978: Chapter 978: Abyss and the Human Heart (Extra Large Chapter for Monthly Votes) 978: Chapter 978: Abyss and the Human Heart (Extra Large Chapter for Monthly Votes) The young officer hurried over, not stopping until he reached the two n and handed the telephone to Corvey.
It was only then that he seed to realize there was soone else standing beside Corvey.
His eyes widened as he looked at He Ao beside Corvey, as if he wanted to ask sothing, but upon seeing Corvey pick up the phone, he clamped his mouth shut.
At this mont, the telephone in Corvey’s hand connected, and a sowhat anxious middle-aged man’s voice ca through, “General Corvey, why did the line just cut off?
Are you alright?
What’s the situation over there?”
“It was an Electromagnetic Pulse Bomb,”
Corvey replied hoarsely, “Nothing serious, things are going smoothly here; we should be wrapping up soon.”
Then he paused montarily, glancing at the flas lighting up the sky overhead, “How’s the situation outside?”
“The situation has gotten worse,”
the middle-aged officer at the other end of the line said quickly, “The Evis Space System rcenary Corps has suddenly intensified their offensive; they are rapidly shifting from probing attacks to a full-scale assault.”
“A full-scale attack?”
Corvey was slightly stunned, then quickly said, “Maintain orderly counterattacks, but don’t significantly increase the force.
I’ll be right back.”
“Yes.”
The middle-aged officer imdiately responded.
While Corvey was on the phone, the young officer cautiously leaned over to look at He Ao, “Are you…
Mr.
Lin En?”
Then he noticed the blood on He Ao, “Are you hurt?”
“Just a minor injury,”
He Ao shook his head, smiling, “I rember you.
When I last visited the South City Command Center, you were standing in the last row.”
The young officer’s eyes instantly widened.
And at this ti, Corvey, having hung up the phone, turned back to He Ao, “Shall we visit the Command Center?”
“Sure.”
He Ao coughed, smiling, “I’d like to see what the situation is in South City right now.”
“Okay then.”
Corvey nodded, then turned and looked at the young officer who was still sowhat surprised and excited, “Call a vehicle to wait for us downstairs, the faster, the better.”
“Alright.”
The young officer imdiately agreed, then glanced at Corvey, then at He Ao, “I promise to complete the task!”
He quickly ran off towards the lower levels.
“Are you poaching my people again?”
Corvey said with a smile looking at He Ao.
“Just making small talk.”
He Ao spread his hands, “The kid runs through artillery fire; he’s got courage and drive.
You’re good at developing your subordinates.”
“Enough with the flattery,”
Corvey said with a smile, raising his hand to point in another direction, “Let’s go this way, it’s closer to the Command Center.
By the ti we get down there, the car should have arrived.”
“How are your injuries?”
He Ao glanced at the bloody wound on Corvey’s back as he followed his pace, asking in a subdued voice.
“They’re okay, nothing serious,”
Corvey smiled, “My Talent Sequences have improved my physical strength considerably; these kinds of wounds will heal quickly.”
“But, it seems like you have quite a few internal injuries?”
He Ao looked at Corvey, observing the sowhat chaotic energy circuit within him.
Even with internal injuries, Corvey’s own strength was still formidable.
He Ao could so easily slay the Minotaur Giant in part because Corvey had first opened a cut on it.
He Ao had no doubt that, with the help of the Life Keepsake Watch, Corvey could have killed those two beasts just now, but Corvey would probably have suffered severe injuries himself.
That was also why He Ao had rushed over without stopping; South City always needed a prestigious and capable B-level to stabilize the situation.
If Corvey were seriously injured, He Ao would find it difficult to attend to both the situation inside the city and that of the City Defense Army.
“That was a long ti ago,”
Corvey sighed, smiling, “Old injuries from the past, when there were no ans to treat them.
I had to make do, and over ti they turned into internal injuries.
For soone like who climbed up from the bottom, to aspire for higher positions, you inevitably face dangers constantly, taking chances wherever possible.”
“I understand.”
He Ao also sighed softly, speaking slowly.
By now, the two had reached the bottom of the hill, and an off-road vehicle with its doors open was already waiting in front of them.
Corvey let He Ao get in the car first and then sat next to him.
As the vehicle started, he turned to look at He Ao’s body, “You’re not lightly wounded, what exactly did you encounter in the west?”
“The Great Tutor of the Prisoners’ Gang,” He Ao said slowly, “He is an Abyssal Life, a bit stronger than a normal B-level.”
“A bit stronger?” Corvey looked at the blood on He Ao’s body, slightly stunned.
He Ao, even in a seriously injured state, had easily killed those two monsters.
For soone to have inflicted such injuries on He Ao was just ‘a bit stronger’?
But Corvey didn’t press the issue as He Ao wasn’t inclined to share more.
Instead, he looked out the window at the retreating road, seeming to be falling into so mory, “But co to think of it, I seem to have heard the word ‘Abyss’ before.”
“Where?” He Ao looked up at him.
As an experienced B-level, it was normal for Corvey, who had climbed his way up from a refugee in South City to Commander of the City Defense Army, to have had many thrilling ‘encounters’ and to know so extraordinary information that ordinary people had never heard of.
“In the ruins from the Era of the Great Cataclysm, I suppose,” Corvey recalled and said hoarsely, “probably on the wilderness in the middle of the Federation, it was a city ruin left from the Era of the Great Cataclysm,
“That ruin was the best-preserved I’ve seen from the Era of the Great Cataclysm; the entire city was buried underground with no traces of disaster or war, as if it had been abandoned all of a sudden and sunk into the ground.
“At that ti, I had just reached D-Rank.
We had taken a commission to search for so ingredients for the ‘Challenger’ Secret dicine in that ruin and found so information left by the city,”
Then he paused, lowering his voice,
“However, I didn’t look at that information.
In general, any information from ruins with a bit of eeriness should not be touched.
But one of my teammates sneaked a peek without my knowledge until he started constantly muttering words like ‘Abyss,’ ‘Eternal,’ ‘Evolution,’ then we realized sothing was wrong with him.
“We got him out of the ruins and left soone to take care of him, but by the ti we got out, both he and the one caring for him were dead.
Their bodies were twisted into shapes that a normal human could not understand,
“We didn’t dare to touch them and could only use explosives to collapse the surrounding rocks and bury them, also finding them a final resting place.”
“It looks like they were contaminated.” After listening to Corvey’s narration, He Ao let out a sigh and said softly.
“Yes,” Corvey’s voice deepened, his smile tinged with helplessness, “That’s just how this world is, you never know when you might suddenly provoke an indescribable existence and die in madness.”
Then, lowering his head as if deep in thought, he looked at He Ao, “Those two we just killed, were they Abyssal Life as well?”
“Yes,” He Ao nodded lightly, “But not pure Abyssal Life, they were parasites in human bodies.”
“So you’re saying the Prisoners’ Gang is essentially a gang disguised by an Abyssal Life, with the power of the Abyss having already spread to this city?” Corvey pondered, lowering his head, “But the mbers of the Prisoners’ Gang don’t seem to be contaminated.”
“Perhaps these Abyssal Life have undergone so sort of ‘Stripping’ and purification during their Advent,” He Ao speculated, “Besides, the Positional Grade of these Abyssal Life themselves is not very high.
Unless they establish a connection with so Higher Beings, the likelihood of direct contamination is relatively low.
After all, Abyssal Life and the Abyss might be two separate concepts.”
“Indeed.” Corvey nodded lightly.
Powerful cultists can live in cities in human form, but this doesn’t an that ordinary people can approach the Evil God.
The SUV passed through the gates of South City Command Center and continued downward along an underground passage.
Just then, Corvey seed to realize sothing and looked at He Ao, “Is soone utilizing the power of the Abyss?”
Abyssal Life wouldn’t just suddenly appear in Yilan City without a reason, let alone organize an attack on South City.
“Not clear yet,” He Ao shook his head gently, “But it’s hard to say which is more terrifying, human hearts or the Abyss.”
Hearing He Ao’s words, Corvey let out a sigh, and a brief silence fell in the SUV.
“General Corvey,” At that mont, a communication ca into the vehicle, and the figure of a middle-aged military officer appeared in a holographic projection in the middle of the SUV,
“The Evis Space System rcenary Corps has initiated a full-scale attack, and the airborne forces led by the Sky Behemoth are rapidly approaching the city gates.
Should we use close-range High-Explosive Armor-Piercing Missiles to counteract?
According to the staff’s analysis, this could effectively hinder the advance of the Sky Behemoth, but we do not have many High-Explosive Armor-Piercing Missiles in the city, so we may not be able to hold them off for long.”
“Pass my command, the anti-air units will reduce their rate of counterattack and enter silent preparation,” Corvey commanded the middle-aged officer calmly, “We will arrive shortly,”
“But isn’t that letting them in?” The middle-aged officer opened his mouth, appearing to want to say sothing else, but ultimately nodded after seeing Corvey’s stern look.
“Understood.”
The SUV stopped in front of a gate that had already opened, Corvey cut off the communication, and turning his head towards He Ao, he opened his mouth as if to explain.
“I can understand,”
He Ao shook his head and smiled, “General Corvey, just command the troops at your own pace.
I’ve said it before, I trust you.”
Corvey opened his mouth, laughed hoarsely, “Then I will show my humble skills.”
The two got out of the car together and walked along the walkway behind the sluice gate, with busy ssengers constantly passing by them.
So who saw He Ao and Corvey wanted to stop to greet them, but were waved off by He Ao.
They soon arrived at a sowhat crude hall.
At this mont, the hall was under a holographic projection that covered the entire space, with the night sky enveloping the ceiling, and the glow of surging flas filling the space.
Dense chanized troops and air squadrons spread across the land like dark clouds and shadows, quickly approaching their position.
At the forefront of the air squadron, the imnse, pitch-black war behemoth raised its cannons, with a dazzling orange-red glow gathering inside.
One after another, interception shells streaked across the night sky, heading for the already bursting cannon, then getting intercepted by the air squad around the large war machine.
But in the end, so shells still made it to the front of the massive cannon.
Boom—
The intense orange-red light illuminated the night and firmant in an instant, like a burning sun lighting up the land around it.
Then, that surging glow burst forth, filling the entire holographic projection.
The holographic projection flickered and then went out completely.
In the suddenly descended darkness, the hall fell into a brief silence, with many of the officers present seemingly witnessing such a scene for the first ti.
They seed stunned by the great power of humanity and by the fact that this great power was ultimately used against humanity itself.
Boom—
With a thunderous noise, the hall itself shook.
This wasn’t simulation from the holographic projection but an actual tremor of the ground, a seismic trembling that awakened everyone from the silence.
“S-97 area wall is damaged, activating ergency repair machinery.”
“Holographic cara is damaged, switching to backup cara.”
“Holographic projection equipnt is restarting.”
As the flickering light lit up the hall again, the grand war machine reappeared before everyone’s eyes, and they all fully awakened from the previous shock.
“General,”
The middle-aged officer standing next to the main seat also saw the two who had co from the back and imdiately rushed up, looking at Corvey, “The rcenary Corps that the air squadron is rapidly approaching us, the Sky Behemoth’s cannon at the very front has reached the high wall.
South City Gate can’t withstand a few bombardnts, we should counterattack now!”
With his voice, many in the hall turned their heads to look at Corvey.
“Don’t rush.”
Corvey walked to the main control station, staring at the trendous Sky Behemoth in the holographic projection, “Just wait a bit longer.”
“But…”
An officer in the crowd opened his mouth hoarsely as if he wanted to say sothing, but in the end, he couldn’t voice it.
So turned their gaze to He Ao next to them.
But He Ao just stood quietly behind Corvey, invisibly stating his stance.
Streams of data cut through the surrounding holographic projections, displaying the specific situation of the air squadron with the Sky Behemoth at the lead.
The Evis Space System rcenary Corps had brought a total of four Sky Behemoths this ti, the current arrangent was one Sky Behemoth and its defensive fleet at the very front, followed by the fighter cha air squadron.
Then ca three Sky Behemoths side by side, followed by the remaining air squadron.
The entire air squadron was advancing rapidly; at this mont, the Sky Behemoth at the forefront was very close to the high wall, and its protective fleet seed to have not quite kept up with its pace.
The entire hall seed sowhat silent, everyone was watching the grand machine step by step approaching them, watching the ten-ter giant cannon begin to charge energy again.
“Notify all high-explosive armor-piercing missile launchers,”
Finally, Corvey’s hoarse voice broke the eerie silence, “Aim at the Sky Behemoth in the front.”
The entire command center bustled into action, but then Corvey said nothing more, and the hall fell back into silence.
The light in the giant cannon began to gather again, shining like a resplendent sun in the night sky.
The silence in the command hall once more fell into deathly stillness.
Then, the elderly general standing at the main seat raised his hand, his voice calm and steady as he called out, “Fire!”
The electronic warfare system quickly transmitted the command, and flashes of light once again lit up the night sky, and this ti, the glow ca from in front of them.
The brilliant artillery fire almost instantly penetrated the sowhat neglected defenses of the massive machine, pierced through the pitch-black armor, and erupted into a roaring explosion.
Everyone looked up ahead, as fire and light once again light up the sky, like blooming fireworks, filling the entire night.
Then, the holographic projection flickered again and again descended into darkness.
“Holographic projection is restarting.”
A voice in the crowd said, sowhat panicked.
The flickering brilliance lit up once again, presenting before everyone’s eyes the sight of the imnse, fla-engulfed war machine, tilting as though falling from the sky like a mountain.
“Did it…
succeed?”
Watching the continuously plumting war machine, the officer at the forefront said sowhat disconcertedly.
“Activate all anti-aircraft guns, full power output, attack the enemy’s air forces that are without the cover of the Sky Behemoths.”
General Corvey’s raspy voice resounded once again.
The crowd quickly ca to their senses and began to relay further orders.
As the flas illuminated the darkness again, and as each fighter plane burst forth under the cover of night, the previously oppressive atmosphere in the war room naturally eased.
And General Corvey turned back to glance at He Ao.
He Ao gave him a thumbs-up with a smile.
The two exchanged a glance and said no more.
In fact, as soon as Corvey issued the first command, He Ao had guessed his intentions.
Communication was blocked both inside and outside of the city, so the outside world remained unaware of the situation within.
They could only infer from the City Defense Army’s combat status.
General Corvey had instructed the troops to lessen their counterattack significantly, effectively sending a false signal of ‘command confusion’ to mislead the enemy commander into thinking the city’s defenses were nearing collapse or had already failed, spurring an underestimation of the situation.
This would encourage the vanguard to plunge deeper into territory, in an attempt to end the war swiftly.
At that mont, General Corvey simply had to wait for the right ti when the enemy was outnumbered, concentrate his forces to eliminate the vanguard first, and thus deal a significant blow to the Evis Space System.
It would also boost the morale of the continuously suppressed City Defense Army.
Of course, this plan was incredibly risky and required strong execution, decisive courage, and unified resolve.
If He Ao had even raised a single doubt or spoken out, it would have swayed the hearts of those around, ruining Corvey’s plan.
Thus, He Ao had remained silent, standing behind Corvey, expressing his stance.
Decisions with such high stakes are not sothing the staff could make; this exemplifies a commander’s purpose.
A staff as a collective often struggles to shoulder high-risk responsibilities – in plain terms, to bear the brunt – but an individual commander can.
Had He Ao not arrived in ti, with Corvey injured and replaced outside, relying solely on the staff, the City Defense Army would adopt an even more conservative strategy, and the situation would have been much worse.
“The rcenary corps outside are retracting their forces; their attack has slowed.”
The middle-aged officer beside him said with a hint of regret.
Following his words, He Ao looked towards the holographic projection of the scene.
After being hit head-on by the City Defense Army, the isolated air forces opted to retreat, widening the distance, regrouping with the forces behind, and continuing to advance step by step.
The enemy commander was not foolish.
After being hamred, they quickly beca cautious.
“Maintain firepower output,”
General Corvey shook his head lightly, “don’t underestimate the enemy.”
“Yes.”
The middle-aged officer imdiately nodded.
At that ti, He Ao was already looking down at the battle situation on the main control console.
“The enemy’s firepower still has the upper hand,”
General Corvey lowered his head beside He Ao, looking at the scene above, “their weapons are much more advanced than ours; from now on, it will be a war of attrition.”
“At least we’ve taken down one of their Sky Behemoths and a good number of their air forces; the gap isn’t as vast now.”
He Ao said with a smile, his voice reassuring.
“Indeed.”
General Corvey also smiled and sighed before he raised his head to look at He Ao, stating calmly and steadily, “Whatever happens, I will fight beside these high walls to the very last mont.”
This was a response to the promise made to He Ao earlier, as well as an expression of trust in him.
“Don’t worry,”
He Ao shook his head, looking at the veteran general, “things will get better.”
“Good,”
General Corvey smiled and nodded, then looked at He Ao and asked in a low voice, “How is the situation in the north?”
“Not so good,”
He Ao shook his head.
As he spoke, he suddenly paused mid-sentence, raised his hand, and looked at his wristband.
A call from a number, not in his contacts—a number unfamiliar yet familiar—popped in.
“It seems the intelligence from the north has arrived.”
He Ao looked up at General Corvey in front of him.
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