Chapter 1 Good Heavens, What a Racket...

Li Ang half-squatted on the ground, his palm pressed against a metal pipe, feeling the intense vibration coming from the pipe. He muttered to himself, "I wonder if it's players or native monsters..."

He had already left the previous hibernation pod hall and scouted around nearby. The buildings here could indeed absorb various forms of energy.

The absorption of electromagnetic waves was the strongest. Unmanned reconnaissance aircraft would lose contact after flying a certain distance.

The absorption of psionic energy was second. The strength, distance, and stability of psionic connections were all reduced.

However, the Zerg hive had previously gone through an era of using pheromones, sound waves, and light for communication. Even without psionic energy, they could still contact each other. What's more, there was Li Ang's divine power network. The building's absorption of divine power was moderate. As long as he expended divine power, Li Ang could still contact every cerebrate.

Relying on the information fed back by a large number of scout Zerg, Li Ang roughly understood the surrounding terrain.

Everywhere here were huge and complex building structures: walls, pipes, stairs, suspended corridors, drawbridges, and discarded mechanical wreckage with unknown functions were everywhere.

At least two types of "mechanical lifeforms" lived in the ruins.

The first type was called "Mech-Beasts" by Li Ang.

They usually dwelled in semi-enclosed spaces such as broken pipes. They were small in size, extremely numerous, and moved in swarms. They had a special fondness for flesh and blood. After contacting flesh and blood life, they would generate weapons to tear it apart, but they would not eat the flesh and blood parts.

The network intrusion devices and EMP electromagnetic interference devices produced and sold by Prometheus Labs Corporation and Whale Song Organization had no effect on them.

Psionic energy and Swamp Divine Power could not effectively kill them either.

According to the observation of the scout Zerg, these mechanical creatures would sometimes pick up discarded machinery on the ground, drag it back to their nests, disassemble it, and use it for self-replication to create more of their kind.

They were somewhat like mechanical beasts without self-awareness or intelligence, only following their instincts.

The second type was called "Builders" by Li Ang.

Builders were scarce in number but huge in size, each comparable to a ten-thousand-ton ship.

Their shapes and models varied. They usually roamed freely within the building complex, picking up and devouring mechanical wreckage on the ground. Inside their bodies, in a place similar to a "forging furnace," they melted the mechanical wreckage into basic materials.

Inside the space, they constructed more walls, pipes, stairs...

However, the Builders were not more intelligent than the Mech-Beasts. Their activities were unplanned, and their overly large bodies rampaged everywhere.

While building, they also damaged the original building structure, keeping the building complex in a chaotic and disordered state.

Li Ang believed that the Builders might have some connection with the Mech-Beasts, but he had not found any definite evidence. In the past period of time, the Builders observed by the scout Zerg had not shown any signs of self-replication.

Usually, Mech-Beasts would actively avoid Builders.

Only in very few cases, when the number of Mech-Beasts reached a critical point, would they attack the Builders in swarms. Due to the difference in size between the two sides, it would take a long time for the Builders to feel that they were being attacked.

And their response strategy was to increase the temperature of the power furnace and the forging furnace, making their body surface hot and scorching.

Combined with slowly shaking their bodies, they would shake off all the dense Mech-Beasts hanging on their body surface. However, before being shaken off, the Mech-Beasts had already stolen enough metal and parts from the Builders, returning to their nests fully loaded to continue self-replication.

These two types of creatures constituted the ecological environment of the Construction City, but Li Ang had not yet seen the [Security Guards] mentioned in the belt.

"The two thousand or so scout Zerg that have been released have had a small half of them attacked and killed by Mech-Beasts. The remaining one thousand four hundred have detected levels 46, 47, and 45, and are gradually exploring towards levels 48 and 44."

Li Ang muttered, "So far, I haven't triggered a battle, and I haven't been noticed by the detectors assigned by the system.

Either more than ten battles have broken out elsewhere, drawing away all the detectors;

Or no battles have broken out elsewhere, and ten detectors are randomly jumping between three hundred players, and it just hasn't been my turn.

The former is more likely, after all, with the belt speed limiter in place,

Those players who are rich in reconnaissance methods and confident in their strength will inevitably take the initiative to attack, plunder others, or form gangs to go to the map to find radioactive powder.

However, as the number of players continues to decrease, the intensity of the battle will always drop below ten, and the possibility of me being exposed to the camera will continue to increase..."

Li Ang's greatest advantage over other players lies in his logistical combat capabilities.

If he wants to defeat players from other factions and advance to the next round, he must use the Zerg hive...

"The Zerg hive can be released, but I can't be exposed to the camera along with the Zerg hive."

Li Ang's mind raced, his eyes like an ancient well without waves, "In the previous stages, I used flying Zerg for reconnaissance.

But a few hundred flying Zerg for reconnaissance purposes alone,

And a Zerg hive with a complete production and combat system, are completely different concepts.

The former can still be glossed over with summoning-type skills and props.

Once the latter is exposed,

Other forces will inevitably make considerations.

With the Zerg hive's crazy expansion ability, environmental modification ability, and troop production ability,

Its user is very likely to obtain resource materials from the real world, and pose a huge threat to the ecological environment of the real world.

This kind of power should not be in the hands of unrestricted, self-aware individual lifeforms."

Li Ang paused, thinking to himself, "In other words, once the outside world knows that Zerg hive = Li Risheng,

Then Li Risheng's identity will be suspected, ostracized, and investigated with unprecedented intensity, and even hunted down by the outside world.

The tacit relationship that Li Risheng has maintained with the Special Affairs Bureau will also be broken."

The current Zerg hive has not yet grown to the point where it can be unafraid of modern strategic-level weapons.

The history of mankind is a history of war. The naturally warlike humans have no opponents in the biological world and have turned their attention to their own kind, constantly studying the art of war and weapons.

Even without using nuclear weapons, which stand at the pinnacle of power in the real world,

Cloudburst bombs, thermobaric bombs, and other sub-nuclear weapons are still enough to destroy mountains and burn the sea, destroying the Zerg hive whose coordinates have been exposed.

"The Zerg hive's only countermeasure is to release fungal spores, destroy the ecological system, and threaten and intimidate the real-world forces to not risk everything, maintaining a balance of terror.

However, this countermeasure is still too passive, and it cannot guarantee the absolute safety of Li Risheng's identity.

The best way is to prevent it before it happens, and not let me and the Zerg hive have any contact.

This way, I can avoid being liquidated after leaving the [Lost World],

And prevent the exposure of logistical capabilities from being discovered by other players in the [Lost World], shelving disputes, working together, and prioritizing solving me..."

Thinking this, Li Ang moved his feet and came to an area that had already been detected by the scout Zerg.

The space here was vast, covering a huge area. The dome above had just been broken through by a Builder not long ago.

Through the dense pipes, one could see the scenery of the 47th and 48th floors above.

The ground was filled with construction machinery, and some of the machinery could vaguely be recognized as the outlines of crushers, wood chippers, magnetic separators, and transport conveyor belts.

"A waste disposal center..."

Li Ang frowned slightly, squatted on the ground, and his palm wearing the Sandworm Crimson Mane gloves pried open the sharp metal, revealing the gray-black soil below.

Plant fibers extended from his fingertips, pierced into the soil, and extracted and analyzed the components.

"The soil is moderately acidic and alkaline. The surface layer has a lichen formed by a symbiotic complex of some kind of fungus and algae. The deep layer of the soil has microorganisms such as bacteria, fungi, and algae.

I didn't see any small macroscopic organisms such as earthworms or termites, but the total amount of air, water, and accumulated biomass...

Is enough."

Li Ang stood up from the ground, dragged out an automated pet feeder disguised as a flat pyramid from the void. After confirming that there were no detectors around, he pressed the side of the coffin with his left hand, stretched his right hand forward, and opened his palm.

Let's begin.

The pet feeder's special effect was activated.

A three-meter-high, moist, purple-red egg-shaped object slowly "squeezed out" from the palm of Li Ang's right hand.

The egg-shaped object was covered with a layer of translucent mucus, and the surface had a large number of network-like protruding blood vessels. The bottom had a calyx-shaped hard part as support.

Thump, thump, thump.

A sustained and muffled heartbeat came from inside the egg-shaped object.

Six neat vertical cracks split open the purple-red skin, blooming like a flower.

Whoosh.

A large amount of viscous liquid flowed out from inside the egg-shaped object.

A terrifying creature nearly three meters tall stood quietly in the middle of the hard calyx.

The overall color of the creature was red and black, with a nearly half-meter-long horn on its head.

The back was covered with a carapace similar to that of coleopteran insects (the carapace material was chitin mixed with high-strength metal). The carapace was covered with dense, sharp thorns.

The edges of the carapace were grown with eight chimney-shaped organs covered with fine pores. The chimneys were filled with capillaries and cilia, which could quickly dissipate heat, displace air, and provide the creature with the necessary oxygen.

The creature's chest was covered with metal armor plates made by the Alchemy Workshop's [Mechanical Workbench].

There were a total of six arms, four of which held door-sized bone blades covered with barbs and serrations.

The other two held a Carnivorous Beetle Gun and an Acid Cannon.

The two recurved legs were strong and powerful.

There were four toes on the soles of the feet, three in the front and one in the back. All four toes extended curved claws that could deeply gouge into the smooth and solid surfaces of metal.

The two-meter-long thick tail rapidly contracted, forked, and sharpened at the end,

Forming two slender blades that could easily cut through metal armor, and could also launch spikes and inject toxins.

This terrifying, brutal, and violently aesthetic biological weapon opened its eyes under its huge skull without any warning. The chimney-shaped organs at the edges of the carapace erupted with hot gas.

The remaining mucus on its body dripped onto the ground along the carapace thorns, barbs, and door-sized bone blades.

The highest crystallization of Zerg hive technology, a biological weapon that existed for killing, the extension and embodiment of the Father's will, the cerebrate's strongest carrier—the Zerg hive Lord,

Looked at its creator, bent its knees, and knelt down with a bang.

The four door-sized bone blades pierced into the metal garbage and soil without any hindrance.

The head, topped with a blood-red sharp horn, drooped to the extreme,

Expressing the most pious and fanatical reverence to the creator (if Dual Blades Chicken were here, it would definitely condemn the angle of the lowered head as not low enough).

"Go."

Li Ang instructed with a smile.

The Zerg hive Lord named Cerberus (who was previously a cleaner responsible for cleaning the Alchemy Workshop) silently stood up. Its feet bent, and the chimney-shaped organs on its back erupted with white air waves like a long dragon.

With an agility that did not match its huge body, it jumped up,

The hooks extending from the joints of its six arms and legs nimbly grabbed the edges of the construction machinery,

The entire Lord silently lay prostrate at the junction of the 46th and 47th floors, guarding Li Ang.

One, two...

Li Ang released a total of fifty-three Zerg hive Lords as guards.

Then, he took out 227 cerebrates without the bodies of Zerg hive Lords, a large number of worker Zerg as labor, and various huge and strange Zerg hive organ factories.

Spore Smoke Towers—shaped like purple-red tentacles, covered with holes, the effect is to erupt spores, assist worker Zerg in producing creep, and modify the composition of the air;

Digestion Pools—shaped like a green acid pond, the effect is to recycle and utilize biomass;

Hatchery Zerg hive—shaped like a pyramid, connected to the digestion pool through pipes, responsible for mass-producing worker Zerg and soldier Zerg;

Gene Bank—shaped like a shell, storing the genetic data collected by the Zerg hive in the past;

...

The huge alien organs filled the entire space.

The spore smoke towers, lined up one after another, erupted with smoke;

The creep expanded along the ground at a speed visible to the naked eye, deeply plunging into the bottom layer of the soil, frantically absorbing all usable biomass;

A large number of vascular, hollow flesh and blood roots injected the biomass and nutrients converted by the digestion pool into the pyramid-shaped Hatchery Zerg hive;

A massive number of servant-level, beast-level, heavy-machine, guard-level, and elite guard-level soldier Zerg lay silently prostrate at the edge of the garbage dump, like statues frozen in stasis.

Li Ang stood on the top of the Zerg hive's central hub, overlooking the alien and strange space.

This was the Zerg hive without restrictions.

Li Ang flipped his hand and casually threw out the Evil God figurine.

The Zerg hive Lord Cerberus, lying prostrate on the top of the construction machinery, immediately inserted the four bone blades in his hand back into the biological scabbards on the carapace on his waist,

Accurately caught the Evil God figurine.

All the cerebrates knelt down together, watching Cerberus fall to the ground with a bang from the air, holding up the Evil God figurine and sending it into the micro-shrine deep in the central hub of the Zerg hive.

Click.

As the Evil God figurine was placed on the top of the shrine,

The cerebrates' chaotic and disorderly beliefs instantly unified, and a large amount of faith power flowed into the figurine, and through the mysterious and mysterious invisible divine power link, it was transmitted to Li Ang.

"Holy! The Lord of Flesh and Swamp, who unifies all things!"

A vast and silent hymn resounded in Li Ang's mind. He indifferently accepted the respect of the creation, nodded, stepped on invisible steps, and climbed upward, his figure disappearing into the dark and lightless cracks in the dome.