Chapter 72: New Predatory City Alliance

For the people aboard the Tomorrow, the thing they most wanted to do during rest periods was undoubtedly to take a bath. After all, while migrating on land, the amount of freshwater allocated to each person daily was limited and primarily used for survival. Washing one's face and brushing teeth daily, with the occasional bath, was a luxury reserved only for the Lord. Thus, whenever the Tomorrow discovered a pond or lake while on land, everyone would rush to the water’s edge in a sort of vengeful frenzy—washing their faces, brushing their teeth, and even bathing. They would also use all kinds of pots and containers to collect as much water as possible to bring back to their rooms for daily use. Now, with the Tomorrow entering the Serene Lake, there was a continuous supply of freshwater. Added to that was the newly acquired Level 2 item—Pure Source City Purification System, which significantly improved the quality of filtered water. Li Ye then lifted the restrictions on freshwater allocation, allowing everyone to use water freely. In fact, the mid-level section of the Tomorrow had a small bathhouse, but Li Ye had not chosen to open it previously. The reason was simple: even the most water-conserving bath consumed forty to fifty units of water per session—equivalent to the daily freshwater supply for forty to fifty people. Even he himself had been reluctant to bathe, usually just wetting a towel to wipe himself down. Now, the small bathhouse was opened, and the simple showerheads inside began to pour out streams of water. The people on the Tomorrow cheered as they rushed into the bathhouse to shower. As for Li Ye, the Lord’s quarters on the Tomorrow already had an independent bathroom, fully equipped with a sink, toilet, showerhead, and bathtub. The previous Lord had even equipped it with toothpaste, toothbrushes, soap, and shampoo purchased from the marketplace. At this moment, Li Ye was lying in the water-filled bathtub, with the showerhead turned to full blast. Amidst the splashing water, Li Ye contentedly narrowed his eyes. "The feeling of freshwater freedom is just too good. I’m going to take a bath every day here,"he murmured to himself. However, just a few minutes later, an unexpected situation arose. "Report, two unknown Mobile Cities have appeared three kilometers ahead,"Lin Xia’s voice came through the speaking tube."They’ve already spotted us and are now accelerating toward our direction, having dispatched fleets." The Lord’s room was specifically connected to the speaking tube system to ensure immediate notification in emergencies. Li Ye quickly dried himself off and headed to the Watchtower. He took the binoculars from Lin Xia and looked into the distance. One Mobile City was painted in gray-blue, with a flag boldly bearing the image of a Gorgon. Another Mobile City was painted in bright yellow, its flag displaying the image of the Sun God Apollo. Li Ye looked at them and nodded lightly. Medusa, Apollo—those were probably the names of these two Mobile Cities. They likely belonged to a certain Predatory Cities Alliance, though the number of its members and how many Level 2 items they possessed remained unknown. The Apollo was equipped with as many as twenty cannons; it was clearly a fire-support type city. The Medusa’s number of cannons and Heavy Machine Guns was within the standard range. It had four fleets and was very fast, clearly an assault-type city. Li Ye closely observed the enemy fleets—each fleet was composed of four speedboats, each armed with multiple combatants carrying Firearms and Rocket Launchers, also equipped with Heavy Machine Guns. These speedboats spread out and rapidly advanced toward the Tomorrow. Just like convoys on land, their goal was to destroy the Tomorrow’s propellers, thrusters, and hull, forcing it to lose mobility on water. Li Ye then gave the order. "Ning Wen, fire Smoke Shells to block the enemy’s line of sight! Tang Fang, retreat eastward!" Seconds later, several Smoke Shells were fired in succession, quickly shrouding the lake surface in smoke. The Tomorrow turned its bow and rapidly sailed toward the east. Li Ye did not order Tang Fang to activate City Camouflage. The reason was simple—if the Tomorrow activated City Camouflage while concealed by the smoke, the enemy would surely start searching the surroundings. Only by widening the distance and disappearing from the enemy’s field of vision could City Camouflage be used effectively to escape. The Tomorrow’s cannons opened fire, bombarding the Medusa. However, the enemy evaded this round of firepower with high-speed sailing and Mobile Evasion. This Predatory City was probably equipped with Level 1 Hull and Level 1 Thruster or similar Waterborne Mobile City Accessories, which explained its agility. At this very moment, several speedboats had already reached within 300 meters of the Tomorrow. "Accelerate the bombardment on its propellers and hull—destroy its mobility as quickly as possible!"a squad captain on one of the speedboats sneered."We’re really lucky—ran right into a fat sheep like this." At the same time, a cold smirk appeared at the corner of Li Ye’s lips. "Think I can’t deal with you just because I have no fleet?" As they were about to approach the Tomorrow, the combatants on the speedboats suddenly widened their eyes in shock, their faces full of astonishment. That squad captain then screamed hoarsely. "Evade—evade with everything you’ve got!" The next second, the speedboat he was on was hit by a dense hail of bullets and exploded instantly. A nearby speedboat, unable to react in time, was struck by a Light Missile and turned into a fireball. On the deck of the Tomorrow, the Storm Infantry Vehicle was prominently deployed. When the enemy approached, Li Ye had already ordered the Storm Infantry Vehicle to be moved onto the deck for fire support. The middle and lower decks of the Tomorrow were too narrow for the Storm Infantry Vehicle to navigate, but the upper deck was especially spacious, offering excellent visibility. The Storm Infantry Vehicle was thus transported to the upper deck by the elevator platform. At this moment, the Level 2 Vehicle was firing at full force toward the enemy speedboats. The Stinger Autocannon’s muzzle spat blazing tongues of fire, with bullet casings pouring like a torrential downpour from the ejection port. As the missile launcher jolted violently, another Light Missile roared out trailing white smoke, leaving a distinct trail in the rain. Combatants on the deck also fired their Heavy Machine Guns and Rocket Launchers. Within just two to three minutes, the first wave of speedboats was entirely wiped out. The remaining speedboats gave up on charging and began circling around instead. With a thunderous roar, the distant Apollo unleashed a salvo of cannon fire. A deluge of firepower instantly swept in, but since the Tomorrow had launched Smoke Shells in advance, most of the shells missed and fell into the water, blasting up towering white columns several meters high around the Tomorrow. By now, the Medusa had charged to within one kilometer of the Tomorrow and opened fire. Upon seeing the situation clearly, Li Ye’s expression changed instantly as he shouted into the speaking tube. "Tang Fang, prepare for Mobile Evasion immediately!" It wasn’t the cannons that startled him, but rather the fact that the Medusa had consecutively launched two torpedoes. The Tomorrow currently only had a Regular Hull, with weak defenses—barely capable of withstanding torpedo attacks. If those were Level 1 Torpedoes from the Medusa, the situation would be even worse. The two torpedoes approached rapidly in a pincer formation—one from the front-left and one from the rear-right.