Chapter 156: Preheating
Purple waves spread outward across the surface of the curtain, wave upon wave. The originally hazy, stagnant gray fog began to twist and churn continuously.
This was no longer the previous state of scattered, slow seepage of the corrosive breath. The entire curtain was like the hide of an awakening giant beast; countless nodes within were synchronously adjusting their frequencies to resonate. A thick, sticky psychic pressure pressed against the city walls across the five-kilometer buffer zone. Without needing to actively release their Sea of Consciousness, even ordinary soldiers could vaguely feel a tightness in their chests and heaviness in their heads, accompanied by the faint, illusory sound of reptiles rubbing against their scales.
"It's not a general offensive," Zhao Kai said, staring at the jumping spectrum, his speech rapid. "The load is still rising continuously, but there are no signals of scaled beast clusters moving in sync. The priests are debugging the underlying logic of the phantom array. This is a warm-up before the assault."
Lu Heng stood at the main sentry post, his gaze sweeping across the entire defense line. His voice was transmitted steadily down the line through the communication channel: "Everyone, steady your minds. Do not actively stare at the illusions on the wasteland. Rifle squads, set up layered defenses. Shock squads, stand by. Lin Yan, Gu Shen, take up separate positions. Wait until the illusions materialize before activating your barriers. Do not overdraw your Sea of Consciousness in advance."
"Received," the two replied in unison.
Lin Yan stood behind the mid-section parapet, quietly focusing his mind. He released only a wisp of extremely faint perception, pressing it against the edge of the curtain to anticipate the rhythm of the surging illusions. Even this slight contact immediately transmitted the familiar, distending ache to the fissure deep within his Sea of Consciousness. He suppressed the urge to extend his perception further.
He remembered Instructor Wen's repeated warnings. His origin injury feared prolonged soaking in same-frequency resonance the most. Spreading the barrier in advance was equivalent to voluntarily offering his wound to the wash of the illusion web.
The atmosphere on the city walls grew taut bit by bit.
The soldiers leaned against the bunkers, their gun muzzles aimed at the wasteland. Many quietly gripped the anti-corrosive breath pills in their chests. The pills could only weakly stabilize the nerves; they couldn't block the deep illusions woven by the high-tier illusion web, at most merely delaying the speed at which one lost focus.
The small psychic barrier devices installed in various parts of the city walls had all been powered on. A faint white glow slowly floated at several key points, protecting core areas like the first-aid zone and the command tower. But the devices consumed massive amounts of energy, and continuous operation wouldn't last long. Their coverage was merely a drop in the bucket.
"How is the situation at the academy?" Lu Heng asked.
"Instructor Wen is guarding the students' training ground with her teaching assistants," a report came through the communication. "Many newcomers are already experiencing nausea and dizziness. They are collectively regulating their breath. Their Sea of Consciousness foundations are too shallow to withstand this preliminary psychic pressure."
At the western sentry post, Gu Shen looked toward Lin Yan's direction from a distance, and the two exchanged a brief glance. They both knew in their hearts that once this round of attacks began, it would be another endless war of attrition. At the same time, the plan to infiltrate the curtain for reconnaissance was still hanging in mid-air. With the Western Front already short-staffed, no matter who was ultimately chosen to lead the squad deep inside, the one left behind would bear a burden several times heavier.
About a quarter of an hour later, fragments of illusions began to emerge from the twisted fog at the edge of the curtain.
First came the broken outlines of ruins. Then, many soldiers saw familiar faces in their line of sight—the figures of fallen comrades standing among the wild grass, silently waving toward the city walls.
This was the psychological trap the alien race excelled at: capturing the deepest regrets and grief in people's minds to weave illusions.
A young soldier's breathing suddenly became急促 (rapid), his finger unconsciously releasing the trigger as he took half a step forward, his eyes vacant.
"Hold steady! It's fake!" Lin Yan no longer waited. He steadily pushed his Sea of Consciousness power outward, sending a thin layer of psychic waves sweeping across the area.
The moment the waves collided with the illusions, the phantoms trembled violently, shattering like paper torn by the wind, slowly dissipating. But the fissure in his Sea of Consciousness immediately transmitted a pulling, sharp pain. His brow furrowed slightly, and he quickly kept his output within the safe threshold, not daring to take more.
"They've changed their tactics," Gu Shen's voice came through the channel. "They are prioritizing the use of empathetic illusions to break morale, rather than immediately sending out scaled beasts for a strong assault."
"First, shatter their will, then release the beast swarm to harvest," Lin Yan responded in a low voice. "Compared to hard damage, the priests now want to exhaust our mental state."
On the wasteland, the phantoms multiplied.
Some saw the houses of their hometowns; others saw deceased relatives. All kinds of illusions floated in the gray fog, silently tempting the defenders. Every few seconds, a soldier's resolve wavered, requiring the two of them to take turns dispelling the illusions. They had to switch coverage areas back and forth, their spirits constantly taut, and the fatigue in their Seas of Consciousness accumulated bit by bit.
Zhao Kai's terminal suddenly popped up with a string of new signals: "Secondary priest signals detected! Three in total, dispersed and anchored to the forefront nodes of the curtain. They are taking turns leading the illusion weaving, sharing the load to avoid being pinpointed and locked by our artillery."
Lu Heng immediately ordered: "Artillery, fire at will! Prioritize bombarding the node with the strongest signal. Don't aim for total annihilation; just disrupt their alternating rhythm!"
Roars erupted one after another. Shells trailed flames as they crashed into the mist of the wasteland. The explosions kicked up dirt and gravel, and the purple resonance waves trembled violently. The signal of one node briefly weakened. But the other two priests immediately filled the gap. The illusions only dimmed for a few seconds before stabilizing once again.
The strikes only treated the symptoms, not the root cause. They could only win a brief respite, unable to sever the entire illusion web.
Time slowly passed. The warm-up had lasted for nearly an hour.
The illusions rotated wave after wave: sorrow, fear, despair. Different emotional illusions assaulted the defenders on the city walls in turn. Two soldiers had completely broken down; they squatted behind the bunkers, clutching their heads and crying, having lost their combat capability, and were supported as they were escorted to the rear first-aid station.
Fine, dense cold sweat seeped from Lin Yan's forehead. The pain from the fissure shifted from intermittent stabs to a continuous, heavy, dull ache. He relied on the ancient martial arts breathing technique to slowly inhale and exhale, offsetting the turbulence in his Sea of Consciousness bit by bit, constantly vigilant not to cross that critical threshold.
Countless times, he had imagined that if he didn't have this injury, his Sea of Consciousness endurance and perception range would be significantly higher. But he had long accepted reality. This injury would not heal on its own. There were no clues, no signs pointing to recovery. It was a shackle as innate as his own existence.
"Attention!" Zhao Kai's pitch suddenly rose. "Scaled beast signals are beginning to cluster and move! Hidden beneath the foundation of the illusions, they are advancing toward the red line of the buffer zone! The warm-up is over; the assault is here!"
Deep within the gray fog, the sound of crawling became clear.
Countless scaled beasts, taking advantage of the cover of the漫天 (sky-full) illusions, lowered their bodies and advanced steadily. The dorsal fins of the second-tier scaled beasts flashed briefly in the gaps of the fog. They were no longer eager to charge; following behind the illusions, they slowly pressed closer to the city walls.
Lu Heng shouted his order: "All units, engage!"
Gunfire erupted abruptly, and the low hum of shock weapons swept across the defense line.
Lin Yan took a deep breath, his Sea of Consciousness spreading out once again. Together with Gu Shen, they formed two barriers, one on the left and one on the right, tearing open a space where the defenders could see the true battlefield amidst the漫天 (sky-full) illusory ghosts.
The pain in the depths of his consciousness continued to roar. He gritted his teeth and endured it.
The reconnaissance plan, the predicament of the six bastions, the terrible news of the North Sentinel losing contact—all these heavy matters pressed upon his heart. But right now, he could only guard this single city wall first.
The curtain churned, and the beast tide drew near. A new round of brutal tug-of-war officially began.
End of Chapter.
This was no longer the previous state of scattered, slow seepage of the corrosive breath. The entire curtain was like the hide of an awakening giant beast; countless nodes within were synchronously adjusting their frequencies to resonate. A thick, sticky psychic pressure pressed against the city walls across the five-kilometer buffer zone. Without needing to actively release their Sea of Consciousness, even ordinary soldiers could vaguely feel a tightness in their chests and heaviness in their heads, accompanied by the faint, illusory sound of reptiles rubbing against their scales.
"It's not a general offensive," Zhao Kai said, staring at the jumping spectrum, his speech rapid. "The load is still rising continuously, but there are no signals of scaled beast clusters moving in sync. The priests are debugging the underlying logic of the phantom array. This is a warm-up before the assault."
Lu Heng stood at the main sentry post, his gaze sweeping across the entire defense line. His voice was transmitted steadily down the line through the communication channel: "Everyone, steady your minds. Do not actively stare at the illusions on the wasteland. Rifle squads, set up layered defenses. Shock squads, stand by. Lin Yan, Gu Shen, take up separate positions. Wait until the illusions materialize before activating your barriers. Do not overdraw your Sea of Consciousness in advance."
"Received," the two replied in unison.
Lin Yan stood behind the mid-section parapet, quietly focusing his mind. He released only a wisp of extremely faint perception, pressing it against the edge of the curtain to anticipate the rhythm of the surging illusions. Even this slight contact immediately transmitted the familiar, distending ache to the fissure deep within his Sea of Consciousness. He suppressed the urge to extend his perception further.
He remembered Instructor Wen's repeated warnings. His origin injury feared prolonged soaking in same-frequency resonance the most. Spreading the barrier in advance was equivalent to voluntarily offering his wound to the wash of the illusion web.
The atmosphere on the city walls grew taut bit by bit.
The soldiers leaned against the bunkers, their gun muzzles aimed at the wasteland. Many quietly gripped the anti-corrosive breath pills in their chests. The pills could only weakly stabilize the nerves; they couldn't block the deep illusions woven by the high-tier illusion web, at most merely delaying the speed at which one lost focus.
The small psychic barrier devices installed in various parts of the city walls had all been powered on. A faint white glow slowly floated at several key points, protecting core areas like the first-aid zone and the command tower. But the devices consumed massive amounts of energy, and continuous operation wouldn't last long. Their coverage was merely a drop in the bucket.
"How is the situation at the academy?" Lu Heng asked.
"Instructor Wen is guarding the students' training ground with her teaching assistants," a report came through the communication. "Many newcomers are already experiencing nausea and dizziness. They are collectively regulating their breath. Their Sea of Consciousness foundations are too shallow to withstand this preliminary psychic pressure."
At the western sentry post, Gu Shen looked toward Lin Yan's direction from a distance, and the two exchanged a brief glance. They both knew in their hearts that once this round of attacks began, it would be another endless war of attrition. At the same time, the plan to infiltrate the curtain for reconnaissance was still hanging in mid-air. With the Western Front already short-staffed, no matter who was ultimately chosen to lead the squad deep inside, the one left behind would bear a burden several times heavier.
About a quarter of an hour later, fragments of illusions began to emerge from the twisted fog at the edge of the curtain.
First came the broken outlines of ruins. Then, many soldiers saw familiar faces in their line of sight—the figures of fallen comrades standing among the wild grass, silently waving toward the city walls.
This was the psychological trap the alien race excelled at: capturing the deepest regrets and grief in people's minds to weave illusions.
A young soldier's breathing suddenly became急促 (rapid), his finger unconsciously releasing the trigger as he took half a step forward, his eyes vacant.
"Hold steady! It's fake!" Lin Yan no longer waited. He steadily pushed his Sea of Consciousness power outward, sending a thin layer of psychic waves sweeping across the area.
The moment the waves collided with the illusions, the phantoms trembled violently, shattering like paper torn by the wind, slowly dissipating. But the fissure in his Sea of Consciousness immediately transmitted a pulling, sharp pain. His brow furrowed slightly, and he quickly kept his output within the safe threshold, not daring to take more.
"They've changed their tactics," Gu Shen's voice came through the channel. "They are prioritizing the use of empathetic illusions to break morale, rather than immediately sending out scaled beasts for a strong assault."
"First, shatter their will, then release the beast swarm to harvest," Lin Yan responded in a low voice. "Compared to hard damage, the priests now want to exhaust our mental state."
On the wasteland, the phantoms multiplied.
Some saw the houses of their hometowns; others saw deceased relatives. All kinds of illusions floated in the gray fog, silently tempting the defenders. Every few seconds, a soldier's resolve wavered, requiring the two of them to take turns dispelling the illusions. They had to switch coverage areas back and forth, their spirits constantly taut, and the fatigue in their Seas of Consciousness accumulated bit by bit.
Zhao Kai's terminal suddenly popped up with a string of new signals: "Secondary priest signals detected! Three in total, dispersed and anchored to the forefront nodes of the curtain. They are taking turns leading the illusion weaving, sharing the load to avoid being pinpointed and locked by our artillery."
Lu Heng immediately ordered: "Artillery, fire at will! Prioritize bombarding the node with the strongest signal. Don't aim for total annihilation; just disrupt their alternating rhythm!"
Roars erupted one after another. Shells trailed flames as they crashed into the mist of the wasteland. The explosions kicked up dirt and gravel, and the purple resonance waves trembled violently. The signal of one node briefly weakened. But the other two priests immediately filled the gap. The illusions only dimmed for a few seconds before stabilizing once again.
The strikes only treated the symptoms, not the root cause. They could only win a brief respite, unable to sever the entire illusion web.
Time slowly passed. The warm-up had lasted for nearly an hour.
The illusions rotated wave after wave: sorrow, fear, despair. Different emotional illusions assaulted the defenders on the city walls in turn. Two soldiers had completely broken down; they squatted behind the bunkers, clutching their heads and crying, having lost their combat capability, and were supported as they were escorted to the rear first-aid station.
Fine, dense cold sweat seeped from Lin Yan's forehead. The pain from the fissure shifted from intermittent stabs to a continuous, heavy, dull ache. He relied on the ancient martial arts breathing technique to slowly inhale and exhale, offsetting the turbulence in his Sea of Consciousness bit by bit, constantly vigilant not to cross that critical threshold.
Countless times, he had imagined that if he didn't have this injury, his Sea of Consciousness endurance and perception range would be significantly higher. But he had long accepted reality. This injury would not heal on its own. There were no clues, no signs pointing to recovery. It was a shackle as innate as his own existence.
"Attention!" Zhao Kai's pitch suddenly rose. "Scaled beast signals are beginning to cluster and move! Hidden beneath the foundation of the illusions, they are advancing toward the red line of the buffer zone! The warm-up is over; the assault is here!"
Deep within the gray fog, the sound of crawling became clear.
Countless scaled beasts, taking advantage of the cover of the漫天 (sky-full) illusions, lowered their bodies and advanced steadily. The dorsal fins of the second-tier scaled beasts flashed briefly in the gaps of the fog. They were no longer eager to charge; following behind the illusions, they slowly pressed closer to the city walls.
Lu Heng shouted his order: "All units, engage!"
Gunfire erupted abruptly, and the low hum of shock weapons swept across the defense line.
Lin Yan took a deep breath, his Sea of Consciousness spreading out once again. Together with Gu Shen, they formed two barriers, one on the left and one on the right, tearing open a space where the defenders could see the true battlefield amidst the漫天 (sky-full) illusory ghosts.
The pain in the depths of his consciousness continued to roar. He gritted his teeth and endured it.
The reconnaissance plan, the predicament of the six bastions, the terrible news of the North Sentinel losing contact—all these heavy matters pressed upon his heart. But right now, he could only guard this single city wall first.
The curtain churned, and the beast tide drew near. A new round of brutal tug-of-war officially began.
End of Chapter.