Chapter Eighty: Earth · Beast Tide (Twenty-One)

“Sun Meng, Sun Meng…” Kokolaru happened to walk in at that moment, bumping directly into Sun Meng’s chest. However, the rebound force pushed her back, and she landed on the floor.

“Sun Meng, what’s wrong with you?” Kokolaru stood up and floated to Sun Meng’s front, aligning her face level with his.

“It’s nothing, nothing serious.” Sun Meng clenched and unclenched his fists, taking a deep breath to calm himself. “Why are you in such a hurry? Did something happen?”

“It’s Mu Xingye. He said he has something important to discuss with you,” Kokolaru replied.

“Then let’s go!” Sun Meng said. He strode out quickly, though in his heart he kept reminding himself that no matter how anxious he felt, there was nothing he could do to directly help Earth for now. Only when the day of exchange arrived could he transfer the cards in his hand to Earth.

Sun Meng and Kokolaru arrived at Mu Xingye’s room.

“You don’t look well,” Mu Xingye observed, looking at Sun Meng.

“What did you want to talk to me about?” Sun Meng asked.

“It’s about the metals. Our real objective isn’t the pitiful amounts inside those monsters, but the metal veins hidden within the mountains. Pix and I deduced that there must be a concealed entrance to the mines. After searching, we found this place…”

A map appeared on the screen, marking a spot not too far yet not particularly close from their current location, but it lay within the area first identified as being frequented by late-stage second-tier monsters.

“So, are we going to take the risk?” Sun Meng looked at him. Although this spaceship and the four of them combined could easily handle fewer than ten late-stage second-tier monsters, there were at least thirty in that area, and once a fight broke out, it would quickly attract even more. Facing such a horde, even if they rallied everyone who’d gone to the ruins before, success would be unlikely.

“Not we—just you,” Mu Xingye replied with a smile. “Although these monsters are powerful, their weaknesses are obvious. Your attack methods are almost tailor-made to counter them. You only need to go alone, and after we lure away some of the monsters with an initial strike, you can enter and explore for signs of a mine entrance.”

As he spoke, he snapped his fingers and a wall rotated, revealing a set of combat gear. “This is my latest modified gene-core power suit. It can amplify your internal energy, and even if you’re injured, it will rapidly heal you. It’s also equipped with a biological cellular computer that can accurately detect the mine entrance.”

“You already know the mine exists?!” Sun Meng exclaimed in surprise, feeling that the other party seemed to know too much. How had they managed it?

“It’s all just rational deduction and calculation, leading to a result with a very high probability—certainly worth trying,” Mu Xingye said, as the content on the screen changed again. “This metal isn’t only compatible with our civilization’s gene-core technology, but also with the technology of Pix’s civilization. In fact, we tested it across thirty-three different civilization systems, and this metal greatly facilitates the transition from late-stage second-tier to the third-tier.”

Mu Xingye stood up. “It’s not something a civilization of our level can analyze or manufacture. In other words, it’s a nonrenewable resource for now, and it’s the key to a civilization’s breakthrough to the third tier! At least, during this assessment, no one can break through to the third tier without it!”

Mu Xingye looked at Sun Meng. “Earth must have received a warning from the System, hasn’t it? How much did your civilization score drop? I’d guess five points.”

A flicker of surprise crossed Sun Meng’s face. “You…”

Mu Xingye raised a hand. “Don’t ask how I know. It’s all calculated. For any contestant civilization to reach late-stage second-tier before the assessment, aside from perfectly completing all tasks in the prior year, the greatest requirement is forming unified leadership, consolidating the core of the civilization. Otherwise, you can only exchange rewards for the civilization as a whole and distribute them randomly. The inevitable result will be mass casualties under a major monster assault. Based on your previous performance and your civilization’s cultivation potential, this outcome wasn’t hard to deduce.”

“You probably think that with the day of exchange coming soon, you can help Earth through this ordeal with the technology and rewards in your cards. And you’d be right. But your civilization’s score will inevitably drop below ninety. Outwardly, the System’s evaluation of potential won’t change, but in reality, you’ll have consumed some of it. Unless, by the next exchange day, Earth manages to consolidate its core, you’ll be forced to use weapons surpassing the current upper limit of the monsters on Earth to resolve the crisis.”

As he spoke, a longsword appeared in Mu Xingye’s hand. It looked plain and unadorned, as if the metal had simply been shaped by hand. “This sword is more than enough to deal with the monsters faced by sub-third-tier civilizations. As long as someone on your world can take down a freshly evolved late-stage second-tier monster, most of this crisis will be resolved.”

“What is it you really want?” Sun Meng asked, staring at Mu Xingye. Suddenly, the man from Azure Blue Star, who looked no different from an Earthling, didn’t seem so friendly after all. The other was trying to control him, to manipulate Earth’s civilization!

“No need for such hostility,” Mu Xingye said. “I want to help you, naturally, but more so, I’m seeking a suitable ally for the future. After all, our two civilizations share a high degree of similarity. I don’t trust even Pix as much as I trust you.” He offered a sincere smile and nodded toward the longsword.

Sun Meng hesitated, but viewers on Earth were already hoping he’d accept the offer. After all, the sacrifice was simply too great at this point. They seemed to sense a doomsday scenario, so different from the stable evolutionary life they’d dreamed of—they wanted security, not a life-or-death struggle.

Sun Meng looked at the screen, waiting for a red message to appear, but none came. He turned to Mu Xingye. “Can I have some time to think it over?”

Mu Xingye nodded. “Of course. I don’t mind, but you should know—if you haven’t managed to deliver enough metal to Earth by the time the day of exchange arrives, there’s nothing I can do to help you.” With that, he took a sip of water.

Sun Meng turned and walked back to his room. Kokolaru followed him in.

“Why won’t you agree?” Kokolaru asked. “His offer is excellent! If you want, I’ll go with you!” she said, moving closer to Sun Meng.

Sun Meng stepped back. “Isn’t your civilization’s situation just as dire?” He suddenly realized that Mu Xingye hadn’t bothered to hide any of this from Kokolaru earlier.

Kokolaru lowered her head and murmured, “Yes. Our shield’s energy is running low, and we’re forced to keep shrinking it. This metal can greatly improve our energy conversion efficiency and help us survive this disaster!” She looked at Sun Meng. “But honestly, I don’t see what’s so bad about this. The wise elders of our civilization suspect he may have other schemes, but if we can’t hang on now, won’t we just be at others’ mercy in the future anyway?”

On Earth, there had been no movement from Xu Xiao’s room for three hours.

“What’s going on with him? Can’t he open the door?” a military representative asked.

“No, the records on this formation are incomplete—it’s his own variant. We need more time,” a researcher replied.

Inside the room, Xu Xiao’s eyes were vacant, his brain running at full speed. Spirit stones arranged around him formed a series of linked arrays, constantly converting their energy into his body to sustain his expenditure.

“We… need… a hero… to find… Sun Meng’s counterpart… on Earth…”

“There’s movement! Quick, replay that!” the military representative shouted. The researchers quickly ran the recording through their instruments to restore the message.

“Sun Meng’s counterpart on Earth? What does that mean?” The military representative was baffled, and the scientists were equally at a loss.

In a fortified town in China, a young man rushed into the infirmary with a girl in his arms.

“Doctor, she’s been poisoned!”