Chapter 142: Promising Material

Chapter 142: Material That Can Be Shaped

On the other side, outside Anqing City.

Chen Jian led his squad out of Anqing City discreetly, and at that moment all their preparations within the city were complete.

Rumors had spread completely, and the drug had already been delivered into the hands of the city defense forces.

Even during the sporadic assault by the abominations on Anqing City the previous night, they had verified the drug’s effect.

As Chen Jian had anticipated, the abominations had almost formed a conditioned reflex.

When that gas capable of plunging a person into an abyss drifted outward, nearly all the abominations fell into a brief bewilderment.

——

Of course, this bewilderment did not suppress their bloodlust; rather, it made their assault even more ferocious.

Yet precisely this result caused the Machine God Sect to believe ever more firmly in the stories circulating within the city.

After all, the blood skulls were truly affected by the drug—this was clearly the first step of 'control'.

Thus, that night the council hall of Anqing City blazed with lights.

When Chen Jian and his companions left Anqing City, large numbers of the Protectors of the Faith began to muster, and the Holy Blood warriors of the Holy Blood Hall, just as they had in Hanshui City, donned the blood-red uniforms worn only in formal, coordinated operations.

They had readied themselves for a great battle, and the only obstacle left before them was a thin barrier.

Now Chen Jian would break through that barrier.

He would do it with just a few aerial bombs recently acquired from the Ring Mercantile Association.

The squad headed toward the warehouse district, and once beyond Anqing City’s surveillance range, Chen Jian opened the radio and made contact with Huangshi City once more.

This time, he heard a piece of news that shocked him profoundly.

"You’re saying what? Huadu has already launched an attack on Huangshi City?"

"How did it turn out?"

Chen Jian’s expression showed a hint of surprise, but he was not particularly tense.

Because from Huang Yu’s tone he had already guessed the outcome of the battle.

Obviously, Huadu had failed.

After all—trying to hastily assemble a fighting force in such a short time, how strong could it possibly be?

They could not possibly have drawn troops directly from Huadu; more likely they had rounded up a pack of abominations and water ghosts, or hired a few mercenaries, and launched the attack straight away.

Frankly, such a force could indeed pose a tremendous threat to other small settlements.

But Huangshi City is no ordinary place; every combatant there is equipped with automatic weapons!

Breaking in would not be easy, and Chen Jian’s chief concern remained how many personnel Huangshi City had lost in the fight.

——

Yet Huang Yu’s next response turned Chen Jian’s expression from surprise to utter disbelief.

"The enemy came with over a hundred men; we nearly annihilated them, though we ourselves suffered some wounded."

"Four of our men were hit by enemy bullets and are now combat ineffective."

"Fortunately, their wounds are all to the limbs and should not be fatal."

"Our greatest loss is ammunition; we simply cannot control its use and have wasted a great deal."

As his words faded, not only Chen Jian but everyone who had heard Huang Yu’s transmission over the radio fell silent.

Over a hundred enemies, nearly wiped out.

And our side’s greatest loss was merely ammunition.

What on earth is going on??

How did they manage it??

Chen Jian posed his question to Huang Yu; after a few seconds of silence, the latter replied:

"We ourselves aren’t sure how we managed it, but I had them run a few drills using the method taught by Team Leader He Shuo earlier."

"It was probably just a coincidence; the enemy’s actions matched what we had practiced."

"So we fought very smoothly."

".Understood."

Chen Jian let out a breath and did not press further.

He had not expected Huang Yu’s initiative to reach such a degree.

After receiving his warning, they not only immediately set up defenses but even organized drills.

This is absolutely prime material—indeed, a tremendous piece of raw potential!

Although their opponents may not have been particularly strong, achieving such a result truly surpassed Chen Jian’s imagination.

At this moment, Chen Jian deeply understood the delight of 'encountering excellent talent.'

And this was not the end of it.

Huang Yu’s surprises for him were not limited to this one.

After reporting the battle details to Chen Jian, he continued:

"This time we captured little useful equipment, and their firearms are not as advanced as ours."

"However, at the very start of the battle we took a hit from their artillery."

"The power of that shell seemed greater than the smoothbore cannons used by the Machine God Sect, so after the battle I daringly led a team to locate their firing position."

"Then I discovered that their artillery crew had been killed by our machine guns, but the gun itself remained."

"That cannon is truly not an ordinary smoothbore; it is relatively small, yet it is not the mortar you team leaders use."

"What exactly it is, I cannot say; perhaps you will know when you return."

"Understood. Keep it well preserved."

Chen Jian turned to He Shuo; their eyes met, needing little words, and they silently shared the same thought.

It is not a smoothbore, it is small, and it is not a mortar.

Could it be a field howitzer?

If that is indeed what it is, then we have truly stumbled upon a treasure.

Chen Jian paused, then lavished praise on Huang Yu over the radio without reservation, and promptly urged him to stay vigilant and continue to guard against any possible attack.

This time, Huang Yu still bore the attitude of ‘resolutely completing the mission,’ but Chen Jian’s confidence in him had risen to unprecedented heights compared with before.

If he could hold the first, he could hold the second.

For he still had reserves—and plenty of them!

By contrast, Huadu could no longer muster a large‑scale offensive in such a short time.

Because our side’s operation is about to begin

After the radio was cut off, a faint smile crept across Chen Jian's face.

He spoke:

“I never expected Huadu would willingly play along with our act.”

“I had been wondering how we could make the ‘retreat’ part of the performance look convincing.”

“But now it seems I don’t need to worry about it any further.”

“They have begun their assault on Huangshi City, so we must inevitably return to defend.”

“This gives us a perfect excuse to withdraw, and it is enough to tempt the Machine God Sect into swooping in for the spoils.”

“So from now on, there is only one thing left for us to do.”

“That is, to transport the aerial bombs into the Anqing ruins and detonate them.”

“This might be the simplest part of this round’s operation plan, but we still need a decoy.”

“A decoy?”

“Ji Xing looked at Chen Jian, bewildered, and asked, ‘Is it still me?’”

“This time you won’t be needed.”

“Chen Jian gave a slight smile and replied:”

“Lei Jie has already made contact with the Ring Caravan and checked the status of those weapons emplacements.”

“Although they cannot be fully repaired, nor can they be remotely controlled, he has restored their most basic functions.”

“Now, two of the weapons emplacements can fire automatically.”

“These two emplacements are perfect to serve as our decoy!”

“An hour later, Chen Jian’s squad arrived at the freight depot.”

“Two hours later, the vessel prepared by the Ring Mercantile Association set out from the depot, sailing upstream along the Yangtze waterway.”

“Five hours later, the ship carrying a total of five aerial bombs of various types docked at the makeshift pier erected by Lei Jie’s squad on the outskirts of the Anqing ruins; with Li Shi’s assistance, all five bombs were unloaded from the vessel and hidden in a nearby outpost.”

“The weight of these five bombs is actually not that great; the largest, the cluster‑4, is only about 230 kilograms, and the 250‑3 low‑drag bomb is only 210 kilograms.”

“Such a weight is easily lifted even by ordinary folk like Chen Jian when aided by an exoskeleton, let alone by the holy‑blooded Li Shi and Zeng Yi.”

“The only problem is that deploying these bombs to their proper positions will require a bit more effort.”

“After concealing all the equipment, Chen Jian took a brief rest and then asked Lei Jie:”

“Have you chosen the positions? Are the weapons emplacements in place?”

“Upon hearing this, Lei Jie replied:”

“They have been selected, near the intersection of Linghu South Road and Lake Center Middle Road.”

“There is a clearing scorched by wildfire, the terrain is open, and it lies relatively close to the demons’ main area of activity, giving it high tactical value.”

“After Xie Liu finished reconnaissance, I led the team to emplace the weapons stations at those spots and set up camouflage and preliminary protection.”

“However, due to limited time, we only erected makeshift cover around the emplacements that can stop small‑arms fire but may not withstand artillery.”

“Later, when we move forward to place the bombs, we will need to find a way to further reinforce the cover.”

“After all, we must ensure the weapons emplacements survive long enough to fulfill their role as decoys.”

“In that case, the cover we construct must at least be able to withstand the fire of small‑caliber artillery.”

“Reasonable.”

“Chen Jian gave a slight nod and then said:”

“Then let’s set out tonight.”

“It’s three kilometers away; we can make two round trips.”

“After we bring the bombs over, we will have plenty of time to build the fortifications.”

“However, we must not expose ourselves prematurely.”

“Therefore, someone must draw their attention while we lay the trap.”

“This time we do not need Ji Xing to risk a close‑range harassment.”

“He Shuo, you come.”

“The trap is set on the west side, so you and Xie Liu should circle to the east, find a high point, and harass them with your ten‑shot sniper!”

“Understood!”

“He Shuo nodded immediately.”

“At that moment, the sun was slowly sinking westward, and the squad’s final harassing skirmish before the battle was about to begin.”

“Meanwhile, in Hanshui City.”

“Li Xian sat in his room, opposite him was the scout who had just returned to Hanshui City.”

“His expression was grave, his posture upright, and as he looked at the somewhat disheveled, exhausted scout, he cut straight to the point and asked:”

“Have you gathered the intelligence I requested? Did fighting break out at Huangshi City, and what was the outcome?”

“Hearing this, the scout immediately stood at attention and replied:”

“Your Eminence, all the intelligence has been confirmed.”

“As you suspected, Huangshi City did indeed see a battle, which took place in the early hours of today.”

“An unknown force attacked Huangshi City, inflicting some losses upon them.”

“But judging from the current situation, Huangshi City’s losses are not severe.”

“They have no more than ten wounded, and nobody was killed.”

“Conversely, the attacking force, which is likely composed of mercenaries and hunters, suffered heavy losses.”

“According to the surviving holy‑blooded, they were almost completely wiped out.”

“However, he also suggested that their crushing defeat was not due to inferior strength compared to Huangshi City, but because they were overconfident.”

“Overconfident?”

“Li Xian let out a cold chuckle, cutting off the scout’s words, and then said:”

“That is merely an excuse for failure.”

“Huangshi City’s strength is absolutely not to be underestimated; even the Sanctum Guard Brigade would gain little advantage in a direct confrontation.”

“Enough, there’s no need to tell me these useless things.”

“I only need two pieces of intelligence.”

“First, whether the mercenaries who attacked them are linked to Huadu.”

“Second, whether the most powerful mimetic heresy primordials are still inside Huangshi City.”

“They are linked to Huadu, and the primordials are not in the city.”

“The scout answered immediately, then added:”

According to that holy‑blooded one, it was precisely merchants from Huadu who hired them.

Those merchants seemed eager to launch an assault on Huangshi City, so they hastily recruited this batch of manpower.

They were clearly unprepared and failed to achieve the intended results.

However, such an attack was merely the first; it is said they will launch further offensives later.

Understood. That's enough, you may go.

Li Xian waved his hand, signaling the scout to leave; the scout bowed respectfully and then turned and departed.

After the door of the room closed, Li Xian hurried to the radio stored in the dark chamber.

He tuned the radio to the frequency he knew by heart, and after repeatedly calling until connection was established, he spoke:

"Sanctum, I am Bishop Li Xian of Han Shui City."

"I have gathered, per orders, the latest credible intelligence concerning Huangshi City and Huadu."

"I have secured three verified pieces of intelligence."

"First, the assault on the Blood Skulls within the Anqing ruins was carried out by several of the most powerful primordials of the Mimic Heresy."

"Second, Huadu launched an attack on Huangshi City; its aim seems not to be annihilation but to pressure the Mimic Heresy, forcing their main force to return."

"Third, Huangshi City withstood Huadu's first wave of attack, yet Huadu's offensives will continue."

"Based on this intelligence, I believe the primordials of the Mimic Heresy are likely compelled to abandon their operations at the Anqing ruins and rush to Huangshi City to render aid."

"Therefore, if the Sanctum decides to take any action—"

"the coming few hours will be our best opportunity!"

(End of Chapter)