There was not much time left for him to think.
The fellow stood outside the camp's range; the Archery Towers couldn't hit him. This was the first time he had encountered an Eerie Creature that could attack the walls from beyond the camp's boundaries.
Moreover, it was uncertain whether it was due to obsessive-compulsive disorder or insufficient range, but it did not attack the wall beneath him.
Instead, it kept destroying the four walls of the Eerie Creature Farm.
"Boom."
With another burst of green light, the last of the Eerie Creature Farm walls crumpled.
His Eerie Creature Farm was gone.
Immediately after.
That fellow, shifting its gaze toward him, raised the emerald green lantern once more, before another green beam shot from it—as if with no cooldown at all—thumping into the wall beneath him.
A strong tremor shook him.
A massive crater was blasted into the wall.
But it quickly repaired itself.
The repair rate was indeed fast.
But...
His Eerie Stones were not unlimited! Just repairing this crater consumed three Eerie Stones!
With only over 800 Eerie Stones left, how many repairs could he afford?
"Calm down."
Chen Fan took a deep breath, trying his best to stay calm and watching as the Mourning Specter standing outside the camp held up the emerald green lantern again.
In the next moment—
He took out ten Level 2 Eerie Stones and crushed them on the spot.
「Eerie Fire upgraded to Level 4. Safety zone increased to a diameter of 100 meters. Deterrence against Eerie Creatures strengthened.」
「Please choose an upgrade direction.」
「1: Increase the safety zone to 200 meters.」
「2: Further strengthen deterrence against Eerie Creatures.」
「3: Slightly reduce the maturation cycle of crops within the camp.」
He quickly scanned the options and, without much thought, chose the first direction.
The range of the Eerie Fire had been expanded to a diameter of 200 meters.
In the next moment!
The Level 4「Archery Fort」 immediately fired as it had long been poised to. A flaming bolt pierced through the rain curtain as it travelled over the heads of the Mourning Specters, accurately striking the Mourning Specter holding the emerald green lantern.
This scene felt like slow motion in his eyes.
He instinctively held his breath.
Only when the Mourning Specter thudded backward onto the ground did Chen Fan finally break into a smile.
"Perfect."
If the enemy was outside the camp, then all he had to do was expand the camp's range.
He had deliberately stopped the Level 4「Archery Fort」 from operating before upgrading the Eerie Fire. This ensured it would fire the moment the camp's range expanded, not caught in an attack interval. Now, it seemed this tactic worked perfectly.
The enemy clearly hadn't reacted in time to the sudden expansion of the camp.
"Is it dead?"
Crippled Monkey and the others watched nervously as the Mourning Specter fell. The moment this Mourning Specter appeared, it struck everyone that tonight might be their last night of the rainy season.
Even Zhou Mo and Dayu had been woken up and had come to help.
However...
The smile that had just creased Chen Fan's face abruptly stiffened.
The Mourning Specter boss, holding the emerald green lantern, split into two doppelgangers.
This was normal.
After all, other Mourning Specters also split upon death—it was a trait of these Eerie Creatures.
But—
Why did both Mourning Specter bosses now hold an emerald green lantern?!
For other Mourning Specters, only the original body would keep its lantern after duplicating itself.
"No way..."
A trace of fear passed in Chen Fan's eyes as he muttered, clinging to a last shred of hope.
But when both Mourning Specter bosses brought up their emerald green lanterns, whereupon two green beams nearly simultaneously hit the wall beneath him, that hope vanished.
"Boom..."
The sudden collapse echoed thunderously.
The wall beneath him had been destroyed before his proud wall auto-repair system had time to function. A Level 2 Archery Tower had also fallen apart alongside.
A three-meter-wide breach opened in the wall.
Countless Mourning Specters poured into the camp through it.
This was the first time in so long that the wall had been breached.
"Young Master!"
Crippled Monkey's anxious shout came from the wall.
The moment the emerald green beams shot toward them, everyone on the wall instinctively fled to both sides.
...
"..."
Chen Fan wiped the rain from his face, glancing across the cleft at Crippled Monkey and the others. There was no time to check for casualties. He could only shout at the top of his lungs, "Guard the stairs!"
Mourning Specters couldn't climb walls.
Even if the wall had been ripped through, as long as they defended the stairs leading up to the wall, they would be safe for a while.
"I'll see how many times you can fucking split!"
The Level 4 Archery Fort fired again.
Both Mourning Specter bosses fell once more.
But...
Immediately afterward, they divided themselves into four and stood up again, each holding an emerald-green lantern. Four green beams merged into a single pillar of light, crashing into the wall where Crippled Monkey and the others stood.
The wall collapsed again.
Having torn through the wall, this beam of light, undiminished in power, smashed straight into the wooden house.
"Boom..."
The next thing they knew, the house crumbled as well.
"Fuck!"
Chen Fan couldn't help but curse, because not only was the camp in a desperate situation, but he had also personally built every structure in it. Seeing them destroyed so ruthlessly almost made his heart bleed.
But there was no time for emotions.
Some Mourning Specters were already lifting their lanterns to smash the Eerie Fire inside the camp.
All structures could collapse.
But the Eerie Fire couldn't.
If the Eerie Fire were to be shattered, all buildings would malfunction, leading to certain death.
"Aim for their limbs!"
Chen Fan shouted orders to the Archery Towers. The towers could follow simple commands, and though without much time, he quickly found a solution: prevent them from splitting further!
He looked outside the camp.
Four Mourning Specter bosses had their arms precisely pierced by bolts, nailed to the ground, and unable to move.
Fortunately, they didn't move, or it would've been much harder to hit them.
However—
In the next moment, he saw the surrounding lesser Mourning Specters step forward, pounding their lanterns against their leaders, killing them. Then, the Mourning Specter bosses split again.
Eight emerald green beams fired toward the wall beneath him.
Yes, eight!
This one didn't replicate itself like the others—it multiplied exponentially!
...
"Gonna die! I'm gonna die!"
His lips going pale, he scurried for his life along the wall in the rainy night, meanwhile crushing Eerie Stones in his hands, building a ring of wall to protect the「Eerie Fire」and rebuilding the collapsed sections.
As the wall's ethereal shape solidified in no time, the breach was filled.
These Eerie Creatures had what it took to march on「Rivernorth City」!
He believed that even Rivernorth City would struggle to withstand such an assault!
"Big brother..."
"Big brother..."
Just then, a girl's tearful voice mixed with the sound of rain echoed in his ears, distant yet close.