Hell Game: Starting from Metropolis

"Colonel, if you don't hurry, there won't be enough time to deliver the food."

Liu Zheng urged.

"You think it's so easy to find something that hasn't been used for hundreds of years? If you're so capable, then you do it."

The driver said irritably.

After taking on logistics work, he seemed to have snapped out of his frenzy.

"forget it."

Liu Zheng shut his mouth and continued to concentrate on drilling the hole.

"found it!"

After what seemed like an eternity, the driver finally let out an excited shout.

Then, a syringe as thick as an arm emerged from the tank compartment.

"Here, this is a special insecticide for sandworms. You're lucky you encountered a sandworm that hasn't grown up yet. If it were an adult sandworm, this dosage wouldn't be enough."

"But you're also unlucky, because this insecticide has gone bad."

the driver said.

"Didn't you say that everything from your Third Reich is of high quality and durable?"

“Even the best quality products have an expiration date. Our citizens aren’t immortal, so why would we need something so durable? Besides, this isn’t conducive to economic growth.”

The driver retorted.

"Will it still work if it's spoiled?"

Liu Zheng was too lazy to argue with him about such political issues.

"It works, but we don't know what additional effects it might cause."

The driver replied.

"It just works."

Liu Zheng used a tentacle to bind the syringe, inserted it into the drilled hole, and then pushed the piston forcefully.

The sandworms reacted immediately after the medicine was poured into the inner wall.

The already cramped space shrank further, and even with Niu Daji's protection, he still felt suffocated.

"Daji, can you still hold on?"

Sensing Niu Daji's body trembling violently, he quickly asked.

"Old man, boss. I don't regret coming to the city with you."

Niu Daji said with difficulty.

"Clap! Clap!"

Drops of liquid fell onto Liu Zheng's head, and this was definitely not the blood of sandworms.

"Bullshit! You've only been my lackey for a few days, it's not time for you to give your last words yet."

His anger surged, and his strengthened body was torn apart from the inside. The blazing sun flames, fueled by his flesh and blood, ignited the dark space along with his burning rage.

"Get down there, you son of a bitch."

The indiscriminate scorching heat burned Niu Daji, causing it to instinctively loosen its grip on Liu Zheng's arm.

The latter took the opportunity to break free from its embrace and then pressed it down.

With just one breath, the serrated butcher knife that Liu Zheng used to pry open the inner wall was bent.

He took a deep breath and prepared to use the express delivery slip.

Suddenly, he felt a sharp pain in his hoof, followed by a strong force that pulled him down.

"Crack!"

The overburdened serrated blade was crushed into pieces, and Liu Zheng successfully returned to the tank compartment.

He looked at his own hoof and found that Niu Daji was biting it tightly with his eyes closed.

Except for the parts protected by the ancestral armor, Niu Daji's entire body had been squeezed and deformed.

Especially its head, it's almost been compressed from three-dimensional to two-dimensional.

"Don't worry, he's just passed out, he won't die for now."

the driver said.

"You're still not dead after all?"

Liu Zheng asked in surprise.

Of course, he didn't want Niu Daji to die; he just found it unbelievable.

"This minotaur is quite resilient. Of course, that's not the key reason; take a look inside its eyes."

the driver said.

Liu Zheng did as instructed and pried open Niu Daji's eyelids, only to find that the pupils underneath had turned blue.

"It's hard to say whether it was good luck or bad luck, but it accidentally ingested the blood of a sandworm. This blood can prolong life and provide medical treatment, but it is highly addictive and can cause physical and mental mutations in the user."

the driver said.

Is there any way to quit?

he asked.

"It's hard to say. The 'Hound' doesn't have the necessary equipment. When we get back, I'll bring out 'El' and give this minotaur a thorough check. If the blood it ingested didn't exceed the critical level, there's still hope. If it did, then..."

"So you can't quit?"

Liu Zheng pressed for an answer.

"No, it's still possible to quit, but the price is extremely high. To be honest, I don't think this minotaur is worth that much."

The driver said coldly.

"I don't need you to make the judgment, Colonel. I just need you to give me a solution."

His tone was even colder than the driver's.

"Alright, since you insist. If the test results do exceed the threshold, I will tell you how to resolve it."

The driver shrugged.

"Thank you very much, Colonel. What do we do now?"

Liu Zheng asked.

"You don't need to do anything, just wait. Given the size of this sandworm, it shouldn't take more than five minutes."

The driver made a judgment.

"Your knowledge of sandworms seems to go beyond that of a hunting enthusiast."

He couldn't help but ask a question.

"What kind of soldier do you think is the most perfect?"

The driver asked him a question in return.

"Excellent conduct, capable of winning battles?"

Liu Zheng remembered a slogan he had seen on television.

"Correct, but too broad."

"That's what the driver commented."

"A perfect soldier should be fearless of pain and death, loyal and obedient, knowledgeable, of exceptional quality, tenacious, and flexible."

He shared his understanding of the perfect soldier.

"Just say you want a group of great men to be your soldiers."

Liu Zheng rolled his eyes.

Even a model youth like him only meets some of the standards, let alone the soldiers who are of varying quality.

"With the blood of the Arakos sandworm, it is not impossible to mass-produce such perfect soldiers."

"Could this be why the Arakkos sandworm became a rare animal?"

He squinted and said.

"That's just because of practical needs. If we had won the war, we would have started protecting them just the same way."

The driver offered a defense of himself.

Unfortunately, reality also doesn't offer "what ifs".

Liu Zheng shook his head.

"Yes, there are no 'what ifs'."

The driver ended the conversation, losing interest.

Soon, the medicine began to take effect, and the sandworms began to struggle violently.

This time, Liu Zheng used his own body to protect Niu Daji, preventing it from suffering secondary damage.

After about four and a half minutes, the sandworm finally stopped moving.

The loose inner walls could no longer stop the tank, and the "Hound" forced its way forward.

Soon, a glimmer of light appeared in the periscope.

The driver slammed on the gas pedal, and the tank burst through the sandworm's closed mouthparts and rushed out of its body.

Liu Zheng climbed out of the tank and looked out. Not far ahead was the vermilion torii gate of the bathhouse street.

"It seems that this sandworm originally planned to take a stroll around the bathhouse area, but it ran into us on the way."

the driver said.

"Should we thank it for letting us hitch a ride?"

He pursed his lips.

"No need, didn't you give it a ride too?"

The driver smiled and said.

"Wow, Colonel, your joke is colder than the kitchen freezer."

Liu Zheng shuddered.

After getting off the tank, he began to examine the sandworm corpses.

But he saw that the other person's body had turned into weathered stone, and with a little force he crushed it into real sand.

"Colonel, is this what a sandworm should look like after it dies?"

Liu Zheng asked.

"No, this must be the effect of the spoiled medicine. Check its teeth."

the driver said.

"it is good."

He examined all the sandworm's teeth and found that most of them had turned into brittle stone, just like the flesh itself, with only about ten still usable.

"It's a pity. The teeth of the Arakos sandworm are called crystal teeth. They can be used to make weapons and are quite expensive. A single crystal tooth can sell for at least a thousand coins."

the driver said.

"Gan!"

Looking at the at least thousands of crystal teeth, Liu Zheng felt as if he could see countless green banknotes flying past him.

"The other parts are probably the same. Take this."

The driver tossed him an earmuff that looked like a listening headset.

"Put it back into the sandworm's body, then slowly move it towards its end. If you feel a mental attack, look around and dig out anything that looks like a sphere."