Legend of the Supreme Soldier - Chapter 551

e Chong had built 62 labor machines. Each labor machine was fitted with a low level bio-photon processor. Ye Chong did not mind the relatively primitive photon processors, since they were easy to make.

Using unidirectional culture methods, Ye Chong could grow large numbers of low level bio-photon processors in a short time. It was the actual labour machines that took time to build. Local wooden materials were as hard as metal alloys, but not as easy to process as metals. There were many minor tweaks that Ye Chong had to manually interfere with. Without this manual part, he would have built 620 machines, and not just 62.

The machines were designed to do laborious physical work, so Ye Chong named them appropriately so. There was now a large heap of earth at the rear courtyard of his manor. Ye Chong had dug 60 meters further down from his laboratory. Kui’s chip had information on how to build underground bases, and all the experience they gathered from building the base on Spectre.

This was immensely helpful for Ye Chong. He could have only managed a small underground basement by himself, and not a large underground base.

The base was not complete yet. There were piles of earth everywhere, but the ground was already paved with rock tiles. Ye Chong had used natural materials like rocks to save cost.

Laboratory 1 was done. The flooring was large and there were smooth slabs of rock, with naturally occurring indigo streaks. These rocks were cut with high intensity laser beams. The air circulation system was up. Energy and water supply were settled. Laboratory 1 was 1,600 square meters wide, with a square layout. The space was large enough for Ye Chong to move all the equipment he kept in the buildings topside down here.

After he moved them in, Ye Chong divided Lab 1 into many smaller sections. The lab was small but complete. Ye Chong planned to do all kinds of research work here. He built a few labs that he needed most first. However, it would take five laboratories to store all the equipment he kept in Celest’s dimension keystone.

The control station for the entire manor’s defense system was also moved underground. The manor was not perfectly secure for now, but it was safe enough. It would be difficult to get him from 60 meters above. The buildings on the ground were only for distraction.

It would be impossible for anyone to break into his underground base, since the surroundings were monitored by a holographic scanning system.

After a few days of intense work, Ye Chong could finally take a breather. Lab 1 was now a fully functioning laboratory. Ye Chong had spent a lot of effort in building his underground base. He did not have specialized equipment for the task, and had to do many things by hand. Ye Chong had no trouble with general construction engineering, but an underground base was usually constructed with many specialized machinery. Ye Chong had never seen or even heard of most of them. He could only build those machines roughly based on their functions. Without Ye Chong’s solid foundation of knowledge and rich experience, he would not have been able to build those 62 labor machines.

Finally, he had a relatively safer base of operations. It was the result of hard work. Ye Chong looked at his base that was still under construction, and felt overwhelmed by emotions. It seemed that he had never had a base that he could call his own before this.

However, how long would he be staying here this time?

After spending an entire week in his manor, Ye Chong had to leave. There was still something else that demanded his attention – the Weapons Design Contest. He was to serve on the judge panel.

Before that, however, there was a guest that required his attention.

Xuan Ning’s visit took Ye Chong by surprise. Xuan Ning was also the third person, aside from Sun Sieha and Master Karu, to have set foot inside Ye Chong’s manor.

If it was anyone else, Ye Chong would have refused to entertain them. Xuan Ning, however, merited his attention.

Xuan Ning looked like a completely different person. Before the battle, he was like a blade that shone threateningly; now, he looked like the image of peace.

Ye Chong took a long glance at Xuan Ning, and asked, “You’ve reached Level 9?”

Xuan Ning smiled. “Yes. To think that I would reach Level 9 because of you! I thank you for this.”

“No need to thank me. It’s all because of your own effort.” Ye Chong shook his head. He could see that the man’s ascension had in part was due to him, but the circumstances were not pleasant. If he was forced to make a breakthrough because someone tried to kill him, saying thank you would hardly be his response.

The first thing Ye Chong would do after achieving his breakthrough would be to kill that b*stard.

The way he saw it, Xuan Ning had no need to thank him.

Xuan Ning did not argue. He laughed and said, “That’s up to me to decide.”

“Well, you’re right.” Ye Chong nodded. He was never interested in changing another person’s mind. He asked Xuan Ning, “Why are you here?”

“Nothing much. I just felt like coming to see you,” Xuan Ning shook his head and said. “I see. You can leave now then.” Ye Chong did not mince words with Xuan Ning.

Xuan Ning smiled. “I was just about to leave.”

Sha Ya could not understand the exchange between those two men, but news of Xuan Ning’s ascension to Level 9 was definitely shocking. If word of this went out, it would definitely cause another wave of excitement. She watched enviously at Xuan Ning’s retreating figure with mixed feelings. The first Level 9 shooter in five decades was born. Sha Ya turned her gaze back on herself – a Level 8 shooter, still far from reaching Level 9. When would she ever attain that level of ability?

Ye Chong was also watching Xuan Ning when he suddenly had an idea. He looked to Sha Ya and said, “Come with me. I’ll walk you through my battle with Xuan Ning, perhaps you’ll get some inspiration from it.”

Ye Chong understood Xuan Ning’s ability better than most people. He even understood Xuan Ning’s final parapsychic attack. The details were worthless to normal people, but they were priceless to Sha Ya.

When Ye Chong was done, he left Sha Ya to her thoughts and headed for the training ground.

Dust was flying everywhere on the training ground. Liao San was yelling; the students were panting heavily; footsteps stomped heavily on the ground. The place was full of activity.

Now that these people had began to grasp the rhythm of running, they were no longer suffering as much. Some of them picked up certain running strategies and improved their stamina faster. However, this kind of stamina training was limited in purpose. There were other ways to further improve the students.

Soon, Ye Chong would be able to select students with desired qualities from them. A qualified mech pilot must first train their stamina, and then their shooting. Long range mech pilots placed more emphasis on shooting, but Ye Chong was not worried about that part. Eastern Cloud had laws that allow only license holders to use guns, but really, who had never used one before?

“Take it slow,” Ye Chong consoled himself.

Eastern Cloud’s Weapons Design Contest was held every four years. The event was not only about weapons design, but also large scale weapons trading. Weaponsmiths with any degree of reputation could sell or auction their more outstanding products in the concurrent Weapons Trading Market. Well-to-do weaponsmiths would prefer to exchange their goods for raw materials that were hard to find.

Shooters would come to barter goods that they had collected over the years, in exchange for some high grade weapons that they had longed for.

As the head of the judging panel, Ye Chong only needed to be present for the finals of the contest. He had plenty of free time on his hands.

…

The public square was large. Weaponsmiths put their weapons on display, while shooters laid out all kinds of rare materials. The stalls were packed closely to one another, but everyone looked about ready to burst with excitement.

Ye Chong had his eyes opened by all the weird and interesting things and raw materials on display in the stalls.

The only thing that made him uncomfortable was the fact that everyone recognized him wherever he went. They would rush in to greet him, to curry his favor, or to ask him to accept a new student. Ye Chong could barely stand the enthusiasm and excitement despite his calmness.

Ye Chong found his way out of the crowd, a mean feat by all accounts, and quickly bought a cloak. The gray colored cloak had a mask attached, so that he could hide his face. There were many people dressed in these cloaks, people who did not want to stand out, like Ye Chong. The outfit did not stand out in the crowd.

Ye Chong had a few laser guns that he made himself on him. Perhaps he could trade them for something good.

He was not interested in weapons. He mostly wandered around stalls that had raw materials on display. Many of them were metals, or gravstones, as the locals called it. Few shooters could survive Darkniss by themselves, but shooters at Level 6 or 7 would form groups to brave the dangers of Darkniss. Their target was almost always the gravstones, unique to Darkniss.

A good weapon was usually not available for cash. Famous weaponsmiths were usually not in need of money. They preferred to barter, and gravstones were popular amongst weaponsmiths.

Ye Chong, on the other hand, was more familiar with metals than any other raw material. Metal ores and minerals did not interest him. In fact, Celest’s dimension keystone stored more than a few high grade metal alloy products.

Ye Chong searched around. Suddenly, something in a stall manned by a bearded man caught his eye.

t was a pink coloured colloid object, thick as a brick. Numerous thin blue hair-like protrusions grew from its surface. These blue hair were swaying gently like seaweed underwater.

Ye Chong recalled seeing something like that in the base on Spectre. He did not have time to investigate what it was then, but now was his chance to learn more about it.

The thin hairs on the pink colloid object was some kind of fungus that Ye Chong had never seen before. Having inherited Lunatic Guan’s knowledge in alchemy, there were not many fungi species that Ye Chong had never seen before. This blue colored fungus must be extremely rare. Ye Chong knew that Lunatic Guan’s chips recorded many species that he had once thought to be rare. The fact this blue fungus was not in the chip told him how scarcely seen it must be.

The universe was vast. It was only inevitable that Lunatic Guan had not seen all the fungi species that ever existed. Ye Chong did not think it odd. The specimen he saw the first time was hidden in a corner, along with many other junk and things, covered in dust. The researchers at the Research Consortium must have not thought much about it. If it was not for the weird shape of the fungus, Ye Chong would have forgotten that he had it in Celest’s keystone.

At the moment, he had found another identical specimen in Su City – a pink colored colloid object, on which the fungus grew. If it just the colloid of the fungus alone he was seeing, he would not have been so surprised to see it. This specimen, however, was nearly identical in both parts of the whole. Besides, given how scarce the fungus is, it was most likely that it could only survive under very specific environmental conditions.

How was this new specimen related to the one he found earlier?

Ye Chong studied the bearded man. His hands were covered with thick calluses, the mark of a long history in using guns. Besides, his gaze was steady and confident. Ye Chong put him down as a shooter of at least Level 6.

Ye Chong squeezed his way to the bearded man’s stall and picked up the pink colloid. He inspected it closely to make sure that it looked the same as the one he had. It most likely originated from the same place as the specimen he had.

“What is this?” Ye Chong asked.

The bearded man looked up at Ye Chong, and could not glean anything from his form, now covered entirely in a gray cloak. The man shook his head. “I don’t know either.”

“You don’t know?” Ye Chong looked at him, surprised. “Where did you get it from?”

“My father brought it back from Darkniss during one of his trips. He was heavily injured then, and passed away not long after,” the bearded man replied quietly.

“Darkniss?” Ye Chong was shocked. He did not expect that. If this fungus came from Darkniss, then where did the specimen he found in the Research Consortium’s base come from? Both specimen were obviously the same thing, and came from the same place. Ye Chong was not sure if the fungus was artificially grown or naturally occurring, but if it was really from Darkniss, the odds were that it was a natural form of life in there.

Ye Chong remembered something else. He had arrived in this strange world from the Consortium’s base. Could the base be related to this world in some inexplicable way?

The bearded studied the man under the gray cloak, who was now holding the pink colured colloid in his hand and deep in thought. The bearded man felt invigorated. The thing was something he got from his father when he was young. His father died soon after the trip to Darkniss, and never told him more about the mysterious colloid. Later on, he tried to investigate more about it, but no one had seen it before. After so many years, that strange thing still looked exactly the same as it was the first time he set eyes on it. He no longer felt so intrigued by it anymore.

He was now a Level 7 shooter. He had hoped to get a nifty weapon from this weapons trading market. Ever since he reached Level 7, he had visited Darkniss a few times, but mostly in the outer regions. The Desert and the Mist were not suitable for air travel, so a handy weapon was very important.

In all his years travelling to and from Darkniss, he had amassed some things of value. He brought them all to this weapons trading market in the hopes of exchanging them for a decent laser gun. This man, now, was interested in something he had. However, from the looks of it, he did not know what the pink object was either.

The bearded man’s disappointment showed.

“Are you selling this?” Ye Chong asked.

“Only for bartering. I want a laser gun, at least 4 million Lux.”

Ye Chong exchanged one of his own handmade laser guns for the colloid object. The bearded man seemed satisfied by the trade. He knew exactly how much the gun was worth. The power of a laser gun at 4 million Lux varied greatly, depending on whether it came from average manufacturers or a Master level weaponsmith. This was why capable shooters would ask for customized weapons from weaponsmiths.

After the trade, Ye Chong saw nothing else of interest. The day’s catch was worthwhile, however.

Ye Chong returned to his manor and compared the specimen he found in the Research Consortium’s base and the one he just bought. Except for the size and shape, they were exactly the same thing. Ye Chong made queries from his chip, hoping to find something from the Research Consortium that could tell him where the specimen came from, but to no avail.

First was the red-tailed beasts; then the black circle; now there were two colloid fungi of the same species – one hidden in a corner of the base back in his world, and another from the inner parts of Darkniss. He had also found himself mysteriously transported to this strange and unfamiliar world. All the facts were here. Ye Chong knew that all of them were related in some way, but how? All the signs pointed toward Darkniss.

Perhaps the only way to answer all his questions was to visit Darkniss himself. Ye Chong looked at the holographic scanning, where many young people were training hard on the training ground. He dismissed the idea right away. It was folly to think he could survive a solo trip to Darkniss. These young people he was training were still too far away from being real combatants. Some things cannot be rushed. Nonetheless, what if he only aimed to do a simple exploratory visit?

Ye Chong thought that might just be manageable. Everything he knew about Darkniss came from secondary sources. He cannot make the right decision without having a more objective understanding of the place. Bringing so many people into Darkniss without more information was very risky.

Ye Chong considered the plan. If he were to enter Darkniss himself, that would not do at all. He did not even know how to get there. Sha Ya can act as his guide. She was experienced. However, just the two of them did not seem enough. Perhaps Xuan Ning would be willing to join him? If he offered a good laser gun for the man in exchange for his services, what were the odds of him agreeing to it?

…

For the past few days, Sha Ya spent her time indoors in deep thought. Ever since Ye Chong shared with her the details of his battle with Xuan Ning, she fell into a mood. Ye Chong understood what was happening. He had been through it before. This was not the time to interrupt her.

Having decided on his plan of action, Ye Chong went to the training ground. He inspected the young people there and found himself happy with their progress. Liao San was training the new recruits with passionate. The young recruits all looked sunburnt, with some of them even developing freckles. Nevertheless, they were in high spirits. Even the nobilities looked like they have had a complete personality makeover.

Ye Chong even more surprised by Gui Gui’s personally led women’s division. The ladies no longer cared for their appearance. They looked exactly like the men. Only the Shu sisters still retained their fair skin. Shu Mo’er threw a cold look at Ye Chong, while Shu Man’er looked haunted and very, very scared. Ye Chong’s gaze did not linger on them both. Only their results mattered. He did not mind their hostility towards him.

After briefing the instructors on the latest training routine, Ye Chong returned to Su City. He flew a commonly seen aircraft, the Butterly-3. It was a popular model which required parapsychic control on its tracking ball to fly it. Ye Chong did not have parapsychic abilities, but flying the aircraft presented no difficulties.

In fact, Ye Chong had thrown out almost all the mechanical parts in the Butterfly-3, leaving only its hull. Ye Chong exchanged the tracker ball for a control lever, similar to the one in the Collision mech. The engine was also modified to fly much faster than the average Butterly-3. The aircraft was used only for transport. Ye Chong’s manor was quite a distance away from Su City.

“You’re looking for Xuan Ning?” Sun Sieha was baffled. He stared at Ye Chong, trying to figure him out.

Ye Chong nodded. “Yes.” He did now know where Xuan Ning lived, and had to resort to this other option.

Sun Sieha turned to his side and gave the order, “Have Xuan Ning come to my study.” A guard immediately rushed out to execute his duties.

Sun Sieha turned back to Ye Chong and studied him for a long moment. He offered slowly, “You really messed things up for me this time, you know? It was just a demonstration contest. Did you know you nearly killed Xuan Ning?”

Ye Chong looked calm. “I’ve told you before, I only know how to fight.”

“Fine.” Sun Sieha gestured with a wave. “‘I’ll not pursue the matter further. Xuan Ning has benefited from the accident. A Level 9 shooter, hehe. Eastern Cloud finally has a Level 9 shooter.”

Xuan Ning entered Sun Sieha’s study then. He saw Ye Chong and could not hide his surprise.

“Your Majesty.” Xuan Ning made a proper greeting to Sun Sieha.

Sun Sieha smiled. “How many times have I told you, no need for the formalities. Well, this time it’s Master Ye who has come to see you.”

“Oh.” Xuan Ning looked even more surprised. “What would Master Ye like to discuss with me?”

“I’d like to invite you on a trip to Darkniss.”

“Darkniss?” Xuan Ning and Sun Sieha exchanged a look of puzzlement. He Xuan Ning asked, “Why would Master Ye want to visit that place? Are you lacking any raw materials? As far as I know, the Royal Family has all kinds of rare materials in stock. You don’t have to risk the trip to Darkniss.”

“That’s right,” Sun Sieha said with a laugh, “We can talk about how much you’d want to buy.”

Ye Chong shook his head and made his thoughts clear. “No. Are you willing to go? If yes, what are your conditions?”

Xuan Ning took a long look at Ye Chong. He considered the invitation for a while and then replied slowly, “Accompanying Master Ye on a trip to Darkniss is fine with me. There is no need for compensation, consider it a token of appreciation for assisting me in achieving Level 9. Having said that, I have my formal duties. The trip would require His Majesty’s approval.” Ye Chong turned his gaze to Sun Sieha.

“Well then!” Sun Sieha affected an expression of unwillingness.

“What do you want?” Ye Chong did not beat around the bush.

Sun Sieha blushed briefly, but quickly returned to business. He considered the question for a moment, and then said, “I’m fine with having Xuan Ning accompanying you. However, in exchange, I want all the information required for us to build your cannon arrays.” Ye Chong’s cannon array was a powerful weapon, but each one cost the nation 20 million ao, an expenditure that Sun Sieha could not afford. He had long wanted to get his hands on the weapon’s schematics, since the weaponsmiths he hired could not replicate the weapon. Now that the opportunity presented itself, he jumped for it without hesitation.

“Alright.” Ye Chong’s reply was swift. The technology behind the cannon array was not exactly advanced. He had a lot more technical knowledge to offer than that. Offering the cannon array technology in exchange for the assistance of a Level 9 shooter was a good trade.

“Hah!” Sun Sieha was overjoyed. He was prepared to bargain with Ye Chong, but he man had agreed without arguing. Sun Sieha was happy with the outcome, but he could not help but wonder why Ye Chong wanted to visit Darkniss so suddenly.

“I’ll come to you when I’m ready,” Ye Chong said to Xuan Ning. He then turned to Sun Sieha. “Send your men to my place for the schematics.” With that, he left Sun Sieha’s study.

“What do you of his foray into Darkniss?” Sun Sieha asked Xuan Ning.

Xuan Ning could not understand it as well. “I don’t know. Master Ye is an mysterious and unpredictable man.”

Sun Sieha nodded without a word. In any case, now that he had the schematics for the cannon array, the military would be able to arm themselves with this weapon on a massive scale. Western Frost and Northern Lands would both tremble under the might of the powerful cannon arrays.

“I look forward to that day!” Sun Sieha thought to himself. His eyes lit up fervently.

…

When Ye Chong reached his manor, Master Karu arrived right after him.

Master Karu was breathing heavily. “I say, did you forget that you’re in the judging panel? Quick, come with me, to the contest, we’re all waiting for you. Also, hand me the schematics for the cannon array. I’ve been trying to figure out ho1 to build the weapon but I can’t make head nor tails of it.”

Ye Chong remembered that he was supposed to serve as a judge.

hen Ye Chong and Master Karu arrived at the contest venue, the contestants had already waited close to an hour. No one showed any signs of impatience, however, for they observed a clear delineation of status between them.

Master Karu sighed in relief and said to Ye Chong, “These are the works that made it to the finals. Have a look at them, and rank them as you see fit.”

There were five people standing in front of Ye Chong. The youngest was just a teenager, who had an air of youthful stubbornness. The oldest sported a long white beard and sharp eyes. There was a woman among the five. The five of them greeted Ye Chong and Karu respectfully. Standing around them were six other people who also bowed respectfully. They were members the judging panel, and some of Eastern Cloud’s best weaponsmiths. Two of them held government positions. These two showed particular admiration for Ye Chong.

Master Karu was in their ranks as well. His was a legendary name in the field of weapons building. Ye Chong’s recent appearance was remarkable enough that he had replaced Master Karu as Chief Weaponsmith of Eastern Cloud, putting him on the same level of the other judges. Compared to Master Karu, Ye Chong was had a more mysterious and interesting background.

The Master level weaponsmiths who were now bowing to Ye Chong were curious about him. So far, there no weapons out in the world that bore Ye Chong’s name. The two weaponsmiths who were serving the Eastern Cloud government were full of expectations. They looked to Ye Chong like a student would to their teacher. They knew more about Ye Chong than the other four judges.

Ye Chong’s works were all treated as classified information by His Majesty Sun Sieha and Master Karu. It was simply impossible to sell his works openly in the market.

The five contestants were all curious, but also nervous.

Ye Chong turned his attention to the five weapons arranged on the display platform.

The first was a laser gun. Its purple colored body was compactly designed, made from the wood of purple camphor. The weaponsmith behind it must be skilled and experienced to have produced this weapon. The gun had sparse decorations, but it had character behind its minimalism. The entire laser gun was in a dark purple color unique to purple camphor wood that spoke of hidden power within. It was also a very powerful weapon.

The second was a laser sword, rarely seen in Eastern Cloud since there were not many combat experts who used this weapon. The laser sword was 1.7 meters long, with wavy edges like flames. The wavy razors could move quickly like a high speed laser saw, capable of terrifying destruction. The wavy razor operated independent of the main laser sword, but they were both fitted together perfectly. The laser sword held a solid form, and could cut through objects without so much as a flicker. Laser swords were obscure weapons, but this one made the cut to the finals.

The third was an individual photon orb launcher. The launcher looked like a big wooden box, but inside was a scary looking launch barrel. The interesting thing about this weapon was its energy reloading method. Heavy firepower weapons like this consumed energy quickly, making it difficult to maintain a steady stream of attacks in battle. However, this particular photon orb launcher needed only three seconds to reload. Hence, in theory, if a person carried enough energy with them, they could use maintain pressure on the enemy effectively. It was terrifying weapon.

The forth was a set of shurikens. The star-shaped shurikens were elegantly designed and aerodynamically shaped. This was also an obscure choice of weapons. However, compared to the laser sword, this shurikens set was perfect for shooters, especially those with strong parapsychic sense. The designer of the shurikens had put much thought into the design. He used the tracking ball in conventional aircrafts to control the shurikens. After all, the miniaturization of tracking balls was one of the outstanding issues for weaponsmiths. This weaponsmith had not succeeded in that yet, but he had introduced a new concept. Shooters could have a certain level of control over the shurikens through the tracking ball via parapsychic control. Even though the precision of control was lacking compared to in aircrafts, this was still a remarkable achievement.

The fifth was not a weapon per say, but an engine. It looked quite ordinary, an assembly of colorful mechanical parts and gears that made it look like a patchwork. Master Karu told him that the engine did not draw any attention from the judges at first, but once it was examined with specialized equipment, they found the engine to be shockingly efficient. Nevertheless, none of the judges understood the reason for it, and this made them uneasy.

This was one of the reasons Master Karu insisted Ye Chong to come for the judging session.

Ye Chong quickly ranked the weapons. The engine was no doubt in first place, followed by the shuriken set, the jagged laser sword, the photon orb launcher and finally, the laser gnu.

Everyone waited with deference for Ye Chong to explain the mechanism behind the engine. It was a rare opportunity to hear a Master speak of his field. Even Master Karu looked eager to listen.

“The engine is well designed. Unlike the common design used in this country, the weaponsmith has come up with an original design – I call it the double-U structure. The double-U structure improves energy consumption efficiency, which is why this engine is more efficient than normal engines.” Ye Chong pointed at the work that he ranked first. “Besides, the weaponsmith behind this engine has put much a lot of effort into building it. He used different materials to make different parts. The overall outcome is commendable.”

Everyone listened closely to Ye Chong’s explanation. But what he said so far was not enough to satisfy the judges, especially people like Master Karu.

Ye Chong did not have the patience to go into the details. He took apart the engine with familiar ease. “The cushioning here is too thick, you should reduce it by a third. Besides, this exhaust pipe is not necessary, take it off. Here, too, you should add a pressure valve.” Ye Chong pointed at different parts of the engine and commented casually. He was familiar with the engine’s structure, since it was a classic example of the double-U design that he had seen before in his own world. However, this particular engine was only a prototype when compared to the fully developed double-U design in his world. Some small tweaks were in order. However, the weaponsmith behind the engine must be talented to have come up with this original design.

The youngest of the five finalists looked very emotional. Master Karu sighed quietly to himself. Ye Chong was the real thing. His comments were delivered without enthusiasm, but the modifications he recommended showed his true abilities!

Some of the judges looked unconvinced. Ye Chong’s explanation of the engine was brief and superficial. Moreover, he had given recommendations after just giving a brief look at the engine. His words sounded more like nonsense.

There was enough equipment provided for the contest to perform those modifications immediately. The young man quickly did the changes as Ye Chong suggested.

When the engine was tested again for performance, everyone was shocked by the results – the engine’s efficiency had risen by 20 percent!

Those who doubted Ye Chong earlier now felt only admiration and respect for Ye Chong. Master Karu looked at Ye Chong like the man was a monster – how can a man make a few simple suggestions and produce this staggering result?

Facts are the most convincing form of argument. No one doubted Ye Chong again.

Ye Chong benefited from the experience as well. Aside from the laser gun, the other weapons were all well designed. He was also impressed by the creativity expressed in them. The young man who designed the engine looked similar to Lian Yue. The laser sword felt like a weapon he could wield with ease. Laser swords had one advantage over metal alloy swords – they were lighter and easier to carry. This particular laser sword could extend to 1.7 meters, but when the laser was deactivated, the hilt was only the size of a dagger. Of course, laser swords had the weakness of being dependent on an energy source.

“Is this laser sword for sale? I’m alright with bartering too.” Ye Chong asked. In the end, specialization matters. Only a dedicated weaponsmith could produce an excellent weapon like this sword. Ye Chong could not hope to emulate the work. Of all the work presented in the finals, only the laser sword was suitable for Ye Chong. The laser gun was definitely out of question. Ye Chong could build an even better one. The shuriken set required parapsychic abilities. Ye Chong could build an even more advanced grenade launcher than the photon orb launcher. As for the engine, Ye Chong already designed a few engines himself. There were also many engine designs in Kui’s memory chips. Only the laser sword was of use to him.

Master Karu was taken aback. Never before had a judge asked to buy a weapon from the finalists. He felt a little awkward, since this might set an undesirable precedent. The request was also unfair for the contestants, since the judges were the ones who decide the winner of the contest.

Master Karu would have declined if it was anyone else, but this was Ye Chong making the request. He could not afford to offend Ye Chong, no matter the reason.

Master Karu looked inquiringly towards the other judges, who were now looking anywhere but at him.

Master Karu rubbed his nose and laughed awkwardly. “That … That would be …”

“Is there a problem?” Ye Chong looked at Master Karu.

Master Karu explained hesitantly, “Usually, the works of the finalists will be sold at an open auction at the end of the weapons design contest …”

“I see.” Ye Chong nodded and went quiet.

Master Karu felt unsettled. He threw a nervous glance at Ye Chong. If he offended the man today, how could he hope to live the rest of his life in peace? He knew that this inconspicuous young man had the world’s most advanced technology at his fingertips. His Majesty was always trying to pry some of that knowledge out of him.

“I am truly honoured that you are interested in this laser gun!” A middle-aged man stepped forward and said. He was the man behind the laser sword. His name was Xi Yan, age 40. He was not too old for a weaponsmith. Xi Yan looked a little thin. His eyes shone intently against his dark skin.

“According to the rules of the contest, none of these works can be sold before the final results are out. However, the contest did not forbid me from gifting my work to Master Ye Chong. Am I right, Master Karu?” Xi Yan asked suddenly.

Master Karu was surprised by the question, but he nodded in reflex. “A gift, that is not forbidden.”

“Then we’re all good!” Xi Yan smiled. His next words surprised everyone else. “I willingly present my laser sword as a gift to Master Ye Chong, and I am pulling myself out from the contest.”

“What?” Master Karu and the rest were shocked. Becoming a finalist in the Weapons Design Contest was the highest honour for any weaponsmith. Of course they were surprised by Xi Yan’s announcement.

“I only have one request.” Before anyone could recover, Xi Yan looked intently at Ye Chong and said, “I hope to become a disciple under Master Ye Chong. I will follow Master Ye Chong for the rest of my life.”

This was another bomb for the audience. The other contestants quickly saw the rationale behind his decision. They all saw how capable Ye Chong was.

Everyone in the room looked at Ye Chong. Discipleship was a strict practice, just like in the Five Galaxies.

Ye Chong was surprised by the offer as well. He considered it for a moment, and then replied, “You can study under me, that is not an issue. However, you must be prepared to live a life of constant travelling, unable to return home.” “A life of constant travelling” was only a cover. What Ye Chong meant was Xi Yan must be prepared to never return to his home.

Master Karu was shocked. “A life of constant travelling”? His Majesty would never let him go far. He must warn the King about this soon. If Ye Chong fell into another country’s hands, the consequences were unbearable.

Xi Yan smiled easily. “Xi Yan has always lived alone. Don’t worry, Teacher. From today onwards, Xi Yan will always be by your side.” Xi Yan was secretly overjoyed. Unlike other contestants, he did not study formally with any teacher. He was mostly self taught, ever since he was young. Everything he achieved today was the result of his own extraordinary hard work. He had always yearned for a worthy teacher to study under, and now he had found one. It was a once in a lifetime opportunity. He did not care about his ranking in the contest. He was only a technician at heart. Besides, he was already 40 years old. Who would want to have such an old student?

Ye Chong nodded. “Alright, you’ll come with me later.” Xi Yan had good fundamentals. With a bit of push, he would improve very quickly.

Xi Yan was not like Kristen. He could follow Ye Chong all the way. A skilled disciple like him would be of tremendous help to Ye Chong. Kristen would stay in Eastern Cloud in the end. She had family and friends here. Even if Ye Chong found his way back to He Yue Galaxy, he would not take her with him.

The other contestants were jealous of Xi Yan. They had teachers already, and besides, they had family that they could not leave behind.

Fate granted him the chance to under a great weaponsmith like Master Ye Chong. No wonder they were jealous of Xi Yan.

Maste Karu stared while Xi Yan was being accepted by Ye Chong as a disciple. Anyone would try to hire a talented man like Xi Yan to work for them. Now that Ye Chong had laid claim, no one else could hope to get their hands on Xi Yan again. Even His Majesty tread with care when dealing with Ye Chong. Master Karu did not believe that he would be able to convince any of Ye Chong’s disciples to betray him.

“At least he’s still in Eastern Cloud,” Master Karu consoled himself.

Ye Chong then continued to explain the workings of the other weapons by the finalists. His words were precise and to the point. Everyone was absorbed in them. To them, Master Ye Chong seemed to have a keen sense. He could point out minor changes that could lead to significant improvements. Everyone was impressed by his abilities.

Ye Chong did not care about what his audience was thinking. He only found the designs of these weapons inspiring.

It was a day after all!

After going through all five weapons, Ye Chong took Xi Yan with him and left. The rest of the audience were still entranced by Ye Chong’s explanations and miraculous suggestions.

Xi Yan sat behind Ye Chong in his Butterly-3 as they flew towards Ye Chong’s manor.

Xi Yan was intrigued by the Butterly-3’s manual control mechanism. Ye Chong seemed more like invincible than ever. Xi Yan always thought that piloting an aircraft required a licence, and a licence could only be obtained by having parapsychic abilities. A person without parapsychic abilities cannot fly an aircraft. Xi Yan never imagined that a person without parapsychic abilities can fly an aircraft. It was simply unthinkable!

Xi Yan’s eyes widened as he watched Ye Chong maneuver the control lever.

Ye Chong noticed his curious stare at the control lever, and offered some explanation, “Mechanical parts allow easier control. I don’t have parapsychic abilities, so this modification is necessary.”

Xi Yan nodded, not fully understanding him.

The view around them was receding quickly. Xi Yan hesitated for a while, but finally blurted out, “Teacher, this Butterly-3’s engine is modified, right?” The Butterfly-3 was flying much faster than its normal counterparts.

“Yes, but not by a lot. The hull is from the original aircraft. Only the engine, protection system and main body of the aircraft were modified. I’ve also changed the weapons system.” Ye Chong replied casually.

Xi Yan was already in cold sweat. The engine, main body, protection system and weapons system were all modified – how could he call that “not by a lot”? Those were basically the main components of the aircraft.

“Careful, turbulence ahead.” Ye Chong interrupted Xi Yan’s thoughts.

Suddenly, the world around Xi Yan started spinning wildly. Everything was spinning in his vision. It made him want to throw up badly.

Ye Chong stared straight ahead, unmoved by the disturbance. His hands pushed the levers here and there.

The Butterfly-3 did a big turn in the air, and then charged forward in a corkscrew motion, drilling its way through the turbulent winds with brute force.

Swish!

The aircraft escaped from the region of turbulence.

The landing field of Ye Chong’s manor came into view. Ye Chong pulled the control lever upwards. The aircraft abruptly shot upwards, and then dived straight towards the landing field. Behind him, Xi Yan looked very pale.

When they were barely a hundred meters from the ground, Ye Chong abruptly pulled the control lever up again. The aircraft’s nose lifted as it began to level with the ground.

Finally, the aircraft decelerated sharply and landed safely on the landing field.

Xi Yan, now pale as a sheet, supported himself on the hull as he made his way out of the cockpit. When his feet finally touched the ground, he bent over and began to vomit.

ha Ya was still isolating herself, thinking about Xuan Ning’s battle. Ye Chong arranged for Xi Yan’s accommodation without much difficulty. There were many empty buildings at his place after all.

He must start making preparations since Xuan Ning had agreed to the trip.

Ye Chong took out both samples of the colloid fungi. He wanted to find out what was special about them. He assembled all the testing equipment available to him and began to examine both specimens thoroughly.

To his great surprise, all the equipment yielded no results. It was weird!

This was his first time encountering this problem. It was not until the third day that he realized that the fungus could avoid all senses. Electromagnetic wave scans were ineffective against both specimens. Ye Chong had never seen anything with this unique attribute. It felt a little magical. He took Krisen to the samples and made some experiments. As expected, parapsychic waves were ineffective against the two colloid fungus samples.

This was treasure! Ye Chong quickly recognized the importance of this colloid fungus. If he had enough of them, he might be able to derive some form of substance that could help him avoid being locked on by parapsychic waves.

However, two specimens were too little, even for just one mech. Fortunately, Ye Chong was a brilliant alchemist. If he could find a way to cultivate them in large batches, Celest would become a true Kind of Darkness. All forms of detection would be ineffective against the bio-mech.

This shocking discovery was encouraging for Ye Chong. The two colloid fungus specimens were very useful for him!

Since Laboratory 2 was completed recently, Ye Chong decided to set it up as an alchemist laboratory. He even fitted the lab with its own independent HVAC system [1]. There were even facilities like temperature-controlled rooms and a vacuum sealed room. About half of all the equipment Ye Chong salvaged from the Research Consortium’s base was related to biology. With all these advanced equipment, Lab 2 became the most well equipped laboratory in his base.

Fortunately, Ye Chong had the Guan family’s auto-analytics mechanism to figure out the best way to cultivate the colloid fungus. It would have taken him years to figure it out himself otherwise. Ye Chong had made a copy of this mechanism. One was with him; the other was with Mu and Shang.

Once again, Ye Chong marveled at the usefulness of the Guan Family’s auto-analytics mechanism. He suddenly thought of Lunatic Guan, and felt an emptiness inside him. Some prodigies suffered cruel fates despite their extraordinary gifts, like Lunatic Guan and Gu Shaoze.

Ye Chong tried his best to push away these negative thoughts. He looked up at the photon processor that showed the formula for the colloid fungus’ cultivation medium.

Penthorum Ison, Mica-cobalt, Shigaran Zinc …

Ye Chong frowned. It was a list of metals.

Strange! Ye Chong had never seen a cultivation medium formula like this. According to this recommended formula, the colloid fungus thrived in a metal rich environment. Ye Chong suddenly had an idea – if this colloid fungus really came from Darkniss, perhaps the place was really had an abundance of metals!

The formula seemed to suggest this. However, Ye Chong now had a another dilemma. Metals were easy to find in his own world, he only needed to pay for them. This world, however, produced no metals. All the obscure metals listed in the formula were impossible to find.

Unless …

Unless he went to Darkniss. There were some metals amongst all the things that Ye Chong salvaged from the Consortium’s base. However, they were only enough to cover half of what was on the list.

Ye Chong’s dream to mass produce the colloid fungus would have to wait.

Nevertheless, the discovery had further convinced him of the necessity to visit Darkniss.

Sha Ya was still occupied with her thoughts, and Ye Chong still needed to prepare for his trip. Anyone who knew Darkniss would describe it as a very dangerous place. Ye Chong did not want to lose his life from this trip to Daniss because of lack of preparations on his end.

People have talked that about most of the water in Darkniss was poisoned. Hence, food and water supply was an important issue. On the issue of food, Ye Chong could make nutrition pills. The high energy pills were tiny and easy to carry. As for water, Ye Chong had a few ideas, but none were safe enough. In the end, Ye Chong decided to just bring enough water into Darkniss. It was the safest way.

Ye Chong took some time off to visit the training ground. All the students, be it commoners or nobilities, yielded to the militaristic social structure in the training camp. They improved quickly. Their stamina was much better than before.

Liao San could not quite understand the reason behind all this. He had diligently performed his duties as Ye Chong asked him to, and he had seen the students improve. Their bodies were tougher, and they were stronger and more resilient. But so what? Even a normal shooter could kill them with a single shot.

What baffled him even more was how their wise King was also very keen in this business.

Ye Chong did not explain himself to Liao San. Instead, he called out the top 200 students who performed the best in stamina and rate of improvement, and then proceeded to teach them a few basic moves. These strange moves were supposed to improve flexibility.

These 200 were the best of the 20 thousand people in the training camp, but the new routine nearly killed them. Three of them quickly suffered from torn muscles, leaving the other 197 of them screaming in pain. The rest of the students in the training ground were appalled.

Ye Chong did not react to the cries of pain and suffering. He stared emotionlessly at them as they performed the new routine from beginning to end. If anyone shied away from the pain, Ye Chong would step up and help them personally with their new moves. This was always followed by a terrifying shriek of pain. As a bystander, Liao San felt his skin creep. He thought Ye Chong would make a good interrogator.

When Ye Chong was satisfied and announced that they had all passed, the students felt immensely relieved. Ye Chong then ordered them to each those new moves to the rest of the students. After all the suffering they had been through, these 200 people now studied the rest of the students running in the training ground, ready to pass on the experience.

Ye Chong did not spend too much time there. He had much to do. He just received the news that the second student intake was full. There were 50 thousand students in this round! The battle between Ye Chong and Xuan Ning had led to the former’s celebrity status. Hence, allocations for the second intake were fully taken up in just two days.

Now, Ye Chong had to build another training ground that could house 50 thousand people as soon as possible.

The 50 thousand new students arrived soon after Ye Chong was finished with building the second training ground. To Ye Chong’s surprise, there was one student who was actually skilled in combat – this was Duan Qian.

Duan Qian could not get the chance to meet Ye Chong before this, so he applied for the student intake immediately when he knew about it.

Duan Qian soon caught Ye Chong’s attention. Duan Qian had an air about him that was unique to combat experts, and Ye Chong could sense it a mile away. After testing Duan Qian’s skills, Ye Chong found himself impressed. It was hard enough to meet anyone good in combat in this world, who could absorb his teaching with ease. Since Duan Qian looked excited, Ye Chong decided to leave the second batch of students to him. He thought that Duan Qian should be able to handle teaching the basics. Besides, Liao San would be there to assist him.

When Ye Chong went to his manor, Xi Yan was there to greet him.

Xi Yan informed him respectfully, “Teacher, the raw materials your ordered for have arrived.”

“I see.” Ye Chong quickly made his way to the warehouse, with Xi Yan close behind him. Recently, Xi Yan noticed from his interactions with Kristen that his own level of expertise was far below Kristen’s. He could not understand many of the things that Kristen had built, and it was baffling and annoying. It was some time earlier that Xi Yan found out Kristen had improved this much after studying under Ye Chong for less than a year. It was invigorating news for him, since it showed how learned and capable his teacher was. Xi Yan felt hopeful for his future.

Ye Chong had ordered some high strength materials this time, such as wood from the hardy linden tree. This material was commonly used to build aircrafts due to its impressive physical properties. From the volume of Ye Chong’s order, Xi Yan could not be certain what they could be for, since they were more than enough to build an aircraft.

Soon, Ye Chong brought out a stack of paper to both his students.

Xi Yan and Kristen exchanged a look of confusion before studying these papers. They were schematics of strange mechanical parts. Details of each part were listed down extensively.

“Can you build these mechanical parts?” Ye Chong asked them both.

Kristen went through the schematics and considered the question. She replied frankly, “Most of them should not be a problem, but some are a bit too complicated for me. I may have some trouble with them.”

Ye Chong looked at Xi Yan. Xi Yan remained quiet. He studied the schematics closely, and then shut his eyes in contemplation. After awhile, he opened his eyes again and replied firmly, “No problem. I can make these parts.”

Kristen was a little surprised. One could tell from this difference that Kristen lacked the fundamental skills and experience that Xi Yan had.

Ye Chong nodded. “Both of you should stop whatever you’re working on now and concentrate on making these parts. I need two of each.”

No one would question Ye Chong’s order. Besides, these strange mechanical parts had hooked their curiosity. What would the end product be once they finished making these parts?

Ye Chong was a man of surprises. What form of surprise would they be having this time?

The curiosity was enough motivation for them both. They worked tirelessly to build these mechanical parts. Xi Yan’s solid competency in building these mechanical parts impressed Kristen.

After seven days and seven nights, the parts were all done. The empty floor of the warehouse was now scattered with all kinds of parts.

Xi Yan and Kristen both sported bloodshot eyes. They had been working without much sleep in the past few days, but still they kept their eyes open for fear of missing out on any single detail. They wanted to know what the result of their seven days of hard work would be. They could sense that Ye Chong placed heavy importance on this project.

Both Kristen and Xi Yan were competent weaponsmiths. The mechanical parts were built up to Ye Chong’s standards. However, Ye Chong did not immediately assemble them together. Instead, he took out a pail of light yellow liquid and used a spray gun to spray the light yellow liquid evenly on the surface of these mechanical parts. Ye Chong had prepared a strengthening solution to improve the physical properties of these parts.

Xi Yan and Kristen studied the spray gun in Ye Chong’s hand with interest.

After that, Ye Chong began assembling the parts as his students watched from the side.

Ye Chong did it slowly enough for Xi Yan and Kristen to understand exactly what he was doing.

Slot two linden wood bars together and secure them with mortise and tenon – you get working mechanical arm. Glue 18 curved surfaces together, and you get a pilot cabin the size of a house …

Xi Yan and Kristen watched with amazement as Ye Chong continued with the assembly. Despite their wildest imaginations, what they were seeing right now was still too much to process.

Ye Chong worked with ease, and began to assemble faster. He lifted the heavier mechanical parts with one hand, like they weighed nothing at all. His hands could do anything – high pressure hammering, hole puncturing, heavy weight lifting …

A strange artificial product made of natural raw materials was built.

When it was finally completed, the massive object casted a huge shadow on its observers. Xi Yan and Kristen both watched in quiet astonishment. They had no words to describe what they were feeling right then. Only their eyes revealed how much their worshiped the creator of this miraculous work.

t was a huge machine that reached up to almost seven meters. It was shaped like a spider, but with legs that reached up to 10 meters long. The proportion of the main body was larger than that of a normal spider. That was where the pilot cabin was. Eight long mechanical legs supported the pilot cabin body above the ground. Xi Yan and Kristen were completely hidden under the machine’s shadow.

An adult human looked so weak and tiny before this gigantic object. Kristen and Xi Yan looked up at the staggering machine that reached up to two storeys tall. They had never seen such a strange machine. This completely overhauled their perception of machinery.

“What … What is this?” Kristen muttered under her breath, completely taken aback by this machine! Xi Yan had a blank expression that showed how completely surprised he was.

The thing was obviously a machine. Its eight slim but powerful legs could move with great flexibility. There were no decorations of any kind on the machine. All the mechanical parts were in plain sight. The machine was a combination of technology and nature that gave it a quality of strength and power.

“This is only a shell. There are many other things to work on.” Ye Chong explained to them both. He was their teacher, and it was only right for him to provide some explanation.

Ye Chong abruptly grabbed onto Kristen and Xi Yan and hopped onto the back of the huge spider. His sudden movement startled the two students, but they soon became preoccupied with their immediate surroundings. They had never seen such a strange and massive machine.

“This is the pilot cabin.” Ye Chong lifted a hatch door and gestured inside, then slipped into the cabin. Kristen and Xi Yan followed.

The pilot cabin was large enough to fit eight people.

“There’s still a lot to add onto this machine. There is the engine, and weapons system. Hmm, we should also add extra armor around the crucial parts.” Ye Chong stood calmly inside the pilot cabin.

His two students were completely won over by his skills.

“Teacher, this … What do you call this? Can it move?” Xi Yan asked haltingly.

“A name. Hmm, let’s call it Spider.” Ye Chong said, “It can walk and move on hilly terrain, but it’s a lot slower than an aircraft.” In fact, the Spider was probably the first ever mech built entirely of plant materials that mimicked a terrestrial animal.

Kristen and Xi Yan were of course unimpressed by Ye Chong’s casual naming for the machine. Such a magnificent being should at least be given an equally impressive name, like Destroyer of Worlds or something.

“What’s it used for?” Kristen was curious about this. She had spent more time with Ye Chong than most, and knew that her teacher would not spend so much effort on a useless piece of furniture. Nevertheless, she did think that this huge spider would make an excellent centerpiece.

“Transport for people or resources.” Ye Chong provided the explanation after some careful thought. He had designed this huge pilot cabin with the intention of entering Darkniss stocked with enough water and supplies. Ye Chong added, “Hmm, and also for accommodation.” The huge spider will of course be properly armed later, but Ye Chong thought that Sha Ya and Xuan Ning would be his main defense line.

Kristen and Xi Yan exchanged a look of disbelief. This magnificent thing was only used for transport, while also doubling as a mobile outdoors camp. Xi Yan thought it was more than excessive.

In the next few days, Ye Chong continued to improve the Spider.

Engine, holographic scanning system, air circulation system, weapons system …

The Spider’s exterior also received a makeover, since Kristen and Xi Yan thought that the exposed mechanical gears and parts were simply unaesthetic. Hence, they added a layer of armor on the Spider’s legs to hide the gears at the joints. This addition made the Spider looked even more like the real thing from afar.

Ye Chong also made extensive modifications to some crucial aspects, such as building the entry to the pilot cabin under the Spider’s belly. This was because Sha Ya and Xuan Ning were not good climbers. Ye Chong also calibrated the center of gravity of the Spider until he was satisfied that the pilot cabin did not shake too much when the Spider moved on hilly terrain.

It was truly a marvel to see the seven-metre tall Spider ran across the mountains. Kristen and Xi Yan were both shocked when they first saw the Spider burst into a run.

Ye Chong left Xi Yan and Kristen with some basic learning material inside a mini projector that could fit into one’s hand. This was basically what Ye Chong was teaching them so far. He did not hesitate to share all his knowledge with them. During his time at Aurora, the elders there never shied away from talking about their expertise. They always answered his questions patiently and with great detail. Thus, Ye Chong came to recognize them as necessary qualities in a teacher.

The two students received the mini projectors like it was treasure. They had never seen anything like it. Studying the object brought them no closer to understanding how it worked. They were intrigued by the device, but also captivated by the new and deep knowledge inside it.

…

Sha Ya finally emerged from her room.

Ye Chong gave her a lookover, and then asked, “You’re done?”

“Yes.” Sha Ya nodded. After so many days of thinking without much rest, her low and hoarse voice now sounded dry and tired as well. “Thank you.”

Ye Chong frowned when he noticed how pale Sha Ya was. “You need a good rest.” Sha Ya’s fatigue was apparent. She looked weak. Her days of contemplation were exhausting.

Sha Ya nodded and returned to her room once more. She knew that she was in bad condition.

After three days of resting, Sha Ya emerged looking sharp and energetic. She agreed readily when asked to accompany Ye Chong to Darkniss.

Xuan Ning received Ye Chong’s notice as well, and arrived early at his manor.

When Xuan Ning saw Sha Ya, he remarked in surprise, “You have improved by a lot.”

Sha Ya smiled and did not comment further.

Xuan Ning turned to Ye Chong and said, “His Majesty hopes that you will bring a few more people with you. He has a few Level 8 shooters in his service, and suggests that you bring them along. You are, after all, Chief Weaponsmith of Eastern Cloud. If anything were to happen to you, I cannot possibly explain myself to the King.” By now, everyone in Su Cit knew how important Ye Chong was to their King, Sun Sieha.

Ye Chong shook his head. “This is only a simple expedition. It would be inconvenient to have too many people. Besides, I have only made preparations for three of us.”

“Oh, what sort of preparations?” Xuan Ning was intrigued. What would a Master weaponsmith do as preparation?

Sha Ya was also curious. Having shut herself in for so long, she did not know what Ye Chong had been up to.

“Come with me.” Ye Chong led the two shooters into the warehouse. The shooters exchanged a look, and then followed him.

When the door of the warehouse slid open, Ye Ching could hear both of them inhale sharply behind him.

“What is this thing?” As expected of a Level 9 shooter, Xuan Ning recovered quickly from his surprise. He moved closer to the huge spider and looked up, still in a daze.

“It’s called Spider, and it is our main means of transport. The speed is lacking, but otherwise it’s quite serviceable.” Ye Chong briefly introduced his creation.

Since the two shooters were crucial to his mission, he must let them get familiar with the Spider as soon as possible.

Ye Chong led them to the belly of the Spider. Hiss! A door slip open, and then a rope ladder was let down.

Ye Chong went up first. The two shooters quickly followed him up the rope ladder.

The pilot cabin was no longer empty. There were now three chairs that could spin freely, with six huge screens that covered 180 degrees of vision. Each chair came with a firearms control lever for shooting. The seat at the center had a control panel. That was Ye Chong’s seat.

The wall of the pilot cabin was lined with a thick layer of bushy lilac colored plant. It could produce enough oxygen for three people.

At the rear were two big rooms that function as storage space. This would be where they store drinking water and energy crystals, and even some repair tools and extra parts.

When Ye Chong began to demonstrate how to pilot the Spider to run around the manor, both Xuan Ning and Sha Ya had already fallen in love with the machine.

“Can you build one for me? Just name the price.” Xuan Ning asked hesitantly. The machine was awesome, it was practically a moving castle. Besides, the huge storage space could carry plenty of water and food. It was very useful for shooters who liked to explore the wilderness. Moreover, the machine could move very quickly even on hilly terrain. Xuan Ning would very much like to own a Spider.

Sha Ya was quiet, but her keen eyes betrayed a similar interest.

Ye Chong looked at them. “After we come back from Darkniss, I’ll build one for each of you.” As long as Xi Yan and Kristen prepared the gears and parts beforehand, the actual construction would not take too much of his time.

“Oh, wonderful!” Xuan Ning was overjoyed. Sha Ya caressed the firearms control lever like a lover.

“Shall we leave now?” Xuan Ning lost all his composure as a Level 9 shooter. He was like a child eager to try out his latest toy.

“Wait. We still need to bring these.” Ye Chong pointed at a huge pile of supplies in a corner of the warehouse.

These were the supplies they had to bring with them for this expedition. Ye Chong made full preparations for his trip to Darkniss.

With all three of them working, the supplies disappeared onboard quickly. It helped that Ye Chong was practically a weightlifting machine.

Sha Ya pointed at a box, filled with bottles of liquid. “What are these?”

Ye Chong threw a quick glance at them. “Testing solutions.” From the blank looks he got from the shooters, Ye Chong knew that explaining to them would be a hassle. He said, “You’ll find out soon enough.” He then continued with moving the box onto the Spider.

Soon, everything was moved onto the Spider. The storage rooms were now packed.

Xuan Ning looked at the packed storage rooms and commented, “That’s enough to last us for months. If only I have one of these long ago, I would have explored every corner of Darkniss by now.”

Sha Ya was quiet throughout, occupied with her thoughts.

Of course, Ye Chong was not planning on piloting the Spider from his manor. They were still some distance away from Dual Forest. At the speed the Spider was moving, it would take them God knew how long to reach Darkniss.

Ye Chong called Liao San and asked for a transport aircraft. The transport aircraft, nicknamed Big Mushroom, could manage a heavy load. A Spider was no trouble for it at all.

When the transport aircraft docked in Yedda City’s landing field, it attracted a lot of attention. The transport aircraft was of an expensive model. Only selected elite military troops would have them. Besides, the symbol of the Royal Guards on the aircraft was simply eye-catching.

The Spider, carrying Ye Chong and the two shooters, emerged into the open from the transport aircraft.

This ignited a commotion in Yedda City’s landing field. “Heavens, what is that monster?” The huge spider ignored the onlookers and left.

The landing field was situated outside Yedda City, so Ye Chong and his crew did not have to go through Yedda City itself to enter Dual Forest.

It was common for shooters looking for an adventure to hang around in the outskirts of Dual Forest. The sudden appearance of this massive thing was shocking. Fortunately, the mechanical nature of the Spider was easily recognized. Once the shooters realized that it was man made, they did not feel so frightened anymore. Some of the bolder shooters even trailed behind the machine out of curiosity.

Dual Forest was largely made up of gigantic trees. These trees had a thick canopy that blocked most of the sunlight to the ground. Trees below the canopy were stunted and weak from the lack of sunlight. This was the law of nature. The strong grew stronger by commanding most of the resources; the weak turned weaker, with no hope of ever absorbing enough sunlight to become just as gigantic, not unless the huge trees around it fell and give way.

The forest did not hinder the Spider’s advance. It weaved its way easily through the scattered trees on the forest floor. The weaker trees were simply bulldozed over. The shooters who followed the Spider were jealous of the pilot behind the machine. How nice it would be to own a Spider too.

Xuan Ning and Sha Ya could tell that Ye Chong was experienced in controlling this kind of machine.

They were full of anticipation for their expedition to Darkniss.

he wild animals in Dual Forest were all scared away by the gigantic newcomer. In the end, Ye Chong and his crew crossed Dual Forest without being challenged by any of the native creatures. Xuan Ning felt annoyed, for he had just learned how to maneuver the Spider’s weapons system.

The shooters who were following the Spider suddenly found themselves travelling all the way across Dual Forest. Most of them had never ventured deep into Dual Forest, for the place was home to many vicious animals. It was simply too dangerous for them! Now that they had actually crossed the entire Dual Forest, all the shooters felt excited. They had all run with all they got just to keep up with the Spider in the past few days. The weaker shooters were left behind long ago.

Xuan Ning frowned, “What’s with their foolishness? Staying alive is more important than satisfying their curiosity.”

Ye Chong and Sha Ya understood him. The shooters were able to reach so far inside here because of their Spider, and not their own strength. Once they were no longer under the protection of their Spider, the dangers of the place would surely overwhelm them.

Ye Chong and his team did not have time to care for their survival. These shooters must now make their way back to Yedda City by crossing the entire Dual Forest again. Xuan Ning and Sha Ya both knew that only shooters of at least Level 6 could survive the journey. Of all the shooters following behind them, only a few were that skilled.

Xuan Ning saw Ye Chong’s eyes lingered on him. He said to Ye Chong, “Forget about them. We should be on our way. Shooters who cannot think calmly are foolish. We’re not their babysitter.”

Sha Ya threw a pitiful glance at the low level shooters. They had realized the situation they were in now, and had started to panic.

The three of them did not stay behind to help. They would not delay their expedition because of these shooters.

Without the Spider, crossing the entire Dual Forest would take around 20 days. Even capable shooters like Xuan Ning and Sha Ya would take that long. This was because the only way to travel was by foot. Besides, in order to avoid the territories of the vicious native animals, they had to make detours and risk losing their way.

On the other hand, Ye Chong and his team sat inside the Spider’s pilot cabin, enjoying their drinks and sporadic conversation while the Spider made its way through Dual Forest. It took only five days to complete the journey. Along the way, the Spider stormed through anything in its path. Xuan Ning was astounded by the sight of all the animals that practically leaped out of their way. Once, the Spider unknowingly crashed into the home of a flock of sharpbeak cuckoos. Over a hundred sharpbeak cuckoos scattered to the skies, making for an impressive spectacle.

Even the larger animals were cautious around the huge spider, for they had never seen it before. They stayed back and did not initiate any contact. Hence, the Spider carried its three passengers and led the group of low level shooters behind it across the entire Dual Forest.

Once they exited Dual Forest, the environment around them transformed quickly.

There was less foliage. The air was dryer. The ground composition turned sandy.

On the third day after leaving Dual Forest, there was not a tree in sight. The ground was flat. The wind bellowed. There were no plants, no humans, no animals – it was a wasteland. This was the Desert.

The wind grew stronger and stronger, kicking up tiny rocks that hit on the Spider. Cling! Clang! The graveled terrain was a picture of desolation. The uninteresting surrounding was uninspiring.

Nevertheless, Xuan Ning was sitting up straight and looked serious. “I think a sandstorm is coming.”

Beside him, Sha Ya shared the same thought. “Agreed.”

Ye Chong heard them. He focused on the holographic screen and keyed in a series of commands. Xuan Ning approached him and asked curiously, “What are you doing?”

“Releasing the Hummingbirds.” Ye Chong answered without looking up.

“Hummingbirds? What are they?” Xuan Ning thought he was just like some curious child who could not help asking questions.

Ye Chong continued keying in the commands. “Hummingbirds are small surveillance devices that can increase surveillance coverage area.”

“I see.”

Four Hummingbirds were released from the Spider into the outside world. They headed straight for the skies.

The Hummingbirds transmitted their video feed onto the screens. Despite the strong wind, the Hummingbirds maintained steady flight and provided clear images of their surroundings.

“D*mn it!” Sha Ya and Xuan Ning cursed simultaneously.

On the screen, the sky had darkened some distance away from them. The sandstorm cast a dark shadow on the ground. The most dangerous thing in the Desert was not the large army of sandscorpions or the vicious sandlizards, but the natural phenomenon known as the sandstorm. Strong winds could lift huge rocks into the air. If hit by any of them, the result would be nothing short of a swift death.

Even if someone could avoid being smashed by huge rocks, they would not be able to avoid the sand flying all around them. If unlucky, they would find themselves buried deep under tons of sand, something not uncommon in the Desert.

Ye Chong and his team had not even reached the heart of the Desert when this sandstorm hit them. They were most unfortunate.

Just then, the video feed shook. Ye Chong quickly ordered the Hummingbirds to return, but by then he had already lost one Hummingbird to the sandstorm.

There was only one thing left to do now.

The huge spider raced across the empty desert wasteland, with a massive sandstorm close on its tail.

The Spider was not fast, and the sandstorm caught up quickly. Its passengers were now witness to a powerful force of Nature.

Bam bam bam! Rocks and pebbles rained down on the Spider’s armor. Larger rocks would shake the pilot cabin. Not even a Level 9 shooter can survive the sandstorm. Xuan Ning felt unsettled by this realization.

“It’s dmn lucky that I didn’t encounter a sandstorm last time. Fck, no one can survive this.” Xuan Ning could not help cursing. Ever since he reached Level 9, his personality had undergone a 180 degree change. He lost his rigidity and became more open and easygoing. Once upon a time, he would never have cursed openly like this. Ye Chong thought the behavior change was curious. None of the mentalist principles that Huang Baiyi had taught him said anything about personality changes.

Sha Ya looked nervous. “Yes, I was quite lucky too the few times I’ve been here. I never encountered a sandstorm before. It’s highly unlikely for anyone to live through this.”

The pilot cabin was hit again, and shook violently. Xuan Ning was nearly sent flying from his half lying position. He put his hands to his stomach and gritted his teeth, enduring the pain.

The screen informed them that the Spider was hit by a rock of over half a meter in diameter. Xuan Ning looked even more unsettled.

Ye Chong was expressionless. “The wind is too strong. We have to stay put and wait for the storm to pass.”

“It’s our only option.” Xuan Ning and Sha Ya exchanged a look of helplessness. The Spider was shaking violently from the buffeting of the winds. Large rocks would hit them intermittently. It was impossible to travel in this condition.

Ye Chong keyed in a series of commands in the control console. Xuan Ning looked curiously at Ye Chong at the control console. Everytime Ye Chong did something at the controls, the Spider was bound to respond in some way. Xuan Ning thought that the Spider was full of surprises, just like its creator.

Whrr! A laser gun was activated outside the Spider. It fired eight times on the ground, leaving eight deep holes. The holes were arranged in two rows of four. Xuan Ning and Sha Ya were still trying to figure them out when the Spider stepped its legs into the holes. The Spider’s body lowered as a result. The pilot cabin was lowered to the ground. The Spider’s legs now had a tight grip on the ground. The holes were just deep enough for the joints of the legs to bend at the surface of the ground.

Creak creak creak! A grappling clamp came out from each of the leg’s joints and sunk itself into the ground.

Suddenly, the pilot cabin stopped shaking. Despite the rocks raining down on the Spider, the pilot cabin did not move at all. The three passengers felt none of the violent shaking anymore.

“So you can do this too! This is neat!” Xuan Ning praised. The thought of Ye Chong giving him a Spider after they returned from Darkniss sent a jolt of euphoria through him.

“Sleep.” Ye Chong did not care to indulge him. He switched off the lights in the pilot cabin, and all of a sudden they were shrouded into darkness.

Xuan Ning exclaimed in annoyance. “Why’d you turn off the lights? It’s so dark.”

Sha Ya was not used to being in the dark with someone else, much less with two men.

Just when she was about to speak up, Ye Chong’s answer silenced her. “It’s to conserve energy.”

Xuan Ning complained, “Conserve energy? How much energy can you save like this?”

Ye Chong ignored him, and Xuan Ning soon quieted down.

The pilot cabin was dark and quiet. Its passengers were most likely asleep now.

The storm continued for a full day before it subsided. By then, the Spider was mostly buried under the sand, leaving only a small part of its back exposed. Even so, there was a thin layer of sand on its back.

Fortunately, Ye Chong had fitted a powerful engine for the Spider, or it would have been impossible for them to climb out of the sand. The Spider lifted its body, and all the sand was shaken off.

The Spider began to walk. There was a disc of about 1.5 meters in diameter at the end of each leg to prevent the machine from sinking into the sand.

With the help of these eight discs, the Spider moved quickly across the sandy terrain. The sandy mounds did not slow the machine down.

“Ohh, this is amazing!” Xuan Ning exclaimed in excitement. “Haha, when I get myself one of these, I am coming to Darkniss every year for vacation. This is so much fun!”

Ye Chong focused on the screen in front of him. He ignored Xuan Ning completely as he piloted the Spider on its way forward.

When the Spider reached the peak of a 100-meter tall sand dune, it brought its eight legs to the center and linked all the discs at its feet together to form a huge board. The Spider then glided down the dune on the board.

Sha Ya and Xuan Ning had never seen anything quite so interesting. The Spider was like a toy for them. Xuan Ning was jumping up and down like a little boy. On the contrary, Sha Ya’s composure was more like a Level 9 shooter’s.

The Spider travelled more easily and quickly on the sand dunes.

“If we follow this direction at our current speed, we will leave the Desert after roughly three days.” Xuan Ning pointed to the front and said to Ye Chong. He still looked energetic, with a seemingly unlimited capacity for excitement. Sha Ya, on the other hand, was already over the initial phase of excitement.

Their luck seemed to have turned for the better after the sandstorm. Aside from the two sandlizards that had immediately took off after being surprised by their transport, they had encountered no other wild animals. Three more days, and they will be out of the Desert.

The Desert was a strange place, interspersed with drought regions and sandy regions. In the past few days, they had already crossed a few of them.

It was all sand and rocks, but Ye Chong still noticed the subtler details. The deeper they went, the more metal ores there were in the drought regions. He could see these metal ores now at their location. The ores were mostly soft and tiny. The sand was more fine as they went deeper into the Desert.

Ye Chong had the Hummingbirds outside throughout their journey. The holographic scanning system was disrupted, and could not provide enough scanning range and detail. Ye Chong had no other combat mode holographic scanning system aside from the ones on Celest and Moon King, but he did not want to use his mechs. Fortunately, the Hummingbirds provided him with some improvement in holographic scanning results.

However, they were soon running out of luck. According to the live feed from the Hummingbirds right now, there was a sea of sandscorpions in front, advancing towards them like a swathe of dark clouds.

andscorpion colonies were a deadly threat in the Desert, just like the sandstorm. A colony of sandscorpions could stretch out for miles, and they moved at an astonishing speed. An encounter with a scorpion colony would be pretty much like signing your own death warrant. A sandscorpion was about the size of a human fist. Just a drop of venom from the tip of its tail would be fatal. Besides, the sandscorpion could release a highly corrosive poison from its tail.

Sandscorpions always appear in the thousands. They could move much faster than a normal human. Shooters who encountered a sandscorpion colony never make it out alive. There was no way to deal with so many sandscorpions.

Xuan Ning looked troubled. “We’re really down in luck. First it was all peaceful but now look what we’ve got in our hands.”

Sha Ya had already made her decision. She turned to Ye Chong and said, “We should run fromthem.”

Every field of expertise has its advantages and disadvantages. A close range fighter like Ye Chong would be able to outrun the sandscorpions. Any capable combat expert would be able to run for at least a few days non-stop. Shooters, however, could not do this. Their weak bodies could not carry them fast enough away from the sandscorpions. Besides, sandscorpions were known to be tenacious in pursuing their prey, making it difficult for anyone they had set their sights on.

Even a Level 9 shooter like Xuan Ning would not be able to handle the sandscorpions.

The Spider was not fast, but it was still faster than the scorpions. Nevertheless, if they ran for it, their schedule would be interrupted. The disgusting insects were famous for their tenacity.

Ye Chong did not bring the Spider to a run. Instead, he went to the storage room and disappeared inside.

The sandscorpions had discovered the huge spider by then. The Spider presented itself as a feast for the sandscorpions. It was terrifying to see the huge colony of insects marching towards the Spider. Xuan Ning and Sha Ya both look stricken.

“Are you trying to test the Spider’s anti-corrosive properties?” Xuan Ning looked deeply unsettled.

Sha Ya had already reached for her laser gun. The feel of the weapon gave her a sense of security. She watched the approaching sandscorpions on the screen nervously.

Both shooters did not know how to pilot the Scorpion, or they would have had the Spider running by now.

They did not know what Ye Chong was up to. It was not Ye Chong’s nature to give up so easily, but they could not fathom what he could do given their current situation.

No sound came from the storage room after Ye Chong disappeared inside it.

10 minutes passed.

Finally, Ye Chong came out from the storage room with two test tubes. The first test tube was filled with a green coloured solution, while the other was filled with a light yellow solution. The solutions were clear as crystal and sparkled under the light.

Xuan Ning forgot about the sandscorpions for a moment and stared wide-eyed at the solutions. “What are these?” Sha Ya was also looking at the two beautiful test tubes with great interest. Women seemed to be innately drawn to pretty glowing things.

“Shavill root extract and Wanda extract.” Ye Chong offered two technical terms that were foreign to both Sha Ya and Xuan Ning, but he did not elaborate further.

Ye Chong directed his attention to the screen. While he was inside the storage room just then, the sandscorpions had already gotten very close to them.

The insects were at most 500 meters away. This was a difficult situation for anyone to be in. When Xuan Ning looked at the screen again, he was shocked by what he saw. “Run! Run -”

Even Ye Chong was surprised by Xuan Ning’s loud shriek. Who knew that a Level 9 shooter could be shocked to this extent. Sha Ya could not help rolling her eyes. She felt her cheeks turn red out of embarrassment. How could Eastern Cloud’s number one shooter turn out like this? His name was enough to tame even the most arrogant and powerful shooters of their time! As a professional in the same field, Sha Ya thought he was an embarassment.

Crack! Ye Chong planted a chop from behind Xuan Ning’s neck. The man’s eyes rolled upwards as he slumped quietly to the ground.

Sha Ya gaped in bewilderment at Ye Chong. How could anyone treat a Level 9 shooter like that? She could hardly believe what she saw.

“He’s too noisy,” Ye Chong explained calmly.

Sha Ya threw a sympathetic look at Xuan Ning, but blurted out, “How long will he be out? Should we give him a tranquilizer? It’s safer that way.”

Ye Chong held the two test tubes in his left hand while his right hand flew across the control panel, keying in commands.

The Spider began to retreat backwards. The soft footing beneath it did not affect its movements. They began to distant from the sandscorpions. However, the colony was too big to escape so easily.

Sha Ya could not understand him. If he wanted to escape, why wait until now? Was it not a little too late now? And what were the liquids in the two test tubes for?

Suddenly, Ye Chong opened the firing chamber, where a cone shaped grenade with four tail fins slid out.

Sha Ya had never seen a grenade before. Aircrafts usually use photon grenades, powerful pure energy weapons that ran on energy crystals. She had never seen a solid weapon like this.

Nevertheless, it felt natural to see something unfamiliar whenever Ye Chong was involved, especially weapons. After all, he was the Chief Weaponsmith.

Ye Chong put down the two test tubes in his left hand and took the grenade instead. He had made preparations for their expedition. He knew that pure energy weapons were only suitable for a narrow range of situations. Besides, these creatures had outer shells that were very resistant to energy base attacks. Other weapons like corrosion grenades and high compression explosive grenades were more up to task. Ye Chong had a thing for auxiliary grenades. He was a wide variety of experience in putting them to good use.

For this reason, Ye Chong prepared all kinds of grenades for this expedition. He had space to store them. Right now, he was using a high explosive grenade, fitted with a miniature engine at its tip. Without using any tools and with the other hand controlling the Spider, Ye Chong opened the bottom part of the high explosive grenade.

Sha Ya simply stared. She had never seen a human hand move so deftly!

Besides, she was curious as to what Ye Chong was about to do.

Ye Chong removed the explosives inside the grenade and replaced them with the solutions in the two test tubes. He then secured the casing at the bottom of the grenade very carefully, leaving the Spider’s control panel while he focused on this task.

Sha Ya had never seen Ye Chong move with such deliberate care. She held her breath while Ye Chong worked.

Ye Chong lifted the grenade carefully in his hands and sent it sliding back down the firing chamber.

When the hatch of the firing chamber was closed, Ye Chong felt relaxed. Sha Ya could hear his breathing pace change. It took only a short while to modify the grenade, but Ye Chong was already sweating on his forehead.

Sha Ya knew the kind of person Ye Chong was. He did not panic even when fighting against a Level 8 shooter by himself. However, he was clearly nervous when handling those two test tubes. What could be so terrifying about the beautiful solutions in those test tubes?

Ye Chong ignored the sweat on his forehead and resumed typing on the control console.

“Target identification.” A red cross appeared on the screen. Ye Chong moved the red cross to the center of the sandscorpion colony.

“Target locked.”

Next, Sha Ya heard a low rumble from the firing chamber that Ye Chong opened earlier. She saw Ye Chong focusing on the screen, and followed suit.

There was an almost imperceptible flash at the center of the red cross. Sha Ya noticed the tiny flash of light on the screen.

“This must be the strange ‘weapon’ that Ye Chong slid down the firing chamber,” Sha Ya thought to herself. She watched the screen with anticipation.

Abruptly, a cloud of yellowish green smoke exploded in the center of the sandscorpion colony.

The thick smoke spread out quickly from the center. Sha Ya was surprised by how fast the smoke was spreading.

When Ye Chong saw the smoke, he immediately had the Spider retreat at full speed. The Spider jolted backwards.

In the next instant, the yellowish green smoke had engulfed all the sandscorpions. The Spider could not outrun the mist. Ye Chong immediately keyed in new commands for the Spider.

“Close all ventilation openings. Activate cabin oxygenation system. Pressurize the cabin.”

The Spider stood still as the mist finally reached it. The Hummingbirds were still in the sky, however, and the video feed from them informed them of what was happening outside.

The thick yellowish green mist unfurled on the ground like a monster, spreading at an alarming speed.

Both the Spider and the sandscorpion colony found themselves shrouded by the thick mist. It was impossible to see them from the sky, outside the mist.

Sha Ya was confused, but began to have an inkling of what was to come.

She stole a glance at Ye Chong. The man looked serious as he looked at the screen without a word.

Gradually, the mist began to subside. Xuan Ning awoke then. He rubbed the back of his neck and sighed. “Oh my, what’s with the soreness? Huh, there’s a mist?” Xuan Ning was startled by the image on the screen. He straightened up immediately. “Impossible. There is no mist in the Desert. Why is there a mist? And it’s in a yellowish green color!”

He turned to the other two people in the pilot cabin in surprise. “Did someone fart?” Ye Chong and Sha Ya simply ignored him while he wallowed in embarrassment.

The mist was thinning out. Ye Chong was happy to find that the mist was behaving as he expected.

The mist subsided as quickly as it first appeared. Soon, it was gone without a trace.

“Wah!” Sha Ya looked terrible. Her eyes betrayed the shock she was feeling. She doubled over and vomited.

Xuan Ning looked pale. He watched the screen in horror and muttered, “This, this is impossible …”

All round them was a five-kilometer radius of blood and dissolved flesh. Nothing in sight was left alive. The sand was covered with mushy insect bodies. The blood was quickly absorbed into the sand beneath it, forming a layer of dark red crust on the ground. Above the layer of crust lay hundreds and thousands of sandscorpion exoskeletons. Only the toughest parts of the exoskeletons remained, which was the sting on their tails!

Sha Ya threw up violently. Despite her long experience in combat, she had never seen or heard anything quite so bloody and devastating. The pilot cabin was filled with the stench of vomit.

Ye Chong was unaffected by it. He tapped a few times on the controls and the air inside the cabin was freshened up. The vomit was cleaned up by an automatic cleaning machine.

Sha Ya straightened up, her face white as a sheet. She stared at Ye Chong in horror.

Sha Ya felt a deep terror inside her. The man in front of her was like the Devil in all the legends she had heard of! No, he was even scarier than that! If this “weapon” was used on humans … Sha Ya felt goosebumps all over her. She seemed to understand now why Ye Chong had nothing to be afraid of, not even a Level 9 shooter. After all, what was a shooter compared to this?

It was a terrifying thought!

Xuan Ning was uncharacteristically quiet, but his sharp eyes revealed how shaken he felt!

If this weapon was ever used on Su City …

A flash of killing intent came and went from Xuan Ning.

Ye Chong ignored the horror of his two companions. Personally, he thought that this fell short compared to the time when he used the Green Tempest. This time around, he did not have the materials to formulate the Green Tempest. Besides, the wind conditions and humidity in the Desert were not suitable. Hence, he opted for the Shavill root extract and Wanda extract. When mixed together, these two solutions produced a very poisonous and corrosive gas called Carmic, which meant “to dissolve”. [1]

Even so, Ye Chong had used this combination with great care, since both solutions were highly unstable and very dangerous to handle.

Fortunately, the weapon worked perfectly. For a person like Ye Chong, who cared only about results, it did not matter if he ended up with a disgusting and bloody scene.

fter solving the problem of the sandscorpions, the trio did not encounter any other creatures along their journey in the Desert. Xuan Ning no longer felt lively . Sha Ya looked pale, perhaps from all the vomiting. Ye Chong could tell that Sha Ya was afraid of him. It was not the first time people looked at him this way. Every time he used alchemy, people would be afraid of him. He was used to it already.

Ye Chong never minded the silence around him. Sha Ya and Xuan Ning thought the Desert was an uninteresting wasteland, but Ye Chong could study his surroundings with great detail and undivided attention.

They must be arriving in the last drought region of their journey. Some of the rocks on the ground would sparkle with a metallic luster. There were more metal ores here. Ye Chong could see that most of them were low quality metal ores. Unless he had access to good extraction technologies, the ores would be useless to him.

There was a trend here that he had observed – the further in they went, the more metals there were around them.

“Beyond this ridge is the Mist,” said Xuan Ning. Three days had gone past, and the shooter had now recovered himself from the shock.

This was a huge white-colored rocky structure. It was not tall, and had white jagged edges all over its bald surface. It looked more like a small hill of about 300 meters tall than an actual mountain ridge. The structure extended for a very long distance like a natural barrier. Huge rocks were randomly stacked next to each other, forming this ridge structure. Many parts of the ridge were unsuitable for climbing.

Of course, to Xuan Ning and Sha Ya, the mountain barely reached 300 meters; to Ye Chong, it was only a small hill.

Under Ye Chong’s command, the Spider made its way quickly towards the hill.

The Spider’s eight legs allowed it to move across the uneven terrain easily. Obstacles that were impossible for humans to cross were easily leaped over by the Spider.

Xuan Ning could not help but felt emotional. “Machines are so powerful. This Spider must be more valuable than 10 Level 8 shooters. I wonder, were the decades that I spent in honing my parapsychic abilities all in vain? If I used all that time to study engineering, what would the outcome be instead?”

Sha Ya looked at Xuan Ning, shaken by his words. She found it hard to believe that a Level 9 shooter would say those words. Shooters were mentally tough and determined people. This was why they were stronger than common people. However, the first Level 9 shooter in the past five decades, Xuan Ning, had just made this surprising comment. Sha Ya found herself very much surprised.

Ye Chong shook his head. “Everything has limitations. This applies to machines as well as parapsychic abilities. Your people understand too little about parapsychic abilities, and have not think of other ways to make use of them. That is why you feel like this now.”

“What other ways?” Xuan Ning was inspired by Ye Chong’s words. Sha Ya, on the other hand, could not keep up with the conversation.

Ye Chong did not elaborate further. He had to concentrate on driving the Spider.

The truth was, he had long realized what he shared just now. In terms of mental abilities, he had never seen anyone as powerful as the shooters of this world. Even the famed mentalists from Xi Feng Tribe fell short. Nevertheless, the shooters used their parapsychic abilities in very limited form. Xi Feng Tribe fared better in terms of application variety.

Xi Feng Tribe’s mentalists did not parapsychic abilities as strong as shooters at Level 5 or 6, but they had already mastered skills such as movement restriction. Experts like Huang Baiyi could even fight with him on even ground in close quarters. Unlike mentalists, shooters lost their combat abilities the moment they lost their guns.

Besides, Xi Feng Tribe’s people had excellent battle coordination strategies, second only to the Sang Tribe, as the result of their mentalist skills. A normal mentalist mech pilot from Xi Feng Tribe was only on par with a fresh Level 3 shooter in terms of parapsychic strength, but the former could use their abilities in more creative ways.

When the Spider crossed the white rocky ridge, the environment around them transformed markedly.

A thin purple mist shrouded the place, blocked by the white rocky ridge on one side. The thin mist added a hint of mystery to everything in sight.

The place had higher humidity compared to the Desert.

“This is the Mist.” Sha Ya said to Ye Chong when she noticed Xuan Ning was still deep in thought. Ye Chong was the leader of their expedition to Darkniss. He had also surprised Sha Ya with his demonstration in the Desert. Sha Ya had gradually come to think of Ye Chong as the decision maker for their group of three.

“The mist here is thin, but it will get thicker as we go on.”

Ye Chong soon found that the light purple colored mist was highly disruptive to the holographic scanning system. The image on the screen was no longer clear. If the mist was to grow thicker as they progressed, then the Spider’s holographic scanning system could no longer be relied upon.

“There’s interference here. Both of you are in charge of security and direction. I’ll clear the path.” Ye Chong ordered the two shooters like it was the natural thing to do.

“Alright,” Sha Ya replied.

After staying quiet for so long, Xuan Ning felt excited again. “Hah, this is what I’ve been waiting for. There wasn’t a chance to shoot since we first started, my hands are getting itchy.” He eagerly reached for the firearms control lever in front of his seat.

Now that the two shooters were ready for battle, Ye Chong opened the hatch for the two laser guns they were controlling. These laser guns were more like laser cannons. Laser guns graded at 4 million Lux were considered quite powerful, but the Spider’s laser gun could reach 12 million Lux. They were powerful monsters. Even an aircraft’s laser cannon never exceeded 8 million Lux. The Spider’s weapons, the mother of all laser guns, could also swivel around easily.

Ye Chong now had a Level 8 shooter and a Level 9 shooter behind his two very powerful weapons. Surely they must be enough for his own security.

Here in the Mist, the ground began to feel uneven. There were trees growing around them sparsely. As Sha Ya warned earlier, the mist was getting thicker, and the holographic scanning system was rendered useless. Ye Chong turned it off and switched to optical mode.

Ye Chong remembered the purple mist back in Yi Ju. The purple mist there was also disruptive to their holographic scanning system. It was impossible for holographic scanning to penetrate the purple gas cloud.

Ye Chong realized that the purple mist here and the one he saw in Yi Ju was eerily similar, and felt alarmed by the consequences.

“Left … Left … Right … Right …” Xuan Ning directed excitedly. He had to play the role of their holographic scanning system.

Under Xuan Ning’s direction, the Spider moved at a moderate pace. Since, Ye Chong could not see the ground clearly, the Spider could not move with the stability they enjoyed back at the Desert.

There were more trees now. The Spider had to avoid them frequently.

“Stop!” Xuan Ning said.

“What is it?” Ye Chong asked.

Sha Ya said to Ye Chong, “Ahead of us is a thick forest. I don’t think the Spider can enter.” She remembered the forest clearly. No one who had been here before would be likely to forget the dense foliage.

Xuan Ning explained earnestly, “It’s difficult to travel in there. The forest is dense, with creepers all over the place. There are swamps too. If you get stuck in one, you’re dead already. Many shooters lost their lives here.” He added, “Spidey here can’t go inside, I’m afraid. What a pity.” He caressed the firearms control lever regretfully, having not fired a single shot from it yet.

“How long does it take to cross the forest?” Ye Chong asked after some thought.

Xuan Ning reached for his memories. “We spent seven days last time.”

Ye Chong turned to Sha Ya. The shooter smiled bitterly. “I wasn’t so lucky. I spent 14 days in the forest, nearly went crazy from it.”

The two shooters looked at Ye Chong. The forest was too dense for the huge Spider to move through. Nevertheless, they were reluctant to let go of the Spider.

Ye Chong considered the duration of seven to 14 days, and did some mental calculations. After a while, he nodded. “I have a plan.”

“What?” Xuan Ning and Sha Ya looked at Ye Chong.

Ye Chong said nothing as he lowered his head and began to type on the control console.

A piece of armour on the Spider’s left side slid open, revealing a weapon underneath. Xuan Ning and Sha Ya were using their parapsychic waves to monitor their surroundings. The movement did not escape their notice.

Suddenly, the Spider reached the first leg on its left towards the back to retrieve the strange weapon. Tap! The weapon was activated. They heard a whirring sound that came from fast rotation – it was a laser saw!

“It’s huge!” Xuan Ning exclaimed. The laser saw was about nine meters long and three meters wide. It was a really huge weapon. However, the handle was small enough to store inside the Spider’s body.

Xuan Ning and Sha Ya understood what Ye Chong’s plan was. They exchanged a look and cried out in unison, “It’s a good plan!” This way, they would not have to leave the Spider. The past few days were enough to make the two shooters love the Spider to bits.

With the huge laser saw clearing the path, the Spider could now advance faster. Any physical obstacles in the way were cleared or cut to pieces as the Spider waved its front left leg. Xuan Ning could only stare in amazement. “This thing’s amazing! I say, what else do you have hidden in the Spider? This laser saw is d*mn powerful, haha, you have to fit my Spider with one too.”

Ye Chong had originally wanted to bring a ship cannon, but the Spider could not bear the weight. The cannon would have cleared a path in the forest with just a few shots. However, since the ship cannon was too bulky, heavy and energy consuming, he had ditched the idea.

The laser saw was more than enough to clear a path in the forest.

The forest was humid, and the plants grew wildly. Unfortunately, Ye Chong could see none of it from inside. This forest would surely be home to very valuable plants. Ye Chong had to be careful when maneuvering the Spider on soft layers of decomposing leaves on the ground. Besides, they were unlucky enough to have encountered a few swamps along the way. Fortunately, Ye Chong was able to react just in time in every encounter. The Spider’s many legs helped. As long at least one leg was not caught in the swamp, they would be able to break free with no issue.

Xuan Ning was very excited. The Spider’s weapons were crazy powerful.

There were no large animals in the forest, only small ones, but Xuan Ning was still eager to test out his gun. It was like firing a cannon at a mosquito – now that was exhilarating!

Where before they had to worry about being attacked by harmful plants, now it was a negligible issue. The Spider was solid enough to resist attacks from these plants. Ye Chong had also closed all the airways that led outside. They were now running on an isolated air circulation system. Tranquilizing gas that came from the plants could no longer affect them.

There was also the problem of the swamps. If they were travelling on foot, they would have died many times over. The Spider had kept them intact throughout the journey.

The laser gun was such an overbearing weapon. Xuan Ning wanted to try it out himself.

Ye Chong could not see anything around him. He only hoped to cross the Mist as soon as possible. Without help from Xuan Ning and Sha Ya, the forest was too dangerous for him.

The Spider waved its huge laser saw left and right. The thick laser beam allowed the Spider to advance unhindered.

It took only three days for them to cross the Mist. By then, the mist was becoming thinner. When the image on the screen cleared up, Ye Chong heaved a sigh of relief.

All around him was a long stretch of crimson colored wasteland. The crimson earth supported no plant life. The flat earth extended towards the horizon with no end in sight. Compared to the dense forest that was teeming with life, this desolate place was a sharp and unsettling contrast.

“The Red Wasteland is not a very big place. Judging by the speed of the Spider, we should be able to reach the entrance to Darkniss in a day and a half.”

Sha Ya studied their surroundings and said to Ye Chong, “That way.” She pointed at an angle towards the left.

fter travelling in the Red Wasteland for some time, the trio finally reached the entrance to Darkniss. When Ye Chong saw the entrance, he was stunned.

In the middle of the endless stretch of wasteland was a flat, black colored circle. It was 15 meters across, and suspended about 20 centimeters above the ground. It was like a gateway to another world.

Ye Chong was familiar with the black circle. He had seen it more than once. There was one in the underground tunnel, one on Yi Ju, and one in the Research Consortium’s base on Spectre. The size of the black circles varied, but they were all black, perfectly circular, and suspended in the air. The similarities were there.

Xuan Ning and Sha Ya noticed Ye Chong’s muted surprise. They had never seen that expression on him.

Xuan Ning was curious. He asked, “What is it? Have you been here before?”

Ye Chong quickly recovered himself and shook his head. “No.”

“Let’s go inside,” Sha Ya interrupted them. “I always felt unsafe at the entrance. Let’s go inside now.”

“Alright.” Ye Chong nodded. He moved the Spider closer to the black circle, ready to step through it. People with strong parapsychic sense had better instincts than normal people.

Xuan Ning smiled. “I once had that feeling too, but now I sense something new. The entrance feels unstable, but it’s actually quite the opposite. A Level 8 shooter can sense its instability, but once you reach Level 9, you can sense that there is a very stable structure underneath the instability.”

Xuan Ning had just finished speaking when a ripple appeared on the black circle.

“What was that?” Sha Ya gasped. She had never seen the entrance ripple like that.

Ye Chong looked at Xuan Ning. Was this really stable?

Xuan Ning look perturbed. “Something’s not right. It became unstable suddenly, like it was stimulated by something.” He closed his eyes and reached out with his parapsychic sense to the entrance. He had the strongest parapsychic sense of the three, and could detect the most minute details.

“Huh?” Xuan Ning opened his eyes wide and turned to Ye Chong with a weird expression. He said, “We should step back.”

The Spider retreated about 10 meters away. The effect was immediately apparent. Once the Spider began retreating, the ripples at the entrance reduced until it eventually became flat again.

Ye Chong and Sha Ya could not understand what was happening.

Xuan Ning turned his attention to the ring on Ye Chong’s finger. He hesitated before speaking again, “Your ring is a little odd. It was the cause of the instability at the entrance.”

Ring? Sha Ya looked at the inconspicuous ring on Ye Chong’s finger. It did not look particularly interesting to her.

“Celest’s dimension keystone?” Ye Chong thought to himself in surprise. How was the ring responsible for this?

Ye Chong suddenly remembered the time when he was in the Research Consortium’s laboratory on Spectre. The spatial window in the corner of the lab had transformed abruptly and sent him to Dual Forest. Could that be related to his ring too?

Xuan Ning saw the confusion on Ye Chong’s and Sha Ya’s faces. He explained, “I don’t know what happened either, but I can sense that the ring was causing the entrance to become unstable. The structure of the entrance seems to be affected by it. Once we back off, the entrance returned to normal. It looks like distance is key here. Hmm, the entrance feels normal now. The structure of the entrance is stable.”

Ye Chong lifted his right hand pointed at the ring on it with his left hand. “This one?”

Xuan Ning nodded. “That’s the one.” He saw the inquiring look on Ye Chong and shrugged. “Don’t ask me why because I don’t know either.” Ye Chong’s ring looked ordinary. He could not understand what was happening as well.

Sha Ya watched Xuan Ning admiringly. This was the difference between Level 8 and Level 9. Xuan Ning could sense the structure of the entrance with his parapsychic sense, and even feel it transforming. What a powerful skill! Sha Ya never imagined that parapsychic sense could do this. Level 9 was almost a legend. People could only imagine what a Level 9 shooter was capable of. She just witnessed the true strength of a Level 9 shooter, and it was much more powerful than anyone could have imagined!

Ye Chong considered their situation for a moment and pointed at the entrance. He asked, “What is its structure like?” He was also curious about Xuan Ning’s ability to sense the structure of the spatial window. His parapsychic sense was strong!

Xuan Ning shook his head in chagrin. “I can’t say for sure. It’s strange and mysterious! I don’t know how to express it.”

Ye Chong tried again with a more straightforward question. “How can we safely pass through the entrance?” He did not want to spend too much time on this problem. The fact that Celest’s dimension keystone could disrupt the spatial window was already a very important piece of information for him.

Xuan Ning looked at Ye Chong. He could see that the man would not leave the ring behind. He considered the problem for awhile. “If we could approach the entrance fast, it should not be a problem.”

“I see,” Ye Chong nodded. His fingers tapped on the control console, and the Spider lunged towards the entrance without warning.

Xuan Ning was thrown backwards. He hit the back of his head on his seat and screamed like a madman. Xuan Ning roared, “Can’t you at least warn us?”

Sha Ya threw a pitiful look at Xuan Ning, the admiration she felt for him fading fast. She marveled at how a Level 9 shooter was helpless against the unpredictable man, Ye Chong.

Once the Spider was close to the entrance, ripples began to form on the flat surface again. Ye Chong ignored the ripples and focused on piloting the Spider. The Spider charged head on towards the black circle and went right through it.

The surroundings turned dark. The image on the holographic screen was completely different now.

It was very, very dark. Only a faint light allowed them to see their surroundings. The sky was dark. There were stars and moons in the sky. Nevertheless, darkness was not the only thing that defined this place. There was also a bright, hot red in sight – lava.

Hot lava flowed like rough waters, splashing violently as they went along deep trenches. The fiery waves could reach up to 8 meters tall. Despite being in the Spider, they could still feel the heat emanating from the lava.

There was a main branch of lava river that was about 30 meters wide. It branched out into thinner flows going downstream, like roots of a tree.

Ye Chong had never seen anything so magnificent. He was distracted for a moment.

“Leave the entrance now!” Xuan Ning shouted panickedly. “Quick! It’s becoming unstable!”

Ye Chong quickly focused himself and pulled the Spider away from the black entrance.

The ripples on the entrance subsided once more and became flat again. Ye Chong watched the spatial window, suspended in midair, and felt fascinated by it. This place was completely different from the Red Wasteland outside, but just by stepping through the “door”, they had arrived in a whole new world. The whole process was even more mysterious than warp jumps.

Unfortunately, Ye Chong knew very little about spatial science. He did not understand the working principles behind them.

Xuan Ning was still not over his shock. “Good thing we left quickly, or we would be in deep trouble.”

Of the three of them, Xuan Ning was probably the only one who truly understood the severity of their situation just now.

Sha Ya said to Ye Chong, “We are now in Darkniss. We call that huge river the Lava River. Usually, we will travel along the Lava River. The River will sometimes change its course, but the general direction is the same. This way, we will not lose our way.”

Darkniss – this was Darkniss!

Once they were in Darkniss, both Xuan Ning and Sha Ya turned serious. Their hands never left the firearms control lever. This made Ye Chong even more wary.

The Spider walked along the Lava River. Everything they saw was tinged red due to the light coming from the lava.

It was just a short while before Ye Chong found a few pieces of high quality metal ores along the way. Darkniss was truly the place to find gravestones. The bright red lava would also have familiar circular patterns that were actually metals in liquid form.

Soon, Ye Chong understood why Xuan Ning and Sha Ya were nervous. They encountered a pack of 80 black striped gray dragons. It was rare to see such a huge pack. These dragons usually move in packs of 20 to 30.

Ye Chong saw his first black striped gray dragon.

The animals were beaked and had sharp claws. Their bodies were gray with black stripes, and reached up to three meters long. Their wingspan, however, was close to 10 meters long. They flew fast and were aggressive in nature.

The Spider was large and hard to miss. The black striped gray dragons thought that this unfamiliar creature would taste delightful.

Xuan Ning reacted first. He was nervous since they first stepped into Darkniss.

A thick laser beam shot right through a black striped gray dragon, leaving a 30 centimeter wide circular hole in its wake. The dragon stopped breathing immediately. Its wings froze and it fell straight down from the sky.

Lasers began to fire. Xuan Ning’s attack marked the beginning of their battle. Sha Ya reacted quickly as well. The black striped gray dragons fell one by one like loose kites, kicking up dirt as they crashed into the ground.

The sudden attacks surprised the dragons, but they were soon angered by them. The dragons screamed sharply and flapped their wings, making their way towards the Spider.

Ye Chong did not expect how fast these creatures could fly. Without a mech, he would have trouble dealing with these dragons. Since they were diving from a high altitude, the attacks from these black striped gray dragons must be very powerful. Even thin alloy boards would give way to their attack.

Fortunately, shooters were the best combatants at medium range. This battle was perfect for them. Ye Chong did not have to worry about his safety, since he had a Level 8 shooter and a Level 9 shooter with him. The black striped gray dragons were strong, but not enough to threaten these two excellent shooters.

Ye Chong even had time to enjoy watching the marksmanship of these two shooters.

They were both very good at what they do. Almost none of the shots missed. Besides, they were not using normal laser guns, but super powerful laser guns at 1.2 million Lux. Every shot was powerful enough to penetrate the bodies of the black striped gray dragons, which were relatively weaker beings in Darkniss. Even if the shot missed any vulnerabilities, it would still affect their flight speed.

Soon, both shooters gained the upper hand. The powerful firepower aimed at the dragons suppressed their movements. Their flying formation was wrecked. Dragons continued to fall from the sky. However, this pack of dragons was stubborn. They were quick and agile in the air. Since Xuan Ning and Sha Ya were still not used to the Spider’s two main laser guns, they were shooting down the dragons fast enough.

There were still at least 40 dragons in the air still, but Ye Chong was not worried. He could see that Xuan Ning and Sha Ya were already getting better at using the laser guns. This was obvious from their increasing firing frequency.

The battle was in the favor of Xuan Ning and Sha Ya. As time passed, their advantage increased further.

Xuan Ning and Sha Ya were both concentrating. Their eyes were closed one-sided so that they would not be distracted by anything visual. On the contrary, Ye Chong was just an observer, enjoying the intense but uninteresting battle.

Suddenly, he caught a movement at the corner of the screen. He quickly turned his attention that particular corner on the screen.

There were only dark rocks and nothing else there. However, Ye Chong was certain that he saw something earlier.

Ye Chong maneuvered the holographic scanning system to perform a detailed search on that area. The screen was showing the opposite side of the Lava River.

“Huh, what’s that?”

There was some hair jutting from behind a rock. Something was wrong! Ye Chong focused on the situation. Those hair must be from some animal! The hair was black and shiny, standing up straight like needles.

Ye Chong took a peek at the black striped gray dragons in the air and dismissed the idea of using the Hummingbirds. Of the four Hummingbirds he prepared, one was lost in the sandstorm, leaving only three with him. This was not the time to use the Hummingbirds.

Nevertheless, Ye Chong had no intention to sit just sit back and do nothing. He had many options to choose from. His hands quickly tapped on the control console. Suddenly, the Spider’s tail armor slid open to the sides. A cannon array rose up slowly from inside. Animals that knew to hide from its enemy were much more dangerous – this was something Ye Chong knew very well.

Compared to the 49-barrel cannon array that Ye Chong sold to Sun Sieha, this cannon array had 81 cannon barrels, each thicker than that of the original model by a third. These 91 cannon barrels formed a nine-by-nine cannon array. The long, smooth cannon barrel were tightly arranged together.

When the cannon array was activated, both Xuan Ning and Sha Ya were momentarily distracted by the danger that emanated from the weapon.

“What is he trying to do?”

That was the thought that came to Xuan Ning and Sha Ya. The black striped gray dragons were already under their control. They could not attack, but they could not run either. Winning was only a matter of time. If that was the case, why would Ye Chong suddenly activate the cannon array?

They also did not know beforehand that the Spider was armed with this weapon.

Ye Chong aimed at the black hair that protruded from the rock on the screen, and pressed down hard on the firing button.

Each cannon barrel in the cannon array could fire 10 shots of spheric photon grenades per second. These grenades were highly explosive.

Boom! The cannon array roared!

810 spheric photon grenades were shot towards the target that Ye Chong had chosen.

The grenades all landed within 15 meters off the target. The resulting explosion was massive!

The loud explosion was enough to send a whole person shaking. Close to a thousand grenades exploded at the same time. Ye Chong’s target area now had a big mushroom cloud over it. The explosion had destroyed all the rocks around as well. A shockwave blasted out visibly from the center of the explosion.

Aooh! Two low howls came from a distance.

When the dust settled, Ye Chong saw in front of him two black colored leopards with an inch-wide stripe of white on their backs. There was also a small patch of white fur on their foreheads that contrasted beautifully against the black sleek fur on their bodies. The animals had an elegant build, with four muscular limbs; nevertheless, they were now in a tight corner.

There were small, charred holes on their black fur. The animals were injured all over. Some of the wounds were still bleeding. Despite their injuries, the animals moved with grace. They stared at Ye Chong coldly.

Beside the two leopards was a third one, lying on the ground. It suffered far worse injuries than its companions. Its body was a bloody mess. This was the animal that Ye Chong saw earlier, and the one who was hit the most from the blast. With close to a thousand photon grenades exploding within 15 meters from the target, no animal could survive the attack. Its two companions were also injured from the explosion.

“Snowshade leopards!” Xuan Ning and Sha Ya were following Ye Chong’s actions closely. They saw the two wild animals now and gasped in surprise. Ye Chong could hear the fear in their voices.

These animals must be avoided at all cost! Ye Chong made the decision immediately. His hands moved across the control console, and the Spider began to run.

To think that he would encounter three snowshade leopards! He only saw one just now. As expected, non-combat holographic scanning was unreliable! Ye Chong did not know what was so scary about these snowshade leopards, but he trusted the judgement of Xuan Ning and Sha Ya.

The two snowshade leopards watched their now dead and unrecognizable companion, and then looked their beautiful fur, now marked with hundreds of charred holes. They howled again!

Aoooh!

The black striped gray dragons heard the howls and quickly made their escape.

Before the echoes of the howls disappeared, the two snowshade leopards ran.

The Spider ran as quick as it could. Both Xuan Ning and Sha Ya had already directed their laser guns at the snowshade leopards.

“I say, what’d you do to get in trouble with the snowshade leopards? My God, there are three of them!” Xuan Ning almost went crazy with the thought.

Sha Ya bit her lips down tightly, and kept very quiet. She was obviously nervous as hell.

Ye Chong did not expect a Level 9 shooter to feel so alarmed by the snowshade leopards. It seemed that they were in big trouble.

Ye Chong soon experienced the terror of the snowshade leopards first hand.

On the screen, he saw the two snowshade leopards raced towards them like bolts of lightning. They were fast! Ye Chong found it hard to describe exactly how fast they were! They were running on the ground as fast as a mech could fly in the air. It was that fast!

The two snowshade leopards could run as fast as a mech. This was a strong visual impression. Their every step on the ground resulted in cracks in the earth. They were so powerful that it was paralyzing to just think about it. Their streamlined bodies ran like the force of nature. They charged like a heavyweight mech. The ground shook and rumbled at their every step.

It was impossible to lock on to them because of their speed.

The two snowshade leopards seemed to be wary of the Spider’s cannon array. They darted left and right as they made their pursuit.

High speed veering, Non-orderly wavy evasions, Sidestep Bursts, Z-steps …

Ye Chong stared blankly at them. What was this? The animals were practically demonstrating how a professional close range mech pilot would long avoid long range attacks.

No wonder Xuan Ning and Sha Ya were so afraid of them.

“To think that we’d see these monsters right after we enter Darkniss. Our luck sucks.” Xuan Ning shrugged casually. “Oh, by the way, you should know that energy weapons are ineffective against snowshade leopard. Their fur is a tough protective material. Oh, I don’t know if these 1.2 million Lux graded laser guns are good against them.”

Ye Chong did not know if the two main laser guns could harm the snowshade leopards, but he did know that a concentrated attack of spheric photon grenades could pose a threat towards them.

The Spider was still running for its life. The cannon array that rose from its tail swiveled round easily.

The snowshade leopards were too fast for their non-combat holographic scanning system to lock on to. Even if Ye Chong decided to deploy Celest now, it would be useless. The only weapon could harm the snowshade leopards was the cannon array – that was what Ye Chong thought.

Boom boom boom! The cannon array fired. To Ye Chong’s surprise, the two snowshade leopards were able to avoid the intense grenade attack aimed at them.

“Once snowshade leopards start running, their sixth sense would be greatly enhanced. Even I can’t lock on to them. The photon grenades are slow compared to laser beams, so they can avoid them without difficulty. This is the interesting bit about snowshade leopards. Once they start running, they seem to be hypersensitive to energy. It’s impossible to hit them with laser beams. They are the nemesis of all shooters.” Sha Ya explained to Ye Chong while firing a few shots at the snowshade leopards. The animals avoided her attacks easily. Sha Ya was looking a little pale. She had never encountered these deadly creatures before, despite having heard of them for a long time.

Sha Ya had just finished speaking when the snowshade leopards closed the distance between them even more. They were now only three kilometers away. The distance was getting smaller at an alarming rate. The only thing that comforted Ye Chong was the fact that the leopards were separated from them by the Lava River. If the snowshade leopards wanted to attack them, the must first cross the Lava River. However, the thinnest part of the River was 20 meters across. It formed a natural barrier between them.

The two snowshade leopards ran quickly, leaving a clear trail of footprints behind them. Each footprint was surrounded by cracks in the earth.

The animals got closer and closer to the Lava River, but they showed no signs of stopping.

They reached the edge of the River and leaped into the air!

Ye Chong’s eyes widened. At the moment the animals made the leap, he could already tell that they would be able to make it to the other side. Ye Chong pressed down on the firing button without delay.

At that moment, two laser beams shot out from the Spider towards the snowshade leopards, still in midair. This was the perfect opportunity shoot! Xuan Ning and Sha Ya took their shots together instinctively.

The two snowshade leopards suddenly twisted their bodies in seemingly impossible ways, and both laser beams missed their mark.

Another two laser beams followed. Both Sha Ya and Xuan Ning were the best of the best in their field. Despite knowing how strong the snowshade leopards were, they would not give up without a fight!

The snowshade leopards showed exactly how superior they were by twisting their bodies again in the air, despite having no foothold to support their movements. Both laser beams missed once again. The creatures had terrifyingly powerful and agile bodies.

Nevertheless, Xuan Ning and Sha Ya were both set on killing the two snowshade leopards before they landed. Another two laser beams were fired!

The outcome this time was different. Xuan Ning’s laser beam hit at center of the forehead of his target, right on the white patch of hair. Bang! The snowshade leopard’s head exploded while the body crashed heavily onto the rocks on the other side of the Lava River.

Sha Ya’s laser beam missed by just a fraction. It graced the ear of the other snowshade leopard as it made its landing.

With only half an ear left from the laser beam attack, the snowshade leopard’s cold eyes turned red. It sprinted from the pain, running even faster than before, leaving only an afterimage in its wake!

Xuan Ning and Sha Ya looked horrified. That was their best chance at killing the showshade leopards. Now that they had missed the opportunity, they were all done for.

However, Xuan Ning quickly recovered himself. He saw Sha Ya with her bloody lips, feeling guilty about having missed, and said to her with a consoling smile, “It’s not your fault. You did your best. Truth is, I wasn’t sure if I could hit my mark just now. They’re too fast. If I hadn’t reach Level 9, I would have died if I ever encountered them before this. We killed one snowshade leopard, and that’s quite amazing already. Haha, this laser gun is quite awesome, it can kill even a snowshade leopard.”

Sha Ya kept quiet, but she looked soothed. Xuan Ning was right. She did her best. The snowshade leopards were terrible monsters that lived in the inner parts of Darkniss. It must be fate that they encountered these animals so near the entrance of Darkniss.

If Xuan Ning and Sha Ya could miss, Ye Chong’s amateur shooting would not harm the snowshade leopard at all. Nevertheless, Ye Chong was not about to give up now!

An auxiliary grenade silently flew out of the weapons chamber. It was directed not at the snowshade leopard, but above the Spider.

The snowshade leopard moved like a bolt of black lightning. It was too fast to aim at! When the auxiliary grenade reached 10 meters above the ground, the animal was already two kilometers away. Xuan Ning and Sha Ya had missed the opening, but still they did not give up. They continued firing at the last snowshade leopard.

Their attacks were in vain, however. The snowshade leopard stared angrily at the Spider with its blood-red eyes. It avoided all the laser beams with ease.

When the auxiliary grenade reached 50 meters high, the snowshade leopard was one kilometer away from the Spider.

At 50 meters above the Spider, the grenade exploded, but with no sound or light effects.

By then, the snowshade leopard was 300 meters way from the Spider.

On the screen, they could see the ferocity in the blood-red eyes of the snowshade leopard!

Suddenly, the Spider activated the huge laser saw in its leg. It seemed that Ye Chong opted for a close range battle as his last resort.

The snowshade leopard’s whiskers quivered as though it was laughing at his effort. The animal did not slow down. Instead, it twisted its body and landed heavily on the ground on all fours.

Boom! Even from inside the Spider, Ye Chong and the two shooters could hear the animal made its landing.

Where the snowshade leopard landed, the ground fragmented. The animal borrowed momentum from its landing and darted towards the bottom of the Spider.

Only Ye Chong saw what happened. Both Xuan Ning and Sha Ya only saw a blur, and lost sight of the snowshade leopard.

Crack! The snowshade leopard had bitten off the Spider’s leg that held the laser saw. Both the dismembered limb and the laser saw fell onto the ground. The fast rotating edge of the laser saw buried itself into the ground.

Boom!

There was a deafening sound.

The three of them felt a strong blow coming from below them. Suddenly, the world was sent spinning. The image on the screen turned and turned. Sha Ya and Xuan Ning were both thrown out of their seats towards the pilot cabin’s inner wall.

Ye Chong reacted the fastest. He gripped tightly onto his seat, counting the seconds.

Now!

he huge spider rolled on the ground. The snowshade leopard’s attack was powerful enough to flip the spider, which was many times its size, upside down. Sha Ya and Xuan Ning, who were inside the pilot cabin, were both dizzy from the hit. Only Ye Chong maintained his calm. However, he was also surprised by the strength of the snowshade leopard.

Even Ye Chong could not flip the huge spider over, despite how strong he was. The snowshade leopard was much stronger than he was. The animals were small but powerful, and moved very quickly. They knew how to move evasively, and their fur served as good defense. They were very powerful creatures!

Nevertheless, all creatures have their weaknesses .The stronger an animal was, the harder it was to identify its weakness. However, this weakness would also be very dangerous for the animal.

Ye Chong took a glance at Sha Ya and Xuan Ning. After determining that they were uninjured, he focused back onto the fight. Ye Chong closed his eyes and listened, as the world outside turned quiet again.

Ye Chong’s hearing was sharp. This was a trait that all combat experts valued.

Ye Chong stepped lightly towards the entrance of the huge spider. The spider had its belly towards the sky. The entrance was thus above Ye Chong’s head.

He carefully opened the hatch and listened to the outside. There was no sound at all.

Ye Chong came out of the huge spider and soon found the snowshade leopard. The powerful creature was now lying quietly on the ground, as though it was asleep.

It seemed that the knockout agent was working perfectly. Ye Chong sighed in relief. The snowshade leopard was powerful. Ye Chong would not fight against them without a mech. This encounter was quite a close call. It had been long since Ye Chong had been in such a dangerous situation. He did not expect to encounter such a terrifying animal so soon after they entered Darkniss. Ye Chong believed that this creature was as strong as the red-tailed beasts.

Darkniss was a terrifying place.

Ye Chong held his breath and took out a strong poison. He opened the flask and waved the opening before the snowshade leopard’s nose a few times. The snowshade leopard convulsed, then subsided. It was good policy to be careful. The snowshade leopard’s strength had shaken Ye Chong. He did not want any more surprises. He turned his attention towards where the snowshade leopard had attacked the huge spider. There were cracks on the surface now, proof of how strong the attack was.

It seemed that he had to change the armor in that area. Fortunately, he brought the tools just for occasions like this.

Just then, Sha Ya and Xuan Ning crawled out of the huge spider with difficulty.

Both of them stopped before the snowshade leopard and studied the creature with curiosity and fear.

“What a scary thing, it’s so strong,” Xuan Ning sighed, “I’ve heard of these creatures, but now I know that the stories fall short of the real thing. I think only a Level 10 shooter has a comfortable advantage against this animal.” Nevertheless, he quickly added for Ye Chong’s benefit, “Of course, you’re an exception.” Ye Chong had many tricks up his sleeves. The snowshade leopards were tame compared to the man himself. Xuan Ning would rather face three snowshade leopards than Ye Chong.

Sha Ya carefully moved closer to the snowshade leopard. “Isn’t the snowshade leopard usually in the inner parts of Darkniss? Why are they here?”

“Who knows?” Xuan Ning shrugged. He seemed to think of something, and his expression quickly turned serious, “It’s been strange in recent years. Usually, the snowshade leopard and those red-tailed creatures live in the inner parts of Darkniss. We encountered a poisoned red-tailed beast just recently, and today we encountered a snowshade leopard. Perhaps something has happened in Darkniss recently.”

Ye Chong heard him, and asked, “How will that be a problem?”

“It’s a huge problem,” Xuan Ning explained, “Here in Darkniss, every species has their own territories with very strict borders. The further in you go, the clearer these boundaries are. The snowshade leopard, for example, never wondered beyond their own territory. That we saw a snowshade leopard here near the border of Darkniss means that we’re in serious trouble.”

“Why is that?”

“Think about it. If these three snowshade leopards left Darkniss, entered Dual Forest, and then went into Eastern Cloud, they would definitely raise havoc. What if it wasn’t just three, but a whole pack of snowshade leopards? There are many powerful creatures like this in Darkniss. If they all left Darkniss, no one can stop them. It will be the end for us all.”

Sha Ya agreed with Xuan Ning. “It’s a very important signal for us, seeing the snowshade leopards near the entrance into Darkniss. I have a bad feeling about this.”

“Haha, let’s not worry too much about it. If we continue deeper in, perhaps we’ll come to understand the reason for it all,” Xuan Ning forced a laugh and said.

Ye Chong was not particularly worried about their concern. He was, after all, not really from Eastern Cloud. He climbed back into the huge spider’s pilot cabin and took out a specimen collection apparatus. He wanted to take a few tissue samples from the snowshade leopard. The creature was strong and fast, and its fur could block energy weapons effectively. It was the only animal Ye Chong knew that was as strong as the red-tailed beast. It was hard to believe that there was so much power in this small animal’s body. The animal’s muscle structure must be close to perfection.

This was very important for Ye Chong. Celest’s muscle structure, despite being the product of the Research Consortium’s endless resources and manpower, was still a long way from the snowshade leopard. If Celest could have a muscle structure as strong as the snowshade leopard’s, it would definitely become a more powerful and terrifying weapon.

Celest’s ability to evolve implied that it had the potential to be improved upon.

Ye Chong carefully extracted samples from various parts of the snowshade leopard. He would be able to grow them into a larger tissue mass with the same properties back at his place with only a tiny sample,. He would then figure out a way to replace Celest’s muscle structure with the snowshade leopard’s. Of course, there were still many technical issues in the whole process, but Ye Chong was confident that he could solve them when the time came.

The snowshade leopard’s fur was a strong defense layer. Ye Chong had to put in some force to collect the tissue samples.

Xuan Ning and Sha Ya paled as they watched Ye Chong’s every move. To them, Ye Chong’s operation was both creepy and scary to consider. What an evil man, to exploit an animal even when it was dead! Moreover, the vacuum specimen container next to Ye Chong was a mystery to both of them.

They both watched as Ye Chong took out his laser sword and dissected the snowshade leopard like it was only a routine job. It was a bloody mess. They suppressed the urge to vomit and quickly went back into the huge spider.

Ye Chong picked up biology very quickly with Kui’s three chips. This was obvious from the way he went about the dissection. He began awkwardly, but soon became familiar with the moves.

Ye Chong returned to the pilot cabin with his vacuum specimen container, satisfied with the day’s rewards. The danger was beyond his expectations, but so was his reward.

In biology, a tissue sample was sometimes enough to change everything.

For the moment, they could not continue forward. The Spider needed repairs. Naturally, Ye Chong was charged with the technical work. Xuan Ning and Sha Ya sat together on a huge rock, drinking and enjoying some snacks while Ye Chong did his work. It was a pleasant moment. Having survived after being so close to death, they found that even sitting around drinking and chatting was one of the best things in life.

Ye Chong worked quickly. He was much more skilled in machinery than biology. Besides, he was well prepared for the incident. He had all the tools and spare parts he needed.

Soon, the three of them were back in the Spider and on their way.

For some reason, the rest of the trip went smoothly. Aside from an encounter with a few black-striped gray dragons, they did not see any more creatures that were as scary as the snowshade leopard.

Sha Ya and Xuan Ning were still curious about Ye Chong. He seemed to picking up everything he could see along the way. It was understandable when he collected rocks or things that weaponsmiths may be interested in. However, he would sometimes collect even flowers, grass and moss. When they came across puddles, Ye Chong would also collect water samples.

Sha Ya and Xuan Ning were baffled by Ye Chong’s strange behavior, but they knew that they could not stop him. Hence, they could only actively ignore him.

Ye Chong was absorbed in his collection activity. Darkniss was like a hidden treasure to him. There were so many metals here that even he did not recognize, and all kinds of new plants. There was a huge variety of metals in this place, and all in great amounts and high purity. It was a real treasure trove of natural resources. Many of the plants were also valuable ingredients for alchemy.

Metal was very important to Ye Chong. He had plenty of processing equipment. If he had metals, he would be able to build numerous things, such as mechs, or even starships.

If he could build a base here …

Ye Chong was moved by the thought.