manynovel Page 12
Page 12
(Note: These people suppress the fluctuations of their own life essence through special methods to avoid attracting too many Devouring Beasts.)
Chen Yuan understood immediately; it must be a group of survivors on the ground, and a well-trained squad at that.
He moved silently into the shadow of a huge pipe and observed quietly.
Soon, a lithe young woman (Xiao Qi) wearing a gray-green protective suit cautiously peeked out from behind the cover, holding a precision energy rifle with a silencer in her hand.
She warily scanned the area at the canyon entrance that was about to collapse. When her gaze swept over the remains of several snake-dogs, her pupils suddenly contracted, and an incredulous look of horror appeared on her face.
"Captain... Snake Dogs... It seems like all the Snake Dogs that came in are dead."
She quickly ran back and said in a low voice, "The manner of death... is very strange, as if some terrifying force instantly crushed the internal organs... and there are penetrating wounds... even the core of the spirit particle was destroyed."
"what?"
At this moment, even the usually composed captain's voice betrayed surprise.
Just then, (Xiao Qi) inadvertently caught sight of the shadowy pipe where Chen Yuan had followed and was hiding.
Although the canyon was dimly lit, he almost blended into the rusted metal.
However, the faint blue light lingering from the foot thrusters of the combat suit, and the almost imperceptible glint in the helmet visor, were still caught by the sharp-eyed (Xiao Qi) sniper.
Chen Yuan, after all, had not received professional training, so it was difficult for him to hide his figure silently.
"Who's there?" Xiao Qi instantly turned his gun towards Chen Yuan, his voice carrying a hint of tension and warning.
"Come out, or I'll shoot."
As she gave the warning, a series of clanging sounds of bolts being pulled back and bullets being chambered immediately rang out from behind the cover.
The other six figures quickly appeared, using cover and pipes as cover, and the crosshairs of several gun muzzles and sniper scopes instantly locked onto Chen Yuan's hiding place.
These people were quick and coordinated, clearly seasoned veterans.
Knowing he could no longer hide, Chen Yuan slowly emerged from the shadows. The Loongson 4 nanosuit gleamed with a cold metallic sheen in the dim light, its streamlined shape covering his entire body. The thruster nozzles beneath his feet still retained a slight warmth from the battle.
He stood there, silent like a metal sculpture from the future, completely out of place in the desolate wasteland.
"Machine? No...there are people inside!"
A burly man with a scar on his face and fierce eyes (Sang Gou) growled, raising the muzzle of his heavy machine gun to aim, and asked warily, "Who are you? Which faction do you belong to?"
Chapter 14 Armor-Piercing Bullets from Behind
Chen Yuan's gaze, peering through his mask and goggles, swept over the small team.
Five men and two women, well-equipped but travel-worn, their faces showing the weariness and vigilance of wasteland survivors.
The captain was a middle-aged man with a resolute face and sharp, eagle-like eyes.
Xiao Qi, who had spoken earlier, pursed her lips tightly, the gun barrel steadily pointed at him.
The other female team member appeared to be older, with a cold expression, and was vigilantly observing her surroundings to prevent the presence of other enemies.
The guy called "Sang Gou" made almost no attempt to hide the ill intent in his eyes.
There's no need to tell you.
Chen Yuan's voice, processed by the voice changer on his battle suit, was cold and emotionless, like a heavy metal sound.
"Just tell me what you're here for, don't force me to take action!"
Chen Yuan pretended to be someone from a powerful family, his gaze fixed on the mongrel, carrying an invisible pressure and a domineering attitude.
The dog was enraged by the look in his eyes and sneered, "Kid, don't think you can act so tough just because you're wearing a metal suit. This isn't your backyard."
After saying that, he subconsciously took a step forward, raising the muzzle of the heavy machine gun even higher.
"Shut up, you bastard!"
Captain Lei Gang sternly rebuked them, saying that the other party was so powerful that they must have something to rely on, and he didn't want to cause any trouble before the mission was completed.
Lei Gang stepped forward and blocked the dog's path, looking directly into Chen Yuan's visor and saying in a friendly manner, "Hey, brother, don't misunderstand. We're an elite team from the Coastal Alliance, and I'm the captain, Lei Gang. We were just tracking a group of raiders and ended up nearby by accident. We meant no harm."
Lei Gang pointed to the snake-dog carcasses at the canyon entrance passage, "Did you do all of this by yourself?"
Chen Yuan didn't answer, but coldly asked in return, "Hmm? Coastal Alliance? Oh, never heard of it."
He keenly noticed that when the opposing team's captain, Lei Gang, mentioned the Coastal Alliance, the female team member with the cold eyes and Sang Gou seemed to tense up slightly, and a strange look flashed deep in their eyes.
"Hmph, stop pretending. Who else could be wearing this armor but those metal-wielding lunatics from Mechanical City?"
Sanggou couldn't help but interrupt again, his tone full of hostility, "Mechanical City and our Coastal Alliance have never gotten along, Captain, why waste words with this guy?"
“You bastard, I’m saying this one last time: keep your mouth shut. When we’re on a mission, you have to listen to me…” Lei Gang’s voice was already filled with anger.
He turned to Chen Yuan, his tone softening: "Brother, no matter which side you're on, in this godforsaken place, there's no need for survivors to fight amongst themselves. Let's leave now and not bother each other, okay?"
Lei Gang signaled his team members to slowly retreat towards the passage ahead, not wanting to cause any unnecessary trouble.
Chen Yuan nodded slightly. Although he didn't like these people, they weren't mortal enemies, and he wasn't a murderer, so he had no choice but to let them leave.
Just as the Coast Guard members relaxed slightly and stepped out of the narrow passage...
"Roar!!!"
Hiss--
A dense and violent roar surged forth like a tide from the canyon entrance and the abandoned factories on both sides.
The earth trembled slightly, as if zombies had been unleashed.
The lingering scent of blood and energy fluctuations from Chen Yuan's earlier battles with the snake-dog pack and the earlier Flower Calyx Beasts finally attracted an even larger horde of Devouring Beasts.
Snake-dogs, spine-worms, and even several enormous earth-roaring creatures spewing corrosive acid mist.
A dark mass, like sharks smelling blood, mindlessly charged into the canyon entrance and both sides of the abandoned factory, heading straight for the retreating coastal team and Chen Yuan.
"Enemy attack! It's a horde of Devouring Beasts! Quickly, establish a defensive line!"
Captain Lei Gang shouted, but his voice was instantly drowned out by the roar of the Devouring Beast and the sudden burst of gunfire.
"Da da da da da!"
"Bang, bang!"
"Grenades, suppress the attack, don't let them rush up."
The machine guns spewed fire wildly, the sniper rifles fired precise shots, and fragmentation grenades exploded in bursts of light among the beasts.
The coastal squad members displayed exceptional combat skills, instantly forming a crossfire network using cover to temporarily suppress the beast horde's charge.
Chen Yuan also entered battle mode, his nanopulse power amplification boosting his movements. He moved swiftly, dodging a large snake-dog that lunged at him, his right hand's five fingers instantly deforming.
"Puff puff puff!"
Five streaks of dark light precisely pierced the core of the snake-dog charging at the forefront and the two spinal worms behind it.
Chen Yuan moved with composure like a silver ghost on the battlefield, weaving through a hail of bullets and the attacks of the Devouring Beasts. Each attack killed a Devouring Beast, and his presence greatly relieved the pressure on the Coastal Squad.
In the midst of the melee, while using a heavy machine gun to fire at the snake dogs that pounced on him, he kept a close eye on the silver figure that moved with the efficiency of death among the beasts.
Jealousy, greed, and a deep-seated hostility toward the Mechanical City, along with the enormous rewards for killing its inhabitants, gnawed at his heart like venomous snakes.
"Damn it, those bastards from Mechanical City... what are you pretending to be, savior..."
The scumbag cursed viciously in his heart.
Then, a crazy idea began to sprout in his mind.
Take advantage of the chaos and kill him!
Every person lost in Mechanical City is a blessing, and we'll also get a reward from the Coastal Alliance—that mech suit…maybe we can even take it off…
Once the idea took hold, it became an unstoppable force.
He quietly retreated to a relatively safe recess in the pipe, quickly removed the drum magazine from the heavy machine gun, and pulled out a specially made armor-piercing round that gleamed with a dark metallic luster from his tactical pouch.
This armor-piercing projectile was developed by the Coastal Alliance for use against heavily armored targets and is extremely powerful.
"You can only blame your bad luck."
With a sinister grin, the savage dog skillfully loaded armor-piercing rounds into a spare large-caliber anti-materiel rifle. Then, he quietly raised the muzzle and, under the cover of chaotic smoke and beastly shadows, precisely locked onto Chen Yuan, who was clearing the flanks with his back to him.
Not far away, the female team member with a cold expression (codename "Ice Scorpion") happened to see Zombie Dog's actions.
Her brow furrowed almost imperceptibly, a complex look flashed in her eyes, and she opened her mouth but didn't utter a sound. Perhaps... it was tacit approval of the dog's behavior?
In the end, she said nothing and silently moved her sniper rifle away, aiming it at the other snake dog that was lunging at the captain.
"Bang!""
A dull yet penetrating gunshot rang out, sounding unusually abrupt amidst the cacophony of the battlefield.
Just as Chen Yuan was inserting the Five-Finger Armor-Piercing Bullet into the core of a Roaring Earth, the Dragon Core suddenly issued an early warning, but it was too late. He felt as if an invisible, heavy hammer had struck his back.
"clang!"
The immense impact caused him to stagger forward several steps, but thankfully he wasn't blasted away.
The nano-alloy armor on the back of the suit instantly caved in violently, and the blue energy shield lit up in response.
[Warning: High-energy armor-piercing round has hit your back!]
[Damage to the nano-alloy armor layer: 5%!]
[The reserve nanoparticles are repairing... estimated time 3 seconds.]
[Scanning detected, attack source being located... Target locked, Coastal Alliance Squad... Codename, Zombie Dog!]
Chapter 15 Tragic
Although the suit absorbed most of the impact, the terrifying penetrating power still managed to penetrate through layers of protection, causing Chen Yuan's back to sting with pain.
This naked malice and murderous intent coming from behind was like a bucket of cold water, instantly extinguishing the last shred of illusion Chen Yuan had about his "kindred spirits".
"Damn it!" Chen Yuan turned around abruptly, and the cold visor of his mask instantly locked onto the recessed part of the pipe. The zombie dog, who was still in a shooting posture with a cruel and gleeful smile on his face, froze instantly.
Lei Gang also heard the peculiar gunshot, and then saw Chen Yuan stagger as he was hit. From his angle, he also saw the ferocious smile on Sang Gou's face, which he couldn't hide in time.
He instantly understood what had happened, his expression changing drastically as he exclaimed, "You damn dog, what the hell are you doing?"
"Brother, it's a misunderstanding, it's a misunderstanding."