Hope of people (Chapter 94)
S-Class Pollutant Beast!!!
This was the first time she had seen an S-Class!
Before, the highest level she had encountered was B-Class, such as the Nether Crow or the Mother Snake of the White Ringed Snake...
She hadn't even seen an A-Class pollutant beast, and now it suddenly jumped to S-Class!!!
What had she done to deserve this?
Ye Sheng stared in bewilderment at the approaching behemoth, feeling incredibly insignificant, like a tiny ant that could be crushed underfoot at any moment.
As the S-Class pollutant beast rapidly approached, Ye Sheng could see it more clearly. It indeed had the appearance of a rare giant panda, but instead of its usual cute and clumsy demeanor, it now looked menacing and terrifying.
With a fierce grin toward the crowd, its sharp teeth gleamed coldly in the sunlight.
Seeing the S-Class Iron-Eater getting closer and closer, it suddenly leaped forward with its hind legs, accelerating sharply. Its body surged forward, breaking countless bamboo stalks in its path.
Its swift speed and powerful charge were terrifying to behold.
"Ahhh, run! It's an Iron-Eater!"
"An S-Class pollutant beast? We're definitely doomed this time."
"I dug up so many Star Iron Stones, I don't want to die here... Where is esper? Please, save us, I'll pay any price!"
"Yeah, where is esper? Hurry up and save us!"
Seeing the S-Class Iron-Eater approaching, the people emerging from the mine panicked. They screamed and ran in all directions, abandoning the Star Iron Stones they had brought out.
Bags were scattered everywhere.
Those still inside the mine were desperately pushing and shoving, trying to get the people in front of them to move out of the way so they could escape as quickly as possible.
The scene was utter chaos.
The esper Ling Lan, who some people were calling for, stood not far away with a serious expression.
Even in the face of an impending S-Class pollutant beast attack, she stood tall and unafraid. Her silver wolf tailed hair glinted in the sunlight, and her blue eyes shone with eager anticipation.
Ling Lan, being an early-stage psychic esper, was not yet severely affected by the suicide issue that plagued espers. She was very excited about fighting pollutant beasts.
Every opportunity to challenge herself brought her joy.
However, the highest level pollutant beast Ling Lan had previously dealt with was A-Class; she had never encountered an S-Class pollutant beast.
Furthermore, there were variations in strength even within the same class of pollutant beasts.
For instance, this S-Class Iron-Eater was undoubtedly among the stronger ones!
Ling Lan understood clearly that her chances of victory were slim.
But espers were not allowed to become deserters on the battlefield; she had to fight to the end!
Behind Ling Lan stood the members of the Blue Whale Mercenary Group, looking grim. They had thought it would be a simple convoy journey and felt reassured by the presence of a mental esper.
They thought this mission would be an easy one.
However, trouble struck as soon as they arrived at the mine!
And it was a big trouble that even espers couldn’t easily resolve!
After all, the mercenaries had only ever heard of Erensu killing an S-Class pollutant beast bare-handed. Other espers found it very difficult to kill an S-Class pollutant beast, needing weapons or group attacks to succeed.
Although Ling Lan had some fame, it was only among new espers, and she definitely couldn't handle an S-Class Iron-Eater!
They were doomed!
"Miss Ling Lan, we should retreat quickly. While the Iron-Eater is attacking others, we should escape by car."
Aside from the esper and mercenaries, the leaders of the convoy were also extremely anxious.
They had come to collect more Star Iron Stones, not to risk their lives here!
If it weren’t for the fact that escaping on their own was unsafe, they would have already left these fools behind. Standing here wouldn’t avoid the S-Class Iron-Eater’s attack!
What a joke.
The more people, the bigger the target!
"You all can go. Pollutant beasts target espers first, so I must stay here."
Seeing the convoy leaders jumping with anxiety, Ling Lan still found the mood to smile lightly.
She raised her eyebrows slightly and looked at these cowardly people with a half-smile. She wasn’t lying; B-Class and above pollutant beasts could detect espers keenly.
Pollutant beasts liked to consume energy stones to evolve.
The energy within espers was significant, making them appear like large "energy stones" to pollutant beasts.
Compared to other meat that barely filled their stomachs, espers were a delicacy in the eyes of pollutant beasts.
After hearing what Ling Lan said, the convoy leaders stepped back in fear. Realizing their actions were inappropriate, they quickly apologized to Ling Lan and then turned their gaze to the mercenaries.
As the employers of the Blue Whale Mercenary Group squad, they had the right to demand that the mercenaries protect them and lead them away.
However, the squad leader of the Blue Whale Mercenary Group wore a grim expression and coldly stated, "The road we came on has been destroyed by the S-Class Iron-Eater. We can’t go back for now unless we find a new path."
In simple terms, they were trapped and escaping wouldn’t be easy.
Even if they weren't immediately devoured by the S-Class Iron-Eater, being trapped in this vast bamboo forest would make it difficult to find a way out.
This area was in the wilderness, with no marked map in the Super Intelligence Network, leaving everything unexplored.
Who knew if they would encounter a second S-Class Iron-Eater after escaping this one?
After all, the bamboo forest was large, and Iron-Eaters usually lived in pairs, male and female...
Seeing that Esper Ling Lan wasn't planning to escape but instead intended to stay and fight, the Blue Whale Mercenary Group squad leader felt frustrated. After much hesitation, he decided to stay and fight alongside Ling Lan.
The power of an esper was unquestionable.
Maybe, this Ling Lan would bring some surprises!
Ling Lan had no interest in guessing what others were thinking. Before the battle, she leisurely searched for Ye Sheng. Once she spotted her standing on the left rear side, Ling Lan smiled and waved.
Then she cupped her hands around her mouth to amplify her voice: "Ye Sheng, run!"
This immediately silenced the mercenaries and convoy leaders, who also wanted to escape.
Ye Sheng, hearing this, glanced at Ling Lan's playful expression and rolled her eyes in exasperation. Run? If they didn't kill this S-Class Iron-Eater, unless she could teleport out of this bamboo forest, escaping would still mean certain death.
Now, the entire place's hope rested on Ling Lan, who was still here, joking around and lowering morale!
Seeing this, Ye Sheng mimicked Ling Lan's gesture and shouted back: "Ling Lan, I believe you can defeat it! Go for it!"
Hearing Ye Sheng's encouragement, Ling Lan's blue eyes sparkled like a dog's when praised by its owner.
Her smile grew even brighter. Without saying anything further, she turned her gaze towards the direction of the charging S-Class Iron-Eater, took a deep breath, and pulled a black vial from her jacket pocket.
For their survival, she had to give it her all!
Ling Lan unscrewed the cap of the black vial, tilted her head back, and drank it. Within seconds, her heart began to race.
Her blood started to boil, and she felt an inexhaustible surge of energy.
Even her psychic power grew stronger.
However, as the potion took effect, Ling Lan's blue eyes instantly turned red.
Espers enhanced their abilities by absorbing energy, making Ling Lan not only swift but also incredibly strong. Now, with the potion putting her into a "berserk" state, she was fully prepared for battle.
At that moment, the S-Class Iron-Eater arrived, prompting Ling Lan to grab her scimitar and charge forward.
Even though Ling Lan, with her nearly 1.8-meter tall frame, seemed small in front of the S-Class Iron-Eater, her destructive power as an esper was anything but weak.
She swiftly maneuvered across the Iron-Eater's body, dodging its claw attacks with agility. In a flash, she climbed onto its head, slashing her scimitar viciously across its ear.
She managed to slice off half of the Iron-Eater’s ear!
The pain drove the S-Class Iron-Eater into a frenzy.
It roared furiously, the sound causing Ye Sheng’s ears to ring from a distance. For Ling Lan, standing atop the Iron-Eater’s head, the sonic attack made her nose and mouth bleed.
Yet, Ling Lan didn’t even bother to wipe the blood away. She simply flicked her weapon lightly.
Her scimitar transformed into a long sword.
Gripping the hilt tightly, she leaped gracefully, and in the Iron-Eater’s moment of fury, she took advantage of the opening to plunge the sword straight into its eye.
Using her downward momentum, she kept a firm hold on the sword, widening the wound.
Anticipating the Iron-Eater’s next attack, she abandoned the sword, jumped off its nose, and landed back on its head. She quickly pulled a timed explosive from her waist and threw it into the half-earless ear canal.
Her series of moves were incredibly smooth.
Ye Sheng watched in awe, thinking that the previous encounter with the Mother Snake had indeed limited Ling Lan’s abilities!
Are psychic espers really this powerful?
Turning the head of an S-Class Iron-Eater into a playground...
But if Ling Lan was so formidable, why had she told her to run earlier???
Just as Ye Sheng pondered this, Ling Lan, who had just thrown the explosive into the Iron-Eater’s ear canal, quickly changed her position. The next second, the Iron-Eater slapped its ear violently.
It missed Ling Lan, but the explosion soon followed.
Unfortunately, even the bones of an S-Class pollutant beast were highly defensible, and the explosive only managed to deafen the ear without damaging the brain or killing it.
Ling Lan wasn’t disappointed. She repeated her tactics, engaging the Iron-Eater in a series of maneuvers, eventually deafening its other ear with another explosion.
Despite her desire to defeat the S-Class Iron-Eater, the effect of the blood-burning potion would only last for three minutes.
Once time was up, her body would suffer severe injuries, and her mental strength would be damaged as well.
Unable to continue fighting.
So, taking advantage of the fact that the medicine hasn't worn off yet, she need to hurry and destroy the giant panda's five senses, which can also increase Ye Sheng's chances of escaping.
Thinking of this, Ling Lan took out the energy sword again and cut the giant panda's nose.
Ye Sheng, who was watching nervously, quickly noticed something was wrong. Ling Lan was full of energy at the beginning, but as time passed, in just two minutes, her speed began to slow down.
Her movements also became sluggish.
This wasn't normal.
Thinking about the black potion Ling Lan drank before the battle, Ye Sheng had some guesses. At this moment, she dared not waste time and directly summoned the lottery space to start double drawing.
Just now, while people were frantically fleeing, Ye Sheng casually picked up more than ten bags of star iron stones.
She now has over ten thousand lottery points!
Silently wishing for Ling Lan to defeat the contaminated creature, Ye Sheng's hand suddenly felt heavy as she looked down at the black box that had been opened slightly.
Thinking that whether they could survive this time depended on this, Ye Sheng opened the black box, reached inside, and immediately took out a white ring.
[Guardian's Blessing Ring (Timely): You can choose a teammate to send them blessings, maintaining their best condition for five minutes, ignoring any side effects and instantly healing injuries during this period. However, the injuries will be transferred to the user, so please use with caution (after the ring's effect wears off, the teammate will immediately fall into a coma and lose memory from the past month). The ring will disappear one hour after activation.]
Wow!
What a thing.
Regarding Ling Lan losing a month's memory, Ye Sheng felt sympathetic but also slightly relieved. This way, she could forget any information related to her!
However, if she used this ring, Ling Lan's injuries would be transferred to her?
She would die directly!
After all, even if a espers only had one breath left, they could recover as long as they had an energy stone.
But ordinary people don't even have a chance to be rescued.
Sighing silently, Ye Sheng continued the double drawing.
After making a wish, she took out the next item from the black box.
[Substitute Straw Doll: It can help the user block three death crises, each lasting one minute, with no cooldown. It can be used consecutively. Please believe, the substitute straw doll is professional (0/3)].
The double lottery draw always yields good items to deal with crises.
Given the urgent situation, Ye Sheng didn't have time to complain. She first bound the Substitute Straw Doll to herself.
Immediately afterward, she activated the ring and selected her "teammate"—Ling Lan.
At this moment, the blood-burning potion that Ling Lan drank was about to wear off, causing her body to develop cracks, even on her face, making her look like parched land about to split open.
Ling Lan clenched her fists unwillingly.
Just give her one more minute.
She could win!
Unfortunately, the aftereffects of the blood-burning potion were too strong. No matter how firm her belief was... wait, where did her injuries go?
Just as Ling Lan was feeling regretful, the cracks on her body suddenly disappeared.
Her damaged mental strength also rapidly recovered.
Ling Lan's eyes lit up, and without further delay, she grabbed the dagger and continued attacking the giant panda.
On the other side, Ye Sheng looked down at the Substitute Straw Doll in her hand and found that the little straw figure had died a miserable death, its whole body cracked open, even the head wasn't spared.
Seeing this, Ye Sheng quickly patted her chest in relief. Fortunately, she had the substitute item!
[Substitute Straw Doll: Has endured one fatal attack (1/3)]
Due to the binding of the Substitute Doll, any relevant information immediately appeared in her mind as soon as it updated.
Whew!
Now, it was all up to Ling Lan.
She must win!
As Ye Sheng watched the battle nervously, the people in the mine finally managed to squeeze out.
At this moment, the S-class giant panda suffered Ling Lan's attack, letting out a piercing shriek.
This sonic attack was even more lethal, causing people to scream and flee in panic.
A large crowd rushed in Ye Sheng's direction, and before she could react, she was already being pushed along by the surging crowd, unable to move or struggle.
Thus, Ye Sheng was carried away by the crowd. When they finally stopped, the surroundings had changed entirely.
The few people around her quickly ran off, disappearing from her sight.
Although Ye Sheng was still in a dense bamboo forest, the bamboo here was pale gold compared to the green bamboo she was used to. Just as she was about to touch it out of curiosity, a voice shouted, "Sister Ye, don't touch that!"
Hearing Mo Lin's voice, Ye Sheng decisively put her hand down.
She then turned toward the sound and saw Mo Lin, who was originally neatly dressed but now looked disheveled, with messy hair, one shoe missing, and his clothes torn and tattered, looking like a little beggar.
As for Ye Sheng's condition, it was also quite bad.
Although her clothes weren't ripped into strips, her hair had been pushed into a bird's nest.
However, meeting someone she knew made Ye Sheng very happy.
"These are Golden Yin Bamboos. Don't touch them. They have strong hallucinogenic effects. However, because they can be used to make special weapons, the recycling price for a pound of golden bamboo is over a thousand points!" Mo Lin explained.
Seeing Ye Sheng also made Mo Lin very happy, but he had injured his foot in the mine, causing him to limp as he slowly hopped toward Ye Sheng.
Once they finally met up, Mo Lin immediately suggested, " Golden Yin Bamboo is rare. Should we take some with us?"
Seeing Mo Lin's money-over-life attitude, Ye Sheng couldn't help but twitch her mouth in exasperation. But then she thought about how Ling Lan, with her help, would surely be able to defeat the S-class giant panda.
In that case, they didn't need to rush to escape. They could just wait patiently.
[Substitute Straw Doll: Has endured one fatal attack (2/3)]
Hearing the reminder from the substitute doll, Ye Sheng silently cheered for Ling Lan.
Her hands, however, were quite honest as she pulled out the energy sword, preparing to cut the golden bamboo. Seeing this, Mo Lin excitedly grinned and joined her, all the while muttering, "lGolden Yin Bamboo not only has hallucinogenic effects but is also quite popular for its taste..."
"..."
Ye Sheng paused, then silently looked up and met Mo Lin's eyes.
The next second, in the bamboo forest, they spotted a five-meter-tall baby giant panda happily munching on the Golden Yin Bamboo.