Chapter 808: Chapter 808
"Central State Hammer Squad reporting, mission to kill Demonic Shadow Daimyo Takeda Shingen within an hour. Upon mission failure, collective eradication will commence."
The moment Silver Trojan’s voice fell, an almost eardrum-piercing buzz of alarm sounded from the radar. Lu Fan looked and saw the screen filled with dense red dots, leaving no gaps whatsoever, indicating that the whole of Ikebukuro had been overrun by Takeda’s Demon Shadow Warriors.
"This is way more than Ai Yixin’s estimate of ten thousand, I reckon it’s more like a conservative thirty thousand." Lu Fan pinched her brow and sighed, then continued firing at the cavalry following her. She decided to hand over all the trouble to Tang Zheng and just follow his lead.
The position of Takeda Shingen was slightly to the left of the center of the radar screen, surrounded by layers upon layers of warriors. Killing him would require piercing through their defense line which, even in Trojan Squad’s heyday, was impossible, not to mention that strong Conquerors like Lin Weiguo had already left the game.
"Tang Zheng, we’ve got no choice, let’s charge," said Sha Ou, unable to think of any solutions, resignedly accepting their fate, "Better to fight and die without regrets than to be killed while fleeing."
"What are you talking about? Keep it zipped if you’ve got no ideas and wait for the group leader to come up with a plan," uttered Yu Manli, not wanting to die, she wracked her brain for solutions and took the opportunity to ingratiate herself with Tang Zheng.
Dantai was also thinking. He wasn’t the type to simply surrender in the face of adversity, but Tang Zheng was a step ahead.
"Burn the entire city down." As he drove past a gas station, an idea suddenly dawned on Tang Zheng, who then took out his Heavy Magnetostorm Rifle and fired at the oil tanks.
Electric arcs danced all over, and fist-sized balls of electrical storm burst from the muzzle, striking the oil tanks and detonating immediately, creating several potent streams of electric current that enveloped the tanks in a lightning jungle. Amid the crackling sounds of electrical discharges, he destroyed the tanks. The source of this content ɪs n̷o̷v̷e̷l̷f̷i̷r̷e̷.net
Boom, the current ignited the gasoline within the tanks, blowing them upward like an eruption, followed by a resounding thunk as they landed on the ground, sparks flying everywhere.
Unsatisfied with the small blast radius, Tang Zheng recklessly fired at the ground, each storm ball creating a big pit. An oil pipeline burst as a result of the explosion, spewing gasoline out due to the hydraulic pressure difference, which was then ignited by the flames. In mere seconds, the entire gas station was ablaze, with repeated explosions ringing in everyone’s ears.
Pungent smoke began to waft and drift towards the Shadow Cavalry.
"Relying on this smoke to stop the monsters?" Li Bo, seated in the passenger’s side, failed to understand Tang Zheng’s actions, and, like most people, had yet to grasp the strategy, except Dantai, who showed a look of sudden realization and immediately fired at the oil tanker inside the gas station, blowing it up.
"Tang Zheng, I’m familiar with this area, and I remember the location of the gas stations," yelled Dantai, signaling that he could lead the way. He realized Tang Zheng’s intent: to ignite Ikebukuro’s entire fuel supply system, causing internal combustion. Once the fire started, it would surely spread everywhere.
"Split up and reconvene before Choshiko Shrine in twenty minutes," Dantai commanded, ready to change course; however, he found that no one intended to leave, all firmly following Tang Zheng’s car.
In a city swarmed with monsters, even the usually proud and confident Ruan Feifei didn’t want to go it alone.
"Fanfan, Cheng Cheng, drop bombs," instructed Tang Zheng, not blindly going after Takeda Shingen but letting Dantai lead the way. They raced through the vicinity, destroying all the gas stations, while Lu Fan continuously dropped bombs to disrupt the roads, stopping the cavalry from pursuing.
The Little Lolita positioned each bomb just right; though none could deal a fatal blow, they could weaken and delay them, which was more than enough.
"Can we move to the front?" Zhao Feng, driving the vehicle, begged loudly after several futile attempts to charge forward. At the rear of the fleet, they were targeted for heavier attacks. Although no cavalry had caught up, the hundred-meter range of the Bronze Cannons meant that with each volley, they felt as if Doomsday was upon them.
Lead shots, cast from the cannons, hit the car like hail striking the ground, clinking noisily; Liu Liu was particularly unlucky, hit by shrapnel in the back, which embedded in her flesh, causing her to break into a cold sweat from the pain.
After ten minutes, much of Ikebukuro was engulfed in flames, with billowing smoke and utter devastation. With their view obscured and the bad condition of the roads, the cavalry could no longer easily locate Trojan Squad’s exact position.
Trojan Squad finally reached Choshiko Shrine and continued for another five hundred meters, where they finally saw Takeda Shingen’s main base. Formerly Ikebukuro’s largest park, it was now occupied by more than five thousand cavalry, mounted on their warhorses, formidable weapons in hand, standing solemnly. At a glance, their red armor appeared like a fiery red evening sky—a harsh, blinding red.
All the survivors, facing the dense sea of heads and the forest of steel weaponry, couldn’t help but gasp, feeling a chill crawl up their spines.
"How are we supposed to fight that?" complained Dongzi, his face contorted in despair. Even the mightiest warriors could not kill all of them, and as Shadow Monsters, they were fearless, relentlessly pursuing survivors until death.
"Five thousand is not that many. It will take some time for cavalry from other areas to come and reinforce. By then...," Dantai tried to boost everyone’s morale, his eyes continuously scanning for the enemy’s weak points.
In the very center of these five thousand warriors stood a castle tower about four stories tall. Takeda Shingen, in red armor and donning a ghastly demon mask and a crescent helmet, stood atop, looking into the distance. He held a Gunpei fan lightly in his hand, fanning himself, with the ancient seal characters for Wind, Forest, Fire, and Mountain written upon it.
In the cavalry formation, the military banners fluttered with the summer breeze, each embroidered with the four large characters for Wind, Forest, Fire, and Mountain. These were the true words of war for the soldiers of the Takeda clan.
"Let’s go, we have no choice," Xu Liangmao knew that charging the formation was foolish, but facing five thousand cavalry, they were at an absolute disadvantage, and any tactics would be crushed.
"The Great Saint Tattoo is useless, right?" Tang Zheng retracted his longbow, ready for battle. The Mechanical Nuclear Bomb dropped by Agent Smith was an S-grade one-time consumption item. Too bad it didn’t carry a spirit attack, or else if thrown out, it certainly could have taken out a large number of Demonic Shadows.
"Useless," Ai Yixin, Lu Fan, and Pang Meiqin all shook their heads. Dantai naturally wouldn’t be able to use it either, it counted as a trump card. The miserable man didn’t say anything, just clenched his fist firmly.
"Alright then, you five split up into teams and lure those cavalry away. I’ll go and kill the Takeda Daimyo. If things get too tough, summon the Great Saint. Five minutes of usage time should allow you to hold on longer. And if you’re lucky, after finishing them off, come and help me," Tang Zheng assigned the mission, directly naming names, "Sister Xin Lan, Gu Xueqi, Manli, Jing Xiang, Ruan Feifei, Sister Hong, Sha Ou, you don’t have tattoos, fight with me."
Chu Baichuan breathed a sigh of relief hearing Tang Zheng’s words, as it meant he wouldn’t have to separate from his wife.
"What about us?" Song Huiqiao became anxious upon hearing Tang Zheng not mention the newbies. Zhao Feng, however, surreptitiously pulled her back. It was better not to be mentioned. Everyone should just hide. If they complete the mission, everyone returns. If they don’t, then enjoy the last half hour.
It wasn’t just Zhao Feng. Li Hongda, the bald leader, and that male teacher felt pessimistic upon seeing the five thousand cavalry. If they couldn’t survive, why not go wild one last time? Each of their gazes fell on Liu Liu and Song Huiqiao, the only two women left.
Zhao Feng and the others, of course, would not fight the Shadow Monsters. They were well aware of their limits. If they charged in, they’d probably be killed within two or three minutes—better to enjoy themselves beforehand. What about law and morality? To hell with that!
Dantai and Yu Manli saw right through the newbies’ scheming, but they didn’t expose them. After all, Tang Zheng would handle it.
"Split up, each person pairs with a Conqueror and follow their orders," said Tang Zheng as his voice fell. The scene went quiet with not a sound. The newbies didn’t object, but they didn’t approve either.
"Fine, I agree." The bald leader hadn’t wanted to speak up, but with Zhao Feng and the others being foolish, he quickly spoke up, suggesting they distract Tang Zheng first.
Of course, Tang Zheng didn’t believe this nonsense, but certain coercive measures weren’t something he could use himself, at least he couldn’t be the one to suggest them.
"Lies, huh? Just look at those eyes, could they get any more ruthless?" Pang Meiqin snorted, reaching for Tang Zheng, "Give me one of those bomb vests. I’d rather they die in front of me than let them go."
The Beautiful Leg Stewardess didn’t care about offending others. Aside from Tang Zheng, she had no one else to rely on. Yu Manli realized that these newbies were obviously not going to survive. Why be so cautious? Suddenly, she grabbed the bald leader by the neck and dragged him in front of Tang Zheng.
"A vest, I’ll put it on him."
Tang Zheng took out a vest and handed it to the mature woman, who immediately put it onto the bald leader and clicked the lock shut.
Upon seeing this, Zhao Feng turned and ran. Dantai took out a clip and slammed it onto the back of his neck, knocking him to the ground.
Xu Liangmao pounced over, subdued him, and then slipped a bomb vest onto him.
"No, don’t, Tang Zheng, you can’t do this," Song Huiqiao cried out in fear, clinging to Tang Zheng’s arm and begging desperately.
"As long as there’s no betrayal against the team, of course I won’t do this," Tang Zheng frowned, helping her up, "We’re out of time, let’s move out. Also, any newbie who survives after contributing, I will reward her with a Silver Seed after the game ends."
Tang Zheng didn’t want to play the bad guy, do anything that would damage his image. Besides, once the newbies were handed over to the Conquerors, hitting them or scolding them was the Conquerors’ business. No matter how strong the newbies were, they couldn’t possibly escape from them.
"Good luck," Dantai and the others had no objections to this arrangement. It might look like Tang Zheng’s team was large, but if they couldn’t draw away enough Demonic Shadow soldiers, then the pressure would all fall on them. (To be continued. If you work, welcome to Qidian (qidian.com) to cast your recommendation votes and monthly tickets, your support is my greatest motivation.)