37: Chapter 37 Underground Steel

The air on the B2 level of the underground garage was filled with a bizarre scent—a mixture of concrete dust and the smell of blood. Commander Lin Dong lay prone in the gap between two military trucks, his right eye pressed against the scope of his type 95 rifle, his breathing as steady as a precision instrument.

The crosshairs behind the lens were locked onto the edge of a load-bearing pillar thirty-five meters away. A dirty prison uniform sleeve was exposed there, and below the cuff, a hand gripping a sawed-off shotgun was trembling slightly.

"Two on the left flank, three on the right flank; the Commander is hiding behind the load-bearing pillar." Commander Lin Dong’s voice was kept extremely low, but every word was delivered into the headset as clearly as a bullet. "Conscript team, report your positions."

"Number One in position, west side of the tanker truck." This was the temporary designation for the Conscript squad; the voice was mechanical and stable, a level of absolute calmness possessed only by system creations.

"Number Two in position, above the entrance ramp."

"Number Three in position, ammunition count intact."

Commander Lin Dong’s left pinky unconsciously tapped the ground—a habit he had developed back in the Reconnaissance Company. Each tap represented one second; he was calculating. Calculating the enemies' movement speed, calculating the time they would be exposed within his field of fire, and calculating the optimal detonation timing for the directional mine he had placed in the center of the gap between the two vehicles.

On his retina, a pale blue translucent panel was flickering in real-time:

[Current Threat Units: 47]

[Armed Personnel: 12. Weapon Configuration: Shotgun ×5, Homemade Gun ×4, Cold Weapon ×33]

[Awakened One Detected: 1, Lv.5 Strength-Type, Strength Value: 18, Threat Rating: B-]

[base vehicle Deployment Progress: 32%, Estimated Remaining Time: 4 hours 27 minutes]

[Warning: base vehicle armor integrity at 98%, but unable to move during construction; defensive pressure is extreme]

32%.

Commander Lin Dong's pupils contracted slightly. Four and a half hours, and they only had six people now—himself and three former army comrades, a female communications soldier Li Na, plus the five Conscripts he had just finished summoning. A total of eleven people to face forty-seven desperadoes.

No, that wasn't right.

He corrected his calculation: it was ten people. Li Na was currently lying prone in the duty room three meters behind him, staring through a gap in the window at the other side, but she only held a type 92 pistol, and she had never truly participated in combat.

[Li Na, Status: Panicked, Heart Rate: 122, Adrenaline Level: Elevated]

The panel would not lie. For this girl, managing to stay steady without screaming was already her limit.

"Boss," Zhang Qiang's deep voice came through the headset; he was the squad leader from Commander Lin Dong's original Reconnaissance Company, a 1.85-meter-tall man from the Northeast. "Those scumbags are starting to move. I reckon they want to flank us from behind."

Commander Lin Dong didn't answer. His gaze passed through the scope and landed on that load-bearing pillar.

The pillar had a diameter of eighty centimeters and was made of reinforced concrete, with traces of crash strips on its surface. According to military standards, this kind of pillar could withstand a frontal impact from a 30-ton truck; a common shotgun slug hitting it would only leave a white dot.

But behind the pillar, that Lv.5 Awakened One was panting heavily.

Commander Lin Dong could see a corner of his panel:

[Strength-Type Awakened One (Unnamed), Lv.5, HP 320/320, Strength 18, Agility 8, Spirit 6]

[Talent: Savage Charge (On Cooldown, 23 seconds remaining)]

[Status: Excited, Adrenaline Surging, Overconfident]

23 seconds.

Commander Lin Dong's finger rested lightly on the trigger. A 3D tactical map surfaced in his mind—an instinct carved into his bones during his time in the Reconnaissance Company. Even without radar, he could construct a three-dimensional model of the entire battlefield in his head.

Underground garage B2 level, ceiling height 4.5 meters, total area approximately 8,000 square meters, load-bearing pillars spaced seven meters apart, with a total of about 230 vehicles. 60% of them were military vehicles—trucks, off-road vehicles, communication vehicles—and then there was that silver-gray behemoth parked in the deepest part, vibrating slightly.

base vehicle.

Its very existence was the ultimate bait.

"They're coming for the base vehicle." Commander Lin Dong had made that judgment the moment he saw this group of prisoners. Forty-seven people, traveling three kilometers on foot from the prison through a horde of zombies to precisely find this hidden underground garage—this was no coincidence.

Someone had leaked the news.

Or rather, someone was monitoring the energy fluctuations in this area.

[System Prompt: During the base vehicle's deployment process, it will release energy pulses at specific frequency bands, detectable by Awakened Ones within a five-kilometer radius.]

So that was it.

The corner of Commander Lin Dong's mouth curled into a cold arc. Among this group of prisoners, that Lv.5 Strength-Type Awakened One had probably sensed this energy in the ruins of the prison, gathered a group of desperadoes, and fought his way here to "snatch the treasure."

Unfortunately, they didn't know what they were trying to snatch.

"Boss," Zhang Qiang's voice sounded again, "they're moving. Three are sneaking in from the right, twenty meters away from our oil drums."

Oil drums.

That was the first trap Commander Lin Dong had set. Four 200-liter diesel drums were surrounded by trucks in a semi-circle, filled with gasoline and engine oil scavenged from the gas station. The drums were connected by fuses; all it would take was one bullet—

"Don't rush." Commander Lin Dong's voice was as calm as if he were discussing what to have for dinner. "Wait for them to enter the kill zone. Calculate the blast radius."

"Radius of twenty meters, shockwave attenuation zone of forty meters." Zhang Qiang blurted out the numbers—this was basic training for a recon soldier. "Our current position is thirty-five meters from the oil drums. We're safe."

"Then we wait."

The second hand on Commander Lin Dong's watch ticked forward, one notch at a time. His gaze never left that load-bearing pillar. He was waiting for that Strength-Type Awakened One.

Killing more underlings was useless; to win, one had to strike the vital point.

15 seconds.

He silently counted down the cooldown for Savage Charge. This kind of Strength-Type talent usually had a burst skill. When that Awakened One had charged into the garage earlier, he had kicked a half-ton discarded car away, greatly boosting his subordinates' morale.

But Commander Lin Dong had noticed another set of data:

[After Savage Charge is activated, Strength is temporarily increased to 25 points, lasting for 5 seconds.]

[Side Effect: Cooldown period of 60 seconds; defense is reduced by 30% during the cooldown.]

A 5-second burst followed by 60 seconds of weakness.

This was a perfect hunting window.

10 seconds.

The sound of footsteps on the right grew closer. Out of the corner of his eye, Commander Lin Dong caught sight of three dark shadows moving between the vehicles, holding spears made of sharpened rebar and machetes. One of them had a sawed-off shotgun tucked into his belt.

9 seconds.

8 seconds.

"Boss! They're coming from the left too!" Another soldier's voice came through the headset—it was the New recruit Xiao Zhou, who had only joined the company three months ago. The tension in his voice was unmistakable.

7 seconds.

Commander Lin Dong's breathing remained steady. In his mind, a virtual timer was ticking in sync with reality.

6 seconds.

5 seconds.

4 seconds.

3 seconds.

2 seconds.

1 second.

[Savage Charge, cooldown complete.]

At that exact moment, a roar came from behind the load-bearing pillar: "Everyone, charge! That iron hunk is mine!"

A figure lunged out from behind the pillar.

He was 1.85 meters tall, shirtless, with muscles as knotted as a bodybuilder's and a scar running from his brow to his jaw on the left side of his face. He held a piece of rebar as thick as a wrist in both hands; the ends had been flattened and sharpened into a crude but lethal javelin.

His gaze was fixed intently on the silver-gray base vehicle deep in the garage, his eyes filled with naked greed.

Now.

Commander Lin Dong's index finger squeezed the trigger.

"Bang—"

The report of the type 95 rifle exploded in the underground garage, the echo bouncing back and forth between the load-bearing pillars, instantly drowning out all other sounds.

But the bullet wasn't aimed at the Awakened One.

It was aimed at the oil drums thirty-five meters away.

To be precise, at the fuse between the oil drums.

"Boom—"

All four drums of fuel were detonated almost simultaneously. An orange-red fireball soared into the air, instantly engulfing the three prisoners who were approaching. The shockwave spread outward at a speed visible to the naked eye, flipping over a dozen nearby cars as shattered glass flew in all directions like a rainstorm.

The screams lasted for less than two seconds before coming to an abrupt halt.

But that wasn't Commander Lin Dong's target.

At the moment of the explosion, the Strength-Type Awakened One's movements faltered—for less than half a second, but it was enough. His gaze was instinctively drawn to the firelight, and his body stiffened for 0.3 seconds.

Commander Lin Dong's muzzle had already shifted.

The crosshairs of the scope were steadily centered on that bald head.

[Target Distance: 41 meters]

[Muzzle Velocity: 930m/s]

[Ballistic Drop Correction: Negligible]

[Windage Correction: No wind inside the garage]

[Suggested Aiming Point: 2cm above the center of the forehead, considering the target is about to lower his head—]

Commander Lin Dong didn't wait for the panel to finish its calculation.

His finger had already pulled the trigger.

"Bang—"

Second gunshot.

[part:gemini-3.1-flash-lite]

The Strength-Type Awakened One's head snapped back violently, a jet of blood spraying from the back of his skull and splashing onto the load-bearing pillar behind him.

His body stood frozen for two full seconds before toppling straight forward. The rebar spear slipped from his hand, bounced twice on the ground, and rolled under a truck.

【Killed Lv.5 Strength-Type Awakened One, received +150 EXP】

【Obtained special item: Awakened One crystal core (Low-grade) ×1, can extract 200 Energy Points】

Commander Lin Dong had no time to pick it up.

"Open fire, everyone!"

His command acted like a switch, instantly activating the entire battlefield.

Atop the tanker truck, Conscript No. 1 stood up, shouldered the AK-47 Assault Rifle, and fired a three-round burst at the three prisoners on the left.

Muzzle flashes flickered in the dim garage, each one claiming a life.

Above the entrance ramp, Conscript No. 2 poked half his body out from behind a communication vehicle, his rifle pouring out bullets at a rate of sixty rounds per minute, sealing off the prisoners' escape route.

Conscript No. 3 flanked from the other side, clutching two grenades in his hand. He bit off the pull rings, counted silently for two seconds, and tossed them into the most densely packed area of prisoners.

"Boom—"

Flesh and blood flew everywhere.

Screams, curses, and pleas for mercy intertwined into a cacophony.

Those prisoners who had been so aggressive just minutes ago scattered like headless flies. Some tried to crawl under cars, some huddled on the ground shielding their heads, and others threw down their weapons and knelt to kowtow.

But Commander Lin Dong's command did not stop.

"Leave no survivors."

His voice was as cold as a steel blade in a winter night.

It was not cruelty; it was a tactical necessity.

With forty-seven people, if even one escaped, intelligence about the base vehicle would get out.

Time was what they lacked most right now; any leak of information would attract more covetous eyes.

Zhang Qiang hesitated for half a second, then gritted his teeth and pulled the trigger.

This was the rule of survival on the third day of the apocalypse: mercy to the enemy is murder to your teammates.

The battle lasted for three minutes and forty-seven seconds.

When the echo of the final gunshot dissipated against the garage ceiling, the B2 underground level fell back into a deathly silence.

Only the occasional groan and the crackling of burning flames remained.

Commander Lin Dong stood up, the barrel of his type 95 rifle slightly hot.

His gaze swept across the battlefield—forty-seven corpses scattered across the three-hundred-square-meter area, the air thick with the smell of gunpowder, blood, and burning flesh.

On his retina, combat data was refreshing:

【Combat Statistics】

【Enemies Killed: 47/47】

【Friendly Casualties: 0】

【Ammunition Consumed: 347 rifle rounds, 24 pistol rounds, 3 grenades】

【base vehicle damage: 3% (hit by stray bullet on outer skin)】

【Li Na Status: Lightly injured (shot in the shoulder, blood loss approx. 1500ml), conscious】

Commander Lin Dong's pupils contracted violently.

Li Na?

He whipped his head around, looking toward the duty room three meters away.

There was a bullet hole in the glass window.

Behind the window, Li Na slid slowly down the wall, her left hand clutching her right shoulder. Dark red blood surged from between her fingers, spreading rapidly across the grayish-white concrete floor.

"Li Na!"

Commander Lin Dong rushed over in two strides and kicked open the wooden door of the duty room.

Li Na's complexion was pale as paper, her lips drained of color, but her eyes were still open. Seeing Commander Lin Dong enter, she actually forced a weak smile.

"Platoon Leader... I'm fine..."

Her voice was as light as a spider silk in the wind.

Commander Lin Dong knelt on one knee, pressing his left hand against her wound while tearing open her collar with his right to inspect the injury.

The bullet had entered below the right scapula and had not exited—this was the most troublesome situation, as the projectile remained in her body.

【Li Na, Status: Early stage hemorrhagic shock】

【Injury Site: Right upper lobe of lung punctured, scapula fractured】

【Blood Loss: approx. 1500ml, remaining blood volume approx. 60%】

【Blood Type: AB】

【Survival Time: If no blood transfusion, approx. 2-3 hours remaining】

Commander Lin Dong's hand paused.

Type AB blood.

He was Type O, Zhang Qiang was Type A, and Little Zhou was Type B—among the six of them, not one was Type AB.

In the entire underground garage, among all the living people—

No.

Commander Lin Dong turned his gaze toward the depths of the garage.

The five Conscripts were withdrawing from their respective firing positions, lining up to await new orders.

On their panels, there was a piece of data he had almost overlooked:

【Conscript No. 1, Blood Type: AB】

【Conscript No. 2, Blood Type: AB】

【Conscript No. 3, Blood Type: AB】

【Conscript No. 4, Blood Type: AB】

【Conscript No. 5, Blood Type: AB】

The blood type of system-created units was uniform.

Commander Lin Dong stood up abruptly: "No. 1, come here!"

Conscript No. 1 ran quickly into the duty room, stood at attention, and remained expressionless.

"What is your blood type?"

"Reporting to the Commander, Type AB." The Conscript's reply was mechanical and precise, without asking why.

Commander Lin Dong took a deep breath, his gaze shifting back and forth between the Conscript and Li Na.

On the system panel, a new prompt was flashing:

【Allow Conscript to donate blood?】

【Warning: If Conscript loses more than 40% blood, combat efficiency will be affected; more than 60% will enter hibernation mode; more than 80% will result in permanent loss】

【Current Conscript health: 300/300】

【Recommended donation amount: 400ml - 600ml】

400 to 600 milliliters.

A safe blood donation amount for an adult is 200 to 400 milliliters.

600 milliliters meant the Conscript would lose 20% of their blood volume, dropping from 300 to 240—still within the combat efficiency range.

But it would require two Conscripts.

"No. 1, No. 2, step forward."

The two Conscripts stood before Li Na.

Commander Lin Dong crouched down, looking into Li Na's eyes, which were already beginning to lose focus: "Li Na, hold on. I'm going to give you a blood transfusion."

Li Na's lips moved, as if she wanted to say something, but only a breathy sound came out.

Commander Lin Dong turned to Zhang Qiang: "The transfusion kit in the medical bag, hurry!"

Zhang Qiang froze for a moment: "Boss, they... they are..."

"They are people." Commander Lin Dong interrupted him, "At least for now, they are people who can save Li Na's life."

Three minutes later, two transfusion needles were inserted into the left arms of the two Conscripts. Through the transparent tubing, dark red blood flowed slowly into Li Na's body.

【Transfusion progress: 12%... 25%... 47%...】

Commander Lin Dong's gaze did not leave Li Na's face.

Her complexion was regaining color at a rate visible to the naked eye, and her breathing gradually steadied.

【Li Na Status Update: Hemorrhage stopped, blood pressure rising, heart rate dropped to 98, out of danger】

Commander Lin Dong let out a long breath and stood up.

His gaze fell upon the silver-gray behemoth in the depths of the garage.

The deployment progress of the base vehicle had jumped to 41%, and the dent on the body where it had been hit by a stray bullet was repairing itself at a rate visible to the naked eye.

【Nano-repair materials activated, estimated remaining repair time: 3 hours 22 minutes】

Commander Lin Dong withdrew his gaze, sweeping over the corpses covering the floor, the Conscripts donating blood, and the two student survivors trembling in the corner—they had been dragged behind cover by Zhang Qiang during the battle and had witnessed the entire bloody slaughter.

One of the boys wearing glasses looked up at Commander Lin Dong, his lips trembling as he asked: "Who... who exactly are you?"

Commander Lin Dong did not answer.

He simply turned and walked toward the base vehicle unfolding in the depths of the garage.

Behind him, Zhang Qiang stood up, glanced at the two students, then at the Conscripts donating blood, and finally at Commander Lin Dong's back.

In his eyes, there was confusion, awe, and a hint of something indescribable.

What exactly was this man, and this self-repairing steel behemoth?

Outside the garage, the eastern sky was tinged with a hint of pre-dawn gray.

The fourth day of the apocalypse was about to arrive.

Meanwhile, in the eastern suburbs nine kilometers away, a signal flare rose with a trailing flame, exploding into three long and two short points of light in the morning glow.

It was a request for support signal from the PLA.

But Commander Lin Dong did not yet know that in that direction, the iron ore coordinates marked by the ore detector overlapped exactly with the position of the signal flare.

【Base System Alert: Special energy fluctuation detected】

【Coordinates: 15° East of South, distance 9.7 km】

【Energy Level: B+】

【Recommendation: Dispatch reconnaissance unit to investigate】

Commander Lin Dong stood before the base vehicle, looking at this prompt, then at the falling signal flare outside the distant window.

Three long and two short.

That was the secret code engraved in his bones.

He remained silent for a full minute, then turned to look at the Conscripts donating blood, at Li Na who had fallen into a deep sleep, at the corpses and bloodstains covering the floor, and at the two terrified students.

Finally, he looked toward the exit of the garage.

There, the sky had already brightened.

【End of Chapter】