At 11:12 PM, Tie Luo, the Sand People patriarch, who was sitting on a large Mok Speed Dragon with his eyes closed, received news that his Explore team, which had entered the garrison station, had been blown sky-high by a booby trap.
The Sand People chieftain, enraged and humiliated, twitched his alligator-like nose, then fed the remaining members of the Explore team, who had returned with severe injuries to report, to his mount.
It was a Speed Dragon King, its size almost comparable to a prehistoric Tyrannosaurus Rex on Earth.
It opened its huge mouth and in two or three gulps swallowed the injured soldiers, who were too terrified to even scream, but then smacked its lips, looking as if it didn't taste good.
Chieftain Tie Luo, with his black scales (though he always proclaimed himself king), kicked over a trembling yellow-scaled servant soldier nearby, then stepped forward and lashed him fiercely with an electrified whip.
All the red-scaled and yellow-scaled Sand People around held their breath, except for the green-scaled Sand People leaning against a war chariot, incongruously wearing an Imperial-style armored helmet, who watched everything with interest.
Chieftain Tie Luo knew he had whipped the servant soldier lying on the ground until he was half-dead, which finally satisfied him a little, and he couldn't help but glance at the armored helmet of the other person leaning against the war chariot, cursing inwardly, 'Fake alien devil, if I wasn't relying on you to drive the war chariot, I would whip you to death right now! A mere green-skinned artisan, seeing my noble black scales, dares to remain seated?'
He didn't know that the other party also harbored thoughts like, 'He's just a barbaric slave owner, who has never seen the ocean of stars or been bathed in the light of civilization, ignorant, foolish, arrogant, and conceited. I truly don't know where his sense of superiority comes from.'
Yes, progressive individuals among the Sand People like the green-scaled war chariot captain, who had received 'higher education' and seen the wider world overseas (in the Star Ocean), found it difficult to consider their kinsmen, whose minds were filled with caste hierarchy, as their own people anymore.
Although these five war chariots were purchased by Chieftain Tie Luo himself, the war chariot captain was a 'civilized person' trained personally by the 'cooperator's' secret training camp, mastering skills such as war chariot driving, cultivation, military communication, and gunnery, and could also speak fluent Galactic Common.
This 'barbaric slave-owning chieftain' simply couldn't command them.
'I warned you long ago. Since the Earth people abandoned their base, they wouldn't leave anything usable behind,' the war chariot captain said in a mocking tone, his gaze like someone looking at a scavenging vagrant.
'Hmph, even the corpses of dead hairless monkeys are useful! I'll hang their heads on flagpoles for display, and leave their bodies to feed the dogs!'
'So, the ten-person squad, plus their Speed Dragon mounts, were sent flying by the traps left by the Earth people! You got nothing, and suffered heavy losses before even engaging the enemy!' the war chariot captain said, 'Lord Tie Luo, we are the experts in combat, please be sure to accept our suggestions next time, alright?'
Chieftain Tie Luo gave the other party a sidelong, ambiguous glance, then suddenly drew his sword and instantly cut the servant soldier lying on the ground into two halves: 'Hmm, I feel much better now.'
He truly is an incorrigible barbarian slave owner!
The war chariot captain looked at the servant soldier, who died with his eyes open, with a hint of regret, filled with emotion.
He didn't realize that he himself was part of the barbarians before receiving 'higher education'.
To save the Sand People, to win our independence and freedom, we cannot rely on these slave owners and nomadic chieftains.
Or rather, they are more detestable than humans!
Only we, the new youth who have seen the vast world, are the backbone of the nation!
After this battle, it's time to seriously consider the future of the nation.
We must seize power from these fools, establish a unified government, new schools, and armies... Hmm, then I can retire and find a school to teach children astronomy.
That's the first lesson to help everyone understand the world, and it's what I love to do most!
The war chariot captain pondered the future of his species with concern for his nation and people, and then heard Chieftain Tie Luo loudly declare: 'Move out! The hairless monkeys can't run far!'
At the chieftain's command, over forty riders, plus five war chariots with a strong sense of patchwork, swiftly advanced towards the mountains in the north.
Vehicles plus cavalry, it sounds like a combination full of flaws, making one feel that they wouldn't run much faster than light infantry on two legs.
But in reality, this seemingly incongruous team moved quite swiftly, and within just an hour, the northern peaks could be seen.
It must be admitted that although Chieftain Tie Luo was a prehistoric chieftain with a mind full of caste thinking, his judgment was still accurate.
The black panther car, equipped with makeshift batteries, simply couldn't run fast, and the residual heat and scent it left behind were obvious traces.
Furthermore, the main mounts of these Sand People warriors—the Mok Speed Dragons—not only had sensitive noses but could also sense heat sources, making them excellent trackers.
Moreover, these animals, somewhat resembling prehistoric carnivorous dinosaurs on Earth, ran extremely fast, had abundant stamina, could pounce, bite, and gnaw, and were covered in surprisingly thick scales, making them almost perfect predators.
Land creatures capable of rivaling vehicles over long distances, and large predators at that, would be truly unscientific if placed on Earth, but since this is an alien planet far from the galaxy, it is understandable.
Thus, in just over an hour, the group had already reached the foot of the mountain.
The chieftain could even see the full outline of the mountain range, which looked exactly like the head of a terrifying, round-faced giant beast poised to devour people.
Chieftain Tie Luo hesitated for a moment, waved his hand to make everyone stop, and prepared to send a few more scouts up to check.
However, when he was about to call out names, all the red-scaled and yellow-scaled Sand People shrank behind the tanks, no one daring to show their heads.
The chieftain was furious, and just as he was about to drag two more slave soldiers to feed his mount, the war chariot captain had already climbed out from the top hatch and said: 'The gentleman sent from over there has made it clear that this group of hairless monkeys has suffered heavy losses! Everyone is injured, and they only have lightly armored troop carriers, while we have five tanks, giving us an overwhelming advantage! They cannot be our opponents! The terrified Earth people should have already fled into the mountains now.'
Chieftain Tie Luo felt this was quite reasonable; his giant Speed Dragon had been somewhat agitated since earlier, clearly smelling the scent of its favorite food—this big fellow had eaten people before and particularly liked the taste.
Clearly, the hairless monkey deserters were very close.
'Prepare to ex—' Tie Luo had just opened his mouth when he seemed to hear a sharp whooshing sound, and before he could react, the war chariot captain's head exploded into a mass of bloody fragments, splattering all over him.
The Speed Dragons and Sand People fell into chaos, even the drivers and gunners of those few war chariots were in disarray.
As for the chieftain himself, he remained in a dazed state for nearly half a minute.
After a long while, the remaining war chariot crew members instinctively fired their cannons forward.
Ion beams slammed into the distant mountainside, but besides creating a pile of falling rocks, not a single enemy was killed.
The only good thing was that the pale blue glow finally brought a hint of brightness to the dark night, and although it was far from professional flares, it still allowed the sharp-sighted Sand People to barely make out the enemy's tracks.
They only saw a few figures hastily disappearing into a gorge at the foot of the mountain, then vanished without a trace.
The gorge was not wide, and it was inconspicuous among these undulating and steep mountains; even during the day, one wouldn't find it without specifically looking for it, but upon closer inspection, it should still be wide enough for war chariots and Speed Dragons to pass through.
'Kill those hairless monkeys! I want their heads pickled in wine!' Khan Tie Luo roared, clad in composite armor obtained from the 'cooperators,' wielding a two-meter-long high-carbon crystal zhanmadao, and was the first to charge ahead on his enormous Speed Dragon, no, dragon.
Leaders of the martial and vigorous city-state nomadic era were like this; their personal combat prowess and courage determined their prestige, so they also had to be brave!
The war chariot crew and Sand People naturally followed.
The former were still somewhat hesitant, but with the captain dead, no one knew who could take charge for a while.
Although they had received professional armored training, their professionalism was ultimately limited, far from being considered 'elites.'
The Sand People, with their heads heated, thus plunged into the gorge, and within minutes, were objectively forced into a single-file formation by the terrain.
The head of the snake was naturally the incomparably brave Chieftain Tie Luo, while the tail was a yellow-scaled Sand People, the most cautious and looking left and right, riding the smallest Speed Dragon, looking ready to flee at any moment... Oh, he couldn't escape; a giant boulder, seemingly fallen from the sky, crushed him and his mount directly, flattening him instantly.
And the rolling boulder completely blocked their way back.
'Boom!' 'Boom!' 'Boom!' The landmines buried in the gorge—which were actually modified hand grenades rather than professional anti-armor landmines—still caused considerable casualties and great confusion in such a narrow environment.
Drivers swerved wildly to avoid explosions, crashing into the mountain wall, or rear-ending the tank in front, or even running over their own dragon riders.
Such incidents immediately triggered a chain reaction that caused the entire army to collapse.
The war chariot crew wanted to counterattack, but they didn't even know where the enemy was, and the cannons couldn't elevate that high.
A few brave ones opened their hatches and exposed their heads, trying to operate the machine guns, but they were picked off one by one by the dense gunfire from both sides.
As for Chieftain Tie Luo... he and his enormous Speed Dragon had been directly hit by the concentrated barrage overhead, their bodies a bloody, indistinguishable mess, no longer whole.
'Charge!' an impassioned voice vaguely echoed through the gorge, but it was immediately cut off by a louder one.
'Charge your head! If there's anyone still moving, keep firing!'
The Sand People despaired, yet could only blindly sweep their surroundings, their shooting movements instantly reminding Yu Lian of his hometown, that mysterious and vast land known as the origin of humanity, and he couldn't help but look again at Sergeant Youyou, who had just yelled 'Charge!'
The big black man shrank his head, trying his best to disguise himself as a soulless killing machine, concentrating fully on shooting at the enemies inside the gorge.
His shooting posture was standard, so his hit rate was also good, much more professional than his compatriots on that vast and mysterious continent.
Hmm, I really miss home a bit.
Maybe I should set a small goal for myself, like going home?
Amidst his random thoughts, Yu Lian watched as all the moving Sand People were struck down.
At this point, the soldiers in power armor slowly emerged from their ambush, cautiously approaching the war chariots.
As Yu Lian had requested beforehand, they gave the wailing Sand People and Speed Dragons on the ground a final shot, then lifted the top hatches of the immobilized tanks and directly threw a hand grenade inside.
After repeating this four times, a cry of despair came from the last tank, and several green-scaled Sand People tumbled out, scrambling on their hands and knees, and surrendered.
Thus, at just before 3 AM on November 14th, the fifth battle experienced by the 12th Garrison Station soldiers in three days came to an end.
But this time, they had zero casualties.