Sky-cracking Rider

The area overrun by the mutant worm swarm now only had the Aircrew Base 911 still capable of launching assaults. The four surrounding bases were destroyed, one of which was overtaken with no survivors.

Therefore, the responsibility to eradicate the mutant fell squarely on the shoulders of Aircrew Base 911. Corporate wars were corporate wars, but the essential duty couldn't be forgotten—it was a matter of principle and righteousness.

Chen Fei reminded, "There are still eight gyroplanes left!"

After scavenging a bargain at Aircrew Base 909 and combining it with their own inventory at Aircrew Base 911, even if they couldn't assemble more 'Big Mouth Monster' turboprop aircraft, cobbling together a few 'tricycles' posed no issues at all.

The only issue was that 'tricycles' had relatively lower defense, slower flight speed, less agility, and less carrying capacity compared to turboprop aircraft, but the basic transport ability was still sufficient. They could be equipped like armed helicopters, hanging two 12.7 mm caliber machine guns and either two rocket nests or two 100 kg class aerial bombs on each side without any problem.

Even though there were flying species among the mutant worm swarm, no matter how fast they flew, they couldn't catch up with the gyroplanes, as in nature, creatures capable of flying faster than 300 kilometers per hour were exceedingly rare—such experts of flight were the product of thousands of years of natural selection and evolution, with the chances of mutations induced by nuclear radiation being minuscule.

So these gyroplanes cobbled together by Aircrew Base 911, were quite suitable for hit-and-run harassment missions where they drop bombs or fire a few shots and then scoot.

The current count of eight gyroplanes was just right; any more would be uneconomical, especially since the engines used in gyroplanes constituted the major cost component.

After some thought, Chen Fei then said, "It would be best to request two 'Dragon Slayer Missiles' and a high-yield Ground-Penetrating Thermobaric Bomb."

Known as the 'Dragon Slayer Missile,' the KDK-1 air-breathing hypersonic smart missile could rival a mini-nuclear weapon, not just for killing dragons, but also for wiping out other targets with ease.

The Ground-Penetrating Thermobaric Bomb was also extremely effective—working in tandem with the 'Dragon Slayer Missile,' the former handling underground targets, and the latter taking care of the surface.

"Is it really necessary?"

Upon hearing 'Dragon Slayer Missile,' the female executive manager couldn't help but feel her scalp tingle.

The current plight of Aircrew Base 911, along with the parent company Apocalypse Defense Group, if traced back to its roots, had to blame Chen Fei's rash actions—a 'Dragon Slayer Missile' had almost led them to mutual annihilation, subsequently drawing the attention of industry giants among the top ten.

Now amidst the chaos, Apocalypse Defense Group and Aircrew Base 911 were significantly weakened, and even the Merman Brothers Consortium probably had to swallow a bitter pill—the corporate war was bloody and costly. What was expected to be an easy grab turned into handling a porcupine.

The surfacing of a mutant worm swarm now added numerous unpredictable factors to this undecided corporate conflict.

"Better safe than sorry!"

Chen Fei was merely providing a suggestion to Manager Hanna, which was all the help he could offer, before contentedly savoring the cup of entry-level dry red wine in his hand.

The wine, enjoyable enough for personal amusement, could perhaps also be used to stew some beef.

Teacher Shen Fei's school was temporarily closed, and nearby villages were planning to cluster together for self-protection while pooling resources to buy high-powered weapons like grenades, explosives, large-caliber machine guns, small-caliber rockets, and mortars to safeguard everyone's safety in case of an attack by the mutant worm swarm — if so, they could at least hold out for a while.

In the end, any hope for rescue would still depend on Aircrew Base 911, as that's precisely what air bases are meant for.

"I'll handle the 'Dragon Slayer Missile' issue. Do you have any biological samples of those mutants?"

The headache-inducing responsibility of dealing with the 'Dragon Slayer Missile' used previously had stemmed from authorization provided by the Blue Star Global United Defense Committee, whose sources traced back to the Sky Dragon City of Cangqiong Star.

The current Dragon King of the Dragon Race was exceptionally resolute and ruthless, mercilessly dealing with his own kind if they stepped out of line.

Otherwise, who would dare to lightly deploy a 'Dragon Slayer Missile' against a giant dragon, risking a long life for themselves?

Giant dragons were not like those mutants or weaker magical beasts that could only endure modern firearms without being able to retaliate—if they got really angry, few sovereign nations could withstand their wrath.

"It seems so!"

Chen Fei thought for a moment, rummaged through his belongings, and pulled out an irregularly shaped, fingernail-sized piece, placing it on the table. "This is a piece of shell, very hard."

Using a white steel crowbar, he had taken several hours to crack it. The fragment flew into his shirt collar and chafed him all night long; the swarm of insects subsided before he finally fished it out from his clothes.

"I'll take it for a biological identification to see which mutant branch it belongs to."

Manager Hanna Gagel downed her glass of wine, pulled out a transparent evidence bag, and placed the shell fragment inside.

Aircrew Base 911 had a professional biological laboratory for identifying mutants and magical beasts, submitting biological data to the Global United Defense Committee to monitor the evolutionary state of hazardous creatures.

"Then I'll be leaving first."

Chen Fei also toasted.

Manager Hanna Gagel, with no intention of rising to see him off, called after Chen Fei's departing figure, "The manufacturers of the Energy Tower will soon send someone over to start it up; you're in charge of coordinating that."

Chen Fei didn't turn back but simply made an OK gesture to show he understood.

With Old Master Barut gone, the task of guarding the Target Low Temperature Nuclear Fusion Energy Tower naturally fell to him, which, fortunately, didn't conflict much with his regular duties with the mechanics crew and his part-time job with the 'Genuine Fragrance' squadron.

After Chen Fei left, Hanna Gagel examined the mutant biological tissue fragment inside the transparent evidence bag, then dialed a number.

"I have a biological sample here that needs to be tested."

A moment later, one of the manager's subordinates arrived in the office to collect the biological sample.

"Chen Fei, I thought you were gone!"

Chef Abel heartily greeted him as he saw Chen Fei come to pick up his bird.

"Chirp!" Little Bird flapped its wings and flew over, landing on Daddy's shoulder, affectionately chirping incessantly.

This little guy doesn't need any looking after at all.

"Has he been good these past few days?"

Chen Fei tapped the Pure Light Sparrow's little head with his finger.

"Chirp chirp!"

Xiao Jiu playfully pecked at his finger.

Nearly turning into a bird nanny, Chef Abel answered for the little fellow, "Good, of course good, extremely well-behaved!"

Chen Fei said gratefully, "You've had it tough again, Mr. Abel!"

"Oh not at all, it's nothing, I really like this little guy, he's really well-behaved, not hard to take care of at all."

Chef Abel rubbed his hands together, clearly very happy, and suddenly as if he had remembered something, he quickly said, "The pickled eggs you made are ready. I cooked two of them, and they taste particularly amazing."

With that, he immediately gave a thumbs up. The sight of the golden, oily egg yolks was enough to make anyone salivate, perfect to pair with staple foods.

"Then I will take a few to try."

Chen Fei nodded his head. Making salted duck eggs didn't involve much skill; it was either soaking them in strong brine or packing them in a salty mud paste. Either way, salt was indispensable.

"No problem, do you want them steamed? I have a vacuum sealing machine here. I can cook several at once, vacuum seal them, and they will keep for at least three months. How many do you want?"

Chef Abel picked out properly pickled eggs from a glass jar full of strong brine and eggs.

While playing with the little bird, Chen Fei said, "Start with fifty!"

"Eh! You're going to eat them as meals?"

Chef Abel stopped and looked over, puzzled.

Fifty salted duck eggs, how could you eat them every day without getting sick of them?

"To give away!"

"Got it."

No need to pick anymore, exactly fifty in a jar—let everyone have a taste.

Twenty minutes later, fifty salted duck eggs were steamed. To avoid cracking them during steaming, the initial heat increase was quite slow. Only after reaching 75 degrees Celsius did the heating speed up. Once out of the steamer, they were immediately vacuum-sealed while still hot, and then sterilized with UV light.

The kitchen was fully equipped, even having the tools for canning and bottling.

After returning to Xiao Jiu's nest, having not seen it for three days, Chen Fei suddenly felt like the magical beast crystal core inside had shrunk a bit. With a trace of uncertainty, he weighed it using the kitchen scale and indeed, it was 27.32 grams lighter.

Then he placed Xiao Jiu on the scale, and sure enough, it had grown, gaining about fifty grams.

Chef Abel really treated Xiao Jiu like his own precious treasure, pampering it with good food and drink—it was bound to gain weight!

Time to diet!

Chirp?

After distributing the steamed eggs, it was fortunate he had steamed fifty; otherwise, there wouldn't have been enough to go around.

Big Brother Xiao and the mechanics of the mechanic group, the pilots of Genuine Fragrance squadron, and the old soldiers who had been out adventuring with him for several days each received two salted duck eggs to sample. He also reserved four eggs for Teacher Shen Fei, planning to deliver them in the coming days when he had a chance, conveniently using the large tricycle.

Nowadays, though the Aircrew Base had a few fewer Big Mouth Monsters, it had gained eight large tricycles. The workload hadn't decreased at all, and only after it was dark did Chen Fei finish his work. Now also half a mechanic, Division Chief Xiao Ming's stress was significantly relieved.

The other mechanics looked at Chen Fei with a little more recognition in their eyes; this rookie newcomer was finally not just a freeloader and could somewhat contribute.

Returning to the shed drenched in sweat, Xiao Jiu immediately flew out of the nest he had brought back, fluttering among the plants, pecking here and there.

Due to insufficient light, the plants inside the shed were somewhat wilted, no longer as vibrant as before, and despite Chen Fei's care, a number had inevitably died off, not as lush as before, leaving the shed feeling a lot emptier.

Knock knock!

The familiar knocking rhythm.

"Come in, Manager Hanna."

Chen Fei didn't need to turn around to know this drinking buddy had come over again.

"I brought some snacks to have with drinks."

The executive manager carried a bottle of alcohol in one hand and lifted a combined meal box with the other.

The shed where the Target Low Temperature Nuclear Fusion Energy Tower was located had evidently become her secret spot to drink and relieve stress.

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