Fang Senyan and the other dashed forward, their footsteps causing sticky goo to spatter from the organic sprawl carpet beneath them. () Now and then, hosts resembling giant jellyfish could be seen descending onto the creep to draw nutrients.

Besides being the manufacturing ground for all Zerg structures, the creep served another vital function: to decompose all organic matter within its coverage area for initial extraction and dissolution. The Overlord acted somewhat like a fruit tree.

The energy within the Pandora Crystals was akin to sunlight; it absorbed the organic matter and energy broken down by the creep, combining the two to produce the primary sustenance for the Zerg. Thus, experienced individuals could estimate the size of a Zerg contingent simply by counting the number of Hosts within that swarm.

Reaching a small incline nearby, they immediately spotted a horde of Zerglings and Hydralisks pouring toward them from a long, narrow valley in the distance. The bodies of these Zerglings and Hydralisks were a dull green, constantly dripping mucus.

At first glance, they didn't look significantly different, but compared to the Zerglings of the Blackspine Brood, the contrast was striking and made them easily distinguishable. The defensive line of the Blackspine Brood on this side appeared sparse.

Clearly, the Blackspine Mother's control over troop deployment was extremely limited; the number of Zerg creatures she had mobilized was likely the absolute maximum. Fortunately, she possessed the authority to construct defensive buildings.

Scattered around these sparse Blackspine Zerg were no fewer than twenty strangely shaped Zerg structures rooted in the ground! These buildings stood no more than half a meter tall, each occupying an area roughly the size of an Alto car.

They were covered entirely in sharp, long spikes, looking from a distance like a flesh-red, malevolent flower growing close to the earth. Once an enemy approached within a hundred meters, a central spike would rapidly shoot out, plunging deep into the ground.

Then, a segment of a sharp, flesh-red spike would emerge beneath the approaching enemy’s feet, lunging swiftly toward their body! These spikes were immensely powerful.

Typically, a single Zergling could withstand only two strikes, and even a hardier Hydralisk could endure at most three. This was the Zerg’s specialized defensive spine (UNENCLNY), which attacked enemies within its range using tendrils and possessed considerable durability.

This defensive line was built precisely at the exit of the ravine. Once the enemy burst out of the valley entrance and failed to deploy or form a proper battle line, they would face simultaneous assault from nearly twenty defensive spines.

They would be attacked to death, suffering terrifying casualties before they could even get close. However, as the Viscous Brood reinforced their numbers, close-quarters combat began to erupt on the battlefield.

The Blackspine Zerg creatures hidden among the spines emerged, coordinating their furious attacks with the spines’ strikes. The fighting on the front line could only be described as a bloody, meat-grinding blender.

The air itself was thick with the volatile scent of Zerg bodily fluids. Lieutenant Colonel Dundee and his men were also firing frantically.

It had to be said that they were specially selected elite warriors; the attack power of each man was in no way inferior to the defensive spines, explaining why the Blackspine Mother insisted they remain to assist. After the assault raged for over ten minutes, it reached a fever pitch.

Any Zerg corpses slain on that spreading organic carpet were rapidly decomposed by the surrounding mucus, absorbed as nutrients, and channeled to various organs. This gave the defenders an inherent advantage.

But the absence of the Blackspine Brood’s brain creature meant that several times the number of troops remained deployed and unable to maneuver in other sectors. Consequently, the front line was forcibly compressed to the very brink of collapse by the sheer numbers of the Viscous Brood.

Suddenly, one defensive spine, ganged up on by three Zerglings, reached its critical health threshold and violently burst into a spray of gore that rained down. This instantly triggered a chain reaction, and defensive spines began shattering one after another as their health expired.

The line immediately showed signs of a full retreat. But just then, over a dozen mining drones, the same type seen earlier, swiftly approached from the distance, burrowed into the earth, and began incubating, forming large, cocoon-like structures across the ground.

Immediately following this, the telepathic voice of the "Blackspine Mother" resonated in the minds of all the humans: “Five minutes! I only need five minutes to fully incubate and deploy a second line of defensive spines!

Please buy me five minutes!” As this voice sounded, Fang Senyan also received a prompt from the Nightmare Imprint: “You have been drawn into a regional event: Twin Swarm Hegemony.” “Zerg Hive: The Blackspine Mother issues you an urgent mission, Bloody Five Minutes. Do you accept?

Yes/No?” Fang Senyan had gradually figured out a trick, so instead of choosing Yes/No, he stated directly: “I require my servant, Gold Mine, to accept this mission on my behalf.” Undoubtedly, this mission would affect the Blackspine Zerg's reputation and favorability. If Fang Senyan accepted, his unfortunate 2 points in Charisma would come into play.

But if the bottom-feeder Gold Mine accepted, the mission would likely be accepted with the default maximum of 50 points in Prowess for this difficulty level. The difference between these two outcomes was as vast as the difference in sensation between caressing a beauty with an A-cup bust versus a D-cup bust.

The Nightmare Imprint’s prompt was curt: “Your servant must accept this mission within ten seconds, or it will be considered forfeited.” Normally, Mr. Gold Mine, the cowardly, timid, and shameless Goblin, always avoided danger and would never set foot on this frontline battlefield.

However, through days of interaction, Fang Senyan had keenly grasped the creature’s weakness. He suddenly cried out: “Oh dear, I think I’ve lost my money.” The utterly vile Gold Mine suddenly sprang out as if from a crack in the stone, his eyes glittering with $$$ as he shrieked: “I’ll help you pick it up, Master?

Huh, where’s the money?” Fang Senyan immediately initiated a trade, sending five Universal Credits over. Unsurprisingly, the avaricious Gold Mine completed the transaction at lightning speed; he had zero immunity to anything related to money: “Enough talk, accept the mission for me, or give me my money back if you refuse!” “Give the money back!!!

Master! How dare you utter those two cursed words to a mere Goblin!” Goblin Gold Mine roared in outrage: “Even if the universe were to end, this would be an impossibility!” Fang Senyan stated firmly: “Accept the mission for me, and there will be an additional five Universal Credits as payment.” Immediately afterward, Fang Senyan received the notification: You have accepted the urgent mission: Bloody Five Minutes (Accepted on behalf of servant Gold Mine).

The mission content was, of course, to hold the line for five minutes. By this time, the front line was nearing total collapse, with even the surviving members of the Gravel Task Force facing desperate hand-to-hand combat.

Just at this moment, A’s unique, grating gunshot rang out again—Morganza’s golden A-gun spat out a conspicuous flame! His new five-round burst mode was making its dazzling debut!

The first searing bullet flew cleanly through a gap between three or four Zerglings, striking an enemy Hydralisk directly in the head, causing it to momentarily lose balance and list toward the rear right. Precisely at that moment, a friendly flesh-red spine erupted from the ground, piercing the skull of an enemy Zergling and continuing its trajectory into the air.

The Hydralisk’s head seemed perfectly delivered onto the spine, impaling it and killing it instantly! The second and third bullets were aimed wildly into the crevices of the nearby rocky mountain, striking the rock face and detonating.

This directly triggered a violent, small-scale landslide, burying at least twenty Hydralisks below under a massive sheet of moving earth. The fourth bullet timely severed the claw of a Zergling; that claw had been less than ten centimeters away from striking Lieutenant Colonel Dundee’s face in a frenzied swipe!

Even after being severed, the claw sprayed a thin, purplish fluid as it flew off, slapping hard against a nearby defensive spike. The sharp claw dug deeply into the fleshy spike, demonstrating the immense force behind that swipe.

The fifth bullet first struck a nearby boulder before refracting, accurately hitting ammunition that the surviving members of the Gravel Task Force had failed to retrieve, immediately causing an explosion that killed at least three or four Zerglings. This five-round burst, combining killing enemies and saving allies, was spectacular; every bullet was like an exclamation point, brimming with imagination and creativity, hitting the enemy’s weakest points precisely!

Fang Senyan violently squeezed the trigger of his shotgun against the few Zerglings before him, blasting them back with agonizing cries. But this was immediately followed by a concentrated spray of acid from the enemy Hydralisks hiding behind them.

Fang Senyan managed a desperate roll behind cover of a rock. Even so, he was hit by the splash, which rapidly corroded his armor and penetrated inward.

Although Fang Senyan was quite tough, he dared not take heavy fire from a concentration of Hydralisks—that would be instant suicide. He took a few breaths, crouched down, and ran to Morganza’s side, speaking seriously: “Old Mo, if you keep hiding your true abilities, we are absolutely going to fail this mission.” Morganza’s body stiffened slightly, and he sighed: “How did you figure that out?” Fang Senyan retorted irritably: “If this A47 is truly your last-resort weapon, you would never have given it such an ostentatious and tacky golden coating.

You would have found every way to make people ignore it. Therefore, your intention was clearly to focus everyone’s attention on your golden A while ignoring everything else—but there are only two of us here, what do you have to be cautious about?

Do you not trust me?”

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