Just as they were arguing heatedly over the issue, screams and terrified cries erupted from several other spots in the crowd. Some people threw their blankets over the biting creatures, pressing down on them, and felt something burst beneath.
Those around them shone their torches or flashlights over. The person stood up, their thin blanket heavily soaked in blood. Looking down, a monstrous mosquito, nearly as big as two human palms, was crushed on the ground. Its mouthpart resembled a giant syringe, and its dark grey, semi-transparent wings were stuck to the ground. Blood splattered all around.
"It really is mosquitoes, giant blood-sucking mosquitoes! Everyone be careful!"
As soon as the words left his mouth, more screams echoed from all sides. The sound of frantic wing beats grew louder, as if the few that had appeared earlier were just scouts, and the main force had arrived. The sky, which had been partly moonlit, was now entirely filled with mosquitoes. Looking up, half the sky was a swarm of them, enough to make one's scalp tingle.
Shrieks and cries were endless. Some people fled in panic, while others threw clothes and bedding over themselves. But still, more people became food for these mosquitoes.
The entire convoy descended into chaos.
Soldiers emerged with weapons, firing fruitlessly at the mosquitoes in the sky. While many were shot down under the barrage of fire, they were a mere drop in the ocean compared to the vast mosquito army.
As Zhu Yu emerged from the carriage, she saw someone trying to burn the mosquitoes with fire. Unfortunately, the person's energy was insufficient, and the mosquitoes were too fast. The small flame couldn't kill them.
She leaped from the carriage and pushed her elder brother, who had followed her out, back inside. "Protect the others."
With that, she took a few steps forward. A mosquito flew directly at her, its sharp proboscis glinting faintly, like the tip of a giant syringe, a sight that made her scalp crawl.
Zhu Yu swept a wave of karma fire. The mosquito, which should have turned to ash instantly, merely shriveled and fell to the ground.
*Host, don't forget you're a water-element ability user. Be gentle.*
The voice gave Zhu Yu a reminder. She used less power, drying out the mosquitoes' bodies to mimic dehydration, and quickly weaved through the crowd.
While the others panicked, many also fought back. They wielded anything they could use as a weapon, swatting at the mosquitoes like playing volleyball as they approached, managing to kill some. Those capable of self-defense helped each other, backs to backs, swatting mosquitoes. Despite their fumbling, faced with the threat of death, they unleashed an unprecedented surge of strength.
The soldiers brought out flamethrowers and unleashed them on the mosquito clusters. This time, the fire proved effective. The mosquitoes' transparent wings were easily incinerated. Laden with blood, their bodies couldn't bear their own weight, and they splattered onto the ground with wet thuds, spraying blood everywhere.
The soldiers continued to burn the mosquitoes relentlessly. Dozens of ability users who could help also descended. Ordinary people, too, used various methods to swat the mosquitoes down. With Zhu Yu, the ultimate cheat, on their side, after over half an hour of struggle, they finally repelled the mosquitoes.
Although many people had died, and the ground was covered in blood, a gruesome sight, they had managed to limit the casualties.
The soldiers began counting the dead. Zhu Yu and over thirty other ability users were led to the front. Many people were too injured to move. The general offered a few words of thanks and sent most of them back to rest.
When Zhu Yu had been killing the mosquitoes, she had only concealed her abilities, not herself. Many people had witnessed her effortlessly bring down mosquitoes with a wave of her hand. Quite a few of the mosquito corpses had been collected. Some, still alive without wings, had their slender legs flailing in the air, looking somewhat comical.
"Little comrade, how did you kill them?"
Zhu Yu replied, "Water. I dried the moisture out of their bodies."
The questioner was astonished.
There were two other water-element ability users in the convoy, both awakened in the past two days. Their powers were quite weak, only able to produce a small amount of water, insufficient for any significant effect.
However, ability users were scarce, and even the weakest among them were treasured.
The man in the white coat looked at the other two water-element ability users. "Can you extract water from living creatures?"
The man and woman looked at Zhu Yu and both shook their heads.
She produced far more water than they could, and now she could also extract moisture from living beings. It was easy to infer that her abilities were far more powerful.
They asked Zhu Yu a few more questions, then let her go back to rest.
When she returned to the carriage, the rest of the Zhao family had woken up and were anxiously awaiting her.
"Little Yu, what happened outside?"
"People outside said there were giant blood-sucking mosquitoes. Are you... are you alright?"
"I'm fine." Zhu Yu shone the flashlight she had obtained earlier over herself. Not only was she unharmed, but she wasn't even stained with a drop of blood.
"Mom, my abilities are amazing! I can suck the moisture out of those giant mosquitoes."
Everyone in the carriage was astonished.
They were all relatives of ability users and knew more than others. Those people's abilities had only recently awakened and weren't considered powerful.
Yet, this girl could dry out a mosquito's body, that was how powerful she was!
Could she also dry them out if she wanted to?
Those who had argued with Mother Zhao earlier due to seating arrangements now trembled slightly.
"Really! Little Yu is so amazing!"
Grandma Zhao was also happy for her granddaughter, but thinking of her once delicate granddaughter now going out to fight giant mosquitoes, she felt a pang of sadness.
Zhu Yu comforted them a few times, then said she was tired and needed to rest, after which things quieted down.
The next morning, someone came to summon Zhu Yu and the entire Zhao family to the front.
Because of Zhu Yu's displayed abilities, they were promoted from ordinary ability user relatives to high-level ability user relatives. They were moved into a more spacious carriage and received better treatment.
Zhu Yu, however, was summoned to see the general again.
"I didn't have a chance to thank you properly last night. You've performed a great service. Is there anything you desire?"
Zhu Yu thought for a moment and said, "I want to eat meat, do you have any?"
Zhen Jie chuckled. "Yes, I'll give you my portion for tomorrow."
Zhu Yu: "..."
It wasn't until she was assigned to search for food that Zhu Yu learned that most of their rations consisted of compressed food. Even their leader rarely had the opportunity to eat meat. His "portion for tomorrow" was actually just two slices of ham.
Zhu Yu was speechless.
The main reason she agreed to come out was that the small town they were heading towards was where Chong Yan was located.