Chapter 43

Crack—crack—!!!

Spiderweb-like cracks raced up the thick load-bearing pillar, emitting a series of grating, shattering sounds.

The whole process happened so fast that even the rotting corpse spiders frantically gnawing at Black Tortoise's limbs hadn't had time to react to this catastrophic disaster.

Deep in the tunnel, the unusually intelligent spider queen seemed to sense something, suddenly lifting her head—but it was already too late.

Boom—rumble—!!!

A deafening roar capable of tearing eardrums erupted from deep underground!

The core load-bearing pillar, over a meter in diameter and supporting the entire shopping mall, could no longer bear the weight after a grating 'creak,' and snapped with a thunderous crash!

The next second, the heavens collapsed and the earth split!

Countless massive concrete chunks, twisted rebar embedded within, fell like a dense meteor shower, carrying destructive force as they slammed down viciously below.

The violent shockwave and collapsing debris instantly engulfed the entire underground transfer hall.

Oh my god! We're going to be buried alive!

Under the shelter of the stone wall, A Qiang stared at the apocalyptic scene above, let out a heart-rending scream, collapsed to the ground, and nearly fainted.

Xiao Hui simply rolled her eyes back and fainted from terror.

Lin Yue kid! Think of a solution, quick!

Wang Gongtou's old face turned ashen; he knew better than anyone how terrifying a collapse of this scale was—it was beyond human power to resist.

Han Ya immediately threw herself over her brother Han Yu and the survivors, shielding them with her body, her eyes filled with resolve.

However, Lin Yue's face showed not a trace of panic.

Black Tortoise, Energy Shield, let's go out.

Roar!

Black Tortoise let out a low growl.

Hum—!

A faint blue transparent energy shield suddenly burst forth from Black Tortoise's body, enveloping Xuanwu City and everyone on its back.

Countless tons of concrete and rebar slammed into the shield, only raising ripples—so much so that the light barrier didn't even tremble.

Immediately afterward, Black Tortoise's massive body moved.

Rumble...

Under Black Tortoise's Earth Control ability, the layers of soil and rock ahead seemed to be forcibly split apart by an invisible pair of giant hands.

Those massive concrete chunks capable of crushing tanks into sheets became as docile as building blocks before it, sliding automatically to either side, forcibly carving a 'safe passage' to the surface through the heart of the collapse!

Black Tortoise simply bore the pressure of hundreds of thousands of tons, walking upward at a steady pace.

……

Meanwhile, above ground, outside the New World Shopping Center

Captain! Look quick!

The drone operator of the 'Night Blade' team, Hummingbird, pointed at the distant shopping center, his voice full of disbelief.

Gui Ying and the team members jerked their heads up; the next second, everyone froze in place, their faces as if they'd seen a ghost.

All that could be seen was the New World Shopping Center slowly sinking.

Immediately after, accompanied by a violent earth-shaking tremor, the entire building collapsed with a thunderous crash!

Boom——!!!!!

An eight-story shopping center vanished completely within just a dozen seconds!

The terrifying shockwave, wrapped in sky-darkening dust and smoke, swept in all directions, its power rivaling that of a heavy bomb explosion!

Take cover! Quick, take cover!

Gui Ying hastily pulled a nearby teammate behind a broken wall.

After the dust and smoke lingered for a long time, the shaken Night Blade team members finally dared to peek out from cover.

Looking at the shopping center now completely reduced to rubble, everyone's minds went blank.

Lin... Mr. Lin, did they succeed?

The rookie muttered to himself,

But... but Mr. Lin they...

He didn't finish his sentence, but everyone understood what he meant.

Buried underneath?

That thought made Gui Ying's heart sink sharply.

But just then, the center of the rubble suddenly began to rise.

Boom!

A 'small hill' of rubble and dirt was suddenly thrust upward from within by a tremendous force, and then a massive head covered in thick stone armor slowly emerged from the debris.

It was Black Tortoise!

It shook off the dust on its body and walked out step by step as if nothing had happened; its mountain-like stature, set against the sky‑filled dust, resembled a primordial beast stepping out of myth.

……

The entire Night Blade team fell silent, not even a sparrow's chirp.

They stared blankly at the colossal figure emerging from the rubble, wondering if human strength could truly achieve this.

Gui Ying's lips trembled as he recalled the words Commander Zhang Zhen Guo had said at the meeting.

We must cooperate with him, no matter the cost.

Only now did he truly grasp the weight of those words.

To be enemies with such a being?

What does the shelter have to fight the enemy with?

He felt immense relief, relief that the Commander had made the wisest decision back then.

……

Lin Yue, we… we have already returned to the surface?

As the gray‑white light shone into view again, Wang Gongtou leaned on the battlement, still somewhat unable to believe.

One moment it was an apocalyptic scene of heaven collapsing and earth splitting; the next, they had appeared unharmed on the surface—such a stark contrast left him struggling to adjust for a while.

Old Wang, you're hallucinating, right?

Lin Yue looked at his still‑shocked state and couldn't resist teasing him again.

Are we still in the tunnel? Isn't Black Tortoise trying to find a way out?

You little brat! Do you think I'm an idiot? I can't even tell inside from outside!

Wang Gongtou shot him an annoyed glance, but the heart that had been suspended finally settled back into his stomach.

Lin Yue made a ghostly face:

Ah, what a pity—I didn't manage to fool Old Wang!

Their conversation eased the previously extreme tension.

A Qiang and Xiao Hui, who had lain limp on the ground, gradually regained some color in their faces.

Han Ya's tense nerves also relaxed a little; she quickly walked over to the group of survivors who had just been rescued and began checking their conditions.

However, an anomaly suddenly occurred!

Hiss——!!!!!!!!!!

A shrill scream filled with endless anger and resentment erupted suddenly from the other side of the ruins.

That sound was like a red‑hot steel needle, viciously stabbing into everyone's brains.

Ah——!!!

My head! It hurts so much!

The members of the "Night Blade" squad in the distance were instantly hit by a devastating blow!

Except for Gui Ying, whose will was the most tenacious and who gritted his teeth and held on, the rest of the squad members painfully dropped their weapons, clutched their heads, rolled on the ground, and emitted mournful wails.

Meanwhile, inside Xuanwu City, everyone was unharmed.

An invisible barrier completely blocked that terrifying mental shock from the outside.

Lin Yue slowly raised his head, gazing toward the direction the sound came from.

PS: New book, please urge updates and collect!