71: Chapter 71 Building the Wall

The One-eyed Leader waved his arms excitedly:

"Don't you know how strong the Orks' combat power is?! They are tireless and feel no pain! And their numbers are endless! Even if we combined all our tribes, we could barely scrape together a thousand warriors. As for heavy weapons, if we pooled everything, could we even find twenty heavy machine guns?!"

A deathly silence fell over the tent.

"Perhaps..."

In a corner, a frail-looking leader spoke up tentatively,

"We could send a suicide squad to hold the Orks back at that river mouth ahead. Then, the rest of us could rush to build a high wall behind them, completely blocking the path south?"

"Idiot!"

Someone immediately countered,

"The Orks have vehicles! Before you've even stacked two stones for your wall, they'll drive right over and crush you into meat paste!"

Another person offered a suggestion:

"Then... we can use explosives to collapse the cliff walls on both sides of the river mouth! The fallen rocks will block the main channel, making it impossible for their large vehicles to get through. Then we can send warriors to stop the scattered infantry that crawl over, covering the construction of the wall in the rear. Once the foundation is built, we can slowly raise and reinforce it."

Upon hearing this, everyone's eyes lit up.

This did indeed sound like a feasible tactic.

But the person who had just countered asked coldly again:

"Good idea. But after blowing up the mountain, who will hold back the scattered Orks that swarm through?"

The tent fell into a suffocating silence once more.

Everyone knew the truth.

No matter how elite the unit sent to plug the breach was, there would only be one outcome: total annihilation.

They would have to use their own flesh and blood to satiate the Orks' bloodlust, buying precious time for the wall construction in the rear.

Who would be willing to go to their death?

The atmosphere became incredibly oppressive.

At this moment, a fat leader dressed slightly better than the others muttered softly:

"Maybe... we should head east and seek refuge with the black market warlords in Shahe Town, or just go to Coastal City and serve the Governor? We'd lose our freedom and have to pay heavy taxes, but at least we'd stay alive. I heard the Ma Clan ran off to join a newly rising power in the east a few days ago..."

"Shut up!"

Talos slapped his thigh and stood up abruptly.

His lion-like fury instantly cowed everyone.

"Have you forgotten what price our ancestors paid, how much blood they shed, to escape from those vampires' Hive Cities and fight for a chance at life in this wasteland?!"

Talos pointed at the fat man's nose and cursed him out,

"You want to go back to being a slave?! I won't even mention the Governor of Coastal City, who treats you like 'Two-legged Sheep' for food. In a place like Shahe Town, a ruthless black market that eats people alive, do commoners like us even have a right to live?! You'd go there just to have your organs harvested or be sent to the arena as consumables!"

The fat leader's face flushed with shame; he shrunk his neck and didn't dare speak again.

Talos took a deep breath and looked around at the brothers from various tribes who had once fought side by side but were now crushed by fear.

He pulled out the short knife at his waist and suddenly sliced his own palm.

Blood dripped into the campfire, making a sharp sizzling sound.

"The debate ends here."

Talos's tone was calm,

"I will personally lead the team to block the Orks. Every tribe will contribute thirty percent of their most elite warriors to go with me."

Hearing this, all the leaders in the tent stood up in shock.

Some looked incredulous, while others were filled with awe.

The Eagle Clan was the most warlike tribe, and Talos was recognized as the strongest warrior on the wasteland.

It was said that not long ago, he had killed an injured Wild Dragon Lizard single-handedly with only an iron spear.

Even though the monster was wounded, it was still a terrifying existence that no human should have been able to withstand.

Now, this strongest leader had decided to personally lead the team to their deaths.

Talos stabbed the bloody knife into the table,

"Now, go back immediately and mobilize your people! For the mixing of gunpowder and the location of the demolition points, I will personally consult Master Kai."

Upon hearing the name 'Master Kai', the leaders who still had doubts showed expressions of respect, and there were no further objections.

The tribal leaders immediately left the large tent to arrange what might be the final charge of their lives.

Over two hours later.

Accompanied by a piercing screech of brakes, the Skaven player Playing Valorant Is Too Noisy rode his custom micro-electric moped, trailing a cloud of dust as he charged through the gates of Fire Seed Shelter.

He scrambled toward the underground elevator and sprinted all the way to the control room.

At the same time, Paratrooper One, who was conducting high-altitude reconnaissance, found a safe place to log off and synchronized the frontline intelligence to the base via the forum.

Lin Li sat in the large command chair, looking at the detailed intelligence brought back by the two mutant players, and couldn't help but pinch the bridge of his nose.

Lin Li looked at the high-altitude top-down view sent back by Paratrooper One and thought to himself,

"This is basically a physical cheat! Not only can he provide air-to-ground fire suppression, but he can scout from the sky almost without being detected. This racial advantage is just ridiculous."

Among the three hundred newly online players, several rare races had appeared.

Two mutated variants:

One was Paratrooper One with bat wings, very practical; the other was a cat-eared female player, purely for being cute.

There were also two Beastmen:

Besides the energetic Skaven in front of him, there was also a massive Crocodileman.

The Crocodileman's base stats were terrifying.

His strength value was even more exaggerated than that of the 2.3-meter Minotaur Makabazi.

However, that guy was usually very low-key and didn't like to hang out in groups; he was a pure solo player, carrying a crescent blade across the wasteland all day, essentially roleplaying as Renekton.

Lin Li didn't have a very deep impression of him.

Pulling his thoughts back, Lin Li focused on the intelligence itself.

"The western nomads have all gathered together; it seems they're planning a big move."

Lin Li tapped his finger lightly on the table, his mind racing,

"Faced with the pressure of the Orks moving south, they aren't running but are forming an alliance instead. I can't guess exactly what they want to do, but they're likely preparing for a desperate last stand. As long as they don't attack the Shelter, I can't be bothered to interfere in their business."

However, another piece of news in the report made it impossible for him to sit idly by.

The number of Orks heading south through that dry riverbed was increasing.

"Letting a few scattered Orks through before was fine as practice targets for the players."

Lin Li looked at the expanding green marker on the map, his expression becoming serious,

"But once too many Orks gather in the south, that damn WAAAGH! energy field will undergo a qualitative change."

Under the catalysis of WAAAGH energy, ordinary Orc Boyzs would rapidly swell into strong Bosses.

Once they formed a massive tribe, the first thing they would definitely do is retake that old Ork camp to the west.

The old Ork camp was just a pile of ruins, but after the players' carpet-style exploration over the past few days, a relatively clean underground water source had been discovered there!

Just then, a familiar window popped up on the computer.

[Challenge Quest Triggered: Protect the Nomads!]

[Warning! Orks are constantly moving south, and the humans struggling to survive on the wasteland are in grave danger.]

[Objective: Within three days, reasonably protect the nomads and keep their casualties in this conflict under 100!]

[Reward: 2000 Core Points!]

Lin Li's eyes lit up, and he slapped the table.

"This broken system is always finding things for me to do; it's basically treating me like a nanny." Lin Li habitually complained, but his body honestly pulled up the map.

The points were a small matter, but clean underground water was priceless.

Lin Li thought so.

Whether it was for establishing an outpost or as a transit station for the Shelter's westward expansion, that water source was a must-have territory.

He absolutely couldn't let the Orks ruin it again.

And judging by the quest given by the system, those natives were likely planning to deliver themselves as snacks to the Orks.

Lin Li didn't know their plan, but as long as the gap was blocked, those nomads wouldn't cross the mountains to pick a fight with the Orks, would they?

"This leaking hole must be plugged."

He stared at the dry riverbed on the map that ran through the Spine Mountains.

"Should I just use high explosives to collapse the mountains on both sides and completely seal the passage?"

Lin Li quickly dismissed this idea.

If the riverbed was completely blocked, the Shelter would indeed be safe.

But the players would also lose an excellent high-level leveling ground; the few Orks that managed to cross the obstacles wouldn't be enough for the players to feast on.

Currently, there were only two ways for players to contact the Orks.

One was the underground rift deep in the mines leading to the northern wasteland, but the terrain there was narrow; vehicles and heavy weapons couldn't get through at all, so it could only be a war of attrition for individual soldiers.

If people died, the experience was gone. The risk was too high—how could they level up?

To allow players to level up safely and practice armored coordinated operations, this wide, dry riverbed had to be kept.

The players were currently in need of high-intensity combat to farm experience and points.

"It can't be completely blocked; there needs to be a controllable valve."

Lin Li rubbed his chin as an engineering plan took shape in his mind.

"At the narrowest pass of this north-south corridor, build a heavy concrete defensive line!"

Lin Li's eyes grew brighter and brighter.

This was an unprecedentedly large project.

First, he had to assemble all the combat-ready players to push upstream along the dry riverbed, clearing the way.

Forcefully establish a temporary defensive line on the northern side of the pass to firmly block the impact of the southward-moving Orks.

Next, the engineering players would have to race against time to construct in the rear.

Lay foundations, pour concrete, and install heavy alloy gates.

This required the players to not only have powerful positional defense capabilities but also an incredibly fast infrastructure construction speed.

Both were indispensable; any slight mistake would result in the collapse of the entire line.

"If it were before, I wouldn't have dared to think about it. But now..."

Lin Li calculated his assets in his head.

For light weapons, there were mass-produced Logging Guns; for heavy weapons, there were 100mm mortars and the 150mm field guns being produced on Floor B3.

Various vehicles and electric mopeds were also starting to take shape.

Cement and building materials were as plentiful as could be in the mines and ruins.

"Let's do it! Proactive strike!"

Late at night.

Most of the Shelter's players had already logged off to work like beasts of burden in reality; only a few idle people were posting on the forum.

Suddenly, an official announcement pinned in red across the server instantly exploded the forum's traffic!

[Warhammer 40k Online Epic Large-Scale Campaign — [Contested Pass] Officially Begins!]

[Campaign Background: Orks are moving south in force through the dry riverbed! The homes and pure water sources we worked so hard to establish are facing the threat of being trampled by the Orks! Seeds, it is time to show your strength!]

[Campaign Objective Phase One: Push back along the riverbed! Establish a defensive line on the northern side of the pass to intercept the Ork tide!]

[Campaign Objective Phase Two: The Great Wall of Steel! Cover the engineering squad as they pour a concrete fortress with a gate at the pass!]

[Campaign Rewards: During this campaign, participants will split a massive amount of Core Points based on their contribution! All participants can draw from a mystery box after the battle, with various top-tier equipment waiting for you.]

[Special Note: During the campaign, the ammunition provided is free to use.]

The moment the announcement came out.

Not only did the idle players instantly reach a climax, but even those working like beasts of burden were pulled into 'slacking off mode' by their friends' messages, flocking to the forum one after another.

Floor 2 [Liver Emperor]:

Holy crap! A large-scale positional defense and counterattack?! And we have to build a fortress on the spot?!

Floor 5 [Why Panic When I Have Flash]:

Isn't this just a real-life version of a tower defense game! This is so damn exciting!

Floor 15 [Nicotine Truth]:

This junior civil engineering dog is ecstatic! My bricklayer skills finally have a day to be useful! Brothers, push up my cement mixer!

Floor 32 [Wanna Sleep with Slaanesh]:

Who just said we couldn't make heavy weapons? Go look at Floor B3! The boss has churned out 150mm smoothbore guns.

Floor 33 [Second-hand Old A6]:

Speaking of which, does anyone know how to fire a cannon?

Floor 35 [Widowmaker]:

Firing a cannon needs to be taught?

Floor 36 [Elbow-Strike Helicopter]:

Get lost!

The players fell into a total frenzy.

The forum was filled with posts recruiting teammates everywhere.