Chapter 93
The wasteland was eerily silent. As far as the eye could see, there was nothing but cracked, yellowed earth and the thick, clinging blood mist.
Within that mist, something seemed to be lurking, hidden in the shadows, silently observing.
Amid this ominous, foreboding atmosphere, a slim young man dressed in a gray-blue uniform suddenly appeared in the wasteland.
Almost the instant he materialized, the previously calm mist began to churn violently. The wind howled across the barren land, and with an immense roar, a dense tide of blood mist surged toward the young man.
*
Base 24, Meteorological Observation Center
“Beep! Beep! Beep!”
A piercing alarm jolted the team leader of Observation Group One awake from his nap. He immediately sprang up, threw on his uniform jacket, and rushed to the monitoring station.
“Little Liu, what happened? Is there extreme weather forming again?”
Liu Jia, seated at the monitor, shook her head at his question. “The concentration of the blood mist east of the base is rising rapidly, and its movement trajectory has also become abnormal. However, so far, it hasn’t moved toward the base.”
This situation was more indicative of creatures within the blood mist fighting each other. Long-term observations had revealed that blood mist creatures engaged in territorial disputes, often causing abnormal fluctuations in the mist.
“Keep monitoring it. Stay alert!”
“Yes, sir!”
The group leader, whose hair was streaked with gray and whose brow was deeply furrowed with wrinkles, continued to stare at the data streaming in from the monitors. His expression grew increasingly grim. After some hesitation, he decided to report the relevant information to the base AI.
Whether extreme weather would develop or not, it was better to err on the side of caution.
However, just as he finished submitting the report, he noticed—
The blood mist, which had been surging and converging on a single point, suddenly froze. Then, to the astonishment of everyone in the observation team, it rapidly dispersed in three directions—east, south, and north.
It was as if something terrifying were chasing it, and the mist was frantically fleeing in all directions. Of course, such a description felt absurd no matter how one thought about it.
The only solace was that the blood mist wasn’t retreating toward the base.
In just two or three seconds, the area that had been dark red, almost black, turned—
Completely normal white.
“L-Leader, what does this phenomenon mean?”
Liu Jia, who had been working at the observation center for just over a year, had never seen anything like this before. After a moment of stunned silence, she turned to the seasoned leader, who had spent nearly a decade working on the prison planet, seeking guidance.
The group leader was speechless.
You’re asking me? Who am I supposed to ask?!
*
Su Ci surveyed the now-cleared surroundings and nodded with satisfaction. As for whether this unusual event would draw attention from the base…
With the AI covering for him, there was nothing to worry about.
The little monkey, perched on Su Ci’s shoulder, looked around with wide, round eyes, curious about everything it saw.
The scenery around them was desolate and barren. Even with the blood mist receding, the oppressive atmosphere gone, the visual improvement was marginal at best.
Su Ci held A-Yan’s hand as they walked forward. With what appeared to be just one step, they reappeared dozens of meters away, almost as if they had teleported.
Yet A-Yan, walking beside him, knew this wasn’t teleportation.
“Shrinking the Ground into Inches,” Su Ci explained, seemingly sensing A-Yan’s curiosity. “It’s an interesting technique. Pay close attention—you’ll be tested on it later.”
Since A-Yan had already mastered teleportation, learning this spell should be well within his grasp, which was why Su Ci brought it up.
A-Yan nodded, his expression growing serious. Even the little monkey on Su Ci’s shoulder found its attention drawn by their conversation.
Su Ci continued leading the two little companions forward. With each step he took, the blood mist, which had already retreated into the distance, was pushed back another ten feet.
Occasionally, they spotted a few giant insects. When exposed after the mist receded, the creatures would glance around in confusion before hastily retreating back into the mist or burrowing into the ground, leaving small pits in their wake.
Noticing this, the little monkey clapped its hands in delight, its earlier melancholy forgotten.
Su Ci’s lips curved into a slight smile as he led them onward until they stopped before a river blocking their path.
Calling it a “river” was perhaps overly generous.
The riverbed, over twenty meters wide and seven to eight meters deep, was almost entirely dry and cracked. Only a few low-lying areas held shallow pools of muddy water.
The water was murky and tinged with an eerie red. Though the surface appeared calm, it exuded a sense of unease, as though countless unseen eyes lurked beneath, watching anyone who dared approach the banks.
Su Ci’s figure flickered, and he appeared in front of one such pool.
The source of the river had likely dried up or been blocked, leaving only these shallow puddles formed by recent blood rains.
The little monkey, perched on Su Ci’s shoulder and curiously glancing around earlier, suddenly sensed the strange atmosphere and instinctively huddled closer to him.
Feeling the soft fur brush against his face, Su Ci chuckled. But when his gaze lowered to the pool, his expression turned solemn.
In the next instant—
Boom!
A blood-red shadow erupted from the water—no, it was the water itself. The murky, crimson-streaked liquid formed a writhing, slimy creature that radiated a foul stench.
This monster, composed entirely of bloody, muddy water, launched itself straight at Su Ci!
Su Ci remained motionless, as steady as a mountain. Even as the crimson mud monster neared, so close that its grotesque face reflected in his eyes—
A faint golden light flashed in the depths of his pupils.
The creature closed the gap.
Ten centimeters.
The mud monster was just ten centimeters from him.
But in that final stretch, the creature couldn’t move forward even a fraction more. Not only could it not touch Su Ci, but even its foul stench was blocked by a transparent barrier of light.
The little monkey, perched on Su Ci’s shoulder, began chattering nervously as the mud monster shot into the air. Yet despite its fear, it didn’t turn and flee. Instead, when the monster loomed directly in front of them, it covered its eyes with its tiny hands, trembling slightly.
When the imagined pain didn’t come, the little monkey cautiously parted its fingers, peeking at the mud monster through the gaps with one eye.
The mud monster stood nearly three meters tall. After surging upward from the ground, its massive body curved in a threatening arc as it lunged toward them.
Its enormous figure seemed to blot out the sky, leaving the little monkey awestruck. But what shocked it even more was…
The slender caretaker stood completely unmoved in the face of this giant mud monster. With just his gaze, he rendered the creature incapable of advancing another inch.
The monster roared in fury, attempting to appear fierce, but it looked more like a bluff. Its slimy, muddy body seemed stuck mid-air, unable to move forward or retreat.
“Roaaar—!”
The blood-red mud monster’s enraged and resentful howls echoed across the empty riverbed, splattering muddy water everywhere as it thrashed.
Although the protective light barrier prevented the splatter from reaching Su Ci and A-Yan, the sight of the filthy blood-streaked mud made Su Ci frown in distaste.
With a casual wave, the massive mud monster was forced back into the pool at a speed even faster than when it had emerged.
The surface of the water stilled, appearing as though sealed by an invisible force.
“Boom! Boom! Boom!”
The mud monster pounded against the water’s surface with muffled thuds. It wasn’t that it failed to grasp the futility of attacking Su Ci but rather…
When it tried to burrow downward, it discovered that the once-soft mud had become as solid as stone. Trapped within the water pool, it had no way to escape!
Watching Su Ci easily subdue the creature, A-Yan couldn’t help but feel admiration, even though he was already well aware of Su Ci’s strength.
If it were him facing such a monster, all he could do was turn and flee. Currently, aside from his teleportation ability, he hadn’t mastered any combat techniques.
He resolved to work harder. If he ever wanted to enter the blood mist in the future, he needed to at least have the strength to protect himself.
At that moment, Su Ci glanced at the trapped mud monster and spoke to the two little companions. “This is a creature born from accumulated mud and resentment. If you encounter pools like this in the wild, you must be cautious.”
Judging by the intensity of the resentment and the deep red hue of this creature, it had definitely taken lives, devouring a great deal of flesh and blood to attain its current form.
A flicker of disdain crossed Su Ci’s eyes.
Then, he turned his palm over, and a crimson flame appeared in his hand, burning quietly.
The little monkey stared at the sudden flame, momentarily stunned. It could feel that this flame—felt very similar to Number Two’s crimson flame.
No, that wasn’t quite right. It felt far more powerful than the crimson flame.
The flame that constantly tormented Number Two, wild and untamable, was instead calm and obedient in the caretaker’s hand, devoid of any ferocity or aggression.
The little monkey even felt a slight urge to reach out and touch it—though it knew better and quickly dismissed the idea.
“Fire is the bane of creatures like this,” Su Ci remarked.
Though this was his first encounter with such a creature, Su Ci had effortlessly discerned its traits and weaknesses with a single glance.
Judging from the numerous pools scattered across the riverbed, there were likely more of these creatures, possibly in significant numbers. So, he decided to turn this into a live lesson.
With a flick of his hand, the crimson flame burning in his palm flew forward, landing in the water pool.
Ordinarily, water should extinguish fire. However, the moment the crimson flame touched the pool, it didn’t go out. Instead, it burned even more fiercely, its intensity growing with each passing moment.
“Roar! Roar!!!”
Su Ci had already released the mud monster from his binding spell, but the creature couldn’t escape. Trapped in the blazing heat of the flame, it let out agonized, piercing screams.
The flames roared and blazed.
Strangely enough, the water in the pool wasn’t evaporating. It seemed the fire was targeting only the mud monster, leaving the water itself unaffected.
Finally, as the mud monster’s screams faded into silence and disappeared entirely, the water pool returned to calm. When Su Ci recalled the crimson flame, the murky red hue in the muddy water was gone, replaced by its original yellow-brown color.
After a period of settling, perhaps it might even return to being clear.
Watching this, A-Yan couldn’t help but voice his confusion. “The water didn’t disappear.”
Su Ci’s lips curved into a faint smile. “That’s where your control over fire comes into play.”
The key, however, lay in the nature of the flame itself—crimson flame was a supremely pure and intense fire, capable of burning away all impurities. By incinerating the resentment fueling the mud monster, it removed the source of its power, leading to its natural demise.
In that sense, the Crimson Flame Tiger truly was the nemesis of such creatures.
Unfortunately, Number Two still couldn’t fully control the power of the crimson flame. Otherwise, Su Ci mused, he might’ve brought him along to the blood mist to deal with these monsters. It would’ve been a great way to let him burn off some of his excess energy.
As Su Ci contemplated Number Two’s future development, he turned and made his way toward another pool.
Scattered across the riverbed were a dozen or so water pools of varying sizes. When Su Ci incinerated the first mud monster, the previously calm surfaces of these pools began to ripple and stir.
The pools started writhing and shifting, eventually merging into a single massive pool over ten meters in diameter.
As they combined, the aura emanating from this pool grew even more menacing and ominous. Moments later, a colossal mud monster emerged slowly from the water. Its head alone measured over ten meters wide, dwarfing anything that had come before.
*
In the distance, a combat ship cautiously approached from the direction of Base 24.
This was the Yan Ping Squad, who had decided to investigate the disturbance themselves. The decision was prompted by an unusual observation: the blood mist in the direction of Base 24 had almost completely cleared.
The detected pollutant levels in that area were even lower than most parts inside the base, excluding the plantation.
Before departure, acting on the AI’s recommendation, Yan Ping had equipped his team with the plantation’s newly developed garlic-scented spray. The journey to the area where the anomaly had first been reported was uneventful, with no trouble encountered along the way.
Once in the area, a cursory visual inspection revealed nothing out of the ordinary.
Then, the team heard the distant roars.
Yan Ping recalled that direction led to a dried-up riverbed, known to be home to numerous blood-mud monsters. Back when the blood mist first appeared and the base began sending operations teams, one squad had perished in that very area.
Fortunately, these mud creatures typically remained confined to the riverbed. As long as one avoided the riverbed itself, they posed little danger.
Additionally, these creatures were usually silent, lying dormant beneath the riverbed until an unsuspecting victim wandered close.
But today…
Why were they so loud? The roars sounded full of rage.
Was there some unknown change in the blood mist? Yan Ping frowned, a sense of unease creeping into his heart.
The most troubling development in recent times had been monsters infiltrating base structures. When he first received the report about the blood mist anomaly, he’d been investigating the metallic wall tunnels with his team.
That proximity was why he’d decided to check the anomaly so quickly—it was incredibly close to their location.
Now, the agitation of the blood-mud monsters had piqued his interest.
“Captain, what should we do next?” Guan Zhishu asked from beside him.
Though her face was slightly pale from the deafening roars, her voice remained steady and composed.
Yan Ping’s brow furrowed tightly.
Under these circumstances, returning to the base immediately would be the safest option. However, failing to investigate the anomaly could mean missing crucial clues, leaving potential dangers unaddressed and setting the stage for future hazards.
To respond effectively, they needed timely information.
After a brief deliberation, he issued his order. “Continue forward, but slow down. Let’s see what’s happening.”
“Yes, sir!”
The battle-hardened members of the operations team showed no signs of fear. With unwavering focus, they all turned their eyes toward the riverbed, prepared for anything that might arise.
One of the squad members, noticing the pilot’s visible tension, tried to reassure him, saying, “Don’t worry. As long as you don’t fly directly over the riverbed, we’ll be fine.”
“Those disgusting mud monsters—what the hell?!”
He hadn’t even finished his sentence when a towering figure, over twenty meters tall, emerged from the riverbed ahead. The creature’s entire body was composed of muck—slimy, oozing mud—with only its head vaguely resembling a grotesque face.
Taking the river’s depth into account, the mud giant stood at least thirty meters tall!
“…”
The previously confident squad member felt like he was losing his mind. At such a height, even if the mud giant couldn’t leave the riverbed, it could simply reach up and pluck them out of the sky!
“Return to base! Immediately return to base!”
Yan Ping decisively issued the order, and the pilot, snapping out of his shock, quickly swung the ship around.
They could hear the roaring of the colossal blood-mud giant behind them, and the gusts of wind it stirred nearly flipped their ship over. Thankfully, the pilot’s skill allowed him to stabilize the craft amidst the turbulence, and he hastily flew back toward the base.
His mind raced: Oh no, oh no! They’ve spotted us! The monster is going to chase us! I don’t want to be eaten!
The combat ship, which had approached cautiously, now fled at full speed, disappearing into the distance in the blink of an eye.
But in reality, the massive blood-mud giant hadn’t even glanced at them. Its entire focus was fixed on the slender young man standing before it—someone so small that he didn’t even reach the height of one of its finger joints.
“Roar!”
The dozen or so mud monsters, having merged into a single entity, finally felt confident enough to face Su Ci. Emboldened by their combined strength, their aura grew fiercer.
The mud giant raised one massive hand and slammed it down toward Su Ci and his companions.
Yet Su Ci’s expression remained unchanged from beginning to end. In fact, seeing the mud monsters gather together brought a hint of satisfaction to his face.
Good, no need to deal with them one by one.
This time, Su Ci didn’t use the crimson flame. Since this was a teaching moment, it was better to demonstrate various techniques, especially since not everyone could use the crimson flame.
“A-Yan, watch closely,” Su Ci said calmly.
He raised his hand, and a glowing orb of light appeared, radiating a soft golden hue. “When dealing with creatures born of resentment, the best method is—”
“Purification!”
As his words fell, the pale golden light shot forward, landing squarely in the palm of the mud giant’s descending hand.
Despite its massive size, the tiny orb of light was barely noticeable against the giant’s enormous hand, like a speck of dust. Without close observation, it was almost invisible.
However, the moment that faint light made contact with the mud giant’s hand, it—
Disintegrated!
The tiny orb of light continued to expand, steadily disintegrating the mud monster’s body. First, its hand crumbled, followed by its arm, and finally its entire upper torso.
Wherever the light passed, the mud shed its blood-red hue, falling in clumps from the air. These pieces split above Su Ci’s head, harmlessly cascading to his sides and behind him, forming three small hills of yellowish earth. Standing amidst the encircling mounds, Su Ci smiled faintly, calm and composed as he watched the mud monster meet its end.
The once-imposing blood-mud giant let out terrified, agonized howls as it staggered backward, struggling to escape. But the purifying power spread relentlessly, following it wherever it went.
As its upper body disintegrated, the mud monster split apart again, transforming from a thirty-meter-tall giant into numerous smaller blood-red mud figures.
These mud figures began running frantically in all directions, desperately fleeing, their earlier confidence against Su Ci shattered beyond repair.
But could they still escape?
Or perhaps, from the moment they encountered Su Ci, their fate had already been sealed.
The purifying power didn’t weaken when they split; instead, it distributed evenly across each of them. As they ran, their bodies continued to break down.
Chunks of mud fell away, and the figures dissolved into clumps of moving sludge. Eventually, as the last trace of resentment was purified, they reverted to lifeless soil, collapsing where they stood and ceasing all movement.
Once the final mud creature was purified, the riverbed became tranquil once more, its stillness so complete that it seemed as if nothing had ever happened.
A few moments later, glowing orbs began rising from the remnants of the mud. These orbs transformed into faintly human-shaped spectral figures.
Upon seeing Su Ci, the specters seemed momentarily taken aback. But they quickly regained their composure and, in unison, saluted him. Without words, they expressed their gratitude to him.
Su Ci gazed at them and, after a brief pause, returned their salute, guided by a fragment of knowledge surfacing in his mind.
The little monkey, perched on Su Ci’s shoulder, looked at him and then at the spectral figures. Though it hadn’t fled during the sudden attack by the blood-mud monster, this moment moved it in a way nothing else had. It leapt down from Su Ci’s shoulder.
Standing on the ground, the little monkey imitated Su Ci’s gesture and gave the spectral souls a respectful salute.
At the forefront stood what appeared to be a young female soldier. She smiled warmly at the little monkey. Her already translucent form began to fade further, eventually breaking apart into glowing particles that merged into the earth beneath her feet, joining the others.
The little monkey stared at them, motionless.
It didn’t know these people, nor their stories, yet it felt a deep, inexplicable sadness in its heart.
When the last of them disappeared into the ground as points of light, tears slipped from the corners of the little monkey’s eyes.
The young man crouched down beside the little monkey.
Su Ci gently patted the little monkey’s head and said softly, “Don’t be sad. They’ve simply chosen another way to continue protecting this land.”
When the time comes for life to flourish once more, perhaps they’ll reappear on this earth, taking on a whole new form…
