Yu Lian moved his gun away, no longer paying attention to the private who was almost paralyzed with fear. He pulled the trigger again for a burst, letting the bullets pass through the crowd, through two savages dancing in bloody maws, and "bang!" pierced a Hydralisk's chest.
"You... you actually have this ability?" Ina looked at Yu Lian in surprise for the first time.
So what kind of image does I, I mean the owner of this body, actually have?
Yu Lian was full of curiosity about his current "self."
One must know that the Commonwealth's so-called "Warrant Officer" actually refers to reserve officers, or to put it bluntly, top students from advanced military academies who haven't graduated yet.
They are truly favored children of heaven who can look down on the security force's cannon fodder from the clouds. In the military, they are referred to as the "elite bureaucracy group," and getting promoted is like riding an orbital elevator.
If they don't get a general's star before retirement, that's truly considered doing poorly.
In contrast, the other two officers in the squad, the sword-wielding Lieutenant and the Lieutenant who always wanted to discard himself, should be part of the so-called "ordinary group" or "non-professional group."
You can tell by their age; one is at least forty-something, and the other should be around thirty-five or thirty-six, typical realistic career templates for whom retiring with field officer benefits would be a blessing.
...Oh, speaking of which, Lieutenant Mondeson was chopping bugs. Where was the Lieutenant who was also equipped with power armor?
Yu Lian quickly spotted him in the crowd.
Not only was he not at the front, but he was also a bit to the rear, standing in a place where he could escape at any time.
"Lieutenant! What are you doing? You have power armor, why fear beasts! If you don't go, you can't just let unarmored people go, can you?" Yu Lian's gaze lingered on the power hammer on his pendant, confirming that the thing was absolutely intact and that one swing would surely knock the overnight droppings out of Zerglings and Hydralisks.
And indeed, that was the case.
The current bugs were clearly unevolved, basic versions; even by brute force, they would be no match for human mobile infantry wearing power armor.
Even if everyone was using an antique like the AS40, which had a ton of problems, as long as they had this thing, the mobile infantry was a humanoid mini-tank.
Not to mention Zerglings, even the massive Brave Claw Worms could put up a fight.
The Lieutenant's face immediately flushed, and he loudly argued, "Shut up! Warrant Officer, you're still a student, what do you know? I'm scared... ah, no, I need to be in a command position..."
His face was beet red, veins bulging on his forehead. He probably wanted to say obscure things like "How can an officer being scared be called scared?" or "I must ensure smooth command," but then he heard Lieutenant Mondeson, who was chopping bugs, loudly say, "Lieutenant Don Russo! I want you in position!"
The Lieutenant shrank his head, whispered "Oh," gritted his teeth, and finally picked up his power hammer, heading to the front lines with an attitude as if walking to his execution.
He sighed, looking like he was about to be chopped to death any second.
Giving his power armor to anyone else Present would be more constructive.
Yu Lian thought.
Of course, we must also understand Lieutenant Russo, after all, even when wearing power armor, there are still inherent dangers... For example, the AS40 power armor does not come with a helmet, or rather, because its Packages helmet has no fire control system, camera, or air conditioning, wearing it affects vision too much and is extremely uncomfortable. Normal people don't want to wear it, often don't wear it on missions, preferring to put on a mismatched ballistic helmet instead.
But you can't expect the bugs to be so considerate as to not chop your head off, can you?
However, in fairness, although this Lieutenant was a coward and always wanted to abandon the heavily injured Yu Lian, his combat ability was still decent—after all, he was from the "non-professional group," so if he didn't rely on his hard skills, could he rely on his academic qualifications?—his power hammer, smashing left and right, was quite methodical.
With the precise output from Yu Lian and Ina, these two "special sharpshooters," the three MTs tanking at the front were also very effective. The other spectators, at least being proper soldiers, didn't do anything foolish to hinder them, and the bug corpses on the opposite side quickly piled up.
The strange odor, somewhere between insect bodily fluids and animal blood plasma, became increasingly pungent.
It could actually fertilize fields, and be a very good organic agricultural fertilizer, as long as one could tolerate the smell.
Yu Lian thought.
Visually, this wave of bugs had at least two to three hundred, but eliminating them was not a problem.
Thus, even he relaxed a little.
Yes, what was needed was "elimination," not "repulsion."
However, soon, Yu Lian seemed to faintly hear a whistle cut through the hot air, then quickly fade away.
Then, the creatures later called "Xenomorphs," like controlled puppets, all stopped in their tracks, then one after another turned their heads and retreated like a tide.
Just as they had surged forward like a tide moments ago.
Strict obedience to orders, uniform and orderly, without the slightest hesitation or panic.
Everyone was dumbfounded, completely unaware of what had happened, and no one sensed the fleeting subtle fluctuation from just now.
Except for Ina, who slightly raised her eyebrows, scanning her surroundings suspiciously.
Yu Lian cursed under his breath, pushing his body forcefully, finally sitting up a bit higher, and gripping his rifle with one hand.
"Phew..." Lieutenant Mondeson let out a long breath, put down his chainsword, and only then felt the soreness in his arm.
Even wearing the exoskeleton, the consumption from that battle just now was truly enormous.
He looked at the Sergeant beside him, who was about his height even without armor. The Sergeant had swung a special power axe as large as a wagon wheel for several minutes and was still not red-faced or out of breath. He couldn't help but sigh that these Bearmen were truly natural beasts of burden.
Lieutenant Mondeson took out a small aluminum flask from his armor's pouch, took a swig, and then handed it to the Sergeant beside him.
Lieutenant Russo, who had a clear view from behind, immediately flushed crimson.
However, before the Sergeant, who wore a simple, honest smile, could take the flask, Yu Lian's sharp command rang out: "Everyone, spread out!"
No one paid him any mind.
Everyone was bewildered; even Ina, who had cooperated very well with Yu Lian just now, showed a puzzled expression.
"Warrant Officer, mind your place!" Lieutenant Russo roared back even louder.
He finally found a reason to retort.
This weak body really is just a student's!
Yu Lian sighed inwardly, then raised the rifle in his hand and aimed it at Lieutenant Russo.
Hey? Even if he was enraged by humiliation, he wouldn't shoot his superior on the spot, would he?
I know you "Moon People" are all arrogant favored children of heaven, but I've never heard of anyone so mentally unsound!
Lieutenant Russo was startled, his first reaction not to raise his gun but to raise his hands.
The quickest to react was Ina; she raised her gun, aimed at Yu Lian's back of the head, and just as she was about to shout a warning, he had already pulled the trigger.
"Should I open fire?" The Sergeant had a moment of confusion.
However, several bullets had already slid out of the barrel, missing Russo but grazing his waist and striking diagonally into the sand of the ground.
Then, the sand, as if a calm lake had been disturbed, rippled slightly. A low howl came from between the brown-yellow rocks and red sand.
"There are enemies underground!" The Lieutenant finally reacted. "But why aren't the sensors responding?"
Because the movement of a spider-like Xenomorph as large as an alligator crawling underground is even less than that of a groundhog, so the un-upgraded old tactical sensors now really mistook it for a groundhog. Yu Lian really wanted to answer that way.
"Everyone scatter!" Ina roared loudly.
The Sergeant's prestige was much higher than Yu Lian's, and the soldiers reflexively followed her orders.
Lieutenant Russo remained in a daze; he was still unsure if Yu Lian had meant to shoot him but missed. Ordinary people at this moment couldn't react at all, and subconsciously blocked out the roaring sound just inches away. It wasn't until a huge Bug Swarm blade emerged from a crack in the mud and severed his neck from behind that the Lieutenant still hadn't processed it.
His head fell to the ground, the expression on his face still one of bewilderment and confusion.
Useless gun! Can a gun that can't kill the spider-like Xenomorphs through thick rock and sand even be called a gun? If he didn't have nothing but this C10 in his hand, Yu Lian would have really wanted to smash it on the ground.
Everyone frantically poured firepower onto the spot where the Bug Swarm blade emerged, but there was nothing there but churning rocks.
The enraged Lieutenant Mondeson didn't stop them; instead, he picked up a comrade's power hammer and swung it in a wide arc to smash the ground. In fact, he didn't know what orders to give everyone, so he could only resort to brute force. Seeing this, the Bearmen Sergeant also picked up his battle-axe and followed suit, hammering with loud thuds.
"This is just venting..." Yu Lian sighed, shed his mecha gloves, and slowly pressed his hands to the ground.
"Warrant Officer..." The plain-looking, plain-figured, and nameless medical officer was full of worry. She was concerned that Yu Lian, being severely injured, would contract some parasites from unprotected contact with the alien wilderness ground, increasing her workload.
Yes, this wretched planet clearly looked like it produced a lot of parasites. Wasn't that obvious?
"Cease fire," Yu Lian said loudly to everyone.
No one listened to him.
"Cease fire!" Ina, who had been beside him, repeated the command in a voice nine times louder than Yu Lian's.
Everyone ceased fire, including the raging Lieutenant Mondeson and the Bearmen Sergeant.
Yu Lian closed his eyes, silently sensing the subtle rhythmic vibrations of the ground.
His Past self, of course, wouldn't have needed such trouble; the extraordinary perception of a Seven Rings Saint could detect the movements of every single bug deep underground from hundreds of kilometers away. But now, having become so weak, he could only resort to mortal means.
However, although it was a mortal method, it was an essential skill for a qualified pioneer and ranger.
The land has its own rhythm, and the crawling of the Xenomorphs breaks this rhythm.
This was a truth his most respected mentor had taught him.
It sounded very mystical, but in plain terms, it was the same principle as ancient scouts lying on the ground to listen for sounds. The only difference was that Yu Lian had accumulated enough experience, so using his hands was sufficient.
The more classical methods are actually the ones that never go out of style. That's the logic.
As mentioned before, the movement of these spider-like Xenomorphs, these stealthy creatures among the Xenomorphs, burrowing underground, is even smaller than that of a groundhog, let alone human footsteps or even hooves. Yet, even so, there is indeed some movement.
"17... 21... 25... 30!" Yu Lian murmured a series of unintelligible commands, and after a few pauses, he suddenly shouted, "Ina! Three o'clock, two meters!"
The Sergeant, who had somehow already taken her chainsword in hand, unhesitatingly turned and swung it. The roar of the chain saw was instantly covered by the sound of tearing bone and grinding metal.
A colossal creature, like an armored spider, silently reared its upper body, but this time its massive bone pincers did not hit the target; instead, they were severed on the spot by the chainsword.
It didn't let out any painful howls; it merely tried to burrow and hide again, but Ina reversed her rifle and, pressing it against its carapace, unleashed a volley of bullets.
The large spider was blasted back several steps, and at that moment, the Bearmen Sergeant and the big black Sergeant had already pounced. The former, with his natural divine strength, naturally still carried his large power axe; while the black Sergeant, as the second strongest man in the team, though without a power exoskeleton, wielded a battle hammer made of high-carbon crystal. The two of them surrounded the giant bug and pounded it fiercely, looking as if they were pounding rice cakes.
The large spider's flesh and blood splattered, it twitched a few times, and then it died.
By this time, the medical officer, who had been wide-mouthed throughout, finally let out an "Ah," and then exhaled a long breath. She looked at Yu Lian in front of her, and for some reason, her face flushed. Just as she was about to say something, he grabbed her hand and pulled her.
The medical officer was pulled directly onto the sand, which happened to make her dodge the Bug Swarm limb extending from behind her.
Another spider-like Xenomorph had, at some unknown point, exposed a small portion of its body on the ground. Seeing that its attack missed, it prepared to retract.
But before that, Yu Lian had already opened fire.
He emptied half a magazine, breaking its mouthparts, piercing its head carapace, and finally destroying its internal central organization.
He was very fortunate that these two spider-like Xenomorphs were unevolved juveniles. If they were the adult stealthers of the Future, capable of extending their Bug Swarm spines hundreds of meters to pierce through tank undersides, everyone would have been doomed this time.
Yes, just as the Commonwealth's regular army still uses "antiques," the Bug Swarm calamity that would later cast a terrifying shadow over all civilized societies in the galaxy is now also developing stealthily.
Yu Lian propped himself up, seriously looking at the Lieutenant, who had finally regained his composure, and said in a deep voice, "Officer, this place is too open; we must move immediately!"
The fierce wind in the desert blew, and Lieutenant Russo's head rolled several meters away, bloody and unrecognizable.
