Devouring Stars: Master of Evolution

Chapter 12 Hatching the Mother Nest

July 21, 2056, 6:7 AM.

Qin Mu enjoyed a delicious breakfast at the supply base's canteen; the food at this martial arts supply base was truly quite tasty.

After finishing the meal, he noticed that many people were looking at him strangely.

Although it was still early, many people were already eating.

As martial artists, most of them are very diligent and self-disciplined.

Thanks to the martial artist's strong physical attributes, and the fact that those people didn't deliberately avoid him, Qin Mu easily overheard their discussion.

"That prospective martial artist who went to the wilderness alone, isn't he him? I think his name is Qin Mu?"

A fierce-looking martial artist with scars on his face looked at Qin Mu curiously and chatted with his teammates beside him.

"He's just an arrogant brat who doesn't know his place. I bet he'll die out there in less than a day."

A lean martial artist with a long sword hanging from his waist curled his lip in disdain.

"I don't think so! Maybe he'll go into the wilderness, find a monster, and be so scared that he'll run back."

Some people shook their heads.

"I heard the Blood Wolf Squad has started a betting operation at the camp, betting that if he dares to go out, he won't come back!"

Qin Mu listened to their discussion, a smile appearing on his face. He walked up to the scarred martial artist and said to him:

"Hey bro, can you do me a favor?"

As the scarred martial artist watched Qin Mu approach, he instinctively became alert and reached for his lower back.

Although taking action is strictly prohibited at the supply base, a greenhorn who dares to go to the wilderness alone may not be able to control himself.

"Brother, I need to get out of town urgently. Help me place this 10,000 yuan bet on whether I can stay in the wilderness for at least 5 days and come back alive. What do you say?"

Qin Mu didn't make a move. Instead, he smiled and took out 10,000 yuan from his pocket and placed it on the table.

The scarred martial artist was taken aback for a moment, then, after realizing what he meant, he showed admiration and gave a thumbs up.

"Brother, you've got guts! If you manage to come back alive, how about joining our Wild Bull Squad? Our captain is a warrior at the Battle General level."

"We'll have to wait until I get back! Hahaha!"

Having acted recklessly, Qin Mu walked out without looking back.

Under normal circumstances, if someone who has just become a quasi-martial artist rashly runs into the wilderness alone, it is indeed no different from suicide.

"But with my Zerg clone, I shouldn't be considered an ordinary person, right?"

A smile appeared on Qin Mu's lips.

At the campsite entrance, Qin Mu sat in the driver's seat of the off-road pickup truck, started the engine, and the off-road pickup roared as it sped into the wilderness without looking back.

The pickup truck sped along the highway.

Although it is a highway, the road surface has been in disrepair for many years, and it is dilapidated and difficult to drive on.

Broken vehicles were scattered along both sides of the road, and there were countless black bloodstains everywhere.

After leaving the base for about ten miles, Qin Mu sensed the soul connection in his mind and gave the command.

"Worker insects, hatch!"

Inside the cargo bed of the off-road pickup truck, the worker insects, having received their orders, immediately hatched and crawled out of their eggs, lying prone in the cargo bed.

With an assistant insect whose strength is equivalent to a low-level beast soldier, Qin Mu's safety will be greatly enhanced.

After driving for about twenty or thirty miles, Qin Mu occasionally saw traces of monsters, and the sounds of various insects and birds could be heard from time to time.

Qin Mu also became tense.

Fortunately, they did not encounter any monster attacks.

After driving for more than 50 miles, Qin Mu followed the map and exited the highway, heading towards the villa area along a small road.

This stretch of road was difficult to travel, so Qin Mu drove very slowly.

The rustling sounds coming from the bushes on both sides of the road kept Qin Mu on high alert.

Several times, the off-road pickup truck got stuck.

Fortunately, Qin Mu had already considered this point and directly ordered the worker insects to get out of the carriage and push the carriage.

Despite their small size, the worker insects are incredibly strong, easily lifting objects dozens of times their own weight. Furthermore, the off-road pickup truck Qin Mu chose wasn't heavy either, allowing the worker insects to lift it with ease.

After some trouble, Qin Mu finally made it to his destination safely.

That is, the villa area that was planned.

This villa area was very large, with over a hundred detached villas and supporting facilities, each occupying an area of ​​over 300 square meters. Unfortunately, most of these villas have now collapsed and are covered with weeds and vines.

The off-road pickup truck stopped about a kilometer away from the villa area.

The worker insect got off the train to keep watch, and only after confirming that there was no danger did Qin Mu open the door and get off.

The location where Qin Mu stopped was excellent, situated on high ground, offering a clear view of the entire villa complex.

Qin Mu took out a telescope and began to observe carefully.

"There's a monster!"

Qin Mu narrowed his eyes, staring intently at the ruins of the villa.

A canine monster, about 1.2 meters tall at the shoulder, with spots on its body and a streamlined shape, was walking through the ruins.

"Tiger Mastiff, judging from its size, it's a low-level beast soldier."

"There's more than one!"

Upon seeing the telescope, Qin Mu was startled.

There was more than one; Qin Mu saw seven or eight tiger mastiffs within his line of sight.

Besides the tiger mastiffs, Qin Mu soon discovered more monsters. A group of pig-like monsters, with fur all over their bodies like sharp spikes and huge tusks, gathered together and roamed the ruins in search of food.

"It's a wild boar!"

After a thorough search, Qin Mu discovered that there were at least several hundred monsters in the villa area, including tiger mastiffs, iron-haired wild boars, and shadow cats.

"This villa area is too dangerous; we need to change our plans."

Qin Mu remained calm and analyzed the situation carefully.

Initially, Qin Mu considered that without cover in the wild, the mother nest would be easily discovered by monsters and human satellites, so he considered using human buildings for cover.

However, they overlooked a very serious problem: in densely built-up areas like villa districts, there are too many monsters.

In their long-standing battles with humans, the monsters gradually moved from desolate, empty areas to human-built areas with various forms of cover.

Because in the wilderness, they are too easily targeted and killed by human firearms from a distance.

Especially since this place is relatively close to the military region, almost all the ferocious beasts roaming outside have been wiped out by the military region's patrol teams.

The current villa area is complex and full of monsters, making it almost impossible to infiltrate directly and hatch a mother nest within the villa area.

As a newcomer who has never been to the wilderness before, even if I managed to sneak in, it would be too dangerous to find a suitable place for the mother nest to hatch in a completely unfamiliar environment.

Who knows how many monsters lurk in the dark corners of that villa area? Rushing in recklessly would be suicide.

Moreover, if I sneak in alone, the various firearms on the vehicle will be completely useless.

"A plan made solely based on information from the HR Alliance platform without venturing into the wilderness is too rudimentary."

Having figured out the crux of the matter, Qin Mu decisively abandoned the idea of ​​entering the villa area and began looking for a suitable place to build a mother nest in the surrounding area.

The villa area is located in a mountainous and hilly region with a complex environment. It has been neglected for decades, with trees growing wildly and vines everywhere.

Qin Mu quickly located a spot in a dense forest beside the road.

The tall trees can block the view from the sky, making it difficult for flying beasts to spot them. With some camouflage, no one will pay attention to this place until a big commotion is caused.

Anyway, this mother nest is just for temporary use; it will definitely be moved once the swarm has grown.

"Worker insects, clear the way! Enter the jungle and hatch the mother nest!"

Qin Mu decisively gave the order.

At the same time, a box of landmines was brought out, in preparation for setting traps in the surrounding area.

The workers, having received their orders, entered the jungle and moved nimbly through it, with Qin Mu, fully armed, following closely behind.

"Click"

Suddenly, the worker insect clearing the way swung its large claws and clamped down on a black creature.

"Silk"

Qin Mu looked closely and saw that it was a venomous snake nearly a meter long, completely black, with a triangular head, which looked extremely poisonous!

"That was close!"

A bead of cold sweat appeared on Qin Mu's forehead. This venomous snake was hidden too well. If it weren't for the worker worm clearing the way in front of him, he probably would have stepped on it.

After going several dozen meters deeper, the worker insect stopped, carefully searched its surroundings, and, after confirming that there was no danger, lay down on the ground.

Then the worker worm's body quickly transformed into a huge fleshy mass, beating like a heart.

The meat bun grew at an extremely rapid pace. With each jump, its size increased by one circle. At the same time, a purple fungal carpet spread outwards like flowing water, digesting any flowers, plants, or small insects it encountered as if they had encountered concentrated sulfuric acid.

This worker insect is mutating into the mother worm!

(End of this chapter)