Chapter 304: Enraged Roddy

Little town!

Home?

Zero City?

Chen Xiaolian’s mind was caught in a whirlpool of confusion. This discovery had shaken everything that he had come to know!

Tell Bai Qi and Mr San…

“We were wrong?”

What kind of words is that?

What does that mean?

Wait…

Could it be…

The powerful weapon that Kaiser mentioned… maybe it is not some equipment or weapon?

Could it be something else?

Like…

A… Zero… City?!

Chen Xiaolian was immediately startled!

…

Mr San had recounted how they created Zero City back during their time to Chen Xiaolian.

They had found a loophole in the initial stage of the system and utilized it to create a sanctuary. A refuge that was isolated from the main system.

When Mr San left Zero City later on, he took with him some of that special power, allowing him to elude the system’s monitoring powers. It was the equivalent of carrying a portable version of Zero City – a shielding device of sorts?

One of Mr San’s sources of power was naturally that.

Could it be? The ‘powerful weapon’ that Kaiser had mentioned was that?

Chen Xiaolian’s heart began throbbing!

“Could it be right here?”

Chen Xiaolian looked outside the window.

Within this little town…

It’s somewhere in here?

…

“Ahh… boringgg.”

Roddy sneezed and he stuck his body out of the Thunderstorm Tank.

He was in a canyon and the Thunderstorm Tank was parked in the shadows of a rocky mountain range. The place was like a natural hiding spot.

Roddy was able to see a considerable number of participants’ location through his personal radar.

They were revealed as green dots on the radar, indicating that they were in a state of combat.

“Does that mean they have started fighting?” Roddy pursed his mouth to the side.

“I wonder where Xiaolian went? Yesterday, he mentioned something about finding an important BUG. Then, he went silent.”

Roddy knew Chen Xiaolian’s character. He knew that Chen Xiaolian was not the type who would go do something without a reason. Whatever it was Chen Xiaolian was doing must be important.

Not long after that, the system suddenly issued out a prompt. Reading the prompt caused Roddy to become puzzled.

Players will enter?

Somewhere in the depths of Roddy’s mind, he sensed that this might have something to do with Chen Xiaolian.

He had followed what he discussed with Chen Xiaolian and did not do anything risky. During the preparation phase when the system had forbidden the participants to kill each other, he had driven the Thunderstorm Tank around to impersonate a member of Thorned Flower Guild. He arrogantly paraded around and announced to everyone that there was someone whom Thorned Flower Guild saw as an enemy. That fellow who looked like Qiu Yun had better hide. If he did appear, then he will have to take on the role of a very ‘unpopular’ fellow.

Even so, Roddy was no fool.

After the preparation phase had ended, he quietly drove the Thunderstorm Tank to a secluded place in search of a hiding spot.

He was not truly a member of Thorned Flower Guild after all. Additionally, he was not too strong – if he did not summon The Mech.

Since he had accomplished his task of setting those fellows up, there was no need for him to take any other risk. He simply chose a place to hide.

Furthermore, there was no need for him to complete the punishment instance dungeon quest.

As for the rest, he will just wait for Chen Xiaolian to contact him. He will leave those annoying matter of making plans to the Guild Leader.

There were 40 more minutes until Players enter.

As Roddy was hesitating as to whether he should continue hiding here, he suddenly saw something in his radar. Several green dots were quickly approaching his position.

“Mm?”

Roddy quickly jumped up and moved inside the Thunderstorm Tank.

The Thunderstorm Tank was not in a very good state. After one day and night’s worth of travelling and the shots fired back then, the tank’s energy reserve was now less than 40 %.

By Roddy’s estimate, the remaining energy reserve should be able to allow at least three or four more blasts from the main artillery – additionally, there was also a need to take into the account the amount of distance travelled.

No matter what, it’s better to be on the safe side. Since a considerable number of people were coming, Roddy decided to leave that canyon!

Although his position was quite well concealed, if some people with ill intentions come knocking, he would end up being trapped inside the canyon.

Roddy was not interested in savouring the feeling of becoming a trapped dog.

He quickly started up the tank and left the canyon.

While it was possible that the other party had come here by accident, Roddy did not want to take the risk.

Unknown to Roddy, just 10 minutes after his tank left, several figures appeared at the entrance of the canyon.

Two dune buggies with machine guns installed on it came to a halt outside the canyon. Several fellows in skin-tight protective suits jumped out from the dune buggies. One of them sported a Mohawk hairstyle and a deep scar across his face. His left eye had gone blind while his right eye was like those of a cat’s – it was like a green bead of glass.

The man walked into the canyon and looked around. He also directed his two companions to jump onto some rocks to check the surroundings for a while.

“There’s no one. They left.”

“There are marks on the sand. They are headed in the southwest direction.”

The Mohawk haired man sneered and said, “Idiots, we were exposed. You fellows entered a state of combat too soon.”

One of them jumped down from the rocks and walked until he was before the Mohawk haired man. He frowned and said, “Head, are we really going to… make an enemy of them? They are the Thorned Flower Guild.”

“Humph!” The Mohawk haired man gritted his teeth. “It’s bad enough that we have to hide from Thorned Flower Guild out there. Since we can encounter a bunch of them here… if we don’t do this now, we won’t have any other chances!”

After saying that, he coldly stared at his men and said, “If you fellows lack the courage, then I’ll just go alone.”

“Denzel!” A middle-aged man walked over and patted the Mohawk haired man on his shoulder. He said heavily, “You are not the only one who holds a grudge against them! All of us here remember the hatred and humiliation brought upon us by Thorned Flower Guild!

“Then let’s finish off these fellows.” Hatred flashed within Denzel’s one eye and he said, “Olin, check the radar.”

“The scouting drone I sent out is being affected by some frequency interference. However, it should still work.” The middle-aged man, Olin shook his head before continuing. “I will need some time to figure out a suitable frequency. Don’t worry, those fellows are not going to get away! It is true that the system radar will not reveal them if they don’t enter a state of combat, but… as long as they have that damnable Thunderstorm Tank up, they can forget about slipping away from my scouting drone’s notice!”

“Good!” Denzel took a deep breath and said, “Now, I will be using my authority as Guild Leader to announce…”

As he spoke, several of his members went to stand beside him with a prideful look on their faces.

“I hereby announce that our Feral Tiger Guild’s main objective remains the same – the completion of this punishment instance dungeon quest! Our secondary objective however, will now be… to hunt down the members of Thorned Flower Guild! Depending on the circumstances, as long as it does not go against our main objective, we’ll be moving to accomplish our secondary objective!”

Several of his team members shouted out in unison, “Yes!”

…

Roddy drove the Thunderstorm Tank to the southwest, unaware that he had suddenly become the target of some fellows.

About half an hour later, he saw a rocky mountain before him.

The terrain was quite elaborate. However, it was still a good place to hide in.

After circling around two rocky peaks, Roddy was about to turn off the tank and get some rest only to see two targets appear in his heat detection screen.

Those were two people!

They were 500 metres in front of him!

…

“Did you hear something?”

Nagase Komi suddenly stood up, looking grimly at a certain direction.

Han Bi frowned and answered, “… … …no.”

Nagase Komi quickly jumped up a piece of rock and crouched down. “Stay in position and don’t move… get ready for battle!”

After saying that, she pulled out a gun from her backpack and threw it over.

Han Bi caught the gun with both hands and looked at the girl in a daze.

Nagase Komi crouched upon the piece of rock and stared into the distance… an area filled with rocks.

“I can hear some sound coming from there… someone is approaching us. It’s not the Great Teacher and the others! The sound is not the same as our dune buggies.” Nagase Komi took a deep breath, turned her head to Han Bi, and said, “It would be best for us to hide first.”

Nagase Komi shook her head before continuing, “We’ll hide. You go behind that rock… if an enemy appears, we’ll pincer them and open fire.”

Han Bi leaned his waist forward and rushed to the position that Nagase Komi had specified.

Nagase Komi had a cold expression on her face as she stared at the distant outcropping rocks.

It did not take long for a silhouette to appear from behind the rocks…

A Thunderstorm Tank came into view.

“It’s them?”

“Thorned Flower Guild?”

…

The Thunderstorm Tank was an outstanding equipment. It was only natural for it to come with equally outstanding scanning capabilities. The observation screen inside allowed Roddy to see clearly what was happening far away.

He quickly magnified the image in the observation screen and found the two figures who were in hiding.

Roddy was quick to identify the bald girl’s face.

“Eh? It’s an old acquaintance.”

Roddy thought about it. He did not want to do anything bad to them. After hesitating for a bit, he then used the tank’s broadcast system.

“You in front! Hey! You there! The one hiding behind those rocks! I’m pointing at you! Stop hiding! Yes, you!”

The voice that travelled into their ears sounded as though it had been created from an electronic voice synthesizer. After hearing that, Nagase Komi’s heart skipped a beat.

She hesitated for a moment before moving out from behind the rocks. At the same time, she waved to Han Bi, signalling him to remain in place.

Nagase Komi walked forward in an open manner. She stopped after reaching an open area and coldly looked at the Thunderstorm Tank. She said in a loud voice, “What is it you want?”

Roddy who was in the tank smiled and said, “Nothing much. But you two fellows were hiding behind those rocks. Were you planning on ambushing us?”

Nagase Komi replied frostily, “We’re in an instance dungeon. Since someone is approaching us, should we greet whoever’s coming with open arms and not be vigilant?”

“You’ve got a point there,” Roddy replied with a laugh. “We have no interest in starting a fight with you fellows. Let’s just mind our own business here then.”

Nagase Komi’s face turned distorted and she said, “We got here first.”

Roddy harrumphed. “So what? The way I see it, this place is very spacious. Even if 300 or 500 people came here, it would still be enough for them all.”

At that moment, Roddy’s face suddenly twisted.

The Thunderstorm Tank’s radar had suddenly issued out an alarm!

The alarm signified that someone was aiming a weapon at the tank!

Roddy was shocked and he quickly tapped the observation screen, moving it to allow him to view his surroundings – there was no movement around him!

However, after elevating the angle of the observation screen, he soon caught sight of a red dot up in the sky!

“Damn!”

Roddy’s eyes narrowed.

A miniature drone was flying forward, moving ever closer to him. Roddy enlarged the observation screen and saw that the drone was equipped with something…

That something suddenly ejected flames and shot out, making a beeline toward the Thunderstorm Tank!

“Missile? Son of a bitch!”

Roddy roared and pulled the controls, getting the Thunderstorm Tank to turn about while reversing. The tank was quick to skid around …

…

“Get down!” Han Bi stuck his head out from behind the rock and shouted a warning to Nagase Komi!

Nagase Komi had already thrown herself to the back of a rock that was positioned near her!

The Thunderstorm Tank was barely able to make the turn. With its front facing the incoming missile, Roddy clenched his teeth and activated the tank’s shielding device.

A faint blue arc of light appeared before the turret on top of the tank…

BOOM!

The missile hit home and orange flames spouted up into the sky!

The resulting shockwaves was so strong it shook the Thunderstorm Tank,

Roddy who was inside the tank held himself in place and he bellowed furiously.

After the flames had faded away, Roddy quickly accessed the control interface…

“Energy shielding device activated, damage to main steel plates: 9 %. Energy reserve down to 27 %...”

Damn it!

Roddy slammed down heavily on the control interface. Through the observation screen, he was able to see the drone circling for a while before quickly retreating.

Unfortunately, the Thunderstorm Tank lacked an effective anti-air weapon… originally, Thunderstorm Tanks should have an anti-air turret. However… this Thunderstorm Tank was something they obtained as a loot. When they had obtained the Thunderstorm Tank, they saw that the anti-air turret was not available. At present, Roddy was unable to do anything other than to stare furiously at the retreating drone that had ambushed him with a missile.

At the same time, the observation screen revealed several dune buggies approaching from afar! Sand clouds were rising up into the air! There were three dune buggies, which approached in a ‘品’ formation. The moment the buggies entered the range of his main turret, they dispersed…

Clearly, those fellows were planning to flank him.

Roddy’s expression turned grim.

The hostility shown by the other side was obvious!

Additionally, from the way they had dispersed just now – it was clear that they were very familiar with the Thunderstorm Tank’s turret range!

They were here for the express purpose to going against him!

Next, Roddy heard clinking sounds.

The dune buggy in the front that was facing him had begun shooting at the tank with its machine gun!

Large calibre bullets struck the body of the Thunderstorm Tank and popping sounds could be heard as a result!

Roddy did not panic. The Thunderstorm Tank was a high-tech equipment; the exterior steel plates were very durable and not something that could be broken through by some ordinary firearms.

Even so, he dared not ignore them. He carefully observed the enemy formation.

The enemy side had dispersed and the dune buggy in front was firing at him at full force. It seemed as though it was trying to divert its attention.

The other two dune buggies…

On the dune buggy on the right, an Awakened stood up straight and carried some strange weapon on his shoulder…

Roddy’s instincts told him that that was not good! From what he could see, the weapon carried by that fellow appeared similar to an RPG. However, why could he not see any rocket on it?

A thought struck him and Roddy was quick to activate the shielding device!

BOOM!

An orange coloured beam shot out from the weapon that the fellow was carrying!

Energy-tier weapon?

No!

Roddy was quick to arrive at the conclusion.

It was not quite an energy-tier weapon. It should just be an electromagnetic-tier weapon.

Even so, it was still far more powerful than ordinary firearms!

Another loud explosion reverberated through the air and the Thunderstorm Tank shook. The huge shockwave caused the body of the tank to tilt over slightly.

The translucent blue arc of light had reappeared again to protect the tank.

“Energy shielding device activated, damage to main plate: 19 %. Energy reserve down to 23 %.”

Roddy harrumphed. “Damn it!”

His hand was quick to operate the controls…

…

The Thunderstorm Tank remained immobile while the three dune buggies circled around it. The dune buggies sent a heavy rain of bullets down on the Thunderstorm Tank.

Both Nagase Komi and Han Bi were shocked by the spectacle.

At that moment, they could only think:

Who could be so daring as to take action against the members of Thorned Flower Guild?

The turret on the Thunderstorm Tank had begun turning…

…

“Go to Hell!”

After having locked onto a target, Roddy did not hesitate to send out a blast!

Another explosive sound echoed out as the flat muzzle of the turret released a beam of light!

The moment they saw the turret unleash an energy beam at them, the driver and the gunner in the dune buggy hastily jumped out from the dune buggy. The two of them then rolled forward on the wasteland, putting more distance between them and the dune buggy.

The orange coloured beam of light struck the dune buggy, causing it to fly up to the sky like a fireball!

“Energy reserve down to 14 %.”

Roddy harrumphed. The muzzle of the turret turned once more.

However, the detestable drone suddenly reappeared!

As expected, it was equipped with a missile as well.

Noticing the drone, Roddy yelled to himself. “You don’t intimidate me!”

He rapidly set the main turret to lock onto the dune buggy on his right. After he was done setting the attack, Roddy quickly jumped out from the Thunderstorm tank!

The main turret of the Thunderstorm Tank opened fire and the dune buggy on the right flew into the sky like a fireball as well!

The first thing Roddy did when his body made contact with the ground was to roll himself away. Rolling a distance of seven to eight metres, he then rushed far away before he could even straighten his body.

A missile descended behind him and struck the Thunderstorm Tank!

The shockwave from the explosion propelled Roddy’s body forward and he was forced to roll on the ground again. His body struck a piece of rock and he grunted in pain. Thankfully, he was wearing a tactical helmet on his head. He endured the pain and ran to the back of the rock.

With its energy reserve exhausted, the Thunderstorm Tank was no longer able to activate its shielding device. Thus, Roddy could only use the hard steel plate of the tank to take on the missile.

The resulting flames were massive and they rose high into the sky.

The Thunderstorm Tank was indeed a high-grade equipment. Its body was incredibly durable and was able to resist being torn apart despite the missile attack. However, the turret and the surface of the tank had become scorched and bent…

Even so, it would appear that the tank was no longer capable of taking much more punishment.

Roddy who was hiding behind a piece of rock saw the sorry state the tank was in and he became enraged.

“You’re asking for death! Floater, appear!”

Denzel. Raw: ‘丹泽尔’, pinyin: ‘Dān zé ěr’.

Olin. Raw: ‘奥林’, pinyin: ‘Ào lín’ ‘’.