"Beast tide?" Yu Lian asked, puzzled.
He had heard the term before, but it felt new in this context.
"Yes, a beast tide! But it's really not very scientific!" Xia Xiake said, full of worry.
...
Yu Lian stared at him expressionlessly.
Unfortunately, this veteran Hunter, the Captain of the Red Maple Factory's self-defense force, had never been a soldier.
Yu Lian's stare made him awkwardly chuckle, unsure how to explain in detail.
Fortunately, Feifei, who had conducted a preliminary investigation of the Far Shore Star Region's border defenses during her internship, explained: "I remember that the beast groups in the Great Eastern Plains occasionally form very large beast tides, attacking Lumina people's tribes.
This is what's called a beast tide, right?"
Lumina Planet is not a typical Earth-like planet; its ocean area is only about forty percent of the surface, yet the climate is not dry.
This is because it has an extremely vast underground water system, or rather, an underground ocean, which is more accurate.
Because of this, its surface vegetation is also quite dense.
Half of its terrain is mountains and forests, while the other half is extremely fertile grasslands.
Furthermore, the oxygen content of this planet is significantly higher than that of Earth, or the homeworlds of the Alliance and the Empire, leading to the emergence of larger Lumina people.
Similarly, the wild animals are naturally also quite large.
One of the dominant predators on Lumina Planet's surface is an animal called the Lumina Dinosaur Bird.
There are at least twenty to thirty biological subspecies, but they are mainly divided into two types: Mountain Dinosaur Birds and Plains Dinosaur Birds.
They are not the strongest predators on this planet, but they are certainly the most famous, because everyone is very afraid of their existence.
We all know that carnivorous animals theoretically cannot form overly large groups, but on Lumina Planet, this is not the case.
Preliminary estimates by biologists suggest that the largest Dinosaur Bird flock on this planet can reach over two hundred individuals.
They will hunt larger herbivore groups and also fight with other Dinosaur Bird flocks over territory, giving it a bit of a tribal warfare feel.
If these large birds hadn't yet started using tools or writing, they would probably have been considered Wisdom creatures.
However, in some special circumstances, bird flocks would occasionally be controlled by some mysterious force, gathering into even larger flocks, driving massive herbivores like an army of beasts, attacking nearby Lumina people's strongholds.
This is what the Lumina people recorded as a beast tide.
"Yes, our ancestors believed this was a way to Balance things," Beikai said in a long, drawn-out tone, sounding particularly like a pretentious charlatan.
Yu Lian chuckled inwardly, thinking, *Does anyone still dare to mention Balance in front of me?*
Seeing his apprentice Babalu looking at him with a reproachful gaze, old Beikai could only say helplessly, "These are just the old sayings."
Indeed, these carnivorous terrestrial birds are only at the top of the wild animal food chain, but above them exist Wisdom creatures, which are the Lumina people.
It's worth noting that Dinosaur Bird meat is truly nutritious and delicious, and naturally, it's one of the Lumina people's most important hunting targets.
Thus, Dinosaur Bird flocks, guided by some unscientific will, would gather and transform into avengers.
This, perhaps, is what is meant by Balance?
"But our Maple City is on the edge of the Grass Sea Great Plains, not within the habitat range of large bird flocks.
Moreover... there have been several beast tides in the Grass Sea over the past decade, but they always tried to stay away from our area.
This time, however, they are indeed heading in our direction," Xia Xiake added.
Yu Lian rubbed his chin, wanting to touch lao dao (old blade) without a lollipop, but after Feifei gave him a sidelong glance, he could only give up.
"Is this beast tide you mentioned very large?" Yu Lian asked.
"It's not a matter of how powerful it is, the scale is huge! There are at least a thousand Dinosaur Birds alone, and I even saw Great Rock Tigers!"
Compared to Dinosaur Birds, which rely on sheer numbers to dominate the food chain, the Great Rock Tiger is a typical lone wolf.
Its appearance is somewhat like an oversized saber-toothed tiger.
Its hide and flesh are thick, but its fur isn't particularly dense, so it's not vulnerable to fire.
Its fangs are exceptionally sharp and so hard that it's difficult to call them calcium-based; they can literally cleave metal and stone.
Since its teeth are of this caliber, the strength of its bones and body goes without saying, doesn't it?
This is an animal that has already reached the Phantom Beast level, with combat power absolutely no less than the Gravel Dragon encountered in New Yumen.
Even Dinosaur Bird flocks that know "military tactics," if they are medium to small flocks of under a hundred, would have to retreat three paces upon encountering a Great Rock Tiger.
Yu Lian frowned slightly, immediately thinking of some very unpleasant experiences.
"Are you sure it's just a beast tide, and nothing else?
For example, did you see any strange... well, creatures that are somewhere between beasts and insects?"
Yu Lian spoke in a calm and composed tone.
He tried his best to hide his emotions so as not to alarm everyone, but Feifei still subtly glanced at him.
Xia Xiake thought seriously for a moment, then shook his head, saying, "No."
"Are you sure there's nothing?"
"Truly nothing," Mr. Hunter said earnestly.
"I am very familiar with the Great Plains to the east, and after discovering the beast tide, I observed for several days.
I definitely didn't see any of the anomalous animals you mentioned.
The scale of this beast tide is indeed very large, but it truly consists only of native animals from the Grass Sea."
Mr. Xia Xiake was, after all, a veteran Hunter, so Yu Lian trusted his words relatively well, which allowed him to relax slightly.
He then thought of another possibility, but this was only a conjecture and required further proof.
Before that, he absolutely could not let down his guard.
"Have the city's self-defense force assemble, and have the young and strong also begin to gather," Yu Lian began to instruct.
"I've already given the order; they can assemble in fifteen minutes at most.
You just need to give the command," Babalu said.
His expression seemed a bit solemn, as if he was contemplating something.
This is the good thing about industrial society.
Workers are inherently organized and disciplined; in this regard, they are even much stronger than those old mercenaries who claim to be "battle-hardened."
"Are there any weapons in the warehouse?" Yu Lian asked again.
"There are over two hundred rifles, three phase-wave cannons, ten power exoskeletons, and ten armored vehicles," Xia Xiake said.
This armament was similar to what was at Station 14 in New Yumen, but Maple City was a city of over two hundred thousand people!
"Originally, we wouldn't even have this much armament.
However, when the Arsenal was dismantled, not everything in the warehouse was moved out, so we kept it, and it's been well-maintained."
No matter how well-maintained, it's still goods from over a decade ago!
What about the city's automatic defense facilities?
Yu Lian was about to ask this, but then stopped.
The city could barely maintain power for the factory now, couldn't even guarantee heating and air conditioning for residential areas, let alone automatic sentry guns and the like.
He had heard it from Babalu.
Over the past ten years, the biggest dangers Maple Factory encountered, aside from a small number of sand bandits, were the pirates who were wiped out by the vast ocean of people's war last time.
The workers must have shut down the city's automatic defense equipment, and it's even very likely they dismantled the sentry guns and such to use as production parts.
"I'll notify the General Headquarters and ask them to send reinforcements quickly," Feifei said.
The General Headquarters would certainly send reinforcements, but the number would likely not be too many.
They would probably only send one or two transport shuttles and a small squad of soldiers, picking up himself and Feifei, and considering their mission accomplished.
After all, Red Maple Factory and Maple City were already forgotten, lawless zones.
The garrison, primarily composed of New Seville residents, and the Marine Corps, which belonged to the central government, had no obligation to them.
Compared to that, asking Lilia for help might even be more useful.
In any case, they couldn't rely on urban defense.
There were still a considerable number of elderly and children here, and the production line they had so painstakingly set up was still running.
If a few Dinosaur Birds or wild yaks were to charge into the city and factory areas, the consequences would be unimaginable.
"Use our authority to request monitoring equipment from the space station above.
I need to know the movement of the beast tide at all times," Yu Lian said.
Feifei nodded, already starting to operate.
Monitoring from outer space could, of course, track the direction, quantity, and even the fur of a single beast within the beast tide.
However, Old Beikai and Xia Xiake had just said that the appearance of this beast tide was very unscientific.
In this universe, if it's unscientific, then it's very likely mystical.
When it comes to that, it's not something a very scientific outer space probe can discover.
"There should still be usable transport shuttles in the city, right?" Yu Lian asked.
"There are two Seagull-class low-altitude shuttles," Buska replied.
Normally, he and his companions maintained these things.
This clever mechanic quickly guessed Yu Lian's meaning and hurriedly said, "But they're not military-grade; they don't have much armor or firepower."
"Being able to fly is enough!"
Yu Lian stood up as he spoke, then looked at Feifei, trying to figure out how to phrase his words, but she said, "Don't worry, I'm not going with you.
I'll stay in the city and stabilize the rear for you!"
She then said to Babalu, "We cannot directly rely on the urban area for defense!
We must set up defensive positions outside the city!
Please give me a list of how many people you have and what engineering equipment you possess as soon as possible."
To meet such a straightforward, unpretentious, and decisive girl, it really is my luck!
"I have a ready-made one here," Stoker said.
Seeing everyone look at him, the graduate student quickly added, "...Th-this, ever since we resumed production, I've had everyone make lists of all materials and equipment every day, and they must be updated daily."
Having a group of reliable teammates, perhaps, is even more fortunate?
Yu Lian took a rifle from the warehouse and, to his great satisfaction, found over a dozen egg-sized impact grenades in a sealed box in a corner.
He didn't wear a power exoskeleton.
He had already reached Three Rings, and such "civilian equipment" no longer provided any boost to his abilities—of course, if he had an Emblem Machine, that would be another matter.
The Seagull-class low-altitude airship was a passenger and cargo transport, with a fairly spacious interior.
The airship's maneuverability was also quite good, simple and clear; anyone who could drive a large heavy-duty truck could certainly pilot this airship.
The pilot was one of Xia Xiake's self-defense team members, indeed a former heavy-duty truck driver.
Xia Xiake, along with a few fully armed and capable team members, boarded the airship.
Yu Lian sat in the co-pilot's seat, closing his eyes and remaining silent.
The others thought he was resting his eyes and dared not disturb him, but in fact, he was establishing a mental link with Shi AA in the sleeve test tube.
"So, you've lived on this planet for so long, do you have any suggestions for the current situation?"
"I'm a mollusk, and I'm not really familiar with these mammals.
Besides, we've always lived in our own base, so we're even less familiar with them," the slug creature said.
"..." Yu Lian didn't speak, but the emotion he transmitted already conveyed his attitude.
"...Alright, previously, Count Salwen also tried to find new hosts for us.
Dinosaur Birds, armored crocodiles, and of course, Great Rock Tigers.
Because these animals have sufficiently strong physiques and also possess a certain degree of intelligence, their brains still have a certain capacity."
Yu Lian knew, even without Shi AA continuing, that the experiment had failed.
If it had succeeded, the universe might have seen self-walking, human-loving, bio-tech-enthusiastic saber-toothed tigers a hundred years ago.
"...If I must say something, Your Excellency, these large animals on Lumina Planet, especially the Great Rock Tiger, actually have a very typical sensitive constitution."
Yu Lian knew what the other party meant, but the way it was phrased made him uncomfortable.
"It can be considered a Phantom Beast; its physique is very sensitive to psionic energy, and its brain possesses a certain level of intelligence and is well-developed.
It is also very sensitive to mental perception, so it can fully accept our consciousness sharing.
Unfortunately, the development of this animal's brain is still limited, unable to accept too many complex commands, and thus cannot truly serve as a stable host... So, what kind of body can truly sustain our existence?
Indeed, it requires more, more thorough research!
Your Excellency, if you can provide me with such conditions, we will serve you.
This is the promise of scholars from the previous epoch!"
"Get to the point! Don't beat around the bush!"
"...Alright, I really only know this much."
This guy shouldn't be lying, after all, the man and the worm were communicating through a consciousness link.
In such a situation, anyone who could lie would have to be a master-level mystic expert specializing in the soul domain.
Although the Seagull airship was a very typical civilian vehicle, its flight speed was still good, and in just two or three minutes, it left the Red Maple area and crossed the mountains.
The scenery below changed from a forest of crimson trees, like a morning glow, to an endless green plain, stretching beyond Yu Lian's sight.
This was indeed a magnificent sight, astonishing even the well-traveled Yu Lian.
He felt as if he had truly arrived above an ocean made of endless wild grass.
And it was true.
This place, called the "Grass Sea Plains" by the Lumina people and simply "Eastern Great Plains" by the Red Maple Factory workers, had a total area larger than three Mediterranean Seas combined, and it was the most expansive plain on this planet, which was primarily composed of grasslands and forests.
Moreover, just by looking at the lushness of these grasslands and the dense rivers, one could tell that the soil here was actually very fertile.
*Not planting crops here would make me unworthy of being a Serisian,* Yu Lian thought.
However, even if they were to farm here, that would be a matter for later.
Yu Lian soon felt the vigorous and wild life force emerging from the distant horizon, like a roaring tsunami.
It wasn't until this moment that Xia Xiake belatedly shouted a reminder: "Captain, it's over there! That's the direction of the beast tide!"
