EBE Chapter 331 Anomaly
Chapter 331 Anomaly
Lin Yeming instantly understood the other party's intention. He didn't engage the enemy in front of him, but instead retreated rapidly, simultaneously raising his gun and firing a series of shots at the Manonian sniper on the bridge who was searching for a new firing position. The specially made firearm no longer fired ordinary energy bullets, but blue light shuttles with subtle arcs of electricity, moving at extremely high speeds, forcing the sniper to constantly jump and dodge between the steel beams of the bridge, making it impossible for him to aim steadily.
The battle escalated rapidly. Amidst the ruins, beams of energy crisscrossed and danced, flashes of light from explosions illuminating the menacing alien figures and the resolute faces of the human team members. The Manonians' technology and physical prowess clearly far surpassed that of ordinary Earth creatures. Their carapaces effectively deflected or weakened parts of the Hyperion's gun damage, their movements were ghostly, and their teamwork was impeccable—the snipers on the bridge consistently managed to disrupt Lina's sniping at crucial moments or provide cover for their comrades below.
"This won't do!" Shinjo shouted into the communications channel. His arm had been cut open by the bone blade, his combat suit was torn, and blood was seeping through. "Their shells are too hard!"
Daigo was also panting. Although his fighting skills were excellent, he seemed hesitant and clumsy against an alien enemy with superior strength and speed, narrowly escaping death several times. Rena's sniping was repeatedly disrupted, making it difficult for her to deliver a decisive blow.
Lin Yeming's eyes were icy, his mind racing. He noticed that while the two Manonians were powerful, their attack patterns seemed somewhat...overly fixated on the container at his waist. Especially the one wielding the bone blade, who repeatedly risked breaking through the barrage of fire, his target being the container.
A plan took shape instantly.
"Lina, listen to my command, fire at the third crossbeam on the left side of the middle of the bridge. Shinjo, Daigo, in three seconds focus fire on the guy with the knife at the two o'clock position. Don't conserve ammo, suppress him!" Lin Yeming gave the orders quickly while dodging the slashes of the bone blades and the occasional green beams of light coming from above.
"understand!"
"Three, two, one! Now!"
Lina subtly adjusted her gun and pulled the trigger. The beam shot out, not aimed at the Manon alien, but at the bridge structure point designated by Lin Yeming. That area, already weakened by age and the aftershocks of battle, groaned under the weight of the high-energy beam, and a large chunk of concrete, along with reinforcing steel, collapsed, crashing directly into the area where the sniper was positioned on the bridge.
The sniper was forced to move and dodge significantly, temporarily losing his shooting angle.
At the same moment, Shinjo and Daigo roared, unleashing all their firepower at the Manon alien wielding the bone blade. The dense barrage of energy projectiles formed a brief web of death, forcing it to retreat repeatedly, wielding its bone blade to block, unable to advance for a time.
It's this fleeting gap!
Lin Yeming suddenly made a move that surprised everyone—he yanked the containment container off his waist, but instead of protecting it tightly, he used all his strength to throw it forcefully towards the dark recess behind the bridge pier!
The silver-gray container traced an arc as it flew into the darkness.
"No—!" The Manon alien wielding the bone blade let out a sharp, piercing, inhuman scream filled with anger and panic. It no longer cared about Shinjo and Daigo's firepower, and even risked using its body to withstand several beams of light. Its carapace shattered, and dark green fluid splattered as it frantically rushed towards the direction from which the container had flown.
Its attention was completely drawn to the beacon.
The moment Lin Yeming threw the container, he sprang into action like a cheetah poised for battle. He didn't chase after the container, nor did he pay attention to the enemies rushing towards it. Instead, he pushed his speed to the limit and charged towards the Manonian sniper, who had moved to the edge of the bridge to avoid falling rocks and was temporarily isolated and helpless!
His goal from the very beginning was to eliminate this most threatening remote attacker!
The specially made pistol was raised, and the blue light on the gun suddenly became dazzling. Lin Yeming pulled the trigger, and this time it did not fire scattered light beams, but a solid, deep blue beam of light, only the thickness of a finger, silent yet sharp enough to pierce through everything.
The Manonian sniper had barely steadied itself when its compound eyes caught the deadly blue light. It frantically tried to raise its tubular weapon to parry or retaliate, but it was too late.
puff!
The deep blue beam of light sliced through the carapace in the center of its compound eyes like a hot knife through butter, exiting from the back of its head. All its movements froze instantly; the weapon in its hand slipped from its grasp and bounced a few times on the bridge surface. The green glow of its compound eyes quickly dimmed, its slender body swayed, tilted forward, and plummeted from the high edge of the bridge, crashing heavily onto the rubble below with a dull thud, before becoming still.
One strike, one kill!
"It's resolved!" Lin Yeming's calm voice came through.
Almost simultaneously, another piercing scream and a series of chaotic sounds came from below the bridge pier.
"The container is empty! We've been tricked!" That was the desperate and furious roar of the Manon alien wielding the bone blade. It had obviously checked the container immediately after pouncing into the depression, only to find it empty. The real beacon crystal had already been silently transferred by Lin Yeming to a safer, concealed device when he left the underground space.
In that instant when it was distracted by shock and rage, Shinjo and Daigo, who had been waiting for a long time, along with Rena who had readjusted her sniping angle, delivered the final, fatal blow.
Energy beams and particle beams struck its body simultaneously from three directions. Its hard carapace shattered completely under the saturation attack, sending dark green fluid and charred carapace fragments flying everywhere. It staggered, its bone blades hanging limply, and finally crashed to the ground. The green light in its compound eyes flickered a few times like a candle in the wind before going out completely.
Silence returned to the ruins, broken only by the faint hum of overloaded energy weapons and the distant, indistinct sounds of the city. A night breeze swept through, dispersing the smoke and the faint, sweet, burnt alien fluid odor.
Lin Yeming leaped off the edge of the bridge and landed steadily. Shinjo, Daigo, and Rena joined him. All four bore the marks of battle, but their eyes remained sharp as they warily scanned their surroundings to confirm that there were no further threats.
"Are you all alright?" Lin Yeming asked, his gaze sweeping over the team members.
"It's just a scratch, nothing serious." Xincheng grinned and pressed the wound on his arm.
"I'm fine too." Daigo caught his breath and looked at Lin Yeming, his eyes filled with a mixture of lingering fear and admiration. The tactical deployment and execution just now were precise and daring, done in a flash.
Lina holstered her rifle, slid down from the high point, and nodded to indicate that she was unharmed.
Lin Yeming walked to the corpse of the short, stocky Manong alien, squatted down, and picked up the empty, silver-gray containment container that had been thrown to him from beside the bone blade it was clutching. Then, he took out the dark blue crystal, which still emitted a faint, breathing light, from a hidden pocket inside his combat suit.
“Mission accomplished,” he showed the crystal to his team members, then carefully put it away. “Beacon recovered, two Manonians who infiltrated confirmed eliminated. Clean up the battlefield, collect all alien technology debris, and prepare to return to base.”
"Yes!"
The team members immediately sprang into action.
Lin Yeming walked to the side, pressed the communicator, and prepared to report to headquarters.
His gaze swept over Daigo, who was busy, especially assisting Lina in collecting the equipment fragments, and a very faint, thoughtful glint flashed in the depths of his eyes.
Something's not right. In my memory, the images of those Manong aliens shouldn't look like this.
Their human avatars are clearly two women, and most importantly, if they really are Manonians, why don't they show their true forms?
This alien is capable of growing to enormous size.
Tonight's encounter consisted of two short, stocky, menacing, heavily armored, bone-bladed melee fighters, along with a sniper with insect-like features.
Their fighting style is fierce and direct, with a strong focus on physical takeovers, and their tactical coordination leans towards well-trained assault squads.
They maintained this "atypical" fighting style until their deaths.
These people are definitely not from Manon Star. Could it be that there are other changes due to my influence?
Although we are currently in Tiga's timeline, he hasn't forgotten that Dyna's timeline is a continuation of it.
It's not impossible that the monsters from Dyna's world suddenly awaken in Tiga's timeline!
Lin Yeming withdrew his gaze and walked towards the spot where the sniper had fallen. The body lay askew among the rubble, the edges of the pierced skull showing crystalline charring. He crouched down and used his gloved fingers to pry open the thick carapace at the back of the corpse's neck, examining it carefully. The carapace was hard, with the characteristic texture of biological keratin, but it was icy cold to the touch, with very little temperature difference from the surrounding environment—unlike the condition of a warm-blooded organism.
He then used his portable multi-functional detector to perform a rapid scan. There was no sign of residual life, and the energy radiation reading was rapidly decreasing, but spectral analysis showed that its energy characteristics did not resemble those of terrestrial life; rather... they were closer to the decay curve of some kind of high-purity energy-driven organism.
“Nightfall,” Lina’s voice sounded behind him, tinged with a barely perceptible seriousness, “I examined the weapon and carapace fragments of that melee individual. The molecular structure of the bone blade is unusually dense, mixed with unknown alloy components, unlike anything produced by natural evolution. On the inside of the carapace… there are etching marks that resemble integrated circuits, very fine.”
Shinjo came over, looked at the corpses on the ground, and scratched his head: "I say, these guys are pretty tough, but they seem... a bit stupid? All they do is charge in, like they're on drugs. They're not quite like the Manonians who do intelligence work described in the data."
Daigo, having completed the initial sealing of the bone blades, walked over, his brows slightly furrowed: "Moreover, from their appearance to their destruction, their target was very singular: that container. They didn't even attempt any form of communication or threat; it was purely a mission execution mode."
The team members' observations all confirmed Lin Yeming's suspicions.
“They are not Manonians.” Lin Yeming stood up, his tone certain, but his eyes were even more profound. “Or rather, they are not the Manonians as we know them.”
“Then they are…” Lina asked.
“Puppet. Or more accurately, something disguised as a Manonian.” Lin Yeming surveyed the mess left by the battle. “Someone, or some force, knew we would come to retrieve the beacon, and knew the Manonians were interested in it. So, they created or modified these two ‘Manonians’ and sent them to steal it. What was their purpose? To test our strength and reaction? To wear us down? Or… to pin this on the Manonians?”
This deduction instantly made the air heavy. If true, it would mean that another unknown force, with considerable knowledge of both human affairs and extraterrestrial dynamics, is lurking in the shadows and has already begun to take action.
"But why imitate the Manonians? And why imitate them so poorly... so unlike their core characteristics?" Daigo raised the key question.
“It’s precisely because it doesn’t look like it that it might be a deliberate flaw left behind,” Lin Yeming said slowly, his gaze sweeping over the corpse again. “If we were a little careless, or not so familiar with the files, we might really think it was done by the Manonians. But if we discover something unusual, like we are now, we will know that there is a ‘third party’ involved. This ‘third party’ may want to achieve a certain goal, and also want us to…be aware of its existence.”
This is a more complex signal, a fog of provocation and declaration.
The sound of vehicle engines could be heard in the distance, and the lights of the follow-up team pierced the darkness at the edge of the ruins.
"Collect all anomalous samples and data, especially the etching patterns and residual energy spectra on the inside of the carapace," Lin Yeming ordered. "The original plan was to submit a standard mission report after returning to base. However, the analysis of 'atypical Manonian characteristics' and 'the possibility of a third party' is currently only known within our team. We will make a decision after I report directly to the director."
"Understood!" the three replied solemnly.
Lin Yeming took one last look at the two "Manonian" corpses, which were gradually losing their vitality and being placed into special containment bags under the operation of professionals. The cold carapaces gleamed with an unnatural matte finish under the light.
The beacon was recovered tonight, the enemy was eliminated, and the mission was ostensibly completed successfully.
But a deeper, darker fog seems to be just beginning to rise. And where is the real Manon Star, whose name has been borrowed? What are their intentions toward this beacon, and toward Earth?
And then there's the "third party" hiding behind the scenes.
Lin Yeming gripped the dark blue beacon crystal tightly, the cold touch coming through his gloves.
The trouble this thing will cause is probably much bigger than expected.
He turned and walked toward the direction where the car lights were on, his figure disappearing into the boundary between light and darkness, his steps steady, his eyes as sharp as ever.
There are too many demons and monsters in this world.
If they come at once, he doesn't know how he'll defend himself.
Meanwhile, Hill found her sister and told her about Lin Yeming's request.
For the sake of his sister, Jinlong had no choice but to take action once again.
During this time, he discovered that this Earth was very strange, with many spatial rifts. Although they could not be easily broken, they could be easily used by those with superpowers who possessed time-space abilities.
Whether it's a monster or an alien.