Chapter Ch89.2 - End Of An Era
translator: xiin
editors: apricot & juurensha
“Two teams. One team has chosen the speed evolutionary path, while the other has chosen guns, but they don’t have enough supplies and equipment. They probably haven’t s.n.a.t.c.hed up enough Evolution Points.” Sora quickly a.s.sessed them and made an estimation.
The team exchanged glances, then took part in the fierce battle for supplies in the same moment that the Dinocephalia launched their attack.
The other two teams in the shallows were caught by surprise when Lin Ke and Wu Jin came out from behind their bunker.
This battle was very difficult for Wu Jin. Unlike those who’d converted their Evolution Points into breathing equipment, both groups of opponents had chosen to develop in the direction of armed reinforcement.
A quarter of an hour later, the supply box opened up. Even with Ming Yao cunningly providing cover for them, Wu Jin was only able to obtain 2 Evolution Points. Wu Jin gestured, and retreated with the equally disadvantaged Lin Ke.
From behind the shrubbery, Ming Yao was unconcerned about it and gave Wu Jin a thumbs up, “What was our hypothesis? The initial advantages don’t really matter in the evolutionary game. Only long-term advantages really count…”
Day and night alternated faster on the colonial planet than the blue star.
Six hours later, night came. By the time meteors streaked through the night again, the team of four was already fully armed––equipped with breathing equipment that could resist low oxygen environments as they trudged towards the cave where they would seek shelter.
The reed forest was restless, and all the creatures were digging and jumping around in a frenzy, like they could sense something.
Unsurprisingly, the biggest change to take place since the start of the game happened that night.
As they camped on a ridge illuminated by the stars, Ming Yao suddenly thought of something, “Say, what evolutionary path do you think Contestant Wei took?”
Wu Jin paused, and light flashed across his eyes, “Predators. Like the lone wolves of the gra.s.sland that have evolved for speed, strength, and their explosive ability to loot and ravage. Like the Allosaurus during the Jura.s.sic period, the Tyrannosaurus Rex during the Cretaceous period, and the Quetzalcoatlus in the air––”
Ming Yao was stumped, “Little Witch, we’re a.n.a.lyzing our opponents, not engaging in some sort of primitive worship…”
Their vision was suddenly illuminated by a blazing red light.
The meteor shower streaked across the sky, slamming violently into the mountains in the distance!
Wu Jin’s expression turned serious. The earth beneath his feet shook, and there was the flash of lightning in the distance.
This was a compet.i.tion, and all such natural disasters were simulated––but by the time the bright red magma and voluminous black smoke came out from the furthest point of their field of view, even Ming Yao and Sora couldn’t help but curse out loud.
“Run!”
The black smoke rolled in, and the ridge was slowly swallowed up from the bottom up. Only the towering caves that were inhabited by the Pelycosaurs weren’t covered by the smoke.
Wu Jin stood guard at the entrance of the cave. Ten minutes later, they could hear the sound of footsteps moving along the dust covered gravel.
Another team was running hurriedly in their direction.
At this time, the black smoke had spread and limited their field of vision to a hundred meters, and their ears were almost deafened from the rumbling. The alarms of their breathing equipment had been beeping continuously, indicating that the composition of the air around them was changing constantly.
The watch on their right wrist showed that 201 of the 250 were still alive.
Very soon, as large amounts of volcanic ash began to affect them in earnest, the team once again headed towards the top of the mountaink2013;k2013;the entrance to the largest cave was located there.
“The paths are very winding inside, and it won’t be a problem to hide inside.” Sora examined it quickly, “We still need to block the team behind us.”
“I’ll go.” Wu Jing and Ming Yao both spoke up at the same time.
The two of them put on their guns and stood to the left and right of the entrance of the cave to guard it. They jumped out as footsteps approached––
The cameras spun wildly.
The youth’s eyes were narrowed slightly from the smoke, and the combat suit was pulled up tight in order to protect him from the polluted atmosphere. The hands holding the tranquilizer gun were calm and steady, and suddenly burst out with power when he jumped out.
He leapt out at a tricky angle. His judgement had been correct, and he ended up in the opponent’s blind spot. His core muscles tensed as he flicked his wrist, the shot quickly traveling over the short distance and hitting a person!
Beside him, Ming Yao attacked at the same time, and two cries of pain came in quick succession.
However, the tranquilizer guns had a basic disadvantage––the players who were shot wouldn’t immediately become encased in a life-saving capsule, and the anaesthetic could take up to 9 minutes to take effect.
Wu Jin gestured to Ming Yao and gestured: Head down the mountain.
In the Crosson Show broadcast studio, the cameras had been switched to show the smoky ridge.
Lin Ke and Sora had already entered the cave system, while Wu Jin and Ming Yao were fighting two against four outside the cave. The fighting was getting fiercer as the two of them pulled back without a trace. It wasn’t until they were completely immersed in the smoke that Wu Jin suddenly picked up his gun again and charged in.
Ying Xiangxiang’s eyes suddenly opened wide, “Is he going to seize their guns?! No, his opponents chose the speed evolutionary path, and their footgear equipment is complete. Little Witch chose the breathing evolutionary path, and he’ll only suffer in this kind of direct confrontation.”
Compared with his usual opportunistic a.s.sault style, Wu Jin’s current actions were fierce and forceful. The director immediately manipulated the camera to follow Wu Jin, and the lens faced him directly––
Wu Jin’s pupils that were usually pale amber were now dark and red from the environment that was full of volcanic ash. The cold light within made people almost unable to move their gazes away. After setting aside his gun, his limbs were no longer held up, and three weeks of close combat and obstacle course training prior to the match had given his movements a strong sense of aggression and forward momentum.
It was unsurprising that the scrolling comments once again became densely packed together.
“My son is so handsome––son, is your evolutionary path skewed!? Son, have you chosen the blackening path?!!”, “Wait, volcanic ash, respiratory system evolutionary path, Permian period extinction. I seem to have guessed what Wu Jin is about to do!”
Blood Pigeon picked up the conversation, “The tranquilizer gun isn’t enough to eliminate contestants. Contestant Wu is using his breathing equipment advantage to pull the fighting out of the safe zone. It’s just smoke right now, but based on the simulated trend of the volcanic eruption taking place the scene, the most lethal cause of extinction during the late Permian period will soon appear––”
Ying Xiangxiang instantly realized, “The volcanic ash falls from the atmosphere while the basalt-rich lava a.s.saults the carbonate rock and causes a large amount of carbon monoxide and carbon dioxide to be released into the air. This creates an asphyxiation layer on the earth’s surface.” Ying Xiangxiang’s eyes were sharp and bright, “The respiratory evolutionary path is more resistant to short-term suffocation than the speed evolutionary path!”
Blood Pigeon nodded, then wondered, “But how could they have known in advance that there would be a volcanic eruption?”
Ying Xiangxiang smiled briefly, “Director, please show us a shot of Little Witch and Little Ming’s drafts from last night. Look, they didn’t know, but they had other ways of making predictions…”
Nine minutes later.
The life-saving capsule suddenly popped up––the anesthesia had come into effect. The first opponent who’d been shot was eliminated directly, and his teammates froze. They were almost caught off guard.
The anesthesia in the guns would only cause the contestants to fall asleep, not eliminate them. It definitely wasn’t possible––at this time, everyone looked at Wu Jin in amazement.
Ten minutes later, the second of their opponents fell over and landed in a life-saving capsule. The other two seemed to suddenly realize something as they looked at the ground.
Sleeping contestants wouldn’t be eliminated.
But players who’d fallen into the suffocating layer of volcanic ash on the surface of the ground and couldn’t breathe on their own would.
Taking advantage of how one of their opponents was still in a daze, Ming Yao hit another person again!
The asphyxiation layer rose up rapidly, and the faces of the three remaining people turned red to varying degrees––a sign that the volcanic ash was about to submerge the foot of the mountain.
The one remaining opponent was hopeless and simply picked up their tranquilizer gun. Ming Yao’s expression was hesitant. They would undoubtedly be attacked by their opponent as soon as they attempted to run back to the safe zone.
Unless they waited the nine minutes until the anesthesia took effect. However, even their upgraded breathing equipment wouldn’t be able to support them until then. All four members of the team had traded for B-cla.s.s breathing equipment, but if they had the A-cla.s.s breathing equipment that allowed them to deal with suffocation––
There was a scuffle from overhead.
As Ming Yao looked on in astonishment, Wu Jin suddenly jumped up and accepted the A-cla.s.s breathing equipment from the law enforcement machine.
Inside his protective suit, the hidden compartment that had originally held two Evolution Points was now empty.
Ming Yao’s eyes brightened.
Inside the Crosson Show studio, Ying Xiangxiang cheered, “Beautiful move! Fifteen minutes ago, Wu Jin took advantage of the time when he set aside his gun to trade in two Evolution Points in order to deal with the asphyxiation layer later on. Now, his strategy and choices are much more flexible––”
Wu Jin quickly put on the equipment and gestured to Ming Yao: You go first!
Ming Yao didn’t try to act polite. He directly tossed his tranquilizer gun to Wu Jin, “Be careful. Nine minutes, you’ll still have enough time to make it back even if you get shot. Alright, I’m going first––”
Inside the asphyxiation layer, Wu Jin’s facial color returned to normal thanks to the high concentration of oxygen in the breathing apparatus. He finally looked at his opponent once again.
The two of them made their move at the same time!
Countless amounts of dust and gravel fell from the dark sky. Their vision was dark, and there was no light anywhere.
From the Permian period to the Tria.s.sic period, all the species that managed to survive had very significant common characteristics. They all had complete circulatory systems, complex gas and respiratory systems, and could adapt to polluted air environments. They were all small creatures, and either herbivorous or omnivorous.
Wu Jin guarded Ming Yao’s retreat and provided the best cover for his teammates.
The Crosson Show’s training handouts consisted of 150 pages of lecture notes and 782 pages of supplementary materials. Most of the trainees had only read the first 150 pages––Wu Jin, on the other hand, had read through all of them with Brother Rabbit in his arms.
At the end of the Permian period, marine animals with calcareous sh.e.l.ls had almost become 100% extinct, presumably due to the large increase in carbon dioxide and resulting tissue hypoxia. Large animals, including the Anteosaurus and Moschops had all gone extinct, presumably because of hypoxia and the breakdown of bodily functions due to their size. The stage two animals living in the swamps and marshes survived, and the Lystrosaurus that lived in the caves survived, because they were naturally more resistant to polluted air.
In the event that indicated the end of the Permian period, the P-Tr extinction event, the most uniform pattern of extinction was––the change in the air composition, increased carbon dioxide levels, leading to hypoxia.
In this Red Queen game that affected the fate of entire races, round one––Permian period, the only winners had been those who followed the respiratory evolutionary path.
Six minutes later, Wu Jin managed to hit his opponent, but was also shot in his right leg.
The drug was pushed in, and the muscles around the wound turned faintly numb. At this time, the asphyxiation layer finally spread up to neck height. His opponent fell, and the digital display on his right wrist flashed.
Kills: 2.
Wu Jin gasped for breath for a few seconds, then bent over to rummage through the opponents’ supplies.
A series of volcanic eruptions brought about by the impact of the meteorite dropped the number of surviving contestants from 201 to 122, leaving less than half the original number of players in the field. The trainees who didn’t manage to deal with the hypoxia and volcanic asphyxiation layer had all been eliminated.
The anaesthetic slowly took effect. Wu Jin was no longer greedy and turned to head towards the cave at the top of the mountain and reunite with his three teammates.
His field of vision was dark, and the entire field seemed like it was undergoing the apocalypse.
Wu Jin tried to maintain consciousness by thinking, attempting to resist the effect of the anesthetics.
There had been at least four groups near the Moschops habitat, including the big boss. One team had been annihilated, and the other two teams had disappeared too. The cave was at the highest point of the entire mountain, and the airflow there was relatively closed up. It was likely to become a refuge point for multiple teams––
Wu Jin shook his head. His vision cleared as he neared the top of the mountain.
A familiar outline gradually appeared amidst the ashes that were still drifting down.
He paused abruptly.
It seemed to be… big brother.
A big brother without breathing equipment.
Wu Jin: “!!!”
Wu Jin suddenly woke up from his dazed, drugged state, his thoughts exploding in his head. His thinking wasn’t very clear and he seemed to be experiencing frequent hallucinations, but his blood was boiling with a rush.
The rocks rolled down, and towering, carbonized trees toppled. Wu Jin rolled to avoid being hit, and rushed towards Wei Shi.
The big boss might not realize––the asphyxiation layer was rising and would soon engulf their current position.
In his brain, they seemed to have returned to the t.i.tanic scene they’d been filming. At the time, the magma surged, and waves rolled. Last time, the big boss had left him the life-saving capsule, but this time––
He was going to pa.s.s his breathing equipment to the big boss like a knight, and give up the last thing keeping him afloat.
Wu Jin continued to climb up amidst a large amount of acc.u.mulated volcanic ash, unable to determine if it was all an illusion or if his mind was still operational.
In his gray and hazy vision, the man who was heading towards the top of the mountain seemed to turn around.
At the end of the dark era came the light.
Wei Shi looked steadily at the shaky Wu Jin, his st.u.r.dy arms catching the person who’d launched himself over.
Then, he kicked away a camera that had come nosing over to record the scene.
Juurensha: …and now I really, REALLY ship the double C JingYi snipers. And hahaha, WS viciously kicking away the interloping camera (although I feel like he doesn’t need the breathing equipment, Little Witch)
xiin: heeheeheeee~