Chapter 577: Close Combat
After swatting away several mechs, the Primordial Body swung its massive tentacles a few more times, forcing the remaining mechs to retreat. Then, with a shudder, it opened its storage sacs, releasing a swarm of mature and larval bodies into the void.
Seeing the Primordial Body summon reinforcements, the mech pilots didn’t panic. Instead, they grew excited. Earlier, there had only been a few Primordial Bodies, but tens of thousands of mechs had been present, leaving many pilots without a chance to engage.
Now that the Primordial Body had released its mature and larval bodies, many of the onlookers could finally join the fight. These smaller Space Octopuses were far inferior to the Primordial Body in terms of parameters, making them much less dangerous overall.
The death of the first mech pilot had left a somber impression on these rookies, who had never seen real combat and had previously been nothing more than model enthusiasts. In the virtual world, they could restart endlessly, but in reality, they only had one life. Having weaker enemies to practice on was a welcome opportunity.
As soon as the mature and larval bodies dispersed, they were surrounded by the mech pilots, who eagerly competed for targets. However, while the mature and larval bodies were far inferior to the Primordial Body in most aspects, they were slightly more agile.
The second mech pilot to fall wasn’t killed by a Primordial Body or a mature body, but rather by what seemed to be the weakest of the bunch—a larval body.
These larval Space Octopuses, less than twenty meters in length and lacking any ranged attacks, appeared tiny compared to the sixty-meter-tall mechs. Yet, when faced with an oncoming mech, the larval body didn’t hesitate. It charged straight at its opponent.
As the two closed in, the mech’s point-defense cannons on its head and chest opened fire, unleashing a barrage of shots. While the Primordial Body’s tough biological armor could ignore such attacks, the larval body, with its much thinner armor, had to show some respect.
However, dodging was nearly impossible at such close range. The mech, with its red shield in one hand and a ship-cutting blade in the other, was already upon it. Dodging would mean losing the initiative.