Chapter 51: Desperate Rescue (3)

Volume 1 “Year of Calamity”

As the alarm sounded, the previously calm Corpse Sea in Longjiang Town began surging like boiling water! Dense Corpse Hordes crowded against each other, desperately trudging toward the source of the sound. The collective roars emitted by the Zombies during their movement could truly be described as earth-shaking.

“Hongyu, wake up! Don’t fall asleep! Hongyu…” Inside a black metal cube, Ye Rong anxiously called out to the nearby Mech Engineer Officer Wu Hongyu.

The two belonged to Lieutenant Colonel Li Guoan’s special operations squad. Ye Rong was the pilot of the Anti-Gravity Airship, while Wu Hongyu was the maintenance personnel for Intelligent Mechanical Soldiers and Full-Coverage Armor. The special ops team’s original mission was to travel to the capital of Province L to install a High-Frequency Particle Signal Enhancement Base Station. However, after being attacked by a powerful Mutant mid-journey, the airship crashed, and she and the unconscious Mech Engineer Officer Hongyu landed here in an Escape Pod.

Perhaps fate had played a cruel joke on them – having barely escaped from powerful Mutated Creatures, their Escape Pod had landed in a place overrun by countless Zombies. From the Escape Pod’s surveillance camera, they could see dense crowds of Zombies swarming outside – truly escaping the tiger’s mouth only to enter the wolf’s den!

Mech Engineer Officer Wu Hongyu had been injured during the airship explosion and had been trapped in the Escape Pod for two days and nights. His wounds had become inflamed, and without treatment, he likely wouldn’t survive much longer. Watching the unconscious Wu Hongyu, Ye Rong also fell into despair. The distress signal had been continuously transmitted for two days without any response. Deep down, she understood that even if someone received the signal, the massive horde of Zombies outside presented an nearly insurmountable barrier. The two of them were essentially sentenced to death – even if not eaten by Zombies, they would probably starve to death in the Escape Pod.

The Escape Pod’s power reserves were running critically low. Ye Rong shut down most equipment, keeping only the signal transmitter active. In her heart, she clung to a sliver of hope that someone might receive the signal and come to rescue them. This was her only motivation to keep living – otherwise, in such desperate circumstances, suicide might have been a possibility. From this perspective, Ye Rong was clearly a woman with exceptional mental fortitude.

Suddenly, Ye Rong inside the Escape Pod sensed unusual movement outside. Countless Zombies seemed to be passing by the Escape Pod, their dense collisions causing the heavy pod to sway from side to side. What was happening? Ye Rong immediately activated the surveillance camera. On the display, massive Corpse Tides appeared to be summoned, collectively moving slowly in one direction. Calming herself to listen carefully, amidst the chaotic roars, there seemed to be a continuous sound resembling an Air Raid Siren.

Ye Rong listened closely – it was indeed an Air Raid Siren! Could someone be coming to rescue them? Oh heavens! Who could it be? Could it be Lieutenant Colonel Li?Thinking of Lieutenant Colonel Li’s resolute and handsome face, a wave of sweetness welled up in Ye Rong’s heart. That man was the one she loved. Though it was only an unrequited crush, it still made Ye Rong feel immensely happy. This was how lovestruck girls were—just like Zhou Xiaoxiao—perfectly content simply being near the person they adored. It was precisely for this reason that Ye Rong had diligently studied anti-gravity airship piloting, managing to stand out among her peers and become one of the first pilots of the new aircraft, as well as the dedicated logistics support for Lieutenant Colonel Li Guoan’s special operations team.

The movement of hundreds of thousands of corpses created a spectacle so grand it could be described as a Corpse Sea. Like tidal waves, the Corpse Horde emerged from Longjiang Town, climbing the slopes and slowly advancing toward the source of the Air Raid Siren. Viewed from above, the horde resembled a dark tide gradually spreading across the mountains, dyeing the yellowed peaks into a black Hell.

“Move out!” Nie Chong commanded, and the four of them quickly descended the mountain, sprinting toward the Armored Assault Vehicle.

An Sheng had completed his mission—most of the Corpse Horde had already left Longjiang Town. They had been waiting for this moment. Taking advantage of the temporary safety within the town, they needed to immediately enter and locate the source of the distress signal.

Driving the assault vehicle and guided by the Full-Coverage Exoskeleton Armor’s positioning system, the four soon found a steel cube in the town. Its color matched exactly that of Huan’an’s crashed airship—this had to be the so-called Escape Pod.

Knock knock “Is anyone there?” Nie Chong rapped on the metal cube’s surface and shouted.

According to radar indications, the distress signal was indeed emitting from this cube, but whether there was anyone inside or if they were still alive remained uncertain. After all, considerable time had passed, and the escape pod had crash-landed in Longjiang Town, densely populated by the Corpse Horde—any mishap could have occurred.

Suddenly, one side of the escape pod slowly split open, and a female officer in light green form-fitting military uniform emerged from the crevice. When she squinted to adjust to the light and recognized the figures before her, she let out a cry and rushed toward Nie Chong, embracing him tightly.

“Captain Li! I never thought you were still alive—this is wonderful! Truly wonderful!”

When Ye Rong saw the black Full-Coverage Exoskeleton Armor emblazoned with the sword insignia, her joy wasn’t for her own rescue but for the fact that this man—the man she secretly loved, her most beloved—was still alive! How incredibly wonderful!

“Hello, comrade. Um… could you let go of me first?” Nie Chong felt somewhat awkward. This female soldier in strange military attire had immediately hugged him, catching him completely off guard.

However, Nie Chong roughly guessed the situation—this female officer had likely mistaken him for Li Guoan, hence her reaction. After all, he was wearing Li Guoan’s Exoskeleton Armor, so her response wasn’t entirely surprising.

“Who are you? Why are you wearing Captain Li’s armor?”

Startled by Nie Chong’s voice, Ye Rong swiftly retreated two meters, drawing her pistol and aiming it at him as she demanded loudly.”Don’t be agitated, Lieutenant. I’m Nie Chong, captain of the Special Operations Battalion from the Northern Theater Command 3rd Combined Arms Brigade. Our armor’s radar system picked up your distress signal, which is why we specifically came to rescue you.” Nie Chong quickly identified himself, noticing the female officer’s emotional state and fearing she might take drastic action.

“How is Captain Li doing?”

Hearing they were comrades from the Northern Theater Command, Ye Rong lowered her guard. However, she seemed to realize something, urgently inquiring about Li Guoan’s condition with an anxious expression. After all, Li Guoan was a pure soldier through and through, and a soldier would never easily abandon his weapons. Yet now, his equipment was being worn by this officer from the Northern Theater – she already had a bad premonition.

“Lieutenant Colonel Li… has fallen in the line of duty…”

Nie Chong held immense respect for the fallen Li Guoan. He was an outstanding soldier and an idol to many special forces members. Had the catastrophe not occurred, he might have become a future general. But he sacrificed himself – a tragic yet heroic death!

Though mentally prepared, Ye Rong couldn’t suppress her sobs upon hearing the tragic news of Li Guoan’s death. Combined with two days of exhaustion without food or water, she felt dizzy and fainted. Fortunately, Xun Lili reacted swiftly, darting to Ye Rong’s side and catching her before the female officer hit the ground.

“Peng Yu, check inside to see if there are any other survivors. Doctor Zhou, please examine her condition.” Nie Chong quickly issued orders. They needed to leave this place promptly – although the corpse horde had been drawn away by the air raid siren, no one could guarantee there weren’t other dangers.

After a brief examination, Zhou Xiaoxiao determined Ye Rong had only fainted from physical weakness. She retrieved glucose from her medical kit, applying it with cotton swabs to feed her gradually. Given two days without sustenance, they didn’t dare give her too much at once, needing to proceed slowly.

“Doctor Zhou! There’s another severely injured person inside – come quick!” Liu Pengyu’s urgent call came from within the metal cube.

When Zhou Xiaoxiao saw the injured Wu Hongyu, her expression immediately turned grave. The man’s left thigh had been pierced by something. Though basic hemostasis had been attempted, the wound showed signs of infection and inflammation, even emitting a faint rotten odor. Moreover, as an emergency measure to stop bleeding, a leather belt had been tightly fastened above the thigh wound. Given the prolonged time without timely rescue, even if they saved the man, the leg likely couldn’t be preserved.

“His injury is quite serious – possibly requiring amputation. I don’t have the proper tools here. We must return to the fortress immediately. Any delay could be life-threatening. I’ll administer some anti-inflammatory and fever-reducing medication first, but we need to handle this quickly.” Zhou Xiaoxiao explained while treating Wu Hongyu’s wound, retrieving various emergency medicines from her medical kit.

Fortunately, An Sheng and others hadn’t insisted on preventing Zhou Xiaoxiao from coming along. Otherwise, encountering such an injured person, the wounded would likely have faced certain death.