Otherworld Advance Team
Chapter 614 - 607: Scorched Earth Policy

Chapter 614: Chapter 607: Scorched Earth Policy

The next day, with the arrival of an airboat, the equipment for the advance team members was also brought over. For this operation, headquarters mobilized almost all the available commercial airboats, stopping short of requesting assistance from the Ronisca air force.

Based on the feedback from the previous advance team, headquarters provided them with new protective suits. These suits, made of composite materials, are quite exceptional, reportedly capable of resisting cuts and stabs, and having decent protective capability.

More importantly, this material can self-regulate temperature. According to the research department, when a person wears this protective suit and moves around, reaching a certain critical body temperature, the suit will dissipate the excess heat, keeping the internal temperature below the critical value. And when the outside temperature drops below a certain critical value, the external material will lock the internal temperature flow, ensuring the wearer’s body heat will not seep out.

Moreover, this material only allows moisture to seep out, not in, therefore ensuring that the wearer’s sweat vapor can be released while preventing external moisture from seeping in.

Though the research center talked up the capability of the suits, the advance team remained skeptical. The Otherworld research center folks were fond of having the advance team test their new weapons and equipment, to which the team was well accustomed. However, since they were rebuked by Lin Wei for their last failure, these researchers had become much more cautious.

In addition to the equipment, in line with Luo’er’s thinking, headquarters also brought the weapons they requested: shotguns. However, due to the urgency of the operation, headquarters didn’t have the time to purchase weapons, so they had to use what they could get.

Therefore, per Luo’er’s request, headquarters brought several military-grade 09 semi-automatic shotguns, which were already relegated to secondary troops. The distinct feature of these guns is their long range, and they also have telescopic butt stocks, which could be used as makeshift secondary weapons.

Luo’er had no choice but to accept this. After all, in this dangerous environment, an extra weapon meant an extra chance of survival. If it weren’t for the weight, he would even want each team member to carry a general-purpose machine gun.

While the advance team was preparing, the Church Court also initiated a new offensive. The specialized army corp fighting against the corpse demons was not able to organize an effective fighting force in time, but they were eager to reduce the pandemic area. Thus, someone proposed a scorched-earth policy.

The proposal quickly gained approval from the majority, so they had started a new operation. The specific procedure was to use fire, including setting forests and grasslands ablaze, burning all the trees and grass within the pandemic area.

While the infection rate of the Corpse Demons was high, they were no match for fire, and there was no evidence suggesting this airborne virus could withstand the heat of the flames. After setting the fire, most of the Corpse Demons would likely be burned to death. While the agile exotic beasts and insects might survive, they would be no match for the elite forces of the Church Court.

The Church Court’s operation started at the same time as the advance team, so soon, the air was filled with choking smoke. Trees that had grown for decades, even centuries, were burning and spreading northwards with the wind.

"Cough, cough, oh my, these people are crazy." On the landing pad, Hu Daoke exclaimed, then hastily put on a gas mask to avoid the choking smoke in the air.

At that time, the forest on the ground was fiercely burning. Luckily, a southwest wind was blowing. Otherwise, if a northwest wind were blowing, the fire could’ve possibly retaliated and consumed their camp.

"Check your weapons and equipment, and board the transport plane immediately after confirming there’s no mistake. Prepare to depart!" Luo’er reminded them.

"This thing is a bit heavy, but considering that it’s semi-automatic, I’ll endure it for now." Hu Daoke shrugged, glancing at the 09 shotgun on the side of his backpack.

Considering the weight, Luo’er only had the three male team members carry shotguns, while the two girls carried Magic Crystal Revolvers as substitutes. Although Magic Crystal Revolvers also have a shotgun mode, their penetration and power couldn’t compare to a real shotgun, as the shotgun mode was not the primary function of Magic Crystal Revolvers.

"Fula, prepare to go!" Luo’er tapped on the pendant on his chest and said.

"I got it!!!" Fulajie’er responded lazily, then appeared before everyone out of thin air.

After a brief inspection of their weapons and equipment, Luo’er and his party boarded the ready transport planes. Both planes had been fitted with weaponry as per their initial plan, with anti-aircraft guns reinstalled at the rear to subdue threats from the ground. The other plane’s cargo hold was full of handheld missiles, providing firepower support for the Advance Team.

With these modifications, the transport capacity of the planes was reduced. They could initially carry at least a dozen people, but now were fully loaded with only five. However, this didn’t matter much as these planes served the Advance Team and Li Si did not plan to use them to transport the main force.

Due to the wildfire, the two planes had to ascend before heading towards the Door of Annihilation. The forest fire filled the air with choking smoke, and Li Si was considering whether to move the Airboat’s docking area to avoid the dust and smoke.

After passing the fire line, the two planes abruptly descended and flew at a height of about a hundred meters above the ground. This gave Luo’er and the others a chance to observe the situation on the ground.

"Wow, look! It’s a horde of Corpse Demons!" Hu Daoke pointed in shock.

Following his gaze, they saw a dark mass of Corpse Demons on the ground. They seemed to feel the presence of the transport planes and emitted eerie shrieking noises.

"Fula, go down and check if they are truly Corpse Demons," Luo’er ordered.

"Uh... I have to go down again," Fulajie’er murmured fearfully before disappearing to observe from the ground.

"It seems like Corpse Demons like to gather and form groups." Cheng Ziang, watching the group of Corpse Demons, said with a furrowed brow.

"It seems so, their individual fighting abilities are likely poor. They probably rely on their numbers for strength," Luo’er concluded.

"They’re quite intelligent then, knowing there is safety in numbers. How should we perceive them? As formerly rational beings now devoid of individuality or as intelligent monsters?" Cheng Ziang asked, still with a furrowed brow.

"In zombie movies, zombies are just dead bodies controlled by a virus. I don’t know if you’ve played an old game from decades ago called Prototype, but the protagonist was actually dead, and the player was only controlling a virus that had inherited his consciousness," Luo’er explained.

Cheng Ziang nodded in agreement after hearing this, but did not speak and continued to contemplate. Looking at the Corpse Demons on the ground, Hu Daoke jokingly suggested, "Hey, if we just drop a bomb over them, wouldn’t that clear them out?"

"That’s not a good idea," Luo’er pointed out, "the resulting shockwave from the explosion could potentially spread the virus on the Corpse Demon’s bodies. So unless it’s a last resort, we shouldn’t attack the Corpse Demons in this way."

"I was just joking, don’t take it seriously!" Seeing Luo’er’s earnest explanation, Hu Daoke scratched the back of his head, looking a bit embarrassed.

"Luo’er, I’m back!" At this moment, Fulajie’er’s voice came through the air. Since there was no compulsion to do otherwise, she directly absorbed the air magic to form her body, an improvement from her previous struggles.

"How was it?" Luo’er asked eagerly.

"Um, they’re probably what you guys call Corpse Demons," Fulajie’er blinked her large eyes, looking hesitant to speak.

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