Apocalypse Forecast

Chapter 425 - 366 Same Species Cannibalism_1

Hungry.

Starving.

If I had to describe it, I'd say I was super invincibly hungry!

For the first time after his Deification Transformation was complete, Huai Shi felt such an urgent and intense hunger, as if he hadn't eaten for ten years.

He could indeed eat stones, iron ore, and drink molten iron without issue, but could that nutritionless gruel compare to roasted meat?

At this moment, someone kept roasting whole sheep, whole oxen, kidney skewers, large intestines, and squid tentacles right in front of him...

Although it lacked a bit of cumin, it already had the right flavor!

Smelling the charred aroma wafting from the distance, Huai Shi's drool had long since flown from his mouth. He was impatient. Watching Phoenix reap so many heads, the desire to fight in his blood didn't surface; instead, a profound admiration arose!

Someone actually set up a barbecue grill for me!

What am I waiting for then!

Charge, charge, charge!

The canteen is serving food!!!

Huai Shi sprinted forward, gesticulating wildly, ignoring the black tide surging towards him, and ran straight for the colossal shadow in the gray tide—an Erosion Species that resembled a huge wild boar.

It was as if what he saw wasn't an enemy, but a hot dog with four legs. What appeared on his face wasn't ferocity or killing intent, but an appetite so intense it made even the Erosion Species shiver!

Seeing Huai Shi rushing towards it, tongue lolling and drool flying, the giant wild boar faltered, instinctively wanting to turn back.

But the surging gray tide pushed it forward, making escape impossible.

And Huai Shi was getting closer, and closer...

When it looked back again, its ferocity and hunger had vanished, replaced by a profound despair in its eyes.

Stay away!

And then Huai Shi arrived. Trampling the gray tide underfoot, he bent down, snatched up the enormous beast—as large as a small hill—lifted it, and tossed it into the air.

Then he opened his mouth wide and, with a GULP, snapped it shut.

It was the perfect mouthful!

Feeling the delicious juices burst in his mouth, the fatty, sweet pork, complemented by the molten lava sauce, erupted with an astonishingly delightful flavor.

Huai Shi was almost moved to tears.

When he looked down again, he found that the gray Erosion Species swarm, which had been ubiquitous like a sea tide, had suddenly parted before him, creating a huge gap.

As if encountering some invisible barrier, the moment they saw Huai Shi, they scattered wildly to either side, only to converge again behind him and rush onward.

They wanted nothing to do with him.

"Now what?" Huai Shi stood dumbfounded. "I think I've been isolated."

None of his allies spoke; they couldn't be bothered with him anymore.

"Too scared to play, huh!"

Huai Shi was furious. On his armor-covered back, countless giant cannons stood proudly erect in his rage, aiming in all directions.

"—Battalion Commander, fire!"

"I'll say it again, I'm not your damn Battalion Commander..."

A terrifying torrent of electricity suddenly surged from the high tower, clawing at the air before coalescing into the vague silhouette of a thundercloud; it was Taurus, now in its energy form.

Then, a wicked smile spread across the thundercloud. "However, I have no objections to firing!"

At that instant, the ground beneath Huai Shi's feet shook violently. He was slammed tens of meters down by the enormous Recoil, the earth cracking as his four huge claws dug deep into the soil.

Tens of millions of streaks of light erupted with the frenzied Thunder, like stars rising and falling in a celestial shower.

Source Substance transformed into heavy metal, instantly and wildly accelerated within tens of millions of electromagnetic fields, reaching a terrifying speed invisible to the naked eye.

The moment they left the barrels, their monstrous forms began to rapidly vaporize, leaving glaring trails of metallic steam in their wake. The sharp shells penetrated the tide of enemies, exploding in all directions, leaving radial scars that instantly extended hundreds of kilometers into the gray tide.

Erosion Species struck at close range were instantly vaporized, without even a chance to cry out. Those at mid-range exploded into showers of blood, torn apart by the fierce wind, forming a crimson mist within the gleaming metallic vapor.

And the unluckiest ones at the farthest distances had massive holes punched through them in an instant. Then, the metal shrapnel embedded in their wounds would detonate thunderously, disintegrating into the purest metal mist, instantly charring most of their bodies and sending them crashing to the ground.

Huai Shi stepped forward, roaring at the heavens.

Scorching lightning rose again, pouring incessantly into the high tower. Under Taurus's control, it was evenly and rapidly distributed to every preheated giant cannon.

One-third cooling, one-third preparing, one-third preheating.

It was almost a perfect reproduction of the three-rank volley fire from the age of line infantry. Supported by seemingly infinite Firepower, the mobile Artillery Positions thundered forward.

Step by step, he moved beyond the lava's range, venturing deep into the gray tide.

When Huai Shi felt tired, he would breathe, voraciously consuming the sediment from the Abyss; when thirsty, he would open his mouth, catching the continuous rain of blood from the sky.

An Abyssal aura, potent enough to make even the Owner of the Great Mob pale in comparison, emanated from him, almost making one mistake him for one of their kind. But now, the biggest "Second Fifth" of this Witch Night was preparing to turn on his own!

On his back, the artillery platform constantly shifted its aim, utterly ignoring the small fry around, and began to systematically target the major threats within the gray tide.

The effect was phenomenal!

This was Huai Shi's mission: to use his superior resistance to Hell to break away from the main group, draw as much enemy attention as possible, and relieve pressure on his allies within the defensive perimeter.

In other words, he was bait.

But aside from Huai Shi—who was as large as a mountain, whose Armor was so thick that heavy artillery couldn't penetrate it, and who was so resilient that not even Doomsday could kill him—who else could accomplish such a task?

Moreover, he had a teammate with the strongest burst damage providing support.

At that moment, Taurus, now completely composed of electric current, repeatedly flew up from the giant tower on Huai Shi's back, dived into the metal city, and returned, wreathed in a massive current from the Energy Furnace, to unleash another round of frenzied attacks.

Instantaneous recovery, instant mana regeneration, and Skills with no cooldowns whatsoever—it was like cheating. For Taurus, the burdens that other Giant Beasts faced simply didn't exist.

It *was* energy!

This meant that, if it wished, it could even launch itself as a projectile!

Fueled by the unlimited supply from the six reactors in the central urban district, it had been a long time since Taurus had wielded its Power so exhilaratingly. After being constrained for so long, it was even getting a bit 'electricity-drunk,' descending into a state of frenzied excitement.

"OHHH, I AM THE KING OF THUNDER AND LIGHTNING!!!"

Amidst dozens of frenzied lightning bolts, the serpentine current coiling around the giant tower cackled maniacally as it unleashed destruction, declaring, "Accept Uncle Bull's correction!"

"Speaking of which, you're not actually a bull, are you? So why the name Taurus?" Huai Shi casually strolled through the monster horde as if taking a walk, even finding time to chat.

"I'm called Taurus because I adopted Creator Qinger Tai's zodiac prototype. It's just a codename; what I'm called doesn't matter."

Huai Shi's eyes widened in annoyance. "Then why can't I be called Battalion Commander?!"

Taurus was taken aback for a moment, somewhat embarrassed, then retorted irritably, "Well, you just can't!"

"Fine then." Huai Shi pouted. "Since our Independent Regiment is down to just the two of us, I have no objections to you being First Battalion Commander... But let's get things straight, First Battalion Commander, my position as Regiment Commander is not up for grabs."

"...Like I care!"

Taurus felt that if it hadn't already become energy, this fool would have angered it enough to make it spew out old blood.

"Also, watch out ahead!"

Huai Shi faltered, then spun around abruptly. He felt the thin air ripple as a Giant Serpent, its body covered in barbs and eyes, burst out from the gray tide, its massive form lunging towards him.

Huai Shi only had time to take a deep breath.

Then the Giant Serpent was gone.

Evenly coated and heated by a layer of metallic vapor, it had turned into charcoal-grilled snake segments. Huai Shi ate it with satisfying CRUNCHES, finding it crispy and rich in flavor. He felt that Taurus, next to him, was practically drooling with envy.

"I am not!" Taurus fumed.

"...How do you know what I'm thinking?"

"Please, just turn off your open mic!" Taurus sounded utterly exasperated. "We're still on the same channel! Can't you have fewer mental broadcasts?"

"Why didn't you say so earlier? If you had, I would have switched songs!!!"

Huai Shi's eyes lit up. He switched to the public channel, activated the colorful backlight behind him, and started playing a BGM with a heavy beat in his mind. He imagined himself performing hot songs and wild dances, leaping about in the gray tide.

Thus, amidst the grating noise pollution, everyone, being force-fed a relentlessly cheerful, folksy mental soundtrack, began to feel that life was unbearable.

Fortunately, as Huai Shi ventured deeper, the mental pollution grew more distant and could be blocked out by sheer willpower, rendered inaudible.

But even after Huai Shi ran with all his might for half an hour—a time in which one could have walked from Zhao Village back to Pingan County Town—he still couldn't see an end to the gray tide.

It seemed as if the entire world had been submerged by the Erosion Species.

If not for the sun hanging high behind him, he would have nearly lost himself in this eternal, gray-black turbulence.

Even the irritable Taurus couldn't help but feel a trace of helplessness and asked, "How many have we killed?"

A thousand? Ten thousand? A hundred thousand?

Huai Shi couldn't even calculate how many enemies a single artillery barrage could eliminate. Yet, even after days of nuclear bombardment, the enemy's numbers remained endless, as if they could never be completely wiped out.

As Huai Shi penetrated deeper into the gray tide, a sinister silhouette finally began to emerge slowly—a half-rotten giant bird rose from the darkness, its ethereal contour condensing like a vaporous fog.

As its single wing, covered in tumors and deformities, slowly lifted, it created the illusion of engulfing the entire sky and earth.

Behind the gray tide, the Owner of the Great Mob had finally appeared!

Instantly, Huai Shi unleashed a round of artillery fire. But when the scorching metal shells landed on its wing, they merely coated its dusky feathers with a trivial layer of molten iron.

With a shake of its wing, the molten iron was flung off like water.

Then, behind and to the right of Huai Shi, two more massive shadows, as if condensed from darkness itself, emerged, moving slowly forward, attempting to encircle him.

"Be careful, they want to trap us here..."

Taurus scanned the surroundings and warned softly, "Let's retreat for now and take the intel back. If they manage to tie us down, we could be worn down to death."

Huai Shi, however, had a different opinion.

"You have to look on the bright side..."

He swallowed, his gaze fixed intently on the shadowy giant bird in the distance.

As his arms spread wide, the hymns soared once again. The Hammer of Sorrow swung high, aimed excitedly at the stunned Owner of the Great Mob before him.

"—At least there will be plenty of chicken wings!"

In Behemoth's thrilled shout, a Roaring Outburst ensued.

The Abyss buffet had begun!