Chapter 444: Map Summary
The little dog had just entered the intersection point when it was caught in the aftermath of the battle and turned into a pulpy mess of flesh. Lin Ye continued sending others to explore the other intersection points. Now was not the time to enter that particular point.
He needed some flesh and blood as materials, and those two giant flesh-and-blood creatures were the perfect providers.
Lin Ye made some more little dogs and had them squat outside the intersection point, sending one in periodically to check the situation. If the two giants could wound each other severely, things would become much easier for him.
"Hmm?"
Lin Ye suddenly looked to his right. A little dog over there had died, and along with it, a team of survivors had been eliminated.
They hadn't entered a new intersection point. Instead, something had broken into *their* intersection point and swiftly dealt with them.
Lin Ye sent a 'run back' signal to the nearby squads, then dispatched a new little dog to approach that intersection point.
This time, Lin Ye focused his attention on that little dog. Before it could even enter the intersection point, it was crushed by something emerging from within.
'... It seems like a high-level duplicate?'
Lin Ye retrieved the Metal Giant, which had been disassembled into various parts, from his spatial item. Under the control of the parasite within the metal, the Metal Giant quickly reassembled itself. It flexed its body, then, gripping the blood-colored longsword, strode with heavy footsteps towards the target intersection point. *Thud!*
The moment it entered the intersection point, the Metal Giant was sent flying by compressed spiritual energy. Wave after wave of compressed spiritual energy slammed into its body like ocean waves, preventing it from getting back up off the ground.
But this was meaningless, as attacks of this level couldn't incapacitate it. And until it was dealt with, the enemy couldn't leave this intersection point.
"What the hell is that thing... So hard..."
"A metal... creature?"
"Is it an armored construct from Carnot Heavy Industries?"
"Can't you just cut its head off?"
"That's not its vital point. The vital point is in its chest."
"Attacking the vital point is useless too. Enemies can't be killed here."
"It's not a normal creature anyway. Just like those little dogs, smash it to pieces and it'll die."
...
Standing opposite the Metal Giant was an aggregate monster formed from the fusion of a large number of duplicates. The aggregate monster was over ten meters tall. Its bloated body was covered in human heads, each capable of independent thought and controlling a portion of the body.
They were searching for the original body scattered throughout the city. By devouring the original, they could advance further.
The aggregate monster slowly moved in front of the Metal Giant. It extended a forelimb, thrust it into the Metal Giant's body, and yanked out the parasite core within.
The Metal Giant struggled for a moment before quickly losing its vitality.
Having dealt with the Metal Giant, the aggregate monster moved towards the next intersection point, only to find it couldn't leave.
A blood-colored longsword pierced through the aggregate monster's body, releasing a large number of small parasites inside.
The aggregate monster didn't know that the Metal Giant was actually just an accessory for the blood-colored longsword.
The blood-colored longsword absorbed substances from within the aggregate monster to extend its blade. The aggregate monster tried to pull the sword out, only to discover that most of its internal organs had become connected to it. Pulling the sword out would severely affect the majority of the duplicates comprising it.
Consequently, the aggregate monster's actions began to show discrepancies. The coordination between the human heads displayed obvious problems.
Nevertheless, the aggregate monster finally managed to wrench the blood-colored longsword from its body. The cost was that most of the duplicates on its body lost control. It forcefully snapped the longsword, only to be sprayed with the liquefied flesh and blood inside.
A thick metal arm stabbed into the aggregate monster's body. The Metal Giant appeared behind it, taking the opportunity to tear the aggregate monster apart.
The aggregate monster used compressed spiritual energy to push the Metal Giant away, threw aside the blood-colored longsword, and forcibly ripped out the parasites within its body.
The Metal Giant charged at the aggregate monster again. Both the blade and the hilt of the blood-colored longsword grew several limbs, crawling like insects towards the aggregate monster from two other directions.
The aggregate monster tried to use compressed spiritual energy to blast these parasitic creatures away, but as its power was divided three ways, the attacks proved ineffective in all three directions.
The Metal Giant and the blood-colored longsword shredded the still-struggling aggregate monster. They then left the intersection point, taking the shredded materials with them.
After obtaining the materials, Lin Ye first separated the devoured survivors from the mass, then began modifying the remaining materials. He needed more pathfinding little dogs, as well as some combat-capable individuals.
The Metal Giant began following various squads to handle the more troublesome intersection points. Lin Ye continued monitoring the two giant flesh-and-blood creatures. Nearby intersection points occasionally spewed forth some duplicates. Weaker duplicates could be handled by the survivor squads, while stronger ones could be dealt with by the Metal Giant and the new types of individuals Lin Ye had created through Alienation.
"Mr. Lin, we encountered an exploration squad from Carnot Heavy Industries inside an intersection point over there."
Harvey walked over and reported.
"Bring them here."
Lin Ye wanted to learn about the situation with Carnot Heavy Industries' Armored Giant.
Soon, some survivors led the squad into the intersection point.
"Hello, I am the captain of the Carnot Exploration Squad. Could you share and consolidate the areas you've explored with us?"
The exploration squad captain was a middle-aged man with a resolute face. Upon seeing Lin Ye, he understood why these survivors had managed to establish a foothold here.
As a high-level spiritual energy user for Carnot Heavy Industries, he had seen Lin Ye once before.
"Certainly. What's the situation on your end? Has that duplicate been dealt with?"
Lin Ye took out paper and pen from his spatial item and quickly sketched the information in his mind onto the paper.
"It's been dealt with. However, the War Giant sustained severe damage. Even preliminary repairs will take at least a month or more."
The captain took out a device similar to a tablet, which displayed their electronic map.
The two of them completed the consolidation. The intersection points explored by Carnot Heavy Industries were surprisingly numerous, spread across the entire Free City. Lin Ye also shared information about the special intersection points with the captain.
If Carnot Heavy Industries was willing to handle those troublesome ones, he would be very pleased.
"Many factions have dispatched combat squads to clear intersection points. May I share the map with them?"
The captain handed Lin Ye a special communication device. They could use it to communicate within the city.
"No problem. Regarding those three anomalous creatures outside, do you have any plans?"
Just thinking about them gave Lin Ye a bad feeling.
"Not yet, for now. After all, they're currently only affecting Free City and haven't directly attacked us yet. We plan to deal with the anomalous phenomena within the city first."
After sharing the map with headquarters, the captain prepared to continue exploring other intersection points.
"I hope you can resolve the troubles in the city as soon as possible, especially those Salvation Cult cultists."
Lin Ye sighed. He had a feeling the final trouble would still fall to him to handle.