Like a Mosquito

Four Terran days passed, and the round-the-clock research and manufacturing finally yielded results.

As the soldiers carried their heavy weapons to various parts of the fortress, Qin Mo ordered Grey and the other four to put on their Power Armor and immediately accompany him to inspect the eastern position.

"Wait a moment. Don't these Power Armor suits need to be tested?"

"There's no need."

Qin Mo led the group of six through the fortress's winding, twisting corridors.

Klein followed anxiously at Qin Mo's side, with the elite soldiers he had just selected trailing behind him.

"I don't think we should be in such a hurry. At the very least, we should test whether there's anything wrong with the Power Armor."

"We'll test it in battle."

"All right, all right. We'll test it in battle."

Seeing how confident and stubborn Qin Mo was, Klein had no choice but to compromise and temporarily drop the matter of testing the Power Armor.

But there was something even more important.

"Grey and the others are all ordinary soldiers. The 44th Regiment has always been a logistics and supply regiment and has barely seen any combat. Are you sure you only want to bring them?" Klein glanced at Grey, then looked toward the soldiers behind him, signaling for them to walk ahead.

Qin Mo understood Klein's concerns, but he had no intention of bringing the 47th Regiment's elite soldiers, so he firmly rejected the suggestion. "Grey and the others may not be the strongest soldiers, but they are certainly the most resolute. Besides, they've fought alongside me before. They're more familiar with my way of fighting."

"All right, then." Klein found the reasoning somewhat persuasive and could only compromise again. He stopped and watched Qin Mo's group leave.

Just as Qin Mo opened a door in the wall at the end of the corridor and was about to step outside, Klein suddenly called out, "Don't take on the rebels head-on. We're badly outnumbered!"

Qin Mo said nothing as he walked out of the fortress, and the door he had opened in the wall immediately closed behind him.

But just as Klein sighed helplessly and turned around, another door opened in the wall.

Qin Mo returned to the fortress and reminded Klein, "There's a Psy-Suppressor in my room, the square metal box. If you come under attack and find a Psyker, don't forget to activate the Psy-Suppressor. But it needs charging and can only work for two days at a time."

"I won't forget." Klein turned back to look at Qin Mo. "I'll form a five-man team specifically to guard and operate the Suppressor."

"Then I can rest easy." Qin Mo turned and left.

The door in the wall closed again, and the wall returned to its seamless state.

The Power Armor could sustain short flights. Crossing seventy kilometers took only two hours, with one stop along the way to recharge the batteries after the energy ran out.

Since they were not sure whether the eastern position still existed, Qin Mo ordered them to proceed on foot once they were within two kilometers, while deploying a Recon Drone to scout the position.

"Does the position still exist?" Qin Mo glanced at the drone rapidly flying into the sky, then turned to Grey, who had deployed it.

Grey did not answer immediately. He craned his neck and stared blankly at the empty space ahead, looking somewhat foolish.

Grey was viewing the HUD integrated into his faceplate, his eyes fixed on the lower-right corner, where the drone's perspective was being displayed.

Smoke filled the position, making it impossible to see anyone clearly.

"Life Scan," Qin Mo reminded Grey. "It's a unique function of the Recon Drone."

Grey immediately said, "Life Scan."

After the Life Scan function was activated, the drone marked every detected life form with green indicators on the HUD while displaying data in the lower-left corner.

Humans: 5,723.

Mutants: 9,938.

Analysis: Based on the current rate at which pure humans are disappearing within the scanned area, the defending forces at this position are expected to be slaughtered to the last man in one hour and twenty-one minutes. (For reference only.)

"The position hasn't fallen yet, but it's close." Grey raised his hand and swiped through the air several times before asking in confusion, "I remember you said the Power Armor system could share information. How do we do that again?"

"Hold out your hand and act as though the HUD is right in front of you. Tap Combat Mode in the lower-left corner. It will force-enable information sharing." Qin Mo explained helplessly.

He had originally thought that integrating an electronic system into the Power Armor would allow it to analyze the battlefield, monitor the Power Armor's condition, and share information.

But for ordinary rank-and-file soldiers, the system was truly rather profound. And since switching the Power Armor between movement mode and combat mode required careful consideration, voice commands could not be used for it. To Grey and the others, this was extremely cumbersome.

"Done." After Grey clumsily tapped Combat Mode, all the information he saw was shared with the other Power Armor suits, allowing the other wearers to see the Life Scan results as well.

Everyone could clearly see the positions of their allies, as well as the locations of every Rebel at the position.

The difference in numbers between the two sides at the position was not particularly large, yet the rebels still held an overwhelming advantage over the Planetary Defense Force.

This was thanks to the rebels' Aberrants.

Aberrants were exceptionally strong individuals among the Gene Stealers. They used industrial tools in combat, making up for their severe intellectual deficiencies with formidable brute strength.

As the Aberrants launched their attack, the rebels filled the position with smoke, forcibly dragging the Planetary Defense Force into close-quarters combat.

Until the six-man team from the 44th Regiment arrived.

Before the Power Armor even landed, the powerful thrust from the Jump Packs had already blown away the smoke covering the position.

The two sides locked in chaotic combat stared in astonishment at the six unknown figures in the center of the battlefield. When they saw the Double-headed Eagle on the scepter, the rebels realized that these people were definitely not on their side.

The rebels did not rashly attack. Instead, they warily assessed the six figures in Power Armor, and the position, once filled with shouts and battle cries, fell silent.

"Die..." The largest Aberrant clutched a head torn from someone's body and glared viciously at Qin Mo.

Qin Mo turned to Grey, who nodded in understanding.

"For the Emperor!" Grey charged out from Qin Mo's side first, rushing straight at the Aberrant ahead.

As the heavy Power Armor ran, the Jump Pack automatically adjusted the angle of its nozzles, providing thrust. Though the armor was heavy, it was not slow.

"Aah!" The Aberrant tossed aside the head in its hand, raised its massive hammer, and charged at Grey.

The two tall, powerfully built figures rushed toward each other. In the minds of the onlookers, they could already picture what might happen next.

Either metal and machinery would prevail, sending the Aberrant flying.

Or the flesh evolved for strength would prevail, smashing the Power Armor and the person inside to pieces.

Even Qin Mo himself thought so at that moment.

Until Grey reached a point five steps away from the Aberrant and suddenly activated the Gravity Shield.

As the stones and debris around him were instantly flattened, the oblivious Aberrant had already leaped with all its might, its hammer raised high as it descended toward Grey.

Splat—

The Aberrant that had jumped into the Gravity Shield's range was slapped to death by an invisible force, leaving behind a puddle of flattened "mush," like a mosquito swatted dead with one slap.

After briefly slowing, Grey's advance rapidly accelerated to its limit. Flames burst from the Jump Pack's rear nozzles, propelling the entire Power Armor forward at high speed.