Chapter 1148

Bug! Bugs are coming!!

Inside the gathering place, the Tianmu people, whose sense of smell seemed unusually keen, upon feeling the slight tremor, also shouted loudly, and in the panic they all grabbed their weapons.

Relying on strength far greater than these people's, Lin An didn't pay too much attention.

Although there were many, the worm swarm in the distance numbered less than ten thousand; only the giant beetles that ran wildly on the ground like longhorn beetles caught his attention.

Pincer-like mouthparts protrude in front of the mouth; when running they resemble a rampaging rhinoceros, and sparks occasionally fly from their mouths.

It appears this kind of worm possesses the ability to spit fire.

Another kind is a fast-wriggling, train‑like long worm; its slimy, wrinkled skin leaves a large puddle of slime as it wriggles swiftly across the ground.

How do you usually deal with the worm swarms?

Can you guys beat these things?

Standing calmly in place, Lin An asked A Gu with some curiosity; in his view, the pale‑faced chief seemed to be mustering people, as if about to charge out. The strength of this group is so weak that he searched everywhere but found no technological weapon usable against a massive worm swarm.

If he doesn't intervene this time, this gathering place will likely be devoured within half an hour.

But the fact that this place has endured this long shows it has its own countermeasures.

Trembling, facing the imminent worm swarm, the dark‑skinned youth instinctively replied:

Not fighting..

We're not afraid if the numbers are few, as long as the chief is here.

For such a large worm swarm, we let the elders cut their wrists to lure the worms elsewhere.

Buzz! Buzz!

The sound of the motor starting.

Hearing the sound, Lin An looked over and saw the chief somehow produce a ramshackle snowmobile‑like vehicle, gesturing for several middle‑aged people to sit in the rear cargo area.

Obviously, these slightly older Tianmu people are the method A Gu spoke of.

Is it self‑sacrifice in exchange for the continuation of the race?

Elderly...

Lin An glanced indifferently at the few people called elderly.

Given his understanding of the Tianmu people, these so‑called elderly are probably only eleven or twelve years old; though their growth cycle is short, for the Tianmu this already counts as a long life.

However, upon closer observation, Lin An noticed some abnormalities.

Although the people in the gathering place were somewhat panicked, amid the tension there was a hint of anticipation, especially those who were to die; they were unusually calm, merely glancing wistfully at the young people inside the gathering place.

After a brief embrace, a middle‑aged Tianmu sitting in the rear cargo area softly spoke to his child‑like clansperson:

Father went to exchange for food; you must finish it..

The youth cradled in his arms nodded heavily, his eye sockets reddened. Though distressed, he appeared composed, as if accustomed to it.

Puzzled, Lin An spoke again.

He noticed that A Gu and these people had not asked him to intervene. Perhaps it was because of his Alien Species identity that they dared not, but A Gu had seen him save people and could certainly ask him.

Exchange for food, what does that mean?

After the worms are lured away, will they just leave obediently?

Facing Lin An's question, A Gu hesitated a moment and then explained:

The worms eat us, we eat the worms' eggs.

After they finish eating, they lay eggs. Once they've laid the eggs, they leave...

While speaking, A Gu pointed to a distant place that looked like a large shed:

After eating the worm eggs, they defecate.

The feces nourish mushrooms, which we can also eat...

After hearing A Gu's explanation, Lin An's face turned slightly odd. He hadn't expected the ecological cycle here to be like this.

Worms eat people, people eat worm eggs, after excreting feces they grow mushrooms, and when there are no worm eggs to eat they eat mushrooms.

This three‑way cycle actually forms a stable structure.

As for sending only seven or eight people over to feed the worms being enough to meet the swarm's demand, Lin An could also understand that. The fact that Tianmu people can be thrown into the Spirit Energy Tower and converted into energy shows that this person's 'nutritional value' is extremely high.

Without further words, Lin An simply watched the chief silently drive the vehicle past him and rush toward the worm swarm, not worrying that the other side might flee.

He realized that the Tianmu tribe would not abandon the gathering place unless absolutely necessary.

Moreover, they couldn't escape his grasp.

With the roar of the snowmobile and a faint smell of blood spreading, Lin An unconsciously twitched his nose and discovered that the Tianmu people's blood was very fragrant.

It was as if it stirred a biological craving, giving off a faint exotic fragrance.

Buzz! Buzz!!

As the snowmobile drove off, after several Tianmu people slit their wrists, they sang a solemn, unknown song loudly, sounding as if it had been passed down from the civilized era.

The vehicle was extremely fast; this hovering craft, under the chief's control, moved like a nimble mouse, constantly circling near the worm swarm and attracting its movement.

Like licking blood off a blade's tip.

Not long after, having drawn the worm swarm to another edge of the horizon, the Tianmu people on the rear cargo area voluntarily jumped off the vehicle and stood calmly in place.

All we saw was them raising their heads to look at the sky, arms outstretched as if welcoming something, standing in place awaiting death.

Inside the gathering place, everyone, miserable as they were, likewise looked up at the sky and sang a 'yi ya yi ya' tune. Although he couldn't understand the meaning, Lin An could feel the solemnity in the melody, like a civilization playing a dirge before its death.

Plop‑pfft

As the chief returned, the Tianmu people standing in place painfully endured the worms' gnawing.

All we saw was worms of various sizes, excited by the lure of flesh and blood, eagerly opening their mouthparts and tearing at their limbs.

Either being pierced in the brain by needle‑like mouthparts, or having their bellies ripped open by flea‑like tiny worms, their bloody intestines were greedily dragged out by this swarm of worms and fiercely contested among them.

Like a feast, the Tianmu people were instantly swallowed up by the worm swarm.

Not long after, the insect tide dispersed, leaving only bright red bloodstains all over the ground, proof of its former existence.

Watching the scene before him, Lin An shook his head slightly; aside from a faint pity, he felt nothing else. The price of a civilization's failure is naturally tragic.

Merely seeing the insect swarm with signs of scattering and preparing to lay eggs, he did not think it would end so simply.

As expected.

Just as the clan chief selected another group of people to move the eggs after the insects left, several sharp-eyed Heavenly Eye People suddenly cried out in alarm.

"No! The insects aren't laying eggs!"

"They're still moving!"

In an instant, the insect swarm that should have fled instead turned in unison and surged toward the gathering place, covering the sky and earth.

Lin An's eyes twitched, and he directly drew Cain's Blade with a backhand.

Indeed so.

The system won't let him just stay here farming points.