Chapter 16
Killing the Ant Queen; the Nuclear Fusion Net
Under the gaze of all the survivors in the country, Gu Changqing, covered in the Infernal Dragon Asura Armor, charged toward the ant’s retreat cry at lightning speed. The army of ants could not stop him at all. His rampaging aura alone crushed large groups of ants as he flashed past. His strength was truly not something Divine Runemasters could compare to.
Meanwhile, the slightly intelligent army of ants finally opened up a path as he passed.
At the foot of a distant hill, an ant queen that was two-thirds the size of the ant king saw Gu Changqing’s approaching figure and did not even dare to make a sound. After all, it had seen Gu Changqing kill its other half. It turned around and fled as quickly as it could. Alas, its speed was not comparable to that of Gu Changqing at all.
When the ant queen ran, Gu Changqing also finally saw it. He closed the distance between them slightly before his blood spear suddenly emitted a dazzling light. He poured 70% of his energy into it before he threw it out.
Swoosh!
The blood spear tore through the air, illuminating the entire place. It seemed to be traveling at the speed of sound.
The ant queen turned around to have a look and was frightened out of its wits. It opened its mouth and spat out an energy beam, trying to block the blood spear.
Boom!
The blood spear was unstoppable. It flashed once before it destroyed the energy beam like a bolt of lightning before it pierced the ant queen’s body through its mouth.
The ant queen was much weaker than the ant king. At most, it was at the middle stage of the third tier.
After killing the ant queen, Gu Changqing dug out its crystal core and returned to the shelter.
…
Everyone was gathered in the huge square in the shelter.
Sacks and sacks of crystal cores were piled up on the ground.
Everyone was really satisfied with the slaughter this time.
At this time, Zhao Yuting, Wang Rong, and the others came over.
Zhao Yu Ting, who did not have any divine runes, asked, “Brother Zhang, what’s the use of these crystal cores?”
“They’re for cultivation,” Zhang Hu replied. He could not stop smiling as he looked at the huge harvest in front of him as he said to the other men, “There are so many of them. Put them in the warehouse. Each of you can carry a few sacks back to cultivate.”
There were at least a million crystal cores. After all, they fought from 8 AM to 4 PM.
In just eight hours, Gu Changqing, who activated the Grim Reaper and Skull divine runes, slaughtered 200,000 to 300,000 mutant ants alone.
Meow!
At this moment, Zhao Yuting’s black cat came over. It was drooling as it stared at the crystal cores.
“Little Black, you can use these crystal cores to cultivate as well?” Zhao Yuting asked as she looked at her pet cat in surprise.
Meow!
The black cat nodded.
A hint of longing flashed in Zhao Yuting’s eyes as she asked, “Can ordinary people use these crystal cores to cultivate?”
Zhang Hu shrugged. “Who knows? You’ll have to ask Boss.”
“It’s possible. However, a Divine Runemaster will have to use his or her spiritual energy to draw out the energy in the crystal core to cleanse your body. After that, there’s a chance you’ll obtain a special ability,” Gu Changqing, who had just returned, said.
Gu Changqing knew that ordinary people without divine runes could also use the energy from the crystal cores to evolve. However, they could not obtain the energy in the crystal core themselves and needed the help of a Divine Runemaster. If they awakened a special ability, they would be able to use crystal cores to cultivate in the future.
“Boss, how was it? Was there another ant king?”
Zhang Hu, Lin Feng, and Wu Rui stepped forward when they saw Gu Changqing.
Gu Changqing nodded and said lightly, “It was an ant queen. Remember not to be complacent. There are many mutant beasts that evolved much faster than us…”
Then, Gu Changqing said to Wang Rong, “Wang Rong, you can cook now.”
“Alright,” Wang Rong replied. Then, she called out, “Yuting, Little Xia, let’s go.”
Upon seeing this, Wu Rui said in a low voice, “Boss, this is an oversight on my part. I forgot to hire chefs.”
“It’s okay. Tomorrow, bring a group of men to one of the underground shelters in Longjiang City and gather a group of workers. They’ll be provided with three meals a day, and they’re expected to work for 12 hours,” Gu Changqing said as he lit a cigarette, “The factories in the shelter need to start running, and the seeds need to be planted in the field…”
Wu Rui nodded. “Yes, Boss.”
“Alright, go back and wash up. After eating, focus on cultivating,” Gu Changqing said before he used his spiritual energy to carry five sacks of crystal cores.
One sack was about a meter tall, and each of the sacks contained at least 4,000 to 5,000 crystal cores, which were the size of peanuts.
Gu Changqing knew that in the early days of the Cataclysm, the mutant beasts in the initial stages were only a threat to ordinary humans. They were rarely a threat to Divine Runemasters. However, after a period of time, the pressure on the Divine Runemasters would increase. After all, apart from devouring their own kind to evolve, the mutant beasts could also absorb the essence of the blood moon to evolve. As such, he had to grow stronger as quickly as possible.
…
Gu Changqing had just returned to the main building when the phone in his pocket rang. He took a look and saw a string of unfamiliar numbers. He took a seat on the couch before he answered the call.
“Hello, is this Mr. Gu?” Xuanyuan Wang Rui’s deep voice rang from the other end of the line.
“Yes, who’s this?” Gu Changqing replied nonchalantly.
Xuanyuan Wang Rui chuckled and said, “I’m Xuanyuan Wang Rui, one of the three decision-makers of the Nine Region Empire. We broadcasted the scene of you killing the ant king earlier through the country’s satellites.”
“You still have the time to call me at a time like this? Have all the mutant beasts in the capital been cleaned up?” Gu Changqing asked indifferently. He did not show any courtesy despite the other party’s prestige.
“We’re still in the midst of cleaning them up. The army, the 72 Divine Runemasters from the Dragon Emperor Organization, the other Divine Runemasters, and the nation’s pandas are all willing to serve the country and are in the midst of dealing with the mutant beasts now… The mutant beasts in the early stages are relatively weak so the army is capable of dealing with them. However, I don’t dare to say for sure in the future,” Xuanyuan Wang Rui said, emphasizing the words ‘willing to serve the country’ to explore Gu Changqing’s thoughts.
“I see,” Gu Changqing said curtly without giving anything away.
Seeing that Gu Changqing had no intention of speaking again, Xuanyuan Wang Rui asked directly, “Mr. Gu, we intend to form a Divine Runemaster Alliance. I wonder if you’re interested in becoming the leader of the alliance?”
Gu Changqing said tonelessly, “I’m sorry, but I don’t like restrictions. However, I won’t just stand by and watch when the country is in trouble. I think all of you should try to stabilize the country first.”
Gu Changqing continued to say, “Move the survivors in the coastal cities as soon as possible. I know you have a nuclear fusion defense net that can withstand the attacks of mutant beasts below tier eight. However, it can only cover one city at most.”
“The speed of evolution of the mutant beasts is far beyond your imagination. I know what you’re thinking. You’re afraid that the mutant beasts will cause trouble so you want to clean up the mutant beasts in the cities where the nuclear fusion net is located. However, that’s not wise. It’ll take you at least half a month or longer to do that. That’s too much time.”
“During this period of time, most of the mutant beasts are in tier one, two, or three. Many of them can withstand the bombardment of bullets and cannonballs. There are also quite a few tier-four and tier-five ones.”
“I’ll tell you another secret. Under the cover of the nuclear fusion net, the mutant beasts and plants won’t be able to absorb the essence of the blood moon to evolve,” Gu Changqing said, “Send me a small nuclear fusion net. In exchange, I’ll send my men to escort the survivors from the eight cities of Xicheng Province to Longjiang City.”
This was Gu Changqing’s motherland after all. He would help if it was necessary, but it was impossible for him to be the savior of the world.
In his previous life, more people died because the government decided to clear the mutants in the cities before activating the nuclear fusion net.
There was only one nuclear fusion in each province of the Nine Region Empire, and the net in Xicheng Province was located in Longjiang City.
“Alright, deal,” Xuanyuan Wang Rui agreed without hesitation upon hearing Gu Changqing’s words. He did not doubt Gu Changqing’s words at all.