Chapter 160 - Four Battlelines
The students were attracted by the incredibly beautiful scenery outside the portholes.
They had been born among concrete buildings in a city that looked like a hornet’s nest, so it was the first time they saw an endless expanse of land.
Even the youngsters who were usually mature looked bedazzled and could not contain their excitement.
Only Meng Chao remained sitting in a corner of the pod while focused on the military map and reports of the battle. He tried to use the information before his eyes to predict the progress of the battle.
Based on the military map, the two mountains they had just passed were known as Lion Fang Mountain and Tiger Fang Mountain.
The paradise in front of them was Shattered Starlake.
It was not just one lake. Instead, the name referred to all the lakes of varying sizes scattered all over the land. There were more than one hundred of them, and it was rumored that they were countless craters from a prehistoric meteor shower. As time went by, the land created the beautiful scenery, where it looked as if scattered stars were shining brilliantly on the ground.
In truth, the Dragon Citizens had discovered Shattered Starlake a long time ago.
There was a spirit energy ley line contained underground, and it was full of spirit energy. All sorts of strange plants and valuable beasts were around it, and hidden under most of the lakes were valuable meteorite fragments from outer space. They were well suited to build incredibly powerful weapons or turned into critical components for supercomputers, nuclear weapons, and other sophisticated equipment. The tactical value of Shattered Starlake was immense.
The only problem was that it was somewhat far from Dragon City. The distance between Shattered Starlake and Dragon City was fifty kilometers, and along the way they had to pass swamps, forests, valleys, cliffs, and never-ending mountains.
Lion Fang Mountain and Tiger Fang Mountain served as the guards of Shattered Starlake and made it difficult for the Earthlings’ mechanized army to spread through the area.
For half a century, Dragon City had licked the wounds it suffered from transmigration. It did not have enough resources, and there was also a severe lack of firepower and ammunition. Since the fog kept invading, the dimension was unstable, they felt as if walls had been set up around them. They were boxed in and did not have the power to send their army to Shattered Starlake.
Only the powerful superhumans occasionally came there to investigate the land, search for mines, hunt superbeasts, and train.
Lately, however, genetic martial arts and spirit energy technology matured, and the fog started to disperse. The dimension became more stable, and the light and heavy industries all recovered and were even upgraded. The Red Dragon Army completed a new round of expansion and upgrades.
This was especially so when they successfully developed the multi-joint limbs, which could be used for war vehicles that resembled animals. There was also the runic symbol technology to strengthen the brittle metallic limbs and joints, which allowed the crawler fighting vehicles to compensate for their lack of fighting ability in forests and mountains. Dragon City, thus, gained the ability to open up a branch base.
The northern offense was launched more than a month ago.
The battlefield was split into four battlelines.
The first goal was to build a railroad and a public road between Dragon City and Shattered Starlake so that armored trains installed with railway guns could reach it smoothly and bring soldiers as well as resources. The railway would be the main artery that connected the main city area to the branch base.
The monsters naturally did not just watch humanity link their civilization’s blood vessels, bones, and muscles to this place. Hence, they started attacking the forces building up the base day after day like a tidal wave.
The Red Dragon Army sent in a large amount of forces to the sides of the “main artery” and built forts as well as battle fortresses. When thousands of forts were connected as one, countless signal towers were set up in every space available to ensure that the Internet was stable, which allowed to summon powerful fighters, intelligent fighting vehicles, and unmanned fighting vehicles at any time. The monsters would then be unable to stop the humans from moving forward.
Humanity also wanted to set up an etherealized plants farm and residential area in Shattered Starlake.
With genetic modifications and 3D farms, the synthesized food technology in Dragon City was pretty advanced, and even if the population increased by another fold, they would not face any issues with hunger.
But synthesized food could only provide basic calories and increase the strength of physical bodies. It could not increase spirit energy, so they could not satisfy the increasing cultivation demands among the large number of Dragon Citizens.
Shattered Starlake had fertile soil and a lot of spirit energy. It was a good place to plant etherealized plants and launch all sorts of agricultural research. At the very least, it would allow them to satisfy the cultivation needs among the youths in the city.
Some large and incredibly fierce Nightmarish Beasts and Hell Beasts had resided in Shattered Starlake. However, during the fierce fighting since the battle began, they were chased away.
But plants grew wild, and the speed at which they grew was very fast. Even if the humans used flamethrowers to burn them all down, the next day, the plants would once again be the height of a human.
And lurking in the grass that looked like a green curtain were many middle-sized and small-sized canine-type, feline-type, and rodent-type monsters. They posed a major threat to the constructionists, botanists, and environmental reconstructionists from Dragon City.
The first task for Meng Chao, the other university students, and the weaker but still pretty strong members of society was to clear out Shattered Starlake and destroy the monster nests so that the botanists and environmental reconstructionists could station themselves safely and deal with the troublesome weeds.
To the north of Shattered Starlake was a dangerous region known as Graveyard Forest.
It was rumored that countless carnivorous plants grew there, and they could even strip Nightmarish Beasts down to their bones. When the first Dragon City’s powerful fighters stepped into this place, they saw piles of monster skeletons, which was why it gained such a strange name.
Based on the geologists, there were several spirit energy ley lines under Graveyard Forest, and they contained a lot of crystals and rare metals. Water was abundant there as well, so if they could develop the place, they could set up a large base for metal work, refinement, and heavy industry outside Dragon City.
But Graveyard Forest had been nourished by spirit energy and given birth to countless powerful Nightmarish Beasts and Hell Beasts.
If Dragon City did not kill these superbeasts and clean Graveyard Forest, they would not be able to work in peace.
Of course, Meng Chao and the other freshmen who were in Spirit Tattoo Realm had nothing to do with such a dangerous place for the time being.
It was the battlefield of special forces from the Red Dragon Army, the elite superhuman fighting squad, and the Deity Realm elites.
Beyond Graveyard Forest was the end of the basin. Raging Waves stood there, and it was an even more majestic and dangerous mountain range compared to Lion Fang Mountain and Tiger Fang Mountain.
Dragon City did not know what exactly was strange about this mountain range. It was not a living volcano, but the mountain range was covered in cracks so deep that their end could not be seen. It was as if those cracks ran straight to the depths of the planet. Smoke that seemed to be produced by a fire gushed out of it all year long and spread through the sky like raging waves. That was how the mountain range got its name.
Dozens of Hell Beasts resided in Raging Waves.
In fact, a Grade Eight Apocalyptic Beast and its pack lived deep in the mountain range.
Apocalyptic Beasts usually possessed intelligence. Hence, it would definitely not allow its bed to be developed by humans into farms, mines, factories, and cities without a fight.
If humans wanted to fully develop Shattered Starlake, they had to first kill the Apocalyptic Beast residing in Raging Waves.
This battleline was led by Deity Realm elites. Meng Chao didn’t have anything to do with it at all, since he was just a one-star superhuman.
‘There are four battlelines. One of them is the construction of the main artery connecting the main city area and the branch base, one is in Shattered Lake, one is in Graveyard Forest, and one is in Raging Waves. Just which one will encounter a problem?’
Meng Chao shut his eyes and rubbed the bridge of his nose to search through the memories of his past life. But he gained nothing.
‘Based on the scale of the military operation and the strategy they employed, the Supernatural Tower deployed loads of elites, the Red Dragon Army is going to stand firm and fight steadily, and they’re paying a lot of attention to each area. The underestimating of the enemy and recklessly pushing forward should be impossible.
‘And based on the military map and the report of the battle, the elites have been scouting and exploring Shattered Starlake for years. The information about this place is very detailed, and the data is solid. The higher-ups should have everything under control.
‘So what sort of accident will occur that the army would be forced to return without any gains, even though it was so sure of victory?’
Meng Chao could not understand it.
He really wanted to go past the leaders of his university and search for the higher-ups of the military so that he could grab their collars and say, “This is a battle we’re bound to fail!”
If he had just returned to the past and was overcome by passion, he might actually do that.
But now, he had come to realize that his return to the past was not that simple. Dragon City and the ancient ruins it suppressed seemed to contain a lot of secrets.
‘The person who created the X-shaped eye might have already reached Deity Realm. Just who is he, and why did he activate Night Demon Blood?
‘Also, if Deity Realm elites, the army from Dragon City, and large railway guns attack together, we can even win against Apocalyptic Beasts. Why did the Monster War last for so long in my previous life, then? Different types of monsters also improved in strength practically at the same time. What’s the logic behind this?
‘Does my return to the past have something to do with the ancient ruins? Did the monsters skilled in controlling minds and creeping into human brains take action?
‘The instructor with the bad breath had brought a group of mysterious fighters from a training camp and had them disguise themselves as Other World creatures to attack another group of living beings from the Other World. Why did he do that?’
A lot of questions danced in Meng Chao’s head, but he forced himself to calm down.
He could not be reckless.
He had to search for more information, but even more crucial was to find the person who could do something. It was only then that he might have the butterfly bat its wings and change the direction of the battle.
If he revealed information that he was not supposed to reveal in front of the wrong person, the future might end up even worse.
‘I’ve decided. I’ll first fight in Shattered Starlake and practice my saber skills to improve. Then, I’ll have the chance to enter Graveyard Forest.
‘It’s only when I enter Graveyard Forest that I’ll have the chance to come into contact with more Heaven Realm elites and even Deity Realm elites.
‘The key of the battle will be Raging Waves. When the Deity Realm elites fight against the Apocalyptic Beast, no matter what, I have to…’
Meng Chao narrowed his eyes, and unbeknownst to him, he started releasing killing intent.
When the students around him sensed it, they sucked in sharp breaths, and fear appeared on their faces.
Meng Chao saw them showing great cooperation by moving back a few steps together. He was a little stunned and asked with a frown, “What’s wrong with you guys?”
“What are you thinking of doing?” a student named Zhou Yun asked warily. “Poisoning, setting up traps, or setting up an ambush?”
Meng Chao felt gloomy. “Am I that sort of person in your eyes? I already told you, I was being kind a few days ago. I just wanted to make you more alert so that you can survive the battlefield where danger lurks behind every corner. We’re on the battlefield now, so we’re all comrades who share the closest bond with each other. Why would I stab you in the back?”
“Who knows?” Zhou Yun said coldly. “No matter what, just stay away from me!”
“Zhou Yun, I think you’re biased against me,” Meng Chao said. “I just snuck into your dorm, knocked you out, and stuffed you under your bed. You didn’t experience any pain nor suffer any wounds, right? I showed you the greatest mercy among the ten challengers.
“Look at Duan Lian. I fought against him so fiercely that we ended up bleeding all over the place, but we decided to open our hearts to each other in the end. We wouldn’t have gotten to know each other if we didn’t fight, and we’ve settled our grudge now. We’ve put all that bad blood behind us!”
“Would I be the same as Duan Lian?!” Zhou Yun flew into a rage.
“We’re all students. What’s the difference?” Meng Chao was puzzled.
“I’m a girl! You snuck into the girls’ dormitory, knocked me out, and stuffed me under my bed!” Zhou Yun shrieked.