Foreseeing the global catastrophe, I sealed off the entire city in advance.

Chapter 13 Insect Swarm Siege, Enduring Desperate Circumstances

The faint glimmer of dawn on the horizon seemed to be suppressed by the heavy darkness, unable to spread out for a long time.

The city walls were filled with the smoke of gunpowder, and the stench of blood mixed with the putrid smell of insects, layer upon layer pressing down on the air, making it suffocating.

The entire pack of scaled hounds had just been wiped out, and the western defense line was temporarily stabilized. But before everyone could catch their breath, a dense, soft crawling sound began to emanate from the ground.

rustling—rustling—

The sounds were fragmented, dense, and continuous, spreading from the ruins outside the city, making one's hair stand on end and a chill creep up one's spine.

Lin Chen paused slightly, his night vision goggles zoomed in, and his gaze was fixed on the entire wasteland outside the city wall.

The next second, a dense, overwhelming swarm of black insects, like a black tide, surged out from the cracks in the collapsed buildings, the fissured ravines in the earth, and the rotting ruins and soil.

Those are iron-eating aberrant woodlice.

It is only the size of a palm, with a dark and hard shell, sharp mouthparts and multi-segmented claws. It has no intelligence, only an endless desire to devour.

First-order social mutant creatures are weak and posed no threat individually, but their terror lies in their numbers.

Densely packed, densely packed, stretching as far as the eye can see, numbering in the thousands, even hundreds of thousands, layer upon layer, constantly wriggling, climbing, and surging, frantically covering the alloy barrier.

"It's an infestation of woodlice! A huge number of mutated woodlice!"

The moment the guards on the south side of the city wall saw the scene clearly, their scalps tingled, and they let out a low, guttural roar filled with extreme horror.

Previously, when dealing with hyenas, scaly dogs, and split-ear bears, they were at least flesh-and-blood beasts with size, weaknesses, and limitations.

But this boundless swarm of insects before us felt no fear, no pain, tireless, and relentless. Even if one was crushed, thousands of successors would still rush forward in a frenzy.

Even more deadly is that this iron-eating woodlice has exceptionally sharp mouthparts, capable of gnawing and disintegrating bricks, wood, rubber, and ordinary steel.

When the fortress was built, Lin Chen specially thickened the special alloy steel plate to prevent the underground insect swarm from eroding it. But now the insect swarm is besieging the city head-on, covering and gnawing over a large area, and the pressure has increased several times in an instant.

Zhao Lei rushed to Lin Chen's side, covered in blood, his hand gripping the long knife slightly clenched: "Brother Chen, this is a huge problem! The number of these insects is terrifying, they're so densely packed we can't kill them all. They're climbing the walls in swarms, even the hardest steel plates can't withstand millions of tons of gnawing at them!"

On the city wall, many team members subconsciously took a half step back, looking at the surging black sea of ​​insects below, their stomachs churning.

The defensive line, which had briefly paused in the gunfire, was instantly enveloped in a new round of desperate situation.

Hyenas are ferocious and can be killed with a single shot; Scaled dogs are tough and can be killed by aiming at their weak points; Earth-Splittering Bears are powerful and can be blasted to death with heavy firepower.

This insect swarm is the only one that remains unsolved.

The bullets swept across, only knocking down a small section in the front row. The insects behind, stepping on the corpses of their own kind, continued to crawl forward, endlessly and incessantly.

"What's the panic?"

Lin Chen's voice was cold and calm, instantly suppressing the panic spreading through the defenses.

His gaze was fixed as he looked down at the approaching black swarm of insects. In his previous life, during the apocalypse ten years ago, he had experienced countless swarms of insects far more terrifying than this. The scale before him was not enough to break his defenses.

"Issue the order to change the defense strategy across the entire front."

"Stop indiscriminate firing of firearms and conserve ammunition to deal with lurking high-level mutated beasts and sudden attacks."

"All melee fighters, immediately distribute flame-retardant gasoline, high-pressure flamethrowers, and highly effective insect-repellent incendiary powder."

"A high-temperature burning platform was set up at the top of the barricade to control the insects. These gregarious mutant insects are naturally afraid of fire, and high temperatures are their nemesis."

The instructions were issued clearly and systematically, instantly stabilizing the chaotic morale of the troops.

As early as when the fortress was built, Lin Chen had anticipated the crisis of the underground mutated creatures escaping after the earthquake. Fireproof, insect-proof, and corrosion-proof materials had long been stockpiled in large quantities in the war reserve warehouses below the city walls, ready to be used at any time.

The logistics team immediately sprang into action, quickly transporting boxes of gasoline, portable flamethrowers, and bags of incendiary insect repellent powder to the walls and distributing them to each section of the defense line.

The team members suppressed their discomfort, quickly assembled the equipment, and lit the flamethrower.

laugh--

A jet of intense blue flame erupted, and scorching heat instantly spread out. The first wave of weevils that rushed towards the wall were instantly engulfed by the flames as soon as they reached the bottom of the wall.

Under the intense heat, the hard shells of the insects quickly carbonized and cracked, and a pungent smell of burning filled the air. Swarms of woodlice twisted and convulsed wildly in the flames, turning into charred remains in an instant.

"It works! The flames can suppress them!"

Seeing this, the team members relaxed a little and their morale immediately soared.

Fire walls were erected in sections, and flamethrowers were used to scorch the area, creating a continuous high-temperature blockade at the base of the walls. Any insects that approached the walls were completely burned to death.

But the number of insect swarms was truly terrifying.

The previous layer was burned to ashes, and the next layer immediately filled in, layer upon layer, one after another, piling up a road leading to the city wall with a massive number of corpses.

Some insects bypassed the front firewalls, climbing through the dead corners of the ruins, cracks in the walls, and gaps in the drainage pipes, slowly crawling upwards along the dead corners of the walls, attempting to avoid the high temperature and launch a sneak attack to scale the city.

"Watch out for blind spots on both sides! The bugs are starting to climb in a winding path!"

"Sprinkle incendiary powder! Seal the gaps!"

The team members had a clear division of labor: some people held flamethrowers to guard the front wall and suppress the insect swarm; others used shovels and iron bars to knock down the small insects that were secretly climbing down the wall; and still others tore open the insect-repelling burning powder and poured it in large quantities along the wall cracks. The powder ignited slightly when it was exposed to the wind, forming a continuous barrier of toxic fire.

The battle intensified once again.

There were no earth-shattering roars of beasts, no violent impacts, but there was a different kind of chilling, oppressive despair.

The soft gnawing sounds came from all parts of the wall as countless woodlice frantically bit into the steel plate and concrete, leaving a dense array of tiny bite marks that covered a large area of ​​the wall in a short time.

The fortifications and walls are being eroded little by little.

Lin Chen strolled slowly along the city wall, his eyes sharp, constantly observing the overall situation.

He knew that the flames could only be suppressed temporarily, not completely extinguished. Once the fuel was exhausted and the combustion powder was used up, this fire barrier would collapse instantly.

We must act swiftly to reduce the scale of the insect swarm.

"Zhao Lei, take twenty elite melee fighters, gather all the remaining high explosives, and circle around to the left side of the ruins outside the city." Lin Chen said in a deep voice, pointing to a huge depression formed by an earthquake collapse in the distance. "That is the central nesting location of the insect swarm. The mutated sowbugs live in large groups, and the core group is all gathered in the low-lying area."

"Pre-bury the explosives and detonate them remotely to severely damage the main force of the insect swarm in one go."

Zhao Lei's eyes sharpened, and he immediately understood the intention: "Understood! I'll take my men and move out immediately!"

Although dangers lurked outside the city, most of the ferocious beasts were currently held back by the city walls' firepower, leaving only an endless swarm of insects. With the combat strength of the elite squad, a short-term flanking attack was entirely feasible.

Lin Chen then issued a series of orders: "The medical team should retreat to the inner city wall and take precautions to prevent small insects from sneaking into the city through the ventilation shafts; the logistics team should speed up the transfer of fuel and replenish the front line in a continuous cycle, and make sure to hold out until the explosives are detonated."

After arranging everything, he looked up into the darkness in the distance.

The swarm of insects blotted out the sky, covering the entire wasteland outside the city, but he keenly sensed that in the shadows behind the swarm, there were always a few hidden and powerful auras lurking motionless.

Those were stronger mutated beasts attracted by the insect swarm, sitting back and watching the fight, waiting for the insect swarm to wear down their fighting strength and damage the city wall defenses, then reaping the benefits and launching a fatal blow.

The first-order insect swarm is just a prelude.

The real killer move is hidden in the depths of darkness.

Lin Chen gripped the alloy battle blade tightly, his fingertips gently rubbing the cold edge, the cold light in his eyes growing stronger.

Want to reap the benefits without lifting a finger?

wishful thinking.

Tonight, whether it be swarms of insects, ferocious beasts, or lurking hunters, anyone who dares to covet his stronghold will lose their life.

On the other side, Zhao Lei acted swiftly, selecting twenty battle-hardened and most elite team members, carrying sufficient high explosives and close-combat weapons, and using the cover of the ruins as cover, quietly slipped out of the city through a secret passage at the side gate of the city wall.

Under the cover of night, the team crouched low and quickly weaved through the ruins, stepping on a carpet of insect corpses, avoiding swarms of insects, and sped toward the collapsed depression on the left.

Occasionally, lone mutant beasts would ambush them along the way, but the team members quickly and efficiently eliminated them without any hesitation.

Having fought a bloody battle all night, this city defense team has long since shed its naivety and is now composed of decisive and ruthless post-apocalyptic warriors.

Ten minutes later.

The collapsed depression came into view as expected.

At first glance, the entire depression was pitch black, with countless woodlice filling the bottom of the pit like black water, piled up in layers, constantly wriggling. Just looking at it made one's scalp tingle.

This was indeed the core nest of the insect swarm.

"Move quickly, disperse and pre-bury the explosives deep in the soil to prevent insects from chewing up the fuses beforehand," Zhao Lei said in a low voice, quickly assigning tasks.

The team members immediately dispersed, carefully stepping into the edge of the depression. Under the cover of darkness, they buried bags of high explosives deep into the ground, gathered the fuses together, and connected them to a remote detonation device.

The rustling sound of insects crawling was right next to their ears. Countless tiny insects climbed up their trouser legs and arms. The team members quickly swatted the insects off while hurriedly setting up their equipment. Every second was a race against death.

In just five minutes, all the explosives were deployed.

"Retreat! Retreat to the city walls immediately!"

Zhao Lei gave a low shout, and everyone quickly retreated from the depression, retracing their steps without daring to linger for even a moment.

Once the entire squad had safely retreated back to the city wall and closed the secret door, Zhao Lei's report came through the communicator: "Brother Chen, all the explosives have been planted and are ready to be detonated at any time!"

Lin Chen stood in the center of the city wall, looking down at the boundless swarm of insects below, and slowly raised his hand.

"Attention all personnel, retreat ten meters temporarily and prepare for bomb disposal."

The next moment, he coldly uttered two words:

"Detonate."

Boom—!!

An extremely violent explosion rang out, and the earth trembled violently, several times more intensely than the aftershocks.

The depression on the left exploded into a huge fire, and billowing smoke and dust, carrying countless insect corpses, rose into the air, while scorching shockwaves swept in all directions.

The high explosives buried deep underground detonated in a series of explosions, causing the entire depression to collapse and crack open, instantly blasting, burning, and burying hundreds of thousands of mutated isow bugs.

The dense swarm of black insects suddenly created a huge gap.

With the core group wiped out, the continuous swarm of insects was cut off at its source, and the overwhelming sea of ​​insects outside the city was instantly reduced by more than half.

The charred insect corpses fell from the sky like black rain, landing on the ruins and beneath the city walls, with a stench and heat wave hitting us.

"It's done!"

The team members on the city wall couldn't help but let out a low shout, finally letting out a sigh of relief after suppressing their emotions for so long.

The main force of the insect swarm was wiped out in one fell swoop, leaving only scattered remnants, which greatly reduced the threat.

But in the instant the explosion roared and flames filled the sky!

Three enormous black shadows suddenly burst forth from the dark ruins behind the swarm of insects!

A deep, violent roar, filled with bloodlust and murderous intent, tore through the sky.

A Tier 3 Rock Armor Giant Wolf clad in thick armor and two Tier 2 Poison Scale Giant Lizards stepped over a field of insect corpses, their scarlet pupils fixed on the city wall, and the terrifying pressure emanating from them instantly enveloped the entire fortress.

The hunter, who had been lying in wait, finally made his move.

Lin Chen's pupils contracted sharply, his muscles tensed instantly, and he raised his alloy battle blade horizontally in front of him, unleashing a chilling killing intent that soared into the sky.

One wave just flattened, another wave rose again.

With the insect swarm over, the true siege by high-level ferocious beasts has officially begun.

The long, bloody battle is far from over.