Chapter 670
Chapter 670 - 650: Third Class Contact
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7 min read
The semi-transparent spirit eagle soared through the sky, and though the intangible war messenger did not make any sound, its gaze had already surveyed everything within several kilometers.
"...target at 167.89, 2011.322, 78.-991..."
With his eyes closed, Lu Ping’an reported several numbers and the condition of the prey.
Then, the thunderous sound of cannons and the attacking hunting squads followed.
Five minutes later, the skirmish ended, and the many achievements in the battle made team leader Lu Ping’an very satisfied with his gains.
He never expected that in this strange world, the first ability to be put to use and the one he used the most every day was his nearly forgotten soldier system ability.
The War Eagle was a divine grace given to Lu Ping’an when he advanced as a soldier. At the time, however, he was more interested in another ability, especially...
"The aerial surveillance capability is pretty much useless in the city, as Earth’s technology level doesn’t have drones... Uh, it may never have drones now."
But the War God understood the warfare, knowing how useful a high-altitude surveillance unit, a "drone" that could share its vision with the commander, would be on the battlefield.
Once considered a trivial ability in the city, the War Eagle proved to be a valuable asset in the wilderness where no forests could provide cover.
One by one, the hidden Gray Edge Hunters were found and quickly eradicated.
Flames engulfed the field, and the black Gray Edge tribesmen were trapped in a sea of fire.
The faceless creature roared, but Lu Ping’an heard no sound. He had heard that this was a kind of sonic damage that was deadly to mortals.
Lu Ping’an turned back to see some of his colleagues frowning... as it became increasingly clear to him that he was not a normal human being.
Lu Ping’an tightened his right hand, and the flames swiftly contracted.
The firewall turned into a fire ring, then slowly tightened and finally transformed into a fireball.
The moment Lu Ping’an clenched his fist, the fireball burst, and the Gray Edge Hunter was crushed like a bug.
Even in the last moments, it could only let out a silent shriek, as if it never had the structure to make a normal sound to begin with.
When the smoke cleared, only a pile of black ashes remained.
This life form was cold-resistant, low in body water, but likely had a negative resistance to high temperatures.
There was no conversation, no questions, and no interaction whatsoever. Within just two days of outdoor work, Lu Ping’an had become accustomed to this fast-paced life of slaughter.
His previous encounters had shown him that any attempt to approach these creatures was foolish - as soon as they detected you, they would launch an attack, and their detection abilities were extremely strong.
Once in contact, they wouldn’t stop attacking even if ignored; puddles of blood would explode in the face of their dying victim... For a mortal, this venom would be lethal.
This characteristic made it very difficult for close-combat professions to deal with them effectively, or at least, it would leave a bad taste in one’s mouth.
"...Will it ever end? There are four more."
On the second day after the great firestorm, these gray, reptile-like creatures appeared everywhere. They searched and killed everything in sight, and they were hostile towards humans.
The first wave of attacks was sudden and caught the unsuspecting exploration team in an ambush. The human side suffered significant losses.
Thankfully, the initial number of attackers wasn’t too many - just a scouting squad - and they were quickly eliminated by the humans that were able to rally.
Now, the primary mission of the patrolling squads, like Lu Ping’an’s team, was to hunt down these "mobile horsemen," take out their eyes and ears, and prevent further group battles.
Lu Ping’an wasn’t initially interested in participating in this pure hunting activity, but when he tried to explore on his own, he encountered several surprise attacks from these annoying hunters, which made him increasingly helpless.
Lu Ping’an had previously asked specifically about their situation and could only sigh at the wonder of the Creator.
"What’s the point of doing this? Isn’t it just a waste of their own forces?"
"Their situation is a bit special. They’re divided into two types of individuals: ’Edge’ and ’Blade.’ The ones we eliminate are the Blades, and the Blades are said to be the puppets and clones of the Edge, a cannon fodder that can be mass-produced."
Lu Ping’an had confirmed this.
Among the ambushes he had encountered, some of the Gray Edge Tribe members were clearly much larger and stronger than their peers, and when they were in trouble, other individuals would shield them without fear of death.
The most obvious sign was that the "Blade" was not afraid of death, while the "Edge" would beg for mercy and run for their lives, clearly exhibiting the characteristics of intelligent creatures.
"Only the Edge are the true Gray Edge Tribe members, and as long as they have enough food, one Edge can replenish seven Blades within three days... Let’s search a little more. They can’t be too far apart, and once we take out that hidden Edge, we’ll have completed our hunting mission and receive our reward."
The other team members also began to explore.
In the end, it was Lu Ping’an who came out ahead.
"...Nice doggie, nice doggie."
He happily praised the excited Little Flame and fed the Edge to his hunting dog.
Little Flame had dug this creature out from underground, so it seemed that Little Flame’s "hunting dog" abilities had been well developed.
Lu Ping’an’s Beast Tamer laboratory also helped refine the hidden functionalities of Little Flame’s Life Diagram.
When new creatures were created, these skill tree pages represented their entire range of abilities. As time went on, they would gradually digest these "skills" and, by then, they would still have many abilities even if the pages were removed.
Previously, the skills of the two "magic pets" in Lu Ping’an’s possession were quite important and complicated. Little Flame’s skills were unique (Exotic Realm creatures), and Zhi Xi was too strong-willed.
Now, knowing this fact, Lu Ping’an gave the "hunting dog" skill to Little Flame, trying to make her more useful in this way.
With an eagle perched on his shoulder, a dog tethered in his hands, and... riding on Zhi Xi’s back, he had become a skilled hunter.
He had only been doing this job for two days, but his battle achievements were already remarkable, making him somewhat famous in the camp.
Based on experience, the area would be relatively quiet for a while... until new Gray Edge sentinels were deployed.
At the present moment, both sides were still in the phase of testing each other. The Gray Edge Tribe continued to send out various sentinels for probing attacks, testing both defensive vulnerabilities and the combat power of their opponents.
This seemed to be a calm before the storm and the beginning of trouble.
So far, Lu Ping’an still didn’t quite understand.
"Why don’t they just go hunting and settle in other places? The world is so big, it can accommodate us."
"...Eliminating an opponent’s initial scouting forces and showing one’s strength and determination during the struggle for the right to colonize the world is the most cost-effective approach. But as far as I know, the Sharp Edge Clan is a bit exceptional..."
"What’s the exception?"
"They will attack all opponents they encounter, just like humans seeing cockroaches in their houses... There are some things that just can’t be negotiated from the very beginning."
— End of Chapter 670 —