Chapter 51: Parting Ways

Chapter 51: Parting Ways

The smoke cleared, the monster's massive body lay still on the ground, the panicked ground rats all unfurled their scent pouches, yet upon sensing the undeniable odor of their host's death, they utterly lost their will to resist, scattering in a frenzy and burrowing into the dense forest.

Chen Jian held the Type 191, spat out a mouthful of smoke‑tinged saliva, and instinctively rubbed his slightly swollen ears.

The power of those two rocket rounds exceeded his expectations to the point that he barely had time to react—the very monster that the Machine God Cult had failed to kill for years, even over a decade, had just died like that?

So what had they been doing all this time?

They certainly could have gotten hold of such weapons; it’s not as if they were just standing two kilometers away with rocket launchers, firing wildly at random.

That’s actually quite possible.

Given their tactical level, this was already the most effective choice they could make.

Watching Zeng Yi climb back up from beneath the overpass, Chen Jian nodded and spoke:

“You’ve worked hard.”

Zeng Yi grinned wide and replied:

“Not bad.”

“I knew you could do it.”

“Indeed, if we truly couldn’t, we would have left long ago.”

Chen Jian showed no humility; he knew that being modest now would be pointless.

On the contrary, only by continually reinforcing in these Holy Blood believers the image of their squad as invincible would future cooperation become smoother.

——

But speaking of cooperation, my alliance with certain people has essentially broken apart.

Chen Jian turned his head; Xu Lie had already returned to the overpass, standing not far off, waiting silently.

The other party opened his mouth, as if wanting to say something, but ultimately swallowed his words.

Chen Jian gave him no leeway, speaking directly:

“You may go back.”

“You need not take part in the upcoming operation.”

“The share of profit we agreed upon for you will be given according to the stipulated ratio.”

“But now, our partnership ends.”

“.Why?”

Xu Lie frowned and asked:

“I merely made the choice I believed was right—could that also be wrong?”

“In that situation, our chances of survival were less than one percent!”

“You are gambling with everyone’s lives, while I only want us all to live—”

“I don’t want reasons, nor explanations.”

Chen Jian cut Xu Lie off, solemnly stating:

“A team can have only one decision‑maker.”

“You may harbor thoughts of retreat, but you may not act on them.”

“Now let’s go; we don’t have to tear our faces apart completely.”

“By the way, don’t follow us from the shadows—you know we can see you.”

“.Okay.”

Xu Lie finally nodded, then told the other Holy Blood believers:

“Let’s go; they no longer welcome us.”

Having said that, he turned and walked away.

He didn’t understand how things had come to this—just before arriving, the two squads had been close teammates working in tight cooperation.

Yet after a single bout of fighting, they ended up parting ways.

Had he done something wrong?

Xu Lie didn’t feel he was at fault; after all, he had his own stance, could not blindly trust these god‑chosen ones, and could not sacrifice everything to side with them.

I belong to the Holy Blood Hall, not to you.

Xu Lie glanced back at the fallen monster, his gaze sweeping over, only to notice that his teammates had not followed him.

Not only had they not caught up, Li Shi had even walked up to Chen Jian’s front, eyes full of expectation, asking:

“May I still stay?”

“Yes.”

Chen Jian nodded without hesitation.

The Holy Blood believer opposite him had shown the greatest resolve in combat; although he had actually contributed little, the mere fact that he stood before Chen Jian, facing that enormous, overwhelming monster with courage, earned him the right to stay.

“Then I’ll follow you! Are we going to fetch the shield?”

“Maybe, maybe not—the road ahead is still perilous; are you sure you want to come along?”

“I’m sure!”

Li Shi answered again, and at that moment Xie Liu and Zeng Yi also approached.

“We’re coming too.”

“Think it through—if you go with us, your ties to the Holy Blood Hall will inevitably develop cracks.”

Chen Jian warned again; Xie Liu remained silent, while Zeng Yi shrugged and replied:

“We haven’t done anything wrong.” “Indeed. Then let’s go.”

With that, they quickly gathered their gear, ready to leave the makeshift bastion at the bridgehead.

Shen Yue brought up the rear, cautiously observing Xu Lie’s movements in the distance.

Only after confirming that the opponent was heading the opposite way, retreating along the same route toward Han Shui City, did he finally catch up with the team, typing a line onto his smart goggles.

“The Holy Blood believers split too early; it may not be trustworthy.”

Chen Jian remained expressionless, typing his reply:

“I know—this is the next round’s test.”

“Received.”

“1.”

“1.”

The other members responded in turn; the original eight‑person squad became seven, heading down the overpass exit toward the monster’s corpse.

Only when he truly stood before that beast did Chen Jian feel the crushing, all‑destroying pressure it exuded.

The monster's foreclaws were even longer than its height, their edges sharp as if polished.

Around the carcass lay trees and buildings flattened by its weight, blood flooding the ground like a deluge, making it slick and foul‑smelling; a single step felt like sinking into a swamp.

“Take a picture, scan it.”

Chen Jian gave a brief order, and He Shuo immediately circled the beast, simultaneously directing the drone to perform a full‑body 3D scan.

While he worked, Chen Jian stepped forward, pried off a small fragment of shattered carapace from the monster’s back, held it in his palm, examined it for a moment, and said:

“This resembles the shells of mollusks and crabs; it must contain a great deal of chitin.”

“But the problem is, this is clearly a freshwater creature—could it be some kind of insect?”

Hearing him, Lei Jie shook his head and said:

“It definitely can’t be an insect; this thing is plainly a mammal—look, it even has… testicles.”

“.Can you quit being so vulgar? You’re a college student, for god’s sake!”

Chen Jian, speechless, gave Lei Jie a mighty slap; fortunately he hadn’t powered his exoskeleton, otherwise that blow would have shattered Lei Jie’s skull.

Lei Jie retreated to the side, looking aggrieved, then spoke:

“I’m just stating the facts—this is scientific rigor; do you understand scientific rigor?”

“.Get lost!”

Chen Jian couldn’t be bothered with him any longer, crouched down, and closely examined the monster’s head pierced by the armor‑piercing round.

From the wound, the metal jet had caused massive damage, carving two huge cavities in the head over three meters wide, already charred to a crisp.

Obviously, against armor‑piercing rounds capable of penetrating heavy plating, the carbon‑based carapace was still far too flimsy.

Beneath the outer hide lay nothing more than ordinary muscle tissue.

In terms of impact resistance, it probably couldn’t match the maternal beast of Chuan Sha City, which can contract its muscles to staunch bleeding.

By now, He Shuo’s modeling was finished; Chen Jian rose to his feet and addressed the three Sanctified Blood bearers:

“Do you need to take another look, or carry away any evidence?”

“If not, we’re preparing to withdraw and head to the next objective.”

“Nothing more.”

“No thanks.”

The Sanctified Blood bearers replied in turn; Chen Jian waved a hand, signaling the team to move on.

They gradually drifted away from the monster’s corpse; the four of Chen Jian’s squad didn’t glance back even once.

On the contrary, the three Sanctified Blood operatives looked back countless times.

They still couldn’t make sense of it.

This beast that had ravaged the Han Shui ruins for over twenty years—had it really just died like that?

Merely ten minutes ago, it had still been the ruler of this area.

Yet ten minutes later, it was tossed aside like a lump of rotting meat, lying still while awaiting decay.

The “culprit” behind all this seemed utterly indifferent, marching straight away.

So, for these God‑Chosen, what exactly is a “monster”?

This being, which in the Sanctified Blood Hall and the Machine God Cult embodies supreme power, slaughter, fear, and despair—and in the eyes of certain heretics even bears a semblance of divinity—

In the eyes of the God‑Chosen, it is really nothing more than a target that can be destroyed, right?

Xie Liu, Zeng Yi, and Li Shi stood silent, saying nothing.

They exchanged no words, yet the same thought sprang up in each of their minds.

Perhaps the worldview they had built over nearly twenty years of growth was mistaken.

The conflict between humanity and monsters was not a battle against an “evil god.”

Monsters are not evil gods; if someone goes and kills them, they die.

(End of Chapter)