As the heavy blast gate opened fully, we seemed to cross the boundary between life and death, entering an alien dimension that didn't belong to humans.
It was a massive underground cavern. The original subway maintenance hall was unrecognizable. Steel girders and concrete walls were covered in a thick layer of translucent, ghostly blue crystal clusters. These crystals grew like living mold, spreading madly, decorating the space like a glittering crystal palace, yet emitting a suffocating, eerie aura.
The air was thick with a sickeningly sweet scent—a mix of high-concentration energy radiation and biological pheromones.
In the center of the cavern, a truck-sized, irregular deep blue meteorite floated.
It beat slowly and powerfully like a giant heart. With every pulse, a visible blue ripple spread outward, connecting to countless thick energy tentacles, feeding endless power into the massive web below.
In the center of that web woven from blue energy threads, a colossal shadow crouched.
Even under the glare of tactical lights, its size was suffocating—as big as a double-decker bus. Covered in diamond-like, indestructible crystal armor. Eight long legs covered in barbs stabbed deep into the ground like steel spears, supporting its bloated, terrifying body.
[Target Lock: C-Rank Peak Variant (Lord Class) · Crystalline Broodmother][Status: Deep Sleep / Absorbing Energy][Danger Level: EXTREMELY LETHAL (Skull Class)]
Gulp...
A collective sound of swallowing came from behind me. The confidence built from slaughtering Hunters in the tunnel shattered like a soap bubble in the sun the moment they saw this titan. Pop. Gone.
"Th... That's too big..." Little Liu's compound bow trembled, arrow tapping against the riser. Click-click. "Can we... really fight this thing?"
Fear spread through the team like a plague.
But I wasn't afraid. Or rather, my fear was suppressed by greed and arrogance.
I looked at the sleeping monster. My eyes saw only the giant meteorite above it, and the priceless Core in its brain.
"Scared of what?"
I drew the Tang Dao from my back, pointing the blade at the sleeping beast. Voice feverish. "It's sleeping! This is a god-given chance! If we're fast enough, we can cripple it before it wakes up, maybe even kill it instantly!"
"Boss..." Quinn's voice shook. She grabbed my sleeve, eyes full of worry. "It's too big... and the energy fluctuation here is too strong. Our arrows might not pierce its shell... We should retreat, make a detailed plan..."
"Make a plan?"
I shook off her hand violently. Shouted sternly: "Am I the Lord or are you?! The opportunity is fleeting! If we go back to plan, what if it wakes up? What if it runs? Or finishes evolving?!"
My voice echoed in the empty hall, full of unquestionable dictatorship.
"Everyone listen! Spread out and surround! Take the high ground!"
Under my pressure, Quinn gritted her teeth and waved the team to spread out. Reluctant, but they followed orders.
Old Zhang held the modified heavy riot shield, creeping to the front. Little Liu and Ah Qiang led the archer team up the abandoned maintenance platforms on the sides. Others took out homemade Molotovs, lighters flickering in the dark.
But I made a fatal mistake.
I was too rushed. Eager to prove my power. Eager to harvest the loot. Eager to establish an invincible image in front of these recruits.
I sent them into the Broodmother's absolute kill zone without establishing a defense line, without probing attacks, without even leaving a retreat route.
Seeing everyone in position, I took a deep breath and swung my sword down.
"Fire! Shoot! Hit it with everything you've got!"
At my command, five Molotovs arced through the air, smashing accurately onto the Broodmother's head and abdomen. Simultaneously, ten custom armor-piercing arrows whistled, aiming for its compound eyes and joints.
Smash! Smash! Smash!
Glass broke. Sticky gasoline mixed with sugar exploded into balls of fire on the Broodmother.
"Got it!" I rejoiced.
However, the next second, a scene of despair unfolded for me and everyone else.
On the surface of the Broodmother's body, a layer of pale blue, ripple-like energy halo suddenly appeared.
The flames that should have burned fiercely on the shell, the moment they touched the halo, seemed frozen. Extinguished instantly, turning into wisps of smoke.
Then the arrows.
Cling! Cling! Cling!
The carbon fiber arrows capable of piercing car doors hit the thin halo and made crisp metallic sounds. Then... all bounced off!
Didn't even leave a white mark! Didn't even make its body shake!
"Physical Immunity?!" My heart sank. Chill went straight to my skull. "That's... an Energy Shield!"
While we were stunned, the behemoth moved.
SCREEEEE—!!!
A deafening shriek resonated through the underground space. High-frequency vibration shook crystals off the ceiling, hurting our eardrums, making us dizzy.
The Broodmother opened eight scarlet compound eyes.
It wasn't heavily injured or panicked as I expected. Instead, its eyes were full of tyranny, mockery, and the grumpiness of being woken from a sweet dream.
That look was like a mammoth looking at a group of suicidal ants holding toothpicks.
A terrifying pressure swept the hall. Air solidified. Everyone's legs went soft. Breathing became difficult.
"It... It's awake!" "Run!"
Formation broke instantly. Little Liu and Ah Qiang, the young ones, collapsed mentally. Turned to run.
"Don't run! Hold formation!" I tried to maintain order, screaming hoarsely. "Old Zhang! Tank it! Others keep shooting!"
But fear had broken these rookies.
The Broodmother moved.
It didn't attack me. Didn't attack Quinn. As an intelligent Lord creature, it saw instantly who was the weakest, who was easiest to kill, whose meat was most tender.
Its black, barbed leg, five meters long, stabbed out. Fast as black lightning. Leaving an afterimage.
Shunk! Shunk!
Two sickening thuds.
Little Liu and Ah Qiang, running at the front, didn't even scream. They were skewered together on the same leg like a kebab.
The thick leg easily pierced their expensive stab-proof vests, went through their chests, and lifted them high.
"Ugh..."
Little Liu's eyes bulged. Hands weakly grabbing the blade through his chest. Blood foam bubbling from his mouth. He looked at me. Eyes full of confusion, fear, and despair.
That look asked: Boss, didn't you say we'd win? Didn't you say the gear was invincible? Why... are we dying?
"Liu! Qiang!!"
Quinn let out a heart-tearing scream. Tears burst out.
Flick!
The Broodmother flicked its leg dismissively, like shaking mud off a shoe. Two bodies smashed against the rock wall dozens of meters away. Splat. Turned into meat paste.
"Damn it... how..."
My mind went blank. Hands and feet cold. Tang Dao trembling. My confidence, my arrogance, shattered in this moment.
"Defense ineffective! It has an Energy Shield!" Shadow roared beside me, slapping my leg to wake me up. "You idiot! I told you it was dangerous! Why didn't you listen?! Happy now?!"
But I couldn't hear him.
I watched the members I hand-picked, armed myself, promised a good life... being slaughtered like lambs.
Hiss—
The Broodmother opened its mouthparts. A jet of dark green venom sprayed out, covering three members on the right platform.
"AAAAHHH!!!"
Shrill screams echoed. The three rolled in the acid, wailing. Protective suits melted. Skin ulcerated. Flesh dissolved into bone water in seconds, emitting a nauseating sour stench.
Three more.
Ten-man squad. Half gone in a blink.
And all this... was because of my arrogance. I brought them here. I sent them to die.
"Boss! Help me!"
Old Zhang raised the alloy shield, trying to block the Broodmother to buy time for others. But the shield he was so proud of, the one that could stop a zombie horde, twisted like paper under the Broodmother's immense strength.
A thick strand of silk wrapped around his waist, dragging him toward the abyss-like mouth full of razor teeth.
He reached out to me in despair. Fingernails scratching deep bloody grooves in the floor. Eyes full of the desire to live.
"Boss... save me... I have kids at home..."
"Old Zhang!"
I wanted to rush over. But my legs felt filled with lead. Fear and guilt were two hands choking me, paralyzing me.
I couldn't move.
I could only watch Old Zhang being dragged into that maw.
Crunch... Crunch...
The sound of bones being chewed was clear. Accompanied by the splash of blood.
Those sounds were slaps. Hitting my face. Hitting my soul.
The gear I was proud of, the squad I meticulously built, were fragile jokes in the face of true apocalyptic horror.