The furious barrage of fire was deafening, as loud as a struck bell. The muzzles of the anti-air guns erupted in blinding flashes, and shell casings rained down like a storm!
Several soldiers lay prone, but they did not fire, for no enemies were visible. The shells were all fired into a patch of darkness.
Jiang Ye watched the ammunition count of the anti-air guns, and after firing over a thousand rounds in one go, they finally stopped.
The soldiers immediately rose and charged forward, breaking into a run, and finally found a smoky area.
Light pierced through the smoke, illuminating a massive corpse.
Jiang Ye gasped!
The colossal, yellowish-green corpse, larger than an elephant, was riddled with shell impacts. Its surface was covered in holes the size of human heads, which widened into water-vat sized wounds within its body, causing streams of fluid to flow out, resembling urine or honey. The soldiers covered their noses as they detected a pungent stench.
"Get closer, I want to see the details," Jiang Ye ordered verbally.
The soldiers cautiously approached the corpse, as if approaching a large bomb.
The lights converged, and the surface of the corpse became clearer, like the lamps of an exploration team illuminating an uncharted cave.
Jiang Ye saw the earth dragon's tentacles, truly like an octopus, each as thick as a python, hanging limply to the ground, still twitching faintly. This twitching did not indicate it was still alive, but rather residual bioelectricity.
Jiang Ye also saw the earth dragon's eyes. Many eyes were evenly distributed on its head, but they were all destroyed by shells. The eyeballs had melted and fallen out like ice cream, leaving only dark, empty sockets.
"Hissing" sounds were heard. A soldier lifted his foot and looked, then cried out, "Fall back! This thing's fluids are corrosive!"
The soldiers retreated one after another, checking their mechs. The mechs on their legs and feet were already damaged, and they quickly rubbed them against the nearby ground to scrape off the corrosive liquid.
"The anti-air guns fired twice. Search the vicinity for any other earth dragon corpses," Jiang Ye ordered.
"Yes!"
The soldiers searched the surroundings, but after more than ten minutes, they found no other corpses and received orders to return to the camp.
Only one earth dragon was killed, yet the guns fired twice. Jiang Ye was worried. The firepower of the anti-air guns appeared formidable, but the earth dragon's hide was simply too thick.
The screen suddenly turned red again, and the muffled thunder of gunfire erupted from the east. Another anti-air gun had been activated!
After firing over three thousand rounds in one go, it finally stopped. The soldiers in the camp were all on edge.
Jiang Ye did not send anyone out to scout the situation again. It was certain that earth dragons were approaching. His heart pounded faster. Were these two earth dragons merely the vanguard?
Silence persisted for half a minute, after which the anti-air guns on the outer perimeter were all triggered!
The rumbling roars from all directions shook the very ground. Under the barrage of artillery fire, the rainforest quickly ignited, the flames illuminating colossal figures. Countless earth dragons were encircling them!
Without Jiang Ye's order, the soldiers opened fire collectively, desperately unleashing their firepower!
On the control room screen, the targets detected by the anti-air guns could be seen. At a distance of one kilometer outside the camp, red targets were more numerous than raindrops, rapidly charging forward.
The sound of rushing water echoed through the rainforest – the earth dragons were spewing acid. They stored an astonishing amount of strong acid within their bodies. After being sprayed onto trees, the thick trunks quickly snapped and fell with a thunderous crash.
"Teams one through four, sortie east, west, north, and south, and flank them! Don't let the earth dragons get close to the camp!" Jiang Ye ordered verbally. "Swordsmen, try to get behind them and slash!"
The soldiers leaped out, charging forward while firing. Countless shells flew overhead.
The earth dragons soon discovered them, leaping up fiercely, rising two stories high, and landing before the soldiers with a thud, then spewing acid. Many soldiers, unable to dodge, were doused with large quantities of strong acid. Their helmets instantly burned through, and then white bone was exposed.
The mech manufacturing machines in the camp worked furiously, desperately producing new mechs. Soldiers who had just been revived emerged from buildings, dripping wet.
Only one-third of the men managed to break through to the earth dragons.
The gunners fired at the earth dragons, only to find that the small-caliber machine gun bullets could not harm them. They were then flung away by whip-like tentacles, and the gunners flew like golf balls, being torn in half by stray anti-air gun rounds in mid-air, metal parts and shattered flesh flying everywhere, like a shattered glass bottle.
The swordsmen sprang and leaped, grabbing onto the earth dragons' bodies to climb up, slashing at their tentacles. The tentacles were harder than expected, but a full-powered slash could still sever them. A few skilled swordsmen directly plunged their swords into the earth dragons' eyes, using their weight to pull down and completely shred the eyeballs. The earth dragons frantically tried to sweep the swordsmen off with their tentacles, but it was difficult to hit mosquitoes up close. The swordsmen flexibly leaped back and forth, dodging the tentacles, and desperately struck with their blades!
The charge masters energetically plugged charging and discharging piles into the earth dragons' legs, then fired their stun guns. The strong current could stiffen the earth dragons' legs, trapping them in place.
The advancing earth dragon horde was halted!
The anti-air guns' range was extended to its maximum, furiously sweeping the targets. Huge explosions erupted within the earth dragon horde, filling the air with smoke and ichor.
Seeing that the soldiers were effective, Jiang Ye did not hesitate to order all soldiers to be deployed!
"Cut off the rear! Leave the foremost earth dragons to the anti-air guns, aim for the rear!" Jiang Ye roared. The noise was too great; without shouting, he couldn't hear the voices in his headset.
All the soldiers surged out of the camp, engaging the earth dragons amidst the cascading acid and fierce combat. The scene was chaotic, with all sorts of firepower and greatswords dancing. One earth dragon after another fell under the bombardment of the anti-air guns, crushing the soldiers beneath them. Many swordsmen, leaping into the air, were pierced by anti-air gun rounds, flying like a mantis struck by bullets. This was unavoidable; the anti-air guns fired too rapidly, already weaving a layer of bullet rain at the height of the earth dragons' heads.
Jiang Ye was not idle either, continuously ordering mechs and distributing them to various spawn rooms.
He could afford to buy level-two mechs, while the soldiers could only buy level-one. At this point, he couldn't worry about money; preserving the base was the most important thing!
Based on the situation on the field, Jiang Ye adjusted the production of the three types of mechs. Only ten gunners were kept; machine guns were completely useless in fighting earth dragons. Bullets striking the earth dragons' scales only produced sparks and were deflected, while hitting their rotten flesh was as insignificant as sesame seeds stuck in a watermelon. The rest were all converted to charge masters and swordsmen. Charge masters could slow the earth dragons' advance, and even if crushed by a stomp, they could release a massive current to stiffen the earth dragons. Swordsmen were the primary damage dealers for cutting the earth dragons' eyes.
The casualty rate of the soldiers was astonishing, with new mechs being constantly taken. The money in Jiang Ye's account plummeted!
From the control screen, it could be seen that the earth dragons were shrinking their encirclement, advancing slowly but steadily. The battlefield was littered with countless damaged mechs and human corpses, forming a thick layer on the ground.