Chapter Forty-One: Picking Up the Corpse

When Chen Cao reached the entrance to the air-raid shelter, the cheers had already drowned out any sound. Outside the door, torches painted half the sky red. More than a hundred trainees at the base gathered around a round object on a nearby sand dune, shouting, waving torches and weapons, some even lying prone, praying toward the east where the sun rose. It looked as if they were celebrating a grand festival, but all this was clearly due to the round object before them.

"It's a reconnaissance drone; no one knows how it ended up here," Hared reached out, blocking Chen Cao's path, his expression grave. He made no move to stop the crowd of trainees himself.

"Dad!" Mosica tugged at Chen Cao's arm, her wide eyes blinking as she asked, "How did that thing fall here?"

"I don't know. I have a bad feeling. Don't go over there," Hared said, arms crossed, his tone stern.

Chen Cao halted, curiosity giving way to caution. He gazed at the distant round object and, after exhaling deeply, mused, "There are no gunshots outside. It doesn’t seem to have been shot down. But how could such an advanced weapon be dropped here?"

Just then, a figure dashed toward them from afar, waving arms and shouting in the native tongue as he ran.

Hared’s ears pricked up. He slapped his palm and shouted, "This is bad! We’re under attack!"

Before his words had faded, a shell, accompanied by a shrill whistle, crashed to the ground and exploded with a deafening blast. The area around the drone lit up, and machine gun bullets began to spray amidst the chaos. The trainees, so jubilant just moments ago at capturing the enemy drone, barely had time to wipe the smiles from their faces before a hail of bullets mowed down scores of them. The survivors, shocked by the carnage, cried out and fled in all directions.

At that instant, a dense buzzing of engines thundered overhead. All flew at low altitude, dropping MP5 bombs relentlessly onto the desert below, lighting up the sand with blazing fire.

"Quick, get inside the air-raid shelter!" Hared shoved Mosica into the fortification and said to Chen Cao, whose face mirrored his terror, "Mosica is in your care now. Look after him for me!" With that, he snatched up a submachine gun from the ground and, before Chen Cao could react, dashed out into the smoke and flames.

"Dad!" Mosica screamed, her voice tearing the air. She tried to run after him, but Chen Cao pulled her back, dragging her into the shelter.

"This man truly has the instincts of a veteran," Chen Cao thought to himself, admiring Hared's agility in the face of war.

But Chen Cao was not a part of this conflict. Survival was his sole priority for completing his mission.

The safest place now was deeper inside the shelter. Mosica, deeply worried for her father, wept and shouted, trying to break free, but Chen Cao had no choice but to press his hand to her neck. Overwhelmed by grief, Mosica abruptly lost consciousness as Chen Cao’s grip cut off the blood flow to her brain.

Chen Cao slung Mosica over his shoulder and headed toward the depths of the shelter.

The walls, rocked by the high-intensity shockwaves, thundered and dust showered Chen Cao’s face. He carried Mosica and settled in a corner deep within the tunnel. The bombardment outside continued all night. By Chen Cao’s calculation, just the bombs dropped at the entrance alone must have cost several million dollars—clearly, the Justice Alliance had invested heavily in this military operation.

Chen Cao thought, "But perhaps this chaos is just what I need. I was worried about escaping, but now everything’s upended!"

As the roar outside gradually subsided, Chen Cao checked Mosica’s breathing. The boy was still sleeping soundly. Chen Cao smiled as he gazed at Mosica’s innocent face nestled in his lap.

Being only a training base, the shelter contained few weapons. Chen Cao searched the undamaged areas and found a dogleg pistol and a submachine gun. Fortunately, the pistol’s magazine was full—with twelve bullets. The submachine gun, however, was empty; apparently some lazy trainee hadn’t bothered to load it during practice.

Still, Chen Cao slung the submachine gun across his back. On the battlefield, ammunition was never in short supply; worst case, he’d have to scavenge from the dead.

Chen Cao gently pinched Mosica’s nose. Not long after, when he released it, Mosica slowly woke. His terrified eyes scanned the darkness and he cried, "Matsumoto, my brother! Dad!" Then he began to sob.

"I’m here. Let’s go find your father," Chen Cao said, switching on his flashlight and helping Mosica to his feet.

Mosica, guided by the light, saw Chen Cao and rushed to him, clinging tightly and sobbing, "Matsumoto, I’m so scared!"

Chen Cao patted Mosica’s head gently. "Don’t worry. Your father is a military instructor, with years of combat experience. We’ll head out now, but you must be strong."

"Alright." Mosica wiped away his tears and nodded. Now, Chen Cao was his only family.

Following the beam of the flashlight, Chen Cao led Mosica to the tunnel entrance, only to find it blocked by rubble. The darkness pressed in, stifling and oppressive.

He tapped the wall—there was an echo. It wasn’t blocked too badly. He said to Mosica, "Step back. I’ll open the entrance."

Mosica nodded, obediently pressing himself against the wall.

Chen Cao removed the submachine gun and, gripping the wooden stock, took a deep breath and smashed it against the rubble. With a crash, a small gap opened, letting in flecks of light.

"Wonderful! Matsumoto, you’re amazing!" Mosica exclaimed, clapping like a child at the sight of daylight, momentarily forgetting his grief for his father.

"Step back farther," Chen Cao said, turning to Mosica.

Mosica quickly retreated a few more steps. Chen Cao used the gunstock to hammer around the edges. Light soon streamed through the cracks in the shattered wall. Chen Cao stepped back, took a deep breath, and charged forward. As he neared the entrance, he shielded his head; with a loud crash, the doorway burst open.

"Matsumoto, are you alright?" Mosica, his eyes not yet adjusted to the bright light outside, shielded himself. When he could see, he rushed out, calling, "Matsumoto, are you okay? Matsumoto!"

Chen Cao climbed to his feet, brushing sand from his clothes. "I’m fine," he replied. But when he turned, he was stunned.

The reconnaissance drone from yesterday was gone from the sand dunes. All around lay the shattered remains of bodies, already covered by a thin layer of sand. Chen Cao’s violent smashing had startled the vultures feasting nearby; they took flight, but soon returned, pecking greedily at the flesh.

"Regular armies are truly formidable," Chen Cao thought. Only now did he witness the military power of a developed nation. He also marveled at Frederica and Sebastian’s prowess—leading a ragtag group against tens of thousands of well-trained, well-equipped, and well-supplied regular soldiers for months in an unconventional war required extraordinary resolve.

"Matsumoto, what are you thinking?" Mosica asked, puzzled by Chen Cao’s distant expression.

"Oh, nothing," Chen Cao replied, returning to himself. He looked at Mosica’s innocent face and gently asked, "Are you not afraid?"

Mosica pursed his lips and spread his hands. "It’s okay. I’ve been here two years. Every day, someone dies. I’m used to it now."

Chen Cao was relieved. Seeing Mosica’s unspoiled innocence, he patted his head. "Good. So do you know where those scattered holy warriors might have gone?"

"Well..." Mosica pondered for a moment. "They usually hide in caves."

"Caves?" Chen Cao asked.

"Yes. Whenever the Alliance launches an attack, they hide in caves and fight guerrilla battles. I’ve gone with my father several times," Mosica replied earnestly.

Chen Cao said, "No wonder—the place is full of rocks and woods, perfect for hiding troops. Do you know which cave your father might be in?" Chen Cao decided to help Mosica find his father before completing his own mission.

"Well..." Mosica spread his hands and shook his head. "My father’s just an instructor, not a commander. He always moves with the unit. I don’t know."

"Don’t you have any special way to contact him?" Chen Cao thought Hared, as an experienced veteran, must have prepared some contingency for his son in such situations.

But Mosica’s sorrowful shake of the head dashed Chen Cao’s hope.

"Then let’s go. We’ll have to find the group and ask around."

"Alright," Mosica replied, taking Chen Cao’s arm.

The vast desert stretched around them. Chen Cao weighed his empty submachine gun and suddenly thought of something. He turned to Mosica and asked, "Are you afraid of corpses?"

Mosica didn’t understand and shook his head, confused.

Chen Cao smiled slightly, placing his hand on Mosica’s shoulder. "Listen. If we’re to cross the desert, we need enough water and food. Now, we’ll split up and search these bodies, see if there’s anything useful left."

Flame King 41_Flame King Full Free Reading_Chapter Forty-One: Scavenging Complete!