"It's annoying, indicating that he cannot rely on electric propulsion to achieve a speed of 100 kilometers per hour but must rely on the power of his own muscles to run.
Level Five cannot release speeds of erratic dashing." At about 80 kilometers per hour, in a state of swift wind steps, it can even exceed 100 kilometers per hour. However, such a sprint relies heavily on internal force and physical endurance. With his Level Five strength, in the power of extreme conditions, he can maintain it for at most twenty to thirty minutes. Moreover, once the internal force is completely depleted, how will he face the imminent danger?
Shaking his head, temporarily putting aside these unpleasant thoughts, he focuses on the present. He looks down at his equipment; the heavy sniper rifle has been smashed, and the energy pistol is nowhere to be seen.
Fortunately, on the weapon rack on his left thigh, the ion shock knife is still hanging. What's more, the battery he reserved is intact. There is no immediate need to worry about the power supply in the helmet or the internal oxygen supply.
He smiles bitterly, first closing some damaged circuits, replacing the depleted batteries with new ones, then lightly tapping a spot on his left waist, opening a small compartment, revealing a standard field medical kit containing potent coagulants, analgesics, and more.
He takes out a painkiller and ingests it.
With today's medical technology, within a few seconds, the intense pain disappears, and he can finally stand up.
The painkiller's effect will last for twenty-four hours; he has three bottles, ensuring that he won't be tortured by pain in the next seventy-two hours. As for what will happen after that time, survival itself is still a question mark—there is no need to consider such distant things.
Afterward, he rummages through the armored storage box on his lower back, finding four packs of high-calorie rations and a bottle of water.
"This amount of rations, under normal consumption, can last for about sixty hours. However, who knows how long this war will drag on; each meal is like a ticking clock. Currently not very hungry, and it's hard to part with.
As for this water... he preserves it until he finds a water source. Reserve it for occasional needs. Therefore, they are sealed and stored intact with the rations.
Activating the armor mapping tool, a three-dimensional map of about two hundred meters quickly appears. A quick glance reveals his current location, about a hundred meters deep inside the cave. The slope inside the cave is very steep—apparently, he rolled in.
He takes a deep breath. Due to the effect of the painkiller, the pain from the injured ribs has subsided. Using both hands and feet, he climbs up and soon reaches the cave entrance.
Several rocks block the entrance. But it's not much trouble for him. He takes out the vibration shovel placed on his thigh and begins to dig carefully. The stones roll to the side, revealing a rather small opening.
Before he can climb out, a violent roar erupts. Immediately after, a gust of wind comes from the left. He instinctively retreats, narrowly avoiding it. A huge claw swipes past the opening, crazily shattering the rocks."
Wilkens stares in astonishment at the cave entrance. "Damn it! How can there be a biological monster standing guard here?"
Indeed, outside crouches a bioengineered beast, obviously tending to its wounds. Hearing the sound of falling rocks, it naturally charges over.
Realizing that there is a cave here, and there is a living person inside, the monster becomes furious. It raises its claws, angrily tearing open, clearly wanting to rip open the cave and drag the man out to devour him.
Wilkens is speechless. He can only run down along the rocky slope. After running for a while, he looks back, and large chunks of stones fall behind him. If he doesn't run fast, he will be buried alive.
But who knows what other dangers are lurking below? As far as he knows, Halo Star is inhabited by even more deadly monsters. Wounded, with incomplete weapons, if there are still monsters waiting at the bottom of the cave, he's doomed!
It's terrible. His armor is damaged, the mini-detector can't activate advanced scanning, and he has to rely on luck.
Does he have any other choice?
He muttered a curse under his breath and sprinted down for about five to six hundred meters. Thankfully, the cave started to widen, offering more space and winding paths, meaning fewer rocks directly falling on his head.
But now, he began to worry about another reason. What if the rolling stones kept piling up, blocking the passage? He would eventually be trapped and buried!
He licked his lips and gave a bitter smile. Currently, his only hope was that the cave might have another way out...
With the help of the combat suit's night vision, he continuously drew a 3D route map. He kept drilling about 4 to 5 kilometers into the cave and still couldn't see the end.
By this point, his mood had actually calmed considerably.
Due to the extreme climate, there was no liquid water on the surface of Halo Star. However, reservoirs could be found underground.
In such a deep cave, the chances of finding drinking water were not small.
Finding a water source, usually accompanied by nutrient-rich moss as food, he could secure supplies and hide here for a week or even longer. It would accelerate his recovery, and when any lurking beasts left, he could attempt to slip out and signal the rescue satellite...
The sensor showed that the oxygen content here was slightly higher than on the surface, and the carbon dioxide content was extremely low, with no toxic gases. For someone with a fifth-level physique like him, the air was breathable.
Wilkens took off his helmet and continued forward...
After winding for more than 10 kilometers, his scanner now tracked a vertical depth exceeding 2 kilometers. He suddenly stopped in surprise. Turning a corner, a vast space unfolded before his eyes...
The cavernous space was extraordinarily vast, with a diameter easily exceeding 500 meters and a height of 200-300 meters, forming a domed ceiling. The dome seemed to contain some bioluminescent microorganisms or minerals, emitting an eerie blue glow that bathed the entire area in dim, hazy light. Wilkens discovered that, more captivating than the space itself, was something lurking at the center!
The shape of this creature was incredibly peculiar. At first glance, it resembled a catfish, with a complex and terrifying head.
The monster was enormous, measuring nearly three hundred meters in length, sixty meters wide at its thickest point, and over forty meters in height. It had ten pairs of irregular, saw-toothed, insect-like limbs, adorned with sharp spikes. The longest pair extended over 200 meters. Two massive spikes protruded from its back, resembling periscopes, ready to launch attacks from any angle.
If it weren't for the complete 3D reconstruction, Wilkens would never believe that such a bizarre creature existed.
What astonished him the most was that his lifeform scanner unequivocally showed that this creature was dead. The thing responsible for its demise—a shimmering little object, exuding a sinister metallic sheen—was deeply embedded in the thick armored skull of this colossal beast.