28: rat riot

"Something's wrong!" Zhang Long's pupils shrank, and a chill shot from his spine straight to the top of his head. He snapped his head around to look outside the door, while simultaneously roaring into his communicator and at all the survivors: "Everyone! Get inside the building immediately! Fast! Go upstairs! To the rooftop! Second batch boarding is suspended! hind! chinook! Take off immediately! Provide cover!"

Before his voice had even faded, a sudden mutation occurred!

Boom! Crash—!

Around the Government Building, all the sewer covers, drainage outlets, and ventilation holes were instantly blown open as if blasted from the inside by a massive force! Countless Mutated Rats, five times the size of pre-apocalyptic rats, with eyes as blood-red as rubies and fur festering with pus, erupted from every opening like black oil geysers! They converged into a rolling, boiling, boundless black tide of rats, emitting ear-piercing shrieks as they charged toward the Government Building like a burst dam!

The recently airborne chinook and the two hinds reacted extremely quickly. Their autocannons instantly spat out lethal tongues of fire, the dense rain of bullets plowing bloody alleys through the Rat Tide. This temporarily checked the swarm rushing toward the building's main entrance, buying a few precious seconds for the panicked survivors in the lobby!

"Quick! Go upstairs! To the roof! Move!" Zhang Long and Chen Hao blocked the lobby entrance like guardian deities, their rifles firing frantically, turning the lead Mutated Rats into mincemeat. The soldiers quickly drove the remaining armored personnel carriers (excluding the ifvs) into the first-floor lobby, using the vehicle bodies to form a temporary barricade. The heavy machine guns and autocannons on the roofs let out deafening roars, weaving a net of death to desperately block the surging Rat Tide from pouring into the lobby. Relying on the vehicles, the soldiers established a fragile line of defense.

However, there were simply too many rats! They were fearless and relentless; as soon as one group was shredded by bullets, more surged forward. Even more terrifyingly, the gunfire and the movement of the rats on the periphery attracted thousands of zombies that had been wandering the streets! They hissed and began to converge on the Government Complex, forming a pincer movement!

"Commander! Emergency! The Government Complex is facing a massive Mutated Rat riot! The number of rats is impossible to estimate! A large number of zombies are also being drawn in from the perimeter! We have retreated to the first floor of the Government Building and are defending using the vehicles! Requesting reinforcements! Repeat! Requesting emergency reinforcements!" Zhang Long roared into his communicator while changing magazines, his voice nearly drowned out by the deafening roar of gunfire and explosions.

On the other end of the communicator, Jiang Xin's expression turned grave instantly: "Mutated Rats? Hold on! Reinforcements are on the way!" He immediately patched through to the City Defense Company: "City Defense Company! Squads one through four, mount up immediately! Destination: Government Building! Full speed to reinforce! Tank Platoon! Grizzlies, rhinos! Deploy immediately!"

In the first-floor lobby, the battle instantly reached a fever pitch. Bullets poured out like water, exploding into mists of blood upon hitting the rat swarm. The air was thick with heavy gunpowder smoke and the sickening stench of rot and blood. The rats were exceptionally cunning; they began trying to crawl in through wall cracks, broken windows, and even ceiling vents, keeping the soldiers exhausted. From time to time, the Heavy Infantrys' rocket launchers roared, clearing out patches of the dense Rat Tide, but it was just a drop in the bucket. Every burst from the ifvs' 50mm infantry cannons could shatter a large area, but ammunition was being consumed rapidly!

Just then, Zhang Lei's figure appeared at the stairwell. His expression was solemn as his hands quickly formed seals, chanting under his breath. Blazing fire energy condensed in his palms!

"Flame Storm!"

"Fireball!"

Violent tongues of flame and searing walls of fire instantly erupted at several critical gaps! The soaring flames charred entire swaths of Mutated Rats, the air filling with the sound of crackling explosions and the death wails of the swarm. Zhang Lei's Superpower greatly relieved the pressure on the defensive line, filling the gaps during autocannon reload cycles. The soldiers' spirits lifted, and their firepower became even more ferocious.

The first batch of transport finally landed successfully on the roof. The shaken survivors saw a glimmer of hope and instantly exploded into a frenzy! Instinct for survival overrode reason as the crowd began to push and shove frantically. Cries, screams, and curses rang out as order collapsed in an instant! Several strong men even roughly shoved aside women and children, trying to be the first to rush toward the hatch.

“Damn it, you're looking for death!” Chen Xiao, the veteran three-star soldier and elite platoon leader of the First Company in charge of this transfer, had a cold glint in his eyes! Like a tiger descending from a mountain, he instantly charged into the chaotic crowd. His iron-like hands accurately grabbed the collar of the man who was being the loudest and pushing the hardest. His arm muscles bulged, exploding with the terrifying strength of a three-star soldier!

"Get the hell down there!"

With a violent shout, Chen Xiao hurled the man off the building like he was throwing away trash!

"No—!"

The shrill, desperate scream lasted less than half a second before it was drowned out by terrifying squeaking sounds. The Rat Tide below the roof instantly submerged the man. Accompanied by hair-raising sounds of gnawing and the crisp snapping of bones, only a patch of mangled, reddened meat—which was quickly trampled and dragged away—and a few stark white bones remained after a few seconds!

All the survivors, including those who had been pushing just moments ago, froze in place. Their faces were as pale as paper as they stared in horror at the few remaining white bones. Their stomachs churned, and many vomited on the spot. The air seemed to freeze, leaving only the hissing of the rats and the roar of guns and cannons.

They never expected Chen Xiao to be so ruthless, acting without any explanation and throwing someone directly to feed the rats.

Like a blood-soaked demon god, Chen Xiao stood at the hatch, his face splattered with either rat or human blood. His cold gaze swept over the deathly silent crowd, his voice sounding as if it came from the nine layers of hell: "Board! In! Order! Anyone! Else! Who! Causes! Trouble!" He pointed at the glaring white bones below the roof. "That is your example!"

Absolute terror instantly suppressed the chaos. The survivors were like ducks with their necks squeezed, not daring to push anymore. Under the soldiers' direction, they trembled and suppressed their sobs, boarding the hind helicopters in an orderly fashion at maximum speed. The hatches closed, and the hinds struggled to lift off, their autocannons spitting fire once more to provide final cover for their comrades below who were locked in a bitter struggle with rapidly depleting ammunition.

Down in the lobby, Zhang Long watched the few remaining ammunition crates and the still boundless, seemingly endless Rat Tide, along with the hissing of zombies drawing closer in the distance. His heart continued to sink!