The convoy continued forward. On the third day, the convoy was about to enter the most dangerous red zone. The convoy slowed down, and every vehicle activated an energy shield, isolating the energy waves, aura, and sound of the vehicles from the outside world.
The elites of the shelter had already opened up a safe route in this area. They would drive away the insectoids that were entrenched on the route regularly. They would also leave their high-level scent to declare their sovereignty and deter other insectoids.
The stronger the insectoid, the more territorial they were. Under normal circumstances, the high-level insectoids in the wilderness would take the initiative to avoid the aura left behind by these powerhouses.
However, not all insectoids were so sensitive. Some bloodthirsty mid-level elite insectoids wouldn't be stopped by these auras at all. As long as they found prey, they would take the initiative to attack.
Although the strength of the convoy was enough to deal with the attacks of mid-level elite insectoids, fighting in the red zone meant danger. The energy waves of the battle would attract even more insectoids.
Before entering the red zone, the convoy rested for a short five minutes before moving out again.
After entering the red zone, Qi Yuan sharply discovered that the clouds in the sky seemed to have become thicker and lower. The surrounding light also became increasingly dim. However, the vehicles didn't turn on their headlights, because the light would easily attract the attacks of insectoids.
With the eyesight of a mid-level ability user, even if there were no lights, they could still see the scenery outside clearly.
Although a mid-level ability user's powerful physique allowed them to not sleep for several days and nights without feeling tired, as the vehicles entered the red zone, Qi Yuan could feel that Fu Qingqing's heartbeat had clearly sped up. She was a bit nervous.
"You rest for a bit. I'll drive this part of the road," said Qi Yuan.
Fu Qingqing shook her head, rejecting Qi Yuan's suggestion.
She was very clear that if there were enemies on the road, their first target would usually be the drivers.
Although these heavy trucks had powerful defensive capabilities, enough to block the attacks of a fourth-level powerhouse, since she had already accepted the heavy responsibility of protecting Qi Yuan, she had to bear these inevitable dangers.
Seeing Fu Qingqing concentrate on driving, unwilling to let go of the steering wheel, Qi Yuan didn't insist. However, the power of the Spirit Fortress quietly swept out.
At the same time, the Blazing Angel also sneaked into the Leader's Medal and switched it to defense mode.
A Rank 5 Blazing Angel, in addition to the protection of the badge, would be able to hold out for a long time even against a Rank 5 Insectoid.
The strength of the energy shield provided by the Leader's Medal was far greater than that of the truck.
As the fleet moved slowly, although the energy shield had isolated the sound, energy waves, and human aura to the greatest extent, it could not completely wipe out the fleet. There were still insectoids wandering around nearby that used their eyes to see the fleet's existence.
Many of the insectoids only glanced at the convoy and had no intention of attacking. Only a few insectoids slowly followed them.
However, the convoy did not attack the insectoids that were tailing them. Instead, they allowed them to follow behind the convoy.
Unless they had gathered a sufficient number of insectoids, they would not easily attack such a large convoy. As more and more insectoids appeared behind them, the voice of the convoy commander came from the command deck of the truck. Just as they were getting ready for battle, the insectoids that were tailing them suddenly scattered.
Seeing that the insectoids that were tailing them had suddenly left, Qi Yuan was not happy. Instead, he was shocked. Of course, insectoids would not leave easily. Their sudden departure could only mean one thing, which was that they had sensed danger.
The danger did not come from the convoy but from the wilderness. It came from the more powerful insectoids.
After moving forward for some distance, the slow-moving convoy suddenly stopped.
The truck that was in charge of clearing the road in front sent a message.
The safe road ahead was blocked by the dark swamp. It was more than three thousand meters wide, and the convoy could not move forward.
Fu Qingqing's expression turned serious.
"I've followed my teacher on this road once. There was no swamp on the road."
Qi Yuan frowned. The terrain of a swamp was not something that could be formed in a short period of time. To be able to change the terrain in such a short period of time and create such a huge swamp, only a high-level Panic Grade insectoid would be able to do that.
Thinking about the elite insectoids that had suddenly left, Qi Yuan vaguely guessed the truth behind the swamp's formation.
The two of them did not get out of the truck rashly. There were people in the convoy who were investigating, but the results of the investigation made them even more nervous.
Just as Qi Yuan had guessed, there was a remnant aura of a Class 7 insectoid in the swamp!
However, they did not know if this powerful Panic Grade insectoid had settled down here or if it was just passing by.
High-level Panic Grade insectoids could easily change the terrain of the wilderness. They were the true rulers of the red zone!
"Even if it's a high-level Panic Grade insectoid, there aren't many that can change the terrain on such a large scale. This insectoid's rank is probably higher than Class 7!" Fu Qingqing said.
Qi Yuan suddenly felt a headache coming on.
They had not even reached the frontline, how could they have encountered something so dangerous?
A Class 7 insectoid was terrifying enough. If they were not careful, they could wipe out the entire convoy. If a Class 7 and above insectoid really appeared, perhaps everyone in the convoy would only be able to fill the gaps between its teeth.
"Can we go around it?" Qi Yuan asked.
Fu Qingqing shook her head.
"The convoy can't deviate from the safe route. Without the deterrence of the high-level powerhouse's aura, the situation will be even more dangerous.
Our convoy is too big. Once we deviate from the safe route, we'll definitely attract the attacks of more dangerous insectoids. "
As the convoy waited for a long time, an uneasy atmosphere slowly spread.
The longer they stayed in the red wilderness, the more dangerous it would be!
Soon, the scouts in front came back with new news. There were no Panic Grade insectoids in the nearby area. The swamp was only caused by the insectoids passing by.
After the news came back, the entire convoy felt much more relaxed.
As long as there were no Panic Grade insectoids, a mere swamp would not be able to stop the convoy from moving forward.
The aptitude users in the convoy could definitely open up a path for the vehicles to travel through the swamp.
Through the Spirit Fortress, Qi Yuan saw a man emitting a faint chill all over his body. He walked all the way to the front of the convoy and directly stepped into the black swamp.
In the perception of the Spirit Fortress, this man was like a terrifying whirlpool filled with the power of ice. Wherever he passed, the coldness would spread. Even the old swamps would become frozen earth that exuded an eerie chill.
Fu Qingqing stuck her head out of the window and looked at the man in the frozen swamp. Her eyes were filled with amazement.
"The genetic warrior research in the lab is getting more and more terrifying. This Class 5 Blood Rank genetic warrior's strength has already surpassed a normal Class 5 aptitude user. Even if I want to kill him, it won't be easy."
"This is the lab's latest genetic warrior. Each one of them consumes a lot of resources. It's hard for the lab to mass produce them. Moreover, their lifespan is not long. They won't be able to survive for too long," Qi Yuan said.
After obtaining the Leader's Medal and successfully becoming a Class 4 researcher, Qi Yuan slowly realized how deep the lab's waters were and how terrifying its hidden strength was.
Although the lab had announced to the public that their research center had shifted to energy and machinery in recent years, only a few people knew what those Class 4 researchers who stayed in the lab for a long time were researching.
If he had not become a Class 4 researcher, he would not have been able to know these secrets.
Among the Class 4 researchers in the lab, at least two of them had devoted all their time and energy to genetic warrior research.
Although genetic warriors were not his research direction, Qi Yuan still had some understanding of genetic warriors.
Although the genetic warriors that walked out of the cultivation cabins were born with great strength, their lifespans were very short. The stronger the genetic warrior, the shorter their lifespans were. With the genetic technology of Doomsday Munitions, the lifespans of Tier 6 genetic warriors did not even exceed a year before they died due to genetic breakdown.
Even if they were injected with genetic stabilizing agents, their lifespan could not be extended to more than five years.
Therefore, although genetic warriors were powerful, the huge cost of cultivation and short lifespan meant that they could not be mass-produced.
Every genetic warrior who was sent to the frontlines was destined to die on the frontlines. Very few genetic warriors could return to the shelter alive.
Regardless of whether it was the new humans or the old humans, genetic warriors were cannon fodder in their eyes. Even Class 6 genetic warriors were the same.
The genetic warrior who controlled the power of frost opened the path in front, condensing a Frozen Earth that could be controlled by the convoy.
The convoy that was forced to stop started moving slowly, following behind the genetic warrior as they slowly crossed the swamp.
Due to the fact that each truck weighed several tens of tons, the Frigidwinter Earth had a very high requirement. Even if the genetic warrior leading the way had the strength of a Tier 5 warrior, his speed was not fast.
This part of the Dark Swamp was about three kilometers wide. The whole convoy spent nearly half an hour to slowly reach the other side of the swamp.
After the first truck left the swamp, the tense atmosphere in the convoy's channel finally eased a little.
The genetic warrior was still standing on the Frozen Earth, maintaining the swamp's frozen state to prevent the truck from sinking into the swamp if it suddenly thawed.
The trucks left the swamp one after another. When they passed by the genetic warrior, Qi Yuan noticed that his eyes had turned dark blue, as cold as ice.
Only the last four trucks were still driving on the Frozen Earth. Suddenly, a formless force field spread out from the swamp.
Qi Yuan felt his heart tighten, as if something was tugging at it.
The Blazing Angel also started shivering, as if he had met his natural enemy.
This feeling was terrifying, but he felt like he had experienced it somewhere before.
Soon, Qi Yuan recalled his first experience with this feeling.
Heaven's Awakening Force Field!
He had once felt this dangerous aura from Ming Ming, a Heaven's Awakening expert from the Gate of Truth.
If there were no Heaven's Awakening experts hidden in the convoy, then this was a Panic class insect beast approaching.
Qi Yuan was alarmed. He immediately opened the convoy's communication channel and said in a deep voice, "A high-level Panic class insect beast is approaching."
After a few seconds of silence in the convoy's communication channel, the convoy's commander chose to believe in Qi Yuan and directly issued an order.
"All vehicles, activate the maximum energy shields and move forward at full speed."
Following the order, all the vehicles sped up. Although the energy shields were activated to the maximum, some muffled sounds could still be heard.
The sounds could easily attract nearby insect beasts. Although it was somewhat dangerous, if the Panic class insect beast in the swamp really returned, it would be a disaster if they were entangled with it.
Just as the convoy sped up, the Frozen Earth that originally spanned the entire swamp suddenly cracked.
The Rank 5 Frost Controller did not leave. He did his best to control the Frozen Earth under his feet, not letting it crack and buy time for the vehicles behind to leave.
His eyes turned into icy whirlpools, and the violent power of frost gushed out crazily. Under his desperate efforts, the speed of the Frozen Earth's collapse slowed down, and the two trucks successfully left the swamp and rushed onto the hard ground.
However, the insect beast in the swamp seemed to have been enraged. A formless energy swept out and the remaining Frozen Earth instantly shattered.
Under the suppression of that powerful energy, any resistance was futile.
The two trucks that did not have time to leave the Frozen Earth sank into the swamp at the same time, slowly sinking into the depths of the mud.
No matter how the engines roared, they could not save their fate of sinking.
"Abandon the vehicles!" The commander's voice reverberated in the vehicle channel.
The doors of the two trucks opened at the same time. Several men in combat uniforms quickly left the vehicles. They stepped on the truck that was about to sink and suddenly jumped out, leaping towards the shore.
The closest truck was only ten meters away from the swamp shore.
For the majority of mid-level ability users, this distance was not too far. A single charge was enough to reach the shore.
However, right when they crossed this distance and were about to land, several muddy water spikes suddenly shot out from the bottom of the swamp.
These muddy water spikes that seemed to have no hardness at all easily pierced through their bodies. Like candied haws, they pierced through the air.
Blood spurted out along the muddy water spikes.
The ability users that were pierced by the mud spikes twitched, falling into the swamp in despair. Only strings of bloody bubbles were left behind, rising from the mud.
In an instant, the last two trucks, people and supplies, were completely wiped out.
The Rank 5 genetic warriors that did their best to maintain the Frozen Earth were similarly unable to escape the fate of being swallowed by the swamp. In front of the Panic level insect beast, the Rank 5 genetic warriors similarly did not have any leeway to resist.
After eating two trucks full of supplies, the swamp did not seem to be satisfied. The melted muddy swamp spread towards the direction of the fleet.
The ground melted silently, and the black swamp spread like wildfire.
"Continue to move forward at full speed. Be careful not to stray from the safe route."
The commander's muffled voice sounded in the fleet's channel.
Amidst the rumbling of the engines, the fleet members frantically escaped from the spreading swamp.
Although the spreading speed of the swamp was not slow, it still did not catch up to the fleet.
After about five minutes of fleeing in a sorry state, the spreading swamp slowly stopped. However, the fleet did not slow down. They continued to sprint forward at full speed for about three minutes. Only after confirming that the swamp did not continue to expand did the fleet slowly slow down.