Chapter 39: Chapter 37: Insect Mother A piercing scream suddenly echoed through the silent night.
"Enemy, enemy attack!" a warrior shouted, his pupils dilating as he clearly saw a giant insect burst out from the ground, biting into his comrade’s lower body.
"Not good! The insects are coming! Enemy attack!" After a brief moment of silence, the crowd erupted into chaos, spreading out and shouting in panic.
The sound of battle filled the air, the scene chaotic in the extreme. Two giant corpse centipedes, their insect armor gray and oozing with some kind of pungent yellow fluid — if you looked closely, it was the liquid of decomposed bodies.
It was obvious.
The death toll at the school was far higher than what was visible; many more had been dragged underground and buried as fertilizer.
It’s unimaginable, the despair and fear of those dragged underground alive: prominent professors, kind and amiable teachers, the school’s beautiful and poised star student, even the gentle boy adored by countless girls. Now... their bodies piled beneath the earth, left to ferment, then devoured by these filthy monsters as food.
Resentment soared to the heavens.
An entire school’s faculty and students reduced to food for the corpse centipedes.
The crowd clambered, with seven or eight people already bitten and killed before they could react. Different from ordinary people, the hot-blooded warriors did not collapse; instead, they quickly overcame their fear, rallied together, and charged at the insects.
"These bugs want to kill us; we can’t let them through, charge!" a warrior roared in anger, holding his machine gun and pulling the trigger.
Unlike the crowd, the giant corpse centipedes hadn’t seen so many living humans for a long time. Confronted with such a bloody scene, they roared and charged toward the people.
"Bang!"
A violent explosion rang out, bullets striking the bronze corpse centipede with a clanging sound. The bullets bounced off, with only a few penetrating some joints, which did little to harm the centipede.
The giant corpse centipede turned its gaze onto a nearby warrior, accelerating, and pounced directly in front of him.
At this moment, the giant corpse centipede charged with thunderous momentum; just one glimpse of its ferocity, bloodthirst, and lethal aura was enough to terrify an ordinary person to death. Especially with the corpse liquid dripping from it, like a herald of death, in just the blink of an eye, the warrior had his neck bitten through.
Unlike abnormal beasts, the giant corpse centipede had defensive traits.
Insect armor.
Before evolving, its body was relatively soft, but once it reached bronze status, its armor became extremely tough and difficult to penetrate.
Bullets.
This killing tool from peacetime was entirely ineffective against the giant corpse centipede.
Dealing with such an insect required powerful rockets or cannon shells.
Otherwise.
Even hundreds of bullets wouldn’t inflict significant damage on these creatures.
However, because of this, the giant corpse centipede’s armor held incredible value. Some blacksmiths could turn its shell into excellent armor, a rare and precious item in many places.
The arrival of the monsters brought not only death but also business opportunities; some adventurers roamed cities, selling these materials.
"No!"
"These monsters aren’t afraid of bullets!"
"What do we do?!"
Several heart-wrenching cries were heard, even some warriors showing looks of despair. After all, with their ultimate reliance rendered useless, they were at a loss for what to do.
The Vine Mage stepped forward, with a casual wave embedding a few seeds into the ground.
Vine Skill!
Suddenly, a green vine broke through the soil.
About the size of a baby’s arm but five meters long, it hindered the giant corpse centipede’s attack, not lasting long but buying precious time for escape.
The Vine Mage’s face turned pale, depleting most of his strength controlling the vine, but he endured with determination.
The giant corpse centipede snarled, feeling the vine constricting tightly from its spine to neck, its entire body contorting, causing considerable harm.
A hint of madness glimmered in the giant corpse centipede’s eyes.
It roared, the sound akin to a wailing ghost from Purgatory, piercingly shrill.
The giant corpse centipede violently thrashed, loosening the vine’s grip, while the Vine Mage beside it was already pale, unable to contain the struggle; it wouldn’t be long before the monster broke the vines.
What to do?
The Vine Mage clenched his teeth, exerting so much force that even his gums bled.
"Whoosh!"
A jet of dark green blood sprayed out, and the giant corpse centipede’s eye was pierced.
The giant corpse centipede’s body began to thrash and struggle, the intense pain from its eye leaving it utterly confused. It tried to flee, but in the next moment, another arrow descended from the sky.
Weak point penetrated.
The eye again.
The vines controlled the movements of the giant corpse centipede. Hidden in the darkness, the elf drew a bow and released arrows. Just two arrows were enough to break through the centipede’s life defenses.
Now, the Dark Elf’s graceful body resembled a scythe of the Grim Reaper, radiating a deadly glow.
Boom!
A muffled noise echoed as it fell!