Slime Immortal.

Chapter 138 The Gunner's Self-Cultivation

Two days later, on the fortress walls.

A ball of silvery-gray slime, shimmering with a faint metallic luster in the sunlight, was meticulously performing its patrol duties along its designated route.

It's called steel slime.

An ordinary metal slime.

Not long ago, it lived with its tribe in dark, damp underground tunnels.

Every day they hide from attacks by powerful monsters, barely surviving by consuming trace amounts of metal in rocks.

Until that day, Wang Zhongcheng's messenger, Little Fatty, arrived. Like a sharp blade cleaving through the darkness, he drove away the evil neighbors that threatened the nest and led them to the road to their new home.

They moved their nest to a safe outpost within the king's territory, and from then on, no monster dared to bully them.

Steel Mud felt incredibly happy and at ease to be under the King's protection.

But at the same time, an indescribable sense of loss quietly spread in its heart.

As a metal slime, it is its duty to guard the nest with its older slime brother.

However, under the protection of the king's gel, the nest was safe, and it seemed... no longer needed.

However, this frustration did not last long. Little Fatty returned to his lair and delivered a message—the Great Slime King was recruiting "gunners" to guard his territory.

Steel Slime didn't understand exactly what the "gunner" was supposed to do, but when it heard "defend the territory" and "serve His Majesty," it signed up without hesitation, following its big brother Slime.

That day was also the first time in its life that it left the underground city and truly set foot on the surface.

As it followed the procession, trembling as it emerged from the dark passage, an incredibly warm and bright feeling instantly enveloped its entire body.

It had never seen such a sight before, but some deep-seated instinctual knowledge told it—this was sunlight.

It was warm and cozy, very comfortable, making the metal inside it seem to vibrate with pleasure.

Led by Little Fatty, they rode on an enormous wild boar monster with awe and fear.

They walked along the wide, flat road, with rustling shadows of trees on both sides. When they passed through the last patch of woodland and saw the scene ahead, he and all his fellow metal slime companions were stunned.

A magnificent fortress stood in the sunlight, its brick and stone walls towering and sturdy, much larger than the slime's lair.

On the city wall, some strange devices they had never seen before shimmered with a warm luster in the sunlight.

Further away, there are halls constructed from enormous trees.

It wondered at the time, is this the king's residence?
So huge, so magnificent!
And now, Steel Mud has truly stood atop the walls of this magnificent fortress, becoming one of its members, a glorious gunner.

It patrolled to a spot on the city wall where a "cannon array" was set up. The meticulously carved gray gravel crystals were inlaid in the center of the intricate paper pieces, exuding an aura that made it feel at home.

Steel Sludge carefully performed its routine inspection, gently placing its liquid metal hand on the surface of the jade, feeling the energy stored within.

This is the gunnery knowledge that Professor Wang gave them.

As a qualified gunner, one needs to constantly monitor whether the energy of these "spirit stones" is sufficient.

If the energy is insufficient, it will either replace it with the stones stored nearby, or it will draw upon the "energy storage" bestowed upon them by His Majesty.

Bubbles filled with pure energy were carefully injected into the cannon array.

Whenever it does this, a strange sense of connection arises, as if a spiritual link has been formed between it and this cold artillery position.

It reached out its little hand to stroke the gray crystal. Under the sunlight, the crystal felt warm and comfortable to the touch.

Steel Mud thought that this big guy must also love basking in the sun, just like it.

Steel Mud remained at his post for a long time, his round body motionless, only his eyes meticulously scanning the dense forest outside the city walls, trying to discern any enemy who dared to approach the fortress.

Just then, a familiar buzzing sound came from above its head.

Those were the king's soldiers, carrying clumps of mud, busily flying back and forth.

I heard from Little Fatty that the King seems to be planning to build a sturdy and powerful "Kingdom Academy" on his territory.

Steel Mud didn't quite understand what "academy" meant, but it thought it must be something extraordinary.

As it was slightly distracted by what the "academy" would look like, a metallic humming and vibration, indicating alertness, suddenly came from another section of the city wall.

It's its partner!
The other metal slimes on duty noticed something amiss!
Steel Mud immediately gathered his thoughts and nervously looked in the direction his companions had warned him.

……

"Damn it, this muddy mess never ends," a hoarse voice complained, as it struggled to pull its boots out of the mud.

"Shut up, Hank. Save your energy for what might come up."

Deep in the dark, damp swamp, three figures were trudging along with difficulty.

Leading the group was Captain "Iron Shield" Baal, a tall, sturdy human warrior with a weathered face.

He wore a practical half-body chainmail shirt, covered by a dirty leather jacket, and a rough iron warhammer emblem hung on his chest—the symbol of war and conquest, "Usca," a ruthless deity popular among mercenaries and warriors.

However, Baal was a pragmatic believer who only thought of the god when he needed to kill or pray for victory.

Closely following behind him was "Skinny" Rex, a pale-faced human ranger with shifty eyes.

He was the team's scout and trapper, of humble origin, who believed in no gods, only in the tools in his hands and the gold coins in his pocket.

He was Barr's longtime partner, and the two had done a lot of shady business together.

At the very back was Hank, the dwarf who had just complained. He was burly, wearing heavy chainmail, and carrying a battle axe with a slightly chipped blade.

He came from a dwarven clan that revered forging and drinking; he was usually carefree, but ruthless in battle.

They nominally worship the god of forging, but their main passion is devoted to alcohol and loot. "Boss, are you sure that 'Black Fang' thing he gave us wasn't a scam?"

Hank the dwarf, panting heavily, couldn't help but question again.

"Besides blood-sucking mosquitoes and muddy puddles that could drown people, I didn't see a single thing of value in this godforsaken place."

Captain Baal didn't turn his head, carefully unfolded the map and glanced at it, then whispered, "Hank, Blackfang's reputation is about as good as goblin bullshit, but they have close ties with those green-skinned scum. This map has a special origin."

"Besides, don't forget the gold coins they paid in advance, as well as the antidote. Even if there's only a nest of toads in this swamp, we won't lose money on this trip just because of the advance payment."

Before Hank could respond, "Skinny" Rex slid up to Barr like a ghost.

"Boss, something's not right. It's too quiet... And I feel a chill down my neck, like something's watching me."

Hank scoffed dismissively and spat, "Come on, Rex, you're just paranoid all the time. Who else could be in this godforsaken swamp besides the three of us? Are we some kind of mud spirits?"

Just then, Baal, who was walking in front, suddenly stopped and raised his clenched fist to signal for quiet.

He pushed aside a thick layer of poisonous fog in front of him, and his pupils suddenly contracted.

“Usca above…” Baal’s voice was filled with disbelief and shock.

Rex and Hank immediately stepped forward, equally speechless with astonishment at the sight before them.

Suddenly, the swamp opened up before them, and a towering fortress, like a giant beast emerging from a nightmare, stood abruptly on the relatively dry land.

"The monster's lair, the information Black Fang gave us is actually true..." Baal's voice was filled with suppressed excitement.

Hank, with his sharp eyes, pointed to the silvery-gray reflective object wriggling above the city wall.

"Look, there are slimes up there. What are they doing... patrolling?"

Even he himself found these words utterly absurd.

Rex narrowed his eyes, noticing the strangely structured devices on the city wall. He felt an instinctive warning of danger: "Captain, those glowing things..."

Baal lowered his voice: "I saw it. Black Fang mentioned it in the information he provided. It's some kind of strangely shaped magic crystal cannon, and its power is said to be so terrifying that it can shatter boulders."

"However, the information clearly states that the thing can only fire a maximum of four shots at a time."

He quickly surveyed the surroundings. "Withdraw. Mission accomplished. Confirming the existence and location of this fortress is enough for us to go back and collect the remaining payment."

However, just as they were trying to retreat using the shadows of the bushes, one of the metal slimes on the city wall seemed to sense something. Its round body adjusted its direction, and its gaze met the three of them.

"We've been discovered!" Rex warned, but just as he finished speaking, a jade talisman on a cannon array on the city wall suddenly burst forth with a blinding light.

call out! boom!
A blazing silver beam of energy tore through the air and slammed into the mud behind them. The violent explosion sent a deluge of foul-smelling mud and shattered vegetation crashing down on them like a torrential downpour.

"Spread out! Get cover!"

Baal roared, his years of mercenary experience making him the most correct response.

The three scrambled towards the sparse woodland to the side, trying to escape using the twisted trees as cover, but what made them even more desperate was that the forest behind them was filled with a chilling, dense buzzing sound.

Dozens of large stinging wasps emerged from the shadows of the forest and blocked their escape route.

Instead of immediately swooping down, they buzzed around like experienced hunters, forcing them away from the edge of the forest, clearly intending to capture them alive.

"This way! Charge over there from that open space!"

Baal pointed to the relatively open but nowhere-to-hide swampy clearing on the other side and roared, "This is the only option."

The three could only run desperately toward that death zone, praying that their speed would create a miracle.

However, the artillery fire from the city walls came one after another, like a call to arms from the Grim Reaper.

boom! !

Three beams of light landed precisely on their running path in succession, and the shockwaves from the explosions knocked them to the ground time and time again, soaking them in mud and causing them to suffer from constant ringing in their ears.

"withstand!"

As he ran desperately, Barr hoarsely rallied his teammates, "That cannon only has four rounds left, it's about to go silent, we have to hurry..."

His roar abruptly stopped.

Because on the city wall, several clusters of metal slimes were emitting a strange light, and then the cannon array, which should have been silent, lit up at a visible speed, locking onto them.

Captain Barr's face drained of all color instantly, his eyes filled with the terror of being utterly deceived and trapped in a desperate situation.

"No...those black-toothed bastards, they gave us false information!!"

call out--!
The fifth beam of light arrived mercilessly with a deafening roar.

"Ugh!"

The dwarf Hank let out a painful scream as he was blasted away, his massive body crashing into the mud, his battle axe flying far from his grasp.

"Hank!" Rex exclaimed, instinctively reaching out to pull him back.

But more stinging wasps had already swarmed around them, their venomous stingers almost touching their throats and eyes, emitting a threatening buzz.

Baal looked at his companions struggling in the mud, then at the cannons on the city wall, which were once again filled with death energy.

He immediately threw the broadsword in his hand into the mud and wisely raised his hands.

"We surrender!"

The swarm of stinging bees tightly surrounded the three men who were completely unable to resist, extinguishing their last glimmer of hope.

Meanwhile, atop the distant city walls, the metal slimes emitted joyful buzzing sounds.

(End of this chapter)