Section 455: Reinforcements
Sang Pu's heart sank into an abyss of icy dread! Unidentified creatures swarmed out from the fleshy tumors on the soft-bodied entity, and in the blink of an eye, the situation on the battlefield was completely reversed! The Sang Tribe's offensive, which had held an absolute advantage just moments before, was immediately disrupted. The disparity in strength between the two sides was simply too vast!
In the short span of ten minutes, the number of unidentified creatures had increased by thousands! The Sang Tribe forces were instantly thrown into a passive and defensive position. Yet, not a single mecha fled the battle. On the contrary, they continued methodically, forming into small squads and fighting strictly according to their tactics! Once again, the Sang Tribe's discipline and tactical prowess were on full display, even if the only witnesses to this scene were a horde of unknown creatures.
A bitter taste filled Sang Pu's mouth. Judging by the current trend, it wouldn't be long before their defenses crumbled. But right now, he had absolutely no way to contact the Young Master.
Damn it!
Deep Dive Library
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Staring at the latest research report in her hands, Faith hesitated. Should she send it over? This question gave her pause. To be honest, aside from Grandpa Poche, she wasn't familiar with anyone else here. She was just a simple research scientist and had no confidence whatsoever in whether the findings in her hands held any real value.
Just then, a knock sounded at the door. "Is anyone there?" The voice belonged to a woman.
Who could that be at this hour? Faith felt a flicker of curiosity. "Please, come in," she responded. She almost never locked the laboratory door, as Ye Zhong sometimes came here to conduct experiments. Furthermore, security within the base was never a concern.
A beautiful and graceful woman pushed the door open and entered.
It's her? Faith was somewhat surprised. She had seen this woman before; her name was Qiu Man, and she seemed to be one of Ye Zhong's former companions. Qiu Man was in charge of inter-departmental coordination and resource distribution. However, all supplies for the laboratory were delivered through a dedicated channel, so Faith had never actually interacted with Qiu Man before.
What brings her here?
"Hello, Ms. Faith. I'm Qiu Man," Qiu Man introduced herself, her voice as melodious as cherry blossoms, her keen eyes hinting at capability. The years of experience had long since transformed her from a young lady of privilege into a highly competent diplomatic personnel.
Although it wasn't her first time seeing Qiu Man, Faith couldn't help but be captivated by the other woman's stunning beauty as she stood before her. A feeling of inadequacy inevitably surfaced within Faith. It had to be said, Qiu Man's beauty was truly rare in this world. Coupled with her poised and graceful demeanor, she naturally became the center of attention wherever she went.
Qiu Man was long accustomed to such reactions. She offered a slight smile. "My apologies for dropping by without an appointment. I hope I'm not interrupting your research, Ms. Faith."
Faith collected herself and shook her head. "Not at all. May I ask the reason for your visit, Ms. Qiu Man...?"
"I had some matters to coordinate nearby and happened to be passing by. I noticed the door was open, so I took the liberty of visiting," Qiu Man explained cheerfully. She had always been curious about this laboratory, sensing the importance both Ye Zhong and Mu Shang placed on it. Seizing the chance while passing by, she couldn't resist her curiosity and decided to step inside.
"It's quite alright. My experiment just concluded," Faith said, having regained her composure after the initial shock of Qiu Man's appearance. Her expression returned to its usual detachment. "You are welcome to visit anytime, Ms. Qiu Man, if you're interested."
Qiu Man's gaze fell upon the unidentified creature corpses stored in the transparent cabinet. "Oh, are these the remains of those unknown creatures sent from the front lines?" she asked with interest.
"Yes," Faith nodded. "The experiment I just completed was related to them."
"Any discoveries?" Qiu Man looked at the chunks of flesh without a trace of fear, asking casually.
"A few peculiar findings, but they require further verification."
"Peculiar findings?" Qiu Man looked up, a hint of curiosity appearing on her face.
"These creatures belong to the same biological community and share many common characteristics. For example, they can evolve. To be precise, as long as the conditions are met, they can complete their evolution in an extremely short time! This is the advanced life form with the shortest evolution cycle I know of so far." Whenever she talked about her field of expertise, Faith's face radiated confidence as she spoke fluently.
"Evolve?" Qiu Man's expression changed upon hearing this: "What changes occur after they evolve?"
"From what we've observed so far, the main change is the increase in the physical performance of their muscle tissue. In terms of external manifestations, it should be enhanced strength and flexibility, as well as increased protective performance of their exoskeletons," Faith explained in detail.
Qiu Man's face turned somewhat grim. After thinking for a moment, she asked again: "You just said that under sufficient conditions, they can complete their evolution in an extremely short time?"
"Yes, based on experiments, that's the case."
"Then what exactly are these so-called conditions? And how short is 'extremely short time'?" Qiu Man asked with an anxious expression.
Although unsure why Qiu Man was reacting this way, Faith still answered cautiously: "So far, I've discovered two triggers for these creatures' evolution: one is energy, and the other is metal. As for whether there are other triggers, it's still uncertain. Regarding the time required for evolution, it's related to the amount of energy they absorb and the metal they consume. That is to say, the more energy and metal they possess, the less time they need to evolve. However, I haven't yet found the specific conversion formula between these three factors." Faith's tone carried a hint of regret.
All composure vanished from Qiu Man's face. She grabbed Faith's hand and, without any regard for decorum, started pulling her outside: "This discovery is extremely important. We need to relay it to the front lines immediately..."
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The situation was becoming increasingly unfavorable.
If this continued, they would be finished sooner or later. Sang Pu stared at the entire battlefield with bloodshot eyes, each exploding collision mech piercing his heart like a knife! He had to do something, otherwise...
He struggled to calm his chaotic mind.
Unidentified creatures kept rising into the air from the soft body; they were awakening on a large scale. These unknown organisms within the fleshy tumors were extremely fragile before awakening, but once they awoke, it would be a true disaster for the entire Sang tribe. The scene before him seemed like a precursor to this disaster. One after another, unidentified creatures broke through the membranes of the fleshy tumors and emerged. The observant Sang Pu noticed that the speed at which the unknown creatures flew out of the tumors was increasing. His heart sank further and further.
If this continued, everyone would be finished! Clenching his lips tightly, Sang Pu's eyes were bloodshot as he stared intently at everything happening within the field. The earlier advantage of the Sang tribe's Collision Corps had long since vanished. Not only that, their situation had become even more dire. It was common to see large groups of unknown creatures relentlessly pursuing a squad of collision mechs, refusing to let go. If it weren't for the superior speed of the collision mechs and the exceptional piloting skills of the Sang tribe, they would likely have suffered heavy casualties by now.
Chasing... relentlessly chasing... Watching the pursuing unknown creatures and the collision mechs ahead desperately evading, Sang Pu suddenly felt a flash of insight.
A bold idea suddenly emerged in Sang Pu's mind.
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The reporters, who had been anxiously watching outside the purple mist, were now growing restless. That large group of strange aircraft had charged into the purple mist, but not a single one had flown out yet. Now, there wasn't a single aircraft on patrol around the periphery of the purple mist, allowing them to approach the purple mist without restraint.
However, the memory of what had just happened made them shudder. Those unknown creatures clearly looked hostile. What if one charged out just as they were approaching? They had no confidence whatsoever in their own combat abilities. So, even though there were no aircraft nearby, they still didn't dare to get any closer.
But after waiting for a long time, the purple mist remained completely still.
Just as they were hesitating, someone suddenly exclaimed: "Heavens, look!"
A mixed fleet composed of tens of thousands of bizarrely shaped aircraft and equally bizarrely shaped starships appeared from the direction of the Death Asteroid Belt. The massive fleet brought an unparalleled sense of shock to everyone watching via the holographic screens.
However, as the impressively large fleet drew closer, the initial shock turned into a feeling of being somewhat amused. In terms of numbers, this mixed fleet was indeed astonishing. Yet, whether it was the aircraft or the starships, they were all mottled in color, looking as if they were covered in patches, appearing rather nondescript. If it were just one aircraft, it might be tolerable, but here were tens of thousands of them gathered together.
What was this? A beggars' parade?
People watching the live news broadcast burst into roaring laughter, many laughing so hard they couldn't straighten their backs.
Suddenly, the laughter froze on their faces.
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Sang Tie arrived in haste with reinforcements—a full thirty thousand troops! That meant thirty thousand Impact Mechs! Accompanying them were three hundred starships, loaded with low-heat stones and spare parts for the Impact Mechs. Precisely because of this, the entire fleet's progress had been somewhat delayed.
They had finally reached Yi Ju Star.
However, when Sang Tie saw the immense purple mist, his expression changed. He immediately contacted the base, and upon learning that the young master and Sang Pu had already entered, his face couldn't help but shift repeatedly.
"All combat personnel, prepare!" Sang Tie issued the simplest and most direct command.
Thirty thousand Impact Mechs immediately detached from the mixed formation. For a moment, the swarm of mechs took flight, creating a dazzling spectacle. The sight of thirty thousand mechs maneuvering through space was truly magnificent. With just one sentence, Sang Tie made all the Sang tribesmen understand what they were about to do.
The thirty thousand mechs showed no chaos. They instantly found their designated positions. The three hundred starships simultaneously changed course, swiftly disengaging from the battlefield and descending toward Yi Ju Star.
Even for a highly disciplined force like the Sang tribe, organizing thirty thousand mechs took them five minutes. During these five minutes, the three hundred starships had already landed on Yi Ju Star.
Sang Tie was actually itching to charge into the purple mist immediately, but he didn't dare! With Sang Pu absent, he was now the overall commander of this force, forcing him to suppress his impatience. Every decision he made was extremely cautious because he knew that each one could very well determine the fate of these thirty thousand tribesmen. The Sang tribe had invested heavily this time—these thirty thousand were the most elite forces of the entire tribe!
Originally, Ye Zhong had only asked Sang Tie to bring ten thousand reinforcements, but after hearing Sang Tie's report, the village chief gathered a full thirty thousand tribesmen. No one questioned the village chief's decision. And so, Sang Tie arrived here with thirty thousand of the most elite troops.
The thirty thousand Impact Mechs assembled on the periphery of the purple mist. Ten mechs formed the most basic combat squad, ten squads formed a combat team, and ten teams formed a combat formation. A total of thirty combat formations were arranged with precision, as if meticulously measured.
When thirty thousand mechs are right in front of you, and in just five minutes, they form such a pleasing formation, what more could you possibly demand?
The vast cosmos, densely packed with neatly arranged mechs—wasn't that a sight too captivating to look away from?
"Formations One through Ten, attention! Prepare to engage! All others, prepare for echelon attacks." Sang Tie's voice echoed through the communication channel.
Every Sang tribesman felt as if their blood was boiling! Born with a natural thirst for battle, they had never experienced a conflict on such a scale before.
"Ready!" Sang Tie's eyes widened sharply. He was just about to shout the order to attack when his gaze suddenly froze.
On the holographic screen, a single Impact Mech suddenly burst out of the purple mist, charging toward the location of the main force.
Before Sang Tie could react, a large group of Impact Mechs followed closely, rushing out of the purple mist.
What was going on? Sang Tie was stunned.
"Formations One through Ten at the front, attention! Execute a frontal交叉 flight! Full speed! Engage!" A voice all too familiar to every Sang tribesman rang out in the communication channel.
It was A'Pu! Sang Tie immediately recognized it and was overjoyed. Though he didn't understand what was happening, every Sang tribesman almost instinctively obeyed Sang Pu's on-the-spot commands.
Without any hesitation, the first ten Impact Mech formations abruptly accelerated, leaving no room for error, and charged head-on toward their fellow tribesmen emerging from the purple mist.
Since Sang Pu's order was for a full-speed engagement, the ten mech formations reached their maximum speed in the shortest time possible.
Both sides were at their top speed. The maximum speed of an Impact Mech exceeded twenty赫, and the velocity with engines at full power was terrifying. Moreover, with both sides exceeding twenty赫, even the slightest graze upon collision could lead to destruction and death.
Many watching the live news broadcast couldn't help but gasp in shock, and some instinctively closed their eyes, unable to bear the sight.
Neither side showed any sign of slowing down. A collision seemed imminent! The most severe cosmic traffic accident in history was about to unfold right before their eyes.