Chapter 520: Chapter 383 Powder and Flame_2
Just as Number Six was preparing to descend from the Platform to assist with the defense on the ground, he suddenly heard Yara shouting from below, "Number Six, you stay up there and provide firearm support, don’t come down. The rest of you, start contracting the defensive perimeter."
"Zachary, you go up first. Once it’s safe up there, provide firearm support as well. The order for climbing the steps will be in reverse age order," she yelled.
Before her words even finished echoing, Dong Tianyu had already made his way to the Platform hovering in midair.
At this moment, Xzavier was striving to create air walls, which would expand the usable surface area of the aerial Platform.
When Dong Tianyu reached the Platform, he began providing suppressive fire support for the others below, and Yara swiftly joined him on the Platform.
"Xzavier, put the expansion aside for now and get ready over here. As soon as the other team members have all gotten onto this Platform, immediately dismantle those air steps below," she instructed.
Hearing Yara’s plan, Xzavier didn’t say a word, grabbed a gun, and began providing fire support from above for the few remaining members of the Hunting Team.
Since the remaining individuals were all Martial Artists, they followed Yara’s retreat plan in an orderly fashion, ensuring the remaining personnel retreated onto the air Platform.
As the last member safely ascended the Platform, Xzavier immediately dispersed the air steps below, which had been meant only as stepping stones.
Seeing that everyone was safely on the Platform, Xzavier didn’t rush to expand the space but instead used the air walls to build a surrounding barrier.
With the air walls bending the light, it became impossible to visually detect what was happening on the floating Platform from a higher vantage point.
Although the Hunting Team had killed quite a few Soldier Bugs just now, their deaths were insignificant compared to the continuously gathering Soldier Bugs.
As the swarm of Soldier Bugs grew, the corpses that had remained on the ground disappeared for some unknown reason.
Yara speculated that the corpses were likely devoured by other Soldier Bugs following behind.
"Big A, hand me a field-clearing device. These things aren’t cheap, and I hope it can give these inexperienced Bugs Clan a bit of a shock just this once," she said.
Yara saw the undisguised desire in Dong Tianyu’s eyes and shook her head as she picked up the gadget, "Don’t even think about it. This thing has a high technological content, and your side won’t be able to produce it in a short time. Don’t be envious. If you really want one, after we get back safely, I’ll help you get a few through a special channel.
This device is brand new, and no one knows how effective it is yet. I didn’t get the few I have for free; they require a written battle report after use.
Basically, these devices are still prototypes, and I only received the ones I have by agreeing to provide post-battle data. If you really want one, you might be able to buy it if you’re willing to spend a lot."
After finishing, Yara toyed with it for a moment before casually tossing it below, regardless of how many of the Bug Race were down there, then said with a touch of show-off attitude, "Let’s all watch the effects."
The box Yara nonchalantly threw didn’t wait for a fated person to catch it, as it was immediately attacked by a Soldier Bug.
A Soldier Bug suddenly leaped up high and bit fiercely into the box. Before the insect could even land, the time was up. Even without the bug’s attack, the small, cigarette pack-sized box would have quickly gone from being unknown to notorious in a very short time.
Nobody would have thought that a box the size of a pack of cards could spray out so much white powder after splitting open. This powder was very light and could float in the air even without wind, lingering for a long time before settling down.
Zachary had originally thought that the white powder might be some kind of toxin or a substance with corrosive effects, but upon seeing that even when it fell on the shell of the Soldier Bug, it didn’t inflict any harm, and the Soldier Bugs on the ground were still wildly hopping about amidst the flames, Zachary did not speak up. Instead, he fixed his gaze on Yara with an implied meaning.
Faced with Zachary’s somewhat scrutinizing look, Yara pretended to be nonchalant and raised the weapon in her hand, firing several shots at the Soldier Bug that was jumping the most vigorously on the ground.
Normally, as long as the pistols in Yara’s hands could pose some danger to ordinary people, for the Soldier Bugs, unless every shot hit the bugs’ weakest points, the wounds would take no more than two days to heal as before.
However, this time when Yara fired the shots, no one expected the bullets to slip as they were shot, even though they did not hit the Soldier Bug’s vulnerable parts but struck the bug’s shell.
The friction between the bullet and the shell even created some sparks.
Under normal circumstances, that would have been the end of it, but don’t forget the box the size of a pack of cards that Yara had thrown down earlier. The explosion spread a white powder, covering everything on the ground.
The moment the sparks appeared, the white powder ignited as if it were an explosive, and the fire became extremely fierce in a very short time.
No one had expected that a box only the size of a pack of cards could produce powder that would cause such intense flames.
As Zachary saw the fire below growing bigger, he knew that the powder was not the main source of the flames below, at most acting as an accelerant.
As everyone watched the fire growing more intense, their expressions relaxed, knowing in their hearts that although they were temporarily safe, they were still inside the encirclement of the Bug Race. They had only gained a moment’s peace.
To truly be safe, they needed to find every possible way to return to the ground.
Unconsciously, everyone had moved to the edge of the Platform, admiring the flames below that, like a conquering general, spread and captured territory in every direction.
Just as everyone was enthusiastically watching the Soldier Bugs being reduced to ashes below, a sudden jarring buzz reached their ears. It was that buzz that recoiled the previously retreating Soldier Bugs, drawing them back again.
Perhaps the Soldier Bugs, which originally knew Zachary’s location, had all been burned to death in the flames just now, so the ones that had just arrived were unaware that Zachary and the others were hiding in mid-air.
Perhaps because there was no more fuel, the fire, which had been so fierce just a moment ago, began to diminish in height not long after, eventually turning into a pile of ashes.
It was only after the flames on the ground had completely disappeared that Zachary noticed everything on the ground had been reduced to ashes.
The bodies of the Bug Race strewn on the ground had already begun to vanish even before the flames arrived; the fire merely helped to cover up the traces left by the corpse-stealing thieves.
To Zachary, whether the corpses of the Soldier Bugs were stolen or burnt made no difference. As long as they were dead, it was good news to him.
Watching as wisps of blue smoke occasionally rose from the ground, Zachary turned to Yara and asked, "Do you know what’s going on with this?"
Hearing Zachary’s question, Yara mechanically shook her head and forced her brain to start up. Once fully coherent, Yara then began to explain to Zachary, "Under normal circumstances, there should be no problem, but for safety, we can wait a bit longer before leaving this place."
"If we don’t take the chance to leave now, when the Soldier Bugs regroup and surround us again, we won’t be able to leave even if we want to."
For some reason, the subordinates who had always obediently followed his instructions were now harboring second thoughts in their hearts.
