Chapter 38: Permanent Coordinates
Three kilometers east of Dapus Fortress.
Su Xiao emerged from an underground passage, a pre-prepared retreat route excavated by two allied contractors.
Overall, the plan had gone smoothly. As for fighting through the alien fortress, Su Xiao had never considered that; it wasn't something he could accomplish alone.
The heavy armor units were troublesome. In a sufficiently open space, Su Xiao had many ways to deal with those iron lumps. But encountering them inside a building, especially a fortress, the best response was to retreat. The various non-judgment control effects were truly a headache.
Su Xiao wasn't afraid of control abilities that required judgment. In fact, the heavy armor units' abilities weren't strong control effects; they affected enemies through shockwaves, accumulating internal damage that led to paralysis and fatigue.
Glancing at the wooden box in his hand, Su Xiao felt relieved. The mission only required five Space-Time Crystals, but this operation had netted nine, exceeding expectations.
Opening the war channel, Su Xiao began posting messages.
Bai Ye (Dawn Adventure Group): "Got it. Nine."
Ghost Girl (Rogue): "Crazy Doctor, get out here."
Ghost Girl (Rogue): "Come out here, you bastard! You led those iron monsters after me. I know you're there, come out!!"
Crazy Doctor (Behind-the-Scenes Cooking Adventure Group): "That was an accident."
Luoni (Rogue): "Behind-the-Scenes Cooking showed up, everyone laugh at him."
Crazy Doctor (Behind-the-Scenes Cooking Adventure Group): "J, may you die a horrible death. Will pay heavily for an adventure group rename scroll. Urgent."
King Kong King (Rogue): "Retreating. Meeting at base camp."
Dean (Rogue): "Estimated safe return to base camp in one hour. Current survivors: 150."
...
The war channel was lively, mainly Ghost Girl cursing Crazy Doctor, and Crazy Doctor's adventure group name was quite distinctive.
From Crazy Doctor's few words, Su Xiao guessed that Crazy Doctor, Dean, and Mr. J had all been violators, their team named the Gentleman Alliance.
These three had clearly escaped the violator pit. The Gentleman Alliance had a notorious reputation, so naming a new group after it was obviously inappropriate. Thus, Mr. J went to change the team name.
That guy had two rename permissions, so he changed it to 'Behind-the-Scenes Cooking (Behind-the-Scenes Mastermind) Adventure Group,' planning to persuade both Crazy Doctor and Dean to quit, then transform it into a solo adventure group. Perfect.
Su Xiao knew Mr. J well. This guy had previously disguised himself as a clown, with a thick skin. Dean was someone who valued face and reluctantly quit the group. Crazy Doctor, however, dug in his heels against Mr. J, both of them bearing the 'Behind-the-Scenes Cooking' team title, neither willing to back down.
The return trip was smooth. When Su Xiao arrived at the base camp, only ten people remained on guard. The alien side hadn't launched a surprise attack on their base camp; with that kind of upheaval, they couldn't spare the attention.
Taking a shower, Su Xiao began treating his wounds. With Poison Claw dead, the spore clusters on his shoulder had long since fallen off. The wounds from the giant axe alien weren't hard to deal with either. Back at base camp, these were just 'superficial injuries.'
...
Fallen Zone, near an abandoned base camp.
Wisps of green smoke drifted from metal wreckage. This had once been the cult's base camp, now completely empty.
The surroundings were quiet. Inside a crevice between broken armor plates, it was dim. Faintly visible inside was an index finger, lying alone, the blood on it already dried.
Whether it was an illusion or not, the index finger seemed to twitch.
A beetle crawled near the finger, ready to gnaw on it. Suddenly, the beetle's body dissolved, turning into a wisp of smoke.
A peculiar scent spread. Not far away, a rodent crawled out of a dirt hole, its red nose twitching. Before long, it ran into the crevice between the armor plates.
"Squeak~"
The rodent let out a shrill cry before falling silent. A few seconds later, faint chewing sounds emerged.
The strange fragrance grew stronger. Dozens of rodents crawled into the crevice one after another.
Ten minutes later, a hand of bare bones reached out from the crevice. A figure slowly stood up. He was nothing but a skeleton, with flesh buds and membranes on the bones. The eyeballs inside the skull were directly exposed to the air, looking quite gruesome.
...
Inside the main cabin of the Reincarnation Paradise base camp.
Over a hundred contractors gathered here. On the round table at the center lay nine Space-Time Crystals.
"Let's begin. This is a stage victory."
The pale-faced Dean spoke. As he finished, the Space-Time Crystals on the table vanished one by one.
[Announcement: War Mission 1: Space-Time Power Condensate (Completed).]
[After this World Conquest War ends, this mission's rewards will be settled.]
[Total Space-Time Power Condensate obtained: 9. Exceeds war mission requirement by 4.]
[Permanent spatial coordinates generating...]
[Checking allied survivor count...]
[Check complete. Due to obtaining 4 more Space-Time Power Condensate than mission required, all allied contractors may choose the following:]
[1. Return to Reincarnation Paradise immediately. Merit reward settlement at 75%, war mission reward at 100%.]
[2. Compete for the World Core. If completed, merit reward settlement increases by an additional 20%.]
...
Two choices lay before them. The benefit of obtaining four extra Space-Time Crystals was now apparent.
Permanent spatial coordinates were about to be generated, meaning they no longer needed to defend the base camp. Movement restrictions were lifted.
"I plan to withdraw. Anyone with me?"
Widow West spoke. Beside her, King Kong King looked surprised. He was about to ask when he received a message from Dean's imprint, telling him to stay quiet.
"I'm just a head left. Both hands are gone. Staying would only beg for pity."
The Poison Master was indeed just a head and part of his torso. His hands had been bitten off by aliens.
"Count me in."
"And me."
A total of seven contractors spoke up. They had basically lost two or three major body parts. Staying would mean teaming up with others, and as the Poison Master put it, that was begging for pity.
Including the Poison Master, eight of their side chose to return. Spatial fluctuations appeared, and these eight returned to Reincarnation Paradise one by one.
"Widow West, why aren't you leaving? Once the permanent spatial coordinates form, you won't be able to."
King Kong King's brain was on 'vacation' again. Widow West glanced at him without speaking. That glance was full of charm, but the price of such romantic luck was high—deadly.
"Of course she won't leave. We've cooperated for a few days. The Poison Master is a very loyal person. Of course, if you haven't defended the base camp together, it doesn't matter. That guy was definitely the first to withdraw. After defending for so long, without someone to take the lead, some things are hard to say."
Dean was shrewd. When Widow West first spoke, he understood what was going on.
The very vengeful Ghost Girl didn't withdraw. She wouldn't take it out on Crazy Doctor, but this girl had developed a grudge against the heavy armor units. Even if she was now 'bottled,' she couldn't let it slide.
Of the 150 people, eight who could no longer fight withdrew. The remaining 142 all stayed. In the minds of some madmen among them, dying in this world was secondary. After being besieged by aliens for so many days, even if they couldn't wipe out the alien race, they wouldn't let them off easy.
[Tip: Permanent spatial coordinates generated. Allied base camp about to transform. Estimated liftoff in 3 hours.]
[War Mission 2: World Core, activated.]
PS: (Recommending a friend's book, title: I Can Connect Across.)