Chapter 15 Anomaly

Suddenly, this "Weird-Grade" mutated monster appeared, catching the four teams off guard.

But seeing the two assistant instructors watching from above with no intention of helping, Suren was happy to stand by and watch the show.

The students had seen specimens of zombie-type Weirds in the academy, and they had also practiced tactics for dealing with them, but this was the first time they had seen a living one.

Although slightly flustered, it must be said that these students had a solid theoretical knowledge and responded in a decent manner.

The four teams cooperated with each other. The students from the Heavy Armor Mechanical Department delayed the Weird's衝撞势头 (chong zhuang shi tou, charging momentum), while the others found cover and concentrated their fire on the Boss.

However, it wasn't just that one Weird. As soon as it appeared, the mutated monsters hidden in the shadows rushed out like madmen.

In an instant, the students were submerged in a tide of monsters.

...

Fortunately, the academy's combat suits had good defensive capabilities, otherwise, these young students would have suffered casualties from the initial impact alone.

At this time, while everyone else was fighting tensely, Suren noticed a shifty-eyed gaze aiming at him from the crowd.

Taking a closer look, he saw a fatty looking at him from afar with an innocent little expression. It was as if that look was saying: Brother, remember to take care of me!

Suren couldn't help but laugh, but he understood the look and nodded to the guy.

After all, this was the elite class, and the students weren't that bad.

After a brief moment of panic, the captains of the four teams finally reacted and began to arrange things according to the tactics they had practiced on weekdays.

"Form a defensive formation, a triangular formation!"

"Don't panic, prepare heavy firearms!"

"Magic users, set up alchemy arrays, area-of-effect attacks..."

As soon as the giant mechanical shields were taken out, there was a crisp "clack" sound, and they unfolded into steel plates and belts. The buckles connected to each other, instantly forming four iron triangles, tightly protecting the team members inside.

It had to be said that this was the benefit of having superior equipment.

Then, various large-caliber, high-firepower firearms were set up, and they started扫 (sao, sweeping) wildly.

Overpressure steam cannons, six-barreled Vulcan guns, anti-armor big shotguns...

Suren's eyelids twitched as he looked at the firearms emitting strange blue and black flames.

These high-end heavy military firearms couldn't even be seen in the gun shops of the outer city.

But these students each had one in their hands.

While envious, Suren couldn't help but sigh in his heart: "A 'rich-man's playstyle'... using ammunition meant for fighting Bosses on small monsters, these guys are really extravagant."

But sighing aside, the effect was immediate.

With one volley, the monsters covered by the firepower were all torn to shreds, and severed limbs flew everywhere.

Moreover, it wasn't just these mechanical equipment.

After the defensive formation was assembled, the alchemy arrays under the feet of those alchemists also lit up.

One by one, the magic academy students pinched術士印 (shu shi yin, warlock seals), and began to condense elements with serious expressions...

In terms of lethality, alchemy magic was by no means inferior to firearms.

And the power of alchemy magic was directly proportional to the energy involved. Within the limit that the caster's body could withstand, the more energy added, the more exaggerated the elemental magic converted...

Then, Suren watched as this group of rich second-generation warlocks cast the most basic first-tier [Fire Serpent Entanglement Technique], stubbornly using excess energy to stack small fire snakes, two fingers thick, into giant flame pythons as thick as water tanks, directly burning those mutated monsters into ashes.

For a time, lightning and thunder flashed throughout the cavern space, and various elemental spells displayed the astonishing lethality of the old-school warlocks to the fullest extent.

These students, who had mastered a wealth of spell knowledge, treated this place as a demonstration classroom for spells, opening the eyes of Suren, the country bumpkin.

But at the same time, Suren kept muttering in his heart: tens of thousands, tens of thousands... another tens of thousands of riso gone...

Alchemists were indeed a money-burning profession, especially magic users.

Suren felt a little heartache. These guys stubbornly used thousands or tens of thousands times the cost to deal with monsters that could have been solved with a few volleys of ordinary bullets hitting the head, letting him see the 'money power', a super power exclusive to the rich!

...

The Boss was indeed very powerful.

Because it was a "Weird-Grade," it already possessed considerable intelligence. It not only knew how to find cover to avoid attacks, but also used tools to remotely throw heavy objects. Moreover, its body tissue was also extraordinarily tough. Even high-explosive alchemy bombs that could blast open concrete could only create fist-sized holes in its body.

But in the end, "money power" quickly quelled this accident.

The tide formed by the mutated monsters was suppressed by an even more terrifying tide of firepower.

Knowing that it was no match, the Weird also abandoned its lair and fled into the depths of the tunnel, dragging its heavily wounded and crippled body.

Suren casually blasted a few stray mutated monsters that had fled to his side, muttering, "These guys are wasting so much ammunition, aren't they afraid of encountering even greater dangers later..."

Although he knew that these noble students had large storage space rings, the amount of ammunition must be limited. Moreover, firearms and the like also had cooldown times. The more powerful the firearm, the more it needed to be cooled and maintained after continuous firing...

They repelled this wave, but what about the next wave?

However, Suren thought it was pretty good anyway, since it wasn't his money being wasted.

He was also lucky to have such a group of people to clear out the monsters, otherwise, he didn't know how long it would take or if he would even have the ability to find that scythe by himself.

The wounded Boss fled, but the students dared not chase it. The assistant instructor, Daniel, thought of something, smiled, and whispered to the female assistant instructor beside him, "I'm going to chase that Weird!"

Rosa seemed to know what he was going to do and nodded with a relaxed smile, "Okay."

Without a little crisis pressure, the trial would be meaningless for these young students.

...

Because of the combat suits, the students, although battered, didn't suffer much damage, except for a few minor injuries.

Having just experienced a great battle, these young students suddenly relaxed from their tension, and smiles reappeared on their faces.

"Phew... it's finally over."

"It seems mutated monsters aren't that scary after all..."

"Heavens, we actually repelled a 'Zombie-Type Weird'! We almost killed it!"

"That's right, I didn't even unlock my bio-implants yet, and this wave of monsters was repelled. Boring..."

"..."

Alright, they're starting to get cocky again.

This was a typical lack of experience.

Experienced wasteland hunters would have chosen to clean up the battlefield at this moment and then leave quickly.

But these students probably thought that the previous round of firefight had cleared out all the monsters in this lair, so there shouldn't be any danger. They all slumped down, chatting and resting.

They didn't think about whether this commotion would attract monsters from deeper within the cave.

...

At this time, Suren, who was watching from afar, gradually became serious, muttering, "As expected, it attracted them..."

He looked up at the dark holes in the ceiling, which looked like a honeycomb. Suddenly, there was a "shasha sha" friction sound, as if some monster was about to crawl out.

Suren took a closer look. His super vision allowed him to see a foreign object wriggling out of the hole. It seemed to be a fat, white worm?

Like a slug magnified countless times, these two-to-three-meter-long worms secreted slimy liquid and slowly slid down from the holes in the ceiling.

[Mutated Strong Acid Worm]

Detailed Explanation: Carrion-eating large worms, their bodies are filled with large amounts of acid; these mutated monsters are timid by nature, move slowly, and are not aggressive; they generally do not leave their nests unless they are fatally threatened. But their mature forms are extremely aggressive.

Another kind of mutated monster he had never heard of before.

Looking at the information identified, Suren immediately became suspicious, "Not aggressive, how did they run out? Also, what is the mature form of this thing?"

He vaguely felt that something was wrong.

He originally thought that the monsters were attracted by the commotion, but he didn't expect them to be worms.

At this time, slimy liquid dripped from the ceiling, and the students belatedly realized something.

"Huh... what's falling on my head?"

"Ah! It's so disgusting, what is this thing?"

"Careful, this mucus is highly corrosive!"

"..."

The students were still complaining, not yet realizing the danger.

They once again missed the best opportunity to dodge in time.

Just then, with a "thud," a fat worm fell from the sky and crashed heavily on the ground. With a "splat" sound, it rotted into a pool of green acid emitting corrosive fumes.

After the first one, it was like opening a floodgate. The white worms in the sky fell like rain.

Hundreds of worms instantly turned this space into a pool of acid.

Suren was far away, but he could feel the acidic gas burning his respiratory tract even through his gas mask. One could imagine how uncomfortable the students in the acid were.

Oh~ their gas masks were more advanced, so maybe they couldn't smell it.

But it was definitely disgusting.

"Damn it, this acid is corroding my combat suit!"

"We have to get out of here quickly. Heavens, the corrosiveness is too strong. I can already feel the burning sensation on my skin."

"..."

There was nothing eternal in this world, and even the best combat suit materials would wear out. Especially when soaked in this highly corrosive environment, the runes were quickly being corroded.

The students didn't even have time to retrieve their mechanical battle shields, and they all ran out of the acid area in a panic.

At this time, Assistant Instructor Rosa also looked serious and took the initiative to speak for the first time, "Now there is a sudden situation. Assistant Instructor Daniel is no longer here, and I cannot guarantee the safety of each of you. Everyone, perk up!"

Listening to this, Suren probably guessed what the male assistant instructor's purpose was in leaving.

With one less "bodyguard," the students listened with a sense of tension, but Suren didn't feel anything. Because he knew that there was still at least one second-tier professional instructor hidden in the dark.

Thinking of this, his gaze unconsciously turned towards a certain hole in the tunnel.

Suren's eyes were slightly puzzled. Was this also a part of the trial?

Did the academy instructor force these worms out?

...

In the darkness, two figures seemed to have realized that Suren knew they were there.

"Oh, that guide is quite alert. He seems to have discovered our presence."

"That's normal. Professionals struggling to survive in the lower levels have the alertness of wild beasts. They crawled out of piles of dead bodies, and their combat ability won't be bad. Alas, our students lack these experiences..."

"..."

The two people hiding in the dark were none other than Daniel and that instructor, Augustus.

As the two were chatting, Daniel suddenly bent over and spat out a mouthful of turbid blood.

Augustus instinctively supported him, concerned, "Oh, Daniel, are you injured?"

Daniel took advantage of the situation to hold onto his arm, a cold glint flashed across his face that was not easily noticed, and said, "Yeah, I took a punch when I was chasing that Weird just now."

Augustus was about to say something when he suddenly sensed something. His gaze suddenly glared at the void a few meters away, "Oh... something's wrong, a professional is approaching, it's a lurker!"

But before he could make any response, in the next second, he felt a huge force coming from his arm, and a crisis of death instantly enveloped his heart, "You... Daniel, what are you doing!"

ps. Asking for monthly tickets and recommendations at the beginning of the month, please everyone~