The sound of gunfire and explosions from the courtyard was intense.
It seemed that the soldiers didn't have an easy time retreating to the Doomsday Fortress.
Lucas glanced in the direction of the courtyard and shifted his focus to the forest.
The fire in the forest was still spreading, illuminating the sky here.
Amidst the billowing smoke, Lucas faintly saw the silhouette of the insects.
Their movement seemed slower, quite different from their previous dominant and aggressive behavior.
The insects had been roasted by the intense fire and thick smoke...
Lucas estimated the direction from which the insects would emerge and crouched on the ground.
He only had one chance to strike.
If he missed, Lucas would have to run.
The six insect legs were not to be underestimated; a casual strike could be deadly.
The infected dog, serving as bait, remained quiet, crouching with its ears raised, ready to pounce.
As soon as Lucas saw the silhouette of the insect, the infected dog stood up, barking madly in the direction where the insect would come out.
Indeed, the low-level, primitive red insects lacked intelligence.
Perhaps their anger was subdued in the sea of fire, as they suddenly accelerated upon seeing the infected dog, leaping fiercely about ten meters away from it.
The insect legs swung in the air, showing great momentum.
At this moment, Lucas was about ten meters away from the infected dog.
However, he had already crouched to the ground at the first sight of the insect.
The insect's attention was fully focused on the infected dog, allowing Lucas to quickly get up from the ground and rush towards the dog's position.
The moment the insect jumped in the air was the best opportunity.
Just one strike!
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The only strike!
Lucas had a sense of recklessness as he ran, not thinking about anything.
He dragged the saw made from insect legs on the ground, ready to assume any attacking posture.
The airborne insect noticed Lucas, but apart from swinging its legs, it couldn't do much.
That's exactly what Lucas wanted.
His sudden appearance would surely make the insect panic with its limited intelligence.
At this moment, Lucas had already determined the spot where the insect would land. He crouched down, holding the saw made from insect legs with both hands, positioned vertically.
As long as Lucas' judgment was correct, the insect would either be fatally pierced or suffer a gut-wrenching fate.
Using the insect's strongest and hardest forelimb to stab its most vulnerable abdomen, the result was something to anticipate.
The infected dog, being very cooperative, made way for Lucas, growling with its eyes fixed on the falling insect, seemingly ready to take a bite.
From the moment the insect leaped to the moment Lucas ran and assumed his position, the entire process was short.
Just as the insect was about to be within a meter of Lucas, he swung the insect leg forward, rolled to the side in a somersault, and without looking back, rushed forward a few steps.
In the blink of an eye, just as Lucas took his first step, he heard the piercing scream of the insect behind him.
Lucas didn't dare to look back and ran at least fifty meters before finally stopping.
The insect's scream was now much sharper than before, and Lucas felt like his eardrums were about to burst.
When Lucas turned around, he saw the infected dog with its mouth clamped onto one side of the insect's head.
"This..."
Witnessing this scene, Lucas was speechless.
However, now, it doesn't matter.
As expected by Lucas, the insect was pierced by the saw made from its own legs, not in the abdomen but slightly below the head.
The saw made from insect legs resembled a needle, protruding from the insect's back, penetrating through the exoskeleton.
This also caused the infected dog to bite the other side of the insect's head, making it impossible for the insect to retaliate.
The six insect legs flailed about, appearing more like a frenzy before dying, without any semblance of coordination.
The infected dog easily dodged the insect legs with agility, but when Lucas tried to approach slowly, the insect's head was bitten off halfway.
This time, the insect's screams ceased, and the speed at which the six legs swung slowed down significantly.
The insect wouldn't survive.
Lucas didn't approach any closer, standing a few meters away from the insect, watching the infected dog ferociously tear at the insect.
Several minutes passed, and the area around the insect's body was covered in green blood and mucus. The entire body remained motionless, only trembling occasionally.
The infected dog's hatred towards the insect seemed boundless, almost distorting its shape with its bites.
What remained were the hard parts of the exoskeleton that the infected dog couldn't chew through.
At this point, the infected dog stopped and looked at Lucas, as if waiting for his action.
Lucas swiftly pulled out the saw covered in blood and mucus, not caring about the disgust, and quickly pierced holes in the insect's body. In less than ten minutes, he obtained an insect nucleus.
[Task completed, reward: one red capsule.]
[Host can use the insect nucleus to repair the bus's power system.]
[Host can exchange red insect shells for one red capsule.]
When Lucas held the insect nucleus in his hand, the voice of the system rang out.
After all the struggle, the task was finally completed.
This task from the system was initially somewhat vague.
At this moment, Lucas finally understood.
Understanding the abnormality of the infected dog and other things wasn't the main point, as Lucas still didn't know why the infected dog's eyes didn't turn gray and it directly became a dumb dog.
The key to this task should have been gaining the infected dog's acknowledgment or trust.
At least now, Lucas noticed that the infected dog's gaze towards him had softened slightly.
The current appearance of the man and the dog had an indescribable flavor.
The infected dog didn't come closer to Lucas, but it also didn't turn away.
Lucas wanted to call the infected dog a couple of times but ultimately didn't say anything.
After surviving for eleven years in the apocalypse, Lucas had a strong guard against anything in his heart.
If the infected dog suddenly turned hostile and bit him, he would be at a great loss.
Temporarily leaving the infected dog aside, Lucas's thoughts returned to the system.
Two red capsules plus repairing the bus's power system.
This reward made Lucas feel like he had won the jackpot.
Just a moment ago, he was fighting desperately for the insect nucleus and completing the task, and now he suddenly became rich.
Such a drastic change couldn't keep Lucas calm, even with his mindset.
He would open the capsules later; after all, the feeling of unboxing was beautiful, so he would save it for last.
Soon, the system panel popped up, and the blueprint of the bus appeared before Lucas's eyes.
When Lucas finished examining the bus blueprint, he felt another surge of joy.
Compared to the last time he saw it, this blueprint had at least ten more green "+" signs.
In other words, there were more than ten additional functions that could be added to the bus!