238: Killing chickens to scare monkeys

Although a few years of development had significantly boosted human strength, many forbidden zones still existed on Blue Star that they couldn't enter.

Lake Siouxie Anne was, without a doubt, one such forbidden zone.

They couldn't even peek into it, let alone step foot inside.

After all, the sapphire-like lake water was the perfect tool to obscure vision.

It made it impossible for them to discern what was happening beneath the surface of Lake Siouxie Anne.

What’s more, countless unconscious aquatic creatures were floating on the lake, and they could only infer from the violent tremors of the water that a fierce battle must have taken place below.

However, the tremors of the lake came and went quickly.

Before anyone could even let their imaginations run wild, they saw the turbulent lake water calm down again.

MacArthur looked at the timer beside him in disbelief.

Twenty-eight seconds!

From the moment the Tiger King entered the water until the commotion in Lake Siouxie Anne subsided, it took less than half a minute.

Had the battle already ended?

Who was the victor of this battle?

Had the Tiger King won or lost, was he alive or dead?

Countless thoughts about this battle swirled in MacArthur's mind.

He stared intently at the monitoring screen, wishing he had awakened an X-ray-like ability to see what was happening beneath the water's surface.

However, he hadn't realized he was observing the battle via satellite surveillance.

Even if he had awakened such an ability, it would have been useless.

After all, he couldn't instantly teleport to Lake Siouxie Anne to watch the battle.

Of course, MacArthur wouldn't have had the courage to go and watch.

Whether it was Lin Tianwei or the Water Monster, any one of these giant beasts had the power to instantly kill him.

One minute.

A full minute had passed since Lin Tianwei entered Lake Siouxie Anne.

The eyes fixed on Lake Siouxie Anne didn't dare to rest for a moment, fearing they would miss any crucial footage.

Yet, they saw nothing; the lake surface had completely returned to calm.

It was as if no powerful creature had just entered the lake.

Had the Tiger King failed?

Had the Tiger King been defeated by the Water Monster?

Had the Tiger King been defeated by the Water Monster in a mere twenty-eight seconds?

Although MacArthur desperately wanted to believe this absurd answer, his rationality told him it was utterly impossible.

No matter how weak the Tiger King was, he couldn't be killed in less than half a minute.

Then, had the Tiger King already killed the Water Monster and was now enjoying a feast of his own?

No, that was also completely impossible!

Lake Siouxie Anne was, after all, within America, and it harbored terrifying Awakened Beasts, so how could MacArthur not pay attention to it?

Therefore, even though the Water Monster rarely appeared, he knew that a terrifying Water Monster, suspected to be a plesiosaur, was hidden at the bottom of Lake Siouxie Anne.

Although he had never seen the Water Monster's full body, just its neck, which was over two hundred meters long, was enough to know that it was an absolute behemoth.

A behemoth even larger than the Tiger-style.

With a larger body and the advantage of underwater combat, how could the Water Monster be killed by the Tiger King in less than half a minute?

If the Tiger King truly possessed such power, it would be a complete fantasy.

It was simply impossible.

Thinking of this, MacArthur took a deep breath and continued to patiently observe the movements in Lake Siouxie Anne.

Perhaps these two Awakened Beasts knew each other, had a simple friendly exchange, and were now chatting underwater, talking about everyday things.

That's why Lake Siouxie Anne was so calm.

This idea was utterly preposterous, but MacArthur found it more plausible than the previous two possibilities.

If they had truly fought, how could the battle have ended in less than half a minute?

The sheer thought of such terrifying combat power sent shivers down MacArthur's spine.

Two minutes!

Although it was only a brief two minutes, it felt like an eternity to everyone awaiting the battle's outcome.

Fortunately.

The long wait finally had an answer.

The calm water surface began to ripple again.

However, this time, the commotion in Lake Siouxie Anne was very slight.

At least, compared to the previous disturbance, it was pitifully small.

As the commotion in Lake Siouxie Anne grew louder, a terrifying giant beast finally emerged from it.

He had beautiful fur, a mix of golden yellow and black.

And the exceptionally prominent character 'King' on his forehead.

It was a tiger, it was the Tiger King, it was the Tiger King emerging from Lake Siouxie Anne!

MacArthur rubbed his eyes in disbelief; he couldn't see a single scratch on Lin Tianwei.

It was as if he hadn't gone into the water to fight, but had merely passed by.

Could it be that they really just chatted underwater?

After asking each other, "Have you eaten?", they each went their own way.

Otherwise, MacArthur simply couldn't understand why Lin Tianwei would return from Lake Siouxie Anne in such a short time.

He returned from Lake Siouxie Anne completely unharmed.

It was as if he had never experienced the battle.

Fortunately, MacArthur's doubts would soon be answered.

After completely devouring the Water Monster, there was nothing left in Lake Siouxie Anne for Lin Tianwei to linger over.

Plus, there were good things waiting for him at Tiger King Farm.

Naturally, he wouldn't stay here any longer.

Running at full speed, Lin Tianwei returned to the farm with extreme swiftness, leaving behind Lake Siouxie Anne, which was now filled with countless floating aquatic creatures.

Almost without hesitation, MacArthur gave the order, saying, "Quick, go and investigate the situation in Lake Siouxie Anne."

"We must ascertain the outcome of this battle in the shortest possible time."

Although Lake Siouxie Anne was incredibly dangerous, a terrifying forbidden zone capable of devouring countless lives.

However, knowing the outcome of this battle was also very important.

Almost immediately, MacArthur dispatched America's remaining elite troops to investigate the situation in Lake Siouxie Anne.

However, this investigation went much more smoothly than he had imagined.

Simple, it was simply too simple.

This elite American unit easily approached Lake Siouxie Anne.

There were no signs of any attack.

The fierce beasts lurking in Lake Siouxie Anne seemed to have all fallen asleep, not making a single move.

Not only that, even entering the water was unusually smooth.

The powerful Awakened Beasts seemed like startled birds, showing no intention of attacking them.

The moment they came into contact with this unit, they chose to flee far away instead.

Just like that, they easily dived to the bottom of Lake Siouxie Anne.

What they had originally thought would be a journey of certain death turned out to be as relaxing and enjoyable as a vacation.

Only the occasional sighting of gigantic Awakened Beasts reminded them that this was the incredibly dangerous Lake Siouxie Anne!

The Water Monster had disappeared!

Only some fresh flesh remnants were found at the bottom of Lake Siouxie Anne.

Judging from the scales left on them, these appeared to be the Water Monster's body tissues.

No wonder Lake Siouxie Anne was so calm.

The Lord of the Forbidden Zone was dead, and the Awakened Beasts here were in a state of panic.

Leaderless, they had no time to bother with these suddenly intruding bipedal creatures.

Such astonishing news was naturally transmitted to the command center and to MacArthur's ears at the first opportunity.

Upon hearing the news, MacArthur's expression clearly froze for a moment.

He never imagined he would hear such outrageous news.

The Water Monster had disappeared, and was suspected to be dead.

He had died at the hands of the Tiger King in less than half a minute.

Despite having the advantage in size and terrain, the arrogant Water Monster had only lasted less than half a minute.

The remaining idle time was perhaps just the Tiger King feeding.

MacArthur suddenly realized.

Although somewhat unbelievable, this was the result derived from the exploration of Lake Siouxie Anne.

Given the Water Monster's incredibly ferocious nature, if it had discovered the troops he sent, it would have been impossible for it to remain indifferent.

The fact that it didn't move and didn't appear could only mean it was already dead.

Soon, another piece of news further corroborated MacArthur's speculation.

According to tests, the fresh flesh collected from the bottom of Lake Siouxie Anne was indeed the Water Monster's body tissue.

Not only that, Lake Siouxie Anne's water contained a large amount of the Water Monster's blood.

If it weren't for the Water Monster's blood being colorless and transparent, making it difficult to see clearly when mixed in the lake water.

Otherwise, the blood alone, which could have dyed the entire Lake Siouxie Anne red, would have explained the outcome of this battle.

The Water Monster was dead.

He was easily killed by the Tiger King in less than half a minute and became his food.

Although this result was unbelievable, it was the truest truth.

MacArthur slumped weakly in his seat, his eyes filled with gravity.

He realized he had once again underestimated the Tiger King's strength.

Although he hadn't directly witnessed the battle, judging by the Tiger King's record, his strength was absolutely terrifying.

It even surpassed his imagination; he was an existence that America was completely unable to contend with.

Even if America was once the hegemon of Blue Star.

Even if America possessed all sorts of high technology, it would absolutely be unable to contend with the Tiger King.

A deep sense of powerlessness washed over MacArthur.

He simply had no strength to contend with the Tiger King.

Killing a chicken to warn the monkeys, this was absolutely killing a chicken to warn the monkeys!

Using the Water Monster's life to warn these 'monkeys' like himself!

Otherwise, it would be difficult to understand why the Tiger King would suddenly attack the Water Monster at such a delicate moment.

There was no warning, no sign whatsoever.

He even used overwhelming power, all to warn the entire America.

MacArthur, having reached this conclusion, was both angry and helpless.

He was naturally angry at Lin Tianwei's arrogant behavior.

He was naturally helpless at America's weakness, unable to contend with the Tiger King in the slightest.

Submission or death?

MacArthur took the answer to this question more seriously than ever before.

Because he realized that this question might truly determine the fate of the entire America.

MacArthur then gave a bitter smile, muttering to himself, "Choice? Do we truly have the power to choose?"

Resist stubbornly? Fight the Tiger King to the end?

Considering the Tiger King's irresistible power, there was no doubt that this choice was no different from seeking death.

Guerrilla warfare? Or other advanced combat methods?

Even using nuclear weapons?

MacArthur shook his head helplessly, thinking that using these methods against the Tiger King was nothing short of a pipe dream.

When the gap in strength reaches a certain level, any method is merely futile.

Moreover, MacArthur didn't believe he was much smarter than the Tiger King.

Past experiences told him that underestimating the Tiger King's wisdom would surely come at a very steep price.

Not to mention, using nuclear weapons in one's own territory was an utterly foolish idea.

With the Tiger King's terrifying Speed Burst, he even surpassed the speed of sound.

Not only could nuclear weapons not catch up to the Tiger King's speed, but even the invisible and intangible nuclear radiation was not as fast as the Tiger King.

Thinking this, MacArthur had already made up his mind.

After a moment's thought, he contacted Etna and said, "Etna, what do you think?"

"Although there's still a long time until the twenty-four hours the Tiger King gave us."

"But it's always better to be early than late with anything; it's better to make a decision sooner rather than later."

Etna hadn't expected MacArthur to consult him on such a major matter.

After a moment of thought, Etna said, "General MacArthur, I'm not in a position to comment on America's affairs."

"After all, I'm just a data analyst, and I simply don't have that kind of vision or courage."

"However, I can provide as much support as possible from a data perspective."

"According to our data analysis of the Tiger King, we found that his speed has reached a terrifying two hundred meters per second."

"Of course, this is just the Tiger King in his normal state."

"Once he enters Speed Burst mode, this speed can even reach a terrifying speed of over one thousand meters per second."

"It is precisely because the Tiger King possesses such terrifying speed that his massive body, far from being a burden, is instead his best weapon."

"With such terrifying speed, the Tiger King's body, weighing far over a thousand tons, can cause world-destroying damage with a casual charge."

"And it is precisely because he has such terrifying speed that even powerful weapons simply cannot hit the Tiger King's body."

"Not to mention, the Tiger King also possesses incredibly terrifying Mental Power."

"A casual Mental Attack can break through the Mental Shield's defense, causing us instant-kill damage."

"In this situation, if we talk about escaping, or perhaps barely hiding, it might still be possible."

"But trying to contend with the Tiger King and regain America's dominance is simply impossible."

Speaking of this, Etna seemed to recall something, revealing a look of lingering shock, and said in alarm:

"I even suspect that the Tiger King's terrifying Mental Power is fully capable of instantly killing all living creatures on American soil."

"Spreading across the entire Blue Star, that was a feat accomplished by Mental Power, spreading across the entire Blue Star."

"It makes me fully believe that the Tiger King absolutely has the power to instantly kill us."

MacArthur was immediately stunned.

He knew Lin Tianwei was terrifying, but it was far less intuitive than Etna's description.

Facing such a terrifying opponent, America simply had no choice.

Submission or death?

This was a question with only one option from the very beginning.

Just like last time, Lin Tianwei seemed to be negotiating for food, but they only had one option: to agree.

What they called aiding the enemy now seemed like a ridiculous idea born of their naivety and inability to see the bigger picture. (End of Chapter)