Hunter of Mysterious Creature-Chapter 398 - 43: Ants

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A group of researchers, dressed like Michelin tire figures, carefully took the container with the mimetic samples from Sun Hang’s hands. Then, they quickly got into an armored all-terrain vehicle waiting nearby and rapidly drove toward Chengdu, escorted by several armed vehicles and a swarm of drones.

Sun Hang turned his head and looked in the direction of Chimera 17. From time to time, he could still see one or two energy streams cutting through the night sky, tearing open the rain curtain, and striking somewhere beyond his sight.

"How many of the ’suicide squad’ sent in afterwards have withdrawn?" Sun Hang glanced at Ye Xuan, who was standing at the edge of the concrete base holding an electronic telescope, and asked.

"Out of a total of three thousand people, about six hundred have withdrawn so far. About two hundred have been confirmed dead, and apart from that, nearly four hundred are missing," Ye Xuan said without turning her head.

"The human wave tactic, that was your idea, wasn’t it?" Sun Hang asked again.

"Yes." Ye Xuan did not deny it.

She put down the telescope, glanced down at Sun Hang on his hover motorcycle, and added, "Winning by any means necessary is my consistent principle. If you find my approach unpleasant, or think my decisions are inhumane, you can lodge a protest with the Federation Council. No matter how the Federation Council decides to deal with me, I won’t resist."

"I didn’t say you were wrong." Sun Hang shrugged. "I just feel that many people died in vain. Actually, even without organizing this ’suicide squad,’ I could have brought out the mimetic samples."

"In a war between species, when one species is at a disadvantage, personal life and dignity become insignificant as long as victory can be achieved," Ye Xuan continued, "Have you ever watched ’Animal World’?"

"No, I haven’t," Sun Hang replied.

"An episode of this documentary left a deep impression on me when I was a child."

"Is it the episode ’It’s breeding season again’?" Sun Hang asked.

"Didn’t you say you hadn’t watched it?" Ye Xuan frowned slightly.

"I haven’t watched it, but that doesn’t stop me from knowing where a popular internet meme comes from, does it?" Sun Hang joked.

"The episode I’m talking about is on red fire ants native to South America. These creatures live in a tropical rainforest climate, where continuous rain for days, even months, is common. When floods caused by heavy rain wash away their nests, they spontaneously form into a ’raft,’ placing their fragile eggs, cocoons, and larvae on the top, while the most important queen is wrapped securely in the center of the raft. This ant raft, made up of countless red fire ants, can float on water for a long time until they find land and rebuild their nest," Ye Xuan said.

"This story seems somewhat familiar," Wang Xiyi suddenly interjected, "But the version I heard was about a sudden forest fire, with ants holding together in a ball rolling out of the fire."

"Whether it’s a flood or a fire, the survival rate of the outermost ants is almost zero. They drown or burn... But it’s precisely because of these ants’ sacrifices that the entire colony survives and continues to thrive," Ye Xuan said, "Our current human predicament is not much different from those ants faced with natural disasters."

"So, when you deliver the consolation payments to the families of the fallen soldiers, will you also tell their families this story?" Sun Hang scratched his head.

"Of course not, I will tell the families that their children died honorably on the battlefield fighting against the Chimera, saving an entire city’s people, and that their sacrifice holds great significance and unparalleled value..."

"Hold on," Sun Hang interrupted Ye Xuan before she could finish, "If in the end Chengdu can’t be defended, what will you say then?"

"Then it won’t be up to me to say anything," Ye Xuan said calmly, "I told my father, if Shuzhou falls, I will stay on this land forever."

"Uh... Your father has no objections?"

"Of course he objects! And strongly!" Ye Jiu came over angrily, "If not for the pressure from the council, my father would have wanted to find someone to tie Xuan’Er back to Chunming City... Why are you so stubborn this time, insisting on making a military decree... Now we’re stuck between a rock and a hard place."

"I’ve never regretted it," Ye Xuan said, "If you’re scared, you have the ability to leave Shuzhou before things get out of control."

"Leave my ass, my father gave me a direct order to ensure his beloved daughter’s safety," Ye Jiu said angrily.

However, he did not mention what his dad said to him later—"If things become impossible, then knock Xuan’Er out and bring her back, I’ll figure something out for the military order!"

"If I were the coward, what would they think?" Ye Xuan pointed to the chaos on the artificial floating island not far away—the ’suicide squad survivors’ just withdrawn were gathering on a few improvised artificial floating islands. Those with strength left were climbing on by themselves, but more soldiers were pulled or pushed onto the islands by their comrades.

Marching at full speed for forty kilometers through swamp terrain, while constantly worried about energy streams capable of vaporizing everything falling on them, and a retreat filled with various strange entities controlled by Chimera 17 and parasitized colleagues... In terms of both physical and mental endurance, these suicide squad members had already reached their limits.