novelraw Chapter 578 503: Family (Double-Length)
Chapter 578 503: Family (Double-Length)
More swarms of insects surrounded the base from all directions. Flamethrower towers rose, and as compressed fuel poured into the bases, extremely high-temperature flames burst forth, causing the swarms of insects to retreat in large numbers, screeching as they were scorched by the blazing flames.
This fuel not only aids combustion, but the inducement agents it contains can also disrupt the pheromones of the insect swarms.
The disruption of pheromones caused them to blindly trample on the corpses of their companions and even attack their own kind. Predators that had just climbed onto the heap of bodies had no time to roar before lurking shadow hunters pounced and split open their chests, green blood spraying, heads being severed and displayed hanging upside down on mantis blades as trophies.
And this shadow hunter, its vibrating wings quickly withdrawing, was about to retreat into the shadows, only to have its head smashed to pulp by a hardened chitin-heavy hammer wielded by a five-meter-tall repair unit.
It was also covered with predators, which were tearing its skin with their fangs. The pain enraged it, making its eyes red and irrational, wildly swinging its lethal chitin-heavy hammer, transforming into a meat grinder on the battlefield.
A soldier wielding a Blazing Energy Blade leaped out, slicing open the chest of the repair unit. Taking a step forward, the long blade slashed again and again, each cut precisely severing the heads of the Insect Race, causing corrosive blood to spill everywhere. The inducement agent on the barrier made the insect swarm mistakenly think these soldiers were their companions, little knowing that this companion was becoming a killing machine, slaughtering them madly.
"The inducement agent that disrupts the insect swarm's pheromones is also an invention of Dr. Kreif."
Mondeville, though his tone remained calm, made it obvious in anyone's ears that there was admiration for Dr. Kreif in his words, his eyes seemingly burning with fervent flames.
Neither flames nor artillery shells, nor even the claws of the Insect Race, could harm these soldiers. The shriek of the insect swarms boosted their morale. Minute by minute, the swarm diminished visibly to the naked eye. The lurking Commander suddenly became alert, realizing something was amiss and let out a high-pitched screech, beginning to lead the main force in retreat.
This also allowed the soldiers to locate its position; it was a Commander disguised as a porter. This type of Insect Race had a head shaped like an inverted triangle, with flesh and metal cans fused together, its three slender legs always moving swiftly, a special body structure allowing it to carry loads many times over its own weight.
"There it is, don't let it escape!" a soldier shouted.
The base's close-defense cannons and flamethrower towers responded immediately, aiming in the Commander's direction. Fire lights filled the sky, and under an onslaught of carpet bombing, the Insect Race launched into the sky every second.
Inferior insects, that is, engineer ants, lacked the capacity for thought, their consciousness controlled by the collective network. Each swarm had a 'thumbtack' nailed in the area, responsible for receiving instructions from the High-level Insect Race and passing them on to the engineer ants. Such thumbtacks were often the Commanders of a small unit of the Insect Race, leading thousands to tens of thousands of engineer ants.
In the battle of attack and defense against the Insect Race, decapitating the Commander was regarded as the most important target. Once the Commander was dead, the remaining engineer ants would become leaderless, lose their action targets, and spontaneously collapse into retreat.
Sensing its danger, the Insect Race Commander panicked and ran frantically, its three semi-mechanical claws scampering rapidly, countless predator engineer ants pouncing on it, shielding it from the rear fire with their bodies, dying incessantly with howls.
The dispersed insects gathered like a tide towards a unified direction, even the soldiers couldn't break through the barriers formed by the insect tide initially, forced to watch helplessly as they retreated.
"That guy is getting away," Mountain Crow reminded. "Does Dr. Kreif have any more black technology to roll out quickly?"
Mondeville stood still, calmly watching the direction the Commander was heading.
"Letting that Commander go back, won't the information be leaked?"
As they watched the Commander being carried away by the Insect Race army, Mountain Crow grew impatient, while Yun Que moved first, quickly bending down and dashing forward, leaping into the air. The mystical blade Aoyama Wanmi was unsheathed, cold air bursting forth, and then suddenly exploding, a bone-chilling cold tide sweeping the entire field, freezing the air to the point of solidification.
"Ice Cold Heart Stream Selfless Lotus."
Accompanied by a resonant hum, two thousand-meter-long glaciers arose from the desert sands, spanning the entire desert, freezing all insects along the way within. The icy stones exuded cold vapors, even at a glance, sending shivers rampaging through one's body, akin to facing an icy abyss directly.
Under absolute strength, the struggle of weaker beings is meaningless. Landing gracefully like a sparrow, Yun Que sheathed the mystical blade, and the glaciers shattered, the insects within the ice stones eliminated by the embedded intent of sharpness.
Undeniably, most family members of the Wind Crane Family and Yun Que Family amongst the Five Families of Chichu were not skilled in combat. The former mainly engaged in overseeing various organizations within the Chichu Celestial Realm, setting up supervisory authorities throughout the realm, while the latter focused their industrial focus on education and healthcare.
But the Patriarch of the Yun Que Family was an exception. His age remains a mystery, with people only knowing that his appearance hasn't changed over the years and his strength is formidable. Over a decade ago, he was active on the battlefield of Octopus Tower City, and in earlier years, was known as one of the Chichu Trio alongside Chichu Hong and Black Blade, having joined forces with them to end the relic contact event.