Chapter Fifty-Five: Destroy the Signal Source

At that moment, Li Longfang, now able to move again, walked in. Since the communicator’s signal was also being jammed, any discussion had to be face-to-face. Meanwhile, Zhao Chengming remained outside to oversee the larger situation. Without delay, Li Longfang spoke first.

“De... Sen…”

Zhang Desen immediately responded, “No need to be formal, just call me that. Speak your mind.”

Li Longfang said, “Earlier, none of us could stand up. I don’t know what happened…”

Zhang Desen replied, “I was the same just now. At present, only those inside the trading house can stand. As for everyone outside, they remain collapsed on the ground.”

Li Longfang couldn’t help but ask, “Why is it like this?”

“Look, even my drone can’t send back any signal,” Zhang Desen said, pointing at the drone control screen. “It’s the same with the others. The reason is...”

He then explained the cause to Li Longfang, who listened with a grave and uncertain expression, not having expected things to escalate to this degree. He couldn’t help but say, “What should we do? The situation has turned very unfavorable for us!”

Zhang Desen answered, “Don’t worry. You all continue to guard the trading house. I’ll go personally to destroy the signal source. Once I succeed, you’ll see an explosion. That’s your cue to strike together—capture or eliminate the monsters.”

Li Longfang grew anxious at this and protested, “No, it’s too dangerous. We can’t let you go alone, Desen. Let me go instead.”

Zhang Desen immediately countered, “You? Do you know how to destroy it? Can you even stand steadily?”

After much dispute, Li Longfang could only relent. “Alright, Desen, you’ll go. But if you don’t return within an hour, I will go east and take my own life to atone!”

Zhang Desen was taken aback and quickly said, “There’s no need for that. I’m a special forces soldier—this is what I do. I won’t be discovered so easily. Besides, who would imagine anyone’s still able to move? Don’t worry!”

He said no more, and began his preparations. Soon, with Li Longfang and the others seeing him off, Zhang Desen walked to the trading house entrance. As he was about to leave, Li Longfang called out again, “Desen, success or failure, return safely within the hour. Those monsters have likely entered the city already—it's dangerous. As long as you live, the future remains.”

Zhang Desen simply replied, “Focus on your own duties. Don’t waste time on pointless worries.”

With that, he turned and dashed out the door. The others, unable to leave, followed the plan and closed the entrance behind him.

Once on the street, Zhang Desen realized the city was indeed used to hiding; everyone had returned home while they could still stand. The streets now were engulfed in darkness, with only a faint glow from a few scattered homes—perfect cover for Zhang Desen.

He quickly put on his night-vision goggles, giving him clear sight in the dark. Thus, step by cautious step, Zhang Desen advanced toward the western side of the city, his pulse rifle’s safety off and ready to fire at any moment.

Suddenly, the sound of someone battering a door echoed ahead. At a crossroads, he saw a humanoid creature trying to break in, clearly on the hunt for prey. Zhang Desen decided to ignore it for now—the house belonged to a wealthy family, with a thick, sturdy stone door unlikely to give way soon. Better not to alarm the enemy; once the signal source was destroyed, the creatures would lose their coordination, making them easier to handle.

He pressed forward as quickly as the darkness allowed. Passing a stable, he was startled to see three humanoid creatures feasting on an immobilized horse, the scene gruesome and bloody. Zhang Desen had no time to dwell on it; stopping them now would only be possible by first destroying the signal source.

He chose to change his route, deciding on the left-hand alley, as it offered more concealment. After entering, he soon reached a fork and turned right, only to find himself at a dead end.

But this was a minor obstacle for someone with special forces training. Even regular soldiers had practiced overcoming barriers, let alone someone of Zhang Desen’s caliber. He noticed several handholds in the wall and climbed up without hesitation, soon dropping quietly into a family’s courtyard. Without pausing, he leapt onto the roof of a house.

Moving along the rooftop, intending to jump over the opposite wall, he was surprised to see the small alien craft hovering nearby. This was an unexpected gift—an opportunity delivered to his doorstep. Using the roof for cover, he went prone and aimed his pulse weapon at the ship.

As the alien craft moved, its weakest propulsion components were exposed—too tempting a target to ignore. Just as Zhang Desen was about to fire, he sensed something was wrong. Looking down, he saw a humanoid creature in the courtyard, its head tilted back, staring right at him.

A cold sweat broke out on Zhang Desen’s brow. Stealth was everything—now he’d been spotted, and the threat was immediate. Still, his first priority was to take down the target.

But just as he resolved to attack, the humanoid creature leapt onto the roof. Zhang Desen rolled to the right, causing the creature to miss. The house was tiled, and while the creature’s jump was powerful, it landed on a loose tile—crashing through as it shattered and tumbling into the house below.

Zhang Desen knew such a fall wouldn’t necessarily kill it; it could leap up again at any moment. He ran to the roof beam, which was sturdier. His movement on the tiles, however, made noise, revealing his position. Sure enough, the creature below launched another jump toward the sound.

Fortunately, Zhang Desen reached the beam just in time, dodging the attack and landing atop it. The creature crashed onto a different section of the roof, again falling through the broken tiles.

Now positioned on the solid beam, Zhang Desen avoided further noise. The creature below, deprived of sound cues, appeared to be searching, hesitating to attack again. Zhang Desen refocused on the small alien ship.

It seemed the craft hadn’t noticed the disturbance, perhaps confident in its own technology. It continued floating slowly along its original path, moving at a pace barely faster than a walk.

Still within range, Zhang Desen crept back toward the dead-end side of the rooftop, seeking a good vantage point. Finding a suitable angle, he readied himself and took aim.

Suddenly, a light flared atop the ship, and a surge of energy began to gather. Ignoring this, Zhang Desen fired a stream of shots at the vulnerable propulsion unit.

Striking the weak spot, the craft’s drive system failed. The ship lost forward momentum but did not fall. Zhang Desen realized he’d only disabled its main propulsion; the vertical lift system below remained intact, allowing it to hover.

He quickly trained his pulse rifle on the lower system, preparing to fire again—but before he could do so, the ship exploded. Despite its sturdy construction and multiple systems, the damage had triggered a chain reaction; total destruction was inevitable.

Fortunately, the wreckage crashed into a decorative pond of a wealthy household, causing no casualties.

Zhang Desen prepared to withdraw, but the crash had roused the city. All around, frenzied howls of the humanoid creatures rang out, as if the fall of the ship had left them leaderless. The one below was no exception.

Zhang Desen decided to eliminate it first. Scanning his surroundings, he spotted several small stones on the roof and formed a plan.

He increased his pulse rifle’s power to fifty percent—higher than the thirty percent he’d used against the ship, but not maximum, as he judged it unnecessary against these creatures.

He set the rifle to standby, picked up a small stone, and tossed it to one side.

As expected, the creature inside was drawn by the noise, leaping toward the sound. At the precise moment it burst through the roof, Zhang Desen seized the chance and fired a shot at its head—a direct hit.

With its head seared by the blast, the creature immediately lost consciousness and fell back inside. Zhang Desen rushed to the new hole in the roof and fired several more shots at the fallen creature.