The atmosphere grew subtly tense. After a long pause, Kevin Zhao couldn’t hold back any longer: “So who’s going to be captain?”
Everyone stayed silent.
“If nobody wants to speak up, then I’ll just be captain!” Kevin Zhao said impatiently.
“Why should you?” Derek Zhao sneered. “Your cultivation isn’t as high as Gavin’s, your talent isn’t as strong as Ian’s—what makes you qualified to be captain?”
“Gavin’s mature and reliable, he’s careful in everything he does, and his cultivation is the highest. I nominate Gavin as captain.” Elaine Zhao smiled, clearly aware she had no chance herself and deciding to do Gavin a favor. Besides, Gavin really was the honest type—if he was captain, at least he wouldn’t use the role to bully anyone.
Seeing that Derek and Elaine weren’t backing him, Kevin Zhao felt deflated. As for Ray Zhao, he was the one who suggested forming a team, so it was obvious he wanted the captaincy too—no way he’d support Kevin.
“I think Ray should be captain,” Gavin Zhao said, sounding a bit flustered.
“No, no, it should be you, Gavin!” Ray Zhao quickly declined.
Kevin Zhao was annoyed by Ray’s fake humility. Since he couldn’t be captain himself, he might as well let Gavin, the honest one, take it. He called out loudly, “I’ve changed my mind—I support Gavin for captain!”
“Me too—I support Gavin!” said Derek Zhao, clearly thinking the same thing.
Of the six, only Ian hadn’t spoken yet. Everyone turned to him, and Elaine Zhao asked, “Ian, who do you think should be captain?”
“Since everyone’s voting for Gavin, I’ll give him my vote too.” Ian smiled, though he couldn’t help suspecting Gavin wasn’t as simple as he seemed—maybe he was just overthinking it.
When Ian also supported Gavin, Ray Zhao’s face darkened for a moment, but he quickly forced a smile: “Gavin, you’re clearly the people’s choice. Looks like the captain spot is yours!”
“Congrats, Captain! When we get to the assessment, you’d better look after your little sister!” Elaine Zhao joked.
Gavin Zhao looked a little troubled. “Are you all just trying to make things hard for me?”
“Don’t be coy, Gavin—if you keep refusing, you’re just being dramatic!” Elaine teased.
Gavin Zhao reluctantly agreed, “Alright, I’ll be captain. But just so you know, it’s only in name—if anything comes up, we’ll all make decisions together.”
Watching from the sidelines, Ian grew more convinced that Gavin wasn’t as straightforward and honest as he appeared.
Two days passed in a flash.
Under the Zhao Family’s arrangements, Ian and the other five were taken to a military airport and boarded a military plane.
Derek Zhao flipped the pilot off, then shot out the hatch.
The plane was only seven or eight meters above the ground—trivial for Innate experts like them.
Within a minute, all six had jumped, and the plane quickly departed, leaving them in the forest.
“I’ll check what’s in this mission pack first!” Kevin Zhao opened his pack.
It wasn’t big—inside were just three things: a crude, simple map, a military dagger, and a small box of biscuits.
Damn, are they messing with us?
Kevin glanced at the map and couldn’t help cursing. The other five took out their maps too, and their faces fell after looking.
It was a straight-line map, showing only the start and end points, with the distance marked as 400 kilometers.
A normal person can walk about five kilometers an hour, though the longer you walk, the slower you get.
But all six present were Innate martial artists, far more physically capable than normal people. If they ran at full speed, they could do fifty kilometers an hour—meaning 400 kilometers would take just eight hours, and the mission time was twelve. In theory, that was plenty.
But if it really were that simple, Kevin wouldn’t be cursing.
Fifty kilometers an hour assumes no obstacles. Right now, they were in a primeval forest packed with trees and thorns, and the map showed only straight-line distance. What if they had to detour around swamps, lakes, or mountains?
That would make the real distance much more than 400 kilometers.
Plus, the forest was crawling with poisonous insects and fierce beasts. To be safe, they’d have to slow down.
Considering all that, reaching the destination in twelve hours would be really tough.
“Gavin, you’re the captain—what do we do now?” Ray Zhao asked.
“What does everyone think?” Gavin asked the group.
“I think we should cut the chatter and get moving! Don’t forget, we only have twelve hours!” Derek Zhao sneered.
Wait!
Ian suddenly called out.
(Please provide the raw text for lines 41-60 so I can translate them accurately.)
The plane was only seven or eight meters above the ground—trivial for Innate experts like them.
Within a minute, all six had jumped, and the plane quickly departed, leaving them in the forest.
“I’ll check what’s in this mission pack first!” Kevin Zhao opened his pack.
It wasn’t big—inside were just three things: a crude, simple map, a military dagger, and a small box of biscuits.
Damn, are they messing with us?
Kevin glanced at the map and couldn’t help cursing. The other five took out their maps too, and their faces fell after looking.
It was a straight-line map, showing only the start and end points, with the distance marked as 400 kilometers.
A normal person can walk about five kilometers an hour, though the longer you walk, the slower you get.
But all six present were Innate martial artists, far more physically capable than normal people. If they ran at full speed, they could do fifty kilometers an hour—meaning 400 kilometers would take just eight hours, and the mission time was twelve. In theory, that was plenty.
But if it really were that simple, Kevin wouldn’t be cursing.
Fifty kilometers an hour assumes no obstacles. Right now, they were in a primeval forest packed with trees and thorns, and the map showed only straight-line distance. What if they had to detour around swamps, lakes, or mountains?
That would make the real distance much more than 400 kilometers.
Plus, the forest was crawling with poisonous insects and fierce beasts. To be safe, they’d have to slow down.
Considering all that, reaching the destination in twelve hours would be really tough.
“Gavin, you’re the captain—what do we do now?” Ray Zhao asked.
“What does everyone think?” Gavin asked the group.
“I think we should cut the chatter and get moving! Don’t forget, we only have twelve hours!” Derek Zhao sneered.
Wait!
Ian suddenly called out.