Chapter 360: Chapter 135 Mist under the Night
Getting that equipment myself? Impossible.
“Are you joking?” Mu Fan said through gritted teeth in a low voice.
Black is really trying to dig my grave.
“Their scheme for detecting Lurkers is quite novel; I want to take it and improve upon it. It’s already on the development list for Shadow Base.”
“…I’ll try my best,” Mu Fan said without committing fully.
After returning to the base to rest, Black continued to invest in the covert development of the base.
The next day, another troop returned from their expedition unscathed.
On the third day, Mu Fan set out again.
This time, they crossed the stone forest area and didn’t encounter a single Zeg.
Luo Jianjin led the team in an attack for a whole day, advancing over twenty kilometers without seeing a single insect.
When Mu Fan and his team returned to Base Three safely, everyone realized something was off.
For two whole days, not a single insect was seen!
“What’s going on with these Zeg?”
“Could it be because we are so formidable that the Zeg have retreated?”
“I feel like I’ve only been part of one battle.”
“I’ve been on several sorties, but haven’t seen a Zeg.”
“This joke isn’t funny at all.”
The crowd in the base was abuzz with discussion.
In the command center, Lin Hao gently tapped the Sky Communication device in his hand.
He had just communicated with the military again, and their feedback was surprisingly to prioritize the mining of Crystal Ore. The expansion of the Federation’s base territory was seen as a good thing. Additionally, they mentioned that other Four Great Colleges like Dawn Academy, Pulan Military Academy, and several B-grade colleges had encountered resistance, though not as large a scale as Ding Chuan Academy had, but battles were happening daily.
Implicitly, this meant Ding Chuan Academy was currently in the lead in terms of expansion success, and the Major from the second Staff Department in charge of contacting Lin Hao even hinted that he would receive an honorific commendation from the military.
But not a single reliable word was said at the end.
What Lin Hao really wanted to hear now was professional information analysis from the Military Department, not some bureaucratic military officer talking nonsensically.
The current stream of messages being compiled by the officers and soldiers below indicated that the base seemed to be in a relatively safe state indeed.
I hope that is the case.
As members of the Tiger Hunting Team, Mu Fan and White Hair had the privilege of riding the Spider Chariot instead of an armored transport vehicle. Amidst the envious and jealous glances of a group of youngsters, Mu Fan sat next to a curvaceous beauty who seemed quite taken with him.
“Little brother, even though there has been no progress these days, I remember that you did surpass two hundred kills last time—sister remembers the promise she owes you,” she said, her seductive red lips curving into an attractive arch.
“Uh, I…”
Mu Fan became stiff as soon as he heard this, but fortunately, Luo Jianjin laughed boisterously at the other end, coming to his rescue.
“Alright, stop teasing the new guy on our team.”
“Hmph, you unromantic Chimpanzee, what do you know about a woman’s curious heart?”
White Hair looked teary-eyed at his teammate. Such an opportunity should have been given to me, but alas, he could only sit silently behind, guarding a box of engineer equipment.
“In two more days, we’ll be heading back to Blue Capital Star. It looks like these Zeg are really hiding,” said Deer, who was driving.
“I spoke with the captain of the Expeditionary Army team we rescued last time, and he spoke in such a strange tone. He said that the Crystal Ore sites they controlled haven’t been harassed at all these days, and their jungle expansion is going surprisingly smoothly. Now, the construction of the fourth base is underway.”
Luo Jianjin scratched his bearded chin before looking at Mu Fan and continuing, “Mu Fan, you should be able to apply for a Centurion Medal this time.”
When the medal was brought up again, Mu Fan finally had the chance to ask, “What’s this medal? I saw Instructor Ruan had one before.”
Hearing Ruan Xiongfei’s name, Luo Jianjin’s tone paused, and then he awkwardly laughed, “Haha, of course, it can’t compare to Captain Ruan’s medal, but this medal represents the merit you’ve shown in battle for the Federation military. The Centurion Medal carries a lot of weight and can only be awarded for killing enemies. With this medal, if you ever encounter personal trouble, the Federation military can back you up.”
Tracy, cleaning her sniper rifle without looking up, said, “Why so complicated? Little brother, just remember this is a combat medal that represents a certain status. It’s the stepping stone for you to enter the military’s higher echelons ahead of time.”
Finally hearing some useful information, Mu Fan smiled bashfully, “Thank you, seniors.”
White Hair’s head fell back heavily as he closed his eyes.
He couldn’t bear to watch; it was too heartbreaking.
Seeing White Hair’s action, people in the vehicle burst into laughter again.
When they returned to the base, Major Lin Hao said to everyone with a smile,
“Tomorrow’s expedition is canceled, everyone can relax for a day. It seems our journey to Planet 131 can be prepared for an early return.”
This statement made the youngsters cheer and jump for joy.
After taking off his exoskeleton armor, Mu Fan stretched his limbs and finally felt a sense of relief.
After so many days of high tension, he could now relax. All signs indicated that Zeg had truly vanished from this region.
Once he left, Black could safely carry out its plans.
These days, his constant companions had been the heavy sword, spear, firearms, and armor.
He hadn’t come into contact with his familiar mecha even once.
But, Mu Fan had to admit, this experience was extremely fresh and precious to him.
Watching Wolf and Deer securely lock their equipment in their designated storage lockers using physical methods, Mu Fan could only helplessly twist his mouth and lie down on his bed.
The task entrusted to him by Black, he simply couldn’t accomplish.
He could handle robbery, but he truly lacked the talent for stealth.
As the deep night fell, Mu Fan and White Hair, among others, were already snoring away on their beds.
…
When night fell on Asteroid 131, the temperature would drop extraordinarily low, partly due to the thin atmosphere of the planet.
Therefore, before it got dark, everyone would return to the base, and the Expeditionary Army was no exception.
With surveillance monitors and automatic radar sensors, along with soldiers on guard in shifts, the base was able to develop normally and orderly.
At this moment, in the river flowing quietly between the Red Plain and the jungle, a huge whirlpool suddenly appeared in a certain segment.
The water began to converge towards a certain point and, all of a sudden, an Earth Dragon broke through the surface.
In the center of that shallow river, a hole emerged with high, protruding edges all around.
Then, a massive and terrifying figure emerged from within.
Rows of circular sharp teeth were set in the creature’s head, and its entire body was covered with reddish-brown wrinkles—it looked like an earthworm magnified countless times.
After the appearance of this monster, three more massive pits appeared nearby.
Their edges all rose above the water, resembling four giant wells with mud platforms sitting in the middle of the river.
Then, a swaying giant tail spine emerged from one of the holes, followed by two pincers and four pairs of limbs.
When the entire earthy yellow figure emerged from the hole, the faint starlight made it clear that this was a monster resembling a giant scorpion.
This seemed to be the beginning, as the other three holes also revealed similar creatures.
At the same time, a huge dark shadow drifted through the sky.
As the shadow passed over the heads of these giant scorpions and continued forward,
The scorpions raised their tails high, and a pale yellow fog slowly enveloped the area.
All the surveillance monitors showed no abnormalities.
First, it was like a murmuring stream, then it converged into a river, and finally like an ocean tide, a dense rustling sound emerged from the yellow mist.
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