Chapter 329: No, You? (110K Explosion!)

The brief negotiation came to an abrupt halt; the survivors in Akse City, seeing the sand bandits fall silent, suddenly gained renewed confidence—the bandits were fierce, but annihilating them all would take considerable effort.

Just then, the sound of artillery shells tearing through the air began echoing from afar; the defenders immediately shouted out:

"Mortars! Air bursts!"

Boom! Boom! Boom!

Explosions erupted across the neighborhoods surrounding the square; smoke and dust filled the air as countless missiles streaked in from all directions.

Alongside them, the sand bandits' assault vehicles unleashed full firepower—heavy machine guns, arc pulse cannons, and rocket launchers all opened fire toward the square!

A full-scale siege battle had begun!

Tack-tack-tack!

"Hold the line!!"

"Fight them to the death!"

"Blow them to hell!"

The Dawn Convoy, the Akse Brotherhood, and the Fulu Shou Convoy members launched a furious counterattack; heavy weapons were brought into play, and buildings and glass across the streets were shattered into pieces.

Some sand bandits, acting like suicide squads, screamed as they charged out of the smoke and debris, hurling specially made high-explosive charges and incendiary bombs into the defensive lines.

The moment they appeared, they were cut to pieces by the survivors' overwhelming firepower—but the explosives they threw detonated in rapid succession, blowing up and igniting the defensive vehicles, causing heavy casualties among the defenders.

These sand bandits, riding high-speed off-road vehicles, charged out one after another like madmen, while heavy armored vehicles behind them steadily advanced toward the square.

"Watch out for psychics!"

Shhh!

The flying psychic Viper darted swiftly across rooftops, dual-wielding guns and spraying bullets into the crowd; instantly, a beast-transformed psychic from the Dawn Convoy, turned into a leopard, leapt from the rooftop and tackled Viper down—they crashed onto a flat-roofed house, rolled into an alley, and began a bloody hand-to-hand brawl!

Meanwhile, more psychics joined the chaotic street fighting; the Fulu Shou Convoy's powered-armor squads moved in unison.

In an instant, the battle reached fever pitch; the area around the square became a warzone, with the constant roar of collapsing buildings and shattered walls.

Behind the sand bandits, the three war vehicles of Old Scorpion, Crimson Hawk, and Bone Dragon slowly advanced.

"Wu Er has located them—they're hiding in the Black Rose Bar. Eliminate them directly. No time to waste," Old Scorpion rasped.

Thud! Thud! Thud!

On the other side of the square, the earth-stone psychic Granite gripped a discarded tank armor plate, smashing through burning cars and roadblocks, charging straight into the vehicle line under a hail of bullets.

The survivors behind the vehicle line saw this and turned pale, shouting:

"Don't let him break through!!!"

"Concentrate fire!"

"Use pulse cannons to push him back!"

At that moment, two survivors lifted an arc pulse cannon, charged it, and fired straight at Granite!

Zzzzz!

A surge of electric arcs exploded outward, striking the tank armor and unleashing a dense storm of magnetic pulses that momentarily halted Granite—but before they could react, the pulse cannon in their hands exploded violently, shards spraying and severing one survivor's arm.

"Sniper! Watch out!"

The survivors below shouted.

On Akse City's watchtower, Scorpion held a high-precision anti-materiel sniper rifle, chewing gum, a sinister grin on his face as he peered through the scope, hiding behind a wall and firing through a hole to ruthlessly pick off lives.

Bang!

"Five."

Bang!

"Six."

"That's it— I love one bullet taking out multiple targets. You'd better line up."

In the corner of the square, unnoticed by anyone, a "ghost" whose form nearly blended into the ground and walls held a sharp dagger, walking calmly through the defensive lines, heading straight for the Black Rose Bar on the innermost street.

He was the psychic who had trailed Lin Xian yesterday—Chameleon!

"Once you're inside, wait for the right moment—kill either Lu Zhao or Hu Lushou. They command the largest teams. Eliminate them, and the battle outside will end quickly."

Wu Dapeng stood at a broken window of a building, watching the Black Rose Bar through binoculars, speaking into his comm:

"Piece of cake."

Chameleon strolled calmly to the entrance of the Black Rose Bar, raising his hand to push the door—then froze mid-motion.

He sensed something wrong.

As a long-time covert scout, his instinct for danger was razor-sharp; Chameleon trusted his sixth sense absolutely.

He retracted his hand, stepped back, and prepared to retreat and observe.

His movements couldn't be too fast—any sudden motion might reveal his transformation to those nearby.

But then, a voice suddenly echoed behind him—sending ice through his veins!

"Who are you looking for?"

Zzzt!

Chameleon's nerves snapped—he spun instantly and slashed out with his knife.

Ding!

The blade struck something hard; Chameleon stared—and saw behind him a hovering spherical drone, its massive crimson "eye" locked onto him.

"Drone?"

Realizing something was wrong, Chameleon immediately tried to flee—but the next instant, dozens of spherical drones descended slowly, surrounding him on all sides.

In Lei Sun's 2000 thermal targeting system, Chameleon's body temperature and heartbeat were spiking rapidly.

Zzzz.

The drone's "eye" in front of Chameleon automatically adjusted its focus, then instantly glowed red.

He felt a chill run through his entire body; his light-bending aura flickered wildly.

"Aaaah!!"

Zzzzz!

Before the scream could fully escape, a crimson plasma arc pulse shot straight through his head, obliterating it.

At the entrance of the Black Rose Bar, a heavy thud echoed; the camouflage aura vanished, revealing a bald man covered in tattoos, lying stiff on the ground, a thumb-sized dark-red hole in his forehead, his eyes wide with terror.

Lin Xian sat inside the bar, watching the drone feed, then spoke into his comm:

"Brother Shi, full engagement has begun. Move now."

"Got it!"

Wooo!

At that moment, a heavily armed heavy train roared across the desert at top speed; above it, five Nightstar hypersonic flyers ignited their plasma pulse engines, instantly breaking the sound barrier—like five black swords slicing through the sky!

Boom!

On the square's defensive line, Granite, gripping the tank armor, accelerated again toward the vehicle line; as he neared the front, the defenders could barely hold back, shouting: "Fall back!"

But then, from behind them, a lithe figure leapt onto a vehicle roof, clenched his fists, and grinned coldly at the charging Granite.

"Shockwave Fist!"

Li Guangwen roared, swinging a void punch at the tank's armor!

Zzzzz…

A distorted airwave rippled outward, striking the armor—thick alloy steel instantly warped and dented; the next instant, the wave detonated, tearing the armor into a shower of shrapnel that blasted backward toward Granite.

Granite was blown apart by the explosion; his hardened earth-and-stone skin was pierced by multiple steel shards.

At that moment, two towering figures stepped forward through the retreating crowd, emerging beyond the vehicle line.

Da Lou, Liang Lei!

Both men's faces were grim; each held four Gatling guns, like war gods—suddenly, the electric motors spun, and the rotary cannons opened full fire on Granite and the charging vehicles behind him!

Duuuuuuuuu!

A furious storm of metal bullets poured down like rain, shredding Granite into flying stone fragments and bloody pulp; he held out for barely seconds before his head was obliterated by the metal stream.

The vehicles charging behind him were instantly hit by the same firepower—several off-road and SUVs were riddled with holes in an instant.

From other directions, a group of elite warriors in powered armor suddenly appeared, rushing into the streets with blinding speed and instantly turning the tide of battle.

On the watchtower, Scorpion saw the broken defensive line suddenly erupt with overwhelming strength; his relaxed expression vanished instantly, his gum forgotten in his mouth. He cursed under his breath and immediately adjusted his rifle to aim at Li Guangwen on the line.

Bang!

The muffled crack of the sniper rifle echoed over Akse City; Scorpion, crouched on the watchtower, his entire head exploded outward in a spray, his cover along with it—his finger still on the trigger as he died.

"Five."

Hundreds of meters away, a sleek figure clad in Black Eagle armor held the Meteor-3, sprinting with blinding speed, leaping from one building to another; his main thruster system accelerated him to near-mechanical blur.

Hss!

Landing on a low rooftop, she dropped into a sharp stop; her armor scraped sparks from the ground, and as she landed, her upper body had already pivoted into a firing stance toward another direction.

Bang!

Another shot—piercing a sand bandit on a large vehicle carrying a rocket launcher, along with the two men behind him; their brains, bone fragments, and skin exploded onto the window glass; the only survivor on the vehicle was the driver, who now stared in horror at the bloody scene—his earlier savage cruelty had turned to deep terror.

His eyes trembled, his mind blank—he couldn't decide whether to stomp the gas or hit the brake.

Bang!

Just half a second later, his head vanished from his neck.

"Eight."

…

At this point, Old Scorpion realized something was wrong—the survivors' combat strength far exceeded their estimates.

"Fuck, it's definitely those bastards from yesterday!" Chi Ying barked, then turned to Lao Xie: "There are several experts—deal with them immediately!"

CRASH!

Lao Xie had already kicked open the door of the Big Foot vehicle, standing atop its wheel, his eyes scanning the streets with murderous intent: "Chi Ying, you and Wu Er flank the central street. Hua Gu Long, that sniper killed Poison Scorpion—find him. Everyone else, follow me to the Black Rose Bar—I'll scatter those Chedui captains' ashes myself!"

Chi Ying and Hua Gu Long's eyes flashed with cold light; they immediately ordered their men. The sand bandits surrounding Akse surged en masse into the city. Half of Akse burned, streets seething with heat, gunfire and artillery echoing down every alley, every modified, bloody weapon turned toward the survivor Chedui.

Several bandit leaders struck at once!

Just as the bandits realized the inner city was too tough and prepared to bring in reinforcements, a piercing shriek tore through the sky!

WOOO!!

High above, several black aircraft streaked across the horizon at blinding speed—and simultaneously, multiple ground-targeting missiles slammed toward Lao Xie's convoy with lightning speed!

BOOM! BOOM! BOOM!

In an instant, the missile explosions raged like fire plows, utterly obliterating Lao Xie's vehicles and every bandit vehicle along the street!

The hulking brute manning the Gatling gun on the back of the golden vehicle hadn't even raised his barrel to see what was overhead—he was vaporized in the blast. The razor mask half-covering his face flew over a hundred meters, landing in a pile of garbage.

Meanwhile, Lao Xie, who had just dodged the attack, saw his ride destroyed from afar—his face turned ashen.

"Aerospace fighter?!"

"Fuck! Is it the Federation or the Phoenix Society?!"

"L-Lord! Bad news!" A radio crackled with the frantic shout of the lookout: "A train's coming from the west—they—they—"

On the rooftop of a tall building at the city's edge, a sand bandit with yellow hair trembled as he raised his electronic scope toward the desert beyond. In his view, a steel dragon suddenly burst from the dunes, hurtling along the flat desert track toward Akse at breakneck speed.

"A train?! How many?!" Lao Xie roared.

"One-two-three-four-five-six…" The scout adjusted his scope—but the heavily armed train stretched beyond sight. The locomotive had already passed kilometers away, yet the carriages deep in the dunes kept pouring out!

"Can't count—it's hundreds of carriages, all armored, all bristling with heavy machine guns, anti-air cannons, howitzers, anti-aircraft guns, close-in defense systems… they—"

The scout stared, jaw dropped, as he watched a massive electromagnetic cannon slowly rotate its base on one carriage, glowing blue.

"They've got electromagnetic railguns!!"

WOOO! ZZZT!

Before he finished, the railgun fired from beyond visual range—a brilliant blue beam lanced toward the Bifenggang Chedui blocking the western exit. A deafening electromagnetic shockwave erupted; several heavy armored vehicles from Wu Dapeng's Chedui behind them exploded violently, along with several houses—suddenly, screams and blasts filled the air!

"What the FUCK is that?!"

"AHHHH!!"

"Electromagnetic cannon?!"

The bandits harassing the west city were stunned. They'd been ordered to encircle the city—yet now a steel beast roared from the open desert, making the dunes tremble under its speed. Seeing the fully armed armored train and its rooftop weapons—each one designed to kill monsters—lowered and aimed directly at them, the bandits froze.

As the united train neared, every heavy weapon on its roof—automatic or crewed—swung toward the besieging bandit Chedui.

Next instant—full firepower unleashed!

BOOM! BOOM! BOOM!

Where did this train come from?

Aerospace fighters, armored trains—is the Interstellar Army mobilizing?

No—using electromagnetic railguns against people? Isn't that cheating?

That train's so long…

Before being swallowed by the firestorm, these were the last thoughts in the bandits' minds.

On the Infinite, Xiao Yuan operated the fire-control radar, locking onto the bandits' vehicles and zones, then activated every weapon—1130, G3 railguns—all firing at once.

In an instant, every bandit vehicle cobbled together with spikes and steel plates, every bandit hiding in alleyways or buildings—none survived. The flimsy desert structures offered no more protection than paper against these heavy weapons.

After a single volley, the outskirts and multiple streets and buildings were reduced to ash under the united train's firepower.

Inside the city, Lao Xie heard his men's report, leapt onto the nearest rooftop, raised his scope—and at the sight of the united train, his shadowed eyes twitched violently, pupils blazing with fury.

In that moment, he knew—this was no accident. His mind raced, then he snapped into action, barking over the radio:

"Chi Ying, Hua Gu Long—these guys are too hard! Withdraw everyone!"

Hearing Lao Xie's voice, Chi Ying and Hua Gu Long—who had frozen after the aerial strike—immediately paled. They scrambled onto the nearest vehicle and shouted orders:

"Retreat!"

Instantly, the fierce battle inside the city reversed course. The bandits who had been charging forward now turned and fled in all directions. Vehicles at the perimeter swerved—three bandit factions retreated rapidly from east, north, and south.

Those bandits who couldn't escape were swiftly eliminated by the survivor Chedui. Everyone felt the pressure vanish—bewildered.

"The bandits ran!"

"Did we get reinforcements?"

"Are those from Chi Xiao Assault Team?"

"Great! We're saved!"

"Those planes were definitely Interstellar Army!"

"Look! A huge train's charging from the west!"

Many climbed rooftops, staring—seeing the united train barreling across the plains.

But then, a roar echoed—and behind the train, thick dust rolled. They looked: two full-terrain trains had split off from the steel dragon, bursting from the desert—one black-green, one black-red—charging toward the north and south city gates in a trident formation.

Those were Longshan No. 1 and Mo Queen's full-terrain trains!

Their momentum made it clear—they were cutting off the bandits trying to flee north and south.

BOOM! BOOM! BOOM!

The two trains' high-speed maneuvers swiftly blocked the escape routes north and south. Their railguns and heavy weapons opened fire on the fleeing bandit Chedui.

"Fuck!!"

Chi Ying, wearing a gas mask, saw a fully automated black-red armored train charging toward him. Beneath the mask, his pupils trembled. He yanked the wheel from his driver: "Turn around—head east!"

On the other side, Hua Gu Long realized his path was blocked. Seeing the heavy armor and the terrifying weapons on the train's roof, he knew charging into the desert would make him a sitting duck.

He'd once hunted survivors this way—now the roles were reversed. He understood: only retreat remained.

Meanwhile, inside the city, several Chedui under Lin Xian's command began counterattacking, squeezing and clearing bandits fleeing through the alleys. In moments, the Scorpion Gang, Crimson Vulture Clan, and Earth Dragon Society suffered devastating losses—fleeing bandits fell like wheat before a scythe.

On the rooftop of the Black Rose Bar, Lin Xian watched the thick yellow dust rising from the eastern district, the fleeing bandit Chedui streaming toward the Sand Snake Mouth. He turned to Kiki and Chen Sixuan:

"Chen Laoshi, you coordinate with the trains to clear the city. Kiki—let's go!"

"Chen Laoshi, you coordinate with them to board the train and clear the city—Kiki, let's go!"

BOOM! BOOM! BOOM!

Amid gunfire and artillery, Lao Xie and his remaining bandits fled desperately through the eastern highway, bullets and shells raining behind them. The Fulu Shou Chedui and the Akse Brotherhood's vehicles, led by Xie Guan, were now blood-mad.

These men had all been driven from their homes by these bandits, lost countless comrades. Now, seeing the fleeing bandits, each clenched their teeth—this was their chance for vengeance. They wanted to crush the gas pedal into the floor, annihilate Lao Xie and his men!

The Dawn Chedui stayed behind to mop up remaining bandits hiding in alleys.

On a bandit vehicle, Lao Xie turned back, watching the pursuing Chedui. His face twitched with rage; he crushed the door handle in his fist.

Now, only a dozen vehicles remained in his convoy—barely a hundred men left.

At this point, only a dozen or so vehicles remained behind his convoy, fewer than a hundred people altogether.

Lao Xie cursed—then suddenly looked up. Several figures were flying toward them.

At the front: a man in battle armor. Behind him: two hulking men, and over a dozen others clad in powered suits.

"Such advanced gear—definitely them!"

"So many flight-capable psychics?" Hua Gu Long turned, panicked. His eyes were sharp—he knew Lin Xian's powered suits couldn't fly.

"They're being carried by some kind of psychic," Chi Ying said coldly. His eyes darted in the rearview, pupils turning red. He gritted his teeth: "We can't run. Kill a few to test their mettle."

He kicked open the door, grabbed the roof, and with a grunt, flipped onto the top.

Then, braving the gunfire, he reached both hands backward toward the pursuing Chedui and the sky—his palms revealed two charred, black holes. Instantly, his veins turned black. POP! Two jets of black smoke erupted!

A bandit driver behind saw this, yanked the wheel—but the smoke still clung to his vehicle's rear. Instantly, steel hissed and corroded, thick toxic fumes billowing.

Lin Xian, flying through the air, saw Chi Ying's move through his suit's targeting system—he reacted instantly.

Lin Xian, flying through the air and rapidly closing in on the convoy, saw Chi Ying's movement through his armor's targeting system and reacted instantly.

"Kiki."

"Hey!" Kiki shifted her stance, pulling everyone back, then accelerated ahead of the Fulu Shou Chedui. Her psychic eyes flared—massive telekinetic barrier surged like a tidal wave, swallowing the black smoke and flinging it sideways into the plains.

Chi Ying's face paled. His poison mist was inescapable—even S-class psychics had to retreat. A surprise strike could kill even Destruction-class experts.

But Kiki just… controlled it all? This was his absolute weakness!

But how the hell did Kiki control all the smoke too? This is literally his worst nightmare!

Hua Gu Long stared: "Chi Ying, what's wrong? Your poison didn't work?!"

Chi Ying had relied on this ability for invincibility—especially against pursuit. With the wind right, he could always turn the tables. But today? His trump card failed?!

Chi Ying's gaze trembled as he stared at the flying girl. "She opened…"

Chi Ying's gaze trembled slightly as he stared at the girl flying through the air, speechless.

ZZZT!

Before Chi Ying could answer, a tiny black hole appeared at the center of his gas mask. His eyes glazed over—he tumbled from the vehicle.

High above, Lin Xian's finger extended—a virtual metallic device appeared. A faint whirring hum of energy charging echoed.

Before Chi Ying could reply, the next instant, a charred pinpoint hole appeared right between his gas mask's brows—he went slack-eyed and tumbled from the vehicle.

"Holy shit!" Hua Gu Long gasped, whirled, and raised an arc-pulse rifle at Kiki in midair.

SHHHH! The energy bolt shot out—but vanished before reaching the girl, as if it had never been fired.

At that moment, Lin Xian appeared before them, forming an AT force field shield.

"Lao Xie, these guys are too weird—what do we do?!"

At that moment, Lin Xian appeared behind Kiki and summoned a force field shield before the crowd.

"Old Scorpion, these people are too strange—what do we do!"

Hua Gu Long felt today might be his last day; cold sweat poured down his face. Chi Ying had died without a sound, and the opponent's strike instantly overwhelmed him with a sense of utter helplessness.

Lao Xie sat in the lead vehicle, his gaze shifting constantly as he searched for a response—then he froze, slowly picking up the radio.

"Stop!"

Wuu~

The sand bandit convoy, speeding away at full throttle, suddenly slowed, then came to a gradual halt on an open stretch of land, kicking up swirling clouds of yellow dust, quickly forming a defensive formation.

Behind them, the Fulu Shou convoy, the Akse Brotherhood, and the Dawn convoy also stopped, maintaining a distance between them.

Tada-tada-tada! Pong-pong-pong!

Both sides had halted their vehicles, but gunfire did not cease—the sand bandits retreated behind their vehicles, continuously firing at the pursuing convoy.

A dense hail of bullets slammed into the armored vehicles, spewing forth countless streams of metal.

"Fuck it, let's fight them!"

"Don't panic—our reinforcements are coming! There are our people everywhere around Sha She Kou!"

"Once we're out of the city, this is our territory—these bastards are celebrating too soon!"

The remaining dozens of sand bandits still clung to their arrogance, firing while cursing loudly.

Meanwhile, Lao Xie and Hua Gu Long huddled together; one of their subordinates pulled out another loudspeaker and placed it on the roof. Lao Xie picked up the megaphone and shouted loudly:

"Who are you? Daring to provoke the Iron Alliance—you must not want to survive this wasteland, right?"

On Lin Xian's side, Kiki led everyone down from the air. For safety, all of them took position behind the armored trucks of the Fulu Shou convoy.

"Oh, these guys are trying their usual threats again—looks like they know they're about to die," Kiki said immediately.

"He's waiting for reinforcements," Lin Xian said sharply, seriously: "But Lao Xie and Hua Gu Long still have tricks up their sleeves—stay alert."

"Got it!" Kiki nodded.

"Lin Team Leader!"

At that moment, a Fulu Shou convoy subordinate, dressed in a black suit, scurried over with another megaphone, then pointed up at the roof with a grin.

"German brand, top-tier sound quality—definitely beats their cheap-ass loudspeakers."

From being cornered by despair to turning the tables on the sand bandits, these subordinates were now thrilled and excited, treating Lin Xian like a big boss.

Lin Xian chuckled in surprise—how come every one of Hu Lushou's men sounded just like him, with that shady merchant tone? But from his own perspective, this guy had decent eyesight…

Lin Xian picked up the megaphone, glanced at it, then pressed the button:

"You're the Scorpion Boss, right? I heard you planned to cage all our men and capture our women alive—why the sudden lack of backbone?"

On the sand bandits' side, Lao Xie's eyes flickered, and he growled:

"Brother, you're a dragon crossing the river—we can't touch you. But you should know: the entire Western Desert and Takhan Desert are under the Iron Alliance. We have Iron Alliance signals linking our territories. Cross us, and don't you fear receiving a gift in the wasteland's darkness?"

In Lao Xie's view, Lin Xian's group's firepower wasn't afraid of sand bandit raids—they even had all-terrain trains. The only thing the Iron Alliance could truly threaten them with was—

The night.

For all humans, it was the greatest threat.

So Lao Xie knew clearly: only by mentioning this could he instill fear.

"Not afraid."

To his surprise, Lin Xian responded instantly.

"Iron Alliance signals are just regional signal packet tech—they can't transmit over long distances, only detect changes through overlapping zones. Meaning: if you're in trouble, only the nearest faction within your territory can know you're dead. But I bet, despite your alliance, each faction's territory doesn't overlap freely. And even if one faction detects it, getting the message to every Iron Alliance unit? At least two or three days—assuming other factions rush to relay it via radio. By then, do you think you'll still find us?"

"Besides—once your so-called allies learn all three of your factions have been wiped out, do you really think they'll dare come after me?"

Lin Xian had long seen through this Desert Iron Alliance. He had the Phoenix Order—even the Phoenix Society, a top-tier official organization, couldn't coordinate large areas under blackout conditions without using extremely blood-essence-intensive global radios.

Sand bandits? Plainly put—they're just a bunch of post-apocalyptic rabble. How could they possibly have this level of response?

Even with Iron Alliance signal devices, they're mostly for intimidation—smaller convoys, unable to resist, naturally avoid them.

On the sand bandits' side, Lao Xie and Hua Gu Long both turned pale upon hearing Lin Xian's words. They exchanged glances—they'd already suspected the opponent wasn't intimidated by the Iron Alliance's threats. And Lin Xian had exposed the hollow truth of their alliance: right now, no other convoy would dare raid this joint train.

Even if the Iron Alliance eventually united, they wouldn't even know where Lin Xian's group had gone. "Pull one hair, move the whole body"? Just a big bluff.

Lao Xie's knuckles cracked as he clenched them. He paused, then picked up the communicator again.

"Then what grudge do you hold against us? I don't recall ever seeing you. You're fleeing east to survive—why provoke us sand bandits? Don't tell me you're here to play the righteous hero. State your real purpose. We've got plenty of resources—five hundred blood essences at least. Spare us, and we can talk."

Hearing this, the survivors' convoy members all stiffened—Lao Xie was begging!

Lin Xian couldn't help but snort in amusement. He glanced at Kiki, then at Da Lou and Liang Lei, and said flatly: "I just don't get it…"

He immediately picked up the communicator.

"Oh, by the way—I almost forgot. I already know the location of your base. So…"

Lin Xian cleared his throat, speaking with a sharp tone:

"Fool. Killing you still makes me your enemy."

Puch!

Kiki burst out laughing. All the survivors wore strange expressions—Lin Team Leader's replies were always unpredictable.

Lao Xie's face darkened instantly—he nearly crushed the megaphone in his grip.

As Lao Xie's expression wavered in uncertainty, Hua Gu Long suddenly glanced toward the distant horizons—south, north, and Sha She Kou—all showed dozens of vehicles, kicking up vast clouds of yellow dust.

Seeing this, Hua Gu Long's eyes lit up—he leapt to his feet.

"Hah! Reinforcements are here!"

The remaining sand bandits erupted in excitement.

"They're coming!"

"Our people are here!"

"Turn the tide!"

"This is our territory!"

"The mantis stalks the cicada—the oriole waits behind!" Everyone echoed.

Lao Xie's eye twitched—he immediately understood. The fury on his face melted into relief; fat jowls dripped with cold sweat as he picked up the megaphone again.

This time, his voice was relaxed—the aura of control had returned.

"Sorry, brother—take a look around you. You thought we stopped to talk to you for what reason? Hahaha! Fighting me on my own turf? You're still too green!"

Lao Xie exhaled deeply, continuing:

"This time, I've been outplayed. But since the grudge is made, I hope you'll leave the Western Desert quickly—otherwise, your train might just become my presidential suite."

"Hahahaha!"

As soon as he finished, the sand bandits erupted in wild, arrogant laughter.

Hua Gu Long spat fiercely. He knew reinforcements meant they could escape—but launching a counterattack against the joint train was impossible. That firepower meant death for anyone who charged.

Still, surviving to live another day was the only thing that mattered. Everything else was irrelevant.

The Fulu Shou convoy, Akse Brotherhood, and Dawn convoy members, seeing dust rising from all directions, were now terrified.

But Lin Xian remained calm. He picked up the megaphone and said:

"They say sand bandits are stupid—but I didn't hear they were blind too. Why don't you look closer? Who do you think those vehicles belong to?"

Lin Xian's words instantly silenced the sand bandits' laughter. Many pulled out electronic binoculars—discovering the approaching vehicles weren't sand bandit vehicles at all. They were led by heavy armored base vehicles, followed by numerous off-road trucks. Strangely, every direction's convoy had identical base vehicles—clearly the same faction.

Seeing the images through the binoculars, Lao Xie and Hua Gu Long's faces turned ashen.

Lin Xian stepped out from his convoy, picked up the megaphone, and sighed deeply: "When you attacked Akse City, your subordinates? I already took care of them."

Before dawn, Lin Xian had pre-deployed strike teams to conduct point-to-point sweeps across high-overlap zones identified by Iron Alliance signal pulses, to completely cut off the sand bandits' escape routes.

Sha She Kou was handled by Huo Ge; Yan Zhua region was led by Shu Qin and Lu Chang, who later met Huo Ge at Sha She Kou.

The northern Black Oil Gully was handled by Qian Dele and Xiao Meng with a team.

The southern Wind-Eroded Gate region was infiltrated quietly by Ningjing with Xiao Qing and others from Longshan No. 1.

Iron Rust Hill was personally handled by Mo Nika, accompanied by a white-haired man.

Finally, there was one more location: the fake camp where Lin Xian's group had stayed yesterday. To ensure absolute safety, Lin Xian assigned a team to lie in wait there.

The Hell Warriors team—Da Dong and others.

Twenty minutes ago.

Ma Zi, second-in-command of the Crimson Vulture Squad's Second Unit, received Chi Ying's order and turned directly from Iron Rust Hill toward the camp where Lin Xian's group had stayed yesterday. His team of over twenty vehicles charged across the desert, loaded with heavy weaponry.

Ma Zi didn't have actual freckles—he'd been splashed with zombie blood during a zombie kill, which had infected his skin with a toxin, leaving his face covered in red spots.

He'd been photographed by sand bandits while leading his men.

Though the photo was blurry, Ma Zi's eyes lit up at once.

"Absolute top-tier!"

"Ma Zi Brother, you mean the men or the women?"

"You fucking idiot!"

"Hehehe, I knew my right eyelid kept twitching this morning—it meant Boss gave us a sweet job!" one particularly lewd sand bandit said.

"Brother Ma Zi, thank god Jie Ge isn't here—if he knew we caught so many top-tier specimens to play with, he'd probably die of rage, hahaha!"

Ma Zi sneered: "That idiot's always mouthing off to me. This time, I won't kill them—just keep two alive so he can watch how I play with women."

"Ma Zi Brother, can I have the purple-haired girl?"

"Oh? You like this type?"

"Ma Zi Brother, I want the one with the biggest tits! So haughty—nothing's hotter."

"I want this one…"

"I'm second!"

"Then I'm third…"

The convoy raced at high speed across the desert plateau, but before they even reached their destination, not a single vehicle was to be found in the wind-eroded valley they turned into.

At this moment, Mazi ordered the group to stop. The man who had been so triumphant just moments ago now wore a look of confusion.

"That doesn't make sense—the coordinates given by the Chameleon were right here…"

Bang! Bang! Bang!

Before Mazi could react, intense gunfire erupted from all around the valley.

In less than five minutes, the entire band of desert raiders was annihilated by firepower from every direction.

Soon, the original force of over sixty men was reduced to fewer than ten, all disarmed and kneeling helplessly on the ground.

Amid the terrified and desperate gazes of the desert raiders, seventy or eighty bearded giants in tank tops, their chests hairy and sweat-glistening, advanced from all sides with the force of collapsing mountains. Mazi looked up and saw the armed giants before him—he felt as if surrounded by peaks, and he roared out:

"Do you know who you're messing with? We're the Iron Alliance—"

Slap!

Before Mazi could finish his threat about the Iron Alliance, a giant swung a brutal slap across his face, nearly knocking him unconscious.

The leader, Da Dongge, swept his gaze over the bandits, his eyes burning with eagerness.

"Hehehe, I knew my right eyelid had been twitching all morning—turns out Lin's team gave us a sweet job!"

Hearing this, Mazi and the others couldn't help but shiver unnaturally. They looked up at the sweat-drenched giants, and the way the men stared at them felt strangely familiar.

It was as if…

the way they themselves looked at girls—exactly the same.

(End of Chapter)