SCOM - Chapter 105
Chapter 105
The warship was massive and less agile than a military flyer, but it had its own weapons. The moment it detected the light cannons firing from the opposite port, the ship's mounted weapons would instantly activate, shooting down the incoming blasts.
The impact from the collisions tore through the surrounding environment, and the entire warship shook.
"Xiang Chengping and Luo Shaoyuan have landed successfully," Zuo Luohuan said from the side, steadying Ji Yuezhi, who had lost his footing.
Ji Yuezhi took the optical computer and asked the person on the other end, "What's the situation at the port?"
"Cha Lili's flyer crashed at the starship port," Luo Shaoyuan reported, having just disembarked from her own flyer. "No one is attacking at the moment."
She had barely finished her sentence when a commotion erupted nearby. Xiang Chengping's voice came through, "There are our people on the observation tower. They're up there."
Ji Yuezhi glanced down at the time, estimating how fast Cha Lili could lead his people up. "There should be other Federation personnel at the port. Rendezvous with Cha Lili, then head to the weapons tower."
"The Gashiro want to occupy the port to prevent any rescue teams from landing. But after so many days, their firepower is still at this level... There must be other Federation teams at the port," An Yingjing said from the side. "We have to get in today."
The warship was still dodging the occasional cannon fire from the other side. The situation at the weapons tower could no longer be described as merely tragic.
The Scavenger Army had to deal with not only robot dogs but also actual Gashiro soldiers. These soldiers might not be as formidable as the robot dogs, but they possessed intelligence and knew where to land a finishing blow.
Even with He Yue and her people arriving, they only managed to hold them off for a short while. They were already exhausted on the observation tower, but at least they could tie down more of the enemy who were trying to use the tower's weapons to attack the warship outside the port.
However, their resistance was broken not long after. A line of Gashiro soldiers suddenly retreated, produced a round sphere, and slammed it onto the ground.
He Yue's pupils contracted. It was a fourth-generation robot dog. She only had time to shout a warning, "Be careful!"
If the Scavenger Army had been at full strength, they certainly could have dodged these fourth-generation robot dogs. But they weren't, and even the skeletal mechs they wore were already hacked to pieces.
...
The observation tower faced the same situation. As Luo Shaoyuan and Xiang Chengping led their teams up, a group of Gashiro soldiers appeared silently before them and released fourth-generation robot dogs. Among them, only Luo Shaoyuan's team had encountered these new robot dogs before.
Soon, the warship received a report from Cha Lili, who was using Luo Shaoyuan's optical computer as his own had been destroyed during the descent.
"They've sent reinforcements over there too," An Yingjing frowned. He suddenly declared, "I'll go."
He didn't say he would take a team. The enemy fire was growing more intense, and a single misstep could get them hit. Besides, he could go alone.
"I'll go with him," Zuo Luohuan said, looking at Ji Yuezhi.
Ji Yuezhi pressed his lips together, then agreed. "...Alright."
Zuo Luohuan personally piloted a flyer out. An Yingjing was the only one inside. He fastened his seatbelt tightly, his heart pounding as he watched her fly.
On the warship, Ji Yuezhi intentionally provided cover for them, allowing the warship to take damage by choosing not to shoot down several light cannon blasts.
"Don't worry about us," Zuo Luohuan said to Ji Yuezhi on the warship via the optical computer on her panel. "We'll be there soon. Protect yourselves."
The crew in the control room, who were adjusting the ship's position, heard this and waited for Ji Yuezhi's command.
"Ignore the flyer. Continue protecting the warship and advance gradually." In the end, Ji Yuezhi chose to trust Zuo Luohuan.
The Gashiro on the weapons tower spotted another flyer heading for the port. Assuming it was full of Federation reinforcements, they began to attack it frantically.
Zuo Luohuan said to An Yingjing behind her, "Hold on tight."
The next second, the flyer shot up at a sharp ninety-degree angle, and a light cannon blast scraped right under it.
Zuo Luohuan maneuvered the flyer into a rapid flip and continued toward the starship port, twisting and turning all the way, narrowly dodging cannon blasts time and again.
An Yingjing couldn't see anything inside the flyer, but the people in the warship's control room could see that Zuo Luohuan's piloting had drawn a significant amount of enemy fire, allowing their warship to advance a considerable distance.
"An Yingjing, get ready to jump," Zuo Luohuan said the moment she piloted the flyer into the starship port.
"Got it." An Yingjing, already in his skeletal mech, gripped the flyer's seat, moved to the hatch, and waited for the right moment.
Just then, someone from the observation tower fired at them with a light gun. Zuo Luohuan left the pilot's seat. "Jump!"
The two of them leaped from the hatch. The flyer was hit by the light gun and exploded in mid-air.
"You stay here. I'm going to the weapons tower," Zuo Luohuan said before quickly moving toward the other side.
An Yingjing looked up at the observation tower. He didn't go up, but instead began to release his pheromones.
For the past six months, An Yingjing had often been required to release his pheromones on the skeletal mech team members. The purpose was to get his own people accustomed to it, so that it could be effective at critical moments.
It was impossible that these Gashiro soldiers had come wearing masks specifically to be wary of him alone.
It might not have an effect on the robot dogs, but the Gashiro soldiers instantly fell into a hallucination. Luo Shaoyuan smelled the familiar pheromones and knew An Yingjing had arrived. She exchanged a look with Cha Lili, who was not far away.
Soon, Cha Lili's team was providing cover for Luo Shaoyuan's group, while Luo Shaoyuan reaped the lives of the Gashiro soldiers trapped in their hallucinations one by one.
Without these Gashiro constantly releasing new robot dogs, the pressure on the skeletal mech team immediately lessened.
As for the weapons tower.
When Zuo Luohuan arrived, the Scavenger Army was completely unable to withstand the attacks from the Gashiro and robot dogs. He Yue had been kicked to the ground by a Gashiro soldier, whose curved blade was raised, ready to strike her head.
The scimitars used by the Gashiro were extremely sharp; they favored using them to slit throats or lop off entire heads.
He Yue's Achilles tendon had been severed, and she could no longer hold on. She was just unwilling to let the Gashiro seize control, not when the rescue forces had already arrived.
Even with the blade before her eyes, He Yue did not close them to await death. Instead, she widened her eyes and glared at the Gashiro soldier in front of her.
Zuo Luohuan was not wearing a skeletal mech. With a slight kick of her toe, the scimitar from the hand of a dead Gashiro on the ground leaped up. She caught it in her hand, and without even adjusting her grip, threw it straight at the Gashiro in front of He Yue.
By the time the scimitar reached the Gashiro's back, its curved edge was already aligned with the nape of his neck.
The tip of the Gashiro's scimitar had just grazed He Yue's neck when, in the next moment, his own head flew high into the air. His eyes even held a trace of confusion. Why was he getting higher and higher?
He Yue struggled to turn her head to see where the scimitar had come from. Zuo Luohuan was standing on the body of a dead Gashiro, bending down to remove two weight belts.
As the surrounding Gashiro and robot dogs swarmed her, a smile appeared on her face, filled with deep mockery. She then threw the two weight belts in her hands at two different Gashiro soldiers.
She threw them with such force that the weight belts directly smashed the Gashiro's heads.
"Don't worry, I have two more," Zuo Luohuan said, looking at the increasing number of Gashiro rushing toward her.
She removed the weight belts from her wrists, dodged an attack from a robot dog, and threw the belts again.
This time, an experienced Gashiro knew to dodge, while another Gashiro swung his scimitar at the incoming weight belt, thinking he could split it. Instead, the force of the speeding belt knocked the scimitar from his hand.
Zuo Luohuan rolled her wrists and instantly donned her skeletal mech. A Gashiro lunged from her rear flank, his scimitar striking the back of her neck with only a 'clang'.
Before the Gashiro could react, Zuo Luohuan grabbed him with a reverse grip. Without even using a light gun or a scimitar, she simply twisted his neck.
Although she was alone, the atmosphere on the weapons tower shifted dramatically. The Gashiro wanted to retreat, but Zuo Luohuan gave them no such opportunity, even taking out a bouncing fourth-generation robot dog when she had a spare moment.
Zuo Luohuan began clearing the area from the first weapon port, moving down the line. No Gashiro or robot dog escaped her light gun and scimitar. She was handling it all with far too much ease.
The arrogant Gashiro could never have imagined that one day they would die by their own scimitars.
He Yue, propping up her blood-stained body, leaned slowly against the wall and couldn't help but smile. Zuo Luohuan's strength was at such a level; she wondered why she had lost to Ji Yuezhi during the training exercise.
The Gashiro and robot dogs that the Scavenger Army couldn't handle were all dealt with by Zuo Luohuan.
Removing those weight belts was like breaking a seal. With the enhancement of the skeletal mech, her strength rose to another level. The last Gashiro tried to escape.
Zuo Luohuan followed him at a leisurely pace, and just as he was about to jump out, she kicked him to the ground.
The Gashiro fell face down, his hand stretching toward the glass window, attempting to escape again.
Zuo Luohuan stepped on him, placed a scimitar at his neck, and bent down. "You look very familiar."
After a moment, it dawned on her. "I've seen a video of you killing people on the northern border before."
Before the Winter Army was stationed at the northern border, the Gashiro Empire had once broken through the line. Many Gashiro soldiers inside specialized in killing Federation civilians, which was how many orphans like Luo Shaoyuan came to be.
The Gashiro pinned to the ground struggled frantically. Zuo Luohuan couldn't be bothered to entangle with him any longer. She simply gave the scimitar in her hand a gentle push, pulled it to the side, and then stood up, holding the blade.
A pool of blood quickly spread across the floor.
Zuo Luohuan didn't spare it a second glance. She walked to the front of the weapons tower and looked through the screen at the warship, which had advanced a great deal. They were almost there.
"Instructor." Zuo Luohuan turned to find a medical kit to bandage He Yue's wounds.
"...Them," He Yue gestured for Zuo Luohuan to go to the back. "My... injuries aren't serious."
Zuo Luohuan looked at the blood-soaked He Yue, said nothing more, left a pack of wound healing agent, and got up to help the other Scavenger Army soldiers.
On the warship.
"General Captain, the attacks have stopped," the crew member in charge of weapons output reported, turning to look at Ji Yuezhi.
Ji Yuezhi's clenched fist finally relaxed. His palm was covered in cold sweat, but his face remained calm. "Full speed ahead."
In the observation tower, the skeletal mech team was also gradually gaining the upper hand. The fourth-generation robot dogs were a potent tool for restraining Federation troops in a crowd, but against well-trained soldiers protected by skeletal mechs, their effectiveness was not as great.
"Look!" Xiang Chengping pointed to the starship port outside. "The warship is coming!"
Cha Lili breathed a sigh of relief. "They must have retaken control of the weapons tower."
Luo Shaoyuan, who could never usually hold her tongue, remained silent. Instead, she quickly descended from the observation tower. She walked around the area for a bit and finally found An Yingjing, who had fainted, behind a civilian ship.
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