Volume 9: Molten Mine Chapter 422: "Stirring up trouble"
"How come another 'Type C mutant' popped up? I'm a little confused." Hound interrupted.
"The appearance and abilities of the C-type mutants are basically the same as those of the S-type mutants, but their intelligence level is much higher than that of the regular S-type mutants, and they also have the ability to control other erosion species. Just like the literal meaning of 'commander', the C-type mutants are their commanders." Aya explained, "And the people of the heretic sect also use the C-type mutants to control these monsters that cannot communicate normally."
"So if we kill this 'Commander', these seeds of erosion will get out of control?" asked Layton.
"But we can't be sure whether the one in front of us is a C-type mutant disguised as an S-type mutant. Not only that, even if we find all the S-type mutants in this area, we can't tell who the commander is. It's like a lottery..." Ivan said.
"I think we should just go around and leave these monsters to the main force to deal with. Our mission is just reconnaissance anyway. We've done our best by recording these coordinates," suggested the Hound.
"I'm afraid taking a detour won't work." At this time, Ke Lan shook his head.
"Didn't you say at the beginning that we should take a detour? Why are you saying that now?" The hound looked over in confusion. "Ke Lan, don't get too excited. This thing has a ripple effect. If we guess wrong, we will be surrounded by hundreds of erosion species."
To be honest, the saying "a single move can affect the entire body" is not quite appropriate here.
"It's already this late, so don't worry about it. Just understand what I mean." The Hound said, "If you don't take a detour, do you have any way to quietly get rid of these seeds of corrosion?"
“Even if we get rid of these seeds of erosion silently, it won’t work. If the S-type mutant dies, the other S-type mutants in the area will still come here if they find a gap in the communication network,” Aya said.
"I didn't say we were going to get rid of them..." Ke Lan said, "Just going around them won't solve the problem. If we hadn't come here to investigate the strength of the building's wreckage, and if Asano Akira hadn't had hearing far beyond that of ordinary people, we wouldn't have been able to find these erosion seeds lurking inside the wreckage. Similarly, the erosion in other places in the area is probably hidden by the terrain. Do you think that if we can find them once, we can definitely find them twice or three times? Not much, as long as they find us first once, everything will be over. Instead of relying on luck, it's better to take the initiative to attack."
"Take the initiative to attack? How are you going to take the initiative to attack? This is the key point of the problem. If we can't find the 'commander', everything will be in vain!" The Hound questioned.
"When I say take the initiative to attack, I don't mean to kill that 'commander' and let all the seeds of erosion get out of control, but to find a way to make that 'commander' make a wrong judgment, so that they will take the initiative to make way for us." Ke Lan said calmly, "Old dog, do you remember the battle at the bottom of the tiankeng, when we used the method of making a feint to the east and attacking in the west to lure those exiles away, and then were attacked from behind?"
"You mean... you plan to use the bait tactic? But... who are you going to use as bait?" Hound subconsciously set his sights on the agents under Aya's command. "The situation here is different from that at the bottom of the tiankeng. Anyone who is used as bait will most likely die."
"There's no need to use bait. If the information Ms. Aya just told you is accurate, we can lure them away without bait."
"Don't keep us in suspense now. Just tell me what to do."
"Let's take a detour first." Ke Lan raised his index finger.
"What the hell... why are you talking about taking a detour again? Are you kidding me?"
"I'm not kidding you. The first step of this plan is to bypass this S-shaped mutant in front of us. By the way, Layton, what is the farthest control distance of your mechanical snake?" Ke Lan turned to look at Layton and asked.
"It's five hundred meters without interference, but you know this place, at most... it's just over two hundred meters, less than half the distance under normal circumstances." Layton replied.
"Two hundred meters is enough." Ke Lan nodded. "First, let Asano Akira lead the way. We will bypass the wreckage of the building and move to the huge rock on the left. It is about four hundred meters away from the wreckage of the building. If you, Layton, act as a signal relay station in the middle, the distance is just right."
"Then what?"
"What to do next?"
Hound and Aya asked at the same time.
"The mechanical snake locked onto the exact coordinates of the S-type mutant, and then Layton shared the coordinates with Valentina, who used armor-piercing bullets to snipe the S-type mutant through the wreckage of the building. If I remember correctly, your mecha should be equipped with a 30mm silenced sniper cannon, right?"
Although it is a silenced sniper cannon, the sound when shooting is still very loud. However, in a noisy environment like the Molten Mine, the sound of the cannon cannot be heard very far.
"Well. There shouldn't be any problem in penetrating the wreckage of the building." Valentina's voice came from the communication channel.
"I want to kill him with one strike. Can you do it?" Ke Lan asked again.
"If the coordinates provided can be guaranteed to be accurate, yes."
"Very good." Ke Lan continued to say to everyone, "If this S-type mutant is a disguised C-type mutant, then it's great, we won the jackpot, but if not, I can still achieve my goal - because the S-type mutant was sniped, the other S-type mutants in the area will only get the information that 'the location' was attacked, and they can't know whether it was a long-range sniper or a short-range attack. But judging from the intelligence of the Corrosion Seeds, even the 'Commander' is estimated to be not much stronger than humans.
After receiving this information, the seeds of erosion in other areas will certainly come out in full force to support the wreckage of the attacked building, but for us, it is equivalent to clearing out this area in disguise."
"What if the seeds of erosion in other areas don't come out in full force? What should we do?" Aya couldn't help but ask.
"No, they will definitely go out in full force... Just imagine, the S-type mutant died instantly under the protection of so many 'subordinates'. In their eyes, the enemy's strength is definitely not weak. Do you think they will only send a few small fish and shrimps to support them?
Moreover, once support is provided, the S-type mutants will definitely come along for the convenience of communication. Even if some troops are left behind, there is no need to worry if there are no S-type mutants. "Ke Lan said.
"Shit... this is a good idea. Isn't this what they call 'throwing a stone to test the water'?" The hound rubbed his hands excitedly.
"Old dog...you used the wrong idiom again. This should be called 'startling the snake by beating the grass'."
