The citizens remained unaware.
While they were celebrating, the upper echelons were nearly thrown into chaos.
Jiang Zhixu hurried down from the watchtower and rushed to the control hub.
“What happened? What happened?! Why did a Mobile City crash into our artillery shell?”
Just as he and Qi Honglang were observing the artillery bombardment’s effects through high-powered binoculars from the watchtower, a massive Mobile City suddenly materialized from the night, crashing into their shell with near-insane momentum.
Without a doubt.
Under the formidable power of the Tier-1 cannon, the unfamiliar Mobile City, taking the full brunt of the damage, exploded and disintegrated on the spot!
The fiery light the citizens saw earlier was caused by the explosions of the city’s various facilities.
At that moment, he and Qi Honglang simultaneously lowered their binoculars, looking at each other, both seeing extreme astonishment in the other’s eyes.
It took them a few seconds to react before they immediately rushed to the control hub.
“……”
The two helmsmen in the control hub were equally bewildered, having no idea how to answer Jiang Zhixu’s question.
They too wanted to know where this kamikaze Mobile City had come from!
They had scanned the area multiple times; there was no city there!
Fortunately, at that moment, Meng Guolong from the artillery turret sent a message.
“City Lord, Lu Yan’s talent was just triggered.”
Lu Yan’s… talent?
Miracle Gunner?
——————
【Miracle Gunner】
Quality: Advanced
Passive Enhancement: 「God-Tier Shot」 Bet everything, predict the future! This shot either misfires or sends the target straight to meet their ancestors!
Trigger Probability: 5% per shot; if 20 consecutive shots do not trigger, the next shot is guaranteed to trigger.
Description: 「When conviction is launched with the shell, the entire battlefield trembles!」
——————
Recalling the talent’s detailed effects, Jiang Zhixu had a sudden realization. “So it was a prediction!”
No wonder that Mobile City seemed to intentionally intercept their shell.
Its movement path had been predicted by Lu Yan!
What a farce…
Jiang Zhixu and Qi Honglang looked at each other again.
A few seconds later, Jiang Zhixu was the first to react. “Quickly organize a team for search and rescue!”
“City Lord, they… might not be innocent.”
Qi Honglang interjected then.
His mind was racing, trying to find a reasonable explanation for this “accident.” “As everyone knows, in the Wasteland, you’re either a friend or an enemy.
“After we arrived at the freshwater lake, the other party never signaled with their horn. Instead, they continued to lurk. That in itself indicates malicious intent.”
— It could also be that the other party preferred to avoid trouble and simply ignored them.
But, at least for now, Qi Honglang wouldn’t voice that thought.
He continued, “I don’t know if the City Lord has heard of an old-world theory—called the Dark Forest. Of course, it’s not as severe here.
“But a Mobile City with unknown intentions hiding just one or two kilometers away from us… if we don’t strike first, they might.
“Even an ordinary cannon shot hitting the power plant area could cripple us. We have no room for error.
“Until the other party shows goodwill, we can only assume the worst!”
After speaking, he looked somewhat nervously at Jiang Zhixu.
He feared Jiang Zhixu might have moral qualms, not only demanding a rescue operation but also compensating the other side with the resources to build a new Mobile City!
They weren’t incapable of providing it now, but it would still be a significant blow.
From their interactions, he had come to understand Jiang Zhixu’s character somewhat. The man seemed like someone who had just crossed over from the old world, still holding onto many of the moral standards and worldview of his homeland.
Unbeknownst to him, those were no longer applicable in this new world.
“You’re overthinking it.”
Jiang Zhixu wasn’t as rigid as he imagined. “What I mean is, unlike during the day, we now have ample time to absorb their population.
“While you organize the search and rescue, try to bring back both their people and their resources.”
「Deep Blue」 was severely understaffed.
A Tier-1 city had a full capacity of one thousand people, yet they only had just over five hundred, far from the limit.
In this semi-gamified world, it was crucial to remember:
The larger the population, the greater the chance of special talents emerging!
No Mobile City would ever complain about having too many people.
…
After the citizens’ celebration, Jiang Zhixu arranged a “bonfire party” for them.
He ordered the consumption of the city’s three-day food reserves to produce Tier-1 items like 「Happy Cola」, 「Joyful Fried Chicken」, and 「Whole Wheat Bread」 for a night of revelry.
However, most people didn’t notice that those with red armbands had quietly left.
They had received a mission from above.
Even they had just learned that those three thunderous artillery shells had destroyed a Mobile City!
Unaware it was a coincidence, they believed the City Lord had intentionally used that city as a target to demonstrate military might to the populace!
Now, it was their turn to handle the cleanup.
Instantly, their admiration for Jiang Zhixu grew even stronger.
Fueled by such formidable fighting spirit, the combat vehicle squad sped off.
In just over ten minutes, they completely dismantled all remaining resistance from the 「Silent Horn」!
Simultaneously, Jiang Zhixu received a system notification.
【Congratulations! Your forces have successfully captured the hostile City Lord’s Control Hub!】
【Please return to your Control Hub to proceed!】
Jiang Zhixu returned to his Control Hub and chose to copy all of the opponent’s blueprints.
Skipping past the daily supplies, his focus was on modification components and weaponry.
【You have successfully plundered all technological blueprints from the hostile City Lord of 「Silent Horn」!】
【You have acquired the manufacturing blueprint for the Tier-1 modification component 「Night Camouflage Armor」!】
【You have acquired the manufacturing blueprint for the Tier-1 modification component 「Engine Silencer」!】
——————
【Night Camouflage Armor】
Quality: Tier-1
Trait: Utilizes special coatings and light-distortion fields to allow the Mobile City to blend with its surroundings, slightly reducing detection probability. Effectiveness is greatly enhanced at night!
Description: Aww, baby, you’re a little ghost for night operations!
——————
【Engine Silencer】
Quality: Tier-1
Trait: Installed on the city engine’s exhaust system, it significantly reduces noise generated during movement.
Description: Come on, deceive, come on, sneak attack! Me, an old-timer weighing thousands of tons!
——————
“This is practically a Mobile City specialized for night raids. All its modification components lean in that direction.”
Seeing this information, Jiang Zhixu felt a chill of hindsight.
Lu Yan had performed a great service!
Back then, they were completely unprepared, and the opponent followed this “sneaky bastard” modification style. Could anyone believe they harbored no ill intent?
It was likely only because the distance wasn’t close enough yet, and they hadn’t found the optimal moment to strike.
Jiang Zhixu’s assumption of the worst was soon confirmed.
A special prisoner was escorted back by the combat squad.
“…That was the entire process we discussed. Our City Lord… indeed planned to move against your city but hadn’t had the chance yet… However, however, I was the only one who explicitly opposed it!”
A seemingly honest middle-aged man knelt obediently not far from Jiang Zhixu, the cold muzzle of a gun pressed firmly against the back of his head.
Jiang Zhixu asked, “You were a senior member of the 「Silent Horn」?”
The middle-aged man nodded hastily. “Yes. I was the head of the logistics department.”