Chapter 497

Chapter 497: Aboard the Pirate Ship
Watching Zhang Mu slowly disappear into the shadows, Qing Ling’s eyes went from a sense of certainty to gradually being filled with disbelief and a hint of excitement.
After vanishing for a dozen seconds, Zhang Mu slowly reappeared from the corner.
It appeared as if he had hidden his form, but in reality, Zhang Mu had used magic to alter Qing Ling’s vision, making her think he was concealed in the shadows.
However, Zhang Mu noticed that Qing Ling seemed a bit off, as her gaze towards him unexpectedly intensified.
“Qing Ling, hey, Qing Ling!”
Zhang Mu reached out and waved in front of Qing Ling. She finally reacted and flashed a cute smile, her two dimples were very charming.
“Zhang Mu, do you know our vine clan’s position in the entire plant alliance?”
Zhang Mu unconsciously shook his head.
“Our vine clan, due to our nature, mostly have hidden abilities, serving as the reconnaissance corps of the plant alliance.”
Qing Ling slyly smiled at Zhang Mu.
“So it’s not surprising that your awakening ability is stealth, but I later discovered that your stealth ability could actually deceive my perception, and you’re not even a fourth-rank strongman. You’re really amazing!”
“Zhang Mu, how did you do that?”
“I don’t know, maybe it’s talent, haha, haha.”
Zhang Mu never expected to join the reconnaissance corps he most wanted to infiltrate. Faced with Qing Ling’s questioning, he just smiled and brushed it off. He couldn’t tell her it was an illusion he cast.
Qing Ling didn’t realize that Zhang Mu was shamelessly making things up, but she nodded thoughtfully.
“Zhang Mu, your talents are really strong. Alright, I’ll let you join the first team. How do you feel about that? Finding intelligence on the battlefield can earn you merit points, which you can exchange for resources to train. There are things like elemental crystalbeast cores and unique treasures of our plant tribe that can be exchanged. And if you perform well, you will be highly valued by the higher-ups.”
Straight into the first team just like that?
It sounds really powerful, Zhang Mu felt a bit pleased suddenly. He had easily infiltrated the enemy’s core team, showing off seems necessary.
Zhang Mu didn’t care about the rewards from exchanging merit points, but the mention of being highly valued by the higher-ups deeply caught Zhang Mu’s attention.
Intelligence can bring high returns along with high risks.
With his initial third-rank strength, even if he really went head-on with the enemy, just surviving would be good enough.
Given this opportunity, Zhang Mu quickly nodded and said, “Okay, count me in. Where should I report?”
“Then I’ll take that as your agreement. I’m not forcing you, okay?”
Zhang Mu was suddenly puzzled, not understanding Qing Ling’s meaning.
Qing Ling at this moment completely lost her innocent and clueless look from before, just like a little fox, giggling and saying, “Ta-da!”
“I am the captain of the first squad of the Vine Tribe Scout Legion.
Zhang Mu, I am informing you now, you are officially summoned by this captain!”
A strong jade arm patted Zhang Mu on the shoulder, but Zhang Mu suddenly didn’t react to this fact.
The Qing Ling in front of him turned out to be the captain of the first squad, she directly became his immediate superior!
“Qing Ling…”
Zhang Mu was interrupted by Qing Ling before he could finish speaking. She sternly ordered, “Now, you are my soldier, call me captain!”
Zhang Mu seemed startled by Qing Ling’s sudden change in demeanor, and he immediately sensed something was wrong. He timidly asked, “What’s going on?”
“It’s okay for you to be the leader.
Um, leader, how many people are there in our team?
If we have a mission in the afternoon, should I meet the other team members and get to know each other?”
At this moment, Qing Ling showed a sly smile of success.
Finally encountering an interesting newcomer who is also strong, she managed to deceive her, as choosing a team also means following the newcomer’s opinion.
Who told this person to be so dishonest with their eyes? Thinking that she hadn’t noticed, she ended up deceiving herself.
Her scout team was established late, so she didn’t recruit good teammates. She didn’t want the inexperienced ones because they had hidden intentions to get close to her, all of whom she rejected.
The person in front of her, Zhang Mu, meets all the criteria!
She finally has a companion!
“Currently, we are the first team, just the two of us, let’s be selective!”
Watching Qing Ling chatting confidently, Zhang Mu’s first thought was that he was being deceived, and his brain stalled.
What first team? There are only two of us!
Deceiving people!
Acting as if childish before, it’s all fake!
Seeing Zhang Mu’s silence, Qing Ling felt like she may have gone too far, looking at Zhang Mu pitifully.
Zhang Mu, seeing through her pitiful act, waved his hand impatiently and said, “You can’t trick me with that deceptive look. Just the two of us won’t achieve much on the battlefield. Are we going for a sightseeing trip? We might not even survive, let alone achieve anything significant.”
“Quickly, switch me to another team!”
Zhang Mu, feeling anxious, naturally sounded a bit angry. With just two people in the team, his goal of infiltrating the core leadership seemed almost impossible.
No matter which group you belong to, your achievements will speak for themselves. What can two people accomplish together?
Seeing Zhang Mu looking really a bit angry, Qing Ling’s face showed a hint of apology, and she quickly explained, “If you care about achievements, I promise you, joining my team will be more beneficial for you than joining just any other team.”
“What do you mean?”
Seeing a hint of relief on Zhang Mu’s face, Qing Ling hurried to add, “I’m not lying to you. My position is really in the first team, it was given to me by my father, but I haven’t accepted anyone who wanted to join yet, that’s why we still haven’t recruited anyone.”
There really is a first team?
Zhang Mu said with confusion, “Even though I haven’t been to the battlefield myself, these inter-tribal wars are not trivial. If two people go up there and get hit by a stray energy wave, they’ll be gone, and there’s no support either. How can we achieve success?”
Qing Ling heard that Zhang Mu was worried about this, and her expression relaxed a bit.
“Why do we need so many scouts? Even if we gather intelligence, our achievements will be split, but between the two of us, we will have a lot to share.”
Zhang Mu’s eyes lit up, thinking that makes sense, too many people sharing the cake means only a small piece left for each in the end.
He was not looking for quick rewards, he was eager for military achievements.
Qing Ling said enthusiastically, “I have a lead on a mysterious creature. If we follow it, we might uncover valuable information. However, I can’t do it alone, so I am giving up. If you agree, we can set off this afternoon.”
“If you agree, we can leave this afternoon.”
Qing Ling’s proposal was the final straw for Zhang Mu, he gritted his teeth and agreed.
“Alright, I will join you, but you must ensure that the lead is real.”
Seeing Zhang Mu finally agree to stay in her team, Qing Ling breathed a sigh of relief. She did not want to be a lone commander. Without support, the feeling of not being able to take advantage of opportunities was not good.
“Okay, wait for me here. I will go home first, and then I’ll come to pick you up in the afternoon.”
Watching Qing Ling leave his treehouse gracefully, Zhang Mu felt like he had been kidnapped.
At nineteen years old, she seemed as wise as a fairy who had lived for centuries!
But when Zhang Mu saw which way Qing Ling was heading, he gasped in shock.
She headed straight for the treehouse at the core of the giant tree!
The father Qing Ling mentioned just now is the leader of the Vine Tribe, Wan Xu!
This Qing Ling is actually the princess of the Vine Tribe!