70: Chapter 70 The Divine Power of Tunnel Warfare

Two hours later.

The reconnaissance reports from hundreds of Skeleton Sand Rats were all compiled.

Xu Qin opened the complete underground terrain map and expanded it on the command interface.

The entire Underground Space was massive, equivalent to the surface area of twenty Floating Cities.

The inner walls were covered in orange crystal clusters, emitting a warm light.

At the bottom of the cavity was a flat crystallized shell, with a massive Mineral Vein Guardian core rising in the center.

That was the area with the densest orange source crystals.

Three hundred and thirty-five Mineral Vein Guardians were patrolling around the core.

They moved in groups, with none left isolated.

However, the Sand Rats did not find their source of origin.

"No spawn point?" Xu Qin stroked his chin and speculated, "Does that mean one less for every one killed?"

This hypothesis could not be confirmed yet. It had to be verified through actual combat.

"Fine, ignore that for now."

Xu Qin drew up a battle plan on the map.

The core idea was simple: do not fight inside the mineral vein cavity.

Use the Bone Drill Vehicles to blast a tunnel from the side, and dig another giant Underground Space a few hundred meters away from the mineral vein to serve as the battlefield.

Then, fill the tunnel connecting the two spaces with traps.

Lure the guardians out, drag them into the trap-filled tunnel, and eliminate them one by one.

"Use classic tunnel guerrilla tactics to divide and conquer them."

He opened the hero panel.

He found twenty-two Troglodyte heroes. Their racial skill was [Tunnel Raid].

Plus the seven thousand plus newly converted Undead Troglodyte skeletons...

Right! Xu Qin suddenly remembered that those seven thousand plus Undead Troglodyte skeletons were still in the conversion queue and hadn't been fully completed.

He clicked on the conversion progress. Currently, four thousand two hundred had been converted.

"Tian Ming."

"Present."

"You are in charge of the underground construction. Man Niu, Blade Guard, Chuan Yun, Jackal Hunter, plus the twenty-two Troglodyte heroes, all are under your command."

"Take four thousand two hundred Undead Troglodytes down there and dig according to the route I drew."

Xu Qin synchronized the plan and drew it on the regional map.

"The tunnels must be winding and twisting. Dig a set of multi-layer traps at the bottom of the tunnel every thirty meters, at least twelve layers deep."

"One end of the tunnel connects to the mineral vein cavity, and the other end connects to our giant battle space."

"Yes, Master."

"As for the defense on the surface, I will keep an eye on it."

"Understood."

Tian Ming turned and left.

Xu Qin still had the shadows, as well as twenty-two Orc heroes and twenty-two Earth Spirit heroes. Leaving them around the Floating City was enough as a defensive force. Plus, with the Skeleton Vultures continuously scouting in the air, if any trouble arose, they would report it immediately.

Soon, the Combat Readiness Platform bridge unfolded.

Five Bone Drill Vehicles and a dense mass of Undead Troglodytes filed out.

The drill vehicles started, their massive bone drills rotating and plunging into the saline-alkali soil.

Gravel and sand sprayed out from both sides.

Five circular holes visibly collapsed into the ground.

The Undead Troglodytes followed closely behind, using their innate digging skills to further reinforce the rough tunnels carved out by the drill vehicles.

Xu Qin stood on the Watchtower, watching the five directions start work simultaneously.

"Dig away."

"Slow and steady wins the race."

...

Over the next twenty-plus hours, the underground engineering work was fully underway.

The five drill vehicles dug non-stop, and over four thousand Troglodytes worked in shifts.

Xu Qin checked the construction progress every two hours. By the next afternoon, Tian Ming sent back the completion report.

Xu Qin opened the underground panoramic view. After seeing the image, he was shocked himself.

The underground tunnels that Tian Ming directed the digging of were even better than he had imagined!

Around the mineral vein cavity, densely packed tunnels extended outward.

All eighteen tunnels were serpentine and winding, with a trap group every thirty meters, each twelve layers deep.

They converged in the same direction, leading to the giant underground battle space he had dug.

That space was about twenty thousand square meters, fifteen meters high, and the Undead Troglodytes had reinforced all four walls and the ceiling.

"This big, it should be enough, right?" Xu Qin smacked his lips. "A group fight shouldn't need more space than this."

He switched to the trap statistics. The total number of traps was three hundred and seventy-six groups, each twelve layers deep.

In other words, if a guardian fell in, it would have to climb up from the bottom of a twelve-layer deep shaft.

"Fine." Xu Qin closed the panel.

"Tian Ming, lead the army back to the city to adjust and prepare for the battle."

"Yes, Master."

...

Two hours later.

Xu Qin stood on the edge platform of the giant Underground Space. This was a command position he had specifically asked the Troglodytes to dig, allowing him to see the entire space clearly.

Beside him were Tian Ming and Chuan Yun.

Man Niu led the Rift Guards to line up at the entrance of the space.

Blade Guard and Jackal Hunter guarded the tunnel entrances on both flanks.

Two thousand Skeleton Elf Archers and eight hundred Undead Dwarf Musketeers were scattered on the high platforms around the battle space.

This was a hunting ground.

"The goal of the first battle is not total annihilation, but to probe the bottom." Xu Qin ordered Tian Ming, "I want to know how hard they are, what their tactics are, and if they have any special skills."

"Yes."

"Are the Troglodyte heroes ready?"

"They are in position."

"Good!"

Xu Qin clicked on the panel to find the eighteen tunnels connecting to the mineral vein cavity. At the end of each tunnel, only a thin layer of soil remained separating it from the cavity wall.

"Open!"

The order was given.

Eighteen Troglodyte heroes acted simultaneously, breaking through the thin walls at the ends of the eighteen tunnels.

Boom.

Crushed soil splashed.

Eighteen black hole entrances led directly into the interior of the mineral vein cavity.

Ten seconds later.

The Sand Rats sent back reconnaissance reports; the Mineral Vein Guardian group had reacted.

Three hundred and thirty-five red dots stopped patrolling.

They began to assemble and rushed toward the black hole entrances.

"Retreat!" Xu Qin shouted.

The eighteen Troglodyte heroes turned and ran, darting into the winding tunnels at high speed.

Behind them, heavy footsteps came, shaking the tunnel walls.

Xu Qin switched to the Sand Rat perspective inside the tunnel.

The first Mineral Vein Guardian drilled into the tunnel.

Its body was a size smaller than the width of the tunnel, just enough to squeeze in.

Its body was covered in an orange crystallized carapace, and six sturdy articulated limbs supported the ground, moving at a fast speed.

Rumble!

All three hundred and thirty-five Mineral Vein Guardians poured into the tunnels.

Xu Qin watched the screen, feeling his skin tighten.

"Why do I feel nervous for no reason?"

Then...

Thump!

The front limb of the first Mineral Vein Guardian stepped right on the trap cover, and its entire body fell straight in.

Bang!

Bang!

Bang!

...

Twelve layers of trap covers were smashed through one after another by the guardians.