Chapter 634: The 'Hell-Level Difficulty' Stage That Has Existed Since Launch

Chapter 634: The "Hell-Level Difficulty" Stage That Had Existed Since the Server Opened

The gray-green dense fog was creeping closer.

Watching the walls and machine-gun positions so near at hand, pairs of eyes lurking in the darkness gradually reflected a crimson glow.

It was six o'clock; night had just fallen over Qingquan City, and the temperature was not yet too cold.

For the spore clouds drifting in the air and the fruiting bodies hiding in the underground passages, night was the best cover.

The evening wind had barely begun to blow when visibility on the streets of the northern suburbs silently dropped to less than fifty meters.

Gazing at her children, Sia felt quite pleased with herself.

The only pity was that those humans had cut off all the branches of the northern suburbs' underground tunnels; otherwise, she could have infiltrated the fruiting bodies behind their lines and then struck suddenly.

The plan would have been even more perfect...

"Go, my children."

Looking down with invisible eyes at those bloodthirsty souls, Sia, standing on the crimson fungal carpet, let out a silent cry.

"Turn them into the nourishment that gives birth to life—"

"Devour them!"

...

"Roar—!"

A piercing roar tore the silence of the night to shreds. The aberrations suddenly charging toward the defense line came like a sudden downpour, and the murderous aura rushing toward them made almost everyone involuntarily hold their breath.

Thick tongues of fire spurted from the towering wall like a dam, and clamorous shells traced arcs through the fog, landing on the broken streets.

Waves of fruiting bodies fell in patches, but soon those behind surged forward to fill the gaps.

The flashes of explosions were like stones thrown into surging waves, stirring not a single ripple in the turbulent tide.

The defense line less than a kilometer from Boulder City.

Watching the surging tide, soldiers clutching assault rifles in their hands involuntarily showed fear on their faces.

They were all soldiers of the Penal Battalion.

Also criminals caught in the severe crackdown a year ago.

Having once lived at the foot of the giant wall, they were all too familiar with the tide.

Yet when truly facing the tide, even the most heinous criminals could not help but feel a bone-deep terror.

The usually dull-witted Feeders seemed as if they had taken drugs.

Even the weakest fruiting bodies had turned into ferocious beasts, united into a single entity under the guidance of the hive mind.

It was something even Deathclaws avoided; no single aberration in the wasteland could stand against these creatures.

They would devour everything in sight!

Tear the prey apart, chew it, swallow it—

Until every shred of flesh and blood of the prey merged into this vast hive, becoming part of that terrifying conscious entity.

"Damn it, how many are there?!" Watching the fruiting bodies that kept vanishing in the gunfire only to be replaced, a prisoner couldn't help but cry out in terror.

"Great Antlered God above..."

Crouching behind the cover beside him, another prisoner muttered a prayer, trying to overcome his fear by invoking the name of the Great Antlered God.

Not far from him, a burly man with a shaved head kept glancing backward, his eyes alternating between ferocity and panic.

If not for the machine guns of the supervising squad aimed at the backs of their heads, he would have fled without hesitation—as far as he could!

Each position had only a hundred men; every hundred-man squad was responsible for one street.

Before them was a tide of slime mold; behind them, the positions of the Militia Regiment. If they fell, those people would not hesitate to rain shells down on their heads.

As the commander of these prisoners, Bit's eyes were full of struggle.

This was their only chance at freedom—

Only by proving their loyalty with blood

Could they become human again!

The moment the gunfire ceased, Feeders had already appeared at the edge of the machine guns' field of fire. Squeezing the trigger, he let out a roar that vented his fear.

"Ahhh!!!"

...

The tide had already made contact with Boulder City's positions; the Alliance's positions were still eerily quiet.

But almost everyone could feel the undercurrents surging beneath the silence.

Three Fungus-Infected Deathclaws moved along the edge of a building, leading dozens of Fungus-Infected Yaoguai, and under the cover of night and gray fog, they approached the edge of Sector 3, Defense Zone 06 of the Alliance, infiltrating toward Sector 4 in the middle of the line.

The human Hive was right before their eyes!

Those amber pupils were etched with a thirst for blood; they could almost see the noisy building.

But just as they bared their fangs, streaks of orange-red fire suddenly rose into the sky, illuminating the streets near Sector 3 like daylight.

The three Fungus-Infected Deathclaws and dozens of Fungus-Infected Yaoguai were instantly exposed under the flare light, and at the same time, two leveled 20mm quadruple anti-aircraft guns had already aimed at them.

Watching those sneaky creatures approach, Kakarot, crouching by the window of an abandoned building, shouted excitedly.

"Open fire!"

Long streaks of tracer fire flew like willow catkins in the wind, carrying a devastating gale toward the dozens of aberrations standing in the street.

Caught off guard, the three Fungus-Infected Deathclaws let out pained roars in the hail of bullets, thrashing their tails as they tried to flee the street.

But the Storm Corps, who had been waiting long, would not let them escape.

Players crouching in the building's windows had already set up their 37mm heavy cavalry rifles, and the moment the anti-aircraft guns opened fire, they pulled the triggers.

"Bang—!"

One Fungus-Infected Deathclaw had its head blown off instantly; the chests and shoulders of the other two burst into sprays of blood.

Although the new spores had strong fire-suppression effects, the Alliance had long since, based on the Bio-Research Institute's recommendations, replaced the cores of their armor-piercing incendiary rounds with magnesium-based incendiaries.

The high concentration of carbon dioxide not only failed to extinguish the flames but acted like an accelerant, making the white light embedded in the Fungus-Infected Deathclaws burn ever brighter!

Pained roars echoed through the rain of bullets on the street. Sia's first wave of elite monsters, sent as vanguard, was instantly annihilated under the concentrated fire of the Storm Corps.

"Seems this mother's micro-management isn't that great."

Looking at the smoking gun barrel, Grave Ghost, crouching behind the window, chuckled softly and reloaded his 37mm heavy cavalry rifle with a fresh magazine.

The voice of Brother Kakarot came through the comm channel.

"Don't let your guard down; this is just the beginning. There's a whole bunch waiting!"

Grave Ghost replied casually with a laugh.

"Relax, we're rock solid!"

Dozens of elite monsters were wiped out in an instant; the Storm Corps had completely stunned the vanguard of the tide charging toward the Alliance's positions.

On a crimson fungal carpet, Xiya, no longer able to sense those assimilated spawn, stood frozen in place.

The spawn formed by slime mold assimilation differed from ordinary spawn; those little ones could not be produced through incubation chambers, but could only be captured from the wasteland by her spawn and personally modified by her.

And the Deathclaw, as a creature nearly at the top of the food chain, was ten or even dozens of times harder to capture than aberrations like yokai or multi-legged beasts!

She had planned to tear a gap in the Alliance's defensive line, then send a massive force to swarm and overwhelm those humans.

Yet those cunning humans had seen through her plan!

After a brief moment of shock, Xiya, standing dazed on the fungal carpet, let out a piercing howl, every cell in her body trembling with that rage.

But no matter—

Their reaction precisely proved that her guess was correct!

They too possessed some kind of hive mind that controlled their consciousness.

And that "hive mind" was indeed crucial to them!

Otherwise, they wouldn't have deployed so much defensive power in front of that noisy concrete block while their kind were under such fierce attack.

She opened her mouth, and restless spores transmitted that silent fury.

At the same time, drawn by that fury, the spawn lurking near Alliance Sector 06 also ignited with boiling battle lust.

Gnawers poured out of the subway station entrances, while at the edge of the North Second Ring Road, more and more high-level spawn began to gather.

Among them were Crawlers scaling the walls of buildings, and Tyrants clad in thick, horny armor.

The northern outskirts of Clearspring City, once still as a lake, instantly boiled over as these spawn emerged densely.

And at the same time, it wasn't just the slime mold in Clearspring City that boiled—the Alliance's radio channels did too.

"Massive numbers of spawn are surging from the underground passages!"

"Estimated count in the millions!"

"Damn... has every mutant in the city come out?!"

"Haha, just in time!"

"Spawn near Defense Zone 06 are forming dense formations; Sectors 1, 2, and 3 are already engaged!"

"Order the Death Corps to turn around immediately! Execute the plan!"

"Roger!"

At the same time, on Sector 4 of Defense Zone 06, watching the endless spawn on the streets, Fentouzhuogui, who had been mocking them as nothing special just a second ago, instantly changed his expression.

Seeing a Tyrant charging up to smash through their street barricades, he immediately pulled the trigger and fired a 37mm armor-piercing incendiary round.

A bright white spark pierced through the Tyrant's body, but it didn't stop its advance.

Only after he fired two more shots did the grotesque corpse collapse into the black mire.

Yet that Tyrant was just one insignificant part of the tide.

Countless spawn, like a flood, crossed its body and surged toward his position below, charging against the chaotic, flying tracer rounds.

Fentouzhuogui's trigger finger was practically glued to the trigger; he had no time to let up.

When one magazine ran dry, he immediately slapped in another, the barrel glowing red-hot.

Watching the ever-increasing spawn on the streets, he couldn't help but curse.

"Fuck... are these bastards getting desperate or what?"

Lumps of flesh trailing green smoke landed near the position, and corrosive acid mist quickly rose.

Fentouzhuogui immediately put on his gas mask, cursing under his breath, enduring the stinging itch on his neck, and grabbed his 37mm heavy rifle to keep firing.

In fact, he had hit the nail on the head.

Xiya was indeed getting desperate.

On one hand, she was convinced that the hive mind behind that defensive line was the weakness of the humans to the north. On the other hand, the Alliance's firepower had truly caught her off guard.

Dark windows spat tongues of flame incessantly, and shells falling from the sky reaped her children.

Her ability could extinguish flames, but it couldn't stop the explosions of those shells.

Not only that—

Those humans seemed to have figured out her ability and cleverly used an alternating fire pattern.

That is, first shelling to create a spore vacuum zone, then launching incendiary rounds, and using shells to cover the advance of the fire.

Though she could still eventually extinguish the flames, she couldn't stop large swaths of spawn and their corpses from being burned to cinders.

Lives flickered and vanished rapidly in the dancing sparks, yet the Alliance's defensive line showed no sign of weakening—

In that endless death, she could feel the sorrow of her children!

As if sensing her hesitation in the face of death, the mother watching from behind let out a commanding roar.

"Do not hesitate—"

"That will only invite more death!"

"As long as we can make them part of our body, this cost is nothing."

"This is our destiny!"

Compared to the spawn that had died in the tides of past years, this loss was indeed nothing.

Feeling the mother's authority, Xiya's momentary hesitation vanished, replaced once more by madness and bloodlust.

Urged on by her, in the span of a moment, the surging tide broke through the fire net's blockade.

Hordes of Gnawers flooded to the base of the skyscraper, engaging in close-quarters combat with the players holding the first floor.

Seeing her children had already breached the Alliance's position, the spore cloud floating around Xiya finally emitted a frequency of relief.

But that relief didn't last long.

Those humans didn't tuck tail and run; instead, they erupted with even fiercer fighting spirit in the melee.

Only then did she suddenly realize—she should have known these people were different from those who lived within walls.

Under the command of the hive mind, they feared no death, nor cared about the tide surging before them.

It was as if what rushed into their faces weren't man-eating monsters, but walking experience packs—

"Brothers! Grab your weapons!"

"Fight them to the death!!"

"Oorah!"

Led by a squad leader, a dozen Strength-type players in exoskeletons charged at the slime mold climbing the steps, forming a moving wall of steel strapped to their chests.

One ruthless fellow, wailing chainsaw in hand, howled as he plunged into the surging tide, swinging and slashing, each swing a spray of blood and gore.

Covered in black blood, standing atop a pile of corpses, that guy let out a bizarre laugh.

"Gahaha, this game is so damn stress-relieving—"

Before his words faded, a Tyrant charged up to him, slamming into him with a dull roar.

Startled, he frantically swung the chainsaw in his hands, yet the spinning blade merely slipped and skidded uselessly against the Tyrant's horny armor.

Writhing in pain, the enraged Tyrant thrust out both arms, digging its claws into his shoulders and ripping violently.

With a sickening tear, the unfortunate player caught in its grasp was torn in two on the spot, dissolving into a mist of blood that sprayed across the ceiling.

Flinging the bifurcated corpse behind it for the gnawers to feast upon, the Tyrant strode forward with meteoric strides, the fresh blood painting its pitch-black horny armor a sinister crimson.

Had an ordinary mercenary witnessed this scene, they would likely have lost their wits to terror.

Yet those standing before it were by no means normal humans, but a horde of players who feared no death.

They were like the warriors of Khorne.

Far from dampening their fighting spirit, this bloody spectacle only drove the players into a deeper frenzy.

Simultaneously, the broadcast playing the background music carried the solemn voice of the Administrator.

"The enemy's main force is charging our positions. These foolish creatures do not realize they have plunged headfirst into our trap!"

"Hold fast! The final victory will surely be ours!"

Answering that voice were roars of boiling battle intent.

"Awoooo!"

...

The roar of gunfire and artillery tore the night of Qingquan City to shreds; the campaign against the Tide had officially begun.

At the exact moment the ten positions of Defense Sector 06 were transformed into a complete meat grinder, the Death Corps, which had been rushing to reinforce Megacity, received orders to turn back, immediately reversing direction to slaughter their way toward the Northern Second Ring Road.

Three thousand high-spirited players sat within armed trucks mounted with machine guns.

Though their equipment could hardly be called sophisticated, every single one of them was a ruthless savage, far fiercer than the mutants.

Because their fighting style was excessively reckless, they rarely purchased expensive gear to avoid wasting limited logistics points; the LD-series rifle, valued at 200 silver coins, was their most expensive equipment.

Beyond that were bayonets, entrenching shovels, and grenades!

According to the original plan, they were supposed to rush to Defense Sector 06 to reinforce the Storm Corps.

However, just moments ago, the Alliance's biological research institute had analyzed the area where "Theia" might be lurking, based on the concentration differences and flow trajectories of the spore cloud gathered by various observation posts and drones scattered across the war zone.

Thus, the Death Corps had a new mission—

Supported by the Goblin Corps, they would launch a raid on the Tide's headquarters!

Clutching the walkie-talkie, Edge Watersport bellowed into the corps' communication channel.

"The Storm Corps is under attack by the Tide! Our brother Fountain is pinned in a corner by the fruiting bodies of the slime mold!"

"Our mission is to give them a hand—not by bailing them out, but by completely wiping out those disgusting things!"

"They will soon pay a devastating price for their stupidity and arrogance!"

"Forward!!"

At this moment, the entirety of Qingquan City was permeated by thick spores, and Theia, standing upon the fungal carpet, could obviously not fail to notice this grand, sweeping army.

A sudden flicker of panic emerged in its emotions.

Though it possessed an intelligence superior to that of its siblings, it still had not expected those humans to leave their precarious broodmother unguarded and come straight for it instead.

Most of its children were on the front lines—some flooding toward the people living inside the walls, some flooding toward the broodmother of the "Northerners"—leaving very little force behind to protect it.

Right...

Come to think of it, how did they find out it was here?

"Mother... they have found me," Theia called out toward the central broodmother in the city center. "I need your help."

The broodmother in the city center had obviously also noticed the human soldiers who had suddenly changed direction and were heading straight for the Northern Second Ring Road.

After a brief deliberation, It replied in a gentle voice.

"Do not panic. I have already dispatched reinforcements to your position. They cannot harm you."

That was It's most elite subordinate, and one of It's most reliable personal guards.

The people from two hundred years ago were no match for that fellow, let alone these creatures who had degenerated for two centuries.

The previous children were not worth It's personal intervention, but Theia was an exception.

It was very satisfied with it.

In every sense, it was the best choice to expand the territory for the collective.

Comforted by its mother, Theia's emotions settled slightly, and it redirected its consciousness back to the two positions located in the north and west of Qingquan City respectively.

It could feel that those two struggling defensive lines were already showing signs of collapse.

Especially the group of people guarding the walls.

Under the onslaught of the Tide, suffering continuous casualties, they had already begun to wail on the brink of breakdown.

Its mother was right.

As long as they made up their minds to pay any price, they could surely drown those ugly organisms completely with sheer numbers; their fragile civilization was utterly defenseless before a higher form of life.

Yet a trace of anxiety still lingered in its heart.

Those fellows had fought its mother for a full two centuries; could it really be this simple...

...

Atop the roof of a skyscraper on the edge of the Second Ring Road, two Viper transports slowly touched down, letting off twenty fully armed players.

They wore identical Type-5 exoskeletons and carried almost exclusively light armaments.

Twenty fully assembled gliders were stacked beside the stairwell.

Old Bai pulled one out, tightened his grip on it, and handed it to Night Ten beside him.

Night Ten was about to take it when he noticed Old Bai wasn't letting go, instead grinning at him.

"Have you thought this through, kid? This gear of yours didn't come cheap."

The target of this mission was the city center of Qingquan City—the very city center that even the Post-War Reconstruction Committee had failed to conquer.

For two centuries, the survivors of Qingquan City had never again attempted to raid that place.

As a "Hell-Difficulty" stage that had existed since the server opened, even the players who feared no death only hovered around its fringes, never venturing deep into the heart of that abyss.

Now was the best opportunity, and almost the only opportunity.

The vast majority of the fruiting bodies in the entirety of Qingquan City were pinned down on the defensive lines laid out by the Alliance.

But even if their mission succeeded, there was a very high probability they wouldn't be coming back.

Ignoring Old Bai's warning, Night Ten rolled his eyes and snatched the glider away.

"Pff, what's the big deal?"

No matter how expensive equipment was, it had a price, but a mission like this, which "concerned the future of the Alliance and the direction of the game's main storyline," would only happen once.

If he missed out on something this interesting, he would regret it for the rest of his life.

Seeing that Night Ten wasn't joking, Old Bai laughed heartily and slapped his shoulder.

"Indeed, just a piece of gear... By the way, if my axe falls, remember to pick it up for me."

Fang Chang, standing nearby, also smiled as he patted the mechanical compound bow in his hand, casually hanging it behind his back.

"And my Dawnbreaker—this one's been with me for a long time. I don't want to lose it."

Wildwind rubbed the bridge of his nose.

"My mechanical hand too... It was a gift from a friend on the Pioneer."

Night Ten looked helplessly at these troublesome friends.

"Why are you all so sure I'll survive?"

Fang Chang averted his gaze with a subtle expression.

"I don't know... Maybe intuition?"

Night Ten was about to say something else when Smoke, standing beside him, suddenly couldn't help but blurt out a complaint.

"You've all planted so many flags on his head—even if he does come back, there's an eighty percent chance he won't."

Old White: "Haha, no worries. If we survive, we'll bring his ashes back!"

Hearing this, Night Ten suddenly realized, and a silent curse escaped his heart.

Good grief.

These bastards couldn't stand to see him do well!

Just then, an arc of light streaked across the sky, flying straight toward the city center.

That was the Lingyun fighter piloted by Brother Luoyu—for them, it was also the signal to attack.

Putting away his joking expression, Old White carried the glider to the south side of the building, tapped the tactical helmet with his index finger, and closed the pitch-black visor.

"Our ace pilot has taken off."

"It's time for us to follow!"