Chapter 121

Su Jing's finger was still on the trigger guard of the laser gun when her wrist communicator suddenly emitted a piercing "beep beep" alarm, and a scarlet notification box that filled the entire screen forcibly popped up.

The text conveys a suffocating sense of oppression: [The dungeon boss "Beast King" has been activated! Basic information: 5 meters long, resembling a hyena mutant, with dark black fur, 15 centimeters long fangs (containing potent venom), and possesses the ability to "berst" (when health is below 30%, attack power is doubled and defense is increased by 50%).

Attack characteristics: Indiscriminately attacks all monsters (including friendly monsters), prioritizing high-level monsters/quest takers;

Current location: 150 meters northeast, rapidly approaching!

"Everyone on alert! Execute the defense plan!" Su Jing's voice instantly turned cold as her fingertips slid rapidly across the communicator, synchronizing the BOS information to all units.

Before the words were even finished, the five mining robots quickly adjusted their formation like gears—robots No. 1 and No. 2 instantly deployed silver-gray manganese crystal metal shields, which were 5 centimeters thick and had a cold, hard luster on their edges. They stood at a 45-degree angle in front of them, forming the first line of defense.

Robots No. 3 and No. 4 took a half step back, and the muzzles of their laser guns popped out of their side pockets. Pale red preheating light converged at the muzzles, aiming at the woodland to the northeast. The words "Laser energy 99%, aiming accuracy calibration in progress" flashed rapidly on the display screen.

Robot No. 5 moved directly behind Su Jing, deployed a small portable shield to completely protect her back, and its tracks gripped the ground firmly on the decaying leaves to prevent slipping.

Su Jing looked down to check her equipment: the laser gun's energy bar was steadily at 100%, the spare energy block was in her side pocket and poking her palm, and the hilt of the golden crystal dagger was slightly damp from the cold sweat on her palm. She subconsciously gripped it tightly, and the cold metallic touch instantly calmed her down.

With a flick of her fingertips, she subtly manipulated the ore to control her supernatural abilities. The manganese crystals and hematite buried beneath the ground vibrated slightly according to her thoughts, forming an invisible flow of ore one meter in front of her. This flow could condense into a weapon or shield at any time—this was her contingency plan prepared in advance. When facing a 5-meter-long BOSS, she had to have a backup plan.

"Xiao Jin, hide behind robot number 5 and don't come out."

Su Jing bent down and picked up the little golden cat with its fur standing on end. The little golden ball of fur was now covered in short hairs standing on end, making soft "woofing" sounds in its throat, and its black eyes were fixed on the northeast direction. It didn't even react when the leaves of the Qi-gathering grass that it usually loved fell in front of it.

She tucked Little Gold inside the shield of Robot No. 5, where there was a soft moss mat, a safe zone she had prepared for it. "Come out when it's safe, be good."

Little Jin rubbed against her fingertips, then obediently curled up on the moss, revealing only a pair of wary eyes.

The green deer reacted faster than expected. The pale blue "natural aura barrier" stopped expanding outward and instead quickly contracted to a range of 5 meters, protecting Su Jing, the black bear, and the core robot within it.

The faint light on the barrier's surface suddenly became dazzling, as if it were covered with a layer of flowing jade. Su Jing could even see the tiny energy ripples on the barrier—that was the Azure Deer overdrawing its own energy to strengthen its defense. Its forelegs were taut and straight, and the muscle lines under its light blue fur were clearly visible. Its short antlers gleamed with a faint blue light, and it occasionally hummed softly towards the northeast, its voice filled with vigilance, but without the slightest sign of retreat.

The black bear strode heavily to the front line of defense, its massive body positioned right next to the shield of Robot No. 1, forming a "human-machine collaborative" defensive posture.

The old scar on its left shoulder looked particularly ferocious due to the taut muscles. The edges of the purplish-black scab were slightly white. The tips of its front claws were fully extended, and the 10-centimeter-long black claws gleamed coldly in the light, like five sharp short knives.

It let out a deep roar towards the northeast, the sound causing the surrounding decaying leaves to fall in a rustling sound. It tried to use its "beast intimidation" ability to drive back the BOSS, but the roar from afar not only did not weaken, but instead grew closer and closer, carrying a strong bloody smell, as if it had just torn apart other monsters.

"Number 3, report the scan results!" Su Jing commanded into the communicator, and the display screen of Robot No. 3 immediately showed real-time data: [Target: Ferocious Beast King, current distance 120 meters, movement speed 18 meters/second, energy fluctuation intensity: high level (more than 3 times that of a third-level black bear), residual monster bloodstains detected on the body surface (suspected to be a second-level green deer), berserk threshold not activated] .

With each data update, the distance to the number decreased by 10 meters, and the ground vibrations became increasingly noticeable.

At first, there was only a slight tremor, but later the pebbles on the leaf litter began to bounce, and even a few small ferns were shaken to the ground. In the distance, there was a cracking sound from the trees, as if the ferocious beast king had broken off their low branches.

Su Jing quickly adjusted the strategy: "Number 1 and Number 2, adjust the shield angle to 60 degrees and focus on defending against head attacks."

Numbers 3 and 4, abandon wide-range aiming, lock onto the foreleg joints of the Beast King, and prioritize interrupting its movement;

"Number 5, maintain the shield. Follow me immediately if I move." She then turned to the black bear, stroking its rough fur. "When it charges, move to the side first, don't take the hit head-on. Use your claws to scratch its belly, and look for an opportunity to coordinate with the blue deer."

The black bear let out a low growl and nuzzled her palm with its forehead, as if confirming a command. There was no fear in its brown pupils, only vigilance against a powerful enemy.

Qinglu seemed to sense Su Jing's nervousness and took half a step closer to her. The light blue aura barrier shrank by another meter, protecting her even more tightly.

Su Jing nodded to it and whispered, "When it gets close, use your antlers to poke below its throat; that's its weak point." The green deer responded with a low murmur, and the green light on its antlers shone even brighter, clearly ready.

The communicator's alarm suddenly turned shrill, and Robot 3's display screen popped up with "Emergency alert: The Beast King is 80 meters away, and acceleration has been detected! Its movement speed has increased to 25 meters per second!"

The ground tremors intensified instantly, and Su Jing even needed to hold onto the shield of Robot No. 5 to maintain her balance. The distant roars of beasts were now as clear as if they were right next to her ears, carrying a nauseating stench of blood. The distance numbers on her communicator jumped rapidly: "70 meters... 60 meters... 50 meters..."

Suddenly, the metal shield of Robot No. 1 made a "humming" sound, and tiny spots of light appeared on its surface—that was because the energy fluctuations of the Beast King had touched the edge of the shield. Su Jing could see the spots of light on the shield moving rapidly, obviously the Beast King was adjusting its direction, trying to find a gap in the defense.

The laser ports of robots 3 and 4 were fully preheated, and the pale red laser beams formed a stable light strip in the air, aiming at the approaching shadow. The words "Lock successful, ready to fire" flashed on the display screen.

Su Jing took a deep breath, mobilized all her mental energy, and her control over the minerals at her fingertips reached its peak—manganese crystals and hematite from the ground rapidly converged in front of her, forming a semi-transparent metallic stream that could condense into a 3-meter-long metal spear at any moment.

She stared at the distance numbers on the communicator, “40 meters…30 meters…” The roar of the black bear and the howl of the ferocious beast king collided, causing the leaves to fall in a rustling sound. Tiny cracks began to appear on the surface of the aura barrier of the green deer. The alarm of Robot No. 5 kept beeping. The air in the entire battlefield seemed to freeze, just waiting for the moment when the BOSS rushed out of the forest.