Swarms of fire slurry sprayed onto the Brotherhood's Cloud Shadow-class fighters, rapidly melting their outer hulls. Within moments, the inner cabins were visible, and several mercenaries who couldn't dodge in time were directly consumed by the flames. The aerial sea beasts continuously flapped their wings, their tails coiled as they spewed streams of fire slurry. They had the Brotherhood's dozen Cloud Shadow-class fighters in disarray!
"It's a Flying Dragon!"
Chen Xue hurriedly maneuvered her fighter backward, stating in a deep voice, "Flying Dragons are creatures that live in the depths of the trenches. Besides fins, they have evolved a pair of wings hidden behind their gill covers. They swim in the sea and can fly once they leave the water. Because they inhabit the depths of underwater volcanic vents, their internal fire possesses extremely high initial energy."
"All units, retreat!"
Lin Zhao gave the order while simultaneously activating the external broadcast system. He shouted to a crowd of civilians, "Hurry and retreat to the south! We'll hold them off here!"
As he spoke, Lin Zhao switched on his cannons and began strafing the incoming Flying Dragons. The creatures that swarmed forward were shot down in mid-air, their fire slurry and flesh scattering everywhere. The four Cloud Shadow-class fighters following Lin Zhao also joined the fray. Soon, the cacophony of machine guns mixed with missile launches plunged the skies into a chaotic battle.
The dozen or so Cloud Shadow-class fighters of the Brotherhood, caught between the Scarlet Moon Transport and the Flying Dragons, found themselves in an awkward predicament. Within moments, five of their Cloud Shadow-class fighters were melted by the Flying Dragons and plummeted to their destruction. The remaining Cloud Shadow-class fighters could no longer concern themselves with the Scarlet Moon Transport; after all, the people on the Scarlet Moon Transport were reasonable, but these Flying Dragons were utterly unreasonable.
For a time, the Brotherhood and the Scarlet Moon Transport unleashed a barrage of fire onto the Flying Dragons.
In the sky, two colossal vessels pierced through the clouds and descended onto the battlefield. They were the Scarlet Moon Transport's two Chiyou-class light cruisers. The roar of their railguns and the whoosh of missiles from their bow-mounted launchers created a unified symphony. Coupled with over 20 Scarlet Moon Transport Cloud Shadow-class fighters approaching from the flanks, a net of firepower was woven in the sky, giving the Flying Dragons no chance to advance.
In less than five minutes, the invading Flying Dragons were all shot down. The Scarlet Moon Transport had also expended a considerable amount of ammunition. After the fierce battle concluded, the Brotherhood had lost a staggering 12 Cloud Shadow-class fighters, a heavy blow.
Lin Zhao did not press his advantage to eliminate them entirely. He merely glanced at them from a distance, not paying them much mind, and then led the Scarlet Moon Transport to escort over 200 civilians away from the wilderness teeming with mutated creatures and fraught with peril. He only returned after ensuring their safe passage to a main road patrolled by local government troops.
"Beep!"
With Chen Xue piloting the Cloud Shadow-class as his co-pilot, Lin Zhao opened a communication channel with Murong Feiyue and sent her a video of their recent engagement with the Flying Dragons. "Sister," he said, "take a look at this."
"Deep-sea Flying Dragons?!"
Murong Feiyue frowned. "These aerial sea beasts are usually extremely rare. The last time I saw a Flying Dragon was three years ago. Could it be… brought by that S-class mother beast from the deep sea?"
"It's not impossible," Lin Zhao replied. "We've dealt with this batch of Flying Dragons, but we don't know if there are any more. In any case, I'm just giving you a heads-up to heighten our alert levels. From now on, humanity's fighter jets will no longer be without worries, as these Flying Dragons possess the ability to melt combat aircraft."
"Understood," Murong Feiyue nodded. "Don't lead people north anymore. Leave the airspace defense here to the Eighth Army. Little Zhao, you've done enough. Get some rest now."
"Mm."
...
Lin Zhao and the Scarlet Moon Transport crew continued their busy work until late into the night, only returning to the Scarlet Moon Transport base at 10:30 PM. However, despite searching for many missing players from the Scarlet Moon Knights throughout the day, they still found no trace of Roman's parents. It was highly likely they had perished, but Lin Zhao couldn't bring himself to tell Roman that.
At 11:00 PM, Lin Zhao ordered Huodao to divide the Scarlet Moon Transport personnel into three shifts, continuing the search and rescue missions outside the city. As for Xicheng, with the sea beast tide pushed back into the Yangtze River, the reconstruction of Xicheng had begun. Fortunately, the sea beast tide had come and gone quickly, and the city's overall damage was not too severe, not to the point of being irreparable.
At 11:30 PM, in the workshop.
Lin Zhao and Chen Xue settled Roman into bed. Roman had cried herself to exhaustion and fell asleep shortly after lying down. However, her sleep was not deep. After only a few minutes, she woke up crying, still unable to accept the fact of her parents' demise.
"A Xue…"
Lin Zhao gently stroked Roman's hair. "You stay with her. She needs someone with her right now."
"Mm," Chen Xue nodded. "You go ahead and attend to your business. It's fine."
"Alright."
Lin Zhao turned and left, heading upstairs. This was his first time logging back in within the past 24 hours.
...
"Swish!"
The character reappeared at the foot of Half-Wushan, trapped within a chaotic cage.
He frowned, accustomed to it. He then brought up the "Ten Year War" version system and began reviewing the human world's battle situation in the eighth year after the Battle of Baicheng. Upon seeing it, he felt even worse.
In the eighth year, following the fall of Yangping Pass, Shanhai Pass was finally breached.
Humanity paid a terrible price. Chen Mengjun, a Great Sword Immortal of the Twelve Realms, defended Shanhai Pass fiercely but was besieged by Chenfeng and Longzheng, two Demon Race cultivators of the Thirteen Realms. She was severely wounded, nearly perishing, and was sent back to Lingyan Sword Sect after being rescued by Lu Fengxian. Lu Fengxian was also injured in a fierce battle shortly after, nearly losing his rebirth realm.
Han Yetang, the Commander of the Palace Guards, led tens of thousands of Vermillion Bird Cavalry in a bloody battle, killing countless demon soldiers and demonic cavalry. However, he was eventually wounded by a single sword strike from the great demon Chenfeng, nearly dying. Subsequently, the Demon Race dispatched countless cultivators to pursue him into the city. Fortunately, thanks to the escort of several extremely loyal and brave Vermillion Bird Cavalry, Han Yetang escaped with his life. He was met by Chen Xi south of Shanhai Pass and sent to Baidi City to recuperate.
South of Shanhai Pass, a river named Beixi flowed between Yun Province and the Northern Territory. Just as two demon military camps and a hundred thousand demonic cavalry attempted to cross the Beixi River, Chen Xi, who was ambushed in the valley, launched a surprise attack with fifty thousand Cangnan Iron Cavalry. In a single battle, they annihilated nearly 150,000 demon forces, even killing nearly 30,000 of the demonic cavalry, who were known as the unparalleled force in the world.
This directly shattered the morale of the commanding Divine Cavalry Captain, who never imagined that human cavalry could be so elite. Chen Xi, who was spoken of in the same breath as Lin Ruo as one of the dynasty's twin pillars, not only commanded with great skill but also struck with formidable ferocity.
Ultimately, Chen Xi's fifty thousand Cangnan Iron Cavalry were reduced to a mere five thousand, and Chen Xi led them back to Tianji City. The Beixi River defense line was then handed over to local troops from Ning Province and Huang Province.
Upon returning to Tianji City, Chen Xi issued a recruitment order, commanding all counties and prefectures of Yun Province to recruit soldiers independently and dispatch troops to the Beixi River to continuously supplement human forces, doing their best to delay the advance of the Demon Race and Demonic forces towards Tianji City.
Lin Zhao frowned and, with a thought, entered the "Yun Province Recruitment" option. Immediately, his body felt heavy as his consciousness immersed itself in a desolate area of Yun Province.
Ahead lay a small town, not particularly bustling. The town housed only a few hundred families, most of whom made a living by farming and raising horses. Every household raised horses. The people of Yun Province were diligent and honest; wheat sprouts were already emerging from the snow in the fields. At this moment, the recruitment order from Chen Xi, the lord of Yun Province, had arrived.
To the people of Yun Province, Chen Xi was like a god. She was not only the granddaughter of the once-famous General Chen Wanli but also a renowned general with brilliant achievements. During her decade-plus tenure governing Yun Province, she had shown great care for the populace and never committed any atrocities. Now that Chen Xi was recruiting, the people responded without hesitation.
It was a pity, however, that the Yun Province Iron Cavalry were no longer as numerous. In countless great battles, despite the Yun Province Iron Cavalry being hailed as the finest in the land, the older generation of cavalry had almost all perished. In Yun Province, young men over the age of 20 had basically all been conscripted into the army. If a family had two sons, the elder brother would certainly have gone, leaving the younger behind.
A year ago, Li Chunyang led an army of six hundred thousand to die heroically at Yangping Pass, and among them were many sons of Yun Province.
Now, with the older generation of Yun Province Iron Cavalry gone, it was the turn of these young men, who still looked tender, to take up arms.
To leave some bloodline for Yun Province, many families in towns and villages married off their children early. Thus, when Lin Zhao's consciousness descended upon the town, he saw scenes of weddings in every household. At night, throughout Yun Province, there were celebrations of marriage, with lanterns and colorful decorations. After the wedding ceremonies, the young wives held their husbands' hands, and the husbands, leading their warhorses, purchased saddles for themselves in the night market.
The next morning, the young newlyweds offered a cup of tea to their elders. The husband received armor, a spear, a sword, and a shield from the government. He mounted the old horse raised by his family, packed a few days' worth of dry rations, and, from just this small town alone, over a hundred young Yun Province Iron Cavalry were about to head north.
By the roadside, a group of newlywed women bid farewell to their husbands. They carefully tied their wedding red scarves onto the horse saddles, as if accompanying their husbands to the battlefield.
In the early morning, a thin mist shrouded the main road.
Countless young Yun Province Iron Cavalry left their homes, carrying spears, with swords hanging at their waists, riding their horses. They converged on the official roads. Most of them were between fifteen and twenty years old, their faces filled with youth. Yet, many of their horse saddles were adorned with red scarves, belonging to young men leaving home for the first time.
Led by middle-aged cavalry captains, they advanced resolutely, without looking back at their homes, heading directly for the Beixi River battlefield.
...
Lin Zhao's consciousness hovered in the air, observing the continuous stream of Yun Province Iron Cavalry on the main road, converging like a mighty river. A sigh rose from his chest. Since ancient times, Yun Province had been known for its heroes, and since ancient times, the Yun Province Iron Cavalry had been the finest in the land. Yun Province was the most vast province in the north of the Great Shang Dynasty, the province with the most formidable folk customs, but it was also the province with the highest casualties in every major war.
How much did this human world owe Yun Province!