9 Fight to the Death

Tat tat tat...

Witnessing the death of their comrade, Qin Hao and the soldiers around him all pointed their muzzles at the giant beetle. As they fired their electromagnetic rifles, the torrent of metal pummeled the giant beetle, forcing it back and preventing it from continuing its slaughter.

Hissss... Krarrr!

The giant beetle screeched defiantly. Although it possessed a solid carapace and powerful strength, it appeared quite fragile under fire from a dozen rifles. In the end, the giant was torn apart by the hail of bullets in an act of revenge for their fallen comrade.

"Watch the flanks! Charge!" Ralph exclaimed. At that moment, they were surrounded by a swarm of the insectoid army, and staying still was tantamount to throwing your life away. They all needed to charge toward the behemoth and lock onto its position for the bombers.

As for what came after that, Ralph no longer thought of it, and neither did Qin Hao nor the other fighters. The reason was, even if they were able to provide a target lock and guide the bombers until they completed the run, it would be impossible for them to fight thousands of giant beetles and return to High Ground Z3.

Tat tat tat tat... The roar of the electromagnetic rifles hardly ceased as Qin Hao and his comrades charged forward, but in the process, soldiers fell along the way. By the time Qin Hao and the rest could vaguely see the behemoth's massive limbs, the whole company, aside from Ralph and Qin Hao, was down to three soldiers.

Before joining the battle, the 2nd Company had a full complement of 130-odd men, but after the landing, only sixty or seventy managed to reach High Ground Z3. Currently, the 2nd Company was almost completely wiped out, and counting the company commander, Ralph, there were only five soldiers left.

"Charge! To the cliff on the left!" Ralph quickly observed the battlefield, and the cliff on the left was made out of rock. So, the beetles could not burrow into the ground to launch sneak attacks on them. If they reached the cliff, they would only need to defend the front and not have to worry about their backs.

"Roger!" Qin Hao and the rest nodded, then quickly followed Ralph across the battlefield.

The three soldiers by Qin Hao's side had been new blood before the battle, but along the way, they had undergone Death's cruel screening. They would be able to call themselves veterans if they managed to survive the whole ordeal!

Half a minute later, Qin Hao and the others arrived at the foot of the cliff.

"You three, come with me and set up a defensive position. Qin Hao, operate the laser designator!" Ralph quickly gave out orders.

"Roger!" The three mechanized infantry used their powered exoskeletons to quickly build temporary defensive works and create a simple station with Ralph. While its defense was not solid, it was still some help to them.

At that moment, Qin Hao took the laser designator from Ralph. It was not his first time operating this equipment. In previous battles, Qin Hao had also operated the laser designator to guide the bomb squadron to the target. Since he had the experience, Ralph gave him the most important duty.

Tap, tap...

Qin Hao quickly operated the laser designator, and after he calibrated it, he aimed the designator at the behemoth in the distance.

"Target locked on! Sending signal..." Qin Hao reported loudly.

"All right!" No one knew when Ralph had thrown away his uniform jacket. With his chest now bare, he held an infantry energy cannon and shot wildly at the insects in front of him.

Booom, booom, booom!! The heavy firepower from the infantry energy cannon suppressed the giant beetle swarm. This reduced the pressure on the temporary station that Qin Hao and the rest were in. At the same time, the three other soldiers also opened fire and took any giant beetles that had survived the cannon.

"How's it going?!" Ralph shouted while frantically shooting. Although the infantry energy cannon was powerful, its energy was limited. Ralph was strong, but carrying an energy cannon was already not easy, and it was impossible for him to carry additional battery packs.

"Communicating. The black mist seems to be interfering with the signal!" Qin Hao shouted back. On the chaotic battlefield, if one did not shout, it would be difficult to hear anyone even if they were next to each other.

"Hurry up! I'm almost dry!" Ralph shouted back. In fact, not only him, and even the three mechanized infantry beside him were running out of ammo.

Tat tat tat... Boom boom!! The sound of gunfire and cannons were intertwined in Qin Hao's ears. Even when there was a massive swarm of bugs before him, Qin Hao did not even lift his head. He had entrusted his safety to his comrades while he concentrated on operating the laser designator; this was called battlefield trust.

"Done!" A few minutes later, Qin Hao shouted excitedly.

"Good! The air support should quickly come and bomb the hell out of these sons of b*tches!" Ralph laughed.

Vooshhh!

"Urgh!"

A sharp thorn had flown out of nowhere and stabbed straight through Ralph's chest!

"Ugh..." Ralph looked at his chest. The sharp thorn had already been nailed into his chest, and green mucus started to glow around the wound.

"Qin Hao, plug the gap!" Ralph gritted his teeth. Thanks to his strong body, he managed to keep himself from falling.

"Roger!" Qin Hao turned over and took Ralph's position. He held up Ralph's energy cannon and continue to fire at the insect swarm. At that moment, the laser designator would maintain contact with the bombers, so there was no need for anyone to operate it anymore.

Boom boom booom!! The energy cannon roared in Qin Hao's hands. He originally could not control the heavy weapon, but after he had his arm replaced with the robotic arm, his strength increased by a lot although his flexibility was impaired. Hence, Qin Hao could lift the heavy energy cannon with just one hand.

"Bang!" A gunshot rang out behind Qin Hao. Without needing to look back, Qin Hao knew what had happened. Ralph had taken out his pistol and put himself out of his misery.

"Kill them all!" Right then, the four remaining soldiers, Qin Hao included, went berserk. No one expected to go back alive, and the only thing they needed to do was protect the laser designator until the bombers completed their attack. After that, it was all about killing their foes and taking as many down together with them.

Half a minute later, Qin Hao and the rest heard the rumbling of the warplanes. It was obvious that the bomb squadron had arrived!

Whirrrr! The tail of a super-heavy aerial bomb ripped through the air, and that meant the bomb squadron had begun to drop their payload.

"Get down!!" Qin Hao subconsciously yelled out. Since they are not too far away from the behemoth, once the super-heavy aerial bombs exploded, they might get caught in the blast.

However, the three mechanized soldiers did not move as they continued to shoot at the insect swarm close by. Everyone knew that even if they did not get caught in the blast, they had no chance of going back alive. So, rather than lying on the ground and waiting for their doom, they might as well kill a few more insects before they died!