Chapter 988: Unknown armed helicopter formation? ?
Looking at the platoon leader's serious expression, the heavy weight in Zou Yuan's heart loosened a little.
This might be the only thing he could do for the child at this moment: a piece of advice, a tiny promise of protection that could be crushed at any time in the torrent of the apocalypse.
At this moment, a deep feeling of powerlessness, like a cold tide, quickly drowned out that faint comfort.
As long as this damn apocalypse doesn't end, tragedies like the one happening to the young man in front of us will never stop happening.
This is the trend of the times that even he, the deputy commander of the Western Theater Command, cannot change!
In the face of this all-encompassing disaster, individual power is as small as dust. Except for a very few great men who can save the world, all living beings are like duckweed.
He racked his brains but could not think of any way to truly save this boy and thousands of children like him from suffering.
Transfer him away from the front lines? But in this apocalyptic world, where is there a pure land? Would that be fair to the other soldiers struggling to survive at the checkpoint? How many children like him are there? How many can Zou Yuan help?
And how long will days like this, this endless darkness, last?
Even he, the deputy commander of the theater, was at a loss as to the answer to this question. The road ahead was murky and uncertain, and the glimmer of hope seemed ever more distant.
With this heavy feeling of sadness and powerlessness that almost crushed his mind, Zou Yuan completely lost interest in continuing the inspection.
He quickly glanced at the crude checkpoint, which was filled with smoke, the stench of sweat, and the smell of despair, and then led his men out as if fleeing...
buzzing-
As soon as Zou Yuan, deputy commander of the Western Theater Command, left the checkpoint, a rumble like thunder rolled in from the distance.
The roar of the high-powered diesel engine mixed with the squeaking of tracks rolling over gravel. When he looked up, he saw smoke rising from the horizon.
Like a yellow dragon, it greedily embraced the blood-red light of the setting sun, and rolled towards the checkpoint with a brutal and unstoppable momentum!
Wherever the smoke and dust passed, even the light became distorted and dimmed!
Behind the "chief," the accompanying staff officer, carrying a field briefcase, whispered with a barely perceptible nervousness, "Judging from the noise, it should be Corps Commander Gao Zhikai coming over."
Before he finished speaking, the giant dragon of smoke and dust had already rushed over.
The smoke and dust cleared slightly, revealing its true appearance - an armored command vehicle that had been modified beyond recognition, accompanied by four armored infantry fighting vehicles.
There was nothing special about the four armored infantry fighting vehicles, they were just ordinary models, but the armored command vehicle in the lead made Zou Yuan, the knowledgeable deputy commander of the theater, look at it with a little surprise.
The armored command vehicle's body was welded with thick, inclined steel plates, resembling a prehistoric beast covered in scales, its hideous horns covered in dried, blackened flesh and blood.
The muzzle of the heavy machine gun on the roof was sinister, like the eye of a poisonous snake ready to devour its prey. It didn't look like a car, but more like a hungry mechanical beast crawling out of a steel cemetery!
The armored vehicle came with the power to crush everything, and when it was only a few meters away from Zou Yuan's mine-proof vehicle, it made a sharp squeak -!
Brake!
The heavy vehicle even tilted forward slightly, and the dust and sand it stirred up hit the trouser legs of Zou Yuan and his entourage like waves.
For a moment, the scene was filled with an eerie silence, leaving only the low and dangerous idling roar of the engine, like the suppressed breathing of a ferocious beast.
"Click."
Soon, as the heavy armored hatch was roughly pushed open, a tall figure, like a sick tiger out of its cage, slowly stepped out.
Looking at the person getting off the car, Zou Yuan's eyes narrowed slightly, and his heart unconsciously began to lift.
Gao Zhikai was not wearing a military cap at the moment. Under his slightly messy short hair, he had a face with prominent cheekbones, an eagle-like gaze, and an extremely aggressive look.
There were black marks on his face, which might have been oil or dried blood. His military jacket was casually open, revealing the tactical vest underneath which was also stained.
The whole person exuded a strong smell of gunpowder, tobacco and a kind of...undisguised iron-blooded murderous aura.
At the same time, Gao Zhikai's eyes were as sharp as an eagle. In just a moment, he penetrated the dense smoke and dust and accurately locked onto Zou Yuan who was standing in the shadow of the mine-proof vehicle.
Their eyes met, and the air seemed to freeze at this moment.
The rays of the setting sun shone obliquely, stretching the figures of the two men and casting them on the scorched earth covered with bullet holes and track marks, like the silhouettes of two mountains about to collide.
Zou Yuan could clearly feel the weight of that gaze—cold, scrutinizing, with a barely perceptible hint of arrogance and impatience.
It was not about welcoming a superior, but more about guarding against an uninvited guest who had entered his territory.
...
After a brief, suffocating silence.
Gao Zhikai moved. He slowly raised his right hand. His movements were not very standard, and even had a hint of deliberate laziness.
With his five fingers together and fingertips slightly tilted, he gave a simple, almost cold military salute in the direction of Zou Yuan.
"Deputy Commander Zou, thank you for your hard work on this journey!"
Gao Zhikai's voice was not loud, but it was extremely clear, like sandpaper rubbing against pig iron. Each word had a cold and hard texture like metal, hitting the dark air in the twilight.
He did not move forward, but just stood there coldly, like a beast lurking in its lair, waiting for the other party to step into his territory first.
That gesture itself is a silent declaration: This is my territory.
"Hehehe——"
Zou Yuan's laughter suddenly rang out, like the ice cracking in early spring, instantly stirring the stagnant air, but without bringing any warmth.
"Captain Gao is the one who has truly made great contributions!" He put on a warm smile and took the initiative to walk towards the border of Gao Zhikai's invisible "territory", while extending his right hand:
"No, it should be said that the hardest-working and heaviest-burdened troops in our entire Western Theater are you, Commander Gao, and the 76th Legion under your command!"
Faced with this hand that was extended proactively and represented "official" goodwill, Gao Zhikai's hawk-like gaze lingered briefly on Zou Yuan's face. In that brief hesitation, he subconsciously weighed the cost of accepting this "goodwill" and the consequences of refusing it.
"It's not that hard." Gao Zhikai's voice remained steady, but his tone was as cold as ice. "It's all our own business, just part of our job..."
This sentence is light and airy, but it is very intriguing: Which home is it? Is it your home, Gao Zhikai's home? Or is it the home of the war zone?
Zou Yuan pondered this internally, and at the same time, he couldn't help but increase the strength of his hands, as if he was competing with them. "Hahahaha - Commander Gao is too modest! Such responsibility and courage are admirable!"
"But," he looked directly into Gao Zhikai's bottomless pupils, hinting at something:
"It's the same principle as living together as a family. Those who are capable and responsible should naturally share more of the burden; those who are temporarily lacking in ability should share less. The key is to do your best, think in the same direction, and work together. Isn't that what Commander Gao agrees with?"
The words fell.
Gao Zhikai's eyes, which had always been as calm as a deep pool, suddenly narrowed!
Two cold lights flashed dangerously, like a knife blade suddenly lit in the darkness...
However, just as Gao Zhikai was brewing something, his personal advisor Su Xunyun, after receiving a message, immediately came up to him with a serious face and reported in a low voice:
"Commander... The 76th Regiment of the 4th Mechanized Infantry Division reports that just now, an unidentified formation of armed helicopters appeared in the southeastern airspace of Lan City..."
