Chapter 217: Frontal Assault

The Commander of the Limaguo 11th Corps was extremely cautious about attacking Late City. He still didn’t know exactly how many enemy troops were garrisoned there. When a staff officer suggested the enemy force might be small, the Corps Commander immediately exploded.

He knew that an opponent capable of annihilating four Allied corps—and destroying another Mara Empire corps just last night—demanded the utmost respect. Furthermore, some of those corps had been destroyed while attacking! This meant the Eastern Spirit forces weren’t just capable of defending; they were fully capable of launching devastating offensives!

“Yes, Corps Commander! My assessment was flawed!” the staff officer immediately apologized.

“We don’t even know who we’re up against! I have no desire to end up like those other Corps Commanders and die here.

“If this is the same commander who annihilated four of our corps, this operation is going to be incredibly difficult. I reviewed the intelligence reports from Headquarters last night. One of those corps was ambushed. The Mara Empire corps last night was also ambushed. So, tell me: will our troops be ambushed today as well?!” the Corps Commander voiced his concerns.

“I don’t think that’s likely. We’ve already deployed our reconnaissance units. If they want to ambush us, it won’t be that easy!” the staff officer reassured him.

“I hope so!” The Corps Commander nodded, saying no more.

He knew that regardless of who the opponent was or how formidable they were, his troops had to continue their advance on Late City. This was an order from Allied Headquarters, and an order from their own Limaguo Commander. Furthermore, Late City was a massive prize he simply couldn’t relinquish easily.

“Report! Our reconnaissance units have discovered a massive armored force hidden in the forest ahead! Our vanguard has engaged them and suffered heavy casualties!” a staff officer reported after putting down the radio.

“What?! A massive armored force?! Order our troops to deploy! Deploy immediately!” the Corps Commander roared.

…

“Hao-ge, we encountered Allied scouts and exchanged fire! Our ambush is likely blown!” Wang Yao yelled over the radio.

“Deploy the drones! Order the Air Cavalry to launch! If we’re blown, we’re blown! We’ll just crush them head-on! Start the tanks!” Hu Hao stood in the command center, a microphone directly in front of him. He was remotely commanding the armored units!

“Understood!” Wang Yao replied. The staff officers behind Hu Hao echoed the acknowledgment and immediately contacted the Air Cavalry. Soon, the Air Cavalry units stationed in Late City began taking off, heading toward the battlefield.

“Hao-ge, Wang Yao only has 200 tanks and 100 armored vehicles. Will that be enough? The enemy is an entire division!” a senior staff officer asked Hu Hao.

“Whether it’s enough or not, we won’t know until we fight! And can we afford not to fight? They’re heading straight for Late City! Are we supposed to fight a street battle with them inside the city?!” Hu Hao retorted, glancing back at the staff officer.

“Yes, but what if casualties are high? Those tank crews are all discharged veterans; they haven’t even had time to train together, yet we’re throwing them straight into an offensive!” the staff officer pressed. Hu Hao sighed.

“What choice do we have? Bai Ye’s division hasn’t arrived yet, and the Allied forces are eager to attack! They certainly won’t wait for us! Therefore, a frontal assault is our only option!” Hu Hao sighed again. Hearing this, the staff officer nodded grimly.

Hu Hao naturally knew these troops hadn’t trained together. Sending them straight into battle meant their coordination would be a major concern.

But he had no other option; time was simply too tight. Originally, if he hadn’t found the tanks in Late City, he would have deployed his infantry division to meet the threat.

However, that infantry division had already established defensive positions at Jukou Town after working through the night. Redeploying them from the east to the northeast now was simply unrealistic.

Most importantly, the infantry division was entirely composed of fresh recruits with barely any training. Throwing them into a frontal assault would likely result in even more catastrophic casualties. Right now, Hu Hao could only hope the tank units could hold out for about an hour until Bai Ye’s seasoned armored forces arrived to finish the job.

“Hao-ge, the drones are airborne! The live feed is coming in now!” a staff officer reported. The moment he finished speaking, the large monitors in front of Hu Hao flickered to life, displaying a bird’s-eye view of the battlefield.

“Have the drones pull back! Increase their altitude! I don’t need to see every single detail!” Hu Hao ordered.

“Yes, sir!” The staff officer immediately instructed the drone operators to increase their distance from the main forces.

“Hao-ge, look! Is that the Allied main force?” A staff officer pointed to a corner of the screen.

“That’s them. Order the tanks to start their engines! Prepare for a frontal charge!” Hu Hao commanded.

“Yes, sir! Start the tanks!” Wang Yao’s radio was connected directly to Hu Hao, allowing him to hear every word.

“Stick to the teams assigned earlier! Move together; do not scatter! During the first wave, fire your armor-piercing shells while advancing! Prioritize destroying the Allied tanks! Infantry, dismount and advance alongside the tanks! Shatter the Allied formations! In the second wave, turn around and charge back through them! Infantry, continue providing cover!

“Heavy machine gunners on the tanks and armored vehicles, open fire! Target the enemy soldiers carrying rocket launchers and heavy machine guns! They’ve deployed into an attack formation, so we’ll meet them head-on with an attack of our own!” Hu Hao ordered.

Simultaneously, Wang Yao patched Hu Hao’s audio feed directly into the tank units’ communication channel, ensuring every driver and crew member heard his voice!

“Also, charge with confidence! Our Air Cavalry will be there shortly to support your assault! We must win this battle!

“We are heavy mechanized infantry! They are no match for us! You might be a bit rusty, but you’re driving tanks! As long as you avoid their tanks and armor-piercing rockets, you’ll be fine! Charge without fear!” Hu Hao continued, striving to instill confidence in his men.

He knew these soldiers were all discharged veterans, some having left the military years ago. Their skills were undoubtedly rusty, but he had to boost their morale.

“Alright, here they come. Tanks in the vanguard—looks like over 100 of them, an entire tank division’s worth! Armored units behind them, followed by pure infantry towing infantry guns! Prioritize destroying those infantry guns!” Analyzing the drone feed, Hu Hao relayed the Allied force composition.

Soon, the Allied forces closed to within two kilometers of Hu Hao’s armored units!

“Tanks, lock onto the lead Allied tanks! Open fire immediately, then charge rapidly toward their center!” Hu Hao roared.

Hidden in the forest, the gunners quickly locked their sights onto the approaching enemy armor.

“Fire when ready! Then advance!” Hu Hao bellowed.

“Boom! Boom! Boom!” A barrage of armor-piercing shells erupted from the tree line!

“Buzz~~~” At that exact moment, the thunderous roar of countless helicopter rotors echoed from the sky.

“Buzz~”

“Thump-thump-thump-thump!” The helicopters hadn’t even fully arrived before they opened fire with their autocannons. Loaded with armor-piercing rounds, the deadly hail tore straight toward the lead Allied tanks.

“Air Cavalry! Split into two groups! One group, attack head-on! The other group, flank around to their rear and slaughter their infantry! I want them completely annihilated!” Hu Hao commanded, switching to the Air Cavalry channel.

“Understood, Hao-ge!” Air Cavalry Division Commander Zheng Longjiang replied instantly.

“Boom! Boom! Boom!” Explosions immediately ripped through the vanguard of the Allied attack formation, engulfing numerous tanks and armored vehicles.

“Damn it! So many helicopters! And so many tanks! Hurry! Form defensive perimeters! Form defensive perimeters! Focus fire on those helicopters! Hurry!” Seeing hundreds of helicopters swarming toward them, the 11th Corps Commander instantly knew they were in massive trouble.

He knew helicopters were the bane of tanks. Furthermore, they hadn’t brought many anti-aircraft machine guns or flak cannons for this offensive.

They simply hadn’t anticipated that the Eastern Spirit Air Cavalry could redeploy from such a vast distance so quickly!

“Boom! Boom! Boom!”

“Rat-a-tat-tat!”

Under the relentless assault of the helicopters, countless armored vehicles exploded. The heavy machine guns mounted on the helicopters swept across the ground, mowing down scores of Allied soldiers!

“Boom! Boom! Boom!” It wasn’t just the helicopters; the tanks surged out of the forest, unleashing a torrent of fire upon the Allied armor.

Because these men hadn’t operated tanks in years, the adrenaline of combat caused many to completely forget Hu Hao’s explicit orders. Instead of prioritizing the enemy tanks, they fired at whatever target presented itself first!

Fortunately, the Air Cavalry had already destroyed a significant portion of the Allied tanks. Otherwise, these rusty Eastern Spirit crews might not have fared so well in a direct armored duel against the seasoned Limaguo tankers.

Although the Eastern Spirit tanks were technologically superior, the Limaguo crews were combat veterans who knew exactly how to exploit weaknesses in enemy armor!

“Boom! Boom! Boom!” The deafening roar of explosions continued to echo across the battlefield. Seeing the Air Cavalry decimate so many Allied armored vehicles so rapidly, Hu Hao felt a surge of relief.

(End of Chapter)