Chapter 38: Breaking Through the Frozen Ice
Things ended up this way.
For the next three days, the Time Shuttle, piloted by the girls, did not head directly to the City of Ruins. Instead, they conducted a series of explorations in the vicinity, gathering ample geological and botanical intelligence.
Following this incident, the atmosphere within the ship became much more lively. Even Zhisheng Luo was no longer wary of White Tail Fox, but seemed to have understood something and opened the door to a new world.
Elus, as usual, continued to bully the Little Fox, using various props and mechanisms to improve Lonis’s reaction time and combat readiness.
And just as everything was proceeding in an orderly fashion…
Something completely unexpected happened.
…
…
“What is that thing?”
Zhisheng Luo looked bewildurably at the group of dark figures at the end of the screen.
They were hidden in the darkness. Although their bodies were only 2 meters long, their enormous wingspan reached a full 6 meters.
Although they couldn’t see clearly from so far away, there was no doubt that their intentions were hostile.
Were they monsters from the Underground World?
Or were they troops dispatched by the Trickster Demon?
Zhisheng Luo was about to call everyone, but the appearance of the monsters as they approached stunned her.
“How is this possible? There are such monsters?”
Zhisheng Luo’s fingers trembled uncontrollably, because these monsters were none other than insects she was very familiar with – mosquitoes!
However, compared to ordinary mosquitoes, these mosquitoes were much larger. Zhisheng Luo quickly shouted:
“Enemy attack! Giant mosquitoes!”
A moment later, everyone had gathered in the cockpit.
Seeing the mosquitoes outside the window, Isumi shook her head and said to everyone, “Everyone, we’d better keep a distance, because those are not ordinary mosquitoes.”
“Oh?”
“Yes, ordinary mosquitoes absorb blood to strengthen themselves. But these mosquitoes can absorb heat from other things through contact.”
“What?”
“Neither metal nor human bodies are exempt. This might be a combat weapon created using Han Yuan, right?”
Isumi’s words sent a chill down the spines of the girls.
Absorbing heat… that’s too terrifying!
Even if the Time Shuttle’s armor was indestructible, facing the Frozen Mosquitoes, it would crumble in an instant.
Fortunately, Isumi had issued a warning in advance. Otherwise, if they had waited until the mosquitoes got closer to hastily confront them, they would have suffered great losses.
“Captain Elus, what should we do? Turn the ship around?”
Zhisheng Luo’s expression was somewhat nervous. She gazed into the distance and suggested, “My advice is not to confront these terrifying monsters head-on. Because in my hometown, we also encountered attacks from similar monsters.”
“Similar monsters?”
“Yes, also giant insects, but not mosquitoes, rather cockroaches. They spread diseases and have extremely troublesome regenerative abilities…”
However, despite Zhisheng Luo’s dreadful description, Elus still shook her head:
“Senior Luo, I know your concerns. But even if we turn around and flee now, it’s impossible.”
“Why…”
“Because don’t you see, these Frozen Mosquitoes are not coming from all directions. They are arriving sequentially… This means their purpose is not to attack the ship, but to drive us in one direction.”
“!”
“Three sides surrounded, one side open. If we dodge now, we’ll probably drive into the area they’ve ambushed! So… ignore them, and just charge straight through!”
Although Elus was a Little Loli, the willpower and aura she displayed at this moment astonished the girls present.
Princess Cécile also pondered for a moment and nodded, saying, “Yes, I also agree with Captain Elus’s opinion… because one day, we will have a direct confrontation with Castor and the Trickster Demon! So, it’s just a group of Frozen Mosquitoes. We will eventually have to find their weaknesses and target them.”
“Okay, I understand.”
Zhisheng Luo was not stubborn. In fact, she greatly respected Elus and Princess Cécile, so she unconditionally followed their arrangements.
…
…
The ship sailed forward like this.
Elus’s decision seemed to have caught the other party by surprise… Those Frozen Mosquitoes apparently did not expect the ship to not only avoid them but to charge directly at them!
And in this moment of confusion, it bought the girls a sliver of space.
“Full speed ahead, everyone! Secure your seatbelts!”
“Yeah!”
The ship sped forward, and the Frozen Mosquitoes also crashed into the ship… As the ship made contact with the Frozen Mosquitoes, an indescribable cold began to spread in the girls’ hearts.
20 degrees, 15 degrees, 10 degrees, 5 degrees, 0 degrees…
The temperature inside the ship dropped rapidly. Soon, everyone was shivering uncontrollably, and even their breath was visible as cold air.
However, thanks to the prior preparations, everyone was wearing warm overcoats, so no one suffered from hypothermia.
And what about Little Fox Lonis?
She was securely wrapped three times in a bedsheet by Elus, and then tied with a rope~
This way, the pitiful Little Fox was immobilized like a mummy… but at least she wouldn’t freeze.
However, at this moment, the thermometer inside had reached an astonishing minus 10 degrees Celsius!
This was equivalent to traveling in a snowstorm, but everyone gritted their teeth and continued their work.
“Reporting to the Captain, the surveyed area is normal, no depressurization!”
“Reporting to the Captain, engine power decreased by 5%, still capable of full speed operation.”
“Position confirmed, no obstacles ahead!”
“Wuwu meow, wuwu woof!”
Lonis also seemed to want to say something, but because she was wrapped in the bedsheet and couldn’t move, she could only make some cute sounds.
Finally…
The Time Shuttle successfully broke through the blockade of the Frozen Mosquitoes!
Although these giant insects could absorb heat from objects, the impact they caused was only temporary.
Although the room temperature eventually reached minus 15 degrees Celsius, it was only 5 minutes later that the ship’s temperature gradually returned to normal.
“Captain Elus, we have successfully broken through the blockade!”
“Yes. Everyone did a good job… Thank you all for your hard work.”
Compared to the joyful cheers of her companions, Elus simply smiled faintly.
Because she knew that the enemies they were encountering now were just the beginning.
If they wanted to reach the Han Yuan Temple,
The real battle was still ahead!
…
——————–
“Damn it!!!”
Having failed to lure the enemies into their trap as expected, Silent Leaf stomped her foot in anger. The surrounding woods seemed to respond to the girl’s mood, emitting a unique whistling sound.
Looking at the annoyed Silent Leaf, a hunched figure of a man simply said, “Oh, why get so angry? My bugs were consumed, and I’m not that angry yet?”
He wore a pitch-black hood, and his shadowed face reminded one of cockroaches in the dark… but if the girls were here, they would be too shocked to speak.
Because he was the same man who had manipulated the Puppet Worms in the Lizardmen village.
He should have self-destructed into a puddle of pus and blood, but now he was unharmed, grinning sinisterly, “But they dodged this time. How will they respond next time? Fire bugs, poison wind bugs, we can have as many of these mischievous bugs as we want.”
“Cute?! Bah, they are all蛀虫 (zhùchóng – wood-boring insects/vermin) that harm trees. Mortak, I advise you to stay away from me.”
Silent Leaf seemed to not get along with the man at all, and took a step back.
“Alright, alright~ Then without my bugs, how else do you plan to stop them?”
“Heh heh… I still have a killer move that hasn’t been used! Next time, you’ll just have to watch closely.”
