6: Chapter 6: The Fierce Battle Underground!! Zanthar Cockroaches

Adrenaline was secreting wildly! Li Yuan's mind went blank, guided only by the instinct developed from hunting Drones during the day!

Drawing the bow, aiming:

【Song of Battle - Normal Shot】!

【Elemental Resonance: Metal Element Enchantment】!

【Elemental Strike Magic: Entangling Vines】!

【Elemental Strike Magic: Earth Spike】!

A series of commands was completed in an instant! An Energy arrow was dyed with a metallic luster the moment it left the string.

"Whoosh—Boom!!!"

The arrow hit the ground! There was nothing there!!!

Dust flew up, obscuring his vision.

Did I miss? Or was there nothing there?

Li Yuan's heart sank.

But in the next second—

"Rumble—!!!"

Accompanied by an even more muffled and violent roar, the earth beneath his feet shook violently! A massive Earth Spike, thick enough to require three people to encircle it and shimmering with a mixture of rock and metal lusters, burst out of the ground without warning along with a large mass of black shadow, piercing straight upward!

At the same time, countless thick vines shimmering with a dull metallic luster grew wildly around the Earth Spike like giant pythons, coiling upward and tightly binding the massive black shadow at the top of the spike!

Between the vines and the Earth Spike, a hideous silhouette was exposed under the light of the Light Guardian.

Covered in a dark brown chitinous carapace, its massive mandibles were like hydraulic shears, and its compound eyes shimmered with a chaotic evil light under the glare. Its limbs, which appeared short compared to its massive body, were kicking frantically, trying to break free from the entanglement of the vines.

Its hideous mouthparts had already opened, brewing corrosive acid inside, ready to fire!

And...

It was facing him!

A stream of corrosive venom as thick as a bucket came spraying forth.

Towards Li Yuan!!!!

The speed exceeded the limits of his neural reactions.

I can't dodge!!!!

This desperate thought was like ice water poured over his head, instantly soaking through his entire body.

He was just a programmer accustomed to keyboards and code, an ordinary person raised in a peaceful era, even if he had integrated the memory fragments of his predecessor. His body simply didn't have time to execute the complex command of "dodging."

Time seemed to stretch and freeze at that moment.

"Buzz!"

A blazing white light, moving at a speed beyond thought, resolutely cut in between him and the venom!

It was the Light Guardian!

It turned its body and dropped its shoulder, meeting the incoming venom with its shining tower shield at an inclined angle.

At the same time, its sturdy lower back suddenly thrust backward!

Li Yuan only felt a massive yet gentle force hit him, sending him flying off the ground towards the corner of the room.

Almost at the same time he flew from his original spot—

"Sizzle—!!!"

That deadly torrent of venom washed violently against the Light Guardian's shield and was blocked by it.

The metal floor and walls, pitted and corroded by the venom, demonstrated the terrifying power of the corrosive liquid. However, the Light Guardian seemed unaffected, still shining brightly.

A small amount of venom, like splashed ink dots, splattered onto the floor where Li Yuan had originally stood. If he hadn't been knocked away, our programmer friend would likely have met a disastrous fate.

"The intelligence of this summon... is way too high?!" Li Yuan cried out in surprise. If it hadn't been for the Light Guardian's millisecond-precise tactical maneuver to forcibly "shove" its master away from the brink of death, he would probably have been turned into a puddle of foul-smelling blood, with not even a bone left!

This was no mere summoned beast that needed commands; this was clearly a top-tier guard with rich combat experience, who knew how to assess the situation and could even make optimal tactical judgments in an instant!

These aren't Light Elemental Constructs; these are Heroic Spirits from the Pantheon reincarnated!!!

Having taken a direct "face-blast" from the Zantar Cockroach that was enough to melt through alloy, this Light Guardian... didn't seem to have suffered any substantial damage at all!

An SSS-grade class is truly terrifying!

It just scratched it!!! It really was just a scratch...

Li Yuan's gaze passed over the darting figure of the Light Guardian in front of him, finally seeing the full appearance of the monster that had been forced out of its stealth state.

It was roughly the size of a small car, its dark brown chitinous carapace thick and rough, covered in tumor-like protrusions and natural, eerie patterns. Under the light emitted by the Light Guardian, it reflected an indestructible, metal-like texture. Its head was massive, with a pair of compound eyes flashing dark red light, and below them were hideous mouthparts filled with serrated teeth like hydraulic shears.

Beneath its body were six thick and powerful limbs covered in a hard horny layer, with the two pairs of front limbs having mutated into terrifying weapons like metallic scythes.

A Zantar Cockroach!!

The memory fragments of his predecessor instantly identified this Zerg monster! This was a fearsome mainstay combat unit of the Zerg ground forces! With burrowing ambushes, high-pressure acid spray, and defensive power comparable to heavy armor, it was a war machine truly born for the conquest and destruction of planets!

Information in his memory showed that even the elite Mobile Infantry of the Alliance of Ten Thousand Races, equipped with full Power Exoskeleton Armor and wielding large-caliber Electromagnetic Rifles, could not face them head-on.

This was a monster that even the regular army found headache-inducing!

And he, an F-grade newbie who had awakened less than a day ago and only knew how to hide in the back and fire cold arrows, was actually face-to-face with such a thing in this cramped basement?!

The Light Guardian ahead had already clashed with the monster. Using its exceptionally agile movements, it slashed its sword at the edge of the Zantar Cockroach's slime-dripping mouthparts!

Damage: 0!! The Zantar Cockroach's skin wasn't even broken!

But the insult was immense!! The Zantar Cockroach's attention was instantly drawn.

The Zantar Cockroach let out an even more violent hiss. Although it was restricted by the 【Entangling Vines】 and 【Earth Spike】 and could not move its massive body freely, it still frantically swung its pair of scythe-like front limbs, which whistled as they tore through the air, repeatedly slashing at the Light Guardian close by.

At the same time, its mouthparts occasionally spat out continuous venom rays or fired high-impact venom balls, its offensive like a torrential storm!

The Light Guardian, meanwhile, displayed agility, combat Skill, and intelligence that did not match its heavy appearance. Utilizing its relatively "petite" size within the limited room space, it performed exquisite maneuvers, dodging almost all of the Roach's attacks.

Of course, the room was cramped after all. Occasionally, a venom ray would graze it, or it would be swiped by the Roach's scythe-claws, its light-forged body being smashed into the wall with a "boom."

But every time, it would act as if nothing had happened, immediately standing up from the ruins and charging forward again without hesitation.

The Light Guardian consciously controlled the rhythm of the battle. Through one provocative attack after another, it successfully kept all the rage of this furious monster firmly locked onto itself.

It even used subtle positioning to guide the Zantar Cockroach's head to face away from the corner where Li Yuan had fallen.

Li Yuan clearly felt that the area he was in had temporarily become a relatively safe "blind spot for output."

The Tank has stabilized the Aggro, and the Skills have provided Control...

Though he was a rookie with no combat experience, the basic logic of a "Team Fight" was something etched into the DNA of every modern gamer!

"Energy is still at 7.5, that's enough!" Li Yuan quickly scanned the System Interface, his heart settling.

He drew the Law Bow.

Target: locked onto the Zantar Cockroach that was entangled by vines, stuck by the Earth Spike, and pinned down by the Light Guardian!

【Song of Battle - Normal Shot】

【Elemental Resonance: Thunder Element Enchantment】

【Elemental Resonance: Wind Blade】

【Elemental Resonance - Fire Rocket】

This was the Skill combination he had found most effective after hunting dozens of Drones during the day. Thunder ensured the arrow's speed and thus its accuracy; Wind Blade enhanced the arrow's penetration; and the Fire Rocket provided considerable burst damage.

Units like Drones would essentially die or be destroyed if they were even grazed.

2 Energy points were deducted instantly.

Upon the bowstring, an Energy arrow instantly took shape.

"Whoosh—!"

The arrow turned into a beam of light and pierced directly through the Roach's body.

However, the Zantar Cockroach was a mainstay combat unit of the Zerg, after all. Its perception of danger and combat instincts were far beyond those of a Drone!

Just as the arrow was about to hit, its massive body forcibly twisted to the side!

Following that—

"Boom!!!!!"

A deafening explosion erupted in the enclosed basement! It was as if a high-explosive grenade had been detonated inside the monster's body!

The Zantar Cockroach's massive body was blown upward. Most of its thoracic and abdominal carapace was shattered, revealing the heavily damaged muscle tissue beneath. Thick, dark green blood splattered everywhere like a fountain, making "sizzling" corrosive sounds as it hit the floor.

Its four rear limbs, used to support the back of its body, were even blown off by the shockwave of the explosion, crashing against the walls.

"Hiss... ga..."

The Zantar Cockroach let out a weak moan, and its massive body crashed heavily onto the floor, kicking up a cloud of dust. Its dark red compound eyes stared fixedly in Li Yuan's direction, their light fading rapidly until they finally lost their luster and became motionless.

Is it over?

A huge sense of joy and relief surged through his body like a warm current. Li Yuan felt his legs go a bit weak, and his tightly wound nerves suddenly relaxed, making him feel almost exhausted.

He looked at the Zantar Cockroach that had fallen like a small mountain, and a sense of inexpressible achievement welled up in his heart. This was a monster that even the regular army found difficult! And it had been taken down by him, an F-grade, in coordination with his summoned beast!

He instinctively wanted to go forward to collect the 【life essence】, which would surely be of much higher quality than those from the Drones.

However, the moment he was about to step forward—

The Light Guardian, which had maintained a high state of alert, suddenly moved!

It took a sudden step back, wordlessly blocking the way between Li Yuan and the Zantar Cockroach's corpse.

"Eh?" Li Yuan was stunned, not quite understanding. Wasn't the monster already dead?

In the very next second after his confused thought arose—

A sudden change occurred!

"Poof!!!!!"

From within the shattered thoracic cavity of the Zantar Cockroach "corpse" that should have been dead, a large cloud of thick, almost solid, dark green eerie mist suddenly exploded! It filled most of the room in an instant!

"Holy crap!!!" Li Yuan was scared out of his wits, his back instantly soaked with cold sweat.

The poison mist spread, obscuring his vision.

When his vision became clear again—

Where was there any sign of the monster?!

In its place was only a large pit that had been corroded and enlarged, with green smoke still rising from the edges, along with some carapace fragments and thick dark green bloodstains. And at the bottom of that large pit, a dark hole leading to who-knows-where was clearly visible!

It... it actually faked its death?! And then, under the cover of the poison mist, it dug a hole and escaped?!

"I missed... it could even escape from that?!" Li Yuan's eyes widened.

He immediately pulled up the system's Life Essence Map. Sure enough, the green light representing the Zantar Cockroach, which was significantly larger than the Drones, was rapidly moving away on the map!

"Chase!"

Li Yuan felt like dying...