Chapter 49: 'Wolf Pack”

The predatory city “The Hanged Man” was painted in red and green. It was equipped with two Level‐1 cannons. It had five convoys. It seemed to have upgraded to Level‐1 city tracks and Level‐1 tires, making it the fastest. The predatory city “The Magician” was painted red and white. It had a total of twenty standard cannons, plus three Level‐1 cannons. It had no convoy and was therefore the slowest. The predatory city “The War Wagon” was painted silver. Its city armor was extraordinarily thick from top to bottom. Its tracks and wheels also seemed to have been upgraded, making it very heavy and stable. This predatory city moved at average speed. It had no convoy and no cannons. Surprisingly, this predatory city was also equipped with two offensive‐type Level‐1 city accessories. One was a massive Level‐1 battering ram. The other was a Level‐1 steam bed crossbow mounted on the mid‐deck. In addition, its city armor seemed capable of contracting and closing. Through binoculars, Li Ye observed the general condition of these three predatory cities. The Hanged Man seemed to be an assault type. The War Wagon was a defense type. The Magician was a heavy‐fire support type. He was somewhat amazed; he didn’t expect mobile cities to also divide labor and cooperate in this way. This shattered Li Ye’s previous understanding of predatory cities. He had always thought these predatory cities were crude, barbaric, and extremely brutal. But in fact, they could also form alliances, trade resources, and share intelligence. They even procured the necessary city accessories and weapons by using resources to shape themselves into specific functional types to meet team needs. From cruel and cunning hyenas, they had transformed into precisely coordinated, mutually supporting wolf packs. But Li Ye didn’t have much time to reflect, because they themselves were the target. At that very moment, the three predatory cities began their respective actions. The cannons on The Magician slowly adjusted their positions, aiming at the Tomorrow’s planned route. The Hanged Man darted forward from the flank, and its convoy sped off at full throttle. The War Wagon let out a sudden roar, barreling straight ahead, smashing every building along the way in a straight line toward Tomorrow! In the process, it continuously accelerated, even surpassing The Hanged Man in speed! “A formidable charge!” Li Ye’s heart skipped a beat. In an instant he understood everything. As the defensive member of the predatory alliance, the War Wagon needed no convoy or cannons. What it did instead was strengthen its defenses and power system to break through the enemy formation at top speed during battle. This defensive‐type predatory city itself was like a projectile for assault! It was clear that in gathering resources and city accessories, it had prioritized upgrading its power system! Its engine must be very powerful—perhaps even Level 2! After a moment of consideration, Li Ye quickly made a judgment. “Ning Wen, fire six smoke shells at The Magician and block their sight immediately!” “Convoys One and Two, and the Storm Infantry Wagon, intercept the enemy assault convoy!” “Tang Fang, prepare to execute evasive maneuvers!” Amid a series of cannon blasts, several smoke shells shrieked as they landed around The Magician. A dense smoke spread, completely enveloping it and the nearby area. On the street, Convoys One and Two, along with the Storm Infantry Wagon, began fierce firefights with the enemy convoy. “Attention! The enemy mobile city is only about 300 meters from Tomorrow—helmsman, brace for evasive maneuvers!” Lin Xia’s urgent voice came through the comm. 300 meters... 200 meters... 100 meters... The War Wagon, with unstoppable momentum, smashed down one building after another. Its armor was extremely thick, so multiple violent collisions only left scores of scratches. As it was about to crash in, inside the cockpit, helmsman Tang Fang yanked the control lever and swung the wheel to the left. Tomorrow executed a sharp left turn with its tracks, narrowly dodging the incoming War Wagon. The latter charged straight into a building, leaving its rear exposed to Tomorrow. “Beautiful!” Li Ye nodded. “Fire!” Instantly, all cannons and heavy machine guns aboard Tomorrow opened fire. A massive barrage engulfed the War Wagon in moments. However, the War Wagon’s armor was so thick that such town‐destroying firepower had little effect. Machine‐gun bullets couldn’t pierce its armor, only denting and lodging in it. The shells roared with power, but merely twisted its armor slightly. “This defense is astounding!” Li Ye frowned. “In that case, Ning Wen! Fire!” The next moment, the lava cannon on the deck fired. The shell struck the War Wagon head‐on. In an instant, a violent explosion soared skyward, the War Wagon engulfed in searing flame. The blast’s immense force caused nearby buildings to collapse and crumble. Debris and dust billowed outward. Seeing this, The Hanged Man on the flank quickly launched multiple smoke shells to cover the War Wagon. Meanwhile, it began unleashing a barrage toward Tomorrow. Amid gunfire and shell bursts, gunner Ning Wen operated swiftly. At his command, the lava cannon’s breech hydraulic seal hissed as steam pressure vented. The breech unlocked and rotated open. The hot molten‐shell casing was ejected, landing on the deck with a wisp of smoke. He promptly accepted a shell from a crewmember and strode forward to load it into the barrel. As the shell’s base locked into the rifling grooves, he immediately pulled the lever. The cast‐iron breech closed with sparks flying. As the pressure gauge jumped to combat levels, he let out a roar. “Report: next lava shell ready! Ready to fire at any moment!” The young, restrained gunner was surging with excitement, his face flushed red. After all, he had been an unnoticed apprentice gunner—but now he had become a key fighter aboard a mobile city, simultaneously facing three predatory cities. Li Ye furrowed his brow as he stared into the spreading smoke. The War Wagon’s form was already shrouded, making it hard to judge. “Ning Wen, adjust the muzzle and prepare to intercept The Hanged Man!” At this moment, The Hanged Man was less than one kilometer from Tomorrow. The lava cannon’s power was clearly intimidating that predatory city. It didn’t dare approach any further. Instead, it used surrounding buildings as cover to maintain distance and trade fire with Tomorrow. Shells flew and bullets ripped through air. Wherever the two mobile cities passed, buildings collapsed, streets cracked, and smoke and explosions filled the air. On the streets, both convoys were locked in fierce tug‐of‐war combat. Assault and counter‐assault. Flank encirclements and close‐quarters firefights... The battle had reached a white‐hot intensity.