Interstellar Hunting Nation

Chapter 16: Underground Flood’s Peak

Translator: Henyee Translations Editor: Henyee Translations

“Parker, didn’t you say that you’re the most familiar with the terrain here? How long did you calculate the remaining time to discharge the wastewater is just now?” Wu Chang, who was lying on the ground, asked anxiously.

“It’ll take at least three hours. I calculated it very clearly—”

Before Parker could finish speaking, Wu Chang jumped up from the ground, and put Aileen on his back. Then, he ran forward.

“Hurry up and leave. You must have calculated wrong…”

At this juncture, no one dared to question Wu Chang’s judgment. The group followed closely behind him. On the way, Parker kept muttering, “How could I be wrong? I remember clearly.”

Lion, who was supporting the Bullhead, went up and slapped Parker on the back of the head. “Why are you spouting so much nonsense? Hurry up and help the Bullhead up.”

Parker, who had been beaten, didn’t dare to talk back. He grabbed the Bullhead’s arm and quickly ran forward.

Wu Chang’s judgment was right. The weak tremor coming from the north came from the three thermal power plants being drained. Geothermal was an energy source that was everywhere on Huang’e. The thermal power plants were used to extract energy from hot spring water for the city.

Although Huang’e City was not big, it was still a medium-sized city with a population of more than 200,000. Coupled with the energy requirements of the surrounding mines, the three power plants operated at full capacity all year round. The hot water accumulated in six hours was enough to set off a flood in the drainage network.

Logically speaking, Parker shouldn’t have remembered this common knowledge wrong. Unfortunately, Parker was just a lowly miner, after all. Huang’e City had changed the drainage time, so they wouldn’t have specially informed him. This resulted in today’s serious mistake.

Billions of cubic meters of hot water rushed over, filling up the network that was more than 10 meters in diameter. White waves surged into the sky, and the sound was like thunder. Using the huge terrain difference, it roared and rushed over.

This speed was too great. Ordinary people couldn’t surpass it at all. If Wu Chang hadn’t been vigilant in advance, everyone might have died here.

Wu Chang and the others were too unlucky. There were no forks in the road at all. Everyone could only run south on the alloy platform on the side of the sewer. Fortunately, Wu Chang had given them advance warning. Otherwise, these people would have been swallowed by the flood before they could have escaped.

The sound of the water behind them was getting louder and louder. The people running wildly were already panting, but they still couldn’t find a fork in the road in front of everyone. They didn’t even find a shelter. Wu Chang’s early warning had only bought everyone five minutes to escape. No matter how strong a body of flesh and blood was, it was difficult to resist the power of nature.

Despair spread in the team, especially when Parker had the thought of giving up. His feet felt like they were filled with lead while dragging the Bullhead with internal injuries as he struggled bitterly at the back of the team.

Lion and Boss Pann ran side by side in the middle of the team. Although their situation was better than Bullhead’s, they were already out of breath.

At the front of the team was Wu Chang, who was carrying Aileen on his back. After all, Wu Chang’s strength had already reached the level of a stage-three warrior. Although he had suffered a lot of injuries and lost a lot of blood, his foundation was still better compared to this group of people.

With Aileen on his back, a large amount of blood loss, and continuous combat, even if Wu Chang used the power of Dragon Tiger, it would be useless. Despair had already infected him.

As she ran, Aileen realized the seriousness of the situation. She suddenly jumped down from Wu Chang’s back, and shouted, “Run, everyone, run for your lives. Don’t carry bags anymore. Remember to avenge everyone…”

Before Aileen could finish speaking, a white wave had already rushed over from the corner of the drainage network behind everyone. It was the vanguard of the peaking flood.

This time, even Lion and Boss Pann no longer hesitated. They shouted at Wu Chang, “Run, Wu Chang, run quickly. Don’t worry about us. Just remember to avenge us…”

At this moment, Bullhead shook Parker off. He pointed at Parker, and shouted, “Stinky rat, hurry up and run with Wu Chang. Everyone’s hope is on the two of you.”

Bullhead was right. He and Boss Pann were both injured. Lion was old, and Aileen was born with her left foot a bit uneven. Right now, Wu Chang and Parker had the greatest chance of survival. The four people present definitely couldn’t be a stumbling block to their escape.

Lion looked at the other two who were standing there stupidly and wasting time. He was so angry that his nose was crooked. “Get lost, both of you get lost…” After saying that, he looked at Wu Chang with tears in his eyes.

“Do you want to see me die here?” Lion roared. He took out a pistol from his waist and pointed it at his temple. “Get lost, right now.”

Tears welled up in Wu Chang’s eyes. It was not only because this scene was very heartbreaking, but also because he was already in extreme despair. This was because he had already seen the flood’s true appearance behind everyone. It was too late to escape now.

Life was never a drama. As the saying went, when the protagonist was on the brink of death, it was impossible for him to save the entire team by himself. Just like now, no matter how strong and touching Aileen, Lion, Boss Pann, and Bullhead’s self-sacrifice was, it could not change the reality that the flood’s peak had arrived.

Wu Chang knew that even if he turned around and ran now, it would be impossible for him to escape from the flood unless his body was at its peak and he could unleash 100% of his strength. Unfortunately, there were not many ifs in life.

At that moment, everyone present saw the towering white waves behind them. The hot-breathing mountain pressed down on everyone like a mountain. This time, everyone finally understood that everything was really over.

However, at this critical moment, at the top of the sewer, a few pitch-black figures more than 10 meters tall shot towards everyone like arrows. Moreover, there were intense squeaks in the air.

“Man-eating clan?” These were the only words in everyone’s minds. No one dared to believe it. Wasn’t it tragic enough to be drowned by the flood? They had to be killed and eaten by the man-eating clan before drowning?

Correct, the black shadows that shot out from the top of the cave were the warriors of the man-eating clan. These screaming humanoid monsters had three rows of sharp teeth that flickered with a cold white light. Just looking at them made one shudder. Wu Chang thought about the wound on his shoulder, and a chill ran up his back.

Humans had a very strange characteristic, which was that they loved to choose their own way of dying. People always imagined many ways of dying to make hypothetical comparisons. Dying in bed without illness or calamity, with family members by their side, was naturally the best way to die. And the ruthless fire and water, the cruel war, and waiting for death were definitely the worst ways to die.

However, one of the worst ways to die was to be eaten alive. This kind of scene did not need to be seen with one’s own eyes. Just thinking about it made one shudder.

It was a pity that everyone had encountered such a situation today, a situation that would make everyone present collapse.

Caught off guard, no one chose to counterattack, because there was no time left. The man-eating clan’s movement technique was so fast that it was too late for one to draw a gun. Even though Lion was holding a pistol in his hand, before he could turn the muzzle, a large hand covered in carapace slapped the pistol into the river.

The man-eating clan warriors who rushed into the crowd carried everyone on their shoulders like sacks. Then, they rushed south like a gust of wind.

What was going on? Were these man-eating clan members going to kidnap everyone and bring them back to their nest and slowly enjoy them? Just as the desperate Boss Pann was about to take out his gun and commit suicide, Wu Chang suddenly shouted, “Don’t resist. There’s something strange…”

These words dispelled everyone’s suicidal thoughts.

Ever since Aileen had brought Wu Chang back from the wilderness, miracles had always been with him. Even the miners had given him a nickname, Ghost Wu Chang. People who often had miracles were easily trusted by others. Now, Wu Chang’s words had actually made everyone temporarily forget their fear of the man-eating clan.

Wu Chang did not know why he shouted this sentence. He only felt the cordiality emitted by this group of man-eating clan members from the bottom of his heart. This was purely a feeling, a very subtle feeling.

The man-eating clan members that appeared this time could be considered warriors. Wu Chang estimated that the combat strength of the man-eating clan member that was resisting him had already surpassed that of Captain Ye Tian. Coupled with the fact that the man-eating clan was born with a good physique, their movement speed actually surpassed the flood behind them.

As they continued to run, everyone watched helplessly as the front of the flood pressed close to their backs, as if it could reach out and touch them. The flood’s wave roared angrily, as if it was unwilling to let these lowly humans escape. However, no matter how much the flood increased its speed, it could not touch a corner of these people’s clothes.

After a short while, everyone’s eyes suddenly lit up. A fork appeared in front of them, and it was slanted at the top of the sewer at a 45-degree angle. The fork was not long, and Aileen could already see the dark red lead clouds and drifting volcanic ash outside.

“Ground!” Aileen shouted loudly. “We are saved…” She was so excited that she seemed to have forgotten that she was saved by the man-eating clan. She also forgot that she might become a pile of meat soup in the man-eating clan’s pot in a while.

The group of man-eating clan members were also excited. They jumped into the fork in the road with squeaking sounds, stepping on sharp rocks as they charged towards the ground. When a group of man-eating clan members rushed out of the ground and glided in mid-air, hot water pillars actually rushed out from the ground, forming a fountain tens of meters tall along the fork. Water droplets splashed in the air, forming a localized rainstorm.

After everyone landed safely, the group of people stared blankly at the hot fountain in front of them for a long time without saying a word. In the end, it was Ground Mouse Parker who broke the silence.

“Even if I had racked my brains, I would never have thought that my life could have been saved by the man-eating clan, huh”

At this moment, the dirty old man, Lion, suddenly said faintly, “In the evolutionary history of mankind, the history of livestock far exceeded that of farming. Our ancestors knew how to capture living creatures. They did not kill them first, but raised them in captivity, and waited for them to reproduce. This way, they could obtain an endless supply of meat without hunting…”

The old man’s words made everyone present shudder. They gathered together and looked at the circle of man-eating clan members outside. All of them were so frightened that their faces turned pale, especially when they saw the three rows of sharp teeth. Ground Mouse Parker peed his pants.

That scene was very strange. A group of man-eating clan members surrounded the six humans and drooled. The six humans no longer had the ability to resist.