Chapter 41: Blood-Stained Trenches
Boiling blood mixed with mud, turning the trench floor into a slippery quagmire. With every step, the soles of their boots stuck to the thick, bloody mud, emitting a dull, sucking sound as they lifted.
The artillery fire from the high ground continued to pound the beast swarm without cease. Orange-red explosions flashed intermittently, briefly illuminating the entire wilderness. Each barrage could tear apart over a dozen low-level scaled beasts, yet the monsters pouring from the rift seemed endless. The corpses in the front piled up to form a low wall of flesh, and the scaled beasts behind them continued to charge over the mangled bodies of their kin, entirely fearless.
"Attention! The third-tier scaled beast responsible for psychic suppression has advanced fifty meters!" Su Qing stared through her scope, her voice taut. Her finger pulled the trigger steadily, and the bullet pierced the eyeball of a scaled beast leaping toward the trench. "It's constantly compressing the space for our Sea of Consciousness defenses!"
Lin Yan nodded slightly, his mind settling. As the third-tier scaled beast drew closer, the oppressive weight of that cold, heavy psychic pressure multiplied. Invisible psychic waves crashed over them in overlapping surges, like freezing seawater repeatedly battering the Sea of Consciousness barriers. Many soldiers in the trench were already suffering from headaches and tinnitus; some had bloodshot eyes and had to frequently swallow Sea of Consciousness stabilizers to steady their minds.
A new recruit just behind and to the right of Lin Yan had always had a weak Sea of Consciousness foundation. After enduring several consecutive rounds of psychic impacts, the stabilizer's effect gradually wore off. He let out a muffled groan, clutching his head tightly as his Sea of Consciousness barrier shattered completely.
"I can't hold on..."
Before he could finish his sentence, two low-level scaled beasts seized this opening and leaped into the trench. A nearby comrade frantically opened fire, killing one, but the other's massive claw viciously slashed across the new recruit's chest and abdomen. A piercing scream suddenly rang out, quickly swallowed by the roars of the beast swarm and the booming artillery. A medic braved the scaled beasts' attacks to rush up, but the wounds were too severe; there was nothing to be done.
"Hold the formation! Don't let any gaps appear!" Instructor Zhou roared. He fully deployed his fourth-tier Sea of Consciousness, erecting a small but incredibly resilient psychic barrier to share some of the pressure for the warriors beside him. "Rotate back to rest! Don't let everyone endure it at once!"
Old Chen stood with his knife across the gap, slashing and severing a scaled beast's protruding claw. Dark green blood splattered all over his combat suit. He turned and shouted, "Lin Yan! I'm leaving the left flank to you; I'm going to patch up the right side!"
"Understood."
Lin Yan stepped into his ancient martial arts stance, his body moving nimbly through the narrow trench. He didn't overextend himself; every strike of his blade was aimed at the weak points of the scaled beasts' armor—the neck, eye sockets, and chest. A scaled beast lunged fiercely, its massive head aiming straight for his chest. Lin Yan slid sideways to avoid the impact, his short blade sliding into the gap between the scales. With a twist of his wrist, he shredded its internal organs.
The scaled beast convulsed violently and crashed heavily into the bloody mud.
No sooner had he dealt with this one than the second third-tier scaled beast in the distance suddenly let out a low roar. Unlike the sharp shrieks of ordinary scaled beasts, this roar carried a heavy psychic shockwave, sweeping directly across the western section of the trench. This was the coordinated tactic of the two third-tier scaled beasts: one maintained continuous long-range psychic suppression, while the other intermittently released short, explosive psychic impacts, specifically searching for weak points in the line to shatter the soldiers' minds.
This wave of psychic shock came out of nowhere. Three warriors in the middle of the trench simultaneously groaned and collapsed, their Seas of Consciousness severely damaged, rendering them combat-ineffective. Seizing this momentary gap, over a dozen low-level scaled beasts swarmed into the trench.
"The line is breached!" Su Qing quickly shifted her firing angle, dropping two with continuous shots, but the remaining scaled beasts had already closed in.
Instructor Zhou immediately led a team to seal the breach, and Old Chen quickly returned to support. The trench instantly descended into chaotic close-quarters combat. The flashes of blades, gunfire, beast roars, and the agonizing cries of the wounded intertwined. Lin Yan moved quickly toward the middle section, slaying two stray scaled beasts along the way to provide backup.
One scaled beast bypassed the others and lunged straight at Su Qing, who was in the middle of reloading. She didn't have time to load the magazine, and her pupils contracted sharply.
Lin Yan suddenly accelerated. His body swept in diagonally, and his short blade thrust upward, piercing the scaled beast's lower jaw. With a forceful twist, he drew his blade and kicked it squarely in the stomach, sending the massive body tumbling backward.
"Thanks." Su Qing quickly inserted a new magazine and raised her gun to continue firing, her forehead covered in cold sweat. "Those two third-tier scaled beasts are still adjusting their positions. It's as if they can precisely pinpoint where we're short on manpower."
Lin Yan nodded, his gaze fixed on the two massive dark silhouettes in the distance. A strange feeling vaguely arose in his heart. Mere mutant beasts could not possess such precise, coordinated tactics, nor could they pinpoint the weak spots in their line so accurately. But with the artillery roaring and the slaughter continuing, he had no extra time to ponder this.
Static crackled through the communicator. The voice from the command tower was urgent: "Western sector, the artillery group has locked onto the coordinates! But the beast swarm is blocking the target. We need you to briefly contain it and draw the third-tier scaled beast's attention to buy a window for the artillery fire! The risk is extremely high. Do you execute?"
"Execute!" Instructor Zhou replied without a moment's hesitation. He turned to look at the remaining members of his squad. "We'll draw its attention. Everyone remember, we only contain it; absolutely no close-quarters engagement! The moment it unleashes a full-force psychic impact, scatter immediately!"
The few of them quickly adjusted their positions, intentionally making noise and firing at the third-tier scaled beast responsible for the psychic suppression. The bullets struck its thick dorsal scales, leaving only faint white marks, unable to penetrate its defense.
As expected, the third-tier scaled beast was provoked. Its massive body lowered slightly, and its psychic pressure suddenly concentrated, bearing down entirely on their small section of the trench. The bone-chilling psychic force struck Lin Yan's Sea of Consciousness like a heavy hammer. His barrier instantly cracked with a dense, spiderweb-like pattern, and a dull ache throbbed in his head. He immediately activated his ancient martial arts breathing technique, locking his mind firmly to the core of his Sea of Consciousness, preventing the psychic force from invading his true self.
A veteran beside him couldn't withstand this concentrated impact. His vision went black, and he stumbled to the ground.
"Now! Coordinates locked! Fire!" the command tower roared.
The heavy artillery vehicles on the high ground roared simultaneously. Several shells, trailing dazzling tails of fire, tore through the night sky and struck precisely beside the third-tier scaled beast. A massive explosion erupted, sending mud and shattered scales flying everywhere. The third-tier scaled beast let out a pained, frenzied roar as the shockwave flipped its massive body. A large area of scales on one side shattered, and dark green blood gushed out.
"Hit! Critical damage!" A glimmer of light flashed in Su Qing's eyes.
However, the explosive power was only sufficient to tear the surface scales and cause extensive external trauma; the third-tier scaled beast possessed an extremely strong vitality, and its vital points had not been directly struck. It was merely wounded, and its movements were not completely paralyzed.
But in the next second, a strange psychic fluctuation rose from underground. The fallen third-tier scaled beast struggled to its feet. Instead of continuing to press forward with a fierce assault, it slowly retreated backward, moving toward the rift.
"It's retreating?" Old Chen frowned.
"It's not a rout; it's a tactical withdrawal!" Instructor Zhou's expression was grave. "The other third-tier scaled beast hasn't been injured yet. Be careful, they're reorganizing the beast swarm! This one is merely wounded and hasn't lost its combat effectiveness; it's simply temporarily withdrawing from the front line to rest."
Lin Yan stared at the wounded third-tier scaled beast slowly retreating into the darkness, the fine tentacles of his Sea of Consciousness continuously capturing the flow of consciousness emanating from underground. That cold, controlling will remained hidden deep within the rock layers, calmly adjusting the deployment of the beast swarm.
This bloody battle was far from over just because one third-tier scaled beast had been severely wounded. In the trench, the wounded were continuously evacuated to the rear. The surviving soldiers were all injured, their Seas of Consciousness generally severely depleted, and their ammunition reserves were dropping rapidly. And in the darkness, a new wave of offensive was gathering once again.
The artillery fire from the high ground continued to pound the beast swarm without cease. Orange-red explosions flashed intermittently, briefly illuminating the entire wilderness. Each barrage could tear apart over a dozen low-level scaled beasts, yet the monsters pouring from the rift seemed endless. The corpses in the front piled up to form a low wall of flesh, and the scaled beasts behind them continued to charge over the mangled bodies of their kin, entirely fearless.
"Attention! The third-tier scaled beast responsible for psychic suppression has advanced fifty meters!" Su Qing stared through her scope, her voice taut. Her finger pulled the trigger steadily, and the bullet pierced the eyeball of a scaled beast leaping toward the trench. "It's constantly compressing the space for our Sea of Consciousness defenses!"
Lin Yan nodded slightly, his mind settling. As the third-tier scaled beast drew closer, the oppressive weight of that cold, heavy psychic pressure multiplied. Invisible psychic waves crashed over them in overlapping surges, like freezing seawater repeatedly battering the Sea of Consciousness barriers. Many soldiers in the trench were already suffering from headaches and tinnitus; some had bloodshot eyes and had to frequently swallow Sea of Consciousness stabilizers to steady their minds.
A new recruit just behind and to the right of Lin Yan had always had a weak Sea of Consciousness foundation. After enduring several consecutive rounds of psychic impacts, the stabilizer's effect gradually wore off. He let out a muffled groan, clutching his head tightly as his Sea of Consciousness barrier shattered completely.
"I can't hold on..."
Before he could finish his sentence, two low-level scaled beasts seized this opening and leaped into the trench. A nearby comrade frantically opened fire, killing one, but the other's massive claw viciously slashed across the new recruit's chest and abdomen. A piercing scream suddenly rang out, quickly swallowed by the roars of the beast swarm and the booming artillery. A medic braved the scaled beasts' attacks to rush up, but the wounds were too severe; there was nothing to be done.
"Hold the formation! Don't let any gaps appear!" Instructor Zhou roared. He fully deployed his fourth-tier Sea of Consciousness, erecting a small but incredibly resilient psychic barrier to share some of the pressure for the warriors beside him. "Rotate back to rest! Don't let everyone endure it at once!"
Old Chen stood with his knife across the gap, slashing and severing a scaled beast's protruding claw. Dark green blood splattered all over his combat suit. He turned and shouted, "Lin Yan! I'm leaving the left flank to you; I'm going to patch up the right side!"
"Understood."
Lin Yan stepped into his ancient martial arts stance, his body moving nimbly through the narrow trench. He didn't overextend himself; every strike of his blade was aimed at the weak points of the scaled beasts' armor—the neck, eye sockets, and chest. A scaled beast lunged fiercely, its massive head aiming straight for his chest. Lin Yan slid sideways to avoid the impact, his short blade sliding into the gap between the scales. With a twist of his wrist, he shredded its internal organs.
The scaled beast convulsed violently and crashed heavily into the bloody mud.
No sooner had he dealt with this one than the second third-tier scaled beast in the distance suddenly let out a low roar. Unlike the sharp shrieks of ordinary scaled beasts, this roar carried a heavy psychic shockwave, sweeping directly across the western section of the trench. This was the coordinated tactic of the two third-tier scaled beasts: one maintained continuous long-range psychic suppression, while the other intermittently released short, explosive psychic impacts, specifically searching for weak points in the line to shatter the soldiers' minds.
This wave of psychic shock came out of nowhere. Three warriors in the middle of the trench simultaneously groaned and collapsed, their Seas of Consciousness severely damaged, rendering them combat-ineffective. Seizing this momentary gap, over a dozen low-level scaled beasts swarmed into the trench.
"The line is breached!" Su Qing quickly shifted her firing angle, dropping two with continuous shots, but the remaining scaled beasts had already closed in.
Instructor Zhou immediately led a team to seal the breach, and Old Chen quickly returned to support. The trench instantly descended into chaotic close-quarters combat. The flashes of blades, gunfire, beast roars, and the agonizing cries of the wounded intertwined. Lin Yan moved quickly toward the middle section, slaying two stray scaled beasts along the way to provide backup.
One scaled beast bypassed the others and lunged straight at Su Qing, who was in the middle of reloading. She didn't have time to load the magazine, and her pupils contracted sharply.
Lin Yan suddenly accelerated. His body swept in diagonally, and his short blade thrust upward, piercing the scaled beast's lower jaw. With a forceful twist, he drew his blade and kicked it squarely in the stomach, sending the massive body tumbling backward.
"Thanks." Su Qing quickly inserted a new magazine and raised her gun to continue firing, her forehead covered in cold sweat. "Those two third-tier scaled beasts are still adjusting their positions. It's as if they can precisely pinpoint where we're short on manpower."
Lin Yan nodded, his gaze fixed on the two massive dark silhouettes in the distance. A strange feeling vaguely arose in his heart. Mere mutant beasts could not possess such precise, coordinated tactics, nor could they pinpoint the weak spots in their line so accurately. But with the artillery roaring and the slaughter continuing, he had no extra time to ponder this.
Static crackled through the communicator. The voice from the command tower was urgent: "Western sector, the artillery group has locked onto the coordinates! But the beast swarm is blocking the target. We need you to briefly contain it and draw the third-tier scaled beast's attention to buy a window for the artillery fire! The risk is extremely high. Do you execute?"
"Execute!" Instructor Zhou replied without a moment's hesitation. He turned to look at the remaining members of his squad. "We'll draw its attention. Everyone remember, we only contain it; absolutely no close-quarters engagement! The moment it unleashes a full-force psychic impact, scatter immediately!"
The few of them quickly adjusted their positions, intentionally making noise and firing at the third-tier scaled beast responsible for the psychic suppression. The bullets struck its thick dorsal scales, leaving only faint white marks, unable to penetrate its defense.
As expected, the third-tier scaled beast was provoked. Its massive body lowered slightly, and its psychic pressure suddenly concentrated, bearing down entirely on their small section of the trench. The bone-chilling psychic force struck Lin Yan's Sea of Consciousness like a heavy hammer. His barrier instantly cracked with a dense, spiderweb-like pattern, and a dull ache throbbed in his head. He immediately activated his ancient martial arts breathing technique, locking his mind firmly to the core of his Sea of Consciousness, preventing the psychic force from invading his true self.
A veteran beside him couldn't withstand this concentrated impact. His vision went black, and he stumbled to the ground.
"Now! Coordinates locked! Fire!" the command tower roared.
The heavy artillery vehicles on the high ground roared simultaneously. Several shells, trailing dazzling tails of fire, tore through the night sky and struck precisely beside the third-tier scaled beast. A massive explosion erupted, sending mud and shattered scales flying everywhere. The third-tier scaled beast let out a pained, frenzied roar as the shockwave flipped its massive body. A large area of scales on one side shattered, and dark green blood gushed out.
"Hit! Critical damage!" A glimmer of light flashed in Su Qing's eyes.
However, the explosive power was only sufficient to tear the surface scales and cause extensive external trauma; the third-tier scaled beast possessed an extremely strong vitality, and its vital points had not been directly struck. It was merely wounded, and its movements were not completely paralyzed.
But in the next second, a strange psychic fluctuation rose from underground. The fallen third-tier scaled beast struggled to its feet. Instead of continuing to press forward with a fierce assault, it slowly retreated backward, moving toward the rift.
"It's retreating?" Old Chen frowned.
"It's not a rout; it's a tactical withdrawal!" Instructor Zhou's expression was grave. "The other third-tier scaled beast hasn't been injured yet. Be careful, they're reorganizing the beast swarm! This one is merely wounded and hasn't lost its combat effectiveness; it's simply temporarily withdrawing from the front line to rest."
Lin Yan stared at the wounded third-tier scaled beast slowly retreating into the darkness, the fine tentacles of his Sea of Consciousness continuously capturing the flow of consciousness emanating from underground. That cold, controlling will remained hidden deep within the rock layers, calmly adjusting the deployment of the beast swarm.
This bloody battle was far from over just because one third-tier scaled beast had been severely wounded. In the trench, the wounded were continuously evacuated to the rear. The surviving soldiers were all injured, their Seas of Consciousness generally severely depleted, and their ammunition reserves were dropping rapidly. And in the darkness, a new wave of offensive was gathering once again.