213: Chapter 213 Burning the Nest

Ling Ye's eyes instantly became incomparably cold and sharp. All hesitation, fatigue, and even the stinging pain of the wound on the back of his neck were forcibly suppressed, transformed into the purest fighting will.

He did not pause for even a second. The moment those fungal mat "eyes" locked onto him and the larvae began to stir, the high-intensity flashlight gripped tightly in his left hand was already aimed at the pool wall and the largest sarcoma in the center, and he abruptly activated the strobe mode!

"Ssss—!!!"

The blindingly bright, snow-white beam of light, like angry thunder, exploded and flickered wildly within the enclosed space! The high-frequency intense light instantly flooded the entire nest!

"Hiss—!!!"

A sharp, collective screech, like countless glass shards scraping together, erupted from those fungal mat "eyes" on the pool walls! The intense light caused them significant damage and interference! Many "eyes" instantly closed, oozing dark blue pus, and the fungal mat itself began to writhe and contract violently! The pulsation of the central sarcoma showed obvious disorder and hesitation, and the dark blue blood vessels on its surface twisted crazily! Those few larvae rolled in pain, emitting shrill screams, instinctively burrowing into the depths of the sludge!

The intense light was effective! And the effect was significant!

Now is the time!

As he activated the strobe, Ling Ye's body darted forward like a cheetah! His target was the largest sarcoma in the center of the pool! The military knife held in his right hand glinted with a cold light, while his left hand pulled out the last defensive grenade from his waist, his thumb pushing open the safety cover and his index finger hooking the pull ring!

He did not charge directly onto the soft sludge at the edge of the pool (that would cause him to get stuck), but instead sprinted along the relatively solid ground at the pool's edge! The strobe light beam was like a sharp sword clearing a path for him, constantly sweeping over the painfully writhing fungal mats and the larvae trying to dodge.

The distance closed rapidly! Twenty meters, fifteen meters, ten meters...

The largest sarcoma in the center of the pool seemed to sense a fatal threat, its pulsation becoming even more frantic. Its surface suddenly split open in several places, spraying out large amounts of dark blue pus that radiated a strong sense of "incoordination" and a corrosive stench, lashing and splashing toward Ling Ye like tentacles!

Ling Ye's eyes grew sharp. He did not dodge or avoid it; instead, at the very moment the pus was about to reach him, he fiercely hurled the strobe-flashing flashlight in his hand toward the cracks in the sarcoma!

"Pfft!"

The flashlight precisely lodged into one of the sarcoma's cracks. The strobe light was partially blocked by flesh and pus, but it still created chaos and damage inside! The sarcoma emitted a dull "gurgle," like internal organs rupturing, and the momentum of its pus spraying slowed down!

This moment of hesitation was the gap he needed!

Ling Ye had already rushed to the edge of the pool. He pushed off the ground with both feet, his body leaping into the air. His right hand, holding the military knife, concentrated all his strength and spirit, carrying the scorching intent of Star Visualization and the instinctive cold repulsion of the xuanyuan ring, and stabbed fiercely toward the area where the sarcoma's core pulsed most intensely and the dark blue blood vessels were densest!

"Pshhh—!!!!"

The military knife sank in up to the hilt! Dark blue, viscous fluid mixed with sickly green and grayish-white, with an extremely high temperature, gushed out from the wound like a fountain, splattering all over Ling Ye's head and face! His clothes were instantly corroded, leaving holes, and his skin felt a burning, intense pain! But he didn't care at all; he exerted force with his wrist and twisted it fiercely inside the sarcoma!

"Aooo—!!!"

An indescribable shriek, seemingly from the level of the Soul, filled with pain, anger, and the desire for destruction, boomed from deep within the sarcoma, and even from all directions of the entire nest! The fungal mat "eyes" on the pool walls burst simultaneously, oozing black pus and blood! Other sarcomas trembled crazily, cracks appearing on their surfaces! The sludge churned violently, and bubbles boiled up!

The sarcoma had suffered heavy damage! But it was not yet dead!

The moment the military knife pierced in, Ling Ye had already pulled the ring of the grenade with his left hand! The lever sprang open!

He did not throw the grenade away; instead, using his last bit of strength, he shoved the activated grenade, hissing with white smoke, deep into the wound made by the military knife, right into the deepest part of the sarcoma!!!

Then, he released the military knife (there was no time to pull it out), and using the reaction force from the stab, he leaped backward, throwing himself onto the ground at the edge of the pool, while clutching his head tightly with both hands and curling his body up!

"BOOM—!!!!!!!"

An explosion, more violent and muffled than the one at the shaft entrance earlier, erupted within the sarcoma! Scorching flames, torn pieces of flesh, a violent shockwave, and the detonated, highly concentrated abyssal eye pollution energy mixed into a torrent of destruction, sweeping wildly in all directions with the sarcoma as the center!

The entire nest space was shaking and collapsing violently! The fungal mats on the pool walls were instantly vaporized and ignited! Other sarcomas were torn to shreds in the shockwave! The sludge was thrown into the air, then fell like raindrops! Those few larvae were reduced to ashes in the flames of the explosion!

The scorching heatwave and deadly fragments whistled past Ling Ye's back and head! He felt as if he had been struck hard by an invisible giant hammer; his internal organs were trembling, his ears were completely deaf, and his vision was a mix of blood-red and darkness!

But the core power of the explosion was absorbed by the sarcoma itself and the thick sludge for the most part. His position at the edge of the pool happened to have a protruding concrete structure, which shielded him from the most lethal direct impact.

He didn't know how much time had passed, perhaps only a few seconds, but it felt as long as centuries. The roar and tremors of the explosion gradually subsided, leaving only the "crackle" of falling rubble and burning debris, and the "hiss" of some kind of energy disorder.

Ling Ye shook his buzzing head, struggling to lift it, and spat out a mouthful of saliva mixed with the taste of blood and burnt matter. His vision was blurry, but he could see that the nest before him had completely turned into a burning ruin flowing with disgusting slime. The largest sarcoma in the center was gone, leaving only a scorched, smoking crater in its place. The pool walls had collapsed, the fungal mats had turned to ash, and the remains of other sarcomas were scattered everywhere, burning slowly.

The air was filled with a thick, acrid smell, ozone, and a strange odor from some kind of energy burning. That originally clear sense of "incoordination" had now become extremely weak and chaotic, and was rapidly dissipating.

He had succeeded. This secondary nest had been completely destroyed.

But the cost was also extremely heavy. He had lost his rifle, used up his last grenade, and the high-intensity flashlight was also lost in the sarcoma (presumably destroyed). The military knife was still stuck in the remains at the center of the explosion, difficult to retrieve. His clothes were tattered, covered in burns, corrosive wounds, and abrasions, with his back and arms being particularly severe, stinging with intense pain. His internal organs had also suffered a concussion, and his breathing carried the taste of rust.

He struggled to stand, stumbled for a moment, and steadied himself against the pool wall that hadn't completely collapsed yet. The ringing in his ears was severe, and he could barely hear anything. But he knew that the noise of the explosion, combined with the energy feedback that might be triggered by the destruction of the nest, would absolutely alert more entities in this underground pipe network, including the Dark Nest core area that might be not far away.

He had to leave immediately! Before bigger trouble came knocking!

He took one last look at the burning ruins; there was no time to search for any potentially valuable remains (like fragments of the sarcoma core?). He had to find a way out of here immediately.

The space where the nest was located seemed to have two other pitch-black openings, besides the branch pipe he came in through, located on either side of the pool. They were partially buried by collapsed bricks and stones, but seemed passable. One opening seemed to lead deeper (southeast, toward the Dark Nest?), while the other might lead in another direction.

He had no map and no guidance. He could only rely on his intuition, the last faint trace of the dissipating pollution source in his Energy Perception, and his own rough sense of direction.