Chapter 48: 48 chapters, shall we practice together?
The Howling Wind Divine Envoy was dead, left without any human shape to speak of.
The priest that had been blown up by the metal spikes also had no recognizable shape left, just a pile of broken remains. The last one looked slightly better in death but only slightly. He was struck in mid-air, breaking an arm and a leg, and even as he fell to the ground trying to resist, he was faced with the onslaught of elite ground warriors, who broke through his Storm Shield and then stabbed him to death with a flurry of knives.
After the death of the three priests wielding Storm Divine Power, the winds quickly subsided, and the fog dissipated just as fast.
In that short period, the soldiers indeed fell into chaos, their firepower network was affected, and many monsters breached their defenses, with over a dozen Pus Spewers entering range and causing casualties among the soldiers with their spray of pus.
However, overall, the chaos caused serious damage but was not fatal.
Once the winds and fog cleared, the soldiers regained control of the battlefield. Despite the casualties, they killed all the monsters that had breached their position, and the Pus Spewers, which had only fired one or two volleys of bio-shell, were eliminated by machine guns and the cannons of armored infantry vehicles.
Even though the three Storm Priests had perished, the battle did not end immediately.
The monsters, to some extent, did follow the Storm Priests’ command, but after the priests’ deaths, the uncontrolled creatures were still tremendously dangerous, maintaining their ferocious state as they constantly surged out of the woods, attempting to attack any living being they could see.
But despite their ongoing frenzy and reduced firepower within the position due to earlier casualties, they still couldn’t break through.
The gap in firepower was something these primitive monsters couldn’t contend with.
It’s said that during a large-scale, mature ‘Other Tide’, even more advanced monsters would appear, not just limited to the inferior Pus Monsters and Spewers.
But at least Gu Hang and his men didn’t encounter any this time.
The nests within the woods were still in the phase of accumulating power. Perhaps given a few months to slowly hatch and consume one another, they could grow into a batch of higher-level monsters, and the situation would become troublesome.
But now, the Primordial Wrath Owl Sect, in an attempt to kill Gu Hang, prematurely accelerated the maturation of most of the nests in the woods, resulting in what seemed like a large-scale attack but was in reality not fraught with many high-level monsters, therefore the threat level was relatively average.
In fact, to some extent, the Primordial Wrath Owl Sect’s actions even helped Gu Hang.
A large number of nests were matured ahead of time, and a vast number of monsters were gathered here, which could be dealt with all at once. This reduced a significant workload for the troops under Gu Hang’s command in their subsequent task of clearing the entire Other-species woods.
As the battle continued, it was evident that the number and density of monsters charging from the thick forest were significantly decreasing.
Clearly, they were not truly endless. After being massively culled, there were not many left.
Eventually, with Yan Fangxu’s forces arriving on the scene, the battle essentially entered its final stage.
When he learned that the governor might be ambushed, he couldn’t stay put waiting for rescue. He took the initiative to lead his troops out, breaking through slowly and methodically.
According to his plan, it was not necessary to break through successfully. Even if they could draw some attention to help the governor, that would be good enough.
As it turned out, as they moved on, he soon noticed a sudden decrease in the number of monsters he encountered, as if they had all run off elsewhere.
He speculated that this was because the battle on the governor’s side had already begun, and he could even hear the roar of gunfire.
So, they sped up and reached the battlefield, meeting up with the governor. But by that time, the battle was already drawing to a close.
He could only lead the 3rd Battalion to join the fight and help clear the remaining monsters.
Soon, there was not a single active monster left in front of the soldiers.
…
Perbov stepped on a Pus Monster that had lost its lower half, relying on its hands to crawl on the ground, and he watched as it vainly stretched out its arms to grab him.
After pondering for a moment, he lifted his pistol and fired at the monster’s head, silencing it for good.
Hearing the footsteps behind him, he turned to see a weary-looking Yan Fangxu approaching.
His gaze naturally fell on the other’s shoulder, where the corrosive-ridden fabric revealed reddening, wounded skin underneath.
He grinned and said, “Yo, captain, you look quite a mess.”
Yan Fangxu rolled his eyes irritably, walked up and punched him in the chest, “You’re not looking any better, limping as you walk.”
“Isn’t that to come and save you?”
Having reached this point, Yan Fangxu couldn’t deny it anymore, and his complexion turned a bit dark.
Perbov, on the other hand, comforted him, “It’s not your fault, this bunch of trash, rubbish, conscience-fed-to-dogs traitors, they just wanted to use you to ambush the Governor. It’s not on you. Our mission is to be the sword and shield of the Governor. Today, both of us didn’t do a very good job at that, but from now on, I’ll put in even more effort. What about you?”
Yan Fangxu looked at the officer who had risen through the ranks of the Abandoned Cave Society with some surprise. Why had this guy suddenly voiced such sentiments?
He wasn’t aware that the Storm Priest had just charged at Gu Hang, directly threatening the Governor’s life, nor could he imagine how deeply this scene had impacted Perbov, the captain.
Unaware of these things, Mr. Captain could only scratch his head and nod, agreeing to it.
After saying goodbye to Perbov, Yan Fangxu went to find Gu Hang.
The Governor was inside an armored personnel carrier.
One of his old subordinates stopped him, “The Governor is resting.”
“I have something I need to report.”
The marine seemed torn but still barred his way, “But… Captain, the Governor is resting. It’s better not to disturb him.”
Yan Fangxu was again surprised.
This was not one of the soldiers recruited by Gu Hang on Rage Owl Star, but one of the marines he had brought down from the starship, a direct subordinate.
Historically, they had been closer. Even to speak a bit disrespectfully, in private, they had not refrained from complaining about various matters regarding the Governor. The soldiers were loyal to the Governor, but it seemed more out of duty and role.
But now, he truly saw respect for the Governor in his old subordinate’s eyes.
A question mark slowly rose in his mind: What had just happened?
It wasn’t that he found the deep respect and loyalty his subordinates had for the Governor problematic.
On the contrary, it was as it should be.
But that didn’t stop him from being curious about what had caused these changes.
He decided not to wake Gu Hang, but instead pulled his old subordinate aside to ask in detail what had exactly happened in the recent battle.
After learning about the situation, Yan Fangxu also fell silent.
The Governor had been approached and attacked by the Heretic Cultists but escaped unharmed, only a bit tired; the Governor’s psychic spells had once again proved powerful; his own old subordinates had undergone earth-shattering changes after the Governor’s rapid “special training”…
All this information was like a fantasy to Yan Fangxu’s ears.
Why was there no harm done? Why did those cultists fall from the sky while flying so properly?
All this could only be attributed to the marvel of Spiritual Energy.
The news that the Governor was a spiritual master, Yan Fangxu could more or less accept. After all, it was not his first day knowing the Governor was a psychic; it was just that his feats seemed more miraculous now.
Yan Fangxu tried to convince himself it was no big deal.
But could his old marine elites become even stronger? And in such a short period of time? Just like how the Governor trained those ordinary people?
Yan Fangxu found it hard to accept and believe.
He joked, “So, you lad, are you even more skilled than me now? Want to have a go?”
In the past, no marine would dare to accept the challenge. Captain Yan Fangxu was famously tough, and sparring with him meant seeking discomfort.
But now, things had changed.
The soldier, brimming with eagerness, said, “Sure, let’s do it!”
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Hey, don’t just look at the girl! Why did we exceed that much in one night? The Governor is pretty handsome too, right?