Chapter 129: R: The Bat Event (Part 6)

Over the Brooklyn Bridge, Rodriguez, clad in his armor, shot past the ground troops, then slammed a bat attempting to ambush him to the ground and pounded it twice.

After receiving the signal from Stark overhead, Director George raised one hand and shouted into his comm device: "All units! Prepare for suppressive fire! Drive them under the bridge!"

Captain America swung his shield, knocking back two humanoid vampires beside him, then feigned defeat, leaping off the bridge with his shield—the two vampires, of course, had no hesitation and followed him down.

To them, the man with the shield was merely stronger than an ordinary human; had his shield not been so unbreakable, they would have broken through Steve's defense long ago.

Seeing the advantage on their side, the two vampires chased Steve relentlessly from behind, completely unaware that several bizarre-looking armors were speeding toward the bridge piers above them.

Natasha stood atop a truck behind the firing line; watching Stark's self-destruct armor ready, she said: "Listen, the detonation sequence is this: the No. 1 pier is heavily damaged—we can ignore it for now, as the subsequent blasts will destroy it anyway. We must first blow up the strongest pier—must be done in one continuous motion, no time for those bats beneath to react…"

Stark said from above: "No. 4 and No. 5 armors in position, preparing for detonation. JARVIS, calculate blast radius…"

"Blast radius confirmed. All friendly forces evacuated. Flight trajectories calculated… Preparing for detonation… 3… 2… 1…"

Stark hovered above the Brooklyn Bridge, watching several streaks of light surge toward its underside. The moment they struck the piers, flames erupted, the deafening explosions battered their eardrums, bricks blasted hundreds of meters into the air, and the entire bridge collapsed with a thunderous crash, the rising smoke and dust obscuring the entire battlefield.

JARVIS's voice echoed through every radio: "Detonation completed. Expected effect achieved. Proceed to next phase of operation…"

"How many enemies eliminated?" Stark asked.

"Based on biological scans from surrounding armors, the bridge collapse killed 132 vampires. Approximately 120 remain severely wounded and are regenerating…"

Before JARVIS finished, Natasha shouted: "Track their positions! Send to night-vision visors! Kill those wounded vampires immediately!"

Stark clicked his tongue from above—he'd just watched one bat whose wings had both been pinned through, yet it struggled, flapped twice, burst free from beneath two massive stones, and within minutes was flying erratically again.

"This regeneration is lethal. I hope Conners is nearly done—this kind of fighting will never end."

But the battlefield situation continued improving: with fighter squadrons and ground special forces coordinating, supported by heavy firepower and Stark's armor units maneuvering through, the vampires' formation was shattered. The bridge explosion had destroyed most of their combat strength; only a few high-ranking vampires now fought desperately.

The strategic counteroffensive began in full. Human lines advanced steadily; the flashes of machine guns and the blasts of grenades came in relentless succession, punctuated by sharp screams from the ground.

Blade, wielding an assault rifle, emptied a magazine into a high-ranking vampire's head, then took a deep drag from his cigarette and crushed the butt under his boot: "Looks like we won't need three days—tonight we'll finish them…"

No sooner had he spoken than he felt something wrong—a sudden red glow lit up on a rooftop in Brooklyn.

Instantly, the red light solidified, slowly forming the shape of a bat.

Stark saw it too, frowning: "What the hell is that? Who's doing a light show on the battlefield?"

Blade cursed under his breath, grabbed his radio, and yelled: "They're performing the ritual! Stop them now!!!"

Before he finished speaking, Captain America launched a sonic dash, then leapt straight onto the rooftop—but it was too late. Steve saw a massive mysterious array on the roof, but no one was there.

"How do I destroy this?" Steve asked.

Before he could finish, screams erupted across the battlefield—all vampires exposed to the red bat light shrieked in inhuman agony, their faces twisting grotesquely as they transformed into bat forms.

These bats were unlike the old ones: each had a wingspan exceeding ten meters, spines growing along their wing bones, fangs lengthening, their once-normal bat faces now monstrous and terrifying.

More importantly, the red glow in their eyes intensified, and collectively they lost all reason, attacking everyone around them indiscriminately.

Even the high-ranking vampires weren't spared—though the bat monsters they became were wreathed in thick black mist. Several police officers who inhaled even a trace of the mist immediately clutched their throats and collapsed.

"Quick! Put on gas masks! Now!" Director George shouted.

But it was too late—the officers who inhaled the mist began thrashing, wings sprouting from their backs, transforming into mad bat monsters themselves.

Previously, vampire attacks had infection capabilities, but transformation was slow; once infection was detected, personnel were immediately withdrawn for treatment.

But these officers transformed into bat monsters in an instant, with no chance of medical aid. Director George's eyes burned red as he roared: "Fire! Indiscriminate fire! Blow these monsters to pieces!!!"

Iron Man accelerated to full speed, dove, and grabbed a bat monster, then blasted its head—yet the monster didn't stop struggling; instead, it grew even more frenzied.

"They're being controlled!" Stark said. "Damn it! Even headshots aren't lethal?"

Blade's voice crackled over the radio: "It's an undying power—burn them! Burn them to ash! That's the only way to kill them! Quick! Prepare flamethrowers!"

But no one anticipated this turn—the flamethrower, an irregular weapon, was not equipped by any combat unit.

The mutated bats' combat power surged dramatically: headshots and heart punctures no longer killed them. Their bodies grew larger, their strength increased, and they were utterly insane—fearless, relentless, only attacking.

The tide of battle reversed instantly. Humans were driven back step by step; even Stark, surrounded by the frenzied bat monsters, struggled to keep up.

Finally, after another bat slammed into him, Stark snarled: "JARVIS! Connect me to my lab at Stark Tower!"

A familiar voice answered: "I'm assisting Conners with research. What is it?"

"Manually override the highest security protocol," Stark said grimly.

"Are you sure? Didn't you say to wait until the situation became desperate?"

"It's desperate now." Stark watched more humans transform into bat monsters—the swarm of creatures blotted out nearly all moonlight. "Hurry! This isn't the time to consider cost!"

Shiler held the phone, walked to a hatch in the lab, entered the password Stark had given him, stepped inside, and found only a lever. He placed his hand on the screen; after two beeps, he yanked the lever down.

Immediately, a lighthouse-like beam began rotating atop Stark Tower. The weapon storage hatch on the top floor opened, and dozens of armored units carrying heavy weapons launched outward.

Most importantly, two massive steel monsters stepped out—one resembled the one Obadiah once piloted; the other bore resemblance to General Johnson's tentacled steel beast, yet clearly had been modified.

These two colossal armors stepped from the tower roof, leapt to another rooftop, then raced toward the battlefield at full speed.

With the arrival of the two giant armors, the brutal battle eased slightly.

These steel monsters were large enough to engage both ground and air targets; grabbing a bat allowed them to tear it apart. Moreover, the one Obadiah once piloted carried a built-in flamethrower, eliminating numerous frenzied bats.

Just as the tide began to turn, more vampires flooded into the battlefield—as if their commander deliberately chose this moment. These vampires, the moment they entered, were bathed in red light and transformed into even more frenzied bat monsters.

Now even Iron Man and his armor units were forced to retreat temporarily. Conners received Stark's call: "Conners, when will your support arrive? We're about to break!"

Peter held a test tube: "Doctor, I think we're nearly there—this serum should temporarily nullify the vampires' regeneration."

"Correct—but only if we inflict lethal damage within the serum's duration. That means we must first reclaim our positions."

Peter looked up at Conners, who pulled out a syringe. Peter said: "Wait… Doctor… what's that? That can't be…"

On the battlefield, Stark dove, shredded a bat's wing, and blood splattered his armor. He cursed: "Damn! So filthy!"

Before he finished speaking, the bat's wing began regrowing.

Steve was nearly buried under a pile of bats; he strained to hold his shield, smashing one bat far away—only for it to return moments later.

Hawkeye hid behind a bridge ruin, rapidly drawing and firing arrows, his arms trembling. The Shockwave Woman hammered the ground, blasting away approaching bats. Natasha, from behind, used binoculars to provide tactical support.

"Iron Man! Fall back! They…"

Before Natasha could finish, Stark was tackled by a much larger bat, its fangs sinking into his left arm. Sparks flew—he roared: "Activate electric shock!"

A powerful surge of electricity erupted, paralyzing the bat. Stark seized the chance to break free, but before the mech could take flight, that bat pursued again.

The airflow from its wings made Stark's mech unstable; it looked as though it would be knocked down again. Steve swung his shield and struck one of the bat's wings. The bat tilted, and Stark used the opening to pull up. He said, "Thanks!"

"Behind you!" Steve shouted.

As soon as Stark turned his head, a violent gust of wind rushed at him. Clearly, a bat had been lying in ambush nearby for a long time. Stark tried to dodge, but it was too late; the bat was too close. Stark said, "Initiate ejection sequence! Then self-destruct the mech!"

"Ejecting now at this altitude would endanger your life," JARVIS said.

Stark's peripheral vision caught Steve on the ground. He said, "Initiate ejection! Immediately!"

A figure was launched out of the mech. Immediately after, the mech erupted with intense electric sparks, then exploded. Both bats were blown away; one was directly burned to a crisp.

"Deceived Kangxi"

Steve leaped directly, caught Stark, and set him down on the ground. Before Stark could say anything more, both felt a massive shadow cover them from above.

They turned around. Stark cursed, "Shit, what the hell is that?!"

Behind them stood a towering green monster, over ten meters tall. It stomped the bat that had barely escaped into a pulp. A lizard monster as big as a small hill leaned down, its enormous vertical pupils staring at Stark as it flicked its tongue and said to him:

"Your backup has arrived."

————Author's Note————

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