NOVPUBThe heavy firepower weapons located within the central and rear army formations opened fire, missiles of various sorts streaked across the sky in arcs, falling into what seemed like an endless sea of bugs.
Even the much-depleted array of weapons managed to unleash a far from sparse bombardment across the battlefield.
Different from the first two strikes, the troops, under Bai E's command, went all out as soon as they engaged.
Only a swift attack could minimize the losses to our own soldiers.
Watching those missile vehicles recklessly blast away their limited ammunition in one go, without considering the possibility of encountering stronger enemies later, the five members of the messenger squad in the rearmost armored vehicle nearly laughed out loud.
They even thought about grabbing the people in their vehicle and making a quick getaway to avoid being devoured in one bite by the counterattacking bugs.
'Have these Blackwater City people never really hurt these bugs before?'
Knowing that the main force of the Bug Race has never been these numerous but actually dispensable worker bugs, wasp bugs, and mantis bugs.
If one just considers this lowly bug tidal wave to represent the full strength of the bugs and therefore uses all their firepower on it, then there's little point in continuing this expedition.
We were just half-convinced that Blackwater City might have their special tactics or some special understanding.
But now it's clear they're just country bumpkins who have never fought a major head-on battle with the bugs!
You don't fight the Bug Race like this.
You need to keep enough reserve firepower to deal with the big ones that show up later, deploy super soldiers with strong breakthrough and entanglement capabilities, and have a large number of elite fighters to stabilize the central and rear army formations.
Only the soldiers filling in at the front line have the right to be mediocre.
As for Blackwater City, apart from the last point, it seems they're lacking in all the others, right?
We might as well retreat early.
But as the high-ranking city officials of Blackwater City excitedly watched the battle on the live screens, the five messengers could only forcefully suppress the urge to voice their opinions.
After all, their armored vehicle was at the very rear of the rear army; even if the entire army were wiped out, those bugs couldn't touch their heads.
Letting these country bumpkins broaden their horizons and see the gap in strength between their city and the imperial capital would be beneficial.
Only in this way, when the great armies of the imperial capital might come to their aid in the future, could everyone in this city willingly join the new empire, offering up their complete devotion to become a cog in its machine.
Lost in thought, the battlefront on the live feed pushed forward.
The directions given to the artillerymen in the rear were to fire off their ammunition as fast as possible; anyone who couldn't finish would be shot on the spot.
Under such orders, every cannon, every rocket vehicle, summoned their full strength to shoot all the ammunition on board toward the Bug Race's encampment.
Amidst the explosive barrages, countless bug limbs and bodily fluids flew chaotically through the air.
Human tanks, armed infantry vehicles, and so on, advanced swiftly, pushing the frontline perilously close to the core of the bug nest right from the outset.
"Good! Well done!" Inside the armored vehicle, some high-ranking city officials witnessing their first battle clenched their fists, feeling exhilarated.
That's how humans should fight the bugs—boldly and with determination, pushing onward.
The messenger squad leader sneered silently, without making any comment.
The arrogance now would be paid for with lives!
Sure enough!
As the human army advanced, the low-level bug sea got pushed back to their home by artillery before they could even mount a push.
The behemoths that might have been planning to watch for a while began to reveal themselves.
Thick cannon barrels brewed up deadly attacks, targeting the vulnerable belly of the human formation from a great distance.
The human front had pushed so quickly that the sand worm units hadn't even reached their positions, making a direct launch less profitable.
They awaited those burrowing sand worms, planning to wreak havoc on the human army's rear in conjunction with the bombardment's chaos.
Seeing the emergence of the so-called "Thunderbeasts" starting their assault in the drone surveillance footage, the messengers subconsciously looked around, expecting to see a hint of panic on the unenlightened faces of these Blackwater City bumpkins.
Unfortunately, whether dumbstruck or utterly clueless, the high-level officials of Blackwater City showed no reaction whatsoever to the newly appeared "Thunderbeasts" or even the three crimson "Nest Guardians" that followed close behind them.
They were still solely focused on the images of their own troops in the feed, seemingly waiting for something—they didn't know what.
Waiting to die?
The messenger squad leader couldn't help but speculate in his mind.
At least four Thunderbeasts, three Nest Guardians.
Those who haven't experienced this kind of insect army will surely take a big loss at their hands!
Even when their imperial capital first encountered these behemoths, they lost quite a few men and horses.
How will you Blackwater City respond?
The next moment, he knew what these people were all waiting for—
A blue and white Mecha stride out from the front lines of the army.
The messenger team leader remembered him! It was the leader of the Blackwater City Mecha armed forces, and the only one whose movements felt somewhat fluid on the road.
He had taken action!
Was he going to lead the Mecha troops to charge and decapitate the enemy?!
It seemed like the wisest choice.
It was also the contingency measure they had taken when the imperial capital first encountered this sort of behemoth.
It must be said, as a city, Blackwater City does have some depth of strength.
But not much...
They think a mere dozen Mechas can break through the sea of insects, break through the guard of the three Bug Race nests, and forcibly decapitate the Thunder Beast?
They must be dreaming... No, wait!
"It's not a team!" the five-man messenger squad shouted, their eyes widening as they watched the live broadcast.
"It's... one!"
"Has he gone mad?"
Watching the Mecha cross their own battle line alone and rush into the depths of the insect sea, the messenger team leader could no longer suppress his urge to criticize, "Has your commander gone mad? Isn't this sending him to his death?!"
Although a dozen Mecha armed forces could only be considered average for the imperial capital, here it was already the strongest force Blackwater City could muster.
Even if they couldn't win, at least there would be something to see.
But just one... Isn't this sending him to his death?!
"Fuck! The banner is in his hands too!" another messenger noticed the Eagle Flag being tightly held by the Mecha, unable to help but complain, "It's bad enough to be sacrificed, but what does it mean to send the one carrying the flag to die?"
The Eagle Flag is the faith of the imperial soldiers.
Once that faith falls, the morale of the entire army will be more than just slightly affected.
What on earth are these people of Blackwater City thinking?!
From the top down, not one of them has a sane mind.
Officers dare to give any commands, and soldiers dare to follow any orders.
This is just feeding the insects, isn't it?
Being human themselves, the messengers could no longer bear to watch people of Blackwater City throw their lives away and waste resources like this.
After all, won't the resources wasted now be part of the new empire after they're integrated?
"Have your commander order a retreat! There's no way to fight this battle," the messenger team leader stood up and said seriously.
However, the old man he was addressing just stared intently at the screen, without blinking, and replied bluntly, "That person is the commander."
"..."
"..."
Inside the messenger squad, silence fell.
After a while, they mechanically turned around to look at the largest screen broadcasting live.
Watching the huge blue and white figure stepping over the sea of insects, the messenger team leader swallowed hard, then somewhat frantically yelled, "Since when does a commander charge into battle like this?!"
Sending subordinates to their deaths wasn't enough, he had to send himself to feel satisfied, is that it?!
Who fights the Bug Race like this?
Wait! Since ancient times, there hasn't been a battle where a commander of an army gave his life away like this, has there?!
