nycdaug Chapter 49 Joining
Chapter 49 Joining
Just as Yunlan was explaining to her mother how to save her father, someone suddenly burst in: "It's bad, Song Tie, the zombie army is coming again, and there might even be level five zombies." Song Tie sighed: "Captain Qi is still unconscious, and Liu Jianye is injured. With just me, a level four zombie, I'm afraid it won't be very effective. You quickly tell the brothers to grab their weapons and come with me." With that, Song Tie led the others out of the ward, leaving only a nurse and two soldiers on guard. Qian Guangming then said, "I'll go check too. More people means a better chance of winning. Captain Yun, you stay here for now." He then also went out.
Qin Fangyu and Qi Guoan, both former soldiers, were somewhat aware of the change of their daughter's name from Qi Wan to Yun Lan and didn't comment on the form of address. Zhao Liying asked, "We saw tanks when we came in. Can we use them to kill zombies?" A soldier shook his head: "They're okay against low-level zombies, but tank shells are practically useless against level four and five zombies. And most importantly, we're out of shells."
Yun Lan immediately instructed Yun Qian to contact the Fourth Battalion's troops behind them via walkie-talkie, requesting their support. Meanwhile, Zheng Yong had already led the dozens of men accompanying the convoy to join the battle. A minute later, Yun Qian reported that the contact was complete and they would arrive in thirty minutes. Qin Fangyu said with some worry, "This time the enemy has level 5 fighters. We only have two high-level ability users who can fight right now; I'm afraid we won't last until reinforcements arrive." Yun Lan directly retrieved the Dragon and Phoenix Spear from her spiritual sea: "Mom, just watch and see how I wipe them out." Yun Lan instructed Yun Qian and Zhao Liying to stay there, and then rushed downstairs.
Long'an Base currently has three Level 4 ability users: Qi Guoan, a Level 4 Earth-type ability user; Song Tie, a Level 4 Water-type ability user, but unlike Yun Qian and Chen Xiaoke, who possess no healing abilities, Song Tie has no Water-type abilities. Liu Jianye is a Level 4 Strength-type ability user, the burly man who was beaten up by Yun Lan. At Dawn Base, aside from the Logistics Support Battalion, most of the battalion commanders and deputy commanders are Level 4, except for Wang Yousheng, the deputy commander of the First Battalion, who is still an ordinary person. Wu Gang, the First Battalion Commander, is a Level 4 Wind and Fire-type dual ability user; Zheng Aiguo and Sun Youcai of the Second Battalion are Level 4 Earth-type and Strength-type dual ability users, and Wind-type ability users, respectively; Hao Dahai and Zhao Gang of the Third Battalion are Level 4 Fire-type and Water-type ability users, respectively; Qian Guangming and Yang Xuelin of the Fourth Battalion are Level 4 Strength-type and Speed-type ability users, respectively; and Wan Dahai and Zhao Rui of the Fifth Battalion are Level 4 Water-type and Level 5 Strength-type ability users, respectively. While the Logistics Support Battalion doesn't have any Level 4 users, it does have two reasonably strong Level 3 users protecting the team.
As soon as Yunlan arrived at the northern position, she saw Zheng Yong and Qian Guangming's Dawn Army, along with Song Tie's troops, using the terrain to their advantage to hold off the zombie army. In the distance, a large horde of zombies appeared, led by a giant zombie standing 3 meters tall. Yunlan immediately activated her Phoenix Eye: Level 5 Slayer Zombie, attributes: Constitution 127, Strength 135, Agility 92, Spirit 85, special move: Charge. Yunlan walked to the front of the position and signaled for everyone to clear the way. Song Tie said, "With so many zombies, if we retreat, the hospital will be finished." Zheng Yong's group had already retreated to the side. Qian Guangming whispered a few words to Song Tie, who then stared wide-eyed at Yunlan before leading his troops back with Liu Jianye.
Yun Lan stood in the middle of the road, her supernatural abilities radiating outwards. At that moment, the perception-type superhuman next to Song Tie suddenly exclaimed, "Level five! Definitely level five! Miss Yun is a level five superhuman!" Liu Jianye muttered, "No wonder she knocked me down in two moves; she was just playing dumb." Yun Lan, wielding the Dragon-Phoenix Spear, faced the charging zombies: "Explosive Dragon-Phoenix Charge!" She thrust out fiercely, and under everyone's gaze, a burst of fiery phoenix energy shot directly into the zombie horde, accompanied by a golden dragon circling around it. Wherever the energy wave reached, low-level zombies were instantly reduced to ashes, until it struck the level five Slayer zombie.
The energy wave, having already cleared out many zombies, had become much less powerful by the time it reached the level 5 zombie. This attack didn't inflict a fatal wound. Yun Lan then took out the Demon-Slaying Bow from her storage ring and prepared to draw it. As energy was continuously injected, a beam of light gradually appeared on the bow, its brightness increasing. "Demon-Slaying Arrow!" Yun Lan shouted, and the beam of light flew directly towards the level 5 zombie, striking it in the chest. Where the arrow struck, the zombie's flesh began to twist in a strange vortex-like pattern before exploding.
As the smoke from the explosion cleared, Song Tie saw that the once towering Level 5 zombie had vanished without a trace. Excitedly, he exclaimed, "The Level 5 zombie is dead! We won! Hahaha!" He then walked up to Yun Lan, saying, "Miss Yun Lan, thank you so much for your help. If it weren't for you, not only would these people have lost the position, but the survivors behind us would have died too." Yun Lan smiled slightly, "It's nothing. There are still quite a few zombies left. With your strength, you can definitely handle them. I'll head back now." She then said goodbye to Zheng Yong and Qian Guangming and went back.
Yunlan returned to the ward, and Qin Fangyu immediately came over to ask how things were. Yunlan smiled and said, "It's almost done. They're cleaning up the remaining zombies. By the way, Mom, have Dad come to our base in a bit. He'll definitely be able to cure them then." Qin Fangyu said with difficulty, "But there are still so many people here." Yun Qian stepped forward and said, "It's okay, Auntie, we can go together. This place wasn't suitable for long-term base use anyway. There are too many zombies, and our supplies are exhausted." Qin Fangyu nodded and said, "Then I'll go and discuss it with a few people."
A short while later, Yang Xuelin led the remaining 200-plus men of the 4th Battalion to the scene and joined the zombie-clearing effort. Their combat capabilities impressed the people at Long'an Base, and everyone looked radiant, showing no signs of hunger or thirst. Thirty minutes later, Qian Guangming and Yang Xuelin went upstairs to report the results to Yun Lan and handed her the green crystal dropped by the level-five zombie. While the three were still tallying the results, Qin Fangyu and Song Tie and a few others approached. Qin Fangyu said, "Wan'er, after discussion, we've decided to join you." Song Tie smiled and said, "Seeing your troops' combat strength just now made me realize how big the gap is between us. It's not just in terms of ability, but also in logistical support, tactical command, and the use of superhumans. We are far inferior to you in all these areas. We've decided to join you."
Yun Lan smiled and shook hands with Song Tie and the others: "You will definitely not regret your choice today. It's already 2 PM, so let's not delay. Let's set off immediately and arrive before dark." As she spoke, everyone started to get busy. Song Tie and his group had come to Jinghai City by car. The vehicles weren't a problem, but they couldn't bring several heavy weapons, which was a bit of a pity. Yun Lan didn't say much and directly put the tanks, armored vehicles, and other equipment into the storage space, which surprised Song Tie again.
After an hour of busy work, the convoy set off in a grand procession, protected by four battalions at the front and rear. Fortunately, the Long'an base didn't have many people to begin with, so packing didn't take too long. Yun Qian and Zhao Liying got into Zheng Yong's car, Yun Lan sat in the passenger seat, Qin Fangyu was in the back, and Qi Guoan leaned against Qin Fangyu's lap. Yun Lan asked, "Mom, when we heard on the radio that Yanjing had fallen, how did you escape?" Qin Fangyu slowly said, "At that time, the Yanjing base had gathered a total of 20 people from four bases, but they couldn't hold out for more than two days. The zombies were too powerful, and ordinary weapons were completely ineffective against those advanced zombies. Some of them were even unaffected by missiles. Some people suggested using heavy weapons, but the commander refused. Your father's Fourth Regiment was on the front line and bore the brunt of the attack. In the end, very few of them survived."
Qin Fangyu took a sip of water and continued, "Later, our Joint Logistics Support Department's hospital was also attacked. Your father, who was ordered to retreat, found me. We then fought our way back, retreating over 100 kilometers south from the Yanjing base. Many people sacrificed their lives along the way, leaving only these 700-plus people. Guo An was unfortunately infected in the process, but instead of becoming a zombie, he gained superpowers. Later, Xia Guo released information about crystals and superpowered individuals, and also issued a directive for people to be self-reliant and independent. So your father and a few others discussed it and decided to establish the Long'an Base. When we first arrived here, there weren't so many zombies, especially at the First People's Hospital. There were many signs of human habitation, as well as fortifications, and we even found quite a few crystals. Your father decided to establish the base here and also broadcast a call for other survivors."
"Then what happened to my dad's injury?" Yunlan asked again.
Qin Fangyu said with lingering fear, "That happened the day before yesterday. The base was suddenly attacked by a group of zombies, including a level 5 zombie. It was incredibly fast and killed several people in one move. Just as it was about to kill a child, your dad stepped forward to block the zombie's attack, but he was injured in the process. Later, after sacrificing a level 4 ability user and dozens of soldiers, we finally managed to kill the level 5 zombie." Yun Lan nodded, "It's alright, Mom, don't worry. My dad will definitely recover." Qin Fangyu smiled and said, "I believe you. When you went outside to fight, I asked those two girls about you, but they didn't say much. Why don't you tell me?"
So Yunlan told her how she became an Awakened One and what the past three months had been like. Qin Fangyu was both shocked and happy after hearing this, nodding and saying, "I didn't expect you guys to be so amazing. The base now has almost ten thousand people. By the way, I really want to meet Li Chenglong, do you have a picture of him?" At this moment, Qi Guoan slowly opened his eyes: "This kid is really good. My Wan'er has such a group of brothers and sisters and such a man in this world. Even if I die, it's worth it." Qin Fangyu slapped Qi Guoan's mouth: "What nonsense are you talking about? We're almost there. After you're cured, we'll go see him together."
On the other hand, Li Chenglong had already received the radio message from Yunlan and immediately notified the managers of various departments to hold a meeting to discuss the resettlement arrangements. Shen Menghua, Liu Qingqing, Wu Suqiang, and several others were also busy ensuring that the people arriving at the Long'an base could move in directly and have a hot dinner. Meanwhile, Li Chenglong also dispatched Hao Dahai's Third Battalion to provide backup in case of any unforeseen circumstances.
It was past 5 p.m. when Qin Fangyu asked, "Wan'er, didn't you say it was only a little over 100 kilometers? Why haven't we arrived yet?" Yun Lan blinked. "Actually, we were lying to you about the distance when we entered Long'an Base. We've only gone about 70% so far, and it'll probably take another hour." After walking for a while, the convoy encountered the Third Battalion, who had come to meet them. Song Tie and Liu Jianye were truly surprised that there was another elite unit like the one they had just encountered. After a brief exchange, they set off again. When they were about a kilometer away from the base, Song Tie exclaimed in surprise, "It's electricity! They actually have electricity, and such a large area has electricity!" The others at Long'an Base looked in the direction of his voice and saw that although Shuguang Base wasn't exactly brightly lit, it had electric lights illuminating almost every part of the area.
Yunlan saw Li Chenglong and a dozen others with some soldiers waiting outside the base from afar, and couldn't help but feel happy. As soon as the vehicle stopped, Li Xue walked over first: "I heard Uncle was injured, so I came to see you." Yunlan stopped her: "Wait a minute, let your brother finish making arrangements first." Although Qin Fangyu wasn't a superhuman, she could still sense the life force emanating from the well-behaved, quiet, and beautiful girl in front of her.
As soon as Zheng Yong got out of the car, he began to introduce the people: "Team Leader Li, this is Song Tie, the second-in-command of Long'an Base, and that is Liu Jianye, the third-in-command. Song Tie, this is Li Chenglong, the city lord of Dawn City and also the supreme commander of the Dawn Army. And those people over there are..." Song Tie and Liu Jianye shook hands with five or six people. Li Chenglong smiled and said, "We have already arranged the dormitories for everyone. Please have a meal in our canteen first and then get some rest. We can discuss anything else tomorrow, okay?" Song Tie happily said, "That would be perfect. To be honest, Commander Li, we haven't had a proper meal in a long time because of the shortage of supplies." Li Chenglong replied, "Then we must make sure you have a good meal today. Zheng Yong, please help me entertain them." Zheng Yong immediately organized people to help Long'an Base move things, and then led the more than 700 people to two canteens for meals.
Along the way, many people looked at them curiously, but they just glanced at them. Song Tie observed his surroundings as he walked; the streets were almost free of litter, some damaged buildings were under reconstruction, and the residents were dressed relatively cleanly, so he nodded in approval. Liu Jianye, however, exclaimed loudly, "It's infuriating to compare ourselves to others! Compared to this, we're worse off than dogs in the hospital!" They soon arrived at the canteen, which was open for lunch. Many people had gotten their food and were either eating there or going home to eat. Song Tie and Liu Jianye looked curiously at one person's lunchbox, which contained green peppers and eggs, a steamed bun with stir-fried luncheon meat, chicken soup, and a bowl of rice. Liu Jianye shrank back, "My god, is this for the leaders?" The person eating there smiled and said, "I'm not a leader, I'm from the construction team, and I'm building the training ground these days."
Soon it was their turn to get their food. Shen Menghua walked over and said, "For you friends who have come from afar to join us, our logistics department has specially approved some chicken legs today. In addition to your regular meals, each person can get one braised chicken leg. But please don't rush, line up slowly, everyone will get one." To improve the efficiency of the canteen, the number of food serving windows has been increased from the usual 8 to 12. The food was all served in just a few minutes.