Lord: Starting with Biological Modification

Chapter 254: Chapter 249: Surprise Attack

The cave was pitch-black.

There were no sources of light; anything that might have glowed had been cleared away by the Worker Ants.

However, for Velin’s squad, the darkness was not an obstacle, but an ally.

Ola and the Knights under his command had taken Velin’s custom-brewed Glimmer Potion, granting them blurry night vision even in the absolute darkness.

They formed the first line of defense, standing perfectly still.

Beneath their helmets, their vision was enhanced by another "sense"—through a Hivemind Terminal, everyone could receive Sarah’s insectoid perception, a kind of "tremorsense" based on vibrations and air currents.

In this shared picture, the cave’s outline was formed by countless lines and ripples.

Teammates appeared as stable, glowing beacons, the cave walls were silent boundaries, and Barrett’s six Scouts were like ripples blending into the background, lurking behind rocks on the high flanks.

The crossbows in their hands were already cocked, their bolts tipped with gel warheads.

Velin and Sarah stood at the rear of the formation, serving as the network’s hub.

He closed his eyes, sensing the breath and heartbeat of every member in the network.

Time ticked by, second by second.

HUMMM—

A resonant vibration emanated from the rock wall ahead. Within their tremorsense, a chaotic cluster of waves began to approach.

The ground began to tremble.

Cracks spread across the rock face like a spiderweb.

Ola issued a command through the psychic network.

’Steady.’

The Knights dug the bottom edges of their tower shields into the ground. An earthy yellow Guardian Spirit Light flickered for a moment before being completely concealed by their armor.

BOOM!

The rock wall violently exploded inward.

A torrent of seawater, gravel, and sand erupted forth like a raging dragon, crashing down upon the shield wall.

The torrent slammed against the tower shields with a deafening, muffled roar.

The water surged down pre-dug drainage channels, but the low-lying area at the cave’s entrance was still flooded with nearly half a meter of murky water.

The water was bone-chillingly cold and carried the briny stench of the deep sea.

’Warning, Father.’

Sarah’s mental message was a warning.

’The water flow is interfering with low-frequency vibration detection. Our tremorsense has failed.’

The three-dimensional image in their minds collapsed, devolving into a chaotic tangle of lines.

They were blind and deaf.

The only sound in the cave was the rushing of water.

Fortunately, the air inside the cave had formed a high-pressure pocket, temporarily holding back the influx of seawater.

The water level was gradually receding.

Several minutes passed, but the enemy still hadn’t appeared.

’What the hell are those bastards up to?’

Ola’s impatient voice echoed in the mental channel.

’Shut up, shorty. Stay alert.’

Barrett couldn’t help but retort.

Velin didn’t respond.

’There’s a problem,’ he realized. ’We’ve likely been exposed.’

’The enemy is right here, beneath this murky water.’

Just then,

PFFT!

A faint, muffled thud came from the left flank of the shield wall, mostly drowned out by the sound of the rushing water.

A three-pronged fork, polished from the spine of some unknown behemoth, shot out from the murky water directly in front of Ola, embedding itself in the tower shield of the Knight before him. The immense force drove the Knight back two steps. The shield’s center had been pierced, and cold sweat instantly drenched his back.

This was only the beginning.

Immediately after, the water at another Knight’s feet exploded upward. A tentacle, covered in a dark green carapace and lined with barbs, shot out and wrapped itself tightly around his ankle.

’What is this thing!’

The Knight let out a short, startled cry.

The next second, an almost irresistible force pulled from below, attempting to drag him down into the murky, bottomless water.

However, the powerfully built Knight was not immediately pulled down.

He let out a furious roar and sank his weight low. His leg muscles tensed like iron as he dug his heels into the silt, planting himself like an iron stake.

He reverse-gripped his Longsword and stabbed downward, striking fiercely at the tentacle coiled around his leg!

CLANG!

The tip of his blade scraped against the carapace, sending a shower of sparks into the air but leaving only a shallow white scratch.

The hardness of the tentacle’s outer shell was far beyond his imagination!

The monster underwater, seemingly enraged by its failure to land a decisive blow, suddenly constricted its grip.

The armor on the Knight’s leg let out a CREAKING groan under the terrifying pressure, visibly denting inward.

He grunted in agony as his body began to sway, on the verge of losing his balance.

’Hold fast!’

His comrade beside him roared, abandoning his defensive stance. He gripped his sword with both hands and brought it down hard on the tentacle.

The heavy blade whistled through the air and struck the carapace with a dull thud.

The tentacle shuddered, and its grip loosened slightly.

Seizing the opportunity, the ensnared Knight pulled his other leg free from the silt, momentarily steadying himself.

Beneath the surface, a massive shadow stirred, the murky water forming a deadly whirlpool around him.

The two sides were locked in a brief, deadly stalemate.

’Enemy attack! Hold the formation! Left flank, hold your ground!’

Before Ola’s voice could fade, the murky water erupted in several places at once.

Five towering, dark figures shot out of the water. The eight tentacles of their lower bodies churned the shallow water, sending up huge splashes as they moved fast enough to leave afterimages.

The sudden assault threw the formation into disarray.

The bone fork of one dark figure found a gap between two tower shields, stabbing through at a vicious angle. A Knight cried out in pain and dropped his shield.

’Everyone, close your eyes!’

Velin’s voice rang out in the channel just in time.

At the same time, he shattered the alchemical crystal vial clutched in his right hand.

A mixture of Sun Flame Grass powder and white phosphorus exploded high in the cave.

A miniature sun flared into existence.

Blinding white light consumed the shadows in the cave, washing everything in a ghastly white.

For the members of Velin’s squad, who had already closed their eyes, it was merely a bright flash seen through their eyelids.

But for creatures whose pupils were adapted to the abyssal darkness ten thousand meters below the sea, the light was an unprecedented form of agony.

"HISSS—GAAAH—!"

The Multi-Armed Race Warriors let out piercing shrieks.

The bodies of this Alien Race were covered in deep blue carapaces marked with spiral patterns.

Their lower bodies consisted of eight thick tentacles covered in writhing suckers, several of which gripped weapons of coral or bone.

Their heads had no mouths or noses, and their faces lacked eyelids. Their two long, single-pupil eyes, completely unprotected, were seared by the intense light. In the most severe cases, viscous fluid began to leak from their sockets.

Flailing and convulsing, they used their tentacles to shield their heads in agony, thrashing their other limbs unconsciously and churning the muddy water.

"Fire!"

As the intense light began to fade, Barrett’s voice rang out.

The Scouts squeezed their triggers. Over a dozen gel-tipped bolts tore through the air with a sharp whistle, flying toward the blinded intruders.

The dark-red gel warheads all found their mark, adhering to the deep blue carapaces.

Without hesitation, Velin remotely activated his Spring Messenger ability.

POP! POP! POP!

The gel packets attached to the Multi-Armed Race Warriors suddenly burst open.

Countless barbed, crimson vines erupted from them—incredibly tough, rapidly growing, intertwining, and constricting.

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