Realm of Power

Oubaluo Continent, Southwest Territory Border, Ruilin Fortress Outpost

"Captain, are the Gangfei people really coming? It's been three days, and I haven't even seen a ghost!" The young sentry Mokad curiously stood on the sentry tower on the top of the mountain, looking at the plain below.

The arrival of late autumn has turned the mountains all yellow. The defense wall of the fortress is made of solid granite. The soil that had just rained heavily last night evaporated bursts of faint white smoke under the sunlight. Looking from a distance, it seemed that the earth was smoking, light smoke. As the breeze slowly floats, everything around becomes unreal

"I don't know. The order from above means that no matter what, you must brace yourself first!"

Next to Mokad, a middle-aged veteran about thirty years old stretched his limbs, lifted an infantry crossbow from his feet, took a look at a chirping sparrow in the sky, put down the crossbow, and found that Mokad was a little nervous. , smiled and said, "Don't be so nervous, we are just the outpost of the fortress. If the Gangfei people really come, their target will be the fortress, not our broken sentry tower built on the top of the mountain!"

"Although I know, I'm still a little nervous!" Mokad said with an embarrassed look on his face.

"Nervous? Do you need it? I can safely say that if you don't come here unless you are wanted, you will definitely be beaten badly!" Veteran Lincoln Tower curled his lips in disdain and raised his finger to point to the mountainside. Ruilin Fortress said, "Now we can't When your Southwest Army defended this place, this time it was directly taken over by the Imperial Central Army. It is said that there were hundreds of Thunder Gods withdrawn from Rusty, and this time even the Thunder Gods were installed in the city of Ruilin Fortress. Head, what else do you have to fear?"

"Thor! Really!" Recruit Mokad looked excited. He was a soldier of the Southwest Army. After the reorganization of hundreds of thousands of Southwest Army, only 30,000 were left. The other soldiers either disbanded and went home. Otherwise, they would be incorporated into the local army to be responsible for maintaining daily security. After all, the development of the southwest suffered heavy losses during the war. The strength of hundreds of thousands of young people can have an immediate effect on stabilizing the hearts of the people in the southwest and the development of the economy and agriculture in the southwest.

During the Battle of the Southwest, Mokad had seen the world-destroying power of the Falcon Army Thor, no matter how strong the flesh and blood was. Under that kind of power that shakes everything, it is irresistible. Those dense charging teams, under the fierce artillery fire of the opponent, were simply a group-style suicide act. Every fireball falls. It means the end of several lives, or even no bones left. Those elite infantrymen that the commander was proud of could not escape being destroyed.

The current location of Mokad and Lincoln Towers is the highest point of the left wing cliff of Ruilin Fortress. Even without a lookout glass, you can see the distant land in front of the fortress.

In front of the fortress is a winding road that leads to unknown distances. The most important northeastern throat guarding the southwest border has left countless corpses and blood. When the non-humans broke into the southwest, they fought their way in through this road.

After receiving the report of the successful surprise attack on the island by Navy Minister Dostelenko, Fatty knew that the war between him and the Confederates had broken out.

Gang Fei has always been eyeing the Southwest and the Battle of the Southwest. The Imperial Navy severely damaged the Congolese navy, and now directly occupied the hub of Kasili Island, blocking the Congolese people's access to the southwest from land and sea. Now the only road is overland. As the two central armies of the Empire are transferred into the Ruilin Fortress, two Thor squadrons directly under the central army enter the fortress. These are the troops that have just withdrawn from the Rusty area. Combat experience and combat morale are at their peak

"What's the reaction from Gangfei?"

In the Ruilin Fortress, the fat man raised his head, stared at the huge military map hanging on the wall, and asked the southwest governor Salon next to him

"Three days ago, there was an unusual mobilization of troops stationed on the Congo-Africa border! The border guard troops that originally had only 30,000 people increased to 70,000, and then to 110,000 yesterday, and were frequently dispatched to our border defense line. "Scout" Salon reported with a solemn expression.

"Border defense line? Mainly those positions?" The fat man frowned slightly.

"The line from Yamai in front of Ruilin Fortress to Barone is 50 miles long!" Salon replied with a respectful look. "The troops stationed in these two areas are all the former Southwest Army. The number of troops is not large, less than 2 The strength of ten thousand people, but as the front line of the Gauls' fight against the Confessians, they had a very strong group of fortresses. The last time the Confessians broke into the southwest, they entered from here. All the barriers were destroyed when the Confessians withdrew. Destroying it is not an advantage for our army!”

"Since you don't have an advantage, then withdraw!"

The fat man gave the order with certainty and said, "We cannot enter a two-front battle in advance. In terms of Gaul and Kyoto, Hu Keqili should be able to grasp the rhythm of negotiations with the Gauls, which will prevent the Gauls from noticing us for the time being." A sudden war with the inhumane,

"As long as the fighting time is short enough, we can quickly solve the problem in the southwest before the Gauls can react. Only by retreating necessary can the Gangfei people follow up. We need to be able to win with a decisive victory, enough to make the Gangfei people come back." He was so frightened that he finally gave up looking at the southwest region! "

"Your Majesty means to let the Gangfei people enter the border first? Then defend and counterattack!" A look of surprise appeared on Salon's face

"It's not release, it's temptation!" The fat man raised his hand and clicked on the map on the wall. He ordered the troops in the area in front of Ruilin Fortress to withdraw one by one, and gradually abandon the line from Yamai to Barone. Give the Gangfei people a little sweetness, so that they will unconsciously go to the direction of Ruilin Fortress Come! Bring in all the border guards of the Congolese people. We will wait for them here. We will defeat their border guards here and then directly enter the Congolese territory, so that the Congolese people will feel afraid. They can’t hit us, but we can hit them hard!”

"That's it, my subordinates understand!"

Salon smiled and nodded. As the governor of the southwest, he also hoped to solve the hidden danger of the Gangfei people in advance. After all, the main role of the southwest was to serve as an important logistics base for entering the hinterland of the Gallic Empire. The empire's goal was still Gaul. , it is not wise to start a full-scale war with Gangfei. If the Gangfei people cannot be directly hit hard, a two-front battle will put the Falcon Empire into extremely unfavorable accuracy.

In this way, the border garrison troops who received the order began to withdraw in an orderly manner.

A group of Gangfei scouts wearing bright silver mail and carrying long snake-shaped swords on their waists looked at the empty land in front of them in shock. These lands were once the buffer zone of the southwest border, and were also the battlefields where the scouts and cavalry from both sides clashed many times. The blood donations of many colleagues dyed the sand and dust here red.

"It seems that they retreated on their own initiative!" Captain Gang Fei, the scout cavalry captain, observed carefully for a while and then said unnaturally, "Did something happen in the southwest?

"Captain, what should we do?" asked the scout cavalry next to him

"Report it to the Legion Headquarters. Anyway, there is something fishy about this matter!"

The scout captain waved his hand with a somewhat forlorn look on his face, and they reported the situation. The reply was to immediately occupy the evacuated area. After continuously occupying one end of the border, the Fifth Army of Gangfei, which was responsible for border defense, began to enter the second line of defense on the border. The Ruilin Fortress in front of them was suddenly placed in front of the Gangfei people.

Lan Mia, the commander of the Fifth Army of Congo and Africa, is an experienced commander. He has planned strategic marches to the southwest many times. He is very familiar with this fortress at the throat. He looks at the fortress from a distance. , eyes full of complex emotions. When Gang Fei's army withdrew from the southwest due to the fighting forces, he had carried out devastating damage to the Ruilin Fortress guarding the road, but he did not expect that after the Falcon Army took over the southwest. A new fortress was immediately built,

Although the new fortress in front of us is much smaller than the previous large fortress, it looks like the edge of a pentagon. Putting all the city under attack is obviously more suitable for the defenders to perform, and the defensive power will not decrease but increase.

Although the original Ruilin Fortress was dangerous, it did not completely block the road to the southwest. But now, this new fortress has given up its huge size, but it is stuck right in the middle. On both sides of the fortress, there are gentle undulations. The mountains slowly stretch to the north and south. However, this gentle stretch suddenly becomes steeper after less than two thousand meters, and the mountain is no longer made of soil, but granite growing with moss. The strength of these granites is very hard. New The construction of the fortress obviously used the stones here. The two wings of the fortress are closely connected with these granite mountains. Like a giant with open arms, it cuts off the road to the southwest for people from Gangfei who want to enter from here. To the southwest, the fortress must be destroyed.

"Order all armies to assemble!" Lanmia estimated the defense power of the fortress and felt that although it had been strengthened, it was only a small fortress after all. Under the strong pressure of the army, it was as fragile as a piece of paper that could be broken by a poke.

"Is Lord Lanmia going to attack by force?" one of his subordinates asked

"So be it!" Lanmia smiled noncommittally. The news about the navy's defeat had already spread throughout the entire Congolese military community. The Congolese Emperor was furious for the fall of Kaisili Island and denounced the navy for its incompetence in combat, but the navy The main force has been transferred to the south to participate in the joint operations of the allies. It is difficult to With wartime changes, the Emperor of Gangfei can only place his hope on the army. The Fifth Army of Gangfei, which is responsible for border defense, has just received an order to find fighters and take retaliatory actions against the southwest region. If the southwest gate can be opened again, the emperor will His Majesty will launch the third personal expedition to the southwest region

end of august

The Congolese and African troops entering the border began to gather in front of Ruilin Fortress.

The lights were like stars, and the hazy moon had risen in the sky. Countless tents and small sheds made of tree branches were erected in the wilderness. It was like a forest suddenly appeared on the plains, between the tents one after another. In the open space, cotton-like mist blankets The wind was blowing, and everything became hazy, except for the 70,000 men of the Gangfei Fifth Army. In mid-August, feeling that the possibility of entering the southwest again would increase, the Gangfei Emperor added 50,000 men to the Gangfei Third Army. Ten thousand people, a total of 120,000 Congolese troops spread out in front of Ruilin Fortress

The fat man raised the observation glass in his hand and looked at the lineup of Gang Fei's army through the lens.

In the original Southwest Battle, the Northwest Navy was responsible for the sea counterattack. This was the first time that the land forces fought against each other. As the Confederation Empire, which had been at war with the Gauls, the Baron overlords of Northern Europe for hundreds of years,

Fatty needed to get a more correct assessment. The observation scope he was using was the third-generation observation scope of the Imperial Navy.

It is even more precise and remote than what I have used before. Objects three thousand meters away seem to be right in front of you. You can even see clearly every movement of the dogtail grass swaying there in the breeze. .

In the distance, the Gangfei army was gathering in an overwhelming array at a distance of 500 meters. The first thing that appeared in the sight of the lookout was the black military flag of the Gangfei people fluttering in the wind. Under the sunlight, it looked particularly eye-catching. .

Moving at high speed following the military flag. It was a group of Gangfei cavalry that galloped out like a whirlwind. They were wearing light silver-colored armor, with brocade feathers on the tops of their helmets. The weapons hanging on the back were not cavalry spears, but hammers specially designed to break heavy armor.

Each of the cavalrymen held a black military flag in their hands, and they suddenly appeared on the ground, with flying horse hooves, silver armor, and the military flag fluttering in the wind. Like the wind, it entered the open space in front of the fortress.

It was a stretch of land, empty, with only countless foxtail grasses stretching their bodies in the wind. The dense horse hooves of the Gangfei cavalry stepped over the dog's tail grass, sinking them all into the muddy ground.

This group of cavalry stopped in front of the fortress, arrogantly arranging a straight line. Hundreds of inhuman military flags were fluttering in the wind. It was the inhumane tradition to raise military flags before attacking the city.

"Idiot!" The fat man snorted indifferently to this bad habit that was obviously still in the age of knights, and put down the observation glass in his hand. He said coldly to the back, "Icasa, kill those flag bearers for me."

"As you command, my lord!"

Icasa, the captain of the Longbow Flag Regiment, grinned with a cruel smile.

200 meters away, the Gangfei light cavalrymen holding military flags stood tall and chatted and laughed with each other easily. Suddenly, there were several sounds of breaking through the air from diagonally behind. Well-trained light cavalry can naturally hear the sound of an arrow leaving the string and piercing the air. Then they didn't even wait for a reaction. I heard a few more muffled groans. Immediately after the sound of "cluck, cluck...", it was the sound made by a few unlucky guys having their throats shot through.

"Pa" More than a dozen military flags rolled down from the horse along with the corpse,

He looked at his former companion who was holding the arrow shaft inserted into his throat and moaning in pain. Several flag bearers were stunned when they saw it. They still couldn't figure out the sharp arrows shot from there, and then there were the sounds of several arrow feathers piercing the air.

This time, the flag bearers were prepared and quickly squatted down on their horses. Then they heard three "ding, ding, ding" sounds, and the sound of sharp arrows breaking through the armor. After that, several people fell down in pain, but It was the arrow feathers that shot directly through the cavalry's armor. This time, it was still the throat.

"Damn..., disperse! The flag-carrying light cavalry roared in panic. There was an uproar, and they retreated back with loud curses.

"It seems that the opponent is difficult to deal with." Lan Mia, who was arranging his army in the distance, looked at all this with solemn eyes. His 73,000 troops and 110 infantry squadrons have been organized into a thousand-man squadron. The flag-bearer's retreat made him a little bit daring. No one thought that the opponent's shooter would be at such a long distance. Now he was riding a tiger with difficulty. The army was ready to attack directly. At this moment, there was a sound in the air. A sharp sound streaked across the sky,

"Rumble"

A thunder god landed among a large number of assembled Gangfei infantry, exploding into a burst of thick black smoke. Objects flew up in the vicinity of the black smoke, some flew high into the sky, and then disappeared among the crowd. What fell in irregular curves were the remains of corpses that had been blown to pieces, whole horses that had been blown up, broken spears, and countless pieces of dust and gravel.

Especially Gang Feiren's iconic weapon, the snake-shaped sword, is like leaves flying in the air waves of the explosion, light and fluttering, making various rotating postures in mid-air, but in the end it is fierce with the top facing downwards. Smashing hard into the moist, soft soil that was already stained red with blood.

"What is this?" Lan Mia was completely stunned. The torrent of Gangfei's army was cut off in an instant, before he could react.

Lan Mia suddenly felt as if the sky was torn apart, and there seemed to be countless sharp objects piercing the dull sky. It was a sound with the breath of death, like the roar of the God of Death, or the howling of ghosts and wolves released from hell.

Rumble

Rows of white smoke emerged from the walls of Ruilin Fortress, and streams of white light whizzed hard at the densely lined up Gangfei people. There were continuous explosions, and waves of smoke enveloped the ground in front of the fortress. The place became filled with smoke. In the diffuse smoke, the fire caused by the explosion seemed to be more dazzling than the sun just now. Every red-light explosion seemed to cause the earth to shake. The continuous explosions seemed to be shaking the earth.

In the smoke, the God of Thunder fell like raindrops on the queue of gangsters. Turning that area into a sea of ​​death intertwined with blood and fire,

The Gangfei soldiers were so disoriented by the bombing that they ran in all directions, but there were too many people. The queue of hundreds of thousands of troops was suddenly in chaos and crowded together.

It came suddenly and exploded, it came so violently,

Directly and simply, countless lives were harvested, and the hot air waves rolled up, knocking down the Gangfei infantry one after another like flies.

Many Gangfei soldiers were shattered into pieces before they even understood what was happening.

The dense explosions created a visible wall of fire, cutting off a distance of 500 to 700 meters. Almost instantly, the land was filled with corpses of all kinds. The fierce artillery fire tore the cavalry and horses apart. The horses were frightened and ran wildly in the panic-stricken crowd, trying to break through the blockade of death. The chaos caused was no less than that of the explosion (to be continued...)