Chapter 6, The Moment of Life and Death

The situation was exceptionally chaotic, with no signs of the crowd dispersing; instead, it continued to grow. A soldier, overwhelmed by intense anxiety, accidentally fired a shot, which immediately caused an explosion among the crowd

Qin Gang raised his voice and shouted loudly

Unless the ancient books shine again, the three red beetles will surely follow the crowd and catch up

With the roar of heavy machine guns and the whistling of rockets, the crowd trampled over one another as they fled towards the nearest neighborhood

The red beetles advanced at high speed despite the intense firepower; apart from a few that were hit and knocked away by rocket shells, the others, under the assault of heavy machine guns, only sustained some dents or a few holes in their shells, resulting in minimal losses for the red beetles

Chu Yunsheng did not go downstairs; he was greatly concerned about the red-armored insects that could appear at any moment. He opened the small steel plate on the window and discovered that the water below had already been blocked and could not drain. The military's advance convoy had already passed through several streets, and from his home, he could only see various vehicles that were blocked behind, along with angry crowds who had not been granted evacuation quotas, even throwing objects at the military vehicles to express their strong protest

Chu Yunsheng greatly admires the fighting spirit of these soldiers. If he were one of those tank soldiers, he would probably have been so frightened that he would only know to flee.

As they cut into the crowd like gods of death, the agonizing screams of those on the brink of death immediately rose and fell in succession

The public is agitated and remains completely unmoved.

Are they human, while we are not? Is your people's army still an army of a minority?

Chu Yunsheng heard a man's voice from a distance, amplified by a loudspeaker, calling out:

Since this is the case, why should those in power and the wealthy withdraw first, while we withdraw afterwards

Qin Gang turned around and angrily said to his subordinates: "Who the hell fired the gun? I will execute him!"

You are talking nonsense!

Compete with them!

The agile red beetle effortlessly evaded an attack from a rocket and a shot from a tank cannon, charging into the military vehicle formation, standing atop a tank, from which a stream of green liquid immediately gushed forth, rapidly corroding the tank's exterior

Comrades! Do not be deceived by certain lawless individuals. The military will absolutely not abandon you. I, Qin Gang, am willing to evacuate together with the last group of people. Please trust me, a large number of troops are still defending the front lines. We are not the last batch. The evacuation requires order; otherwise, it will be vulnerable to attacks from monsters. We must ensure minimal losses

The expert upstairs expressed great gratitude to Chu Yunsheng and casually revealed a secret to him. It is said that in three days, the last group of individuals and their families, protected by well-equipped elite troops, will evacuate. The expert upstairs has been temporarily added to the evacuation list for certain reasons. Although it is the lowest level of list, he has also been granted three family member rights. Unfortunately, he happens to have three family members and cannot transfer them to Chu Yunsheng.

Even the military is likely to abandon this place in the end, as it is said that in a nearby location, these beetles keep emerging in increasing numbers, and the military can no longer control the situation

The entire crowd was stunned; just moments ago, they were almost in a riot, and suddenly, they scattered in a rush. With over 50 red beetles, why aren't they running away?

The street battle involves three fiery red monsters. Experts upstairs estimate that the military has named this creature the Scarlet Beetle. It belongs to the insect family, possesses extremely strong defensive capabilities, has exceptionally high offensive power, and its secreted saliva has a highly corrosive ability

The arrival of the Dark Ages has led people to refer to the previous era, characterized by sunlight, as the Age of Sunshine, while the present is deemed the Dark Age

However, when the 126th Regiment encountered a situation where tens of thousands of civilians surrounded them, even the military command responsible for the operation did not dare to issue an order to open fire. There were too many people, all ordinary citizens, and no one was willing to give such an order. Reports were quickly relayed to the general command.

However, what Chu Yunsheng did not anticipate was that the evacuation operation on the third day would suffer a serious leak, resulting in various vehicles protected by the rearmed military advancing only a short distance under the cover of darkness before being blocked by a large number of civilians. These people, believing that the military had abandoned them, were indignant at this unfair treatment, leading to a significant crowd congestion in the streets, where emotionally charged individuals condemned the military's discriminatory policies.

... ...

Not long after, the first batch of troops withdrawn by the military quickly appeared on the streets. Under the protection of numerous tanks and armored vehicles, a long convoy of private cars followed the military, moving slowly. According to experts from the building above, the first few batches of evacuees consisted of prominent figures, protected by elite main forces. However, he was also unaware of the specific destination for the withdrawal; perhaps the military had better bases in mind.

... ...

They have all been eaten by bugs, damn it

Do not listen to this bastard's nonsense

The soldier who fired his weapon has already been overwhelmed by the surging crowd. Just as those people were about to rush towards the military vehicle, someone suddenly shouted loudly: "Insect! ... ... Insect! ... ... Monster! Monster! Monster ... ... "

The sound of the red beetle occasionally emanates from the surroundings, and Shencheng is no longer a safe place, with crises lurking everywhere. Chu Yunsheng spends night after night in cultivation, trembling with fear and anxiety.

According to the experts upstairs, the command headquarters has issued an order stating that any person who obstructs military operations may be shot on the spot by any unit without reporting up the chain of command. This is what is referred to as the use of severe penalties in chaotic times

The red beetle let out a high-pitched cry, erupting with a red glow from its body. It forcefully tore apart the tank's shell, which had been corroded by acid, using its knife-like forelegs and pincers, and bit to death the tank crewman who was making a desperate stand with a pistol.

Taking a deep breath, he intended to immediately seal the Cold Soldier's Yuan Talisman onto the powerful crossbow he had purchased for a hefty sum three months ago. According to the annotations in ancient texts, this modified crossbow could harness the primordial energy of heaven and earth to shoot formidable ice arrows imbued with the attribute of cold, which would effectively counteract fire-type monsters such as the Red Armored Beetle

In the absence of communication, the commander of the 126th Regiment shouted loudly into the megaphone:

Chu Yunsheng knew that he was not qualified to receive special treatment from the military. Three days later, a family on the third floor, who had saved the daughter of a wealthy businessman, received a reward from the businessman, and the family of the expert upstairs was granted evacuation protection.

It is a pity that at that time we did not know what kind of monsters would appear, resulting in a significant waste of energy in creating the fire soldier talisman, which was less effective than the ice element talisman. Therefore, in the past two days, we have been hastily producing the ice element talisman.

Although Chu Yunsheng believed that it was his family's ancient books that truly saved that woman, he did not dare to tell anyone, and of course, others might not necessarily believe him. However, it seemed that this wealthy merchant was somewhat of a conscientious person. Nevertheless, Chu Yunsheng still abandoned the idea of seeking help, as explaining the situation might lead to even greater trouble for himself

A week later, the soldiers distributing food in the community had long ceased their operations, and the number of troops maintaining public order was dwindling. The situation suddenly became chaotic, and the wife of the expert living upstairs was almost assaulted at her doorstep. Fortunately, Chu Yunsheng threatened the burly man attempting the assault with a gun.

... ...

When the ancient book will emit light, Chu Yunsheng has no idea at all, and he cannot rely on it; he can only depend on the preparations he has made these days.

Murder!

The military is killing the common people

The building behind the Chuyunsheng community, according to the calculations of Sunshine Era, should be emitting a chilling scream in the dead of night, followed by the sharp chirping of a scarab. Initially, the military would come to handle such matters, but as time passed, the military no longer came.

In this day and age, money has become worthless; having money is nothing significant, it has turned into scrap paper

If close combat with the insects occurs, unless the ancient book shines again, Chu Yunsheng's chance of survival is zero

One, two, three, at least fifty or sixty bright red ladybugs are rapidly approaching along the walls of the buildings on both sides

Starting from the next day, the supply of rations in the community began to decrease sharply. The expert from upstairs worriedly informed Chu Yunsheng that due to the massive attacks by the red beetles in various regions, the transportation of supplies was no longer safe and normal

... ...

The urgent need to seal the Yuanfu onto the weapon now arises from his discovery that three red beetles have followed the crowd heading towards Building 8 and are already approaching beneath his building

You know nothing. Wealthy individuals all have connections; those who are not government officials have good relationships. Under such nepotism, we common people amount to nothing.

... ...

The expert upstairs quickly hit the nail on the head; approximately 7 to 8 days later, the red beetles frequently appeared in the vicinity

Nonsense! You all have left, so what is there to retreat from?

Prepare for battle! 2nd Battalion, 3rd Battalion, 7th Battalion, heavy machine gun fire, prepare rockets, prepare artillery

... ...

Therefore, it is essential to keep the enemy at the gates, and modern crossbows are the best choice

Fortunately, there were tanks and armored vehicles on the streets. After paying a heavy price, it seems that the military killed three red beetles, but there were no cries of victory, nor were there any mournful calls; everything returned to calm once again

Comrades! Comrades! Please listen to me! I am Qin Gang, the political commissar of the 126th Regiment. Please rest assured that the General Command will absolutely not abandon any comrade. The military's withdrawal plan definitely includes all of you. Please trust me!