Advance, the Nest! (Part One)

"Though I really don't want to admit it, our combat strength has truly fallen to its lowest point," Chu Xuan murmured with his head lowered.

Of the six people present, Overlord was already gravely injured and could lose his life at any moment without prompt treatment. Zhang Jie's arms had nearly been corroded away; even if he had firearms, he could not use them. Zheng Zha had the greatest combat strength, but his right arm was now shattered, and he had expended an enormous amount of Internal Force. His combat capability would not be promising anytime soon.

Zero Point was an excellent sniper, but the gun in his hands was a light weapon similar to a Submachine gun. Its power and accuracy were insufficient to kill an Alien. Chu Xuan was highly skilled at analysis and planning, but he was far inferior to Zero Point and Overlord when it came to using firearms. There was even less need to mention Zhan Lan. Though she had trained for quite a few days, she was worse than even Chu Xuan with guns.

Zheng Zha nodded. "Yes, basically all of us are injured now. Luckily... we killed all the Aliens. Not a single Alien has rushed out of Room Fifteen for so long, so there should only be one Alien Queen left inside."

"That one Alien Queen alone... is enough to kill all of us," Chu Xuan said. "There is basically nothing we can do to it. The Queen is roughly three times the size of an ordinary Alien. Let us assume its shell is only twice as thick as that of an ordinary Alien. Even that thickness cannot be penetrated by normal bullets... Perhaps heavy weapons, high-precision sniper weapons, or armor-piercing rounds could harm it, but all we found in the armory were light weapons like these. Sigh, this was originally just an ordinary merchant ship."

Zheng Zha thought for a moment. "What if we can break through its shell? Then we all use our guns to attack the parts without a shell. Can we kill it that way?"

Chu Xuan looked at Zheng Zha strangely. "I will not make deductions or analyses without logic. If you can break through its shell, then show sufficient proof."

Helplessly, Zheng Zha picked up an ordinary Spiral Thorn. Aside from the two remaining Spiral Thorns tied to explosives, this was the only one still intact. He stood, took a deep breath, circulated his Internal Force, and hurled it violently. Just like in his previous demonstrations, the Spiral Thorn sank deeply into the steel wall beside them.

Chu Xuan stared intently at the Spiral Thorn. He sighed. "You are not left-handed, but your right hand is already... It was my fault. If I had known your combat strength was so great, I would never have let you suffer such severe injuries. Yes, just as you said, as long as we can blast open the Alien Queen's shell, we will have a strong chance of killing it. In fact, if your accuracy with that thing were a little higher and you struck its head directly, you might even kill it in one blow."

Zheng Zha gave a bitter laugh. "I can't aim that accurately. After all, I'm attacking with my left hand, and I only have enough strength left for one or two more throws. Rather than risk aiming for the Alien Queen's head, it would be better to be practical and aim for its body."

"Indeed!" Chu Xuan nodded. "Aiming for the body has a higher success rate. Our chances of killing the Alien Queen... are around thirty percent. That is already very good, enough for us to take this risk. Then let us divide the work. Zheng Zha, you—"

Zheng Zha suddenly said, "Wait. You only need to take responsibility for your own companions. Let us divide up what each side is responsible for. We will break open the Alien Queen's shell and provide a certain amount of fire support. You will protect us and provide fire support as well. How about it?"

Chu Xuan bit his finger. "Is this what you call an alliance? Fine. Both sides only need to handle the parts they are responsible for. I accept your proposal, but please note one thing: if we do this, there will be no need for me to design plans specifically to protect you. Both sides will share the danger very fairly."

Zheng Zha sneered. "That is exactly the kind of fairness we need. Why must we rely on your protection? So that you can devise a plan to abandon us later? What a joke. We need your intelligence, and you need our strength. Our relationship is that simple!"

Chu Xuan said nothing more. He silently took out several weapons from the armory and explained the advantages, disadvantages, and methods of use for each one to Zheng Zha's group. In the end, Zhan Lan chose the Desert Eagle with unlimited bullets that Zero Point had not taken, while Zheng Zha picked up a semi-automatic rifle with somewhat greater power at short range.

Only after seeing Zheng Zha and the others take up their weapons did Chu Xuan speak again. "Actually, we are quite lucky. If we had arrived one or two days later, we would not be facing three Aliens anymore, but seven! Those four people have probably already been implanted by now, so we must kill the Alien Queen in the shortest possible time. Otherwise, once those four Aliens hatch, we will definitely die in our current condition."

"Besides that, there is one more thing you must pay attention to. Once the Alien Queen is injured and begins to bleed, we must kill it as quickly as possible. Alien blood is extremely corrosive, and the Alien Queen is located near the edge of the merchant ship. If its blood corrodes a huge hole there... we could be sucked directly into outer space. Then we would be doomed!"

Zheng Zha secretly admired him. Putting Chu Xuan's cold-blooded personality aside, the man was absolutely a super genius at analysis and planning. He noticed every last detail, and even everyone's personalities and reactions were within his calculations. Though Zheng Zha did not approve of some of Chu Xuan's methods, having someone like him as an ally would undoubtedly be a tremendous help to surviving in a Horror Movie!

Chu Xuan continued, "Tuck all your pant legs into your shoes and tie them tightly, just as I have done. Next, we will be walking through the Alien nest. Their secretions are not strong acid, but they are still corrosive. So seal your pant legs and shoes tightly. That will isolate those substances for a short time. Also, do not touch the walls carelessly. If you see Alien eggs—those huge oval objects—shoot them immediately. Never approach them casually. That is basically everything. For the rest, everyone can only adapt to the situation."

At last, everyone thoroughly checked their weapons once more. Zhang Jie and Overlord truly had no combat capability left. Chu Xuan had originally intended for them to remain here temporarily, but Zheng Zha worried that more Aliens might circle around them and reach the armory, so he insisted that Zhang Jie accompany the main group. As for Overlord, he was a member of Chu Xuan's team. According to Chu Xuan, he could only lie here alone from now on, leaving his life and death to fate.

The moment Zheng Zha stepped out of the armory, he turned back to look at Overlord on the floor. The man had already fallen into a semi-conscious state, and a sense of desolation rose in Zheng Zha's heart. Then he turned his gaze away from the armory. Beyond Corridor Fifteen, the light was dim. That was the Alien nest... like an entrance leading to hell. Death... or the end of the Horror Movie?