Lin Muci hadn't expected Ling Kuang to be so decisive once he entered combat mode!
Those people had initially intended to gang up on Ling Kuang, relying on their numbers, but after being brutally beaten down by him, they quickly lost hope.
They tried to escape, but Ling Kuang grabbed a few of the slower ones, leaving them no room to retort.
"Lead the way."
Since he had made his move, he intended to go straight to their base of operations.
...
The living conditions of the inhabitants of this abandoned land were indeed extremely harsh. Although Lin Muci had anticipated this to some extent, she was still deeply shocked when she witnessed it firsthand.
These people lived in utter disarray. Those who had been sent out to face Ling Kuang were considered well-off in comparison. In their underground base, everyone was gaunt and sallow, appearing to be lacking even adequate food supplies.
The surroundings of the base also showed many traces of wind and frost.
The little rabbit took one look around and immediately made a precise judgment.
"Energy is severely lacking... Lack of sunlight prevents crops from growing, forcing reliance on artificial nutrient solutions. But this is not a sustainable long-term solution; this place is already on the brink of collapse!"
"Even without the Shadow-Foot Worms, this place would have collapsed within ten years!"
The little rabbit shook its head as it spoke, sighing.
"This place is truly oppressive. Anyone living here for too long would also turn mad. No wonder the Shadow-Foot Worms could exploit this situation. But I wonder how it managed to bewitch the humans here—it feels like the Shadow-Foot Worms have grand ambitions. Could it be... it wants to..."
As the little rabbit was contemplating, it suddenly widened its eyes.
"The Shadow-Foot Worms' true target is the military department?"
"If it has already absorbed enough power here, enough life force, and achieved an upgrade, then it might be able to return to the central planet without being detected by the stringent surveillance of the central planet."
"And for the Shadow-Foot Worms, if it wants to take a huge gamble, the most valuable thing would be to directly impersonate the... Nine-Star General of the military department."
Lin Muci had already guessed who the military department would likely send. If her own daddy didn't come, then it was very likely to be the youngest and most ambitious Artorius. Thinking about it this way—isn't Artorius in danger?
The Shadow-Foot Worms' target is Artorius?
But is Artorius that... that foolish? That Shadow-Foot Worm should not be strong enough to kill a Nine-Star General and replace him.
However, Lin Muci thought about it again and felt it wasn't impossible.
After all, that red-haired young man, despite meeting him only a few times, did not give her the impression of being an extremely calm person. If he were to fall into a trap set by the Shadow-Foot Worms, using the abandoned humans here, perhaps Artorius could indeed capsize in the gutter.
As Lin Muci pondered this, she unknowingly passed through the dark passage. Before her, there was a semblance of a human city—Lin Muci and Ling Kuang had put away their mechs when they entered this underground base.
And as they rounded a corner, a frantic alarm suddenly blared in their ears! The alarm was deafening, vibrating their eardrums layer upon layer like a tidal wave.
Amidst the frantic alarm, black gun barrels emerged directly from the walls, seemingly aiming at her chest, and then, without giving her any time to think, they fired.
In the midst of the maddening clamor, Lin Muci's mind went blank. At this moment of life and death, a hand directly embraced her, and then turned. The bullet plunged directly into his back. He grunted, and Lin Muci exclaimed in panic.
"Ling Kuang!"
The man merely raised an eyebrow; there was no pain on his face. He turned and extended his hand, and the bullet automatically flew out of his body. His wound was healing. He looked at the terrified expressions of the few survivors before him, a sinister smile appearing at the corner of his lips.
"If this is your routine and your tactics, then it is impossible for you to kill me."
"Compared to the insectoids, your attack methods are too limited."
As he spoke, he casually flicked the bullet in his palm back.
The bullet from his palm accurately hit the opponent's cannon barrel, and then exploded with a bang. This loud noise triggered a chain reaction, and even the walls of the base began to collapse—Lin Muci's eyes widened as she looked at Ling Kuang in disbelief.
The man waved his hand and said,
"It has nothing to do with me; the place is too old and hasn't been repaired or maintained, so it can't withstand even a little external force."
As he casually uttered these words, he looked up towards the core of the base in the distance. He spoke,
"That Shadow-Foot Worm is highly intelligent, so I surmise that after it transformed into a human, it should have easily understood the details of this underground base and figured out the origin of the so-called condemned sinners."
"It is extremely skilled at psychological manipulation—I imagine it promised the higher-ups here that if it succeeded in leaving, all the people here would gain freedom, and their descendants would be forever away from this abandoned land."
"It must have presented evidence to make those high-ups believe in its capabilities."
"Therefore, it is highly likely that it is now being strictly protected by these humans. If it were someone else, facing the obstruction of so many of their own kind, they would likely hesitate, or even be unable to face their kin's death threats, and develop inner demons."
"However, I will not give up on killing it as it expects!"
As Ling Kuang spoke these words, intricate whirlpools seemed to form in the depths of his eyes—and the little rabbit in Lin Muci's arms stared blankly at the scene, wanting to say something but holding back.
Truly, a powerful man!
Lin Muci was still worried if his wound was alright, but the man beside her directly grabbed her wrist, and with a swift flash, she felt her body flicker, and then they appeared in a narrow space. This seemed to be a room.
Before them was a seemingly ordinary wooden table, and a very ancient desk lamp—such ordinary light sources were no longer used in the interstellar era.
Then, in front of the table, there was a pale-faced young man wearing glasses. He looked up nervously.
"Who are you?"
"How did you get into my room?"
"You—I'm going to call for help!"
"I said, no one is allowed to disturb me during my research, get out!"
Ling Kuang quietly observed the pale-faced young man. He seriously watched the young man's flustered expression, and after a while, he smiled.
"Mr. Shadow-Foot Worm—I think you don't need to pretend in front of me anymore, do you?"
As Ling Kuang uttered these words, a ball of swirling white light reappeared in his palm. This swirling white light then floated towards the youth opposite him, circling madly above his head.
The pattern above his head couldn't take shape for a long time—
Just as Lin Muci felt a pang of anxiety, the white light finally took form. However, it wasn't like before where others became ten years younger. From Lin Muci's perspective, it turned out to be a terrifyingly ferocious insectoid beast, its claws and teeth bared, as if it were about to pounce at anyone at any moment.
She gasped.
Ling Kuang, however, grabbed her wrist to comfort her. He sneered at the pale-faced young man opposite him.
"I don't care—what your plan is."
"How you intend to stir up bloodshed among humans, and how you plan to trick those foolish humans, because sometimes, some humans are completely brainless, even more foolish than your filthy insects."
"However, Mr., all your plans and schemes end here."
"The insectoids will no longer have any room to exist. Farewell, Shadow-Foot Worm!"
The moment Ling Kuang uttered these words, a light blade immediately appeared in his palm. This light blade spun, intending to shatter the young man opposite him into pieces. At this very moment, someone suddenly lunged at Ling Kuang, shouting uncontrollably.
"No!"
"Don't hurt him... I don't know what you're talking about, what insectoid, but he is my lover!"
"I absolutely will not allow anyone to hurt him!"
This woman, regardless of her age, could still see the fine wrinkles at the corners of her eyes on her well-maintained face. And this woman before her was desperately protecting the pale young man.
"Who are you people?"
"You despicable intruders, if—if you lay another hand on him, I'll take you all with me!"
This woman, her hair disheveled, blocked in front of the young man she called Will.
"My Will... he is my life, I love him more than life itself, I cannot live without him."
"You madmen, you vile intruders, did you get the entry permit? His research can save the people in the underground base—if he succeeds, we might even get more food. You actually want to kill him? Only over my dead body!"
"He is not a research expert. Look clearly at the person behind you; he is just a Shadow-Foot Worm disguised as a human. If you just look into his eyes, you will see the clues."
"He possesses no human emotions whatsoever, and what you call affection is nothing more than an illusion."
The woman before them shook her head frantically, as if she had lost all reason.
She stood in front of Will, about to speak, when the next moment, she felt a sharp pain in her chest, a pain she could not possibly imagine. Confused, she lowered her head and saw a limb emerge from her chest, grotesque and stained with hot blood. Da Feng Novel Network.
Behind her, there was a hissing sound, strange syllables that made one dizzy.
"What a foolish and noisy woman."
"You are right, some humans are even more foolish than those lower-class insectoids—since you are so foolish, why do you occupy so many resources?"
"You deserve to be annihilated by us, the Sacred Race!"
The insectoids considered themselves the sacred race, and the mother nest was considered the sacred nest.
The woman, who had been desperately protecting her lover the moment before, turned her head back in disbelief, her scalp tingling because the person before her—no, he was no longer human. Insectoid limbs suddenly burst from his body, and he absorbed the life force of the tragic woman before him.
Only when she completely stopped breathing did he lift his head. His compound eyes were filled with vigilance towards Ling Kuang.
"Human?"
"In my inherited memories, humans have never had a powerhouse like you..."
"Nor has anyone been able to control such power as yours."
"However, the most foolish thing about humans is that you should have come alone, but you were so arrogant that you dared to bring a burden with you to confront me!"
Lin Muci was stunned for a moment before she realized that the insectoid before her, referring to a burden, seemed to be her.
She was called a burden?
Lin Muci almost laughed in anger, but the insectoid opposite her showed no mercy. It directly extended its dagger-like limbs, intending to coerce Lin Muci.
In the narrow space, its movements were so agile that they almost created afterimages.
If caught off guard, she might have fallen prey to it. Moreover, Lin Muci's current body was that of the most fragile female beast; without the protection of a mech, she was completely defenseless.
Ling Kuang was about to flash in front of Lin Muci to protect her, but the next moment, the unassuming rabbit that had been curled up in Lin Muci's arms suddenly leaped up.
Then, in mid-air, a faint ripple spread out, like an even sharper blade, directly severing the insectoid's limbs. The insectoid let out a piercing scream!
The rabbit was not to be trifled with either!
The little system thought to itself, did they really think it came out without any equipment? It had quite a few good items from the main system, items that weren't even available in the human council's warehouse!
For example, the item it just used released energy called Dimensional Wave Light Slash. According to the main system, don't underestimate this seemingly calm attack; it was equivalent to the full force of several starships concentrated, a light of extinction!
It was a testament to the insectoid's resilience that it hadn't been reduced to ashes on the spot.
After completing this attack, the little system retreated into Lin Muci's arms.
Ling Kuang glanced at the unremarkable rabbit in Lin Muci's arms again, clearly intending to settle accounts later and ponder the rabbit's origin and how it stayed by his little female beast's side. However, with the enemy right before him, and trying to harm his little female beast at that,
He naturally wouldn't be polite. He sneered and threw a punch!
This punch actually unleashed a long wave of air!
A massive light blade formed directly in mid-air.
The Shadow-Foot Worm opposite frantically tried to escape but was trapped by invisible shackles. It could only watch helplessly as the massive light blade slashed down.
This massive light blade fell, directly cutting the sickly and frenzied Shadow-Foot Worm in half.
Killed instantly!