Chapter 69: Slanderous Intel

Volume 1 “Year of Calamity”

Medusa held a formidable reputation among the survivors of Yushan Fortress—though certainly not a favorable one. To exaggerate slightly, if children like Little Biscuit cried and refused to sleep at night, simply telling them “Medusa is coming!” would guarantee they’d immediately burrow under their blankets, too terrified to emerge. An Sheng’s attitude toward her could be described as turning pale at the mere mention of her name—in his heart, Medusa equated to a man-eating tiger that devoured bones and all.

So when people in the Fortress Area witnessed this legendary monster, previously only seen in videos, actually intervening to rescue their families in the fortress, everyone initially struggled to believe their eyes. However, Medusa’s declaration—”How dare you touch my man, seeking death!”—carried overwhelming implications. When had An Sheng become involved with this female monster? Wasn’t he supposed to be terrified of her? Regardless, the most crucial fact remained: An Sheng and the others were temporarily safe.

Unlike the shock and confusion of other survivors, one person’s eyes burned with pure hatred—Ye Rong. She would never forget Medusa, even if the Alien Race member were reduced to ashes. This was the very being who had ambushed their special operations squad and killed Li Guoan!

When Ye Rong heard Medusa’s term of endearment for An Sheng, countless suspicions and unanswered questions suddenly fell into place. No wonder this female monster had spared An Sheng multiple times. No wonder Yushan Fortress had never been attacked by Mutants since its establishment. Everything became clear—it was all because of Medusa’s relationship with An Sheng!

In Ye Rong’s mind, if Medusa was the chief culprit who killed her lover and comrades, then An Sheng—being both a Mutant and Medusa’s “man”—was nothing but a complete accomplice. That hypocrite still put on a saintly facade every day, claiming everyone in the fortress was his family. Disgusting! Deceitful!

In that instant, Ye Rong pieced everything together. Rage and hatred nearly overwhelmed the female officer’s reason. No longer concerned with the battle outside, she turned and rushed into the cave, sprinting toward the cavern housing the Particle Signal Transmitter.

“The commander places great importance on the video you sent. What’s the current situation there? Could rescue forces from the base still arrive in time?”

On the laptop screen appeared a middle-aged soldier with golden stars on his shoulders—Senior Officer Hu Biao, Deputy Chief of Staff at Kunlun Base.

“Sir! Currently Yushan Fortress is under attack by three Purifiers. Two have been eliminated by Captain Nie Chong, though the captain is now severely wounded and combat-incapacious. The remaining Advanced Purifier is engaged in combat with two other Mutants, so the fortress is temporarily secure. I believe, if possible, we should seize this opportunity to eliminate all these Alien Race members!”

After a moment of contemplation, Deputy Chief of Staff Hu Biao responded to Ye Rong on screen: “I’ll report your proposal to the commander. I believe he’ll likely approve this operation.”The top brass of Kunlun Base were well aware that Li Guoan was Commander Li’s only son, who had been attacked by a Lord-level Mutant during the mission to Province L and ultimately fell in battle after a valiant struggle. Although the base had not yet deployed weapons capable of confronting Lords, Deputy Chief of Staff Hu Biao, as a senior base official, knew that the research institute had already produced three large combat weapons and was conducting live combat tests.

Preliminary test results indicated that the combat capabilities of these three large weapons were fully comparable to Lord-level Mutants and those terrifying Advanced Purifiers.

The intelligence Ye Rong sent to Kunlun was fabricated—more precisely, it was edited footage. There were three video segments: the first showed Li Guoan’s combat recording before his death, which was unaltered; the second depicted An Sheng rescuing women and children by the river, but most of the content had been cut by Ye Rong, leaving only scenes of An Sheng transforming into a Demon and charging into the crowd with his Saber; the third segment was combat footage recorded by the Intelligent Mechanical Soldier’s camera, also heavily edited.

This woman was utterly blinded by hatred. The intelligence she sent was purely intended to slander An Sheng and Medusa. Her hatred for Medusa was somewhat understandable, as Medusa had indeed attacked them, killing Li Guoan and the special operations team soldiers.

But what about An Sheng? Both Ye Rong and Wu Hongyu owed their lives to An Sheng’s rescue. This was nothing short of repaying kindness with enmity!

How could a woman consumed by hatred care about such things? Her sole focus now was avenging her beloved, even at the cost of her own life!

After waiting just two minutes, another communication request appeared on the laptop screen. Ye Rong pressed Enter, and the screen flashed to reveal the white-haired Commander Li Yinfeng!

“Comrade Ye Rong, first, on behalf of the nation, I express my gratitude to you. Despite being trapped, you have not forgotten your duty as a soldier.”

The commander’s words stirred Ye Rong deeply. She immediately stood at attention, saluted, and declared loudly: “I serve the people!”

“Enough pleasantries. I’ve dispatched an Aerospace Carrier Fleet heading at full speed to your location. They will arrive in just forty minutes! Hold on, survive—I await your return at the base!”

“Yes, Commander!”

Hearing this, Ye Rong was overwhelmed with excitement. What did an Aerospace Carrier Fleet signify? It was a colossal Floating Battleship five times larger than a sea-based aircraft carrier, equipped with anti-gravity engines and no fewer than a hundred giant Particle Cannons. Along with other large, medium, and small escort Airships, such a force could have dominated the entire planet a year ago. But Ye Rong’s thrill stemmed not from this—it was from the prospect of finally achieving revenge.

After closing the communicator, Ye Rong sat before the computer and murmured softly: “Guoan, do you see? Soon, I will avenge you! Do you see? Guoan… sobbing”Ye Rong wept, starting with soft sobs that escalated into weeping, then finally erupting into unrestrained wailing. The months of pent-up anguish she had carried within her heart could no longer be suppressed the moment she heard the base’s dispatched troops were about to arrive, pouring out in a torrential release.

Her vengeful scheme in the cave went unnoticed by others, as nearly all survivors were currently gathered in the bunker, watching the battle outside.

When Fang Yi laid eyes on Medusa, she immediately knew the situation was dire. Medusa was no ordinary Mutant, but a genuine Lord. What did being a Lord signify? Her mere presence was enough to make a high-tech military base hesitate to venture into her territory.

Even Advanced Purifiers possessed formidable strength, yet they still fell slightly short when compared to a Lord. Moreover, Medusa wasn’t just any ordinary Lord – she was a super Lord with Heaven-Defying genetic talent!

Freshly evolved into a Lord, she had managed to lethally counter two Purifiers while still unfamiliar with her new body – one of whom was Andre, who already had one foot in the Advanced Purifier Rank. Now, after all this time, Medusa had not only absorbed both Purifiers’ abilities but had also been consuming numerous powerful Mutants in the surrounding areas.

The current Medusa could rightfully be called the strongest among Mutants. Even if not the absolute strongest, she undoubtedly stood at the pyramid’s peak. Or to put it differently, Medusa now stood at the brink of a Breakthrough. Given the right opportunity or sufficient time, she might break through the Lord Rank and evolve into a legendary existence.

Fang Yi had heard the Emissary speak of that conceptual legendary tier. When an Infected Body breaks through the Lord Rank, even a deity-like being such as the Emissary would need to handle it with care. The “Red Tide” Virus and Deification Factor originated from the same source, sharing countless intricate connections. When the Emissary released the “Red Tide” upon Earth, it had taken enormous risks, given the Virus’s uncontrollable nature that might even evolve lifeforms surpassing the Emissary itself.

Fang Yi pondered briefly without immediately launching an attack. Though she looked down upon Virus-infected Mutants, she wasn’t an arrogant person. Sometimes, compromising before a powerful opponent wasn’t shameful – losing one’s life was the true waste.

“Lady Lord, I believe there’s no need for us to fight each other. Compared to humans, all our power comes from the same source. From this perspective, we should be purifying humanity together, don’t you think?”

Despite her compromise, the Purifier’s inherent pride still tinged Fang Yi’s tone with condescension. This manner of speech displeased Medusa greatly, especially since Mutants were genetically predisposed to loathe Purifiers. But these were minor matters – what truly enraged Medusa was that this woman before her had nearly beaten her man to death!

That was the man her majesty Medusa had claimed for herself! She could amuse herself with him, even torment him as she pleased – but for others to lay hands on An Sheng? Absolutely unforgivable!”You little bitch, you sure talk a lot,” Medusa stared coldly at Fang Yi as she spat out the insult.

That word again. Fang Yi truly detested that term, especially when it came from the mouth of a filthy Mutant directed at her, a noble Purifier. At that moment, Fang Yi completely abandoned any thought of negotiation and instantly entered her Energy Transformation state. Compared to threats, Purifiers valued their honor far more.

“Spear of Judgment!”

“Death Ray!”

The two powerful women launched their attacks at each other simultaneously. Meanwhile, Xun Lili finally overcame her disgust and cut a piece of flesh from the Baldy Purifier, bringing it to An Sheng’s lips.

“An Sheng, eat it quickly! That female monster said this could save your life!” This was the first time Xun Lili had ever done something so cruel. Even though the one being carved up was a despicable Purifier, the man hadn’t even drawn his last breath yet. When she cut the flesh from his body, the Purifier was still moaning in agony.

An Sheng didn’t eat it. He shook his head with difficulty and whispered to Xun Lili, “Just put him near my mouth. Go check on Third Brother immediately and feed this piece of meat to him instead.”

Though An Sheng’s voice was faint, Xun Lili understood his meaning through lip reading and quickly complied, placing the Baldy Purifier near his mouth. An Sheng painfully turned his head, forced his mouth open to reveal sharp fangs, and bit down on the Purifier’s exposed skin, beginning to absorb the man’s blood.

Meanwhile, Xun Lili rushed over with the piece of flesh to where Pighead Three lay motionless nearby, checking his condition. But when she discovered Pighead Three had already stopped breathing, she burst into loud sobs once again.

Frantically, she stuffed the Purifier’s flesh into Pighead Three’s large mouth, hoping he could swallow it and absorb the energy to heal his injuries. But it was all in vain. Pighead Three was dead – he had died the moment he blocked all those thunderbolts.