True Apocalypse Game

Although their convoy had many tanks and armored vehicles, its only true long-range weapons were the two self-propelled howitzers and a single multiple-launch rocket system. At this distance, only these three artillery pieces could threaten the high tower.

By now, the surrounding zombies had formed a surging tide of corpses, swarming in from all directions with a density dozens of times greater than before.

Fortunately, despite the vast number of zombies, the mechanized armored unit’s speed far exceeded that of a running human. A dozen or so tanks led the way, flattening blocking vehicles and various obstacles into pancakes, clearing a path with little resistance.

They could even crash straight through or blast apart smaller buildings, punching through to the other side.

The self-propelled howitzers continued to thunder, relentlessly firing shell after shell at the distant high tower.

But each of their bombardments exploded several kilometers from the tower, having no effect whatsoever.

"Legion Commander, attacking the distant tower is useless! Requesting permission to use the self-propelled howitzers against the zombie tide!" The voice of Nick, commander of the Sixth Brigade, came over the comms channel. The two howitzers were currently under his control.

The Legion Commander frowned. He watched two shells explode in mid-air in the distance and said:

"Request denied. Continue attacking the tower. Test fire on multiple locations. Increase the rate of fire. No delays!"

Although Nick, on the other end of the comms, was extremely reluctant, he immediately responded:

"Yes, sir!"

Many others had also heard the exchange between the Legion Commander and Nick. With mixed feelings, they all looked up at the high tower.

This twisted, sinister-looking tower seemed to be the control center for the zombie horde. Perhaps only by taking it down could they completely quell the surging tide of corpses!

The armored legion charged forward, but the surrounding horde was gradually closing in. A large bridge lay ahead, but the approach was already blanketed with a dense mass of zombies—at least tens of thousands of them!

There were fewer buildings here, giving way to open ground. Though the machine guns and cannons on the tanks and armored vehicles shredded large numbers of zombies, many still surged forward.

Moreover, these zombies seemed different from the previous ones. A considerable number actually ducked their heads to avoid the sweeping machine-gun fire.

Seeing this, the Legion Commander issued another order:

"Anti-air cannons, clear the path ahead! Armored vehicles, cover the rear! Infantry, fire grenades behind us!"

The formation of this steel torrent shifted again. The cluster of tanks at the front moved to the sides, opening up a wide path.

Then, four anti-air vehicles swiveled their cannons, aimed at the horde of tens of thousands of zombies ahead, and unleashed a scything crossfire!

Struck by the immense kinetic energy of the anti-air shells, the zombies exploded into clouds of blood and gore!

Many of the cannon shells didn’t even detonate, instead punching clean through dozens of zombies before finally exploding, leaving behind a field of mangled flesh and blood.

Although they had seen high-explosive tank shells blast zombies to pieces before, the Salvation Army Warriors present were still deeply shocked by the awesome reaping power of the anti-air cannons.

In the face of powerful modern weaponry, mere flesh and blood was utterly insignificant!

In the blink of an eye, after several rounds of crossfire, the tens of thousands of zombies that had been blocking their path were decimated. The ground was covered in a slurry of blood and viscera, littered with mangled corpses.

Among the few thousand zombies still standing, a considerable number actually turned and fled the battlefield!

This sight brought an even more shocked expression to the faces of many Salvation Army Warriors.

’These zombies... they’re capable of fear!?’

This was simply unbelievable, completely upending everything they knew about zombies!

Soon, the armored legion reached the head of the bridge. They crossed the blood-soaked field and were about to drive onto the bridge itself.

Just then, from among the piles of shattered corpses on the ground, a thousand zombies suddenly scrambled to their feet and launched a close-range attack on the Salvation Army convoy!

These zombies were draped in broken limbs, concealing them perfectly. They struck suddenly, the closest ones only a few meters from the Salvation Army Warriors. In an instant, they had pounced on dozens of soldiers and began to tear at them ravenously.

The zombies’ movements were nothing like those of mindless creatures. They were more like a troop of well-trained soldiers. Though armed only with their own claws and teeth, they worked in groups, and each time, they managed to rip open the throat of a Salvation Army Warrior!

For a moment, the screams of the Salvation Army Warriors were incessant.

Many didn’t have time to react and were bitten instantly. Their teammates were also at a loss, hesitating to open fire for fear of hitting their comrades.

Fortunately, the veteran players, including Nick, responded calmly. Looking as if this was nothing out of the ordinary, they quickly gunned down the zombies and executed their bitten teammates.

The zombies’ surprise attack had claimed a thousand Salvation Army Warriors in total. The losses weren’t severe, but the brows of the Legion Commander and the other Salvation Army leaders furrowed even deeper.

These zombies knew how to set ambushes and coordinate attacks. Their teamwork was so skillful they were nothing like mindless monsters.

Clearly, their understanding of zombies was still far too shallow...

The Salvation Army’s convoy sped onto the bridge, now reaching the edge of New York City’s urban area. On the other side of the bridge, there was no large-scale zombie horde.

Apparently, the influence of that twisted, evil tower had its limits.

As the last armored vehicle sped onto the bridge, the distant zombie tide finally closed in. A surging horde of hundreds of thousands, even millions, of zombies roared and shrieked madly as they too swarmed onto the bridge.

The Legion Commander ordered impassively:

"Blow the bridge!"

Immediately, the artillery, which had long been standing by, began a volley. The shells landed in the center of the bridge, blowing the oncoming zombies to smithereens and blasting massive craters into the roadbed.

As the bombardment continued, the bridge deck was finally breached. The targeted section of the bridge broke apart with a sudden crack, temporarily cutting off the zombies on the other side.

The Salvation Army Warriors had just breathed a sigh of relief when they saw the zombie tide was still surging. Like army ants, they began to climb over and cling to one another, seemingly trying to form a living bridge to span the gap.

Not daring to delay, the convoy continued to retreat toward the outskirts of New York under the Legion Commander’s orders. After passing through several city blocks, they arrived at a military base enclosed by barbed wire.

This was the same military base they had discovered earlier. It would become their fortress.

A 200-man combat team had been left to guard the base. Upon seeing the massive convoy, they immediately opened the main gate to let everyone in. At the same time, the surrounding defensive posts and machine-gun nests went on high alert, eliminating the few scattered zombies that had followed.

The armored vehicles rumbled to a halt. Sophie leaped down from one and helped Li Tongchen get down as well.

Looking back at the high tower in New York City, her brow was furrowed in thought, and she felt a slight sense of melancholy.

The commotion in New York City had subsided by now. The feeling of frenzied chaos was gone, and it seemed they could finally catch their breath for a moment.

But when she thought of that mysterious and terrifying tower, a profound sense of powerlessness washed over her.

She knew that if the Legion Commander hadn’t made the decisive call to stop searching for their Salvation Army comrades and retreat immediately, they might all have turned on each other and been wiped out by now.

She remembered hearing a theory from one of the Salvation Army’s veterans: that the Commander was actually from the future, and that the various doomsday missions he designed in the game were, in fact, his own real-life experiences.

’If that’s true,’ she thought, ’facing this terrifying, bizarre environment alone—the mind-twisting tower, the intelligent zombies that know how to set ambushes—just how much hardship did the Commander have to endure?’

As Sophie was lost in thought, the Salvation Army’s high command was gathering in the command room at the Legion Commander’s order.

Unlike the worried Sophie, the Legion Commander appeared remarkably relaxed. He looked at the assembled officers and asked:

"Does anyone here have experience flying bombers?"

If a problem can’t be solved with heavy firepower, it just means you aren’t using enough.