Chapter 53

Chapter 53

Soon, every crew in each group realized they were cut off from the others. The young Alphas were yet unaware of the dire situation they were about to face. However, the next moment, as they saw the overwhelming wave of Blackwing insects sweeping towards them like dark clouds outside the window, they were almost frozen in place.

In everyone's mind, the question arose: What is that?

Dark clouds?

Gloom?

Or... an unpredictable fate.

The helicopter was nearly entirely surrounded by the swarm of Blackwing insects, so close that they could clearly hear the fluttering of their wings and the hissing sound of their mandibles, causing the students to feel a tingling scalp and goosebumps all over.

Xu Feng was completely petrified, slumped in his chair, his brain unable to function, with only his eyes registering the terrifying scene.

The other Alphas weren't faring much better, being just students who had recently joined the Dark Star Military Academy. The most intense combat they had experienced was organized opposition training with senior students, nothing that could prepare them for such a horrifying sight.

In the group, the sole Omega was more composed than anyone else, even more than the crew.

Queqiu, unaware of what the insect race was, nor how vicious they could be, or the peril of their current situation, simply treated eliminating the insects as his mission, viewing these repulsive Blackwing insects as his adversaries.

In the face of enemies, Queqiu was always merciless and fearless.

He stood up amidst the chaos in the helicopter, urging the Alphas in the cabin not to panic and to be ready for battle.

"Get your weapons out! Aim at them when it's time. That's all you need to do, and you can do it."

His voice was uncharacteristically cold and harsh, unlike his usual soft demeanor, somewhat reminiscent of An Wenyi's typical scolding of students.

Amidst their fear, the startled Alphas were quickly pulled back from the brink of terror by Queqiu's commanding voice. With their minds unable to process too much information, they obediently took out their electromagnetic rifles as instructed.

Perhaps this familiar action reminded them of their rigorous training, helping them regain their composure. No longer paralyzed by fear of the insect tide, they quickly arranged themselves in threes at each window of the cabin, awaiting Queqiu's next command.

After momentarily stabilizing the situation, Queqiu, braving the helicopter's severe shaking due to magnetic interference, made his way to the cockpit to urge the captain to make an emergency landing.

"But the ground conditions are unclear; we don't know if there are more insects below. A hasty landing might trap us in an inescapable situation," the captain hesitated.

Queqiu took a deep breath and pointed to the Blackwing insect tide outside, encircling them: "Do you see? They're all around us. If we don't make an emergency landing now, once they completely block our path below, we'll be truly trapped."

The captain was still hesitant: "But we haven't received the next instructions from Head Instructor An Wenyi; we can't act rashly."

"Then ask him for instructions!"

The co-pilot said in a panic, "We can't make contact—the magnetic field is disrupted by the Blackwing insects."

Queqiu paused, then realized that it had been about three minutes since the insect tide was detected, yet there was no voice on the radio. He had thought that An Wenyi and the others hadn't discovered the situation yet, but it seemed that they couldn't communicate even if they had.

But this wasn't the time to dwell on that. With the insect tide closing in and many instruments failing due to magnetic interference, causing severe shaking to the point where it was almost impossible to stand, immediate action was necessary.

With time running out, Queqiu, in a moment of urgency, slapped the dashboard, compelling the captain to land: "The general's orders are to unconditionally follow his and the team leader's commands. I am the leader of this squad. The Alphas listen to me, and so must you."

He leaned in close to the captain, his gaze intense and commanding: "Now, my order is to make an emergency landing and seek a breakthrough on the ground—"

"Understood?"

"Understood, understood."

Only then did Queqiu straighten up and return to the cabin.

After his departure, the captain and co-pilot finally breathed a sigh of relief.

They never imagined that one day, their seasoned expertise would be completely overshadowed by a newcomer, and an Omega at that.

What was even more surprising was that they actually followed Queqiu's command.

And during the emergency landing, the pilots felt a sense of relief: with their years of experience, they knew well that an emergency landing was the best hope for the entire team's survival in such circumstances. But without direct orders, who would take responsibility for any potential mishap?

No one could ignore the potential risks involved, nor bear the responsibility for a decision gone wrong. In other words, their hesitation to land wasn't due to the lack of instructions, but rather the absence of a "disclaimer."

Whoever gives the order, bears the responsibility for the situation. Without explicit commands, everyone is at risk, like a headless dragon.

But Queqiu stepped forward.

All the responsibility shifted onto him. He could either emerge as a hero or be reviled and held accountable for a failed command.

Regardless, he took a stand.

In that moment, he became the hope for everyone aboard the helicopter.

The two pilots had shifted the burden of responsibility that should have been theirs onto Queqiu's shoulders, detaching themselves from the outcome, be it heroic or criminal.

Fortunately, the emergency landing went smoothly, without any interception from the Blackwing insects below.

The moment the helicopter landed steadily, everyone's heart in the cabin also finally settled.

But before they could rejoice, they heard Xu Feng shout, "Insects! There are insects on the ground too!"

Queqiu's heart skipped a beat. He quickly walked to the cabin door, opened it, and cautiously observed the outside situation.

After a moment, he breathed a sigh of relief.

Turning back to the waiting Alphas, Queqiu reassured them, "Don't worry, it's just a small swarm."

The Alphas relaxed slightly.

Xu Feng moved closer to him, asking cautiously, "So, what do we do next?"

Faced with his question, Queqiu felt a bit puzzled, "What do we do?"

Xu Feng was stumped by the counter-question, a bit dazed, "Yes, we've successfully landed, there aren't many insects on the ground, so next…"

Queqiu spoke matter-of-factly, "Next, we obviously continue with the live combat assessment—"

He glanced around at his teammates who were gaping but hesitant to speak, "Am I wrong?"

What followed was a long silence.

The Alphas looked at each other, then shared an awkward smile: Queqiu was indeed right, wasn't a live combat assessment their task?

But...

What they were really concerned about was that they had just escaped from such a perilous situation, barely saving their lives. Wouldn't normal people still be recovering from the shock and relief? Wasn't he transitioning into action a bit too quickly?

Didn't they need a moment to catch their breath?

Realizing the vast gap between their thinking and Queqiu's, the students couldn't help but marvel: Could this be the difference in mindset between the top student and ordinary people?

Indeed, worthy of being the combat department's little princess, the sole top student of the first year.

Queqiu was the first to jump down: "If you're scared, you don't have to come out. Stay here; I'll come back after clearing these insects."

Although Xu Feng was timid, he was a steadfast follower of Queqiu and jumped out of the helicopter without hesitation.

The others exchanged glances. Even the weakest and most fearful among them had charged out, so could they really stay coiled up in the helicopter, embracing the title of 'afraid'?

Thus, no longer hesitating, they slung their electromagnetic rifles over their shoulders and joined Queqiu on the battlefield.

Beyond the main urban area, whether in slums or border regions, the Dark Star remained a scene of endless yellow sand and desolation.

Stepping on the Gobi desert, each footprint created a depression, which slowly filled back with flowing sand, leaving no trace of their passage as if the path behind them was always pristine.

Queqiu advised the team members who followed, "It's easy to get separated in the Gobi, so no matter what happens, none of you nine should act alone to avoid getting lost."

After all, the sky above was teeming with Blackwing insects, and the ground was sporadically dotted with insect creatures. If separated, given the Alphas' lackluster combat skills, their chances were slim.

"If you really can't keep up with me, find a hidden shelter and stay put. Don't engage recklessly; wait for me to come back for you."

The Alphas listened intently, nodding occasionally.

They were well aware of their actual capabilities, as Queqiu had said. Not causing him trouble was achievement enough, let alone expecting them to beat the insects.

Even Xu Feng wondered if Queqiu being assigned to their team, despite being the top student, was deliberately arranged by An Wenyi—after all, apart from Queqiu, probably no one else could lead them.

After explaining the precautions, Queqiu handed his firearm to Xu Feng: "One more weapon for you means a bit more safety."

Xu Feng looked at him worriedly: "What about you? Are you going to fight the insects barehanded?"

Before he finished speaking, Queqiu had already produced a sleek and compact pulse weapon, fitting his style perfectly.

He adjusted the weapon, not catching Xu Feng's words: "Huh? What did you just say?"

"...Nothing," Xu Feng forced a smile, "Just be careful."

Queqiu nodded: "Sure, don't worry."

With that, he dashed out without looking back, as swift as a bullet whistling through the air.

Xu Feng and the other Alphas hadn't even reacted before Queqiu vanished. Then, they witnessed a perfect, impressive solo performance.

The ground swarmed with small-scale insect groups, resembling scorpions magnified dozens of times. Different from Earth's scorpions, they were covered in hard, dark green nodules like fitted armor. Their weapon was a venomous scorpion tail held high, with a barbed tip gleaming a sinister, deep green.

Queqiu faced about twenty of these venomous scorpions, each twice his size, scouting for targets. Upon locking onto Queqiu, they all charged at him simultaneously.

In that moment, Xu Feng's heart clenched, watching Queqiu, who appeared as tiny as a rabbit against the massive swarm, his heart racing faster than when he nearly fell from a twenty-meter height.

He couldn't bear to watch, covering his eyes with his long, droopy rabbit ears, yet couldn't resist peeking through a slight gap, anxiously observing Queqiu.

Queqiu raised his hand and fired at a scorpion directly ahead. A two-finger-wide laser pulse shot out, severing the creature's tail and exploding the venom sac, scattering dark green, foul-smelling poison, which corroded into the ground, creating smoking pits like a lethal acid rain.

The stricken scorpion reared in pain, revealing rows of interlocking long teeth, an unnerving sight. It thrashed its wounded tail, spraying venom further. The surrounding scorpions weren't spared, as the poison rain hit them, causing their dark green noduled bodies to emit corrosive smoke, filling the air with their agonized shrieks.

The burnt scent mixed with the stench of the venom, so overpowering that an orange cat Alpha several meters away retched, struggling for a while before looking back, utterly dumbfounded.

Not just him, his teammates were equally astonished by the incredible scene before them.

Seizing the opportunity while the insects were slowed by injury, the weapon in Queqiu's hands rapidly disassembled into metallic-gleaming fragments, then swiftly reassembled into a pulse sniper cannon in the blink of an eye.

Queqiu mounted the sniper cannon on his shoulder, balancing the barrel with one hand, the other raising a thumb to his eye.

Then, aiming, he fired—

A dazzling flash of light illuminated the entire Gobi desert. The slender Omega stood in the light, slightly staggered by the recoil of the sniper cannon.

The bright light outlined his petite silhouette, creating a stark contrast with the huge sniper cannon on his shoulder.

In the path of the light, the venomous scorpion insects were annihilated, vanishing without even a screech, as if they had never existed.

A gust of wind blew, lifting only the yellow sand.

And the Omega's flowing golden hair.

In the light, he became the light.

Author's note: