Chapter 73: Lishan
[Received!]
's attention immediately diverted a portion of itself from over to .
[Captain , please lead your team members to coordinate with the Sentinels and go scout the situation,] 's voice rang out promptly through 's , still calm as ever. [Remember, prioritize your own safety.]
"Received!"
put down the binoculars and, with a pang of regret, gave up the self-heating hotpot that was wafting its tantalizing aroma.
He snatched up the " " spray from the table, gave himself and his gear one thorough spraying, then dashed downstairs in long, hurried strides.
"Emergency mission! Everyone, assemble and move out within five minutes!"
Through the , his order was instantly delivered to every team member's ear.
Before long, three wheeled assault vehicles and two robots rumbled over the scattered remains in the streets, racing along the direction of the surging toward the source of the gunfire.
About twenty minutes later, when the convoy crested a slope, the scene in the open ground ahead gave even a start.
At the center of the battlefield, a steel position formed by six ZBL-08 wheeled infantry fighting vehicles and two ZTL-11 wheeled assault vehicles was pouring out firepower like mad.
The roar of 30mm autocannons and the thunder of 105mm rifled guns wove together into a symphony of death.
Farther out, there was even a ridiculously imposing , locked at a specific elevation angle, slamming 155mm shell after 155mm shell into the rear of the . Every blast tossed up a spray of flesh and blood.
"Whoa, that much firepower?" A team member beside couldn't help clicking his tongue. "And they're fighting with real discipline, too. Where the hell did they spring from?"
The combat proficiency of the force before them was nothing to sneeze at. Their interlocking fire net was built as tight as a drum, and their precision kills on mutants were right on the mark.
More than a hundred people, with their armored vehicles as support, were trading blow for blow with the endless —that wasn't something a half-baked outfit could pull off.
But the longer watched, the tighter his brow knit. He couldn't quite understand what these people were trying to do. Why hadn't they retreated? Were they really that sure of themselves?
was short on just about everything—except zombies, of which it truly was not short.
This was the main artery of the corpse horde's migration. Stopping here to fight a positional battle against the zombies? What kind of death wish did their commander have?!
Sure enough, the battle turned even faster than he'd anticipated.
"ROOOAR—!"
With a burst of savage howls, seven or eight dog-type Rot-Beasts, each the size of a medium truck, charged out of the .
They were blindingly fast, completely ignored the harassment of rifle fire, braved the autocannon strafing, and slammed head-on into the armored vehicle position.
Boom!
The side of an infantry fighting vehicle was crushed into a dent. Its tracks let out a teeth-grinding screech of twisting metal as the hull shuddered violently, and the machine gunner on top went silent on the spot.
A breach was torn open, and countless ordinary zombies poured in like floodwater through a burst levee.
"Damn it, they're about to break!"
didn't hesitate another second. He immediately gave the order: "No more waiting! Prepare to cut in from the flank! Get them out of there!"
The instant the order was given, the muzzles of the powerful 105mm rifled guns on several assault vehicles in 's convoy belched flame.
Boom!
An armor-piercing shell punched precisely through the side of the skull of a dog-type that was about to lunge at a soldier. That huge, hideous head burst apart like a watermelon struck by a sledgehammer, sending reeking brain matter and shattered bone splattering in every direction.
There had also been survivors and soldiers who'd escaped from other places, so they'd regrouped and risked going back to their station to wrest back their weapons.
After that, they'd kept clearing and rescuing survivors in the area. By now, they had formed an emergency base of around fifteen hundred people.
Of that number, soldiers like themselves numbered a little over four hundred and formed the main fighting strength.
A trace of pride showed on 's face. "We've basically wiped out of the area, set up a new base inside the city, and recovered quite a bit of equipment from the nearby stations."
"That fast?" was somewhat surprised. "Even with good equipment, you shouldn't have been that fast. Unless... you've never run into those big monsters that are really hard to deal with?"
"Uh, of course we did!" hesitated for a moment, then said, "There were plenty of monsters holed up in the city center, just like those dogs and birds from a while ago. We pounded them with heavy artillery for a long time before we put them down."
"And the troublesome things they left behind there just wouldn't burn, no matter how we burned them."
At that, fell silent. He seemed to know where the problem lay.
A full ten-plus seconds later, he carefully weighed his words and asked a different way: "You... never came across that kind of monster that can kick up thick fog?"
"Thick fog?" was even more puzzled. "What thick-fog monster?"
Oh boy. 's heart gave a lurch. Now he'd fully figured out what was wrong.
was starting to feel unnerved by 's stare and couldn't help asking, "Comrade , why are you looking at me like that? Is there a problem?"
"Nothing." took a deep breath and decided to set the topic aside for now. He was afraid that if he kept going, he'd be unable to stop himself from landing a punch on the other person's head.
"So, what was the purpose of your coming here?"
"We came to look for survivors." 's expression turned serious as the mission came up. "Not long ago, our frontline reconnaissance units observed continuous signs of explosions coming from your side."
"So we suspected there were survivors here."
"But all forms of communication have failed for unknown reasons right now, so the higher-ups sent us to come investigate the situation in person and see whether we could gather up and rescue any survivors."
At that, 's face grew earnest. "But, Comrade , from the way you tell it, the situation here seems quite different from what we'd imagined?"
"Come with me," said, seeing wavering, and extended the invitation. "Since you're here to investigate, go see it with your own eyes at our place."
"By then, you'll know whether what I'm saying is true or false."
As for how official his own operation was, didn't have the slightest doubt. A super AI, insane drones, an ammunition factory... if this wasn't the government, who else could have this kind of financial muscle and technical reserves?!
Looking at the extremely confident man before him, pondered for a long time and, in the end, gave a heavy nod.
"Alright, I'll go take a look with you."
***
When and more than a dozen handpicked soldiers followed 's convoy and saw for the first time the black ring-shaped bulwark standing between heaven and earth, they were all dumbstruck.
How had they done it? Under the difficult conditions after the disaster, how had they built fortifications of this scale so quickly?
And what the hell were those six-barreled turrets, and that cannon with a glowing base that looked off no matter how you looked at it?
"This... this is..." 's head tilted back, mouth stretched wide enough to fit a lightbulb, brain briefly locking up.
Before coming, had imagined many possibilities: a survivor camp, a re-formed base like their own, or a private with something a little questionable about it.
But had never imagined he would see a fortress-like military construction on par with a sci-fi movie.
"Welcome to ." looked at their stunned expressions, a proud smile curling at the corner of his mouth. Finally, it was his turn to show off.
Right at that moment, the opened as if on cue, stunning once again these soldiers who had come all the way from .