Wasteland Commander

The people at the Daqing Mountain Prison Base reacted correctly. Although they panicked after the first cannon shot, under Hu Yuan's strong suppression, they didn't flee.

If they continued to run, they would continue to be bombarded. The only way was to charge, to charge close to the city walls where the enemy's giant cannon would be useless.

It has to be said that Hu Yuan's strategy was correct. The survivors of the giant cannon's bombardment began skirmishing again.

They swarmed towards the direction of the city wall.

Shen Ruihui ordered the giant cannon to fire another shot, but the effect of this shot was much less, sweeping away only about two hundred people.

"No need to fire anymore. Wait until the enemy is within rifle range to start shooting."

The remaining soldiers went up the walls from below, ready to snipe.

When the enemy came within range, the gun battle between the two sides began.

At first, the people at the Daqing Mountain Prison used vehicles to charge, but they quickly paid the price.

The Dawn Army's rocket launchers and heavy machine guns taught them a lesson.

After three armored vehicles and dozens of other cars were destroyed, they no longer dared to use vehicles.

The vehicles were too large a target; traveling on foot was necessary.

But they were still not moving around freely because they had to carry ladders and moved slowly through the snow after disembarking.

Some covered with guns for those carrying ladders, exchanging shots with the soldiers on the wall.

The Dawn Army hid behind the merlons while the people from the Daqing Mountain Prison were exposed in the open, making this battle uneven.

Fortunately, the Dawn Army didn't have many left to defend several places. If there were five or six hundred people on this wall, the people from Daqing Mountain would probably have been annihilated already.

They ran back and forth, advancing using any available cover and entangling with the Dawn Army, but scaling the walls quickly was unlikely.

Also, their leader, Hu Yuan, was not among the group.

Hu Yuan had realized that breaking through the front of the wall was too challenging.

Attacking from East City seemed to be a mistake, but it was too late to change it.

During the havoc of the giant cannon, he issued emergency orders and then took several Evolvers with him, quickly shifting toward the direction of South City.

He intended to enter from the outer city of South City, using the main force to draw attention so he could infiltrate from the side.

Only this way, he would have the chance to approach Deputy Shen.

The outer city walls were nowhere near the same level as the inner city's, standing only a little over three meters tall and unfinished.

Moreover, there were no sentry towers behind, basically just for show.

It might block clumsy zombies, but any agile person could climb it.

Following Hu Yuan were four Evolvers. Five people and a jeep quickly arrived at the outer city wall.

"Get out of the car, enter the city!"

The four subordinates jumped down and quickly scaled the wall like monkeys.

Hu Yuan leapt up with a single hand's pull.

They turned over the wall below, having entered the outer city of Dawn City.

Inside were crisscrossing streets and neatly arranged houses, seemingly occupied.

Some houses even had corn, dried red peppers, and other food hanging outside.

This made them envious.

Food in the post-apocalypse is precious. People were desperately collecting grains, and even though Daqing Mountain Prison Base had seized Mei City, their food was still scarce.

Many food items in the city couldn't be taken out and would spoil soon.

A base with hundreds of thousands of people consumes an astonishing amount; they often lose men while gathering food due to zombie attacks.

Ordinary survivors only receive a bit of thin gruel daily; delicacies like peppers hardly reach them.

Why do ordinary survivors in the Dawn Army have such things in their homes?

"Damn it! This Dawn Army is really wealthy. How much have they looted?"

"Never mind, once Dawn City is taken, it's all ours."

The group continued swiftly along the street. Some survivors saw them but didn't interfere, seeing it as the Dawn Army's responsibility. They stayed home obediently to avoid causing trouble for the troops.

They ran through several streets and approached the main city district.

When passing another street, an Evolver hesitated.

A beautiful woman appeared from one house.

She wore a pom-pom hat, a pink down jacket.

Her pure face was slightly flushed with cold, holding a chicken in a plastic bag, ready to put it away.

In the northern winter, there was no need for a refrigerator; everywhere was one.

"What a beautiful chick! How can such a girl live just in the outer city? Could Ye Fan of the Dawn Army really not appreciate women?"

If the task weren't so crucial, he would have stopped to have his fun.

As they passed by, the beauty snorted.

"Hu Yuan... so you have your day too. I've finally let out some steam."

********

The group continued moving forward, finally approaching the main city district.

The siege battle was fought on the eastern city walls of the main city district. If they managed to get through this gate, they'd have a chance to climb the walls.

Upon reaching the gate, they discovered a small door was left open!

"Great, the defense is so lax, let's go in!"

They dashed through the small door.

Inside, the environment seemed slightly better than the outer city, with larger houses, and in the distance, there was even a market, though currently deserted.

Continuing eastward, crossing the frozen river would bring them close to the eastern city walls.

They sprinted to the river's edge, where they met resistance.

A large pack of military dogs surrounded them from all directions.

These military dogs were extraordinarily large, comparable to lions and tigers, likely Mutant Beasts.

It's unclear how they were tamed by the Dawn Army; they pounced with immense ferocity.

An Evolver drew his gun to fire, but a shadow flashed overhead, and he was taken into the sky by a giant bird!

The wingspan of three to four meters was terrifying; he was lifted uncontrollably, hurriedly trying to shoot the bird. When the bird released its claws, he fell back down.

A pack of military dogs attacked from all sides, with one biting off one of his wrists, causing his firearm to drop.

The Evolver let out a scream of agony; the bite force of these military dogs instantly shattered his Evolver pride.

He was an Evolver, yet these were also Mutant Beasts, and he held no advantage.

The other Evolvers faced similar situations, besieged by these eagles and dogs, they were in a tough battle and wouldn't last much longer.

Only Hu Yuan managed to cross the river.

Even though eagles and dogs tried to intercept him, Hu Yuan had an Evolution Value of 1.9, not just for show. His successive double kicks sent two military dogs flying, followed by precise gunfire that hit several more dogs and an eagle.

However, these resilient Mutant Beasts weren't killed; they retreated after being injured.

Hu Yuan didn't pursue them. He had no intention of fighting this large group of Mutant Beasts; he took this chance to confront Deputy Shen.

On the city wall, Shen Ruihui also saw Hu Yuan.

Shen Ruihui had intentionally allowed them to enter the city because of this leading Evolver.

As a Hero Level unit, Shen Ruihui could sense the immense power emanating from this individual.

This must be a leading figure of Daqing Mountain.

Shen Ruihui believed that when the commander first upgraded him to Hero status, he viewed himself as his most trusted confidant.

Thus, the position of Deputy Regiment Commander was likely to fall to him.

But he wasn't without competition, like Zhongjing and others.

So, he needed to achieve a merit, such as capturing this enemy leader alive, adding a significant bargaining chip to his promotion path.

So when Hu Yuan broke through the military dogs and War Hawk defenses, Shen Ruihui immediately descended from the city wall.

He actively engaged the approaching Hu Yuan, even stopping the soldiers on the wall from shooting at Hu Yuan, as he wanted to fight one-on-one.

The two met by the riverbank, exchanged no words, and simultaneously drew their guns to shoot!

One clip of bullets each, the score was one to zero!

Hu Yuan was shot in the waist, something he never expected.

With his current skill level, one-on-one, unless it was a Sharpshooter Evolver or a Level 2 Evolver, nobody could hit him.

Indeed, Deputy Shen's strength was formidable!

However, his own physical constitution was extremely strong; the gunshot was not lethal. He tossed the gun with a raised hand, pulled his clothes tightly to slow the bleeding, then lunged at Shen Ruihui.

Empty-handed combat, swiftly taking down the opponent.

Shen Ruihui glanced disdainfully at his opponent and pulled out a scout-issue dagger from his trouser leg.

Charging forward with accelerating steps, the two quickly approached each other!

They simultaneously leaped into the air!

Exchanging flying kicks!

Hu Yuan executed a mid-air 360-degree triple kick!

Shen Ruihui countered with a 361-degree triple kick!

After three mid-air kicks, they almost landed simultaneously.

This immediately determined the winner; Shen Ruihui landed steady, while Hu Yuan staggered backward several steps, inferior in strength to Shen Ruihui.

"Impossible! Could it be a Level 2 Evolver?"

Hu Yuan hadn't yet regained stability when another gap became evident.

Shen Ruihui's extra pivot allowed his arm to lift neatly, launching a knife!

Thud~~~!

The knife lodged into the gunshot wound on Hu Yuan.

The injury compounded, thoroughly tearing open the wound, as blood began to gush.

Shen Ruihui hit his mark and flicked his military coat with a flourish.

"You should feel honored to fall beneath my flying knife."

"Flying knife.....?"

"That's right, the 'flying' in Deputy Shen's Flight, and the 'knife' in Deputy Shen's Dagger."

Having said that, Shen Ruihui waved his hand, flicked his coat, and took big strides forward.

Unwilling, Hu Yuan attacked Shen Ruihui again, but the difference this time was even greater.

His opponent's strength and speed had reached a superhuman level; his grappling skills were highly refined, and the injured Hu Yuan was subdued within moments.

He accepted defeat.

In one-on-one combat, dozens couldn't defeat him, yet he toppled so easily; his opponent was undoubtedly a Level 2 Evolver.

"I've lost, but it's not in vain. Since you're the Deputy of the Dawn Army, I don't feel I've lost to a nobody."

With Hu Yuan pinned underfoot, Shen Ruihui called soldiers over to bind him but refuted his words.

"No, I estimate I'm on the verge of becoming a deputy, but the Commander-in-Chief hasn't appointed me yet."

"Oh! Then, are you the Political Commissar?"

Shen Ruihui shook his head.

"Battalion Commander?"

Another shake.

Hu Yuan felt some frustration in his chest, "Am I defeated by a Company Commander?"

Shen Ruihui was slightly embarrassed, "Actually, I'm just a Platoon Leader."

Blood spurted out, and Hu Yuan's consciousness blurred.

The pain in his heart far exceeded the physical pain.

He thought he was invincible under the heavens, yet he lost to such an underling. What kind of dragon's lair and tiger's den is this Dawn Army?