Chapter 22: Uninvited Guest

"Zhou Yang, I'm the main attacker; you hold them off from the side!"

Lei Hong raised a black‑gold shield in his left hand and an alloy Long Sword in his right, let out a low shout toward Zhou Yang, then slammed forward like a cannonball at the three‑meter‑tall ghost‑faced spider.

"Peng!"

Lei Hong has been at the mid‑level war general rank for years, and his basic force output is already close to thirty thousand kilograms.

With cultivated striking technique, this collision delivered at least forty thousand kilograms of force!

The hard black‑gold shield slammed into the ghost‑faced spider's body from the side, sending it flying backward.

Lei Hong's alloy Long Sword swung down in the flow, carving a huge wound into the spider's abdomen.

Lei Hong's eyes brightened; he rushed forward, gathering power in his right‑hand alloy Long Sword for a downward slash!

"Eighty to ninety ping!"

The limp ghost‑faced spider on the ground could only let out a desperate wail before its sharp, snarling head was split in two by Lei Hong's Long Sword.

The massive spider web folded down to a tiny size and had already been stowed into their backpacks.

Lei Hong quickly ordered everyone to clear the battlefield.

Lei Hong shouted a commendation through his communication earpiece.

"Squeak!"

The spider web they harvested this time amounts to a full eighty to ninety ping, which could fetch at least six or seven hundred million!

Consider that they had been rampaging for half a month, slaying over a hundred low‑level war‑general monsters, which only netted about 1.5 billion.

"Peng!"

"Cut it for me!"

"Xiao Xia, well done!"

The massive ghost‑faced spider rolled onto the ground and sprang up again, its eight compound eyes constantly swiveling to lock onto the figure that burst in, while its body rose into a defensive stance.

Zhou Yang dissected a spider leg while silently tallying in his mind.

Zhou Yang didn't hesitate; he swiftly circled to the spider's rear and thrust his Long Spear at its back abdomen.

But everyone understood that such a windfall once is already luck; you can't expect more.

"We got it, Captain, we got it! The web area is at least eighty to ninety ping, and it's all intact, not a single tear!"

"Old Zhou, you three, go collect that web."

Zhou Yang didn't dare delay, brandishing his Long Spear to quickly join the squad.

Lei Hong gathered his full body force and struck a fierce slash at the outer joint of a rear leg of the ghost‑faced spider.

"Hehe, average, average."

"Zhou Yang, dissect the spider's material with me, Zhu Xia, keep watching the surroundings!"

At that moment, a massive sniper rifle crack rang out.

"Yes, Lei Shu!"

After losing a leg, the ghost‑faced spider's combat power dropped, making it harder to resist Lei Hong's assault.

Now he only used his shield to guard vital parts, while his right‑hand alloy Long Sword became a continuous blade shadow, relentlessly striking the spider's vital points.

He let out a low shout, his combat suit's right‑arm sleeve billowing, channeling massive power from his arm into the alloy Long Sword.

Squad members split up and hurried to work.

The fragile leg joint couldn't bear the force; with a crisp "crack", it shattered instantly, and the leg drooped limp.

"Haha, average!"

Zhou Yang drew a Level‑7 Throwing Knife, crouched, and together with Lei Hong began dissecting the spider's material.

Lei Hong and Zhou Yang sped up, quickly harvesting the remaining material from the spider.

"Unfortunately, buying at half price requires two‑star contribution points; otherwise I could purchase it now."

Just as Lei Hong was about to order a retreat, Zhu Xia's frantic voice blared through the earpiece!

"Captain, reinforcements incoming! Three targets, moving fast, at least high‑level war generals!"

Lei Hong, nicknamed Zhui Feng Jian, trains with an S‑rank manual 'Xun Wind Sword Technique', famed for its attack speed.

The leg‑less ghost‑faced spider staggered, nearly collapsing, while it let out continuous painful cries.

A smug giggle from Zhu Xia came through the earpiece.

"Squeak squeak, squeak squeak!"

In that instant, Lei Hong, who had been directly in front of the spider, seized the chance.

Not only him; the others thought the same.

The ghost‑faced spider's eight spider‑spines were as hard as alloy; it propelled itself with six rear legs while raising the front two to block Lei Hong's attacks, yet it was clearly at a disadvantage before him.

Now that they've slain a mid‑level war‑general ghost‑faced spider, the profit already matches half of their previous hauls.

"If only a few more ghost‑faced spiders showed up!"

At that moment, excited shouts from Zhou Yong and others rang through the earpiece.

By now, his father Zhou Yong, together with Lao Liu and Chen Chong, had finished gathering the spider's web and were rushing to converge here.

An armor‑piercing projectile traveling at several times the speed of sound whistled through the air and struck the spider's lower back.

The fleeing spider, caught unguarded, was hit directly; the projectile's massive kinetic energy pierced its slender torso, instantly destroying the nerves of its lower limbs.

"This ghost‑faced spider's commotion is huge; finish it quickly and retreat, lest someone snatch it!"

Zhou Yang, as Lei Hong's Long Sword slashed toward the spider, thrust his Long Spear forward, triggering the Apocalypse First Tier Burst; the spear's speed and force erupted suddenly!

"Puff!"

He quickly made up his mind in his heart: that's how he'll do it!

"Squeak squeak squeak!"

The ghost‑face spider's burst is strong, stamina is poor, its weak points are the abdomen, lower back, eyes, and the joints of its spider legs!

First there are two poison fangs, then the poison sacs at the two cheeks, and also eight spider‑leg spears as hard as alloy; just these can fetch at least 150 million Huaxia coins.

"How about letting old man give a bit of support first? Anyway, he's already bought all the secret manuals and weapons, and for now there's no place to spend a lot of money."

Under normal circumstances, the spider silk produced by a mid‑rank General‑class ghost‑face spider sells for seven to eight million per square meter.

The ghost‑face spider spots the ambushing Zhou Yang, its six hind legs twitch, and it quickly darts sideways to dodge.

"Squeak!"

Lei Hong shouted a warning, then surged forward to grapple with the ghost‑face spider.

Zhou Yang, while evading the frenzied attacks of the ghost‑face spider, loudly praised it.

The ghost‑face spider howls in pain, retreats quickly, then glances at the two strong foes before it, turns around, and darts away toward the distance.

"Received!"

"If we process all the materials from the wilderness region this time, a conservative estimate is about 2.3–2.4 billion in profit; based on contribution, I can get roughly 600 million, which is almost enough to meet the requirement for purchasing the second tier of 'Apocalypse'."

The remaining seven spider legs of the ghost‑face spider, like soldiers without a commander, quiver chaotically and then go limp; its three‑meter‑tall massive body loses support and crashes forward, slamming onto the ground.

That kid Chen Chong is still dreaming.

Lei Hong laughed and replied, continued to press forward, attacking the ghost‑face spider repeatedly, and added a reminder:

"Lei Shu is awesome!"

Zhou Yang and Lei Hong locked eyes, both breaking into excited smiles.

A hazy starlight flickered and vanished, the tip of the Xingkong Long Spear plunged deep into the ghost‑face spider's abdomen, leaving a huge cavity in its body.

"Senior Battle General!"

Zhou Yang and Lei Hong exchanged a glance, each seeing a solemn expression on the other's face.

(End of chapter)