Cyber ​​God: Abyss Walker

"Such a massive organic life form, could the great entity corresponding to this city be a sea of ​​blood?"

Dorothy said that she now suspected that even the ground beneath their feet was mimicked by these unknown organisms, and that from the moment they entered the city, they had been surrounded by this enormous organic organism.

"No, it doesn't seem like it. The Blood Sea wouldn't simply simulate buildings or other things like that. It's more aggressive. Assimilation or large-scale devouring and proliferation is the most likely scenario. If we previously thought this was an infected city and believed that the great being corresponding to this abnormal zone was the Blood Sea, I no longer think so."

Wang Yu denied Dorothy's speculation. He knew a bit about the Blood Sea, a great entity he had come into contact with many times. This simulated city didn't seem to be its creation. How to put it? It was too "gentle" and lacked aggression.

"Look on the bright side. This simulated city hasn't shown enough aggression. Our mission isn't to destroy it, but simply to collect items and set up camp at the target location."

The transport vehicle continued moving, and Wang Yu's gaze fell on the target location, which was obscured by numerous buildings. Discarding those wild thoughts, they ultimately only needed to complete their mission. It would be best if this simulated city did not exhibit any aggression.

"Okay, I've deployed all the drones. The thought of walking on the body of some giant life form makes me very uncomfortable, but now I think I can understand why this city has remained undiscovered for so long..."

A large number of drones took off from the transport vehicle's lifting platform, spreading into the surrounding airspace and constantly monitoring the surroundings. Dorothy, meanwhile, had already put on the control mask that resembled VR glasses and activated the ability she had gained from the ritual to achieve a brainless machine-computer interface interconnection with the drones.

Dorothy and the other two had actually come to understand why this city had never been discovered by the explorers of the abandoned city; it was probably because the city had never existed in the first place.

The fog is the shaper of this city. It seems to be infected, but it is actually like a 3D printer made of pure biological matter. Within the biomass fog environment, it gradually pieces together the shape of the city and then mimics the details of the entire city.

In other words, this city was likely only recently mimicked by the anomalous derivatives. It is unclear what this area was like before, but it was definitely not this city.

The biggest questions are where this biomass fog comes from and why it suddenly created such a simulated city. It's not hard to guess that the answers to these questions can probably be found at the mission objective location near the city center.

"Hmm? You also carried an automated machine, and you even placed it in your throat. You're quite something."

Dorothy began to notice some "flaws" in the city from the large amount of footage fed back by the drone: the flow of water, the reflection of glass, the details of some exquisite goods in the shops, etc. The mimicry was not perfect, and further observation could still reveal flaws. However, something she suddenly sensed made her ask a question and look at Wang Yu driving the car.

"Yes, what's wrong?"

"It's nothing, I just think that the automated machine you're carrying is a bit unusual."

Dorothy didn't say much and quickly suppressed the slight surprise she had shown earlier. Wang Yu didn't pay any attention to this little episode either. The ability she gained from the ritual was related to mechanics, so it was normal for her to be able to detect that he had placed a mechanical spider in his throat.

"Wait, watch out, there's something unusual on the road ahead... that's... quickly back up!"

A sudden warning of an object moving reached Dorothy's ears. Several drones simultaneously detected the anomaly that had appeared out of nowhere, on the surface of the wall of a building just a few dozen meters ahead.

"squeak……!"

Without hesitation, the brakes were slammed on, and the vehicle reversed at an extremely high speed. The high performance of the RimWorld transport vehicle played a crucial role at this moment, completing the retreat in a very short time. The next moment, a "cannonball" flew from a distance and struck the spot where the transport vehicle had been standing.

"Bang!"

The shell exploded in a burst of lightless impact, blasting cracks into the ground. This made Wang Yu and the other two realize that the ground beneath their feet was not yet a mimicry of an abnormal organism, and that the impact of the "shell" was far more than that.

As the biomass shell exploded, three cysts inside, encased in thick flesh and blood, flew outwards. Upon impacting the wall or hitting the ground, they burst open, ejecting three independent creatures. However, the appearance of these three creatures was truly unsettling...

"This city copied us, and even the vehicle we were riding in?!"

Dorothy stared in disbelief at the three humanoid creatures charging toward the three people in the car in bizarre poses. These three naked humanoid creatures were indistinguishable from the three of them in appearance, and their movements were extremely fast and their steps were strange, clearly indicating that they had been greatly enhanced in terms of physique.

"Bang, bang!"

However, even with enhancements, it is still just a flesh and blood body made of biomass, which is ultimately meaningless in the face of the destructive power and speed of artillery shells.

The silent monk calmly unleashed two shots. The first shot pierced through two humanoid objects in one go, turning their flesh and blood into scattered fragments. The second shot precisely struck the lower half of the last target, tearing it apart with immense destructive force until only a head remained, rolling on the ground.

"pretty."

Wang Yu praised the enemy's accurate artillery fire, while looking at the location shown on the drone and shared with them. It was a middle-floor wall of a building where the supposedly solid wall had melted away like a malleable, gelatinous substance, revealing a gun turret protruding from within and pointing in their direction.

They were very familiar with the design of the turrets; they were almost identical to the anti-aircraft guns mounted on the RimWorld transport vehicles. This city had actually replicated their vehicles to attack them—this was truly…

"Continue to advance as a probe, Dorothy, and remind me at all times whether the city shows any signs of aggression."

Without hesitation, Wang Yu slowed the car down to almost a walking pace and drove forward little by little, needing to test the waters.

"stop!"

A serious and tense voice came from Dorothy's mouth, and Wang Yu immediately stopped the car. Cold sweat also seeped out from his back. The changes in this city were so great that they could be clearly seen with the naked eye.

On the buildings in the area just ahead, countless mimicry turrets emerged from the surface, all their muzzles relentlessly aimed at the transport vehicle that had stopped in time. Wang Yu had no doubt that if they advanced another 5 meters or so, these turrets would immediately launch a saturation attack.

"This is troublesome..."

Wang Yu cursed heavily. The city had replicated the artillery emplacements of the transport vehicles and launched an attack on them. The power of the shells wasn't that amazing, but the sheer number of them was impressive.

"Give up?"

The silent monk spoke up to ask, though he remained quite silent throughout, he also maintained his composure.

"Having come this far, it would be too rash to give up now."

Dorothy's face was grim, but she showed no intention of retreating immediately. The drones overhead seemed eager to try, as if the other side was deeply obsessed with the reward for this mission.

"Let me try. Maybe there's another way. This city isn't necessarily reacting to us."

After a brief moment of thought, Wang Yu opened the car door and got out, walking towards the dense array of artillery positions. He was equally nervous, but how could he easily give up the chance to remove the parasite from his head? He wouldn't refuse the risk that was worth taking.

"tread!"

His footsteps landed on the spot where he had just triggered the mimic turret attack. The surrounding environment seemed to fall silent for a moment because of his rash and reckless act. However, just as Wang Yu had boldly and recklessly imagined, the shelling did not come.

Frowning, he took a few more steps forward. The mimicry turrets still didn't aim at Wang Yu, who had "crossed the line," but instead kept their eyes firmly locked on the transport vehicle on the boundary line, ready to launch a devastating attack at any moment.

"So, are you still planning to come inside with me?"

Turning around, Wang Yu equipped himself with the gear he had brought from the vehicle. He calmly addressed the two mercenaries in the car, saying that although his thoughts had been confirmed, the road ahead was undoubtedly extremely dangerous.

"Damn it! ...Fine, I really can't refuse this reward. Let's keep going. I'm too unwilling to give up here."

Dorothy's face contorted in distress, but she eventually jumped out of the car, taking her equipment with her and scattering the drone swarm around the area.

The Silent Monk, though saying nothing, also took all his equipment, got off the vehicle, and followed Wang Yu. That's right, these bastard mercenaries, which one of them wasn't a desperate gambler who risked his life? If they were truly afraid of death, they wouldn't have accepted missions from Star Ring Mercenaries.

After parking the transport vehicle at the "boundary line," Wang Yu and the two continued forward. Relying on his escapee abilities, he confirmed his conjecture: the city's target was not them, as organic beings, but the transport vehicle.

Just like the mimicry behavior of the unknown organisms that make up this city, their judgment of living and non-living things is likely to be the opposite. Wang Yu walked in on foot, so at least in this area he would not be attacked.

"We're about five kilometers from the mission objective. It's definitely in the city center. Stay alert. I'll go first."

Wang Yu equipped his self-made exoskeleton-assisted arm armor onto his arms. The plasma convergence blade had been upgraded and integrated into this equipment, which combined cutting and high-power output. This was the most advanced device he could currently make with his mechanical repair skills. It was crude but powerful and easy to use.

"Look at this."

Dorothy projected the distant images captured by the drone to Wang Yu and the Silent Monk in a holographic manner. In that direction, a faint pillar of red and yellow mist rose into the sky, gradually dispersing until it became completely imperceptible.

This column of mist had always been there, but it had been almost completely obscured by buildings, making it impossible to see. Only after getting closer were the three of them able to clearly see the source of the biomass mist on the outskirts of the city using the drone.

"The source of that fog must be here. This biomass fog is sent into the high sky from the center, then spreads to the outer ring of this simulated city and settles down. In the high-concentration environment, it completes the simulation and expansion of a larger city. This is how this simulated city grows."

After a simple analysis, Wang Yu continued forward. The closer they got, the higher the reading displayed on the depth gauge on his wrist became, indicating that they were approaching the source of the abnormal pollution in the entire abnormal area.

"If this simulated city didn't exist before, then its appearance likely originated from the Tide Gang's exploration of this area. To find what they left behind, we'll inevitably encounter something that made it impossible for them to return..."

As Wang Yu pondered, he noticed more details in the surrounding environment. In this area near the center, the buildings did not seem to be made up of only mimicking abnormal creatures. Some of them were indeed made of normal solid building materials, only some of which were replaced by mimicking creatures.

"The drone can already capture images of the source. Tsk, what exactly is this thing?"

Even when the distance closed to within two kilometers, the group remained unharmed, and the drone was finally able to spot the entity in the city center that was continuously spewing out biomass mist to expand its simulated city.

It's difficult to describe precisely what that enormous thing was in words. It completely occupied a large park-like building, similar to a stadium, rooted in the flat, open space at the center, writhing its flesh and periodically spraying the yellow and red biomass mist inside its body into the air.

It clearly lacks the ability to move on its own. Rather than an animal, it resembles a deformed plant growing from the ground. Its body, exposed above the ground, is hollow and columnar, entirely composed of reddish biomass and flesh.

Its hollow interior forms a fleshy tube that extends to an unknown depth underground. The mist seems to be pumped up from the depths of the earth by this tube. This enormous, unknown creature, whose body radius exceeds thirty meters when exposed on the surface, is the core of this mimicry city.

The well of flesh and blood, the source of mimicry, is probably the best description of it.

"Where are the things left behind by the Tide Gang? Let me..."

"Bang!"

Dorothy controlled the drone swarm to hover near the Well of Flesh and Blood, trying to find what the Tide Gang had left behind. Even though she was actually more than a kilometer away from this terrifying thing, just observing it up close from the perspective of the drones still made her feel a lot of pressure.

However, before it could make any discoveries, a deafening cannon blast followed, and the drone closest to the Well of Flesh was torn to shreds by a shell. This shell was not a biomimetic shell, but a real, heavy armor-piercing grenade.

"Let's go! I found something left behind by the Tide Gang!"

With a cry of fear, Dorothy quickly pulled the drone swarm back, but even so, drones continued to be hit and destroyed by heavy artillery shells that precisely locked onto the target's trajectory. The flying debris and wreckage signaled the approaching danger.

Without hesitation, Dorothy followed the other party's actions and retreated. She had already projected the object rushing towards them. It was something left behind by the Tide Gang, but it had almost no connection to the past.

Biomass serves as the inner lining and filler, while steel machinery forms the outer shell and armaments. Tentacles grow, and flesh wriggles. This aberrant creature has pieced together the machinery left behind by the Tide Gang in a crude and violent manner, yet inexplicably, it can move in an even more exaggerated way.

If the transformation between the mechanical sea and the blood sea involves a complete change and distortion, then the way this flesh-and-blood war machine is constructed is more similar to a biological body implanted with a mechanical prosthetic.

The result was a biomass tank that swung its tentacles, climbed buildings at high speeds, and freely adjusted its gun barrel angle to bombard targets. It truly moved at high speeds between buildings, as if it were flying...