The convoy drove slowly in the red zone. Slowly, the puddles of blood could no longer be seen on the road.
However, the people in the convoy did not dare to relax at all. The ability user who could control water also stood on top of the truck and did not leave.
The enemy still did not appear. It was as if they had disappeared.
Qi Yuan kept his area detection activated until a palm-sized mouse suddenly entered the range of his perception.
It was a young black-toothed mouse, so it was abnormally small. It did not even have the strength of a rank 1.
Qi Yuan was a little surprised. Along the way, he had already found a few young black-toothed mice of this size. Otherwise, he would not have paid attention to such a weak black-toothed mouse.
If meeting one was a coincidence, then there must be a problem behind it if there were several of them in a row.
"Are there any black-toothed mice in the red zone?" Qi Yuan asked.
Fu Qingqing nodded. Compared to Qi Yuan, Fu Qingqing's knowledge of the wilderness was more extensive.
"The black-toothed mouse's vitality is very tenacious. Its reproductive ability is also very scary. Moreover, it lives underground. Relying on these three characteristics, its living area is very wide. Whether it is the gray zone, blue zone, red zone, or even the black zone where even high-level powerhouses cannot set foot, there are traces of black-toothed mice. It's just that there are more black-toothed mice in the gray zone."
Through the area detection, Qi Yuan could clearly see that the black-toothed mouse was not scared away by the movement of the convoy. Instead, it quietly stood up and peeped at the convoy's movements.
The way the black-toothed mouse looked at the convoy was not the way a young black-toothed mouse should look. Instead, it was somewhat similar to a human's. Its bright eyes scanned the convoy as if it was looking for something.
At that moment, Qi Yuan "saw" the black-toothed mouse suddenly look at the truck he was in. Its faint gaze locked onto him.
It's looking for me!
Qi Yuan was shocked. He suddenly realized that not only was there someone controlling this black-toothed mouse, but he was also the other party's target. At least, he was one of the targets.
The enemy had used all kinds of methods to deal with the convoy, but they had not shown up. It should be because they were not strong enough to fight the convoy head-on. They could only harass them secretly.
Therefore, the enemy's goal was definitely not to take down the entire convoy. They must have a specific target.
After pondering for a moment, Qi Yuan decided to warn the convoy.
No matter who it was that wanted to ambush him, they would have to first disperse the convoy. If he were to warn them beforehand, the convoy would be more vigilant and he would be able to avoid a lot of dangers.
"Someone is observing our caravan through the black-toothed rats. Pay attention to the enemy's sneak attack."
Qi Yuan sent out a warning through the team channel.
"Roger that," the fleet commander replied.
Perhaps it was because Qi Yuan had warned them of the danger in the Dark Swamp, so the fleet commander chose to believe in Qi Yuan without hesitation.
"Car No. 3, activate the high-power detector and scan the surroundings."
"Car No. 3 received."
After that, Qi Yuan felt a weak energy fluctuation spreading from the third car in front of him and quickly spreading into the distance.
After a few seconds, Car No. 3 said in the team channel.
"We have completed the scan of the surrounding 3km radius. No abnormalities have been discovered."
"Got it."
After pausing for a few seconds, the fleet commander continued to give orders.
"Keep the detector active. Perform a scan every minute."
"Car No. 3 received."
The convoy continued to move forward. After a few hundred meters, Qi Yuan suddenly noticed another black-toothed rat cub approaching.
Like all the black-toothed rats they had encountered before, it did not get too close to the convoy. Instead, it stood at the edge of the safe road, straightened its body, and used its strange eyes to observe the convoy passing by.
Qi Yuan did not act rashly. The black-toothed rat cub was not powerful. Since the other party could control one, he must be able to control many of them. If he were to act rashly and kill a black-toothed rat at this time, it would not affect the other party too much. Instead, it would alert the enemy.
With the huge scale of the convoy, the other party would definitely not lose the target as long as they kept the safe line.
The convoy moved forward silently. Car No. 3 would activate the detector every minute, but the result of the detector did not find any abnormalities.
However, Qi Yuan knew that the enemy was getting closer and closer.
This was because the frequency of the black-toothed rats appearing on the roadside was increasing, and their size was getting bigger.
In the beginning, there would be one every 500 meters. Slowly, it became 400 meters, and then 300 meters. Now, there were more than 10 black-toothed rats appearing within the range of the spiritual fortress.
Another invisible detector wave swept across, but Car No. 3 still did not find any abnormalities.
As soon as the detector ended, Qi Yuan noticed that the black-toothed rats around them seemed to have received some kind of command, and suddenly became restless.
Qi Yuan secretly cursed. Although the detector's detection range was very wide, its detection target was limited to the Intermediate level. It did not have any reaction at all to the black-toothed rats that were surrounding the convoy, even though there were already many black-toothed rats gathered around the convoy.
Following the restlessness of the black-toothed rats, adult black-toothed rats crawled out from the ground. They were no longer satisfied with continuing to stand and watch from afar. Instead, they rushed toward the convoy like crazy.
In the blink of an eye, the black-toothed rats that surged out from the ground were endless like a tide. They surrounded the entire convoy in an instant, as if they wanted to use their flesh and blood to stop the convoy from moving forward.
Looking at the black-toothed rats that were surging like a tide, their bodies squeezing and stacking together as they rushed over crazily, Qi Yuan almost had trypophobia.
"Are these black-toothed rats crazy?"
Fu Qingqing said in surprise. Looking at the black-toothed rats that were swarming toward them, she did not feel much fear. They were only Rank 1 black-toothed rats. The huge difference in rank made it impossible for them to threaten the existence of the convoy. Only the energy shield that enveloped the vehicles was enough to block the attacks of the black-toothed rats.
No matter how many Rank 1 black-toothed rats came, they would not be able to bite through this layer of energy shield. They would not be able to stop the convoy from moving forward.
Looking at the black-toothed rats that were swarming toward them like a tide, Qi Yuan faintly felt that something was wrong. The other party had secretly observed the convoy for so long. It was impossible for him not to know that the convoy had an energy shield. It was impossible for him not to know that the black-toothed rats could not do anything to the energy shield of the convoy. The reason he secretly controlled so many black-toothed rats to swarm over was definitely not to scare the convoy.
He must have his own goal!
These black-toothed rats must have other uses!
Right at this moment, Qi Yuan's pupils contracted slightly. Through the Spirit Fortress, he could clearly 'see' the scene of the first black-toothed rat making contact with the energy shield of the truck.
The energy shield that enveloped the truck had the effect of isolating sound and energy waves. It could also block external attacks to a certain extent, but it did not have too much destructive power.
However, the instant this black-toothed rat collided with the energy shield, it loudly exploded into a pile of flesh and blood.
The power of the explosion was not great. It could not even compare to the full power attack of a Rank 2 ability user. Under the explosion, the energy shield was completely undamaged.
However, there was not only one black-toothed rat here, but rather an endless number of them!
The other party wanted to use the self-destruction of these black-toothed rats to exhaust the energy core of the energy shield.
Even though the explosion of a single black-toothed rat could not affect the energy shield in any way, with so many black-toothed rats exploding at the same time, it was definitely able to completely drain the energy of the truck's energy shield.
Boom boom boom!
The concentrated sounds of explosions connected together. The entire convoy could only see lumps of exploding bright red flesh and blood. No other colors could be seen.
The black-toothed rats that swarmed over took the place of the fallen one after another. They used a suicidal attack to collide with the energy shield of the convoy, turning the surroundings of the convoy into a bloody battlefield.
In the perception of the Spirit Fortress, the surrounding energy was in a state of chaos. Only the roars of the black-toothed rats and the deafening sounds of explosions could be heard.
The commander of the convoy clearly realized this problem as well. He no longer dared to let these black-toothed rats continue to explode. He directly issued an order through the convoy's command channel.
"Frost 11, Frost 12, Frost 13, Frost 14, Frost 15, attack with all your strength. Stop the black-toothed rats from approaching the convoy!"
Under the rumbling sounds of explosions, the commander's orders were somewhat indistinct.
The door of a heavy truck behind them opened with a loud rumble. Five genetic warriors that were emitting powerful frost energy jumped out of the truck.
They each stood on the roof of the truck and controlled the biting cold frost energy to go against the current of the surging rat tide.
Most of these black-toothed rats were only at level 1. Even if there were some level 2 black-toothed rat kings mixed among them, they were still incomparably weak in front of these level 4 genetic warriors. They could not even withstand a single blow.
The surging cold current wreaked havoc. Everywhere it passed, groups of black-toothed rats were instantly frozen to death, turning into ice sculptures where they stood.
Under the cooperation of the five genetic warriors, the surging cold current quickly spread to the whole convoy. Almost all the black-toothed rats that approached the convoy were frozen to death outside of the energy shield.
The rumbling sounds of explosions became sparse. Just as the convoy was about to rush out of the encirclement of the black-toothed rats, a muffled gunshot suddenly resounded.
The muffled gunshot had obviously been silenced. However, the Spirit Fortress was still able to capture the sound of the gunshot from afar.
Bang!
The head of a genetic warrior who was controlling the power of frost to clear out the black-toothed rats suddenly exploded like a watermelon. Red blood and milky white brain matter splattered everywhere, and the headless corpse fell from the top of the truck with a loud bang.
Sniper!
A powerful sniper capable of insta-killing a level 4 genetic warrior with a single shot!
Instantly, the Spirit Fortress expanded. However, no traces of the sniper could be captured. The sniper's position was beyond the range of the Spirit Fortress.
Bang!
Another muffled gunshot resounded.
A second genetic warrior collapsed. Similarly, he had been shot in the head, dying without a complete corpse.
"Activate the detector and lock onto the sniper's position!"
The voice of the commander resounded from the convoy's channel.
A formless detection power swept out. However, soon after, a disappointing news was transmitted.
The detector was unable to lock onto the sniper's position as well.
This signified that the sniper either possessed a long-range attack ability or a method to block the detector.
Regardless of which, this was bad news for the convoy.
Fu Qingqing said with a solemn expression, "The sniper is at least a level 5 or even a level 6 mechanic!"
Qi Yuan's mind spun rapidly. This powerful sniper should be hiding outside of the safe route. Although the sniper rifle had been silenced, an attack with such power would definitely have a powerful energy undulation.
Every shot fired by the sniper signified danger!
Why was the sniper taking such a huge risk to kill these level 4 genetic warriors?
Hence, the sniper's goal was not purely to kill them. Rather, it was to clear the way for the black-toothed rats to approach them!
Without waiting for the convoy's commander to think of a way to deal with this, the five genetic warriors controlling the power of frost on the roof of the car were all killed by the sniper's gun.
Following the deaths of the five genetic warriors, the surging black-toothed rats once again surrounded the convoy.
Intense explosions resounded once again, madly exhausting the strength of the energy shield. In less than five seconds, the initially incomparably sturdy energy shield was on the verge of collapse.
Near them, black-toothed rats were self-destructing. Far away, a powerful sniper was hiding in the dark, shooting at them from behind.
The huge convoy was akin to a bloated giant. For a moment, they could only passively take a beating, unable to find a chance to retaliate.
Right at this moment, a gloomy voice resounded in the convoy's channel.
"Convoy, continue advancing. I will deal with that sniper."
The convoy's commander appeared as if he had eaten a tranquilizer and once again issued the order.
Once again, several frost genetic warriors walked out of the car and started spreading the power of frost around them, blocking the black-toothed rats from approaching them.
Qi Yuan surveyed his surroundings. Through the power of his spirit fortress, he was finally able to see a faint shadow flying away from the convoy.
To dare enter the red zone to hunt such a powerful sniper alone, this person was definitely a level 6 expert.
There was indeed a level 6 expert hidden within the convoy.
However, it was unknown if this person was a genetic warrior or an ability user.
After the shadow left, the gunshots that sounded like the knocking of the Grim Reaper finally stopped. The black-toothed rats were also blocked by several genetic warriors. Finally, the convoy was able to rush out of the black-toothed rats' encirclement.
However, the convoy's energy shield was already on the verge of collapse. Evidently, its energy had been exhausted.
Under normal circumstances, the energy core used to maintain the energy shield would be able to last until the convoy reached the frontline. However, the explosion of the black-toothed rats this time was too violent, resulting in the exhaustion of the energy shield.
Without the protection of the energy shield, it would be extremely dangerous for the convoy to travel in the red zone. As such, the convoy's commander issued the order decisively.
"All vehicles, turn off all engines. Activate the energy core and the energy shield."
The convoy stopped.
The accompanying machinists moved quickly, quickly replacing the energy cores of all the trucks.
An ability user from the elemental domain controlled a water column to clean all the black-toothed rats' flesh on the tires.
Although the flesh of the black-toothed rats was not too attractive to the bugs in the red zone, the smell of blood would still attract some trouble.
Just as the machinists removed the energy cores and prepared to replace them with the backup energy cores, the ground beneath the convoy suddenly trembled. A huge bug beast broke out of the ground.
The bug beast suddenly opened its mouth and swallowed the level 4 ability user who was controlling the water column to clean the vehicles.
He did not even have the chance to struggle.
Looking at the pitch-black body that was over ten meters long that was exposed from the ground, Fu Qingqing opened her mouth wide.
"How can there be such a huge sandworm?"
The appearance of this monster was very similar to a sandworm. However, its body size was several times bigger. Its ferocious aura was also not something a level 2 sandworm could compare with.
This was at least a level 4 or even a level 5 monster.
"This is not a sandworm," Qi Yuan said.
"This is a genetic beast."