amaotonovel Chapter 343 Encounter
Chapter 343 Encounter
At 4 a.m., Li Chenglong woke up in his tent, tidied himself up, and went outside. A short while later, a soldier brought him hot water, and by the time he finished washing up, it was already 4:30 a.m. He had slept in his tent last night because the command vehicle had been given to the dozens of wounded soldiers, but it didn't matter where he slept; today, the real battle would begin.
Looking around, Li Chenglong saw tens of thousands of troops forming a long line. Many areas along this line had lights on, indicating that logistics personnel were preparing breakfast. Although it was already April, the morning air was still slightly chilly. Just as Li Chenglong was about to take a walk, Zheng Yong approached with a document.
This is a battle report, jointly sent by Xu Qingming and Wei Huasheng. After entering Jiangsu and Zhejiang provinces yesterday afternoon, they began a thorough clearing of the zombies. So far, there have been two large-scale battles, resulting in the annihilation of over 3 enemy troops, while their own losses were relatively minor. Li Chenglong instructed Zheng Yong to forward it to headquarters in the name of the Allied Command and personally replied to both men.
At 5:30 a.m., a loud bugle call rang out, signaling the start of reveille. When Yunlan and the special forces girls got out of her command vehicle, they saw Li Chenglong had finished his morning training and was relaxing. He glanced at his watch and said to everyone, "We'll depart at 7 a.m., with the 1st Division in front, followed by the 2nd and 3rd Divisions, then the Rocket Regiment, the equipment and logistics units, and the information support units. The 4th Division will be at the rear. Wang Jie, notify the Dawn City Air Force Squadron that all 20 of their Tyrannosaurus Rex fighters will be taking off today to provide air support for our Dawn Army and the allied forces to the east."
Because Zhao Liying, Han Xiaoling, and other members of the Special Support Section 4 were all going to participate in the battle, Li Chenglong brought Wang Jie along for coordination. He also told Wang Jie that she would receive her own psionic apple after the battle. Meanwhile, at the central information management department on the 8th floor of Dawn City, the number of daytime staff was temporarily increased to four, while the number remained at two at night.
The main force set off on time. Li Chenglong, in the command vehicle, was discussing the route and potential enemy encounters with Yun Lan, Zheng Yong, Feng Tian, and others. Meanwhile, a special forces team fifty kilometers ahead would relay their reconnaissance back to command in real time. Suddenly, Li Chenglong shouted, "Prepare for engagement immediately! Air enemy attack! Quick!" He then charged out first. Yun Lan reacted swiftly, immediately instructing Wang Jie to notify the entire army to prepare for the air attack. Instantly, all seven command vehicles on the move sounded their sirens, and the soldiers who received the notification began their anti-aircraft preparations.
Three minutes after Li Chenglong issued the warning, the special forces team also made contact. Yang Liu said in the call that they observed thousands of zombie birds flying towards the Dawn Army. Some of the zombie birds were carrying zombies. According to Zhao Liying, who was traveling with them, most of the zombie birds were level 7, and the highest level of the zombies they carried was level 10.
Currently, the Dawnbreaker Army's main anti-aircraft firepower is the Killer Squad Crystal Machine Gun. This machine gun weighs 10kg, has a rate of fire of 1000 rounds per minute, an effective range of 1200 meters, and a maximum range of 1500 meters. It uses either 7.62 crystal bullets or regular bullets, but the lifespan of the weapon will vary depending on the type of bullet used.
The second effective anti-air weapon is the energy rifle, which has an effective range of 1000 meters and a maximum range of 1400 meters, but its power is much greater than that of the Killer Machine Gun. Other anti-air weapons are the various skills released by superhumans with long-range attack capabilities, which are also the most effective means of attack.
In fact, the military camp had a lot of anti-aircraft weapons such as anti-aircraft guns, rocket launchers, and anti-aircraft missile launchers. However, as the level of zombies and zombie birds continued to increase, the damage these weapons could cause was extremely limited. Many of them were dismantled by Li Chenglong and used as materials to manufacture other weapons.
The space factory does have an energy anti-aircraft gun powered by level 9 crystals, with an effective range of up to 5 meters. The cost of manufacturing one isn't very high; the material cost plus the crystal cost is only about five level 9 crystals. However, Li Chenglong has been too busy and hasn't been able to manufacture it yet. But the day before yesterday, he told Shen Menghua about the necessary materials, and Shen Menghua's factory will begin producing them. Once the materials are available, Li Chenglong can start manufacturing the energy anti-aircraft gun.
Because there was still some time before the zombie air force arrived, all the units of the Dawn Army were making tense but orderly deployments. Li Chenglong gathered the four division commanders together and said, "The highest level of zombies this time is only level 10. Although there are many of them, I require that the battle be resolved within half an hour, and the losses must be kept to a minimum. Also, I will not participate in this battle."
The four division commanders nodded in unison. They understood Li Chenglong's meaning. Although the Dawn Army's vanguard had stumbled upon the zombie force attempting to ambush their rear yesterday by sheer chance, the defeat was still a defeat, and it had indeed had a negative impact on morale. Today's battle had to be fought brilliantly and decisively, a resounding victory to help the new recruits overcome their psychological hurdle.
Zheng Yong and Feng Tian have also been deployed to the 2nd and 4th Divisions to assist in the battle, and the army headquarters' guard company will also be involved. Li Chenglong has extremely strict requirements for the Dawn Army. Regardless of your branch of service or your job within the army, your individual combat skills must be guaranteed. More sweat in peacetime, less blood in wartime. This makes the Dawn Army significantly different from other friendly forces. Of the 5 men in the Dawn Army, only 5 are truly combat-ready, while of other friendly forces' 5 men, perhaps only 4 are actually capable of fighting.
Li Chenglong gazed into the distance, watching the direction from which the zombie flying force was approaching. Yun Lan, dressed in a smart combat uniform, asked beside him, "Should I join the battle later?" Li Chenglong shook his head: "No need to join the battle. It's a waste of your talents to have you fight these flying zombies. Why don't we go to the roof of the command vehicle and observe our Dawn Army's battle more closely?" As he spoke, he put his right arm around Yun Lan's waist, and with a dimensional teleportation, they arrived on the roof of his command vehicle.
On the battlefield, officers of all ranks were busy with their own tasks. Qi Guoan, commander of the 3rd Division of the Dawn Army, was speaking to the division's long-range attack ability user formation. Qi Guoan said seriously, "Currently, all our vehicles have been stored in storage capsules, so don't hold back too much during the battle. You are all the best long-range attack ability users in the entire division. When you fight, you must pay attention and give those zombies a good beating from the start. As long as you can shoot down those squeaking zombie birds, we'll take care of the rest of the zombies."
On the other side was a combat formation composed of close-range attack ability users, and behind them was an anti-air formation composed of ordinary soldiers using energy rifles and killer crystal machine guns.
Thirty minutes passed, and the fully prepared soldiers saw a massive swarm of zombie birds flying in from the south, blotting out the sun. Some of the larger zombie birds even carried zombies. With the zombie empire accepting alien support, the zombies' equipment had greatly improved, causing considerable hardship for many unprepared bases.
The zombie warriors in ordinary zombie armies are generally level 5 and equipped with relatively simple gear. However, the zombie warriors in elite zombie units are level 7. These zombies not only wear thick protective suits but also carry weapons, many of them guns. These guns are not the kind used before the apocalypse; they have clearly incorporated alien technology.
This is why Li Chenglong has been focusing all his efforts on researching the space factory and the books left to him by Teacher Lena. The current battle is completely different from one a year ago. The equipment and technological weaponry of the army largely determine the outcome of a battle.
Looking at the approaching horde of flying zombies, Li Chenglong said in a low voice, "The real battle has begun."