Gunfire still echoed in the corridor as Ou Zhanpeng suddenly turned and lay on the ground, turning his gun 180 degrees. Another short burst of fire erupted, the sound deafening in Ling Xiao's ears, making him momentarily dizzy even through his helmet.
When he recovered, he looked back to see two aliens lying limply on the ground. They were only two meters tall, not the towering, multi-meter-tall giants. They also lacked shields.
Ling Xiao scratched his helmet, suddenly questioning his purpose: What was he even here for? Combat? No, combat didn't need him. Ou Zhanpeng handled it all by himself. Ling Xiao was just scenery, a backdrop, neither essential nor dismissible.
It wasn't entirely Ou Zhanpeng's fault. He was using a regular rifle, far less powerful than a heavy machine gun.
"No wonder you told me to stay outside," Ling Xiao's tone was laced with envy, a sourness that had long since turned into a river of longing. He hadn't realized he possessed this ability when they first entered...
Ou Zhanpeng knew this was impossible to explain, so he deflected: "Did you hear the gunfire? It's up ahead!"
Ling Xiao indeed snapped back to attention. The two of them sped forward, one after the other. As they passed the enemy corpses, they stumbled upon a few shell casings.
Ou Zhanpeng suddenly detected a faint, almost imperceptible smell of blood in the air, masked by the heavy scent of gunpowder, which he had subconsciously ignored. Taking a step forward, a large expanse of blood came into view, instantly stinging both their senses.
Ling Xiao no longer had the inclination for idle chatter, only a deep sorrow for the fallen. "Who was it?" he asked.
Ou Zhanpeng shook his head, then crouched down, picking up a blood-stained shell casing. "Let's go!"
Ling Xiao tightened his grip on his rifle, following closely behind Ou Zhanpeng. If he had harbored any doubts about Ou Zhanpeng's judgment earlier, they were now thoroughly dispelled. The shell casing was the clue. The two of them moved swiftly, and with every encounter with enemies, Ou Zhanpeng would stop them beforehand, firing a few shots to eliminate all approaching foes. Ling Xiao never found an opportunity to fire his weapon. What was supposed to be an extremely dangerous mission felt more like a leisurely stroll. Fighting while slacking off? Incredible!
They continued down the corridor, and before long, Ling Xiao also heard distinct gunfire. His spirits lifted, and he prepared himself for some serious action. As for who exactly was going to do the dominating, it hardly mattered. They were brothers, after all. What was the distinction between him and Ou Fei?
Ou Zhanpeng, who had been leading, suddenly braked hard. Ling Xiao, caught off guard, nearly collided with him. "What's wrong?"
Ou Shao stared at the empty corridor, his gaze sharp as a blade. "No, Qing'er, we've overshot. The gunfire is behind us!" The sound came from a side and rear direction, accompanied by the distinct sound of rushing water.
"No way?" Ling Xiao was astonished. "We didn't see any blast doors or passages or anything!"
"This way!" Ou Zhanpeng turned and headed back. After about twenty to thirty meters, he stopped. "It's here. The sound is clearest!"
Ling Xiao was bewildered again. He truly couldn't discern any difference. Ou Zhanpeng desperately wanted to blast open the bulkhead, but he only had one charge of explosives left. Using it here would leave him unable to blast open the hangar door when they departed. Yet, he quickly made up his mind. They didn't know how to proceed now, and the future would have to take care of itself.
Just as he was about to place the explosives on the wall, his expression changed. He kicked Ling Xiao a considerable distance away and then leaped more than ten meters himself. While still in mid-air, he aimed his gun at the spot where Ling Xiao had just been standing.
The bulkhead slid open silently, and the gunfire became exceptionally clear. Two aliens emerged. As they looked up, they saw the human soldier still in mid-air. Before they could react, the machine gun in Ou Zhanpeng's hands roared, and a long burst of fire downed the enemies. He executed a clean mid-air flip, landing firmly on his feet. Ling Xiao, who had been flung aside, landed in a heap and could only stare at Ou Zhanpeng, speechless.
Ou Zhanpeng strode forward. "No need to thank me!"
Ling Xiao's vision darkened. He almost cried. So, he was kicked over ten meters away, and upon getting up, he was expected to say thank you? How cruel!
Despite his grumbles, he knew that business was paramount. Ling Xiao quickly got to his feet, and the two of them covered each other as they passed through the door. The scene before them suddenly changed. After entering the enemy ship, they had encountered only monotonous corridors. Here, however, was a massive chamber. A colossal floor-to-ceiling window, made of glass-like transparent material, divided the vast ship cabin in half. One half was the ordinary space they occupied, while the other was a vibrant, colossal water tank, extravagantly luxurious.
Dozens of brain fish swam leisurely within, along with an equal number of jellyfish brains floating near the edges of the water tank. Upon spotting Ou and Ling behind the glass wall, they erupted into chaos, scrambling towards the left side of the water tank. There, a row of fish tanks was arranged, similar to those found inside the alien robots. Each fish tank corresponded to a robot embedded in the wall. A whole row, at least forty to fifty units.
How could Ou Zhanpeng allow the brain fish to enter the robots? He raised his machine gun and unleashed a barrage, ensuring each robot's chest took at least one shot. Streams of water, as thick as a finger, spurted from the bullet holes. Some of the faster brain fish had already managed to enter the fish tanks and were retracting into the robots' chests from behind. If they were lucky, only the robots were damaged. If they were unlucky, the bullets first pierced the robots and then hit the fish tanks. However, the fish tanks were far more robust than expected, showing no signs of cracking even when hit directly by a large-caliber machine gun. No wonder the brain fish were so eager; it wasn't to pilot the robots, but because the fish tanks were more sturdy!
The jellyfish brains were also quite fast. Although not adept swimmers, their tentacles extended and retracted, allowing them to move no slower than the brain fish. In the blink of an eye, they had all vanished, hiding somewhere. Without the robots, the brain fish were lambs to the slaughter. Those with fish tanks huddled together, reluctantly shielding the brain fish without tanks.
Ou Zhanpeng paid them no mind. After destroying all the robots, he immediately contacted his own forces: "Calling, calling, is anyone on this channel? Respond if you receive!"
"Ou Zhanpeng?" Xie Yu's voice came through, he could hardly believe it was real. "How did you get in?"
"And me!" Ling Xiao immediately chimed in, annoyed by Xie Yu's oversight of his presence.
Xie Yu felt a mixture of gratitude and concern. "Things are falling apart here. You two, go back where you came from, quickly!" Before he finished speaking, he transmitted all the intelligence gathered since entering the enemy ship to them. "You must get this intelligence out!"
But at that very moment, two towering alien giants, over three meters tall, smashed through the bulkhead and charged in. Upon discovering all the robots destroyed, they were instantly enraged, roaring as they lunged at Ou and Ling.