Soon, the convoy stopped at the village entrance. From the flickering lights within the village, it was clear that many people were indeed still trapped inside.
Under ACE's arrangements, the Operators put on their protective suits, grabbed their rescue equipment, and hurried towards the village.
Originally, under this Calamity, the villagers could only huddle at home, trembling, hoping the Calamity wouldn't collapse their houses, and despairingly cursing the village chief who had abandoned the village and left alone.
At this moment, a sudden knocking sound caused many people to panic. Upon learning that it was the arriving rescue team, most villagers couldn't help but burst into tears.
However, it was fortunate that because Calamities are frequent in Terra, everyone prioritizes saving lives in such situations. No difficult villagers asked rescue personnel to take their "cattle, sheep, pigs," or household property.
Soon, the arriving convoy was packed full.
Fortunately, Provence, with the help of other colleagues, had previously obtained the number of remaining people in the village, and there were enough vehicles brought, so there was no situation where some people were left behind due to insufficient space.
Just as the vehicles were about to depart, Kanna, who had been resting with her eyes closed, suddenly opened them and looked outside.
"What's wrong?" ACE's heart tightened when he saw Kanna's movement.
"There are many large loaches. They must be hungry and hunting nearby. They were probably attracted by the lights." Using the village lights and the car headlights, Kanna could see a bit further than before. She saw many creatures resembling loaches surrounding the convoy. These loaches were two to three meters long, and their sharp teeth clearly indicated they weren't herbivores.
"Many?"
"I can see sixty or seventy of them, and each one is about as long as a car. They are approaching the convoy," Kanna said after looking around.
ACE immediately warned the other vehicles, "All vehicles prepare to depart immediately. Remember, no matter what happens, do not open the car windows." After speaking, he instructed the driver to prepare for retreat.
Kanna looked back at the way they came; many "loaches" had also appeared in the middle of the road there.
Although the convoy could force its way through, if any vehicle lost control, it could easily be surrounded by these loaches.
Under ACE's shocked gaze, Kanna opened the car door and darted out.
"The way back is also blocked. I'll clear the road. Uncle, you take the convoy and follow quickly."
Before ACE could reach out and grab Kanna, a purple flash streaked across, and Kanna vanished before everyone's eyes.
"What should we do?" Provence, who was next to him, prepared to open the door to look for Kanna, but ACE pulled her back. "Kanna is still outside. How can you let a child face the Calamity alone without any protection?"
"Kanna is an Elite Operator of our Rhodes Island. I believe in her judgment and her strength. Going down now, you can't do anything but die. Everyone, prepare! Return the way we came!" Looking at the Thunderbolt Wedge next to the back door, although ACE was gritting his teeth a bit at Kanna's unauthorized action, ACE knew Kanna's character.
Although she looked very young and sometimes liked to be a bit mischievous, Kanna had never been a hindrance in crucial matters. On the contrary, just like coming here before, if it weren't for Kanna's help, the convoy would have taken several times longer to arrive and would have easily encountered problems along the way.
At this moment, Kanna's voice appeared in ACE's communicator, "The road ahead has been cleared. The convoy can proceed."
He looked up and saw a purple figure flickering in and out of sight in the heavy rain not far away.
Under ACE's command, the convoy quickly retreated in the direction they came from, towards the outer edge of the Calamity.
Meanwhile, Kanna felt very uncomfortable after rushing out of the car door. The rain above her head was more like someone pouring an infinite basin of water over her head.
Stepping into a puddle, faint lightning floated around Kanna's body, and the falling water was instantly re-evaporated upon contact.
Accompanied by a huge burst of steam, Kanna, like a fully accelerating dump truck, crashed into the loaches blocking the way back.
These loaches would never have imagined that they were just out for a meal, but instead of eating, they were cooked by the sudden high-intensity electric current and high-temperature steam.
Kanna, who had charged into the loaches, wielded the ten-centimeter thick, five-meter-long "Palm Thunder" in her left hand like a giant laser sword. Those in the middle were fully cooked, and those on the edges were half-cooked.
Wherever the two Thunderbolt Wedges in her right hand were thrown, a series of thunderstorms accompanied by plasma scattered, instantly turning that location into a teppanyaki scene.
"Kanna, how's the situation outside?" Just as Kanna cleared the road and the convoy was moving smoothly, ACE's voice came through.
Kanna carefully looked at the communicator. Fortunately, it wasn't broken! It was also fortunate that Kal'tsit had anticipated that Kanna's abilities could easily damage electronic communicators, so she had given her a special communicator made entirely of Originium and powered by Originium.
"I feel the gathering of these creatures is a bit strange. They should have a leader, but I haven't found one. Uncle, you all be careful."
After observing for a while, Kanna found it very strange that after the loaches on the road were cleared, those nearby didn't flee but continued to surround them. This situation was unscientific. Normally, if there was a sudden attack and death in one area, the surrounding creatures should scatter and flee, then re-congregate only after being vigilant for a while and realizing the danger had passed.
"Understood, I will be careful. You come back quickly too." ACE's voice was calm and steady.
Kanna, still uneasy, circled the convoy twice. Finding no suspicious targets, she breathed a slight sigh of relief, wondering if she was being too suspicious.
Kanna lightly leaped, instantly darting from the very back of the convoy to the top of ACE's car at the very front.
Hearing the footsteps on the roof, ACE knew Kanna was back and breathed a sigh of relief. Although he had appeared so confident in front of Provence just now, his heart had been suspended in mid-air the whole time.
After all, he had never personally experienced Kanna's combat power, at most having witnessed two tests, so he couldn't completely guarantee that Kanna could easily complete the mission.
Kanna on the roof was also about to use a Thunderbolt Wedge to transfer back into the car when, at that moment, a bolt of lightning streaked across the sky, illuminating the entire rain-soaked ground brightly.
And in that nearly one-second flash of light, Kanna's pupils suddenly contracted.
The convoy had just re-ascended the ridge and was about to leave along the original path. The rushing water on the mountain, carrying mud and sand, flowed into the river below the mountain. And in that one-second flash of light, Kanna saw the huge figure in the river and the pair of eyes unique to a predator.
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