Volume One: Planet of Ten Thousand Beasts Chapter 56: Music

Boom!

With the final grenade thrown, scattering the cluster of volcanic scorpions into pieces, Li Juxu was left with only his Tiger-Brave 74 assault rifle and a meager supply of ammunition. He pressed his back against the crumbling rooftop, his muzzle angled downward, firing incessantly to cut down the seemingly endless wave of volcanic scorpions. Strapped to his back was his unconscious younger sister. Two hours ago, while their group was fleeing for their lives, a rocket-propelled grenade had gone off-target, exploding less than five meters away from them. To shield him, his sister had taken the full brunt of the blast's shockwave, and subsequently, her leg had been crushed by flying bricks. The explosion had also left Li Juxu dazed and disoriented, but his survival instinct had instantly spurred him to his feet, lifting his sister and running. Thanks to his quick reflexes—had he been even a few seconds slower—they would have been swallowed alive by the surging tide of volcanic scorpions.

After reaching a safe spot, he had first tended to his sister's injured leg, then hoisted her onto his back and resumed their flight. Half an hour ago, his sister had begun to mutter incoherently in a haze of delirium. When he pressed his palm to her forehead, it burned with heat—she had developed a fever.

Lacking proper rest for an extended period, combined with the drastic shifts between hot and cold temperatures, her body had finally broken down. Li Juxu deeply regretted not bringing cold medicine when they left the hotel, as he had assumed they would return shortly. Even if danger arose, getting back should have been effortless. However, the changing situation had far exceeded his expectations.

Two days ago, when another section of the city wall collapsed, he had resolved to head back to the hotel. Yet, the battlefield dynamics had shifted; the way back was blocked. Either buildings were ablaze, or the streets were choked with volcanic scorpions. He had no choice but to continuously detour with his sister, and in this zig-zagging escape, two days and two nights had slipped away.

The effects of a combat stimulant kept him going, but his sister was barely hanging on. Both her speed and strength had noticeably declined. Li Juxu saw it all, anxiety gnawing at his heart, yet he was utterly helpless. He had considered taking turns resting, but the volcanic scorpions refused to grant them the opportunity. Nowhere was safe; the scorpions were ubiquitous. They couldn't even linger in one place for more than an hour.

"We must get back to the hotel as soon as possible!" Feeling the radiating heat from the body pressed against his back, Li Juxu felt a burning panic. Yet, the reality was that far from returning to the hotel, he didn't even have room to maneuver anymore—he was trapped on a rooftop. The nearest building was over twenty meters away, and the streets below were entirely blanketed by a dense, tightly packed sea of volcanic scorpions, leaving not a single patch of empty ground.

Trying to cross at ground level was out of the question; to touch the ground with one foot was to die the next second. Leaping across rooftops was something he might have gambled on if he weren't carrying his sister. But with her on his back, he knew there was zero chance of success unless he consumed a Tier-2 stimulant.

He still had his grappling gun, but the surrounding buildings were built with corrugated iron sheet structures that lacked the load-bearing strength required; his grappling gun could only anchor into brick and stone. Once again, he had been too careless, his preparations inadequate. Regret surged within him as his mind raced frantically, racking his brains for any possible solution.

Shark was dead. Lin Lu was dead. He absolutely would not allow his sister to die as well, let alone perish in such a manner. Suddenly, his gaze caught a sign downstairs.

Heavy Metal Record Store!

This was a shop that sold musical merchandise—records, speakers, guitars, electronic keyboards, and the like. He knew of this place, though he had never stepped inside. These were playthings for the scions of wealthy families; a single guitar easily cost tens of thousands. As an impoverished young man, he could never bring himself to spend money on musical instruments, yet he harbored a genuine fondness for music.

In the gunpowder-choked night, the explosive strains of music suddenly erupted. The sound was so piercing and resonant that it could be heard within a radius of two kilometers.

"The beacon fires rise, looking north across the rivers and mountains; the dragon cavalry charges, horses neigh long, the sword qi is like frost..."

The song shook the heavens, drowning out the roar of gunfire. Those engaged in fierce combat with the volcanic scorpions were momentarily stunned. Gunshots dwindled by more than half, leaving only the booming, thunderous music to roar across the night.

"Who cares not to die a hundred times to serve the country? I sigh in endurance, speechless, eyes brimming with blood and tears..."

The song pierced the blackness of the night, carrying far and wide across the grand avenue, injecting a jolt of fierce adrenaline into anyone who heard it.

"What person possesses such leisurely sentiment to sing at the edge of life and death? So utterly carefree, a model for our generation!"

"Carefree my ass! That's just a speaker playing, not someone singing a cappella. Is his brain fried? Playing battle hymns for moral support during a war? Is he worried the scorpions aren't excited enough? Still, listening to this song really gets the blood pumping!"

"Someone's doing a good deed. Look, the volcanic scorpions are moving toward the source of the music. It seems volcanic scorpions are music lovers, too."

...

The person playing the music was naturally Li Juxu. He had cranked up the highest-wattage speaker in the shop and tossed it into the street opposite. When the deafening music rang through the night, the stimulated volcanic scorpions went frantic, charging en masse toward the speaker. In the opposite direction, a gap opened up. He crossed it at top speed and scrambled up another high-rise building.

What he did not know was that not far from where the speaker landed, a squad of hunters was trapped, clueless about how to escape, when thousands of volcanic scorpions suddenly swarmed in. Forget about finding a way out; they probably couldn't even fire their guns. Fury erupted in their hearts as they cursed the person who threw the speaker with every imaginable insult.

Li Juxu only realized he had inadvertently doomed others when he caught sight of the fiery glow of an explosion in the distance. Alas, it was too late for regrets. From afar, he watched as the speaker was swallowed layer by layer by the volcanic scorpions, its sound gradually fading. If someone had deployed high-yield explosives or electromagnetic rifles right then and there, tens of thousands of volcanic scorpions could have been wiped out in a single stroke. Unfortunately, after fighting for so long, it seemed nobody possessed any heavy weaponry left, forcing them to watch helplessly as a prime opportunity went to waste.

Clutching his rifle, Li Juxu hesitated, unsure whether he should open fire. But he was soon spared the dilemma: four rocket-propelled grenades tore through the night. Before their fiery crimson tails could even dissipate, the explosions thundered out.

Boom!

The music stopped abruptly. The volcanic scorpions, piled as high as a hillside, were blasted to smithereens. However, the blast radius of the grenades was ultimately limited; the scorpions a bit further away were merely knocked flying by the shockwave without dying. The swarm instantly went berserk, launching a frenzied assault on everything in sight.

Venom sprayed haphazardly. Walls, iron-sheet roofs, roads... hissed with white smoke, corroding at a visible rate. The building Li Juxu had climbed was also under attack, with massive numbers of volcanic scorpions swarming up the outer walls. Willing or not, Li Juxu had no choice but to fire. Individual volcanic scorpions were shot dead, but against the colossal army of the swarm, it was a drop in the bucket. Yet, he had no other option.

When one building fell, he immediately retreated to another; when that building was overrun by scorpions, he moved again. On one side, he faced imminent death; on the other, his sister's condition was worsening by the moment. Every time Li Juxu attempted to edge closer to the hotel, reality thwarted his intentions. Just as he resolved to take a desperate gamble, his gaze swept across a nearby storefront, and he abruptly froze.

Happy Pharmacy.