The vertigo from the space teleportation washed over him like a tide, then receded in an instant.
One moment, Qin Feng was standing on the solemn and magnificent assessment plaza of Cannan Star Martial Arts University, surrounded by the roaring din of a million gathered prodigies.
The next, his entire world had been turned upside down.
He opened his eyes to a completely unfamiliar world.
The sky wasn’t blue, but an oppressive, dull shade of orange-yellow, as if veiled by a layer of dust that would never settle.
Beneath his feet were not solid plaza flagstones, but soft, granular, reddish-brown sand.
As far as the eye could see, the land stretched on, boundless and jagged with strange rock formations. Countless stone pillars and rocky hills, eroded into bizarre shapes by wind and sand, created a desolate, monotonous landscape.
There was no wind. The air was so dry it felt as if it could wring the last drop of moisture from his lungs. A deathly silence blanketed the land, with only the air shimmering in the distance, distorted by heat waves, to prove the world was not entirely still.
This was planet G19182-B11—a world completely occupied by the Insect Race, where the intensity of the War was managed by the high command of the Human Race, and which was ultimately transformed into a natural Trial Ground.
Just as Qin Feng was cautiously surveying his surroundings, suppressing his presence to the absolute minimum, a notification from his Intelligent Assistant, "Hammer," echoed directly in his mind via the Subspace Network.
[Warning: You have entered a high-risk area.]
[Task module activated...]
[Solo Mission (Part 1): Single-handedly hunt and kill one member of the Level 4 Elite Insect Race.]
[Mission Status: In Progress.]
[Time Limit (combined for the first two parts): Six months.]
[Special Reminder: For this combat assessment, all external support equipment—including Spiritual Weapons, power armor, and recovery Potions—is disabled. You are permitted to carry your own melee weapons.]
Qin Feng’s gaze was as tranquil as still water, his heart completely undisturbed.
’Single-handedly hunt a member of the Level 4 Elite Insect Race.’
He, and all the other candidates, were currently only at the peak of the Third-level Martial Artist stage. They hadn’t even successfully opened a single Acupoint yet.
To fight a Fourth-level Life Form as a third-level being was, in itself, a challenge that transcended the tiers of life.
And what’s more, the enemy was the Insect Race—one of the most terrifying species in the Cosmos.
’Hammer, immediately gather all public information on planet G19182-B11 and the Insect Race on it. Summarize and analyze it; find me an opening.’
Qin Feng issued the command in his mind.
He didn’t rush to act. Instead, he chose a relatively concealed alcove in the rocks, his body blending into the shadows like a statue as he immersed his full attention in his communication with Hammer.
’On the battlefield, intelligence is always more valuable than reckless Courage.’
*Command received. Now retrieving, analyzing, and modeling data from the Empire’s public database and the public information library provided by Cannan Star Martial Arts University...*
Hammer’s efficiency was staggering. In just a single second, a massive stream of information had been processed and presented to Qin Feng’s consciousness in the clearest, most intuitive format.
[Information summary complete.]
[Regarding the Insect Race:]
[Racial Profile: One of the Cosmic Peak Races, the apex of pure biological evolution.]
[Core Will: The Insect Nest Will. An absolute psionic network that blankets the entire species, coldly and precisely controlling the activities of every member of the Insect Race. In most cases, individual insects do not possess independent thought and only follow the commands issued by the Insect Nest Will.]
[Racial Objective: Reproduction. To achieve this, the Insect Race can digest and absorb all matter on a planet, converting it into Spiritual Material for its own growth.]
[Core Trait: Genetic Devouring and Adaptive Evolution. The Insect Race can devour the genetic fragments of other species to continuously modify and optimize itself, evolving into ever more efficient and lethal machines of War. This results in the Insect Race having an immense variety of forms and abilities, all highly specialized and adaptive.]
[Warning: On the battlefield, there is almost no such thing as a "lone" insect. Their movements are highly coordinated. Engaging a single combat unit will very likely attract support from nearby Insect Race units in a short amount of time.]
The sheer volume of information gave Qin Feng a much deeper understanding of this terrifying race.
They were like locusts of the Cosmos, leaving nothing but desolation in their wake.
Next was a detailed analysis of the current mission objective.
[Regarding the Level 4 Elite Insect Race:]
[Definition: Insect Race units that have completed their initial "specialization." Their vitality index is typically above 30.00, and their physical structures and combat roles are highly differentiated.]
[Known "specialization" types are as follows:]
[1. Assault Type: The backbone of the battlefield. They typically possess hard chitinous exoskeletons, sharp bone blades, or massive bio-cannons. Born for slaughter and extremely dangerous.]
[2. Defensive Type: Possess thicker carapaces and biological shields. They exist to protect high-value units or strategic locations and are extremely difficult to kill.]
[3. Guardian Type: A balance of offense and defense, they serve as personal bodyguards for higher-level Insect Race Lords and usually appear in pairs or groups.]
[4. Sentinel Type: Possess exceptional stealth capabilities, specializing in reconnaissance and information relay. Able to release special pheromones to call for reinforcements.]
[5. Gunpowder Insect: Specialized living artillery. They can incubate and fire corrosive or explosive spore mines from within their bodies and can live symbiotically with other members of the Insect Race.]
[6. Transport Type: Responsible for carrying collected materials or Spiritual Resources back to the Insect Nest or frontline bases.]
[Based on the current mission objective "single-handedly hunt" and the user’s assessed strength, Hammer proposes the optimal recommendation:]