Chapter 865: Chapter 865
The German’s screams ceased abruptly as his head was crushed like a rotten tomato. The beetle’s mouthparts then clamped onto his body, tearing off a chunk of flesh to feed on, even crunching through the bones.
The flying bugs had only one way to attack, but their kamikaze-style assaults were exceedingly destructive. They flew high into the sky, then plummeted like meteors, exploding upon impact with the deck. Even if they were blasted out of the air, they would still explode.
Though Landeck and his group were not in mortal danger, they were thrown into disarray and couldn’t focus on attacking the Overlord Beetle.
The four Conquerors who came to aid the newbies hesitated to use their abilities. This delay created a gap, and a flying bug burst through their barrage, smashing into a middle-aged woman.
With a deafening boom, the woman’s body was ripped into fragments, her half-bloodied head rolling away and a piece of her intestine splattering onto the head of a German stewardess a few meters away, nearly driving her mad with fear.
The newbies scattered like ants doused with boiling water.
"Come back, don’t run around," Sun Xueliang grew desperate; they had spread too thin to protect them. But the newbies didn’t return, their trust eroded by the Conquerors’ lack of credibility.
The punishment timer hit the five-minute mark, and a second Overlord Beetle came through the Teleportation Gate. A beam of light shot from its gaping mouth, cutting a hundred-meter-long trench into the deck.
Screeching, the Overlord Beetle reared its head and unleashed a piercing cry, spreading sound waves so shrill that even the Conquerors clutched their ears, while ripples spread across the sea surface.
"Use your powers, you idiots!" Lu Fan, standing on the bridge, grabbed a megaphone and yelled down.
Another beam of light shot forth, slicing like a military knife just past the bridge. From high above, the aircraft carrier bore scars, a hideous sight.
Both the Star Team and the West Lake Longjing Team harbored hidden agendas and did not wish to escalate the conflict. Yet even so, their fierce firepower restrained the Overlord Beetle.
The Little Lolita had selfish intentions, wanting to collect information on the enemy. Unfortunately for her, they were prepared and opted to don their Power Armors instead of using their abilities.
"Lu Fan, you should find a way to make them fight a little longer." Basking in the misfortune of others felt wonderful, Pang Meiqin thought as she fired at the bugs while keeping an eye on Fleischer and his group.
"Don’t worry, it won’t stop." Lu Fan fired at the incoming flying bugs and roared at the foolish newbies, "Kill the bugs for points, this is a great chance to score and gain actual combat experience."
Both the stewardess and the neo-Nazis’ eyes sparkled as they shot at the flying bugs. The old man also wanted to give it his best effort, but he was hardly able to move with his four limbs broken.
Chastised by a little girl, the soldiers felt awkward, but seeing her single-handedly take out the bugs, they lacked the confidence to retort.
Pang Meiqin sneered and increased her firing rate, killing the bugs. The Beautiful Leg Stewardess excelled at earning points this way. Chen Hong, who had been standing by Tang Zheng’s side, was a bit slow to catch on, and her terrible shooting skills meant she failed to hit a single bug, driving her to near tears.
"Let the women fight." Sha Ou was a chauvinist; he initially kept firing, but after hearing Lu Fan’s words, he stopped.
Gu Xueqi and Ruan Feifei were too proud to engage in such a task. Li Xinlan took Tang Zheng’s Heavy Magnetostorm Rifle and handed it to Cheng Cheng, guiding her shooting and achieving a few kills.
Qin Yan and the others did not shoot unless the newbies failed to intercept; only then would they lend a hand.
"Stop shooting," Chen Hong fumbled with her clip, clattering it to the ground. Seeing the soldiers steadily killing the bugs, she grew irate, "Are you seriously competing with us women?"
The soldiers found themselves in an awkward predicament and ceased firing altogether.
"Hey, you there, stop firing! Didn’t you hear?" Seeing the German stewardess from their team still shooting, Chen Hong dove over, yanked her arm, and hauled her in front of her. With two resounding slaps, she swelled the stewardess’s cheeks.
The neo-Nazis bared their teeth, clearly unhappy.
"What’s the matter? Not satisfied?" Chen Hong threatened as she brandished her rifle, smashing it against the neo-Nazi’s head, "You dare glower at me? Looking for trouble?"
Blood dripped from the neo-Nazi’s forehead, staining his cheeks red, but they dared not make a sound.
Assaulting the newbies and watching them seethe with silent anger, Chen Hong reveled in a sense of dominion and pleasure, almost giddy with it.
"What’s wrong with you?" Qin Yan couldn’t stand by any longer. She didn’t mind the Germans being beaten but disapproved of Chen Hong’s disgraceful behavior toward the team.
"Such trash, why don’t they just die," Pang Meiqin cursed Chen Hong disdainfully.
"Group Leader, lend me the First Bow of the East Sea Road," Chen Hong paused in her tirade, not daring to confront Qin Yan but attempting to show off by running to Tang Zheng’s side and hugging his arm coquettishly.
"Don’t make a fuss, go to the side and improve your shooting," Tang Zheng eventually showed compassion and handed Chen Hong a Thunderstorm rifle.
Chen Hong, having been scolded, sulked for a moment but then, getting her hands on the Thunderstorm, she perked up again.
"Can you afford the ammunition?" Pang Meiqin taunted her, and Chen Hong wanted to retort, but after glancing at Tang Zheng, she let it go.
"You all keep firing," Tang Zheng nodded to the soldiers.
"Strong," Zuo Yi, the company commander, praised. It seemed like every member of the Warhammer team didn’t take the looming crisis to heart, unlike the Wanderers team, who were all serious and the atmosphere was tense.
"That’s because they have a good group leader to shelter them from the storm," observed the platoon leader. It was clear that Tang Zheng was the linchpin of the entire team; with him around, the team wouldn’t panic. People might question Dantai’s words, but as soon as Tang Zheng spoke, everyone would automatically shut up, listen attentively, and then act.
Shen Qingshuang also noticed that Tang Zheng’s position in the team was unshakable. However, this was also a crisis because there were still conflicts among the team members. After his careful observation, Pang Meiqin, Chen Hong, and Ruan Feifei were the ones being isolated.
"Once the group leader dies, the team will definitely collapse," Shen Qingshuang didn’t believe that Dantai and Qin Yan hadn’t seen this, but it wasn’t his place to comment. He needed to focus on doing his part and surviving.
"Each team is responsible for one bug BOSS. If this drags on, it will only benefit others," Huangfu Xiong, donning his power armor, complained. With each passing minute, points were spent, and he was obviously displeased.
"Agreed," Landeck yelled at his subordinates, "Full firepower, attack the Overlord Beetle."
The air around Huangfu Xiong rippled as ten Floating Shuttles shot out, circling the Overlord Beetle and firing. The searing light beams, before even nearing the bug, were intercepted by an invisible Position Shield. However, these were all feints. Four Shutters formed a circle and launched a concerted attack on the crystal on the beetle’s head, piercing the shield and cracking the crystal.
In these few minutes of offense and defense, the Conquerors had already figured out the Overlord Beetle’s defense pattern. The Position Shield could move to block attacks from up to five directions simultaneously.
"These bastards," Huangfu Xiong cursed, seeing that the enemies were still not unleashing their abilities despite having two power armors taking the lead. He felt helpless since he had already revealed his ability; even if he didn’t use it now, the enemy would know about it. However, this was also an opportunity to set a fixed image for them, and any change in his abilities in future battles would definitely catch them off guard.
"No suspense left," Lena sighed. Such a minor skirmish indeed wasn’t enough to deplete their strengths.
A minute later, the two Overlord Beetles were destroyed, and before the Conquerors could attack the Teleportation Gate, it disappeared.
"A bunch of wastes. It took you eight minutes to finish the punishment period. Is there any point in your existence?" The Arrogant Blue Horse was quite dissatisfied and didn’t give the two teams any time to rest, directly announcing the start of the newbie challenge.
All four squads stood on the rear deck, waiting for the Trojan to explain the rules.
"Randomly select a newbie for a one-on-one duel. The victor will have the right to choose one Level A prop, and the loser... will be executed with a head-exploder."
The newbies were in uproar; the Trojan plainly treated them as toys.
"You ungrateful base people. A top-notch Level A equipment can be worth up to five thousand points, several Golden Seeds. If you own one, it will be a tremendous advantage in the coming games and will help you survive," the Arrogant Blue Horse lectured the newbies, displaying many Conqueror portraits on the Virtual Screen. "These are Conquerors who have activated their abilities. But until their death, none could ever own one. Can’t you appreciate the value of Level A equipment now?"
"If you want to survive, seize every chance and fight for your life," the voice of the Arrogant Blue Horse was filled with cold ruthlessness. "Now, does anyone voluntarily want to step forward?"
"It’s up to you guys now," Dantai said to the Company Commander, relieved; his side had a huge advantage.
Orientals tend to be reserved, and while the soldiers were eager to fight, none of them had volunteered yet. Surprisingly, the first to step forward was a belligerent Nazi youth.
"This is unfair, they’re military men; we’re bound to lose if we fight," Tole hoped for some advantage and he seemed to have grasped Blue Trojan’s temper – the creature favored the strong. "If you let me face ordinary people, I can win for sure."
"Very well, base people warrior. As the first survivor to step forward, you have the right to choose your opponent," said the Blue Trojan. Tʜe source of this ᴄontent ɪs novel⟡fire.net
"I choose him," Tole was pleased, knowing he had gambled correctly, and pointed at the old man from Warhammer team. In reality, he would have preferred to choose the soldier with the broken leg.
"Have you no decency? You dare to fight an old man like me?" the old man trembled, spitting while reproaching Tole, but his opponent didn’t care at all.
The Chinese newbies cursed, while the Germans envied their compatriot’s good fortune.
"I’ll be your opponent," Zuo Yi stepped forward, volunteering to duel Tole.
Tole’s comrades responded with a Middle Finger, not paying any attention to him.
"I’ll fight you unarmed," Zuo Yi said and as soon as he finished, his comrades held him back, urging him not to be impulsive.
"Good man," the old man squeezed in front of him, patting his shoulder and praising profusely, "When we get back, I’ll have my son sworn to you; he’s a section chief." (To be continued. If you work, you are welcome to come to Qidian (qidian.com) to vote for recommendation tickets and monthly tickets. Your support is my greatest motivation.)