Chapter 167: Journey to the Mutated Beast Battlefield, Half A Year (I)

Boom! Boom! Boom! Boom!

The sky was ablaze with rockets and missiles raining down from above, covering the plains for dozens of kilometers ahead. The relentless barrage of explosions sent countless mutated beasts that were charging forward flying through the air.

The sheer number of missiles and rockets dwarfed those from the night of the attack in Kyrola, almost painting half the sky with their fiery trails. Fixed at intervals of over a dozen kilometers along cliffs and mountainsides, howitzers and anti-aircraft guns roared incessantly, their shells whistling through the air and shattering everything in their path.

Under this terrifying saturation bombing, the entire world seemed to shake and tremble amid a cacophony of fire and explosions, with the roars of mutated beasts forming the melody of this chaotic world.

Meanwhile, soaring through the sky, birds with wingspans ranging from several meters to dozens of meters hovered, engaged in aerial combat with unmanned fighter jets. Occasionally, a jet engulfed in flames would be shot down, erupting in an intense explosion, as the bodies of mutated flying creatures fell from the sky.

From the military base in the rear, occasional beams of blue and white light shot out, piercing through the heavens and spanning distances of dozens of kilometers, annihilating any flying creatures with wingspans of over fifty meters. These beams were smaller than the one that had obliterated the mountain peaks in Kyrola, but were equally devastating.

With each discharge, a path would be cleared in the sky, obliterating all mutated creatures in its wake.

This was the video Xia Youhui had sent, brimming with awe-inspiring scenes that surpassed even the most extravagant science fiction films.

However, this segment lasted only ten minutes, abruptly ending amid the continuous bombardment of missiles and rockets from above.

Xia Youhui chuckled to himself.

Xia Youhui:

What do you think, Ah Chu? Isn't this awe-inspiring? This is the kind of action a man should have. Kyrola's antics pale in comparison.

Chen Chu exhaled slowly.

Chen Chu:

When did this battle take place?

Xia Youhui:

Yesterday.

"Yesterday, huh

?

" Chen Chu nodded.

He had previously reviewed some information about the mutated beast battlefield. It was located in a region where the mythical world and this one intersected: vast, dotted with numerous rifts, and rich in energy.

The battlefield’s terrain resembled two inverted V-shapes. One end boasted expansive plains, fertile land, and abundant minerals, while the other end was characterized by undulating mountain ranges stretching over six thousand kilometers, with a maximum width of over three thousand kilometers.

The military had established a massive base between the two V-shapes, guarding the plains to prevent mutated beasts from breaching the barrier. Simultaneously, efforts were made to develop the plains, cultivating high-energy crops and exploiting resources.

Roughly every six months, the military attracted and gathered the majority of mutated beasts within a thousand-kilometer radius using top-level resources as bait, then annihilated them with saturation bombing. This operation, the inspiration for the battlefield’s name, required nearly half a month of preparation.

Similar to the purge operations, the primary goal was to suppress the overall population of mutated beasts near the stronghold and alleviate the pressure they were putting on the humans.

The bases of various martial arts high schools were established along a line behind the military base, facing the vast stretches of mountain ranges and surrounded by stable resource refineries. Some of these resources were allocated to teachers and officials, while others were distributed to students, serving as the primary source of cultivation resources for Chen Chu and his peers.

Due to the environment, cultivation progressed further here than outside, which explained why students in their second or third years were rarely present at school. Another contributor were the missions students could take on, generally divided into two types.

The first involved assisting teachers in guarding resource points, with a steady monthly contribution akin to a regular job. However, this task wasn't merely a walk in the park; it involved guarding against any mutated beasts that may attempt to seize those resources, thus still carrying certain risks.

The second type entailed venturing deep into the mountains to hunt high-level mutated beasts and seek out new resource points or natural treasures, honing one’s skills in the process. Compared to the comfort of the first type, the second was riskier but offered richer rewards. Generally, only those talented individuals with formidable combat prowess would choose these missions.

With this in mind, Chen Chu couldn't help but ask something.

Chen Chu:

Old Xia, how many mutated beasts have you killed since you arrived?

He refrained from inquiring about advancements in Xia Youhui’s Realm, as it could be too sensitive a topic.

Even so, Xia Youhui took a while before responding.

Xia Youhui:

Ah Chu, I don't find this topic particularly interesting. Let's change the subject.

Observing this, Chen Chu couldn't help but chuckle, amused by his friend's reluctance to boast.

Since advancing to the middle stage of the Third Heavenly Realm, Xia Youhui's defenses had strengthened, but his offensive capabilities remained mediocre. Killing a level 3 mutated beast was still somewhat challenging for him, something that his combat record suffered from.

Chen Chu smiled.

Chen Chu:

Alright, let's not talk about hunting mutated beasts. So, how many mutated beast corpses did you move on the battlefield yesterday?

Xia Youhui was once again at a loss for words.

Each time the military base gathered low- and high-level mutated beasts from the surrounding thousand-kilometer radius to initiate the extermination mission, the nearby martial arts bases would dispatch students to assist in battlefield cleanup.

The mutated beasts able to break through such firepower blockades were mostly level 5 or 6, and were dealt with by specialized experts. Sending students of the Fourth Heavenly Realm or below would be suicidal.

Xia Youhui sighed.

Xia Youhui:

Ah Chu, I went through all the trouble to share this video with you, and you're just going to deflate me like this? Not very brotherly, is it?

Chen Chu couldn't help but smile.

Chen Chu:

Alright, then let's talk about something cheerful.

Xia Youhui:

Something cheerful?

Chen Chu:

I broke through to the Fourth Heavenly Realm a few days ago.

There was a moment of silence before Xia Youhui sent an excited reply.

Xia Youhui:

WTF, Ah Chu, you really reached the Fourth Realm in just over a month!? Is that for real!?

He had joked before that he wouldn't be surprised if Chen Chu broke through to the Fourth Heavenly Realm in just over a month, but that had been nothing more than a casual remark at the time.

Considering that it had only been a little over three months since Chen Chu had broken through to the Third Heavenly Realm, his sudden advancement to the Fourth was truly terrifying in terms of cultivation speed.

Thinking about this, Xia Youhui, sitting in the communication room, couldn't help but envy him, especially since he was still struggling in the middle stage of the Third Heavenly Realm.

Chen Chu:

Of course it's true, and I'll be there this Sunday.

Xia Youhui:

[Sobbing] Ah Chu, you're finally coming! I'll be able to show off with you again. Life has been so boring without you.

Xia Youhui:

Every day, I have to follow Lin Xue and the others to act as cannon fodder, only to encounter level 3 mutated beasts, which is totally unchallenging. I can't even show off...

Chen Chu:

Old Xia, this is the group chat. Just because the others don’t have any data signal right now doesn’t mean they won’t eventually see these messages.

Immediately, Xia Youhui deleted over a dozen messages in the chat.

Seeing this, Chen Chu chuckled and changed the subject.

Chen Chu:

By the way, how are Lin Xue and the others doing?

Xia Youhui:

The class monitor and Lin Yu aren't considerate enough. They've been mingling with the third-year seniors for over a week now, leaving us behind.

Chen Chu:

Mingling with the seniors?

He was somewhat surprised by this news.

Xia Youhui:

Yeah, apparently one of them is a former student of their parents. When she learned that Lin Xue and Lin Yu had come here, she voluntarily came in to take them deep into the mountains for training.

Xia Youhui:

You would have never guessed that they had former high school teachers for parents, huh?.

Chen Chu:

...That is indeed unexpected.

Chen Chu nodded to himself, then casually changed the subject.

Chen Chu:

What about An Fuqing and Li Hao?

Xia Youhui:

An Fuqing’s made a lot of progress. I heard she's on the verge of breaking through to the Fourth Realm, and she’s been in seclusion for the past few days, pushing herself to the limit.

Xia Youhui:

As for Li Hao, he's been deep in the mountains for half a month now. He said he was inspired by the senior geniuses and won't come back until he breaks through to the Fourth Realm.

Chen Chu:

That's quite intense.

Xia Youhui:

That guy has always been quite crazy

...

After chatting for a while longer, Chen Chu finally put down his phone.