Cutting Off the River

Having lost their traction device, the horde of Great Spikes surged out of the valley as if mad, violently lunging at every living organism they could find. Even the low-tier black armors seemed capable of distinct emotional shifts. In fact, this batch of descending Great Spikes was somewhat different from those in the past. For instance, their arms having been forcibly ripped off was something without prior record. This was something Azure had yet to notice. Their focus had only just shifted away from the main battlefield of Xilang Peak, dispatching elites overnight in preparation for the final sweeping phase across the various sectors of the Perimeter Xilang Peak battlefield. Once the arms Han Qingyu had handed out along the way were turned in, there would likely be an official explanation. At this moment on the plateau, the vast horde of Great Spikes soon flooded over the battlefield where Han Qingyu had just fought, sweeping through like rushing water. People were crawling and wailing on the grass over there, perhaps crying for help, but no one heard them. Or perhaps someone did hear, but because it was in French, they could not understand, could not intervene, and had no wish to get involved. These people would never leave. This horde of Great Spikes was something they had gathered with their own hands. This world had once granted them the mission to save and protect, and had gifted them martial power far surpassing ordinary humans. Yet they had used it to do the absolute opposite. "That commotion sounds a bit terrifying." Wen Jifei chewed on his cigarette and muttered under his breath. Both were injured and could not move fast for the time being. Feeling the tremors of the ground transmitted from far behind, they could not help feeling a little tense. They were not primarily worried about themselves. After all, even with injuries, Han Qingyu's speed meant that if he truly ran for his life, he could still carry Wen Jifei clear of the Great Spike horde. What needed worrying about right now were the ordinary Azure squads likely still executing their missions further along the route, along with the highland residents they were escorting away. The frenzy of the Great Spike horde made them terrifyingly fast by comparison. Their feet carried them forward. The color of the light on the grass shifted subtly. "Don't tell me dawn is breaking?" Wen Jifei's throat felt a little dry. He said, "Qingzi, check your watch. What time is it?" In September, the sky still grew light very early. With the Great Spikes running amok, daylight was definitely not good news. Han Qingyu raised his wrist. "My watch blew up earlier." "Mine too. Next time we fight, remind me to take it off first." Wen Jifei looked up at the sky. A few beams of white light were piercing through the clouds; dawn was approaching. Han Qingyu said, "Let's try to run." "Yeah," Wen Jifei agreed. A mass charge of over two hundred Great Spikes was something even Han Qingyu would not dare face head-on right now. No matter how many men an ordinary squad had, they could never breach it. What was more, Han Qingyu was currently injured. Heading in the direction of the herdsmen's retreat, the two began limping into a run. Han Qingyu could not swing his left arm, and the same went for Wen Jifei's right arm. *** "Uncle Liu... why haven't those two soldier uncles come back yet?" Jiayina asked from horseback, tilting her head up in worry. "Ghost only knows." Liu Shiheng was somewhat fretful. He glanced nervously around in all four directions, then pulled himself together and said, "It's fine, don't worry. As long as that guy you call the War God is there, everything's fine. He's absurdly strong, barely human." While comforting Jiayina, Liu Shiheng was also trying to comfort himself. Liu Shiheng had been the first to know that there was a suspected super combat power over there, and the enemy had numbers on their side... He had no idea if Qingzi could actually cut his way through, so he could only tell himself over and over that it was fine, Han Qingyu was abnormal. In reality, Han Qingyu and Wen Jifei were already near their vicinity, separated by merely one or two mountain ridges. But because the scene had descended into total chaos, neither side knew where to look for the other. The horde of Great Spikes appeared within visible range, rushing forward in a wild charge. Roughly a hundred-odd ordinary Azure squad soldiers and over forty highland residents, including the herdsmen's pack of horses, were fleeing frantically along this route... The people were exhausted, and the horses were exhausted as well. "Duoji!" Liu Shiheng shouted forward. The herdsman ahead turned his horse around, rode back to his side, and looked at him. "Is there really a river over there? Is there a bridge over the river?!" Liu Shiheng pointed his war saber as he asked. "Yes, there is. I've crossed it many times," Duoji nodded with certainty. "Then we run that way, cross the river, and then I'll sever the bridge." There was no one left to rely on. Every decision had to be made by himself, then borne and executed... Having finished speaking, Liu Shiheng half-rose in his saddle and began shouting at the top of his lungs: "Run! Everybody run... The kids too! Didn't you say you wanted to be soldiers? Let me see if you're tough enough!" The horse team picked up speed. The clouds in the sky gradually thinned; today would be a clear day. Finally, bright daylight cast down upon the earth. Everything became completely distinct. Seen from high above in the air: Across the boundless open grassland, the Azure squads and highland residents, split into several paths, were tiny as ants, frantically running in the same direction. More than two thousand meters behind them, the dark mass of the Great Spike horde bore down like a black tide. Cutting across ahead was a river that churned white from the sheer violence of its rapids. The surface was roughly three to five hundred meters wide, and the riverbanks were exceedingly high. The booming roar of the rushing water could already be faintly heard. Between steep rock cliffs several hundred meters tall on either side, the river thundered past. Over the river, there was no bridge. The iron pilings of the suspension bridge still stood on both banks, but the body of the bridge had already been severed by someone. *** Duoji galloped along the riverbank for a stretch, the anxious light in his eyes dimming as bloodshot veins flared. "Where's the bridge?!" Liu Shiheng roared at him. Duoji stopped his horse with lowered head beside the iron pilings of the suspension bridge. He looked up, glanced at Liu Shiheng... then looked back toward the horde of Great Spikes. "I'm sorry. I will go lure them away." "Lure my ass!" Liu Shiheng paused, then spat, "You think they'll follow you?" The remaining squads and highland residents soon gathered at the riverbank as well. Despair began to spread. Perhaps three seconds passed, perhaps five. "There are over a hundred of us here. We'll go hold them off. Tell the residents to run downstream along the river... Reinforcements will arrive soon." One of the squad leaders stepped forward. Liu Shiheng hurriedly dismounted at that instant. A clear judgment in his heart told him that facing a horde of Great Spikes, ordinary soldiers like them trying to hold the line was tantamount to suicide; they had no hope of breaking that kind of formation. Yet his subconscious was screaming at him: *Quick, hide among the herdsmen and leave with them.* *Clip, clop, clip, clop...* Duoji rode his horse over to Liu Shiheng's side. "The children will go, but I'm not... I'll stay with you all." More and more young and able-bodied herdsmen rode over, turned their horses, and lined up beside Liu Shiheng. They looked like an ancient cavalry unit preparing for a desperate, final charge. And Liu Shiheng was their general. "..." General Liu stood dumbfounded with his head bowed for five seconds. He looked up at the sky, gritted his teeth, and cursed under his breath, "Fuck your mother!" "I said it before—I never wanted to be a fucking hero!" The thundering footsteps of the Great Spike horde drew nearer and nearer, shaking the ground. "Form up!" the Azure squad leader in front shouted. Defensive battle formations arrayed themselves one after another with their backs to the river. Liu Shiheng turned to look at the herdsmen and the children. "Go!" The instant his words fell— *Boom!* Everyone was stunned for a moment. Liu Shiheng wondered: *What the hell is that?!* *Artillery?!* Flanking the river, a lone tank was rumbling forward. Its treads churned up grass and earth along the gentle slope. The tank swayed and wobbled as it advanced at a rather sluggish pace. It descended a slope... and its main cannon lowered, then raised again. *Boom!* Another shell landed squarely amidst the horde of Great Spikes. Because the horde was packed so densely, the person inside the tank could not immediately tell whether the shell had been effective or not. Han Qingyu and Wen Jifei ran up a small knoll, turned their heads, and immediately spotted that vintage tank that kept halting and jerking forward. Looking at each other, both wore dazed expressions: *Had some regular army unit failed to evacuate in time, spotted the situation here, and come to help?!* In truth, inside the tank was only a sixty-odd-year-old Huaxia veteran. His home happened to be right on the edge of the plateau. The tank had been salvaged from an old repair depot that had been abandoned before its contents could be moved. The old man, who had served many years as a tanker in his youth, had spent several days tinkering with it with his own hands until it was barely functional, and had gathered a few shells... Just like that, he had driven it out to avenge his son. His surname was Tian. He had a son named Tian Jiao, who had previously served in a special unit fighting "terrorists" and had sacrificed his life not long ago. Before his death, he had fought his way home one last time to bid his family farewell. "So fighting terrorists... meant fighting things like this..." Old Man Tian sat in the driver's cabin of the tank. Peering through the viewports, his presbyopic eyes finally made them out clearly. In that first instant, an uncontrollable dread washed over him... Gritting his teeth, the old man growled, "Fine. I don't give a damn what you are, this old man is going to kill you all." *Boom!* Another shell roared into the air. Operated and fired by a single man, the dilapidated tank lurched and halted, swaying erratically as it charged straight toward the horde of Great Spikes.