Chapter 185 Tactics <TOC> Chapter 187 Psychic Marksman
Translator: SumTLMan
The ruins from before the Great Cataclysm had become dilapidated as time passed. After enduring the bombardment of a tank’s main cannon, the building became structurally unstable and was on the verge of collapse.
The eastern wall was riddled with enormous gaps, reminiscent of festering wounds on a giant’s body. Twisted steel bars protruded from the broken sections.
Some walls had cracked open and tilted at dangerous angles, exposing the red bricks inside.
The Soul Cult’s cultists took shelter in the ruins, setting up firing positions. They used the rubble of concrete in the ruins to build cover, strategically placing various firepower.
They were fully prepared for this war.
After a brief rest, the Soul Cult quickly reorganized and resumed their offensive. The vassal armies outside the city were not mere puppets; if they could not quickly annihilate the armored troops trapped within the city, the situation would become dire.
A three-person anti-tank team was positioned behind one such reinforced cover. They operated an improved version of the pre-cataclysm NAG anti-tank missile from the Xindu Federation. The new model was heavier, faster, and could more swiftly change its flight trajectory to track targets.
Amid the intense sounds of gunfire outside, the missile operator quietly knelt in front of the missile, his forehead pressed tightly against the launch tube. He silently prayed to the Lord of Souls, hoping for divine help in destroying the target.
The observer and assistant operator also knelt, holding their breath in prayer.
With the arrival of the rainy season, the connection between the believers and the Lord of Souls grew stronger. During prayer, they could even faintly sense the Lord’s faint response. Her gaze pierced the deep and winding ocean of source essence, falling upon the believers.
This further fueled the zealotry of these armed believers.
Now, before firing, the anti-tank team would pray, as facing the steel behemoths with anti-tank missiles required immense courage.
Although the post-cataclysm anti-tank missiles’ flight speed had increased significantly, covering a distance of about one kilometer still took three to four seconds, while older pre-improvement models needed over ten seconds.
(Many anti-tank missiles’ maximum flight speeds do not exceed 300 meters per second, and the duration at this speed is short, with some older models only reaching just over 100 meters per second.)
This seemingly endless period was more than enough time for tanks with powered armor to detect the anti-tank missile positions and use their cannons to destroy them.
Moreover, in actual combat, it is exceedingly challenging to destroy tanks using anti-tank missiles, as external explosive reactive armor and smoke grenades can impair the effectiveness of the missiles. This can only be accomplished if one has both the right timing and location advantage, while the opponent’s tanks are detached from the infantry cover.
The Soul Cult’s dispersed anti-tank teams along the defensive line did achieve some significant results, but their losses were equally heavy.
As the three people prayed devoutly, a figure, like a psychic cat, fell silently from the large hole in the ceiling, landing noiselessly on the ground.
He pressed his hands on the necks of the observer and the assistant operator, with one push and one twist, the two people fell rigidly to the ground.
Sensing something wrong, the remaining weapons operator tried to grab the rifle placed aside to counterattack but was struck directly in the back of the neck with an elbow, instantly losing consciousness.
Three corpses lay on the ground, and Li Mu, holding a rifle, looked around before gesturing for the others to come in.
“Take this anti-tank missile launcher and all the ammunition with you.”
The anti-tank missile would play a significant role in building defenses against the Bloodthirsty Beasts.
Immediately, two infantrymen jumped down from the hole in the roof, tied up the anti-tank missile launcher with ropes, and with a strong pull, the soldiers above hoisted the launcher up.
The two men looked at Li Mu with admiration. After infiltrating the Soul Cult’s defense line, he had personally cleared seven strongpoints, and the battle-hardened armed cultists could not withstand him for even a second.
“First platoon, set up defenses on the spot. Platoons two, three, and four, continue clearing the defensive line. If you encounter resistance, request reinforcements from me directly.”
The Soul Cult typically deployed three to four individual soldier positions and one machine gun emplacement around an anti-tank missile site, all of which had been cleaned out by him.
At least in the nearby seven or eight buildings, there were no more armed forces of the Soul Cult.
Li Mu, holding the rifle, observed the external battle situation through the hole in the wall, staying close to the wall.
The first platoon began taking over the cleared area and set up defenses based on the terrain. The other platoons, without Li Mu as their spearhead, progressed slowly.
Suddenly, the sound of gunfire, like popping beans, came from the buildings at the other end of the street. Intense firefights were taking place inside, with occasional bursts of gunfire.
After all, the first platoon was composed of ordinary soldiers with limited combat experience. Armed cultists had already discovered the infiltrating allied infantry, and fierce firefights broke out between the two sides.
However, the more intense gunfire on the battlefield drowned out the nearby gunshots.
Li Mu leaped down from the upper floor, sprinting forward in just a few steps, traversing a distance of over a hundred meters in a mere breath, and soared into the air.
Armed cultists exchanged fire with the invading provincial soldiers through the narrow corridor. Gun muzzles danced, flames flickered, and bullets whizzed through the corridor, stirring up dust and debris.
Suddenly, a large hole appeared in the ravaged outer wall of the corridor, and a figure burst in from outside.
“Cease fire! Cease fire!”
The provincial infantry immediately shouted, recognizing the figure as Li Mu in an instant. Grasping the greatsword with one hand, he hurled it with all his might.
The heavy greatsword emitted a mournful whistling sound, piercing straight through an armed cultist carrying a grenade launcher and embedding itself in the wall.
In the next instant, Li Mu had one foot on the cultist’s body and another on the wall, his entire body perpendicular to the wall. He gripped the sword hilt and pulled the sword out from the wall.
Due to his immense speed, gravity seemed to lose its effect on him.
The remaining armed cultists screamed in terror, raising their weapons and shooting wildly. In the blink of an eye, Li Mu was no longer in his original position but had charged into the crowd with his sword.
The not-so-sharp sword blade was invincible, and none of the armed cultists could withstand a single strike.
Soon, the armed cultists within the entire building were wiped out, and due to the extreme speed of the sword, the tungsten steel greatsword didn’t even have much blood on it.
Most of the armed cultists were dismembered directly, with a massive amount of blood loss. The blood quickly covered Li Mu’s feet.
Provincial soldiers looked at Li Mu with a mixture of fanaticism and fear.
They had fought alongside numerous awakened individuals before but had never seen one so brutal and resolute in their killings.
Li Mu hoisted the sword onto his shoulder and picked up the grenade launcher from the ground.
“Continue the attack, clean out the entire Soul Cult’s armed forces in this area.”
He walked to the hole in the corridor’s outer wall, stepped out, and landed straight on the ground to support another battlefield.