Super Giant Bug Nest

"Boss!"

Huo Bingzhi Ri said, "I heard you went to the Dazhao Temple in Longnan with your sister-in-law a few days ago. Did you have fun? If you did, I'll take my girlfriend there sometime."

"Bingzi, you need to have some shame."

Cai Cai bluntly exposed him in front of everyone. "You don't even have a girlfriend, do you?"

"Cai Cai, I'll fucking swear at you!" Bingzi exclaimed in exasperation.

"Oh, right..."

Lin Qingying also remembered this, and immediately opened her bag, took out a talisman and gave it to Ruolin, saying, "I specially got this talisman for you at the Dazhao Temple. Remember to take it with you when you go on missions in the future. The talismans from the Dazhao Temple are very effective and can protect you from bad luck and keep you safe."

"Um!"

Ruolin was genuinely moved this time, her eyes slightly red.

"Oh dear, the amulet from Dazhao Temple..."

Faye and Aji both opened their mouths, filled with envy, like fish yearning for river water after coming ashore.

"No need to be envious!"

I immediately stood up and started pulling out amulets from my pocket, saying, "When Xiaoying asked for amulets, I also asked for one. Each of you six will get one!"

"Ah?!"

Everyone was overjoyed; team morale increased by 200%!

Hehehe...

After receiving the amulet, Kou Mei lifted her long hair and put it on in public. She then boldly opened her clothes and placed the amulet into the ditch.

"Hiss--"

Cai Cai and Bingzi Zi both gasped in surprise. "Kou Mei seems to have grown again recently, has she gotten a boyfriend?"

"I'll date your grandpa's boyfriend!" Kou Mei retorted.

Lin Qingying suppressed a laugh; the chat environment of Ding Han Squad was ultimately too simplistic and crude, and she couldn't quite handle it.

Fatty and Faye, just like Kou Mei, happily put on the amulets, stuffed them into their clothes, and patted them as if every action was essential.

The others followed suit, and in the blink of an eye, all nine people in the private room were wearing amulets.

Even Xiao Ai has it.

I put a few ginkgo leaves in the brocade pouch containing the amulet, and had her hang it around her neck. Xiao Ai loved it very much, feeling that it was the first gift in her life...

Soon after, the food was served, and they ate and drank.

The food at Stream City No. 1 was as good as ever. Knowing that this private room was for me and my friends, Lao Chen personally cooked. The taste of the dishes was exceptional, and the portions were at least 20% larger than usual. The king crabs used were all freshly caught and large. This meal was all-you-can-eat!

Around eight o'clock, we finished eating and drinking.

I didn't drink too much, just two bottles of Heineken, and I was slightly tipsy. I also secretly asked Zhu Ting to treat this table to a free meal.

After finishing the cake, Kou Mei suggested, "How about the second round? How about we go sing karaoke for a while?"

"OK!"

Everyone agreed.

Lin Qingying smiled gently, took my arm, and nestled against me like a little bird.

Just as everyone was about to go to karaoke, suddenly the sound of Gun Like a Dragon, came from within the star map—

"Attention all players in Huaining City! Emergency! Emerald Lake, ten kilometers southwest of King of Glory City, has suddenly dried up. Our reconnaissance equipment has detected a strong Zerg biological signal. Based on the signal strength, it is assessed as Super Giant Bug Nest. We suspect that a Zerg hive is moving towards King of Glory City from the direction of Emerald Lake. The situation is urgent. Please drop everything and head to the Player Black Market to await the Guide's mission!"

"Holy crap..."

Cai Cai frowned and said, "Why is a mission being issued at this time? Alliance Leader Long is really inconsiderate..."

Ruolin and I also became serious.

"What's wrong?"

In the parking lot of Stream City No. 1, Lin Qingying asked, "An emergency mission?"

"Um!"

I took a deep breath. "A bug hive has appeared in the direction of Creek City. Our team is the backbone, so we have to go there. Xiaoying, you and Xiao Ai go home first, I'm going."

"Yes, be careful..."

She nodded. "Everyone should be careful, Xiao Ai, let's go home first."

As they watched her retreating figure, everyone fell silent.

"Let's go, Player Black Market, let's assemble."

Taking advantage of a blind spot in the parking lot's surveillance cameras, the group retrieved their Off-road Motorcycle and headed straight for the Player Black Market.

Before even reaching the Player Black Market, a bell rang in my ears; the Guide's quest had been issued.

[Attention all players! The Region Task "Emerald Lake, Crisis Approaching!" (SSS-rank) has been officially released! Issued by: The Guide. Quest details: A Super Giant Bug Nest has appeared at the bottom of Emerald Lake. Emerald Lake is now dry, and this Super Giant Bug Nest is highly likely targeting King of Glory City or Creek City. For the safety of the people, please immediately proceed to Emerald Lake to eliminate the swarm. The higher your contribution in this quest, the richer the rewards!]

It's actually an S/ SS-class Region Task.

For the sake of profit for the players in Huaining City, and for the sake of the King of Glory City, the Guide have truly risked everything.

Of course, after merging with Number 17's Intermediate Authority GM Key last time, the Guide took a big bite, and now his foundation is considered to be at the upper level among all GMs.

The 3S Mission is incredibly tempting!

In the game "Star Abyss," while these group missions do have certain requirements, as long as players are willing to put in the effort and demonstrate their true strength in battle, players at the mid-to-high level can generally obtain the full rewards.

In other words, you're guaranteed to get 3 points of Charm Value.

However, these group tasks also have a "preventing players from slacking off" mechanism. If the team's contribution is too low and the overall output is too low, they may not be able to get the full reward. In fact, players who used to shoot a couple of shots and then go home to sleep may not even get the most basic 1 Charm Point.

In fact, more than 50% of players received a reward of 2 Charm Value points, which is consistent with previous statistics.

Shortly after, the team arrived at the Player Black Market.

Players from guilds such as Crimson Firmament Alliance and Ember Domain had already set off. Many players arrived at the Black Market and did not linger, but teleported directly to King of Glory City and headed straight for the battlefield.

"Aji, you go drive the Dauntless, the rest of you check the ammunition reserves."

"Clear!"

The group quickly checked their supplies. Actually, there was no need to check; they were all veterans who had been in Star Abyss for over eight months and had long since developed the habit of keeping their ammunition plentiful. This habit was essentially the same as Ammo Scarcity Phobia; if ammunition or supplies were insufficient, they couldn't help but feel a little panicked.

A few minutes later, the Dauntless emerged from the warehouse, and the group stepped into the Teleportation Array, arriving at the King of Glory City. They then sat on the Dauntless's shoulders and sped off towards Emerald Lake.

Ten kilometers, reached quickly with the speed of a fearless individual.

In the distance, flames erupted from the direction of Emerald Lake, and the sounds of gunfire were incessant. Players wielding weapons and using skills to engage in close combat with the insects were a common sight.

Emerald Lake has dried up; have the insect swarms already emerged?

Just then, accompanied by a loud croak, a blue Blade Bug flapped its wings and took flight, rushing straight at the Fearless One!

"Court death!"

Aji raised his arm, and the Fearless One followed suit. The cannons fired, shattering the Blade Bug's body in mid-air. The firepower was too intense, and the Blade Bug's body was too small; it was simply blown apart, instantly killed...

The Fearless is an extremely powerful weapon with its own system in the game, not entirely following the player's settings. It is very effective at killing insects, but it also consumes a lot of resources. If you keep using this machine gun mounted on your arm to kill them, the Guide and the Alliance Leader Long would probably be heartbroken after a battle.

"Prepare for battle!"

I leaped off the Fearless's shoulder, sword in hand, and activated my Power Sword the instant I landed. Instantly Crimson Blade transformed into a Blazing Red Flame, and I charged forward, slicing down several blind Blade Bug.

Ruolin also charged over with her torch, quickly slashing down several insects, and together with me, formed the team's front line.

Upon reaching the shore, and looking down by the firelight, one could see that Emerald Lake had been reduced to nothing but silt at the bottom, with the center having collapsed into a large black hole.

Footprints were densely packed in the mud, and the sounds of fire and battle could be heard from inside the cave, indicating that players had already entered.

"Ding Han!"

Not far away, a group of people also arrived at the lakeside. They were members of the In the Jianghu Guild. The guild leader, Wall Observer, held a sharp blade and looked at Emerald Lake with a solemn expression. "Holy crap, what a huge hole!"

"It is indeed quite big." I nodded.

Zhang Ruolin glanced at me, then at the Wall Observer, seemingly speechless at our conversation.

"Where are the people from the Crimson Firmament Alliance?" asked the Wall Observer from afar.

Immediately, a player clearing out the insects on the periphery shouted, "The members of the Crimson Firmament Alliance, the Ember Domain, and the Old Day Royal Court have already stormed into the underwater cave!"

"Did the people from the Tea Tasting Pavilion go in too?"

"No, the fairies always put on makeup before going out to level up. They probably won't arrive at the battlefield for another twenty minutes."

"Ding Han, what do we do?"

"Shall we also enter the insect hive?" asked the Wall Observer.

"Let's deal with the scum outside first!"

"Good!"

So the group jumped into the lake and, stepping through the mud, shot at the insects that rushed out. And it wasn't just insects; amidst the undulating mud, eels were also darting in and out, desperately trying to survive.

Under the scorching heat of the shells, the faint aroma of braised eel wafted through the air.

A few minutes later, suddenly the ground beneath my feet sank!

This is bad! The strata at the bottom of the lake have collapsed!

Ruolin, Cai Cai, and I were caught off guard and all fell into the insect nest along with the collapsed riverbed.

The entire squad crashed, but Aji reacted quickly, activating the Dauntless's Flight Mode. The Dauntless then sprayed blue flames and briefly hovered in the air.

"Boss, are you guys alright?" Aji asked anxiously.

"Boom~~~"

With a loud thud, his body hit the ground, covered in mud.

Hehehe~~~

Amidst the swarm's cries, a massive swarm of insects surged out of the darkness. As expected of Super Giant Bug Nest, this swarm was indeed far denser than that of a large insect hive.

Ahead, two brown lights and more than ten golden lights appeared!

Those were two S9-rank flying dragons and more than ten S8-rank Golden Blood Beast, leading a large army of miscellaneous soldiers, pressing in!

"Aji, come down and help!"

I drew my sword and charged straight at one of the flying dragons, shouting, "Ruolin, I'll suppress one dragon, you lead the others to suppress the other! Wall Observer, you lead the brothers in the In the Jianghu to hold off those blood beasts!"

The group of In the Jianghu tumbled out of the mud and looked at the group of high-level insects in the distance. Their expressions immediately turned extremely ugly.