Chapter 143: Confronting Modern Weaponry

Lu Chen believed he had concealed his strength well, yet he still underestimated human capabilities. As scientific research departments deepened their study of the Mist Space over these past days, his strength had gradually been uncovered. Of course, humans naturally remained unaware of his specific mutant abilities.

"Tier 5, my god... it really is the number one ferocious beast on Blue Star. This strength is already on par with the beasts in Alien Space No. 3."

Dong Mingjun nodded and replied again, "That is why I said those Mulligan mercenaries were courting death by trying to target the Dragon King. Our approach of equal cooperation and mutual benefit is far more reliable. All it costs us is a few spirit stones..."

While Dong Mingjun was conversing with his subordinates, Lu Chen suddenly felt a sharp, stinging pain in his back. Without a moment's hesitation, he pushed off the ground with his limbs, his body launching forward like a cannonball. In a flash, he appeared forty or fifty meters away.

"Boom..."

The next second, a massive explosion erupted behind him. A small mushroom cloud shot toward the sky, completely shattering the forest's tranquility and startling countless birds into flight. Even from dozens of meters away, Lu Chen could feel the rolling shockwave. Before he could catch his breath, he veered again, darting into another patch of dense woods.

Boom, boom!!

For a time, the primeval forest was filled with flashes of fire and a continuous series of explosions. Saturation attacks? These humans were certainly willing to spend a fortune to deal with him. Lu Chen felt the stinging sensation in his body intensifying, as if he were being targeted by multiple sources. However, he felt no panic.

Even the most advanced hypersonic missiles possessed by humans only reached speeds of about Mach 5, or five times the speed of sound. Such tactics would certainly achieve great success if used against ordinary beasts. But for Lu Chen, who possessed a keen sense of impending danger, they caused little impact. He gained a premonition almost the very moment his opponents locked onto him and fired. Moreover, the tall, dense forest provided the best possible defense, giving Lu Chen sufficient time to evade.

The only issue was that the drone swarms launching the missiles were at an altitude of over ten thousand meters; with his current abilities, he could not shoot them down. Furthermore, flying into the air would make him a sitting duck. Yet, fleeing in such a disheveled state made him feel incredibly frustrated.

Taking a beating without retaliating had never been Lu Chen's style. He believed that since these humans were intent on capturing him, they would eventually reveal themselves. When that time came, he would have a satisfying, bloody fight.

***

"Damn it, this mutant Saltwater Crocodile is too fast; missile attacks are having no effect. Headquarters wants us to keep closing in; we must restrict its movements." Upon receiving the order, Sanchez immediately instructed his subordinates, "To ensure safety, helicopter flight altitude must not drop below 100 meters."

Before arriving, Sanchez had studied the video footage of the Saltwater Crocodile destroying drones in great detail. He noted a detail: when the target launched energy attacks, its maximum effective range was roughly fifty meters. Months had passed, and the beast's strength had undoubtedly grown. Therefore, maintaining an altitude of at least one hundred meters was essential to ensure their safety.

Hearing their captain's voice, over a dozen helicopters quickly spread out into a fan formation, flying rapidly toward the explosion zone. Soon, they caught sight of the beast below. Compared to a few months ago, its size had more than doubled, making it appear even more ferocious.

Rat-tat-tat... From an altitude of over a hundred meters, the humans inside the helicopters began operating their autocannons, aiming and firing!

Whoosh, whoosh!!

Following closely, another helicopter began launching missiles.

Are they finally here!

Lu Chen watched the helicopters appearing in his line of sight, his beastly eyes filled with boundless killing intent. This time, he would make sure they never returned! However, he had to lure these guys to his chosen battlefield first.

With this thought in mind, Lu Chen’s running speed did not slacken in the slightest. His massive body bounded rapidly, covering fifty or sixty meters with every step, resembling a black phantom skimming through the forest. Facing the incoming fire from the autocannons, Lu Chen did not make a single evasive maneuver. His scale armor defense value now exceeded 3,000; theoretically, he no longer feared fire below 30mm caliber.

Rat-tat-tat...

Autocannon rounds constantly struck his thick scales, sending off a string of sparks. Lu Chen only felt a slight tingling sensation, but he suffered no damage at all; it was well within his tolerance. Of course, he still chose to dodge the missiles fired by the helicopters for safety's sake.

"Damn it, the autocannon fire is ineffective!"

"How is that possible? This beast's scale defense can actually withstand autocannon rounds..."

Inside the helicopters, several mercenary team members exclaimed in disbelief.

In the definition of modern Blue Star weaponry, an autocannon refers to a continuous-fire device with a caliber greater than 20mm. The autocannons equipped on their helicopters were a full 30mm. Each bullet was as thick as an adult's forearm, with more than three times the power of a machine gun. In live-fire target tests, a single round could easily penetrate a 20-centimeter-thick concrete wall. One could imagine that if such a bullet struck a human body, it would be like a watermelon dropped from several meters high—shattered instantly, with no possibility of even recovering the remains.

More importantly, its rate of fire was astonishing, capable of discharging over 4,000 rounds in a single minute, creating a rain of lead over the target area. Yet, this rain of bullets hitting the mutant Saltwater Crocodile had no effect whatsoever; it didn't even leave a scratch. This could not help but shock and panic the mercenaries involved in the attack. They realized their earlier assumptions had been too simplistic. Their target would definitely not be easily hunted.

Dong Mingjun and the members of the crisis response team, who were closely monitoring the battlefield, also wore looks of astonishment. This kind of formidable defensive capability was simply beyond imagination, surpassing even the latest defensive armor developed by humanity. No wonder the creature had no intention of dodging.

However, amidst everyone's amazement, Lu Chen suddenly turned and accelerated once more, charging deep into the dense forest.

"Damn it, keep firing! Use the onboard missiles; the beast is trying to escape!!" Sanchez shouted urgently. Their recent experience told him that the beast was likely afraid of the missiles.

Boom, boom!!

The explosions resumed. Lu Chen, however, never stopped, constantly changing directions as he moved. After sprinting several hundred meters forward, he took advantage of the dense forest's cover and suddenly vanished into a narrow, elongated valley. The mountains on both sides were roughly four or five hundred meters high, covered with tall, lush trees that formed a dense canopy.

Whether it was the reconnaissance drones hovering at high altitude or the helicopter fleet at the battlefield, all lost track of the Saltwater Crocodile. Seeing this, Sanchez did not panic; instead, a look of excitement appeared on his face. He hurriedly issued an order: "Group A, get to the other side as fast as you can, block the exit, and don't let it escape!"

Although this valley terrain contained many blind spots, the Saltwater Crocodile's body was immense, making it easy to relocate. Moreover, the constraints of the terrain would significantly slow its escape speed.