A wild boar, the size of a sedan, crashed through the undergrowth, toppling a large tree as it emerged from the depths of the jungle.
Its small eyes, disproportionate to its body, were filled with a look of novelty. It had never ventured beyond the Qi Ling Mountain range since its birth.
It had heard from some monsters who had fled into the mountains from the outside world that the world beyond was dominated by bipedal animals that walked upright. These monsters, aside from their sheer numbers, had nothing else to recommend them.
These creatures were timid and weak, only capable of shrieking and fleeing. They enjoyed raising other creatures for their consumption and wantonly destroyed nature and the environment, pushing many species to the brink of extinction.
Oh, right, these creatures did have one redeeming quality.
They were delicious!
Though the wild boar had never eaten human, the influence of those monsters who had fled into the mountains made its mouth water at the mere thought of humans.
With the recent incident in the mountains, it decided to seize this opportunity to venture out and taste human flesh.
Just as it was about to exit the mountain range, a large-caliber sniper bullet struck its forehead, creating a bloody, mangled crater in its head.
The bullet did not kill the boar monster. The basin-sized wound looked terrifying, but it was merely a flesh wound and not fatal to the boar's immense body.
However, the bullet stunned it. Moments later, a rocket-propelled grenade exploded nearby, the deafening roar of gunfire engulfing its location.
Each of these bullets was fired from at least an assault rifle, and some even from heavy machine guns. Their power was incomparable to ordinary handguns.
By the time the firing stopped, the boar monster was unequivocally dead, its body riddled with countless bullet holes, resembling a giant, red hornet's nest.
Its corpse was left there, uncollected, presumably to serve as a deterrent to other monsters.
Watching the wild boar fall, Lin Zhe Yuan's expression did not relax in the slightest. Dealing with a single wild boar was not cause for celebration; the real trouble still lay ahead.
If monsters were only of the wild boar's caliber, there would be no need to dispatch hunters for support.
Indeed, it was the Hunter Association of Furong River City, where Lin Zhe Yuan was located, that had taken charge of this vital route leading out of Qi Ling Mountain.
There were over a dozen such passages, each guarded by an varying number of monster hunters.
The only monster hunters remaining in Furong River City were Jiao Xin Lei and the incapacitated Ding Ming Guang. With these two present, at least Furong River City would not fall into utter chaos when the main force was deployed.
As for the hunters he brought with him, there were Lin Lu, Yan Xiu, the newly joined Li Da Zhuang, and another newcomer. Including Lin Zhe Yuan, a total of five superhumans had arrived.
The support brigade of the Furong River City Hunter Association, numbering in the dozens, had also accompanied him. Each of them was armed with various high-impact weapons, ambushing in the vicinity. As soon as a monster appeared, they would be targeted.
An individual ordinary person wielding conventional firearms posed little threat to such monsters.
However, when a large number of trained supporters were involved, these firearms would transform into a torrent of metal, exhibiting formidable power.
Many monster species could not be eliminated by firearms alone. Fortunately, most monsters in the Qi Ling Mountain range could not ignore the damage inflicted by gunfire.
While these supporters played a crucial role, they faced greater danger than the hunters themselves, as they lacked the ability to protect themselves. If a monster managed to close in, their fate would be death.
But Lin Zhe Yuan had to do this. Monsters would continue to emerge here. If the hunters handled all of them, they would likely be too exhausted to cope when truly threatening monsters appeared.
Therefore, Lin Zhe Yuan and his team would only intervene when the supporters were in mortal danger or when the monsters were beyond their capacity to handle. At other times, their priority was to conserve strength.
You Han was also among the supporters. Her abilities had only recently recovered, a fact that Lin Zhe Yuan was not aware of at the time.
She was part of the team because she was the captain of the Furong River City Support Brigade.
Suddenly, Lin Zhe Yuan's eyes snapped open. A slender, red tendril shot from his hand, soaring into the sky and impaling a strange bird, bringing it down.
This was the route they were guarding, and not a single bird was allowed to fly out!
This bird was half the height of a person. Its sharp claws could likely tear through sheet metal with ease. Even with its body pierced, the strange bird thrashed about restlessly. Only when Lin Zhe Yuan plunged his tendril into its brain did it finally become still.
"This strange bird might be considered a monster outside, but living in Qi Ling Mountain, this level of strength is insufficient. Perhaps they are a flock."
The moment this thought crossed his mind, Lin Zhe Yuan sensed an aura from the depths of the forest before anyone else. His expression suddenly changed, and he shouted, "Supporters, please be advised, the next wave of attack will come from the sky!"
As soon as he finished speaking, a series of chirping sounds arose. The silhouettes of several giant eagles, their feathers shimmering with golden light, appeared from the direction of the mountains. And behind these giant eagles, there was a flock of the same strange birds.
These golden giant eagles were of the same species as the Ying Ying monsters caught by Wen Wen, and those strange birds were their subordinates.
As the birds flew close enough, You Han gave an order. Dozens of different firearms roared simultaneously, and the strange birds rained down from the sky like dumplings.
They were small in size, and their fur offered little defense. A single bullet was enough to injure them.
However, after the first volley of gunfire, these birds became harder to hit. Under the command of the Ying Ying monsters, they rapidly altered their flight paths, making it difficult for the supporters below to aim.
Then, they would occasionally dive from the sky, snatching up the supporters who were firing and dragging them into the air, tearing them apart with the combined efforts of several birds.
Faced with this terrifying situation, firing was akin to seeking death, as it would attract the birds' attacks.
But the supporters did not cease. They knew that if these monsters were allowed to escape, it would not just be them who were torn to shreds, but also the unsuspecting civilians in the city.
They would not easily let the monsters pass until they were all annihilated.
Lin Zhe Yuan and his team also stopped conserving their strength and began to act. Red blood threads, holy white light, kicking long legs, and a single gray-green厄运守卫 (E'yùn Shǒu Wèi - roughly "Doom Guardian") moved in unison.
The怪鸟 (guài niǎo - strange birds) were being killed one by one, but the situation did not improve much. What was more troublesome were the Ying Ying monsters circling in the sky. There were a full seven of these Ying Ying monsters, constituting a small pack.
Six of them were each at the Disaster level, and the strongest one was even approaching the Catastrophe level. As for the leader, a pure golden giant eagle, it exuded an aura characteristic of the Catastrophe level.
You Han sighed, unbuttoning her gray ladies' suit to reveal a light combat uniform underneath.
In the current situation, she could no longer conceal the recovery of her abilities.