Chapter 312 : Breaking Through the Ice
Things eventually turned out this way.
Over the next three days, the Time Shuttle piloted by the girls didn't head directly toward the Ruins City, but first conducted a series of explorations in the vicinity, collecting sufficient geological and botanical intelligence.
After experiencing this incident, the atmosphere on the ship became much more lively. Even Luozhi Sheng was no longer wary of the Eight-Tailed Fox, but seemed to understand something and opened the door to a new world.
Elucia continued to bully the little fox as usual, using various ingenious tools and mechanisms to improve Lonis's reflexes and combat responsiveness.
And just when everything was proceeding in an orderly manner...
Something completely unexpected happened.
......
......
"What are those things?"
Luozhi Sheng looked puzzledly at the group of black shadows at the edge of the screen.
They were hidden in the darkness. Though their bodies were only 2 meters long, their enormous wings were a full 6 meters wide.
Though they were too far away to see clearly, they were undoubtedly hostile.
Monsters from the underground world?
Or troops sent by the Trickster Demon Lord?
Luozhi Sheng was about to call everyone, but when the monsters approached and she could see their appearance clearly, she froze.
"How could there be such monsters?"
Luozhi Sheng's fingers couldn't stop trembling, because these monsters were none other than insects she was very familiar with—mosquitoes!
Except compared to ordinary mosquitoes, these mosquitoes were much, much larger. Luozhi Sheng quickly shouted:
"Enemy attack! Giant mosquitoes!"
Moments later, everyone gathered in the pilot house.
Seeing the mosquitoes outside the window, Yicheng also shook her head and said to everyone: "Everyone, we'd better keep our distance, because those aren't ordinary mosquitoes."
"Oh?"
"Yes, ordinary mosquitoes absorb blood to strengthen themselves. But these mosquitoes can absorb heat from other objects through contact."
"What?"
"Neither metal nor human bodies can escape. These are probably combat weapons created using Ice Abyss power."
Yicheng's words chilled the girls' hearts.
Absorbing temperature... this was really too terrifying!
Even if the Time Shuttle's armor was impregnable, it would crumble instantly before these Freeze Mosquitoes.
Fortunately, Yicheng had given advance warning. Otherwise, if they waited until the mosquitoes approached before hastily engaging, everyone would suffer greatly.
"Captain Elucia, what should we do? Turn the ship around?"
Luozhi Sheng looked somewhat tense, gazing into the distance and suggesting: "My recommendation is not to clash head-on with these terrifying monsters. Because in my homeland, we also encountered attacks from similar monsters."
"Similar monsters?"
"Yes, also giant insects, but not mosquitoes—cockroaches. They spread disease, and their reproductive ability was extremely troublesome..."
But despite Luozhi Sheng's terrifying description, Elucia still shook her head:
"Luozhi Sheng, I understand your concerns. But currently, even if we turn around to avoid them, it's impossible."
"Why..."
"Because look, these Freeze Mosquitoes aren't coming from all directions at once. Their movements are sequential... This means their purpose isn't to attack the ship, but to drive us in a particular direction."
"!"
"Surrounding three sides while leaving one open—if we avoid them now, we'll probably sail into the area where the enemy has set their ambush. So... ignore them and charge straight through!"
Though Elucia was a little loli, the will and aura she burst forth in this instant surprised all the girls present.
Princess Sethilu also nodded after pondering for a moment: "Yes, I also agree with Captain Elucia's opinion... Because someday we'll face Caster and the Trickster Demon Lord directly! So it's just a group of Freeze Mosquitoes. We need to find their weaknesses and target them accordingly."
"Understood."
Luozhi Sheng wasn't stubborn. In fact, she greatly respected Elucia and Princess Sethilu, so she unconditionally followed their arrangements.
......
......
The ship sailed forward like this.
Elucia's decision also seemed to exceed the enemy's expectations... Those Freeze Mosquitoes apparently hadn't expected the ship not only to not retreat, but to charge directly at them!
This moment of confusion gave the girls a slight opening.
"All ship, accelerate! Everyone secure your safety belts!"
"Yes!"
The ship sped forward rapidly, and those Freeze Mosquitoes crashed into the ship... With the contact between ship and Freeze Mosquitoes, an indescribable chill began spreading through the girls' hearts.
20 degrees, 15 degrees, 10 degrees, 5 degrees, 0 degrees...
The temperature inside the hull plummeted rapidly. Soon everyone was shivering from cold, even their breath forming visible vapor.
Fortunately, they had prepared in advance. Everyone wore warm coats, so no one suffered hypothermia.
And little fox Lonis?
She was tightly wrapped in bedsheets three times by Elucia, then tied up with rope~
This way, though the poor little fox was immobilized like a mummy... at least she wouldn't freeze.
But just then, the indoor thermometer reached an astounding minus 10 degrees Celsius!
This was equivalent to traveling in ice and snow, but everyone gritted their teeth and continued their work.
"Reporting to Captain, scanning area all normal, no pressure loss detected!"
"Reporting to Captain, engine power down 5%, still capable of full-speed operation."
"Position confirmed, no obstacles ahead!"
"Wuu wuu meow, wuu wuu woof!"
Lonis seemed to want to say something too, but because she was wrapped in bedsheets and couldn't move, she could only make cute sounds.
Finally...
The Time Shuttle successfully broke through the Freeze Mosquitoes' blockade!
Though these giant insects could absorb heat from objects, the impact they caused was only temporary.
Though the room temperature ultimately reached minus 15 degrees Celsius, just 5 minutes later, the ship's temperature gradually rose again.
"Captain Elucia, we've successfully broken through the blockade!"
"Yes. Everyone did well... Thank you for your hard work."
Compared to her companions' jubilant cheers, Elucia only smiled faintly.
Because she knew the enemies they encountered now were just the beginning.
If they wanted to reach Ice Abyss Temple,
The real battle was still ahead!
......
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"Damn it!"
Having failed to lure the enemy into the trap as planned, Withered Leaf stamped her feet in anger. The surrounding forest seemed to respond to the girl's mood, emitting a unique howling wind.
Watching the furious Withered Leaf, a hunched man merely said:
"Oh my, is it worth getting so angry? My bugs were all consumed, and I'm not this angry."
He wore a pitch-black hood, his face so sinister it reminded one of cockroaches in shadows... But if the girls were here, they would be too shocked to speak.
Because he was the man who controlled Puppet Evil Worms in the Lizardman Village.
He should have self-destructed into a pool of pus and blood, but now he was perfectly fine, chuckling sinisterly: "But they escaped this time. How will they respond next time? Fire worms, poison wind worms—I can have as many of these mischievous bugs as needed."
"Cute?! Bah, they're all wood-boring pests that harm trees. Mortak, I advise you to stay away from me."
Withered Leaf looked incompatible with the man and stepped away.
"Fine, fine~ So without my bugs, what method do you plan to use to stop them?"
"Hehe... I still have my trump card unused! Next time, just watch and see."