Translator: Nyoi-Bo Studio Editor: Nyoi-Bo Studio
Peach Bay—this was the territory of the Gloaming Oceanic Manta Ray that Gao Peng had encountered.
A wharf was supposed to have been built here during the last century, but because the project plans were altered, the land was left as it was.
Of course, to even be considered for a wharf in the first place meant the waters here were deep. Not only was the surface area of the sea greater than that of the land, but it also possessed the natural advantage of being vertically expansive.
Because of this, the number of monsters in the sea was many times that of those on the land, causing the competition among the monster population to be particularly fierce.
Beneath the calm surface of the sea, all the monsters in the surroundings suddenly felt an inexplicable pull to gather together. What was strange was that they didn’t fight or quarrel among themselves, but remained surprisingly agreeable with each other.
Sonar images of the deep-sea monsters beneath them were projected onto a screen. Even though their actual appearance couldn’t be seen, it was still possible to make educated guesses on the sizes, forms, and characteristics of these monsters based on the images. From there, they could then calculate a portion of the monsters’ types through a comparison of the monsters’ forms and characteristics with the database.
After a careful screening of the data, based on comparisons of average sizes for each monster type, they were basically able to analyze the monsters’ level and abilities.
Even though the data generated was only for a portion of the monsters, the little that was garnered was already enough to cause quite a few headaches in the military.
“Why are these monsters not fighting each other despite being gathered in one place? This is most unusual.” The bespectacled researcher adjusted his glasses confusedly as he raked through his hair with his hands.
“There’s only one possibility,” said the commander-in-chief of Yang Cheng’s military, Wang Ze, calmly. “There’s a monster out there whose tier is high enough to suppress them all, causing them to remain docile in close quarters.”
Upon hearing these words, a heavy silence settled over the room.
At the time, there were only two confirmed Lord-tier monsters. The fact that these two Lord-tier monsters passed by each other without the slightest sign of conflict…
One of these was the Gloaming Oceanic Manta Ray from the information Gao Peng had provided. The other was a Sand Shadow Carpet Shark, its body exceeding 100 feet long. For a Sand Shadow Carpet Shark of this size, it had most likely achieved Lord-tier ranking, unless it had a rare mutation that made it giant.
Suddenly, the wind seemed to have been knocked out of the small room they were in.
All those sitting before the screen felt shivers run up their backs, dozens of tiny goosebumps crawling across their skin.
On the screen, what originally appeared to be a small swarm of light green creatures of various sizes had rapidly dispersed in all directions within seconds.
It happened in the blink of an eye. The entire screen turned a light, leafy green. It was such a beautiful color and yet those who saw it felt as if their hearts were in their mouths.
Now, the sonar equipment was of an improved model. Because all living things had their own magnetic field, the light waves emitted by the equipment would be reflected back upon encountering them, and from there project the corresponding imagery onto the screen. To have the entire screen turn light green…
“Increase the altitude of the drones.” Wang Ze ordered calmly.
The drones sped into the sky and stopped several thousand yards above sea level. Finally, the screen wasn’t covered in light green in its entirety, but showed some sort of outline, as if it were reflecting irregularly shaped island.
In terms of surface area, it was approximately a whopping million square feet and seemed to be highly irregular in form.
However, this was no inanimate object, but an unknown living monster.
This creature, with its fearsome million-square-foot girth, appeared a dusty light green on the screen, and in its light, all the expressions of the people in the room were reserved and solemn.
…
“This is a sonar image taken by a military drone from above. You can’t eat it!” Whap! Gao Peng smacked Da Zi’s head. “So close your mouth.”
“No, I want to eat it!” Da Zi became upset. “If you don’t let me eat it, you’re not the real Gao Peng.”
“This, this is a sonar image, How on earth are you supposed to eat it?!” Gao Peng could feel a headache coming on.
“No, it’s obviously a mooncake that’s had two bites taken out of it, and we don’t even know who ate it!” Incensed, Da Zi started jabbing furiously at the light green image.
Flamy began to dance and hop from foot to foot on the sidelines. It appeared that these two gluttons had come to an agreement.
Gao Peng pulled out a piece of spiced, sweet dried meat from Silly’s pocket dimension and flung it far away. Da Zi swiveled his head, following the arc of the projectile, and sped towards it in a flash of lightning, snatching it from the air. Pleased with itself, it began to chew on the meat in a corner. If one didn’t look too closely at it, it could almost be mistaken for a corgi—especially since his legs were just as short.
Gao Peng then proceeded to take a salted fish out of Silly’s pocket dimension. Flamy’s eyes lit up at the sight; its neck stretched out to follow Gao Peng’s every move. He drooled almost incessantly.
Gao Peng popped the salted fish into his own mouth and chewed on it. It was a little dry, so he took a large gulp of juice to help swallow it down.
“The military has requested that we work with them to eliminate these monsters,” Gao Peng told his beasts. “You guys have anything to add?”
Da Zi was too busy feasting upon the sweet spiced meat in his corner to answer.
Flamy was still angry from having been tricked by Gao Peng. Who did Gao Peng think it was—an idiot like Da Zi?
Goldie narrowed his eyes. As someone who couldn’t swim, it had no opinion on the subject.
Dumby merely stood silently, his eyes smoldering with passion. Whatever Master said, it would follow.
Silly smacked Gao Peng’s ear angrily. If stupid Gao Peng drank its juice again; it was definitely put its foot down.
“Squeak.” Gao Peng grabbed Silly with one arm and began to squish his face as if kneading a ball of dough while holding him. “Hey, don’t you go throwing a tantrum now.”
Silly was kneaded into all sorts of shapes by Gao Peng. His face took on the shapes of a bun, tang yuan, man tou…
“So, you see, it’s not that I don’t accept your request, but my beasts are unwilling to fight beside me. They tire of conflict and battle, and only wish to rest for the time being,” Gao Peng said apologetically to the table full of uniformed men.
The men’s lips pursed. They were rendered speechless and unable to offer a rebuttal.
“The Southern Sky Group has always been a small company that never ventures too far outside its comfort zone, and I myself obey the law; I always pay my taxes on time. It wouldn’t be a stretch to call myself a good citizen of the alliance.” Gao Peng said seriously. “However, I am but a feeble boy without my beasts, too weak to even truss a chicken.”
The uniformed men took two deep breaths. Despite knowing that Gao Peng was talking nonsense, they weren’t in positions to lose their tempers. “The threats near the Qing Jiao Settlement have always been the military’s responsibility, as they should be. However, this time, the monsters are particularly hard to deal with. I’m sure you’ve read the information we’ve given you, and as the saying goes, there are no unharmed eggs beneath an overturned nest—more so when the distance between here and Peach Bay isn’t so far as the crow flies. We’ll be recruiting the best monster hunters from countries with significant Chinese populations, as well as all over the world, to help rid the earth of these creatures, and you’re a Lord-tier trainer, Mr Gao. We hope that you’re willing to contribute to the cause—be it for your company or the people of Yang Cheng.”
