Chapter 74: Hell on Earth

A blood-red sky. 

The earth was covered beneath a crimson blood cloud, and the extreme drought had caused the ground to crack open. Towering piles of corpses, stacked dozens of meters high, formed gruesome monuments. The bodies were severely decayed, swarming with flies, and the pustules within these ghastly structures occasionally released clouds of blood-red mist, resembling some sort of living entity. These horrific scenes were the source of the sky and land being stained in blood, slowly altering the environment around them.

However, flying at a low altitude of a hundred meters, eight concealed Blackhawk assault crafts sped towards the northeast.

Inside the cabin: 

"…"

Leon's heart grew heavier as he peered out the window at the outside scene. Even though the combat suit had an air filtration function, he couldn't shake the sensation that he could smell blood.

Leon didn't understand what spiritual energy was, nor did he possess such supernatural powers, but he knew this Earth had descended into "madness."

As a specially trained investigator, even he was shocked by the sights below. Reflecting on the reports mentioning Frank Hammer and the colonel who led a group of Marines to protect the survivors for five years, Leon couldn't help but feel deep admiration for them. He also pondered over the "shining side of humanity" mentioned in the company's mission statement.

"Target in visual range, estimated arrival at the landing zone in two minutes. Please prepare," the pilot's reminder over the internal comms snapped Leon back to reality.

The pilot's shared view allowed Leon to see, through his helmet's display, the so-called super-giant city—Minerva.

Even though they were still more than ten kilometers away from Minerva, through the pilot's perspective, Leon could "see" the defensive walls equipped with artillery, the massive high-rise buildings within, and the towering industrial smokestacks spewing thick smoke into the clouds.

'Hell...'

Minerva gave Leon the impression of a hell on Earth.

"…"

The thought of soon infiltrating this place with the Hunters made Leon close his eyes and take several deep breaths to calm his rapidly beating heart.

Two minutes passed in the blink of an eye.

A slight sensation of descent, followed by a soft jolt, indicated that the Blackhawk carrying them had landed and the landing gear had made contact with the ground.

"Blackhawk H7 has landed, both side doors are open. Good luck to you all, and I hope to see you back at the base."

"Move."

Upon hearing the pilot's reminder, the Hunter squad leader, a sergeant in charge of H7, issued a brief command.

Upon hearing this, Leon and the other Hunters activated their optical camouflage and quickly exited the cabin from both sides.

The moment he stepped outside, Leon sprinted several meters forward before dropping to one knee, his weapon ready as he kept watch.

A gust of air from behind quickly dissipated, followed by silence.

Remaining vigilant, Leon glanced at the upper left corner of his radar, which showed that the H5 through H8 Blackhawks had already taken off and returned, while H9 through H12 continued flying east.

Including Leon, a total of fifty-six combat personnel had landed here, forming four teams of fourteen.

"No immediate threats nearby. Kennedy, regroup here," the sergeant said.

"Understood." 

Leon stood up and jogged toward the marker displayed on his helmet's screen.

15 meters… 

5 meters… 

0 meters.

Upon reaching the sergeant's marked position, Leon identified the gathered figures as the Hunter squad leaders from the four combat teams, along with the accompanying investigators, based on the outlines drawn on his screen.

"Gentlemen," the lead Hunter, a lieutenant, spoke first. "Major Morgan has tasked our four teams with infiltrating Minerva, securing their central control center, and obtaining the city's architectural blueprints. We are currently three kilometers from Minerva's outskirts and roughly fifty kilometers from the core area. The latest hydrogen batteries and individual systems should support us for three continuous days, so to be cautious, I'll lead H5 on foot. What about the rest of you?"

After hearing the lieutenant's suggestion, the leaders of H6 and the investigators nodded in agreement.

"Going on foot isn't completely safe either," said Ada Wong, an investigator accompanying H8. "Lieutenant, even if the batteries last long enough, we still have to figure out how to bypass that tall wall when we reach Minerva's edge. They've also deployed heavy artillery on the walls and have thousands of patrols. Walking has its own exposure risks, but based on the aerial images taken by Ernie 002, 60% of the nearby roads are still operational."

Ada continued in her unusually calm voice as she raised her left hand and gestured eastward. "And there's one just two kilometers from here."

"Yes," the lieutenant acknowledged, "but the reason I ruled it out is because their transport system is chaotic and unpredictable, which could separate our group members. However, we could take both approaches. H5 and H6 can proceed on foot, while H7 and H8 can head toward the road and try to hitch a ride. This way, we cover both options. After all, as long as one group, or even one person, manages to obtain Minerva's blueprints, any sacrifice will be worth it. What do you think?"

"I agree," Ada said without hesitation.

"H7 has no objections," Leon and the sergeant replied in unison.

"Good, then good luck to you all," the lieutenant said, leading the accompanying investigator away.

Following that, H5 and H6 moved forward on foot as planned, while H7 and H8 headed east toward the road leading to Minerva. Once they arrived, Leon immediately understood the lieutenant's concern.

Despite the heavy trucks traveling back and forth on this road, the lack of maintenance by transportation departments had left the surface cracked and full of potholes.

But Leon and the others didn't hesitate. After quickly crossing to the eastern side of the road, two of H7's Hunters made the first move.

The screen displayed the two speeding up, and just as a heavy truck was about to pass by, they leaped with all their strength, their momentum carrying them into the air as they "collided" with the side of the truck's container.

Instead of a crash, the two Hunters stuck to the container's side like geckos, using magnetic grips to climb to the top of the container.

Following the same method, H7 and H8 repeated the process in pairs, allowing Leon and the others to hitch a ride on fourteen different trucks carrying various cargoes toward Minerva.

In no time, they reached the base of the high wall and faced the challenge of passing through the checkpoint to enter the city.

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