Apocalypse Gachapon

Chapter 2078: Open

The number of warbeasts in Cloud Peak increased significantly after the Thousand Beast Manor was incorporated.

Now, the mountain villa bred warbeasts not only using Cloud Peakʼs own various methods—such as the different varieties and medicinal herb feed from the Blue Secret Realm, Lan You, and the already systematic agriculture—all providing various guarantees for warbeast rearing.

After the Beast Manor joined, it brought more rearing methods, more professional caretakers and breeding laboratories, as well as many beast pool equipment, from large to small.

Combining both sidesʼ manpower, financial resources, systems, and technology, the scale and quality of Cloud Peakʼs warbeasts had made substantial progress.

This improvement wasnʼt just reflected in the ground forces of the Warbeast Camp; it also included the air force.

Now, Cloud Peakʼs air force was divided into three parts. The first part was the reconnaissance department, which included various fast, agile, small flying life forms and flying machines. The Exquisite Floating Ball now belonged to Cloud Peakʼs air force.

The second part was the transportation department. Flying machines and flying warbeasts used for transport were under this departmentʼs control. Besides the Exquisite Floating Ball, Cloud Peak now had many flying machines, mostly wheel technology. In the first few years of the apocalypse, such equipment was almost always attacked, but now, for some reason, it had become much safer. This allowed Cloud Peakʼs transportation flying department to expand rapidly. The fact that they could previously occupy large areas of the countryʼs territory so quickly was largely due to these transport tools enabling rapid troop deployment. After all, teleportation equipment also had significant consumption. Frequent use made Cloud Peakʼs finances somewhat unbearable.

Additionally, those huge ʼbig birdsʼ that appeared earlier on the Mei City battlefield, which had no outstanding combat power but immense strength and could carry many supplies or life forms, were also the main forces of the transportation department.

Finally, there was the combat department.

The apocalypse valued combat the most. Even though Cloud Peak paid close attention to balanced development, the combat department remained the pillar and main component of Cloud Peakʼs air force.
Strictly speaking, the air force combat department was also subdivided into two parts: the Warbeast Department, composed purely of combat-type flying life forms, and the Sky Rider Department, with human control.

But regardless of which part, they were all filled with various flying life forms, using their respective characteristics to form combat styles suitable for them, together constituting the complete Cloud Peak air force.

Adding the machines and life forms of all three parts together, Cloud Peakʼs air force was now one of the largest combat teams, with numbers exceeding five hundred thousand.

Of course, more than half belonged to the reconnaissance and transportation departments.

However, the air force coming to aid now was not inferior in numbers to the flying parasites. Among them, there were fifty thousand Sky Rider Department members. Their combat power was stronger than pure flying life forms—this combat power referred to comprehensive combat strength, not just individual power.

Sometimes, one plus one for a sky knight might not necessarily produce a power greater than two. The knight and the flying warbeast merely added their strength; perhaps sometimes it wasnʼt even addition. But the reason sky knights could become sky riders was because they could control warbeasts. Under human control, warbeasts could obey orders, understand tactics, know when to advance and retreat, and exert collective power. So in group combat, they were the strongest.

Now that Xia Lei was trapped in that strange space, the air force was the first to arrive. They simply didnʼt pause at all; whoever blocked their way was a mortal enemy.

Aerial combat was completely different from ground combat. Aerial combat was more three-dimensional and more dangerous. Sometimes, killing wasnʼt necessary; just making the target lose flight capability was enough.

So aerial combat historically required the fewest mistakes.

But now, Cloud Peakʼs people couldnʼt care about these. They rushed towards the parasite horde wave after wave. The mutated life forms, knowing the urgency, also entered a frenzied state.

Because Red Hair alone held back two top-tier life forms, and another stayed at the back, plus the Undead Dragonfishʼs help, creating tens of thousands of allies with one move, Cloud Peakʼs air force combat proceeded very smoothly. They eroded the flying parasitesʼ battle lines in large swathes.

But even though Cloud Peakʼs air force wasnʼt at a disadvantage in numbers, and because the flying parasitesʼ physical advantages werenʼt as obvious against the air force, the battle situation was very favorable.

Still, after all, the enemy also had two hundred thousand; they werenʼt that easy to kill. Later, the sky knights began consciously bypassing the enemy to attack the layer of gray substance wrapping Cloud Peakʼs command center, hoping to break it open and let Xia Lei and the others escape.

Magic crystal cannons continuously bombarded that layer of substance, but part of both flying and ground life forms were diverted to attack the positions there. More and more magic crystal cannons began to fall silent.

To rescue Xia Lei, Cloud Peak could no longer care about the magic crystal cannon positions, leaving it to the Cloud Peak fighters there themselves. It was conceivable that if the battle couldnʼt end within a short time, there would basically be no survivors around the command centerʼs magic crystal cannon positions.

After controlling tens of thousands of flying parasite corpses to help in battle at once, the Undead Dragonfish was clearly heavily drained. Hovering in the air for a while, it looked at the huge red hair sphere, not knowing the battle situation inside; it could only confirm Red Hair was still alive.

The Undead Dragonfishʼs body began to tremble slightly. A towering aura emerged from its body, making all surrounding life forms turn to look.

After waiting a moment, its already immensely huge body crashed towards the gray substance.

This was a desperate strike from a top-tier life form.

The level-nine flying parasite guarding the innermost part moved. It also let out a huge roar, charging towards the Undead Dragonfish.

Before, whether magic crystal cannons or occasional Cloud Peak life forms that broke through the defense line, the damage caused to that layer of gray substance was ultimately limited. Perhaps when the quantity and power accumulated to a certain extent, it would be effective, but that required time.

But a full-force strike from a level-nine life form was different. It stayed at the end to prevent exactly this.

It didnʼt need to kill a life form of the same level or kill many enemies; what it needed to do was hold back Cloud Peakʼs level-nine life forms until its companions inside the independent space completed the surprise attack mission.

The two top-tier life forms flew at full speed. Any targets appearing before them were all smashed into blood mist. Even those slightly too close would be sucked into the huge wind vortex generated by their charge. The lucky ones lost balance and fell to the ground; the unlucky ones were directly sucked into their bodyʼs vicinity and killed by impact.

At a certain moment, the two collided.

Even after reaching the top tier, level-nine mutated life forms still trusted their own bodies the most.

The collision between the Undead Dragonfish and the top-tier flying parasite produced an explosive effect. Huge energy ripples spread outwards. Whether flying parasites or Cloud Peak air force, they were directly thrown into disarray. Around the collision point of the two life forms, a large empty area formed.

A shadow fell from the sky. Many who were very concerned about this battle watched nervously.

The one falling was the flying top-tier parasite. In the most direct collision with the Undead Dragonfish, it was defeated and died.

The Undead Dragonfish flew erratically in the air; clearly, it wasnʼt feeling good either. Finally, it struggled to charge to the side of the gray substance. Its huge body crashed onto it, producing a loud sound.

Then it slid down along this layer of substance, falling to the ground and raising huge clouds of dust.

The entire Cloud Peak air force paused for a moment, then let out a unified roar.