Chapter 184: The Culprit  

Huge waves of genetic energy spread out from the center of the explosion. The ground shook with such force that it shocked the gathered hunters.

As he avoided the attack, Zhang Lie began to analyze the situation critically. In one-on-one battles, Fang Yi and the others would be no match for the robotic guards, but if all of Team Zenith worked together and focused on slowing the guards down, they would likely be able to hold two of them back. In that case, they would be able to hold out until Yan Long arrived.

He was also considering another question: why was it that the alarm had been triggered the moment he touched the cosmos leaf? Why had the guards only focused on the hunters of Team Zenith? Although Chu Feng and Yun Bing had also been attacked, it was evident that they weren't the robots' priority targets.

As he mulled things over, the robotic guards shot out their second attack. Thanks to [Eclipse], however, the strength of those attacks was greatly reduced.

"Sun Mengmeng, Fang Yi, form teams with the others and try to deter as many of the guards as you can. Leave the rest to me," Zhang Lie called out. They would focus on offense, and he on defense.

Yun Bing and Chu Feng rushed over to help.

"What's going on?" Chu Feng shouted.

"Zhang Lie, we're here to help!" Yun Bing took a stand against the robots.

He Tian and Qian Zhen also joined their forces, although they looked somewhat unwilling to do so. Surprisingly, they were a huge help to Zhang Lie. Zhang Lie darted behind them to see whether the robots would attack them, only to find that the robots' attacks would deviate just enough to avoid them. As a result, they became particularly useful shields.

Outside the treasury, a hovercar was rushing toward the mountains. Yan Long's face darkened as he rushed out of the hovercar and met up with Luo Lie and two other hunters by the outside of the treasury.

"What's going on inside?" he roared.

"Commander, the automated defense system activated all of a sudden, and Lieutenant Liu doesn't have enough authority to override it," one of the hunters replied.

Yan Long frowned. Save for Luo Lie, he was the highest authority in charge of the treasury, but something had gone wrong with the system at precisely the moment Team Zenith and the others were inside. It was evident that someone had tampered with the security and defenses.

"Investigate whether the defense system has been tampered with. Do so immediately!" Yan Long commanded, rushing toward the scene. Within the treasury, the members of Team Zenith used all their trump cards, as did Yun Bing and Chu Feng. Zhang Lie had activated his forest wolfman soulshard, but dealing with a dozen such robots at once was still near-impossible even working as a team. If not for his domain sapping at their strength and mobility, along with the human shields He Tian and Qian Zhen, the hunters would likely all have perished.

However, [Eclipse] drained quite a bit of his energy, and Zhang Lie was swiftly running low on his reserves. Seconds passed, then minutes; the fight had devolved into a battle of attrition.

However, the robots had a far larger supply of genetic energy than the harried first-realm hunters, and it would only be a matter of time before they were overwhelmed.

"Zhang Lie! Why don't you surrender? Stop resisting! These robots might just want to capture you!" He Tian and Qian Zhen were starting to feel a little spooked. In the previous few rounds of attacks, they had almost lost their lives when the robots' techniques grazed them, and they couldn't bear the sense of having their life dangling on a thread any longer.

Zhang Lie smiled. "Is that so? If I didn't know better, I'd think they were trying to kill me outright! Why don't I send you over first?"

After Zhang Lie spoke, the robots' eyes seemed to gleam an even more vibrant red, but Zhang Lie attacked He Tian and Qian Zhen before the robots could attack him. The two of them were subdued almost immediately; the last thing He Tian and Qian Zhen remembered was their necks turning cold, and then sudden darkness.

At that very moment, the doors to the treasury opened wide, and all the robotic guards stopped attacking. The danger dispelled for the moment, the hunters reared back in relief.

However, Zhang Lie instantly commanded, "Bring some treasures and stuff it in their laps, then wake them up!"

Despite the curious command, the members of Team Zenith obeyed Zhang Lie without question.

Yan Long and Luo Lie walked into the treasury, sighing in relief as they saw Zhang Lie, who had transformed into a forest wolfman.

"Zhang Lie, are you all alright?" Luo Lie asked.

"Commander Yan Long, what's going on? How did the defense system activate all of a sudden?" Sun Xiaowu queried, his face marred by a frown.

An ordinary hunter would have been a corpse by now, and they had all only survived because of Zhang Lie! Chu Feng and the others were equally concerned. This was a surprisingly low-level mistake for the military to make; had something gone seriously wrong?

Everyone looked toward Yan Long, waiting for him to give a satisfactory explanation for this entire mess.

"There were a few issues with the system," Yan Long replied. "That's all I know at the moment."

Shame burned red on his face. Regardless of what the issue was, it was indubitable that the problem lay with him, the authority in charge of the treasury.

"Once we rescue any wounded hunters, I'll make sure to give you all an explanation for this turn of events!" he promised. Yan Long turned to He Tian and Qian Zhen, who seemed to be unconscious. As the two of them slowly regained consciousness, they too asked about just what had happened to the defense system. "Commander, could the defense system have been activated because someone tried to take out more treasures than they were qualified to?" He Tian suddenly asked.

Yan Long nodded. Otherwise, he wouldn't have had to give everyone a pre-programmed wristwatch.

"In that case, isn't there the possibility that the system was triggered because someone tried to take too many treasures than they were supposed to?" Qian Zhen added, glancing intermittently at Zhang Lie.

Yan Long frowned at what He Tian and Qian Zhen were implying. "Let's not worry about this for the moment. Have you all gathered the treasures you came here for?"

Zhang Lie glanced at all the members of Team Zenith, who nodded. Except for Zhang Lie, who had yet to acquire the cosmos leaf, everyone else had already decided on their treasures.

"Zhang Lie, haven't you chosen yet?" Yan Long turned back to him.

"No, not yet. I was intending to take the cosmos leaf, but the defense system activated at that very moment."

"Hoh? Was it really then that the system activated?" He Tian narrowed his eyes in Zhang Lie's direction.

"As I've mentioned, we'll discuss any such allegations later. Zhang Lie, pick the treasures you want to keep. I'll need all of you to come with me to the world federation's offices to investigate the anomalous failure of the defense system," Yan Long commanded. Such an important breach in security had to be investigated and analyzed in full detail.

"Team Zenith will cooperate to the utmost," Zhang Lie promised.

"Official Yan, the two of us will cooperate as well!" Qian Zhen and He Tian also quickly pledged, glancing at Zhang Lie with a conceited smile.

Zhang Lie retrieved the cosmos leaf, along with a few other herbs that he had had his eye on. Subsequently, the ten of them got into the military's hovercar and flew toward a military fortress, Yan Long's face as dark as before.

Rumors began to spread throughout the capital surprisingly quickly.

"The Dragonwolf Zhang Lie, taking more treasures than he was allotted at the imperial treasury, triggered the treasury's automated defense system! Zhang Lie's medals should be stripped because of his greed!"

"Zhang Lie: Dragonwolf or Greedwolf?"

News about the defense system's malfunction in the capital quickly gained the media's attention, who disseminated it even more widely.

Yan Long frowned at the news that covered the screen, all rumors designed to target Zhang Lie. The ten hunters all stared at the news report silently. magic

"I think this is a sensible accusation," He Tian immediately exclaimed.

"Isn't that so? Otherwise, why would the defense system activate?" Qian Zhen followed suit. Chu Feng and Yun Bing exchanged a glance as they looked toward the two hunters from the He and Qian clans, clearly suspicious of them.

On the other hand, Zhang Lie remained calm, as though he weren't the target of the rumors being flung in his direction.

Yan Long eyed the He and Qian hunters. "In that case, this whole fiasco started because Zhang Lie got too greedy?"