Wasteland Development Diary

The explosion generated a circle of shockwaves that surged in all directions.

The Forest Giant was just raising its head when the supporting Copper Bull Cannon arrived and gave it a face wash, pressing it back to the ground.

It was also the first time that Zhou Yi had witnessed the intensity of suppression by heavy firepower at close range.

At this moment, a shadow ran out from the Mushroom Forest.

The Black Samurai intercepted it.

The figure hastily stopped and spat out something.

"Master, master, hold your fire! It's me! It's your loyal Ye Zhao!"

Zhou Yi called a halt to his companions.

This Mushroom Guardian was covered in scabbed wounds, its fur stained with purplish-brown blood, appearing somewhat bedraggled.

Out of breath, it said, "Master, thank goodness for you, I thought I was done for. The perimeter of the Mushroom Forest was blocked by squads of enhancers. They shot crossbow bolts at me, I dared not come out, nor did I dare to expose the mushrooms inside. I tried to draw them away, but in the end, I could only run further inside..."

"Just now a huge monster revived from underground, I tried to break through only to realize that you had already taken over the place, which is just perfect, master!"

"Right, the mushrooms are still there, I've brought them out."

It was only then that Zhou Yi noticed that what Ye Zhao had spat onto the ground were several mud-ball mushrooms, which were mostly intact.

"Well done, you've had a hard time."

Zhou Yi offered some words of comfort.

"It wasn't hard, it's what needed to be done. Now that you're here, this place is safe!" Ye Zhao relaxed, throwing in a bit of flattery.

Zhou Yi turned his gaze back to Tie Ma: "How are things on the Copper Bull's side?"

Tie Ma replied, "It has informed me that there's something extremely dangerous inside the Mushroom Forest, with very high mechanical strength. The Copper Bull has advised us to evacuate here first, it will try to hold back that creature's advance."

Zhou Yi paused for a moment.

It seemed that the two missile volleys had caused no substantial damage to the giant.

He immediately ordered the samurai crabs to gather the enhancers' left-behind tools and equipment and quickly retreat.

At that moment, the giant slowly rose again from within the dust and sand.

Distant war vehicles fired once more, two missile volleys trailing red tails, turning into two nocturnal meteors targeting the enemy.

However, this time, right in front of the giant, they were frozen in the air as if captured by some strange force, turning into two hovering spheres of light.

Amidst the flying dust, slender, bar-like structures grew out of the giant's body.

They wove into a long, thin bony arm, which at the end unfurled into a cage-like cube, enveloping the two missiles' spheres of light.

The light, as if melting, was slowly absorbed by the giant through the bony arm.

Zhou Yi's mind heard the voice of Red Kestrel, "It's converting the firepower into pure energy that it needs."

"The strength and precision of this ability has exceeded category C, it's at least on the B level. Considering that it has been dormant for many years and has just restarted in poor condition, its mechanical strength might also be at the B level... extremely dangerous, we need to evacuate immediately."

Yet Zhou Yi's expression was peculiar.

Through Red Kestrel's bird's-eye view footage, he could see the full picture of the giant.

This high-rise giant was light gray all over, its surface covered in stains, with sand and debris constantly shaking off its body.

It was full of holes, quite literally riddled with them. It also lacked a head, its body equally thick top to bottom, all straight and broad prisms.

The upper half of the giant's body was the most damaged, with a large slanted gap looking as if something had bitten off its head.

From any angle, the description was strange.

Yet, when these elements combined, they were something Zhou Yi had known all too well in the past.

The so-called giant who couldn't stand was, in fact, a high-rise building.

Its odd limbs and arms were entirely constructed from tangled steel rebars.

Could reinforced concrete, forming the building's structure, also evolve life features in the Dead Sea?

Zhou Yi asked Red Kestrel with a belly full of doubts.

"Electromechanical life can be born, so of course architectural life can exist too, though they are very rare."

The drone replied, "Their forms and structures are diverse, and there's a significant difference between individuals, also known as Dead Sea Aliens."

"Unlike electromechanical life forms which follow clear regulatory standards, architectural life has long been immersed in the Dead Sea environment, not only affected by Death Light radiation but also by nearby life forms."

"The more widely accepted hypothesis is that architectural life is the group evolution result of various life forms in a particular area, including electromechanical life, Flesh Guangna Species, Bone Men, and so on."

"When various life forms leave the structure or die, their past behavioral trajectories and emitted signals are preserved in the architecture by the light film of Death Light. With the continual accumulation of lifelike consciousness information, over time, under the catalysis of high-pressure fields induced by Death Light, bursts of Death Light, and rapids, architectural life has a certain probability of being born."

"It can be understood that they are a form of life that has transformed from collective memory."

"Unfortunately, it is completely impossible to communicate with them, and they can't communicate with each other internally. Adding to their strange behavior and highly individualistic nature, their body strength is usually incredibly high, and they possess a variety of bizarre skills, so they are like walking natural disasters."

...

The mutilated High-rise Giant stood motionless in the Mushroom Forest, basking in the sunshine with a faint reflective sheen on its surface, like it was coated with a layer of oil film.

Zhou Yi found this scene all too familiar.

The big guy was absorbing Death Light.

It had just woken up and was in dire need of an energy refill.

For now, the High-rise Giant didn't show any aggressive tendencies, but that could change once it had finished charging up.

Considering that it could directly absorb the firepower of thermal weapons, if it went berserk, its destructive power would be terrifying.

The camera light on Tie Ma's car head blinked red: "First there was strange weather, now this level of a monster... We simply can't continue the reclamation as long as it doesn't leave. Just passing by, it would destroy the entire farmland."

"Let's put the farm aside for now, safety first."

Zhou Yi said.

Tong Niu remained silent as usual. It was dragging a container of fertilizer, with the four rockets mounted on its head already fired, and the two cannons on top still aimed in the giant's direction, remaining vigilant.

"My brother says that it's mechanically too strong, and the gap between it and us is too big, we simply can't stop it. He thinks, we have to find a way to lure the monster away, otherwise that guy is a super timed bomb that could go off at any moment,"

Tie Ma relayed the opinion of its socially anxious brother.

"I think so too."

Zhou Yi looked towards Tie Ma: "One thing I'm curious about, why are you equipped with fake weapons, while Tong Niu is armed with such strong firepower?"

"Well, since you and I have such a life-and-death bond, I don't mind telling you."

Tie Ma's car lights flashed: "I was originally just traditional farming machinery, after awakening, I stuck to my job. Tong Niu is different, it was a multifunctional combat vehicle before, with many years of battlefield experience. But later, it didn't want to fight anymore, so it underwent modifications."

"But after all, it used to be a seasoned warrior, and these weapons are from its previous arsenal, so it just took them to deter others, and they also come in handy at critical moments."

"Didn't expect we'd never need them before, but now we've encountered one that we just can't beat."

Zhou Yi thought to himself, that explains it.

According to Bird's Eye View from Red Kestrel, the giant was activated as Luan Zou's last counterattack, but for some reason, the giant didn't go on a rampage directly; it was just quietly charging up.

"Master, I know a little bit about the situation."

Suddenly, Ye Zhao piped up from the side.

"When I was hiding in the Mushroom Forest earlier, I saw a lot of silhouettes entering the giant's body, all Black Hand Mushrooms. I suspect it's those guys who are controlling the giant. So the giant could make quick responses to block our attacks."

Black Hand Mushrooms?

Zhou Yi immediately had Red Kestrel carry out a more detailed scan on the High-rise Giant.

On the screen of the remote control, indeed, silhouettes were bustling about the window holes, busily moving around inside, apparently fiddling with something.

Through the gaps, one could see that a large amount of mushrooms and soil were being moved from the bottom to every layer above.

The broken high-rise had seemingly turned into a Mushroom Kingdom.

Zhou Yi was shocked.

No.

Were these Black Hand Mushrooms actually trying to pilot the Alien like a Gundam?