Chapter 15: Departure, Hunt the Molten Broodmother!

Early morning. Accompanied by a heavy rumble, the massive gates of Roland Fortress slowly opened. The Tomorrow started up and drove towards the wilderness. Behind it, the Conqueror and the Azure followed closely. Li Ye stood by the railing, gazing in the direction of the Firefeather Forest. It wouldn’t be long before a great battle erupted. “Hope everything goes smoothly...” he thought silently. At that moment, everyone on the Tomorrow was nervously preparing. When they heard the news that the three Mobile Cities were allying to attack a wild BOSS, they were all stunned. In their stupor, feelings of anxiety, fear, and excitement surged. Beside the cannons, the newly appointed gunner Ning Wen was nervously adjusting it, occasionally raising his thumb to gauge the distance — he needed to quickly get into the zone before the battle started. There was a noise nearby. Li Ye turned his head and saw Lin Wu. After learning the details of the agreement, Lin Wu nodded and lightly adjusted his glasses. “The terms of the deal are acceptable. Only mutually beneficial alliances have a chance to last...” The three Mobile Cities departed, while in the upper district of Roland Fortress, a man leaned against a sickbed, silently watching them through the window. It was a middle-aged man. His face was pale and weak, his figure thin, and he coughed into his hand from time to time. He was the Lord of Roland Fortress. Li Ye and the others didn’t know that the reason the Lord of Roland Fortress didn’t receive them in person was because he had long been bedridden by illness. And Roland Fortress wasn’t as indestructible as imagined. After years of mining, the mineral zone it sat on was nearly exhausted, and the freshwater lake was almost depleted. Outside, the Crimson Hound posed a serious threat, and inside, factions struggled for power. There were mainly two factions within Roland Fortress. The radical faction believed resources were nearly depleted and couldn't support so many people. They thought Roland Fortress should revert to a Mobile City and set off again in search of resources. Due to the current resource limits, they could only bring 500 people at most. So they planned to select 500 people and abandon the rest. The conservative faction felt that method was too cruel and heartless. Even putting aside the fairness of the selection, it could very well spark conflict ahead of time. The current resources could still last for a while — maybe a solution could be found. The only reason conflict hadn’t erupted yet was that the Lord’s prestige still held both factions in check. But his time was also running out. The Lord of Roland Fortress quietly watched the three Mobile Cities, occasionally rubbing his forehead, seemingly deep in thought. With a soft sound, the door slowly opened, and the steward entered with a tray of medicine. “It’s time for your medication,” he said, looking at the Lord he had served for more than ten years, his gaze gentle. “Come to think of it, you always watch like this every time a Mobile City departs.” The Lord gave a few light coughs. “Old Li, sometimes I can’t help but wonder...” He spoke slowly. “If Roland hadn’t become a fortress back then, would it have traveled farther by now?” ... After reaching the destination, Li Ye in the cockpit touched his face and took a deep breath. Everyone aboard the Tomorrow was in position. Since Old Zhou, the Combat Captain, had been sent as a hostage, the combat on the Tomorrow would be under his command. As the three Mobile Cities slowly advanced towards the forest, the wild BOSS Molten Broodmother had already tensed up, letting out a vigilant hiss. The Molten Spiders and Spider Guards around it surged like a tide. At Li Ye’s order, the Tomorrow sounded three long horn blasts. These blasts meant... the attack had begun. In an instant, cannons from all three Mobile Cities fired simultaneously, and the Molten Broodmother was engulfed in explosions. “Awesome! It hit!” Ning Wen’s lips curled into a delighted smile. Even in his joy, his hands trembled slightly. As the newly appointed gunner on the Tomorrow, he had expected his first battle to be against monsters occupying a mine or forest, not a wild BOSS. The Tomorrow’s two cannons were operated by him and another combatant. Before firing, Ning Wen had nervously calculated wind speed, distance, and humidity. But just a few seconds later, his smile vanished. After the smoke cleared, the Molten Spiders and Spider Guards had suffered minimal casualties, and the Molten Broodmother was nearly unscathed. Li Ye’s expression grew serious. This had actually been within his expectations. This round of regular cannon fire couldn’t achieve much, at most providing suppressive fire. After all, these monsters were elite, elite captains, and wild BOSS-level. To truly deal damage, they’d need Level 1 Firearms, Level 1 Heavy Machine Guns, or Level 1 Cannons. The spider swarm, enraged by the shelling, surged forward like a tidal wave. 1000 meters, 900 meters, 800 meters... The distance between both sides rapidly shrank. Suddenly, the Molten Broodmother crouched and leapt, its massive body sweeping through the air and instantly covering more than 500 meters. No one had expected such a move. At that moment, the Molten Broodmother was less than 300 meters away — everyone could clearly see its terrifying, grotesque compound eyes. Countless machine gun bullets and shells rained down on it. But the effect of these standard weapons was minimal. The Molten Broodmother charged forward under fire, the distance shrinking fast. Just then, the Level 1 Cannon on the Conqueror fired. A fierce explosion erupted on the Molten Broodmother, blasting off one of its side limbs. At the same time, its movements slowed down. “So this is the power of a Level 1 Cannon?” In that moment, Li Ye felt both shock and relief, mixed with envy. Among the firepower of the three Mobile Cities, only the Level 1 Cannon on the Conqueror could suppress the wild BOSS Molten Broodmother. Li Jin shared the same emotion. As Lords of Mobile Cities, the two of them deeply wished to possess a Level 1 Cannon. Just then, the Molten Broodmother suddenly made an unexpected move. It sprayed webs like a launched projectile, quickly wrapping around the wheels and treads of the three Mobile Cities. The sudden change stunned everyone. At the same time, the spider swarm surged up in dense waves. “Open fire! Everyone, fire on the spider swarm!” Li Ye shouted. The Tomorrow immediately poured firepower onto the spider swarm. The Azure joined in — their joint mission was to eliminate the spider swarm, while the Molten Broodmother would be handled by the Conqueror with its Level 1 Cannon. Meanwhile, the mechanical arms of the three Mobile Cities activated and began clearing the webs wrapped around their wheels and treads.