Chapter 81: She Thinks It Should Be the Black Tower
Once Mo Xiao was no longer in danger, Su Tang turned to the Silver Wolf lying on the ground. Her gentle spirit power surged out again, enveloping the wolf’s body. The recovery of a spiritual entity requires nourishment, and a Guide’s spirit power is the best medicine for them.
“You said you encountered reinforced pollutants…”
“What were their characteristics?”
Zhan Ye looked at the returning members of the Third Squad, a ruthless glint in his eyes and his fists clenched. His team members could not have died so easily in the hands of those things for nothing. He, Zhan Ye, swore he would slaughter those creatures.
“Their eyes are red, and they’re at least thirty percent faster than normal high-level pollutants. Furthermore…”
The Vice-Captain shared his discovery.
“They seem to be able to absorb the energy of a spiritual entity and convert it into their own. The Silver Wolf grew weak and was swarmed because a large portion of its power was sucked away.”
Su Tang’s heart jolted. Wasn’t this exactly like the one-eyed pollutant that had devoured her spirit thread earlier?
It seemed the situation in the Abyss was far more severe than they had imagined.
“Mo Xiao, did the number of pollutants you encountered match the list given by the Bai Ta?” Su Tang asked in a heavy voice.
Mo Xiao shook his head while panting. The clotting factors were working; the wound on his shoulder throbbed with a burning pain, followed by the itching sensation of new flesh growing.
“Excluding the ones that came from underground, many also emerged from the tree trunks in the forest. Moreover, they coordinated perfectly. Their actions looked like they were being unified by a single command.”
Otherwise, they wouldn’t have all swarmed the Silver Wolf at the exact moment it was weakened from having its energy absorbed.
As his injuries improved, Mo Xiao stood up from the table. He looked at the signs of battle around the camp and frowned.
“You were attacked here too?”
“About fifty of them came. We dealt with the leader, a one-eyed pollutant, before they finally fled,” Zhan Ye replied, his expression grave.
“It seems the enemy set the board long ago. They deliberately let us split up, probably to pick us off one by one.”
The air in the camp grew heavy. After this ordeal, the camp’s backup resources were nearly exhausted, and the Sentinels had suffered heavy casualties. They couldn’t withstand another large-scale assault for the time being.
“We must return to the Bai Ta immediately,” Mo Xiao broke the silence, his voice resolute.
“The evolution speed and intelligence of these pollutants have exceeded expectations. Our casualties are severe, and our resources are almost gone. We must return to the Bai Ta immediately to reformulate our plan.”
The Vice-Captain of the Third Squad immediately nodded in agreement.
“Captain Mo is right. While I was planting the bombs earlier, I noticed the energy fluctuations of that Cocoon getting stronger. It might even be gestating something even more terrifying.”
“In our current state, if they launch another attack, we absolutely won’t be able to resist.”
Zhan Ye agreed and turned to Klei.
“Establish communication with the Bai Ta immediately. Explain the situation here and request a support aircraft for pickup. Tell them we were ambushed, casualties are heavy, and we need an immediate evacuation.”
Klei rushed to the communicator. He first sent a written report of the events to the Bai Ta’s High-Level Affairs Office, then began attempting to establish a live communication link.
Su Tang knelt beside the Silver Wolf, her hand gently stroking its body, lingering for a while on its injured front leg.
“Will the Bai Ta agree to the retreat?”
Zhan Ye knelt beside her and handed her an energy agent.
“Hard to say. The old fogies at the Bai Ta only care about profit. However, this time it’s more than half the elites of two squads; surely they can’t just sit by and do nothing.” He glanced at Klei and called out, “Wait five more minutes. If there’s no response, re-apply.”
Klei nodded. Fortunately, he didn’t have to re-apply. A few minutes later, he finally established communication. The symbol of the Bai Ta Command Center popped up on the screen. Klei straightened his collar.
“This is the Abyss Execution Team. We have encountered an attack…”
He gave a concise report of the trap, the reinforced pollutants, and the casualties.
“Requesting the Bai Ta to immediately send a support aircraft for extraction. We need to return for rest and to reformulate a new mission plan.”
The other end of the communicator was silent for a moment. Finally, a response came.
“Execution Team report received. After an emergency discussion by the Bai Ta Command, new directives are being issued to your team.”
The one answering them wasn’t a human voice, but a cold, mechanical one. Su Tang lowered her eyes. Xiao Yu, seemingly displeased, had already started squirming restlessly in her arms.
“Directive One: Your team’s request for evacuation is rejected. According to the latest detection, the energy field in the Abyss area is currently unstable, and support aircraft cannot enter safely. If your team needs to evacuate for rest, you must resolve the return journey yourselves.”
“What kind of nonsense is this?” Zhan Ye couldn’t help but curse under his breath. “What the hell does this mean? If we could resolve it ourselves, why would we even report it to you?”
Su Tang was stunned as well. Refusing to send a rescue—how was that any different from telling them to wait for death? And they found such a grand-sounding excuse. They call it the White Tower, but she thought it would be better named the Black Tower.
The mechanical voice was entirely unbothered by the commotion and continued on its own.
“Directive Two: Given that the Cocoon has undergone unpredictable changes, in order to prevent the influence from deepening, the Execution Team is hereby strictly ordered to complete the established mission within twelve hours. You must blow up the target Cocoon and completely eliminate its influence.”
“Directive Three: May your team carry out the order resolutely at any cost. For the future of all humanity, if your team fails to resolve the Cocoon within twelve hours, the Bai Ta will deploy top-secret weaponry to conduct a concentrated destruction of the Abyss.”
The final sentence exploded in everyone’s ears like a thunderclap. The camp fell into a deathly silence.
Concentrated destruction of the Abyss. They all knew the lethality of those weapons. The last part of the directive meant that if they didn’t blow up the Cocoon in twelve hours, the Bai Ta wouldn’t care about their safety; they would be wiped out along with the Abyss.
“Is the Bai Ta insane?” the Vice-Captain of the Third Squad shouted. “We can barely protect ourselves, how are we supposed to blow up the Cocoon? And in twelve hours?!”
Mo Xiao’s face was livid. He stared fixedly at the communicator screen, stepped forward, and snatched the device from Klei.
“This is Mo Xiao. I request to speak directly with the Command Center.”
The mechanical voice responded coldly:
“The directive has been issued and cannot be changed. Repeating: if the Cocoon is not destroyed within twelve hours, the indiscriminate destruction of the Abyss will commence. Communication ended.”
The screen went black instantly. Communication was cut.
“Re-apply,” Mo Xiao said with a dark expression. Klei’s fingers flew across the keyboard, but there was no response.
“The connection keeps failing. They’ve cut the entire communication line.”
“Fuck!” Zhan Ye kicked the table. “Those bastards sitting in the Bai Ta… they’re gambling with our lives.”
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