Chapter 60: Rift King Beast

On the hillside.

Lin Mo’ve also saw that gesture and stood up abruptly.

Because of the extreme distance, Lin Yu could not see clearly. However, seeing the solemn expression on his sister’s face, he knew something was wrong.

“Sister…”

He was just about to say that he should probably leave first. ‘I should probably leave first. I’ll only be in the way here.’

The earth-shaking tremor that followed in the next second interrupted his thoughts. The ground beneath their feet began to vibrate violently without warning!

It was not a slight tremor, but a massive upheaval. The entire hillside buckled and tossed as if a giant beast were rolling over.

Lin Yu had just stood up when he stumbled and nearly fell. Lin Mo’ve grabbed his arm with a firm grip to steady him.

She glanced back before pushing him into a nearby depression on the slope. She then stood her ground, her eyes fixed on the lake surface below, which had already begun to churn and boil.

“BOOM — !!!”

With a deafening roar, the lake surface seemed to explode as if a bomb had been detonated within it.

A massive column of water shot into the sky before turning into a downpour that crashed back onto the ground.

The group below could not dodge in time and were completely drenched. Fortunately, their specialized combat suits were waterproof; only their hair was wet, making them look somewhat dishevelled.

As the spray cleared, a massive, hideous shadow broke through the water and appeared before everyone’s eyes.

Its size far exceeded that of a normal Rift Beast.

The upper half of its body alone, exposed above the water, was three or four stories tall.

Its entire body was covered in a thick, pitch-black carapace that looked like obsidian. The shell was covered in sharp edges and twisted patterns, shimmering with a cold, metallic luster.

Several pairs of thick limbs covered in exoskeletons sprouted from the sides of its torso, their ends tipped with sharp, hooked spikes.

What made everyone’s pupils tremble the most was its head.

No, perhaps it could not even be called a head. It was more like a giant weapon growing from the top of its body.

The massive battering ram was covered in multiple layers of bone plating, and its tip flickered with a dangerous, dark red glow.

At the base of the horn, rows of large and small green compound eyes were arranged. At this moment, they were all staring in unison at the tiny humans below.

No emotion could be seen within them; they were as cold as if they were looking at mere prey.

Just by standing there, the pressure it exerted was extraordinary. A massive amount of energy and a terrifying aura swept over them like a tsunami, making it hard to breathe.

It was not just a gap in size and strength, but a crushing sense of suppression from a higher level of existence.

Without a doubt, this was a Rift King Beast.

Lin Mo’ve’s face was incredibly grim. This was wrong—this was completely wrong!

Why would a Rift King Beast appear at this time and in this location?

She instinctively looked toward the distant Black Tower. ‘Then… what is inside that thing?’

However, the current situation left her no time for further thought.

“ROAR — !!!”

The Rift King Beast let out a deafening roar. The sound waves were visible to the naked eye as they rippled outward, causing the gravel along the lakeshore to jump.

At the same time, Xinyao shouted at the top of her lungs:

“BATTLE FORMATION! STALL IT UNTIL REINFORCEMENTS ARRIVE!”

Yes, they had to stall it. With their current equipment, it was impossible to kill it.

Even Chief Lan Lan, who possessed the strongest offensive capabilities, would not be able to kill a Rift King Beast with her bare hands.

It was hard to imagine that these things were also carbon-based lifeforms.

Lin Mo’ve reached out and slapped down a space-time beacon.

It was not that she did not want her brother to leave first, but Rift King Beasts never appeared alone.

They were usually followed by swarms of Rift Beasts. When the fighting started, if even one or two of them managed to break through the line…

It was better to leave her brother where he was. She could keep an eye on him at all times, and if danger appeared, she could return to this position instantly.

She had planned for this from the start, but she had never expected a “big one” to show up.

“Don’t be afraid, Yu. I’m here. Squat down and hide. I’ll protect you,” Lin Mo’ve said, trying her best to keep her voice steady.

She felt a deep sense of regret. She should have come alone; why did she have to bring her brother along?

At that point, she had already torn her little idea of showing off in front of her brother to shreds, and she wished she could just go back to an hour ago and kill her past self!

Lin Yu understood his sister’s current thoughts. He could see the worry she was failing to hide, so he gave her a reassuring smile.

“Mhm, I know. I believe in you, Sister.”

Saying “don’t worry” would have been useless. At a time like this, only telling her he believed in her could give her the drive she needed.

Sure enough, upon hearing her brother say that, a towering fighting spirit ignited in Lin Mo’ve’s eyes, and her cheeks flushed slightly with excitement.

She said nothing more, only nodding heavily before picking up the equipment she had prepared and circling around the side.

She could not charge straight down from there. If the Rift King Beast noticed her brother, things would get complicated.

Below.

The five people had already begun their battle against the swarm of Rift Beasts.

With the appearance of the Rift King Beast, a large number of ordinary Rift Beasts began emerging from the water one after another.

Xinyao floated in the air, her plasma beam gun taking out a beast with every shot.

The others also combined their abilities, either firing weapons or swinging blades.

To them, these ordinary Rift Beasts were like vegetables being sliced on a cutting board.

Strangely, however, the Rift King Beast remained motionless, simply staring at them coldly.

This caused more than half of their attention to be drawn toward it, significantly reducing their efficiency in killing the smaller monsters.

The only one who seemed relatively relaxed was Mu Liuli. She held no weapons because her ability required no physical intervention from her.

Invisible threads automatically attached themselves to the Rift Beasts that drew near her.

Then, the battle turned into the Rift Beasts slaughtering each other. Her efficiency was actually the highest among the group.

She was also wondering what the King Beast was thinking and why it had not made a move yet.

At the same time, she was considering something else. From her perspective, it seemed as if someone had just flashed across the hillside.

It was just like the glimpse she had caught when she first arrived.

The battle continued. Every second, Rift Beasts died, and the group’s stamina was slowly being depleted.

This sense of a never-ending, infinite tide was the reason why the Rift Beasts had been able to defeat humanity and seize most of the planet’s land.

The source could not be closed. No matter how many weapons and resources were poured in, it was like throwing them into a bottomless pit.

A sense of powerless despair slowly surfaced in their hearts.

The remaining woman in the team used a whip-blade and a handgun as her weapons. Her supply of explosive bullets had long since run out.

With a swing of the sharp blade, she entangled two more Rift Beasts and crushed them together.

Taking advantage of the gap, she shouted toward Xinyao in the sky, “Captain! Aren’t the reinforcements here yet?”

Xinyao, who was in a relatively safe position in the air, checked her communication device and found that the reinforcement units were already on their way.

However, because they were bringing heavy weapons capable of dealing with a King Beast, it would still take a little while.

“Hold on for five more minutes! The positron cannon is on its way!”

This news was like a powerful shot of adrenaline to the group. Their flagging morale suddenly soared.

But at that moment, Mu Liuli, who had been focusing most of her energy on the King Beast, noticed that the monster’s eyes had changed.

They shifted from cold killing intent to a sort of mocking smirk, as if a scheme had succeeded.

She loved dolls and was very familiar with the emotionless, thoughtless gaze they possessed. Therefore, she was well-acquainted with the similar eyes of the Rift Beasts.

“Something’s wrong! Watch out!” For the first time, a panicked voice, stripped of all calm, erupted from her mouth.

But it was a step too late.

Including her, every person except for Xinyao in the air was suddenly ensnared by limb-like tentacles bursting from the ground, leaving them unable to move.