34: camouflage

"Click... click..."

The sound was getting closer.

Chen Feng pressed his body even lower, almost merging with the ground, leaving only a sliver of vision to stare intently into the depths of the darkness.

A massive shadow slowly "squeezed" out from the darkness.

"My god..." Chen Feng gasped inwardly.

It was a behemoth comparable in size to a heavy mining truck. Its body was completely covered in a black chitinous carapace, which was encrusted with symbiotic blue crystals of various sizes that flickered with an eerie light. Countless pairs of arthropod limbs supported its massive frame; with every movement, the tips of those limbs scraped against the ground, producing a tooth-grinding "click" sound.

It had no obvious head, only two massive, scythe-like forelimbs at the front that swung through the air from time to time.

A Giant Crystal Mite.

The term instantly jumped into Chen Feng's mind.

"Massive size, thick carapace... relies on sensing vibrations and sound to move, vision almost completely degenerated." He quickly issued an analytical command to himself in his mind. "Charging through is a death wish; absolutely not an option."

He glanced at his feet, still wearing his tattered miner's boots.

"I have to take them off."

Without the slightest hesitation, he carefully and with the slowest possible movements removed his boots, then took off his filth-stained socks as well, stepping barefoot onto the cold but soft moss.

"Good, footsteps can be minimized now," he said to himself. "Now, observe its route."

The massive Crystal Mite didn't notice him, maintaining a steady rhythm as it slowly patrolled the central area of the cave. Its route seemed very regular, circling round and round, guarding a core area where the crystals were densest and their glow most brilliant.

Like a patient leopard, Chen Feng crouched in the shadows of the crystals, observing without moving a muscle.

"Its patrol radius is about fifty meters..."

"There's a three-second pause every time it turns..."

"The patrol route passes right by that direction..."

His gaze locked onto an inconspicuous corner at the edge of the Crystal Mite's patrol route. There, a slightly raised, rectangular metal platform sat.

On the edge of the platform, a line of nearly illegible ancient characters was marked in faded red paint—'Old Emergency Exit - Lift'.

"That's the place!"

Chen Feng took a deep breath and began his move.

"Now!"

Seizing the moment the Crystal Mite turned its back to him, he darted out soundlessly like a shadow hugging the ground.

Every step landed on the thick moss without making a sound. He covered the dozen or so meters in just a few seconds.

By the time he successfully slid into the shadow of the lift platform, the Crystal Mite behind him had just finished its turn. The "click" of its massive limbs rang out again, sounding like a death knell.

Chen Feng leaned against the cold metal wall, his heart pounding wildly, but his face remained as unshakeably calm as ever.

The lift had long since been corroded by time, leaving only a hollow frame.

Fortunately, the emergency maintenance ladder next to it was mostly intact, despite being covered in thick dust and cobwebs.

"Going up... Bachm... and those Mine Slaves..."

As he climbed, he began rehearsing the script for his return in his mind.

"No, I can't just go back directly. I must be a 'survivor,' a 'victim.'"

"Kruger and Fisk... yes, they are the perfect scapegoats."

He spoke in his mind to an invisible listener: "Lord Overseer, it was them! They stole the map I drew and claimed the credit for themselves!"

"Then there was an earth-shattering cave-in, like the end of the world! I was blown away by the shockwave and fell into a bottomless crack..."

"Down in the crack, I saw... I saw glowing crystals, and... and monsters!"

The climb was long and tedious, consuming a massive amount of physical energy. However, Chen Feng's mind was running at high speed, polishing every detail, every expression, and every line of the story until it was seamless.

After climbing for an unknown amount of time, he finally reached the top of the ladder.

This was an abandoned Equipment Relay Station, the air thick with the smell of machine oil and dust. In a corner, next to an old terminal, the indicator light for the emergency backup power was still flickering with a faint green light.

He immediately connected his personal terminal, greedily replenishing its precious battery life.

He didn't leave immediately, but instead walked toward a broken mirror hanging on the wall in the corner.

The mirror reflected his current disheveled appearance.

"Not enough," he whispered to himself.

He walked to a piece of abandoned equipment, dipped his fingers into some black, viscous machine oil, and without hesitation smeared it on his face and neck, making himself look even more filthy and wretched.

He then grabbed his already tattered clothes and forcefully tore several larger holes, revealing the scarred skin beneath.

After doing all this, he saw a sharp, rusty piece of metal on the ground nearby.

"It has to be real."

He picked up the metal shard, aimed at his left arm, and without any hesitation, slashed down hard!

"Hiss—"

A wound appeared—not deep, but enough to bleed continuously. The gruesome wound, combined with the filth all over him, made him look truly pitiable.

He looked into the mirror again and began practicing for his reflection.

"The eyes... the eyes need to be hollow, filled with the fear and numbness of a survivor."

He adjusted his expression, transforming from a calm hunter into a frightened lamb.

"Like this... yes... a bit weaker..."

He gave his reflection a fear-filled smile that looked worse than crying.

Preparations complete.

He followed the relay station's corridors through various twists and turns, finally crawling out of a long-forgotten abandoned vent located at the edge of Sector B.

The piercing light made him squint. He identified the direction and prepared to return to the mining camp.

Just then, a faint "buzzing" sound came from the distance.

He looked up and saw a patrol drone belonging to Bachm in the distant sky, its red light flashing as it flew toward him.

The corner of Chen Feng's mouth curled into an unnoticeable arc.

"It's here," he said in his mind.

"The perfect opportunity to be 'discovered' has delivered itself to my door."