"Move out!" At Misato's command, Asuka eagerly charged at the Angel.
Huang Zhetian and Shinji hurriedly raised their machine guns and sprayed the Angel with bullets. Its surrounding A.T. Field blocked every shot-all smoke and no damage...
Wasting taxpayers' money again... All we're doing is drawing its attention, Huang Zhetian grumbled inwardly.
Stepping across the seawater-submerged buildings, Asuka quickly circled behind the Angel. She pushed off with her heels and launched herself forward!
Gripping her spear with both hands, she raised it high overhead and brought it down in a vertical slash through the Angel.
By the time the Angel turned, it was already too late. Asuka struck before it could deploy its A.T. Field.
Splat-
The spear sliced through the Angel's flesh, cutting it in half. The two halves slowly separated.
"All right! Nice work, Asuka! You hit the Angel's core." Misato's praise rang in their ears.
"Tch... Only because Zhetian-kun and I were drawing its attention. Otherwise, how would Asuka have landed that attack..." Shinji replied with a disdainful pout.
"Convinced now? Finish it fast-that's the whole point! And you have to look cool doing it! I won't hold what you said earlier against you." Asuka's image appeared inside their cockpits. Even through the screens, they could see her dismissive gaze and the wildly smug grin tugging at her lips...
So fucking... Tch, there's no describing that expression.
Still, Huang Zhetian kept his attention on the Angel Asuka had cut in half.
Just as I thought!
"Commander Ikari! We have a problem! There's a high-energy reaction inside the Angel! It's splitting at incredible speed!" In the command room, the staff urgently reported to Commander Ikari and the others behind them.
"Asuka! All of you, fall back! Something's wrong! Hurry!" Misato froze for a moment, then snapped out of it and urgently ordered the three of them to retreat.
Asuka was headstrong, but she wasn't stupid. All three reacted immediately, lowering their weapons and moving back at speed. Asuka quickly withdrew from beside the Angel as well.
Rip-gurgle, gurgle-pop!
One Angel became two! The holes atop their heads immediately began charging, and cross-shaped beams flashed and swept outward.
Vmmm-clang!
Boom!!!
A cross-shaped blast scar immediately appeared along the shore, and the dust slowly drifted away.
Huang Zhetian appeared in front of the other two and blocked the attack with his A.T. Field. Clang!
"Miss Misato! Something's wrong. We don't have enough information on this Angel. Please let us return!" Huang Zhetian reported gravely to everyone at the base.
"Return immediately! All frontline personnel, withdraw with them!" Misato ordered without hesitation, unable to shake the thought that this operation was taking a turn none of them had anticipated.
But the Angels had no intention of letting them have their way...
Splash! Boom! Boom!
The two Angels leaped out of the sea and slammed onto the shore. Another cross-shaped laser swept toward them!
Vmmm-clang! Boom!
The three hurriedly combined their A.T. Fields, but unfortunately, this wasn't as simple as one plus one.
Crack! It sounded like shattering glass.
Their A.T. Fields shattered. Asuka ducked and rolled clear. Huang Zhetian drew two Tang Daos from his back and crossed them to block the attack! Redirecting its force, he deflected the laser to one side, where it skimmed past the Special Unit's face! The equipment behind him was utterly destroyed!
Shinji wasn't so lucky. The other Angel's beam struck his waist and pierced straight through it.
"Aaaaaaah! Zhetian-kun! Save me! Asuka! Aaaaaaah!" Shinji screamed in agony as the staff at the base hurriedly reported the readings.
"Synchronization rate falling rapidly! Extensive damage to Unit-01's waist. It's already exceeded thirty percent..."
"The pilot has extensive burns around his waist..."
"The pilot's..."
"Damn it! Asuka! Take Shinji back. I'll cover you! Miss Misato! Hand command of the operation against the Angels over to the military. Have them support my retreat..." Huang Zhetian swiftly darted over to Shinji, blocked an attack with his Tang Dao, and hauled Unit-01 up before tossing it to Asuka. Then he straightened and reported to the base.
"Understood! Asuka, bring Shinji back. Let Zhetian-kun cover your retreat. Zhetian-kun, hold on a little longer!" Misato responded immediately.
"You idiot, Zhetian! Don't try to play the hero! How can you fight two Angels alone? We're leaving together!" Asuka opened a video link and spoke to Huang Zhetian anxiously.
"If I don't hold them off, we'll all die! If I do, we'll still have a chance to fight them. This isn't the time for that. Get Shinji back for treatment... Now! Do you hear me?!" Huang Zhetian grew increasingly frantic as he spoke, finally shouting directly at Asuka. Then he flung the two Evas behind him and rushed toward the Angels without looking back.
Asuka knew this wasn't the time to be stubborn. In the end, she obeyed Huang Zhetian, hauling Unit-01 up and running toward the rear.
Even setting Huang Zhetian's situation aside, Shinji's injuries were nearly as severe as those he had suffered against Ramiel. Saving Shinji was what mattered...
Huang Zhetian's voice sounded in her ears. "I'll cover your retreat. Go on ahead. Once Miss Misato's fire support arrives, I'll pull out."
Asuka was still worried, but she gritted her teeth and forced herself to snap, "Don't go dying on me. I don't want to have to collect your corpse."
Shinji was rushed into emergency treatment. A large swath of his abdomen was burned, and he kept coughing up blood.
Misato stood nearby, anxiously questioning the medical staff...
Asuka leaned against the wall, watching. The scene felt familiar, and memories she had buried deep and refused to revisit resurfaced in her mind.
They were of her mother.
Asuka felt somewhat numb inside. Perhaps it was because she had lived through her mother's death, or perhaps it was because of the demands she placed on herself...
Expressionless, Asuka slowly returned to her changing room.
After changing her clothes, Asuka seemed to remember something.
"Right. How's that idiot doing now?"
Back in the command room.
Fuyutsuki watched the large screen with a grim expression. Asuka arrived too and looked up at it.
She felt shaken. Why was that idiot so fearless?
In Huang Zhetian, Asuka saw defiance, strength, passion, and fearlessness.
On the screen, the Special Unit fought the two Angels with a Tang Dao in each hand. Part of one blade had snapped off, and the Special Unit's left cheek was slashed. The equipment on its back and shoulders was severely damaged, leaving its insides clearly visible...
For the first time, Asuka saw someone who not only worked harder than she did, but also fought with even greater determination to press forward.
Angered, Fuyutsuki loudly demanded of the staff, "Why hasn't anyone from the military arrived yet?"
It wasn't out of concern for Huang Zhetian. Losing an Eva meant losing part of their fighting strength, and there was also...
Losing the Special Unit, a machine comparable to Unit-01, would mean losing another fallback.
"We don't know! Why aren't they sending anyone? Apparently, there's been a problem with their satellite system..." a staff member hurriedly replied.
Fuyutsuki snorted. "Old Ikari, it looks like those old men are making their move..."
Gendo Ikari held his clasped hands in front of his mouth, his glasses reflecting the light and obscuring his expression. "Request assistance from China's satellite system. China will certainly help..."
With that, he picked up the red telephone and made the call.
After making some inquiries, Gendo Ikari addressed the personnel below while Asuka watched anxiously. "Send the Special Unit's coordinates to the China Supercomputer. China will provide aerial support for the Special Unit. Until the military's satellite system is restored and its forces arrive, maintain constant contact with China."
Meanwhile, at the Special Unit.
"Tch! This is hard enough already! Hiss... And now the LCL is heating up too. A high synchronization rate isn't always a good thing." Huang Zhetian gritted his teeth and held on, staring fixedly at the two Angels without daring to relax for even a moment.
The two coordinated far too well, catching him off guard every time. If his power cable hadn't still been connected, how long he could last would have been an open question...
It seemed the plot had changed again. Otherwise, the military wouldn't still be absent.
"Something going wrong at a critical moment... This has to be SEELE's doing..." Huang Zhetian knew SEELE was one of the powers pulling the strings behind the scenes.
The old men on the committee were gradually taking notice of him-they had already incorporated him into their scenario-and his own plans and scenario were becoming increasingly difficult to carry out.
Huang Zhetian leaped high into the air, raised his Tang Dao, and slashed horizontally. Whoosh!
The Angels merged into one and deployed an A.T. Field.
Clang! A huge section of the ground was torn up, forming a massive crater centered on the Special Unit and the Angel.
Blocked again. Damn it!
A sharp gleam flashed in the Angel's eyes. Screee-vmmm. A cross-shaped beam fired!
Huang Zhetian immediately made the Special Unit crouch low and bend forward. The laser swept overhead, and a cross-shaped pillar of light instantly rose from the ground behind him!
Boom-boom!
Ding! Huang Zhetian's heart sank as his external power supply switched to the internal battery. The facilities behind him had been completely destroyed. At this rate, both he and his machine would be finished.
"Pilot Huang Zhetian, please respond if you read me. I'm an operations commander with the China Ministry of National Defense. I've received your coordinates. Please respond immediately. I'm about to commence saturation bombardment. Please respond if you read me." A familiar, comforting voice from home suddenly sounded in his ears. It was from the mainland!
Overjoyed, Huang Zhetian hurriedly replied in Chinese, "Roger. Pilot Huang Zhetian copies."
"Good. Withdraw immediately. We are commencing saturation bombardment."
"Thank you. My respects!" Huang Zhetian suppressed his elation and calmly thanked the mainland.
This is an open channel. Who knows whether Gendo Ikari is listening in? Better not let my emotions show.
"Comrade Huang Zhetian, our respects to you as well!" a steady, powerful voice replied.
"I've retreated five thousand meters and am still withdrawing!" Huang Zhetian reported to the mainland as he drove the Special Unit away from the bombardment zone.
"Keep going, keep going. You're not far enough away yet..."
"I've retreated twenty thousand meters..." No sooner had Huang Zhetian finished his report than a deafening sound came from high above, reverberating through heaven and earth!
Looking up, he saw what looked like a falling meteorite.
Divine Punishment!!
"It has been launched, Pilot Huang Zhetian. You may return to the NERV Headquarters base. The Japanese Military will take over from here. Their satellite navigation system has been fully restored."
"My respects once again..."
"Goodbye, Comrade Huang Zhetian!"
Looking over the scarred land as fighter jets began appearing one after another in the sunlight, Huang Zhetian couldn't help feeling a surge of emotion. Whether in his previous life or this one, it was always so complicated-a feeling he couldn't put into words.
Japan could never escape bombardment, whether in reality or on screen... (Especially Tokyo. That place warrants a closer look. You can search online, particularly on Bilibili, where there are explanations.)
The Special Unit soon ran out of power, and the entry plug immediately darkened. Huang Zhetian drifted into a deep sleep as well... He was utterly exhausted. His nerves, stretched taut all this time, finally relaxed, sending him straight to sleep.
Before you continue