Chapter 961: Chapter 961

In the village, Lan Xingyue stood on the watchtower, anxiously looking outside.

At this moment, she even somewhat regretted sending Lin Chen and Zhao Xiaohua on the adventure.

The two of them were practically the pillars of this small squad. If they were no longer around, the squad's combat strength would be diminished by two-thirds.

Just then, shadows flickered in the jungle.

The sentinels on duty immediately raised their bows and arrows.

"Don't shoot, it might be our people," Lan Xingyue quickly said.

At that moment, two figures emerged—Lin Chen and Zhao Xiaohua entered the camp.

Seeing Lin Chen and Zhao Xiaohua rescue Yue'er, the entire camp erupted in cheers.

Several girls gathered in Yue'er's room.

Unfortunately, Yue'er was still unconscious, not having awoken yet.

"She's too weak and needs a night's rest. By tomorrow morning, she should wake up," Lin Chen said calmly.

Though Wang Zixuan and the others were worried, they all went to rest since the squad was set to resume their journey tomorrow.

Lin Chen patted Lan Xingyue's shoulder and said, "Don't worry, Yue'er will be fine."

Lan Xingyue nodded, her face reflecting a hint of pain as she looked at Yue'er covered in injuries.

The night was quiet; apart from the patrolling sentinels, all other rooms had extinguished their lights.

Suddenly, the door of a room opened, and a figure clad in black slipped out quietly.

The shadow flitted to an old well, and upon confirming that no one was around, she pulled out a small pouch from her pocket.

At that moment, a shadow flashed behind her, and someone snatched the pouch away from her.

"Who's there!" The figure's expression changed; upon seeing the person behind her, she was momentarily horrified and attempted to flee.

But after running a few steps, she stopped abruptly, because Zhao Xiaohua, Lan Xingyue, and several other squad members had surrounded her tightly.

Lin Chen slowly walked up to the person dressed in black and tore off the cloth covering her face: "Mu Yuqiu, can you explain to me what you're doing here in the middle of the night?"

Mu Yuqiu looked at the other squad members, her face flushed with shame.

These were comrades who had braved life and death with her, yet today she had betrayed them. At that moment, Mu Yuqiu wished she could find a hole to crawl into.

"I—I'm sorry," Mu Yuqiu said, her face pale as she looked at everyone.

"Mu Yuqiu, why? Why did you betray us? Do you know? Yue'er was nearly killed because of you. And we, too, almost faced destruction several times because of you," Lan Xingyue shouted emotionally.

Mu Yuqiu's tears streamed down her face: "I—I didn't want to, but I didn't have a choice. Really, I didn't have a choice. If I didn't do what they wanted, they would kill my parents."

"What exactly happened?" Lan Xingyue asked.

"Before I joined your squad, I suddenly received a video," Mu Yuqiu said, handing her phone to Lan Xingyue.

In the video, several armed militants were pointing guns at an elderly couple.

One of the militants said, "If you don't do as we say, we will kill your parents."

Mu Yuqiu sobbed as she spoke: "I know that what I've done is wrong. But if I didn't obey, my parents would lose their lives. They're the ones who gave birth to and raised me—my dear family. I'm sorry, I really had no other choice."

After hearing Mu Yuqiu's words, everyone's faces reflected a trace of sympathy.

Lin Chen's feelings were especially complicated, as Xiaoshuai had already found news stating that the elderly couple had been killed when they first entered the secret realm.

While Lin Chen stood in stunned silence, Mu Yuqiu abruptly lunged forward and grabbed An Xiaodi.

"Don't move! Let me go immediately," Mu Yuqiu yelled, pointing a gun at An Xiaodi.

Everyone froze at this sudden turn of events. Nobody expected that, even under such circumstances, Mu Yuqiu would continue to resist.

Lin Chen looked at the nearly deranged Mu Yuqiu and sighed: "Yuqiu, stop working for them. The truth is, your parents are already dead."

"What!" Mu Yuqiu's expression changed upon hearing Lin's words.

"You're lying! That can't be true!" Mu Yuqiu shouted at Lin Chen.

"I know—you're deliberately lying to me to make me surrender," Mu Yuqiu yelled with a ferocious look on her face.

Lin Chen sighed and handed his phone to Mu Yuqiu.

While still holding An Xiaodi hostage, Mu Yuqiu read the news on Lin Chen's phone.

On the phone was a headline that read, "The bodies of an elderly Chinese couple were discovered in a roadside ditch near a highway in Country M. Further investigation identified them as tourists from China, surnamed Mu and Sun."

Mu Yuqiu's face turned grim when she saw the photo accompanying the news.

In the image, the two elderly bodies lay in a muddy ditch. Though the image was somewhat blurry, Mu Yuqiu immediately recognized them as her parents.

"Bastards! Those scumbags! They promised that as long as I cooperated, they would release them!" Mu Yuqiu let go of An Xiaodi and fired her gun into the air.

Mu Yuqiu emptied the bullets from her gun before falling to her knees in anguish.

Everyone quietly watched the scene unfold, remaining silent.

About ten minutes later, Mu Yuqiu suddenly stood up and started walking outside.

"Where are you going?" Lin Chen stopped her.

Killing intent shone in Mu Yuqiu's eyes: "I'm going to kill those bastards. I'll avenge my parents."

"Yuqiu, calm down. You'll just be walking into your own death ," Lin Chen said gravely.

"I don't care! I'll fight them to the death! Killing two would make it worthwhile, killing three would be a bonus," Mu Yuqiu screamed hysterically.

Lan Xingyue stepped forward and slapped Mu Yuqiu across the face.

"Get a hold of yourself! Uncle and Aunt are already gone. You should live well—for their sake, to avenge them. If you go out in this state, you'll probably kill no one and end up getting killed in vain. Is that what you think is worth it?" Lan Xingyue yelled in anger.

Mu Yuqiu collapsed on the ground, shaking with sobs: "Then what am I supposed to do? I've already betrayed you all, and nearly hurt Yue'er. How can I bear to face you now?"

"Yuqiu-jie, I don't blame you. We're a team. If you betrayed us for money or something else, maybe I wouldn't forgive you. But you did it for your parents, for family—no one here would blame you for that. Please, Yuqiu-jie, come back to us," Yue'er said softly.

"Yue'er!" Tears flooded Mu Yuqiu's face; she hadn't expected Yue'er to forgive her.

After all, because of her, Yue'er had almost been violated and even lost her life to those mercenary scum.

"Come back; we welcome you," Lan Xingyue offered with a smile, extending her hand.

Lin Chen chuckled lightly: "I have no objections—more beautiful women in the team is a plus."

"Come back, we welcome you!"

Wang Zixuan and An Xiaodi also voiced their encouragement.

"You all!" Mu Yuqiu's eyes welled up; she could hardly believe that after everything she had done, these comrades still didn't blame her and wanted her to stay in the squad.

"Thank you for not abandoning me. I will dedicate my life to atoning for the mistakes I've made," Mu Yuqiu said earnestly.