Secretly Crossing at Chencang

The enemy had gleaned information from the previous probing attack—how could Huo Gu not have done the same?

To withstand the tearing force of the tornadoes, Huo Gu had added a massive mesh of intertwined roots and stems within the cube's layered outer skin. Within the small square gaps of that giant mesh, it had added finer nets woven from carbon nanofibers. In addition, it transcribed gene chains to produce large quantities of connective proteins, strengthening the adhesion between the outer skin, scales, and bones.

Thus came the present scene—facing the raging cyclones, the octahedron stood as steady as a mountain, as though brushed by a gentle breeze.

The assault of tornado columns continued for some time. Seemingly realizing that such attacks were futile, they gradually weakened and vanished into the air as if they had never existed.

"Giving up?"

"...Or are you planning to surprise me again, like last time?"

As if in response to Huo Gu's taunt, the earth began to tremble violently, seismic waves surging endlessly from underground to the surface.

The subterranean caverns gradually collapsed under the crustal movement. Seawater flowed downward, and countless whirlpools appeared across the sea's surface. Lava from underground came into contact with boiling liquid water; every stretch of sea affected by the quake was churned upside down, with ocean currents rolling back upon themselves.

The octahedron standing on the surface was naturally affected. Its massive body swayed amid the tremors, but due to its immense mass, the movement was not severe. The greatest effect on it was perhaps sinking a few centimeters into the ground.

However, the tremors were merely a prelude. Vast amounts of lava seeped from underground fissures, engulfing the lower half of the cube.

"What the—? That startled me. So it's only magma... Such a huge commotion, I thought something else was going to crawl out of the ground."

Magma alone could not threaten the octahedron as it was now. Back when the octahedron had still been within the strata, it had come into close contact with lava more than once. Those arrogant "fire dragons," which had been untouchable since the Hadean Eon, had ultimately become the octahedron's meal.

However, there was one thing Huo Gu needed to pay attention to: the root-and-stem connections that transported organic material had been severed by the vast outpouring of lava.

To prevent destruction by lightning and tornado columns, and to keep the octahedron from toppling, Huo Gu had buried half of its volume underground. It then transported material to the octahedron from below, allowing it to continue expanding rapidly.

But now, that connection had been cut off by lava rising from below. Having lost its foundation of vast quantities of organic material, the octahedron's rate of expansion immediately began to slow.

The larger a lifeform's body, the greater the energy required to sustain its vital functions. A gigantic lifeform like the octahedron still relied on chemical energy, and the amount of matter it consumed every moment was astronomical. If Huo Gu had not amassed nearly an entire gigantic subterranean cavern's worth of organic material as reserves, the octahedron, relying solely on independent growth, could at most have grown to a body nearly ten kilometers in size. Its growth would then have merely balanced its own consumption, making further expansion impossible.

"I need to restore the supply of material as soon as possible..."

Huo Gu murmured as it watched the octahedron. With a thought, it issued a new command to the root-and-stem system—restore the octahedron's supply as quickly as possible.

Backed by an abundance of organic material, the roots and stems recovered extremely quickly. Before long, they had reestablished a connection with the octahedron.

However, not long afterward, lava erupted from underground again, burning through the newly established material connection.

Huo Gu tried several more times, but every time the root-and-stem system established a connection with the octahedron, lava would erupt shortly afterward and sever it.

Coincidence?

In no more than the blink of an eye, Huo Gu dismissed the thought and stared coldly at the sky.

"No. No coincidence could repeat with such a high degree of consistency."

To verify this thought, some roots and stems hidden within the strata burst out from the seafloor, attempting to establish a connection with the octahedron's upper half.

This time, the roots and stems had only reached the octahedron's vicinity. Before they could even make contact, they were shredded by suddenly appearing small but powerful tornadoes.

"So it really noticed..."

"It seems the time is ripe. The second step of the plan can begin."

Huo Gu issued the command. A large number of roots and stems from the root-and-stem system advanced toward the octahedron, seemingly determined to restore their connection with it at any cost.

The enemy did not yield either. Lava sprayed from fissures in the ground, sealing off the octahedron's lower half, while wind and lightning sealed off its upper half. Huo Gu also noticed that the octahedron was slowly sinking.

Huo Gu guessed that the other side intended to forcibly drag the octahedron into the upper mantle, then use the sea of lava to continuously scorch it and destroy it completely.

Upon realizing this, Huo Gu felt both relieved and grave. Clearly, the enemy's control over the planet's strata exceeded its expectations. It was relieved because it could prepare itself, rather than suffer a disastrous setback in a crucial matter without any warning. Yet it was grave because it realized the enemy likely still possessed a great deal of power it had yet to use. Things were far from as simple as they appeared.

Vaguely, Huo Gu felt as though it had overlooked something. But this was a race against time, and it had no time to ponder what it had missed.

The launch had to be completed before the enemy withdrew its attention from the octahedron, this "opponent." The opportunity would vanish in an instant!

About ten thousand kilometers away from the octahedron, a root-and-stem structure embedded in the strata and kept in a state of suspended animation was activated.

The roots and stems swiftly and carefully broke through the crust with as little disturbance as possible. They then grew up to the sea's surface and quickly, silently formed a passage leading directly from the strata to the surface.

"Launch!"

Boom!

A muffled blast rang out from the strata across hundreds of kilometers, causing the ground to tremble faintly. The shell, long prepared for this moment, was propelled into high-speed motion by a violent explosion. Following the grooves along the titanium-alloy inner wall of the passage, it spun at tremendous speed, reaching an astonishing 8 km/s.

Boom!

This was the sound of the second detonation. The object accelerated even further, and a piercing hum came from within the passage as vast quantities of gas were ejected—the air displaced by the shell's high-speed flight.

Boom!

The third detonation pushed its speed to the limit. A streak of fire cut across the sky. From afar, it looked like a meteor slowly rising from below. The sound of its friction against the air could be heard clearly even from several kilometers away.

"Victory or defeat will be decided by this one move."

Huo Gu watched the fiery streak gradually disappear from sight, its heart filled with mixed emotions.