northernbook Chapter 95 White Tiger Fortress
Chapter 95 White Tiger Fortress
The square fell silent instantly.
All eyes were on the location on the map that was heavily marked in red.
White Tiger Fortress.
This name is familiar to every resident of Jiangcheng.
It's not because it's important, but because it's a scar on Jiangcheng.
The sound of discussion spread among the crowd.
"White Tiger Fortress? That White Tiger Fortress?"
"Haven't we already fallen?"
"That place is overrun by tens of thousands of strange beasts!"
"I've heard the monsters there are far more ferocious than those at Fortress One!"
Ye Feng did not stop these discussions.
He made them speak, he made them express all their fears.
Only when someone is afraid will they realize what they need to overcome.
A person who isn't even afraid of fear is either truly brave or doesn't know the meaning of death.
Only after the commotion subsided did Ye Feng speak.
"I have a question for you."
He surveyed the entire room, his gaze sharp as a knife.
"Are you scared?"
The sound wasn't loud, but it carried a sense of oppression.
The veterans' contingent was the first to respond.
"Don't be afraid!"
The voices of a thousand people merged into one loud voice.
Dong Sheng stood at the very front of the formation, turning to face his men.
Dong Sheng was looking at his brigade, demanding that they be in perfect unison.
"Don't be afraid!"
Although the voices of the 630 men were not as uniform as those of the veterans, they were loud enough and had enough momentum.
Ye Feng's lips curled up slightly.
"Alright." He waved his hand. "Let's go!"
A convoy of three thousand people drove out of Jiangcheng in a grand procession.
They headed northwest along the long-abandoned official road.
Leading the way were ten armored reconnaissance vehicles, followed by hundreds of military trucks.
The convoy kicked up clouds of dust, leaving a long yellow trail across the wilderness.
The scenery along the way became increasingly desolate. At first, there were still traces of life.
Further on, what lies ahead is endless wilderness and ruins.
Dong Sheng sat in the passenger seat of the lead car, holding a map in his hand, his brows furrowed.
He is a native of Jiangcheng and grew up on this land.
He remembered that this road used to be very busy, with hundreds of trucks coming and going every day.
They hauled the ore and timber back to Jiangcheng.
Back then, White Tiger Fortress was Jiangcheng's treasure trove.
What now?
"The area ahead is the territory of White Tiger Fortress," Dong Sheng said to Ye Feng, pointing to the mark on the map.
"Twenty kilometers ahead is the area where strange beasts are active."
Ye Feng leaned back in his chair, closing his eyes to rest.
"Tell me about the situation at White Tiger Fortress."
Dong Sheng took a deep breath: "White Tiger Fortress, the largest military fortress in the northwest of Jiangcheng, and also the most important resource-producing area in Jiangcheng."
"It sits on a huge mineral vein that supplies Jiangcheng with 70% of its alloy ore and timber."
"Seventy percent?" Ye Feng opened his eyes.
"Seventy percent." Dong Sheng's tone was filled with resentment.
"In the past, Jiangcheng had ample funds to buy equipment, pay military salaries, and carry out construction."
"After the fall of White Tiger Fortress, Jiangcheng's fiscal revenue plummeted by 70%. From then on, we began our decline."
Ye Feng nodded.
A fortress supplies a city with 70% of its ore and timber; losing it is tantamount to losing its economic lifeline.
With the fall of Fortress No. 1 and Fortress No. 2, the defensive line was torn apart, and the alien beasts rushed in unimpeded, leaving all the mines and forests in the wild abandoned.
Jiangcheng's finances began to collapse from that time onward.
"Therefore, White Tiger Fortress must be taken back," Ye Feng said.
"It would be good to get it back." Dong Sheng frowned again.
"But Ye Feng, it's said there are tens of thousands of strange beasts guarding White Tiger Fortress. We only have three thousand people, can we handle it?"
"It's only a few tens of thousands." Ye Feng closed his eyes. "It's not like we haven't fought before."
Dong Sheng opened his mouth, but remembering Ye Feng's achievements in the beast tide and Fortress No. 1, he silently closed his mouth.
The convoy continued forward.
After passing through a deserted farmland, a cluster of buildings came into view.
It is a small town.
The town is small, with only about a hundred households.
However, the layout was orderly and the streets were wide, clearly indicating that it was a prosperous place before it fell to the enemy.
There is no one left alive in the town.
The streets were littered with skeletons and rusted vehicles, and the walls were covered with faded slogans.
Some of the slogans are still legible, such as "Jiangcheng Mining", "Baihu Mining Third Mine", and "Safety Production".
A tattered signboard hangs crookedly on a three-story building, the words on it faded.
However, the words "Jiangcheng Mining Office in Baihu" can be vaguely seen.
"This used to be where the miners lived," Dong Sheng said, his voice hoarse as he looked out the window.
"I came here once with my father when I was a child. It was very lively here then, with people everywhere."
"Now...it's gone, all gone."
No one spoke in the car. The entire car was filled with locals from Jiangcheng, people who had grown up listening to stories of the White Tiger Fortress.
When they were young, White Tiger Fortress was the pride of the people of Jiangcheng.
There are large mines, forest farms, factories, and tens of thousands of workers there.
That was the wealthiest place in Jiangcheng.
Until that disaster struck.
The strange beasts have invaded this place and turned it into their home.
Five fifth-tier beast kings completely occupied this place.
Now, that place is a forbidden zone for humans and a lair for alien beasts.
In the past few years, apart from a few powerful Wasteland Hunters.
No one dared to set foot in this forbidden zone for humans anymore.
"arrive!"
Dong Sheng's eyes flashed with a sharp light.
The car sped along the desolate highway, getting closer and closer to White Tiger Fortress.
Something is changing in the air.
The veterans in the same vehicle instinctively gripped their weapons tightly.
Having served in the military for over a decade, their instincts for danger don't lie.
"Today we will reclaim this land."
Ye Feng closed his eyes and spread his mental energy in all directions.
He could sense something following the convoy on both sides, moving very fast and in large numbers.
They are exotic beasts, at least dozens of them, all of them at least at the second rank.
"Ignore them," Ye Feng said calmly. "They won't dare to make a move."
The convoy continued on its way.
The dozens of strange beasts followed the convoy for about five kilometers on both sides, but never launched an attack.
Perhaps they sensed the terrifying aura emanating from Ye Feng.
Perhaps they just wanted to see where the convoy was headed. Ultimately,
They gave up and turned to disappear into the wilderness.
The convoy stopped about ten kilometers from White Tiger Fortress.
Ye Feng jumped out of the car and stood on this land that had been occupied for nearly ten years.
There is a stone tablet by the roadside with the words "White Tiger Fortress - Jiangcheng Mining" engraved on it.
Not far away, the outline of White Tiger Fortress could be faintly seen on the horizon.
The city walls are still there, and the gates are still there.
But the city walls were covered with vines, and the rust on the gates gleamed a dark red in the sunlight.
Ye Feng stared at it for a long time.
In the memories of the people of Jiangcheng, this fortress is a symbol of prosperity and pride.
And now? It's a disgrace.
"Keep going." Ye Feng didn't look any further and turned back to the car.
The convoy started again, carrying three thousand soldiers from Jiangcheng, and headed towards the fortress that had been occupied by alien beasts for nearly ten years.