novelaction Chapter 1457 Disgusting
Chapter 1457 Disgusting
However, Xiao Ce's drones were simply too small, too numerous, and too agile!
Like a school of fish swimming in water, they moved with incredible collective mobility, weaving, tumbling, and diving through the gaps in the hail of bullets and the laser net!
Many of Xiao Ce's drones were hit and exploded in mid-air into tiny blue sparks, but many more broke through the fire net!
Hiss...!
The sound of the miniature energy blades cutting through metal was like dense raindrops!
Their target is not heavily armored units!
Instead, it was the exposed energy conduit interfaces, sensor arrays, unfinished turret bases, and hyena engineers working on the ice!
"Ah! My arm!"
"The energy pipeline has been cut!"
"The sensor is malfunctioning! I can't see!"
"These damn bugs!"
Screams and the sound of metal tearing apart instantly rang out on the outskirts of the mining area.
The hyena technicians were easily severed by Xiao Ce's highly targeted drones, their limbs and tools were cut off, their precision equipment was destroyed, and sparks flew from the makeshift wiring.
Although the actual damage caused was limited, the resulting chaos and psychological stress were enormous.
"Fire! Take it down! Increase the density of the laser mesh!"
The commander was furious.
Just then, several silent shadows suddenly darted out from behind the ice mound, and even from the blind spot of the close-in weapon turret that had just been briefly silenced by Xiao Ce's drones!
It's a robotic hound mech!
They move with lightning speed, and the energy cushioning devices at their limb joints allow them to walk on smooth ice as if on flat ground.
A robotic hound lunged at the base of a close-in weapon system turret that was turning, its sharp energy claws plunging into the fragile connecting joints. At the same time, the machine's built-in cutter frantically slashed through the pipes, paralyzing and emitting smoke from the turret within seconds.
Another robotic hound appeared like a ghost on the side of a hastily assembled hyena infantry squad. Its small particle cutter swept across the shoulder in an instant, neatly slicing several infantrymen and their pulse rifles in two!
The blood instantly spread across the ice surface, only to be frozen solid by the extreme cold.
"There's a mech attack! From the rear! There's one from the rear too!"
Terrified screams erupted from all sides.
The pulse rifle fire of the hyena infantry was not very effective against the light armor of the robotic hounds!
Meanwhile, the robotic hounds use their speed and agility to weave and cut through the crowd, creating even greater chaos.
Their goal is clear: inflict casualties, disrupt key points, create panic, and then never linger in battle!
When the reinforcements of the Ripper mechs and more drones arrived!
The surviving robotic hounds, already programmed to either detonate themselves and create a small-scale chaos, or they would catastrophically detonate nearby energy tanks or ammunition depots.
Or they may use speed and terrain as cover, just as they came, to disappear silently behind the vast snow and ice hills.
All that remained were the devastation, the burning remains, the corpses of soldiers, and the terrified defenders.
Meanwhile, Xiao Ce's drone swarm in the sky, after suffering nearly a third of its losses, also retreated swiftly like the receding tide, leaving behind only the scarred ground and equipment, and a suffocating silence.
First harassment, ended.
Xiao Ce fought decisively, and retreated decisively as well.
Everything was like a locust swarm...
...
The atmosphere in the command center of the Abyss Roar was oppressive. Holographic screens displayed damage reports and chaotic scenes from the outskirts of the mining area.
"Bastard!"
The captain slammed his fist on the armrest of the throne, producing a dull thud, and almost roared:
"Xiao Ce! It's that same underhanded harassment tactic again! It's disgusting, like flies!"
As Xiao Dingshan watched from inside the cage, a sense of pleasure and a deeper chill flashed through his heart.
He felt a sense of satisfaction at seeing the captain suffer a setback, but also a chill at the increasingly unpredictable and difficult-to-defend methods of Xiao Ce.
"Commander, the enemy clearly doesn't want us to mine in peace. These small-scale, high-frequency attacks, while not causing much damage per incident, will severely delay our project progress and deplete our morale and energy."
A senior military officer analyzed.
"I know! Do you really need to tell me that?"
The captain forcibly suppressed his anger, his crimson electronic eyes flashing with a cold light, and then said, "Strengthen the defenses of the mining area! Send more of our 'Ripper' mech patrol teams!"
Expand the surveillance range of our 'Shadow' drones!
Install automatic sentry guns at mine entrances and key nodes! Prioritize energy shield coverage of the engineering area!
Tell the engineering team to speed things up! Use the energy of the spiritual essence to build up the defenses!
The hyena army's efficiency is indeed astonishing.
With the frenzied infusion of spiritual marrow energy, in just half a day, more rapid-fire turrets shimmering with energy light were erected around the mining area!
More "Shadow" drones hovered at low altitudes, the number of patrolling "Ripper" mechs doubled, and a thicker temporary energy shield enveloped the core mining area and the energy hub under reconstruction.
The entire ruined base resembled a frightened hedgehog, raising even more sharp quills.
However, how could Xiao Ce's offensive be so simple?
As night truly falls in the Arctic polar night, the second wave of attacks arrives in an even more cunning manner.
This time, the attack came not from the small swarms of drones as before, nor from agile mechanical hounds.
A dull tremor came from beneath the ice.
"Alert! Ground tremors! Large unit detected approaching...from the direction of the Ice Sea!"
"Is it a submarine? Or a bunker-buster mech?"
Before the defense system could fully react, several kilometers away from the ruins of the creation base, at the edge of a relatively weak ice shelf, accompanied by a deafening roar and towering ice fragments and steam, several massive steel behemoths broke through the ice!
These are not the main mechs from before, but rather a different style...
Thick and angular, like a moving steel fortress.
These are modified assault mechs released from the arsenal! They are equipped with giant drilling arms, reinforced frontal armor, and... high-powered particle turbulence emitters!
"Target confirmed!! What...what are they doing? Not charging?"
The defense commander stared at the scene on the screen, somewhat taken aback.
Instead of charging into the heavily defended mining area, these modified assault mechs plunged their massive drilling arms deep into the ice. At the same time, the particle disruptors on their backs were activated at full power, emitting wide-range, high-intensity phase interference beams!
Hum...!
An invisible energy wave swept across the ice field in an instant.
Target area: The temporary energy shield generator node recently installed by the Hyena Legion and the main energy transmission lines buried underground!
"Warning! High-intensity phase interference detected! Shield generator energy output is unstable!"
"Underground energy pipeline signal malfunction! Localized overload!"
Outside the mining area, the newly raised protective light curtain began to flicker violently and erratically, like a light bulb with a faulty connection!
Sparks even flew at several key points! The rapid-fire turret, which relies on a stable power supply, also experienced brief lag and aiming deviation!
"Damn it! They're interfering with our shields and energy! Where's the anti-air fire? Take out those jamming sources!"
The commander roared.
The Hyena Legion's anti-aircraft fire immediately shifted, with dense energy beams and missiles whistling as they hurtled towards the modified assault mechs in the distance.
However, the frontal armor of the modified assault mech was extremely thick, and the energy beams only left charred marks on it, while most of the missiles were intercepted by its point defense laser.
Like firmly rooted reefs, they withstood the artillery fire, continuously releasing deadly interference waves.
Just as the defensive firepower was drawn to these modified assault mechs!
The sky was once again enveloped in a buzzing sound!
A second, even larger swarm of drones has appeared!
This time, they are not only smaller and more stealthy, but they are also equipped with miniature electromagnetic pulse bombs!
Take advantage of the precious window of opportunity when the shield is unstable and anti-aircraft firepower is tied up!
These drone raiders, like a black tide bursting its banks, instantly broke through the sparse outer defenses and rushed directly towards the core mining area that was operating at full capacity!
They deftly evaded the ground-patrolling "Rippers," specifically seeking out exposed spirit marrow ore conveyor belts, cooling system interfaces of refining equipment, and...
The raw spirit marrow ore has just been pulled up from the mine and has not yet been transported!
Chi Chi Chi!
The miniature energy blades were frantically cutting through the fragile conveyor belts and pipes.
clap clap clap!
Miniature bombs were dropped onto the control nodes of the refining equipment, causing bursts of electrical sparks and black smoke.
Even worse, several drone raiders, like suicide bees, crashed directly into the Spirit Essence Ore piled up at the mine entrance, shimmering with an alluring dark golden hue!
Although it cannot detonate this highly stable ore, the violent impact and the destructive energy blades it carries are enough to shatter these precious raw ores and cause their energy to dissipate!
"No! My ore!"
A hyena engineer in charge of the mining area let out a heart-wrenching scream as he watched helplessly as a priceless piece of high-purity ore was smashed to pieces, the glow flowing inside quickly dimming.
"Stop them! At all costs!"
The commander's voice even changed tone.
This loss is not just of equipment, it's the lifeline of the Legion's future!
The "Ripper" mech opened fire wildly, its shoulder cannons and arm pulse guns sweeping across the battlefield, blasting apart a large number of drone Night Raiders in mid-air.
However, many of them completed their sabotage missions before being destroyed by subsequent concentrated fire.
Meanwhile, the modified assault armored mechs, having completed their jamming mission and absorbed sufficient damage, began to slowly retreat under cover, either sinking into the icy sea or activating short-range spatial warp to escape the battlefield, completely concealing their achievements...
The second raid was successful.
This incident not only damaged the equipment but also directly threatened the precious spiritual marrow ore, dealing a heavy blow to the hyena legion.
The next few days.
This high-frequency, multi-wave, and tactically varied harassment has become the norm in the Arctic battlefield.
It also became the main theme.
The attack methods are varied, but the equipment is still pretty much the same.
However, the same equipment, but different combinations, always yields an extremely unexpected result...
Using the "Arsenal" as a platform, Xiao Ce briefly deployed several "Thunderstorm" self-propelled artillery pieces equipped with heavy rocket pods to the edge of their firing range, launching a barrage of rockets at the mining area!
They hit and ran, keeping the hyenas' ground-based air defenses constantly on the move.
They also use specialized mechanical hyenas, employing more advanced stealth technology and environmental simulation, to even briefly infiltrate the mine interior, disrupt ventilation systems, cut off local energy supplies, or assassinate lone engineers, creating an atmosphere of terror.
There are also drone swarms specifically designed to release high-power, full-band jammers to paralyze the Hyena Legion's communications and radar for a specific period of time, causing temporary chaos in the command and defense system and creating conditions for harassment from other directions.
A small number of specially reinforced self-destructing or small mechs, under the cover of specially modified assault armor or interference, charged toward the shield generator nodes or open-air high-energy fuel tanks in a near-suicidal manner...
Xiao Ce is like a ruthless and precise chess player!
They've really put a lot of creative ideas into using "swarm" drones and light mechs.
He never sought to win in one battle; each raid was like using fine needles to constantly pierce the most sensitive and vulnerable parts of the hyena legion, this behemoth!
The newly built defensive fortifications, key logistical nodes, precious spiritual marrow ore transport lines, and... increasingly tense nerves and constantly depleting troop strength.
Each attack resulted in the Hyena Legion losing some engineers, equipment, ore, or drones and mechs.
Each successful defense brings no joy of victory, only the exhaustion of surviving a disaster and a deep anxiety about when the next attack will come.
They were forced to commit vast amounts of valuable resources and combat power to defense, severely hindering reconstruction and mining efficiency... The morale of soldiers and technicians steadily declined amidst the constant alarms and destruction...
Meanwhile, at the Starhound base...
On the cold metal wall, the enormous star map light screen resembled a constantly bleeding wound.
The crimson dots represent the remaining forces of the hyena legion, huddled in the core area of the polar ruins like an ant colony trampled by a naughty child.
Beside him, the glaring blue dots represent Xiao Ce's ubiquitous and elusive "swarm" of drones and mechanical hounds!
Like maggots clinging to bones, they continuously flicker and bite at the edge of the scarlet area.
Each blue flash was accompanied by a piercing alarm in the command center and a chilling loss report.
"Report! The Third Transport Team has been attacked! Seventeen tons of Spirit Essence Ore have been lost, along with three escort mechs and the entire engineering technician squad... all killed!"
"Report! The Northwest Sector Sentry Turrets have been disabled by an electromagnetic pulse; repairs will take time!"
"Report! The 'swarm' has breached B7 defenses, and the jammers have disabled the mine elevators. Deep mining is suspended!"
The barrage of bad news struck like a cold hammer, relentlessly pounding on the commander's taut nerves in the command center.