The hive growth here had fused with the pipes, spreading through the entire processing network.

The assigned Engineer sliced through a thick tendril; it responded with a twitch.

Then the entire pipe shuddered, rattling the entire place like a horror house.

A sudden hiss echoed; yellow vapor spilled from a ruptured valve, forcing the squad to retreat.

“Get back! Back out, now!” the squad leader shouted.

Soldiers dragged the Engineer away from the ruptured pipeline as the yellow vapor spread across the processing floor.

The Engineer wiped the fog from his goggles and glanced at the valve assembly.

“The flesh has blocked the pressure release,” he said calmly. “The pipe is still loaded.”

“How do we un-load it then?” the squad leader asked.

“Sweep the upper pipes,” the Engineer answered. “Then flush them out.”

“We can do that,” the squad leader nodded, then pointed at the three Army Soldiers and a Conscript.

“You heard the man. Move with me! The rest, stay here.”

Five soldiers moved along the catwalk, rifles ready in case the biomass reacted again.

The catwalk groaned beneath them as the soldiers advanced along the pipeline network. Their helmet lamps swept across the pipes.

From there, they saw how the dark strands of hive flesh wrapped around. “Found the blockage,” one of the soldiers muttered.

The biomass pulsed weakly as the soldier prodded it with the barrel of his rifle.

“Careful,” the squad leader warned. “We’re here to clear this thing off. Not IT clearing us.”

He stepped closer and observed the patch. “Cut this thing out.”

“I’ll do it, squad leader. Hold me.”

One soldier pulled their combat knife from their belt and leaned over the railing.

The blade slid through the shriveled flesh with a snap. The severed tendril dropped into the processing floor below.

For a moment, nothing happened.

Then a deep rumble echoed through the pipes.

“Pressure release incoming!” the Engineer shouted from below.

“What the hell does that mean?!” the squad leader yelled.

“It means hold on to the railing!” the Engineer replied, but it was too late.

A violent hiss erupted through the pipeline; the soldiers staggered around as they clung to the railings for their dear lives.

Yellow vapor blasted through the open valves, pouring into the containment vents.

The entire chemical hall shook the trapped gases were purged. Seconds later, the noise faded. The squad leader coughed out.

“Report… what’s your status?”

The Engineer checked the valve assembly and wiped the residue from the control panel.

“That was the residual pressure,” he muttered. “Hive flesh blocked the release valves.”

“These tanks were still loaded before the outbreak,” the Engineer added. “Nothing vented them.”

“And we just did? Fuck, we’re a pro in this, team!” The squad leader grabbed his radio.

“Sweep Ten to Golden Eagle. Chemical plant stabilized. No further… ack! No further hostiles!”

Similar operations unfolded across the refinery district as Engineers and infatry cleared the last traces of hive growth and zombie presence from the industrial structures.

Hans smirked, feeling a sense of accomplishment as red dots after red dots vanished from the Radar map.

While engrossed over such a jovial feeling, the system prompted.

——

[ Strategic Facilities now devoid of hive presence and enemy contact. ]

[ Engineers may now proceed for capture. ]

——

He grinned, ecstasy filling his heart. He pressed his comms and patched in to the Sweep squads.

“Engineers, begin the capture process for all Strategic Facilities. There’s no better time than this!”

Inside a refinery control room, dust-covered monitors flickered faintly as the Engineer connected to his interface.

The system recognized the facility immediately.

——

[ Strategic Facility capture in progress: Industrial Refinery Complex ]

[ … ]

[ Strategic Facility capture in progress: Fuel Storage Facility ]

[ … ]

[ … ]

——

One by one, the system recognized the facilities interfaced by his Engineers.

Soon he would be able to deploy his MCV. Soon he would expand his territory.

Soon—

——

[ Error: No power supply detected. ]

[ Strategic Facility capture failed. ]

——

[ Error: No power supply detected. ]

[ Strategic Facility capture failed. ]

——

[ Error: … ]

[ … ]

——

The error prompts filled his vision, dousing cold water to Hans’s short-lived happiness.

What?! he clenched his fist. System, what is going on?!

——

[ Strategic Facility grid has no electricity. Cannot be captured. ]

——

Why didn’t you say that in the first place?

He wanted to curse someone with his legendary keyboard-warrior skills.

A cooling sensation eased his frustration. Hans then lowered his comms.

“Sweep One, report.”

Static crackled before the Engineer answered.

“Commander, the refinery control systems are intact,” he said. “But they require external power.”

“Backup generators?” Hans asked.

“None are active nor repairable. Hive flesh may have destroyed them. The city grid used to supply this district.”

And now it’s down, Hans exhaled deeply. The nuclear plant went offline around a month ago or so.

Hearing the silence from Hans, the Engineer added.

“The structures themselves are fine, Commander. Once we restore power, they should operate normally.”

He’s right. This district is nothing but an empty industrial shell without power.

“Looks like we’ll have to build our own power grid.”

He opened his system panel and switched into the War Factory Tab.

——

[ Mobile Construction Vehicle (MCV) – 50000 ]

——

[ Suitable area has been detected. MCV deployment can proceed in the highlighted area. ]

——

“System, this MCV is huge. If it spawns, where will it come from?”

Hans worried. Constructing a large warehouse to fit this MCV would be an insurmountable task.

It could be as high as a three-story building, and the scaffold needed was exorbitant for him to gather and build in the shortest time.

——

[ War Factory not physically constructed. ]

[ … ]

[ MCV will appear through dimensional fabrication. ]

[ Infrastructure preparation not required. ]

——

Hans’s eyes bulged. You will spawn it… literally?

He stared at the highlighted zone on the Radar map and traced it from his current position.

The marker actually settled over a rectangular compound. Six large warehouses spanned in a row hundreds of meters behind.

At the center of it all was an abandoned tower, one that looked too similar from the control towers in airports.

Hans wondered to what use it was, but then, his brows twitched.

How could I forget about this? he knocked his head repeatedly. My Scouts had reported it earlier…

The system had already chosen the perfect place. He just had been too focused on capturing the facilities.

Since the system will just fabricate the vehicle on spot, the rest should be easy.

Hans turned eastward.

Beyond the refinery towers lay the outline of Grefort City—a dead metropolis filled with hundreds of millions of infected.

It’s not that easy, he frowned. I need more than just these men.

——

[ Gold 285,220 ]

——

He switched into the Infantry Tab.

Reserve a hundred thousand for MCV and emergencies. 185,220, huh?

Deploying the MCV here would not go unnoticed.

And there was still that strange pulse he had felt earlier, the dying hive’s last signal.

If it was a true SOS, a nearby hive might already have listened.

Even so, one thing was clear for his next phase—Hans needed to train more units, and they should accomplish several things.

First: firepower capable of thinning a horde.

Second: defensive positions strong enough to slow them down and hold them where they were at.

Third: a fallback plan if something went wrong.

“System, time for a little exercise.”

——

[ Gold: 285,220 (-185,200) -> 100,020 ]

——

[ 162x Conscript queued for training. ETA: 2 hours and 42 minutes. ]

[ 70x Army Soldiers queued for training. ETA: 4 hours and 40 minutes. ]

[ 34x Machine Gunners queued for training. ETA: 8 hours and 30 minutes. ]

[ 34x Guardian GIs queued for training. ETA: 11 hours and 20 minutes. ]

[ 10x Scouts queued for training. ETA: 1 hour and 40 minutes. ]

[ 8x Engineers queued for training. ETA: 1 hour and 20 minutes. ]

[ 8x Medics (2 Females, 6 Male pairs) queued for training. ETA: 40 minutes. ]

——

[ Total ETA: 30 hours and 52 minutes sequential ]

——

Source: Webnovel.com, updated by NovelKeep