Chapter 137 Another Mountain

After exiting that tunnel, Feng Bujue and his teammates found themselves facing another high mountain.

The mountain's slope was generally gentle, and a river flowed down its side.

Even from the foot of the mountain, they could see many Honghu Falcon (Red Falcon) bunkers and artillery emplacements along the ascent, as well as some patrolling sentries.

Of course, obstacles of this level were nothing to Feng Bujue and his team.

In fact, for a commando team like theirs, this kind of terrain was the most suitable for operations.

The four of them made their way up the mountain, taking out one sentry post after another, and eliminating dozens of Honghu Falcon soldiers.

Finally, at the top of a waterfall, they saw a mini-boss...

This mini-boss looked quite imposing, with a head the size of a truck cab and a lizard-like appearance. It also had two huge tentacles that whipped around like whips. Besides that...there wasn't much else...

Because this mini-boss had no body, its head and tentacles were parasitic on the mountain rock. Below the rock on which it was parasitic was a large metal door connecting to the mountain body.

When faced with this kind of enemy, Feng Bujue naturally took on the task of probing.

He charged forward alone, using his superhuman speed and reflexes to play with the mini-boss for more than two minutes. Then, he returned to the safety of his teammates as if taking a stroll.

"Alright, let me explain the tactics." When Brother Jue returned, he began to explain the strategy without even panting.

After explaining the battle plan to the other three, the four of them charged out together.

The tricky thing about this mini-boss was that its attack methods were quite comprehensive. Its tentacles could directly sweep at enemies physically. It could also spew out fireballs about a meter in diameter from its mouth, which had a slight explosive effect. In addition, the tips of its tentacles could also launch small fireballs that didn't travel very fast.

Dealing with this monster alone would indeed be quite tiring.

However, cooperation among the four made things much easier...

Feng Bujue's arrangement was for him to restrain the head at close range, dodging fireballs while shooting at the monster's mouth.

Isaac and Lightning Head ran to either side of the Boss, attacking from about ten meters away from the tentacles' physical attack range. In this way...they only needed to pay attention to the slow-moving small fireballs that might appear on their side.

The Bearded Man with the small cannon was the most relaxed. Because the selected weapon was very heavy, his mobility was poor, but his firepower and range were not to be underestimated. Brother Jue assigned him the job of providing fire support from the rear, basically just shooting at the head.

And so...the four spread out their formation and began a barrage of attacks without saying a word.

The battle progressed faster than they had expected. After three minutes of fighting, the Boss couldn't hold on any longer. After letting out a muffled wail, it actually...exploded.

This could be considered one of the characteristics of Contra. The final boss had to explode to signify its demise.

As the mini-boss died, the metal door below the rock also exploded, revealing another mountain tunnel...

"This should be the entrance to the fourth level," Feng Bujue muttered as he looked at the tunnel. He then turned to look at Isaac and the others. "Do you guys want to rest for a bit?"

"No need." The Bearded Man, who was walking over from a distance, replied as he walked. "I'm not tired at all."

Before he could finish speaking, Lightning Head chimed in, "I'm not tired either."

"Oh?" Seeing this, Feng Bujue seemed to realize something. He then looked at Isaac. "So...you don't feel tired either?"

Isaac shook his head. "No."

"Hmm...I see." Brother Jue pondered for a moment. "I understand..."

Seeing Feng Bujue's reaction, Isaac also seemed to understand something. He took the opportunity to say, "Mr. Feng, I was just about to ask you...Starting from the beach, we've crossed a coconut grove, attacked a camp, cleared a tunnel full of enemies, and now we've fought our way to this mountain. During this time, we haven't rested once, or even had a sip of water..." He paused for half a second. "Yet, even now, I don't feel tired at all...Isn't that a bit strange?"

"Indeed, that's not normal, but..." Feng Bujue replied in a relaxed tone, "I've been thinking about it for a while now...This is most likely caused by the dimensional shift. In simple terms...this phenomenon is because you've become something like 'game characters'."

"What do you mean?" The Bearded Man interjected. "Are you saying...I've become Mario?"

"Something like that, but you can't eat a mushroom and double in size," Feng Bujue replied. "You also can't jump several meters high like the protagonist in Contra, or run like Sonic...You just possess some of the characteristics of game characters, such as—not having to worry about stamina."

"Haha! That's great, I can kill to my heart's content." The Bearded Man seemed quite happy to hear that.

But Isaac was different, he considered more things. "Then...after we destroy the Pi Tower, can we return to our original dimension...or rather...can we turn back into humans?"

"I don't know." Feng Bujue didn't plan to deceive him. He spoke the truth. "All I know is...after the Pi Tower is destroyed, my 'mission' will be completed, and I will be transported to another dimension by a higher power. As for you...although I can try to use my abilities to help you return, I can't guarantee that it will be successful."

"So..." Isaac continued, "Technically speaking, the versions of us in the real world are likely already three dead men, right?"

He seemed quite calm when he asked this question.

"Yes." Feng Bujue replied in a similar tone.

"Hmph...whatever." The Bearded Man said, "The moment those mechanical bastards killed my daughter, I considered myself dead. As long as I can take down the Pi Tower, I'll go to hell if I have to."

"Heh..." Lightning Head chuckled bitterly. "I don't mind either, I've long been prepared to sacrifice myself for the rebel army."

Two seconds later, Isaac looked up and looked at his comrades beside him.

He didn't say anything similar, just stared at them for a few seconds, then said, "Let's go."

…………

The mountain tunnel on the fourth level was basically an enhanced version of the previous tunnel.

The ground here was red, and the color of the defense walls was changed to green. The number of soldiers and defense walls in the tunnel had increased, and not only the large machines at the end of the level, but even the defense walls along the way adopted a multi-energy core design.

However, because of their previous experience, the four of them passed through this enhanced tunnel faster. The mini-boss at the end of the level didn't cause them too much trouble.

In about fifteen minutes, they cleared this area and entered the next level.

After exiting the tunnel, the four found themselves in a forest covered in white snow. In reality, it was naturally impossible for "passing through a mountain cave to feel like you've arrived on the other side of the earth," but in the game world—don't worry about these details.

From this level onward, the Honghu Falcon's combat power had finally been upgraded to a level that could pose a threat to Brother Jue and the others.

First of all, the main enemy in this area was a powerful red-armored soldier that was stronger than the green-clothed soldiers in the tunnel. The marksmanship, firepower, and speed of these soldiers were on a completely different level from the previous enemies. Even Lightning Head admitted that these guys' skill had exceeded the average level of their rebel army soldiers.

Secondly, from the moment they entered this area, Feng Bujue and the others were constantly being attacked by grenades fired from unknown directions. Those grenades all came from a great distance away. Although their speed was slow and their trajectory was obvious, the annoying thing was...these grenades were endless, and their launch coordinates could not be identified. The four of them could only keep moving under the pressure of these grenades, because they would be blown up if they stopped.

Under such pressure, they also had to face two new enemies that appeared for the first time in this area: one was an elite Honghu Falcon soldier who controlled a rapid-fire turret, and the other was an armored vehicle.

It could be said that at this level, the difficulty of the battle had truly risen to a new level. Without the ability to use skills, even Feng Bujue wasn't confident that he could clear the level without taking damage on his own.

Fortunately...he wasn't alone at the moment. Even if these three rebel army NPCs couldn't compare to Brother Jue, they were still at the "Contra" level of combat power.

The four of them worked together, and after thirty minutes of fierce fighting, they finally reached the end of the level with some close calls.

Disproportionate to the difficulty of the level itself, the boss at the end of this level was ridiculously weak...

Basically, it was a small mechanical fortress floating in the air. It looked quite advanced, and its attack mode seemed to have more than one or two types, but...it was extremely fragile.

When the four saw that thing descending from the sky, they almost instinctively raised their weapons and fired a volley of shots at the sky. Unexpectedly, after firing this first wave, the little Boss started emitting black smoke and fell diagonally from the sky while exploding.

Perhaps due to its size, or perhaps it had sacrificed overly thick armor in order to have floating capabilities, in short...this Boss's defense was so low that it was almost non-existent. It didn't even fire a single shot or shell before it was finished off.

After dealing with this particularly silly thing, Brother Jue and the others continued to move forward. This time, what awaited them wasn't a tunnel built inside a mountain, but a huge, completely man-made building.

According to the change in the map area, this should be the sixth level, the legendary place that could enter the "Underwater Eight Levels."

Although Feng Bujue also knew that the Underwater Eight Levels were just a "rumor," he couldn't help but feel curious now that he had really arrived here. After all, the task bar clearly and unambiguously stated [Enter the "Underwater Eight Levels" of the Contra area], and he had no reason not to try it.

Therefore, before entering that building, Feng Bujue first stopped Isaac and the other three, intending to explain to them the so-called "Underwater Eight Levels" setting, and to have them pay attention to a "special" Honghu Falcon soldier in order to fulfill the entry conditions required by the rumor.

In the end, even Brother Jue didn't expect that the three people in front of him were very familiar with the story of the "Underwater Eight Levels." Even the Bearded Man, who wasn't a player, knew the story.

Since that was the case, things were even easier. Feng Bujue simply used his identity as a "savior" to give them a simple pep talk, and persuaded them to complete this task together.

…………

After the discussion was settled, the four entered the sixth level.

The interior of the building looked like a processing plant. Gray metal platforms of varying heights were covered with green conveyor belts, and blue pipes connected everything. Basically, each platform was equipped with several red indicator lights that emitted the light of energy cores, used as lighting equipment.

Soon after rushing in, Brother Jue and the others discovered...that there weren't many enemies in this level. It could be said that it took the path of "less but better." Apart from the powerful red-armored soldiers and rapid-fire turrets from the previous level, there were no other types of enemy troops in the factory.

The four fought as they advanced, and after about ten minutes, they arrived at an area with many flame throwers.

These mechanisms...had relatively obvious patterns. They could be passed by observing them a little, and didn't pose much of a threat, but they were just annoying.

After spending a little time, Feng Bujue and the others passed through this area and arrived at a fairly spacious space.

At this time, beneath their feet was a glowing conveyor belt that was constantly changing colors, and all around them was a vast expanse of darkness.

The four all knew that they were already close to the end of the sixth level, but...

"What's going on? We've gotten this far, but we still haven't seen that special soldier," the Bearded Man couldn't help but mutter.

"Yeah...it's very strange," Feng Bujue agreed. "We haven't encountered a soldier running up from behind from beginning to end, and the last enemy we killed was a rapid-fire turret gunner. That guy was very far from here, and there was a trap array consisting of flame throwers in between. Even if he was allowed to run, he might not be able to make it over...In other words, in reality, this place doesn't have the conditions to trigger the so-called 'Underwater Eight Levels'."

Just as the two were talking, the conveyor belt beneath their feet carried them to the end of the level.

At that moment, the door of a metal warehouse in front of them slowly rolled up, and heavy footsteps came from the darkness behind the door.

Just as everyone thought they were about to see the robotic Boss at the end of the sixth level, an anomaly occurred...

Coming into the light was not a machine warrior that was four or five meters tall, but...an unidentified object with a very strange shape.

Its appearance looked like a mass of pixel graphics that had been corrupted by a bug. Its lower body was two yellow legs that resembled those of a Honghu Falcon soldier, while its upper body looked like a torn-open, slanted big mouth, with a width that was more exaggerated than a human body.

"Ho~ so that's how it is..." As soon as Feng Bujue saw that thing, he knew what to do. He immediately turned around and shouted at the three people behind him, "Everyone...follow me!"