Chapter 171: Northern Kestrel Point

Words : 1018 Updated : Sep 19th, 2025

Chapter 171: Northern Kestrel Point It was the little chipmunk’s first time skipping classes and first time traveling toward a Contaminated Zone. Although he learned about it through the books he’d managed to obtain, nothing could compare to seeing the demarcation line himself. And by the looks of it, the habitable map had really shrunk with each year that passed by. It was alarming and tragic. So many people have been displaced trying to keep a safe distance from the encroaching corruption, but with the Contaminated areas increasing in size, where else could they go? These zones were scattered throughout the Empire, and nearly every galaxy had its own Contaminated Zone, but that meant being pushed into a corner as everyone tried to figure out where else to hide. Just like the original inhabitants of Kestrel Point. They were either dead or displaced. Most ended up as evacuees and were still marooned in the closest established military safe zone. In fact, most of them were still being inspected for contaminated belongings. And such was the scene they witnessed after confirming their identities with their official IDs and Mercenary Licenses. The staff on duty had to do a double take because all the students before him were freshmen. But there was really nothing to say when they were insanely short on manpower. He just hoped they wouldn’t perish this young. "Going into Kestrel Point? It’s better to avoid the northern and eastern areas, as it seems like the corruption managed to breach the peaks." casually advised the staff, who then noticed the short one’s confusion. "While contamination on Kestrel had been held back for a while now, returning personnel had reported the sudden presence of corruption in the originally untouched areas," he expounded. "So, try not to linger for too long, and when bringing in resources or materials, better have them checked thoroughly. We’ve been having more and more cases of contamination due to negligence." The students could only nod and thank the staff who bothered to warn them. But they couldn’t exactly tell him about their plans. Not when they were explicitly looking for corruption and the people they were asked to locate were likely in those dangerous areas. Luca actually wanted to bring over their Battleship using the Dungeon’s Inventory. But they were forced to park it because ships weren’t allowed close to contaminated planets when unmanned, and they needed to mark their arrival, or someone might start asking about their odd practices. So, five students in four mechas took the jump pad for the Northern area of Kestrel Point. So much for avoiding that area! Luca wanted to say something nice about the place but realized that much of it was either towering rock peaks or corrosion. According to the briefing that Kyle prepared, these jagged peaks were actually responsible for Kestrel Point’s ability to resist aggressive contamination. The stones offered no energy for the corruption to latch onto, forcing most of it into dormancy until recently. Now, between this stretch of barren valleys lay the cracked ground etched with veins of unnatural black. And to anyone with an eye or likely a nose, it was evident that whatever was pulsing with that faint, sickly glow was most definitely not water. "The map says there should’ve been a lake here? But unless I’m hallucinating, I see no such thing." Ollie said as he volunteered to be the map watcher. "This must be how it spread," Xavier said as his mecha’s fingers pointed to the cracks in the ground. It was likely the corroded rocks that couldn’t hold on, allowing the contaminated water to seep through, bypassing the natural cage that used to be the peaks. But if this entire crater was supposed to be water, or now contaminated water, then just how far did the contamination stretch? Xavier wondered as he stared at the area that was now ravished by corruption. But while he was deep in thought, one particular guy was having issues with self-control. "Uhm, guys, do we still need to check anything with the corruption in this area?" Asked Luca, who had a tough time keeping himself seated the moment he saw corruption everywhere. "..." For a moment, it seemed like the rest forgot how Luca could convert corruption into CP. Then again, it was because Ollie only saw it from outside, while Kyle and Jax had never seen him do it. But there was nothing much to see because without holding anything back, the Dungeon was siphoning it at a rate that made it look like he was rewinding a time-lapse. And nothing was left, save for the corroded rocks that eventually started disintegrating into dust. It was crazy. As if straight out of everyone’s dreams or nightmares, Luca stood in the middle as the corruption around him cleared. And even Xavier, who was now in a different mecha, was surprised. Back then, he couldn’t see exactly what was happening inside the container vans. But as someone who was now watching from outside, he could already tell just how scandalous this would be to the entire Empire. But the scandalous vacuum was just feeling a boost in his mood that had suffered several blows even before getting here. The void in his heart was enormous, as in 117 billion large, but thankfully, the corruption that was promised by this land seemed to make everything feel better. And better was probably going to be an understatement with how D-29 marveled at the rate they were going! Would it be possible to upgrade after all this? Or would it be possible to convince the Host to at least get a few of the parts it needed? But maybe all of that was possible, provided they got through this mission in one piece. Because somewhere close by stirred the original occupant of this giant crater. The ground trembled every time it moved, and a low rumble reverberated through the bones of a certain trapped father and son. And for a while longer, one little chipmunk would remain unaware that his movements started a commotion underground.

Chapter 171: Northern Kestrel Point

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