Chapter Eighteen (Reset) Fierce Battle with the Swarm

Tunnel Worm, Level 25, Biological Structure. The moment I saw this information, I immediately understood—this system is utterly merciless, leaving no room for survival. At that very moment, creatures burst from the tunnel worm’s gaping maw. Their bodies were serpentine, but each had two long, scythe-like forelimbs; their revolting mouths split into three segments—a central jaw lined with teeth and two sides hooked backward. These monstrous beings, faces twisted in savagery, drooled incessantly, as if ravenous, and without the slightest hesitation, spat sharp spikes from their mouths at a startling speed. Three players at the front—two warriors and a summoner—were struck down before they could even scream, falling lifeless to the ground.

“What’s happening? What are those monsters?” someone screamed in terror.

Venom Serpent, Level 35, Elite Beast.

“Boss, let’s retreat! This is too dangerous!” someone nearby shouted in panic. For players at our current stage, a horde of level 35 Venom Serpents was simply terrifying.

“Fine, let’s fall back! Damn it, how did it turn out like this? Looks like we’ll have to shell out some cash after all.” The male warrior’s face was twisted with frustration as he led his small band of a dozen or so people, turning and sprinting toward the exit.

With a thunderous crash, three players at the front were suddenly flung aside, their bodies smashed through the air with a shriek. Bones shattered, and they collapsed limply to the ground, unable to move.

Another tunnel worm emerged, spewing a torrent of cockroaches that surged toward the players. Everyone recoiled at the sight of so many monsters, a nameless terror creeping into our hearts.

Meanwhile, the battle behind us had turned into a bloody massacre. These savage killers possessed terrifying attack power. Beneath the carapace of the Venom Serpents lay bone plates bristling with armor-piercing spines. Whenever they fired, agonized screams rang out wherever the spikes landed. One after another, people were impaled, while those who fought in close quarters could not evade the scythe-like forelimbs and were hacked cleanly in two. High-level players? Demon Beasts? Angel Beasts? Experts? In the face of these Venom Serpents, all were powerless, fated only to be devoured.

With cockroaches and Venom Serpents attacking from two sides, the players’ formation shrank smaller and smaller, gradually closing into a circle.

“These damned bugs! How can this be? It’s utterly unreasonable—we’re just being sent to our deaths. It’s over, we’re all doomed!” The male warrior, blocked by a tide of cockroaches, turned pale with despair.

Barely three or four hundred people remained alive, all forced to retreat to a clearing in the center. Venom Serpents and cockroaches surrounded us, each bearing a sinister expression, drool dripping from their mouths.

The three of us huddled beside the male warrior, fear and despair flickering across our faces.

“Dragon, you have the best equipment among us,” Fire Phoenix said suddenly, biting her lip with resolve. “You have the greatest chance of escaping. If you get out, remember to pick up our gear for us.”

I smiled and said, “In a moment, stay close—don’t run around or get separated. I’m fired up now.”

Great Roc said, “This isn’t the time for hot-blooded heroics. These bugs are cunning—each one stronger than anyone here. It’s only a matter of time before we’re all wiped out.”

This would be a truly brutal battle.

As people’s spirits waned and faces grew grim, the ground began to shake again. Cracks split open, and massive shapes burst from below into the crowd—every one of them terrifying cockroaches.

I watched as a cockroach opened its maw and roared, then slammed its huge body into the players, sending five or six of them flying. Some were killed instantly, while others were dissolved by the green acid it spat next.

More Venom Serpents emerged, spitting spikes that flashed like lightning through the crowd. Wherever they struck, screams erupted. Some people were eviscerated by the scythe-like forelimbs, howling as they collapsed.

In the blink of an eye, the last line of defense crumbled. The players scattered in panic, each hoping to escape and avoid being slaughtered by this monstrous horde.

As the chaos erupted, the other bugs swarmed in, plunging into the melee with the remaining few hundred players. The final battle began.

Great Roc gripped the hilt of his crimson greatsword, gathering all his strength. With a long cry, he became a streak of lightning. With a crisp sound, a Venom Serpent, in the midst of its rampage, suddenly let out a miserable howl. Before it could turn, the sharp blade had already severed its grotesque head, its massive body collapsing to the ground.

The air was filled with the endless hiss of blades. Great Roc’s sword slashed again and again; I joined the fray, each strike of my hundred-plus attack power felling a Venom Serpent or cockroach, some of them reduced to pulp beneath my blows.

Lost in this endless swarm, no matter how strong I was, I couldn’t count how many monsters I’d killed—or how many times I’d been struck. My body was a mass of wounds.

If this continued, I would be buried here, swallowed by this swarm.

Fire Phoenix and Great Roc fought desperately as well. The players, realizing escape was impossible, charged bravely into the bugs, unleashing a slaughter so fierce that the shouts and screams shook the heavens.

I shouted, “What’s going on? These bugs are endless—it makes no sense!”

Great Roc replied, “It doesn’t make sense. Everything should have a solution. I don’t think the system would make an impossible mission—otherwise, who would keep playing?”

Fire Phoenix said, “Right. From the look of things, the only way is to take out the boss—otherwise, we’ll be devoured for sure.”

I said, “You two keep the bugs busy. I’ll go find the boss and finish it.”

Great Roc said, “Wait, you can’t go alone! That’s suicide.”

I replied, “I don’t plan on dying—I'm going to be the man who turns the impossible into possible.”

Fire Phoenix moved beside me. “I’m coming with you.”

Great Roc said, “Me too. I’ll help draw the monsters.”

I shook my head. “Forget it—my health is over 500. Even combined, the two of you don’t match me. If you come, it’ll just be more for the slaughter.”

Fire Phoenix traded with me, handing over some potions. “Good luck. I believe you’ll come back alive.”

I smiled, and then Great Roc also traded, giving me some potions and a skill book. “Bro, I believe you won’t die so easily. I meant to sell this for a good price, but it’ll be more useful to you. If you take down the boss, just give me a share of the loot.”

I immediately put ten gold coins into the trade. “Take these—I can’t take your things for free. Let’s say I bought the book.”

Great Roc said, “Alright, good luck. I’m rooting for you.”

I nodded, then broke away from the crowd and charged into the swarm. My goal was the tunnel worm—the thing responsible for transporting soldiers to the battlefield. The boss was surely at the other end of the tunnel worm, at the exit of the network.