Chapter 21: Ammunition Exhausted and Spirit Withered
The aftershocks of the global psychic impact still vibrated through the air.
The trench was a complete mess. Mud mixed with pools of dark red blood slowly spread across the bottom of the pit. After the previous tsunami-like psychic crushing, fewer than half of the people could stand firmly. Those who had fallen fell into two categories: some had physical injuries, curled up in the mud, groaning in pain; the others had suffered Sea of Consciousness damage, their eyes vacant, completely unresponsive no matter how loudly others called to them. The medics no longer had time for the latter; they could only prioritize treating the wounded who still retained their sanity.
"Stabilizer patches are over half consumed, and ammunition reserves are down to thirty percent!" A non-commissioned officer quickly finished counting the supplies and rushed to Instructor Zhou's side to report in a low voice, his tone hiding an undeniable anxiety.
Instructor Zhou's jaw tightened as his gaze swept over the ruined defense line. High above, the third-tier scaled beast still perched atop the rocks, its dark green vertical pupils staring coldly at the trench without rashly charging. It knew the humans were severely weakened; it only needed to continue draining them. Once the Sea of Consciousness stabilizer patches were exhausted, it would be time to reap the harvest.
"Split into two groups to rotate guard duty. One group maintains the contracted Sea of Consciousness defense, while the other briefly relaxes their minds to rest. Alternate strictly; absolutely no one is allowed to overextend themselves simultaneously," Instructor Zhou ordered rapidly. "Move all wounded to the innermost part of the trench. Any wounded still capable of holding a gun will guard the rear gap."
The moment the command was relayed, another urgent chorus of scaled beast hisses echoed from the shadows of the rocks on the left flank.
Four low-level scaled beasts used the terrain as cover, lowering their bodies to advance rapidly. Having caught the scent of blood and weakness, they seized the window before the humans' mental power had fully recovered to launch a surprise attack.
"Contact! Four-man formation!"
Two veterans still capable of fighting immediately stepped forward, followed by two new recruits in decent condition who moved up to fill the gaps, quickly forming an encirclement formation. One scaled beast pounced first, spitting out a cloud of foul-smelling mist from its mouth while fine psychic needles simultaneously pierced toward the four people's Seas of Consciousness. The front-line veteran raised his heavy armor to hard-tank the pounce. The massive impact made him groan, instantly reopening the old wound on his arm as blood soaked through his sleeve.
The other three seized the brief moment of rigidity when the scaled beast landed from its pounce, concentrating their energy gun fire on its eye sockets. The veteran with the short blade flanked and thrust the blade toward the soft flesh under the beast's lower jaw. Agonized by the pain, the scaled beast twisted its body frantically, its thick tail lashing out fiercely toward a new recruit beside it. The recruit failed to dodge in time and was struck in the chest by the tail. He flew backward, crashing heavily into the muddy water. He spat out a mouthful of blood and instantly lost his ability to fight.
"Another one down." Standing on the side and rear, Lin Yan maintained his extremely contracted Sea of Consciousness, keeping his eyes solely on this area. He didn't recklessly charge forward to attack; he kept his energy gun in a ready-to-fire state, prepared to provide covering fire and suppress the enemy at any moment.
This was the rule he had learned on the battlefield over this period: veterans were responsible for the main distraction and the kill. New recruits like him were only responsible for filling gaps and providing interference; they must never disrupt the formation.
One scaled beast avoided the frontal firepower, bypassed the four locked in combat, and charged diagonally toward the middle of the trench where the wounded were piled up. Su Qing, guarding the wounded, was deathly pale. The light from the patch on her forehead had dimmed to the point of near invisibility. She forced herself to raise her gun and fire, but lacking mental power, her arm trembled uncontrollably, and two consecutive shots missed completely.
Roaring, the scaled beast's massive body drew closer, the foul wind hitting their faces.
"Steady!" Lin Yan shifted his footing, using his ancient martial arts footwork to quickly move two steps sideways. His gun barrel locked steadily onto the soft spot on the back of the scaled beast's neck, and he pulled the trigger continuously. Two energy beams blasted into the side of the beast's neck, burning two charred wounds. The intense pain caused the scaled beast's movements to pause, forcefully interrupting its offensive momentum.
In that brief moment, a veteran broke away and rushed over, leaping into the air and driving his short blade fiercely into the scaled beast's eye socket. The beast let out a miserable, piercing shriek, its four limbs twitching violently a few times before it collapsed heavily to the ground, black blood flowing endlessly.
"Good job, your timing for the suppression was spot on." The veteran panted heavily, wiping the blood and dirt from his face. There was no excessive praise; he immediately turned his head to stare intently at the third-tier scaled beast in the distance. "Don't relax. This was just the appetizer."
Lin Yan nodded slightly, his back already soaked in cold sweat. In that brief moment just now, the psychic turbulence released by the scaled beast at close range had struck his contracted Sea of Consciousness, causing another sharp pain in his skull. Even though he had mastered the technique of concealing his Sea of Consciousness, he still couldn't withstand continuous psychic harassment for long periods. His ancient martial arts foundation could only protect his physical reflexes; in the realm of mental confrontation, he could only endure and learn bit by bit.
The third-tier scaled beast high above seemed to have grown impatient.
It let out a long, low howl, no longer relying solely on large-scale psychic suppression. Instead, it unleashed a directed psychic impact, precisely locking onto the four veterans who were currently forming their formation.
This was a targeted strike!
The lead veteran, whose Sea of Consciousness was at the third tier, was caught completely off guard. His head violently jolted, his Sea of Consciousness instantly overloading. His body swayed, and the short blade in his hand slipped, falling into the mud.
"Careful!" Instructor Zhou roared a warning, but it was too late.
From the direction of the distant rift, taking advantage of the third-tier scaled beast tying up the main human forces, more low-level scaled beasts emerged in groups from behind the rock piles. There were at least seven or eight of them, swarming toward the entire trench.
"The defense line can't hold the pressure!" the non-commissioned officer roared. "When is the backup arriving?!"
Only intermittent static came through the communicator. The voice of the support squad was filled with exhaustion: "We're still clearing the beast swarms along the way. There are still many scaled beasts blocking the road. We need at least a while longer. You must hold the line!"
Gritting his teeth, Instructor Zhou quickly adjusted the deployment, splitting the remaining combat-capable personnel into two-man teams to intercept the surging scaled beasts. Each team had to face at least two low-level scaled beasts, and the rate of casualties instantly accelerated.
To shield a new recruit beside him, a veteran used his own body to hard-tank the scaled beast's claws. His chest cavity was torn open, and he collapsed heavily at the edge of the trench. Witnessing his comrade's gruesome death, the new recruit's mind fell into chaos, his Sea of Consciousness instantly breaking. He stood there dumbly, allowing the psychic turbulence to erode his consciousness.
Watching this scene, a chill surged in Lin Yan's heart. Death was right before his eyes, so easy, so cruel. He forced himself to suppress his churning emotions, continuing to stare fixedly at the charging scaled beasts, looking for the perfect moment to fire. He still lacked the ability to fight any low-level scaled beast head-on alone; he could only seize every fleeting gap to use bullets to interfere and distract, helping his teammates bear just a fraction of the pressure.
The groans of the wounded in the trench grew increasingly dense. The available Sea of Consciousness stabilizer patches were running out, and ammunition was being continuously consumed.
The third-tier scaled beast slowly stretched its thick limbs, stepping down from the rocky high ground one step at a time. It was no longer content to drain them from afar; it was preparing to step into the trench personally and harvest this group of humans who were completely spent.
The earth trembled slightly with each of its heavy footsteps.
Lin Yan gripped his energy gun tightly, his knuckles turning white. Fear still lingered in his heart, but it was no longer mere panic. Silently, he reviewed all the details of the recent battles, memorizing the precursors to the scaled beast's directed psychic impacts, the coordinated patterns of the group charges, and the coping mechanisms of the veterans when their Seas of Consciousness were overdrawn.
All of this was knowledge that could only be learned on a true, blood-soaked battlefield.
Deep within the distant rift, the continuous roars of the beasts still echoed endlessly, as if they would never cease. This brutal tug-of-war was far from reaching a halt.
End of Chapter
The trench was a complete mess. Mud mixed with pools of dark red blood slowly spread across the bottom of the pit. After the previous tsunami-like psychic crushing, fewer than half of the people could stand firmly. Those who had fallen fell into two categories: some had physical injuries, curled up in the mud, groaning in pain; the others had suffered Sea of Consciousness damage, their eyes vacant, completely unresponsive no matter how loudly others called to them. The medics no longer had time for the latter; they could only prioritize treating the wounded who still retained their sanity.
"Stabilizer patches are over half consumed, and ammunition reserves are down to thirty percent!" A non-commissioned officer quickly finished counting the supplies and rushed to Instructor Zhou's side to report in a low voice, his tone hiding an undeniable anxiety.
Instructor Zhou's jaw tightened as his gaze swept over the ruined defense line. High above, the third-tier scaled beast still perched atop the rocks, its dark green vertical pupils staring coldly at the trench without rashly charging. It knew the humans were severely weakened; it only needed to continue draining them. Once the Sea of Consciousness stabilizer patches were exhausted, it would be time to reap the harvest.
"Split into two groups to rotate guard duty. One group maintains the contracted Sea of Consciousness defense, while the other briefly relaxes their minds to rest. Alternate strictly; absolutely no one is allowed to overextend themselves simultaneously," Instructor Zhou ordered rapidly. "Move all wounded to the innermost part of the trench. Any wounded still capable of holding a gun will guard the rear gap."
The moment the command was relayed, another urgent chorus of scaled beast hisses echoed from the shadows of the rocks on the left flank.
Four low-level scaled beasts used the terrain as cover, lowering their bodies to advance rapidly. Having caught the scent of blood and weakness, they seized the window before the humans' mental power had fully recovered to launch a surprise attack.
"Contact! Four-man formation!"
Two veterans still capable of fighting immediately stepped forward, followed by two new recruits in decent condition who moved up to fill the gaps, quickly forming an encirclement formation. One scaled beast pounced first, spitting out a cloud of foul-smelling mist from its mouth while fine psychic needles simultaneously pierced toward the four people's Seas of Consciousness. The front-line veteran raised his heavy armor to hard-tank the pounce. The massive impact made him groan, instantly reopening the old wound on his arm as blood soaked through his sleeve.
The other three seized the brief moment of rigidity when the scaled beast landed from its pounce, concentrating their energy gun fire on its eye sockets. The veteran with the short blade flanked and thrust the blade toward the soft flesh under the beast's lower jaw. Agonized by the pain, the scaled beast twisted its body frantically, its thick tail lashing out fiercely toward a new recruit beside it. The recruit failed to dodge in time and was struck in the chest by the tail. He flew backward, crashing heavily into the muddy water. He spat out a mouthful of blood and instantly lost his ability to fight.
"Another one down." Standing on the side and rear, Lin Yan maintained his extremely contracted Sea of Consciousness, keeping his eyes solely on this area. He didn't recklessly charge forward to attack; he kept his energy gun in a ready-to-fire state, prepared to provide covering fire and suppress the enemy at any moment.
This was the rule he had learned on the battlefield over this period: veterans were responsible for the main distraction and the kill. New recruits like him were only responsible for filling gaps and providing interference; they must never disrupt the formation.
One scaled beast avoided the frontal firepower, bypassed the four locked in combat, and charged diagonally toward the middle of the trench where the wounded were piled up. Su Qing, guarding the wounded, was deathly pale. The light from the patch on her forehead had dimmed to the point of near invisibility. She forced herself to raise her gun and fire, but lacking mental power, her arm trembled uncontrollably, and two consecutive shots missed completely.
Roaring, the scaled beast's massive body drew closer, the foul wind hitting their faces.
"Steady!" Lin Yan shifted his footing, using his ancient martial arts footwork to quickly move two steps sideways. His gun barrel locked steadily onto the soft spot on the back of the scaled beast's neck, and he pulled the trigger continuously. Two energy beams blasted into the side of the beast's neck, burning two charred wounds. The intense pain caused the scaled beast's movements to pause, forcefully interrupting its offensive momentum.
In that brief moment, a veteran broke away and rushed over, leaping into the air and driving his short blade fiercely into the scaled beast's eye socket. The beast let out a miserable, piercing shriek, its four limbs twitching violently a few times before it collapsed heavily to the ground, black blood flowing endlessly.
"Good job, your timing for the suppression was spot on." The veteran panted heavily, wiping the blood and dirt from his face. There was no excessive praise; he immediately turned his head to stare intently at the third-tier scaled beast in the distance. "Don't relax. This was just the appetizer."
Lin Yan nodded slightly, his back already soaked in cold sweat. In that brief moment just now, the psychic turbulence released by the scaled beast at close range had struck his contracted Sea of Consciousness, causing another sharp pain in his skull. Even though he had mastered the technique of concealing his Sea of Consciousness, he still couldn't withstand continuous psychic harassment for long periods. His ancient martial arts foundation could only protect his physical reflexes; in the realm of mental confrontation, he could only endure and learn bit by bit.
The third-tier scaled beast high above seemed to have grown impatient.
It let out a long, low howl, no longer relying solely on large-scale psychic suppression. Instead, it unleashed a directed psychic impact, precisely locking onto the four veterans who were currently forming their formation.
This was a targeted strike!
The lead veteran, whose Sea of Consciousness was at the third tier, was caught completely off guard. His head violently jolted, his Sea of Consciousness instantly overloading. His body swayed, and the short blade in his hand slipped, falling into the mud.
"Careful!" Instructor Zhou roared a warning, but it was too late.
From the direction of the distant rift, taking advantage of the third-tier scaled beast tying up the main human forces, more low-level scaled beasts emerged in groups from behind the rock piles. There were at least seven or eight of them, swarming toward the entire trench.
"The defense line can't hold the pressure!" the non-commissioned officer roared. "When is the backup arriving?!"
Only intermittent static came through the communicator. The voice of the support squad was filled with exhaustion: "We're still clearing the beast swarms along the way. There are still many scaled beasts blocking the road. We need at least a while longer. You must hold the line!"
Gritting his teeth, Instructor Zhou quickly adjusted the deployment, splitting the remaining combat-capable personnel into two-man teams to intercept the surging scaled beasts. Each team had to face at least two low-level scaled beasts, and the rate of casualties instantly accelerated.
To shield a new recruit beside him, a veteran used his own body to hard-tank the scaled beast's claws. His chest cavity was torn open, and he collapsed heavily at the edge of the trench. Witnessing his comrade's gruesome death, the new recruit's mind fell into chaos, his Sea of Consciousness instantly breaking. He stood there dumbly, allowing the psychic turbulence to erode his consciousness.
Watching this scene, a chill surged in Lin Yan's heart. Death was right before his eyes, so easy, so cruel. He forced himself to suppress his churning emotions, continuing to stare fixedly at the charging scaled beasts, looking for the perfect moment to fire. He still lacked the ability to fight any low-level scaled beast head-on alone; he could only seize every fleeting gap to use bullets to interfere and distract, helping his teammates bear just a fraction of the pressure.
The groans of the wounded in the trench grew increasingly dense. The available Sea of Consciousness stabilizer patches were running out, and ammunition was being continuously consumed.
The third-tier scaled beast slowly stretched its thick limbs, stepping down from the rocky high ground one step at a time. It was no longer content to drain them from afar; it was preparing to step into the trench personally and harvest this group of humans who were completely spent.
The earth trembled slightly with each of its heavy footsteps.
Lin Yan gripped his energy gun tightly, his knuckles turning white. Fear still lingered in his heart, but it was no longer mere panic. Silently, he reviewed all the details of the recent battles, memorizing the precursors to the scaled beast's directed psychic impacts, the coordinated patterns of the group charges, and the coping mechanisms of the veterans when their Seas of Consciousness were overdrawn.
All of this was knowledge that could only be learned on a true, blood-soaked battlefield.
Deep within the distant rift, the continuous roars of the beasts still echoed endlessly, as if they would never cease. This brutal tug-of-war was far from reaching a halt.
End of Chapter