Chapter 70: Chapter 70: Delivering Yourself into the Line of Fire!
However, this actually presented a problem.
The current version of the map was unable to accurately identify who the Blood Demon Mother was.
All Blood Demons on the map were just red dots.
Shen Hao took a cursory look at the distribution of Blood Demons and found that there were quite a few.
After unlocking the White Level 5 Mall, his equipment had been upgraded once again, his Spirit Points had broken through the thirty-point mark, and the map’s range had expanded once more, easily covering the entire city.
So, after a careful count, there were actually more than fifteen thousand Blood Demons in the city!
Considering that since the declaration of war, major cities had greatly increased their defenses, the parasitic behavior of Blood Demons had been greatly impacted. This meant that these numbers of Blood Demons were most likely all parasitized by this Matrix in just the past month.
This was nearly double the average number of the other Matrices!
This Matrix, indeed, was out of the ordinary.
“We can’t let it escape,” Shen Hao muttered to himself.
For humans, every Matrix had tremendous sins in their hands.
Not one should be let go, especially this one!
However, because of this, Shen Hao couldn’t act rashly. Although he had enough confidence in himself and in the map, the Matrix also possessed Talent. If the Matrix dared to come forward and call itself “leader,” it might have some card up its sleeve.
And his appearance would inevitably alarm the other party.
“I’ll mark the positions of the Blood Demons and increase our defenses first,” Shen Hao turned to Dong Gong and said, “Once we make a move, if the Matrix panics, it’s likely to mobilize all the Blood Demons. Anyway, let’s focus on being as covert as possible for now.”
“Yes,” Dong Gong nodded, efficiently coordinating the task.
He might not be as strong as other Chosen Ones in combat, but when it came to this kind of work, he was extremely adept and efficient.
These days, Shen Hao had become accustomed to having such an assistant at his beck and call.
In just a short while, the number of military vehicles on the streets had increased without notice, and fully armed soldiers dispersed into the city.
Especially in areas where Blood Demons were concentrated, more special equipment squads and Chosen One teams were deployed.
The members of Shen Hao’s team were likewise involved.
As some of the strongest Chosen Ones in the country, they had been extremely busy lately, running around from place to place.
A dark web targeting Blood Demons was quickly being woven.
Shen Hao maintained the calm of a hunter, and the Analysis Department was also working quickly, using the information he provided to conduct their investigations and analyses, determining the most likely locations for the Blood Demon Mother’s appearance, and developing the best battle plans and strategies.
However, just as the encirclement was about to form, Shen Hao’s gaze suddenly sharpened.
“We have a situation!” he closed his eyes, but his mind remained intently focused on the map, “A group of Blood Demons has suddenly started moving, about two thousand in number! They’re concentrated near the B-4 area!”
Indeed, with the restrictions on people’s movements, most people were stationary.
The movement of some Blood Demons was very conspicuous.
Not to mention two thousand Blood Demons, starting to move at the same time!
“Our setup has been discovered?” Dong Gong was also startled.
But there was no reason for it, their encirclement was very cautious, each team even had a dedicated person in charge of route command!
The command center reacted quickly, immediately conducting an investigation based on the situation Shen Hao provided.
“Squad 247 reporting, sniper spot has detected people leaving their residences in substantial numbers. They’re avoiding surveillance, wait, it’s confirmed, they are Blood Demons, repeat, their identity as Blood Demons is confirmed!” The frontline combat team’s report was directly relayed into the communication channel.
Right now, several snipers positioned at high vantage points were tensely observing the area below.
In their line of sight, they could clearly see dozens of Blood Demons using blood to form grappling hooks, swiftly moving through shadows and between buildings, doing their best to avoid detection by surveillance cameras and the patrolling drones overhead. It was obvious they were amassing!
However, they probably knew that complete concealment under pervasive surveillance was impossible.
Mere grouping of a certain number—dozens, even hundreds—was enough for them to stop hiding their figures!
Using walls and buildings as cover, they rapidly converged toward a particular direction!
“It’s the fuel station!” came the voice of the overall combat commander through the communication channel. “The Blood Demons are targeting the fuel station! Open fire! All squads, open fire immediately, do not let the Blood Demons get close!”
The target was so unmistakable, one might say they made no attempts to disguise it!
They were heading straight for the largest fuel station in that area!
Even the smaller fuel stations were also targets for some Blood Demons!
They were looking to create a massive explosion!
Instantly, the sound of gunfire erupted intensely!
The Blood Demons that had just burst out of the neighborhood were met head-on with heavy fire. The military troops, already gathered nearby, quickly established defensive lines and firing positions. More and more armed drones and helicopters converged on this location, even attacking with heavy weapons like rocket launchers.
To the citizens in those districts, it seemed as though the intense gunfire and deafening explosions happened all at once, akin to New Year’s firecrackers, only louder!
Suddenly, the residents of the entire city tensed up.
“What’s happening? Why the gunfire?”
“Everyone stay away from the windows, beware of stray bullets!”
“Holy shit! This is too intense!”
“What’s going on? They’re even using cannons now!”
“…”
Though gunshots had been heard from time to time these days during tests resulting in small-scale battles, nothing compared to the current situation. People near the area felt as though they were right in the middle of a fierce battlefield.
It was as if the shells could land on their heads at any moment!
But in reality, the situation was not so dire.
After all, there had been vigilant prevention, and the discovery was timely.
Though individual Blood Demons were strong, they lacked weapons and their weaknesses were well-known; thus, they could be repelled and killed by concentrated firepower, particularly when special equipment teams and the Chosen One cooperated.
This was evident from the various commands given by the command center.
Reinforcements were gathering rapidly, and all interdiction actions were organized and systematic.
“It seems coincidental,” Dong Gong also breathed a sigh of relief at this point, even feeling somewhat fortunate. “That Blood Demon Mother likely intended to create a spectacle causing panic and further influence public opinion, threatening us.”
At this point, he couldn’t help but turn to look at Shen Hao.
It was definitely timely for the squad leader to have come over.
If that Blood Demon Mother knew that Shen Hao had already arrived here, it certainly wouldn’t make a move. Where Shen Hao was, gathering Blood Demons would not be about concentrating forces to create a spectacle; it would be like lining up for execution!
Even though Shen Hao had yet to take action, just marking the Blood Demons’ locations was enough to significantly enhance their preventative capabilities!