Shouts still echoed within the vehicle, and ahead, the orange glow of explosions was visible.
The fluctuating light illuminated the bridge spanning the river, as well as the colossal squids and crabs swarming its approaches. Against the onslaught of these massive sea monsters, the armored vehicle’s cannon fire seemed pathetically weak.
Huang He’s gaze was grim. “We can’t get through ahead. Xiao Yuan, can we take a detour?”
The driver’s voice was crisp. “Yes!”
He wrenched the steering wheel, and the truck veered north. Yuan Liming stomped on the accelerator.
The Yuxiong River flowed through the city from north to south, emptying into the sea. The appearance of giant squids and crabs within the city indicated they had entered the river mouth and were moving upstream.
Now, the truck had to race against the sea monsters in the river. They had to cross first, to get ahead of the creatures before they could cut off traffic on the Yuxiong River.
As the armored truck sped further away, the gazes of everyone inside were drawn back to the Cai Xiong Bridge behind them, an indescribable feeling churning in their hearts.
“Damn it!” Ou Zhanpeng punched the car door with a muffled thud. “I’ve never felt so pathetic in my life!”
The armored truck was the closest friendly unit to Cai Xiong Bridge. Yet, despite receiving a distress signal, not only could the people inside not help, but they were also fleeing the battlefield.
Could there be anything more frustrating than this?
“If only we had our gear,” Ling Xiao said dejectedly, the usual spark gone from his eyes. “The base has everything, but that woman Xu Qing practically has us locked up. It’s unlikely she’d let us out to help!”
“It’s not entirely her fault,” Ou Zhanpeng remarked. “We were just rushing in blindly. The garrison has so many people; do they really need us two?”
Ling Xiao scratched his head. “They certainly don’t lack manpower, but lending a hand would be better than just watching, wouldn’t it?”
Huang He remained silent, discreetly switching off the radio.
It wasn’t that he didn’t want to provide support, but the mission he was tasked with prevented him from deviating.
As they spoke, the speeding armored truck managed to cross another bridge spanning the river, just ahead of the sea monsters.
The bridge was adorned with decorative lights, and both banks of the river were illuminated.
Ou Zhanpeng clearly saw the river’s surface teeming with surging squids and crawling giant crabs. If the truck had been even a minute or two slower, they would have been overtaken by the monsters.
Looking into the distance, the firepower at the Cai Xiong Bridge remained fierce, but anyone with even a modicum of military knowledge knew that such firepower couldn’t last.
At that critical juncture, a dull whistling sound echoed from the sky again. In a flash, a shell landed in the river.
With a deafening roar, no water column was raised, but a large swathe of the river was instantly cleared, sending fragments of fish and crabs flying everywhere.
The sheer size and broad surface area of the colossal squids and crabs meant that many appeared unharmed on the outside, yet they lay motionless in the water, quickly losing their lives.
Even the bridge deck shook violently with the explosion, as if it might collapse at any moment.
The occupants of the truck felt as if they had experienced an eight-magnitude earthquake. Yuan Liming slammed on the brakes, bringing the truck to a halt on the bridge, no longer daring to drive forward.
Furthermore, from beneath the bridge southward, a shell struck the river surface at regular intervals, killing countless sea monsters.
The shaking came and went quickly. As the tremors subsided slightly, Yuan Liming immediately accelerated to drive off the bridge at full speed.
The predicament at Cai Xiong Bridge was likely resolved, and everyone felt a slight sense of relief.
Ling Xiao couldn’t help but be curious. “That barrage of artillery fire just now, it must have been at least 155mm, right?”
“Probably… Major Huang, may I ask how the garrison plans to deal with the Yuxiong River situation?”
Huang He shook his head. “This is a new development. There’s no specific information on it, but all available combat forces have been deployed. There are no reserves left.”
“The situation is that serious?” Ou Zhanpeng asked, surprised.
“I can only say it’s more serious than we imagined,” Huang He replied. “There are too many landing points, and each requires personnel. The consumption of ammunition is also enormous.”
“No reinforcements assigned?” Ou Zhanpeng inquired.
“They’ve been assigned, but they won’t arrive for at least another two hours.” Ou Zhanpeng could hardly believe his ears. “That slow? Are our allies so far away?”
“It’s not the distance, but rather that our situation isn’t considered the most urgent. So, priority has been given to other directions.” Huang He explained.
Ou Zhanpeng’s mind struggled to keep up. “Other directions? Is the scale of the sea monster attack that large?”
“I’m not clear about distant locations, but all the nearby cities have reported monster sightings, and the scale is much larger than ours.” Huang He answered directly, without any concealment.
Ou and Ling exchanged glances, unable to fathom how many colossal squids and crabs would be needed to launch such a simultaneous attack along such an extensive coastline.
“This is interesting!” Ou Zhanpeng fell into a contemplative mood. He wanted to discuss it with Ling Xiao, but he was wary of having an outsider present. The existence of alien species was no longer a secret within the space forces, but did the ground forces know this information?
If he accidentally leaked it, it would be a terrible injustice!
As he was pondering, a large group of people suddenly rushed out of a nearby subway station. They were shouting in panic and running in all directions. Some of them ran onto the road and waved frantically at the truck.
Yuan Liming instinctively slammed on the brakes. With a screech of tires, the heavy truck finally came to a halt.
The group immediately swarmed around. “Help us, help us!”
“There are monsters, there are monsters!”
“My mother is still in the mall, my mother is still in the mall.”
The people in the truck were all stunned. Huang He was in a quandom.
As a soldier, helping civilians was his duty. However, his mission was to deliver Ou and Ling back to base as quickly as possible, and he couldn’t stop here.
Fortunately, nearby police officers heard the commotion and rushed over, immediately dispersing the crowd, cordoning off the subway station, and informing the garrison of the situation.
A squad of police officers entered the subway station, and a large number of civilians retreated.
Ou Zhanpeng’s eyes widened. He wanted to ask Huang He: How many people did you accommodate in the station?
He had no idea that due to the suddenness of the event, Huaxiong City had received orders to enter a state of emergency immediately, with personnel flow restricted within a set time. Essentially, people were being evacuated to the nearest safe locations upon receiving the news.
At this moment, large numbers of civilians were sheltered in various public places such as shopping malls, stations, hospitals, and subways. What they were seeing was merely the tip of the iceberg.
With the crowd not yet dispersed, the truck was stuck in the middle of the road, unable to move. Through the open car window, Ou Zhanpeng faintly heard someone calling for support on the police radio.
Another squad of police officers rushed into the station, their resolute figures disappearing into the tunnel in an instant.
Ou Zhanpeng suddenly felt a pang of worry. If the attackers were giant squids or crabs, could the police officers’ weapons handle them?
In less than two minutes, he heard the call for support again.
The on-site police commander’s face was grim. Without hesitation, he spoke a single sentence: “Requesting military support!”