Chapter 174: Chapter 174: Termination
Along the way, Long Ming saw some exploration teams. Some drove off-road vehicles, while others rode motorcycles.
These explorers all stared warily at Long Ming.
Long Ming also kept his distance from them as much as possible. There were no cameras in the wilderness. If you got taken out, there was nowhere to seek justice. A death was a final death.
Time trickled by.
Long Ming rode his dirt bike, pressing onward across the wasteland. His surroundings grew more and more desolate until there were no other people in sight.
The Bukeao Mountain Range, Long Ming’s destination, had extremely complex terrain. It was also a primeval forest, and with no major ruins discovered there, basically no one ever headed in this direction.
Although independent explorers didn’t have intelligence as good as the military’s, they weren’t idiots either. They naturally wouldn’t venture in a direction even the military avoided.
「Ten hours later.」
Long Ming appeared on his dirt bike, stopping at the edge of the Bukeao Mountain Range.
A dense, primeval forest filled his vision.
Long Ming glanced around. After confirming no one was nearby, he pulled the Red Ghost mask from his backpack and put it on. He then swapped his Shadow automatic rifle for a Carbine, replaced the magazines on his tactical belt, and put on his tactical gloves and power-assisted boots.
After changing his gear, Long Ming hid the dirt bike and then walked into the forest alone.
Inside the forest, the ground was covered in dead branches and decaying leaves.
As Long Ming walked, he would occasionally hear a CRACK, but otherwise, it was eerily quiet. There wasn’t even the sound of insects.
This unnatural silence kept his nerves on edge.
Long Ming pushed deeper into the forest. Every so often, he would draw his Death’s Fang and mark the tree trunks along his path to keep from getting lost.
But as he went deeper, the trees grew denser, blocking out the sun and making the light increasingly dim.
Long Ming didn’t shrink back because of this. Instead, he searched inward with great determination, carefully looking for clues to the ruins.
...
「The next afternoon.」
Long Ming moved through the forest, Carbine in hand.
RUSTLE~
Just then, a faint sound came from the surrounding trees.
A normal person would have subconsciously dismissed it as the wind.
But Long Ming keenly noticed a subtle difference in the sound and immediately grew vigilant.
He activated the thermal imaging of his Red Ghost mask and scanned his surroundings. He instantly spotted a red figure moving along the tree branches, silently approaching him.
Without hesitation, Long Ming raised his Carbine and opened fire.
BANG! BANG!
A dense spray of bullets tore through the leaves.
The unidentified creature darted away like an afterimage, leaping to other branches and using the thick foliage for cover.
Unfortunately for it, this was useless against Long Ming.
The Red Ghost mask’s thermal imaging device kept it constantly exposed.
Long Ming quickly tracked it with his muzzle, firing continuously. No matter how fast the monster moved, it was still peppered by bullet after bullet.
"AWOO~"
With an indignant roar, the monster turned and fled at high speed.
Seeing it escape, Long Ming’s brow furrowed.
’That monster took so many hits and was still fine, even able to escape. It seems unusually dangerous.’
However, Long Ming didn’t pursue it. After all, he was here to search, not to hunt. Besides, there was basically no reward for killing monsters.
He gripped his Carbine and continued forward.
...
「Nightfall.」
Long Ming found a large tree and sat down, his back against the trunk.
He took a pack of compressed biscuits and a bottle of purified water from his backpack, eating as he gazed into the distance.
Although he had found nothing so far, Long Ming wasn’t discouraged. He had been mentally prepared for a long-term search before he even entered.
’I just don’t know if I’ll succeed in the end.’
Soon, Long Ming finished the compressed biscuits, replenishing his Physical Strength.
He then held his Carbine and closed his eyes to sleep.
An unknown amount of time passed.
A figure crept silently, inch by inch, toward Long Ming.
CRACK~
The faint sound of a twig snapping echoed.
Long Ming’s eyes snapped open.
Instantly, a blood-red figure pounced down from the tree.
Long Ming reflexively rolled to the side to dodge the sneak attack, pressing his left hand to the ground to quickly get to his feet and look.
A two-meter-tall creature with a humanoid body came into view. It was covered in red, tumorous scales, with sharp claws and a hideous face.
’Damn it! It’s the one from earlier today.’
Long Ming’s expression turned cold as he yanked the trigger, spraying bullets.
BANG! BANG!
The figure darted away with extreme speed, disappearing into the night.
Long Ming immediately activated the Red Ghost’s thermal imaging and quickly scanned the area. Sure enough, he saw a figure moving rapidly.
He immediately aimed his Carbine and fired quick, single shots.
BANG! BANG!
The monster dodged rapidly but was still hit by bullet after bullet.
But this thing was as resilient as a cockroach. It took so many bullets without dying and instead hid behind a large tree, unmoving.
Long Ming crept closer, then pulled out a high-explosive grenade, pulled the pin, counted down, and threw it.
BOOM~
As the explosion erupted, the monster shot out at high speed.
Without a moment’s hesitation, Long Ming tracked it with his Carbine, firing single shots nonstop.
BANG! BANG!
He fired one shot, then two, then three.
Every single one found its mark.
CLICK-CLACK!
The magazine was empty.
Long Ming immediately ejected the magazine and pulled a fresh one from his tactical belt.
The monster keenly seized the opening as Long Ming reloaded and charged toward him at extreme speed.
The corner of Long Ming’s mouth curved up slightly. He suddenly stopped reloading and pulled the trigger on the approaching monster.
BANG!
A grenade shot out.
BOOM~
With a massive explosion, the monster was blown straight into the air and fell heavily to the ground.
Long Ming quickly finished reloading and raised his muzzle toward the monster.
He saw the monster lying motionless on the ground.
Long Ming’s eyes turned cold, and he pulled the trigger without hesitation!
BANG! BANG!
Bullet after bullet slammed into the monster’s body, sending flesh and blood flying.
But the monster’s body showed no reaction.
Seeing this, Long Ming cautiously approached to see if there was anything valuable.
But just as he got close, the monster suddenly opened its crimson eyes and, without warning, leaped up and pounced at Long Ming.
Long Ming’s heart leaped. He thrust his Carbine out horizontally to block.
The monster’s sharp claws pressed down on the Carbine, knocking Long Ming directly to the ground.
Long Ming gritted his teeth, holding on for dear life.
Just then, he noticed a slight bulge on the monster’s abdomen. He immediately drew Death’s Fang and plunged it in.
"AWOO~"
The monster let out a pained howl, immediately abandoned its attack on Long Ming, and scrambled away.
Long Ming scrambled to his feet and quickly gave chase.
The two chased each other relentlessly through the forest.
BANG! BANG!
A strong killing intent showed in Long Ming’s eyes. He pursued it, firing constantly, not sparing any bullets.
’This monster isn’t like the others. It actually came back to ambush me in my sleep. That means this thing is stalking me like a viper.’
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