Dark Ruins Dawn

Chapter 128 Counterattack
"Hey!"

The foreman finally couldn't hold back any longer and shouted towards the rear of the vehicle, "What's going on behind us?"

An eerie silence lasted for a few seconds.

One of his men, who he had sent over, replied with a forced smile, "It's empty inside! Nothing unusual!"

This answer made the squad leader's heart skip a beat. He sensed something was wrong, but before he could react, he realized something was amiss.

"Clang-crack-!"

The truck's tailgate was kicked open, and ten armored soldiers, led by Cole, rushed out of the truck bed, exuding a murderous aura.

Without the slightest hesitation, their alloy boots formed a standard firing formation the instant they landed.

"Leave that leader behind." Zhuang Fan's command rang out simultaneously in the tactical channel.

“Da da da da—!”

The dozen or so scavengers standing behind the barricades, unaware of what was happening, were torn to pieces by a hail of bullets.

The whole process was extremely fast; they didn't even have a chance to draw their guns and fight back, let alone send a distress signal.

The gunfire stopped abruptly in just six seconds.

Blood and bits of flesh stained the yellow sand red.

Only the petty boss and his six henchmen, who had been held captive at the rear of the car from the beginning, remained at the scene.

The squad leader was both shocked and frightened, and pulled out his submachine gun to fire wildly at Cole.

Ding-ding-ding-ding!

The bullets hit Cole's heavy armor, but didn't leave even a white mark.

Cole strode forward, ignoring the opponent's counterattack, and simply slapped the submachine gun away.

He snatched the leader's communication panel, then slammed him to the ground, and without hesitation, raised his alloy combat boots and stomped down.

"Crack!"

The crisp sound of bones shattering rang out.

"what--!"

Cole's boots crushed his calf, pinning him down.

"Where are your main forces?" Cole's electronic voice was devoid of emotion.

"Hey! We're from the Blue Blade Gang!"

The henchman's face was contorted with pain, veins bulging, but he still tried to sound tough, "You dare touch me..."

"The Blue Blade Gang?" Zhuang Fan slowly walked over and squatted down to look at him.

"I've only ever heard of a bunch of stray dogs who were just beaten to a pulp by the Apocalypse Cult in the north of the city. What, are they now begging for food in the south of the city?"

"You're talking nonsense! That's...that's a strategic shift!"

The underling, his sore spot touched, blushed, and shouted, "We're protected by the deputy director of the Security Bureau! You're all dead!"

Cole ground the broken bone into the bone, and the gang leader let out a bloodcurdling scream.

"Where are those catwomen! Tell me or I'll crush your other leg too."

"No, stop stepping on me! I'll talk! I'll talk!"

The underling was in tears: "It's Fifth Brother! Fifth Brother led the main force and found the trail of those catwomen. He's surrounded the cave, and we were just about to join him!"

The "Fifth Brother" mentioned by the junior leader is one of the five leaders of the Blue Blade Gang.

They are five brothers, with the youngest being the fifth brother. The real leader is known as "Brother Blue".

Cole pressed again, "How many people are there over there?"

The foreman answered tremblingly, "Fifth Brother's side has at least a hundred people..."

"Where are the armored soldiers?!"

There are ten units.

After confirming the authenticity of the intelligence, Cole looked at Zhuang Fan and asked with his eyes whether he should be silenced.

Zhuang Fan shook his head: "Save your life. Gage just happens to need a batch of laborers to dig tunnels."

"Tie them up tightly and throw them onto the truck."

"Yes!"

A few minutes later, the seven prisoners were securely tied to the fixed hooks in the carriage and placed with ten armored soldiers.

Zhuang Fan climbed back into the driver's seat, and the truck roared to life, speeding towards the cave.

In the bumpy driver's cab, Zhuang Fan connected to Mao Shanwang's encrypted communication.

"Old Cat, the situation is urgent."

"My ancestor, how long have you been out of the city?" Mao Shanwang's voice came.

"The scavenging group was attacked by the Blue Blade Gang and is now hiding in a cave. The enemy is preparing to besiege it, so we rushed over there."

"The Blue Blade Gang...aren't they in the north of the city? These mad dogs!" Mao Shanwang cursed.

"Do not talk nonsense."

Zhuang Fan continued, "Immediately transport those forty power armor units to the Firewood Base; I need them at any time."

"Okay, okay! I'll arrange it right away!"

Mao Shanwang realized the seriousness of the situation, "I'll also bring a group of cats over to help you!"

"Okay, let's meet up later."

……

Deep within the dark cave, Hua Xin is leading her scavenging companions, maneuvering through complex terrain to fend off pursuers.

The Blue Blade Gang's scavengers had the advantage of numbers, but in this pitch-black environment, they could only hold up flashlights and cautiously venture deeper.

A group of pursuers had just rounded a corner when they passed a patch of drooping willow branches.

In the darkness, Hua Xin, who was lurking high up, deliberately threw a stone, which hit the stone wall in front of them.

"Who?!"

The scavenger running in front was startled and instinctively raised his gun to push aside the willow branches.

"Shh-!"

The willow branches came to life and lashed out at them, making a crisp cracking sound.

"Wow! So many lightning willows!"

The scavengers who were running at the front were whipped until their skin was torn and they fell down screaming in agony.

"Help me—!"

The willow branches quickly wrapped around their necks and limbs, then lifted them off the ground, strangling them to death in the darkness.

The pursuers behind were taken aback when they saw this and tried to detour from the other side, but accidentally bumped into a few inconspicuous low trees.

The leaves burst open instantly, sharp as knives, cutting the scavengers until they bled profusely.

"Holy crap, what kind of place is this?!"

The remaining pursuers were terrified and dared not venture any further, holding up their flashlights. Their fear of the eerie plants in the darkness even surpassed that of the corpse monster.

Hua Xin and his group lay in ambush in a dark corner.

There is a patch of mushrooms emitting a faint glow. Although the brightness is very low, it is just enough to dispel the deadly fog without revealing their location.

Even so, their situation was precarious. They had run out of ammunition, and most of their equipment, stored in cargo trucks, had been seized by the enemy.

At the entrance to the cave, Fifth Brother became very impatient.

Behind him, several powered armored vehicles protected him, and further out, hundreds of scavengers surrounded the area, making it impossible to pass through.

"Damn it, a bunch of useless trash!"

Fifth Brother kicked one of his men next to him, "It's been so long and we haven't even found a trace of a person! The plants in the cave are more useful than you guys!"

More deserters slunk out, trembling with fear of the deadly plants inside the cave.

"Bring those humans here!" Fifth Brother roared.

Soon, several men with bruised and swollen faces were dragged out; they were members of Hua Xin's scavenging group.

"You stray cats, aren't you supposed to value teamwork?"

Fifth Brother pulled out a dagger and slapped it across the hostage's face, shouting, "If you don't come out now, I'll skin him alive with each stab!"

Seeing no response from inside the cave, Fifth Brother licked his lips, his eyes hardened, and he stabbed the hostage's shoulder blade with his dagger.

He deliberately avoided vital points, and then stabbed the victim more than a dozen times.

"Ah—!" A scream echoed throughout the entire cave.

Hua Xin, who was hiding deep in the cave, listened to his comrades being tortured by the enemy and bit his lip tightly.

The catwoman beside her quickly grabbed her clothes, "Hold on, you can't go out."

Hua Xin clenched her cat-like fist, her body trembling slightly with anger.

Fifth Brother grew increasingly frustrated as he watched the hostage, who was convulsing in a pool of blood, almost fall silent.

Just then, another group of his men escaped in disarray, which made him completely lose his patience.

"No wait!"

He kicked aside the hostage next to him and shouted, "Bring up the flamethrower and the incendiary bombs!"

Several men immediately brought over fuel canisters and boxes.

"Burn it for me!"

Fifth Brother's face contorted with rage: "Block the entrance and pour fire inside! I want to see if they'll be suffocated by the smoke first, or roasted to a crisp!"

Several scavengers immediately stepped forward and unleashed long streams of fire into the depths of the cave.

The flames instantly ignited the lightning willows and blade trees, and the dry plants crackled and popped.

As thick, pungent smoke billowed back in, the scorching air began to burn the skin, and the oxygen rapidly thinned out.

Hua Xin and the others were in a hopeless situation.

Just then, Zhuang Fan and his group had silently infiltrated the flank of the Blue Blade Gang's main force.

Xiong Er found an excellent sniping spot on a distant high ground, and locked his scope firmly on "Fifth Brother".

"Target locked."

"Fire!" Zhuang Fan gave the order to attack.

"puff!"

Fifth Brother's entire head, along with his upper body, was suddenly blown open, and red and white matter splattered all over his subordinates' faces.

The subordinate didn't even realize what had happened; he just blankly wiped his face.

"Enemy attack! Enemy attack—!!"

It wasn't until several seconds later, when Fifth Brother's headless body crashed to the ground, that the scavengers located the sniper's position. However, the ground was already shaking violently.

Cole, leading ten armored soldiers, charged into the Blue Blade Gang's formation from the flank with overwhelming force.

"Don't panic, stay calm!"

Fifth Brother's deputy instantly calmed everyone down. When he saw that Cole's side only had ten armored soldiers, he grinned maliciously.

"Overestimating yourselves! Ten armored soldiers dare to charge? We have ten of our own! And over a hundred brothers!"

He pulled a disc-shaped bomb from his pocket, activated it abruptly, and threw it at Cole, who was charging at the front.

"Come and taste the flavor of your nemesis!"

Om-!
The armor-destroying weapon exploded in mid-air, releasing a powerful electromagnetic pulse visible to the naked eye.

Cole hadn't expected that these scavengers would also be hiding such a powerful weapon. Fortunately, the leader had the foresight to install a nano-lining in advance.

Cole's machine only shuddered slightly, and the system returned to normal within 0.5 seconds.

"Unharmed." Cole's electronic voice betrayed a hint of lingering fear, which quickly turned into rage. The scene the co-pilot had anticipated—the pilot being killed by the shockwave—did not occur, and the sneer on his face froze.

"How can it be……"

His eyes nearly popped out of their sockets: "It didn't work? It's expired, damn it?"

"They cheated!"

A scavenger who knew his stuff cried out in despair, "It's a nano-lining! Only top-tier armor has that!"

"You're only realizing this now? Too late."

Cole also pulled two armor-destroying weapons from his tactical rack.

"Reciprocity!"

He precisely threw two of his nemesis into the area where the enemy's power armor was most concentrated.

Without the protection of the nano-lining, the Blue Knife Gang's cobbled-together power armor was as fragile as cardboard.

Eight powered armored vehicles were instantly disabled, and the remaining two armored soldiers narrowly escaped death.

It wasn't because they were standing far away, but because their power armor was too damaged and leaked air everywhere, which greatly weakened the power of the armor killer.

However, the driver inside was also dizzy and almost lost the ability to fight back.

Seeing that things were not going well, they turned and ran.

The members of the Fire Spirit team caught up instantly, activated the high-frequency vibration blade, and pierced through the opponent from behind, along with the cockpit, pinning him to the ground.

The overwhelming force of the power armor, coupled with the sudden death of their leader, caused the Blue Blade Gang's defenses to collapse completely.

"We can't win, it's over!"

"Run!"

The surviving scavengers finally realized that this was not a battle, but an execution.

“Da da da da—!”

They indiscriminately fired bullets at the ten powered armors, but Cole and his men were unharmed.

Through the smoke-blackened cave entrance, Hua Xin and her cat-people emerged from the side of the cave.

Their clothes were completely blackened, but that didn't hinder their movement; they silently circled around to the back of the group of scavengers.

Taking advantage of the enemy's distraction by the armored soldiers ahead, the cat-men's agility was put to the test.

"laugh--!"

They attacked from behind with daggers, slashing one throat after another with precision.

What should have been a close battle quickly turned into a one-sided massacre.

Zhuang Fan directed from the rear, witnessing firsthand how the opposing force, which had a significant numerical advantage, was utterly crushed.

He became even more determined to stick to the elite force strategy, believing that in the face of absolute power, no matter how large the mob, they were just a disorganized rabble.

In the end, the thirty-odd surviving bandits were terrified and knelt on the ground with their hands raised.

The skirmish ended.

Pipi grabbed the medical kit and ran quickly to the abused hostage, cutting the ropes.

Fortunately, the hostages are still alive.

Hua Xin walked quickly to Zhuang Fan, her eyes slightly red. She suppressed her emotions and lowered her head in remorse.
"I'm sorry... We were being very careful when we came out, but they probably noticed us while we were climbing and jumping... and then they started targeting us..."

Zhuang Fan gently patted her shoulder and comforted her softly, "It's not your fault, it's alright now."

He paused, then said decisively, "After you all put on power armor, no one will bother you."

"Hmm..." Hua Xin quickly regained her composure.

Then, Zhuang Fan ordered Cole, "Tie them all up and take them back."

The battle yielded a rich haul, starting with the Blue Blade gang's wasteland-style power armor vehicles, followed by three heavy trucks, four spiked Hedgehog vehicles, and more than ten fuel-powered motorcycles.

The first captured leader and his six men were tied up in a corner of the lead car.

Then more than thirty surrendered prisoners were crammed in, making the carriage extremely crowded.

Cole left four armored soldiers to keep a close watch on them.

"Humph."

The foreman glanced coldly at the group of new inmates and snorted disdainfully.

"These bandits don't know what tough guys they've messed with. Do they really think they can run rampant outside the city just because they've stolen a few power armors?"

The bandit next to him nodded: "That's right. Once Brother Lan finds out, none of them will survive."

The truck bumped along the way and finally returned safely to the Firewood Base.

When the carriage doors opened, all the prisoners were roughly shouted out and led into the center of the base.

Inside the base's maintenance area, ten fully armed, uniformly painted powered armored personnel stood side by side.

Although the squad leader had a broken leg, he remained defiant. Looking at the ten powered armored vehicles before him, he muttered to himself:
"It's just these iron frames, what are you pretending for? Where does this run-down refugee camp get its courage?"

He glanced at Hua Xin and the others who were receiving treatment nearby, his eyes filled with contempt: "You're keeping a bunch of cat people as playthings, huh... Hey, let me tell you, our main force has a lot of power armor!"
"Snapped!"

An armored soldier slapped him hard across the face, making him see stars. "What are you babbling about! Behave yourself!"

The gang leader was stunned by the beating. He spat out a mouthful of blood and said, his neck stiff, "Tomorrow you will all be flattened! Not one of you will escape, you will all be..."

As he was being escorted around a corner and into the base's main maintenance area, the rest of his words got stuck in his throat.

Directly in front of him, another forty brand-new power armors sat quietly on the rack, gleaming with a cold, menacing light.

Forty more units?! Where the hell did they come from?! Is this recycling center that rich?!
He barely needed to calculate that this mysterious force possessed at least fifty power armors, far exceeding the number possessed by the Blue Blade Gang.

What made him even more desperate was that the quality and performance of these armors far surpassed the wasteland version he had cobbled together.

The weaponry was frighteningly fierce, consisting entirely of rotary machine guns, along with shoulder-fired grenade launchers, chainsaws, concussion knives, and the like...

The underling was completely too afraid to utter a sound this time, cold sweat sliding down his forehead.

Cole walked up to the leader, his heavy alloy footsteps abruptly stopping, and said coldly:
"Is your Brother Lan coming for revenge?"

"..."

"Don't worry, we'll kill him on our own so he can't run away."

The minor leader trembled and dared not raise his head again.

Inside the base, the cat people and the scavenging team members had never seen such a scene before and were all stunned.

They stared blankly at the row of steel behemoths before them, momentarily forgetting how to think.

Fifty powered armor units!
In the midst of this awe-inspiring silence, Zhuang Fan stood before everyone and said with a smile, "From today onwards, you have all passed the assessment and are now officially members of the Spark Foundation."

He pointed to the brand-new steel suits, his voice clearly reaching everyone's ears: "This means that from now on, when you go out to scavenge, you will all be wearing powered armor."

After a brief moment of stunned silence, someone in the crowd gasped in shock.

"Wow, long live the boss!"

Immediately, everyone erupted in jubilation.

The joy was so intense that it overshadowed the fatigue from the life-or-death battle.

The Spark Base currently has twenty cat people and thirty humans, just enough for one person per unit.

As for the ten power armors seized from the Blue Blade Gang, Gage inspected them. Although they were a bit worn out, they could be disassembled and repaired to serve as decent backup units.

Cole directed the armored troops to take the group of prisoners, who had completely lost the will to resist, into the basement.

Zhuang Fan called over Hua Sheng, who was in charge of logistics: "Tell Gage that these people are his first engineering team, and send some soldiers to guard them."

"Unless they perform exceptionally well and pass the loyalty test, they will keep digging until they reach the underground station platform on the Jetta side."

Watson nodded solemnly, accepted the order, and left.

Zhuang Fan's gaze fell back on Cole, watching him methodically count the spoils of war, and he was quite satisfied.

Cole is quickly shedding his former logistical pedantry as a quartermaster and becoming more mature and steady, adapting very well to his new role.

The cleanup work at the base continued until evening.

In the makeshift interrogation room.

Faced with the intimidation of fifty powered armored vehicles, the leader's psychological defenses had already collapsed.

Zhuang Fan extracted all the information from him in just half an hour.

The Blue Blade Gang's true nature was quickly uncovered.

As the leader said, their backer was a deputy director of the Linhai City Security Bureau.

The reason why the Blue Blade Gang rolled from the north of the city to the south was indeed, as he said, because they were afraid of being harassed by the Apocalypse Sect.

In addition, their real purpose was to target the trade routes near the Torch Base, intending to bypass official checkpoints and smuggle ore illegally mined from the city's Brilliant Crystal Mine.

"Take it down."

Having received all the answers he wanted, Zhuang Fan got up and left the interrogation room.

Cole understood and immediately came in, dragged the prisoner away, and sent him to reunite with his men.

A moment later, in the base's operations room, the core members of Zhuang Fan's team gathered, with Mao Shanwang sitting beside them with a solemn expression.

"Obviously..."

Zhuang Fu pointed to the route on the electronic map, "Even if there is no conflict today, given the Blue Blade Gang's expansion plan, they will inevitably include our base."

Cole said in a deep voice, "Our position is right on the smuggling route they envisioned. Conflict is bound to break out sooner or later. We won't have peace until they are dead."

"This is more than just a little troublesome, bro."

Mao Shanwang's expression was somewhat unpleasant. "My caravan will no longer be able to use this route to travel in and out, and we also have to be wary of the investigation teams from Mori-saka."

He had a headache just thinking about the future: "If the Blue Blade Gang really takes control of this place, they will plant spies everywhere, and it will become their territory. It will be extremely difficult for us to transport supplies in."

Just then, Chu Ningyan sent a communication request.

After Zhuang Fan answered the call, the voice on the other end said, "I've found out that the deputy director of the Security Bureau is in the Speaker of the Council's camp."

"The Speaker of the Council?" Zhuang Fu frowned slightly.

"Yes, he represents the council power of Linhai City, and they have always been at odds with Finn."

Chu Ningyan continued, "This Blue Blade Gang may also be a black glove kept by the council chairman, specializing in handling dirty work outside the city, such as smuggling Radiant Crystals."

Zhuang Fan pondered for a moment: "This is a bit tricky. Let me think about how to solve it."

"If needed, I can send troops."

"Okay, we won't need it for now."

"Okay, let's talk again."

After Zhuang Fan hung up the call, the atmosphere in the room became even more oppressive.

This matter involves a power struggle at the highest levels of Linhai City, and it's no longer just a problem for a group of scavengers.

If the Blue Blade Gang cannot be properly dealt with, it may invite retaliation from the powerful figures in Linhai City, creating a chain reaction.

However, before Zhuang Fan could formulate a detailed plan against the Blue Blade Gang, a new threat had already arrived.

A group of Apocalyptic cultists dressed in white robes gathered in the ruins a few kilometers away from the Firestone base.

The believer in charge of reconnaissance was kneeling before the minor leader, reporting: "Deacon! I saw it with my own eyes!"

"The scavenging group at that recycling station happened to be chased by the Blue Blade Gang today. Everyone who witnessed it saw it, and they must have suffered heavy losses!"

Upon hearing this, a hint of excitement flashed in the deacon's eyes.

That towering figure harbored a deep hatred for the recycling center, where his lifelong rival was said to reside.

If I could clear that place for Lord Iron Tower and offer him this credit, then he might be promoted to Patriarch!
"very good."

The deacon stood up, drew his sword from his waist, and raised it high: "The gods are calling us! Those heretics are probably still in a state of panic, and their defenses are certainly the weakest!"

He looked around at the more than one hundred believers, including sixty fanatical followers who were fearless of death.

"Then purify them! Take their lives and offer them to our God!"

(End of this chapter)