Chapter 7: The Rust Tide Swarm, Submission!

Within Paradise Island, most of the electrified fences of the wildlife park had long since collapsed, and the once-captive beasts now roamed freely throughout the grounds.

Ye Mi moved with softened footsteps, slipping like a cat between the abandoned tour vehicles. The night wind carried a strange scent—a blend of unknown plants and decaying flesh. In the distance, guttural beastly roars echoed faintly.

Her luck was poor; she had barely entered and already sensed the presence of monsters.

Her electronic eye glimmered with a faint red light in the darkness, carefully scanning her surroundings.

Suddenly, a piercing chewing sound came from the woods behind her.

Ye Mi crouched behind a tour vehicle and peeked toward the source of the noise. Three mutated cougars, each as large as a compact car, were tearing apart the corpse of a mutated zebra.

Their fur was unnaturally dark red, their bodies rippled with knotted muscles and bulging veins. Most terrifying was the lion king in the center—three sharp bone spines jutted from its back, and its tail ended in a ball of flesh covered in vicious barbs.

...What sort of beastly meteor hammer is that?

Ye Mi saw the lion king's tail and her mind wandered to absurd associations.

She hadn’t come here to battle monsters, so Ye Mi avoided unnecessary trouble, staying within the blind spots of the lions’ vision, hoping to slip away unnoticed from the wildlife park.

But she had underestimated their keen senses. The lion king suddenly raised its head, bloodshot eyes locking onto the place where Ye Mi hid—it had caught the scent of an intruder.

Ye Mi cursed inwardly, but it was already too late.

With a thunderous roar, the lion king charged, followed by the other two beasts. She retreated swiftly, poison spear spinning in her hand, ready to counterattack.

To her surprise, the lions, upon seeing her clearly, abruptly halted their charge. They growled in low, warning tones.

"...?"

Ye Mi was confused by their sudden pause, but she too stopped her movement.

Otherwise, these three mutated lions would have faced a merciless, savage blade.

Ye Mi cautiously stepped back, noticing the lions simply watched her, silently escorting her departure.

Why was this?

Ye Mi was puzzled for a moment, but quickly rationalized the lions’ behavior: the prey of Rust Tide creatures was metal, not other monsters, so perhaps the lions and Rust Tide coexisted without conflict?

Other than that, she couldn’t think of any other reason.

Afterward, Ye Mi encountered no further obstacles and smoothly reached the giant Ferris wheel at the island’s center.

She scaled the tilted steel colossus, her fingers gripping the frame securely, and in just a few moves reached the highest point, standing lightly atop it.

The moonlight in the latter half of the night was obscured almost entirely by clouds, leaving Ye Mi with only the dark outline of the island. She switched to night vision mode, her electronic eye adjusting its focus as she scanned Paradise Island.

Toward the visitor center, she caught faint glints of metal.

Several Rust Tide creatures were gathered there, seemingly using the visitor center and its adjacent plaza as their base.

One, two, three...

Ye Mi counted carefully and discovered a total of twelve Rust Tide creatures.

A sizable number, though their strength remained uncertain.

“Finally found you,” she murmured.

Once she locked onto their location, Ye Mi slid swiftly down from the Ferris wheel. Sparks flew from her metal soles as she landed, then she rushed toward the visitor center without hesitation.

The main entrance was twisted and deformed, shards of glass littering the floor.

Soon, Ye Mi stepped into the lobby.

The scene before her made her pause—Rust Tide creatures had transformed the space into their nest. Strange metallic objects were scattered everywhere, and the original bright, open appearance of the visitor center was barely recognizable.

Ye Mi didn’t hide her presence, for she knew Rust Tide habits well. They were very friendly toward their own kind and never attacked each other, typical of communal monsters.

Sure enough, a pair of electronic eyes inside the visitor center turned toward the doorway. Upon recognizing Ye Mi as a new kin, its communication wires gently waved in the air, seemingly curious.

Ye Mi recalled the method of interaction she’d used with the three Rust Tide creatures upon entering the Ruins of Light. She slowly released her own metallic wires, allowing them to weave with those of her kin in the air.

In an instant, a flood of emotions surged into Ye Mi’s consciousness.

Curiosity, surprise, awe, confusion... This Rust Tide had never encountered such a powerful peer.

The emotions it conveyed were friendly, tinged with a hint of fear. Although it didn’t know where Ye Mi came from, it could sense the immense power contained within her body.

The metal on Ye Mi’s body was unfamiliar, never seen before, not even on the leader.

The Rust Tide approached cautiously, its metal wires dancing, gently touching Ye Mi, signaling its submission.

It turned and gestured for Ye Mi to follow, leading her through the lobby into the plaza, now nearly fully transformed into a metallic nest.

Hearing unfamiliar movement, the other Rust Tide creatures gathered in small groups.

The guide brought Ye Mi before a Rust Tide creature noticeably larger than the others—the leader of the group, whose strength had reached C-class, the undisputed king among them.

The Rust Tide leader extended its metal wires, transmitting emotions far more complex than the others—besides awe, there was a cautious probing.

Ye Mi could sense its confusion: why had such a powerful kin suddenly entered its territory?

She shaped everything she wished to convey into waves of emotion—encountered enemies, anger, resistance, battle, needing the Rust Tide’s help. The enemy’s supplies could make the Rust Tide stronger.

All these emotions flooded into the leader’s consciousness like a tide.

The visitor center fell abruptly silent.

Every Rust Tide creature ceased movement, staring intently at Ye Mi and the leader. The leader’s electronic eyes flickered rapidly, as if struggling to interpret Ye Mi’s emotions.

The process lasted almost a minute.

Ye Mi had no idea what its mind was processing. After all, it was a monster, not a human; its polluted CPU might even burn out at any moment.

She wasn’t worried—if persuasion failed, force would do. Faced with a powerful kin and greater, better metal, these Rust Tide creatures had every reason to follow her.

Finally, the leader made its decision.

Just as Ye Mi had anticipated, a resolute wave of emotion pulsed through the metal wires, expressing a single attitude: submission.

This wire, carrying submission, prompted all the other Rust Tide creatures to lower their metallic heads, swearing allegiance to their new king.

It was a remarkably smooth process, but as it should be—the strongest always leads the others. This is the universal law for all creatures.

The other eleven Rust Tide creatures all possessed D-class strength. Ye Mi nodded, satisfied with her new ‘troop’.

However, as she communicated with the group, Ye Mi soon discovered an unexpected piece of information.