Chapter 877

·

·

·

Main Character:

Shen Yao

"It's so dangerous outside, how is Chengyi doing?"

Inside the Shelter, Shen Yao would chat with the System every day about matters concerning Shen Chengyi.

After all, Shen Chengyi was currently not in the Shelter, and the wilderness was an extremely dangerous place; there was ultimately a limit to what Shen Yao could do.

"Host, Shen Chengyi is relatively safe for now, but judging by the current wilderness situation, the Shelter's relocation isn't safe either."

The risk of things going wrong is still very high, especially since unknown Monsters have appeared in the wilderness; they don't look like products of the planet's Natural Evolution at all.

Shen Yao rested her chin on her hand; of course she knew about the Human-Faced Monsters and the Four-Nots that Shen Chengyi had encountered, because the System's Mouth never got a moment's rest, telling her many things every day.

"It sounds unsafe, but you also shouldn't ignore the military force the Shelter itself possesses; individual Firearms don't have great effect, but large-scale Firearms are still a factor that cannot be ignored."

What Shen Yao worries about most right now is whether even more illogical Monsters will appear later, like the planet's evolution failing or an Invasion by alien Creatures, with native Creatures competing against them—whoever wins becomes the master of this planet.

"Host, the planet has its own Consciousness," no matter who it is, they cannot become the planet's master, because the planet won't be Willing.

"Oh, so that means new collaborators," Shen Yao simply changed her phrasing; anyway, the general Meaning hadn't changed—the planet doesn't care which side survives in the end, as long as it can push its evolution to success and ascend smoothly, everything else is negotiable.

System: ……

The situation gradually became clear; there was no problem with the Host putting it that way. The System originally wanted to retort and argue a couple of sentences, but in the end the System chose to Give Up, because it fundamentally could not persuade the Host.

At this moment, movement came from Outside the Door; it was Shen Chengyu and Shen Chengning returning from the Ability User Center.

Ever since Shen Chengyi went out on a Mission, Shen Chengyu and Shen Chengning could be described as diligent and hardworking; even if snow fell outside, threatening to bury the entire Shelter, they would insist on going to the Ability User Center to train themselves and improve their Abilities.

The Home wasn't short on Evolution Potions or Crystal Cores; because Shen Yao's mental Ability couldn't be Exposed, she didn't have much time to go to the Ability User Center. This time, considering the Weather's Influence, Shen Yao stayed Home while Shen Chengyu and Shen Chengning went to practice.

"Mom."

Shen Chengyu called out to Shen Yao, then relayed the news she had heard from Chen Xuanxuan: the squads executing Missions outside had run into Trouble, and two squads were currently Missing.

Shen Yao: ……

Shen Yao not only knew that most of the two Missing squads had no survivors left, she also knew that new Monsters had appeared, and Shen Chengyi had already exchanged blows with them; the current danger level wasn't high.

"Contact in the wilderness is poor to begin with; the content Xuanxuan knows is likely outdated," Shen Yao understood that Shen Chengyu and Shen Chengning were worried about Shen Chengyi, but with their current strength, they couldn't help Shen Chengyi much. "You two train seriously; Chengyi will return safely."

Shen Chengning looked at Shen Yao with her determined tone, thinking to herself that her Mom really could stay calm; the two of them had felt their hearts skip several beats when they heard the news, fearing that Shen Chengyi might be in those Missing squads. After all, the wilderness held unknown risks, and the Probability of something going wrong was extremely high.

"Alright, go back and wash up and rest your Feet," Shen Yao pointed toward their Room, then added that today's Evolution Potions had already been delivered. "Normal delivery."

This was one of the conditions Shen Chengyu had agreed to for going on Missions. Shen Chengyu and Shen Chengning temporarily set their minds at ease, let out a big breath of relief, and returned to their Rooms to wash up respectively.

Meanwhile, on the other side, Shen Chengyi finally had time to rest.

The Four-Nots' Defense was astonishing, but as long as one found their weak points, dealing with them was even more Direct than dealing with the Human-Faced Monsters.

It's just that the Four-Nots were too Abstract, and the things inside the Four-Nots' bodies inflicted massive Injury on the support squad members, to the extent that they even wanted to take the opportunity to deal with the Mutant Ginkgo Tree and the Vines as well, but they didn't find the time; instead, the Mutant Ginkgo Tree and the Vines escaped Smoothly.

Looking at the huge pit that had been revealed, the support squad members fell silent. After all, in their view, Mutant Plants couldn't leave their growing grounds because of their Root systems, but the Mutant Ginkgo Tree had overturned their understanding—it actually smoothly pulled its Tree Roots out of the ground and walked away leaning on its Roots like a person.

Oh.

Actually, it wasn't just the Mutant Ginkgo Tree exerting force alone; the Vines had also taken Root underground and helped drag it along. They cooperated with Tacit Understanding, and by the time the support squad realized it, they had already run off without a trace.

Shen Chengyi: ……

Actually, she had seen the moment the Mutant Ginkgo Tree and the Vines escaped, but Shen Chengyi indicated that at that time everyone was busy chopping the Four-Nots, striving to fish out their teammates' Corpses from inside. If she had really reminded the support squad to watch the Mutant Ginkgo Tree and the Vines, the Four-Nots would have had omissions, and they wouldn't have recovered many of their teammates' Corpses either.

There are clear Regulations for wilderness Missions: Corpses that cannot be brought back to the Shelter must be cremated on the spot.

The Four-Nots had already digested a large portion; if in the end there was nothing left, they would have no way to explain it to the families back at the Shelter.

Okay, actually, putting it all together, Shen Chengyi indicated that the support squad might not necessarily be able to smoothly deal with the Mutant Ginkgo Tree and the Vines anyway, and if she exerted herself too much, it would attract attention, which would be Disadvantageous for her subsequent work Arrangements.

The Official Command was only to clear the dangers around the Shelter; the direction where the Mutant Ginkgo Tree and the Vines were located had limited Influence on the Shelter. Moreover, right now both of them had already run away; as long as they don't come back later (high Probability they won't, the Human-Faced Monsters and Four-Nots that appeared here strongly Counter the Mutant Ginkgo Tree and the Vines), there's no need for them to exterminate them completely.

Wei Ran walked over to find Shen Chengyi to seek help. The reason was simple: they couldn't take their teammates' Corpses away; besides Fire Abilities, Lightning Abilities were also very effective.

In order not to delay their return journey, Shen Chengyi was very Willing to lend a hand.

But with just two bolts of Lightning Ability striking down, the Corpse pile that had been stacked into a small Mountain instantly turned black and turned to Ashes, even faster than the Fire Ability user next to them.

They had brought well-sealed bags when they came out; the Ashes were mostly collected into them, the rest were buried on the spot, with no markers made.

On the way back, everyone was very silent; besides the sound of the Truck, there were no other sounds.

Wei Ran sat uncomfortably in the Corner of the Che Xiang, with Cheng Nan comforting her beside her.

But Cheng Nan also knew her words were useless; the dead cannot be brought back to life no matter how much is said. Right now, the most important thing is still to complete the Mission.

"With Wang Fei and Gao Xuefeng and them gone, the remaining support squads will have to be merged in," at that time their Mission will be even heavier, and they might even face a situation where they have no support squad behind them.

"Yeah, let's go back and listen to the Commander-in-Chief's Arrangement," Wei Ran simply switched to propping her Chin on her other arm, indicating she felt the Commander-in-Chief would accelerate the pace. The Regiment/Battalion wipeout happened too early; they hadn't anticipated it at all.

When the Truck returned to the building, the sky had already completely darkened. Deputy Captain Liu was anxious because of caring for the patients, extremely worried about everyone's Safety.

The good news is, everyone went and returned the same way, with no Personnel losses. The bad news is, Wang Fei and Gao Xuefeng and the others only brought back Ashes, and it's not even certain whose are whose. Even back at the Shelter, it would be one handful per person, or buried collectively in the name of the group.

The lucky ones who stayed in the Truck hugged their teammates' Ashes and wept bitterly. Wei Ran felt heartache listening to them, and pulled Cheng Nan aside to rest.

The support squad members discussed the departure time for early tomorrow morning; they needed to rush back to the Temporary Camp as soon as possible, then complete the other subsequent Missions.

As for grief and sorrow, there is no Time. Every second delayed affects the lives of more people.

Shen Chengyi was unaffected by these things; she just honestly organized her own belongings, because she was leaving the team in Advance. Shen Chengyi had obtained a lot of Intelligence that others didn't know. Some content that needed to be said she told Wei Ran; some that didn't need to be said she didn't mention.

"Here, these are the Crystal Cores I found; they should be things left behind by the Mutant Ginkgo Tree." Not keeping them for herself, Shen Chengyi handed the pale green Crystal Cores inside the box to Wei Ran, whose Emotions were still very low.

Wei Ran: ……

"This is your harvest; you can keep it yourself." No need to hand it over to the Official side.

"It's different." Shen Chengyi Shook her Head, pointing at the box and saying the Crystal Cores inside had research value. Sending them to the Laboratory might yield some Breakthrough. "Handing them in gives special points for Exchange, and additional item Purchase Rights."

Shen Chengyi doesn't lose out. She doesn't have the Laboratory's many Equipment, nor does she have time to hug Crystal Cores and research them. Professional matters should be left to professionals; they can harvest more.

Wei Ran:...

That's true, but more people still prefer to keep crystal cores for themselves; Shen Chengyi doing this moved Wei Ran deeply, after all, this crystal core looked quite large, and it was that pure green color, related to abilities and plants.

"Rest assured, if there's news from the laboratory side, I'll tell you immediately."

Showing her attitude, Wei Ran signaled Shen Chengyi that she had worked hard today and should go back to rest early; tomorrow morning when they return to the temporary camp they might not have time to adjust, and will likely go out on a mission directly.

Shen Chengyi hummed and nodded, then she took out her sleeping bag, spread it out, lay flat, and fell asleep in no time.

When she opened her eyes again it was already the second morning; last night's crying had long since disappeared, leaving only faint calm.

Shen Chengyi washed up, put on the protective suit she had taken off, and Wei Ran was distributing breakfast according to the number of personnel; to get back quickly, one special energy bar per person, no one is allowed to complain.

"Get on the truck!"

Cheng Nan shouted once, and team members climbed aboard in twos and threes using the truck's railings; Shen Chengyi walked last, with Wei Ran holding an ash bag beside her.

"Sigh, Wang Fei and Gao Xuefeng are enjoying themselves; they never received such treatment while alive, but now that they're dead they can at least get hugged."

Speaking such hellish words with an expressionless face, Wei Ran was in high spirits; at least no one else in the truck dared to provoke her, letting her do as she pleased.

Shen Chengyi continued to throw herself into the corner, using her backpack as a cushion, and placed her long blade where she could raise her hand and touch it.

Although the possibility of encountering danger on the truck was low, that didn't mean absolute safety; weren't the few people they had dug out earlier staying in the vehicle, and by a twist of fate became the only lucky survivors?

The truck drove back for several hours, and the temporary camp appeared before them.

Wei Ran and Cheng Nan got off holding ash bags, while Shen Chengyi made no move; she just sat in the truck with her eyes closed resting, until those who got off returned again.

Sure enough, just as Wei Ran had expected, there was no time to rest, but they set out directly from the temporary camp to continue clearing dangers around them.

The ash bags were left behind, along with those few lucky ones who had some psychological issues; the Commander-in-Chief couldn't truly disregard human lives, and in such a situation, rest was still necessary.

"The squad supporting us replaced Wang Fei and Gao Xuefeng and the others in carrying out the mission; this time they were assigned to the north."

And they, because they performed outstandingly, went to the more dangerous west side.

What's on the west side?

"There's a group of hibernating mutated snakes; they're not the main target this time," Wei Ran tapped her map, which showed red on the west side they were going to, and below the red were the big characters "Mutated Ants."

That's right; the west side was originally the habitat of a group of mutated white ants; they were already an invasive species, and after mutation their bodies became even smaller, not to mention they ate whatever they encountered, and apart from being somewhat afraid of fire-type abilities, there was no good way to deal with them.

Ants have little activity in winter, but this group of white ants went against the norm; according to analysis of the results from the Commander-in-Chief flying a specially made drone to inspect, this group of white ants was gnawing on the surrounding snow and buildings, not even sparing the land.

So this time when they went out, they brought not only many materials that could draw fire, but also quite a few potions to restore abilities; among them, fire-type ability users received the most care, because they were the most effective part of this trip.

"The Commander-in-Chief's meaning is, if they can successfully deal with this group of white ants, handle the hibernating mutated snakes together, to prevent the snake population from spreading around the shelter after the weather warms up."

There were signs of this last autumn; the authorities adopted various policies to stop the snake population, and who knows what will happen next year; the authorities' meaning is to prevent problems before they happen as much as possible—if they can be solved, leave no survivors.

Shen Chengyi:...

Wake up the hibernating snakes (or mutated ones) and deal with them? Given their abilities, it probably wouldn't be easy to do.

Shen Chengyi glanced at Wei Ran with words on the tip of her tongue but held back, only silently nodding; she would do her own part, and the rest could only rely on everyone.

This time the truck had been driving for a while, or perhaps she had been sitting from morning until now; Shen Chengyi's body couldn't take it, and she actually had some symptoms of physical discomfort, causing her spirit to look somewhat listless.

Debuffs stacked too high; Shen Chengyi had a bad premonition about this mission.

Sure enough, as if stepping on bad luck, they first found the wrong white ant nest, then prematurely woke the hibernating mutated snakes, next they encountered a mutated pine tree with a bad temper that liked to shoot pine needles, were pelted with fruit by mutated squirrels on the pine tree, finally left the mutated pine tree's range, and suddenly discovered the snow behind them was moving.

"That's the ant swarm! Where did the snow come from? The snow is already in the white ants' bellies!"