Chapter 102: Chapter 102: Seeking Help, Sand Control
So painful!
Qin Tian’s face was deathly pale. This was his first time enduring such a pure spiritual attack; it felt like several knives were violently stirring in his mind, leaving him breathless from the pain.
Whoosh~~
Black Wings flapped, soaring skyward like a rocket, flying farther and farther.
Stopping thousands of meters high in the air, seeing no more spiritual attacks, Qin Tian wiped his nosebleed and finally sighed in relief.
"Thankfully, I almost fell."
A strong sense of fear filled Qin Tian’s heart.
Spiritual attacks have a range; the farther the distance, the less the damage.
If he had been flying a bit lower just now, he might now be a soul-less shell.
Spiders, mantises, invisible insects
And an incredible amount of spiritual power
Qin Tian suspected the mastermind was likely a rare Beast Taming Spiritualist.
Beast Taming Spiritualists are a niche stream among Spirit Mages.
During the cultivation of spiritual energy, they focus on enhancing spiritual power and form contracts with Spirit Beasts using secret techniques, letting the beasts fight for them.
Some powerful Beastmasters can even open up a personal beast taming space with some spatial artifacts, keeping numerous Spirit Beasts with them to summon when needed in battle.
However, this combat style also has some unavoidable flaws and hidden dangers.
First, nurturing Spirit Beasts consumes a lot of resources; the more the beasts, the greater the consumption. If these resources were invested in oneself, the effects would be more significant; but if they are spread across several beasts, the enhancement is quite limited.
Moreover, Spirit Beasts have thoughts of their own, and in battle, they cannot be commanded as precisely as robots by the Beastmaster. Coordinating multiple beasts is a major challenge; any miscoordination could lead to disastrous consequences.
Finally, Beastmasters who invest all their time and energy into their beasts themselves become weak points in the combat system, making them vulnerable.
Because of this, the path of the Beastmaster has always been a niche, maintained only by certain bloodline families.
No doubt, those people taken away by the spiders have surely been brought underground, either as food or for some other use.
Although Qin Tian wanted to rescue them desperately, he was indeed powerless at the moment.
"Forget it, let’s assess the situation first."
Qin Tian calmed down, and when he was in a better state, he activated the Night Demon Bloodline, creating a crow doppelganger, flapping its wings, diving downwards.
The crow pierced through the clouds, through the fog, and finally landed on the ground below.
The spider army was nowhere in sight; even the spider and large bug Qin Tian had just shot were gone, along with the citizens of Mist Town.
"Sorry."
In the sky, Qin Tian’s expression darkened. As the commander of the 137th Battalion, protecting the people was his duty and mission; yet, despite his best efforts, he couldn’t protect them in the end.
"No, this must be reported quickly, and have someone sent for rescue."
Qin Tian thought, but suddenly, he realized a grave issue.
Who should he report to?
His direct superior was Yan Qing, but Yan Qing hadn’t replied to him in several days.
As for the other military superiors, could they really be trusted?
Qin Tian frowned deeply. The former commander Liu Dalong went missing, along with several Spiritualists, yet so much time had passed, with the Military Department doing nothing about it, as if they completely ignored this matter.
Moreover, the government parallel to the military also remained silent.
Mist Town seemed like an isolated island, forgotten by everyone.
During this time, he received a transfer order, appointing him as the acting commander of the 137th Battalion, without any form of communication, and his superior Yan Qing hadn’t been in touch at all.
The whole process was rushed and bizarre.
After arriving at Mist Town, the state of the whole town made him more uneasy; a mist caused everyone to fall asleep. If not for his Body of Ten Thousand Poisons, which made him immune to certain substances in the underground water, he might not know whether he would live or die by now.
"Who can I truly trust?"
Qin Tian’s eyes flickered intensely; at this moment, he realized his biggest problem—his network was too narrow.
Besides Yan Qing, he couldn’t find anyone to communicate with and trust.
The Earth Dragon Team members, and his classmates in the Special Warfare Department, did not have the capability to get involved.
After considering, maybe only one person was worth a try.
Qin Tian opened his smart bracelet and dialed a number.
"Hello~"
On the other end, a deep voice with a trace of sleepiness answered.
"Principal Zhang."
Qin Tian’s voice was heavy: "There is something I’d like to ask of you."
...
"What, you were transferred to Mist Town as acting commander? How come I don’t know about it?...The former commander went missing, no one dealt with it, what on earth is the Military Department doing?...What, another few hundred people were taken? Okay, I’ll contact someone right away."
Zhang Meng hung up the phone, no longer sleepy, waves rising in his heart.
He knew Yan Qing recently attended a secret meeting, unable to communicate with the outside for a short period, so before the trip, Yan Qing entrusted him to take care of Qin Tian.
But right when Yan Qing was away, Qin Tian was suddenly transferred to a border town as an acting commander, and this town was evidently in the midst of a vortex.
Zhang Meng knew clearly that if Yan Qing were around, this transfer order could not have been implemented.
Someone must have bypassed the Seventh Bureau, using underhanded means to move Qin Tian and throw him into a pit.
But what could their motive possibly be?
Qin Tian was just a Clone, having no real value.
Could it be that someone intends to take advantage of the situation, using Qin Tian as a wedge to strike against Yan Qing?
But even if they captured Qin Tian, what could they use to threaten Yan Qing?
If I help Qin Tian, would it play right into some people’s schemes?
Zhang Meng’s mind was jumbled; with different identities and perspectives, his considerations were entirely different from Qin Tian’s.
Qin Tian’s purpose was to have Zhang Meng find reliable people, whether from the military or elsewhere, to send someone to rescue the citizens as soon as possible.
But Zhang Meng, having experienced countless brutal battles and witnessed many power struggles, worried about deeper layers.
Due to differing thoughts, some matters may not develop as Qin Tian expected.
......
Returning to the camp, as the mist gradually dissipated, no one in the military camp woke up.
Qin Tian couldn’t wake them, so he had to temporarily return to the room, waiting for Zhang Meng’s response.
Seizing this opportunity, he first evaluated the gains from tonight’s battle.
First was the skyrocketing 120,000 Evolution Points, mostly obtained from hunting spiders.
In addition, he acquired four new talents:
[Light Distortion] Green, [Spider Silk] Green, [Top Hunter] Purple
And a talent gained from killing the big yellow bug
[Name] Sand Control (Green)
[Type] Active Skill
[Introduction] You can control sand, making it flow according to your will