With all the paperwork done, Li Changan was now officially a member of the squad. Zhang Qiangzhuang was overjoyed - no one could take him away now unless the general personally ordered it.
Having an experienced hunter join would greatly increase the squad's chances of survival, regardless of what superpowers were involved.
Just after returning to the tent, Zhang Qiangzhuang blinked and went back out again. After thinking for a bit, he walked back in to make sure he wasn't seeing things.
Lying on the ground was Hu Chai, with a bruised and swollen face!
Not only was it Hu Chai, but there were also some bruises on Ma Hao's face. Ha Ka nearby looked relatively unharmed, but upon closer inspection his dark eye circles seemed more purple than usual.
"What happened here? Did another squad come bully us again?" Zhang Qiangzhuang looked towards the only uninjured one, Li Changan.
Li Changan shook his head. "Hu Chai said he wanted to test out my close combat skills, so we sparred a bit."
"Why would you say 'again'?"
"But you didn't have to beat him up this badly..." Zhang Qiangzhuang swallowed nervously. It seemed like Li Changan was taking out his frustrations on Hu Chai.
Having one's abilities doubted would naturally frustrate anyone. But since they were now teammates, being too violent wasn't appropriate.
Li Changan bent down and pointed at a few of Hu Chai's wounds. "These were from the first spar. Then he said he wasn't good with daggers and wanted to go again bare-handed."
"The rest are from the second match. Afterwards he said he wasn't good at one-on-one fights, so the three of them came at me together. He took three beatings, so naturally he'd be more injured."
Zhang Qiangzhuang gaped speechlessly at his other two comrades. Ma Hao silently nodded in confirmation.
The three of them together still couldn't win?
Zhang Qiangzhuang still found it somewhat unbelievable. Although the squad didn't have any notable achievements, that was because his orders always prioritized survival. In reality, their strength wasn't weak at all.
Hu Chai painfully opened his eyes with a sigh. "Captain, he was able to predict the location of my Blinks. And he guessed right all three times - I lost fair and square."
Predict the location of Blinks? At first listen Zhang Qiangzhuang found it preposterous. But on second thought it still sounded preposterous. In any case, he wasn't about to personally test it out.
Besides, Hu Chai already looked miserable enough.
"I wanted to pull him up but he insisted on lying there. I didn't hit him too hard," Li Changan helplessly explained.
"We're not weak," Ha Ka finally spoke. Up til now Li Changan had thought he was a mute.
"Now, we'll be even stronger." With that said, Ha Ka closed his mouth again.
The atmosphere turned a little awkward.
Ma Hao lightly coughed twice, purposely explaining to Li Changan, "We really aren't weak. But at least in close combat you're better than us. And with you joining, we'll become even stronger in the future."
Did individual strength contribute to team strength? Li Changan understood and nodded. He knew his own weaknesses, but was quite confident in close combat.
After defending the borders for the Empire for so many years, Zhang Qiangzhuang felt that compared to Li Changan, he himself was delicate and useless. He couldn't even imagine what Li Changan had experienced in the past.
The good news was that after this 'brawl', it was obvious Li Changan had already integrated into the group. Half of male bonding relied on fighting each other up.
The other half relied on eating and drinking together.
"Speaking of which, we just received a small mission. Everyone can get used to each other during this." Zhang Qiangzhuang patted Li Changan's shoulder. "It'll be tough on you."
Li Changan smiled without responding. Rather, he felt expectant.
The paperwork may have been handled by someone else, but he had to collect his own gear. It was some odd rule. In any case, the supply depot already had a long line.
The whole squad went with Li Changan to collect his equipment, claiming it was because they were worried about him. Li Changan didn't point out their barely concealed excitement.
They were excited to show off their squad's powerful new addition, obviously.
Being able to become someone else's bragging material - while Li Changan didn't say it out loud, it also made him a little happy.
In an encampment with tens of thousands of people, what were the chances of running into an old enemy? Very high! Such was the way of the world, where coincidences were common.
Li Changan had only been lining up for less than five minutes before Hu Chai's chattering suddenly stopped beside him.
"That disgusting guy is here." Ma Hao had just spoken when Li Changan sensed someone approaching. Then he felt a hand land heavily on his shoulder.
"Well well, you guys found another newbie huh." Zhou Mu not only grabbed Li Changan's shoulder, but also squeezed forcefully. "A bit scrawny isn't he? What if he doesn't make it back after one mission with you all?"
Zhang Qiangzhuang frowned severely. "Zhou Mu, get your hand off him! You don't want to embarrass yourself in front of everyone right?"
"Captain Zhang, are you threatening me?" Zhou Mu gave a cold chuckle before heavily patting Li Changan's shoulder again. "What a nice new recruit. If he dies after one mission with you all..."
"As if you're qualified to lead missions or be a captain. Hey little bro, how about joining my squad instead?"
Zhou Mu looked down at Li Changan. He was a full head taller than Li Changan, and together with Li Changan keeping his head lowered, the size difference was even more obvious.
"Take your hand off me."
Zhou Mu looked left and right, seemingly unable to believe those words had come from Li Changan's mouth. His grip on Li Changan's shoulder increased as he tilted his ear mockingly. "What did you say?"
"You're annoying." Li Changan twisted his body sharply. Caught off guard, Zhou Mu didn't let go in time and was pulled forward by the sudden force.
Li Changan bent down slightly and drove his left fist upwards below Zhou Mu's ribs.
Staggered by the heavy blow, Zhou Mu unconsciously shrank back.
Stepping forward, Li Changan advanced with a straight punch. Zhou Mu raised his left arm to block, but it looked like a struggle to barely defend himself. He completely couldn't keep up with Li Changan's tempo.
Even though he could see the attacks clearly, he was always a beat slower than his opponent. Such was the power of tempo.
Li Changan switched moves. Drawing back his fist, he struck out with his elbow instead, breaking through Zhou Mu's guard and landing solidly on his jaw.
Zhou Mu stiffened like a block of wood and crashed heavily to the ground.
Li Changan rubbed at his shoulder absentmindedly. It didn't hurt, just felt gross.
"Um..." Zhang Qiangzhuang opened and closed his mouth a few times, eventually settling on a wry smile. "You guys wait here, I'm going to report to the captain first in case this guy tries to distort things later."
Before leaving, Zhang Qiangzhuang gave Li Changan a faint smile. He had wanted to pat Li Changan's shoulder initially, but after seeing what happened to Zhou Mu he decided against it.
Hu Chai had no reservations at all. Throwing an arm over Li Changan's shoulder, he grinned. "Don't stress out, that guy was asking for it. At most we'll just get a verbal warning."
Stress? Li Changan nodded. He was feeling stressed indeed.
If the roots weren't eliminated, future trouble would arise. Zhou Mu would definitely try to sabotage them from the shadows with his undisguised pettiness.
He'd have to find an opportunity to kill Zhou Mu.