Wasteland Border Inspector

Like a diligent farmer, methodically harvesting in the "field," the tentacles broke one by one, eyeballs burst into foul water, and the Demon Eye Sponge’s aura visibly weakened.

"Looks like it’s about done?" Gazing at the Demon Eye Sponge with only three hundred tentacles left, it had completely lost the ferocity of their first encounter in daylight and could only wave around helplessly.

Cheng Ye paused his actions. Although charging using the tentacles was quick, there might be a temporary energy demand tomorrow. Keeping this Demon Eye Sponge as a charging station means he can return later when needed; it won’t escape anyway.

He lightly kicked his legs, arriving above the sponge-covered cave.

"Tan Ming, oh Tan Ming, someone is secretly farming here. Don’t let me down!"

Cheng Ye swung his knife out forcefully, but surprisingly, the sponge here was unexpectedly tough.

It was like cutting cowhide; the Purple Blade fell and was rebounded vigorously.

Buzz!

An invisible wave flashed past.

It’s... the Ten Thousand Orders Land Conch!

Cheng Ye widened his eyes, retreating swiftly, prepared for a mental impact.

But to his surprise, the wave swept over him without pausing, continuing to expand into the distance.

"Getting polluted has this advantage?"

Cheng Ye was startled, then looked down to see the Commanding Silk Pattern on him and realized.

Could it be that this silk pattern could even deceive the Ten Thousand Orders Land Conch into thinking he was an ally?

Seemingly having found a bug, Cheng Ye was delighted, briskly returned to the shore, and grabbed the remaining explosive.

He planted the explosive at the cave entrance, setting it to detonate after ten seconds.

Accelerating his energy to full operation, Cheng Ye returned to the water surface and jumped onto the dock.

Bang!

A faint explosion sounded; the movement beneath the water became more apparent.

After several seconds, the wave dissipated, and he dove back into the water, rushing towards the explosion site.

Visible to the naked eye, the Cotton Room covering the cave finally opened a gap, allowing the river water to seep inside.

Simultaneously, a mysterious red aura was seeping inside, seemingly searching for something.

But the sponge was frantically repairing the breach, and the red aura was immediately repelled.

"It’s working!"

Cheng Ye’s eyes lit up; the path was opened, why not let Lord Tan enter?

"I, slash, slash, slash, slash, slash!"

Following the breach, Cheng Ye used all his might, continually slashing at the gap.

Even though the blade was rebounded each time, the sponge’s repair speed slowed, stopping further penetration.

And soon, a terrifying psychic wave emanated.

Feeling something amiss, Cheng Ye immediately stopped slashing, ignoring how much aura was still seeping in, he fled with all his strength.

He could do only so much.

If breaking the Cotton Room without containing the Demon Eye Sponge is impossible, the difficulty is too great.

But if he can cause some trouble, delay some time, and get through the night, it would be a great victory.

Cheng Ye mused before surfacing.

Upon returning to the dock, the sky was completely dark, with only a last strand of orange-red light remaining on the horizon.

Yet Dapo Town was brightly lit; two searchlights were already set up, one aimed at the temporary residential area in the Red Zone, and the other scanned the defensive line in the Blue Zone, the beams strikingly conspicuous in the night.

Cheng Ye stored the Obsidian Battle Armor, changing into ordinary protective armor. His bare scalp felt somewhat unfamiliar, yet nothing abnormal was visible from inside the helmet.

A day had passed.

Taking a walk around the town, Cheng Ye noticed Dapo Town had changed its appearance again; many abandoned houses were demolished, the streets were spacious and tidy.

Behind the granary in the Red Zone, temporary residential units were erected on leveled ground, enough to house over four hundred people, while in the Blue Zone, the parking lot was reinforced with new defense facilities and two watchtowers.

One faced the White Water River, the other toward the town center, and the searchlights mounted on the towers could move at any time; any anomaly could be pinpointed for observation.

Reaching the granary entrance, Cheng Ye saw Luokuke leaning against the wall, sleeping soundly, his heavy breathing almost like he was passed out.

No wonder, he barely closed his eyes since last night, there might be a fierce battle tonight, only using this time to desperately recuperate his strength.

Seeing him come over, Garcia was silent for a while, then unexpectedly spoke, "Cheng... Inspector, go rest, tonight I’ll lead the patrol and wake you if there’s anything."

"No worries, I can still hold on."

Cheng Ye said this, but felt weak upon returning to camp.

Having fought all day, even with Living Water Essence replenishing energy, his stamina was nearly depleted.

He climbed the watchtower facing the river, resting against the cold wall, and took out the Commanding Silk Pattern remote controller for examination.

After pressing several buttons tentatively, Cheng Ye roughly understood the usage logic; the buttons corresponded to different command frequencies, perhaps usable for disrupting the Demon Eye Sponge’s control of the Crab-men.

Once understanding the general use, drowsiness engulfed him.

Unable even to muster the Heart Power to extract intelligence, he leaned against the wall, drifting into a deep sleep.

...

The research team stationed outside Dapo Town.

A day had passed, further elevating the area’s research capabilities by several levels.

The research institute moved over almost half of its movable precision facilities, constructing a temporary research base on the vacant ground outside the town.

With the night completely blackened, the brightly lit colorful steel room in the base emitted an ongoing "beep beep" from the operating instruments.

Suddenly, in one of the laboratories, an equipment alarm sounded urgently.