Chapter 595: Watch out for friendly forces!

Ding! Ding!

The 7.62mm and. 50cal armor-piercing rounds merely made a tinkling sound against the Annihilator-class's skin, unable to inflict even the slightest damage.

Boom! Boom!

The 40mm mortar shells hit and exploded in succession, merely kicking up black smoke, leaving only slight dents and a scrape on the Annihilator-class's skin.

Unless it's an anti-armor cannon over 100mm in caliber, the firepower of a single infantry tactical squad simply cannot stand against the Annihilator-class, which counts as an alien armored unit.

Moreover, more and more of them appeared—half-human, half-scorpion creatures that were like a smaller, red version of the Annihilator-class, namely the Tank-class, continuously pouring out of gaps and charging at the makeshift position formed by the tactical squad.

Ah!! Die! Die ah!!

Yang Lin, standing beside the engine of a wrecked SUV, held up his ultimate gun while shouting to vent his emotions, firing short and long bursts at the Annihilator-class's scorpion tail head.

However, everything done by all the soldiers, including him, was merely a drop in the bucket.

The Tank-class could be dealt with by their firepower, but they were helpless against the hulking Annihilator-class.

Within just over ten seconds,

That Annihilator-class had already rushed to a point over thirty meters from where the 1st and 2nd squads were positioned, and this huge, ugly creature then swung its massive pincer with incredible speed…

Bang!! Bang!! Flesh and vehicles alike exploded.

The vehicles fell apart, glass shards and parts of the bodywork scattering like fragmentation grenades, while soldiers within the Annihilator-class's attack range suffered the same fate, even more gruesome…

A bloody mess.

Even with mechanical exoskeletons and heavy armor, facing the Annihilator-class's pincer blow, comparable to a bus, everything was as flimsy as paper, utterly useless.

Moreover, even if the soldiers at the front reacted in time, they couldn't withdraw immediately and had to die resentfully on the spot.

"Xiao Tian! Xiao Li!! Damn it!!" the platoon leader, whose helmet had been knocked somewhere unknown, flew into a rage, his eyes bloodshot; in an instant he lost an entire squad's men, leaving him wondering how to accept it.

But the platoon leader, unmoved by emotion, looked back and confirmed that Ping Ming had already withdrawn before issuing the order: "Everyone, fall back in succession; do not cease fire; continue to block!"

"Yes!"

Yang Lin and the remaining soldiers immediately fell back in succession, continuously pouring fire at the Annihilator-class and Tank-class.

As members of the third squad, Yang Lin and his comrades, being in the rear, did not leave right away; they waited for the surviving soldiers of the first and second squads to pass by, then after a few seconds began to turn and withdraw.

Rat-a-tat-tat!!

As the machine gunner, Yang Lin nevertheless had to be the last person.

"Safe!"

The comrade's signal came through the headset; Yang Lin finally moved his right index finger off the trigger, preparing to turn and sprint.

"Save my… child…"

However, before he had fully completed his turn, he heard a faint cry for help from not far ahead in the direction diagonally toward the alien.

?!

Hearing this, Yang Lin's turning motion stalled; he turned his head toward the source of the sound.

!!

All that could be seen was a travel sedan that had been smashed by the Annihilator-class, flung over ten meters away, rolling to a spot not far from their third squad's position, its body twisted and deformed—inside, incredibly, there was still a father and son?

Furthermore, the father seated in the driver's position was gravely wounded, blood seeping out along the cracks and pooling on the ground.

This amount of bleeding…

No hope left.

Yet on the child seat in the back, an infant a few months old lay completely swaddled by the airbag, yet for some reason made not a single cry.

What is going on?

Could it be that, when the Annihilator-class appeared, that father was unwilling to abandon the vehicle and preferred not to flee on foot?

What is the infant's condition?

Is it dead or alive?

Moreover, why had he and his comrades failed to notice this father and son earlier?

In an instant, countless doubts and speculations flooded Yang Lin's mind, but his body had already sprung into action, immediately charging toward the wrecked vehicle.

Since joining the military, the teachings and training Yang Lin had received told him that civilians ranked above orders and his own life.

With the strength and speed boost from his mechanical exoskeleton, a distance of over ten meters vanished in an instant.

"Screech!!"

The twisted, deformed car door, as flimsy as an A4 sheet, was easily torn open by Yang Lin's outstretched hands; he then half‑rose into the rear seat, pulled open the child seat, and gently cradled the infant who appeared to have stopped breathing.

Leaving the vehicle.

Seeing the infant's chest rise and fall normally at close range, Yang Lin's clenched heart finally eased.

"He's still alive!" Yang Lin exclaimed, venting his emotion while also speaking to the dying man.

"..."

After confirming his son was still alive, the father, as if having fulfilled a wish, exhaled his last breath with effort, his head lolling to one side, and lost all vitality.

However.

Yang Lin, however, failed to notice the father's condition; he simply cradled the infant with his left hand and pointed his gun with his right at the approaching few Tank-classes.

Just as he was about to pull the trigger.

!

But Yang Lin jerked his index finger back and glanced at the infant in his arms.

"Xiao Yang! What are you doing!! Get back here right now!" At that moment, the platoon leader's shout came through the headset: "Forget it! Quickly give Xiao Yang cover! Move it, damn it!"

The words fell.

"Rat-a‑tat‑tat!"

The comrades already in position afar opened fire to provide support.

Puff! Pfft!!

His running speed was relatively fast, and the tank‑class units that tried to encircle him were all smashed into sieves.

One of the guys even leapt fiercely, opened his humanoid mouth and lunged at Yang Lin, thus becoming the soldiers' focus of fire, being shot to explode and burst in midair.

At this moment, Yang Lin didn't linger, turned and ran, but…

"Rou~—!"

But as he turned, he also heard a fierce howl and a tearing of the air from behind.

That meant he had entered the target‑class's attack range, and that ugly giant scorpion had already swung its bus‑sized massive claws.

!!!

Realizing the blow was unavoidable, Yang Lin instantly unleashed the fastest reaction speed of his life, closed his eyes, curled his body, firmly cradling the infant in his chest, preparing to press everything onto his Mechanical exoskeleton and armor.

Of course, his own body could also serve as a "meat cushion" for buffering; even if there was the slightest chance, he wouldn't let go of any opportunity to keep the child alive…

Even if it meant living a few seconds longer than him.

Buzz~!!! Sss… Boom!!

Suddenly, a harsh chain rotation sounded, like the fierce noise a chainsaw makes when cutting hard material, echoing across the whole street.

Boom…!!

And the next moment, a huge and heavy object crashed to the ground.

??

Because he curled his body, Yang Lin fell to the ground and was stunned; logically, he should have died by now, right?

And why had his comrades' gunfire also stopped?

With doubt, he opened his eyes.

First he looked up toward the front, seeing his comrades each with mouths agape, faces showing disbelief as they stared at what was behind him.

Then Yang Lin also turned to look back…

!!

and joined the astonished crowd.

Within a distance of just over twenty meters from him and the target‑class, a blue Tie Guantou at least three meters six or seven tall had appeared out of nowhere!

Its armor was thick, especially the shoulder pauldrons, and its back bore a pair of robust mechanical arms, each holding a missile launch tube and a rotating machine gun of indeterminate caliber.

The helmet's red mane, waist iron chain, and various cloth strips (purity marks) gave it a vibe reminiscent of an ancient Roman Praetorian guard.

Most striking was the double‑edged, about 1.8‑meter‑long massive Chain Saw mounted beneath the left arm armor.

Together with the massive claws that fell on either side, Yang Lin guessed that Tie Guantou had intervened, blocking that fatal blow and then using the Chain Saw to slice the target‑class's claws.

This…

Is it still human?!

Even with a three‑meter‑six or seven physique and advanced powered armor assistance, compared to a target‑class that moves like a low mountain, it is still an overly "tiny" existence.

But the fact is the situation before his eyes.

"Heh!" At this moment, Tie Guantou let out a metallic‑sounding scoffing laugh, shook his shoulder joints, and said:

"Mince."

Buzz—!

As the words fell, Tie Guantou again set the double‑edged Chain Saw's chain whirring rapidly, and despite his seemingly bulky, clumsy frame, moved with extremely agile, swift steps, charging toward the target‑class.

"Puff!!" The flesh was brutally blasted.

"Sss!!" The chain rapidly shredded flesh.

During the charge, a multitude of tank‑class units swarmed forward, trying to block its momentum, but each turned into meat sauce and fragments without exception.

In less than a blink.

Miraculously, the ghost‑like Tie Guantou was already standing at the target‑class's back.

His left‑hand Chain Saw slashed toward the human‑headed scorpion tail, his right hand slammed into the nauseating lower jaw, and then…

"Sss!!!" Blood sprayed like a fountain.

When the left Chain Saw's decapitation was only half done, the right hand impatiently yanked outward, brute‑forcing the entire human‑headed scorpion tail off.

Without pausing, Tie Guantou's right hand, clutching a scorpion tail more than twice his own size, lifted his left foot and kicked.

"Boom!!!" Meat splattered everywhere.

It seemed quite practiced, a kick‑and‑crush move, as if a venting execution habit.

However, after dealing with the fatal human‑headed scorpion tail, he finally realized a massive target‑class was on his back and began frantically struggling, trying to fling it off.

"Oh?" Tie Guantou lowered his head slightly, his dual monitors emitting a faint red glow, staring at the spot beneath his feet that had paused for a second.

Then…

Buzz… Sss!!!

He directly used the Chain Saw to easily shred skin that even a 40 mm grenade couldn't damage, then operated the left missile launch tube, thrusting it into the gash at close range.

Whoosh!!

A slender missile burst from its tube, drilling straight into the target‑class's body.

With virtually no delay, a fireball about forty meters in diameter instantly formed from within, devouring the entire target‑class and Tie Guantou.

"Boom‑rumble!!!" A fierce explosion and powerful shock followed in quick succession.

The Yang Lin who had just stood up hunched over again, his back facing the explosion, while his comrades all hurriedly bowed their heads.

When the shockwave receded and the firelight faded, a small mushroom cloud replaced the previous fireball, smoke filling the entire street, visibility dropping to its lowest point.

Dong, dong.

However, Yang Lin and all his comrades could clearly hear the clank of some metal boots striking the road.

At the same time, the pair of flickering dark‑red eyes of the Iron Can also became especially conspicuous in the thick smoke, and they continued to gaze at Yang Lin, who was protecting the infant.

After a moment.

The eyes disappeared one by one, indicating that the Iron Can, still unharmed at the blast's epicenter, seemed to have turned around, facing the collapsed breach dug out by the destruction‑level explosion.

Then…

Ri~——ka-ka-ka!!!

A burst of ringing‑crisp, moving sound—yet not overly deafening—of heavy artillery fire and flames continued to emanate from the core of the smoke.

Seeing this,

All the comrades rose from cover, gathering around Yang Lin to ensure the safety of him and the infant in his arms.

Next, the platoon leader, wearing a more advanced helmet with thermal imaging, looked toward the smoke's core, but the result was just a blank whiteout, as if suffering interference.

He then ordered: "Xiao Gao, take two people forward ten meters, conduct some scouting; I always feel this smoke has lasted a bit too long—perhaps it's a jamming measure released by that Iron Can."

Yes, platoon leader.

Upon receiving the order, three people immediately stepped forward to advance.

Swish! Swish!

But before the three soldiers could act, sparkling azure orbs suddenly flashed all around them.

Next, more blue‑painted Iron Cans, dressed like ancient Roman Praetorian Guards and centurions, appeared as if teleporting, encircling the soldiers in the center.

And the smoke, suspected by the platoon leader of having jamming capability, began to rapidly dissipate as more than a dozen new Iron Cans 'entered the fray'.

At this moment.

The platoon leader and Yang Lin then realized that the Iron Can had not only blown the destruction‑level target to pieces, but was also using the rotary machine gun mounted on its mechanical arm to create an 'absolute vacuum' zone between itself and the tank‑level threat, single‑handedly holding the entire street.

Moreover, the dozen or so Iron Cans that had seemingly teleported beside them using unknown technology were also stepping forward with heavy treads, preparing to formally 'enter the fray'.

'Keep the projectile muzzle velocity below the speed of sound,' one of the Iron Cans reminded everyone in a metallic tone.

Next.

Amid the bewildered chaos of the local soldiers, these dozen Iron Cans had already reversed their advance and struck, even sending two volunteers leaping into the underground tunnel dug for the destruction‑level target.

Holy shit… platoon leader, who are these people?

Old Liu, you need to ask whether those big guys are human.

Once the street had returned to normal, the soldiers finally opened up.

I don't know who those Iron Cans are; maybe they're a secret unit developed by higher command. The platoon leader also shook his head.

Hiss… At that moment, a busy signal came over everyone's comms, followed by a hoarse voice that was instantly recognizable as a senior officer issuing an order over the public channel:

I am Lieutenant General Gao Tiankuo of the Third Field Army; all troops, take note: any warrior whose physique and build far exceed the norm and who wears blue paint is a friendly force of the Human Empire.

Take note, those warriors are all friendly forces.

(End of chapter)