Chương 77: The Spider Queen

Li Qinwu decided to strike while the iron was hot and eliminate the Cave Spider threat once and for all, leading his troops deep into the cavernous abyss. Since the tunnels were large enough to accommodate Ogres, Li Qinwu had equipped Dang-Dang with three layers of heavy Crocodile-Derm armor. Holding a massive wooden shield in one hand and a heavy farming mattock in the other, Dang-Dang served as the vanguard. As they descended into the pitch-black void, the Goblins utilized their innate night vision.

Li Qinwu remained suspicious: the tunnel was wide enough for three heavy trucks to drive abreast; such a deliberate excavation suggested a grander purpose.

"Enemies ahead! Prepare to fire!!" At a sudden bend, a swarm of spiders erupted. Li Qinwu fired his flintlock first, followed by a volley from his System Soldiers. The 20mm lead balls demonstrated terrifying kinetic energy; even the spiders' thick carapaces were shredded like paper, their internal organs turned to mush by the massive cavitation effect. The soldiers employed a "one shooter, three loaders" rotation, maintaining a relentless curtain of fire.

However, the thick smoke from the black powder soon filled the enclosed space. Taking advantage of the low visibility, several spiders lunged at Dang-Dang. Their spear-like legs stabbed frantically, but they only managed to pierce the first two layers of his armor. Startled by the "face-huggers," Dang-Dang swung his mattock. With a series of sickening cracks, the spiders were pulverized. Against the Herculean strength of an Ogre "Nautilus," their venom and silk were utterly useless.

After five minutes, the vanguard was wiped out. Li Qinwu collected 4, 000 Denars, along with venom glands and silk. As they pushed deeper, he ordered his men to block the side tunnels with spider carcasses to prevent being flanked. As they descended, the variety of spiders increased, and Li Qinwu named them on the fly: This tale has been unlawfully lifted from Royal Road; report any instances of this story if found elsewhere. Wolf Spiders: Balanced hunters, fast with light armor.

Web Spiders: Bloated, unarmored silk-spinners. Shooting them was immensely satisfying as they popped like overripe fruit. Worker Spiders: Metallic-colored forelegs designed for tunneling and mining. Soldier Spiders: Tank-like heavy units with shield-like forelegs. It took two concentrated shots to crack their armor. Still, they remained "shatter-prone" before Dang-Dang's mattock. They burned through thick layers of webbing, revealing "cocoons" of preserved forest prey.

Li Qinwu realized they had reached the hive's inner sanctum. They soon encountered a chamber filled with Alien-like egg sacs. Li Qinwu fired a warning shot into one, but it triggered a hornet's nest. Over a hundred spiders, including a dozen Soldier Spiders, surged forward.

"Steady retreat!!" Li Qinwu remained calm, pulling a demolition charge from his storage. He set a 20-second fuse and tossed it into the egg chamber before leading a tactical sprint back. BOOM!! The massive explosion shook the mountain to its foundations. Dust and debris nearly buried the Goblins. They scrambled out of the tunnel, coughing and gasping for air. Three hours later, once the dust had settled, Li Qinwu returned. He found over a hundred spiders writhing on the ground, disoriented and flailing.

Some were even ramming into walls. Li Qinwu had a realization: spiders rely on sensing vibrations. The sheer magnitude of the explosion had essentially shattered their sensory organs, giving them a magical equivalent of "shell shock." Exploiting this weakness, he ordered his men to perform target practice, upgrading 60 System Soldiers to Tier 3. As the troop prepared to enter the final chamber, a clear, frightened female voice rang out abruptly in Li Qinwu's mind:"Stop!

Do not come any closer, or I will kill you and turn you into my food!!" Li Qinwu was startled and realized Gobu-Spear had heard it too. They had found the source. When Li Qinwu pulled out another demolition charge, the voice cracked, rising into a panicked shriek: "Ah! You bastard! Don't take that thing out! Put it away! Or I'll melt your bones with venom, waaaah... Stay back, I'm showing my fangs!!" Amused by the hollow threat, Li Qinwu pushed through the final passage.

As they entered a gargantuan dome, they were met by a creature two stories tall, its carapace etched with eerie red patterns and its brow adorned with hundreds of blood-red compound eyes. It was visibly trembling. This was—the Spider Queen.