Chapter 21 - Bombings

A few minutes later, the long convoy of vehicles left the parking lot in order. At the spacious intersection, they quickly split up and rushed off in their respective directions.

The wet soles of boots were firmly pressing on the gas pedal, the engine burst out with a deafening roar. The lead assault vehicle, with its terrifying speed violating all traffic laws, reached the nearest residential area in just a few minutes.

The beautiful red sandstone blocks formed a rough half-round arch door, the dense branches swaying in the wind sheltered most of the rain in the carefully landscaped green belt. The four engraved characters "Jingtai Garden" on the door wall added a touch of cultural atmosphere to the place.

More than ten civilians carrying their luggage crowded under the porch that could shelter from the rain, and looked curiously at the convoy from a distance with restless and expectant eyes.

Lin Xiang, with a pale face, jumped out of the assault vehicle and shouted to a soldier waiting at the door, "Why are there only a few people here? What about the others? Have they all been evacuated in advance?"

The evacuation forces had been sent out half an hour ago, they had to evacuate the citizens in the designated area within the designated time. The elderly and the weak would be gathered at designated locations and transported out of the city by the convoy.

The residents in "Jingtai Garden" number more than two thousand, and according to the data provided by the civil affairs department, at least half of the population still remaining here has not yet been evacuated.

"We've tried our best," a young woman with a "Community Work Station" symbol on her left arm said wearily, shaking her head. "We've said all that needs to be said, but they are stubbornly convinced that this is a government-made fraud in the urban renewal project, and no one wants to leave, even... they curse us as the government's accomplices..."

"Everyone come with me, run forward!"

Ignoring explanation, Lin Xiang urgently shouted to all the soldiers and rushed into the nearest building.

The deep black security door had a thick and heavy feeling, and the doorhead, smoothed with white gray paste, was written with three neat numbers in eye-catching red paint: "101".

The chaotic footsteps obviously alarmed the owner of the house. The light from the narrow peephole was quickly covered, and even through the thick door panel, one could feel the slight breath from the door and the pounding heart like a drum.

"Get away!"

Lin Xiang, slinging his assault rifle, strode forward and aimed the dark muzzle at the tightly closed door lock. He pulled the trigger heavily.

"Boom."

The hot bullet spun into the lock, shaking the wall with great kinetic energy, tearing apart all obstacles blocking the door. Before the pungent smoke cleared, Lin had already lifted his foot and kicked the broken lock with his sturdy rubber sole. The broken door panel bounced back against the wall inside the room, leaving clear marks.

"What do you want to do?"

A middle-aged woman, who was plump with plastic curlers hanging from her head, shrank on the couch, crying and scolding, "You are unscrupulous robbers, you use violence to break in when you can't cheat. I'm going to sue you."

"The situation is urgent, we don't have much time." Lin Xiang couldn't explain more and quickly approached her, his left hand forming a palm, he chopped down with force on her neck, the crying and shouting stopped abruptly.

Lin Xiang hoisted the unconscious overweight woman onto his shoulder, and shouted loudly towards the room that was causing a commotion: "If you don't leave, you will never see her again."

Before he finished speaking, a skinny man in a white vest rushed out of the room, followed by a young boy who was crying and wiping his tears.

"The car is outside, if you don't want to die, come with me," Lin Xiang said coldly, facing the angry male owner, and quickly ran out with the overweight woman.

In the peaceful community, the sound of consecutive gunshots soon echoed.

Breaking in, smashing doors.

Faced with the intruders, all the homeowners showed an unusual anger and shock. Despite the government's repeated emergency evacuation orders, everyone believed it was a trick. In their eyes, cutting off water and power was the most despicable move by the real estate developers. In order to protect their sacred and inviolable private property, the homeowners even purchased a large amount of food and water, and prepared various tools for violent resistance. When the soldiers forced their way into each room and tried to evacuate like Lin Xiang did, they encountered intense resistance.

"Captain, what do we do?" A sergeant anxiously asked, "They don't believe in persuasion at all and are even confront us with kitchen knives."

"Load up the people who have been rounded up and send them away one batch at a time," Lin Xiang wiped the sweat that was flowing down his forehead and gritted his teeth, "Order the engineers to quickly install explosives and release tear gas. Once the people inside come out, immediately blow up the residential building completely."

Houses were the residents' fundamental root of resistance. Without houses, no one would continue to stay here.

"Blow up the building?" The sergeant could hardly believe his ears: "But we can't confirm if there are still residents inside. What if someone is still inside and refuses to come out..."

"There's nothing to be done about it now." Looking at the pointer on his watch constantly moving forward, Lin Xiang shook his head helplessly, "By doing this, at least we can save the lives of most people. If they get infected with the virus... everyone will die."

With thin white smoke tails, dozens of cylindrical tear gas canisters were accurately shot into the building by a grenade launcher. After the dazzling and eye-catching white light passed by, thick smoke quickly filled every corner of the building. The windows that had been sealed with thick tape on each balcony were one after another violently pushed open by residents who could not stand the choking stimulation and pungent smell. They stuck their bodies out of the window, hoping to get the most thorough release in the fresh air. However, the dense smoke that rolled in from inside the house finally made this act in vain. Under the stimulation of choking and excessive secretion of liquid from the eyes, nose and mouth, people could only give up their long-held homes, clasping their mouths and noses, and stumbling out of the building with weak vision, collapsing onto the cold ground and panting for the long-lost air.

"Detonate----"

The deafening explosion drowned out the violent coughing and panting mixed in the crowd. When the sky-high dust and rocks fell on top of their heads, the owners of the house felt as if they had a terrible dream. They stood there blankly, looking at the house that had become broken stones and rubble, with their mouths wide open and unable to speak a word for a long time.

"Uh----"

At this moment, a sharp and piercing alarm came from a distance, echoing for a long time under the dark sky of the city. People who were immersed in anger and despair looked up and were surprised to find that all the people standing beside them had the same confusion and fear in their eyes.

"Go north, leave the city from the north. Move quickly, this is your only chance to survive," said Lin Xiang, jumping onto the assault vehicle and rushing towards the source of the alarm with all the soldiers who had already boarded. Only a group of bewildered residents were left, searching, crying, and cursing in the ruins where the dust had not yet settled.

What needs to be done has been done, and everything that needs to be said has been said. There are still more people in the city who need help.

Heaven is fair, and there is only one chance to live.

...

It's been four whole hours since the counterattack began.

The tanks with their ammunition exhausted could no longer attack and could only roll heavily with the roar of the engine into dense crowds of mutants. Faced with these unshakable steel behemoths, the intelligent mutants chose to evade, opting to break apart and infiltrate buildings from the corners, narrow alleys, and interiors instead of moving forward on the roads. Their agility and speed allowed them to completely neutralize the attacks of the armored groups.

The air force bombing destroyed the massive piles of infected corpses on the ground, but the mutants soon found new targets for parasitism: all the interiors of the buildings and a considerable number of survivors hiding in the shadows, watching the situation nervously and hoping for safety.

The wailing of the dying echoed through the room, completely covered by the huge explosion outside the window. No one detected the hidden danger, and the evacuees couldn't possibly thoroughly inspect every building. The murdered dead lay quietly in the blood-soaked waters, letting the virus consume all of them, extending its grasp to every corner of their bodies. In the end, they become the new masters of the brain and soul.

Standing on the roof of the South Region Intermediate People's Court, Xie Zhiping felt a rage and helplessness that he could not put into words.

He never thought that a small virus could bring such devastating disaster to the city. These monsters that are invisible to the naked eye are using their own ways to compete for the top seat in the food chain with human beings. This has far exceeded the limit of human warfare and is a struggle for life and death between two completely different races in terms of form, consciousness, and living environment.

But no matter what, he has to fight for time for those who are still alive. Every extra minute means a little more hope for survival.

Tearing open the windbreaker button of his military uniform, the old general finally checked his assault rifle's magazine, growled fiercely, "Come on! You rabbits, I will show you these inferior and dirty creatures what happens when you anger an old soldier."