Chapter 61: Carnage |
Following the guidance of the ten-person team, Chen Chu and others made their way out of the airport. They had been walking along the road for only four kilometers when the roadside terrain became uneven, covered in craters left by heavy artillery and missile bombardment; a reminder of just how fierce the Federal Army’s attack had been.
After following the broken road for several kilometers, a stretch of low buildings slowly came into view.
What was once a small town was now in ruins, filled with explosive craters, bullet holes, and scorch marks everywhere.
The second lieutenant spoke in a deep voice. "Everyone, pay attention. This town was originally occupied by a rebel army of a thousand people. While we were able to rout them, most of these rebels are locals and very familiar with the terrain, which has allowed them to evade our forces. We’ve been seeing them during patrols in the past few days..."
Before the squad leader could finish speaking, Chen Chu felt a strong sense of danger looming.
Just over a hundred meters away, a middle-aged man with dark skin stood up from the roof of a flat house, carrying a rocket launcher on his shoulder.
In an instant, a sharp whistling sound echoed as a rocket, spewing flames, shot towards the group.
"Seeking death."
With a low grunt, the female teacher ahead released a formidable aura. A powerful surge of blue true power emanated from her, akin to flames enveloping her entire body.
The ground erupted with a resounding blast as the teacher leaped up, leaving behind a residual image. In an instant, she appeared dozens of meters away, her palm slamming into the rocket.
Bang!
The rocket’s fiery explosion illuminated the surroundings, and billowing smoke filled the air.
Amid the glow and smoke, the teacher's true power danced around her unharmed body. She emitted an astonishingly oppressive aura from head to toe.
Over a hundred more figures emerged in succession from the dilapidated structures. Most of these individuals were armed with rifles, some were carrying submachine guns and heavy machine guns, and one individual was even wielding a grenade launcher.
Among them were ten cultists, dressed in black robes. One shouted sternly, "Open fire! Kill those Federation geniuses!"
Pang Long also issued a low command. "Soldiers, take cover! Leave the cultists to us. All students, engage! Eliminate every single rebel."
As Pang Long spoke, gunshots erupted in the distance, and countless bullets flew towards the group.
The teacher who had intercepted the rocket was the first to bear the brunt. She was completely engulfed by the barrage of bullets, causing her true power to ripple continuously from the impact.
"Kill!"
Two more rockets were fired at the group, and Pang Long and another middle-aged teacher erupted with a formidable energy. Red and white true power danced around their bodies like flames. In an instant, they vanished from their original positions, leaving behind a trail of afterimages.
Boom! Boom!
Midway, the two of them intercepted the rockets, directly shattering them mid-air. Such a domineering scene stunned the attackers. Several ordinary members among the rebel forces were trembling, their hands shaking as they considered fleeing.
The lead cultist frowned. "What's going on? Didn’t the intelligence report say there’s only one high-level cultivator? Don't be afraid, keep shooting and make them deplete their true power. They can't hold on for much longer. Bring in the heavy machine guns."
He then signaled for his subordinates to retreat. Just because they were fanatical cultists didn’t mean they were fools.
Boom!
In the blink of an eye, the female teacher broke through the barrage of gunfire. With a powerful strike, she demolished the wall in front of her and leaped, lunging towards one of the cultists.
However, the cultists weren’t weak either. The two strongest among them, with auras only slightly weaker than Pang Long and the others, released blood-red energy from their bodies. Realizing that they couldn’t retreat in time, they instead attempted to surround and attack the female teacher.
Pang Long and the other teacher, shrouded in red and white auras, dashed into the town at a terrifying speed exceeding one hundred meters per second and pounced on the remaining cultists.
Compared to the leading duo, these cultists were much weaker, with a few having only the aura of the Second Heavenly Realm. Upon contact, one of them was instantly killed by a single palm strike from Pang Long.
Both sides erupted into intense combat, causing walls to collapse and buildings to explode. In the pursuit, they disappeared into the outskirts of the town.
Xia Youhui licked his lips, hoisting the spiked shield on his back in front of him. With excitement, he said, "Ah Chu, let's join the fray."
With a nod, Chen Chu cautioned, "Be wary of grenades."
With the protection of the full-body armor, ordinary rifles and submachine guns posed no significant threat to them. The impact from the shots hitting their bodies could be easily ignored. Grenades and rocket launchers, on the other hand, were still highly lethal against them.
"Kill!" Chen Chu had just spoken when Li Hao charged forward, carrying his iron rod like a rampaging tank.
Despite his seemingly reckless charge, he zigzagged his way forward, avoiding most of the bullets. The few that did hit him were deflected by the battle armor.
More than twenty freshmen, half of them showing excited expressions, also charged forward. They utilized obstacles to dodge bullets, resorting to the battle armor's defense only when they couldn't avoid the shots, and displayed an intimidating momentum. Seeing this, Chen Chu didn't hesitate. He drew his long saber and moved like the wind, ghosting around to the side.
With cultivation at the Second Heavenly Realm and physiques five times stronger than the average person, these students moved at speeds far beyond the norm. Even while wearing battle armor and carrying heavy weaponry, the slowest among them still had a burst speed close to twenty meters per second, crossing a hundred meters in just a few seconds.
Chen Chu's speed was even faster, almost exceeding fifty meters per second. In the blink of an eye, he charged into the buildings from the side.
Bang!
Chen Chu planted one foot on red brick wall, the powerful force creating cracks as he leaped off. He soared into the air, landing on the roof of a building over four meters high.
Three rebels with dark skin and fierce expressions were crouching at the edge, firing wildly at the incoming freshmen. These individuals, having experienced several months of chaos, reacted quickly. The moment Chen Chu landed on the roof, they turned around and opened fire without hesitation.
Bang! Bang! Bang!
A dense barrage of bullets landed on the roof, raising clouds of dust, all missing their target. The second they had pulled the triggers, Chen Chu had already vanished from his original position, covering a distance of over seven meters[1] in an instant to reappear at their left sides.
Without hesitation, the two-meter-long straight saber tore through the air, a white light flashing across the three rebels in an instant.
Plop! Plop! Plop!
Under the incredibly sharp blade, all three were instantly slain. Even the rifles in their hands were cleaved in half, and hot blood gushed out as the bodies fell to the ground.
This was his first kill, and yet Chen Chu's gaze remained ice-cold. The dismembered remains on the ground elicited no emotional response from him.
He was already used to such a bloody scene. After all, he, or rather 'It,' had killed and devoured over a hundred mutated fish.
Bang! Bang! Bang!
A burst of bullets suddenly passed through the spot where Chen Chu had just been standing, hitting the rooftop and creating sparks and dust.
On the rooftop of a neighboring two-story building, a rebel hid behind the stairwell door. As soon as he saw Chen Chu kill his three comrades, he had immediately opened fire.
Sensing the danger, however, Chen Chu had already moved in advance to evade.
This was the key aspect of the Insightful Eye Realm—the ability to keenly perceive danger and gazes imbued with killing intent.
Boom!
Chen Chu resembled a raging giant elephant in his battle armor. After dodging the rifle barrage, he leaped high and landed on the opposite rooftop, becoming a black shadow as he charged into the door at full speed.
Bang!
Under the ferocious force, the wooden stairwell door instantly shattered into pieces. The rebel behind it was sent flying, crashing into the opposite wall like a pile of mud.
Chen Chu's figure moved like the wind, flashing down the corridor. At the entrance below, two rebels, one carrying a heavy machine gun and the other wielding a submachine gun, were startled as they looked back while still firing outward.
Plop! Plop!
The blade flashed, and before the two rebels could react, Chen Chu had killed them. Their heads flew into the air, and crimson blood spurted out.
After consecutively killing six individuals, he rushed out of the flat and saw chaos outside. His classmates, emboldened by their battle armor, were charging recklessly through the gunfire.
Especially Xia Youhui, as a faint earthy glow radiated from his body. With his shield over a meter tall and more than ten centimeters thick, he ignored the gunfire completely, charging directly toward a modified off-road vehicle that was attempting to escape.
Boom!
Person and vehicle collided with a resounding crash, causing the ground around them to tremble. The impact of the vehicle, which had been traveling at a speed of several dozen kilometers per hour caused the ground beneath Xia Youhui's feet to tremble, creating subtle cracks. He, however, stood firm and unmoving.
The vehicle, on the other hand, was brought to an abrupt halt, its front end crumpled. The sudden and sharp stop whipped the riding rebels around, causing them to shout in panic.
At that moment, the two-meter-tall Li Hao leaped down from a nearby flat roof. In his hands, the three-meter-long iron rod whistled through the air and crashed onto the vehicle.
Boom!
The vehicle was directly smashed under the terrifying force of Li Hao's strike. It exploded in a burst of flames, and the rebels inside were instantly reduced to unrecognizable forms. As the vehicle exploded, some gasoline splashed onto Li Hao, igniting him.
"Damn it, Li Hao, don't steal my kills!" Xia Youhui exclaimed in frustration.
Li Hao, with flames still flickering on his legs, emanated a commanding presence. Disregarding Xia Youhui’s protest, he carried the iron rod and pursued the retreating rebels who were attempting to escape in the distance.
Boom!
A careless freshman was blasted away by a grenade, rolling several times on the ground and not getting back up.
Before the rebel with the grenade launcher could shoot again, a heavy sword suddenly swung from the side, cutting him and his weapon into two halves.
It was a gruesome and bloody sight, but Yuan Chenghuang, standing on the side, was visibly excited.
Elsewhere, flashes of fire illuminated the scene, with the continuous exchange of gunfire and agonizing screams. Bullets scattered, and grenades exploded chaotically, creating an atmosphere filled with the scent of blood and fire.
It was hard to imagine that these freshmen were experiencing their first time on the battlefield.
1. The original novel uses "two zhang"; this was converted to meters for consistency ☜