novelraw Chapter 58 : White Sand Sky Pillar Sea Domain
Chapter 58 : White Sand Sky Pillar Sea Domain
Five mechas slowly advanced from the deep water area.
Before approaching the island, a black mecha floated up to snorkel, stopping and going tentatively.
After detecting no movement, it slowly raised its metal head above the sea surface.
"Commander, it seems quiet, and there's no one..."
The mechas below also slowly surfaced, looking at the island from a distance, indeed seeing no trace of any mechas.
The person called Commander clasped his hands and made a decision: "We'll land on the island."
"Wait, Tong Zhou, there are no spiritual body fluctuations on this island."
The analyst in the team warned.
"The elimination light pillars lit up ten times, which should indicate two full teams."
Tong Zhou speculated, "Could they have mutually destroyed each other?"
The analyst felt the energy fluctuations on the island were strange—how could there be no spiritual body fluctuations at all? Were there no competitors left?
This seemed very odd.
The analyst felt increasingly uneasy.
The Commander thought optimistically: "After such an intense battle, getting eliminated due to high deterioration rates would be normal."
"Let's not delay, hurry to the island, grab the supply point resources and retreat quickly. It'll be difficult if other teams arrive."
Third Ring Sixth Academy wasn't a particularly strong team, or rather, didn't dare to call itself strong, even though they were an academy within the Third Ring.
Above them were six direct military institutions, and below were several same-tier academies coveting the direct affiliate positions. Third Ring Sixth Academy was merely the most inconspicuous team among them.
They had passed the Star Ring Selection only because the previous year had secured more spots, and they had barely been picked up at the elimination threshold.
They wanted to participate in more elimination matches, not wanting to be eliminated so quickly.
Hearing the Commander's words, the analyst swallowed his inner concerns.
Meanwhile, as they saw the heads surfacing on the sea, those crouching on the mountain peak whispered through the team channel.
Zhou Chen saw the figures appearing and agreed with Chen Sui's words.
"No wonder you said someone was watching us. There really is a team, and they've arrived so quickly."
Chen Sui felt something was wrong—the sense of being watched hadn't diminished with this team's appearance. Her back remained tense.
This was intuition, derived from every battle with alien species.
"It's not them," she said, aiming her artillery at the team landing on the island while extending her energy perception. "There's a high-level energy body on this island."
Although the White Sand Sky Pillar Sea Domain was classified as an S-level energy field, it didn't mean the island only had S-level energy bodies.
Energy field ratings were based on energy fluctuation levels.
Chen Sui understood her current level. If it were an S-level energy body, she could probe its position, but now, she only felt that numbing gaze without being able to determine the energy source. The entity was likely above S-level.
Just watching, which suggested this energy body didn't intend to act rashly.
Looking at the full team that had already landed, Chen Sui only briefly informed her teammates.
Xie Chunshi's voice sounded from the high tower: "Understood, I'll keep an eye out."
Chen Sui felt somewhat relieved, hearing him ask: "Can we deal with this team on the path up the island?"
Chen Sui's perception, spread out in the distance, detected the spiritual body fluctuations on them, estimating they were below SS-level.
"We can, don't worry."
There was more than one path from the bottom of the island to the supply tower, but Chen Sui had arranged in advance to block the other routes. The path currently visible had Zhu Jing Fu's field of vision covering the high ground.
The barrage comments watched as this full team still marveled at their luck, and couldn't help but light candles for them.
[Which team is this?]
[Third Ring Sixth Academy, their Commander is Tong Zhou, S+ level spiritual body]
[Huh? They don't seem very famous]
[It's okay, there are many strong teams in this league—besides the seven direct affiliates, there's Seventh Ring Third Academy, First Ring Fourth Academy, Second Ring Sixth Academy, Fifth Ring Third Academy, all quite strong]
[They're still talking about good luck. You know what? Their luck really is good—closest to the supply point, last to arrive, and about to get ambushed]
[They're walking into a narrow path, don't go up!]
The barrage watched as Third Ring Sixth Academy cheerfully walked upward, with Tong Zhou somewhat complacent, boasting about his decision.
"I told you there's no problem, right? I'm the Commander. You didn't believe me when I directed you in this direction, but we were the closest, and now we've reached the supply point."
His tone was somewhat sarcastic. The team's strong attacker silently pulled out her artillery and patted the foot soldier: "Set up the shield."
Strong attacker Jiang Han was a meticulous girl. Walking on the island path, looking at the low arbor thickets around, with traces of battle, artillery fire, and burn marks along the way, she had an ominous feeling.
"The combat traces here are strange. One side clearly had the upper hand—it couldn't have resulted in mutual destruction."
Tong Zhou watched the foot soldier obediently set up the shield, then heard the strong attacker's rebuttal. His gaze showed some dissatisfaction.
He was the Commander, yet these people seemed to follow Jiang Han's words too much.
Earlier on Talo Star, because he hadn't obtained the energy crystal that matched Jiang Han, she had subtly blamed him.
Tong Zhou cursed women as troublesome in his heart, but restricted by Jiang Han's strength, he endured his dissatisfaction despite his displeasure.
Yet seeing the shield set up by the foot soldier only deepened his annoyance.
Watching this scene from below, Chen Sui sensed the unusual atmosphere among them. She entered combat mode, extremely observant—sometimes, a tiny movement on the battlefield could reverse the situation.
Seeing the mecha that appeared to be the Commander turn around when the foot soldier set up the shield, pause for a second, then stiffly turn his head back, Chen Sui could easily guess.
The order to set up the shield hadn't come from the Commander.
"Heh, interesting," she suddenly smiled, her gaze lingering on the mechas behind. "Focus fire on their strong attacker."
Chen Sui marked the target mecha.
Seeing her marker, Zhou Chen was stunned: "Eh? We're not targeting the analyst first this time?"
Chen Sui didn't answer. Zhou Chen's eyes rolled, his tone teasing: "Focus fire on the strong attacker? Seems our analyst has some ideas about strong attackers?"
Gu Qinxue's cold snort came through.
"If your cannon veers off even slightly during the attack, I might have some ideas about agile attackers too."
Her voice came with a frost-like coldness.
Before Zhou Chen could reply, Chen Sui saw the opponents enter firing range. "Stop playing, prepare for battle."
Zhou Chen's gaze immediately sharpened, but his mouth remained flippant: "Don't worry, it won't veer off. I didn't even miss when I killed that old Gu Haichuan."
Hearing this name, Chen Sui's ears twitched slightly, her gaze unconsciously shifting to Gu Qinxue's mecha in the distance.
The strong attacker's artillery aimed below.
"Within firing range."
Gu Qinxue, in ambush from afar, announced.
"Attack!"
Chen Sui decided decisively.
Tong Zhou, still displeased with Jiang Han for bypassing him to command the foot soldier, looked at the mountain path they had walked for some time without any disturbance. His tone unconsciously carried a hint of complaint.
"See, I told you there's no problem. We're just lucky. Yet you still insisted on setting up the shield, wasting energy."
Jiang Han's tightly knitted brows hadn't relaxed at all, her inner tension growing stronger.
"It's too quiet here, don't you think?"
Despite having experienced a fierce battle, it was so serene, eerily so.
"Ji Qingkong, have you detected any anomalies?"
Tong Zhou didn't want to hear about her sixth sense; it was like nonsense to him.
The analyst, when addressed, was startled, then shook his head: "No... but..."
His tone was somewhat hesitant, causing Tong Zhou to click his tongue impatiently.
"But the island seems to be screened somehow, my energy perception is intermittent..."
Tong Zhou laughed, "See, no anomalies, and could island screening be something one person could achieve?"
Hearing the analyst's conclusion, Jiang Han reluctantly calmed down, but upon hearing the island anomaly, she couldn't help but worry: "Only high-level energy bodies could achieve this. Don't let your guard down."
Tong Zhou felt he had scored a point and waved dismissively: "I know. We'll just get the resources from the supply point and leave. We won't linger on this mountain. High-level energy bodies aren't our concern."
He wasn't greedy; he just wanted enough water-repellent materials, unlike other teams who were after energy crystals too.
Jiang Han's tension hadn't eased when Tong Zhou was proudly walking forward.
A sudden, sharp whistling sound tore through the air, thundering towards them.
Their nostrils were instantly filled with the smell of gunpowder.
"Shield up!"
Jiang Han's pupils contracted as she dodged behind nearby rocks. Tong Zhou, whose smile hadn't yet faded, was hit directly by a high-pressure energy cannon.
"Boom------"
"Bang!"
With a massive explosion, the high-pressure energy cannon sent the mecha flying, tossing it into the air. It exploded violently, then crashed to the ground with a thud.
[Deterioration rate 53%]
Tong Zhou heard the system reminder in his ear, his body freezing. Instinctively, he rolled to the side, avoiding an ice bomb.
Chen Sui fired three shots in succession; one missed, while the other two froze the foot soldier with the shield.
"Ye Ke!"
The analyst, who had been protected behind the shield, looked at the foot soldier's mecha with helpless eyes.
Jiang Han, hiding behind cover, peered out and fired a shot in the direction of the attack.
"Bang!"
An ice bomb intercepted it in mid-air. She was surprised for only a second before seeing an ice bomb hurling towards her cover.
Jiang Han instinctively dodged, but her arm was hit by the ice bomb.
[Deterioration rate 51%]
Her mecha's deterioration had been alarmingly high since their entry and several battles, now right at the elimination threshold.
"Qingkong, retreat!"
In the midst of the artillery barrage, Jiang Han touched the ground with her palm. A line of fire followed her position, burning all the way to foot soldier Ye Ke's mecha, melting the ice bombs and disrupting the surrounding energy.
The foot soldier, having regained mobility, immediately relocated with the analyst.
"You're right, this strong attacker is a bit troublesome."
Seeing the shot at the foot soldier miss, Zhou Chen shook his hand and repositioned his cannon.
Jiang Han, whose rhythm had been disrupted by the initial chaos, quickly recovered.
She and the team's agile attacker, Bai Yujin, darted out from left and right.
One provided cover while the other prepared to retrieve the exposed Commander.
Bai Yujin leaped swiftly among the mountain rocks while Jiang Han set up artillery in the distance. Seeing a shot plummeting towards Tong Zhou's position, she quickly intercepted, causing the energy cannons to collide in mid-air.
"Let's eliminate one first."
Zhou Chen, seeing his shot blocked again, communicated with his teammates.
Understanding his intention, Gu Qinxue promptly followed: "Agreed."
Both aimed their guns simultaneously.
"Understood."
Chen Sui followed up, ice bombs sealing off Bai Yujin's path along his tracks.
Bai Yujin felt the ice bomb brush past his face, its stored energy poised to release. He suddenly stopped, looking up at the mountaintop position, but saw nothing except giant rocks.
He gritted his teeth, "The opponents are hiding too deep. We need to force them out."
Jiang Han's fire-attribute energy spread along the mountain rocks. Looking at Tong Zhou in the distance, she reminded through the team channel: "Commander, can you find cover?"
Tong Zhou dodged several energy bombs falling from the sky, already looking somewhat disheveled. Hearing this question, he immediately looked around, spotting a protruding rock nearby and instantly feeling relieved.
"Yes!"
Jiang Han relaxed, energy accumulating in her palm. Watching him dodge the bombs and about to enter cover, she prepared to use her energy to force out those hiding in the mountain rocks.
Behind Tong Zhou, bombs fell like meteors, debris hitting his back. Ignoring the pain in his body, he focused solely on diving behind cover, rolling over, lying on the mountain rock, gasping heavily.
"Heh, perfect."
Seeing the completely exposed mecha in her vision, Chen Sui spoke into the team channel while releasing a charged ice bomb.
"Zhou Chen, three o'clock position, three seconds."
"Received."
The energy cannon turned, charging.
Tong Zhou hadn't yet recovered when an ice bomb plunged directly down from the upper diagonal position.
[Deterioration rate 73%]
"F*ck!"
Hit directly in the cockpit by the ice bomb, he couldn't help but curse.
"Above me diagonally, aim at that position!"
Tong Zhou captured the firing position and marked it. Jiang Han almost instinctively exposed herself.
Fierce fire like threads burned along the mountain rocks, lifting a red veil of fire, spreading rapidly.
Jiang Han focused all her attention on the position Tong Zhou had indicated.
As an output, the most trusted in the team besides the analyst was the Commander.
However, what surprised her was that someone's overall view always surpassed others.
"There they are."
Chen Sui looked at the two completely exposed mechas. The ice bomb hit Tong Zhou's chest and hadn't yet melted.
On the other side, a mecha peered out from behind a huge rock, hand wielding flames.
Zhou Chen's energy cannon aimed at Tong Zhou from another direction. As he fired, he quietly critiqued: "Their Commander isn't very good."
"Can't keep up with the strong attacker's rhythm."
Chen Sui commented, her appreciation for the strong attacker evident.
After saying this, she called out to Gu Qinxue.
The two were at positions directly opposite the mountaintop, one left, one right.
A fiery giant rabbit figure darted out. Jiang Han instinctively turned towards the searing heat behind her, seeing an enormous spiritual body shadow in mid-air.
"The strong attacker is indeed good, but when it comes to playing with fire, still a bit lacking."
Thinking of Chen Sui's high praise, Gu Qinxue couldn't help but show off her own skills.
Chen Sui found it both amusing and exasperating as she summoned her summoning body from the other side.
Just as Jiang Han's vigilance rose, a layer of flame surged before her, instantly engulfing everything.
Two high-temperature energy sources, one in front and one behind, caused her face to burn instantly.
Simultaneously, the energy cannon struck, hitting Tong Zhou's cockpit directly, detonating the energy sealed within the ice bomb.
"Boom!"
The ice bomb and energy bomb collided. A layer of ice instantly froze the mecha to the rock, but it quickly melted under the sweeping high temperatures.
[Deterioration rate 82%]
[Number 3501 eliminated]
Tong Zhou looked at what was before him in disbelief, his surprised gaze sweeping past the strong attacker being attacked by two flames on one side, the agile attacker with his path sealed by ice bombs on the other, and the analyst surrounded by the foot soldier's shield.
"F*ck!"
"You're playing so dirty?"
He was burning with anger, curse words on the tip of his tongue, but considering the live broadcast cameras, he swallowed them all. The intense pain in his chest made Tong Zhou unable to breathe.
Chen Sui had no time to listen to his farewell speech. After eliminating one, she and Gu Qinxue immediately appeared from left and right.
Puluo's quantum cannon aimed at the foot soldier's shield.
Seeing Chen Sui emerge from her hiding spot, he knew what fate awaited that shield.
Sure enough, an ugly beast-shaped summoning body appeared behind Chen Sui. Jiang Han looked at it once and felt a stabbing pain in her eyes.
She bit her lower lip, retracted her fire, and feeling the fire wave surging from behind, decisively stepped aside, quickly leaping up the side of the mountain. At her original position, the flames swept over without energy resistance, leaving black burn marks on the mountain rocks.
Jiang Han, who had just felt relief at escaping, had barely turned around, ready to engage the opponent again.
However, before her was a rolling sea of fire, flames licking everything around like tongues.
Bai Yujin was trapped by the fire sea. The mecha with the giant rabbit figure descended from above, a long whip in hand, lashing fire onto Bai Yujin. Even though he quickly drew his weapon, prepared for close combat, the mecha unexpectedly distanced itself in the blink of an eye.
Jiang Han's pupils contracted as she realized the person was trying to lure Bai Yujin into a line of fire. Just as she was about to warn him, a whistling sound came from behind.
Jiang Han didn't even have a chance to turn. A green shadow, swift as the wind, darted down along the mountain rocks, reaching her back in an instant, too fast for the naked eye to capture.
The barrage was immediately filled with shock.
[Damn, is this analyst a rabbit?]
[So fast, holy shit]
[Jiang Han is in danger!]
Among the barrage filled with exclamation marks, one could see the mecha quickly draw a deep red spear.
The red spear shaft swung out, beginning to vibrate violently as it was brandished.
The mecha delivered a flying kick, sending the opponent's mecha into the air. The spear struck the mecha, its violent vibrations bouncing it like a volleyball towards the other side.
"Ah Xue!"
"Got it!" Gu Qinxue's long whip spun in the air, flames waving down like a burned-out firework, brilliantly beautiful.
The whip arced like a rainbow, spinning to bind the mecha thrown by the spear.
Jiang Han felt an intense pain in her waist, as if she'd been kicked. What alarmed her was:
When did this person get behind her?
Almost within three seconds!
Her vigilance wasn't so low; the only explanation was that this ghostly shadow was extraordinarily agile.
However, this thought quickly disappeared in the feeling of suspension, followed by a burning sensation spreading throughout her body.
Then came the excruciating pain of the mecha being thrown against mountain rocks.
It felt as if her limbs had been disassembled and reassembled, the pain breaking Jiang Han's train of thought for a second. With a delayed reaction, she thought about dodging.
However, facing the quantum cannon charging straight at her face, she seemed frozen in place, feeling only a numb pain as a tremendous explosion erupted in her ears.
The protective device that ejected alleviated the neurological pain.
Ah, so her feet were bound by the fire whip.
Jiang Han belatedly realized, dazed from the beating.
Then, she heard the reminder inside the mecha.
[Deterioration rate 81%]
[Number 3503 eliminated]
The fire whip and the rope-like flames around her feet and body dispersed.
The mecha slowly slid down from the huge rock like a tattered cloth.
Having eliminated the most troublesome strong attacker, Chen Sui turned and rushed towards the foot soldier.
The barrage, having witnessed her speed before, still couldn't believe what they were seeing.
[You call this an analyst?!]
[Huh? Why is the analyst's movement speed higher than the agile attacker's?!]
[Is it the summoning body? Anyone have her summoning body stats! Big reward!]
[This analyst... doesn't anyone else think something's off?]
[As an analyst, strictly speaking, it's actually okay, because we really [
covers mouth crying
] need this speed to escape]
[...]
[Bro, get this straight, you have this agility and speed, and you use it to run away? The agile attackers are furious!]
[What the hell, what is she doing? Is she punching the foot soldier's energy shield?]
Chen Sui rapidly closed the distance to the foot soldier, delivering a powerful punch.
"Thud!!"
A muffled but resonant sound exploded.
The ice wall resisted the flames. In the spiritual threshold, the pain of the core crystal being burned made his spiritual body's shadow twist grotesquely.
Bai Yujin couldn't care about these. Turning his head at the sound, he saw the green mecha punching the energy shield repeatedly with heavy blows.
"F*ck..." the foot soldier's restrained voice sounded.
"This f*cking... my shield... can't hold much longer..."
The foot soldier's voice seemed to seep through gritted teeth as he was currently biting down, resisting the massive force invading from the other side.
Seeing the elimination scene, Bai Yujin quickly made a decision in his mind. "Ye Ke, cover you, can you take the analyst and go?"
"Maybe," as the foot soldier's voice came, there was also a crisp shattering sound.
Ye Ke said bitterly: "Not really..."
Before everyone's eyes, as Chen Sui delivered a punch, the energy shield completely shattered!
"Puluo!"
As Chen Sui broke the shield and turned around, the voices of the Commander and Puluo sounded in the team channel.
"Analyst, take it easy."
"Understood, already aimed."
Chen Sui quickly retreated, moving away from the battlefield.
She replied to Xie Chunshi in the channel: "Don't worry, Commander, I'm holding back, not being too flashy."
Looking at the energy shield shattered all over the ground, Puluo held his quantum cannon with a slight tremble, but fired three quantum shots with high accuracy.
Chen Sui's mecha brushed past the quantum projectiles.
[Number 3502 eliminated]
[Number 3505 eliminated]
Behind her, a massive white light whipped up dust, exploding into a layer of flying soil.
The green mecha burst through the clouds of smoke, returning to the high ground. The charged gun barrel aimed at the output supporting the ice wall and fired without hesitation.
[Number 3504 eliminated]
Bai Yujin was carried away by an ice bomb, still somewhat dazed when he crashed against a rock.
But in the next moment, he was shattered by a surge of flames that broke through the ice wall. The flames gathered into an arrow, piercing through his mecha.
It directly destroyed his deterioration rate.
"You call this holding back?"
Zhou Chen watched Chen Sui casually put away her artillery, not even out of breath, and sincerely asked.
Chen Sui paused for a second, answering with equal sincerity.
"What else? I didn't even engage in hand-to-hand combat."
She had only moved her hands twice—once to draw the spear and strike Jiang Han, once to punch the shield.
Zhou Chen pursed his lips, hearing her seriousness, feeling even more silent.
Do you want to see how the foot soldier's hands were shaking like a sieve?
You did that.
As the elimination light pillars rose again, the Third Ring Sixth Academy school team lying in the ruins was still somewhat dazed.
Chen Sui looked at a mecha lying face-up, with the energy pipe placement position right on its back.
She stared at it for a second, making the lying mecha's back cold. Not understanding what was targeting it, it only felt danger approaching and instinctively wanted to turn over.
But with hands pressed against the ground, it realized its hands had been numbed by the tremendous force of the shield-holding collision earlier, and now couldn't muster any strength.
"I have an idea."
As soon as Chen Sui spoke, the school team, well acquainted with her peculiar thoughts, couldn't help but look at her.
"Please enlighten us," Zhou Chen used an honorific at this moment, anticipating that Chen Sui definitely had an idea that would boggle his mind.