Armor-piercing bullets don't believe in carbon-based monsters

Chapter 326 Are We the Heroes?

The leader of the Imperial Guards, or rather, the man named Guo Xu, sat on the open ground, with the corpse of the giant monster behind him.

Sitting opposite him, besides Jin Zhong, was a female Holy Blood Maiden whom he had never seen before, but who was clearly the highest commander of this team.
-
Of course, that is Ji Xing.

After wolfing down the dry rations Ji Xing had given him, he let out a long breath, wiped the sweat from his forehead, and said:
"So, the battle of Jinling City is over?"

Hearing his words, Jin Zhong nodded and replied:
"ended."

"In fact, not only has the battle in Jinling City ended, but the battle in Jinling New City has also ended."

"The beast tide has been effectively destroyed - although there are still some scattered monsters, it is basically impossible for a beast tide to form again."

"Now, besides our team, the only ones still fighting the monsters should be the religious guards from other small cities or mercenaries hired by caravans."

"However, all the battles are mainly about clearing out enemies."

"Just like we're doing now."

"Clean up?"

Guo Xu clicked his tongue and shook his head.

"The world has truly changed."

"Back when we were still in the Guards Brigade, how could we possibly use the word 'clean up' when fighting monsters?"

"Every battle involving large monsters of level four or above is a life-or-death test."

"Now, you people are chasing after a level three monster all over the place, and you actually call this kind of operation a cleanup."

"This is simply..."

"The offensive and defensive situations are different."

Ji Xing chimed in from the side:

"Humans cannot be suppressed by monsters forever, nor can they live under their claws forever."

"We all have to find a way out for ourselves, right?"

"Yes, that makes a lot of sense."

Guo Xu put his fingers in his mouth and sucked off the oil stains, then asked:

"So how was Nanjing City defended?"

"Jinling City was not defended."

Ji Xing's tone was calm, but Guo Xu's expression suddenly changed.

"They couldn't hold out?"

His eyes trembled slightly, and a hint of barely perceptible ferocity appeared in his gaze.

If Jinling City falls, what will happen to the common people in Jinling City?
where are they?
"Don't get excited."

Ji Xing waved his hand and continued:
"The city of Jinling was not defended because it was breached, but because the various harmful environments caused by the battle with the monsters forced the civilians there to evacuate."

"But they should be heading back now."

"Jinling City will be restored soon; the city still exists."

"That's good"

Guo Xu relaxed again.

"How was that battle fought? Was it with the help of the Chinese army?"

"The remaining Holy Army and Guardian Army in Jinling City are unlikely to be able to withstand such a massive beast tide, and reinforcements transferred from other cities won't arrive in time."

"You actually still have the resources to support Jinling City?"

"We did indeed provide support to Nanjing."

Ji Xing shrugged.

"But we also suffered heavy losses in supporting Nanjing, and ultimately we did not play a decisive role."

This time, Ji Xing didn't keep them in suspense; he said it directly:
"It was you who saved Nanjing."

"Us?? Who??"

"You, the three of you."

As soon as Ji Xing finished speaking, the three Imperial Guards sitting opposite him froze in place.

Did we save Nanjing?
The three of them stared at each other in disbelief, not understanding for a moment what Ji Xing meant by those words.

They had only been lost for a few days.

They did nothing, so how did they become the ones who saved Nanjing?
-
and many more.

It seems like they did do something, though.

That device.

"Is it because of that device?"

"Yes."

Ji Xing nodded again.

"That device is a beacon used to control the beast tide. Two of our comrades entered the mountain city and obtained the beacon terminal through some means."

"They issued incorrect instructions to the beast tide, causing the monsters to kill each other."

"Most of the monsters died in the process of fighting each other, and the rest were finished off by us when we had the chance."

"After the beast tide north of Jinling City was eliminated, the crisis of the beast tide was basically over."

"Understood"

Guo Xu slowly exhaled.

At that moment, a thought that he couldn't express but which made him extremely grateful popped into his mind.

Ok!

Fortunately, I listened to the advice and handed that equipment over to the Huaxia Army!
If it's simply about destruction, or even handing it over to the Holy Church...
The result would definitely be completely different!

The church is not capable of using such equipment, nor are they capable of sending people to the mountain city to obtain any terminals.
Wait a minute?!

Guo Xu's eyes widened suddenly.

"Mountain City?!"

"You've entered the mountain city?!"

His tone revealed intense shock, as did Liu Hao and Zhang Chao beside him.

Are you kidding me? !

That's a mountain city!

That's the holy site of the Cult of Machines!
None of us have even entered the mountain city yet, and now you're casually telling me that your people have already entered?

And it was through equipment obtained in the mountain city that the beast tide was ended?
Guo Xu had already stood up, his whole body trembling.

For him, this was no longer as simple as "faith being desecrated".

No, this is not actually blasphemy.

It should be said that I suddenly realized that I had lost ownership of my own beliefs.

If you reach our holy land, then what are we?
He felt his mind was in a mess.

Ji Xing noticed his expression and couldn't help but find it somewhat amusing.

“I’ve seen something like this in the group leader’s files—a certain religion reacted the same way when it lost Jerusalem.”

"But it's okay, you don't need to worry about it too much."

"Because that so-called 'holy city' has absolutely nothing to do with the Cult of Machines."

“That is not the dwelling place of the Holy Trinity.”

"In most cases, it's just a smart city on a larger scale than 011."

"How can it be!"

Zhang Chao, who was next to Guo Xu, suddenly stood up.

"That is where God dwells! There."

He suddenly realized he couldn't continue speaking halfway through his sentence.

He knew that the person in front of him had absolutely no reason to lie to him.

It's not because they can't, but because they're unwilling, or even disdainful.

Therefore, what she said is most likely true.
The three of them turned their gaze to Jin Zhong, who had been standing to the side the whole time, as if they wanted to hear a negative answer from him as their last comfort and hope.

But Jin Zhong just shook his head.

"Ji Xing is right."

"That's not a holy place."

At that moment, Guo Xu felt as if all the strength had been drained from his body.

After a long silence, he spoke again:
What is it like there?

"How did you get in? Can we still get in?"

"Not at the moment."

Ji Xing shook his head and said:
"But we will launch an attack there very soon."

"attack."

If anyone else had said such presumptuous things in front of Guo Xu, he probably would have already put a gun to their head.

But when facing the Chinese army, he had no confidence whatsoever.

Because he knew that the other party might actually have the right to say that.
Guo Xu closed his eyes.

After a moment, he spoke:
"Is your operation over?"

"I'd like to go with you to see Jinling New City." An hour later.

After the Holy Blood Warriors, led by Ji Xing, cleared out the last large monster in the vicinity, the three members of the Imperial Guard and the Holy Blood Warriors embarked on their return journey.

They emerged from the forest, returned to the paved road, and boarded the driverless truck used for personnel transportation.

Guo Xu turned around in surprise, then asked:
"How exactly did you find your way?"

"The environment here has been completely affected; even a compass is useless."

How do you know which direction you're going?

"Inertial navigation".

Ji Xing answered casually.

"Inertial navigation. What's that?"

"It's hard to explain to you."

Ji Xing was too lazy to say more.

"If you want to know, you can go to the reading room and find the books when you get to Base 011."

"Go by myself?? Can I go?"

Guo Xu was dumbfounded.

In his view, such "profound" knowledge is often monopolized, just like the Great Library of the Mechanicus, which is completely sealed off with strict defenses.

But judging from Ji Xing's tone, those Chinese soldiers seem completely unconcerned.
What kind of organization is this?
Ji Xing hummed in response but did not answer, and Guo Xu wisely refrained from pressing further.

The group drove back towards Base 011. It wasn't until the convoy reached the riverbank that he finally realized that his original location was actually very close to Jinling City.

They are currently on the opposite bank of Jiangning Town, and at most 30 kilometers north to Jinling City.

"We've gone in such a big circle!"

Guo Xu clicked his tongue and said:
"I thought we were heading west, but we were actually heading south."

"What kind of monster is that that can affect the surrounding magnetic field?"

"The magnetic field was not affected."

Jin Zhong, sitting next to him, interjected:
"It's your compass that's been demagnetized."

"The device you found has strong interference; any magnetic object that gets close will be affected—the Chinese military has already tested it."

"so."

Guo Xu nodded thoughtfully, then suddenly asked:

"You understand this, too?"

"I just learned it too."

Jin Zhong didn't say much, but at this moment, Guo Xu felt an indescribable emotion welling up in his heart.

In fact, not long ago, he had quite a few complaints about Jin Zhong.

Although he could understand Jin Zhong's actions of retaliating against the incompetent Christian defenders in Liangxi City in secret, no matter what, what he did was betrayal.

But now, having committed the act of betrayal himself, he finally understands that perhaps Jin Zhong's choice was right in a certain sense.

What about yourself?

Now I'm going to the territory controlled by the Huaxia Army.

Is it possible that I might also betray them completely because of this?

This thought sent chills down Guo Xu's spine.

A word that hadn't been mentioned in a long time suddenly flashed through his mind.

Mimicry heresy.

Those pseudo-heresies that will incite a plague of ideas.

If the Huaxia Army were still burdened with this "crime" by now, they would probably be considered "plague infected persons" themselves, right?

What kind of fate awaits them?

Complex thoughts clashed within him, and Guo Xu fell silent, eventually drifting off to sleep.

Actually, this kind of sleep should be called a coma.

After all, his physical strength was completely exhausted, and he simply couldn't hold on any longer.

He was in a daze for some time when he suddenly heard a loud crash.

Then, someone nudged his shoulder and woke him up.

When he opened his eyes, he was already in an unfamiliar city.
-
Calling it a city doesn't seem quite right.

This place feels more like a small town.

Dense, low-rise houses cluster together to form residential areas, while vast fields surround these areas.

The convoy stopped in a square where many people were walking around, seemingly conducting business with merchants.

It's a very prosperous place.

This was Guo Xu's first impression.

Contrary to his expectations of a "city ruined after a great war," this new city of Jinling seemed to have never been attacked by monsters.

After getting off the bus, he saw more familiar things.

This gave him his second impression of Nanjing.

This place has immense potential.

Those newly built and under-construction workshops, the black smoke billowing from the chimneys, the machinery, and the workers in uniform.
Isn't this a city that's just starting out?
Guo Xu looked around curiously at everything before him, and just then, a person dressed in armor walked up to him.

He recognized him at a glance as the "regimental commander" of the Huaxia Army.

I just don't know which of those four regimental commanders he is.

"Welcome."

The person extended his hand to Guo Xu.

"My name is Chen Jian, and I am one of the people in charge here."

"You are Guo Xu, the leader of the Imperial Guards, right?"

Guo Xu nodded immediately and then grasped Chen Jian's outstretched hand.

"Yes, I am Guo Xu."

"Thank you for your contributions."

Chen Jian smiled and said:

"I thought I would never have the chance to see you, but clearly you are very lucky."

"Of course, this is also a blessing for all of us."

"You can stay here for a while, rest, or look around, that's all fine."

"If you wish to return to Jinling City, we can arrange transportation for you."

"However, at least wait until tomorrow morning."

"May we express our gratitude to you?"

"of course."

Guo Xu straightened up slightly.

"We also thank you for your sacrifices and contributions during the beast tide."

His tone was neither humble nor arrogant.

He knew who he represented at that moment.
The last vestige of the Mechanicus.

"Then it's settled."

Chen Jian raised his hand and pointed to the main passage of Base 011 behind him.

"You should head in that direction."

"Someone will take you inside to rest."

"Take a nap first, and I'll talk to you again after you've rested, okay?"

"no problem."

Guo Xu nodded, said goodbye, and led Zhang Chao and Liu Hao toward the main passage.

Chen Jian, on the other hand, remained where he was.

He Shuo's voice came through his earphones.

"You can keep these people safe for me. Make sure they stay in the base."

"The next plan targeting Jinling City will start with them."

"If it works well."

"We could even take this city outright!"

"rest assured."

Chen Jian nodded slightly.

"I won't let them go."

"However, you also need to speed up the progress of the airport project on your side."

"The bombers will take off in 6 hours."

"We must complete the bombing of the mountain city within 10 hours."

"Whether Lin Yu can survive in the mountain city depends on how well we drop these nuclear bombs!"

(End of this chapter)