Translator: CinderTL
Rustle!
The wilderness stretched vast and green, dotted with trees.
Chen Feng stopped behind a pine tree, crushing dry leaves underfoot.
He wore a black trench coat and a sand-resistant face mask that concealed half his face.
It was none other than Chen Feng, who had been traveling nonstop for several days.
To avoid detection and scrutiny from the deep web, he had suppressed much of his power.
Yet, even so, he had encountered no incidents along the way.
Both mutated beasts and opportunistic scavenger teams had long since turned to dust.
He reached into his coat pocket and pulled out one of his recent trophies: a map of the wilderness.
Technological advancement in the wilderness was severely stunted and tightly controlled. Civilian forces were largely restricted from using electronic devices.
Consequently, maps had become the primary tool for scavenger teams.
Whoosh!
As the map unfolded, Chen Feng focused his gaze.
The wilderness truly was vast, spanning every region of the Tedo Kingdom.
Every main city circle was surrounded by wilderness, and only through highly advanced technology had these isolated cities been integrated into a cohesive whole.
At this moment, he had arrived near Cloud City, one of the main cities.
According to the map, they were only a few dozen kilometers from the main city.
"Almost there," Chen Feng murmured, nodding slightly as he put away the map.
He continued forward for a short distance before abruptly stopping.
Within his Perception, 700 meters ahead, a swamp blocked their path. Several enormous, crocodile-like strange beasts with single horns lurked within. Each beast was three to four meters long, their vertical pupils glowing with an intimidating green light, radiating killing intent.
Normally, he wouldn't have paid them any mind. But then he glanced ahead.
In a clearing before the swamp, a group of scavengers had hidden their off-road vehicles. Armed with firearms, they were stealthily approaching the swamp, their footsteps light and cautious.
Their faces looked strangely familiar.
It was none other than the group he had knocked unconscious in the mountain cave.
"Joey, do you think we can do this?"
"These azure armor crocodile beasts are incredibly fierce. Many teams have fallen victim to them."
Dozens of meters away, in the forest bordering the swamp, some scavengers were setting up steel wire nets, while others were adjusting sniper rifles.
Someone couldn't help but voice their concern, but they quickly received a reassuring reply.
"No problem. These azure armor crocodile beasts may have tough scales that can deflect ordinary bullets, but they move very slowly on land, and their eyes are extremely vulnerable."
"Follow my lead. Once we lure them out, we'll take them down one by one."
The leader, a woman named Joey, wore her hair in a ponytail and appeared to be in her late twenties. She had fair skin, brown eyes, and was clad in a gray-and-black tactical suit, carrying a small firearm.
The three men and one woman who had followed her clenched their jaws, but ultimately agreed to take the risk. After all, the Azure Armor of these azure armor crocodile beasts was highly valuable, with numerous biotech companies in the main city circle offering substantial rewards for them. If they succeeded, each of them would receive a significant share of wealth and resources, enough to sustain them for a long time.
Joey, sensing their decision, took her submachine gun and circled around alone, creating a diversion from another direction to draw the attention of the azure armor crocodile beasts in the swamp.
Roar!!
As expected, the mutated crocodile beast revealed its savage nature. Its nearly four-meter-long body unleashed brute force in the swamp, churning the water into a frenzy. In less than a second, it had already lunged onto the bank.
Clang! Clang! Clang!
Feigning panic, Joey fired her weapon frantically, but the bullets only sparked against the beast's armored back. In the nick of time, she rolled sideways to evade the attack.
Boom!!
The azure armor crocodile beast slammed into the bank like a charging war machine, leaving a massive crater in the ground. The nearest gray rocks shattered instantly.
Fallen leaves swirled, and stone fragments exploded.
Then, the crocodile beast opened its blood-red maw and lunged forward to bite again.
Boom!!
Its strike missed. Joey had already risen to her feet and dodged backward.
Her gaze swept past the crocodile beast on the bank and down into the swamp.
The other three azure armor crocodile beasts in the swamp, though their eyes glowed with green light, drawn by the commotion, remained motionless, floating on the water's surface like gray driftwood, making no further move.
"We can't stall any longer."
Frowning, Joey made a decisive move and opened fire on the swamp.
Bang bang bang bang bang!!
After a burst of gunfire, the other crocodile beasts in the swamp were provoked and enraged. Regardless of their size, they all charged toward the bank.
In an instant, they received the signal.
Hidden in the bushes a dozen meters away, Joey's teammates sprang into action.
Boom!!
A custom-made sniper rifle with a large-caliber barrel fired, piercing the eerie green eye of a crocodile beast during a moment of slow movement.
Meanwhile, thin steel cables were pulled taut, forming a net that blocked their retreat.
Within mere breaths, two crocodile beasts were slain on the spot.
Roar!!
Blood sprayed, and the death of their kin ignited even more bestial fury.
The largest azure armor crocodile beast roared and struggled, twisting its massive body and charging straight toward a teammate.
The ground shook violently as the steel net meant to restrain it snapped under its impact.
The sound of wood cracking echoed repeatedly as several nearby trees, bearing the brunt of the force, snapped in half.
"Damn it!"
Seeing the beast about to break through their encirclement and tear into a teammate, several scavengers' faces turned grim.
At this critical moment, Joey, the team's leader, gritted her teeth. Finally, she pulled a silver, oval-shaped metal object from her tactical suit.
"Get down, everyone!!"
The command rang out, and everyone instinctively obeyed.
Then, Joey hurled the object, tossing it beneath the crocodile beast.
Boom!!
The earth trembled with the force of the explosion.
A wave of wind swept outward, uprooting trees and sending ripples across the swamp's surface.
Gray smoke billowed into the air, and the few remaining opponents coughed and rose to their feet, their faces etched with shock.
"Cough, cough... What was that?"
"Joey, you didn't just use a high-compression explosive bomb, did you!?"
As the questions flew, Joey climbed to her feet, her expression one of pained regret. This was a rare item she had obtained through connections at the supply station, at no small cost.
Initially, Joey had been wary after being knocked unconscious by the strange young man and subsequently questioned by the warship. She had wanted to save the high-compression explosive bomb as a trump card for emergencies.
But now, she had been forced to use it here.
"This is a huge loss!" she grumbled, waving her hand to disperse the smoke.
The group, guns raised and alert, cautiously advanced through the mud. They soon saw a deep pit nearly ten meters wide in the center of the muddy ground.
The powerful azure armor crocodile beast was already dead. Its abdominal scales had shattered, and blood flowed freely, almost staining the ground red.
Everyone breathed a sigh of relief, but the thought of the high-compression explosive bomb's use made them wince.
Technology weapons were already heavily restricted in the wilderness, and such rare and devastating equipment was beyond mere monetary value.
"Forget it," Joey said, shaking her head, finally suppressing her heartache. "Let's clean up quickly."
The others nodded in agreement and prepared to clear the battlefield, harvesting materials from the crocodile beast's corpse.
But just then...
Vroom!!
Engines roared as several black SUVs sped toward them, kicking up a cloud of dust.
Joey and her companions' expressions changed. They immediately raised their guns.
But soon, a piercing drone of buzzing filled the air.
A swarm of drones rapidly approached from behind the off-road vehicle, their rotating gun turrets locking onto them.
"Tsk, tsk, tsk. Who would have thought you wilderness remnants could actually kill an azure armor crocodile beast?" someone sneered from inside the vehicle, pushing open the door.
With a series of loud slams, figures clad in black combat suits emerged, weapons drawn, and surrounded the area, their boots crunching on stone chips and mud.
Some even wore special metal arm armor and had silver-gray power units strapped to their backs.
"Pangu Technology?" Joey's pupils narrowed as she saw the silver axe emblem on the newcomers' chests and the four large characters emblazoned on their combat suits.
Her four teammates behind her paled, their faces quickly turning ashen.
This was a super-corporation within the Tedo Kingdom, a behemoth in the field of technological research.
Many advanced weapons on the market bore its mark, including some of the firepower systems used by battleship legions. Rumor had it that Pangu Technology supplied them all.
"Oh, you're quite well-informed," the leading man said mockingly, appearing to be around thirty years old with a slicked-back hairstyle.
Amidst the commotion, he walked past them as if they were invisible, heading straight for the deep pit. Two more Pangu Technology off-road vehicles arrived on the scene.
Several mechanical soldiers, clad entirely in black, descended with their rifles drawn, their cold, crimson eyes fixed on Joey and her team.
Portable high-explosive weapons and high-powered missiles locked onto them.
The atmosphere instantly plummeted to freezing point, the equipment disparity overwhelming.
Joey's face paled, and her teammates behind her were filled with despair.
"Since I'm in a good mood today, I'll give you one minute to scram."
"From this moment on, this loot belongs to us."
He smiled, ignoring them completely as he gazed at the azure armor crocodile beast's corpse.
His mocking tone was deeply humiliating. Joey's four scavenger teammates flushed crimson, clenching their jaws in silent rage. Joey, as their leader, gripped her weapon handle tightly, her heart filled with resentment.
"Oh?"
Narrowing his eyes, the Pangu Technology leader, his face triangular and his head tilted slightly, resembled a venomous snake.
Sensing the coldness in his gaze, Joey finally suppressed her anger.
Reason told her the right choice. With a bitter sigh, she stepped forward, leading her team away.
"Let's go!"
Hearing this, Joey and her three teammates gritted their teeth and followed suit, preparing to leave.
"Hey, wait."
But just then, the male leader from Pangu Technology suddenly raised his hand to stop them.
Ignoring the shocked and furious glances from Joey and the others, he tilted his head slightly, gazing into the distance across the swamp.
There, a dense thicket of trees stood, their lush foliage obscuring the view.
Beep!
An intelligent voice sounded, and a blue light projected from his wristwatch, forming a holographic screen that hovered before him.
Advanced thermal imaging technology had already scanned the surroundings, revealing a large red heat signature on the screen, roughly the size of a normal human's energy field.
It was only a few hundred meters away, deep within the thicket.
"So you dared to play such petty tricks on me?" the male leader said, his tone mocking.
Joey and her teammates froze, their expressions stunned. Then, he waved his hand dismissively.
"Since you don't want to leave, none of you will."
"Kill him!"
Buzz!
As the order fell, a swarm of drones erupted into a chorus of buzzing, hurtling toward the distant swamp.
(End of the Chapter)
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