Chapter 94: Into the Sea (2)
The shrimp units could match the mantis shrimp in speed, but their attacks were too weak to penetrate its armor, relegating them to reconnaissance roles.
Fortunately, mantis shrimp often hid in the sandy seabed, lying in wait to ambush passing prey. Coincidentally, such areas were also the crabs’ domain.
After several hours of patrolling, hundreds of shrimp scouts finally located a mantis shrimp at a depth of over 200 meters. The crabs soon received the coordinates and moved in.
To avoid alarming the mantis shrimp, only two crabs approached its hiding place.
Perhaps because the crabs were similar in size to the mantis shrimp, it chose to attack rather than flee. It lunged at one crab, which hurriedly raised its claw in defense. Yet, as the mantis shrimp darted past, one of the crab’s claws was severed, floating away.
However, the mantis shrimp underestimated the swarm’s collective combat tactics. The two crabs had deliberately lured it out. When it paused momentarily to prepare for another strike, the second crab seized the opportunity, leaping forward and pinning the mantis shrimp with its claws.
The mantis shrimp, covered in spikes, struggled fiercely. While the crabs’ carapaces provided excellent defense, their abdominal armor was relatively soft, and the mantis shrimp managed to pierce them in several places.
The injured crab, now reduced to a single claw, used it to grip the mantis shrimp’s head and carapace seam. In retaliation, the mantis shrimp unleashed a hammer strike, severing the crab’s remaining claw.
Even so, the detached claw remained lodged in the mantis shrimp’s carapace seam, severely hindering its movements.