"I said, open fire indiscriminately!"
"Bang! Bang! Bang..." "Whoosh! Whoosh! Whoosh..."
Wang Ji felt as though countless sledgehammers had struck him. His vision went black in an instant, and he lost consciousness. Before he blacked out, he saw the captain drop into a shallow crater while the Silver-Furred Black-Backed Ape fought desperately to dodge, only to be hit by machine-gun fire in the end...
Wang Ji woke up in his living room.
"Was I just used as cannon fodder?" Wang Ji laughed bitterly. But after he calmed down, he couldn't stay too angry. He just felt unbearably frustrated.
Thinking about it, the order had been right! The team had already been wiped out, with its members dead or wounded. Even without the indiscriminate fire, the Silver-Furred Black-Backed Ape would have killed Wang Ji and the captain soon enough. And if they'd hesitated even for a moment and let the ape escape, everyone's sacrifice would have been in vain. That Silver-Furred Black-Backed Ape was definitely a high-level Beast General! If it got away, the mission would be a complete failure.
So why did he still feel so frustrated?
That major battalion commander really was a cold-blooded animal! Just as he'd thought, the man looked more like a high-flying executive. Sure enough, he was exactly that type: someone who cared only about benefits and had no humanity.
"Instance: Dianyuan Defense. Entries remaining: 2/3"
"Instance results: 1. Cover the mass evacuation: incomplete; 2. Hold out for 7 days: incomplete"
"Wang Ji
Age: 17
Strength: 3660 kg
Speed: 39.2 m/s
Neural response: Advanced Warrior, excellent
Essence Source: 84"
A small smile appeared on Wang Ji's face. At least he'd gained 84 Essence Sources, even though he hadn't completed the mission. That would still be enough to improve quite a bit.
"Add points! Spend 60 Essence Sources!"
"Strength: 4260 kg; Speed: 48 m/s"
Wang Ji sighed. "I'm already an Advanced Warrior. Not bad! I'll save the remaining 24 for later."
After leaving the instance, Wang Ji wandered around the military base all afternoon but didn't find any other instances. It didn't matter, though. He'd just been fishing for whatever he could find.
"Dianyuan Defense. I looked through the historical records just now. It was an extremely brutal defensive battle. Clearing it won't be easy. But conservatively, even if I can't clear it, I should be able to earn another 200 Essence Sources over two more runs. All right, enough thinking. Enter!"
Wang Ji entered the instance again.
A cold wind howled.
The sky was gloomy and oppressive. Wang Ji emerged from some ruins. Outside, the scene was still one of chaos and panic.
Fully armed, Wang Ji walked along the roadside with the flow of vehicles.
"You! Yes, you!" a booming voice called out.
Wang Ji turned around. A young soldier with a second lieutenant's insignia stood not far behind him. "Comrade! The 112th Division Vanguard Battalion needs to recruit you temporarily to help cover the evacuation. Are you willing?"
Wang Ji grinned. "Are you Li An?"
The second lieutenant froze. "Do we know each other?"
Wang Ji shook his head. "Not yet."
The second lieutenant's expression stiffened. "Hey! I don't have time for riddles. We need to recruit you temporarily. Are you willing or not?"
Wang Ji smiled. "I am, sir."
Li An looked awkward. "Don't call me sir... You look like a warrior, too. Don't call me sir."
And so, Wang Ji joined the unit with Li An.
"Hey, Li An, who's that guy in our unit wearing a major's insignia and looking like some kind of high-flying executive?" Wang Ji asked with a grin.
"Huh?" A flicker of discomfort crossed Li An's face. "You know him? He's Li Dawei, the battalion commander of the Sharp Knife Battalion."
Wang Ji stopped in utter astonishment. "Li... Li Dawei?"
Li An looked curious. "What is it?"
Wang Ji forced a smile, then waved it off. "Nothing." But inwardly he thought, Li Dawei? Isn't that the current military commander of Jiangnan Base City, the guardian of Jiangnan Base City, and the national general, Li Dawei? He'll have plenty of dealings with Luo Feng in the future, too. This cold-blooded animal is Li Dawei? Hmph... So what if he's Li Dawei? I'll find a chance to make him feel just as frustrated. At the very least, I'll beat him up. Damn it!
"Lao Bao! I found you a good fighter!" Li An called out as soon as they returned to the unit.
A middle-aged man with dull eyes and a wooden expression glanced up at Wang Ji, then nodded. "Welcome!"
Li An apologized to Wang Ji. "Lao Bao's just like that. But he's a great guy! He's always first into battle and last to enjoy himself. He takes especially good care of his brothers."
Then he explained to Wang Ji, "Lao Bao is the acting company commander and the captain of our company's Vanguard Team. Old Liu is the platoon leader, in charge of more than 40 men across the first and second platoons. He's our firepower specialist. As for me, I'm in charge of the third platoon, mostly the brothers who were recruited temporarily. We have the most men—more than 60 in the third platoon now! Hahaha..."
After that, Wang Ji joined Lao Bao's Vanguard Team.
"Kill!"
"I'll take the lead. Wang Ji and Shi Tou, cover me. Gunners and snipers, look for an opening!" Whenever Lao Bao fought monsters, he seemed like a different person, charging forward with reckless abandon.
"Whoosh! Bang, bang!"
After a few battles together, Wang Ji quickly got the hang of things and became familiar with the Vanguard Team. There were nine people in all. Lao Bao was an Advanced Warrior and the team's primary attacker, always at the very front. Four others wore military uniforms and were all warriors. Some supported Lao Bao, while others provided backup with firearms. Three more, like Wang Ji, were capable fighters who'd been recruited temporarily.
The nine-man squad was very efficient at killing monsters. After all, the monsters hadn't yet evolved to the level they would reach in later generations. Most were still Beast Soldiers, while an Advanced Beast General was considered a super-monster. Lord-level monsters were rarer still. King-level monsters might exist, though.
As long as they kept the monsters in check, they could concentrate their fire and take them down with firearms. Their efficiency was far beyond anything Wang Ji could manage alone. He just didn't know how the results would be calculated. Would they get Essence Sources for monsters they killed together?
"Careful! This monster is strong! Everyone, watch out!" Lao Bao called out gravely. It was a Shadow Leopard, and Wang Ji estimated it was probably a Beast General.
The Shadow Leopard had just overturned a family car and killed the five people inside in an instant. It was about to attack other vehicles when a sniper's bullets pinned it down. Now the beast's attention had been drawn to the Vanguard Team.
"Whoosh!" The Shadow Leopard deftly dodged the bullets, steadily closing in.
"Charge! Keep formation and follow me!" Lao Bao charged first, sweeping his War Blade furiously at the Shadow Leopard. The leopard suddenly accelerated, slipping past Lao Bao's blade and shield in an instant. Its two- to three-meter-long body moved like a gust of wind, and it plunged straight into the squad!
Everyone was in danger!
A black blur lunged at Wang Ji. It was the Shadow Leopard's forepaw! It was moving so fast that Wang Ji could barely see it.
Wang Ji focused with all his might. Somehow, an elusive experience in his mind instantly became instinct. "Whoosh!" He dodged backward by just 30 centimeters at exactly the right moment, and the Shadow Leopard's claws grazed his combat uniform.
"Good! This is great!" Wang Ji swung his War Blade with ease, keeping close to the Shadow Leopard as he shifted back and forth. Each time, he dodged its attacks by a hair's breadth. It was like walking a tightrope—thrilling and dangerous, yet strangely graceful.
"Hold steady! Stick together as a squad! Don't panic!" Lao Bao shouted.
The Vanguard Team managed to surround the Shadow Leopard. But from the look of things, Wang Ji alone was drawing more than half of its attacks. The leopard repeatedly lunged at him, but it never managed to land a hit.
Wang Ji stuck to the Shadow Leopard like glue.
"Roar!" The Shadow Leopard howled. It accepted an injury to swipe away a three-man group, but it had underestimated Wang Ji.
Wang Ji suddenly lunged forward, practically crashing into the Shadow Leopard's embrace. Then his War Blade flashed like a striking snake at the soft spot on its belly. Wang Ji's blade was a Type 5 War Blade, far sharper than the Shadow Leopard could have imagined. He didn't press his advantage; he thrust once and immediately retreated. Even so, he left a wound on its belly a handspan wide and a foot deep.
The Shadow Leopard slowed down at once. Its movements were no longer as fluid as the wind.
"Bang, bang, bang, bang..."
Half a minute later, with its speed reduced, the Shadow Leopard lay in the mud like a rag.
"Haah, haah..." Everyone panted. It had been their toughest battle yet. Speed-type monsters were the bane of warriors. Thankfully, they'd finally dealt with it.
But with everyone wounded, no one could feel happy. One person had died and another was gravely injured; the other seven had suffered injuries ranging from minor to serious.
Lao Bao's expression returned to its usual wooden blankness. He personally straightened the dead soldier's uniform, then dug a grave and laid the soldier's body to rest.
"Present arms! Salute!"
"Whoosh!" "Bang! Bang! Bang!"
In that moment, Wang Ji felt a solemn reverence unlike anything he'd experienced before.
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