Central Avenue.
Spears and his men were sitting on top of an armored vehicle, heading to the front line. Although large-caliber indirect fire could not be used within the Hive City, mortars and grenade launchers were still viable.
Inside the mortar position, there was a busy scene. The Soldiers were clearly divided in their tasks; some were busy loading ammunition, while others adjusted their sights.
The artillery Sergeant was commanding while observing the situation on the front line.
"Ready!" a Soldier shouted.
Within the artillery base, radio commands were rapidly issued for each attack, calmly observing the target area in the distance. Each squad on the front line picked up their communicators and gave instructions to the mortar crews in the position.
"Received, prepare to fire!" the Sergeant responded, then motioned for his subordinates to adjust the angle.
The first mortar round whistled out, streaking across the sky, then exploded in the target area, kicking up a cloud of dust and debris. The enemies in the eastern district of the Hive City seemed to be deterred and began to temporarily withdraw from their front-line bunkers.
Spears jumped down from the armored vehicle, preparing to walk through the combat zone to find out where Li Feng had gone. After a few steps, Spears saw a group of Battle Sisters in the distance conducting a systematic search of the battlefield, surrounded by the corpses of Gretchin.
Sister Fides, who was leading them, immediately pulled her power sword out of a Gretchin corpse when she saw Spears, then charged towards him. The stance of these battle sisters gave these veterans quite a fright… "Sister… let's talk this out…"
"Tell me! Where did Li Feng sneak off to?"
Seeing the man-eating expression on Fides' face, Spears sighed helplessly. It seemed that Li Feng's trip to the front line really was a secret. "Sister, we don't know either. We are also looking for him…"
...Within the block,
Gunfire continued to echo, but this intersection was unusually quiet, with only a few fallen Soldier corpses on the street… A few Astra Militarum Soldiers were hiding around the corner, as if wary of something. "Sergeant… I'm going then…"
With that, the Soldier rushed out from the corner, intending to take cover behind a broken-wheeled pushcart in the middle of the street, but just as he was about to reach it, a Las-fire round directly pierced his thigh.
"Ahhhhh!"
The Soldier immediately fell to the ground, but he quickly rolled to dodge other bullets aimed at his body, rolling behind the pushcart… At this moment, the Sergeant came to the edge of the corner and shouted, "Are you okay!"
The Soldier was now sitting propped up behind the pushcart; the recent Las-fire had pierced his thigh, and the femoral artery began to bleed heavily. He immediately took out a tourniquet and tied it around his upper thigh, then quickly stuffed various filling agents into the penetrating wound in his thigh.
"I've got a hole in my thigh, but I've stopped the heavy bleeding! It's not serious! But I can't move from here right now!"
At this moment, a Gretchin sniper, armed with an Imperial laser sniper rifle, was repeatedly aiming at the street corner and the pushcart from a tower. "Whoosh~ Clang~" A Las-fire round hit the pushcart, and the Soldier hugged his head and ducked further inside. "Sergeant! Have you found where it's coming from!"
The Sergeant's small mirror now caught sight of the tower from which the laser had just been fired, then he put away the mirror. He walked to the back, where an officer wearing a tank helmet was sitting on the street, drinking tea from a thermos.
"Found it! The tower!"
Hearing that the target was found, the tank commander finished the last bit of coffee in his cup, then screwed the lid back onto the thermos. He climbed onto the roof of the M1A4 "Cadianus" and slowly entered the vehicle's cabin.
"Commander, did you find it?"
"The tower."
As the tank's engine started running again, the tank drove towards the intersection ahead. At this moment, the loader opened the depressurized ammunition compartment and took out a high-explosive shell from the ammunition rack… The Gretchin sniper then saw a tank emerge from the corner, its barrel aimed at him. He looked at the tank through his scope with confusion… The gunner looked at the bewildered Gretchin sniper through his gunsight: "I'm waiting for it to load, what are you waiting for?"
As the loader pushed the high-explosive shell into the breech, the breech block closed, and the electromagnetic coils charged, lighting up a green light… Li Feng walked out of the room, rifle in hand. At this moment, a huge explosion occurred in the distant tower. He tilted his head, looking at the collapsing tower, then scratched his face and looked at the Pureblood Gellerpox Infected lying on the ground.
The Pureblood Gellerpox Infected on the ground was still alive, but its body was only twitching uncontrollably. Having taken a shotgun blast at close range, plus falling from the second floor, with all its limbs broken, it was still alive; one had to admit its vitality was truly strong.
Li Feng pulled a grenade from his waist, slowly walked to the Gretchin, and then squatted down. At this moment, the Gretchin's mouth kept opening and closing, as if it wanted to bite Li Feng.
Pulling out the pin and holding the lever, Li Feng stuffed the grenade into the Gretchin's mouth… "The structure of a grenade is very simple: a safety pin, a lever, a fuse, and the body. The safety pin and lever are used to hold the fuse in place. Even if the safety pin is pulled, as long as the lever is not released, the fuse cannot detonate the body."
Although the Gretchin couldn't speak human language, it still nodded as if it understood, and its arrogant demeanor instantly vanished.
Li Feng looked coldly at the Gretchin on the ground, smiling slightly, as if with pity, yet also with disdain. He clapped the dust from his hands, stood up, and slowly retreated a few steps.
"Alright, then let's play a game now." His tone was relaxed, but his eyes held a chilling coldness.
The Gretchin's eyes were fixed on Li Feng, its pupils darting back and forth uneasily, its fanged mouth clamped tightly around the grenade with the pin removed, and faint, rapid gasps escaped its throat. Its head swayed slightly, seemingly trying to remain calm, but its eyes had already betrayed its inner fear.
Li Feng just stood by, silently watching the Gretchin, his finger lightly tapping the rifle's stock, one tap, then another, in a leisurely rhythm… Urgent footsteps came from the end of the alley. Li Feng turned his head and saw Spears and a few Soldiers hurrying over. Seeing the dying Gretchin on the ground, they all showed a hint of surprise and disgust.
"Sir!"
Spears walked a few steps closer, frowning as he scrutinized him and the Gretchin on the ground.
"You certainly know how to find trouble… But this little thing is quite tenacious, still wants to be alive now?"
Li Feng smiled faintly, shrugging indifferently.
Spears narrowed his eyes, looking at the grenade with the lever clenched in the Gretchin's mouth, and grinned: "Quite cruel…"
Li Feng did not respond, only shifting his gaze from Spears to rest coldly on the Gretchin's face again.
The Gretchin trembled slightly, its eyes flickering with complex emotions, as if in its final struggle.
Li Feng sneered and nodded, then stood up from beside the Gretchin and walked forward without looking back. When he had walked to a suitable distance, Spears turned around and fired a blind shot from 200 meters, hitting the Gretchin's thigh.
The pain made the Gretchin's mouth open slightly, but with that one movement, the lever sprang open… "Pong!"
Li Feng listened to the explosion behind him, watched the continuously advancing front line in the distance, and asked:
"Spears, what's the situation now?"
"The very front of the front line has now advanced to within 800 meters."
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