"What's going on?" Wei Li opened his eyes.
"Oh!" He grabbed his neck in pain.
He had been sleeping for a few hours against the tree trunk, in the same position, which caused a nasty crick in his neck.
The ache would probably linger for days.
With one hand on his neck, he walked toward the source of the noise.
He found the team gathered together, laughing.
'Did they lose their minds because we got nothing?'
He was confused by their sudden shift in mood.
"What happened?" he asked as he approached Mei Li.
Mei Li looked at him, puzzled.
"What do you mean, 'what happened'? Where were you?"
"Well… I actually fell asleep from all the waiting," he said, rubbing his neck.
He was now like a pig, unable to turn his neck from the pain.
"We recovered essence this time," Mei Li informed him.
"Oh!" Wei Li raised his eyebrows—
but then he remembered the curse and laughed.
"Hahaha! All this fuss over a single essence? Seems like I made the right call by sleeping through it—hahaha!"
"Nineteen."
"Huh?" Wei Li's laughter stopped dead. "What did you say?"
"We recovered nineteen essences. And we even accidentally killed the three slaves," Mei Li said, her face blank.
The smile vanished from Wei Li's face.
His lips trembled, his eyes widened.
He completely lost touch with himself.
Wei Tong, Bai Tong, and Jin Chao noticed him and walked over.
"Looks like all that overthinking was pointless," Bai Tong said with a cheerful grin.
Wei Li looked at him with dead eyes.
Bai Tong was a bit surprised.
"What's wrong? Aren't you happy?"
"Wait… don't tell me you didn't get anything?" Jin Chao asked.
Everyone turned their eyes to Wei Li.
He looked back at them, his neck tilted stiffly.
"Nineteen animals showed up, and everyone on the team got one essence each… seems like you were the only one who didn't," Ray Kang said, realizing what had happened.
Upon hearing that, Wei Li's gaze locked onto Kogan and Mei Lan.
'Even those cursed bastards got lucky…'
Veins began to bulge on Wei Li's forehead from rage.
Seeing his condition, Mei Lan started to feel uneasy.
'He's like a rabid dog…'
Not just Mei Lan—
even his own partner, Mei Li, was starting to feel afraid.
Kogan slung his bow over his shoulder, resting one hand on his hip.
He looked at the captain, silently asking for an explanation—
why had everyone's mood suddenly shifted?
The captain quickly stepped in,
"Even if you didn't get anything tonight, I'm sure you'll get one next time."
Then he turned to Kogan with a faint smile and spoke internally:
"They're just competing over who can get the most essence."
"Oh, that's fine," Kogan nodded.
Several members quickly moved toward the three slaves.
They extinguished the fire, cleaned up the area, and carried the corpses back toward the city.
They mounted their goats, lit their torches to light the way,
and rode back with lifted spirits.
A dark cloud loomed over Wei Li.
Not only had he missed out on essence while sleeping—
he had also hurt his neck.
His hatred for Mei Lan and Kogan multiplied a million times over.
Mei Li approached him.
"Looks like we're going to rise in the contribution rankings.
I've managed to collect essence every time we went out,"
she said, trying to remind him of the bigger picture.
Sure, he didn't get anything,
but Mei Li—his partner—did.
And in the contribution rankings, everything was calculated in pairs.
We rise together, or we fall together.
And since we fall together...
Mei Li wanted to calm him down before he does something stupid that might ruin all her effort.
Wei Li ignored her. He didn't reply.
He wasn't in the right mood to think clearly.
'Tch… damn it…' Mei Li clenched her teeth.
She didn't like Wei Li's condition or the vacant look on his face.
As for the rest of the team, they didn't care about his state—they were chatting with their partners and friends, completely relaxed.
Some of them had even forgotten that Wei Li hadn't received any essence at all.
Only Mei Lan felt a bit uneasy about his condition.
She knew he hated her for the same reason the others did, but Wei Li took that hatred seriously.
She couldn't predict what he might do to her if he lost control in a fit of rage.
"What if he targets Kogan instead of me?" the thought crossed her mind.
Death was more merciful than absolute slavery.
If Wei Li harmed Kogan—framed him for something forbidden, or even killed him—
that would make Mei Lan the greatest loser.
"I need to be careful," Mei Lan reminded herself.
She couldn't afford to look out for herself only—she had to protect Kogan too.
It was easy to target someone who couldn't hear.
Everyone moved in high spirits as they headed back toward the city.
Contribution points would be added to their balance, and as long as they kept accumulating, they would serve as help in the future.
After walking for about two hours, the white lights of the city began to appear before them.
The city looked like a giant pearl in the middle of the forest.
This time, no one felt bored on the way back—instead, everyone was talking, laughing, and enjoying themselves.
They had completely forgotten about the threats surrounding them.
The twenty members arrived in front of the delivery device.
The window was closed, and it was impossible to see inside the room connected to the device.
Ray Kang and his team waited quietly in front of the room.
The device must not be touched without the permission of the person inside.
And no one should knock on the door or the window.
All they could do was wait.
Ray Kang and the operator inside held the same rank, and neither had authority over the other.
Each person was responsible for their own duty and could not impose themselves on someone else's task.
However, if someone reached the second rank, their authority would surpass that of any first-rank individual, and they could assert themselves anywhere and over anyone.
Suddenly, the window slid open, and the person in charge peeked out.
"Oh, you again. Place your hands as usual,"
His face was slightly red, and he didn't bother greeting the captain, but Ray Kang didn't seem bothered—or didn't care at all.
There was no need for formalities every time they met.
"Begin," Ray Kang signaled with his hand.
The team members stepped forward one by one.
After some time, it was Kogan's turn.
This time, he had earned essence, as he had landed the finishing blow on one of the animals.
He stepped forward, placed his hand on the device, and a white light shone. Moments later, it was done.
"Hmm?" He glanced at the man inside the room, but there was no reaction.
He sighed and stepped away from the device, allowing the next person to move forward—and so it went until the process was complete.
Nineteen essences were delivered in total.
Was this the first time every member of the team retrieved essence?
Yes.
Among first-rank teams, this was a first.
But second-rank teams were on a completely different level.
The team members said their goodbyes and returned to their quarters.
The morning had not yet dawned, allowing them to fall asleep more easily—
since sleeping at night was always easier than during the day.
Kogan and Mei Lan walked together toward their home.
Wei Li and Mei Li returned to the inn in heavy moods.
And behind them, Wei Tong, Bai Tong, and Jin Chao walked with their partners in pairs.