Xu Kui glanced at the mechanical watch on his wrist. It was eight o 'clock sharp. He turned around and walked towards the truck beside him. Luo Kui opened the door to the front passenger seat and waited for Xu Kui to settle down before closing the door.
"Let's go!"
Luo Kui shouted. Everyone moved at the same time. The difference between the two sides was once again apparent.
The seventeen warriors under Xu Kui's command quickly climbed onto the back of one of the trucks. Lu Han climbed onto the roof of the truck, one hand holding onto the heavy machine gun fixed on the roof. The other hand was still holding onto the half-burnt cigarette, unwilling to let go.
Only after all the warriors had entered the truck did the rest of the warriors scatter and gather towards the other truck. More than twenty hunters silently gathered in one of the trucks.
Mystery wasn't with Xu Kui's warriors, nor was she with the other hunters. The woman whom Scarface suspected of being a polluter climbed into the back of the last truck. The hunters watched in horror as the woman climbed into the trunk of the last truck.
No one envied her. The dull thuds from the back of the truck announced that it belonged to the dangerous Black Scorpion.
This arrogant woman dared to be alone with the Black Scorpion!
Even if the Black Scorpion had been tamed by Xu Kui, it was still a dangerous Class 2 insectoid. It could easily crush all the hunters in Blackstone Town.
The roar of the engine instantly drowned out the other sounds. Under the confused gazes of the others, the three trucks started at the same time, drawing an arc in the air as they drove into the dangerous wilderness.
In Blackstone Town, Situ looked at the sudden rise of smoke and said to himself, "They're leaving just like that. I wonder how many of them will come back alive."
The heavy tires ran over the ground, causing the ground to tremble, causing the fat sandworms to break out of their shells and escape.
The atmosphere in the truck was oppressive. The four people who had gathered together temporarily didn't have much interaction. At the same time, they tried their best to avoid conflict with others.
These hunters who dared to accept Xu Kui's recruitment were all ruthless people who were willing to exchange their lives for a tomorrow. Even if they were slightly weaker, they could still explode with great lethality.
In the corner of the carriage, there were a few gray snakeskin bags. Dark red blood seeped out from the bags, filling the entire carriage with a strong smell of blood.
Qi Yuan's nose twitched, and he quickly identified the contents of the bag. It contained the carcass of a black-toothed rat!
The speed of the three trucks was not considered fast. It took them about half an hour to reach the abandoned mine.
After Qi Yuan jumped out of the car, he found that the truck had stopped in front of a huge mine pit that was more than 100 meters in diameter and more than 20 meters deep. There were scattered boulders everywhere in the mine pit, and from time to time, black-toothed rats could be seen lurking in the shadows.
The black-toothed rats here were not afraid of humans. They hid in the shadows and peeped at the intruders with their scarlet eyes. They were filled with the desire to attack.
The entrance to the mine was at the bottom of the pit. It was a deep and dark cave, like a ferocious beast with its mouth wide open, waiting for its prey to walk into its trap.
Lu Han had a cigarette in his mouth. He turned the heavy machine gun with both hands and aimed the gun's cold, metallic muzzle at the dark entrance to the mine.
Luo Kui took out a sniper rifle from the truck and set up a firing line on the top of the truck carrying the Black Scorpion. He also aimed at the entrance to the mine below.
Seeing this scene, the faces of the hunters around them became more solemn. The firepower of the heavy machine gun was enough to crush most of the hunters here. Coupled with the powerful killing power of the sniper rifle, even a stage-two Extraordinaire might not be able to escape from such suppressive firepower.
"Death Harvest!" Butcher said with an ugly expression.
"What did you say?" Viper asked with a frown.
Butcher glanced at the sniper rifle on the roof of the truck and took a deep breath.
"That sniper rifle is a weapon developed by the Gate of Truth. Its name is' Protector '. It has been mass-produced since the 277th year of the New Calendar and is sold to the outside world. It has a powerful recoil and can only be used by snipers who have strengthened their bodies. The consequences of ordinary people using this gun are only to shatter the bones in their shoulders.
"Just as famous as the recoil is the power of this gun. If an ordinary person is hit by it, there is only one outcome, and that is to turn them into a pile of minced meat. It can even penetrate the defense of stage-two Extraordinaire to complete an effective kill. Its power is comparable to mechanical equipment!
"This gun is almost the nightmare of all hunters. The number of hunters who have died under this gun is even more than the number of Insectoids. Therefore, it has another name — Death Harvest!"
Viper and Scarface's eyes trembled at the same time. It was as if they could already see themselves being shot in the head by this sniper rifle.
Qi Yuan's expression was also a little pained.
He suspected that he was targeted by this world, and there was evidence!
There were Insectoids, Extraordinaires, heavy machine guns, sniper rifles, and a guy suspected to be a Polluter. The difficulty of checking in instantly rose to the max!
Rip!
After Luo Kui moved, he seemed to feel that the clothes on his body were in the way. He tore off his shirt, exposing his scarred body to the cold wind of the wilderness.
Wounds crisscrossed all over his body like a centipede. It was hard to believe that someone could survive after suffering such serious injuries.
Luo Kui's fleshless arms had been severed from the shoulders. Instead, they were replaced by two powerful black metal mechanical arms.
On his back, there were two half-meter-long Zhanmadao fastened with metal buckles embedded in his flesh. As he moved, there would occasionally be the sound of metal rubbing against each other.
Luo Kui walked in front of the hunters and said in a commanding tone,
"All of you, carry the corpses in the carriages and throw them at the entrance of the mine."
The hearts of Butcher and the others immediately sank. Moving the black-toothed rat corpses was a dirty and tiring job. Of course, Xu Kui's direct subordinates would not do it. Naturally, it was up to the hunters, who risked their lives for money, to take over.
However, under such circumstances, leaving the black-toothed rat corpses at the entrance of the mine meant danger. Not only did it mean that they would have to face the possibility of Insectoids appearing at any time, but they also had to face the threat of heavy machine guns and sniper rifles.
Most of the time, a person's corpse was the same as a black-toothed rat's. It was no more than a hundred kilograms of flesh!
If they felt that the black-toothed rat corpses were not enough, or if the shadow lizards inside walked out of the cave, Butcher had no doubt that Xu Kui would order them to open fire and tear the people and Insectoids moving the corpses to pieces.
The hunters did not listen to the order. The eyes of a few of them slowly became dangerous, as if they could attack at any time.
Luo Kui expressionlessly pulled out the two Zhanmadao on his back in response to the hunters' choice. The surrounding soldiers also turned their muzzles and aimed at the hunters. A civil war was about to break out.
Luo Kui held the Zhanmadao with both hands and walked in front of a hunter who was already holding a weapon. He said coldly, "Since you've taken the money, you have to do things. Even if you have to die, you have to listen to orders!"
The hunter in front of Luo Kui's face changed. The veins on his hands holding the rifle bulged. After a moment of confrontation, he suppressed his anger and said in a voice.
"I'll return the money to you. I quit!"
"Quit?"
The corners of Luo Kui's mouth rose slightly, as if he had heard something funny.
The next second, a sharp sound broke through the air. The Zhanmadao in Luo Kui's hand drew two parallel arcs.
The hunter in the confrontation lowered his head in disbelief and stared blankly at his body. It seemed that he had not expected Luo Kui to suddenly attack.
"You —"
Before the hunter could finish his sentence, the rifle in his hand suddenly broke into two from the butt. Then, his right hand fell to the ground. Finally, his body, which had been cut into three parts, fell to the ground with a loud bang!
Scarlet blood spurted out, drenching Luo Kui's body and the two hunters standing behind him.
The remaining hunters clenched their weapons at the same time. The muzzles were aimed at Luo Kui, who was covered in blood and holding a Zhanmadao.
Luo Kui did not seem to notice the muzzles aimed at him. He glanced at the corpses on the ground and said coldly,
"You want to quit? This is the result!"
Luo Kui's oppressive gaze swept across the crowd. He was like a violent bear in human skin. The fierce aura surging out of him suppressed all the hunters!
"Who else wants to quit? Step forward now!" Luo Kui shouted.
Qi Yuan took a deep breath and suppressed the restless killing intent in his heart.
At this distance, even if he shot Luo Kui, he would still have to face Lu Han, Xu Kui, and the Rank 2 Black Scorpion. The hunters had no chance of winning.
Under the threat of death, a few hunters with weaker willpower stepped forward and began to move the black-toothed rat corpses piled up in the corner.
There were only four bags of black-toothed rat corpses. Although each bag weighed about the same as an adult man, the hunters' physiques were not bad. One person could easily move them.
Four hunters carried the snakeskin bags filled with corpses and walked step by step toward the entrance of the mine. Butcher and the others had just breathed a sigh of relief when they saw Xu Kui raise his Zhanmadao and point at Qi Yuan.
"You, drag the corpses on the ground away!"
Qi Yuan's face darkened. He instantly understood Luo Kui's intention. If the previous slash was to make an example out of the ordinary hunters, this time, it was to force the strongest hunters to bow their heads.
I never thought that there would be a day when I would be treated like a chicken!
The suppressed killing intent in his heart burned fiercely once more!
If Master Luo's deal had only moved Qi Yuan's heart, then Luo Kui's actions had personally placed himself on Qi Yuan's kill list!
I will definitely kill you in the mine!
In the blink of an eye, Qi Yuan had already sentenced Luo Kui to death in his heart!
Butcher, Viper, and the others who had formed an alliance had ugly expressions, but they did not act rashly. They were well aware of the difference in strength between them. Although Xu Kui still needed them to clear out the mine, the result of making a move now was very likely to be the same as that Wild Hunter who had been killed as an example, becoming a corpse.
Moreover, they had only formed an alliance with Qi Yuan for a short period of time. Their relationship was far from the point where they would risk their lives for each other.
Qi Yuan took a step forward. Under everyone's gaze, he silently dragged the corpse down the mine. The rubber soles of his shoes rubbed against the sand on the ground, and the bleeding corpse left a bright trail of blood on the ground.
Seeing this scene, Luo Kui's heart suddenly thumped uneasily. It was as if some unknown danger had locked onto him.
Although Luo Kui was born a Wild Hunter, ever since he followed Xu Kui, in order to completely cut himself off from his past, he began to believe in using the most direct and violent method to deal with Wild Hunters.
This method seemed to be very effective. When many Wild Hunters died at his hands, the other Wild Hunters looked at him with eyes full of fear and dread. They no longer had the misconception that they were the same kind as the Wild Hunters in the past.
After Qi Yuan and a few Wild Hunters threw the corpse into the entrance of the mine, they quickly returned. Although they did not encounter any danger, the atmosphere in the group became more and more oppressive. However, Xu Kui's direct subordinates did not seem to care. They did not take the hostility of the Wild Hunters to heart at all.
More than ten minutes later, there was a sudden movement in the silent mine. Pairs of scarlet and dark green eyes appeared in the darkness. They flashed in the darkness and quickly picked up the pile of flesh piled up at the entrance.
Angry roars could occasionally be heard coming from the mine. Clearly, the Insectoids inside were fighting for food.
Butcher's pupils became cross-shaped as he stared at the entrance of the mine. Slowly, a hint of fear appeared on his face.
As the distance was too far, Qi Yuan could not see the situation inside the mine clearly. Just as he was about to ask Butcher what he saw, a muffled gunshot broke the silence of the group.
Looking in the direction of the sound, he saw Luo Kui release the trigger and shake his head at Xu Kui. Then, he took the sniper rifle that Butcher called "Death Reaper" from the roof of the car and slung it over his shoulder.
Xu Kui glanced at the time and turned to the group of Wilderness Hunters.
"Everyone, my promise to you still stands. As long as you clear out the Insectoids in the mine, I will give you all the rewards you deserve. However, if anyone dares to disobey my orders, don't blame me for being rude."
"You have ten minutes to prepare. After ten minutes, all of you will enter the mine!"
The Wild Hunters were silent. Although many of them no longer believed in Xu Kui's promise, there was no turning back now. They could only pray that they could walk out of the mine alive. As for the rewards, only those who were still alive had the right to receive them.
Butcher and the rest gathered around with heavy expressions. Whether it was the Insectoids that flashed past the entrance of the mine or Xu Kui, who no longer hid his malice, all of them represented fatal danger.
"There are more Insectoids than we expected. They are also more dangerous!" Butcher said in a low voice.
"What did you see?"
Butcher could not help but glance at the silent mine. He seemed to have some lingering fear.
"Bloodthirsty Black-toothed Rats and a Scaled Snake that can swallow half a Black-toothed Rat in one gulp!"
"Scaled Snake!"
Viper and Scar Face's pupils shrank at the same time. They were full of fear for the Insectoids.
This type of insectoid that had mutated from the pythons of the old era had already formed a stable genetic ability. It could steadily pass down its extraordinary abilities to the next generation. It had layers upon layers of black scales that covered its body like iron plates. When it matured, it would grow to a length of over ten meters, allowing it to withstand continuous attacks from bullets.
Unless it was a powerful sniper rifle like "Death Reaper," normal firearms would not be able to break through the Scaled Snake's defense. The Bloodthirsty Black-toothed Rats would take the initiative to attack humans, but in front of the Scaled Snake, they were just moving meat.
Among the Class 1 Insectoids around Blackstone Town, the Scaled Snake was one of the most difficult to deal with.
No one had expected them to appear in the mine.