Chapter 68: Just Stand There

Chapter68: Just Stand

At this moment, Huangshi City was in utter chaos; the city guards, who had never faced such intense combat, were already terrified, and when Zeng Yi and Xie Liu—two strange sang-blood warriors wielding automatic fire—charged, they offered hardly any effective resistance before dropping their weapons and surrendering.

The two reinforcing units of the Protectorate that had arrived still retained some fighting spirit, yet against the sang-bloods' extraordinary mobility, their counterattacks were severely limited.

Moreover, Chen Jian and He Shuo, having swiftly returned from clearing the Mechanist Cathedral, needed only a few minutes to purge the city of all armed forces.

The civilians sensed the danger of the conflict, especially after seeing the dust rise to the north, and throngs began fleeing desperately toward the lakeshore.

Of course, some refused to leave.

Those townsfolk who had harbored thoughts of rebellion rushed to the scene, but upon reaching the Mechanist Cathedral and attempting to join the mysterious “reinforcements” from who-knows-where, they were stunned to discover that the force that had turned the city upside down and cleared out the Protectorate in an instant consisted of a mere four individuals.

They stared dubiously at the two unmistakable sang-blood warriors, unable to believe that their combat prowess had reached such a level.

Upon further reflection, it seemed these two sang-bloods were not the main force; the true power lay in the two oddly armored ordinary people.

For a moment, no one dared to speak.

The two sides merely faced each other at a distance, warily watching.

As countless fishing boats streamed southward to escape Huangshi City, Chen Jian stepped forward and shouted loudly:

“The heretics of the Mechanist Creed have all been exterminated!”

“The beast they have raised is surging toward Huangshi City; those who wish to defend their homes, follow me to the lakeshore!”

His words fell, and the crowd of hundreds instantly wavered.

A cacophony of murmurs rose—some doubted the Creed’s downfall, some questioned Chen Jian’s party’s identity, but most were shaken by the news that “the monster is coming imminently.”

Without doubt, they knew exactly what monster Chen Jian referred to.

In an instant, dozens more turned and fled.

Yet as Chen Jian led his three companions toward the lakeshore to prepare a defensive line, forty or fifty still followed behind.

Zeng Yi did not understand why Chen Jian had summoned these people; he gripped his rifle, eyes fixed on the distant dust, and asked:

“Why bring these civilians here? They’ll be of no help, and might even cause chaos!”

“I know they won’t be of help.”

Chen Jian unfolded the weapons rack, emplaced the PBP201 mortar on the ground, and continued:

“Only those who take part in the battle deserve to enjoy victory.”

“Even if they merely stand here, as long as they do not flee the field, it is meaningful.”

“We are not here to rule Huangshi City; we are here to liberate it.”

“Those who remain will be our first allies.”

“Enough talk—Zeng Yi, Xie Liu, spread to the east and west; when the monster appears, open fire to draw its attention.”

“Lei Jie, how many rounds are left in the tube?”

“Four! Two armor-piercing, two high-explosive!”

Lei Jie’s reply crackled over the radio, and Chen Jian let out a great sigh of relief.

Enough.

He still had a recoilless cannon here; three armor-piercing shells would be enough to make any monster gulp.

Moreover, Lei Jie had sniper grenades.

If we could lock onto the monster’s weak point, a single shot might kill it outright.

—

Even if we concede ten thousand steps, should this “Mongol” monster’s armor prove too thick for our weapons to pierce, killing the Mechanist Creed handlers that control it would likely cause it to go berserk and wander off.

Thus, Chen Jian continued issuing orders:

“Shen Yue will replace Li Shi, using the heavy machine gun to clear the Mechanist Creed drivers on the monster’s back, while He Shuo seeks high-value targets.”

“Such a massive beast, with so many cultists—the Mechanist Creed surely sent a chaplain to organize them; take out the leader, sever their command, and then we’ll see!”

“Understood!”

The orders were given, and everyone sprang into action.

Chen Jian remained in place, having set up the mortar, then continued to take the PBW024 recoilless cannon from the rack, holding it steady as he waited for the monster to appear in his sights.

His expression was calm, his movements orderly; even the heart rate that had spiked during the assault gradually slowed. Indeed, for him, the threat posed by this so-called monster might truly be no greater than a single sniper shot from the Protectorate.

The dust on the horizon swelled larger, and the monster’s roars, along with the Mechanist Creed’s hymns, drifted in faintly.

Among the civilians who had followed, someone ran up behind Chen Jian, fearful, tense, yet respectful, and asked:

“Sir, what should we do?”

“Organize your people to stand in a dispersed line along the lakeshore as much as possible, then do what you can.”

“Dig cover, erect makeshift fortifications, conceal yourselves, draw attention.”

“We… just that?”

The person stammered in disbelief.

“You may also shout, you may also curse; if you have firearms, you may shoot at the monster.”

“But do not advance, do not retreat; make use of cover as much as you can!”

“.Good!”

The person turned and departed; Chen Jian turned his head back, fixing his gaze on the images flowing through the tactical sight.

At that moment, the monster had approached to within one kilometer of the lakeshore, entering the range of Lei Jie and Shen Yue.

Yet neither fired; they simply observed silently, continually relaying intelligence to Chen Jian.

“High-value target detected: located at the central control platform on the monster’s back, thermal signature tagged; He Shuo, please acknowledge.”

“He Shuo received.”

“Enemy strength confirmed: roughly forty total—eight on the central platform, about thirty in the side baskets, and two following below.”

“These two individuals are distinctive, moving swiftly; they are likely sang-blood warriors, designated as high-value targets; He Shuo, receive the thermal data and mark them yourself.”

“Tagging complete.”

“Artillery spotted: positioned in the side baskets—front-loading smoothbore cannons.”

“Received; Lei Jie will handle it with sniper grenades on his own.”

“Understood.”

Chen Jian flexed his wrist, then issued another command:

“Drone One, lower altitude and conduct perimeter reconnaissance.”

“Drone Two, fly to the rear, monitor rear activity, guard against enemy ambush.”

“Understood; drone switching to autonomous cruise mode—here it comes!”

He Shuo’s reply echoed, accompanied by a furious roar, as a colossal beast finally smashed through the thickets, revealing its horrifying, grotesque form.

It wasn't particularly tall; compared to the few monsters Chen Jian had seen, it even seemed much shorter.

Judging by reference objects, it was no more than about ten meters high.

But its body was long, its four limbs extraordinarily thick; with each step the ground trembled heavily.

This alone shows how astonishing its weight is.

The source of its enormous weight may perhaps be linked to the layer of 'iron armor' covering its body!

Of course, the so-called iron armor is not real armor in the true sense; rather, someone poured molten iron directly onto its external carapace, which upon cooling formed a fragmented, mottled, dark metallic coating!

What an astonishing idea!

Chen Jian drew a deep breath, turned his head toward the civilians who had already lined up in a row as he had ordered.

They were already cursing; some even fired their front‑loading powder guns—about as effective as a stovepipe—at the monster still 1.5 kilometers away.

Although it had no effect, the good news was that they did not retreat.

Chen Jian nodded in satisfaction; at the instant the monster's foreleg stepped into the lake, he spoke his command:

'Get ready!'

'Now, act!'

(End of chapter)