EBE Chapter 1454 Retreat
Chapter 1454 Retreat
Because there was no one in the cockpit!
Their consciousness resides far in East Asia; they merely control steel shells!
Losing a mech? The Starlink Hub immediately assigned another soldier's consciousness to the backup mech!
As long as the factories in the rear can produce them, they can be "revived" continuously!
This is exactly what Xiao Ce relied on!
"Report to the Commander! A large-scale unidentified mech army has ambushed our rear! Coordinates confirmed! It's a combination of spatial teleportation and pre-arranged ambush! The scale... is equivalent to a heavy armored army group! Our supply lines have been cut off! Three energy supply platforms have been destroyed! The 7th and 9th Ground Mobile Battalions... have lost contact!"
The adjutant's voice was filled with unprecedented panic.
"Useless! How is this possible?! How could the Star Network Hub's surveillance possibly cover this area? Where is our counter-detection system?!"
The captain's furious voice echoed in the command hall, his crimson electronic eyes fixed on the area on the star map that was rapidly being "stained red" by the blue mecha markings.
He suddenly turned his head, his gaze like that of a venomous snake, shooting towards Xiao Dingshan and the others in the corner!
Xiao Dingshan, Caesar, and the others were also deathly pale!
They knew Xiao Ce's methods better than the captain, but they were equally shocked by this precise and ruthless backstab!
Caesar's data core frantically processed the data, but could only arrive at one conclusion: the enemy had a complete grasp of their troop deployments and surveillance blind spots! This was no coincidence!
"It's...it's Xiao Ce! It must be him! He used our intelligence...no, he predicted your attack route long ago!"
Xiao Dingshan was so frightened that he became incoherent and was eager to distance himself from the situation.
"Shut up!"
The captain roared, his massive metal fist clenching so tightly it cracked, his face contorted beneath his helmet.
shame!
An unprecedented shame!
He was actually manipulated by a "native"!
Their frontal assault was thwarted, and their rear base was breached!
His proud fleet was now like a nail to an anvil. The Lingas Fortress in front of him could not be destroyed, and the mech legion behind him was frantically tearing at his weak point!
"Order! 'Abyssal Roar', main gun 'Starbreaker' immediately lock onto the rear mech cluster assembly point! Bombard it!"
The commander practically roared the order. He wanted to wipe this area, along with those damned mechs, completely off the map!
"Commander! Main gun charged to 95%! The energy reaction in the target area is too violent, and the space is unstable. Forced locking will take time! And... and high-intensity anti-phase interference has been detected in this area!"
The technical officer reported urgently.
"Then send the nearest Crack Claw ships and Hyena fighter squadrons back to reinforce! Hold them off at all costs! Ground troops, consolidate your lines and hold your ground until reinforcements arrive!"
The captain forced himself to remain calm, but the impatience in his voice was unmistakable. Return to reinforce? Easier said than done!
Fort Lingas ahead is like a tough nut to crack. The landing force on the front is being held back. If forces are hastily redeployed to reinforce, they may not only be attacked from both sides by the fortress defenders and the suddenly appearing mechs, but the frontal offensive will also collapse completely! Moreover, those damned remote-controlled mechs are not afraid of being worn down!
The situation on the battlefield took a sharp turn for the worse!
On the front, after enduring the relentless assault of the fleet's main force, although the "Anvil" shield was teetering on the brink of collapse and damaged in multiple places, the core fortress still stood firm!
Relying on their dilapidated fortifications, the defending troops displayed remarkable resilience, even seizing opportunities when enemy fire was tied down at the rear to launch several small-scale counterattacks...
The core fortress of Lingas, the final barrier meticulously crafted by Xiao Ce and reinforced by the Star Network Hub, withstood a terrifying attack far exceeding its design limits.
The main gun "Starbreaker" of the "Abyssal Roar" once attempted to turn its muzzle and bombard the rear!
However, due to the combined constraints of Xiao Ce's pre-planned interference and the tenacious resistance of the Lingas Fortress itself, the charging and locking process was severely delayed, and in the end, only one incompletely charged deterrent shot was fired.
The crimson beam of destruction grazed the edge of the fortress's shield, vaporizing a mountain range behind it, but failed to inflict decisive damage on the fortress itself.
The fortress's shield was like a candle flickering in the wind, its energy readings flashing wildly at the overload threshold. Multiple areas were torn open by the secondary guns of the Crack Claw ship and the saturation attacks of the Hyena fighters, revealing the molten and twisted alloy armor inside.
Thick smoke and plasma flames gushed out from the breach, like a bleeding wound on a fortress.
However, the defenders inside the fortress are the last elite of the Western Federation and the automated defense system coordinated by the Starlink Hub!
It displayed a chilling resilience.
They used the dilapidated fortifications, crisscrossing passages, and pre-set traps to engage in fierce urban warfare with the "Hyena" infantry and "Ripper" mechs that broke through the breach.
Every inch of the metal tunnel was soaked in machine oil and blood, and every explosion was accompanied by the tearing of steel and flesh.
The fortress commander's voice was already hoarse!
But the instructions transmitted through the Starlink Hub remained clear: "Pull up the B7 breach! Energy core overload 35%, prioritize shield generators! Let those metal cans in, then trap them!"
The soldiers traded their lives for time, using precise explosives and crossfire to divide and annihilate the small enemy units that had broken in.
The fortress was like a giant meat grinder, devouring the lives of both sides, yet it remained standing.
Behind those interstellar hyenas, things were equally unpleasant for them.
Xiao Ce's Remote-Controlled Mech Army!
The steel torrent led by Starbreaker VII has completely transformed into a hurricane of death.
Axe Bull's roar echoed through the smoke and gunpowder via loudspeaker: "Hahaha! That's great! Tear it apart! Tear apart all of this bastard's supplies!"
The mechs, remotely controlled by the Starlink Hub, completely disregarded casualties.
A "Battle Ram" had its mechanical arm severed by concentrated fire from several "Rippers," but in the instant its consciousness switched, another warrior took over the remaining body, directly detonating the core engine and turning the enemies within dozens of meters around it, along with itself, into a giant fireball.
Before the aftershocks of the explosion had subsided, another mech of the same type burst out of the mothership's maintenance bay, filling the gap.
The hyena legion's supply depot, energy replenishment platform, communications relay station, small dock...
These "blood vessels" and "nerves" that sustain the massive army at the front are being precisely and efficiently destroyed and severed one by one by the "Iron Hammer" Legion.
The Hyena fighter jets attempting to return to the aid were intercepted and torn apart by the main guns of the heavy mech mothership and the escort fighter jets.
The sporadic counterattacks by ground troops appeared weak and ineffective in the face of heavy armor and fearless fighting style.
Panic spread like a plague through the rear of the hyena legion, and the command system began to fall into chaos.
This caused their interstellar hyena team immense suffering...
Inside the throne room of the flagship Abyss Roar, the atmosphere was as oppressive as solidified magma.
On the massive star map, the area representing their own rear was being rapidly devoured by Xiao Ce's dark blue forces, which symbolized destruction. Meanwhile, the crimson light tide, symbolizing the main direction of the frontline attack, was firmly pinned to the stubbornly flickering yellow area of the Lingas Fortress, unable to advance an inch.
The casualty reports scrolled across the screen like cold, snowflakes, a truly shocking sight.
"Report to the Commander! The Seventh Logistics Hub is completely paralyzed! The 'Razor' 23rd Flight Squadron was ambushed on its way back to support, suffering losses exceeding 70%!"
"Report! The breach on the west side of Lingas Fortress has been resealed by the enemy, and the assault force... has been completely wiped out!"
"Report! Due to spatial interference and pressure ahead, the second recharge of the 'Starbreaker' main cannon is expected to take another 127 star seconds!"
"Report! The mech cluster at the rear is moving towards the 'Styx' Claw support fleet! The 'Styx's' shield energy is below 40%!"
Each report struck like a hammer blow into the deathly silence of the command center. The technical officers and adjutants fell silent, their uniforms soaked with sweat.
In the corner, Xiao Dingshan, Caesar, and the others in the cage had ashen faces and their bodies trembled involuntarily with fear.
There seemed to be a hint of relief in his expression...
While this outcome was unexpected, it was, in general, somewhat within expectations...
The captain did not roar.
His crimson electronic eyes were fixed on the star map, and the processor under his visor was running at an unprecedented speed, coldly calculating every data stream.
Raging magma surged within him, threatening to break free of the steel shell that bound him, but his reason as the ruler of the legion forcefully suppressed it.
He saw it: the attrition ratio. His massive fleet and ground forces were suffering enormous losses every minute, while his opponent, Xiao Ce's remote-controlled mechs, could quickly replace a pilot with a new mech as long as the factory remained operational.
The fortress defenders, relying on their fortifications, inflicted heavy casualties on his elite assault troops at a relatively low cost.
Most critically, his logistical lifeline is being relentlessly destroyed by that damned "hammer." If this stalemate continues, even if it ultimately shatters the "anvil"!
His legion will also lose the ability to continue conquering due to excessive blood loss, and may even be completely crushed from behind by this fierce "hammer"!
Time seemed to stretch on for an eternity in the suffocating silence. Finally, the Captain-Commander's voice, cold as metal scraping against metal, rang out, devoid of any emotion; each word pierced the hearts of everyone present like an icicle:
"Pass the order."
The air in the entire hall seemed to have been sucked out.
"Entire fleet, execute the circuit breaker protocol."
Repeat, execute the circuit breaker protocol.
"Abyssal Roar, main gun 'Starbreaker' turn, target: assembly area directly in front of Lingas Fortress, maximum power, cover fire, create a firebreak."
"All Crack Claw-class attack ships, open fire at full power, suppress the gaps in the fortress shield and surrounding defensive fire, and cover the ground troops to disengage."
"Ground combat units and landing forces, immediately disengage from combat and assemble at the nearest landing zone according to the pre-set withdrawal route!"
Dump all non-essential heavy equipment and board the ships as quickly as possible! The rearguard will initiate self-destruct procedures to slow down the pursuers!
"All Hyena fighter squadrons, abandon the attack on the fortress, and focus all your efforts on covering the retreat of ground troops and hindering enemy air units from pursuing you, especially the mech fighters attacking from the rear!"
"Order all remaining units in the rear to hold off the enemy mech cluster at all costs, buying time for the fleet's space jump!"
"The use of any means is permitted, including... tactical nuclear-grade weapon coverage!"
The order was issued swiftly and precisely. The flagship's central processing unit began operating at high speed, breaking down the retreat instructions into countless specific tasks and sending them to every warship and every combat unit. The hall was instantly filled with even more urgent alarms and communication sounds.
"Circuit breaker protocol sequence confirmed! Main guns to recharge!"
"The order for the Crack Claw ship to suppress fire has been issued!"
"Ground troops have received orders to retreat! Disengaging... Encountering fierce resistance! Requesting more concentrated fire support!"
"Rearguard self-destruct sequence initiated!"
"The remaining units at the rear have received orders to hold out to the death! The Styx reports: We will fight to the last moment!"
With the commander-in-chief's order, the situation on the battlefield changed dramatically in an instant.
The bow of the "Abyssal Roar"!
That chilling dark red energy vortex spun wildly once again!
This time, the target was the area in front of Lingas Fortress that was crowded with hyena infantry and mechs charging or trying to retreat!
Without warning or mercy, a dark red death beam, thicker and more condensed than before, lashed the earth like the whip of a world-destroying giant!
boom...
It wasn't an explosion; it was complete annihilation and vaporization!
Wherever the light touched, whether it was charging hyena soldiers, burning mech wreckage, or scorched earth, everything instantly vanished, leaving only a bottomless, massive canyon stretching for several kilometers with lava flowing along its edges!
This destructive beam of light mercilessly sliced through the battlefield, creating a death trap between the fortress defenders and the retreating hyena legion!
This is a blood-stained isolation zone that the commander-in-chief paved with the lives and land of his soldiers for the retreat.
The fortress's firepower was momentarily halted, shocked by this ruthless tail-cutting method.
At the same time, all the Crack Claw ships opened fire with full force, no longer aiming to destroy the fortress!
Instead, they concentrated their bombardment on the breaches in the fortress shield and the remaining defensive works around it, using dense energy beams and missiles to suppress the defenders so that they could not raise their heads, buying every second for the ground troops below to surge toward the landing zone like a tide.
Many hyena infantry and mechs, caught in a fierce battle and unable to break free, watched in despair as their allies retreated, while they themselves were torn apart by the swarming defenders or remote-controlled mechs attacking from behind.
The rearguard activated their self-destruct mechanism, and one by one, the moving steel coffins burst into a final burst of flame in an attempt to halt the pursuers.
In the air, the hyena fighter squadron abandoned its attack and frantically pounced on the fortress defenders' aircraft that were trying to pursue the retreating ground troops, as well as Xiao Ce's remote-controlled fighter jet that swooped down from behind like a vulture.
The aerial battle instantly intensified, with exploding fireballs resembling festive fireworks, yet carrying the chilling stench of death.