Chapter 247: Deathmatch at the Exit
The faint light at the end of the crevice was not the cold white of a glow stone, but a meager reflection leaking through the seams of the maintenance hatch cover. It was as fragile as if it could be swallowed by the darkness at any moment. The miner emerged first. The moment he poked his upper body out of the crevice, a strong, foul-smelling wind from the scaled beasts hit him head-on. Several pairs of crimson pupils suddenly lit up in the shadows of the tunnel.
"They're outside!" the miner shouted in a low voice, hastily pulling his upper body back halfway into the crevice while pressing the communication terminal in his arms tighter against his inner clothing.
Three scaled beasts blocked the exit. The second-tier scaled beast, wounded on its back, pressed forward in the center. Its cracked scales continuously oozed dark green mucus. Its gaze was locked fixedly on the crevice opening, its snout exhaling hot, foul-smelling breath. The other two first-tier scaled beasts flanked the left and right, sealing off all space for lateral movement. The secondary priest directing remotely was hidden deeper within the shadows of a rock niche. Its tentacles trembled, firmly locking down the vision of the entire exit, leaving the squad no room to maneuver.
They had just finished reorganizing after the dust from the cave-in settled, and were stationed right here, waiting for their prey to crawl out.
The squad was stuck in the middle of the crevice, caught in a dilemma. Behind them was a dense, restless swarm of tentacle worms, many of which had already crawled up along the rock surface to reach their boots and wrists. Before them were the scaled beasts poised to strike. The moment anyone fully stepped out of the opening, they would be immediately surrounded. The cramped crevice did not allow multiple people to fight simultaneously. At most, only one person could go out to engage at a time, leaving the rest trapped inside to passively wait.
"I'll go out first to draw their aggro," the scout said, gripping his short blade tightly. The new wound on his shoulder was still seeping blood. "I'll go out to attract their attention, and the rest of you follow one by one."
"Watch out for the second-tier," Lin Yan said from behind him, his voice weak and hoarse. The chill brought on by blood loss had already spread from his limbs to his chest, and his Sea of Consciousness drifted in waves. "The priest is in the rock niche at the rear. Don't let its commands dictate your movements."
Taking a deep breath, the scout placed both hands on the edge of the opening and rolled out fiercely.
The instant he landed, the second-tier scaled beast in the center pushed off the ground with its four limbs, its bone spikes thrusting straight at his chest and abdomen. The scout was well-prepared; he turned sideways and blocked horizontally with his blade. The shock of the metal collision traveled up his arm to his bones. Using the momentum, he slid backward two steps to create distance, his short blade swinging continuously to force the two first-tier scaled beasts to divert their attention to entangle him.
Roars erupted, and the tunnel descended into another fierce battle.
The miner crawled out immediately after. The moment he stood up, he pressed against the rock wall and moved sideways, guarding the terminal in his arms. The female support soldier followed closely, her short dagger unsheathed as she ambushed the hind legs of a first-tier scaled beast from the flank. The military police officer brought up the rear. The moment he found his footing, he swung his blade to hack open a scaled beast that was trying to circle back and block the crevice entrance, preventing the worms and scaled beasts from surrounding them from behind.
All five of them had successfully evacuated the crevice, but the space was still extremely cramped. This section of the tunnel had limited width, leaving no room for wide-ranging maneuvers. Relying on its thick scales and superior strength, the second-tier scaled beast charged back and forth, each impact carrying enough force to shatter bones. The priest at the rear continuously adjusted its commands, and the scaled beasts remained perfectly coordinated, applying pressure in turns without giving anyone a moment to catch their breath.
Lin Yan was the last to leave the crevice. Bracing himself against the rock wall, he barely managed to stand straight. The bandage on his waist had long been soaked through with blood. Every breath pulled at his damaged internal organs, causing waves of dull pain. He did not immediately charge into the fray. Instead, he expanded his Sea of Consciousness, staring fixedly at the secondary priest hidden in the rock niche. As long as that psychic command chain remained unbroken, this group of scaled beasts would be extremely difficult to defeat.
The second-tier scaled beast delivered a vicious tail swipe. Its thick, spiked tail whipped horizontally. The scout failed to dodge in time and was struck on the calf. He stumbled and fell to his knees, his short blade slipping from his grasp and sliding far away. The scaled beast immediately changed direction, lowering its head to bite at the scout's neck.
"Danger!" the miner roared. He dropped his rock hammer, grabbed a sharp rock from the ground, and hurled it fiercely at the second-tier scaled beast's eye.
The rock struck the hard scales above the beast's brow bone, leaving only a white mark, but it successfully drew its attention. The second-tier scaled beast let out a furious roar, abandoning the scout and charging fiercely toward the miner. Unarmed, the miner could only continuously retreat to dodge. His foot stepped on a loose rock, causing his center of gravity to shift. He was on the verge of having his chest pierced by the bone spikes.
The female support soldier rushed to his aid at lightning speed, her short dagger plunging with all her might into the gap between the scales on the beast's ribs. The strike went deep enough, and dark green blood gushed out. In agonizing pain, the second-tier scaled beast went berserk. Its massive body twisted violently, and its shoulder slammed heavily into the female support soldier. She flew backward like a kite with a broken string, her back crashing hard against the granite wall. Letting out a muffled groan, she fell to the ground. Her short dagger slipped from her hand, and she was unable to get up for a long time.
The battle situation instantly deteriorated. The military police officer was fighting two against one, entangled by the two first-tier scaled beasts and unable to help himself. The scout's calf was injured, severely restricting his movement. The female support soldier had temporarily lost her combat capability. Unarmed, the miner could only dodge clumsily. In an instant, all the pressure fell squarely on Lin Yan's shoulders.
Gritting his teeth, Lin Yan suppressed the metallic sweetness constantly surging to his throat and gripped his short blade as he stepped forward. His vision had already begun to double. His Sea of Consciousness was filled with the residual static noise of the spores. He could only perform his ancient martial arts techniques at thirty to forty percent of his usual capacity, but he had no other choice.
Seeing him step forward, the second-tier scaled beast abandoned the miner and turned its spearhead directly toward Lin Yan. It remembered this human. During the battle in front of the cellar, it was this person who had severely injured its kind. It regarded Lin Yan as its primary target, aiming its bone spikes at the heaviest old wound on his waist, intending to finish him off with a single blow.
Lin Yan did not take the blow head-on. Stepping unsteadily, he slid sideways to dodge the bone spikes. His short blade followed with a diagonal slash, slicing open the flesh of the scaled beast's front claw. In pain, the beast frantically swung its front limb to slap at him. Lin Yan failed to dodge in time; his forearm was grazed by the claw, instantly adding a deep, bone-scraping wound. The excruciating pain made his whole body tremble, and his short blade nearly slipped from his hand.
Blood dripped down his arm, splashing onto the rubble on the ground.
"Lin Yan!" The miner picked up the rock hammer that had fallen nearby and wanted to rush forward to help, but he was intercepted by a first-tier scaled beast that had broken free from its entanglement.
Watching the battle from the rock niche at the rear, the secondary priest's tentacles trembled with excitement as it continuously issued attack commands to the scaled beasts. It was convinced that Lin Yan was completely exhausted. If they delayed for just a moment longer, this man would collapse. The rest of the squad would lose their backbone, and the terminal would be theirs for the taking.
Panting heavily, Lin Yan stared fixedly at the second-tier scaled beast while simultaneously allocating a sliver of his perception to lock onto the priest. He knew clearly that he could not sustain a frontal engagement for much longer; he had to find a way to sever the command chain. Feigning continued engagement with the second-tier scaled beast, he kept making small movements, gradually drawing the battlefield toward the rock niche where the priest was hiding. Consumed by hatred, the second-tier scaled beast only focused on chasing him to tear him apart, completely unaware of the trap.
After several evasive maneuvers, the distance to the rock niche was less than seven meters.
Seizing the brief window when the scaled beast pulled back after a fierce pounce, Lin Yan suddenly turned sideways. Abandoning the frontal engagement, he sprinted with all his might toward the rock niche. This movement pulled at all his wounds. It felt as if his internal organs were being crushed. His vision blackened, and he relied entirely on a sheer force of will to keep from collapsing.
The priest's expression changed drastically. Its tentacles shook wildly as it immediately ordered the second-tier scaled beast to fall back and intercept.
It was too late.
Lin Yan had already reached the edge of the rock niche. Raising his short blade high, he used the very last ounce of strength in his body to thrust downward toward the base of those slender psychic tentacles.
The priest emitted a soundless psychic shriek and desperately tried to shrink backward, but the rock niche was too narrow, leaving it nowhere to hide. The blade pierced the main nerve trunk beneath its tentacles.
The command link snapped instantly.
All the scaled beasts froze in unison. Their unified coordination vanished in an instant, and they reverted to wild beasts fighting solely on instinct.
Roaring, the second-tier scaled beast turned its head. No longer bound by commands, it still charged furiously toward Lin Yan. Having stabbed the priest, Lin Yan no longer had the strength to dodge. He could only hold his short blade horizontally in front of him. The massive impact slammed into him, sending his entire body flying backward. He crashed heavily onto the tunnel floor, his short blade slipping from his grasp and rolling away.
Pfft—
A massive mouthful of blood sprayed from his lips, staining the rubble in front of him crimson.
The second-tier scaled beast walked slowly toward the fallen Lin Yan, its bone spikes lowered, preparing to deliver the final blow.
Just then, the recovered scout endured his leg injury and pounced. He picked up his short blade and stabbed fiercely into the back of the scaled beast's neck from behind. The miner swung his rock hammer, striking the beast's wounded brow bone repeatedly. Breaking free from the two first-tier scaled beasts, the military police officer also rushed over to join the encirclement. Though the second-tier scaled beast, deprived of the priest's command, remained as ferocious as ever, it could no longer execute the fluid, coordinated attacks from before. Under the relentless assault of the three fighters, it struggled for a few breaths before its massive body collapsed heavily to the ground, no longer moving.
Seeing their leader fall, the remaining two first-tier scaled beasts lost their command and their courage. Attempting to turn and flee, they were chased down and slain separately by the military police officer and the scout.
The sounds of battle gradually subsided.
The tunnel was a complete mess, littered with dark green beast blood, rubble, and splattered gore. Supporting herself against the rock wall, the female support soldier slowly sat up, her chest heaving continuously. She had only suffered a concussion; no bones were broken. The scout's calf wound was swollen, and he walked with a limp. The miner's arm was scratched, and his entire body was covered in grime and beast blood.
Everyone's gaze fell upon Lin Yan, who was lying on the ground.
The miner quickly ran over and crouched down, gently lifting his shoulders. Lin Yan's face was as pale as paper, his lips completely devoid of color. His breathing was faint and shallow. His three wounds on his waist, back, and forearm were bleeding simultaneously, dyeing the rocks beneath him a dark hue. His eyes were open, his vision unfocused. It took a long while before his gaze slowly came into focus, settling on the communication terminal in the miner's arms, which was still flashing with a red light.
"Is the pulse... still transmitting?" His voice was as faint as a mosquito's buzz.
"It's still flashing, continuously broadcasting the coordinates outward," the miner said, lifting the terminal slightly. The red indicator light blinked steadily.
Lin Yan let out a slight sigh of relief. He leaned his head tiredly against the miner's arm and closed his eyes. He had not fainted; he simply lacked the strength to even keep his eyes open.
"The maintenance hatch... isn't far," he whispered. "Let's go back and find Commander Su and the others."
The miner carefully helped him sit up. The military police officer voluntarily stepped forward to support half of Lin Yan's body weight. The female support soldier walked at the very back to stand guard, while the scout leaned on his rock hammer, limping as he led the way at the front. This battered squad, dragging their heavily wounded bodies, moved slowly toward the maintenance hatch cover.
Deep within the cavern, the Spiderweb Ancient Being received the news of the secondary priest's death and the complete annihilation of the ambushing scaled beasts. That faint pulse signal continued to stubbornly pierce through the rock layers and diffuse outward, uninterrupted.
It remained silent for a long time. Countless psychic tentacles slowly tightened within the hidden rock caverns.
He is still alive. The terminal is still intact, and the signal continues to spread outward, the intent of the Spiderweb Ancient Being flowed through the darkness. Layer upon layer of checkpoints, layer upon layer of ambushes, and still, they could not stop them. If this pulse is truly captured by the barrier cities, the balance of the entire rift battlefield will be shattered.
The consciousness of the supreme ruler slowly floated forth.
There is no need to mobilize the scaled beasts along the route to pursue, the supreme ruler decided. They are already very close to the shelter pod. Continuing the pursuit will only drain our combat strength. We must conserve our forces to prepare for the arrival of the barrier cities' reinforcements. For now, let us quietly observe whether this signal can reach the human defense lines.
The ancient beings' hunt temporarily ceased. But this did not mean the crisis was over. Once the reinforcements arrived following the coordinates, the underground rift would erupt into a battle of a scale far exceeding any previous conflict.
Inside the tunnel, the silhouettes of the five moved forward slowly under the faint light of the glow stones. Leaning half against the military police officer's shoulder, Lin Yan's consciousness flickered between clarity and blur. Images flashed through his mind: the little boy in the shelter pod handing him the bone shard, the face of Scholar Su, and the continuous fortifications of the barrier defense lines.
The pulse he had sacrificed everything to send out was the only chance of survival for everyone in the entire shelter pod.
Not far ahead, the outline of the maintenance hatch cover had already faintly appeared within the dim light.
End of Chapter.
"They're outside!" the miner shouted in a low voice, hastily pulling his upper body back halfway into the crevice while pressing the communication terminal in his arms tighter against his inner clothing.
Three scaled beasts blocked the exit. The second-tier scaled beast, wounded on its back, pressed forward in the center. Its cracked scales continuously oozed dark green mucus. Its gaze was locked fixedly on the crevice opening, its snout exhaling hot, foul-smelling breath. The other two first-tier scaled beasts flanked the left and right, sealing off all space for lateral movement. The secondary priest directing remotely was hidden deeper within the shadows of a rock niche. Its tentacles trembled, firmly locking down the vision of the entire exit, leaving the squad no room to maneuver.
They had just finished reorganizing after the dust from the cave-in settled, and were stationed right here, waiting for their prey to crawl out.
The squad was stuck in the middle of the crevice, caught in a dilemma. Behind them was a dense, restless swarm of tentacle worms, many of which had already crawled up along the rock surface to reach their boots and wrists. Before them were the scaled beasts poised to strike. The moment anyone fully stepped out of the opening, they would be immediately surrounded. The cramped crevice did not allow multiple people to fight simultaneously. At most, only one person could go out to engage at a time, leaving the rest trapped inside to passively wait.
"I'll go out first to draw their aggro," the scout said, gripping his short blade tightly. The new wound on his shoulder was still seeping blood. "I'll go out to attract their attention, and the rest of you follow one by one."
"Watch out for the second-tier," Lin Yan said from behind him, his voice weak and hoarse. The chill brought on by blood loss had already spread from his limbs to his chest, and his Sea of Consciousness drifted in waves. "The priest is in the rock niche at the rear. Don't let its commands dictate your movements."
Taking a deep breath, the scout placed both hands on the edge of the opening and rolled out fiercely.
The instant he landed, the second-tier scaled beast in the center pushed off the ground with its four limbs, its bone spikes thrusting straight at his chest and abdomen. The scout was well-prepared; he turned sideways and blocked horizontally with his blade. The shock of the metal collision traveled up his arm to his bones. Using the momentum, he slid backward two steps to create distance, his short blade swinging continuously to force the two first-tier scaled beasts to divert their attention to entangle him.
Roars erupted, and the tunnel descended into another fierce battle.
The miner crawled out immediately after. The moment he stood up, he pressed against the rock wall and moved sideways, guarding the terminal in his arms. The female support soldier followed closely, her short dagger unsheathed as she ambushed the hind legs of a first-tier scaled beast from the flank. The military police officer brought up the rear. The moment he found his footing, he swung his blade to hack open a scaled beast that was trying to circle back and block the crevice entrance, preventing the worms and scaled beasts from surrounding them from behind.
All five of them had successfully evacuated the crevice, but the space was still extremely cramped. This section of the tunnel had limited width, leaving no room for wide-ranging maneuvers. Relying on its thick scales and superior strength, the second-tier scaled beast charged back and forth, each impact carrying enough force to shatter bones. The priest at the rear continuously adjusted its commands, and the scaled beasts remained perfectly coordinated, applying pressure in turns without giving anyone a moment to catch their breath.
Lin Yan was the last to leave the crevice. Bracing himself against the rock wall, he barely managed to stand straight. The bandage on his waist had long been soaked through with blood. Every breath pulled at his damaged internal organs, causing waves of dull pain. He did not immediately charge into the fray. Instead, he expanded his Sea of Consciousness, staring fixedly at the secondary priest hidden in the rock niche. As long as that psychic command chain remained unbroken, this group of scaled beasts would be extremely difficult to defeat.
The second-tier scaled beast delivered a vicious tail swipe. Its thick, spiked tail whipped horizontally. The scout failed to dodge in time and was struck on the calf. He stumbled and fell to his knees, his short blade slipping from his grasp and sliding far away. The scaled beast immediately changed direction, lowering its head to bite at the scout's neck.
"Danger!" the miner roared. He dropped his rock hammer, grabbed a sharp rock from the ground, and hurled it fiercely at the second-tier scaled beast's eye.
The rock struck the hard scales above the beast's brow bone, leaving only a white mark, but it successfully drew its attention. The second-tier scaled beast let out a furious roar, abandoning the scout and charging fiercely toward the miner. Unarmed, the miner could only continuously retreat to dodge. His foot stepped on a loose rock, causing his center of gravity to shift. He was on the verge of having his chest pierced by the bone spikes.
The female support soldier rushed to his aid at lightning speed, her short dagger plunging with all her might into the gap between the scales on the beast's ribs. The strike went deep enough, and dark green blood gushed out. In agonizing pain, the second-tier scaled beast went berserk. Its massive body twisted violently, and its shoulder slammed heavily into the female support soldier. She flew backward like a kite with a broken string, her back crashing hard against the granite wall. Letting out a muffled groan, she fell to the ground. Her short dagger slipped from her hand, and she was unable to get up for a long time.
The battle situation instantly deteriorated. The military police officer was fighting two against one, entangled by the two first-tier scaled beasts and unable to help himself. The scout's calf was injured, severely restricting his movement. The female support soldier had temporarily lost her combat capability. Unarmed, the miner could only dodge clumsily. In an instant, all the pressure fell squarely on Lin Yan's shoulders.
Gritting his teeth, Lin Yan suppressed the metallic sweetness constantly surging to his throat and gripped his short blade as he stepped forward. His vision had already begun to double. His Sea of Consciousness was filled with the residual static noise of the spores. He could only perform his ancient martial arts techniques at thirty to forty percent of his usual capacity, but he had no other choice.
Seeing him step forward, the second-tier scaled beast abandoned the miner and turned its spearhead directly toward Lin Yan. It remembered this human. During the battle in front of the cellar, it was this person who had severely injured its kind. It regarded Lin Yan as its primary target, aiming its bone spikes at the heaviest old wound on his waist, intending to finish him off with a single blow.
Lin Yan did not take the blow head-on. Stepping unsteadily, he slid sideways to dodge the bone spikes. His short blade followed with a diagonal slash, slicing open the flesh of the scaled beast's front claw. In pain, the beast frantically swung its front limb to slap at him. Lin Yan failed to dodge in time; his forearm was grazed by the claw, instantly adding a deep, bone-scraping wound. The excruciating pain made his whole body tremble, and his short blade nearly slipped from his hand.
Blood dripped down his arm, splashing onto the rubble on the ground.
"Lin Yan!" The miner picked up the rock hammer that had fallen nearby and wanted to rush forward to help, but he was intercepted by a first-tier scaled beast that had broken free from its entanglement.
Watching the battle from the rock niche at the rear, the secondary priest's tentacles trembled with excitement as it continuously issued attack commands to the scaled beasts. It was convinced that Lin Yan was completely exhausted. If they delayed for just a moment longer, this man would collapse. The rest of the squad would lose their backbone, and the terminal would be theirs for the taking.
Panting heavily, Lin Yan stared fixedly at the second-tier scaled beast while simultaneously allocating a sliver of his perception to lock onto the priest. He knew clearly that he could not sustain a frontal engagement for much longer; he had to find a way to sever the command chain. Feigning continued engagement with the second-tier scaled beast, he kept making small movements, gradually drawing the battlefield toward the rock niche where the priest was hiding. Consumed by hatred, the second-tier scaled beast only focused on chasing him to tear him apart, completely unaware of the trap.
After several evasive maneuvers, the distance to the rock niche was less than seven meters.
Seizing the brief window when the scaled beast pulled back after a fierce pounce, Lin Yan suddenly turned sideways. Abandoning the frontal engagement, he sprinted with all his might toward the rock niche. This movement pulled at all his wounds. It felt as if his internal organs were being crushed. His vision blackened, and he relied entirely on a sheer force of will to keep from collapsing.
The priest's expression changed drastically. Its tentacles shook wildly as it immediately ordered the second-tier scaled beast to fall back and intercept.
It was too late.
Lin Yan had already reached the edge of the rock niche. Raising his short blade high, he used the very last ounce of strength in his body to thrust downward toward the base of those slender psychic tentacles.
The priest emitted a soundless psychic shriek and desperately tried to shrink backward, but the rock niche was too narrow, leaving it nowhere to hide. The blade pierced the main nerve trunk beneath its tentacles.
The command link snapped instantly.
All the scaled beasts froze in unison. Their unified coordination vanished in an instant, and they reverted to wild beasts fighting solely on instinct.
Roaring, the second-tier scaled beast turned its head. No longer bound by commands, it still charged furiously toward Lin Yan. Having stabbed the priest, Lin Yan no longer had the strength to dodge. He could only hold his short blade horizontally in front of him. The massive impact slammed into him, sending his entire body flying backward. He crashed heavily onto the tunnel floor, his short blade slipping from his grasp and rolling away.
Pfft—
A massive mouthful of blood sprayed from his lips, staining the rubble in front of him crimson.
The second-tier scaled beast walked slowly toward the fallen Lin Yan, its bone spikes lowered, preparing to deliver the final blow.
Just then, the recovered scout endured his leg injury and pounced. He picked up his short blade and stabbed fiercely into the back of the scaled beast's neck from behind. The miner swung his rock hammer, striking the beast's wounded brow bone repeatedly. Breaking free from the two first-tier scaled beasts, the military police officer also rushed over to join the encirclement. Though the second-tier scaled beast, deprived of the priest's command, remained as ferocious as ever, it could no longer execute the fluid, coordinated attacks from before. Under the relentless assault of the three fighters, it struggled for a few breaths before its massive body collapsed heavily to the ground, no longer moving.
Seeing their leader fall, the remaining two first-tier scaled beasts lost their command and their courage. Attempting to turn and flee, they were chased down and slain separately by the military police officer and the scout.
The sounds of battle gradually subsided.
The tunnel was a complete mess, littered with dark green beast blood, rubble, and splattered gore. Supporting herself against the rock wall, the female support soldier slowly sat up, her chest heaving continuously. She had only suffered a concussion; no bones were broken. The scout's calf wound was swollen, and he walked with a limp. The miner's arm was scratched, and his entire body was covered in grime and beast blood.
Everyone's gaze fell upon Lin Yan, who was lying on the ground.
The miner quickly ran over and crouched down, gently lifting his shoulders. Lin Yan's face was as pale as paper, his lips completely devoid of color. His breathing was faint and shallow. His three wounds on his waist, back, and forearm were bleeding simultaneously, dyeing the rocks beneath him a dark hue. His eyes were open, his vision unfocused. It took a long while before his gaze slowly came into focus, settling on the communication terminal in the miner's arms, which was still flashing with a red light.
"Is the pulse... still transmitting?" His voice was as faint as a mosquito's buzz.
"It's still flashing, continuously broadcasting the coordinates outward," the miner said, lifting the terminal slightly. The red indicator light blinked steadily.
Lin Yan let out a slight sigh of relief. He leaned his head tiredly against the miner's arm and closed his eyes. He had not fainted; he simply lacked the strength to even keep his eyes open.
"The maintenance hatch... isn't far," he whispered. "Let's go back and find Commander Su and the others."
The miner carefully helped him sit up. The military police officer voluntarily stepped forward to support half of Lin Yan's body weight. The female support soldier walked at the very back to stand guard, while the scout leaned on his rock hammer, limping as he led the way at the front. This battered squad, dragging their heavily wounded bodies, moved slowly toward the maintenance hatch cover.
Deep within the cavern, the Spiderweb Ancient Being received the news of the secondary priest's death and the complete annihilation of the ambushing scaled beasts. That faint pulse signal continued to stubbornly pierce through the rock layers and diffuse outward, uninterrupted.
It remained silent for a long time. Countless psychic tentacles slowly tightened within the hidden rock caverns.
He is still alive. The terminal is still intact, and the signal continues to spread outward, the intent of the Spiderweb Ancient Being flowed through the darkness. Layer upon layer of checkpoints, layer upon layer of ambushes, and still, they could not stop them. If this pulse is truly captured by the barrier cities, the balance of the entire rift battlefield will be shattered.
The consciousness of the supreme ruler slowly floated forth.
There is no need to mobilize the scaled beasts along the route to pursue, the supreme ruler decided. They are already very close to the shelter pod. Continuing the pursuit will only drain our combat strength. We must conserve our forces to prepare for the arrival of the barrier cities' reinforcements. For now, let us quietly observe whether this signal can reach the human defense lines.
The ancient beings' hunt temporarily ceased. But this did not mean the crisis was over. Once the reinforcements arrived following the coordinates, the underground rift would erupt into a battle of a scale far exceeding any previous conflict.
Inside the tunnel, the silhouettes of the five moved forward slowly under the faint light of the glow stones. Leaning half against the military police officer's shoulder, Lin Yan's consciousness flickered between clarity and blur. Images flashed through his mind: the little boy in the shelter pod handing him the bone shard, the face of Scholar Su, and the continuous fortifications of the barrier defense lines.
The pulse he had sacrificed everything to send out was the only chance of survival for everyone in the entire shelter pod.
Not far ahead, the outline of the maintenance hatch cover had already faintly appeared within the dim light.
End of Chapter.