Entering the Belly

Earthworms, as large-scale exotic beasts, generally possess a strong sense of territory; theoretically, there should only be one within a given area.

But now, not only were there two in this small patch—no, counting the first one a few hundred meters away, this was already the third—but they didn't seem to like sleeping at all, showing no signs of hibernation!

Could it be that he had just happened upon several Earthworms fighting over hibernation territory?

Many doubts flashed through Chen Chong's mind, but it was all in an instant; he had no more time to ponder.

The Earthworm in front of him burst from the soil, its towering torso swaying in the air before dipping down. Its hideous mouthparts faced Chen Chong, and then it lunged down with a violent force!

Chen Chong was prepared. Watching the Earthworm's movement, he dove to the side, dodging the bite.

The massive head slammed into the ground with a thunderous boom, the splashing mud nearly burying Chen Chong. The impact allowed him to roll twice more, then he flipped to his feet, took long strides, and zipped away to put some distance between them.

Seeing this Earthworm turn its head to attack the nearby security squad, Chen Chong quietly breathed a sigh of relief.

At least this one isn't fixated on me; as long as I run faster than them, I'll be fine.

Although those team members were more experienced in weapon operation and combat than Chen Chong and his peers, their physical tempering was inferior to that of the three elite fighters; these were two different paths.

The security squad was suddenly scattered, but the members further away quickly raised their guns and began to counterattack.

Tongues of fire erupted from the muzzles, exploding in bursts of flesh and blood on the Earthworm. Even with its massive body, the beast began to twitch, its movements becoming noticeably sluggish.

The survival capability of an Earthworm is extremely strong; it must be completely severed to be thoroughly killed. Even if only one-tenth of its body remained, as long as it was intact horizontally, it could potentially recover.

Correspondingly, every part of its body suffered the same damage. As long as the security team poured their special explosive rounds into that massive frame, it was enough to cause effective harm.

However, while the Earthworm's intelligence was low, it was not a wooden stake. After trembling from the bullets for a while, it slammed and swept its body, sending the two nearest team members flying.

The team members were startled and began to scatter to increase their distance, then organized counterattacks in twos and threes.

The Earthworm pursued for a while with little effect. Seeming to realize that these little bugs were hard to catch, its body suddenly reared up, then dove headfirst into the ground and vanished!

"Oh no, it burrowed in!"

A team member had just finished exclaiming when a wave of soil surged toward him, then violently burst open!

The team member let out a cry, which immediately turned into a scream, and the scream was cut short halfway through.

The Earthworm's hideous mouthparts had already caught him in mid-air. As the worm's head contracted and expanded, the severed half of his body twitched incessantly.

Scarlet blood flowed down the Earthworm's body like a waterfall.

"Damn it!"

The team members cursed in anger, pouring bullets frantically, yet the Earthworm had already retreated back into the underground, beginning to move at high speed.

Chen Chong frowned as he crouched in the distance, watching the Earthworm begin its hunt.

This was the terror of exotic beasts; even a well-trained combat squad was helpless once they were closed in upon. Ordinary thermal weapons had limited effects. To truly deal with an exotic beast, one either needed heavy firepower or had to rely on someone who had entered the realm.

Chen Chong just watched, having no intention of intervening, instead evaluating the possibility of leaving in his heart.

He was a bit far from the camp now. If he ran openly, Liu Xun had the strength to finish off the Earthworm and then come after him.

Moreover, once discovered, they could report via radio at any time; if they organized a blockade in time, he probably wouldn't get very far.

It was best to leave quietly amidst the chaos, without being noticed immediately.

If Liu Xun's side became bogged down in a struggle, perhaps he could... hmm?

Chen Chong's eyes narrowed.

The battle on Liu Xun's side hadn't ended, but his blade light ceased, and he ran directly toward the security squad.

Behind him, the massive Earthworm was in hot pursuit, yet halfway through, the beast twisted its head and charged at Chen Chong again!

Chen Chong's brows stood up. This thing took so many blades, yet it doesn't go for revenge and insists on coming for me? Is the frequency of that ultrasonic wave really that annoying to it?

He jumped up and took a step toward Liu Xun's side.

Da-da-da—

A small wave of soil kicked up in front of him as a string of bullets shot over.

If he had taken one more step, he would have been hit.

Chen Chong stopped abruptly, looking up to see Liu Xun putting away his gun, saying coldly:

"Get lost! Come any closer and I'll kill you first."

Chen Chong's eyes turned cold.

Liu Xun was doing this on purpose. He wanted Chen Chong to use his life to stall this one so he could save his own team members and prioritize the other side.

However, he hadn't been issued any blades or guns, only a meat-cutting dagger; Chen Chong didn't know how he was supposed to face such a giant beast.

Seeing the Earthworm lunging swiftly, Chen Chong glanced at the blade light flashing over there and bolted in the opposite direction.

Seeing Chen Chong's speed from the corner of his eye, Liu Xun raised a brow slightly:

"Running so fast? That should be enough to stall for a while."

But once targeted by an Earthworm, without his timely rescue, he probably wouldn't last long... I hope he isn't too useless.

In truth, if he had two more minutes, he could have hunted that big guy down alone, but his team members would likely suffer heavy casualties.

Thus, he chose to "rotate out," saving his own team members.

As for Chen Chong's fate? He did not care; the life of a pugilist could not compare to that of a security officer.

Chen Chong ran for a while, feeling the stench of the beast drawing closer behind him. Though his speed was not slow, it was impossible to outrun the Earth Dragon on this soft, uneven black mud.

Finally, sensing the fierce wind rushing up behind him, Chen Chong lunged forward, dodging the Earth Dragon's strike.

He somersaulted to his feet, faced the exotic beast, drew his dagger, and his gaze turned calm.

Running was no longer an option; he had to try.

Seeing Chen Chong stand still, the Earth Dragon slowly raised its body, then slammed down again with a roar!

Chen Chong dodged to the side, then slashed his dagger, carving a wound several dozen centimeters long along the side of the Earth Dragon's head, from which yellow mucus and red, soft flesh hung out.

It looked like he had scored a hit, but unfortunately, this wound was completely insignificant compared to the Earth Dragon's massive body.

Chen Chong began to weave and dodge around the Earth Dragon, pushing his Combat Technique's agile footwork to the limit.

This was practically dancing on the tip of a blade; one moment of carelessness and he would end up in the Earth Dragon's belly. But he had no other choice; fists and kicks were certainly useless, so he could only use this short dagger for a bloodletting tactic.

As for how long it would take to bleed this massive Earth Dragon dry with such a small toothpick, he had no idea.

Suddenly, Chen Chong felt the Earth Dragon's reaction change. He snatched a glance behind him and discovered that Peng Wei and Pei Li had arrived at some point and were frantically stabbing the rear half of the Earth Dragon's body with their daggers.

"Hold on!"

Pei Li shouted at him.

Chen Chong's eyes flickered.

Although that area was less dangerous than the Earth Dragon's head, it was far from safe. He had never expected the two who had hidden themselves to come and help him.

The three of them split up, covering the head and tail, working in unison to entangle the Earth Dragon.

Even for this massive body over twenty meters long, the countless cuts from the daggers gradually began to take effect.

Then, the Earth Dragon suddenly shuddered.

It abruptly raised its body, then dove into the ground with terrifying speed, like a diver hitting water!

Amidst flying sand and stone, a pit several meters wide was instantly drilled into the ground. With a flick of its tail, the Earth Dragon vanished inside, leaving behind only a deep, ghastly hole.

The ground began to tremble, waves of soil rolling continuously, and all three struggled to keep their footing.

Chen Chong's internal alarm bells rang wildly, and he dodged the soil waves repeatedly, yet the Earth Dragon was even faster moving underground than it was on the surface.

He suddenly felt a vibration beneath his feet and tried to leap away, but in an instant, the Earth Dragon burst out from beneath him.

Its wide-open mouthparts tightened, clamping firmly onto his chest and lifting him high into the air!

"Chen Chong!"

Pei Li and Peng Wei screamed.

Chen Chong felt a slow, crushing sensation spreading through his body; it was the mouthparts and sharp teeth contracting.

It doesn't hurt that much?

He realized instantly that his Devour Form had helped him withstand the first wave of biting; this big guy actually couldn't quite bite through him.

However, the contractile force of a worm was extremely strong. If he let it keep tightening its mouthparts, he would suffocate even if he wasn't bitten to death.

Chen Chong suppressed his pounding heart, calmed himself slightly, and his gaze darted like lightning until he saw a broken tooth.

It was the one he had kicked off just moments ago.

A thought struck him, and he whipped out his dagger, stabbing fiercely at the base of the broken tooth.

The Earth Dragon faltered, and its contraction slowed.

It worked!

A brilliant light ignited in Chen Chong's eyes, and then a flash of red vanished in an instant.

Second form, Gluttony.

Blood surged like a river, and his muscle power erupted!

Feeling the sudden surge of strength in his body, Chen Chong's hands turned into a blur, stabbing and thrusting at the base of the broken tooth with lightning speed, hammering at the weak point.

The Earth Dragon's mouthparts writhed uncontrollably and loosened slightly.

Chen Chong slid downward in an instant.

He held his breath, freed both hands to grip his dagger, and then unleashed all his strength into a forward thrust!

Outside, Liu Xun had just finished slicing the Earth Dragon into several segments and looked back.

Pei Li and Peng Wei were stabbing frantically beneath the Earth Dragon, but on the upper half of the body that the beast had raised high, Chen Chong's figure was nowhere to be seen.

The time they held out was truly perfect.

Liu Xun set his mind at ease, shook his long blade, and was about to head over when he suddenly stopped.

The movements of this Earth Dragon seemed a bit strange.

The Earth Dragon was twitching more and more violently. Peng Wei, who was frantically swinging his dagger, sensed something was wrong and looked up at Pei Li:

"Go! He's finished, let's get out of here! If we wait for it to turn back, it'll be too late!"

Pei Li drove her dagger deep into the Earth Dragon Meat and bit her lip.

This foolish brat, I told him to do it and he wouldn't.

Well, look at him now, dying without ever knowing what a woman tastes like.

Pei Li took one last look at the convulsing Earth Dragon and was just about to give up on the rescue when a flash of cold light caught her peripheral vision.

She looked up in surprise, only to discover that, at some point, the tip of a dagger had emerged from beneath the Earth Dragon's head.

The dagger looked very familiar, appearing identical to the one in her own hand.

It was also identical to the one in the hand of Chen Chong.