Chapter 885: Chapter 885

885: Chapter 871: Natural Enemy 885: Chapter 871: Natural Enemy “….What kind of godforsaken place is this?

Even a graveyard would have more life.”

“Such a strange smell, meow.

Uh, disgusting, meow!”

Another advantage of using a small boat instead of a large ship was that the explorers disembarking on the land felt much more at ease when they saw the small boat descend to the surface with them.

As soon as they arrived on the ground and opened the hatch, Lu Ping’an and his companions were struck by a suffocating odor.

But most people put on their prepared masks, and no incidents occurred.

“….Is the air toxic?”

“Not bad, no lethal toxins or supernatural toxins detected.

Minimum biochemical reserves, first-tier Magic Potion on standby; one every eight hours should be enough.”

The Magic Potion logistics team immediately busied themselves; for such non-contaminated, mildly toxic environments, the versatile “Detox Magic Potion” could solve the problem.

One applied externally, one taken orally, cheap and plentiful….Lu Ping’an noticed that when those Hammer-men saw his group distributing Magic Potions, they actually looked somewhat envious and curious.

The comprehensiveness of professionals, as well as their clear complementary functions, might be another advantage.

But when they truly stepped into this small world, they were still met with displeasure.

It was a world that made Lu Ping’an feel nostalgic, but in a reverse kind of way….

“…..Just came out of the Abyss quagmire; how come I’ve ended up in another muddy world.”

The overly dense moisture and heat caused Lu Ping’an to slip the moment he set foot down.

Underfoot was not a swamp, but something more troublesome: deep mud pits.

Even more frustrating was the fact that this damned small world was too far from the star and lacked a sufficient atmosphere layer.

Even in broad daylight, the visible light still reminded one of twilight.

Grey skies, yellow ground, air with a stench of decay, and squishy mud underfoot—by all accounts, this area could be considered the trash of trash.

Lu Ping’an truly couldn’t understand why a camp needed to be established here of all places.

If one were to choose a vacation spot, this would probably be the worst option.

“…After processing, the mud here can be refined into rare Enchantment Metals, the quality of which is comparable to the Gold of your country.

Moreover, there are several valuable mining areas here.”

Alright, a simple and crude reason, yet unexpectedly persuasive.

One by one, power Mechas landed on the ground.

In such an environment, enchanted armor that had undergone “environmental adaptation” was far more useful than bare flesh.

But the number of suits of armor was limited, and it also wasn’t suitable to deploy them all at once; those with the Runner profession just had to run on their own.

Feathering Transformation plus a suitable pair of boots made it easy to handle such harsh conditions.

Even without the Runner profession, most professionals had a way to handle things on their own.

“We’re heading to the mining area first; there have been reports of some troubles there….”

What the boss says, the mercenaries do.

With protection in front and behind, the big lads carefully disembarked the ship, heading towards the nearby valley.

But some immediately sank into the quagmire.

The ones caught by the chains were not from Lu Ping’an’s team but the employers…The Hammer-men, with their massive size and weight, were ill-suited for such environments, lacking the ability to exert force in the middle of the mire.

“Don’t you have vehicles like sleds for this kind of situation?”

When Lu Ping’an asked, the response was a unanimous shake of the heads.

As Star-zone businessmen, why would they stock up on such…

specialized vehicles for unique ground conditions when there was hardly a need for it?

Lu Ping’an glanced at the big fellows stuck in the mire and sighed; it seemed this job was going to be a bit troublesome.

“We usually have ways to manage, but this time we came in a rush and didn’t bring prosthetic bodies adapted to this environment.”

“Buying them temporarily would be very expensive, and because they’re not fitted, it would cause ongoing damage and negative effects to the wearer.”

“There should be some in the mining area.

We’re just here as reinforcements…”

The Hammer-men’s “bodies” were mere vessels, which could be swapped out for different types according to the environment.

But with such a harsh environment, fabricating specialized bodies was expensive and not universal.

These businessmen, who had come to offer support while also transporting goods, naturally didn’t bother to purchase them…

Eh, they had hired some mercenaries instead because that was cheaper.

“….Let me do it, everyone stand back a bit…”

The wooden Noah’s Ark shot up from the ground; in such an environment, Brother Guan’s Fusang tree Ark was the best possible land vessel.

The towering large ship appeared amidst the quagmire, and although it splashed some mud, it also sparked a round of cheers.

“How is it?” Lu Ping’an asked Guan Xinxian, but it was about the local environment.

Guan’s Ark, though his private property, was in fact also maintained by the entire team, so naturally, Lu Ping’an cared about it.

It says it’s very nutritious, we’ll take a sample before we leave, see if it can be used as fertilizer,” Guan Xinxian nodded in satisfaction after sensing the feedback from his Magic Pet.

This was an unexpected bonus.

The group boarded the ship, and since their destination wasn’t far, this could save them a lot of trouble.

Compared with the previous rescue ship, the current “Ark” had changed dramatically.

All the unguarded rails had been equipped with barriers and parapets, with many aggressive Magic Plants and siege weapons added to the sides.

The most expensive item was a hunting demon Mithril crossbow that was ninety percent new.

Its Enchantment Demon was very expensive, extremely so.

But its primary weapons were still the “Vortex Stone Cannons” at the front and back…

Brother Guan had also made it clear that before rescuing people, they needed the power to knock others down first.

The quagmire could not stop the giant ship.

The team’s heavy-armor-clad core strength patrolled left and right, attempting to locate the opponent mentioned in the intelligence.

Meanwhile, Lu Ping’an himself was performing tricks on the deck…

Taking Magic Plants and animals out and then returning them, he tested their combat power levels in this environment and whether they could adapt.

The answer was somewhat disheartening; the “mildly toxic” gases were unfriendly to the keenly-scented Demon Wolves, and continuously administering Magic Potions to them was neither realistic nor cost-efficient.

“The Magic Plants are quite vigorous though, Brother Guan was right; the soil and air here are extremely fertile.”

The overly moist and hot environment was constantly devoid of sunlight, a depressingly oppressive area, yet bizarrely suitable for the growth of Magic Plants.

So, Lu Ping’an took a walk around the Ark, planted a batch of new Magic Plants, and at the same time, was ready to reap their evolutionary potential.

The Ark moved forward slowly and persistently, its sound inevitably carrying far in the strangely calm surroundings.

A sudden shout drew attention, and a massive Giant was approaching from that direction.

He was at least eight or nine meters tall, his body pitch black with faintly visible scales, appearing both like a Giant and a Dragon monster.

It had no eyes, or perhaps in this world eyes were unnecessary.

The torn flesh and dripping digestive fluids from its gaping mouth clearly revealed its target.

Without needing a command from Lu Ping’an, the first volley of cannons and firearms began their assault.

The gunshots included with the powered armor fired a volley, the continuous sparks splattering, causing bodily fluids to spurt from the monster but completely unable to stop its advance.

Thick skin, no eyes, slow perception, Lu Ping’an had completed a preliminary profile of the local lifeforms.

The bombardment from the Green Planet’s Vortex Stone shells rang out, and the next moment, the Giant lost its upper limbs and internal organs.

This time, it fell straight down, utterly finished.

“…Seems like a waste.”

The Vortex Stone cannon ammunition was expensive and scarce.

Seeing that the apparently formidable monster was shattered after just one hit, Lu Ping’an felt a pang of distress.

But as everyone’s attention was drawn to the fallen giant monster, the real trouble arrived…

The one who screamed was the Hammer-man, normally so placid.

One unlucky fellow was hoisted into the sky by a gray-black faceless, eyeless “giant earthworm” that had somehow climbed aboard the ship.

It opened its huge mouth wide and then, with a suck, took in the airborne Hammer-man….

The torso of the Hammer-man fell to the ground in pieces, smashed beyond any hope of reconstruction.

The screams of his kin revealed the adversary they were facing on this expedition.

“It’s a stone maw sunflower!

The natural enemy of my kind!”