Chapter 154 Total Annihilation

A squad of Kamikaze soldiers cautiously advanced deep inside the mine tunnel, not daring to let their guard down in the slightest. Although the entire mine had only a single exit, the environment within was intricately labyrinthine.

To maximize ore extraction, mining machinery would scan the mountain beforehand, computing the most complex route that would prevent collapse while hollowing out the rock face. In other words, the internal structure was as convoluted as a spiderweb.

*Rustle, rustle.*

"Who's there!" A soldier flashed his light toward the source of the sound, but where a shadow had just flickered by, there was now nothing at all.

*Rustle, rustle.*

"Over there! Attack!" The squad leader gave the order without hesitation. Without a second thought, the team's gunner raised his weapon and fired a barrage into the space, only to hit empty air.

It sounded like something sharp piercing into the rock wall and being pulled back out. The faint, scraping noise was spine-chilling, resembling someone dragging a metal file across their bones right beside their ears. Chills ran down their spines, and cold sweat broke out profusely.

Acting as the backbone of the team, the squad leader calmly ordered, "Everyone, stay calm. Didn't we scout this beforehand? The target has mutated into a Crypt Demon Spider, and this terrain suits it best. Illuminate the surroundings completely and leave it nowhere to hide!"

The one o'clock position was illuminated, the two o'clock position was illuminated, and every direction—even directly above—was lit up without a single blind spot. This demonstrated the powerful combat awareness of Kamikaze as a Tier 1 hunting corps.

Yet... nothing could be found.

"Nothing... It's avoiding our light," a soldier reported.

"That's not right... I'm not avoiding your light at all~" A voice that was eerie yet laced with playful mockery echoed right beside the soldier's ear.

The soldier whipped his head around, only to see a man with faintly purplish skin resting his face right next to his. Illuminated by the flashlight, beneath the heavy shadows, that wicked smile brimming with greed and lust made his hair stand on end.

"Ah!" the soldier screamed. Instantly, the flashlight strapped to his arm slipped from his grasp and hit the ground, shattering its lens. The light that was supposed to provide them with a sense of security was instantly extinguished.

Almost simultaneously, everyone's flashlights suffered unknown attacks and were completely smashed, plunging the mine tunnel back into darkness.

"Hehe, caves need darkness to feel comfortable. Your lights are~ way too blinding!" The voice gradually faded into the distance, as if the owner was walking away.

One soldier wanted to check on the comrade who had just screamed in terror. Calling out the man's name, he said, "Erwin, Erwin, are you alright? Come on, get up... Ah! What is this..."

"What's wrong? What happened to Erwin?" the squad leader asked anxiously.

"Blood... blood... He's not breathing. Erwin... is dead!"

A comrade had fallen in the blink of an eye, and everyone's hearts plunged halfway into despair.

Deep within the cave... *Rustle... Rustle...*

***

The day Huo Ye and his team set off coincided with the second day after the Kamikaze personnel entered the cave. When they arrived at the disaster location specified in the mission, they discovered not a single soldier from the hunting corps.

"What's going on? Didn't they say Kamikaze had the calamity surrounded? Where are the people?" Jiang Feng asked, puzzled.

Huo Ye scanned his surroundings. The sky was vast and clear, birds sang from the branches, and the world was filled with serenity.

"Stay on guard. Something must have happened," Huo Ye instructed.

"Help..."

Relimi pulled up the satellite map of the area and said, "If the calamity is still inside the cave, we're going to need the internal cave layout. Let me see if I can pull it up."

"No need, I already acquired it in advance," Jiang Feng said, sending the cave's cross-sectional diagram to everyone.

"Help... Save..."

"Hang on, don't talk. Listen carefully," Alice suddenly said.

Hearing this, the rest of the group fell silent.

"Save... me."

"Someone is calling for help. Find them!" Huo Ye gave a concise and direct order.

The group immediately dismounted from their hover-bikes and followed the cries for help toward the caller.

"Over there!" Shangguan Yudie had the easiest time locating people; she only needed to track the electromagnetic signals. The members of the Astral team hurried over and found a young man lying on the ground at death's door, resting atop a patch of crushed, flattened saplings.

Judging by the direction the trees were knocked over, he must have been flung out of the mountain cave entrance and crashed heavily onto the ground. If not for the vegetation cushioning his fall, he might have been killed on impact.

Huo Ye walked over to the young man and asked gently, "Hey, are you alright? How are you holding up?"

If the man had retained clear consciousness, he would have cursed Huo Ye out loud. *I'm in this wretched state and you're asking if I'm alright? Are you asking how I'm holding up? Are you fucking kidding me? I've practically got one foot in the netherworld right now, you know!*

However, having one foot in the grave, the man could only respond to his primal instinct for survival: "Cold... Water..."

Huo Ye looked at the puncture wound on the man's abdomen. It hadn't hit any vital organs, and although the wound had started to coagulate, excessive blood loss was clearly the reason he felt cold.

Huo Ye tried asking him a question, "What is your blood type?"

"B... Type B," the man replied with all his remaining strength.

"Alright, Relimi, you brought the medical gear, right? I'll give him a blood transfusion," Huo Ye said.

Jiang Feng interjected, "Boss, aren't you Type A? You can't transfuse Type A into a Type B person!"

***

Without a moment's hesitation, Relimi produced the transfusion equipment. Skillfully inserting the needle into Huo Ye's vein, she explained,

"Big Brother possesses sub-grade stem cells. Normally he is Type A, but whenever necessary, he can generate blood of any type himself."

Hearing this, Jiang Feng said no more.

Although Huo Ye and the others performed emergency aid on the man, he showed no signs of waking up.

Through spatial perception, both Kazama Ruri and Huo Ye confirmed that a powerful calamity still resided within the mine tunnel, but aside from that, there were no other living signatures.

This young man, who had lost consciousness from blood loss and could only cry out for help through sheer survival instinct, wore the uniform of the Kamikaze Hunting Corps. There was no doubt he belonged to Kamikaze.

"It seems that apart from this person... the Kamikaze personnel stationed here have been completely wiped out," Luo Jiajia said with a worried expression.

Lu Dingyuan exclaimed in surprise, "So... this is a natural disaster-grade threat. I heard Kamikaze was very powerful! Why were they wiped out so easily?"

"It must be because of the type of calamity and the terrain," Jiang Feng squatted down, pointing at the soldier's bandaged wound. "His abdomen suffered a piercing injury. The wound is small, likely caused by a slender blade.

Look at his arm again. The shape of this wound resembles a spiderweb, indicating that the opponent's animal prototype is a spider. Furthermore, the web is corrosive, meaning it's a venomous spider.

Based on what I previously gathered, combined with our current intelligence... the opponent might be a Crypt Demon Spider."

The Crypt Demon Spider was an extremely dangerous and vicious calamity that never actively attacked humans. No, to be precise, they never left their caves to assault humans. Instead, they typically claimed a cavern and emitted a mesmerizing pheromone to lure humans inside, turning them into prey.

Although this pheromone had no effect on Esper-wielders, ever since the species made its debut, it had never been removed from the "Extreme Danger" classification in the Calamity Compendium.

Caves... the domain upon which Crypt Demon Spiders relied for survival and hunting. To think they had actually occupied a human mine.

It truly proved that the original decision to fully automate the mining operations of the Wilds with machinery was correct; otherwise, the annual casualties would be immeasurable.

Afterward, the new recruit surnamed Liu slowly regained consciousness and recounted his experience to the Astral members...

Just as he finished recounting the entire process of his squad's annihilation, the Kamikaze Hunting Corps reinforcements called by Huo Ye arrived and took him away for medical treatment.

"Youngsters, you should come back with me. The calamity inside has devoured nearly forty people in just these past few days. Right now, it's likely at its peak. Don't try to take it head-on!" a Kamikaze soldier advised.

Huo Ye, however, kept his back to the speaker, staring unblinkingly at the mine tunnel as he replied, "We can't do that... This is our mission, and if we leave it unattended, more victims might appear. Whenever something unusual happens, there's always a reason. For a Crypt Demon Spider—which normally only appears in the primary Wilds—to show up in the Earth Wilds, we have to get to the bottom of this."