Chapter 218: A Battle Where the Future is at Stake

Still dressed in his dark-patterned white suit, Black Lotus stood tall on the bridge of the warship, his expression unreadable as he stared quietly at the image of Haiyang displayed on the screen.

It was not a static map, nor a photograph; it was, surprisingly, real-time surveillance.

If it were not for the current apocalypse, no one else would find it strange or shocking; it was clearly a local satellite map magnified many times over.

How clear was it? One could see every explosion and every person running.

Not to mention the Base Burning the zombies outside the high walls, and then the armored troops filing out; that scale of mobilization was no laughing matter.

And what Black Lotus focused on, throughout, was that silver-white figure that had dodged long-range attacks several times.

"It's a Mecha. The Huaguo military has actually developed combat Mecha. Judging by this level of mobility, it's likely a big problem."

Behind Black Lotus, a burly man with a buzzcut and a red-line tattoo on his head crossed his arms and shook his head incessantly, "Troublesome, really troublesome."

"Heh," a sharp, mocking chuckle came from the pale-faced, gloomy youth on the other side, "They have Mecha, but do we not? It can dodge shells, but can it dodge a swarm of our Mecha?"

His tone was extremely disdainful; one could tell at a glance he was a difficult person to get along with.

These two men were none other than Black Tiger and Black Eye, both in the Black Sequence of the Heavenly Viper.

Heihu had always looked down on this gloomy, sickly man who resembled a poisonous snake, and he immediately clenched his fist, causing a series of cracks, "What the hell are you spouting? Can those Mecha of mine compare to this thing? Dodging shells is so simple, why don't you go try dodging one for me, you bastard!"

"Enough!" Black Lotus frowned slightly, a flash of impatience crossing his jade-like, handsome face, "Go make preparations and follow the second wave ashore. No matter who is piloting that Mecha, you must kill Bai Chonghuan first."

"Yes!" The two glared at each other and left the bridge together. As they exited, Black Eye was bumped by Black Tiger's large frame and could only fall a few steps behind.

Once the sounds of their mutual cursing had faded, Black Lotus used a finger clad in a pristine white glove to tap on the location of the silver-white Mecha, and the image zoomed in.

"Does the interception of the previous missiles have anything to do with it?"

This was the question he cared about most. The reason he waited until those two idiots had left to ask was that he knew full well they would shrink from the task.

Inside the Heavenly Viper, everyone claimed to have a common ideal, but that was just brainwashing rhetoric for the bottom-tier cattle and horses. Once one reached the Black Sequence, no one was a fool who would risk their life just because the pie being drawn was beautiful enough.

The technician quickly denied this speculation, "It shouldn't be. According to reliable intelligence, the Haiyang Base has possessed the capability to launch and intercept missiles for over a decade. It is also a frontline for Huaguo's coastal defense, so it should be that the radar inside the Base captured our launch signal and carried out the interception."

The captain nearby added, "Leader, you don't need to worry. As far as I know, the radar at Haiyang Base is more than half broken. If we continue with long-range strikes, their air defense system will soon collapse, and then we can blow up the core of the Base in one fell swoop, turning those people directly into corpses."

The captain's tone was sycophantic. Although his rank within the Heavenly Viper was not low, the Black Lotus beside him now was the operational leader appointed by that never-before-seen 'Number One'. Not only for this operation, but after the organization lost Black Mamba and Red Flower, and Night Owl was exiled due to poor performance, Black Lotus was naturally the most powerful figure now.

"Is that so?"

Black Lotus's tone was somewhat skeptical, but under the current restrictions of the Heavenly Sword, they had failed to discover the detailed launch location of the interceptor missiles in time, and could only confirm the area was within Haiyang City.

"Let that fool go test the waters. Huaguo's military industry is hidden too deep. If it really is a combat monster, I will take action myself."

This operation staked the future of the Heavenly Viper, and it staked everyone's lives.

If they could not seize this piece of land, then the Heavenly Viper would have to withdraw from Huaguo entirely.

The order for Black Tiger to deal with the Mecha was quickly passed down, while Black Eye's Assassination Squad would detour to the rear flank where the landing troops were fighting the Haiyang army, finding an opportunity to behead Bai Chonghuan and several other regimental and battalion commanders.

Heihu's Mecha squad required an airdrop. Just as they were descending, the satellite map on the warship flickered a few times, and the screen turned into static.

"Lost it again?"

Black Lotus's handsome, fair face was tightly furrowed. Currently, the Heavenly Viper only had two usable satellites; one did not pass over the Southeast Three Provinces, and the one they could use only stayed over this area for fifteen minutes every eight hours, which was why they were landing during this window.

But from now on, the battle could only be deduced based on the news transmitted from the front.

The target of the Mecha airdrop was simply too large; it was impossible for Liu Mu not to notice.

Seeing the giant steel 'dumplings' falling from the sky, she, who had no constraints of battlefield morality, shot directly at the air without the slightest hesitation.

The distance was no more than three kilometers; who was looking down on whose range?

Such idiots had nine times out of ten underestimated the functions of Zreo, actually thinking they could land safely by maintaining a certain distance. Since that was the case, she would kindly teach them a lesson.

However, under the reminder of Heitao A, what she fired were not ordinary shells, but weapons that would cause equipment to short-circuit; the main material was likely graphene.

The shells flew for a while, aiming to explode just as each 'dumpling' was about to land. They exploded into countless fine filaments that directly wrapped around those Mecha.

As Liu Mu rushed over, Zreo's perspective zoomed in, clearly seeing those Mecha flashing with arcs of electricity within the shroud of filaments, then emitting black smoke from various gaps before shutting down right where they were.

"If I take them back to repair, they can still be used. The Heavenly Viper really likes sending me good things as always!"

Liu Mu naturally knew that these Mecha were countless versions behind Zreo, but even so, they were still cutting-edge products of Earth's military industry.

If asked how she knew, naturally, Liu Mu might not understand military industry, but did she not understand the Heavenly Viper?

People from the Heavenly Viper would not use low-end goods, just as Shengjie Xiuni was never short of money.

By the time she arrived, the people inside who had been stunned by the short-circuiting of these Mecha had just regained consciousness.

It had to be said, Liu Mu appreciated the combat quality of these people; they had regained consciousness in less than ten minutes. If they had faced ordinary soldiers, it would have been a disaster!

Based on this consideration, Liu Mu dragged them out directly, one bullet per person, a fair headshot.

The broken Mecha were naturally collected into the Recovery Space; it was reasonable and fair.

Subsequent analysis and dismantling would have to wait until this war was over; she had time to study them slowly and then organize mass production.

As she gratefully accepted the big gift, she naturally did not know how disappointed Black Lotus was in the bridge of one of the warships upon hearing the news that the transport planes had been neutralized.

Wiped out before even landing—it was unbelievable, as if it carried a hint of fantasy. They didn't even know the opponent's means of attack. Each Mecha, costing over ten million, had just gone down the drain like that, without even making a ripple.

Black Lotus could no longer maintain his elegance; he slammed the table in a rage, demanding that the people on the transport planes explain the matter in detail again.

Meanwhile, Liu Mu, having finished collecting the Mecha, looked up at the transport plane still hovering over the sea, licked her lips, and wanted to...