Chapter 26: Close Call
"Tighten the formation and retreat! Satyr, Bart, Asia, and Puck retrieve their bodies with the imps."
His voice thundered in the dimly lit tunnel, forcing his subjects to nod.
Despite their high stamina, he could see the abundant sweat marring their clothes and hear their ragged breaths amidst the pungent smell of acid.
More than feeling down about his mistake of underestimating the colony size, he had to ensure everyone survived. Therefore, he pushed his anxiety down and focused on repelling the ants approaching while stacking their carcasses to form a wall of flesh and chitin.
Simultaneously, the others pushed the ants' corpses out with difficulty under Luna's twitching eyes.
"It'll take forever."
With a snort, she sent a wave of liquid fire to wash everything out before creating a scalding green stallion. Hair-like flames fluttered in the wind as its towering frame registered in their amazed eyes.
Then, burning chains connected to a cart condensed behind it and Luna's voice echoed again.
"Charge everything in it. I'll wait on its back."
'You can do that too?'
His pupils constricted as he gazed back between two strikes, shock coloring his features.
Demonic energy was much more than just a fiery power. Seeing its versatile applications, from intangible to liquid and from burning to cool, made his heart race against his chest in yearning.
'I'll learn diligently under her. But first, retreat!'
He observed the wall of dead flesh blocking the tunnel, feeling the tremors shaking it and hearing the ants crashing on it in unbridled fury.
"Rush to the exit. Maintain the formation and adjust your speed to the slowest! We leave no one behind!"
His command echoed as he turned and cut through the wind like an arrow, only to see his subjects a few steps ahead.
'I'm the slowest?!'
The realisation prickled his skin and made his veins throb on his forehead. Yet, he shrugged as they slowed down to match him.
'I should have levelled up a few times. After distributing my points and learning demonic essence control, I'm sure I'll surpass them!'
As his eyes narrowed into determined slits, they emerged from the darkness and returned under the bright morning sunlight.
He noticed the fully charged cart and the others seated atop the carcasses. The imps waved at him, bright smiles stretching their lips.
"Return to the territory!"
The stallion neighed, huffing flames and smoke from its nostrils as it blurred in the distance while he continued to run.
Just like that, they escaped the scene, sweating and muscles aching at the failed raid.
Still, they had scavenged many carcasses and earned an enormous amount of experience points, balancing the hardship with sweet rewards.
However, his face couldn't help but turn somber on the way.
Simultaneously, the wall of carcasses exploded in the tunnel, revealing a glistening ant much shorter than its brethren. Thin wings unfurled on its back like two transparent capes as its red eyes scanned the surroundings for the intruders.
Unable to find them, it screeched in fury, clenching disturbingly human-looking fists and tensing its back. The other ants stepped back, their many legs trembling in fear at the sight of their angry general before silence engulfed the scene.
Unbeknownst to Adam, his demonic subjects avoided death by a few minutes as the ant returned to the tunnel's depth, awaiting their return.
Meanwhile, the imp in question dropped to the ground, his chest rising and lowering as fresh air burned his throat.
'I need a real scouting team. We can't raid places without knowing their approximate number.'
Fortunately, the tunnel width allowed them to fight two versus one. But in an open area? The swarm would have overwhelmed their formation and crushed them in a matter of minutes.
The realisation alone sent a shiver down his spine.
'Their number makes for a great farming spot, though. I can take the newly summoned demons and kill the ones working outside. I'll cross the interior as a dead zone for the moment.'
With this idea in mind and after a moment of rest, he pushed himself off the ground and dusted his robes.
Then, noticing his main fighters' disheartened faces, he chuckled.
"Don't feel ashamed of a tactical retreat. We met our objectives and returned in one piece. That's what matters most. Get some rest, eat your fill and smile at the victory!"
As his encouragement hung in the air, he stepped to the now sprawled carcasses littering the ground.
Unfortunately, Luna left already, too bored to watch them catch their breath or maybe tired herself after carrying everything for several kilometers.
Patting the imps on the shoulders on his way, he began to extract the ants, eyes sparkling in joy with each notification resounding in his ears.
[Obtained: unit of food x1 076.]
[Obtained: unit of hard chitin x50.]
[Obtained: beast core x81.]
[Obtained: Chitinous helmet, greaves, and gauntlets blueprint.]
'What a haul!'
Each ant yielded four units, making them a terrible food source compared to their sizes and strength. Yet, their sheer quantity solved the concern.
He opened the market interface and bought materials without bothering to list the meat.
'I can't eat the juicy pie alone.'
He munched on his lips, swallowing the feeling of loss at trading only one unit of iron ore for one of food.
This time, he kept ten to feed his citizens and ignored the concept of stock. After all, the ore's prices would only grow. In the worst case, he could trade a few back for a sea of food.
Next, he focused on the blueprints, making their stats appear.
Chitinous helmet
Introduction:
Built from the reinforced ant's exoskeleton, it provides a substantial boost in defence without impeding speed. Craft the five parts to unlock the set effect.
Rarity: Common-uncommon
Level requirement: 15
Vitality +5-8
Strength +0-2
Set pieces:
Helmet, greaves, gauntlet, chest plate and boots.
Set effect:
Vitality +10, strength +10, agility +5
Materials required: 10 units of hard chitin and one unit of fabric.
"I need to equip everyone with a set!"
The idea rumbled in his mind. The set effect was just that good. Even better, the greaves focused on agility while the gauntlets on strength, providing a well-balanced boost.
"The chest plate should increase vitality even more. The boots agility again!"
Jumping in joy, his mind devised plans before he focused on the experience points.
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Gifts
-- Gift
received Weekly Power Status
-- Power
Ranking 
-- Power
stone