Aircraft roared overhead, their engines fading into the distance, and the sea monsters on the beach were once again cleared.
The escort ships fired several flares, illuminating the beach and the sea. Everywhere they looked, there were squid like mud and shattered giant crabs, with tattered tentacles, crab legs, and shells strewn about. Even the armored vehicle that Ou Zhanpeng had used for cover was smashed by half a giant crab, falling with a loud crack at the feet of Ou and Ling.
Unidentifiable substances splattered from the crab shells, and the smell was indescribably foul.
Ling Xiao tried to find humor in the grim situation: "What a waste of crab roe."
"What, you planning to scoop it up and take it home?" Ou Zhanpeng rolled his eyes. "Crab roe and tomalley are reproductive cells. Wouldn't you feel awkward eating that stuff?"
"What's so awkward about it?" Ling Xiao’s mouth watered. "You get me one later, just me, and I guarantee I'll eat it all, believe it or not?"
"Why don't you take all the giant crabs on the beach?"
A voice interrupted their bickering: "The sea monsters are coming up again!"
Peeking out, under the dimming flares, another wave of giant crabs crawled onto the beach, followed by a group of giant squid, creeping stealthily and hiding.
"No way?" Ling Xiao's eyes widened. "Sea monsters have tactics too?"
The hard-shelled giant crabs led the charge, with the soft, flabby squid hiding behind them. It really did seem like a coordinated effort, a mutual cooperation.
Ou Zhanpeng's expression turned grim. "There must be an alien species in the water, maybe it's Brain Fish."
If these creatures could adapt to Earth's seawater, they wouldn't need to wear mechanical armor; they could appear in their natural form, which would be the best camouflage.
After several rounds of heavy fire, the police officers' spirits noticeably relaxed. Even as the crab swarm crossed the beach and climbed onto the road, no one felt tense, knowing what kind of resistance the crab swarm would face next.
Just as the crab swarm was about to launch another assault, a dull roar suddenly came from the sky.
Ou Zhanpeng looked up, vaguely seeing a huge silhouette passing through the clouds. Its massive wingspan made it look like a divine bird from ancient legends.
He blurted out, "Bomber, it's our bomber!"
Everyone froze. Before they could react, the bomber had already passed over the beach, and another round of bombing commenced.
But Ou Zhanpeng couldn't smile. To deal with a mere group of monsters, not even land creatures at that, why deploy a strategic bomber?
This thing flying around, considering fuel, maintenance, and munitions, was burning money every second. With the same amount, they could have carpeted the area with artillery shells a dozen times over!
Ou Zhanpeng instinctively felt something was wrong, but he couldn't quite pinpoint what.
The repeated failures didn't deter the enemy. Hordes of giant crabs and squid continued to crawl onto the beach in groups.
Just as everyone expected another bombing run, the roar of engines suddenly came from the distance. Soon, a convoy arrived, consisting entirely of military wheeled armored vehicles speeding along the road.
Before they even reached the location, the armored vehicles' turrets spat fire, and the giant crabs and squid on the beach once again faced annihilation.
A moment later, the armored convoy arrived at the battlefield. Dozens of wheeled armored vehicles, nose to tail, formed a line along the road.
Machine guns, autocannons, and various other weapons unleashed a barrage. Before long, no sea monsters were visible that could still stand.
Not only that, but as soon as the sea monsters were suppressed, several armored engineering vehicles drove onto the beach. With their rotary excavators working furiously, they dug a trench over a meter deep along the entire stretch of beach. They then coated it with specialized cement, and within minutes, the initial curing was complete.
Next, a tanker truck appeared and poured thick heavy oil into the trench.
When the sea monsters charged, the heavy oil in the trench was ignited. The once fierce sea monsters immediately halted.
Those at the front feared the flames and dared not cross the line, while new giant crabs and squid continued to surge onto the beach from the rear. A large number of sea monsters were packed together on the beach. Many hot-tempered crabs and squid, jostling and tangling their limbs, began fighting amongst themselves.
The armored vehicles didn't need to aim; as long as the direction was right, they could hit anything.
It was only then that a military officer arrived at the police line, saluted the police現場 commander, explained the situation clearly, and announced that the beach was now under military control, and the police were relieved of their duties and could leave at any time.
The police commander ordered his officers to withdraw, but he himself chose to stay.
The situation was entirely under military control, and Ou Zhanpeng and Ling Xiao could withdraw. Ling Xiao couldn't help but sigh, "Now I finally know why the police station has been working overtime."
A dozen soldiers carrying oxygen tanks, under the cover of the wall of fire, charged forward, lay down at intervals, and aimed their weapons. At the commander's order, a dozen fiery torrents broke through the fire wall and swept across the beach.
In an instant, the beach was filled with squid and giant crabs engulfed in roaring flames. Wrapped in blazing fire, they flailed around like headless flies, their flames spreading to more sea monsters.
In a flash, the sea monsters, which had been tightly packed together, descended into chaos. Many desperate sea monsters plunged into the wall of fire.
The sea monsters further away were luckier; most were pushed into the water by their fleeing companions. Whether they could charge back up or not, at least their lives were saved.
At this point, it had only been a little over half an hour since the first sea monster had charged onto the beach.
It proved that once humanity was adequately prepared, any giant marine creature was merely a joke.
Subsequently, the sea monsters launched several more waves of attacks, but they were repelled by the military's planned and systematic defenses, leaving their bodies littering the beach.
Later, the sea monsters could only charge forward by stepping on the corpses of their companions, the beach covered in crushed squid and tripping giant crabs.
Another half hour passed, and three warships, one large and two small, appeared. Not far from the coast, they unleashed over a hundred depth charges, the resulting water columns obscuring the warships.
A moment later, large amounts of shattered squid floated to the surface, forming a thick layer from the shore to the sea.
The giant crabs, however, remained still at the bottom of the sea.
The rhythm of the sea monsters' attack was clearly disrupted, and it took a while before they could launch their next assault.
By this point, the military had gained complete control of the battlefield.
Ou Zhanpeng and Ling Xiao waited on the shore, witnessing this scene with profound emotion.
In the entire army, while their combat capabilities couldn't be called top-tier, they were undoubtedly among the elite, definitely at the level of "Soldier Kings."
However, in the face of the military's integrated combat system, the fighting strength of one or a few individuals was simply a joke, offering no hope of resistance.
This was the power of the system!