Guan Xin, along with the Red Roses, landed first, clearing a safe and clean area before respectfully welcoming Zhang Chen and his group as they descended from the sky.
The great canyon was only a little over a thousand kilometers from the walled city, not a great distance.
Guan Xin and his team had flying mounts, allowing them to ignore the terrain, thus arriving first alongside Zhang Chen.
The others needed to travel on foot, crossing mountains and valleys, which naturally slowed their progress.
"Brother Chen, we'll rest here for a moment. I'll send people to scout the canyon, and then you can decide where to set up camp!" Guan Xin asked respectfully.
"Alright, you arrange it!" Zhang Chen nodded.
He then noticed Chen Xiao and the female mutant were gone.
Scanning the area, he discovered the two were looking down from the edge of the cliff.
They weren't just standing at the edge and looking down; both were lying on the ground, only their heads extending over the precipice.
This was certainly safe, ensuring they wouldn't fall, though the posture was a bit cowardly.
Looking into the vast abyss below, it seemed to connect to hell itself.
The colorful, glowing mushrooms deep within the canyon were the only embellishments at the valley floor.
"Ah!" Chen Xiao shouted into the canyon below.
"Ah... Ah... Ah..."
Soon, echoes reverberated from both sides of the canyon.
"I really like mushrooms!" the female mutant also shouted into the canyon.
Similar echoes bounced back and forth within the canyon.
"Ugh..." Chen Xiao's mouth twitched, and he said nothing.
After all, the person beside him wasn't human, but the Netherworld Mushroom. It was perfectly fine for it to say that.
It just felt a bit strange coming from this body.
Before long, Guan Xin's organized members returned, reporting the specific situation.
In the middle section of the canyon, they had found an entrance guarded by mutants, suggesting it was likely the entrance to the laboratory.
Guan Xin nodded and then suggested Zhang Chen set up camp on one side of the canyon, about twenty kilometers from the middle section, and quite far from the cliff edge.
Zhang Chen had no objections and directly produced his manor, moving into it.
The Red Roses then began constructing the camp and defensive fortifications around the manor.
Zhang Chen knew that Guan Xin chose such a distant location for the camp because she had discovered something amiss.
After all, Xu Linna wasn't foolish. If Zhang Chen and the Red Roses appeared, how could she not react?
Moreover, for such an important location as the laboratory, it was almost as if they wanted people to find it, openly deploying two mutants to guard the entrance.
All of this indicated that the location was a decoy. Xu Linna wanted Zhang Chen to lead his team inside.
Therefore, Guan Xin deliberately set up camp further away, clearly signaling to Xu Linna that her little trick had been seen through.
Since the laboratory was in this vicinity, even if they sent people to dig it out inch by inch, they would eventually find it.
Just as the defensive fortifications were being completed here, a squadron of rhinoceros beetle cavalry suddenly charged out from the woods behind them – these were followers of the True God Cult.
The moment they saw Zhang Chen's manor, they immediately dismounted and knelt on the ground in devout worship.
It was like a pilgrimage.
Zhang Wenwen and others, amidst the crowd of followers, slowly emerged and also bowed respectfully to Zhang Chen.
After another hour, a team with highly uniform military bearing slowly approached from a distance.
All the teams were arranged in formation, neat and orderly, with synchronized steps, and their armor and weapons were almost identical.
Subsequently, Zhao Longchuan and Zhao Xiyue, accompanied by a host of generals, slowly emerged from the ranks.
Upon seeing Zhang Chen's manor, Zhao Xiyue's eyes welled up. Though she smiled, tears streamed down her face uncontrollably.
"Silly sister, he's back. You won't be separated this time!" Zhao Longchuan smiled and comforted Zhao Xiyue.
After a year of reforms, Zhao Longchuan had put all the camp personnel through military training.
He also brought out the knowledge from the apocalypse university to impart, training a disciplined apocalypse legion.
Wuuu! Wuuu!
Suddenly, a deep and resonant horn sound echoed.
Following that, another team slowly approached.
At the front was a team of survivors with diverse attire, but their strength indicated they were all above the extraordinary level, with their leaders at the inheritor level.
Following behind was an orchestra, with over a dozen people carrying two long beast horns. As they walked, they channeled energy into the horns, producing deep, booming sounds.
Behind the orchestra was a colossal land turtle, its shell covered in blooming flowers, with a small pavilion in the center.
Zheng Hao sat inside with a smug expression, and behind him were groups of survivors.
From their formations, it was evident that Zheng Hao preferred grandeur, and his subordinates were battle-hardened. This was entirely different from the army trained by Zhao Longchuan.
The latter emphasized teamwork, formation, and unified combat.
Zheng Hao's side, however, was more like a motley crew, with strong individual combat groups forming a larger collective.
But they were all veterans, survivors of the fittest, so their combat power was not to be underestimated.
Seeing Zhao Longchuan's army, Zheng Hao raised an eyebrow slightly, a look of disdain on his face, and muttered, "Showy... impractical..."
Qian Zhenyu, standing beside him, smiled and said nothing.
Previously, Zheng Hao's Revival Camp had always held an edge over Zhao Longchuan's Wolf Fang Camp of the military base, both in terms of average personnel combat power and survival capabilities.
Now, seeing Zhao Longchuan's army, it was likely that Zheng Hao felt more envy, though he was unwilling to admit it outwardly.
During Zhang Chen's absence, Zhao Longchuan, Zheng Hao, and Guan Xin were all powerful overlords, effectively local emperors. Coupled with their naturally superior talents, their arrogance had grown.
However, without exception, upon seeing Zhang Chen's manor, they all felt a jolt of shock, quickly dismounted, and flew towards the manor.
No matter how formidable they were, in front of Zhang Chen, they were mere juniors.
At that time, the Supreme Being didn't even dare to engage Zhang Chen in combat and surrendered immediately.
If Zhang Chen weren't the leader of the "Dream Nightmare" organization, these powerful individuals at the Supreme Being level would have been trembling.
After all, in Zhang Chen's eyes, these Supreme Beings were just kindly helping him gather all the crystal cores into his body.
With a wave of Zhang Chen's hand, he could make them vanish into dust.
"Leader, you're back!" Zheng Hao knelt on one knee outside the manor, greeting him with an awkward expression.
Because his location was closest to the canyon, he had assumed he would arrive first.
He had put on such a grand display to intimidate others and make them envious of him.
Who would have thought that Zhang Chen would arrive first?
To show off in front of Zhang Chen was perhaps akin to being tired of living. Therefore, Zheng Hao had to kneel on one knee, his attitude exceptionally humble.