54: Hope in despair

East side of the military base.

The ultra-alloy city wall was covered with shocking dents, and yellowish-green pus flowed down the wall.

Five Martial Masters formed a defensive circle, back to back.

Their breathing was heavy like oxen, and their combat suits were stained with the black blood of mutated beasts and their own sweat.

"Third wave!" the female Martial Master leading the team warned sharply.

Her left arm hung unnaturally, clearly broken.

A third-tier Vicious Beast, shaped like a mantis, leaped from outside the wall, its scythe-like forelimbs glinting with a sharp cold light.

The youngest team member hastily raised his saber to block, but the immense impact split the web of skin between his thumb and forefinger.

The scene on the west side was even more tragic.

The squad was cornered by over twenty wolf-type mutated beasts.

These monsters advanced and retreated with precision; whenever a human Martial Artist attempted to break through, three or four would pounce and tear at them simultaneously from different angles.

Even more terrifying was their leader, a three-meter-tall werewolf.

Seven bodies of Martial Masters already lay at the feet of this fourth-tier Vicious Beast.

The entire section of the city wall seemed to have turned into a meat grinder, as mutated beasts climbed the wall, treading on mountains of corpses.

In the sky, hundreds of half-human, half-insect flying species circled like vultures.

Every few seconds, one would suddenly dive down, carrying away a warrior with its sharp tail stinger or claws.

"Third squad, all personnel KIA!"

"East Gate needs immediate support! Repeat, East Gate needs…"

…

The communication channel was filled with desperate shouts.

Boom!

A visible Qi wave exploded in the center of the beast horde, instantly pulverizing the mutated beasts within a fifty-meter radius.

Elder Ye stood with his hands behind his back, suspended in mid-air, an invisible Protective Aura surrounding him.

However, this earth-shattering blow did not deter the beast horde.

The remaining mutated beasts surged forward with even greater frenzy.

There was no hint of fear in their blood-red eyes, as if they did not know what death was.

Elder Ye's brows furrowed, his figure flickered, and he immediately became entangled with five newly appeared Vicious Beasts.

Each of these high-tier Vicious Beasts had special abilities.

Some could spray corrosive poisonous mist, some had carapaces that could reflect energy attacks, and the most troublesome one could even perform short-distance spatial jumps…

As the battle continued, the defensive line was forced to retreat step by step.

The vanguard of the mutated beasts had already climbed the breach in the city wall, on the verge of breaking into the base.

Elder Ye punched the giant centipede in front of him into pieces, then seized the opportunity to scan the battlefield, his expression growing increasingly grim.

"It seems we need to prepare for a retreat…" the old man murmured, his voice filled with weariness and unwillingness.

Just at this critical moment, a thunderous roar of battle suddenly came from the south.

Several Martial Masters suddenly joined the battlefield, shoring up the crumbling defensive line.

A rhinoceros-type Vicious Beast flew horizontally like a cannonball, crashing heavily into the city wall, denting the alloy structure.

As the smoke and dust cleared, Su Lei strode towards them.

He casually flicked the blood from his hand as he walked, as if he had only just casually delivered a blow.

Behind and flanking him were all the Martial Masters who had originally been stationed on the south side.

Elder Ye's pupils suddenly contracted, and he shouted sharply, "What are you doing here? Get back to your posts…"

"The beast tide on the south side has been cleared," Su Lei said calmly, his voice not loud but clearly audible across the battlefield.

"What?!" For the first time, a look of shock appeared on the old man's usually unperturbed face.

He subconsciously looked south, only to see the sandy ground covered with mutated beast corpses, stretching to the horizon.

Even more incredible was that although the Martial Masters who participated in the southern defense were all injured, none had died.

The battlefield fell into a brief silence at this moment.

Immediately after, the surviving defenders erupted in cheers.

"Great! Support from the south is here!"

"Hold on, brothers! It's time to counterattack!"

Amidst the rising and falling shouts, Elder Ye gave Su Lei a deep look.

The look of approval flashed in his eyes, then quickly returned to his usual composure.

He nodded slightly, "Since that's the case… I'll leave this to you."

Before he finished speaking, the old man's figure had already transformed into a white streak, soaring towards the most critical battle zone on the east side.

Su Lei looked around and immediately issued orders.

"Zhang Shan, take your men and hold the left flank breach."

"Li Shi, organize long-range firepower to suppress aerial units."

"The rest of you, follow me."

There were no grand declarations, no pre-battle mobilizations.

But these simple words made everyone's heartbeats involuntarily quicken.

…

Much later, the shouts of battle gradually ceased.

When the last mutated beast fell in a pool of blood, the battlefield finally returned to silence.

Elder Ye slowly descended onto the city wall.

He surveyed the scarred base, his gaze lingering for a moment on each fallen soldier's body.

"Count the casualties."

"Convene an emergency meeting."

There was no time for mourning, nor for rest.

The Martial Masters who had reached the fourth tier immediately came to the conference room.

Elder Ye looked at everyone, tapping his finger lightly on the table.

"I believe you've all noticed, these are not ordinary mutated beasts."

"Whether it's their fearless mode of action or their clever tactical coordination, it all points to one problem…"

"Something is commanding them."

As soon as he finished speaking, everyone looked at each other.

Wang Kai frowned and said in a deep voice, "Could it be a Vicious Beast with intelligence… No, a Yao Beast controlling them?"

Elder Ye nodded slightly.

"That possibility cannot be ruled out."

"In any case, the anomaly of the Pyramid and this beast tide attack are by no means a coincidence."

"To know the answer, to know why so many mutated beasts suddenly appeared, we can only figure it out by going inside the Pyramid."

Everyone's expressions were a bit grim.

But they also knew this was something that had to be done.

Otherwise, no one could guarantee whether the next beast tide would come, or when it would come again…

"I have decided to form two elite squads to investigate the Pyramid," Elder Ye's voice broke the silence.

"One squad will be led by me personally, and the other…"

Su Lei stood up from his seat, "I'll do it."

"My perception abilities are very good, and I'm good at dealing with these Vicious Beasts."

Elder Ye was silent for a moment, then nodded lightly, "Alright, the other squad will be commanded by you."

Zhang Shan hesitated for a moment, then couldn't help but speak, "Su Lei's strength is indeed very strong, but…"

"He's only been here for less than a day; he's completely unfamiliar with the Pyramid and the surrounding area."

Elder Ye looked at him calmly.

"Precisely because he is new, he is the most suitable."

"Without preconceived notions, he can make more objective judgments."

Su Lei did not decline, taking a step forward: "I still need a few people."

Elder Ye nodded: "Choose them yourself."

Su Lei turned, his gaze sweeping across the crowd: "Wang Kai, Zhang Shan, Li Shi…"

The three named men had varied expressions.

Wang Kai stood out without hesitation, while Zhang Shan and Li Shi were clearly somewhat reluctant, but under Elder Ye's gaze, they still stepped forward.

"Just the four of you?"

"Enough."

"Remember," Elder Ye said in a deep voice, "This investigation is primarily about gathering intelligence; do not get bogged down in battle, try to survive, and await our support."

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