Chapter 614: Chapter 355, I Promise You
In the process of the advance, the 35th Brigade experienced losses.
Although the orbital strikes had created a path for them, their duration was not particularly long nor the firepower sufficiently intense. The main reason was that Fino City’s Anti-Orbit Cannons had increased their output, shifting their focus away from the attacking ground troops and directing more firepower at the combating starships.
This caused significant trouble for the Tianma Fleet; several ships had their Void Shields and energy shields blown apart, forcing them to retreat urgently. Even worse, two Escort Ships had their shields shattered so suddenly that they could not evacuate from the range of the Anti-Orbit Cannons in time and got hit by several more rounds. Although they didn’t explode, the armor was penetrated, resulting in substantial damage to the hulls, and they were heavily damaged.
This was exactly the sort of situation the proud naval officers disliked.
When Gu Hang made the request, the Tianma Fleet was reluctant to comply. Although Gu Hang was the commander of the war zone, the navy officers’ temperament, unlike the ‘stubborn’ Land Forces, meant that they would lament, protest, and even escalate issues when faced with what they deemed ‘unreasonable’ missions.
A grand naval decisive battle, perhaps, but to deploy the precious Fleet against ground fortresses armed with Anti-Orbit Cannons was downright foolish—like a naval force from the 2000s bombarding coastal defense cannons.
…
However, for the sake of a greater goal, they were ultimately coerced into doing the job.
Now, with losses incurred, the two ships that had gone to the shipyards for repair might need two to three years to fix, and the total cost might exceed two billion.
This loss made the already displeased mood of the Tianma Fleet Commander even worse.
He communicated with the ground forces and Mr. Gu, reporting the issue that continuing the fight in this manner would result in ever-increasing losses.
But Mr. Gu insisted they proceed according to the plan.
After expressing his strong dissatisfaction, the Navy Rear Admiral could only indignantly state that they would follow the plan at most and could not possibly take on any more; if the Fleet suffered more losses, he would decide on his own whether to retreat. If it came to a review by the Military Affairs Department, then so be it.
Gu Hang paid him little attention.
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Issues of attitude aside, completing the task at hand was paramount.
The Tianma Fleet’s Deputy Commander, who had been left in charge, ultimately dared not fully abandon the battle.
Although he refused to take on any more responsibility, he still continued to fire at Fino City’s Void Shield as the battle plan had outlined, maintaining the suppression.
As for the enemies outside the city?
Since the battle plan only called for one round of orbital bombardment, why fire a second round?
Besides, the armoured units on the ground had already begun their advance through the blasted zone; what was the point of continuing bombardment?
And as for providing covering fire for the enemies near the advancing route…the operation plan specified that this task was to be carried out by two Destroyers and six Escort Ships, yet the number of ships that had withdrawn from the battle sequence due to shattered shields had already exceeded this. Therefore, the inability to assist was normal, and surely not a naval issue.
In light of the Navy’s somewhat weak support, the Land Forces’ offensive naturally could not proceed smoothly forever.
If the orbital bombardment was only for one round, not every inch of the ground could be covered; even if it were, there would be survivors at the edge of the explosions, inside defensive structures, or simply those lucky enough to remain alive.
After the bombardment, the Plague Demon Army, which had not been covered by the orbital firepower, also hurried to support from all directions.
All these factors greatly hindered the route of the human armoured forces.
But despite these challenges, the armoured group’s progress was still rapid. The hastily assembled forces that attempted to block their way rarely received support from Fino City’s Sinister Energy Cannons and were relatively scattered and rushed.
Under the iron tide, these obstructing monsters were mercilessly crushed.
After paying a certain price, the 35th Brigade became the first army to breach Fino City’s Void Shield.
And as their boots, wheels, and tracks stamped across a mass of writhing flesh, the most arduous part of the battle commenced.
Their forces carried with them ample specialized weapons.
Incendiary rounds, flamethrowers… As the troops moved forward, they burned the surface every step of the way, incinerating the living flesh, forcing it back, revealing the grey concrete underneath, with exposed steel rebar in some places.
They used artillery, tank cannons, machine guns, and even threw bombs into the fleshy buildings beside them, smashing and collapsing them. The goal was to eliminate any potential enemies inside these flesh structures as well as to destroy the flesh itself.
However, after the 35th Brigade’s large-scale entry into Fino City, the rate at which the living city advanced slowed significantly.
Yet, it was then that immense numbers of the Plague Demon Army surged from all directions, willing to sacrifice their flesh and blood in a siege against the human forces, determined to slow their advance; swarms of giant flies circled above the battlefield, braving the anti-aircraft fire from vehicles and infantry to perform dive-bombing suicide attacks.