Chapter 561: Chapter 330, Is a Mountain Gun Still a Cannon?
The war on Heijian Star hadn’t subsided in the least with the departure of Gu Hang.
The armed forces established by the New Kings’ Council had already reached five hundred thousand, deployed on the front lines.
This was nearly the limit of troops currently available.
It wasn’t a limit for the individual countries, though.
Up to now, eleven countries had joined the New Kings’ Council, with a total population reaching 120 million, it wouldn’t drain them to draft five hundred thousand from their standing armies and reserve forces.
But this was the limit for the New Kings’ Council.
This new organization was founded solely under the military threat of the Rage Owl Star forces; Stefano’s annihilation in forty days leading to the Iron Curtain Queen’s surrender, in turn causing nine nearby countries to capitulate due to this military intimidation, thus establishing the New Kings’ Council.
Its foundation was exceedingly unstable.
An alliance based on military strength cannot afford to show any military vulnerability.
If the Alliance Army couldn’t maintain a steamroller momentum, kings would start to question; if the Alliance Army suffered a major defeat, they would probably turn coats immediately.
Even subdued Stefano was no exception, now leaning towards the alliance under the Iron Curtain Queen’s suppression, yet remnants of defeated generals still lurked in the shadows. They didn’t dare to make rash movements, staying put obediently, and might not even dare to bristle at eradication attempts, potentially complying outright.
However, should the alliance encounter a significant military setback, those military leaders and kings, now tame as dogs, would likely rise up instantly.
After all, serving as a dog of the alliance was out of desperation for survival when defeat was certain; given a chance, who wouldn’t want to be their own feudal lord?
In such a situation, one couldn’t afford to draft too many troops, lest they cast doubt on the military might of the alliance, wondering why they still needed their people to fight.
Moreover, the reliability of these vassal forces was also rather suspect, with each feudal nation being entangled with countless others through noble intermarriages and vested interests. It was possible for any knight, count, or general to defect at a critical moment.
In fact, Perbov indeed dared not entrust vital defensive positions or important logistic lifelines to these vassal forces.
If anything went wrong, it would spell complete disaster.
Nevertheless, with five hundred thousand vassal troops, Perbov’s hands were undeniably freer with forces.
Although, facing an enemy army of three million, he couldn’t exert too aggressive an offensive stance, or undertake a full-scale assault across hundreds of kilometers of the battlefront. But he finally had enough troops to allocate elite units of the alliance into fist formations, targeting specific battlefronts for concentrated strikes.
He, too, was implementing the changed approach he had reported to Governor Gu Hang.
He ceased to concern himself with strategically important points or towns of significant political symbolism, instead utilizing the armored units’ strong breakthrough capabilities and the motorized units’ excellent mobility, and when necessary against tough-to-crack positions, he could even call upon the assistance of the Interstellar Warriors…
Through these means, in the past four months, Perbov had waged three beautifully executed battles of annihilation.
In two of them, the alliance took the offensive. With a pincer movement, they achieved breakthroughs on both sides of a battlefront approximately eighty kilometers wide, encircling the middle kingdom troops that failed to retreat in time.
Next came the severing of supply lines, blocking reinforcements, preventing breakouts, and bombarding the encircled enemy with heavy artillery over an extended period.
The first time, one hundred seventy thousand kingdom troops were encircled; failing to learn their lesson, the second time resulted in three hundred thirty-one thousand troops being decisively trapped.
For these two campaigns, Perbov deliberately chose non-urban areas. The surrounded enemies numbered in the hundreds of thousands and could not possibly scrounge sufficient food locally.
Not to mention, a modern army, lacking ammunition and fuel, would suffer a sharp decline in combat effectiveness, which has little to do with fighting spirit; after all, even the bravest soldiers can’t conjure bullets from sheer willpower.
Moreover, these feudal armies simply lacked such discipline.
The ultimate outcome of these two battles of annihilation was a resounding victory for the Alliance Army.
The destroyed units weren’t all killed; most became prisoners and were sent to rear prisoner-of-war camps to engage in heavy labor such as road repair and trench digging after being disarmed.
After suffering heavy losses, the kingdom military was unwilling to concede defeat. They organized a massive counteroffensive, indeed investing heavily in the effort.
The kingdom military had more than just numbers. In the realm of ultimate weapons, they had a real threat to the Alliance Army—twelve assembled Knight Titans.
For the kingdoms on Heijian Star, the most precious of possessions were surely the Knight Titans.
Their strength was beyond question, with a cost of seven hundred thousand Tax Currency each speaking for itself. Over time, the presence of the Knight Titans gradually became a symbol of a nation’s power and a noble’s status.
Indeed, the so-called ‘Seven Great Nations of Heijian Star’ referred to the seven states that could afford and more importantly, sustain Knight Titans.