Chapter 442: Chapter 214: Let’s Fight Somewhere Else (Part 1)
With this understanding, Gu Ningzhi grew even more curious, his gaze constantly shifting between the two. Those branches seemed to know the three of them were hard to deal with. Coming up would only be sending themselves to death. After several waves of them died, they no longer appeared.
"Phew—my goodness, these bizarre things are even more troublesome than alien beasts." Gu Ningzhi wiped the sweat from his forehead.
"These branches are just one of the tens of millions of branches of the Mother Tree. They are not strong but very annoying." Su Jiameng planted Xihe into the ground. Even though she was powerful, she was also panting, "And their strength is not in combat power, but their nauseating ability. Along the way... ugh, absolutely filthy..."
Su Jiameng did not let her guard down even in the current situation, because she could feel the core trunk of the Mother Tree was still nearby.
The Insect Race were greedy and vicious creatures. Even knowing that the Ximolai Ore here had been tampered with and that they couldn’t absorb it, they lingered stubbornly over this mineral vein. Even after encountering the trio with Su Jiameng and suffering considerable setbacks, they still refused to leave.
However, precisely because of this greed, Su Jiameng had no concern about the Mother Tree moving its core trunk elsewhere. Now she had the leisure to sit on the ground to rest and catch her breath. After taking a sip of water, she tossed the bottle to Gong Yulu, "Have some."
Besides being voracious in energy absorption and having exaggerated branching, the Mother Tree also had the ability to pollute. It contained deadly toxins, and wherever it rooted itself, the surrounding environment became easily contaminated.
If some unsuspecting fool were to drink the water here, they would definitely be poisoned to death. In other words, if Gong Yulu hadn’t come out to stop Gu Ningzhi, and if the people on the warship really started collecting resources here... haha, the entire Expedition Army would perish silently on the warship, becoming mere dust in the vast cosmos! And they’d die in extreme agony and despair!
Su Jiameng didn’t know how Gong Yulu managed to survive on this planet. But judging from her state, it was clear that her situation was dire. She must have used extreme measures to survive until now.
"Thank you." Gong Yulu also put down Yongping, unabashedly finishing the remaining water.
Before the Mother Tree grew, the water sources on this planet were drinkable, and the quality was exceptionally good and tasty. However, as the Mother Tree occupied more territory, the potable water became scarcer.
The cold water slid down her parched throat, and the discomfort in her throat relaxed significantly. Su Jiameng rested enough and got up again, "Within the Insect Race, the Mother Tree is considered intelligent. Given that its core is the trunk, if the trunk were destroyed, the Mother Tree would die completely. So hiding the trunk is something they excel at..."
"But no matter how cunning a fox is, it can’t escape the hunter’s trap, can it?"
Gu Ningzhi watched eagerly as Su Jiameng and Gong Yulu finished the water, while he didn’t get a drop. Other than feeling disappointed, he just felt more disappointment. In his mind, he thought once he returned to the warship, he’d claim a whole bucket of water for himself to enjoy alone!
"You’re giving these guys too much credit by comparing them to foxes." Gong Yulu’s gloomy eyes turned, making Gu Ningzhi shiver. He could swear that despite all the battles they had faced, none were as fearsome as a single glance from her.
Gu Ningzhi sighed internally, "Women change their minds faster than flipping a page," and then obediently remained silent. He didn’t want to give Gong Yulu any reason to attack him. Su Jiameng continued to lead, Gong Yulu defended the rear, and he stayed in the middle.
"This cave... is really huge..." After a series of twists and turns, the three entered an enormous circular cave over a hundred meters high. The cave walls appeared somewhat smooth, not like they were naturally formed. Before Gu Ningzhi could finish speaking, he was startled by Gong Yulu’s words.
"This cave was bored out by the main trunk of the Mother Tree, so of course, it’s big." The cave should have been quite dark, but because the walls were embedded with small, scattered pieces of Ximolai Ore or other glowing minerals, the place was filled with multi-colored hues.
"The main trunk of the Mother Tree... bored it out?" Gu Ningzhi found it hard to believe. According to Gong Yulu, wouldn’t that mean the main trunk of the Mother Tree was over a hundred meters thick? As for how long it was, he couldn’t even imagine.
"Hmm, it’s just another of the clever tricks it uses." Gong Yulu said, surveying the front cautiously, "I’ve investigated this creature for a long time. It never settles in one place for long. Otherwise, why would it be so hard to find?"
The Mother Tree wouldn’t allow its main trunk to stay in one place for too long. But it was too greedy to leave the Ximolai Ore here, lingering around and refusing to leave. With Su Jiameng’s telekinesis perception, catching this prey shouldn’t be difficult.
"The universe truly is wondrous, to think it could produce such creatures..." Gu Ningzhi remarked in awe.
Su Jiameng responded, "The universe is indeed wondrous, but in my opinion, the Insect Race is like a virus disrupting the normal functioning of the intelligence system; their elimination is only natural."
Describing the Insect Race as a virus? It really was a vivid analogy.
The tunnel left by the movement of the main trunk was very long and became increasingly wide, eventually reaching over two hundred meters in width!
"I think we should figure out a way to lure this big thing out onto the surface before dealing with it... Once it’s outside, at least we’ll have the airborne artillery support of the warship..." Gu Ningzhi said, looking up, "This place is spacious for us, but for the Mother Tree, it might have difficulty even turning... if it moves at all, we might end up buried." (To be continued. If you like this work, welcome to vote for recommendations and monthly votes on Qidian (qidian.com). Your support is my greatest motivation. Mobile users, please read on m.qidian.com.)
