Han Hongyu eagerly peeled away the husk of the corn, only to find the kernels inside were still not fully developed.
One of his subordinates stepped forward, examining the kernels closely before plucking one off and swallowing it.
His expression shifted from delight to a frown as he said, "These are indeed mutated corn, but they aren't mature enough. I doubt they can be used as seeds for planting."
Han Hongyu commanded, "Keep searching. There must be mature seeds here."
With that, he prepared to break off the immature corn cob.
"Wait," Zhang Xiaoli suddenly interjected, "I'll try to see if I can revive this corn plant."
She then emitted a green light from her right hand, enveloping the corn plant.
Nourished by the green light, the somewhat withered and yellowing corn seedling suddenly turned a vibrant green. Not completely broken, it miraculously came back to life.
Qin Shilei asked, "Xiaoli, if you put your full effort into healing it, how long would it take for its seeds to fully mature?"
Zhang Xiaoli placed her hand on the corn, sensing it carefully before replying, "It will take at least a day for them to fully mature."
Upon hearing this, everyone's brows furrowed in unison.
With insects swarming all around, they had no time to wait here for a day for the corn to ripen.
"Boss, there's another good ear of corn here too."
The group immediately rushed over. They peeled away the outer husk to reveal kernels that were even more tender than the previous ones.
"Alert, insects are approaching."
Qin Shilei suddenly called out a warning.
Han Hongyu quickly produced a flare, ignited it, and threw it into the sky.
Only then did he have a moment to look around and saw hundreds of beetles charging from all directions, with six or seven silver beetles among them.
Han Hongyu's face changed drastically, and he urgently commanded, "Quick, break off the corn and let's leave immediately."
"Wait," Qin Shilei said in a deep voice, "Dig up the entire plant. We'll see if we can revive it back at base."
His subordinates all looked towards their leader.
Han Hongyu glanced at Qin Shilei and nodded, replying, "We'll do as Brother Qin suggests."
His men immediately began digging up the corn with their weapons. In less than twenty seconds, they returned to Qin Shilei carrying two corn plants still covered in soil.
Zhang Xiaoli waved her hand, and a giant willow tree appeared behind the group.
Qin Shilei then retrieved a suitable bucket from his Qiankun Ring and placed each of the two corn plants inside.
He then stepped forward, positioning himself to protect the group.
The helicopter had yet to arrive, but the beetle attack was already upon them.
Spirit Guardian! Wood Clone!
Zhang Xiaoli summoned a Moon Spirit, equal in strength to herself, to guard the left flank, and a Wood Clone, half her strength, to guard the right flank with her.
Han Hongyu and his men were stunned by Zhang Xiaoli's dazzling array of summons.
This beautiful woman must be the strongest of the two, defending three directions by herself.
However, when Qin Shilei unleashed his full power, they were once again astonished.
Han Hongyu's vision blurred for a moment, and he suddenly lost sight of Qin Shilei.
He only saw the surging insects suddenly freeze as if electrocuted, stopping dead in their tracks.
A gust of wind blew, and the insects split in half, dying a complete death.
Han Hongyu looked closely and realized that Qin Shilei, moving at incredible speed, was weaving through the insect horde. Each strike he made killed an insect instantly.
Zhang Xiaoli and her two clones also continuously cast spells and unleashed abilities, slaying the charging insects within ten meters.
Just as Qin Shilei and Zhang Xiaoli were demonstrating their power by annihilating the insects, those few silver beetles suddenly moved.
Three silver beetles converged on Qin Shilei, while the other three charged towards Zhang Xiaoli.
Qin Shilei immediately felt immense pressure.
The three silver beetles, with their six gleaming forelimbs, transformed into a blur of motion, relentlessly slashing down at him.
Qin Shilei dodged and weaved, constantly evading their sharp forelimbs. The Blood Soul, imbued with sword energy, carved numerous gashes onto the beetles, but failed to kill them with a single blow.
Blood Flow Reversal!
Qin Shilei unleashed a skill from his Blood Soul upon the three silver beetles.
Under the force of the internal blood surge, the movements of the three beetles momentarily halted.
"Die!"
Qin Shilei frantically channeled essence into the Blood Soul, then raised his sword and cleaved at one of the beetles, splitting it in half with a single strike.
Then, as the remaining two beetles just began to recover, he used a skill called "Thunder Piercer" to stab over ten holes into the head of one of them, causing it to fall dead to the ground.
While Qin Shilei and Zhang Xiaoli were spectacularly dispatching four silver beetles, Han Hongyu and his men were facing a life-or-death crisis.
The towering willow tree stood at their rear. Any creature foolish enough to enter its shaded area would be instantly ensnared and strangled by its resilient branches.
In less than three minutes, hundreds of scythe beetles had met their end by the willow tree's branches.
However, when the last silver beetle charged from their direction, the tree could no longer hold it back.
The incredibly tough willow branches snapped into several pieces under the fierce onslaught of the silver beetle's sharp forelimbs.
The willow tree's strength was merely Iron rank eight, utterly outmatched by the Silver rank silver beetle.
If not for the sheer number of its branches hindering the beetle, the tree's trunk would have been cleaved in two.
Seeing that it couldn't deal with the willow tree immediately, the beetle turned its attention to Han Hongyu and his men.
"Protect the corn seedlings."
Han Hongyu commanded, then thrust his spear at the silver beetle.
Facing the sharp spear tip, the silver beetle fearlessly raised its forelimbs and parried.
With a single blow, Han Hongyu's face contorted.
He felt an immense force surge through the spear, sending it flying to the side. His body was also propelled backward uncontrollably.
Han Hongyu crashed heavily seven or eight meters away, spitting out a mouthful of blood, his face instantly paling.
He knew this silver beetle was strong, but he never imagined it would be so powerful.
He was Iron rank nine, yet he couldn't even withstand a single move.
This silver beetle must be a Silver rank異獸 (mutated beast)!
Then, what was Qin Shilei's strength to be able to kill silver beetles?
Before Han Hongyu could fully comprehend this, a scythe beetle suddenly lunged at him from the side. He had no choice but to roll like a tumbleweed towards Zhang Xiaoli.
As Han Hongyu scrambled to his feet, he saw the silver beetle charge forward, instantly slicing two of his subordinates in half.
The beetle then turned and charged again, its target now the other two men guarding the corn seedlings.
Han Hongyu's heart tightened.
He feared that his subordinates and the two corn plants would be annihilated by the beetle's next charge.
Suddenly, his vision flashed. Qin Shilei had inexplicably appeared in front of the beetle and, with a single sword strike, sent it flying back.
"Why are you still standing there like idiots? Hurry back and guard the corn seedlings."
Zhang Xiaoli's melodious voice suddenly rang in Han Hongyu's ears.
Only then did he snap back to reality and quickly rushed to the side of the corn seedlings to protect them.
Han Hongyu had never imagined that he, the leader of the Longhua City base, would be ordered around by a woman to guard a corn seedling.
He, who had always commanded others, now had to obey someone else's command.
Rumble!
As Han Hongyu worried if another silver beetle would charge again, the beautiful and pleasing sound of helicopter engines finally echoed from above.