The massive boulder crashing to the ground was no less than an earthquake. Many grass huts collapsed, and those exposed to the sunlight who were a bit slow fell to the ground, never to wake again.
Charles looked up and saw a familiar pseudo-star flickering faintly on the dome above.
As the star dimmed, another huge boulder fell.
Charles quickly flew into the air, shouting, "Everyone, follow me! The creatures above know we’re attacking them! They’re intelligent—we must stop them now!"
With that, Charles flapped his wings and soared upward.
Soon, the airships and helicopters followed.
As they drew closer, Charles saw the pseudo-star clearly. The flickering light was actually the glowing abdomens of mantis-like creatures hanging upside down in a flower-like formation.
As the light grew faster, the mantises’ abdomens suddenly dimmed, and a massive boulder fell from above, crashing toward the island.
Seeing the scattered mantises regroup to drop another boulder, Charles couldn’t let them succeed.
The giant bat flew beneath them, opening its ferocious mouth to emit a piercing screech.
The sound disrupted the mantises. They quickly covered their abdominal organs with their shells, revealing sharp scythe-like blades as they lunged at Charles.
Charles swiftly retreated, but the mantises were faster. Just as they were about to catch him, a barrage of bullets swept through from below.
"Rat-tat-tat-tat!!" The helicopter guns spat fire, trying to rain bullets on the mantises.
Though agile, some mantises were hit. The rotary machine guns were far more powerful than revolvers, tearing through flesh wherever they struck.
With a sharp "snap," Charles’ fangs severed the head of the last mantis.
"Keep going," Charles, hanging upside down from the dome, waved his wings toward the sunlight rift. The airships and helicopters turned, flying toward it.
The mantises weren’t about to give up. They swarmed out of the rift like wasps from a nest, charging at their enemies.
As the mantises broke through the bullet barrage, the first aerial battle in the Underground Sea erupted above Hope Island.
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Bullets from a helicopter tore through a mantis’s shell, but a shadow suddenly appeared behind it.
With a flash of cold light, the steel machine was torn apart like paper.
The successful mantis didn’t pause. A solid shot from an airship’s cannon ripped away half its flesh.
This scene played out everywhere. Injured and dead creatures fell like rain.
Gunfire, screams, cannon blasts, and screeches merged into one. It was a brutal war between species.
But in the end, humans had the numbers. The mantises emerging from the rift began to dwindle.
Charles, with a look of triumph, led the remaining forces toward the rift.
As they reached the base of the rift, the bright light above suddenly dimmed.
Charles looked up just as a boulder the size of a house slammed into him, sending him plummeting toward the water below.
Gritting through the pain, Charles pushed against the boulder with all his might, freeing himself from its momentum and returning to the air.
Others weren’t so lucky. Wood, metal, and screaming humans fell with the boulders into the water.
Charles grabbed one person with his hind claws, dragging them to safety.
Back at the dome, Charles looked down and saw the person’s head crushed—long dead.
He let go and turned his gaze toward the rift.
Against such boulder attacks, neither airships nor helicopters had a good solution.
The mantises were above, humans below, and the intense sunlight made it impossible to aim guns or cannons.
Charles carefully climbed to the edge of the rift, peering through the thick brown glass above.
In the forty-meter-wide tunnel, hundreds of mantises formed a circle. Attacking from below was nearly impossible.
And they couldn’t delay. Airships were fine, but helicopters needed fuel.
"Wait for me. When you hear the explosion, charge up. Understood?" Charles, hanging upside down, held several barrels of explosives as he spoke.
Seeing everyone on the ships nod, Charles gripped the barrels and matches in his mouth, climbing upside down toward the rift.
Pausing at the edge, he took a deep breath, mentally counting down. Suddenly, his muscles tensed, and he began scaling the rift wall with all his strength.
The mantises noticed Charles. Boulders of all sizes began falling.
Charles nimbly leaped across the cliff face, dodging the rocks.
The lower part was easier to dodge, but the higher he went, the harder it became.
With a loud "thud," a boulder the size of a table scraped the cliff, slamming into Charles’ right shoulder.
"Crack!" A searing pain shot through him. His right claw was almost useless.
"No one—no one can stop me from returning to the surface!!"
Looking at the mantises just meters above, Charles struck a match against the wall, lit the fuse, and kicked off the cliff with all his strength, lunging upward.
As boulders rained down on him, Charles hurled the explosives upward.
Just as Charles fell back outside the rift, a deafening explosion erupted above.
Half his bones shattered, Charles grabbed onto an ascending airship.
A follower approached to help, but Charles sank his teeth into the man’s neck, drinking deeply.
As the blood flowed into him, his body rapidly healed.
Releasing the pale-faced follower, Charles growled at the remaining four, "I need one more."
After a moment of hesitation, the strongest stepped forward.
Once restored, Charles flew back to the rift. The mantises were in disarray.
Without the high ground, the outnumbered mantises were quickly overwhelmed.
As Charles saw the faint blue light above, his black-furred face twisted into a terrifying grin.
But the smile vanished. The blue light was being blocked by a living creature.
As the light slowly dimmed, the helicopter crew’s eyes widened in horror, some trembling uncontrollably.