Chapter 79: The Remnant Squad Returns to the City and the Alien Race Reviews
The wind on the wasteland carried the scent of scorched earth and blood, biting and freezing.
The squad that had just climbed out of the vertical shaft didn't even have a moment to catch their breath. Dozens of scaled beasts trampled over the scattered rocks and sprinted toward them. The dark, dense shadows of the beasts blocked out the nearby light, and their neat charging formation displayed an eerie coordination. Even though the main ambush force had been defeated, the Ancient Progenitor still relied on the underground psychic network to remotely control the remaining beast swarm on the wasteland, relentlessly hounding them.
"Fight and retreat simultaneously! Do not hold your ground!"
The instructor's arm was injured, and his hand gripping the spear trembled slightly, but his voice remained steady as he issued the command. Everyone knew they were already running on fumes. After continuous underground ambushes, the bloody battle in the vertical shaft, and the erosion of psychic illusions, everyone's physical strength and Sea of Consciousness were pushed to the breaking point. Especially the severely injured student, whose breath was faint and who might collapse at any moment.
The formation quickly tightened. The wounded were protected in the center. Old Chen wielded his long knife to guard the left flank. With each rise and fall of the blade, he forcibly hacked down two pouncing scaled beasts, splattering dark green blood across the rocks in front of him. Jiang Tao's fourth-tier Sea of Consciousness continuously expanded a barrier to block the sporadic psychic stingers from afar. However, his psychic consumption had exceeded half, and the barrier was already dim and fragile. Every time he defended, it was accompanied by agonizing pain in his skull.
Lin Yan guarded the right flank alone, pushing his third-tier Sea of Consciousness to its absolute limit.
Countless fine psychic threads were scattered. No longer pursuing large-scale interference, he precisely severed the receiving commands of the scaled beasts point by point. Every scaled beast that rushed close would instantly fall into brief command confusion. Their charging rhythm would stall, and they would collide with each other, buying the squad precious moments to slay them and retreat.
This was the most extreme level of precise control he had achieved since tempering his third-tier Sea of Consciousness.
The price was the rapid depletion of his psychic power. Waves of dizziness hit his mind. The wound on his ribs was torn by his violent movements, and the pain pierced through his limbs. Warm blood continuously soaked through his clothes, sticking to his flesh in a sticky, uncomfortable mess.
"Retreating like this is too slow!" a student roared through gritted teeth, raising his gun to shoot down a scaled beast. Their ammunition was already running dry. "The beast swarm is growing larger and larger with every pursuit. We won't be able to hold out until we reach Panshi City!"
As far as the eye could see, sporadic dark shadows in the depths of the wasteland were still converging. The Ancient Progenitor was mobilizing all roaming scaled beasts in the vicinity at any cost, stubbornly biting down on this remnant squad. It did not seek total annihilation; it only sought continuous consumption, dragging down everyone's body and mind. Even if it could take down one more person, it would be a severe blow to humanity's combat strength.
"Hold on for ten more minutes!" The instructor's gaze was firmly locked on the silhouette of the distant bastion. "The patrol route of the Panshi City patrol team covers this area. We just need to hold on for ten more minutes!"
Ten minutes felt as long as a century in this moment.
Everyone gritted their teeth, dragging their broken bodies in a desperate retreat. The crisp sounds of cold weapons clashing, the roars of the scaled beasts, and heavy panting intertwined. Every step backward was accompanied by blood and sacrifice. Another student completely exhausted his physical strength and failed to dodge in time. A scaled beast's sharp claws swept across his thigh, and he fell heavily to his knees, instantly surrounded by two scaled beasts.
"Protect him!"
Old Chen charged forward ferociously, swinging his long knife horizontally to force back the two scaled beasts. Unfortunately, his back was inadvertently torn open by a sneaking scaled beast, leaving a deep, bone-scraping wound. As the excruciating pain hit, his body swayed, and he nearly collapsed. Relying on his extremely strong willpower, he stubbornly planted his feet and stood firm.
Seeing this, Lin Yan unleashed his Sea of Consciousness with full force. A large-scale psychic disturbance instantly spread out, forcing back all the surrounding scaled beasts and briefly clearing a safe zone.
But this all-out exertion completely overloaded his already depleted Sea of Consciousness.
Weng——
A violent tremor echoed deep within his Sea of Consciousness. The scene before his eyes instantly went black, and a dizzying, spinning sensation swept over his entire body. He stumbled two steps, dropping to one knee on the gravel, as large mouthfuls of bloody foam overflowed from his lips.
"Lin Yan!" Old Chen cried out in alarm and immediately turned back to protect his flank.
Deep underground in the resonance rock cave, the Ancient Progenitor sat quietly in the center of the pool. Through the psychic network, it clearly captured the state of Lin Yan's overloaded Sea of Consciousness. A cold glint of satisfaction flashed in its dark gold vertical pupils.
"Forcibly overdrawn the Sea of Consciousness; there will definitely be hidden dangers left in his foundation."
Its icy thoughts echoed, soothing the anger of this failed ambush. Although it had failed to kill Lin Yan on the spot and completely annihilate the squad, this wave of consumption was not in vain.
This practical training squad was entirely injured, their combat effectiveness completely destroyed. Especially Lin Yan, whose newly broken-through and stabilized third-tier Sea of Consciousness had suffered severe damage that could not be repaired in a short time due to continuous deadly battles and forced overloading. He would be unable to perform at his peak combat strength in the short term.
One secondary priest was dead, and the other was severely injured. The only surviving priest lay on the ground, its body trembling slightly as it transmitted feelings of guilt.
The Ancient Progenitor was not angry. Having lurked for a thousand years, its patience far exceeded that of ordinary races.
"This failure is not your fault. It lies in the fact that I underestimated humanity's tenacity in desperate situations, and even more so, I underestimated the growth rate of that young human."
It slowly raised its head. The remaining dark blue fluorescent veins on the rock walls flowed slowly, reconstructing the broken psychic links. With the twenty-five-year encroachment plan exposed and the timing for a large-scale frontal decisive battle not yet ripe, the upcoming tactics needed to be completely rewritten.
"Suspend small-scale rift ambushes."
"Secretly breed high-tier scaled beast legions. Concentrate computing power to nourish three deep, hidden rifts, and quietly open underground tunnels leading to the six major bastion cities."
"Continuously release diffuse psychic toxins to infiltrate human bastion cities, subtly eroding low-tier Sea of Consciousness cultivators."
Meticulous commands spread through the rock strata to the entire underground wasteland.
It would no longer rashly send out priests or expose its core combat strength. Instead, it would focus on endurance, infiltration, and attrition, silently accumulating capital for the decisive battle. It knew that after obtaining the evidence, humanity would inevitably upgrade its defenses and cultivate its combat strength at a rapid pace. Time was running out for it. Only by laying out plans in the shadows could it seize the initiative in the future full-scale war.
As for Lin Yan, he remained its number one target for assassination.
"Wait until his Sea of Consciousness damage has not healed and he is at his weakest point in combat strength, then set up a deadly trap again. Next time, no one will be able to save him."
On the wasteland, the dawn finally pierced through the smoke.
From the distant horizon came the muffled roar of engines. Several military off-road combat vehicles broke through the gray mist and sped rapidly toward the battlefield. The machine guns on the roofs spat out dense tongues of fire, and the pursuing scaled beasts along the way fell in droves.
"It's the patrol rescue team! We're saved!"
The nerves of the surviving students, pulled taut, instantly snapped. Their tense bodies suddenly relaxed, and exhaustion, pain, and weakness swept over them all at once. Several people collapsed directly onto the gravel.
The combat vehicles arrived quickly. Soldiers jumped out to swiftly clear the remaining scaled beasts, while medics carrying first-aid supplies sprinted over, immediately stopping the bleeding and administering IV fluids to the severely wounded to stabilize their vital signs.
"Everyone, provide cover. Return immediately!"
The instructor let out a sigh of relief. His tense spine finally straightened, and the heart that had been suspended in the air finally settled.
Everyone was supported as they boarded the combat vehicles, covered in blood and scars. A seemingly ordinary three-day wilderness practical training had been brutally transformed into an ambush with a nine-out-of-ten chance of death. Of the six-person training squad, one was critically injured and on the verge of death, and all five others were injured. No one was left unscathed.
The combat vehicles turned around and sped all the way toward the bastion of Panshi City.
Inside the carriage, there was complete silence, with only the faint hum of medical equipment and the heavy breathing of everyone.
Lin Yan leaned against the side wall of the carriage, his eyes closed as he regulated his breathing, forcibly suppressing the severe pain and dizziness in his Sea of Consciousness. He could clearly feel that his third-tier Sea of Consciousness had become restless and unstable. The solid foundation he had spent a month quietly tempering had developed fine cracks after the continuous deadly battles and forced overloading. The psychic damage was severe.
But there was no sign of defeat in his eyes, only an increasingly calm determination.
This ambush had allowed him to completely figure out the tactical core of the Lizardmen Ancient Progenitor—endurance, calculation, precise hunting, and step-by-step encroachment. This ancient alien race was far more cunning and terrifying than humanity had imagined.
At the same time, he had thoroughly grasped the offensive and defensive logic of the third-tier Sea of Consciousness. Even though he was severely injured, his battle insights and understanding of the psychic network far exceeded the merits of several months of peaceful cultivation in the past.
Sitting beside him, Old Chen had bandaged his wounds. Looking at Lin Yan, who was resting with his eyes closed, he sighed in a low voice, "We managed to get our lives back this time. The Ancient Progenitor is truly determined to kill you."
"Mm." Lin Yan opened his eyes slightly, his voice hoarse. "It won't stop. From now on, it will only be more cautious and more ruthless."
Half an hour later, the massive gate of the Panshi City bastion came into view in the distance.
The alloy gate slowly opened, and the combat vehicles drove into the city. The city, still reeking of gunpowder, remained heavily guarded. Soldiers and rescue teams could be seen rushing about everywhere on the streets.
This bloodied, broken training squad returning from the field instantly attracted everyone's attention.
The combat vehicles drove directly to the core recuperation area of the war zone, and everyone was immediately sent to the intensive care and Sea of Consciousness repair rooms.
A seemingly ordinary field assessment had evolved into a targeted assassination ambush by an alien race. The news was quickly reported to the high command of the war zone, and the combat readiness level of the entire Panshi City was quietly raised once again.
Dark undercurrents surged underground, while swords were sharpened above ground.
The comprehensive game between humanity and the Lizardmen Ancient Progenitor race had quietly pulled back the curtain.
And Lin Yan, bearing the damage and growing against all odds, had already stood at the very forefront of this war.
End of Chapter.
The squad that had just climbed out of the vertical shaft didn't even have a moment to catch their breath. Dozens of scaled beasts trampled over the scattered rocks and sprinted toward them. The dark, dense shadows of the beasts blocked out the nearby light, and their neat charging formation displayed an eerie coordination. Even though the main ambush force had been defeated, the Ancient Progenitor still relied on the underground psychic network to remotely control the remaining beast swarm on the wasteland, relentlessly hounding them.
"Fight and retreat simultaneously! Do not hold your ground!"
The instructor's arm was injured, and his hand gripping the spear trembled slightly, but his voice remained steady as he issued the command. Everyone knew they were already running on fumes. After continuous underground ambushes, the bloody battle in the vertical shaft, and the erosion of psychic illusions, everyone's physical strength and Sea of Consciousness were pushed to the breaking point. Especially the severely injured student, whose breath was faint and who might collapse at any moment.
The formation quickly tightened. The wounded were protected in the center. Old Chen wielded his long knife to guard the left flank. With each rise and fall of the blade, he forcibly hacked down two pouncing scaled beasts, splattering dark green blood across the rocks in front of him. Jiang Tao's fourth-tier Sea of Consciousness continuously expanded a barrier to block the sporadic psychic stingers from afar. However, his psychic consumption had exceeded half, and the barrier was already dim and fragile. Every time he defended, it was accompanied by agonizing pain in his skull.
Lin Yan guarded the right flank alone, pushing his third-tier Sea of Consciousness to its absolute limit.
Countless fine psychic threads were scattered. No longer pursuing large-scale interference, he precisely severed the receiving commands of the scaled beasts point by point. Every scaled beast that rushed close would instantly fall into brief command confusion. Their charging rhythm would stall, and they would collide with each other, buying the squad precious moments to slay them and retreat.
This was the most extreme level of precise control he had achieved since tempering his third-tier Sea of Consciousness.
The price was the rapid depletion of his psychic power. Waves of dizziness hit his mind. The wound on his ribs was torn by his violent movements, and the pain pierced through his limbs. Warm blood continuously soaked through his clothes, sticking to his flesh in a sticky, uncomfortable mess.
"Retreating like this is too slow!" a student roared through gritted teeth, raising his gun to shoot down a scaled beast. Their ammunition was already running dry. "The beast swarm is growing larger and larger with every pursuit. We won't be able to hold out until we reach Panshi City!"
As far as the eye could see, sporadic dark shadows in the depths of the wasteland were still converging. The Ancient Progenitor was mobilizing all roaming scaled beasts in the vicinity at any cost, stubbornly biting down on this remnant squad. It did not seek total annihilation; it only sought continuous consumption, dragging down everyone's body and mind. Even if it could take down one more person, it would be a severe blow to humanity's combat strength.
"Hold on for ten more minutes!" The instructor's gaze was firmly locked on the silhouette of the distant bastion. "The patrol route of the Panshi City patrol team covers this area. We just need to hold on for ten more minutes!"
Ten minutes felt as long as a century in this moment.
Everyone gritted their teeth, dragging their broken bodies in a desperate retreat. The crisp sounds of cold weapons clashing, the roars of the scaled beasts, and heavy panting intertwined. Every step backward was accompanied by blood and sacrifice. Another student completely exhausted his physical strength and failed to dodge in time. A scaled beast's sharp claws swept across his thigh, and he fell heavily to his knees, instantly surrounded by two scaled beasts.
"Protect him!"
Old Chen charged forward ferociously, swinging his long knife horizontally to force back the two scaled beasts. Unfortunately, his back was inadvertently torn open by a sneaking scaled beast, leaving a deep, bone-scraping wound. As the excruciating pain hit, his body swayed, and he nearly collapsed. Relying on his extremely strong willpower, he stubbornly planted his feet and stood firm.
Seeing this, Lin Yan unleashed his Sea of Consciousness with full force. A large-scale psychic disturbance instantly spread out, forcing back all the surrounding scaled beasts and briefly clearing a safe zone.
But this all-out exertion completely overloaded his already depleted Sea of Consciousness.
Weng——
A violent tremor echoed deep within his Sea of Consciousness. The scene before his eyes instantly went black, and a dizzying, spinning sensation swept over his entire body. He stumbled two steps, dropping to one knee on the gravel, as large mouthfuls of bloody foam overflowed from his lips.
"Lin Yan!" Old Chen cried out in alarm and immediately turned back to protect his flank.
Deep underground in the resonance rock cave, the Ancient Progenitor sat quietly in the center of the pool. Through the psychic network, it clearly captured the state of Lin Yan's overloaded Sea of Consciousness. A cold glint of satisfaction flashed in its dark gold vertical pupils.
"Forcibly overdrawn the Sea of Consciousness; there will definitely be hidden dangers left in his foundation."
Its icy thoughts echoed, soothing the anger of this failed ambush. Although it had failed to kill Lin Yan on the spot and completely annihilate the squad, this wave of consumption was not in vain.
This practical training squad was entirely injured, their combat effectiveness completely destroyed. Especially Lin Yan, whose newly broken-through and stabilized third-tier Sea of Consciousness had suffered severe damage that could not be repaired in a short time due to continuous deadly battles and forced overloading. He would be unable to perform at his peak combat strength in the short term.
One secondary priest was dead, and the other was severely injured. The only surviving priest lay on the ground, its body trembling slightly as it transmitted feelings of guilt.
The Ancient Progenitor was not angry. Having lurked for a thousand years, its patience far exceeded that of ordinary races.
"This failure is not your fault. It lies in the fact that I underestimated humanity's tenacity in desperate situations, and even more so, I underestimated the growth rate of that young human."
It slowly raised its head. The remaining dark blue fluorescent veins on the rock walls flowed slowly, reconstructing the broken psychic links. With the twenty-five-year encroachment plan exposed and the timing for a large-scale frontal decisive battle not yet ripe, the upcoming tactics needed to be completely rewritten.
"Suspend small-scale rift ambushes."
"Secretly breed high-tier scaled beast legions. Concentrate computing power to nourish three deep, hidden rifts, and quietly open underground tunnels leading to the six major bastion cities."
"Continuously release diffuse psychic toxins to infiltrate human bastion cities, subtly eroding low-tier Sea of Consciousness cultivators."
Meticulous commands spread through the rock strata to the entire underground wasteland.
It would no longer rashly send out priests or expose its core combat strength. Instead, it would focus on endurance, infiltration, and attrition, silently accumulating capital for the decisive battle. It knew that after obtaining the evidence, humanity would inevitably upgrade its defenses and cultivate its combat strength at a rapid pace. Time was running out for it. Only by laying out plans in the shadows could it seize the initiative in the future full-scale war.
As for Lin Yan, he remained its number one target for assassination.
"Wait until his Sea of Consciousness damage has not healed and he is at his weakest point in combat strength, then set up a deadly trap again. Next time, no one will be able to save him."
On the wasteland, the dawn finally pierced through the smoke.
From the distant horizon came the muffled roar of engines. Several military off-road combat vehicles broke through the gray mist and sped rapidly toward the battlefield. The machine guns on the roofs spat out dense tongues of fire, and the pursuing scaled beasts along the way fell in droves.
"It's the patrol rescue team! We're saved!"
The nerves of the surviving students, pulled taut, instantly snapped. Their tense bodies suddenly relaxed, and exhaustion, pain, and weakness swept over them all at once. Several people collapsed directly onto the gravel.
The combat vehicles arrived quickly. Soldiers jumped out to swiftly clear the remaining scaled beasts, while medics carrying first-aid supplies sprinted over, immediately stopping the bleeding and administering IV fluids to the severely wounded to stabilize their vital signs.
"Everyone, provide cover. Return immediately!"
The instructor let out a sigh of relief. His tense spine finally straightened, and the heart that had been suspended in the air finally settled.
Everyone was supported as they boarded the combat vehicles, covered in blood and scars. A seemingly ordinary three-day wilderness practical training had been brutally transformed into an ambush with a nine-out-of-ten chance of death. Of the six-person training squad, one was critically injured and on the verge of death, and all five others were injured. No one was left unscathed.
The combat vehicles turned around and sped all the way toward the bastion of Panshi City.
Inside the carriage, there was complete silence, with only the faint hum of medical equipment and the heavy breathing of everyone.
Lin Yan leaned against the side wall of the carriage, his eyes closed as he regulated his breathing, forcibly suppressing the severe pain and dizziness in his Sea of Consciousness. He could clearly feel that his third-tier Sea of Consciousness had become restless and unstable. The solid foundation he had spent a month quietly tempering had developed fine cracks after the continuous deadly battles and forced overloading. The psychic damage was severe.
But there was no sign of defeat in his eyes, only an increasingly calm determination.
This ambush had allowed him to completely figure out the tactical core of the Lizardmen Ancient Progenitor—endurance, calculation, precise hunting, and step-by-step encroachment. This ancient alien race was far more cunning and terrifying than humanity had imagined.
At the same time, he had thoroughly grasped the offensive and defensive logic of the third-tier Sea of Consciousness. Even though he was severely injured, his battle insights and understanding of the psychic network far exceeded the merits of several months of peaceful cultivation in the past.
Sitting beside him, Old Chen had bandaged his wounds. Looking at Lin Yan, who was resting with his eyes closed, he sighed in a low voice, "We managed to get our lives back this time. The Ancient Progenitor is truly determined to kill you."
"Mm." Lin Yan opened his eyes slightly, his voice hoarse. "It won't stop. From now on, it will only be more cautious and more ruthless."
Half an hour later, the massive gate of the Panshi City bastion came into view in the distance.
The alloy gate slowly opened, and the combat vehicles drove into the city. The city, still reeking of gunpowder, remained heavily guarded. Soldiers and rescue teams could be seen rushing about everywhere on the streets.
This bloodied, broken training squad returning from the field instantly attracted everyone's attention.
The combat vehicles drove directly to the core recuperation area of the war zone, and everyone was immediately sent to the intensive care and Sea of Consciousness repair rooms.
A seemingly ordinary field assessment had evolved into a targeted assassination ambush by an alien race. The news was quickly reported to the high command of the war zone, and the combat readiness level of the entire Panshi City was quietly raised once again.
Dark undercurrents surged underground, while swords were sharpened above ground.
The comprehensive game between humanity and the Lizardmen Ancient Progenitor race had quietly pulled back the curtain.
And Lin Yan, bearing the damage and growing against all odds, had already stood at the very forefront of this war.
End of Chapter.