Chapter 899
Chapter 899 - 885 "Kindred
1,493 words
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8 min read
"Go! Go! Go!"
Time was always limited and precious. No one believed that the poor Demon Wolves, acting as bait, could hold on for long in front of the apex predators of the Biological Chain.
As soon as Lu Ping’an’s team entered the base, they split up in an instant, one became two, two became ten, each finding their own path and direction to scatter.
The scattered executors were more suited to seizing every minute and second.
The "slight explosions" that traveled through the walls from different directions could still attract the attention of the Energy-devouring Evil Sunflowers, although not many were present here.
But that was probably all it could do, just serve as a distraction...
"Southwest direction, found seven."
"Two found in the north."
"Over here, twelve... ugh, broke through thirty, all found under one table. Were these poor saps having a party?"
The dispersed warriors were swiftly traversing in their respective directions.
They were all leading Demon Wolves on leashes, some even carrying "Self-destructing Helicopters", which could help distract the energy devourers once or twice before awaiting their demise...
"Damn, due west, one... I’m back. There are seven giant earthworms squatting here, don’t come over."
However, because of the existence of courtyards and Reception Rooms, being surrounded did not mean a dead end. Such a suicidal plan could be relatively safe as long as it was well-prepared.
The team scattered in a suicidal fashion, searching for the gems that were avatars of the Luka people (and any other valuable Goods), breaking through if possible. If they truly couldn’t advance, they would use points to return to Lu Ping’an’s Courtyard.
And those who were forced to retreat, if they still had the strength and time, could make a second breakthrough with the Demon Wolves.
With Lu Ping’an as the core, the underground Palace map, previously filled with "fog", was forcibly unveiled, and danger spots and "Resource Points" were marked one by one...
"North, west, second passage on the right. There seems to be some interesting stuff here, looks like what they call a ’Resource Stockpile’. Anyone interested in making a haul?"
"Over here... how unlucky, another group of giant earthworms, don’t come over." Xue En had returned for the third time, holding only two gems.
The dispersed "Suicide Dog Tactics" were a simple and direct approach, yet with each passing second, they were reaping more "gems"... along with a massive amount of rare minerals.
This was once the core base of the Luka people, with vast amounts of precious minerals laid out on the ground. The team could only try to pick up as much valuable stuff as possible.
These were all clearly taken with the Original Owner’s nod of approval.
Lu Ping’an had already signed an agreement with Prince His Highness, ensuring that all extra gains from this mission were to be the mercenary team’s reward, and that the Prince’s death would have nothing to do with the team.
Don’t think this was superfluous. Without this agreement, Lu Ping’an and his party, should they actually secure Somer Steel, might encounter a lot of trouble.
Especially since no one could guarantee whether this unfortunate Prince would really be able to leave this Planet alive... Should fate really turn grievous, causing murder and robbery, or if the forsaken Luka people of the Royal Family decide to vent their anger, it would become very troublesome.
The tactic seemed to be working well so far.
The first wave of suicide dogs drew away most of the Energy-devouring Evil Sunflowers on the perimeter (they were more sensitive), and the number of Demon Sunflowers still inside the base wasn’t high, so it was possible to actively avoid them if encountered. The team was continuously collecting gems... and each gem actually represented a life.
"How much farther? At most ten minutes... Regardless of success, we’ll need to consider retreating."
Now, Lu Ping’an’s goal was very simple and direct, to reach Warehouse 1 of the local base... That place was said to be a reserve for Somer Steel, but at the same time, it was the heart of this underground City.
Time was always limited, and those Wolf packs outside, even when fleeing for their lives under threat, would still be hunted down one by one.
Having obtained the time point, they might sense the movements inside the base and choose to return directly... According to the plan, if time spent in the underground base exceeded a quarter of an hour, it would become extremely dangerous.
Now, seven minutes had already passed...
"Can’t get around it, prepare to fight."
But since they had a goal, they couldn’t just avoid confrontation as before.
An Energy-devouring Demon Sunflower was blocking the passage, its massive size making it impossible for smaller life forms to pass.
"... Please, Mumu!"
The little Tree-man led the way, growing larger and larger with each step.
By the time he reached the Energy-devouring Evil Sunflower, they had become a battle between a giant and a giant beast.
The Energy-devouring Evil Sunflower froze there, its slow mind trying to tell itself that the being before it seemed to be of its own kind? But why did it look different, and why did it have four more ugly limbs...
With a punch and a pull, Mumu directly started boxing and tugging.
After an initial sluggishness, the Energy-devouring Evil Sunflower began to fight back. It tried to coil around its opponent, intending to strangle this strange kin to death.
"...As expected, it didn’t activate the ability to call its kin."
The scene before everyone’s eyes made them all sigh with relief.
The most troublesome part of facing an Energy-devouring Evil Sunflower wasn’t its strength, but the fact that once it was on the losing side, it would immediately use its kindred-summoning ability to howl to the sky, calling its kin for a righteous gang-up.
If it still couldn’t overpower its opponent, it would summon more, and then even more would come.
As a result, if you couldn’t kill it quickly, there could be more and more to fight until, despite being stronger, you were forced to choose between retreat or death.
But what if the opponent was of the same species?
In truth, such a scenario had indeed happened before when two Energy-devouring Evil Sunflowers clashed and competed over prey.
And on the ground experiments, Mumu, whom other Energy-devouring Evil Sunflowers saw as one of their own, also didn’t trigger their kin-calling trait!
"Go, let’s move quickly!"
When the giant serpent-like creature coiled around Mumu the giant, the previously tight passageway naturally opened up a large gap.
Lu Ping’an didn’t wait for them to settle the fight because it was completely meaningless.
"...Alright."
Once they successfully broke through that area and upon instruction, Mumu once again transformed into the smaller Tree-man form.
The massive Energy-devouring Evil Sunflower could only fall to the ground heavily, still unable to understand where that frenzied kin had disappeared.
"Continue...."
Lu Ping’an breathed a sigh of relief.
At this time, he was actually sharing Mumu’s "Devourer" trait.
Having lost most of his abilities, he should appear as a "small kin" within the Energy-devouring Evil Sunflower’s radar.
"...Hurry, I can’t take it much longer."
However, he had underestimated the presence of this ability.
Once used, the ability of the Devourer (Gold tier) would continuously devour the energy from his body... His body temperature rapidly plummeted, his heartbeat became harder and harder, and even the constriction of his blood vessels became a torture.
HIs breaths were filled with coldness and pain.
This was not a curse of the Life system, but a sheer deprivation of all "energy."
This was still the result when the ability level was at its lowest. If he truly used the ability to its full extent, instantaneous death was likely the only outcome.
"It’s not that it can’t be used; perhaps your tier is too low. Rule-level should use Rule-level strength after all."
Big Cat casually comforted him, making Lu Ping’an a bit more at ease... at least Mumu still had potential to be tapped, and her abilities could become his wealth in the future.
But then, Lu Ping’an frowned.
He had reached the agreed spot, the central square of the city. Just a few streets across from him was the full-packed warehouse.
But frustratingly, whether it was because the warehouse held so many treasures or because this was one of the areas hit hardest from the start, the ground was not just littered with numerous gems, there were also...
"How do we clear out so many Energy-devouring Evil Sunflowers."
A multitude of Energy-devouring Evil Sunflowers were entrenched around the treasury, blocking every path and becoming the final obstacle for Lu Ping’an and his team.
— End of Chapter 899 —