Wasteland Border Inspector

Chapter 234 Infection and Reproduction, Mountains Fall from the Sky!
Looking down from the top of the cave, the entire cave can be roughly divided into three parts.

The largest area is the dense forest near the exit of the light gate, which is irregularly trapezoidal in shape.

Directly in front of the dense forest lies the large lake area where the Wanlingdi Falcon is located.

On the right side of the Great Lakes, there is an additional area where there is no lush vegetation or expansive lake, but only a series of small lakes of varying sizes.

Although the area is only one-tenth the size of the dense forest, it is home to no fewer than twenty sources of infection.

Moreover, the pattern is quite obvious: the larger the lake, the stronger the source of infection; the smaller the lake, the weaker the source of infection.

Even so, the infection level in the smallest lake reached a terrifying plague level!

Those cluster-level and wave-level infection sources that are considered troublesome outside are not even qualified to take root here.

At this moment.

Near a small lake at the back of the area, Rokuk was clapping his hands gently, the frequency of his clapping varying with a peculiar rhythm.

As he moved, ripples suddenly appeared on the surface of the small pond, and a large, bright red shrimp slowly emerged.

Its shape is somewhat similar to that of red shrimp, but its size is dozens of times that of ordinary red shrimp.

Even though it has been shrunk by the cave, it is still about the length of a forearm. The shrimp shell is covered with dense and strange patterns that gleam in the dim light. Looking at them for a long time can make people feel uneasy.

"Hey, I finally caught you!"

Rococo was delighted, but he didn't dare to slack off at all, continuing to clap gently at a fixed frequency.

He was really bad at dealing with those crab-men; his progress in clearing them out couldn't even keep up with those blood-red figures who only knew how to fight brute force.

However, he is adept at dealing with specific sources of infection that have clear habits.

After arriving and carefully examining the area, he recognized most of the sources of infection and obtained the exact containment methods through the Firelink system.

Although we haven't actually contained them before, once we figure out their rules of action and weaknesses, the difficulty of dealing with them will drop dramatically.

Finally, the red shrimp slowly approached the shore, its large eyes gleaming with a hazy, almost human-like light, clearly not yet fully awakened from the bewilderment of the sound.

Rococo immediately stopped clapping, carefully drew the dagger from his waist, and lowered his voice even further:
"Don't worry, don't worry, it'll be ready soon!"

He slowly stepped forward, gently pressed the short knife against the seam of the red shrimp's head, and carefully felt along the lines.

Soon, the tip of the knife picked out a small red shrimp, no bigger than a palm.

This is the core of the source of infection.

Rokuk quickly took two steps back, opened the containment box he was carrying, and steadily threw the core inside.

As the connection between the core and the outer shell was severed, the giant red shrimp in the pond instantly began to tremble violently, its shell buzzing as if it were equipped with a high-frequency vibrator.

When the vibrations reached a certain critical point, the massive body suddenly disintegrated, turning into dry fragments that silently merged into the lake water, leaving not even a ripple.

"Three now!"

Rokuk turned to look at the two empty lakes next to the Red Shrimp, let out a long sigh, and couldn't help but smile.

cool!

It's been a long time since I've had such a satisfying containment experience.

External sources of infection, once they emerge in the human world and cause an impact, are often already in the outbreak phase, and it is rare to encounter individuals in the dormant or awakening phase.

However, the sources of infection in this pond are all in a state between dormancy and wakefulness, neither fully asleep nor fully awake. As long as the steps in the manual are strictly followed, the risk is extremely low.

He has successfully contained three plague-level infected sources without any incidents.

"After containing the immortal artifact, I can be allocated a level-4 extinction quota, which can help me advance to the fourth stage."

"As for these few plague-level indicators, they are a bit of a waste for me. Why not give two to Wang Kang? It would help him get through the internship stage quickly, and it would also be a favor to Cheng Ye."

"Let's see if we can exchange the remaining quotas for resources. If we can get out of here alive, Cheng Ye will definitely become a core member of the checkpoint, just like Cheng Long, with immeasurable potential. If I can make more investments in Dabo Town beforehand, maybe..."

"No, we must first maintain our relationship with Cheng Ye. We absolutely cannot neglect this relationship."

A series of thoughts flashed through Rokuk's mind.

If an ordinary person were placed in such an environment where they could face a life-or-death crisis at any moment, they would probably have difficulty even standing still, let alone daring to imagine what would happen next.
But the prosecutors are completely different; facing life and death while trekking through the wilderness is nothing new to them.

The core of promotion at checkpoints is "screening".

Prosecutors who survive to the third stage of treatment have generally escaped from life-threatening situations more than three times.

Whether relying on luck or quick wit, it would be a lie to say that one is completely without fear.

But it's absolutely impossible for someone to be so fearful that they lose their composure and can't even plan for the future.

Otherwise, what inspector would dare to venture into the wilderness? They could all just hide in the buffer zone and wait to die.

With that thought in mind, Rokuk gathered his thoughts and brought his attention back to the present moment.

Of the four containment boxes he brought in, three have already been used, leaving only one.

Once we've finished using this one, we'll have to go out for a while and bring in a new box.

He looked towards the dense forest area for a while and could vaguely see more and more vegetation turning yellow and withered, so Cheng Ye's progress seemed to be quite fast as well.

He took out his defense device and checked the time; it was only nine o'clock, still a long time before their agreed meeting time.

"What should we choose as our last target?"

Rokuk's gaze swept over the surrounding lakes, but did not linger on the known sources of plague infection. Instead, his eyes fell on the lake deep within the region, which was ranked third.

A four-meter-long cave crab, which, even when scaled down, is still over sixty centimeters long, is perched on the edge of the lake, still in a dormant state.

As for what is hidden in Lakes One and Two, he hasn't figured it out yet, but the Darkwater Cave Crab in Lake Three is a known source of infection, so it's worth trying to contain it.

"It's just a disaster-level infection source. I've contained them before, so what's there to be afraid of!"

Rokuk mentally rallied himself, then carefully placed the box containing the three Plague-level Infection Source Cores in a concealed spot on the edge of the area before opening the last empty containment box.

Inside were bottles and jars he had prepared in advance, all of which were medications for dealing with high-level sources of infection.

Special rules might be useful in dealing with low-level infection sources, but when it comes to disaster-level infections, those tricks become completely ineffective.

To contain an infection source of this level, one would have to treat it like a divine artifact:
First, find a way to deplete its energy. Once the energy level drops, then stimulate its uncontrolled outburst.

After the outbreak ends, the infected source will enter a brief period of weakness, at which point containment can begin.

"Since you like purifying water, then I'll just add more pollutants into it!"

Rococo stared at the bottle in his hand. Even though there were no labels on it, he skillfully picked out several medicines and quickly mixed a tube of brown powder.

He then crouched down and crept along the narrow gap between the lakes to approach Lake No. 3, flicking his wrist to evenly sprinkle the powder into the water.

Having done all this, he dared not linger and immediately retreated quickly, hiding in the shadows of the dense forest to the side, keeping a close eye on the movement of the lake.

As soon as the brown powder entered the water, it bounced on the surface like popping candy, and then exploded with a "pop".

A pungent stench instantly spread, and the originally clear blue lake water turned grayish-yellow at a visible speed, as if it had been splashed with a layer of mud.

The still-dormant water crab finally slowly opened its eyes, but it only lazily glanced at the changes on the water's surface without even moving its body.

Immediately afterwards, it opened its mouth and spat out several large, dark blue clumps of toxic water crystals. These crystals seemed to have a built-in adsorption function; as soon as they floated to the surface, they engulfed all the surrounding grayish-yellow sewage.

A moment later, the crystals broke apart into fragments, and the lake water regained its clarity.

The Water Cave Crab closed its eyes again, as if the pollution just now was just an insignificant little episode.

"These big guys are really tough to deal with."

Rococo frowned as he watched this scene.

Clearly, the powder concentration just now was not high enough to completely alert this catastrophic source of infection.

He hesitated for a few seconds, then took out a few more bottles of medicine from the containment box and mixed a tube of darker red powder. This time he was more careful, crawling almost close to the ground towards the lake and gently dropping the powder in.

Before he could retreat back into the dense forest, the red powder in the lake exploded.

Large plumes of firework-like powder tumbled and exploded in the water, instantly releasing a pungent, spicy aroma that made the air scorching and the lake water turn an eerie dark red.

"Shouldn't he wake up now?" Rokuk held his breath, staring intently at the lake.

As expected, it did not disappoint him. After being provoked repeatedly, the Darkwater Cave Crab suddenly opened its eyes, its turbid crab eyes filled with rage. It opened its mouth wide and spat out three pieces of blackish-green poisonous water crystals, rushing towards the red area.

This time, however, the red powder was not easily absorbed. Instead, the remaining part seemed to come alive, continuously splitting and spreading in the water, making the spiciness stronger and stronger.

"This is powdered with fission insects. I won't let you succeed unless I wipe it all out in one go!" Rokuk sneered inwardly.

Sensing that the pollution was not being eliminated, the Darkwater Cave Crab was finally enraged.

Its entire body erupted with a dark green light, and its two huge claws, which had been tucked in front of it, slowly extended out, the spikes on the claws glowing with energy.

thump.

thump.

The crab claws collided with each other, producing a dull sound like drumming.

The moment the drumbeat sounded, a faint blue light burst forth from the crab claws, spreading across the entire lake surface.

A magical scene happened.

The lake water seemed to be layered by an invisible force, with the clean blue water sinking to the bottom and the polluted red water floating on the top, the two clearly distinct.

Then, the water crab spat out more than a dozen pieces of poisonous water crystals. This time, the crystals were smaller and more numerous, densely covering the upper layer of red water. It took a full half minute for all the red powder to be completely purified, and the lake water returned to calm.

But at the same time, his size also shrank dramatically, dropping from sixty centimeters to fifty centimeters, and his head drooped slightly, clearly falling into a deeper slumber.

"So strong?" Rokuk, hiding in the dense forest, was secretly shocked.

What kind of monsters did the Magic Eye Sponge raise?

The energy reserves of this cave crab are simply outrageous!
It spat out dozens of poisonous crystals and even used its purification talent once, yet the energy consumption was less than one-fifth.

At this rate, he would need to prepare the powder five more times to deplete the opponent's energy.

He had plenty of powder, but if the Darkwater Cave Crab got angry and completely woke up from its dormant state, he wouldn't dare to sneak over and poison it.
"In that case, let's invest the amount for five rounds at once, and then release it in stages over time!"

Rokuk gritted his teeth, made a snap decision, and directly prepared five portions of a more concentrated stimulant powder.

He used special water-soluble paper to wrap the powder separately, and the dissolution time of each layer of water-soluble paper was precisely controlled at one minute, with the overall interval set at two minutes.

Even if the Darkwater Cave Crab clears the first wave, subsequent bursts of powder will erupt one after another, giving it no chance to breathe.

With immense trepidation, he crawled slowly towards the lake like a lizard, close to the ground, and before the water crab could fully wake up, he quickly threw the five paper packets into the water.

Having done all this, he dared not linger for a moment, and turned to rush into the dense forest, his steps so fast he almost staggered.

Boom!

Suddenly, a tremor came from behind, and water splashed half a meter high on the lake surface.

The persistent harassment by the Darkwater Cave Crab has indeed brought it to full awakening.

There may be a first and a second time, but not a third or fourth.

Having been poisoned repeatedly, it simply stopped sleeping and stared intently at the shore with its two murky crab eyes, as if trying to find out who was behind it.

As for the first wave of red powder that has just dissolved, it still uses the old method: first, it uses its crab claws to shake and separate the layers, and then it spits out venomous water to crystallize and purify.

No sooner had the first wave been cleared than the second wave of powder dissolved on schedule, turning the lake surface dark red once more. Just when the second wave was finally cleared, the third wave exploded immediately afterward.
creak-

The Water Cave Crab let out an unprecedented roar of rage, its claws flailing wildly in the water, creating a huge splash.

It repeatedly released a ghostly blue light to gather red powder, but before the poisonous water could crystallize and completely purify it, new powder would explode again, like a trouble that could never be cleaned up.

"Hahaha, I'll let you clean it up to your heart's content!"

Rococo, hiding behind a tree in the distance, couldn't help but chuckle softly.

If it were any other inspector who wasn't good at preparing medicines, they really wouldn't be able to handle this water cave crab. But who can blame them when they're the best at using these "chemical methods"?

After the five powders had finished exploding, the Darkwater Cave Crab finally showed signs of fatigue. Its movements slowed significantly, and its size shrank from the initial sixty centimeters to just over ten centimeters. This met the criteria for containment.

Rokuk didn't rush forward. He waited until the Water Cave Crab had cleaned up the last bit of red powder, shrunk to five centimeters in size, and was completely exhausted before carefully approaching it with the containment box.

As long as the source of infection does not enter an outbreak phase, its aggressiveness will be greatly reduced, it will basically not actively attack humans, and its abilities will become limited.

For example, the "Immobilization Control Wave" and "Area Purification" abilities that the Darkwater Cave Crab only has in its burst state are completely unusable now.

"Come in, come in quickly!"

With a short knife in one hand just in case and the open containment box in the other, Rokuk slowly squatted down in front of the Darkwater Cave Crab.

The containment box is actually a specially designed Origin Orbit product that naturally attracts infected sources and can temporarily suppress their abilities.

Although this stage is the safest time for containment, he still dared not let his guard down. He moved very quietly, his body tense, ready to escape at any moment.

Smelling the enticing scent emanating from the containment box, the Darkwater Cave Crab slowly opened its eyes, glanced at Rokuk, but didn't move.

Only when Rokuk gently placed the box beside it did it reluctantly move its crab legs and slowly crawl inside.

"It's done!"

An indescribable sense of accomplishment welled up in his heart. Rokuk could even imagine the look of surprise and delight on Cheng Ye's face when he saw that he had taken in the Spectral Cave Crab!
I am also a phase III inspector.

It might not have an advantage against a monster like the Magic Eye Sponge, but taking down a Darkwater Cave Crab is a piece of cake.
Once the Water Cave Crab had completely crawled into the box, Rokuk immediately pressed down on the lid, fastened the latch, picked up the box, and turned to leave.

just.

He had just picked up the box and hadn't even turned around when a strange fluctuation suddenly came from beside him.

Then, his fingers involuntarily loosened, and with a "thud," the box slammed heavily onto his foot.

what happened?

Rococo was shocked to find that he had completely lost control of his body.

He tried to turn his head to see the source of the disturbance, but his neck remained motionless as if it had been welded shut, leaving him anxiously pacing around in his mind.

Immediately afterwards, I heard a "splashing" sound of water, carrying a damp, fishy smell, as it slowly approached.

With his obsidian armor concealing his human presence, he wasn't worried about being discovered. However, when the colossal object slowly moved in front of him, Rokuk was completely stunned.

Hidden water crab?

How can it be?

Why is there one more? No, wait, why are there two more Darkwater Cave Crabs?

He stared intently at his left and right sides out of the corner of his eye. A giant crab with a dark bluish-gray shell crawled out of Lake One, while a grayish-yellow one crawled out of Lake Two. Both of them were over two meters long, four times larger than the "little crab" he had taken in before.

Could it be a male and a female?
Was the one he took in their offspring?

hum.

Rokuk's mind went completely blank for a moment, and his thoughts came to a complete standstill.

In the eight years he has been a prosecutor, he has never seen any source of infection reproduce with each other!
The checkpoint has taken in so many sources of infection, but there has never been a similar record before.

If the source of infection can reproduce on its own, doesn't that mean that humans can never kill or eradicate it, and that this war against the source of infection has no end?
Compared to the fear of being torn to pieces by the Cancer, the shock of the realization that "the source of infection can reproduce" completely threw him into disarray, leaving him without even the ability to think clearly.

Is it the effect of the Magic Eye Sponge?

Or was it the magical conch shell that caused this?

A myriad of thoughts raced through his mind, but his body remained frozen in place like a statue, watching helplessly as the two giant crabs drew closer and closer.

The grayish-blue male crab seemed very curious about the containment box on the ground. A blue energy emanated from its claws, lifting the box slowly into the air.

The next second, to Rokuk's astonishment, the box exploded with a "boom," scattering fragments all over the ground, and the five-centimeter-long Darkwater Cave Crab fell out.

Before the baby crab could even touch the ground, the mother crab's yellow energy supported it.

Then, a bizarre scene unfolded: three cave crabs surrounded the fragments of the containment box and began to gnaw on them.

The male crab ate the most, swallowing two-thirds of the fragments, and then shared the rest with the female crab and the baby crabs.

After finishing the pieces, the three crabs paused for a moment, seemingly preparing to return to the lake to rest.

Rococo prayed frantically in his heart, hoping they would leave, but the next second, the grayish-yellow female crab suddenly stopped, as if dissatisfied with the small amount of fragments she had just received. She slowly turned around and moved towards him.

The enormous crab mouth slowly opened, its fine fangs gleaming coldly in the dim light.

Rokuk was only about 30 centimeters tall. Compared to the giant crab, which was over two meters tall, it was as small as an ant and had no chance to fight back.

My life is over!

Rococo felt a chill in his heart, and all hope vanished.

The female crab's mouth was right in front of him, and the fishy, ​​foul smell seeped in through the gaps in his obsidian armor, making his nose sting.

At that moment, all his thoughts ceased, leaving only primal fear and a vague voice echoing in his ears:

"Prosecutor Luo, are you prepared to die?"

No.

I do not have.

No.

I'm done!

He sighed inwardly, but suddenly felt a sense of peace.

Dying here doesn't seem so bad. The containment of the Myriad Earth Conch has made progress. In the future, the checkpoint's records will at least state, "Inspector Rokuk fought to the last moment in the battle against the fairy."

In this way, his ten-year-old child will likely face fewer difficulties at the checkpoint when he inherits the position.

However, just when he had completely given up, the voice did not disappear; instead, it rang out again with a strange tone:

"It seems you're not ready yet!"

what?
Rococo's thinking got stuck. Who's speaking?

The next instant, a thick, sturdy, blood-red arm suddenly appeared in my peripheral vision.

With a single, powerful punch, the arm sent the two-meter-tall female crab staggering back two steps, leaving a shallow fist mark on its shell.

Immediately afterwards, his body was pulled by an invisible force, sliding straight backward and away from the attack range of the two giant crabs.

In the distance, more blood-red figures began to appear.

One, three, nine, eighteen, thirty-six.
His vision was almost completely enveloped in crimson; the densely packed figures seemed to emerge from the ground and quickly surrounded him.

These figures, of varying heights and builds, stood in front of him, forming a blood-red barrier.

Did Tan Ming's petrification curse save me?
Rokuk couldn't believe it, but what shocked him even more was yet to come. After he was pulled more than ten meters away, those blood-red figures actually launched an attack on the two giant Netherwater Cave Crabs!

The fat man, who was at least four meters tall, suddenly leaped up and slammed heavily onto the male crab's back. He then unleashed a flurry of punches, which sent the crab staggering backward.

The figure, as thin as a monkey, began to spin in place, its long, thin arms slicing through the air like blades, cutting around the mother crab.

The short, blood-red figures, along with the muscular man who had saved him, also rushed forward, punching and kicking the crab's leg joints and claw gaps.

Enraged, the male crab unleashed a ghostly blue light that immobilized the figure, but the light struck the blood-red figure without any reaction, as if a stone had sunk into the sea.

Those figures continued to fight and slash as if they were doing useless work against thin air.

However, the burst-type Darkwater Cave Crab clearly has more than just these tricks up its sleeve.

The male crab slammed its pincers together, and an invisible shockwave instantly spread out, shattering four or five blood-red figures into dust. Even the spinning, thin figure had its lower body severed by the wave blade, turning into blood that seeped into the ground.

Immediately afterwards, the female crab opened its mouth and spat out a large pool of yellow liquid. The blood-red fat crab, which had just fallen off the male crab's back, turned into white smoke with a "sizzle" the moment it touched the liquid and completely disappeared.

Worse still, the previously dormant sources of infection in the surrounding lakes were also disturbed by the fierce fighting, and one after another they awoke, dragging their wet bodies to the surface.

There are giant black fish covered in transparent mucus, some as long as two meters, with scales that gleam with a greasy, dark light, and countless sharp teeth visible when they open their mouths.

There are giant leeches with hard shells the size of bowls on their backs. When they stretch and contract their bodies, they can extend a blood-sucking mouthpart that is half a meter long. When they land on the ground, they leave behind a sticky puddle of water.

The most eye-catching creature was a turtle, even larger than the Netherwater Cave Crab, which looked to be about four meters long. Its dark green carapace was covered with cracks, and in the very center of the shell was a palm-sized, dark blue fragment. The fragment shimmered with an eerie luster in the dim light, like some kind of energy core.

In addition, there are four other strange creatures that Rokuk has never seen in the Pokédex.

A type of water spider with eight pairs of thin legs and its body covered in downy hair.

A type of water maggot without limbs, only a cylindrical body.

A freak that resembles a starfish but has dozens of tentacles.

There is also a type of water ghost that is completely transparent, with only the outline of its internal organs visible.

As soon as these infected creatures crawled out of the lake, they launched an attack on the crimson figure without hesitation. Even though the crimson figure had the advantage in numbers, the situation became precarious in an instant when faced with so many different types of high-level infected creatures with strange abilities.

"Run! Pull me along!"

Rokuk roared furiously in his heart, but his body remained rooted to the spot, unable to move even a finger.

This is the sense of powerlessness humans feel when facing high-level infectious agents.

Faced with these bizarre abilities, once they are unleashed, there is no other way but to fall into despair and wait for death.

But soon, before the source of infection and the blood-red figure could determine a victor, a rumbling sound came from behind them, growing ever closer.

It was as if a colossal creature was running at high speed, and the ground trembled slightly in response.

What's coming?
Rocco admitted that he had never been so curious as he was now.

He desperately wanted to turn his head to see what else had come besides the blood-red figure.

Boom, boom, boom!

The tremors grew stronger and stronger, almost lifting the ground off its surface, but just as the shaking reached its peak...
Hmm, it disappeared!
Rococo was taken aback.

The next second, a terrifying crimson shadow suddenly swept over his head, its size as large as a moving small mountain, and the moment it passed, it even brought with it a hurricane that almost knocked him over.

This sweep covered more than ten meters and went straight for the head of the grayish-blue male crab!

Seeing this, the male crab remained calm and brought its pincers together again, clearly intending to use the same tactic to repel the attack with a shockwave.

This time, however, the shockwave struck the crimson giant as if hitting cotton, producing only a few ripples and failing to cause any damage.

Boom! ! !

The crimson shadow slammed heavily onto the male crab's back, instantly shrinking its massive body by half and cracking its shell with countless tiny lines.

Immediately afterwards, the giant shadow suddenly stretched out two arms, thicker than the trunks of the sturdy trees in the dense forest, from its mountain-like body.

With his left hand, he gripped the male crab's left mouthparts tightly, while with his right hand, he grabbed the crab's pincers used to release shockwaves.

"Click——"

A piercing cracking sound rang out, and the nearly invincible Catastrophe-level Infectant was torn in two from the middle by the giant shadow, just like a rag doll!
Dark green bodily fluids sprayed everywhere, and black and red internal organs mixed with broken shells were scattered all over the ground.

The moment they met, the male crab didn't even have a chance to struggle before it was completely and instantly killed!

Instant kill!?
It was sold out in seconds?!

Rokuk's pupils suddenly contracted, and his mind went blank. He had never seen anyone kill a Cataclysmic Infected Source so easily. Even the superhumans he had seen outside had to put in a lot of effort to resist the special abilities of the Darkwater Crab!

But then, the "blood-red mountain" slowly turned around, holding half of the male crab's carcass in its hand.

The previously blurry head suddenly coalesced into a clear face.

Familiar silhouette, eyes stained with blood.

A slight twitch appeared at the corner of his mouth, and a deep, muffled voice boomed out like thunder:
"Prosecutor Luo, it seems you weren't prepared!"

(End of this chapter)