Chapter 78: The Gap

Chief of Staff Han, our soldiers are down to this last handful. If we send out yet another detachment, our division's designation risks being entirely disbanded. I urge the Chief of Staff to reconsider!" In response to the thick-browed officer's order to dispatch more rear-guard personnel, several mid-level officers voiced their opposition. Everyone knew that the so-called rear-guard personnel were essentially a suicide squad, with their chances of survival infinitely close to zero.

"Do you think I am unaware of this? Do these principles need to be explained to me? What are we? We are soldiers, and soldiers must obey orders! Soldiers must not fear sacrifice! Our mission is to ensure the people on that bus reach the capital safely. To ensure the mission succeeds, no sacrifice is too great!" The thick-browed officer's voice suddenly sharpened, issuing the order in an unquestionable tone.

In the eyes of this Chief of Staff Han, it did not matter how many soldiers died. As long as he could safely deliver these young people to the capital, it would be a monumental achievement. With this favor, he would undoubtedly secure a prime position in the capital and continue living a life superior to others.

The identities of these young people were far from ordinary; they were all scions of elite families from the capital. Before the catastrophe struck, no one knew why they had come to Yangcheng, seemingly to attend someone's gathering. The location of this gathering happened to be in the northern part of the city, so when the city fell, these young masters and misses joined the breakout team on their side.

Upon learning of their identities, Chief of Staff Han immediately realized his opportunity had arrived. He had been worrying about how to climb into the upper echelons upon reaching the capital, and now the opportunity had presented itself!

High-ranking officials were a dime a dozen in the old capital, and even more so now. As a mere divisional chief of staff, he would amount to nothing inside the city. However, if he protected these young masters and misses well, the situation would be entirely different. While it might not guarantee a meteoric rise, it would at least keep him from being pushed out as cannon fodder.

"Chief of Staff, I am afraid I cannot carry out such an order. I was never aware that we had orders to protect the people on that bus, and I cannot send my men to their deaths in vain!" The rear-guard officer singled out by Chief of Staff Han stiffened his neck and flatly refused the command.

"Regiment Commander Lan Zhengyu, are you trying to defy military orders?" Chief of Staff Han's eyes narrowed, a cold flash passing through them as he spoke in a grim voice.

"Ha! Han Fuchuan, so what if this Laozi defies military orders? This is the end times now. Do you still think the rank you sucked up to get can suppress me? Fuck your mother! If you want to get my men killed, you had better see if you have the ability!"

"See if I don't execute you on the spot!" Having completely lost his authority and grinding his teeth in anger, Chief of Staff Han whipped out the pistol at his waist, aimed it at Regiment Commander Lan, and in his fury, prepared to pull the trigger.

Clatter, rattle!

The soldiers on the two trucks suddenly raised their guns in unison, all barrels pointing directly at Chief of Staff Han. The sight made him tremble so violently that he nearly dropped his pistol.

"What are you doing? Ah, what are you doing? Are you all rebelling with this man surnamed Lan?" Seeing so many soldiers backing Lan Zhengyu, Chief of Staff Han felt his confidence waver, shouting fiercely from a position of weakness as the atmosphere grew intensely tense.

"What are you all doing? Chief of Staff Han, it seems your authority is rather mediocre if even your own troops won't listen to you. In that case, you need not be the leader anymore. From now on, everyone takes orders from me. Those with guns, get to the back and hold off the spider monsters! No one is permitted to retreat without orders!" A pale-faced, beardless man with one completely pitch-black arm stepped down from the bus, followed by two strangely featured awakened beings. He walked up to Chief of Staff Han and said with a sneer.

"Captain Yuan, do not misunderstand. There is no problem here, it will be sorted immediately, right away."

Upon seeing this pale-faced man, Chief of Staff Han's expression shifted. This man was the captain of the awakened squad, and he had no way of commanding him. These awakened beings seemed to have reached some agreement with the young masters and misses, obeying only their commands. With only two awakened beings by his side, he was in no position to contend with them.

"Spare the nonsense. The spider monsters are already within three kilometers. Are you waiting for those monsters to slaughter their way here before organizing a defense? Anyone who disobeys orders is to be executed on the spot!" The pale-faced man swept his gaze across the formation, finally letting it settle on the regiment commander, Lan Zhengyu.

"Ah!"

A beam of red light flashed out, and in the next instant, one of Lan Zhengyu's arms instantly severed and flew through the air. Blood only began to spurt out after the arm hit the ground.

"That is the price for disobeying orders!" The pale-faced man's contemptuous voice rang out, plunging the entire troop into dead silence.

"Ah, Regiment Commander Lan! You damned scum, we'll fight you to the death!" Seeing this tragic sight, several of Lan Zhengyu's loyal subordinates turned red with rage, raising their submachine guns to fire at the pale-faced man.

Yet at that moment, the pitch-black arm on the pale-faced man's right side flickered, tracing a circle in the air. The firearms in the hands of the opposing soldiers instantly flew into the air, twisting together into an irregular metal mass. With a flick of the pale-faced man's hand, the metal clump was tossed onto the roadside, scattering back into a pile of broken weapons.

"Hmph, a bunch of cannon fodder wanting rights!" The pale-faced man sneered coldly and returned to the bus with his two subordinates.

"Hiss!"

Every soldier, including Chief of Staff Han, drew a sharp breath. Along this journey, they had not lacked opportunities to witness awakened beings fighting monsters. Yet when facing monsters, these awakened beings had not appeared particularly formidable; they ran from the monsters just like everyone else, leading the soldiers to subconsciously believe that these awakened beings could not replace the standing of the military.

Yet now, the pale-faced man had finally taught them a lesson, showing them that in front of awakened beings, soldiers holding guns were as weak as ants—just as the man had said, their existence was merely that of cannon fodder.

"Hmph, you don't shed tears until you see the coffin. Now do you understand what obeying orders means? Listen up, everyone. The First and Third Battalions will form the rear guard, and you must hold off the monsters for twenty minutes even if it costs you your lives! The rest will cover the bus as we retreat!" Chief of Staff Han glanced sideways at the unconscious Lan Zhengyu lying on the ground with a severed arm, making his instructions with a complex expression.

This time, no one opposed the order. With a precedent set right before them, no one wanted to follow in Lan Zhengyu's footsteps. Even those who intended to feign compliance while secretly disobeying planned to wait until they were away from the main force before fleeing.

Although the soldiers were forced to obey orders under the intimidation of the awakened beings, they were no longer fighting for the country at this moment; instead, they had been coerced into becoming the private militia of those spoiled aristocratic heirs. They certainly had no intention of genuinely dying to cover the rear for them.

Leaving behind the soldiers from six trucks and all the heavy weaponry, along with two awakened beings on the bus to act as supervisors, the bus rapidly sped away down the highway under the cover of the remaining two trucks.

However, before the pursuing spider monsters could even arrive, the bus that had just vanished came speeding back at an even faster pace, followed by only a single truck while the other had vanished without a trace.

"Oh no! Giant worms! It's a giant worm! Prepare the anti-aircraft guns, quickly!"

The two remaining awakened guards had sharp eyes and instantly spotted a white giant worm over twenty meters long manifesting in the distant sky. Needless to say, the bus had been driven right back by this monster.