Rebirth: The Universe's Hidden Heiress-Chapter 108: Fighting Insectoids

Yuka didn’t make the clever move the audience thought she would. She used a straightforward search method, following the tracks left by the mecha and villagers on the muddy ground.

Yuka, using her mechanical arm, gently held the little girl, letting her sit in the crook of the mecha’s arm. She ran without bumping the girl at all, a stark contrast to those mechas who had carried the villagers on their shoulders like sacks or dragged them by their collars to rush to the entrance earlier.

[The adorable little girl needs a bit more care.]

[The chosen one, I’m rooting for you.]

[Wow, what’s that over there?!]

At the village entrance, almost all the players stood on both sides of the cave.

The river here, downstream, wasn’t wide but was fairly clear.

Everyone watched the water and cave entrance nervously, guessing when the first insectoid would appear.

But before they saw any insectoid emerging from the cave, a violent tremor shook the ground. The mecha and villagers on the ground became unsteady, swaying and instinctively trying to grab someone to stabilize themselves.

During the scuffle, a few villagers fell into the river.

Parasite insectoids in the water excitedly swam around, wrapping their transparent limbs tightly around the fallen villagers. They extended the spikes from the suckers on their bellies, piercing the villagers’ bodies and greedily sucking their blood.

Before the mecha on the shore could jump in to save them, swarms of parasites had already devoured the villagers, turning them into data streams that vanished from the map.

Only then did everyone realize that the insectoids had already infiltrated the village.

The shaking grew more intense, and many players thought about retreating back into the village. Shawn furrowed his brow, feeling the violent tremors were like those caused by a type of insectoid –

"It’s Ironback!" Yonda shouted in the commentary booth. "It’s actually Ironback!"

[But still, I want to ask, what’s the deal with Ironback? Is it scary? What are its features?]

Viewers quickly answered this person’s questions in the comments.

[Ironback is huge and slim, usually curled up into a ball to rest, but when it stretches out, it’s as tall as a three-story building.]

[Moreover, when Ironback stretches out, it looks like a centipede with many legs, moving very fast. Each leg has a spike for attacking.]

[Also, its brain was tiny and is in the middle of its head. To attack its brain accurately without using artillery, you have to climb onto its body. It’s hard.]

Yonda was intently watching a huge black insectoid wriggling out of the ground. Glancing at the lively comments, he nodded in agreement and said, "That’s right, this is a very tough insectoid. It was originally buried underground in this map and was supposed to appear in the later stages of the battle when disturbed. But the commotion caused by so many people rushing here woke it up, so it emerged early from the ground."

[Man, this batch of newbies is somewhat unlucky.]

[I just want to know if killing this insectoid only scores ten points?]

[Wow, that’s so unfair! Such a big bug for just ten points?] freēnovelkiss.com

[Are they going to change the advancement rules again? There are too many surprises in this Tournament.]

Kenji, sitting next to Yonda, also saw the comments and immediately contacted the five presidents who were watching the match.

As the students in the Sakura Valley village map were panicking and preparing to flee, Kenji’s voice rang through their mecha communicators, clear for everyone to hear.

"Due to the premature disturbance of Ironback and its high difficulty in killing, we are temporarily changing the advancement rules."

"After Ironback is killed, the top ten students who inflict the most damage, and whose protected villagers have not died, can advance to the third round of the competition. If any of the top ten have a protected villager who dies, their rank will be pushed back."

"Additionally, I inform everyone that due to the increased difficulty of this game, the number of insectoid species has been reduced to three. Please take the game seriously."

Hearing this, those who were planning to flee stopped in their tracks and turned their attention to Ironback, which was stretching its body.

With only three types of insectoids, including Ironback and the parasites, there was only one other species left. The difficulty of the game indeed seemed much less, and many students regained their confidence and began attacking Ironback and the parasites in the river.

However, Ironback was called so because its shell was extremely hard. To harm it, one must target its softer belly and then its head to kill it.

Bullets and blades hitting Ironback’s shell did no damage at all; instead, it felt threatened and unfurled its body even faster, rapidly crawling towards the people.

The violent tremors it had earlier caused the banks of the small river to collapse. Now, its movements made it impossible for people on the shore to stand steady.

They fell into the river one after another, getting devoured by the waiting parasites.

A mecha also fell in by accident. It was quickly enveloped by the parasites, dragged to the river bottom, and eliminated from the competition by the system.

The agitated parasites also tried to crawl ashore. They attacked people and mecha on land, creating chaos at the scene.

[The advancement rules really changed again. Who was the prophet earlier? They nailed it.]

[Oh my, this is so tough for them, I can’t even watch.]

[About twenty or thirty players are already out. And so far, no one has advanced!]

[Where’s the chosen one? Why hasn’t she arrived?]

[There she is, I see her now.]

Yuka had heard Kenji’s announcement and had now reached the central battlefield.

She saw the enormous Ironback and the parasites struggling to climb ashore, but she didn’t spot the third type of insectoid yet.

Using her long sword, she fended off parasites crawling towards her feet. Then, holding the little girl, she rushed to the center of the battlefield and yelled to a mecha, "Ayoi!"

Ayoi turned around and caught the magazine Yuka threw to her. "Thanks so much," Ayoi said. "You came just in time, Yuka. I was about to run out of bullets!" Yuka picked up the little boy Ayoi was protecting and stood behind Ayoi and Alex to observe the situation.

[The chosen one knows these two. Are they teammates?]

[This player’s shooting accuracy is quite high. No wonder the chosen one gave her the magazine.]

In the commentary booth, Yonda glanced at the mecha on the screen, noted its number, and checked the student list. He realized the student was Ayoi. Observing Ayoi’s shooting, he saw that each shot hit its mark, if not the insectoid’s head, then a vital part of its body, immobilizing them.

Alex, standing next to Ayoi, took the opportunity to kill the insectoids. Despite Ironback’s interference, their kill count quickly reached five.

Yonda temporarily turned off his microphone, turned to Kenji. He relayed Ayoi’s performance, suggesting, "Sir, I think we should move the shooting course from the second semester of freshman year to the first. We can’t afford to ignore talents like Ayoi. What do you think?"

Kenji nodded. "I’ll discuss it with the five presidents."

Yonda smiled broadly. He turned his microphone back on, and continued watching the battle in the map.

However, the situation on the battlefield wasn’t going on very well.

Ironback’s speed and massive size impacted the fighting students with each movement. Although they focused their firepower on Ironback, they did little damage.

Moreover, as the students attacked, parasites crawled up to entangle and hinder them.

As the number of remaining players on the field dwindled. Most villagers had been consumed by the insectoids, transforming into data streams and disappearing. The audience felt that maybe none of the students would advance to round three.

[Let’s call it a day, nothing more to see here.]

[These students are really unlucky. Facing Ironback, the big boss, right at the start? How can they make it?]

[What if no one advances to the third round? Will there be no third round? Do they need to change the advancement rules again?]

[These are the fresh blood of the Alliance Army? These are the people who will protect the citizens of the Alliance? They are too weak! What are the five academies doing? The Alliance Army is probably doomed.]

Although this comment was quickly deleted by the mediator, it stirred up a lot of discussion. Many netizens echoed the sentiment that the five academies and the Alliance Army were finished, ridiculing the future pillars of the army for not being able to defeat even a single Ironback.

Amidst the growing rumors and anger online, representatives of the Alliance Army, led by Kenji, and the five academies, represented by the UUA president, remained silent. They watched the chaos among the netizens and focused on the battlefield, hoping for a turnaround.

Kenji was watching Yuka. He knew that she didn’t want to advance to the third round; her advancement in the first round was an accident, and she would likely seek elimination in the second round.

But Yuka hadn’t given up yet.

Kenji observed Yuka holding the little girl, understanding something after a while: Yuka had become surprisingly empathetic.

However, the situation was getting worse and worse rapidly. If Ironback wasn’t dealt with soon, they would all perish.

Kenji wondered what Yuka’s plan was.

As Ironback approached Yuka, more and more players were disappearing from the game.

Yuka told Alex to turn around and protect the villagers, then stepped forward with her sword. She planned to immobilize Ironback without killing it.

But someone else acted faster.

Realizing the dire situation, Ichiro and his brothers exchanged glances and turned to find Shawn and his group.

Ichiro got straight to the point with Shawn, saying, "Let’s cooperate."

Shawn looked at Philip, and the latter nodded in agreement.

Ichiro then called Lory, who was nearby. Together, they cleared the parasites from the battlefield while moving towards Ironback.

Philip and his team surrounded Ironback, shooting at the gaps in its shell. When Ironback dodged the bullets and ran out, Lory charged forward, slashing off several of its legs with a swift strike.

Ironback, in pain, turned to attack Lory, but before it could fully turn, Ichiro swiftly chopped off several more legs on the other side.

With over a dozen legs lost, Ironback became unsteady, its body tilting to one side.

Seizing the opportunity, Shawn and his teammates rushed forward, pushing Ironback towards its tilted side, trying to completely topple it over to expose its vulnerable underbelly.

Others nearby, seeing Ironback about to be flipped, also wanted a piece of the action. In the chaos, someone opened fire hoping to increase their damage output, disrupting Shawn’s team’s coordinated attack.

Hit by a stray bullet, Shawn bent over in pain, his grip slipping.

The weight of Ironback was suddenly distributed among the others. Some of them faltered, unable to sustain the push, and Ironback began to tilt back to its original position.

As Ironback’s massive body threatened to crush them, Shawn and his team, with nowhere to escape, closed their eyes in despair, ready to be eliminated from the competition.

At this critical moment, a mecha dashed from nearby, single-handedly steadying the teetering Ironback, then forcefully pushed it back. With a swift motion, the mecha’s right hand plunged a blade into Ironback’s abdomen.

Witnessing Yuka’s timely intervention, Kenji’s lips curved into a smile.