CHAPTER 868: CHAPTER 868: DECISIVE VICTORY AT AKALE COUNTY!

In the southern part of Akale County, a formidable encounter battle erupted in the wilderness.

On one side was the 370,000th Legion led by Baldwin of the Southern Corps. On the other side was the First Mechanized Division from Jinjaron Harbor, along with two armored regiments from the Tiger Army and Black Panther Army respectively.

The latter’s objective was to advance to the bend of the Everflow River, cutting off the retreat route of the 360,000th Legion of the Southern Corps, while the former’s goal was naturally to prevent the latter from launching a surprise attack on the rear of their allies.

The moment they engaged, intense firefights erupted.

Two "Chimera" armored vehicles were the first to fire "Dove" missiles, successively destroying a Conqueror No. 5 light tank and a Beast wheeled personnel carrier.

The 370,000th Legion of the Southern Corps did not shy away. Two light armored teams quickly moved forward, continuously destroying three "Chimera" armored vehicles of the Jinjaron Harbor Mechanized Division.

Seeing that the armored units of the 370,000th Legion were about to overrun the vanguard forces of the First Mechanized Division of Jinjaron Harbor, a steel torrent composed of over a hundred "Conqueror No.10" tanks suddenly burst into the Southern Corps’ positions!

The two light armored teams had not yet gathered their thoughts when the roaring tank shells penetrated their side armor, exploding into burning scrap metal in the muddy terrain.

"Advance!!!" The commander of the Tiger Army armored regiment roared loudly in the communication channel, leading his troops to first strike at the flank positions of the 370,000th Legion.

Watching their own tanks crashing through, the Weilante soldiers of the 370,000th Legion were dumbfounded.

The Conquerors were supposed to be their tanks.

The Alliance might perhaps have gotten a couple, but how did they manage to gather tanks for two whole thousand teams?!

Facing the limited anti-tank firepower of the Southern Corps, the Conqueror No.10 tanks moved as if in an uninhabited realm, chasing the personnel carriers and reconnaissance vehicles of the former far and wide!

Looking at the damage report from the frontline officers, Baldwin, sitting in command, felt his heart bleeding.

The two light armored teams sent up earlier were his elite forces and direct subordinates!

Seeing the opponents as the natives of Poluo Province, he initially expected his men to snatch a couple of medals, but didn’t foresee two armored battalions suddenly dispatch from the other side!

In a matter of minutes, he had already lost twenty Beast wheeled personnel carriers, five Grey Dogs, and two armored troop carriers.

Seeing that his two light armored teams were about to crash and burn, he unhesitatingly grabbed the communicator and roared loudly.

"Light armored teams, retreat! First Thousand Team, go up! Break their tracks for me!"

"Support teams, prepare to fire! Use armor-piercing grenades! Aim for the tanks with broken tracks!"

With the orders issued, the two light armored teams of the 370,000th Legion quickly maneuvered toward the rear, replaced by rows of Weilante soldiers holding anti-tank weapons charging forward.

Throughout the wilderness, the only available cover were the undulating field ridges.

They moved along the edge of the ridges, using their anti-tank rocket launchers to counterattack, covering their light armored units’ retreat.

Meanwhile, more than a thousand Clone soldiers of the Glory Army also grabbed simple anti-tank weapons, launching suicidal raids against the armored regiment of the Tiger Army.

The mountains and plains were filled with shouts of war, yet the chaotic charge collided head-on with the sweeping 37mm fragmentation shells.

Explosive fire blossomed in the fields, accompanied by flying flesh and shrapnel.

The Clone soldiers fell like harvested wheat, yet under the Centurion’s urging, they were forced to keep their eyes wide open and advance.

A brutal slaughter unfolded.

The First Mechanized Division of Jinjaron Harbor, shielded by allies, immediately halted their retreat.

The leading twenty "Chimera" armored vehicles quickly turned their turrets, synced with the pace of the Tiger Army’s armored forces’ advance, using 37mm guns to help tanks eliminate approaching infantry, while firing "Dove" missiles to pursue fleeing "Conqueror" No.5 light tanks.

In contrast, the 370,000th Legion of the Southern Corps found themselves in a tough battle.

Neither the recoilless guns held by the anti-tank groups nor the Glory Army Clone soldiers charging with anti-tank grenades and "Iron Fist" rocket launchers could do anything against the Conqueror No.10 heavy tanks.

Intercalated armor’s defense against armor-piercing shells was almost absolute, whereas the small guns on the Conqueror No.5 light tanks couldn’t even scrape a layer off the Conqueror No.10, at best breaking its tracks.

Long ago, the Alliance conducted an experiment, having two Conqueror No.10 tanks fire at each other, resulting in all ammunition expended without either side damaging the other.

In terms of weapon design philosophy, the Corps and the South Sea Union seemed like opposite extremes.

The latter’s philosophy was mutual balance, whereas the former seemed never to have considered a scenario of internal conflict.

In this aspect, the Weilante people were indeed very united.

However, when betrayal occurred, this unity unexpectedly became a burden.

These Conqueror No.10 tanks were sold by arms dealers from the Death Coast of the Eastern Legion, turned over to the military faction of Tiger State and Leopard State!

The First Mechanized Division of Jinjaron Harbor quickly gained the upper hand, but their opponents were not easy to deal with after all.

The Tiger Army’s armored regiment soon found their offensive stalling after advancing for a while.

Several tanks got stuck in the mire due to excessive weight, and nearly five tanks had their tracks severed.

The region around Akale County was originally a floodplain; the soil was loose and sandy, coinciding with the current rainy season. Continuous rains over several days resulted in even muddier soil.

Seeing the tanks trapped in the wilderness, Centurion Baldwin immediately ordered the self-propelled guns to open fire.

One by one, 200mm armor-piercing grenades, guided by infantry points, bombarded the tank-filled wilderness.

A Conqueror No.10 soon became the unfortunate target.

An armor-piercing grenade struck the very center of the turret, driving down into the cabin.

The explosion sent thick smoke skyward, along with shrapnel from the ammunition racks exploded in sympathy.

The tank crew inside were instantly killed, unable to leave even a single intact corpse.

Witnessing the plight of their allies, the crew members of stuck tanks were forced to abandon their vehicles and flee.

"Blast them into bits! Hit them hard!" Baldwin shouted, eyes blood-red, face filled with a cruel smile as he watched the fleeing Poluo people.

Dazed!

Artillery is the ace of the Southern Corps!

The invincibility of the Conqueror No.10 isn’t in an absolute sense, but a relative one.

They aren’t entirely powerless against the Conqueror No.10!

The tumultuous artillery fire continued, and soon another Conqueror No.10 turret launched skyward.

Yet Baldwin’s delight was short-lived, as suddenly the distant artillery noise mixed with several ear-splitting explosions.

Those were not the sounds of self-propelled guns firing, but explosions from artillery shells!

Baldwin’s cruel smile gradually froze on his face, especially when he saw a wisp of thick smoke rising from the artillery position, his heart skipped a beat sensing doom.

"Damn it!"

He cursed angrily, immediately grabbing the communicator to reach the support team.

"What was that explosion?! What happened over there?!"

His words had barely fallen when a series of denser explosions came again from the direction of the artillery position, and this time the smoke wasn’t just a wisp, but an entire cloud!

Even as dim-witted as he was, Baldwin got it — the previous explosion was a coordinate adjustment bombardment.

And this upcoming salvo was the real deal!

The noisy static and rumbling artillery sounds simultaneously transmitted through the communication channel, and the Centurion of the support team shouted in disarray.

"We’ve been hit with artillery fire! It’s from the artillery position of the 360,000th Legion! Damn, make them stop!"

"The 360,000th Corps?!"

Baldwin momentarily froze, his mind blank, countless possibilities flashed through his thoughts until only one remained.

The allied artillery position was wiped out!

The fifty-two "Fire Crossbow" self-propelled guns that were supposed to be aimed at their enemies were now aimed at them!

Cold sweat slid down Baldwin’s forehead, and in just three seconds, he made his final decision, holding the communicator and shouting loudly.

"Glory Army, continue to intercept the enemy! Hold them at all costs!!"

"All remaining units retreat westward! Regroup in the southern part of Reedbull County!"

With the retreat order given, the Weilante troops, engaged in firefight with the First Mechanized Infantry Division of Jin Carson Port, began withdrawing from the battlefield.

Even though many thousand teams still held clear advantages, they nonetheless retreated without hesitation, replaced by the clone soldiers’ charge.

The latter were quickly annihilated, while the Weilante people took the opportunity created by them to quickly board the armored troop carriers.

Due to the hurried retreat, they couldn’t even gather the bodies of fallen allies, leaving them and the dropped equipment scattered on the battlefield.

Armored troop carriers rapidly departed the battlefield, abandoning a line spanning several kilometers in width...

Though somewhat disgraceful, it had to be admitted Baldwin made a wise decision.

Because soon after they started retreating, the burning white phosphorus descended on their positions, raining from north to south.

Having captured the self-propelled guns, Yocale’s subordinates showed no mercy, immediately resorting to the fiercest measures.

If they had left a minute later, those Weilante soldiers lying behind the ridge would have been rolling in flames and mud, unable to escape nor perish...

Watching the sea of flames boiling and the charred corpses, the Jin Carson Port soldiers lying behind the ridge showed surprise in their eyes.

"Weilante has... retreated."

Several Jin Carson Port soldiers exchanged glances, seeing disbelief etched on each other’s faces.

"Damn..."

A young man swallowed hard, muttering softly.

"...We actually won."

No one could believe it was true.

Whether the soldiers on the front lines or the officers commanding from behind, their faces were filled with amazement.

Before stepping onto the battlefield, they never dreamed they could defeat the legion in a frontal battle, but unexpectedly, they had really won.

After the flames extinguished, an old soldier tentatively stood up, explored the area for a while, and found no trace of the Weilante people on the opposite side, only abandoned equipment and unfinished corpses.

Unable to contain his excitement, he raised his rifle and shouted loudly.

"Victory!!!"

That excited exclamation quickly turned into mountainous, wild roars.

"We won!!!"

"Woohoo!!!"

Meanwhile, the Weilante soldiers riding on the armored troop carriers had faces filled with humiliation.

They actually lost to a group of natives!

"Damn..."

A Weilante soldier angrily punched his knee guard, making a dull thud.

The soldiers sitting by his side remained silent, their faces heavy and expressionless.

Baldwin in the command vehicle was the same, but his heavy expression was not just from temporary defeat, but from being unable to reach the allied forces next door.

Since the shelling began, he tried to contact Ten Thousand Leader Wolfe but found it impossible.

"Damn!"

He slammed the communicator onto the table, his gloomy face even darker.

Sitting next to him, the adjutant spoke in a heavy tone.

"The 360,000th Corps likely faces more danger than good luck... Worst case, perhaps even the command post has been wiped out."

"What was that fool doing!"

Baldwin cursed and then looked into the distant sky at a faint, floating figure.

To lose a battle right under the iron airship’s nose! Truly disgraceful for the legion! Better shoot himself to end it!

...

As Baldwin predicted, the situation of the 360,000th Corps was indeed grim.

Firstly, on the support troops’ side, fifty-two self-propelled guns had just adjusted their firing coordinates ready to support their battle when the Burning Corps sneaked up and disarmed them.

It was the most frustrating battle; Alliance soldiers in power armor killed right up to Thousand Leader Toran’s face!

Faced with the dark muzzles, Toran, though startled, didn’t hesitate, decisively raised his hands and surrendered.

Surrounding them were not only the Burning Corps but also the 110,000 Squad of Poluo Country wearing legion-standard exoskeletons.

Relying solely on their support units’ combat power, there was absolutely no hope of breaking through.

Even if one were to resist desperately, it would serve no purpose other than pointless sacrifice.

"...Give it up, Phil, this battle is theirs," glancing at his adjutant still trying to draw his gun to resist, Toran said in a calm tone.

"But..."

"Even if you won’t think for yourself, consider your subordinates. They have families too."

Hearing the officer say this, the adjutant named Phil reluctantly handed over his sidearm in humiliation.

Taking the pistol, Old White looked at the Thousand Leader named Toran, raising an eyebrow.

"I like people who know the times, because it saves us a lot of time."

Seeing the handcuffs handed by soldiers, Toran obediently extended his hands.

Yet, just before being led away, he suddenly seemed to recall something and spoke.

"Are you the corps head of the Burning Corps?"

Seeing the NPC look at him, Old White nodded and straightforwardly said.

"Yes."

Toran pondered for a moment.

"May I dare ask a question?"

Old White: "Go ahead and ask."

Toran glanced at the group of Poluo Country soldiers wearing Army equipment not far away and spoke in a leisurely voice.

"I can’t understand... what benefits did they give you to make you help them."

Old White replied simply.

"Because without doing this, the Wasteland won’t end."

Hearing this unexpected answer, Toran was clearly taken aback.

"...The Wasteland won’t end?"

"That’s right," Old White nodded, then glanced at the self-propelled gun not far away and raised his chin, "Can that thing end the Wasteland?"

"As long as there are enough of them, it can indeed be done," the officer named Phil retorted, staring intently at Old White, "At the very least, they can clear out you meddlesome Ground Squirrels."

Old White didn’t get angry but laughed gently as he replied.

"Is that so? Then your Wasteland should have ended a long time ago; why come here to seek sunlit land? I guess the survivors on the Wasteland must be scrambling to get to your place rather than dodging you like cockroaches."

Toran suddenly laughed aloud.

"If there really were such a person, I bet they’re definitely crazy."

Phil looked at his superior in shock, seemingly unable to believe those words came out of his mouth.

At this unexpected reply, Old White looked at the Centurion named Toran more, raising his eyebrow lightly.

It seems not all Weilante people are mad; some are still normal...

All fifty-two self-propelled guns were seized; Van leader Yakale commanded his men to aim their guns at the Weilante gunners, forcing them to set new firing data based on the coordinates provided by the First Mechanized Infantry Division of King Carson Port, then launched a fierce bombardment on the artillery positions of the 370,000th Legion.

What happened next was precisely as Centurion Baldwin saw.

Facing tanks rushing from the front and artillery from the rear, the 370,000th Legion could only break into pieces to flee.

Compared to being completely routed, breaking into pieces was just a more euphemistic term.

Luckily, they ran fast.

If they’d run any slower, they might not have had the chance to escape.

The collapse of the 370,000th Legion and the downfall of the support team for the 360,000th Legion were just the beginning.

Facing the combined assault of the Death Legion and the 30,000th Boloro Team, the eight thousand teams that crossed the river also suffered heavy casualties.

Confronted with the Death Legion’s insertions and encirclement, nearly ten thousand soldiers deep into the forest were forcibly split in half!

One part of the troops was surrounded on a hill less than five kilometers from the riverbank due to rash advancement, while the other recently reinforced part was stuck by the riverbank, caught between advancing or retreating.

Especially the latter was most tragic.

With floating bridges being destroyed one after another, the Weilante people stationed on the riverbank had lost their retreat and could only face the volleys coming from the forest in despair, suffering increasingly heavy casualties.

Some couldn’t endure the fear and failing to find a shelter, turned around and jumped into the Everflow River, attempting to swim back to the west side of the river.

Blood stained the riverbank; bodies lay all over the east bank of the Everflow River!

Among them were Clones and Weilante people, some died from machine gun fire, others were unlucky enough to be hit by shrapnel from mortar shells or had their insides shattered.

Explosions rang out continuously; eventually, the airship dropped its anchor chain, bombarding the ground with cannons to try to block the Death Legion’s encirclement of the 360,000th Legion.

However, not long after, dense smoke blocking signals began to drift in the forest.

The airborne artillery lost guidance from ground forces along with direct targeting visibility and could only watch the dense fog in the woods while staring.

The Southern Corps Aviation Team that flew from West Sail Port faced the same issue; twenty "Daggers" reached the battlefield overhead. However, without guidance from ground troops, they couldn’t engage quickly.

Including the "Peidao" arriving from the direction of Evernight Harbor.

The latter was especially frustrated, lacking ground support methods, and after shooting two clips of cannons, it could only regretfully withdraw.

Ultimately, the cannon of the Horn Number proved most useful, bombarding the edges of the smoke one after another, inadvertently killing many Alliance soldiers amidst the chaos.

Nonetheless, those guys seemed endless, charging toward the face of their ground troops under howling artillery, determined to take one down even in death.

Faced with such an unyielding momentum, the 360,000th Legion was utterly stunned.

Many young men from the colonies were experiencing such a brutal battlefield for the first time.

Those faces no longer showed the pride they had upon first entering the battlefield, only panic and fear.

There were no medals they longed for here.

Only the omnipresent death!

Not only those young men fighting at the frontline but also the commanding officers stationed at the rear.

In truth, as the war had reached this point, there was no longer any distinction between front and rear; the entire forest was filled with whizzing bullets and gunfire.

However, not everyone was as "cowardly" as Centurion Toran, for example, the first to cross the river, Taote, who stubbornly declared he’d rather die than surrender.

Seeing almost all of his forces beaten, his eyes turned blood-red, and instead of feeling any retreat, he charged along with his guard team.

"No retreat! Everyone hold the line! Our reinforcements are on the way!"

"Damn it! Everyone, pull yourselves together!"

Although the 360,000th Legion had taken heavy blows, he believed the Alliance and Poluo Country were similarly suffering heavy casualties!

Those bodies scattered throughout the forest weren’t all Weilante people; quite a few were Alliance or Poluo people.

If he retreated now, those fallen brethren would have truly died in vain.

Even for the dignity of the Weilante people, he wouldn’t allow himself to withdraw at this time.

However, just then, a burst of gunfire swept from his front side.

Two guards were instantly killed, and another two were shot in the chest and thighs, bleeding profusely as they fell to the ground.

Taote drew his pistol, but before he could unlock the safety, he was kicked to the ground.

He reached out for the fallen pistol but was stopped by a military boot stepping on his wrist.

"Ah!"

Taote let out a painful scream as Edge Shoveling held the LD-47 rifle with a bayonet backward, stabbing it heavily beside his ear.

"It’s over. Tell your men to surrender."

"Surrender... hehe..."

Taote smiled through the pain, his twisted face covered with mud like a demon crawling from a swamp.

"...Dream on!"

Guessing he’d say that, Edge Shoveling clicked his tongue but said nothing.

Whether this guy surrendered or not wouldn’t change the outcome of this battle.

Just as he said.

It has already ended.

The roar of fighter planes flew overhead, two "Thunder" aircraft carved two brilliant blue lights in the sky, stabbing towards the circling "Daggers" in the air.

Those propeller planes flocked towards the iron airships seeking protection, while the latter hurriedly raised cannons and air-to-air missiles, guarding against those two brilliant blue lights.

Falling Feather, piloting the Thunder aircraft, did not approach the firing range of the airship but instead turned along the edge of the range and, along with the wingman, fired thirty-two unguided rockets.

The rockets did not fly towards the airship but accelerated directly toward the anchor chain below the airship.

Although the deflection shield based on graviton technology covered the entire airship, it clearly did not envelop the anchor chain below the airship into the shield.

John, standing inside the ship’s bridge, noticed the intention of the Alliance aircraft and immediately ordered the anti-aircraft guns to fire.

Locust-like shells burst into an impenetrable cloud in the air, yet compared to the rockets’ speed of breaking through Mach three, they were still a step slower.

Rockets with trailing flames pierced through the dense fragmentation cloud like javelins!

Although most skimmed past the side of the anchor chain, five or six still crashed into the steel pod tied with the man-thick anchor chain and iron chain!

The explosive flash cleaved the anchor chain into two segments, and the kinetic energy of the explosion made the airship’s towering body sway.

The steel pod, which was being released downward, crashed heavily on the ground, rising billowing dust on the plains.

Watching the steel pod fall, Taote, lying on the ground, finally showed a hint of despair on his face.

In his perception, the Legion’s iron airship was invincible, unbeatable!

Yet the reality that came into his eyes brutally shattered his faith.

Not only did despair appear on Taote’s face, but Wolfe, who was about to board the pod, also had the same expression.

He could never return.

The First Mechanized Infantry Division of Jinjaron Harbor had already reached his face, and at this moment, only two thousand teams remained on the west bank.

With just these two thousand teams, they simply couldn’t hold off those fierce guys like starving wolves!

And indeed, that’s how it was, twenty "Chimera" armored vehicles first charged to the west bank at the river turn of the Everflow, and the 37mm rapid-fire cannons sprayed wildly, quickly beating the light infantry guarding the riverbank into a frantic scramble.

As the two armored regiments cut to the relatively high terrain on the west side, Wolfe in the command vehicle completely gave up the idea of escaping.

A white flag rose from the command vehicle, and he reluctantly issued the order to surrender.

Listening to the voice on the communication channel, the ferocity on Taote’s face finally turned to despair.

"I said, it’s over."

Not wanting to mock this guy, Edge Shoveling just teased him with a sentence, then picked up the handgun fallen by his side.

With a mud-stained face expressionlessly looking at him, suddenly squeezed out a phrase from dry, cracked lips.

"Kill me."

Edge Shoveling chuckled softly.

"We don’t kill prisoners."

Taote’s emotions suddenly became agitated, he stumbled to get up from the ground.

"Then give me back my gun!"

However, before his words fell, he was knocked to the ground by a gun stock.

The one who acted was a soldier from Poluo Country.

He glared at the officer with murderous eyes, wishing he could chop off the guy’s head.

Since the Lion City massacre, to him, all the Weilante people were the same.

He only wished he could kill them all!

However, Edge Shoveling did not give Taote the "glorious" opportunity, reaching out to stop the allied brother preparing to take action.

Walking up to Taote, he looked down at this guy panting in the mud like a wild dog.

"...I won’t do that either. We will let you live until this war ends, and then let the victims of this war judge you, making you carry your sins to hell to repent."

Without sparing another glance at the guy, Edge Shoveling simply urged to "keep an eye on the man" and then walked away.

The battle on the ground had ended.

Whether it was the Weilante people trapped by the river or those gathered on the hills, they ultimately chose to surrender.

Maybe considering allied casualties, maybe to save ammunition, the airship hovering in the sky ultimately did not fire, instead retreating westward to regroup with the main forces and try to regain the scene later.

Watching the airship departing further and further away, Yishel expressed disbelief.

"...We actually won."

"Don’t be too proud, it’s just this round."

Standing on the edge of the hillside, Edge Shoveling looked up into the distance, squinting slightly.

In that pitch-black cloud layer, a hint of unnoticeable coldness was faintly discernible.

He knew where that coldness came from.

Just as they were achieving victory, four airships no less capable than the Horn Number had arrived at West Sail Port and were heading towards the eastern front.

This information was obtained from intelligence provided by the South Sea Union’s allied forces, which Falling Feather confirmed.

Currently, this news has already been synchronized on the official forum of "Wasteland OL".

Seeing the serious expression of Edge Shoveling, Yishel also retracted the underestimation on his face, becoming serious and earnest.

"...What should we do next?"

"Next... of course, we celebrate."

Seeing the on-edge Yishel, Edge Shoveling suddenly relaxed his brow, smiling as he reached out to pat his shoulder.

"Cheer up, we just won a battle, and according to our allied forces, they caught a big fish under that airship, a centurion they say."

"Is it the centurion of the 360,000-strong Legion?!" Yishel instantly showed a delighted expression.

It’s no wonder he’s so excited!

After all, until yesterday, they had been one-sidedly beaten by the Legion.

So many officers of the Poluo Country had died in battle, they could hardly count with two hands, and now they finally had a moment of pride.

Although captured by the Alliance, it made no difference!

"Yes, that bastard, a jerk who underestimated us, I have to thank him later... thanks to his stubborn head, wanting to cross this river."

Looking at Yishel’s delighted face, Edge Shoveling smiled and patted his shoulder.

"What did I say before? That airship isn’t scary at all."

"Everything will get better slowly."