The Interstellar Queen of Scavengers

Chapter 968: Chapter 968: Black Gold Rat

Shen Changqing and Chu Jiaojiao gradually approached the Dock’s engine room, while brothers Yue Qiguang and Yue Qiyuan sat in the spaceship cockpit, ready to make a quick escape with everyone...

Ji You and Sheng Qingyan held their positions on either side; Ji You was processing information transmitted by two separate drones, observing the video feed and considering from which direction to advance...

Semi-crouched on the ground, Sheng Qingyan squinted at the monitor, his gun barrel continuously rotating...

Liu Fufeng squatted in the corner, one hand supporting his chin, the other absent-mindedly drawing something...

Everything seemed calm, so calm it felt almost like a leisurely excursion. If the winds here were lighter, the sun more gentle, the moisture in the air a bit higher, clouds, yellow sand, a breeze... It would be an ideal vacation spot.

Liu Fufeng, drawing and drawing with one hand...

Suddenly——

He jumped up entirely; just as Liu Fufeng sprang to his feet, the smooth alloy surface of Dock No. 6’s ground suddenly burst open, a massive crack appeared instantly, rumbling...

In an instant, the ground collapsed into a large hole!

And in the blink of an eye, a thin, elongated Black Gold Rat burst forth from the collapsed pit, heading straight for Liu Fufeng.

Liu Fufeng’s timing was impeccable; a second later, he surely would have fallen in. But, faced with a sudden attack from a Black Gold Rat, Liu Fufeng barely had time to react before feeling a powerful gust rushing towards him, and just before closing his eyes, the last image he saw was sharp claws and fierce fangs...

Liu Fufeng’s pupils contracted!

Not good!

His beautiful face!

Liu Fufeng barely managed to raise his arm to shield his face.

At that moment, with a swish, the Black Gold Rat that was about to bite into Liu Fufeng’s face halted its action, then suddenly fell to the ground, an arrow pierced through its back to its chest, its belly busted open, and crimson blood streamed out, its body convulsing violently, mouth agape: ”Squeak squeak squeak——”

”Squeak squeak squeak——”

The squeaks of the Black Gold Rat gradually weakened and a few seconds later, stopped completely.

Sheng Qingyan retrieved the bow and arrow, coolly gazed at the Black Gold Rat’s corpse, inspected it briefly, then disdainfully kicked the body aside, pursing his lips: ”Level 1, worthless.”

Liu Fufeng looked gratefully at Sheng Qingyan, saying: ”Sheng... Sheng Qingyan, thank... thank you for saving me.”

Initially, Sheng Qingyan and Liu Fufeng never communicated much, primarily because Sheng Qingyan considered Liu Fufeng’s identity a hassle. Sheng Qingyan was someone who would lie down rather than sit, sit rather than stand... living idly was his lifelong pursuit, and troubles were something Sheng Qingyan feared getting involved with. Now facing Liu Fufeng’s earnest expression and sincere gratitude, Sheng Qingyan’s attitude remained indifferent, waving his hand, he said, ”No need to thank; although I took your Soul Device, I honestly didn’t want to work for you, just forced into it~”

After speaking.

Sheng Qingyan returned to the monitor, not wanting to engage with Liu Fufeng any further.

Liu Fufeng, sensing this, remained silent but moved next to Ji You and crouched beside her.

After the incident, neither Ji You nor the others were startled. This minor commotion was within everyone’s tolerance and not enough to frighten them. Yue Qiyuan and Yue Qiguang continued to hold their positions in the spaceship cockpit, staying put.

Shen Changqing and Chu Jiaojiao successfully entered Dock No. 6’s engine room, attempting to activate the Dock’s surveillance system.

Ji You gazed calmly at the hole in the ground.

...

Suddenly——

Ji You raised her hand and commanded: ”Stand guard!”

”Level 3 readiness!”

”Huh?”

As soon as everyone heard Ji You’s voice, they quickly drew their weapons——

Ji You’s eyes were bright, her tone as steady as possible, saying: ”Underneath us, a preliminary assessment suggests a nest of small Black Gold Rats. Look—”

She raised her hand, pointing to the pattern of marks at the bottom of the hole, ”The channels dug up are intricate, and the claw marks don’t match this Black Gold Rat. This one must have recently left its mother, just allowed to venture out on its own. Judging by its claws, it’s less than 6 months old...”

As Ji You finished speaking, everyone’s spines tensed.

From the spaceship, Yue Qiguang shouted: ”4444, should we have everyone board the spaceship and choose another place to land?”

Dock No. 6 was unanimously agreed upon as the safest, most suitable place as a rear camp. Yet here, right beneath us, there’s an ongoing infestation of Black Gold Rats? This!

This is disastrous.

It’s crucial to understand that Black Gold Rats don’t grow as large as other Star Beast species; a full-grown Black Gold Rat is roughly the size of an adult’s fist. But they are incredibly fast, almost light-speed, and their teeth and claws can penetrate ordinary armor, even shatter the exteriors of 1-3 Star Level Standard Mechas. Moreover, they sometimes suddenly spring out from dark corners to claw at you!

It’s virtually impossible to guard against!

What’s worse, the X-virus carried by Black Gold Rats is over 80% higher than that carried by other Star Beasts! Even a scratch from a Black Gold Rat can potentially lead to infection of the Star Beast X-virus. The high virus content and infection rate make it at least twice as deadly as other Star Beast viruses! Without timely treatment, losing limbs and replacing organs might be the least of your concerns; losing your life is the most serious.

Despite the advancement in human technology and medicine, encountering a group of Black Gold Rats still leads to a mortality rate of over 40%!

Initially, Ji You opposed accepting this group task because she felt Black Gold Rats were difficult to deal with.

However, Black Gold Rats have one characteristic that greatly reduces their danger; unless it’s their breeding season, they never group together. They mostly live alone or in pairs, possibly with one mother rat caring for a group of young.

Underneath this plot of land, it seems to be a mother rat with her brood, slightly troubling is the fact that these are nearing maturity, with their attack and danger levels not insignificantly weak.

...

The situation worsened rapidly; Dock No. 6 was no longer safe. With everyone on high alert, Yue Qiyuan looked at everyone and asked, ”Do we change location or—”