Chapter 484: Metal Slug, Again
[This world: Metal Slug 2]
[Mission Difficulty: A-Rank]
[Number of Participants: 500]
[Main Mission: Justice and Evil]
[Mission Objective: Defeat the Abu Abbas Legion that has joined the Modern Rebel Army, or repel the elite regular army unit sent to suppress the rebellion: the Hound Corps.]
[Completion Reward: 10,000 points, 10 free attribute points]
[Failure Penalty: None]
[Optional Mission: Participate in the destruction of the super-heavy bombers gifted to the Abu Abbas Legion by the Modern Rebel Army, or destroy the Hound Corps' Sky Fortress.]
[Completion Reward: 10,000 points, 10 free attribute points]
[Failure Penalty: None]
[World Summary: The war between justice and evil has only just begun.]
The Metal Slug world—this could practically be considered Qin Ming's home turf by now. He was intimately familiar with it and even held the rank of a three-star major general here.
Returning to this place was naturally a good thing, but the problem was this time's mission...
Defeat the Hound Corps? Destroy the Sky Fortress?
Wait a second—his army had actually become one of the mission targets?!
The force he'd built up himself had grown so influential it had affected Nightmare Space's mission design?!
Staring in shock, Qin Ming double-checked the mission intel. Sure enough, his own troops were listed in there. For a moment, he didn't know whether to laugh or cry.
His self-established army had grown powerful enough to be designated as a target by Nightmare Space—wasn't this a kind of backhanded recognition? It was acknowledging his influence over this world.
Shaking his head, Qin Ming's face turned serious. He pushed open the door and strode outside.
And as he stepped out, he found himself in the middle of a desert city.
To be more precise, a desert city currently at war.
Explosions rocked the air! The roar of artillery was nonstop!
Fighter jets spiraled and pursued one another in the sky! Soldiers on the ground exchanged fire with ferocious intensity! Both sides were fully engaged in a brutal firefight!
Just as Qin Ming was still stunned by the scene, a thunderous boom suddenly rang in his ears. The very next second, a shell struck the building behind him, blowing it apart on impact and sending debris flying through the air.
Before the smoke had even cleared, an X-class heavy assault tank—developed by the rebels—broke through the wall and charged straight onto the battlefield at high speed.
Marching out with it was an entire squad of rebel soldiers.
Wearing steel helmets marked with a bold X, the troops were grimy and fierce-looking.
One of the squad leaders froze upon seeing Qin Ming standing in front of the rubble. Realizing something, he quickly waved at him with urgency.
"Civilian! Get down! It's about to turn into a warzone! Go, now!"
But before the captain had even finished shouting, the piercing rattle of machine gun fire erupted. Sparks burst from the tank's surface under the hail of bullets, and the rebel troops behind it scrambled for cover in panic.
From around the opposite street corner, accompanied by the roar of engines, several regular army tanks and armored vehicles stormed in, leading a squad of dozens of elite soldiers!
The two forces collided at the corner and immediately broke into a close-quarters shootout.
Gunfire from one side, cannon blasts from the other—as the battle intensified, reinforcements continued pouring in from both sides.
The city had completely transformed into a massive battlefield, with every building turned into a military fortification.
Brutal, adrenaline-fueled urban warfare broke out in every corner of the city.
Standing motionless in front of the ruins, Qin Ming frowned as he watched both sides clash violently in front of him.
As the two sides exchanged fire, the regular army was quickly suppressed.
Their equipment was as disappointing as ever—outdated firearms, tanks and vehicles in disrepair.They simply couldn't match the rebel forces in a head-on confrontation.
In just a matter of moments, two of their tanks had already been destroyed, and they'd lost control of the entire street.
Watching the regular troops fall back in defeat, Qin Ming shook his head.
As expected, they were nothing but a pack of worthless grunts. Under his command, the Hound Corps soldiers fought like madmen, utterly fearless.But under the leadership of other generals, how were they getting beaten so badly by an enemy of equal strength?
Finding a spot to sit, Qin Ming quietly observed the battle without any intention of getting involved.
Half an hour later, the skirmish finally ended—with the rebels securing a complete victory.
They reclaimed the street and immediately began fortifying it without pause.
The commanding officer of the rebel unit continued barking out orders nonstop.
"Units One and Two, increase vigilance! Unit Three, tend to the wounded! Unit Four, spread out and check if any civilians are still in the area! If you find any, get them to safety!"
"Yes, sir!"
The soldiers swiftly dispersed. The same squad leader who had earlier told Qin Ming to take cover noticed that he was still there. Gun in hand, he walked over.
Before he even got close, his voice rang out.
"Are you a local civilian? Or a traveling merchant?"
"Merchant."
"This city's no longer safe. You'd better leave now. If you wait any longer, you might not get the chance."
He pulled open his backpack, took out some food and water, and tossed them over to Qin Ming from a distance.
The rebel squad leader wore a very serious expression.
"The Demon Legion is about to arrive. They might raze this entire city to the ground. Leave, now."
Catching the supplies, Qin Ming glanced at what he'd been given and raised an eyebrow slightly.
"The Demon Legion? There's a unit with that name in the regular army?"
"Yeah, of course there is. And their name rings loud and clear—those demon soldiers and their demon general, who hasn't heard of them?"
"Why are you helping me? Even giving me food?"
"Because we're the Resistance! A force that fights back against the unjust oppression of the Federation! If anyone's in need, we help them! That's the very principle on which we were founded! Even if they suppress us a hundred times, a thousand times—we'll always rise again! We—"
"Alert! Alert! The Demon Legion is here!!!"
Before the squad leader could finish his impassioned speech, a shrill warning suddenly rang out from the distance.
Hearing that cry, the rebel soldiers who'd been cleaning up the battlefield immediately panicked.
Carrying ammo crates, they scrambled to find cover—but before they could settle in, the sharp sound of something cutting through the air reached their ears.
Accompanied by howling winds, two fighter jets screamed in at low altitude, unleashing a hail of gunfire as they flew.
Bullets stitched across the ground and buildings, kicking up clouds of dust in their wake.
Rolling to dodge the strafing, the rebel soldiers raised their weapons and fired furiously at the jets overhead.But the bullets merely sparked off the fuselage—completely unable to penetrate the metal armor.
Before the jets had even flown out of range, the sound of engines roared from around the street corner.
The next moment—a light tank charged in at the lead, followed by twenty soldiers.A full assault team stormed the street head-on.
(End of Chapter)