novelODS Chapter 38, Phase 4 begins!
Chapter 38, Phase 4 begins!
Chapter 38, Phase Four Begins!
Cherry blossom area.
Yamamoto Ichiro looked up at the sky, his lips slowly curving upwards in an undisguised smile.
He turned his head, his gaze landing precisely on the solemn figures in the Dragon Kingdom area. He picked up his teacup and gently blew on the steam.
"This is a picture of your future."
He took a sip of tea, and his smile deepened.
Dragon Kingdom District.
Several high-ranking officials looked at the land in the sky, riddled with holes by hail, and their brows furrowed in unison.
Although it was an Indian city, and although it was someone else's disaster, everyone knew it.
If Lin Xia fails to make it into the top five, the same, or even more tragic, scenario will unfold on the land of the Dragon Kingdom.
Commander Hua tapped his fingers unconsciously on the table, his voice low.
"Indians, monkeys, and Han mad cats—three countries, three kinds of natural disasters. If they hit, they'll wipe out decades of our vitality."
The white-bearded scientist stroked his beard and sighed.
"If we can't make it into the top five—we can't afford the scale and intensity of the natural disasters."
The group fell silent, their gazes all falling on Lin Xia's image.
The guy had his legs crossed, munching on sunflower seeds, and even a faint smile playing on his lips.
The executives exchanged glances, their eyes filled with complex emotions.
What makes him so calm?
Where is his breakthrough point?
No one can answer these questions; all the answers are hidden in that head that's eating sunflower seeds.
Commander Hua stared at Lin Xia for a long time, and finally just said something in a low voice.
"Let's wait a little longer."
Besides waiting, he didn't know what else he could do.
The golden light in the sky shone again, and lines of text appeared one by one.
[The natural disaster has ended, and the fourth phase is about to begin in the Early Cretaceous.]
[Please select the intended use of your interference card, players of Civilization Observation.]
The atmosphere at the global joint command center instantly became tense.
Winter has just passed, and all things have yet to recover, but a new round of competition has begun.
High-ranking officials from various countries picked up their communicators and made urgent calls to their respective civilization-observation players, speaking rapidly and issuing a constant stream of instructions.
In Longguo District, Commander Hua dialed Lin Xia's number, but before he could speak...
A lazy "No need" came from the other end, crisp and decisive, as if he had been waiting for this sentence.
After the call ended, Commander Hua held the receiver, opened his mouth, but ultimately said nothing and silently put it down.
got used to.
Other countries have also made their choices, with most opting not to.
The harsh winter has taken a toll on their energy; the tribe needs to rest and recuperate, and it's not suitable for them to engage in any more activities.
Two exceptions.
The player observing civilizations from the Russian bear took a deep breath and gave the command in a calm voice.
"Spread out."
Meanwhile, Igor in the Bear Zone stared at the sky, his clenched fist never loosening.
The threat of Dilophosaurus was like a knife hanging over our heads.
He didn't know when they would land, so the only way was to scatter the whale pod.
Let them split up, one group to the east, one group to the west, and another group to the south.
We'll save as many as possible.
In the Eagles section, Hopkins leaned back in his chair, holding a coffee cup, a slight smile playing on his lips.
"Attack the whale dragon."
Michael Brennan, who was sitting next to him, turned his head and asked in a low voice.
"Shouldn't we wait for the Dilophosaurus to develop further? Isn't it too hasty to act now?"
Hopkinley took a sip of coffee, his tone as casual as if he were arranging a routine task.
"We can't wait any longer. If the whale pod disperses, it will be difficult to wipe them all out in one fell swoop. Now is the best time to act."
Hopkinley then put down his coffee cup, leaned forward slightly, and picked up the communicator.
Listen,
His voice wasn't loud, but he enunciated each word very clearly.
"Use the interference card. The instruction is to pursue the whale pod. Now is the best time to slaughter them."
On the other end of the phone was Hopkins.
The principal investigator from MIT paused for two seconds before replying.
"clear."
He raised his hand and pressed the use button for the interference card.
"Attack the whale dragon."
At the same time, the image on the sky began to change.
Phase Four Begins!
The snow line recedes slowly from south to north, as if someone has drawn back a curtain on the earth.
The grayish-white snow gradually thinned, revealing the dark brown soil and withered fern remnants beneath.
The frozen river surface cracked open with its first fissure, a slender, meandering line that resembled a blue snake swimming across the white ice.
The cracks multiplied and widened, eventually shattering the entire river surface into countless pieces of floating ice, colliding, swirling, and melting on the flowing water.
The first fern shoots broke through the soil, emerging from the withered leaves and mud crevices, their tender green color and fuzzy hairs covering the ground.
The cycad's stiff leaves slowly unfurl from their curls, with ice droplets from melting snow still clinging to their tips.
On the distant hills, glimpses of green can already be seen beneath the withered vegetation.
The animals began to move around.
The Dilophosaurus stood up from under the cycad tree, shaking off the snow and dead leaves that had accumulated over the winter, its bones making a dull cracking sound.
The leading Dilophosaurus raised its head and let out a long roar, the sound carrying far through the morning air.
The sides of the body are covered with thick muscles, and the muscles near the shoulder blades are prominently bulging.
This is a mark left from the bloody battle before the cold winter.
Although his muscles hadn't fully recovered to their peak condition, his eyes were already shining, and his bloodthirsty instincts, suppressed by the cold winter, were awakening.
It lowered its head, twitched its nostrils a few times, sniffed the lingering whale-dragon scent in the air, and then took a step and walked out in one direction.
Behind them, hundreds of Dilophosaurus followed silently.
The whale dragons were scattered throughout the fern forest.
The harsh winter consumes a great deal of energy; the larger the fern, the more food it needs, and the ferns are almost completely eaten up during the winter.
Several young whale dragons were so thin that their ribs were barely visible, and they moved slowly, falling at the very back of the group.
Unaware of the approaching danger, it led its herd eastward to a fern forest that hadn't been completely devoured during the winter.
Other animals that huddle together for warmth are also active.
The Dimorphodon of South Korea took off from the high rock face, its wingspan even larger than before the winter.
The airflow generated by the flapping of its wings dispersed the remaining snow on the rock face, and the black wing membranes stood out conspicuously in the early spring sky.
They hover high in the sky, their view covering an area of more than ten kilometers in radius, and no moving object on the ground can escape their eyes.
The Gallic Handrapter emerged from the depths of the fern forest, its population smaller than before the winter.
But those who survived were all strong, agile, and sharp-eyed adults.
They dart back and forth between the forest edges and open areas, searching for the first small prey to awaken from hibernation.
The bony plates of the Cherry Blossom Dragon are wider and thicker than before winter, extending from its back to its tail. The blunt spikes at the tail tip are beginning to take shape and are starting to become sharper.