Chapter 559: Hybrid Insect Swarm
Chapter 559: Hybrid Insect Swarm
Under the cover of night, Sandhill and his two companions were fleeing north.
On their first expedition, the hunters naturally wanted to prove themselves and were eager to make a name for themselves. So they slightly altered their route, extending their exploration and compressing their return time.
Three days passed, and they had even ventured into uncharted territories.
In a misty canyon, they discovered some rare plant resources.
Swish—
The night wind brushed past their collars, and the icy air was suffocating.
Sandhill sniffed the approaching enemy's scent from behind, his expression growing more solemn.
"Speed up! Stopping now will only lead to our deaths!"
Sandhill and his two companions continued their escape.
The unexpected discovery was initially a good thing.
But just as they attempted to collect samples and begin their return journey...
Insects with dark green bodies, resembling a combination of mantises and locusts, suddenly emerged from the canyon and attacked them.
These insects had hard shells and ferocious attacks, and there were quite a few of them.
To protect his two subordinates, Sandhill had no choice but to fight and retreat, running towards the camp to escape.
Fortunately, they had the skills of hunters to rely on.
Throughout the night, they only suffered minor injuries.
Boom!
Under the night sky, a thunderous roar suddenly erupted.
Sandhill and his companions were still running at full speed, trying to shake off the pursuing insects, when they were startled by the sound.
"What was that? It sounds like thunder."
"The sound is coming from ahead!"
Amidst the panic of his two subordinates, Sandhill recognized the source of the sound.
"Arrows! They're arrows!"
Concealed by the dim night sky, the black-feathered arrows sliced through the air.
Before Lindsay and Silude arrived, arrows shot from Iron Horn Longbow's bow flew towards them.
Two streaks of dark nightlight flashed in the darkness, intertwining and following each other closely. In an instant, they passed by Sandhill and his companions, and the sound of 'crack' echoed as the insects' shells shattered.
Sandhill possessed the skills of a hunter.
He didn't even need to turn back; with a twitch of his nose, he could smell the scent of blood from the injured mutated insects.
"..."
Sandhill's expression froze.
He didn't doubt the effectiveness of the arrows, but he was genuinely puzzled about the source of the rescue.
Even as they fled with all their might, their current location was still about two days' journey from the camp.
Moreover, they hadn't sent any information back, so theoretically, the camp couldn't possibly know their situation.
In the desolate land, there had never been any tales of knights in shining armor coming to the rescue.
"How could there be reinforcements?"
"The distance to the camp..."
Sandhill was utterly astonished.
But after a few breaths, he spotted a figure rushing towards them from a distance.
Sandhill's two companions couldn't even make out the person's silhouette.
Only the hunter, with his enhanced dynamic vision granted by his skills, could barely discern the person's identity.
"Lindsay, Mr. Lindsay!"
After a brief hesitation, Lindsay had already reached Sandhill and his companions.
Without much ado, he instructed them:
"Go to the back; Silude is there, join her."
Boom! In the next second, Lindsay and Sandhill's group passed each other.
Intense flames left a scorching scar in the night sky.
Over a dozen strange insects that had been chasing them were instantly torn apart, and the air was filled with the crisp smoke of burning insect shells.
Sandhill and his companions continued forward a few steps, propelled by their momentum.
They turned to look at the blazing ground, then turned back and saw Silude, breathless, pushing her wheelchair towards them.
For a moment, the three of them couldn't process what was happening, but Sandhill stepped forward to greet Silude.
"Miss Silude..."
Silude immediately understood their confusion:
"Alright, stop thinking about all these random things.
"It's like this. We were exploring towards the south as planned, but considering the time difference between exploration and return, we decided to deviate from the plan and scout a little further."
"And that's when we encountered a misty valley."
"It's unusual for the Wasteland's climate to have fog, so I led them in to investigate..."
Sandhill proceeded to inform Silude of the details.
Up ahead, the flames beside Lindsey gradually died down, and he stood in thought amidst the insect corpses.
With these 10 or so kills, the 【Hunting Journal】 already presented the specific information.
【Mutated Scythe Bug】
【Hybrid Insect - Quintessence Awakening 1-3】
【Length: 0.1-1.2 meters】
【Weight: 1-47 kg】
【Running speed slightly faster than an adult human.】
【Omnivorous insect, keen senses, agile movements, and no hibernation habits.】
【After being infected by the plague, this species was artificially created through hybridization. The Mutated Scythe Bugs have a hard carapace and are highly aggressive, only following the commands of the Queen. The hardness of their carapace and the strength of their attacks increase with the level of quintessence fusion.】
【Weaknesses: Brain, abdomen.】
【Hunting Suggestion: Directly kill the Queen.】
【Hunting Achievement: 13/50】
"Queen? Artificially created through hybridization?"
Upon seeing these words, Lindsey knew this was no ordinary situation.
Insect swarms with this type of species structure usually have decent reproductive capabilities, let alone this being an artificially created hybrid.
And excellent reproductive capabilities often mean a significant resource consumption.
Continuing the analysis with the Wasteland's environment in mind.
The place Sandhill and his team stumbled upon might truly be something extraordinary!
"Abundant resources, a unique environment."
Lindsey pondered while casually gathering materials.
From these 10 or so insect corpses, he collected 7 sharp carapaces, which could be used to craft insect-themed armor and corresponding weapons.
Although the strength of the armor and weapons might not be of much use to Lindsey.
However, crafting them into equipment and adding to the territory's inventory would be a great contribution.
After gathering the hunting materials, Lindsey also collected the insect corpses. Since the species description mentioned no toxins, he could bring them back to experiment with, perhaps even turning them into food.
"Thriftiness is a virtue."
"These resources must not be wasted."
Lindsey cleaned up the battlefield.
Sandhill also pushed Silude over.
Just as the hunter was about to greet Lindsey, the lord in the darkness seemed to have anticipated something and asked Sandhill first:
"Sandhill, are these the insects you encountered in a canyon, where there were also many plants growing?"
Sandhill's expression froze for a moment, but he quickly nodded:
"You're absolutely right, my lord!"
"Did you also hear what we just told Miss Silude?"
Sandhill assumed Lindsey's hearing was exceptionally sharp.
"No, I only have a general idea." Lindsey waved his hand and then began issuing orders, "Let your men return to camp and inform them that we are safe and sound, so they don't panic."
"As for you, lead us to that valley, and let's investigate thoroughly while we have the time."
(End of Chapter)
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