Chapter 2700: Level 3 Black Zone

"Hey! What do you think you’re all doing?!"

An officer approached the group of soldiers surrounding Yuan’s table before any of them could respond, stomping toward them with a displeased expression on his stern-looking face.

"How dare a bunch of low-ranking soldiers interrupt an officer in the middle of his meal?! Did no one teach you proper military etiquette during boot camp, or did you all sleep through the entire thing?!"

Respect for rank was deeply ingrained in the military, especially when it came to lower-ranking soldiers showing deference to their superiors. What these soldiers were doing was not only disrespectful, but outright brazen.

"S-Sorry, Major Teng."

The soldiers quickly apologized after seeing his rank and name tag.

"Now get out of here before I write all of you up for disorderly conduct!"

Upon hearing that, the soldiers immediately turned toward the exit and ran away.

"Thank you," Yuan said to Major Teng a short while later.

Major Teng turned to look at him, still wearing a frown.

"I know you’re still relatively new to the military despite already being a Captain, but you need to start acting like an officer and make sure the soldiers know their place, or they’ll keep acting unruly."

Yuan nodded.

"I’ll keep that in mind."

Without another word, Major Teng walked back to his table and continued eating his meal.

"What an uptight individual," Huang Zhi Han mumbled before looking at Yuan again.

"How much longer are you going to stay in the cafeteria?" she asked a moment later.

Yuan looked behind him and counted how many serving stations he had yet to visit, and replied, "I came here because those guys were lingering outside my house and I didn’t want to deal with them, but now that they’re gone, I can go back. With that being said, I’m going to stay here until I taste everything in here. It’s not like I have anything better to do right now."

"Nothing better to do?" Huang Zhi Han raised an eyebrow. "What about training?"

"I just came back from training, and I need to receive approval before I can continue."

"Approval? Why do you need such a thing to train?"

"Because I am trying to visit the Level 3 Black Zone."

"L-Level 3 Black Zone?!" Huang Zhi Han exclaimed, her eyes widening in disbelief.

"What sort of training requires you to enter the second most dangerous place in the world?"

"If I am going to defeat the strongest being in the world, I have to do that much." Yuan shrugged.

"That makes sense..." Huang Zhi Han muttered at his reasoning.

"Anyway, if you’re staying, I’ll stay with you. Unlike you, I actually have nothing to do," she sighed a moment later.

Yuan didn’t object and continued eating.

After seeing him eat so much, Huang Zhi Han also ended up grabbing a few plates of her own.

Some time later, they left the cafeteria together.

"I’ll go accept your request now," Yuan said.

"I’ll come with you."

As they walked, Huang Zhi Han reminded him, "By the way, you haven’t really answered my question yet. Why did you invite me to your squad?"

"Do you believe in fate?" Yuan suddenly asked.

"Fate...? I’m not so sure about that."

"Well, I have a feeling that we’re bound by fate."

"How do you feel something like that?"

"I just do."

Half an hour later, Yuan officially accepted Huang Zhi Han into his squad.

"We’re only one member away from being officially recognized as a squad," Yuan said as they left the building.

"I’m surprised you don’t already have four members, especially considering how popular you are."

"I only want people I can truly trust in my squad, and I already have a fourth in mind."

"Oh? Who?"

"Li Jieyu."

"Huh?" Huang Zhi Han’s eyes widened.

"That woman? Do you know her?"

"No, not really."

She stared at him with a stupefied expression, clearly taken aback by his unexpected response.

"Don’t tell me it’s because you feel like the two of you are somehow bound by fate..."

Yuan didn’t respond, merely smiling in silence.

"Unbelievable..."

Eventually, they arrived at Yuan’s home.

"Are you going to follow me inside?" Yuan asked when they reached the doorstep.

Huang Zhi Han remained silent for a moment before shaking her head. "Maybe when we’re more acquainted with each other."

"Then I’ll see you later."

Meanwhile, somewhere in the base, Mei Feng and Supreme General Tian sat before each other with pondering expressions on their faces.

"No matter how many times I rewatch it, it still leaves me speechless..." Mei Feng sighed.

"I wasn’t expecting him to be able to handle level two so easily," said Supreme General Tian.

"Do you think it has something to do with his anomalies?" he then asked.

"Either he has been hiding his strength this entire time, or he gained overwhelming strength after recovering from an unknown and powerful anomaly. If you ask me, the latter sounds more logical," said Mei Feng.

Supreme General Tian nodded.

"I agree."

"So what do you think? Allow him to enter level three?" Mei Feng then asked.

"Even in my Midnight Squad, only one individual has the qualifications to enter level three. However, I don’t want to send him there as a mere observer. The risks are too high."

"Well, the only other people with qualifications to enter the Level 3 Black Zone are the Generals, and I highly doubt General Gu would be willing to do it."

"Are you implying that you want to go to the Level 3 Black Zone with him?" Supreme General Tian remarked while staring at Mei Feng with a raised eyebrow.

Before Mei Feng could even respond, Supreme General Tian spoke, "No, you can’t. It’s too risky."

"What other choices do we have? Don’t tell me you are going to do it yourself?"

Supreme General Tian fell silent with a pondering look on his face.

"Are you really thinking about it?" Mei Feng asked, looking somewhat surprised.