sovbooks Chapter 17 Stop
Chapter 17 Stop
"director!"
At Cheng Xu's prompting, Hu Zhou also noticed that the Crystal Giant's wounds were healing rapidly.
This means that it is no longer possible to wear down the giants through a protracted war.
"We can't delay any longer. We need to move the survivors out of the branch base as soon as possible. Fields, you know how to get in, right?"
Hu Zhou looked at Fields, who immediately understood:
"I know an emergency exit for getting in and out of the base. Follow me!"
With conventional communication facilities out of service, the group had to head to the branch headquarters to organize the evacuation of the survivors.
Hu Zhou raised his right arm, and a signal flare was fired from the miniature launcher in his combat suit, exploding in a bright red circle in the air.
This was a pre-arranged signal. The two exoskeletons understood immediately and lured the stone giant away from the branch base.
While the mechs used their speed and agility to engage the stone giant, Cheng Xu and the others followed behind Fields, quickly approaching the titanium alloy dome of the stronghold.
Seemingly sensing the approach of the group, the signal indicator lights on the dome changed from azure to bright yellow, the phased array radars distributed around it began to operate, and the microwave beam transmitters were aimed at Fields at the forefront.
"An unknown individual has been detected approaching. Please report your identity immediately!"
A cold, mechanical synthesized voice rang out, and Fields hurriedly removed his faceplate, raising his hands high above his head.
"Uncle Theodore, it's me!"
"Fields? You're alive? Oh my god! By Sheila, I'm so glad you're alright!"
The mechanical voice from the speaker transformed into an accented interstellar common language, which sounded quite exciting.
The next second, the flashing signal lights switched to green, and a crack appeared in the originally seamless dome, expanding into a passageway large enough for three people to pass side by side.
The group filed in. Before entering the stronghold, Hu Zhou fired another golden signal flare into the sky.
Upon arriving at the branch's headquarters, a middle-aged man with blond hair and gray eyes eagerly greeted them.
"Fields, I'm so glad to see you safe and sound!"
Theodore, the head of this branch and a trusted lieutenant of the Explorers' Association president, rushed forward and firmly grasped Fields' hand.
When disaster struck, Theodore was almost in despair.
Despite having two bodyguards and a guide with him, how could Fields possibly be a match for the berserk Crystal Rock Man?
Theodore felt a chill run down his spine at the thought of the association president's most beloved only son being involved in an accident on Golun Star.
He wanted to organize a search and rescue operation, but the area outside was full of Crystal Rock Men, and the actual conditions only allowed him to hold the fortified stronghold.
Seeing Fields alive and well again, he almost cried tears of joy.
Theodore's gaze swept over Fields, and seeing the familiar standard combat uniform, he guessed why Fields had survived the disaster.
"Uncle Theodore, this is urgent, let's get straight to the point."
Fields did not forget the purpose of his group's visit, and his expression turned serious.
"I was lucky to encounter rescue personnel from the Anomaly Management Bureau, which is why I'm safe and sound. The people outside who were distracting the giants were agents from the Bureau."
"That giant is not something we can fight head-on; we need to evacuate everyone from the base as soon as possible!"
Theodore, having become the head of the branch, naturally understood the stakes involved and immediately began directing and coordinating the survivors within the branch.
He didn't utter a single unnecessary word throughout the entire process.
Three minutes later, Theodore returned to Fields after assigning tasks to his subordinates.
"Due to the stone giant's attack, a small number of personnel are trapped near the site of the attack. When will the Bureau's spaceship arrive?"
Hu Zhou stepped forward: "I have already sent out a signal that the rescue ship is expected to arrive in ten minutes."
He fired a bright gold flare before entering the base building, signaling that the command center monitoring the location via satellite would dispatch spacecraft support as quickly as possible.
Due to equipment limitations, electromagnetic signals are still difficult to use for information transmission on Golun Star, so rudimentary optical signals like signal flares can be quite useful.
"I'm currently clearing the rubble and counting the people. I estimate that we can evacuate about fifty people first."
Theodore and Hu Zhou exchanged glances and nodded simultaneously.
There were originally about a hundred people in the branch's stronghold, of whom more than ten were killed in the recent attack by the Crystal Giant.
Aside from those searching and rescuing people in the ruins, and those controlling weapons and equipment to remotely support the exoskeletons, the fifty people Theodore mentioned who could evacuate first were mostly explorers from the association.
Perhaps the oppressive feeling from the stone giant was too despairing, but when the hope of survival appeared before them, the explorers in the branch displayed amazing qualities and teamwork.
The spaceship that Cheng Xu and the others had sent returned quietly, and with the activation of the curved light concealment device, it docked silently on the open ground outside the emergency passage without attracting the attention of the Crystal Giant.
During the previous siege, the branch had already inventoried the important documents, supplies and equipment within the stronghold and concentrated them in the underground warehouse.
At this moment, Theodore gave the order, and the explorers transported these items out of the emergency passage in an orderly manner and sent them onto the spaceship.
After completing the transfer of supplies, the explorers did not rush to board the ship, but instead returned to the base to help search for the trapped personnel.
With everyone working together, the branch members dug out one trapped person after another from the collapsed equipment rubble.
Some of those trapped are in good condition and still able to move. However, others are seriously injured and urgently need medical treatment.
The medications provided in the Bureau's standard combat uniforms proved invaluable. After being administered the medication, the injuries of these critically wounded soldiers were temporarily stabilized, allowing them to hold out until they reached a safe medical point.
Cheng Xu, Fields, and two bodyguards also joined the rescue team, helping the explorers transport the wounded.
Everything proceeded tensely but methodically until Hu Zhou, who was monitoring the battle from inside the stronghold, issued a warning.
The Chengming Star Branch's stockpile of special attack weapons against large life forms has not yet been delivered to Golun Star, which means that the Administration currently does not have the means to deal with the Crystal Giant.
If it were to truly clash head-on with it, the stone giant only needed one punch to smash both mechs, along with their pilots, into scrap metal, which would then be evenly spread across the surface crystalline rock layer.
The two exoskeleton mechs could only rely on their agility to maneuver around the Crystal Giant, a tactic commonly known as "flying a kite."
In the beginning, Chen Lin and another driver did exactly the same thing.
Relying on its high mobility, it buzzed around the giant like a mosquito, occasionally managing to leave a few wounds on its body with its laser sword when it found the right opportunity.
These wounds are essentially no different from scratching an itch. After being injured, the crystals that well up from deep within the wound quickly soothe the injury.
But as the fight went on, Chen Lin noticed something was wrong.
The crystal giant's attack methods are changing, and the techniques he could easily dodge are appearing less and less frequently.
For example, when they first clashed, the Crystal Giant would basically only do one thing: lift its foot and stomp.
But now, it's using its arms to sweep across a wide area, which makes it much more difficult for Chen Lin to dodge.
In other words, the Crystal Giant's combat intelligence is slowly improving.
Hu Zhou also noticed this, which is why he focused his attention on the stone giant.
With terrifying numerical values and a gradually evolving combat style, the two exoskeleton mechs repeatedly found themselves in perilous situations.
If the driver hadn't been an elite specially selected to participate in the "Terminal Anomaly Observation Program," he would probably have been crushed into a pancake by now.
"This is bad..."
Hu Zhou realized that relying solely on the two exoskeleton mechs wouldn't be enough to hold off the Crystal Giant for long.
"Mr. Theodore, speed things up!"
He urged him on, and Theodore quickly responded:
"Almost there! There's only one person left to rescue!"
The base's architecture was complex, and one of the branch's mechanical operators was trapped deep within the ruins.
All other evacuation work has been completed. As long as the last person can be rescued, everyone can evacuate within one minute and escape on the spaceship.
At that time, no matter how powerful or destructive the crystal giant was, it was difficult to pose a threat to the spaceship that had ascended into the sky.
However, just as Theodore shouted, the situation on the battlefield outside the stronghold suddenly changed.
Just as the two mechs were about to use a conventional method to lure and evade, buying time for the rear, the Crystal Giant made a completely unexpected move.
Its giant hand, which was originally swinging towards the two mechs, suddenly stopped in mid-air, and then changed direction and swung out with lightning speed.
Caught off guard, the movement trajectories of the two mechs were completely locked and covered.
The next second, a rocky hand, the size of a small hill, slammed down on the mech, the immense force causing large cracks to appear on its surface instantly.
"Clang—"
The sound of metal clashing against metal rang out along with the howling wind, and the exoskeleton mech drew an arc in the air as it flew into the distance.
Fortunately, the exoskeleton automatically activated its emergency mode the moment it made contact, curling into a spherical shape to absorb the impact and protect the pilot inside.
Both were seriously injured, but their lives are not in danger for at least the short term.
Even so, the situation has reached its most dangerous point.
Beside the transport spaceship, Cheng Xu and Fields had just settled a wounded soldier and returned to the base when they witnessed a scene that made their hearts clench.
The harasser who had drawn the Crystal Giant's attention disappeared, and it turned around and strode towards the stronghold.
The distance seemed far, but the crystal giant arrived at the stronghold in just three steps.
At this moment, the explorers had just carried the last wounded man out of the rubble, and many others inside the stronghold had not yet had time to evacuate.
The sudden turn of events left the branch stronghold, which was essentially undefended, completely exposed to the Crystal Giant.
The automated machinery on the stronghold's dome fired at the stone giant, but its only effect was to polish the crystalline outer shell of its body.
The crystal giant slowly raised its arm.
The already severely damaged dome offered no effective protection, and everyone could only watch helplessly as the massive, sky-covering crystalline hand grew larger in their field of vision...
Inside the base and on the spaceship, almost everyone's eyes showed despair, and even screams were stuck in their throats.
"Stop!"
Hu Zhou turned around abruptly, his gaze fixed on the figure who had just spoken.
Cheng Xu activated all the weapons inside his combat suit, unleashing a barrage of ammunition at the giant, but this level of firepower was barely enough to scratch it.
Inside the base, the others looked at Cheng Xu with bitter smiles. If this could stop the giants, it would be a miracle.
In the face of such a natural disaster, individuals still seem too insignificant.
Everyone closed their eyes, calmly accepting their death.
His palms had completely blocked out the sunlight, and Cheng Xu felt as if all the sounds of the world had disappeared, leaving only the drumbeat of his heart in his chest.
"I said, you fucking stop right there!"
He roared and fired the last bullet.
The bullet struck the giant hand's palm.
Fields opened his eyes blankly and looked up at the sky.
The crystal giant's hand did not fall.
It stopped.