<h4>Chapter 23: Chapter 20 Shopping Spree</h4>


    While Li Le was searching for traces of Tao Yu and collecting the few scattered Blood Orchids left,


    Above the valley, Joseph and Wino had alsopletely shifted their gaze away from the corpses of the Pythons in the valley and frowned as they looked back at the dim Rainforest.


    Rustle~


    A slight noise emerged from the dense forest as if something was approaching.


    In the already darkened forest, one could vaguely see the swaying of branches and leaves in the shadows.


    "That kid wasn''t lying, there really is something out there."


    Wino, carrying his Double-ded Axe, twisted his body, his armor making the sound of metal friction, and a hint of wariness appeared on his face.


    He was confident in his strength; it shouldn''t be possible for anything to go wrong on the day of awakening.


    But in the fragments of the Abyss, anything is possible, so carelessness is an ironw.


    "It''s not those giant Pythons, the noise would be bigger. Some smaller creature, and fast, too—number... not just one... be careful."


    Joseph''s pupil mechanically contracted for a moment, switching to infrared mode.


    However, even in infrared mode, looking at the dimly outlined Rainforest in front of him, he still couldn''t see anything useful!


    Lizards in the trees, mice on the ground, and even some insects were visible in this mode, but he definitely couldn''t find anything else.


    "Can''t find it with infrared? Must be something with a heat-isting shell..."


    Hardly had Joseph finished speaking when a dark shadow swooped down from above, moving extremely fast!


    But faster still was the raising of Joseph''s shoulder-mounted cannon.


    Bang~


    The diving figure was blown apart in mid-air, green liquid sttering everywhere.


    Joseph didn''t know the problem with the blood, but still cautiously avoided it.


    Still, some of the green viscous blood sma sshed onto him and immediately began to sizzle~.


    His metal arm, though supposed to be corrosion-resistant, showed signs of slight corrosion, which caused Joseph''s face to turn pale.


    "Be careful, the blood of these creatures is highly corrosive! It must be one of those Yuan Force beings from the ins."


    As he reported the situation, his other hand swiftly pulled out a bottle of water and washed the blood-stained area, while the raised Mechanical Arm instantly transformed, turning into a Gatling-like barrel!


    He hadn''t switched to this mode when attacking the Pythons before, but now he did so without hesitation.


    The two from the Inner City, though arrogant, indeed had strong abilities.


    The broadcast had only given a rough description, but they still made quick judgments and, with a rtively small price, determined the acidic nature of the blood.


    Meanwhile, Wino, watching the ck and green mixture of Alien remains on the ground, listened to the sizzle of the corrosion,


    and with an ugly expression on his face, he pulled out a metal te from his waist, which flicked into a triangr Boomerang Mark with just a shake.


    "Blood with strong acid? That targets me too well. How many bullets do you have left?"


    "That depends on how many there are!"


    Joseph''s expression also gradually darkened as he saw those exoskeletal, ferocious creatures peering out from between the treetops and behind trees, yet not pouncing.


    Just a rough nce and he could already see more than a dozen!


    Jet-ck exoskeletons, long, dangerous tails, hideous faces, and the asional dripping of viscous saliva.


    Moving behind tree trunks, shuttling through the dim shadows.


    "Are they trying to trick me into firing? Wasting bullets?"


    Seeing the Aliens trying to peek out and then immediately withdraw, Joseph couldn''t quite believe it.


    That meant they had more brains than those Pythons!


    "All of you, get up here! Prepare for attack!"


    Wino bellowed out as he quickly tossed the Boomerang Mark forward.


    The triangr metal Boomerang, propelled by Wino''s immense strength, instantly pierced through the air, cutting off several branches along its path and revealing its terrifying sharpness.


    An Alien barely dodged it by swerving to the side; however, the returning Boomerang Mark sliced a deep wound across its body.


    Along with the Alien''s furious roar, green acidic blood sshed out, and before Wino caught the returning Boomerang Mark, he had already thrown the second one.


    Though its power was far less than his High-Explosive Incendiary Grenade, it had the advantage of being reusable!


    Catching the first Boomerang Mark and seeing its slight corrosive marks still made Wino look solemn.


    This was too restraining for him!


    On the other side, Wino''s roar also changed Li Le''s expression as he was collecting scattered Blood Orchids; his eyes flickered, and then, carrying his gun, he continued to slide down towards the bottom of the valley.


    And he yelled at the others,


    "Didn''t you hear? Get up there! Or I''ll shoot you dead!"


    While forcing the other four people up with his gun, Li Le also looked up to assess the situation above.


    Since he was standing in the middle waiting, he had heard some of the conversation. It seemed like they were facing some very troublesome creatures!


    Thinking of the Blood Orchid in his hand, and the bag full of Tao Yu, he urged the others to climb faster while he himself quickly retreated, running towards the gap on the other side of the valley along the bank.


    God damn it, I haven''t joined the cannon fodder squad yet! You won''t die with me; I have no obligation to follow your orders!


    Just need to find that guy who fled, just find him, that''s all!


    Thinking of the other''s backpack, which was stuffed with dozens of Blood Orchids, Li Le felt a fiery desire in his heart...


    Zhang Wei, who was climbing up and had fallen behind, also heard the noise of Li Le''s escape behind him, looked back at Li Le''s retreating figure, nced ahead, and then his face darkened as he quickly pocketed his gun and retreated.


    Having barely awakened abat talent, he had to survive this time, he just had to!


    Seeming to sense the others drawing near, the Alien that had been lurking and probing behind the trees suddenly changed its original tactical n.


    With just a few short roars, the Aliens quickly attacked the two from multiple directions!


    Although they were not as big and strong as the Pythons, their greater dexterity provided them with better evasion tactics.


    Moving swiftly between the trees, constantly using various forms of cover!


    Bang~


    Tat-tat-tat~


    Jose fired first, sting one Alien to pieces with his shoulder cannon, while the transformed Gatling gun in his wrist turned another into a sieve.


    Their hard exoskeleton was torn to pieces, and green acidic blood sttered everywhere, hissing as it hit the ground.


    Though he quickly dealt with two, Jose''s expression soured.


    "Damn it! These things have a decent resistance to bullets!"


    Although his shoulder cannon could still achieve one shot per Alien, his arm-mounted Gatling gun was far less effective than expected!


    If this were against those giant snakes'' heads, they''d have been pierced and he''d have switched targets two or three times over.


    But here, twenty to thirty shots barely managed to take down one?


    With a slight movement of his finger, a belt-like device at his waist rapidly shot out a row of small spheres towards the area in front, quickly setting up Guile Thunder for close defense.


    He then pulled out a red grenade from behind his back with the same hand that seemed human and tossed it into the woods without looking.


    Boom~


    A fierce me erupted. Even though the branches and leaves were damp and hard to ignite at once,


    the st from the High-Explosive Incendiary Grenade spread like a molotov cocktail, instantly covering the front and burning several Aliens as they writhed in agony.


    Meanwhile, another Alien approaching from a different direction was automatically hit by a Guile Thunder on the ground and exploded into pieces with a bang~.


    The precious items they hadn''t used against the Pythons were now being thrown around like they were free, an indication of the foundation that set them apart from the Outsiders.


    Wino, while being careful not to be hurt by the Guile Thunder, was also constantly throwing more and more Boomerang Marks.


    Despite his bulky appearance, he was extremely agile, throwing five Boomerang Marks at high speed while continuously reloading to maintain the barrage.


    The Double-ded Axe was stuck in the ground, ready to be drawn at any moment to face the enemy!


    Every now and then, he threw a high-explosive grenade to stop the Aliens from getting too close.


    However, what should have been a sustained ranged attack for Wino seemed somewhat awkward against the Aliens.


    After cutting through the bodies of several Aliens a few times, the corrosion-resistant alloy on his weapons became pockmarked.


    Soon, only two battered Boomerang Marks remained out of the five; the other three got stuck in the bodies of Aliens and couldn''t return due to losing their smoothness.


    "Damn it! I need to take some meds; watch out for yourself!"


    Seeing the resilient pests lessening their probes against Jose and turning their attention towards him, Wino roared and then forcefully pped his left shoulder.


    A needle hidden within the shoulder guard pierced his neck, injecting an unknown substance into him.


    Almost instantly, along with Wino''s roar, his whole body seemed to grow in size, stretching the seams of his armor, exposingyers of scale-like skin.


    "Roar!"


    Letting out an animalistic roar, Wino, whose size and strength had surged, lifted the Double-ded Axe and charged in the opposite direction towards the Aliens.


    Thump~


    One blow from the axe ttened an Alien, sttering viscera!


    Although his armor and axe were still vulnerable to corrosion, the thickness meant it wasn''t fast-acting, which seemed trivial given his desperate state, likely due to side effects.


    One after another, Aliens lunged at Wino, only to be smashed away or crushed t.


    That''s when Worl, who had just climbed up, witnessed this scene.


    Although frightened, the deep-seated reverence for the Inner City elitepelled him to grip his shotgun and step forward.


    But in the next instant, he too was cleaved in two by Wino''s axe!


    Guts and blood spilled everywhere.


    This tightened the hearts of Chen Guan and Wino''s group member, aside from Li Le who was an Outsider, and they slid down the valley with the momentum.


    Looking back at Li Le who was almost out of the valley, and Zhang Wei, who had run halfway, as well as Tao Yu who had disappeared without a trace, they cursed under their breath...