210: Phoenix City Corpse Tide

One week later

Southern Military Region Frontline Command

Yang Zhen stood before the giant electronic sand table, letting out a long, slow breath. The six counties his subordinate troops were responsible for had basically been cleared, with a total of 200,000 citizens rescued—a remarkable achievement. He was about to connect to Commander Zhou Keming's private line to discuss the next phase of the general offensive against the two major central urban areas when a piercing alarm suddenly rang throughout the command center!

"Report to the Commander-in-Chief! Emergency! Abnormal energy fluctuations have appeared in the direction of Phoenix City!" An Operations Staff Officer's voice carried a trace of imperceptible trembling.

Everyone's eyes instantly focused on the area representing Phoenix City on the sand table. The data stream displayed via the high-precision energy fluctuation detector was jumping violently like it was boiling! The light dots representing the zombie groups, which were originally scattered relatively loosely across Phoenix City's urban area and its eight subordinate counties, were now being drawn together as if by an invisible giant hand, beginning to converge and surge frantically and in an organized manner! Their direction of travel was pointed straight at the neighboring Shaocheng and Rongcheng, where the core of the military region was located!

"Commander-in-Chief, this... this is too strange! These zombies... they seem to be under some kind of strong stimulation, or... a unified command?" A staff officer with a Major General's rank on his shoulders frowned deeply, his voice grave.

Yang Zhen's eyes were as sharp as an eagle's, fixed on the clusters of light dots spreading like a blood-colored tide on the sand table. He said in a low voice, "No, it's not stimulation; it's a command. Judging by past experience, a freakishly powerful Corpse King must have appeared, controlling the Zombie Tides in all counties of Phoenix City with its absolute strength!"

He looked around at the tense senior officers in the command room and continued his analysis, his voice echoing in the silent headquarters: "Think back to the large-scale Zombie Tides in Luocheng and Lujiang that broke out in the early days of the apocalypse; they were all led by a single powerful Corpse King. In recent months, as the number of Third-Tier zombies increased, such unified actions haven't occurred. Now, the situation in Phoenix City has reversed, which can only mean—a terrifying existence has been born there, capable of suppressing all its kind and taking control of the entire situation! It has absolute command over the more than eight million zombies in the entire Phoenix City!"

As soon as these words were spoken, the command center erupted into a clamor. People looked at each other, their faces filled with disbelief and deep concern.

"If that's really the case... it'll be very troublesome." A gray-haired Lieutenant General took a deep breath of cold air, his voice dry. "If it's a Peak Third-Tier, we can still gather our forces for a fight. But if... it's a Fourth-Tier, which has never appeared before... we still know nothing about that level of power!"

"Fourth-Tier? That's impossible!" another Major General immediately countered. "Currently, the number of Third-Tier Corpse Kings is still small, and evolution takes time to accumulate. How could a Fourth-Tier appear?"

"There's no point in arguing whether it's Third-Tier or Fourth-Tier now!" Yang Zhen waved his hand sharply, interrupting the discussion, and said decisively, "The priority is to stop it! No matter what, we cannot let this Zombie Tide crash into our newly stabilized defense lines, and we certainly cannot let them attack the citizens or Rongcheng!"

He strode to the operational map, his finger pointing precisely at the main traffic artery connecting Phoenix City and the Shaocheng: "Order immediately! The 3rd Heavy Combined Arms Brigade stationed in the Shaocheng's County No. 6 is to abandon their current mission and head to National Highway G323 at full speed. Relying on the favorable terrain, they must construct a blocking position at all costs and hold the enemies from Phoenix City right there!" His finger moved to the surrounding areas: "Order the 2nd and 4th Combined Arms Brigades resting in the Shaocheng's Counties No. 7 and No. 8 to immediately close in on the 3rd Brigade to form a pincer movement and assist the 3rd Brigade in annihilating the incoming enemy!" His commands were clear and decisive, carrying an unquestionable authority.

"Everyone!" Yang Zhen turned around, his gaze scanning every general. "Eighty percent of the Phoenix City and Shaocheng areas are mountainous and hilly, with complex terrain. National Highway G323 is the throat connecting the two places. Although it passes through mountainous areas, there are also level areas along the route where troops can be deployed. It is easy to defend and hard to attack! We must follow the successful experience of the previous Lujiang campaign, set the battlefield in the open, and use our absolute advantage in heavy firepower to deal a devastating blow to the Zombie Tide in this corridor of death!"

"The Commander-in-Chief's insight is brilliant!" A staff officer's eyes lit up. "This way, we can avoid the massive casualties and destruction caused by urban street fighting, and fully utilize our army's equipment advantage! As long as we can heavily damage or even annihilate the main force of the Zombie Tide in the field, the resistance to the subsequent operation to recover Phoenix City will be greatly reduced!"

"Exactly! Our goal is to fight a beautiful war of annihilation in a non-urban area and completely bury these eight million zombies along National Highway G323!" Yang Zhen's voice carried a blood-and-iron determination. "Contact Commander Zhou Keming immediately and request the use of the large thermobaric bombs from the strategic reserve warehouse! At the same time, order the H-9 Strategic Bomber formation to enter the highest state of combat readiness immediately, ready to take off at any time! This time, I want to treat the 'guests' from Phoenix City to a nice, boiling pot of our 'steel meat soup'!"

He paused and added a crucial link: "Also, contact Jiang Xin of the Red Alert Legion immediately to inform them of the situation and request that they send their nearest unit to rush to the G323 defense line! We need their high-end combat power and their ability to decapitate the Corpse King!"

"Yang Zhen, the Red Alert Legion... will they come? Without substantial benefits, they might..." A Lieutenant General expressed concern.

Yang Zhen shook his head, his gaze deep. "I believe in Jiang Xin. He may be good at calculating, but from his previous actions of providing a large amount of serum for free, he has an unquestionable stance and responsibility when it comes to the survival of the human race. This is a war to defend the common living space of our human future; he will definitely come!"

...Southern Military Region 3rd Heavy Combined Arms Brigade Headquarters

The order reached the 3rd Brigade headquarters like a gale, and the atmosphere instantly tightened to the extreme. Brigade Commander Xia, a Senior Colonel, immediately convened an emergency operational meeting for all officers at the battalion level and above.

"Everyone, the military situation is extremely urgent!" Brigade Commander Xia didn't bother with pleasantries and pointed directly at the winding National Highway G323 on the map. "According to Yang Zhen's latest assessment, an extremely powerful unknown Corpse King has appeared in Phoenix City, unifying and commanding over eight million zombies across the Shaocheng, and they are surging toward our Shaocheng and Rongcheng like a tsunami! The General Command has ordered our unit: immediately abandon current missions, the whole brigade is to mobilize urgently and advance at top speed to the Shaocheng's County No. 6 section of National Highway G323. Relying on favorable terrain, construct a solid defense line and stop them at all costs!"

"Great!" The Deputy Brigade Commander slammed the table, his face filled with irrepressible excitement. "Street fighting with zombies in the Shaocheng these past few days has been so restrictive and frustrating! We should have been like the Red Alert Legion, setting up in the open and fighting a head-on battle with our iron torrent! In the plains and mountains, our firepower advantage can be fully utilized!"

The Chief of Staff appeared much calmer. He pushed up his glasses and analyzed steadily, "Deputy Brigade Commander, I'm afraid the situation isn't that optimistic. Eight million zombies, even if crowded onto National Highway G323, will have an extremely long distance between their vanguard and rearguard. It's unrealistic to expect to end the battle with just a few large-scale bombings. We must be mentally and materially prepared for a long and arduous battle. Moreover, the ammunition consumed in this blocking action will likely be an astronomical figure."

Brigade Commander Xia nodded and took over, "You both have a point. This is both an excellent opportunity for our heavy brigade to play to our strengths and deal a heavy blow to the enemy, and a tough, fierce battle that will test our will and logistics! Headquarters has already ordered the 2nd and 4th Brigades to rapidly converge on us to form a joint force. The 8th Brigade will take over the civilian transfer work we were responsible for. More importantly, the Red Alert Legion has agreed to send elites to support us!"

He clenched his fist and slammed it heavily on the G323 position on the map, his eyes burning with battle intent: "In short, Headquarters has given us the greatest support! We have only one mission now—unleash our full potential, don't worry about the consequences, use every means possible to crush these bastards from Phoenix City on G323 and wipe them out completely!"

"Yes! We guarantee the mission's completion!" all the officers roared in unison, their fighting spirit high... Red Alert Legion

Qianzhou Base Command Center

Jiang Xin received the emergency notification from the Southern Military Region almost at the same time. He looked at the data and simulations on the screen regarding the abnormal movement of the Phoenix City Zombie Tide, his brow slightly furrowed in brief contemplation.

"Phoenix City Zombie Tide riot... unified command... suspected appearance of a Corpse King beyond Third-Tier..." He repeated the key information in a low voice, his eyes gradually becoming sharp. This wasn't just a threat to the Southern Military Region; once the defense line was breached, the flames of war would likely spread into Xijiang Province.

"Li Yi!" Jiang Xin suddenly looked up, his voice clear and powerful.

"Present!" Li Yi, the Flight Captain, immediately stepped forward, standing tall.

"You immediately assemble the three main regiments closest to National Highway G323, carry heavy equipment, and advance at a forced march toward the tail section of Shaocheng's County No. 6 on National Highway G323! You must arrive and stabilize the line before the Southern Military Region's defense line takes too much pressure or suffers significant casualties!" Jiang Xin's order was like an unsheathed sword, swift and precise.

"Yes, Commander!" Li Yi didn't hesitate and turned to leave.

"Wait!" Jiang Xin called him back and added, "I will coordinate with the Air Force to send peacekeeper bomber formations to provide aerial fire coverage for the Southern Military Region. Additionally, allocate five apollo aerospace fighters to your direct command! Your primary task is to use the apollo's precision strike capabilities and your own Evolver advantages to prioritize clearing the high-tier zombies in the tide, especially that potential command-type Corpse King! You must slay it and fundamentally collapse the Zombie Tide! If you can't handle it, I will deal with this Corpse King personally!"

"Understood! Targeted elimination, decapitation strike! Mission guaranteed!" A sharp light flashed in Li Yi's eyes as he saluted again, then strode out of the command center to begin mobilizing the troops.

The clouds of war began to shroud the South of the Ranges.

(I forgot to write about Yuri, the trump card; I'll add him during the Lingnan Campaign.)