Chapter Forty-Six: Battle

Long Yu’s physical capabilities far surpassed those of the mutated cats, and naturally, he was faster as well. With a powerful push of his hind legs, Long Yu propelled himself toward the two mutated cats, the air crackling with sonic booms in his wake.

The two mutated cats were still airborne, their bodies poised in a predatory pounce. Long Yu's sudden movement instinctively filled them with terror. As the distance between them closed, Long Yu prepared to unleash his most ferocious attack.

However, his Crushing Mountain Palm struck only empty air. Despite stretching his arm to its fullest, his palm met nothing but the void, missing the mutated cat by mere centimeters. At the last possible moment, driven by a powerful survival instinct, the mutated cat managed to twist its body midair, shifting away from the spot where Long Yu’s attack should have landed, dodging the blow entirely.

His attack having missed, a spatial portal instantly opened before him, and Long Yu reappeared far away. The mutated cats, who had just landed and were ready to counterattack, stared in confusion at the empty air where Long Yu had been, only to spot him again at a distance.

Long Yu, of course, would not give the mutated cats another chance to strike. The moment his attack failed, he quickly retreated, avoiding any risk of being countered while still airborne. Thanks to the spatial portal, he could afford to be so bold and unrestrained in his assaults.

“Damn it, how could they dodge that? These beasts are insane!” Long Yu cursed fiercely as he watched the mutated cats evade his attack, his respect for them deepening.

The two mutated cats crouched low, fur bristling, letting out low, throaty growls, but they no longer advanced. Long Yu had no time to wonder why they’d stopped; perhaps he’d frightened them. But even if they regretted attacking, he had no intention of letting them go.

Channeling the power of space within him, he conjured another spatial portal beside the mutated cats. The vigilant creatures detected no danger, still keeping their eyes fixed on Long Yu, wary of any special abilities.

From the mutated cats’ perspective, Long Yu vanished before their eyes. Before they had time to process what had happened, a wave of intense danger swept over them—a product of their B-rank passive skill, Danger Sense.

The sense of peril grew ever closer. Obeying pure instinct, the mutated cat leaped backward with all its might.

Yet even as it sprang into the air, Long Yu’s attack met it head-on, his Crushing Mountain Palm striking one of the mutated cats with full force at the waist. The blow was so powerful that its spine snapped in two, the cat’s body splitting before it could even cry out. Just like that, one mutated cat was dead.

With one fallen, the other grew even more wary, retreating toward its companion’s corpse and roaring in fear. Oddly, though, despite its terror, it did not flee.

“So be it. If you won’t run, then die!” Long Yu gathered energy in his palm, preparing another strike.

Meanwhile, Zhao Yihan, hiding at the rear, was not idle. Her C-rank Wood Binding skill summoned vines from the earth, which wound around the mutated cats fighting Number Two. Caught off guard, the cats were quickly decapitated by Number Two’s blade.

With their teamwork, one mutated cat after another was dispatched. At last, when Long Yu finished off the final one near him, Number Two did the same.

To Long Yu’s surprise, even as their numbers dwindled, the two mutated cats attacking Number Four did not flee; instead, they watched the team warily, still not attacking. When attacked, they would only dodge desperately, as if their only intent was to delay the group.

The realization dawned on them: these mutated cats had no intention of killing them. Their only purpose was to stall.

With that, everything became clear. Smacking her forehead, Zhao Yihan exclaimed in alarm, casting her skills even faster, eager to finish off the last two mutated cats and get away.

Number Three’s earth giants were now fully formed—three in all—but Number Three looked pale and exhausted, clearly drained by the effort.

Under their combined assault, it took less than ten seconds to dispatch the remaining mutated cats. The two under Long Yu’s control suffered minor wounds but nothing serious.

As soon as the battle ended and they prepared to leave, Number Four’s urgent voice rang out: “Captain, bad news! We’re surrounded again.” There was fear in his tone.

Everyone instinctively looked to Long Yu, wordlessly seeking guidance. Long Yu understood at once.

With a resigned wave, he offered a wry smile.

He was nearly out of energy to fuel the spatial portals—there was no way he could get the whole team out. Alone, he might have had a chance, but with so many? Impossible.

Privately, Long Yu resolved that if things became truly desperate, he would have to flee, even if it meant leaving the rest behind.

Seeing Long Yu with no solution, disappointment flickered in the others’ eyes, but only briefly. They were all soldiers; though they didn’t treat death lightly, they were prepared for it. Besides, the situation wasn’t hopeless—fight, and maybe they’d survive.

“Number Three, have your earth giants take the lead and clear a path. Number Two, handle any mutated beasts that get through. Long Yu, you bring up the rear. The rest, stay with me in the middle. When it’s time, we break out together.”

After a quick briefing, the group set off toward the edge of the mountain.

Meanwhile, Zhao Yihan kept the satellite phone busy, constantly reporting their situation and requesting backup. Of course, no backup would come—human forces had long since lost air superiority, and no aircraft dared take off in the wild.

However, headquarters did promise remote fire support, arranging for artillery to be launched from a hundred miles away.

But the shells, while helpful, were of limited use; they couldn’t risk hitting their own team, and at best could clear some of the outer threats. Besides, with the mutated beasts’ current vitality, the stronger ones couldn’t be killed by mere shells.

Within a minute, the roar of artillery echoed through the sky, though Long Yu and the others had not yet encountered the next wave of beasts.

Before they could even feel relieved, their hopes sank further—some of the flying mutated beasts rose into the sky and intercepted the shells midair.

“They can do that?” The group was stunned.

The mutated beasts’ actions revealed their cunning, and a dark fear for the future settled over everyone.

By now, even a fool could see that the mutated beasts were being controlled by something intelligent—something capable of strategy.

Would humanity be able to survive this? For the first time, Long Yu felt a true sense of dread for mankind’s future.