Silence was like mist in the night, slowly spreading between the two people.

Looking up towards the riverbank, a thin fog had already enveloped the sky over Dapo Town.

It was unclear whether it was the smoke residue from burning vines during the day or a hazy ghostly mist foretelling impending danger, it only made one’s heart sink.

Luokuke didn’t say another word, his attitude had been fully expressed, saying more would not align with his usual principle of "only saying what is necessary".

He could even articulate these words because the two of them were teamed up in the Wilderness, temporarily out of the Buffer Zone’s power whirlpool, and were startled by Cheng Ye, this Intern Inspector, feeling in a daze that even a Third-stage Inspector was merely a shackle binding him.

Garcia sensibly didn’t press further.

Because he knew clearly as well, the current situation was no longer something he could resolve by running over and "nodding, apologizing" to Cheng Ye, the conflict between them was trivial, as long as he was willing to lower his head, with Cheng Ye’s style, he likely wouldn’t dwell on past grievances.

What truly trapped him was the "power" itself, the attention and resources he had enjoyed out of nowhere without contributing anything during this period.

Once some things begin, it’s like a runaway horse, beyond control, unable to stop again.

Once some positions are climbed, there’s nothing left underfoot but a cliff, attempting to voluntarily jump down almost guarantees being shattered to pieces.

The first round of the paper examination, he completed terribly, many core issues remained unclear in his thoughts.

Logically speaking, the responsibility should never involve him, whether it’s the first round or now the second round, he wasn’t qualified to step on stage.

But it’s precisely because of the grievance with the Eastern People, Cheng Family descendant, that made him the vanguard among the young generation of Westerners, forcibly pushed to the forefront.

Otherwise, he would merely be among dozens of Western inspectors, a very unremarkable batch of ordinary inspectors.

The unspeakable silence lasted for more than ten minutes, until the sound of footsteps from the patrol team came from the granary corridor, Garcia finally took a deep breath: "Inspector Luo, do I now... have any other paths to take?"

"Other paths?" Luokuke was momentarily stunned, with a hint of surprise in his tone, "Did you not formally contact them?"

"Contacted, but I... didn’t agree." Garcia slowly shook his head, with a hint of struggle hidden in his eyes.

"That’s manageable." Luokuke’s tone relaxed a bit, "Once this examination is over and you return, apply to take on field tasks and leave, in the next three years, except for winter, try not to return to the Buffer Zone, if the field tasks are completed nicely, no one will mention what happened in the past."

"Is there only this one method?" Garcia pursued, seemingly still hoping for other possibilities.

Luokuke didn’t directly answer, but asked back with a question, "Do you remember what I told you yesterday?"

"Huh?" Garcia was momentarily stunned, unable to react.

"Win him, in the Third-stage Inspector list, your name will certainly be there."

After saying that, without waiting for Garcia’s further reaction, Luokuke directly turned around, heading towards the approaching patrol team, and clearly said:

"Everyone, let’s push harder tonight in the first half of the night, I will rotate duties with Inspector Garcia, swapping shifts every hour to familiarize you with the patrol route and ensure safety."

"Understood!"

Having an inspector lead the team, certainly seemed safer than wandering blindly in the dark Dapo Town.

Four patrol teams totaling 32 people, marched out of the abandoned granary in great numbers.

Compared to the daytime patrol route, tonight also needed to cover the Blue Zone, expanding the range significantly, but the task load actually lightened somewhat, as there wasn’t constant worry about monsters suddenly appearing from the Blue Zone.

As long as the entire safety of Dapo Town was maintained until the second half of the night, the danger could be greatly reduced.

Of course, the possibility still couldn’t be ruled out that an Infected Body might come ashore later in the night.

The first station of the patrol, Luokuke set at the riverbank.

This was the most dangerous place in the entire Dapo Town, also the location with the frequent appearance of Infected Bodies, but usually, Infected Bodies coming ashore would leave clear traces.

And he had made preparations during the day, already quietly scattered glow tracing powder along the riverbank, now it could reflect a glowing trail when illuminated by a flashlight, making it easy to track traces.

"Flashlight?"

"Sir, here!" someone hurriedly handed over the flashlight.

Luokuke turned to receive it, pressed the switch, and a long beam of light shot towards the ground, extending along the riverbank into a yellow glowing band over a hundred meters.

Luckily, this segment of the glowing band closest to the Red Zone showed no abnormal traces.

"Keep moving forward! Everyone, stay close to me, don’t spread out!"

He shouted loudly, glanced at the several slightly dazed-looking members at the rear, and calmly moved forward along the yellow glowing band.

The thirty or so people behind immediately followed, each nervously gripping the pistol at their waist.

In all accounts, this was still their first time approaching the waterside at night, a few took several steps before finally succumbing to curiosity and glancing towards the river beside them.

It’s truly beautiful.

A thin mist covered the river surface, scattered moonlight spilled down, reflecting sparkling silver lights.

Occasionally, a few large fish would leap out of the water with a "splash," before submerging with the waves.

The few people at the back stared in awe, unconsciously slowing their pace, even being subconsciously flooded with inexplicable illusions.

As if a voice softly enticed: "The underwater world is so beautiful, it’s especially warm, come down and feel it..."

Is it really so beautiful?

The last person at the rear suddenly halted, their gaze turned dazed, subconsciously edging closer to the riverbank.