78: Chapter 78 One bike against twenty-three! Lu Chen heads straight for the shattered ice swarm

"City Lord, it is six o'clock."

Lin Wan's voice came from two meters away.

Lu Chen's eyes opened the instant the voice sounded, completely alert, with no need for time to shake off the sleep.

He sat up straight and glanced at the wall clock; it was exactly six o'clock.

"Ray Cannon."

That was the first thing he said.

Lin Wan stood frozen in place.

Lu Chen summoned the holographic panel.

[High-Temperature Thermal Melting Cutting Ray Cannon: Charging complete. Current battery level: 100%. Available shots: 3.]

Fully charged.

He had returned at two in the morning; four hours was certainly enough to fully charge it, leaving three rounds on standby.

He put away the panel, stood up, and stretched his neck.

"Breakfast."

"I made meat soup, the same as last night."

"One bowl is enough."

Lin Wan brought over a bowl of steaming Iron-Spine Wolf meat soup.

Lu Chen took three sips and set the bowl down.

He then walked over to the driver's seat, sat down, and turned on the communicator.

Before he could dial out, Zhou Yuan's frequency automatically connected.

"City Lord Lu Chen, I have the latest intelligence."

"The main force of the Icebreaker Swarm arrived at the vanguard's original position at 4:30 AM."

"Three and a half hours earlier than expected?" Lu Chen replied.

"Yes, they accelerated during the second half of their journey."

"And after they arrived?"

"They stayed at that position for forty minutes."

"What were they doing for forty minutes?"

"We speculate they were searching for traces of the vanguard convoy."

"Did they find anything?"

"They found nothing."

Zhou Yuan's tone carried a peculiar undertone.

"You disposed of those five vehicles so thoroughly that not even a scrap remained. There are only a few shallow pits and fragments on the ground, and even the tire tracks were covered by the treads of the Polaris."

"So, Grey Bee knows the vanguard is gone, but she doesn't know how it happened."

"That is likely the case."

"What happened next?"

"At 5:10 AM, the Icebreaker Swarm moved fifteen kilometers to the southwest from their original position. They are currently stopped fifty-five kilometers to the northeast."

Lu Chen's fingers paused on the armrest for a beat.

"Fifty-five kilometers."

"That is only five kilometers from the iron wall's position."

"How is the iron wall reacting?"

"Zhao Tiezhu has already turned all ten of the iron wall's 105mm main guns toward the northeast."

"What about the ten assigned patrol vehicles?"

"They have pulled back to within three kilometers of the iron wall, forming a defensive formation."

"Has the number of vehicles in the Icebreaker Swarm been confirmed?"

"The latest count from the outpost is twenty-three Lv.2 combat vehicles, plus at least fifteen armed snowmobiles."

"Twenty-three vehicles."

Lu Chen did some mental math.

Twenty-three times two hundred is four thousand six hundred Truth Points.

Adding the three thousand four hundred and four in his account, that would be over eight thousand.

If he included the wrecks of the snowmobiles, it would be close to nine thousand.

He pressed the toggle button on the communicator.

"City Lord Lin Xiao."

"What is it?"

Lin Xiao's voice was alert, though it carried the hoarseness of someone who hadn't slept all night.

"The Icebreaker Swarm has reached the buffer zone."

"I am aware; Zhou Yuan just reported that."

"Twenty-three Lv.2s and fifteen snowmobiles, five kilometers from the iron wall."

"Mm."

"They are stopped there and haven't attacked immediately, which means Grey Bee is scouting."

"Correct. She is testing the situation."

"The five vanguard vehicles disappeared, and Grey Bee doesn't know what happened. She will first send out the snowmobiles to scout and figure out what is on the other side."

"Your assessment matches Zhou Yuan's."

Lin Xiao continued.

"Zhou Yuan calculates that Grey Bee's scouting phase will last at least two to three hours."

"And after those two to three hours?"

"If Grey Bee confirms that there is only the iron wall and ten patrol vehicles, she will choose to harass them in a dispersed manner to deplete the iron wall's ammunition and forces."

"She won't attack head-on?"

"The Icebreaker Swarm does not fight head-on."

Lin Xiao paused.

"Grey Bee's signature tactic is to disperse and harass, draining the enemy while waiting for White Bone to arrive."

"When will White Bone arrive?"

"The latest estimate is between this afternoon and tonight."

"What about the marching speed of the Ice-Rift Swarm?"

"It is slower than the Icebreaker Swarm because the Ice-Rift Swarm is equipped with three heavy transport vehicles carrying 105mm howitzers; their marching speed is slowed down by these three vehicles."

"So I have half a day."

"What will you do with that half-day?"

"Before the Ice-Rift Swarm arrives, I will cripple the Icebreaker Swarm."

There was silence on the other end of the communicator for five seconds.

"Brother Lu Chen, are you thinking of taking on twenty-three Lv.2s by yourself?"

"I'm not alone."

"What do you mean?"

"The iron wall will stay in position and attract the Icebreaker Swarm's attention, while I cut in from the flank. When the Icebreaker Swarm disperses to harass, they will be in groups of three to five, scattered across dozens of kilometers. It will be easy to fight them once they are dispersed."

Lin Xiao was silent again; he was thinking.

"You want to defeat them one by one?"

"Grey Bee is skilled at skirmish tactics, but once they disperse, each group will only have three to five vehicles."

"You have already seen the Polaris's performance against five vehicles."

"Eight minutes."

"Eight minutes."

Lu Chen repeated.

"In groups of three to five, I only need five minutes for each. After finishing one group, I'll move to the next. Each time, I'll take out three to five vehicles and degrade all the wrecks. Once the Icebreaker Swarm loses more than half of its vehicles, Grey Bee will be forced to retreat. By the time the Ice-Rift Swarm arrives, the Icebreaker Swarm will already be crippled."

Heavy breathing came from Lin Xiao on the other end of the communicator.

"Brother Lu Chen."

"Yes."

"I will give you one condition."

"What condition?"

"I will connect you to the iron wall's communication frequency so you can contact Zhao Tiezhu directly. His guns can provide you with long-range fire support when needed."

"What is the effective range of the iron wall's 105mm guns?"

"Five kilometers."

"That is enough."

"There is one more condition."

Lin Xiao's tone tightened.

"Once you head out, report your position every thirty minutes."

"Why?"

"Because my sister is on your vehicle."

Lu Chen's fingers tapped on the armrest.

"Report every thirty minutes."

"Good."

"Also."

Lu Chen added through the communicator.

"The wrecks of the Icebreaker Swarm."

"They are all yours; I already said that."

"Including the snowmobiles'?"

"Including those."

"Thanks."

"Don't mention it."

Lin Xiao chuckled.

"If you help me take out half of the Icebreaker Swarm and I don't give you the wrecks, then I, Lin Xiao, am not a man."

The communicator disconnected.

Lu Chen stood up and walked to the vehicle door.

"City Lord, are you heading out again?" Lin Wan's voice rang out.

"Yes."

"How long will you be fighting?"

"Half a day."

"Half a day..."

"Don't worry. The iron wall is five kilometers away to back me up."

"City Lord."

Lin Wan stood at the entrance of the partition wall, her fingers clutching the corner of her apron.

"I can harvest the cabbage at four this afternoon. When you come back, the cabbage will be ready to stew."

Lu Chen glanced at her.

"Fine."

The Polaris's engine shifted from idle to low gear, and its heavy tracks began to turn.

It drove out of the parking area once more and onto the Rustwind Wasteland.

The direction was northeast.