Chapter 351:Hide and seek is over.

Chapter 351: 351:Hide and seek is over.

He continued running uphill while the sound of wings multiplied behind him, his boots striking hard against the uneven stone as Spatial Sense painted a constantly changing picture of the tunnels surrounding him.

The route ahead remained relatively clear for perhaps sixty meters, but the passages behind were filling rapidly. Worms crawled through the lower tunnels, several more were cutting through connecting passages, and above them moved smaller, faster signatures that no longer needed the ground to travel.

The Sky-Borers could fly over their own colony, cross gaps that would slow the worms and, most dangerously, pursue Silver through the larger upper tunnels where he’d previously relied on speed to avoid being surrounded.

The network module vibrated inside his pocket. Silver pulled it out without slowing.

[External Network Detected.]

[Signal Strength: 12%.]

The number flickered.

[Signal Strength: 14%.]

His eyes narrowed. That was the strongest connection he’d seen since falling underground.

A sharp buzz approached from behind,he twisted. One of the Sky-Borers shot through the tunnel with its wings folded slightly against its enormous body, moving frighteningly fast despite its size.

He raised his handgun.

[Phantom Draw Lv3 Activated.]

Pfft! Pfft!

The first bullet struck the creature’s hardened abdomen. The second tore through the base of one wing.

The Sky-Borer lost balance and slammed into the wall, but he didn’t wait to confirm whether it was dead. He turned and continued running.

The tunnel split. Silver activated Spatial Sense.

[Spatial Sense Lv2 Activated.]

The left passage descended while the right climbed. Two worms were approaching through the right route.

He chose it anyway. The first worm lunged the moment he rounded the first corner but he didn’t stop.

[Primal Strength Lv2 Activated.]

He lowered his shoulder and collided with the creature. The impact hurt. The worm was thrown sideways.

Silver stumbled but remained upright. The second worm blocked the center of the passage.

[Short-Step Lv2 Activated.]

Space folded. He disappeared from directly in front of the creature and reappeared several meters behind it.

He kept running.

[Primal Strength Lv2 proficiency increased.]

Silver glanced at the notification.

[Primal Strength Lv2 Proficiency: 99%.]

"One percent."

He didn’t have time to celebrate. The tunnel ahead widened. Roots protruded from the ceiling, not pale underground roots anymore. These were dark brown, thick and covered in damp soil.

He could smell vegetation strongly now. The airflow was constant. He knew he was close. Maybe not to the original entrance or any safe path but close to the outside.

The network module updated.

[Signal Strength: 16%.]

Silver slowed.

Sixteen percent.

His first thought was Ravenna, then another Sky-Borer flew past his head. He ducked. The creature turned sharply midair.

He fired but missed. It came again. Silver drew his sword with his left hand while keeping the handgun in his right.

The Sky-Borer attacked. He waited until the last moment, spatial Sense tracking its movement. He stepped aside and slashed upward.

The blade cut through one wing. The creature crashed. He drove the sword into the back of its head.

A worm appeared behind him. He ripped the blade free. Another appeared farther down the tunnel, then another. His pursuers were catching up.

Silver looked at the network module.

Fifteen percent.

He needed more. This was not for Ravenna but for the beacon. He pulled the Emergency Survival Beacon from storage.

He hadn’t used it earlier because the system had repeatedly warned him that the mountain was too dense and the depth too great for reliable transmission.

Now he was close enough to ordinary networks that the situation had changed. He held the beacon while moving.

"System, reassess transmission probability."

The response came immediately.

[Emergency Survival Beacon detected.]

[Reassessing current environmental conditions.]

Silver ran.

The device vibrated.

[Estimated emergency-frequency penetration: 31%.]

It was better than zero, although not good enough.

"How much higher?"

[Insufficient geographical data.]

He nearly cursed.

"Of course."

A worm emerged from the wall ahead. Silver fired twice and the creature recoiled before he ran past.

The passage continued upward. The incline became steep enough that his legs began burning again. He forced them to continue.

The beacon remained in one hand and the gun in the other. His network module was clipped securely against his equipment.

Seventeen percent, then eighteen.

Silver checked the beacon.

[Estimated emergency-frequency penetration: 43%.]

He continued.

The buzzing behind him grew louder.

He activated Spatial Sense, and almost regretted checking. There were eight worms, five Sky-Borers, more movement beyond his current range, and something larger was moving through another passage farther behind.

Silver didn’t investigate since he already had enough problems. The tunnel ahead ended at a collapsed section.

He stopped.

"No."

He activated Spatial Sense. There was stone, packed soil and roots but a passage existed beyond it. He could feel airflow through narrow gaps.

The worms were approaching quickly from behind. He holstered the handgun.

[Space Slash Lv2 Activated.]

The attack cut into the obstruction. Silver struck again.

[Space Slash Lv2 Activated.]

A larger section broke.

[Primal Strength Lv2 Activated.]

Silver grabbed a fractured slab and pulled, muscles tightening as the stone shifted. His arms shook from all of that.

Behind him, wings screamed through the tunnel. He roared through clenched teeth and dragged the slab aside.

[Primal Strength Lv2 proficiency increased.]

He ignored the notification.

There was enough room, so he squeezed through. A Sky-Borer struck the opening behind him, its mandibles snapping centimeters from his boot.

Silver kicked it in the face and crawled faster. The narrow section lasted only several meters. He emerged into another passage and immediately stood.

The network module beeped.

[Signal Strength: 21%.]

Silver looked at the beacon.

[Estimated emergency-frequency penetration: 62%.]

That was enough. He wasn’t waiting for perfect conditions.

He activated it.

[Emergency Survival Beacon Activated.]

A small indicator illuminated.

[Searching for registered Contractor emergency infrastructure...]

Silver moved while it searched. The tunnel behind him exploded with movement. The Sky-Borer forced itself through the opening.

Silver fired.

Pfft!

Its head snapped backward. Another began squeezing through behind it. He retreated while firing occasionally.

The beacon vibrated.

[Emergency Frequency Detected.]

His breathing caught.

[Association emergency infrastructure detected.]

[Encrypted distress transmission initiated.]

[Warning: Subterranean interference remains severe.]

[Precise location triangulation unavailable.]

[Approximate transmission origin being broadcast.]

Silver smiled despite everything.

"Take whatever you can get."

The beacon continued transmitting. For the first time since the cave collapsed, he wasn’t merely hoping somebody outside knew he was alive.

He was broadcasting his registered identity, emergency status and approximate location hoping someone would receive it.

The first Sky-Borer came through. He fired until it dropped. A worm squeezed behind it.

He moved backward.

The network module reached twenty-three percent. Silver realized he had another opportunity. The beacon would tell them someone needed help but it wouldn’t tell them what was happening.