Black snow fell softly through the mountains and forests.
A gigantic, lion-like Calamity Beast covered in silver-gray fur was bowing its head.
Heavy breathing continued to come from its mouth.
The hot breath condensed quickly into white mist upon encountering the cold air.
It continued to breathe, one gasp after another.
After a long while, it slowly raised its head.
Golden, vertical pupils, etched into their sockets, swept across the surroundings.
Dozens of Calamity Beast of various shapes and sizes were watching intently from a great distance.
They seemed to be watching its situation, or perhaps waiting for some instruction!
"Roar--!"
The roar echoed through the mountains and forests.
Following closely behind were a series of unintelligible hissing sounds.
After a long while, several Calamity Beast took flight and departed.
The lion slowly turned around and began to climb the mountain peak beside it with heavy steps.
Soon, its figure slowly came to rest on the mountaintop.
His vertical pupils narrowed slightly, and his gaze pierced straight into the distance.
On the horizon, a human base is rapidly taking shape.
The metal city walls, winding like silver snakes, are seeking a final connection.
On the city wall, towering cannon emplacements appeared and disappeared in the wind and snow.
One after another, tiny black dots moved and darted within the wall...
Inside the unfinished base.
Shen Heng slowly raised his eyes and looked in one direction.
Han Ling, seemingly noticing something, stopped her breathing exercises and looked over.
However, she didn't disturb them, but sat down and waited.
Shen Heng gazed at the distant mountain peaks.
After a long while, a dark shadow appeared among the sparse trees on the mountain peak.
The shadow was not clear. Even Shen Heng, whose eyesight had been passively enhanced after cultivation, could only barely make out that a shadow had suddenly appeared over there.
This is assuming the location is known beforehand; without knowing the location, it would be almost impossible to notice the dark figure.
Under Shen Heng's watchful gaze, the dark figure slowly turned around and disappeared above the mountain peak.
Shen Heng slowly withdrew his gaze.
Are you ready to come?
"Did you find anything?" Han Ling asked, noticing that Shen Heng had turned his gaze away.
"Yes, the Calamity Beast might be coming." Shen Heng nodded slightly.
Upon hearing this, Han Ling's expression became even more serious.
"Should we report to the Daoist priest or the chief now?"
"Wait a moment, let me double-check and also assess the possible quantities," Shen Heng said.
Han Ling nodded upon hearing this.
Shen Heng closed his eyes slightly and listened again.
The commotion caused by the Calamity Beast wasn't limited to just one location; it was also present in other directions.
However, the commotion in other directions was significantly less, mostly consisting of small groups of two or three people gathering together.
Unlike that direction, even with deliberate suppression, Shen Heng could still hear that at least dozens of Calamity Beast had gathered there.
The strange and obscure hissing sounded in Shen Heng's ears again.
Unfortunately, he couldn't understand it, and they were too far apart to hear each other's thoughts... Shen Heng listened in silence.
The sound quickly faded away.
Just when Shen Heng thought the Calamity Beast would soon regroup and attack, the Calamity Beast began to move.
However, they weren't coming this way; instead, they headed straight into the distance.
30KM, 35KM, 40KM, 45KM...
Then, it disappeared within the range of Shen Heng's hearing.
Shen Heng glanced up in that direction with slight surprise, then lowered his head and fell into deep thought.
Why did you leave?
Because my condition hasn't fully recovered, I still feel my strength is insufficient...
"Something went wrong?" Han Ling asked after waiting for a while.
"Hmm," Shen Heng pointed in a direction, "There's a Sixth Tier Calamity Beast leading the other Calamity Beast in this direction."
"No more attacks?" Han Ling asked.
"It's hard to say for now. Maybe we'll go back and summon the Calamity Beast, and they'll be here soon; or maybe we'll refrain from attacking for now and go back to make some preparations," Shen Heng replied.
Han Ling nodded. The attack by the Calamity Beast was inevitable; it was just a matter of time.
She pondered for a moment, then asked, "Should we report this to the Daoist priest and the others?"
"Yes, but for now, let's focus our main efforts on continuing monitoring." Shen Heng calmly gazed in the direction the Calamity Beast had left.
"After all, regardless of whether the Calamity Beast attack or not, preparations will definitely be made as if an attack is imminent."
Han Ling nodded slightly and looked away.
Shen Heng also lowered his eyes slightly and continued to listen.
Time flows on.
The base's construction is becoming increasingly complete.
The metal city wall was also completed.
However, the defensive fortifications on the city wall are still under construction.
Part of the fortifications were on the city wall, and part were inside the wall.
The city walls mainly consisted of large structures such as gun emplacements that were difficult to place.
Inside the walls, there were mainly observation windows and the like.
Seven hours after entering the Erosion Zone, a soldier arrived below Shen Heng and his group.
The soldier saluted and then said:
"Hello, are you Inspector Shen?"
Shen Heng nodded and replied, "Yes, it's me."
"The commander requests your presence!" the soldier said.
It's been more than five or six hours since Jiang Lin mentioned, and there's still no sign of the beast tide, so isn't that a bit strange?... Shen Heng turned his head and exchanged a glance with Han Ling.
He then jumped out of the sealed cabin and left with the soldiers.
The two arrived at a metal house.
The soldier reported this, and after receiving permission from inside, Shen Heng stepped inside.
The room was very simple: a table, a few stools, and an electronic display screen—that was all.
Several figures were already seated around the table.
Besides the familiar Li Daoyi, there was also the chief of staff in charge of the Plateau Erosion Zone, Zhang Weijun, and several officers in military uniform.
Shen Heng and Li Daoyi exchanged a glance, and with Li Daoyi's slightly raised eyebrows, they turned their gaze to Zhang Weijun.
"Chief of Staff," Shen Heng nodded.
"Yes, Inspector Shen, thank you for your trouble." Zhang Weijun nodded slightly, then said:
"Although it was a bit delayed due to unforeseen circumstances, our radar reconnaissance system has finally expanded to a range of over thirty kilometers, which is temporarily sufficient to deal with any potential Calamity Beast."
Could it be an unexpected factor that could interfere with monitoring?... Shen Heng's mind raced, and he thought of the falling black snow.
"In short," Zhang Weijun continued, "We are now able to monitor the area around the base 24/7. Although the distance is still a bit short, at least we won't have to wait until the Calamity Beast appear on this plateau before we even notice them."
As soon as he finished speaking, the officers around him also showed a relieved smile.
Although I know that with Inspector Shen in the Supervision Bureau, it seems that he can replace the role of radar, or even do it better.
However, their long-standing experience has made them more accustomed to trusting their own weapons and equipment.
At least, these pieces of equipment don't need a break.
Shen Heng's gaze swept over the officers. He pondered for a moment, then said thoughtfully:
"Chief, I have some news to report!"