The Predator City Hanged Man was painted red and green. It was equipped with two Level 1 Artillery pieces and had five convoys. It seemed to have upgraded its Level 1 City Treads and Level 1 Tires, giving it the highest speed.
The Predator City Magician was painted red and white. It had a full twenty Normal Cannons, along with three Level 1 Artillery pieces. It had no convoys and was the slowest.
The Predator City Chariot was silver. Its City Armor was incredibly thick and heavy, while its treads and wheels also seemed to have been upgraded, making them extremely heavy and sturdy. This Predator City moved at an average speed, had no convoys, and carried no artillery.
What was surprising was that this Predator City was actually equipped with two offensive Level 1 City Components.
One was a massive Level 1 Siege Ram.
The other was a Level 1 Steam Ballista mounted on the middle level of the city.
Moreover, its City Armor seemed capable of contracting and closing together.
Through his telescope, Li Ye observed the general condition of the three Predator Cities.
The Hanged Man seemed to belong to the assault type, the Chariot to the defense type, and the Magician to the heavy-fire support type.
He could not help feeling surprised. He had not expected Mobile Cities to have divisions of labor, with each fulfilling its own role.
This shattered Li Ye's previous understanding of Predator Cities.
All along, he had thought these Predator Cities were crude, savage, and utterly brutal. But in reality, they could also form alliances, exchange resources, and share intelligence.
They could even consume resources to purchase the City Components and weapons their teams needed, transforming themselves into the corresponding types.
They had changed from cruel, cunning hyenas into a pack of wolves that worked together with precision and coordinated with one another.
However, Li Ye did not have much time to sigh with emotion, because he was precisely their target.
At that moment, the three Predator Cities began taking action.
The artillery aboard the Magician began slowly adjusting its position, aiming at the Tomorrow's advance route.
The Hanged Man darted forward from the flank, while its convoy charged ahead at full speed.
The Chariot suddenly let out a roar. This Mobile City smashed straight through the buildings along its path and charged toward the Tomorrow along the shortest possible route!
As it did so, it continued accelerating, eventually even surpassing the Hanged Man!
"What an advance!" Li Ye was startled.
He understood everything almost instantly.
As the defensive position in the Predator Alliance, the Chariot did not need convoys or artillery. Its role was to strengthen its defenses and power system, then break through the enemy formation at the highest possible speed during battle.
This Defense Type Predator City was itself an armor-piercing shell!
Judging by this, it had gathered resources and City Components to prioritize upgrading its power system!
Its engine had to be extremely powerful. It might even be Level 2!
After pondering for a moment, Li Ye quickly reached a decision.
"Ning Wen, fire six Smoke Shells at the Magician and block its vision completely!"
"Convoys One and Two, along with the Storm IFV, are responsible for intercepting the enemy convoy's advance!"
"Tang Fang, prepare for Mobile Evasion!"
Amid a succession of cannon blasts, several Smoke Shells shrieked through the air and landed around the Magician. In the next moment, smoke billowed in all directions, completely enveloping it and the surrounding area.
On the streets, Convoys One and Two and the Storm IFV had already begun an intense exchange of fire with the enemy convoy.
"Attention! The enemy Mobile City is now only about three hundred meters from the Tomorrow. Helmsman, prepare for Mobile Evasion!" Lin Xia's urgent voice came through the speaking tube.
Three hundred meters. Two hundred meters. One hundred meters.
The Chariot smashed through building after building along its path with unstoppable force. Its City Armor was extremely thick, and the repeated violent collisions left behind nothing more than countless scratches.
At the instant the Chariot was about to crash into them, helmsman Tang Fang abruptly yanked the Control Stick and whipped the steering wheel to the left.
The Tomorrow immediately executed a beautiful sharp left turn on its treads, dodging the incoming Chariot. The latter crashed headfirst into a building, exposing its rear to the Tomorrow.
"Beautiful!" Li Ye nodded. "Open fire!"
In an instant, all the artillery and Heavy Machine Guns aboard the Tomorrow opened fire simultaneously, and a dense barrage of shells and bullets engulfed the Chariot.
However, the Chariot's armor was exceptionally thick. This level of firepower, which could have destroyed a town in an instant, had little effect on it.
The machine-gun bullets could not tear through its armor and merely embedded themselves in it. The artillery fire was tremendous, but it only warped the armor slightly.
"That defense is unbelievable!" Li Ye frowned. "In that case, Ning Wen! Open fire!"
The next second, the Lava Cannon on the deck fired, its shell striking the Chariot head-on.
In an instant, a violent explosion rose into the sky, and the Chariot was engulfed in a sea of flames. The enormous blast caused several nearby buildings to collapse, sending rubble and debris scattering through the smoke and dust.
Seeing this, the Hanged Man on the flank quickly fired several Smoke Shells to cover the Chariot.
At the same time, it began pouring a barrage of fire toward the Tomorrow.
Amid the storm of bullets and shells, gunner Ning Wen worked with crisp efficiency.
Under his movements, the Lava Cannon's rear hydraulic breech hissed as it vented steam pressure and rotated open. The scorching Lava Shell casing was mechanically ejected, trailing wisps of smoke as it struck the deck.
He immediately took a shell handed over by a combatant, stepped forward, and slid it into the chamber. As the base of the shell fitted precisely into the grooves of the rifling, he pulled the lever. The cast-iron breechblock snapped shut, sending several sparks flying.
As the cannon's pressure gauge needle instantly jumped to the combat threshold, he let out a loud shout.
"Report! The next Lava Shell is ready! We can fire at any time!"
The young, reserved gunner was now overwhelmed with excitement, and his face had flushed crimson from it.
After all, he had originally been nothing more than an ignored trainee gunner. Now, however, he had become the combat backbone of a Mobile City—and was simultaneously facing three Predator Cities.
Li Ye furrowed his brow slightly as he looked at the endless smoke spreading before him.
The Chariot's shape had already been swallowed by the smoke, making it difficult to determine its position.
"Ning Wen, adjust the barrel and prepare to engage the Hanged Man!"
At that moment, the Hanged Man was less than one kilometer from the Tomorrow.
The power of the Lava Cannon had clearly intimidated the Predator City. It did not dare approach any closer. Instead, it used the surrounding buildings for cover and maintained its distance while exchanging fire with the Tomorrow.
Shells flew, bullets rained, buildings collapsed, streets crumbled, and explosions sent smoke billowing wherever the two Mobile Cities passed.
On the streets, the two sides' convoys were engaged in a fierce, grinding battle.
Advances and counterattacks, flank encirclements, close-range exchanges of fire.
The battle was nearing its boiling point.
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