Chapter 192 - 123: The Coming Storm

Chapter 192: Chapter 123: The Coming Storm

The unusual flock of birds above the Red Star Industrial Zone had yet to draw the widespread attention of all frontline Observers, but a warning from the Jiang City Shelter had already been broadcast via radio to every outpost.

"Repeat: In recent days, there have been multiple incidents of mutated birds actively attacking humans in the periphery of the shelter and certain monitored zones, resulting in casualties and subsequent infections. It has been confirmed that the talons and beaks of some mutated birds carry the zombie virus. The threat level has been elevated. All field units and forward observation posts are now required to heighten their alert status. Do not venture outside unless absolutely necessary. When going out is unavoidable, full-body protection must be worn, with special attention paid to the head and neck..."

The announcement was clear and solemn, not only highlighting the mutated birds’ aggression and infectious nature but also issuing a direct order: "Do not venture outside unless absolutely necessary." Immediately after, the public radio channel began to repeatedly broadcast a similar warning, reminding all Scavengers and civilian teams operating in the wilderness to beware of the threat from the sky.

Upon receiving this information, Xu Mo understood. ’Just as I thought. These mutated birds, gathering in such unusual numbers, aren’t just passive observers of the changing environment. They’ve become active predators and vectors for the virus.’

The skies were no longer safe.

’I wonder what kind of response plan Jiang City has for this new threat from the sky,’ Xu Mo mused.

The presence of the mutated flocks would undoubtedly wreak havoc on air traffic. Fighter jets required clear, safe runways and airspace to take off and land. If they were to be disrupted or, worse, struck by a flock, the consequences would be catastrophic. And while helicopters were more agile, they faced a similarly heightened risk in areas with dense flocks.

For Jiang City, which needed to control a vast territory and maintain the flow of supplies, losing reliable air support and rapid transport capabilities was terrible news.

’Then again,’ he thought, ’considering how skillfully Jiang City uses its drones, they must have some technology or contingency plans for air defense and bird deterrence. Otherwise, they wouldn’t have issued such a specific warning so quickly.’

Over the next few days, during his limited excursions and daily observations, Xu Mo noticed a new phenomenon, though he couldn’t tell if it was a good thing or a bad one.

The mutated birds circling in the sky no longer seemed content with merely cruising at high altitudes. They began to dive down from time to time, their targets none other than the zombies shambling across the ground below.

Sharp beaks and talons ripped into rotting flesh. Some of the smaller or slower common zombies were actually being hunted down and devoured by these raptor-like mutated birds.

Of course, the zombies were not entirely passive. When attacked, some Agile Zombies or Strength Zombies would counter fiercely, shredding wings with their sharp claws, smashing bird bodies with bony clubs, and even dragging the mutated birds to the ground to devour them.

The slaughter from the sky and on the ground became interwoven in a bizarre and brutal dance.

In the short term, this seemed to "reduce" the populations of both sides. But Xu Mo knew that in this post-apocalyptic environment, such a process of mutual predation and elimination would only accelerate their evolution.

The birds that successfully preyed on zombies would inevitably grow stronger, fiercer, and perhaps more adapted to the virus. Meanwhile, the zombies that survived—or even managed to kill their avian attackers—might evolve a response to aerial threats or develop even stranger mutations.

This would undoubtedly breed a greater variety of more formidable mutated creatures, making an already complex ecosystem—if one could even call it that—all the more treacherous.

Faced with this brutal evolutionary arms race driven by natural selection, Xu Mo felt a sense of helplessness.

This wasn’t a problem a single individual or squad could solve. The only thing he could do was to use his radio to send a detailed report to the Jiang City command about this new development: "Birds actively attacking zombies, with casualties on both sides."

Perhaps the research institutions there could analyze it and extract more valuable information.

A few more days passed before Jiang City broadcast a message that was both more practical and more likely to stir the Observers’ emotions:

"Due to the persistent and spreading aerial threat, helicopter takeoffs and landings are now under strict restriction to ensure flight safety. Effective immediately, the scheduled airdrops to all forward outposts may be delayed or suspended. During this special period, all Observers are required to carefully manage and conserve their existing supplies. For emergency resupply requests, Command will assess the risks and organize ground convoys as the situation permits, but delivery times and capacity will not match those of airdrops..."

As soon as the message was broadcast, a low murmur of complaints and worried chatter erupted on the public channel.

"Ground convoys? That’ll be so slow, not to mention dangerous."

"If we ration what we have, we can probably hold out for a month or two. Any longer than that... it’s hard to say."

"Sigh... Life’s about to get even tougher."

Most of the Observers felt a tangible threat to their survival. The convenience and relative safety of airdrops were a key pillar supporting their ability to hold these isolated outposts. Now that this pillar had become unstable, anxiety naturally followed.

Xu Mo, however, remained relatively calm. His storage space was overflowing with supplies, far exceeding the standard allotment, so he wouldn’t be feeling the pressure anytime soon. Still, he could sense the faint scent of a deeper change in the message.

’This forced change in supply methods is probably just the beginning.’

After more than two months of continuous observation and reconnaissance by the Sharp Sword team, Jiang City should now have a fairly detailed grasp of the "periodic respawn" pattern of the zombies in the Red Star Industrial Zone. Although the secret of the source in the core area remained undiscovered, they at least had experience dealing with the superficial threat patterns.