The monster looked like a worm magnified dozens of times, its skin covered in a rough carapace as dark as asphalt that glinted with a faint metallic luster.
Its body exceeded two meters in diameter and was of an immeasurable length; the front section alone, protruding from the dust and smoke, was seven or eight meters long.
Its head lacked any distinct features, consisting only of a terrifying mouth filled with several rings of spiral-shaped serrated teeth. Saliva dripped to the ground, causing white smoke to hiss as it corroded the earth.
Even more bizarre were the pairs of pitch-black bone blades, resembling the scythe-like arms of a praying mantis, that protruded from its sides at regular intervals. With every casual swing, it sliced through concrete fragments as easily as if they were tofu.
“It’s a variant of the Rock-Piercing Earth Dragon! Dammit, why is it one of those?!” The middle-aged man’s face was as pale as paper, his voice cracking with fear.
This kind of monster was incredibly powerful in open areas or underground caverns. With its terrifying strength, hard carapace, and razor-sharp bone blades, it was one of the worst nightmares they could have encountered on this exploration mission!
The open ruins were the perfect stage for this creature to display its power!
A single roll of its massive body could crush a large area, and its bone blades swung in a way that was almost impossible to dodge!
There was nowhere to run!
“Let’s give it everything we’ve got!” A flash of ruthlessness and desperation crossed the middle-aged captain’s eyes. “Eagle, Crow, Plan C! Keep moving as much as possible and target the joints and the inside of the mouth! I’ll hold its attention from the front!”
A sinister look flickered in the eyes of the young team member named Crow. He shot a sudden, cold glare at Su Wan on the steps and sneered.
“Hmph! That bitch thinks she can just stay out of this? In her dreams!”
“Captain, you guys stall the beast! I’m going to grab that woman! If we’re going down, she’s going first!”
Before his voice even faded, the tall member called Eagle and the middle-aged captain had already charged toward the incoming Rock-Piercing Earth Dragon!
The ripples of energy from their abilities erupted from both of them simultaneously.
The middle-aged captain let out a low roar as the muscles in his arms suddenly bulged. His skin took on the earthy, dull luster of rock, making him appear far more massive and heavy.
He clenched his fists and slammed them violently against the ground!
【Earth Ability: Rock Barrier】!
Rumble!
A rough stone wall, half a meter thick and about three meters wide, rose from the ground, blocking the monster’s path!
Though it looked crude, it had formed rapidly, clearly intended to buy them time.
At the same time, Eagle’s body became incredibly light and agile. It was as if air currents were lifting his feet, causing his speed to explode as he circled toward the monster’s flank like a ghost.
The muzzle of the specialized rifle in his hand began to glow as it charged with energy.
With the assistance of his 【Wind Ability: Haste】, he coordinated his movements with his energy weapon.
Meanwhile, Crow, the young man with the sinister eyes, kicked off the ground and lunged toward Su Wan like a leopard!
Cruelty and delight flickered in his eyes, as if he could already see the image of Su Wan being dragged out of her barrier and swallowed whole by the monster.
Faint dark-red energy patterns flashed across his arms, indicating he possessed some kind of strength-enhancing ability.
“Bitch, get over here!” Crow grinned savagely, reaching out with a gloved hand to grab Su Wan’s shoulder.
They had seen the bullets being blocked earlier, but they subconsciously assumed it was some kind of fixed defense skill or a shield generator. They believed that as long as they broke through that “film” or pulled Su Wan herself out, the defense would be neutralized.
Su Wan simply stood where she was, her clear eyes watching Crow without a single ripple of emotion.
Seeing Su Wan so calm and indifferent, Crow felt a brief moment of unease, but he didn't let it stop him.
However, just as his fingertips were over a meter away from Su Wan’s body—
Bang!
An incredibly flexible yet irresistible force suddenly surged back at him!
Crow felt as if he had crashed at full speed into a super-elastic rubber wall!
All the kinetic energy from his forward charge was reflected back at him in its entirety. He could even hear the faint sound of his arm joints popping out of alignment!
“Agh!” He cried out in pain as he was sent flying backward at an even greater speed. He crashed miserably into a pile of rubble several meters away, rolling several times before stopping, his arm throbbing with agonizing pain.
“Crow!” Eagle, who was busy dealing with the monster, caught the scene out of the corner of his eye and shouted in shock and anger.
The monster’s bone blades swung down like scythes. With a sharp crack, the Rock Barrier the captain had hastily erected was split open with a massive fissure, sending stone fragments flying everywhere.
The captain himself was shaken by the counter-force, his blood roiling as he was forced back several steps.
“Dammit! What kind of ability does this woman have?!” The middle-aged captain was also horrified when he saw Crow being repelled.
Crow struggled to his feet, clutching his trembling, painful arm. He looked at Su Wan, who was still looking down at them indifferently from the steps, his face filled with venomous resentment and disbelief.
The plan to drag her into the mess had failed.
“Captain! This woman is freaky!” Crow screamed hoarsely. He had no choice but to turn around and rejoin the battle against the monster.
He shook his arm, and as dark-red energy surged through it, the pain subsided slightly.
He pulled a high-frequency vibration dagger from his waist, his eyes searching ruthlessly for a weakness in the monster.
The three of them no longer had the luxury to worry about anything else. They could only face the terrifying Rock-Piercing Earth Dragon variant in a life-or-death struggle.
The middle-aged captain’s Earth Ability constantly created obstacles to restrict the monster’s movement, Eagle relied on his Wind Ability to speed up his hit-and-run shooting, and Crow looked for opportunities to attack the base of the monster’s bone blades or the gaps in its carapace with his dagger.
Their coordination was seamless and their use of abilities was proficient, but against this mutated monster, they were clearly struggling.
The three of them were soon in dire straits, new wounds appearing on their bodies as blood stained their high-grade combat suits.
Just then, Ah-Hao, who had been peeking through the crack in the door behind Su Wan, moved toward her, his face pale.
His voice carried an irrepressible fear as he spoke quickly in a low tone:
“Landlord, the Panshi Exploration Company is a famous big company in the Inner City. They are very powerful! They have outposts in many Outer Cities and maintain their own private armies!”
“They have high-level Ability Users and heavy weapons from the old era. When they say they’ll flatten a Ruin Zone, they aren't joking!”
He paused, his voice dropping even lower, carrying a chill that reached the bone. “What they just said about ‘sending you to a laboratory’… that’s the worst nightmare for us refugees!”
“Those big companies in the Inner City are all conducting secret research—biology, abilities, Aberrants… they study everything.”
“They need a large number of test subjects. They need living people!” Ah-Hao’s voice was trembling. “The poor in the Outer City and us refugees are just materials to them.”
“People from the Inner City companies often go to the Outer City and use large amounts of food, Star Coins, medicine, and even permanent residency permits as bait to recruit ‘volunteers’ to be test subjects for three months, saying it’s for the progress of humanity and that the reward is generous…”
“Many poor people who have nowhere else to go, or who want to fight for a way out for their families, volunteer for it…”
Rate on N.U.
