Chapter 21 Dead Sea Abomination <TOC> Chapter 23 The Mastermind
Translator: SumTLMan
In the dead of night, the Warrior Crabs skillfully crawled forward, executing precise point eliminations on their enemies.
The peripheral Camel Soldiers were the first to be taken down.
By the time the four Enhancers became aware, the Warrior Crabs had already closed in. Two Alchemists were instantly slain, while the four-wheeled motorcycles were overturned and slaughtered by the ten-armed ambushing Warrior Crabs as they attempted to flee.
The only one who struggled twice was the gunman who pierced through the Iron Horse.
Each of the enemy’s light points representing their presence vanished completely within two minutes.
To all of this, Zhou Yi was accustomed.
Combat was brutal, survival meant life or death, leaving no room for luck, mercy, or compassion. The imperative was to eliminate as much of the enemy’s living force as possible in the shortest time.
In the Dead Sea, Zhou Yi had once been exhausted by the relentless assaults and challenges from various monsters.
No matter how many times he triumphed, the monsters continued their onslaughts in unending waves.
To minimize casualties among his Warrior Crabs, there was a period when Zhou Yi had to dodge and flee constantly.
He began to observe and study the powerful Light Absorber species that dominated certain regions, confused as to why they had not been challenged. Instead, these Light Absorbers relentlessly hunted other monsters, forcing entire groups to scatter and flee, hiding in fear, too terrified to resist.
Zhou Yi discovered that some regional rulers were not inherently that strong; their superiority over surrounding individuals was limited. If the hunted could unite and attack these rulers as if fighting their own levels, they could inflict injuries or even kill them.
Yet, the rulers never did so. They simply fled in panic.
Monster overlords always took the initiative, killing off a portion of their own kind within the monster horde, especially the stronger individuals. This instilled fear among the lesser monsters, completely stripping them of any desire or courage to resist.
After prolonged observation and extensive testing, Zhou Yi achieved enlightenment in the Dead Sea.
One must take the initiative, deliver powerful blows, and swiftly reduce enemy numbers. Particularly by killing the strong, one could intimidate the weaker ones, undermining their will to rebel.
This method proved highly effective.
From then on, Zhou Yi needed only a few battles to make most monsters respect and avoid him.
Building on this foundation, he made further optimizations.
Zhou Yi selected a group of robust Warrior Crabs and distributed some Light Seeds to them. These Warrior Crabs had evolved their exoskeletons to a black hue, and their energy needs surpassed those of their peers.
These strong individuals exhibited extreme hunger.
With the supplementation of Light Seeds, they would undergo metamorphosis through molting.
These Warrior Crabs acquired stronger and lighter black armor, with significant boosts in speed, strength, and explosive power. Their claws also evolved in different directions.
Some of the black-armored Warrior Crabs had their claws contracted and elongated into sharp, double-edged broadswords on either side, which Zhou Yi called Dual Blade Hands.
Others had their dual claws become larger and more powerful, resembling a pair of iron hammers capable of delivering devastating blows that could penetrate high-defense targets. Since they were adept at demolition and modification, Zhou Yi named them Hammerhead Soldiers.
The last portion, however, embarked on a different evolutionary path.
Their physiological structures underwent significant changes, transforming into a slightly bizarre upright form.
Their large dorsal shells became segmented black armored plates covering their entire bodies, and their head armor became heavy, resembling space helmets without glass visors.
The upright crabs’ dual claws evolved into three-toed talons, allowing for more flexible gripping and climbing. Their lower bodies featured two sturdy legs, not claws or feet, but stilt-like bone stilts that moved swiftly without compromising their balance.
The other three pairs of legs were folded onto their backs, capable of tightly grasping weapon boxes, swiftly drawing weapons to transfer to their claws, and quickly unfolding to provide support during rolls, serving as auxiliary limbs.
These upright crabs were not tall, generally under 1.5 meters, but their armor was broad and thick, their limbs sturdy, and their center of gravity extremely stable.
They were the fewest in number, but their potential was immense, capable of utilizing more tools.
Furthermore, upright crabs were the only ones capable of spontaneous weightlifting and running, training their own strength, speed, and explosiveness. They also modified weapons for their own use and engaged in sparring with other individuals, possessing higher intelligence and combat understanding than their peers.
Zhou Yi named them Weapon Masters.
Dual Blade Hands, Hammerhead Soldiers, and Weapon Masters were the three branches into which the Warrior Crabs evolved into their next forms.
Their common traits included pitch-black armor, silver-white vertical eyes, and body surfaces that no longer displayed silver patterns directly, only revealing them when absorbing Dead Light energy.
Zhou Yi named them Black Warriors.
They could maintain a concealed state, blending into their surrounding environments, making them hard to detect.
This trait was remarkably effective in combat.
The success of the night raid also demonstrated that their capabilities were equally effective for ground operations.
Zhou Yi had only one point of confusion.
He asked the remote control device: “Are these people too weak? Why does it seem like the Enhancers have no effective resistance?”
Red Falcon responded: “Once there’s a significant disparity in their units, resistance becomes non-existent. It’s merely the weak being unilaterally hunted by the strong.”
“These Black Warriors, their strength, or rather, destructive power, has already reached D-class. Sending out 30 Black Warriors and 104 ordinary Warrior Crabs to deal with these 4 Enhancers and 28 ordinary humans was bound to yield such results.”
The drone said: “A strength like that of the Black Warriors should belong to a leader of a crab horde, and normally, they are exclusive. It’s truly incredible that you’ve managed to make them cooperate with each other.”
“Especially the Weapon Masters inside; I’ve never heard of this evolutionary branch before.”
Zhou Yi mused: “That’s because I am their leader in their eyes, having rescued and raised them since they were young.”
With an absolute core at the center, everyone could perform their duties.
After confirming that none of the enemies had survived, Zhou Yi proceeded to the battered Iron Horse.
The surface of this agricultural machine was marked with many black burns and damage from flames. The headlight was drooping, dragging on the ground, and the machine gun on its back had its muzzle completely bent. The hole on the roof still sparked with electric arcs, but the main body of the agricultural machine remained relatively intact.
Zhou Yi said: “Sorry I’m late.”
“Thank you for your assistance; you arrived just in time,” Iron Horse emitted a crackling, broken voice, seemingly due to a malfunctioning speaker.
“I almost got dismantled by those bastards. These guys are truly despicable…”
Through its narration, Zhou Yi learned that the Iron Horse had originally cultivated the farmland for protection, so it came to try to stop this group from expanding the storm, only to be ambushed and beaten.
Zhou Yi pointed to its top where the machine gun was and joked: “Looks like the firepower is still insufficient.”
“Actually, this is just for show; there are no bullets inside. Because bullets are expensive, the machine gun was only made as a fake, for appearances.”
Iron Horse added: “The traps they set up made my unit difficult to operate normally, with a large amount of energy drained. I could barely maintain basic power.”
Only then did Zhou Yi understand.
They had installed a fake weapon to bluff.
At that moment, the Red Falcon suddenly emitted a sharp, unprecedented siren.
“Be careful! There’s something in the Mushroom Forest!”
“The energy intensity is extremely high!”
“At least C-class!”
Zhou Yi turned his head to look.
At this time, the sun was rising, and the Mushroom Forest was producing a rumbling sound, as if something inside was vibrating.
Then, a mountain slowly rose from within.
Suddenly, a loud whistle sounded from the rear.
“Big Brother, I’m coming!”
Then Zhou Yi saw, in the direction of the whistle, two thick red flames lit up, swiftly charging head-on into the giant object in the Mushroom Forest.
Amidst dazzling explosive flashes and deafening roars, the previously risen mountain slowly collapsed.
Zhou Yi let out a groan.
“Copper Bull is back with the fertilizer.”
Iron Horse explained: “Unlike me, it’s equipped with real weapons.”
Chapter 21 Dead Sea Abomination <TOC> Chapter 23 The Mastermind