Chapter 93: Sniped from 300 Meters
The Steam Faction suddenly started the war, which was very unreasonable.
Logically, a three-day period had been given to clear the field, and the Steam Faction shouldn't have come to provoke on Green Street during this time.
Moreover, with the support of the third branch of the Rayes family, the Steam Faction just needed to wait a few more days, and the Cross Society would eventually leave Green Street due to the pressure from higher-ups. Even if there were conflicts, they would be minor skirmishes.
They could have taken Green Street without much cost, but now it looked as if they were intent on a gang warfare, which was incomprehensible.
Kai cursed as he looked at the number of enemies, "Have the Steam Faction gone mad? Do they want this to be a fight to the death between the two gangs?"
Su Lun, observing the sudden turn of events, had a strange thought cross his mind, and he murmured, "To act so recklessly… Could it be that the president of the Steam Faction has been assassinated, or perhaps… Young Master Martin has been killed?"
Apart from this reason, he couldn't understand what could drive the Steam Faction to such a desperate charge.
But whatever the reason for the Steam Faction's war declaration was, it didn't matter anymore; now that the enemy was at their doorstep, the Cross Society had to face them.
.....
The first shell exploded, destroying an armored vehicle of the Cross Society parked at the head of Green Street. The caravan charged into Green Street and the surrounding blocks like a flood of steel.
Fierce gunfire ensued, with shots fired and cannons booming on the streets.
The Steam Faction excelled in mechanical augmentation, granting them a massive technological advantage with cannons and armored vehicles.
Virtually each of their motorcycles was fitted with portable cannons and heavy machine guns, turning these hundreds of bikers into hundreds of moving artillery units.
The Cross Society was caught off guard by the scale of gang warfare and could not sustain a direct artillery fight for long; their men were soon forced into the alleyways between buildings, where urban combat began.
Initial estimates suggested that the Steam Faction outnumbered the Green Street Cross Society ten to one!
Furthermore, the majority of the Steam Faction members were augmented with mechanical limbs, which gave them an edge in large-scale firefights. A bullet hit was less likely to be fatal compared to a flesh-and-blood body.
Besides, while mechanical limbs might not be as agile as flesh, they offered substantial advantages in sustained shooting accuracy and steadiness among non-professionals.
....
Kai and Su Lun, along with their men, took position in front of a dilapidated building, which was conveniently located by a narrow alley.
This alley was too cramped for large war vehicles to enter, allowing them to set up defensive combat positions.
"Brothers, fight the bastards. Just hold on a bit longer; reinforcements from headquarters are on the way!"
"Wolff, take the rocket launcher and blow up the troop carrier on the street corner!"
"Damn it, we need someone who can bandage—get Batty's wound taken care of!"
"..."
The sound of gunfire was incessant, like rain, as Captain Kai shouted commands in a strained voice.
"Whoosh" "Whoosh" "Whoosh"... The whistling of bullets filled the air, and the oppressive threat of death weighed heavily on everyone's chest, making breathing labored.
Large-scale warfare wasn't the time for personal bravery; even Kai, who was very capable in close combat, had to stay behind cover and shoot. If he rushed out now, he'd instantly be riddled with bullets.
Gang members, after all, weren't the same as a regular army; although fierce in battle, they had many shortcomings.
For instance, they lacked medics.
Once injured, it was pretty much fatal for them.
The seasoned fighters still had experience; they shifted from cover to cover while returning fire effectively. However, the new recruits could make fatal mistakes due to nervousness and frequent slips...
A mistake meant death.
Before long, from the group of forty or fifty people, more than ten were out of action due to death or serious injuries. And because the resistance in the dilapidated building had been noted, more and more Steam Faction members gathered at the alley's entrance.
...
Su Lun took cover and occasionally fired his gun with cold precision.
His expression remained calm throughout.
After all, ordinary gunmen didn't pose much of a threat to him.
Even without peeking out to survey the area, Su Lun's capability to locate enemies by sound allowed him to easily determine where their shots were coming from. He could even dodge rocket attacks by predicting the trajectory and impact point from the sound of the rocket's ignition, avoiding fatal blasts with ease.
Su Lun's combat abilities had already surpassed most of the captains. With his marksmanship, he could easily suppress the twenty or thirty enemies at the mouth of the alley with little effort.
But he didn't do so.
Because that wouldn't solve the problem and would only bring real disaster upon the Green Street squad.
If the enemy realized there was a "gun expert" in the dilapidated building, an experienced captain would be sent to tackle this tough nut; and if Su Lun killed a captain, higher-ranking fighters would come...
Trouble would come in an unending stream.
Now that the enemy outnumbered them ten to one, no matter how formidable Su Lun was, it was impossible for him to kill them all.
The best choice was to continue whittling them down and wait for the reinforcements from the Cross Association to arrive. Only when someone could restrain the enemy's tier two professionals, could he let loose and counterattack.
What he needed to do now was to preserve himself, occasionally taking potshots to eliminate a few of the more threatening enemies.
....
The team members from Green Street Squad were pressed from the mouth of the alley to its end.
Just then, Kai suddenly realized the sniper atop the dilapidated building had stopped moving. Looking back, he discovered that their sniper had been headshot by the enemy at some point, his body half-dangling over the edge of the rooftop.
"Damn it, our sniper's been taken out!"
"Captain, it seems like some enemies have climbed up to the back of the dilapidated building!"
"..."
The Steampunk Gang enemies, pinned down at the entrance of the alley and not daring to rush forward, were actually largely deterred by the fact that the Cross Association had occupied the high ground early on, with the threat of the sniper.
Now, without the sniper in the high position, the Steampunk Gang pushed forward with their mechanical shields a significant distance outside the alley.
The situation grew increasingly dire, and Su Lun was still trying to figure out how long they could hold before they would absolutely have to withdraw.
But just then, he suddenly felt a sensation on his forehead akin to the pressure of a needle prick.
"Am I being targeted by a sniper?"
This was a premonition warning from "Malicious Perception," sensing the hostile gaze fixed upon himself.
The feeling was faint, indicating that the enemy was at a great distance.
But it was enough to put Su Lun on high alert.
Without any hesitation, he rolled away on instinct, and almost at the same time, a bullet struck the spot he'd just occupied, leaving a crater on the hard ground.
Su Lun looked at the bullet's trajectory and instantly determined the precise location of the sniper. Nearly rolling at the same time, he unhesitatingly drew the famed gun "Lightning Serpent," flung it forward, and pulled the trigger towards a small building's window 300 meters away in the 10 o'clock direction from the left front.
"Bang!"
A burst of special brilliance flashed from the muzzle like a serpent, the bullet fired, and then it accurately entered the window 300 meters away. The blood splattering suddenly on the windowpane showed that someone behind it had been hit.
Captain Kai, watching Su Lun suddenly roll and fire towards the flank of their position, instinctively followed the direction of the barrel.
He had just been wondering why Su Lun's pistol was angled so high, and when he saw the blood spatter on the windowpane, he realized why.
"A sniper?"
Kai looked at the expressionless Su Lun with eyes full of shock as if he had seen something unbelievable.
Su Lun was a "gun expert," Kai knew that.
He wasn't surprised that Su Lun could snipe the enemy sniper with one shot.
But using a pistol to accurately kill a target 300 meters away, wasn't that absurd?
Ignoring the marksmanship, who uses a pistol for sniping?
Kai, after all, was a professional, with far more experience than the average gang member. Glancing at the old, marked pistol in Su Lun's hand, he knew it couldn't be ordinary.
He had seen Su Lun not using the famed gun "Three-Headed Ghost" before and thought it was because Su Lun was wary of exposing himself, daring not to use it. Did Su Lun switch to something even better?
Kai didn't say much; now was not the time for idle chatter.
Without the high ground, they were at a disadvantage. Kai instantly thought of something, came over, and asked, "Brother Su Lun, can you lead a couple of brothers to take over the high ground of the dilapidated building?"
It was a very dangerous mission.
Snipers were targets that received special attention; once they fired and exposed their positions, the enemy's first choice would be to eliminate the sniper spot.
Kai and Su Lun had been through life and death together. If not for the need to hold his position, he would have chosen to go himself.
But Su Lun agreed without any hesitation, nodding, "I can."
It suited him just fine.
There were too many people at the position, too many watching eyes; it wasn't convenient to expose many of his tactics. Besides, because the position was a large target, it would definitely be the main focus of the enemy's attention. Even with his heightened perception, it was hard to avoid being accidentally hit by stray bullets.
Most importantly, if they couldn't hold on later, it would affect his "tactical retreat."
Su Lun thought it over and then added, "I'll go alone."