Chapter 298: Chapter 298: The Curtain Falls

However, after Lin Xinghai and his men once again repelled an attack from the Mutated Zombies, the Military Department delivered some good news: they had finally brought the zombie horde’s numbers down to under one million.

If they maintained this kill rate, the battle could be over in an hour at most.

At this point, the combatants on the front lines could also feel the difference. The density of the Zombie horde had indeed thinned out compared to the beginning. While the change wasn’t drastic, it was undoubtedly a good start.

Even the Mutated Zombies seemed to sense the shift in the situation, which made them grow more desperate.

Another ten minutes or so passed before the group of Mutated Zombies finally made a major move, launching a unified assault on the defense line.

An attack from 46 Mutated Zombies, including fearsome melee types like Death Claws, Giant Arms, and Armored Corpses, was no laughing matter.

Lin Xinghai had already steeled himself for a desperate fight to the death.

But he never imagined that the three artillery squads would be even more terrifyingly effective than he thought.

The three firing platforms combined, unleashing their full firepower, could launch over a hundred shells every second.

Mortars, Grenade Cannons, Burning Bullets, High-Explosive Bombs, Purgatory Bombs, High-Energy Bombs, and Fission Missiles. This arsenal of weapons completely transformed the 1,000-meter stretch in front of the defense line into a death zone.

The horde of Mutated Zombies pushed forward under the terrifying roar of the artillery, but they couldn’t endure it for even 500 meters. Once the Armored Corpses leading the charge began to sustain heavy injuries, the Mutated Zombies scattered and fled.

In the end, they even managed to kill five Mutated Zombies in the barrage—and once again, the casualties were Spitters and Blood Worms.

What could they do? Those two types of Mutated Zombies had low Defense and couldn’t run fast.

In this battle, Lin Xinghai was reduced to a mere spectator.

’Firepower is truth.’ The phrase inexplicably popped into his head.

After suffering more losses, the horde of Mutated Zombies was now down to 41.

Though their numbers were still considerable, they inexplicably gave off an air of being at the end of their rope.

The Spitters and Blood Worms, their ranged attackers, had been all but wiped out. Meanwhile, powerful melee types like the Death Claws and Giant Arms were being pinned down by the artillery squads, not daring to charge in again.

Ultimately, realizing the situation was hopeless, the Mutated Zombies chose to disperse. They split into two groups, each looking for an opening.

Seeing this, Lin Xinghai immediately followed the pre-arranged plan, ordering the combatants at Outpost 108 to also split into two groups to intercept them.

When the Mutated Zombies saw this, they immediately split again, quickly forming three, then four, then five groups.

Lin Xinghai had his own teams follow suit, splitting into three groups, four groups, five...

No, there was no fifth group. Because when Lin Xinghai saw that a mere 41 Mutated Zombies dared to split into five groups, with each group averaging only about eight...

He stopped holding back.

He immediately ordered the artillery squads to clear a path with their Grenade Cannons and charged in himself.

Truthfully, a group of fewer than ten Mutated Zombies was no longer much of a threat to him, especially since all of them were injured, with quite a few seriously wounded.

And so, with the artillery squads providing covering fire, he killed another five Mutated Zombies, including a heavily wounded Death Claw.

By now, the Mutated Zombies were well and truly terrified. They began to retreat, this time falling back a full five kilometers away, directing the Zombie attack with only their roars.

Seeing this, Lin Xinghai felt a pang of regret. Only 36 Mutated Zombies remained.

’If they dared to attack again, even all at once, I could probably find an opportunity to kill another batch with just a few preparations.’

Of course, even without that opportunity, it didn’t matter. They had already completed their mission perfectly.

Besides, at this point, the outcome of the battle was no longer in question.

All the Military Department had to do now was finish off the Zombies while minimizing their own losses.

「An hour later.」

When the zombie horde’s numbers dropped to 200,000, some of the High Level Zombies stopped obeying the Mutated Zombies’ commands and began to slip away.

When this started happening, the Mutated Zombies mercilessly killed a group of the High Level Zombies, which immediately cowed the rest of the horde.

Lin Xinghai’s eyebrow twitched at the sight. Without a second thought, he ordered the artillery squads to open a path with their firepower and charged toward the group of Mutated Zombies five kilometers away.

But the Mutated Zombies were truly terrified by now. The moment Lin Xinghai made his move, they immediately fled.

The Mutated Zombies’ flight triggered a chain reaction, and the remaining 200,000 Zombies immediately broke into a full-blown rout.

Watching the battle draw to a close, Lin Xinghai heaved a long sigh of relief.

Next, under orders from the command post, all forces were split into two groups.

One group stayed behind to count casualties, treat the wounded, and clean up the battlefield.

The other group gave chase to the routing horde, continuing the cleanup operation to clear a path to the Industrial Park as quickly as possible.

This was done out of fear that the escaped Mutated Zombies might return. If they gathered another horde and rallied more of their kind, it would be a huge problem.

After all, there were definitely far more than just 50 Mutated Zombies in Guanghan City.

Of course, according to the staff department’s calculations, the probability of that happening was only 5.3% at most.

But even with such a small probability, they couldn’t let their guard down. For Star Shield Shelter, securing the resources in the Industrial Park was the absolute top priority.

For this very reason, Lin Xinghai didn’t even have time to catch his breath before he was tasked with the heavy responsibility of leading the charge to clear the road.

Fortunately, the job wasn’t too strenuous. After the horde had routed, very few Zombies remained along the path.

The force Lin Xinghai led, however, was massive. Combining the various Mercenary Corps and the Military Department’s troops, it numbered a full 10,000 strong.

In addition, they were accompanied by 20,000 Combat Robots.

A force of this size could have easily swept through the horde even before it suffered any losses, let alone after it had already routed.

Therefore, during the subsequent cleanup operation, Lin Xinghai didn’t need to lift a finger.

However, just having him present was enough to put both the Mercenary Corps’ and the Military Department’s troops completely at ease.

Everyone’s morale was soaring.

It took them just over half an hour to clear a safe road to the Industrial Park.

Without a moment’s rest, they immediately began clearing the Zombies out of the Industrial Park.

By the time midnight arrived, the entire Industrial Park had finally been secured.

Meanwhile, the cleanup of the main battlefield had also been completed. Everyone gathered in the Industrial Park to begin enjoying the spoils of their victory.