Especially under the Mother Empress’s control, their reaction speed wasn’t slow at all. At the very least, they could evade a large portion of the Dreadnought Battleship’s follow-up Firepower Coverage.
It looked like for future opening volleys, they would need to switch to the Pulse Electromagnetic Cannon mode. First, they’d fire Magnetic Storm Bombs to give the Swarm some paralyzing electro-shock therapy, then use conventional shells with a higher Fire Rate for covering fire to reap the kills.
The point of live-fire training was to identify and patch up weaknesses, find problems and solve them, and ultimately formulate better combat strategies.
And these factors would be critical in determining the outcome of the final battle.
With the first battle won, everyone returned to camp that afternoon after clearing the battlefield and began to celebrate.
Lin Feng hadn’t accompanied them during the live-fire training. The Commander for the entire operation was Chen Yanyan, while the front lines were managed by the Battle Group Leader and the various squad captains.
He needed to trust Chen Yanyan’s capabilities. During the final battle, he would be leading the Tier Two Corps deep into the Underground Hive and would have no time to spare for the situation on the surface.
So that afternoon, Lin Feng and Ling Yi were performing a purification treatment on Zhang Liying.
Shen Jie accompanied her as she left the faculty apartments, and they went to a research building where the surgery would take place.
Inside a clean laboratory, Ling Yi used over ten tons of fish meat and one Tier Two Zerg Egg to render down and cultivate a fleshy mass that formed a Biological Nest.
It was about half the size of a classroom.
Under Ling Yi’s control, the small Biological Nest grew numerous fleshy tentacles and blood vessels that connected to the Tier Two Zerg Egg.
Then, the organic slurry inside the Zerg Egg gradually semi-solidified. The entire egg swelled to several times its original size, changing from an elongated oval into the shape of a chicken egg.
Zhang Liying wasn’t allowed to see this part. It was best that as few people as possible knew about Ling Yi’s identity as a Mother Empress Avatar.
Once everything was ready, Zhang Liying walked into the secret laboratory with Shen Jie’s arm around her shoulders. The sight of the writhing, red-and-white mountain of flesh and the Tier Two Zerg Egg connected to it made the color drain from her face instantly.
Zerg features instinctively manifested on her body.
Fangs and thrusts sprouted from the gaps in her Zerg Armor.
This was an automatic response, her body’s tissues entering a state of high alert after instinctively sensing a threat.
Shen Jie silently pulled his hand back. He hadn’t been on guard while comforting Zhang Liying, so the fangs and sharp spikes had pierced the hand and arm he’d had on her shoulder.
A few beads of blood dripped out before the wounds quickly healed, leaving no trace.
When Zhang Liying glimpsed the blood on Shen Jie’s arm, a guilty expression crossed her face. At the same time, she felt a profound sense of revulsion for the Zerg Armor covering her own body.
Shen Jie quickly reassured her:
"It’s okay, a small scratch like this is nothing."
"Look, I went into that thing, and it completely stripped all the Zerg Race traits from my body. It even fully repaired the internal tissues that had undergone Genetic Assimilation."
"This is a piece of Zerg biotechnology we found after entering an Underground Hive. This is Researcher Ling; she’s an expert who specializes in the Zerg Race. She was the one who pulled me back from death’s door. Getting rid of the Zerg Armor on the surface is just a side benefit."
"Go on. I’ll be waiting right here."
Zhang Liying took a deep breath and nodded.
Shen Jie had already told her all of this beforehand. It was the only reason she had agreed to leave her room, taking advantage of the afternoon when all the camp’s Warriors had deployed to the battlefield to come here with him.
After mustering her courage, Zhang Liying walked toward the Tier Two Zerg Egg. She stepped onto a classroom desk to get high enough and stood before the egg.
At the top was a forty-centimeter-diameter opening that Ling Yi had left. All she had to do was jump in.
Zhang Liying’s body trembled slightly:
"Do... do I have to take off my clothes?"
Ling Yi nodded:
"You don’t have to, but the effect will be better if you do. The surgical removal will also be faster."
Zhang Liying swallowed hard and began to unbutton the large coat draped over her.
Lin Feng was about to turn away to give her some privacy, but Shen Jie stopped him:
"Her body is completely covered in Zerg Armor anyway. With you here, Brother Feng, everyone will feel more at ease."
Lin Feng gave a slightly awkward smile and stopped.
When Zhang Liying took off her coat, her entire body was revealed. From head to toe, she was completely covered in a layer of hard, black-and-yellow Zerg Armor. It had even spread over the top and back of her head. All of her hair was gone, save for a few bangs that remained on her forehead.
The Genetic Assimilation of the Zerg Race had destroyed her scalp, completely obliterating the hair follicles.
The hard Shell covered her skull, transforming the once elegant young woman into a monstrous Zerg Person.
No wonder Zhang Liying’s personality had changed so drastically, causing her to fall into an Abyss of internal conflict.
On a man, these changes might not have been such a big deal. Some young men with a touch of chunibyo might even find a full suit of Biological Armor to be inexplicably cool.
As for hair and all that, what does it matter compared to power?
But for a woman, especially a naive young girl, the psychological impact of such a hideous transformation was enough to cause irreparable Damage.
But what Ling Yi saw was far more detailed.
Judging by the condition of the Zerg Armor on Zhang Liying and her weak aura, her State was not just poor, as Shen Jie had described—it was critical.
"Wait!" Ling Yi’s voice rang out suddenly, just as the girl was about to take a step with a foot covered in barbed Zerg Armor.
The other three turned their gazes to her in unison.
Ling Yi’s brow furrowed, and she called out to stop the girl:
"In her current State, she won’t be able to survive the surgery."
"The Energy in this tissue is only enough to strip the Zerg Armor off her. It’s not enough to repair her severe underlying injuries..."
"Injuries?!" Shen Jie asked in confusion:
"She’s been a shut-in and hasn’t participated in any front-line battles. Where would she have gotten injured?"