Chapter 829 - Underground
Chapter 829: Underground
Translator: EndlessFantasy Translation Editor: EndlessFantasy Translation
The whole routine had been arduous, the suffering beyond words. In any event, he had finally arrived on the opposite shore. He had finally crossed the sea.
Tang Wulin lay there and allowed the seawater to wash up against his body as a faint smile appeared on his face.
‘Have I finally succeeded after enduring so much hardship and undergoing so much torture?’
He lay there hardly moving as he completely concealed all his soul power. He swept up the sand quietly, like a turtle burying itself, bringing his body temperature under control.
By doing so, he prevented himself from being discovered by the Northsea Army Corps’ radar. He needed to rest because he could barely lift a finger right now.
His breathing gradually returned to normal as he adjusted his blood essence fluctuation.
Ever since he came to Demon Island, it was truly a rare occurrence for such a quiet moment. Tang Wulin understood why Elder Cai’s expression was so peculiar back then. Demon Island was truly controlled by demons! The situation now was different according to Old Demon Nightmare. It was difficult to tell if they could even return alive.
It would have already been three months since they have been on the island. Although Tang Wulin could not tell the actual duration, he knew he had been tormented in a state of being neither dead nor alive for approximately three months. If this had been part of the military training, how was he going to live out the remaining period of a year and eight months? What else was waiting for them next?
He sighed in his heart. Tang Wulin relaxed his body to allow his physical abilities to recuperate. He had not eaten at all for the past three months. If he could steal an aircraft and returned to the island, would Old Demon Nightmare release him and his comrades? It was apparent that it would not be so easy.
Anyhow, there was a slim chance of survival as long as he could ensure that his comrades were safe at the moment. At least, he had already crossed the sea by relying on the Destruction Aura. He was here not to just steal an aircraft. More importantly, he needed to find a path for their return. He would take his squad back to the Federation as soon as he had the opportunity to save them.
Tang Wulin once thought about seeking reinforcement from the academy, but he knew that it was not a viable option. If he were to use his soul communicator, aside from whether the academy would respond to his call, what if Old Demon Nightmare found out with his ghastly ability? Tang Wulin dared not take the leap because he would be doomed eternally if he missed! He could never stand to see his comrades destroying themselves in pain.
He rested for an hour before his body gradually adjusted to the situation. This was not Demon Island after all so the vitality here was not as rich. Thus, he felt an intense hunger when his physical ability was restored.
He should have caught a sea soul beast if only he had known earlier. His body would be replenished even if it was just some sashimi!
He raised his head ever so slightly and looked to the defense line afar. Searchlights flashed past the thick and tall walls continuously. It was only dusk at present so he could clearly see the iron and steel forest along the defensive line.
Tang Wulin did not doubt that the defense here would be impregnable even if a one-hundred-thousand-year soul beast were to launch an attack.
Due to the high-speed development of soul technology, a soul master’s status on the continent now was not as prestigious as before.
‘No, I can’t force my way in. I don’t stand a chance. If I can’t go up, then how about I go underground?’
Tang Wulin already had a plan before he came. He possessed a pair of powerful Golden Dragon Claws which had both its special features of ‘Tear’ and ‘Smash’. Hence, it should not be too difficult for him to dig a tunnel. His only concern was there may be some defense or detection equipment underground based on his understanding of mankind’s soul technology. If he was not careful, it would be more troublesome if he was discovered underground.
However, he must try. It was still better to go underground than confront the terrifying firestorm of soul cannons.
Tang Wulin slowly unleashed the Golden Dragon Claws at this point. He began pawing at the sand below him such that his body gradually sank into the sand.
He could not help thinking that the Mountain Dragon King’s Torso Bone had been most helpful for his development. Not understanding the bone well enough had not prevented him from having the ability to control gravity. It had also greatly enhanced his defense and even increased his affinity with the earth element exponentially.
Tang Wulin’s body sank slowly. The earth became soft and loose under the influence of the Mountain Dragon King’s Torso Bone aura. He relied on his pair of sharp Golden Dragon Claws to dig into the ground.
The underground was inevitably stuffy but Tang Wulin’s physical quality made it possible for him to withstand the discomfort. The Golden Dragon King Bloodline circulated naturally and provided enormous amounts of energy in addition to his hyper-powerful strength. Soon, he was already deep into the ground.
It only took ten minutes for him to pass through the soil and enter the rock mass. Tang Wulin’s movement through the rocks was even faster because there was little possibility of the rocks collapsing. There was no need for him to rely on the strength of the Mountain Dragon King’s Torso Bone to stabilize the surrounding area unlike the situation when he was digging through the soil layer.
Tang Wulin was preparing to use this tunnel more than once. He had planned to use this tunnel in the future to lead his comrades in an escape. For that reason, he was especially cautious during the digging process. He was not in a rush to advance in the direction of the Northsea Army Corps’ base. On the contrary, he was digging as deep as he could.
The possibility of him being discovered was less the deeper he dug the tunnel.
An hour passed. Tang Wulin relied on his strong physique to dig deep into the ground for a hundred meters. He faced many obstacles during the process which included the presence of underground water.
Tang Wulin had no choice but to divert his tunnel upon uncovering water underground. He had to look for a dry area before he could continue digging downward. The digging was undoubtedly arduous and tortuous. Fortunately, he succeeded in the end.
It was already a hundred meters below the ground. The thick slabs of rocks provided the best shelter to prevent them from being discovered.
Tang Wulin leaned against the tunnel as he panted heavily. The air here was extremely thin resulting in extremely low levels of oxygen. Any ordinary person would have suffocated to death in these conditions. Only Tang Wulin could withstand this as he attempted to use his cultivation of internal breathing to reduce his oxygen intake.
Tang Wulin estimated his current position before he began digging horizontally. The mass of rock was almost like tofu before his Golden Dragon Claw’s special features: Tear and Smash. Tang Wulin’s powerful arms worked better than any excavator. He was heading rapidly toward the direction of the Northsea Army Corps’ base.
Generally, the military had a few methods for underground detection. The most important one being the seismograph.
Any underground change would produce unusual vibrations which in turn generate ripples. If the seismograph detected these ripples, it would then generate the data. When the vibrations were stronger, the data generated would reflect that as well.
The seismograph was capable of detecting any changes underground at depths of more than ten kilometers. However, the shortcoming was that it could only detect relatively large fluctuations.
There was also the soul power detector. It searched for any suspicious signs by detecting the underground soul power fluctuations. The soul power detector’s range was less than a seismograph as it was only effective for depths of less than five hundred meters. However, it was much more sensitive than the seismograph as any minor soul power fluctuation would cause a reaction in the detector.
In any case, these two detectors complemented each other and formed an effective monitoring system for the underground world.
Tang Wulin’s method of not using any soul machine or soul power but only his strength to dig underground was extremely rare. It was difficult for a Title Douluo powerhouse to do this unless the person was cultivating Body Sect’s body cultivation. On the other hand, it was actually impossible to build an indomitable defense no matter how advanced the technology was.