Ou Zhanpeng heard many secrets from Shan Qiuyu. While surprised, he didn't dwell on it too much.
However, in the following days, he received several situation reports about monster attacks. Only two of these attacks occurred on the southern border, while over a dozen happened worldwide.
Not only did surveillance cameras capture the attacks, but eyewitnesses also saw and filmed the small dogs.
The news spread rapidly online, and it wasn't long before someone identified the creature. A wag, giving it a very fitting name: Xun Dog!
What followed was a viral, rapid spread of information.
Netizens expressed their shock in comments. One eyewitness described them: "They are brutal, swift, and ferocious. They snapped Old John's neck with a single bite. I could even hear the sound of teeth breaking bone. My God – I couldn't believe my eyes. Is this an alien invasion, or a game invasion? How can monsters from a game appear?"
A netizen commented below: "Your God told you to pick up your weapon and save yourself!"
Some doubted the authenticity of the rumors: "Is it real? Another game promotion, right? The art style is too realistic, not my cup of tea."
All sorts of wild speculation and imagination filled the internet. What was supposed to be a top-secret, confidential matter, turned into an open secret overnight.
The lid was completely blown off. The inhabitants of Blue Star simultaneously intervened and controlled public opinion to prevent the spread of panic. However, as surveillance footage continued to circulate, more and more people began to change their understanding.
The rampant spread of news even affected the base. One evening, Xu Qing casually mentioned, "The internet is saying that the alien species isn't making sea monsters anymore and has started making something called Xun Dogs. Have you heard about it?"
Ou Zhanpeng's heart skipped a beat. "Who did you hear that from?" His first reaction was that something was wrong – who had leaked the secret?
Xu Qing pouted in dissatisfaction, "I told you, I heard it online. Haven't you been watching the news lately?"
Ou Zhanpeng quickly faked a cough to cover his awkwardness. "Well, I have been watching the news. I just didn't expect you to be interested in this kind of news. Don't girls like gossip and entertainment news?"
"Who are you looking down on?" Xu Qing was not suspicious. "Hey, what do you think the alien species is thinking?"
"It's not strange," Ou Zhanpeng said. "Sea monsters are large and easy targets. They look fierce, but no matter how big they are, they are still flesh and blood. As long as we are prepared, both ground fire and aerial platforms can effectively destroy them. Xun Dogs are different. They are small, fast, and stealthy. Just thinking about it, you know these things are difficult to deal with."
"Oh, you're quite articulate about it?" Xu Qing looked surprised. "Hearing you say that, I'm actually a little worried."
Ou Zhanpeng secretly cursed himself. How did he accidentally reveal what he had been thinking about these past few days?
Fortunately, Xu Qing didn't think too deeply, nor did she realize the hidden information in Ou's words.
In the period that followed, the situation worsened across various regions. The casualties in the mouths of Xun Dogs increased, and even the troops responsible for clearing the dog packs suffered some losses.
It wasn't a problem with command, nor was it that the soldiers were not acting. It was because all the military training was designed with humans as the hypothetical enemy, and never for animals.
As Xun Dogs were biological weapons controlled by an alien species, their behavior patterns and attack methods were vastly different from humans. Using methods meant for humans against Xun Dogs was like trying to fit two gears of mismatched sizes; they simply wouldn't mesh.
Although the military quickly identified the problem and made corrections, the effect was very limited.
Feedback from the front lines revealed that the best method to deal with Xun Dogs was actually mine-laying!
But the southern border was vast, and the boundary was long. Xun Dogs could infiltrate through any remote corner. Could the military seal off the entire border with minefields?
It was simply unrealistic!
Conversely, if they couldn't seal it off completely, then the blockade would be meaningless. The dog packs could completely bypass minefields, and even avoid cities near the border, to launch more attacks deep inland.
At that point, it wouldn't just be the border facing problems, but the rear areas would also be greatly affected. This was a result that the higher-ups absolutely could not accept.
To deal with the series of problems caused by Xun Dogs, the military acted swiftly, sealing off all areas where Xun Dogs had been discovered and prohibiting anyone from approaching.
Then, a large number of technicians rushed to the border and set up hundreds of radar stations along the frontier. Satellites connected all these radar stations into a dynamic monitoring network, comprehensively monitoring the situation in the border areas. Any creature entering the monitoring network would be completely exposed on radar.
However, monitoring neither solved the root cause nor the symptoms; it only indirectly provided an understanding of the general distribution of Xun Dogs.
Next, the military implemented a large-scale mobile strike plan, relying on the dynamic monitoring network.
Simply put, it involved helicopters patrolling the blockade zone. Once the monitoring network detected abnormal situations, drones would be immediately deployed to carry out precise strikes on the targets.
This was a very mature jungle combat tactic. The preparations and personnel were already in place, ready to be deployed immediately.
If it were a new tactic, it would be different. Regardless of the effectiveness, the preparation of equipment and training of personnel would take a considerable amount of time, and what the military lacked most at the moment was precisely time!
Initially, this tactic did achieve some results, but the Xun Dogs quickly learned to evade drones. It was analyzed that Xun Dogs had very sensitive hearing and smell, and it was highly probable that they had remembered the sound of drones and would evade them as soon as they approached.
Another viewpoint suggested that since the setting was copied from a game, perhaps Xun Dogs would dig holes and hide underground?
Ou Zhanpeng could easily imagine a Xun Dog running in the jungle, suddenly stopping, pricking up its ears, quickly digging a hole, and hiding in it, thus evading the drone.
To cope with the rapidly deteriorating situation, the military had to shift its focus, establishing thousands of automatic firing points along the county and township roads, and the strategic roads near the border. Once the dynamic monitoring system detected a target, it would immediately send data to nearby firing points, activating the guns to kill the target.
However, the southern region was known for its excellent environment and dense vegetation, providing excellent cover. The defensive effectiveness of the automatic firing points was not as outstanding as imagined. Some firing points were even damaged by Xun Dogs.
To put it bluntly, the dog packs were engaging in guerrilla warfare with the military, usually dispersed and hidden in the jungle, only gathering temporarily when launching attacks. Unless the gathered Xun Dogs were discovered by chance and timely firepower was applied, it was difficult to eliminate the dog packs.
Furthermore, these creatures were very alert. Any slight disturbance would cause them to disperse immediately, making them even more slippery than loaches and bringing great difficulty to the military's clearing operations.