Chapter 42: Integration

After the general tactical direction was laid out, silence fell over the irregular circle of people.

With the change in command, the Central Plains team had gained absolute authority due to their recent combat record, and the time for a reckoning seemed to have arrived.

When it came to personnel deployment, Yu Shuang’s gaze predictably landed on Jia Wenxuan first.

Jia Wenxuan was on high alert, his throat tight, but Yu Shuang simply asked, "Can you operate all models of drones?"

Jia Wenxuan was taken aback and instinctively replied, "I can."

"When driving at night, you will replace Sun Yiran in the lead vehicle; during the day, you will remain in the front vehicle." After saying this, Yu Shuang looked toward Qin Tianshu, seeking his agreement.

Qin Tianshu was also surprised. Putting the Morning Star team's deputy leader in the lead and pilot vehicles? He was still unsure of Yu Shuang’s methodology, but since Jia Wenxuan possessed night vision, the arrangement was indeed appropriate, so he nodded.

"Don't you have a vehicle with three rows of seats? Clear it out to serve as a medical vehicle. Move the two wounded there, along with our team's Xiao Su and Morning Star's Liu Weiyun," Yu Shuang continued.

It was a very reasonable arrangement. Liu Weiyun had minor injuries and could recover in the medical vehicle while monitoring the contamination levels of the two severely wounded.

Qin Tianshu’s understanding dawned, and he felt a sense of admiration. He nodded vigorously, "Understood!"

"The medical vehicle will be positioned between the trucks and will not participate in combat," he added. "One combat drone for each of the three directions. I will have my deputy take our team's drone to the left guard vehicle, and Morning Star's Ruan Xiaoyu will supplement my tail vehicle."

"Agreed. Take inventory of the remaining ammunition for each team, distribute it according to need across all vehicles, and designate one person per vehicle to track equipment reserves and report them to me after every battle," Yu Shuang concluded.

"Positions are dynamic. If there are any issues with cooperation in any vehicle, provide feedback immediately so we can resolve them early. Our principle for the journey ahead is speed. There will be no long rest periods, not for a day and night, perhaps not for several days and nights. Everyone, prepare for a protracted war."

Everyone responded in unison: "Yes!"

The response was far more synchronized than when Li Yi had issued orders, and there was noticeably less internal friction or subtle maneuvering. The air seemed to freshen; as the members of Chengfeng Team 2 and Northern Team 2 worked together, they began to familiarize themselves with one another, chatting and laughing.

The members of Morning Star Team 1, however, felt as though they had punched a pillow; the humiliation and isolation they had braced themselves for never arrived. They had simply been dispersed among the various vehicles. But since all three teams had been broken up, they did not appear particularly singled out.

That night, while moving the wounded, Yu Shuang chatted with the now-conscious Zhao Bohan: "That Qin fellow is quite sensible; he took the initiative to cooperate with me in splitting up the teams."

Zhao Bohan observed the smile on her face and remarked acidly, "If he couldn't even cooperate with that, he’d be too stupid to live!" He earned an eye-roll from Yu Shuang.

Still, Yu Shuang tucked the blanket in around him, fed him warm water and medicine, and only left once he had drifted back into a restless sleep.

Moving the personnel and organizing the equipment took until midnight, yet the convoy had to depart before dawn the next day. Thanks to their enhanced physical stamina, everyone was not particularly exhausted after a few hours of rest, but this was only the beginning.

Half a day into the journey, the drone from the left guard vehicle spotted Corrupted Insects.

The insects had a clear objective and moved with speed; they were coming specifically for them, though they could not catch up.

An hour later, a second wave of insects pursued from a different direction, and half an hour after that, Qi An’s lead vehicle drone observed a group of insects blocking the path ahead.

This time, there were two vehicles—dilapidated pickups with their cargo beds packed full of Corrupted Insects, several of which were armed!

"Right Guard 1, close in on the lead vehicle. Snipers to the roof. All vehicles, prepare to accelerate!" Yu Shuang’s calm voice sounded over the public channel.

In Right Guard 1 were Zhuang Xiao, Tang Long, and Li Yi. Tang Long was driving, while Li Yi sat silently in the back seat.

As Tang Long accelerated toward the lead vehicle, Zhuang Xiao tried to climb out onto the roof, but Li Yi beat him to it.

In the pilot vehicle, Sun Yiran also climbed onto the roof. She was a petite girl, and her posture while holding the rifle was particularly striking—a mix of contradiction and cool composure.

The insects ahead were within a one-kilometer range. The weather was clear, and visibility was good. Sun Yiran raised an eyebrow at Yang Yuning, who was driving, then fired a shot that shattered the windshield of the first pickup, piercing the skull of the insect in the driver's seat!

The vehicle skidded to a sudden halt!

Jia Wenxuan’s combat drone from the lead vehicle flew over the pickup and dropped a bomb.

The first vehicle was totaled, and the chorus of screams from the insects on the second pickup erupted from the smoke of the explosion!

Sun Yiran’s face crinkled in frustration as her second shot went wide. She looked indignant, quickly fired a follow-up shot, and blew the head off the insect in the passenger seat.

Her highly evolved sense of hearing made her extremely susceptible to contamination during battles with the Corrupted; even with noise-canceling headphones, they could only block 99%. That remaining 1% was agony for her!

Three consecutive air-dropped bombs reduced the insects on the first pickup to gore. The second vehicle swerved around the wreckage, and an insect with a sniper rifle coiled in its tentacles pulled the trigger.

The moment it pulled the trigger, it was killed by Li Yi. The bullet had been aimed at the truck, but it missed.

The distance between the two sides had closed to 500 meters! Li Yi also sniped the insect in the driver's seat, and in coordination with Jia Wenxuan, they blew up the second vehicle!

Zhuang Xiao clicked his tongue, thinking to himself that this guy actually had some real skill.

The road was wide enough; the convoy bypassed the wreckage of the two pickups without slowing down in the slightest.

There were still more ahead and more behind, but thanks to their reconnaissance advantage and timely commands and responses, they passed through several gauntlets, killing insects at every turn without stopping. They left the insects trailing behind so far that they couldn't even see their shadows!

Sun Yiran retreated into the vehicle and asked Qi An to cleanse her, looking so comfortable she almost wanted to rub against her.

Yang Yuning’s skin crawled, and he couldn't help but use his gun butt to push her back with a dark expression. Sun Yiran stubbornly leaned toward the front seat, their bickering making the vehicle sway until Qi An, unable to bear it any longer, barked at them to stop.

The atmosphere in the other vehicles was quite good. Zhuang Xiao whistled, "Our captain’s tactics are top-notch! The bugs only deserve to eat our exhaust!"

Tang Long laughed in agreement, "For sure!"

In the back seat, however, Li Yi sneered.

Zhuang Xiao turned back in anger—though he was still a bit afraid of this man—and mustered the courage to ask, "What are you laughing at?"

"Do you think it's safe now?" Li Yi countered.

Zhuang Xiao was slightly startled. At the same time, Qi An, who had finally found some peace in the pilot vehicle, reported to Yu Shuang over the public channel:

"There are more ahead. My drone has captured another wave approaching from a different direction. This group has stopped on the road, seemingly watching us."

Qin Tianshu’s voice was heavy and irritable: "Why do I get the feeling that these insects are communicating? It’s too dense. Maybe even that group at Yu-li Village was just a small surrounding outpost, and they have a massive, core hub somewhere!"

Qi An took off her drone headset, handed it to Sun Yiran, and studied the map on her tablet:

"We are about to pass a county town. We won't go through it, but we will have to skirt around the outskirts."