252: Chapter 252 Deep into the Demon's Lair, Ovaries Revealed

The wind was still blowing at the cave entrance, but Chen Wuwang had already entered the rock crevice.

He walked forward, his Mechanical Prosthetic Eye emitting a red light that illuminated the winding path ahead.

The air was stifling, hot and humid, smelling of rust and rotten meat.

"Let's go!" he said in a low voice.

The three people behind him immediately followed. Chen Tiezhu carried a toolbox, his footsteps heavy. His feet stepped on the ground, leaving a trail of wet footprints.

It wasn't water, but mucus flowing down from the walls—purple and slippery, making a "pop" sound when stepped on.

"This place really stinks." He spat and took out a Shock Detonator from his waist. "How about I blast a section? Then we won't have to squeeze through these narrow paths."

"Don't blast it," Chen Wuwang raised his hand to stop him. "Explosives will interfere with detection and might cause a cave-in. Stick to the plan."

He swiped his finger through the air, and a translucent map appeared, rendered by his Mechanical Prosthetic Eye.

The lines were constantly shifting, with several areas marked in red to indicate danger.

"The left is blocked by flesh, there's movement underground to the right, but this middle path is still passable." He lowered his hand. "Bai Ling, purify the air; Xiao Dao, watch the flanks; Tiezhu, use small-scale shocks to clear the way, nothing too big."

"Okay," the three replied in unison.

Bai Ling raised her hand, a layer of white light glowing in her palm.

She floated up slightly, her skirt fluttering gently as the white light slowly dispersed. The stench faded, and the Purple Moss on the walls shrank back.

"This moss isn't right," she said. "It didn't grow naturally; it looks like it was planted."

"It doesn't matter who planted it," Chen Wuwang looked ahead. "What matters is that they are transmitting information."

Just as he spoke, the passage suddenly narrowed.

Everyone had to walk sideways. Thick fleshy membranes hung overhead like intestines, twitching rhythmically.

"I'll do it." Chen Tiezhu stepped forward and pressed a button.

"Buzz—"

With a sound, the fleshy membrane shook a few times and split open a crack.

Before they could celebrate, a dark red liquid flowed from the crack, emitting white smoke as soon as it hit the ground.

"It's poisonous!" Chen Xiaodao used his scabbard to flick away a drop, and the scabbard immediately turned black.

"Go, quickly!" Chen Wuwang shoved Chen Tiezhu aside, and the three of them rushed through.

As soon as they passed, the fleshy membrane behind them snapped shut with a "thwack," sealing perfectly.

"Dammit!" Chen Tiezhu cursed. "Is this thing alive?"

"It didn't 'come alive'," Chen Wuwang glanced back. "It was alive to begin with."

His Mechanical Prosthetic Eye scanned continuously, data updating incessantly.

There was a low buzzing in the air, like needles pricking the brain.

He saw Chen Xiaodao frowning, hand on his sword hilt; Bai Ling's face was pale, her light flickering slightly; even Chen Tiezhu was gritting his teeth in endurance.

"Auditory hallucinations," he said. "Ignore them. They're fake, not real sounds."

"I hear a child crying... and the sound of wood burning..." Bai Ling's voice trembled.

"I hear a forge exploding... the one from twenty years ago..." Chen Tiezhu gripped his case tightly.

"I hear the cries from when the Zerg attacked the village," Chen Xiaodao spoke, his voice cold. "But I won't stop."

Chen Wuwang glanced at him but said nothing.

He knew these sounds were everyone's fears being magnified.

But it also meant they were not far from their objective.

"Another three hundred steps," he pointed at the map. "At the end is a large cavern; all the signals are coming from there."

"Are you sure you want to go in?" Chen Tiezhu asked in a low voice. "Our mechs only have thirty percent power left, Bai Ling can't hold out much longer, and Xiao Dao doesn't have much strength left. What if it's a trap inside..."

"We've been in a trap for a long time," Chen Wuwang sneered. "Ever since we entered the forest. Retreating is the only way to die."

He paused. "Why is Blood Butcher here of all places? Why did the Demon Nest appear tonight? Someone wants us to see this."

"So we'll look," he said. "And see it clearly."

The three were silent for a moment, then nodded.

They continued walking.

The path finally came to an end.

The view suddenly opened up.

A massive cavern appeared, its ceiling too high to see, wide as a valley.

The ground undulated like the inside of a stomach, covered in things that looked like pulsing blood vessels.

In the very center was a mountain-like object—dark red all over, encased in a membrane, with many eggs moving inside like a heartbeat.

A stench wafted over them.

The smells of rot, blood, and fermentation mixed together, making one want to vomit.

Chen Xiaodao covered his mouth, forcing himself to hold it back.

Bai Ling's light flickered, but she didn't stop.

Chen Tiezhu stared at the pile of eggs, his eyes glazed. "God... how many are there?"

"Three thousand seven hundred and twenty-one," Chen Wuwang calculated immediately. "The smallest is thirty centimeters, the largest one point eight meters. They'll hatch in about seventy-two hours."

"They must be destroyed," he said. "We can't let them come out."

As soon as he finished speaking, the entire cavern suddenly went silent.

Even the buzzing stopped.

It was as if the nest had understood him.

"How do we destroy it?" Chen Tiezhu asked. "Blast it? Burn it? Or cut it with psionic energy?"

"Any of those would work," Chen Wuwang looked at the eggs. "But first, we need to figure out one thing—are these eggs part of the mother body? If we harm them, it might alert the Mother Beast."

"I'll go check," Chen Xiaodao stepped forward. "I'm fast; I can dodge."

"No," Bai Ling said suddenly. "You'll be contaminated if you get close. When you touched that fleshy pillar earlier, your mech glitched for zero point six seconds."

"I know," Chen Wuwang nodded. "Everyone, back up five meters."

The three did as told.

He stood at the very front, raised his right hand, and a small Shield Device popped out from his wrist. With a press, a transparent membrane expanded, shielding the four of them.

"Done," he said.

Then he looked at the pulsing mountain of eggs, his voice low but clear:

"Prepare the explosives, set three Directional Mines. Tiezhu, you're on main control; Xiao Dao, provide cover; Bai Ling, maintain purification. We only have thirty seconds. Once they blow, we retreat immediately."

"Yes!"

"Received!"

"Understood!"

The three immediately sprang into action.

Chen Tiezhu opened his case and took out three silver-gray metal blocks, checking the fuses and energy cores.

He was sweating, but his hands were steady.

Chen Xiaodao drew his sword slightly, the blade shimmering with starlight-like radiance. His eyes scanned the surroundings, guarding against any sneak attacks.

Bai Ling pressed her palms together, the light becoming thicker. Her face grew paler, and a trickle of blood escaped the corner of her mouth, yet she remained floating behind them.

Chen Wuwang stood by the edge of the shield, his Mechanical Prosthetic Eye continuously scanning the structure of the eggs to find the detonation points.

Data lines popped up one by one:

[Surface membrane is very hard; ordinary explosives won't work]

[Eggs are arranged in a honeycomb pattern; easy to detonate together]

[Pulsing at seventy-two times per minute, synchronized with the ground]

He narrowed his eyes.

"Found it," he whispered. "The weakness is at the bottom. There are three conduits supplying energy; cutting even one will cause an imbalance."

He turned to Chen Tiezhu. "Set the mines in the bottom triangular zone. Use a two-second delay; we'll detonate after we've run out."

"Got it," Chen Tiezhu nodded. "Give me three minutes."

"You only have two and a half minutes," Chen Wuwang said. "The eggs are pulsing faster. It knows we're watching it."

Everyone looked up.

The mountain of eggs was indeed pulsing faster.

Thump, thump.

Like a heartbeat.

And like a countdown.