It was evident that the Kez's goal was to kill Zhang Lie.

The downsides of Zhang Lie's evolving framework were prominently displayed at that moment: his reservoir of genetic energy was rather limited, and he was barely sustaining himself with his stamina. Without genetic energy, he would be unable to use any of his multi-target techniques, and he would eventually be overwhelmed by the bugs swarming toward him.

"We have to save our captain!" Fang Yi shouted, noticing the danger at once.

The other members of Team Zenith were all looking in Zhang Lie's direction.

"These damned bugs!" Li Feng yelled out.

"Come on, we have to save our captain!" Sun Mengmeng loosed arrow after arrow at the approaching swarm, and Zhou Ying and Sun Xiaowu immediately hurried over. Zhou Ying's framework boasted significant regenerative abilities, and she had recovered somewhat from her serious injuries.

Fang Yi took the lead, Li Feng and Sun Xiaowu followed closely behind, Sun Mengmeng ran after them, and Zhou Ying defended the rear. In their five-man formation, they charged toward and within the swarm of bugs, hoping to rescue their captain.

When the military commander saw this sight, he immediately shouted, "Quick, assist them!"

The bullets that rained down on the bugs before them significantly lowered the pressure that Fang Yi and the others had to face, but even with supporting fire, saving Zhang Lie would be a difficult and dangerous operation.

As the vanguard of the party, Fang Yi held his obsidian spear before him, its tip swirling with gusts of wind and storm. The genetic energy took the form of a dragon's head, smashing apart the bugs that lay before him.

The other members of Team Zenith followed quickly behind him.

Sun Mengmeng continuously launched arrows into the distance, thinning out the swarm of bugs before Fang Yi reached them, charring them into ash and soot. And while Sun Mengmeng and Fang Yi cleared the way, Sun Xiaowu and Li Feng guarded their flanks, one in silver and the other in gold, sweeping aside any bugs that drew near from the sides.

At the very end of the party, Zhou Ying caused vines and other obstacles to surge up from the ground, preventing the bugs that they had just passed through from catching up to and surrounding them.

Despite the extreme danger, the members of Team Zenith worked in such cohesive unity that they managed to sweep through a wide swathe of the bugs in a matter of moments. 

However, the longer they remained amidst the swarm, the more intense the danger they would face. They were currently using up their last reserves of genetic energy, and they wouldn't be able to sustain this output for long. Fortunately, even though none of the soldiers or hunters could spare any forces to help them, the supporting fire never stopped.

When Zhang Lie saw Team Zenith heading in his direction, he immediately made his way toward them, and they reunited after just a few short minutes. However, by that time, they had all suffered quite a few injuries.

Poisoned spikes stabbed into Zhang Lie's body from head to toe, and the only reason his injuries weren't more severe was because of his white-grub armor. Otherwise, Zhang Lie could well have died to just a swarm of regular black-tipped scarabs.

Fang Yi, Sun Mengmeng, and the others all had cuts and scratches lining their body, courtesy of the swarm of bugs that they had just passed through.

"Captain, are you alright?!"

"Nothing life-threatening for the moment. Quick, we'll reverse the formation and rush out of this swarm of bugs!"

"Yes, Captain!"

They had to rush out of danger before their supply of genetic energy ran out, or they would be in grave danger, but their reserves were already flagging, and the injuries on their bodies were steadily increasing.

They were only a few hundred meters away from the teleportation array, but these few hundred meters seemed as though they would take an eternity to traverse: lying in wait for them were countless mandibles and sharp forelegs.

"Hold on! We'll be able to rush back to the array within half a minute at most!" Zhang Lie cried out.

Blood and gore trickled down their faces. Logically, they would likely collapse before they made it back to safety, but none of the members of Team Zenith gave up. They looked up, toward the defensive perimeter that had been set up around the teleportation array.

It seemed as though they would falter and perish at any moment, but they were still stubbornly and steadfastly making their way, ever closer, to safety.

The hunters defending the perimeter were all staring at them.

The fighting was still going strong in the other directions along the perimeter, but there was significantly less pressure on the northern front because of how quickly the three-star black-tipped scarab had been killed.

However, their position still wasn't secure, and emerging from the relative safety of the defensive perimeter would be extremely dangerous.

It was evident to most of the gathered hunters that Team Zenith was about to perish, but when they saw how strongly the hunters of Team Zenith clung to life, the hunters in the perimeter couldn't stand still any longer.

After all, they had just seen Zhang Lie kill a three-star black-tipped scarab on his own! Were they going to watch him die?

"I'm not going to sit here any longer! Team Lone Wolves, gather up—we're going to rescue these hunters!" a man with a scarred face yelled out. Yes, it would be dangerous—but how could he do nothing? His teammates were all fierce-looking hunters, and most of them were excited upon hearing his orders.

His team's reaction caused the other defenders to start to mobilize as well.

The actions of Zhang Lie and his team, who were fiercely struggling despite all odds, had touched them all.

"Right, we'll head down with you!"

"Look at how strong he is despite his youth! Surely we can't let him die now!"

"If we work together, we can keep the casualties to a minimum. Team, gather up!"

"We'll head down together!"

Almost all the gathered hunters began to mobilize, and some teams were already heading out.

"Soldiers, listen up! Support that team of hunters with cover fire—we have to bring them back at all costs!" At the same time, the soldiers guarding the northern front all received an order from their commander.