I transformed into a cute girl and lived a carefree life in the apocalypse.

Chapter 150 Artillery Barrage

The Sandstone Dragon howled in agony, its skin charred by the high temperature of the neutron bomb. Its most prized defensive shell was now a paste-like substance plastered all over its body, and the scalding heat drove it into a rage.

"Roar, roar—"

The tyrant came running from a distance, having spotted the people on the city wall, and was rushing towards them at full speed. With each step it took, the earth shook and boulders crumbled, sweeping away all obstacles in its path with unstoppable force.

Yan Ziming estimated that this guy's running speed had reached an astonishing 200 km/h, and he could probably reach their position in less than ten minutes.

Other mutated species followed the tyrant's lead. Although they didn't know where the human army was, they knew that following the strongest was the right thing to do. So, the beast tide they formed surged forward, following far behind the tyrant. The tyrant, leading the way, was like the most valiant warrior among the mutated species, intending to crush the human army in front of him.

"Fire at full power!"

boom--

Countless self-propelled artillery pieces began spewing flames, creating ripples of water around them. Various heavy firepower was unleashed, with mortars, main battle tanks, and rocket launchers all firing. Countless 155mm grenades, mortar shells, armor-piercing high-explosive shells, and so on, all crashed into the mutated species cluster.

In an instant, deafening explosions resounded, billowing flames rose into the air, mixed with raindrops of shrapnel, covering the entire range of the mutated species in the back row. The fine rain that was flying everywhere was directly swept away by the scorching hot air. The flames of death engulfed everything, and many weapons fired at the same time, which was more spectacular than a volcanic eruption.

Under such intense firepower, the mutated species that were not harmed by the neutron bombs were fortunate enough to experience a different kind of artillery fire. Under the impact of the powerful air waves, their bodies were either roasted by the high temperature and heat, torn apart by the scattered shrapnel, or blown to pieces by the shock wave of the explosion. It was quite a spectacular sight.

The troops participating in this battle were among the most elite forces in China, most of whom were soldiers who had experienced the darkest period of the apocalypse. They were true veterans and elite troops. The armored divisions, which already possessed high military skills, completed their aiming immediately, calculated and allocated various artillery angles, and then launched their attacks. Shells came from all sorts of tricky angles, instantly leaving the mutated species completely bewildered.

Almost all mutated species swallowed by the explosion were doomed. Those hit by the aftershocks of the energy wave were tossed about, their limbs and internal organs scattered across the ground, filling the air with a foul, acrid smell, giving one the feeling that "this is no worse than hell."

Yan Zimo frowned:

"That's not enough. There are too many of them. We need more powerful firepower."

"How many of them do you think will be left by the time they reach us?" Lin Shuqi asked, her voice trembling slightly as she was terrified by the sight, having never witnessed anything like it before.

"It's hard to say. Based on the current firepower, we can still have at least six or seven hundred thousand." Yan Ziming pondered for a moment and gave a rather vague figure.

"so much!"

Lin Shuqi was surprised, as this far exceeded her expectations. She thought that there would be at least tens of thousands of mutated species left, but Yan Ziming gave a figure of six or seven hundred thousand.

"What else did you think? There are millions of these mutated species. There are just too many of them. We'll have a lot to fight later."

After these rounds of attacks, the mutated species became even more aggressive, charging towards the human positions in hordes, stepping over the corpses of their own kind. Even those who were half-dead, had several limbs severed, or were on the verge of death, as long as they were still alive, they all charged forward relentlessly, as if their lives depended on it. The stimulation from the blood was more intense than any pain, and their eyes were all red, with a bloodthirsty red light flashing in their eyes.

However, it was all for naught.

The artillery barrage clearly wouldn't end after that short time; it would come wave after wave, the endless barrage firmly holding them back and slowing their advance. But even at their slowest pace, they were indeed moving forward, inching closer to the human positions.

Moreover, it was raining, which weakened the firepower. Despite the best protective measures, some of the shells were still affected by the dampness of the rain and became damp to some extent. A small portion of the shells that landed among the beasts were duds.

It was because of this small number of duds that some small gaps appeared in the large net woven by the artillery fire. Many mutated species seized this small gap and rushed forward, quickly gathering into a considerable number.

"Are these bastards on steroids?!" some people cursed from the city wall. Judging from the current situation, they would inevitably have to enter close combat, and casualties would be unavoidable.

"The weather isn't going well for us. The close-quarters combat later on is going to be extremely fierce, so you all need to be careful," Yan Ziming warned Lin Shuqi and the others.

She keenly realized that although her side currently held the upper hand, this was only due to their distance advantage. Furthermore, the mutated species' current formation was still very dense. Once they dispersed, her artillery defense network would inevitably become weaker due to the extended battle line. In such intense artillery fire, the mutated species that survived the longest would become stronger, and that would be the real battle for them.

Besides that group of mutated species, there were also quite a few S-class mutated species, which were the biggest threat, especially those with particularly thick skin and flesh that could withstand most artillery fire. They had created a considerable distance between themselves and the beast tide behind them.

Suddenly, hundreds of armed helicopters rose into the sky and fired hundreds of high-explosive rockets, leaving trails in the air as they aimed at the tyrant running down the road. It did not dodge, but simply let the rockets hit it, exploding into fireballs on its body.

This is one of the biggest threats on the battlefield right now, and many people are paying attention to it, hoping that this round of firepower can inflict some damage on it.

However, after the fireball dissipated, its body surface only showed slight signs of burning, indicating that it had not achieved much success. Nevertheless, everyone understood that the physical strength of an SS-level mutated species was not to be underestimated. Li Hao had never intended to kill it with just a few hundred high-explosive rockets. If it were that easy to kill it, humanity would not have been so severely suppressed in the apocalypse.

He simply wanted to use this volley of rockets to test the extent of the tyrant's defenses, and to determine the effectiveness of the next round of attacks based on the results.

After careful calculations, Li Haoyi came to a conclusion—only close-in weapon systems or some super-heavy firepower could inflict considerable damage on it. He then picked up the walkie-talkie and contacted command.

"Requesting ballistic missile support."

Before long, many small black dots appeared in the sky, a total of twelve. These were all used to deal with S-class mutated species. The Tyrant was naturally the focus of attention, with half of the ballistic missiles landing around it. One after another, small suns rose up. Amidst the thunderous explosions, the temperature at the impact point reached tens of thousands of degrees Celsius. Countless cracks appeared on the solid ground, revealing a dark red lava-like appearance.

"Roar--"

The tyrant's roar shattered the flames of the explosion, revealing its bloodied and mangled body. It held an S-class mutated species in its hands, using its body to block most of the energy impact. Only a small portion hit its body, but it still caused considerable damage.

"Let's do another round and see if we can wipe this beast out completely." Li Hao snorted coldly, continued to call for backup, and even requested the launch of burrowing bombs, which were intended to deal with the Sandstone Dragon.

Chapter 151 The Issue of Combat Strength

The Sandstone Dragon had caught up from behind. The pain from its wounds drove it into an unprecedented frenzy. It trampled and killed many mutated species along the way, quickly overtaking the Tyrant and reaching the forefront. The ground shook violently, and even the self-propelled artillery's accuracy was affected by the violent shaking, further widening the gaps in the firepower network.

"Tsk, as expected of the Sandstone Dragon, it has already taken a quarter of the total amount of firepower from the entire battle, right?"

Yan Ziming's lips twitched as he watched the Sandstone Dragon closing the distance. Most of their artillery fire had been shifted from the beast tide to it, but it could only slightly slow its advance. The straight-line distance between them was now less than ten kilometers.

Just then, a dozen small black dots appeared in the sky, three of which were Dongfeng-15 ground-penetrating bombs, all of which slammed into the Sandstone Dragon. This guy had to be taken out first, otherwise, once it got close, our firepower network might collapse!

Unfortunately, due to the Dongfeng-15's accuracy of only 10 to 20 meters, and the Sandstone Dragon's high-speed movement, only one missile hit its body head-on. The missile penetrated directly into the Sandstone Dragon's left rear side, and then—

Boom!

A raging inferno erupted from the lower left side of the Sandstone Dragon's abdomen, and a thick cloud of blood mist burst forth from its entire body. Its eyes, nose, and mouth were all like they had been filled with water, with large amounts of blood spraying out from within.

Even so, it did not die; its vitality remained strong, only its forward momentum slowed considerably.

"Is this guy a monster? He's still alive!" A chorus of curses erupted from the city wall, all expressing their anger at this seemingly indestructible cockroach.

"It was a monster to begin with..." Yan Ziming thought to himself. Did these people not even use their brains when they were cursing?

"Big sister, look at the Tyrant." Ye Qianxue pointed to another explosion site. The Tyrant was still running towards them unharmed. The ballistic missile hadn't caused it any damage at all.

—What just happened?

Yan Ziming was puzzled. Had he missed?

Her entire attention was focused on the Sandstone Dragon, and she had no idea what was happening on the Tyrant's side.

That shouldn't be the case!

With so many ballistic missiles, surely one of them should hit. The Tyrant isn't like those other mutated species that are as small as ants; its size is what it is, so it's impossible for it to miss.

"So fast..."

Standing at the very front, Li Hao witnessed the entire process. Everyone else was focused on the Sandstone Dragon running at the front, but Li Hao didn't. Although the Sandstone Dragon was the main threat, it wouldn't last long, and death was inevitable. So he only glanced at it briefly and then ignored it, instead observing the Tyrant. That's when he saw the astonishing scene.

Just as the warhead was about to hit, the Tyrant suddenly increased its speed threefold, crushing the ground beneath its feet in that instant of acceleration, successfully evading the ballistic missile attack.

Its speed has now returned to normal. It seems that the acceleration just now was only a short burst and could not be maintained indefinitely, otherwise it would be too terrifying.

Imagine a super monster, comparable in size to an ancient giant, capable of running at speeds exceeding 500 km/h. How much unpredictability would it bring to the battlefield? How much pressure and casualties would it inflict on your own side?

It's simply unbelievable!

However, although its speed has decreased, it is now far beyond Li Haoyi's warning range. It only needs to deliver a heavy blow to make all the self-propelled artillery under the city wall fail to aim, or it can leap into the air and land straight in front of the position to start a bloody massacre.

"Move away from the tyrants' firepower in a straight line from here in one minute. Yan Ziming, Fang Yan, you two prepare to fight with me."

Yan Ziming was surprised. He hadn't expected to be fighting in close combat so soon, especially against an SS-rank tyrant. He worried he might get beaten to death by the tyrant if he wasn't careful.

"We should have more than one or two eighth-tier fighters, so why aren't they fighting?"

The man named Fang Yan, who was the second seventh-level ability user in the fourth column besides Yan Ziming, asked the question that Yan Ziming most wanted to ask.

Admittedly, the eighth rank is the strongest combat force below the ninth rank, and their numbers are not many. There are only about forty people nationwide, and there may be more. A small portion of them are not directly under the military and are more like rogue cultivators in cultivation novels. Most of the rest hold important positions or serve as the defense force of their own military administrative regions and rarely have the opportunity to go out to distant places to carry out missions.

However, this rescue operation involved more than just one administrative region, and all of them were among the top seven in the country. Naturally, there were quite a few eighth-level ability users. Yan Ziming knew of Li Haoyi, Mu Mu, and Lao Wang alone. These three alone outnumbered the eighth-level powerhouses from the Yongjing Military Administrative Region.

The rescue team consisted of four military administrative regions: Xihai, Sanqin, Jiangning, and Bei'an. If each region sent one or two experts, there should have been at least four level-eight powerhouses.

Li Haoyi, an ability user with a strong military background, is undoubtedly from the Bei'an Military Administrative Region. Yan Ziming knows that Lao Wang and Mu Mu came from the West Sea, but what about Jiangning and Sanqin?

Furthermore, Yan Ziming hadn't seen Mu Mu since returning from the battle at the research institute. Knowing her as she did, Yan Ziming knew that Mu Mu would definitely look for her once she returned. The fact that she was able to spend the day peacefully yesterday meant that Mu Mu hadn't returned yet, and might not even be on the battlefield right now.

"I wonder what secret mission she received. The final battle has already begun and she still hasn't returned."

Yan Ziming suddenly missed her. This wasn't because Yan Ziming had feelings for Mu Mu, but because he needed her combat strength.

Okay, Yan Ziming admits it's not just for that reason. After all, Mu Mu is a super beauty, isn't she? Yan Ziming herself was a man in her past life, and she's still single. Now that such a super beauty is chasing after her, it would be a lie to say she's not tempted. If Mu Mu's personality weren't so unfortunate, Yan Ziming might actually be interested in her... Well, she is indeed a little interested in her.

Being a womanizer is both a man's greatest characteristic and his greatest flaw, and Yan Ziming was also affected by this; she had little resistance to beautiful women.

“They all have their own positions and responsibilities, you don’t need to count on them,” Li Hao said casually, glancing at Fang Yan.

Fang Yan's expression was rather grim. His special ability wasn't one with powerful destructive or superior defensive capabilities, but rather leaned more towards control. His survivability on the battlefield was far inferior to Yan Ziming and Li Haoyi. Moreover, their opponents were among the most powerful beings in the beast tide, making this an extremely severe test for him. One wrong move and he could die a horrible death.

A minute had passed, and the artillery fire within a straight line between the tyrant and them had cleared. Li Hao decisively jumped down:

"Go. We've never fought together before, so we'll just have to play it by ear."

As he fell, blue light walls appeared beneath Li Hao's feet, winding downwards in a stepped pattern. Soon he landed at the foot of the city wall and charged towards the tyrant.

"Wait--"

Even though the division commander had gone down, Fang Yan had no choice but to jump, no matter how unwilling he was. But he didn't know how to get down; he couldn't very well jump like Li Haoyi, could he?

Jumping from a height of over a hundred meters, he would have been smashed into a pulp before the tyrant even killed him. Even a seventh-level ability user's physique couldn't withstand such an ordeal.

Are your clothes sturdy?

Yan Ziming asked casually. Fang Yan was taken aback at first by the sudden question from such a beautiful and charming woman, then replied:

"This clothing is made of a special material that can withstand a tensile force of nearly one ton..."

"That's fine then, I'll take you down." Yan Ziming nodded, and before he could finish speaking, she grabbed him by the back of his neck and dragged him towards the edge of the city wall.