Chapter 147: Win, Win, Win—all Winners!
The lamp stand weighing hundreds of pounds was smashed flying with a single strike from the short stick, parts scattering in all directions.
The high-strength short stick in his hand also completely disintegrated.
Watching Su Huan rampaging ahead in the engineering vehicle, Zhong Cheng gritted his teeth in hatred.
But what irritated him even more was the attraction emanating from the train, that feeling just like observing zombie inducer up close, making him desperately want to lick it to taste what it was like.
A battlefield medic rushed over swiftly, tearing open the clothes on his back in a few quick moves, precisely extracting the bullet head stuck in the gap of his shoulder blade with tweezers, then quickly stopping the bleeding and suturing.
Even in the downpour of acid rain and flurry of stray bullets on the battlefield, the entire rescue process took less than a minute.
After the medic bandaged his wound, he said, “Secretary Li asks if firepower support is needed.”
Zhong Cheng’s brow twitched, and he coldly refused, “The armored train used a large range of zombie inducer, tell him not to act rashly, and no one can guarantee if the metal manipulator is hiding his strength, just retain some firepower for remote suppression, must contain the zombies in the county center!”
“Yes!”
The medic packed up his items and quickly burrowed toward the rear position.
The bullet rain here was far denser than on the train side, the boiling corpse roars deafening.
The zombie tide piled up, charging forward relentlessly to break through the defense line, but in the face of surging firepower, even a Tier 1 butcher turned into a pile of minced meat in moments.
Because it was on the edge of the county town, high-rise buildings were scarce, so even night demons and goblins had no chance for sneak attacks.
They could only charge forward head-on against the soldiers’ firepower net.
At this time, Li Tao was wearing a raincoat inspecting the rear of the temporary position, his glasses gone from his face, his eyeballs covered with a thin film-like layer flashing faint glints from time to time, just like the tech glasses Wan Xing wore.
After hearing the medic’s report, Li Tao calmly acknowledged it.
Once no one around was looking at him, a trace of gloom flashed across his refined face.
When the soldiers withdrew and the evolvers took over, he also withdrew.
The Steel Council had at most three thousand troops, plus five thousand servant soldiers making eight thousand, headquarters needed one thousand to garrison, so Changli County had only two thousand regular troops and about four thousand servant soldiers, and with the servant soldiers’ extremely high casualties, it was uncertain if they even had three thousand now.
To welcome the armored train, the Steel Council had temporarily adjusted its tactics.
Five hundred soldiers mixed with five hundred servant soldiers were scattered throughout the county town for deep penetration tasks, which was actually just to divert zombie attention, avoid clustering, and buy time for the Steel Council to concentrate fire on the armored train.
The remaining five hundred encircled leading one thousand servant soldiers to surround all of Changli, setting up defense lines and blockading the area.
Of course, the latter was just for show, this number of people was far from enough to blockade an entire county town, otherwise Su Huan wouldn’t have easily torn through it.
And it was twice, in and out.
But it could still serve as a warning.
The remaining forces were one thousand regular troops and over one thousand servant soldiers, needing to both resist the armored train and contain the large zombie horde in the county center commercial plaza.
So they were stretched so thin.
Ever since the armored train arrived, the zombie hordes had begun uncontrollably gathering toward due east, and when the armored train broke through to the third defense line and the real battle began, the rear zombie tide completely rioted.
Just like it was planned with the armored train.
Front and rear pincers, nearly breaking the Steel Council’s rear.
Startled, he hurriedly withdrew the soldiers by the railway track to fill the defense line, even dragging over one of the three 85mm cannons prepared for Su Huan.
Only then barely suppressing the rioting zombie tide.
He had suspected it was Su Huan’s doing at the time, but last time when he tricked him it was with mutated beast inducer, different from this time, so it was just suspicion, now it was completely confirmed, it was that dog bastard’s doing!
‘Doesn’t he fear ending up in the zombies’ bellies himself?!’
Looking at the armored train completely halted behind by the large engineering vehicle and various means, Li Tao was utterly baffled.
Both ends of the train had car doors broken open, the front had Lin Jin and them holding it, so it was okay, they didn’t dare enter, they didn’t dare exit, still in a stalemate behind the train’s thick armor fighting a war of attrition.
But the passengers at the rear were just a flock of lambs to the slaughter before the Steel Council’s well-trained soldiers.
The soldiers initially minded Xiao Ba’s presence and used non-metal cold weapons for close combat, but later seeing no one caring, they directly used guns to massacre the unarmed passengers.
The train that lost its speed was like a steel dragon stranded on a shallow beach, losing its dignity.
The battle had fully entered white-hot intensity.
Both sides were on the brink of death.
“Wingless Fox, Black Fox, you two go hunt that metal manipulator, the train conductor I’ll handle personally.”
Zhong Cheng tore off his tattered raincoat and walked toward the engineering vehicle manipulated by Su Huan.
The woman and soldier immediately left, heading straight for the front of the train.
The windows there were already broken, the easiest spot to enter.
Evolvers were already approaching.
Snatching this “first boarding” honor would at least make one a B-class combat team captain!
When still a dozen meters away, the woman tugged the soldier holding night demon claws as a dagger, who paused and chose to follow behind the woman.
Wingless Fox’s perception of danger was the strongest among them, second only to Zhong Cheng.
Because of their pause, elite soldiers immediately jumped into the front of the train.
“Get out!”
A muffled roar sounded from inside the front, two elite soldiers who had just climbed in flew back out, arms broken, chest cavities dented, blood spraying from their mouths.
A man burly like a mountain god emerged from the cockpit, holding a metal shield like a long sword, its surface bluish.
“He Jie.” Liang Kuan growled without turning his head.
“Coming!”
He Jie, with half a rain-soaked cigarette in his mouth, crawled out from the driver’s cabin, single-handedly carrying a 12.7mm anti-aircraft machine gun, the gun barrel still smoking.
He strode to Liang Kuan’s side, aimed at the two still in mid-air, and pulled the trigger—
“Da da da da!”
The violent firepower instantly shredded the two, flesh and blood exploding in the bullet rain, He Jie narrowed his eyes, the cigarette tip flickering in the rain curtain, coldly saying: “Playing feint attacks with me!”
The ferocious combat style made Wingless Fox and the other’s eyes twitch.
The two quickly dodged to the side of the train, Wingless Fox’s limbs eerily adhering to the metal surface, crawling rapidly like a spider, her voice sharp, “He Jie are you crazy! Your wife and child are still at the company!”
After shouting, she quickly ran toward the broken car door at the rear.
He Jie’s pupils suddenly contracted, the machine gun’s roar abruptly stopping.
Liang Kuan keenly noticed his teammate’s breathing grow heavy beside him, thrusting the shield sideways fiercely, “Bang!” blocking a series of incoming bullets, the metal clash ear-piercing.
“Get back inside the vehicle!”
He Jie glanced at Su Huan not far away driving the engineering vehicle, unwillingly retreated back.
Before Su Huan filled the large pit, they had to ensure the train didn’t fall to the Steel Council evolvers’ assault.
The other side was the same situation.
Su Huan inside, Zhong Cheng outside.
“Buzz—”
The engineering vehicle turned direction, its two headlights shining over.
Zhong Cheng’s pupils instinctively contracted, adjusting to the light intake, yet even in that intense glare he could see the smile at the corner of Su Huan’s mouth in the driver’s cabin.
“Really want to rip your mouth off.”
Zhong Cheng said coldly.
The cold hard voice entered the driver’s cabin, this was the second sentence he said to Su Huan since the battle began, if counting that deliberate roar.
“Come on~”
Su Huan smiled at the corner of his mouth, crazily switching between high and low beams, watching Zhong Cheng’s pupils contract nonstop like a feline’s, laughing heartily.
The furious Zhong Cheng grew even calmer, crouching into a sprint, then leaping up fiercely, facing the engineering vehicle, one foot stepping on the second-floor stair railing, squatting amid the twisting metal sounds, his already thick thighs instantly bulging another circle, stretching the highly elastic pants fabric, the next instant, his whole body smashed down like a stone heavily onto the windshield at the front of the driver’s cabin.
The two stared at each other across the glass.
One cold as iron, but with blazing anger in his eyes.
One laughing like a madman, but with eyes cold as an ice brick.
The engineering vehicle’s engine was revved to the max, buzzing forward.
“Bang!”
Zhong Cheng bent his elbow smashing the windshield, the entire glass shattering instantly, metal frame twisting.
Su Huan one-handed adjusted the steering wheel, charging straight toward the large pit.
“Bang bang bang—”
Zhong Cheng’s movements grew even more savage, smashing the glass blow after blow, several large holes appearing in the windshield, teetering on collapse.
The engineering vehicle overtook the train and plunged into the five-meter deep pit, power fading, body rapidly dropping.
Zhong Cheng’s arm pierced through the shattered windshield like a steel bar, five fingers clawed straight for Su Huan’s throat.
Su Huan jerked back fiercely, his neck brushing past the fingertips, three bloody marks instantly appearing at his Adam’s apple.
Zhong Cheng gritted his teeth, arm muscles bulging, actually tearing open a larger gap in the twisted metal frame, squeezing his whole body into the driver’s cabin.
Electric light flashed in Su Huan’s eyes, his left hand slamming the control stick.
The engineering vehicle’s hydraulic arm suddenly surged, the heavy mechanical arm sweeping horizontally from the side, thousand-pound force slamming toward Zhong Cheng’s waist and abdomen!
Zhong Cheng grunted muffledly, but borrowed this force to fully crash into the driver’s cabin.
The two engaged in close-quarters flesh combat in the cramped space, blood splattering amid elbow strikes and knee collisions.
Su Huan’s right arm piercing injury restricted his movements, smashed in the chest by Zhong Cheng’s fist, ribs cracking on the spot, blood surging up his throat.
Gritting his teeth, he detonated all remaining grenades in the cramped space.
“Boom—”
The engineering vehicle crashed heavily into the deep pit.
The violent vibration interrupted all their actions, the accumulated three meters of acid rain splashed into towering waves by the engineering vehicle, gushing out from all sides of the deep pit like a flood release, then carrying more acid rain and mud and sand crashing back.
Acid rain surged into the cockpit from all sides, the two instantly submerged in rainwater.
More deadly was the heavy blow to the chest, lungs crushed, unable to breathe at all.
Even slight movement made his entire skeleton groan under the strain.
Ice-cold liquid poured into mouth and nose, this damned feeling instantly brought him back to the moment before his death in his previous life.
No organ or orifice without pain, every one of the 36,000 pores aching!
His thoughts slowed in this instant, all nerves becoming extremely sensitive, as if his body prolonged the time to make him remember this pain.
A pool of despair gathered drop by drop in his heart.
Like a giant hand ruthlessly pressing down on his head, dragging him deeper into the water.
Scenes of four years of painful struggle flashed chaotically in his mind: metal barriers, wildly growing giant trees, great fire burning the horizon, killing, being killed, rebirth… killed again?
A single question remained in the train conductor’s fragmented mind.
————
Seeing the armored train halt, explosion firelight from the large pit, a neat exhale sounded in the office.
Everyone was stunned for a moment, then burst into laughter.
All the directors finally put their hearts back in their stomachs.
“Looks like the New City Plan can proceed smoothly.”
“Superficial, though the armored train lost, the evolutionary strength they showed can’t be underestimated, once the company gets their profession recipes, development speed will far exceed before.”
“Maybe even catch up to those few ahead!”
“Champagne, open a bottle.”
Several directors raised champagne glasses walking toward Li Wangchuan by the window, “President Li, the supplies you mentioned before will arrive tomorrow, but I hope for the armored train…”
Li Wangchuan looked at the firelight outside the window, his brows finally relaxing, “The armored train is the company’s spoils of war, I Li Wangchuan naturally won’t monopolize it.”
Meeting a soft rebuff, the man didn’t mind, continuing to offer conditions.
Besides those approaching Li Wangchuan, other directors also exchanged various interests among themselves.
Only Director Zhang was completely excluded.
His complexion ugly, shrinking in the corner.
Not that he had no value left to exchange, but the moment the armored train was subdued, he lost the qualification to exchange!
Some had even started flattering Li Wangchuan, proposing in his face how to divide his rights and assets.
In the war between the armored train and Steel Council, Li Wangchuan became the biggest winner.
And he became part of the spoils of war.
————
“We won.”
In the six-story small building, Wang Yi said listlessly.
Though it was a foregone conclusion from the start, the Steel Council fought far too ugly.
It looked like a pyrrhic victory no matter how you saw it.
She thought she’d be mocked by the person beside her, but unexpectedly he praised Li Wangchuan instead.
“Generals meet soldiers, earth dams rivers, Uncle Wang indeed chose a fine helmsman.”
Wang Yi unusually didn’t scold him, rising from the sofa like a noblewoman after watching a play, lightly yawning, “You should head back early too, the roads at night aren’t safe.”
“What is that?”
No reply from the middle-aged man came, but an exclamation.
Wang Yi frowned, looking toward him, surprisingly seeing a trace of panic on his face, somewhat startled, she followed the man’s line of sight out the window.
At the battlefield center, above the armored train was a pitch-black mass, not the gloom of dense dark clouds, but a surging black.
Like countless living things gathering into a layer of black dark cloud overhead, devouring all light.
Steel Council soldiers also noticed the anomaly, adjusting searchlights toward the sky.
In the illuminated circular area, amid surging black wings, densely packed scarlet eyes stared tightly at everyone below!
Wang Yi’s pupils suddenly contracted—
That wasn’t a dark cloud, but tens of thousands of black crows!
The assistant quickly pushed open the window, wings flapping like muffled thunder rolling, crow shadows nearly blanketing the entire sky, even blocking the acid rain, only sporadically dripping through the crow flock gaps like sifted fine sand.
“Mutated beasts! It’s a mutated beast flock!” Someone shrieked, voice laced with undisguisable fear.
Wang Yi’s gaze instinctively turned to the deep pit before the railway track.
No searchlights were paying attention there now.
Such an intense explosion, even Zhong Cheng might not survive, let alone Su Huan, a physically frail energizer.
Wang Yi found her own paranoia amusing.
It should be the intense battle attracting some mutated beasts.
In the instant her peripheral vision swept by.
The pitch-black deep pit suddenly flickered with light, cold blue glow spreading rapidly across the water surface like vines.
But everyone was drawn by the crows overhead, no one noticing there.
‘He’s still alive!’
Horror flashed in the woman’s eyes.
