The gap in the safe zone’s portal had already widened considerably compared to the beginning. Right from the start, the monsters sent through a massive mud creature.
Compared to the ordinary mud creatures in the wild, this one was on a completely different scale—like a giant monster specifically designed for destroying cities.
It felt like they’d suddenly jumped from a game set into an Ultraman-style battlefield, catching the combat unit guarding the area off guard at first.
After fighting it for a while, the players realized that despite its enormous size, its attack and defense weren’t proportionally stronger—it was just a big, hollow threat.
“Clear the battlefield! Send the injured to the treatment center! This place isn’t safe anymore—move the regular players to the sides!” Xing Yue barked orders, scowling, shirtless as usual. Zhao Yantong glanced at him, then silently handed him a piece of clothing.
“Huh?” Xing Yue looked confused. “I’m fine—I’m not cold.”
Zhao Yantong sighed. “Put it on.”
Still puzzled, Xing Yue pulled it over his head. “But even if I wear it now, when monsters come again, and I use my ability, it’ll just rip apart anyway…”
Zhao Yantong glanced at the nearby civilians sneaking looks at him, then fell silent for a moment. “If you don’t mind… then forget it.”
“It’s fine,” Cao Wu said, patting her shoulder reassuringly. “Girls are more considerate, but our captain’s thick-skinned—he doesn’t even have embarrassment in his emotional range, so romance is basically impossible for him.”
“Hey!” Xing Yue frowned. “Are you insulting me?”
He shook his head. “Forget that—look at the portal.”
“Just now it was barely a finger’s width, now it’s almost—”
Cao Wu couldn’t help but chuckle.
Xing Yue turned black-faced. “What are you laughing at?!”
“Nothing, nothing.” Cao Wu waved his hands, still smiling. “Just the way you described it—‘a finger’s width’—sounds like something an obstetrician would say…”
Xing Yue: “…”
“What the hell is going on in your brain all day!”
“That’s basic knowledge for a man with a partner,” Cao Wu said solemnly. Then he grinned. “Captain, my wife’s pregnant. When we get back, I’ll probably be taking paternity leave.”
Xing Yue was completely caught off guard, not knowing how to react.
Zhao Yantong, however, nodded politely. “Congratulations.”
“Hehe, thanks!” Cao Wu couldn’t hide his goofy smile.
“Tch.” Xing Yue kicked him lightly. “Look at you—so happy it’s disgusting.”
Even as he grumbled, his expression softened slightly. “How are people still being all lovey-dovey in a situation like this…”
“Love doesn’t depend on where you are,” Cao Wu said seriously, then smiled again. “If possible, I’d like my child to be born on our beautiful Blue Planet. So captain—do your best. For my wife’s peace of mind.”
“So that’s why you told me this?” Xing Yue rolled his eyes. “Don’t dump your parenting pressure on me!”
Cao Wu hooked an arm around his shoulders. “Come on, don’t say that. Let the kid call you godfather later. If you end up single forever, he can even take care of you in the same nursing home as me!”
“If your unborn kid knew you just gave him an extra burden, he’d probably kill you right now,” Xing Yue muttered, though his tone had softened. Scratching his head, he added, “Those monsters better not be messing with us… now I kind of want to go home too…”
Halfway through, his expression changed. “Hey! Didn’t you hear the order to move?! What are you doing here—go back!”
He rushed toward a group of approaching civilians, waving over other combat members. “Where’s the evacuation team? Can’t you see someone this obvious wandering in?!”
A young man and an old man were walking toward them. The young man hesitated and tugged the elder. “Grandpa, let’s go back… don’t cause trouble…”
The old man glared. “I told you to go back! I’m staying to help!”
“Help with what?!” Xing Yue snapped. “Go back! We’ve got this!”
“I will help! What’s your ability? I never miss a shot! Ever heard of a sharpshooter?” The old man sized him up. “Which unit are you from? Know the old Marksman Battalion? I was company commander of the Seventh Company, Houyi Regiment!”
With a snap, he opened his coat, revealing a row of gleaming medals. He glared back just as fiercely. “Enough talk—give me a gun and I’ll take that monster’s head off!”
Xing Yue froze—clearly his first time dealing with someone like this.
Cao Wu tried not to laugh, whispering to Zhao Yantong, “Doesn’t this feel like old-man Xing Yue arguing with current Xing Yue?”
Zhao Yantong smiled faintly. Stepping forward, she whispered to Xing Yue, “That unit really existed—a specialized marksmanship regiment. Most top shooters came from there. Even Yi Luo trained there.”
Xing Yue grew even more serious. “Still not your turn! Take your grandson and go! You’re retired—stop messing around!”
The old man snorted. “Are you giving me a gun or not?!”
Zhao Yantong glanced at the unstable portal. “Fifteen minutes left… but the sky’s getting redder. The monsters will likely take Ghost Island soon. New monsters will spawn on that fifteen-minute mark.”
She looked at the old man again. He glared stubbornly. “I’m not leaving when monsters come!”
Xing Yue gritted his teeth, then finally threw him his gun. “Take it! I don’t use it anyway. Stay back and shoot!”
The old man instantly beamed. “Now that’s more like it!”
He quickly found cover, his movements crisp and professional.
Xing Yue cursed. “What are they doing? Letting the monsters take Ghost Island?”
“Li Liangzi instructed them to temporarily give ground and expand the battlefield. Her judgment is that we can handle monsters spawning every fifteen minutes.” Zhao Yantong tightened her grip on her weapon. At the moment, she was essentially using herself as a shield, protecting important buildings and ordinary players from being caught in the monsters’ attacks.
Although the others weren’t here, her lifeline was actually linked to several other players who specialized in maximizing health.
“I know that,” Xing Yue said with a dark expression. “But it still pisses me off to think about letting the monsters gain the upper hand, even if it’s only pretend and only temporary.”
“That’s probably why Li Liangzi left you in the safe zone instead of sending you to the front lines on Ghost Island,” Cao Wu remarked with a sigh. “Seriously, how is the brain of that ‘Human Supercomputer’ even built? Do you think if I let my wife shake hands with her, our future kid might end up that smart?”
“Can you stop bringing up your wife?” Xing Yue turned around with a pained expression. “How did I end up surrounded by people like you...”
He cast a long look toward the elderly man nearby. “And him.”
“There may be even more of them later,” Zhao Yantong reminded him. “I checked the forums just now. Quite a few elderly people who aren’t in the best health are asking to be allowed onto the front lines to help.”
“Even though we haven’t announced that this is the final battle, I think everyone more or less senses it.”
“Yeah, I saw that too,” Cao Wu agreed. “Honestly, it was pretty moving...”
While keeping watch on the portals, Xing Yue opened the forums as well. Pinned right at the top was a highly visible petition thread. He skimmed through it quickly. He saw plain and straightforward messages like: Leave hope to the young. Let us go. He saw playful ones: Let your grandpa beat the hell out of those bastards. Your auntie is still your auntie. And romantic ones: Let this dying white dwarf star radiate its final warmth. Line after line passed before his eyes.
Through those words, he could almost see the different elderly people behind them.
After a long silence, he looked up at the sky. “We can’t lose.”
A portal darkened as a massive shadow emerged. A gigantic monster stepped through in a single stride. Zhao Yantong raised a defensive barrier. “Of course we can’t.”
Cao Wu shook his head helplessly. “Don’t make the atmosphere so heavy. I need to smile for my attack power buff to increase...”
……aaa
Meanwhile, most of the players were already standing by in the rainforest region. On the sea bridge connecting Ghost Island to the mainland, only the pink milk tea car remained parked in the middle.
The monsters were busy painting the entire island red and had not immediately given chase.
Perched atop the milk tea car, Padra glanced uneasily down below. “Are you sure you want to stay on the bridge? What if they just destroy it?”
“I know your milk tea can turn people into mermaids, but my ability doesn't work underwater. Then again...” He paused halfway through his complaint. “Wait. Playing rock music underwater sounds kind of unbelievably cool, doesn’t it?”
“They won’t destroy the bridge,” He Wuning interrupted, cutting off his wild train of thought.
His tone was so certain that Padra blinked in confusion. “Huh? Why not?”
Yi Luo climbed down from the truck carrying bundles of explosives. Calmly, he began laying the charges across the bridge. “Because,” he said evenly, “we’re going to blow up the bridge before they do.”
----------
No comments:
Post a Comment