Chapter 58: The City Alliance, Assemble!
Li Ye nodded repeatedly as he read.
In this way, the Tarot League's ultimate trump card had been laid bare before his eyes. He now had a comprehensive understanding of the predator alliance's overall strength.
At the same time, he could not help but emit a sigh of emotion.
One could only say that the Predator City Alliance was indeed well-endowed, possessing such a vast number of Level 2 items.
Yet, when averaged out, a single predator city didn't even possess a single Level 2 item.
This indirectly confirmed the extreme scarcity of Level 2 items.
Among them, the one that made Li Ye's scalp tingle the most was the final Level 2 item.
This meant that everything within a radius of 200 kilometers was crystal clear to the Tarot League, allowing this predator city alliance to launch hunts with pinpoint precision and efficiency!
The only flaw was that the energy consumption of this powerful Level 2 item was truly astonishing.
Merely activating it consumed 20% of their energy, while maintaining it required an additional 40% per hour. Even with the Tarot League's deep reserves, continuous all-weather operation was simply impossible.
Following that, Li Ye recalled two specific events.
The Morning Star's encounter with the Hanged Man, the Chariot, and the Magician in the urban ruins, and its encounter with the Devil, the Lovers, and the Tower at the edge of the forest.
Looking back now, these two encounters were no coincidence; they were meticulously arranged hunts orchestrated by the Tarot League using radar positioning.
Yet, what they had failed to anticipate was that the Morning Star's firepower was far more formidable than that of an average mobile city, and it even possessed a Level 2 vehicle, the Storm Infantry Fighting Vehicle, allowing it to narrowly escape two encirclements against all odds.
Regaining his composure, Li Ye glanced at the seventh piece of intelligence.
This legendary intelligence was still in the process of refreshing, and its refresh time would presumably take even longer than the epic intelligence.
"Let's put that aside for now; I need to figure out my next countermeasure," he muttered to himself.
Initially, Li Ye's purpose in entering the forest was to explore the region, gather resources, develop gradually, and eventually prepare to head toward the Silent Lake.
Joining the Vanguard Alliance was merely a means to acquire more intelligence and increase his chances of survival.
Had it been a routine situation where Li Ye was asked to contribute effort and resources while enjoying the intelligence benefits as a group member, he naturally would have agreed. However, he had no intention of getting dragged into an all-out war between two city alliances.
Right now, he had virtually no choice left.
The Tarot League possessed the Skyspan Radar System; in their eyes, the Morning Star—equipped with two types of Level 1 cannons, a Level 2 infantry fighting vehicle, and a series of Level 1 resources—was a mouth-watering prize.
The Morning Star had already been targeted, and the future would undoubtedly bring even more intense encirclements.
Currently, the only entity capable of standing against them was the Vanguard Alliance.
Li Ye clenched his fists, silently resolving himself.
Before the Tarot League made their move, he would unite with the Vanguard Alliance to prepare, and strike back when they least expected it!
...
"Huh? We're setting off right now?" Tang Fang asked in the cab, looking bewildered. "Brother Li, didn't you tell us earlier that we were going to rest and recuperate here for two or three days?"
Li Ye shook his head, a wave of melancholy washing over him.
Upon learning that the Tarot League possessed an urban radar system, his sense of insecurity had reached its absolute peak.
He had originally thought the Morning Star could fish in troubled waters within this labyrinthine forest, but he never expected that his every move might be under the enemy's watchful eyes.
Now, reuniting with the Vanguard Alliance as quickly as possible was the only safe course.
In a matter of minutes, three predator cities—or perhaps even more—might descend to encircle him!
Looking at the towns and bazaars passing by, Li Ye couldn't help but shake his head.
These people probably had no idea that this safe zone wasn't safe at all, and that the Tarot League could launch an offensive at any moment.
Accompanied by a deep roar, the Morning Star slowly started up and veered onto a fork in the road.
When the clock struck six, Li Ye logged into the A4 communication channel.
By this time, the A4 communication channel was already active, and all members had joined.
Before anyone else could start chatting, Li Ye took the initiative to broadcast a message.
[Morning Star: Everyone, I have urgent news to share. My informant planted within the Tarot League has uncovered a crucial piece of intelligence.]
[Morning Star: The Tarot League possesses a Level 2 item, the "Skyspan" urban radar system. It can detect and navigate anything within hundreds of kilometers, and share the data with members via city radio. This forest is no longer safe.]
[Moon Shadow: ?]
[Echo: What? Are you joking?]
[Vanguard: Wait, this might be true. A few hours ago, the Bronze Wanderer and I were ambushed by three Tarot members. They seemed to know our route in advance and were lying in wait.]
[Roamer: What should we do next then? Escape the forest at full speed, or go to war with them?]
[Vanguard: The terrain in this forest is intricate and complex. If everyone chooses to scatter and flee, it's equivalent to giving up the chance to resist. Besides, since the enemy possesses a radar system capable of detecting us at any time, escaping will be exceedingly difficult.]
[Bronze Wanderer: I understand your point, Boss. Let's prepare for war.]
[Morning Star: My thoughts are exactly the same as yours.]
[Echo: Hurry over, Morning Star. Everyone has arrived; you're the only one missing.]
What? They had all assembled?
Li Ye was startled.
He wasn't entirely surprised, however, because during yesterday's communication, Vanguard had specifically instructed Moon Shadow to fire signal flares into the sky at regular intervals to guide the scattered members in the forest to rendezvous.
Even though this carried the risk of exposing their own location.
[Moon Shadow: By the way, I also discovered a massive open space not far away. That place is called the Twisted Garden, formerly the habitat of the giant Treants.]
[Vanguard: Then let's use the Twisted Garden as our decisive battleground against the Tarot League. Oh, and I almost forgot to introduce a new member to you all.]
A new member?
Li Ye subconsciously looked at the member list, noticing it had changed to [8/9].
The new member was named "Industrial".
[Industrial: Hello, everyone.]
[Vanguard: Tell everyone a bit about your functions.]
[Industrial: I can be considered a pioneer-type mobile city, specialized in constructing fortifications, repairing vehicles, and servicing mobile cities. However, my firepower is very weak, possessing only standard cannons and ordinary heavy machine guns, in numbers so small they are practically negligible.]
Li Ye fell into deep thought.
Although the Vanguard Alliance currently had nine members, the Horizon had already departed for the desert region and gone offline, and the Sea Gull was developing in the forest labyrinth and unable to make it, leaving only seven members capable of entering combat.
The Tarot League's Hanged Man had been eliminated by him, leaving them with eleven predator cities.
Seven against eleven—they were at a numerical disadvantage. Coupled with the enemy's arsenal of Level 2 items, their chances of winning were truly slim.
"Since a decision has been made, there's no need for excessive hesitation."
He murmured under his breath.
"Let's risk it all right here."
Though his mind was made up, a heavy expression inevitably settled across his face.
He could scarcely imagine just how intense a war involving dozens of mobile cities would ultimately become.
Hours later, Li Ye arrived at the safe zone.
At this very moment, Vanguard and a host of other mobile cities were parked within the safe zone, each conducting personnel redeployments and maintenance.
Li Ye picked up his binoculars and began to carefully observe these mobile cities.