Accompanied by the fierce melody and the roar of artillery fire, the legions of the Ember Empire gradually approached the city wall of Collins. At this moment, this terrifying beast finally showed its fangs.
"Boom! Boom! Boom!"
One shell after another pierced the sky, fell into the position of the Issel coalition, and set off fierce explosions one after another.
"Ah!"
"Careful!"
"My arm! It's gone!"
The soldiers were wailing and screaming. Under the intensive firepower, they were often hit by flying shrapnel and engulfed by raging flames.
The officer waved his saber and shouted: "Counterattack them! Damn it, what are your artillery used for?"
As a former Thracian town, Issel also purchased advanced artillery from the Ember Empire and had its own artillery regiment. Duke Walter believed that they could also carry out some countermeasures.
But soon, the officers realized that they were completely wrong. There was also a gap between artillery and artillery.
The coalition soldiers hurriedly took out the artillery shells, stuffed them into the barrels, and hurriedly aimed at the Ember Legion in the distance.
Fire broke out from the muzzle, thick smoke rose, and the shells also drew a graceful arc in the air, but fell powerlessly in front of the tank corps, blasting holes in the wasteland.
Their range is actually not enough!
Seeing that the counterattack was ineffective, the governor roared angrily, while the soldiers of the Allied Artillery Corps hurriedly loaded the shells
At this moment, a human soldier raised his head with a look of despair - his pupils reflected the dense and overwhelming cannonballs.
"Amauna Tower is up there."
"Boom!"
For a time, artillery fire continued all over the sky, raindrops of artillery shells poured down towards the coalition artillery position, flames and smoke rose into the sky, and the entire position was suddenly plunged into a sea of flames.
The thousands of heavy cannons that Duke Walter had placed high hopes on were turned into scrap metal at this moment, but the gold coins they spent were actually consumed by the Ember Empire to produce more cannonballs and firearms.
In the artillery position of the Ember Legion, the ogre head, who is the commander of the artillery legion and wears the rank of lieutenant general, is holding a telescope and squinting at the sea of fire in the distance.
——That is the artillery position of the coalition forces.
"Tsk, tsk, stupid southern humans, it's so ridiculous that they exposed the location of the artillery positions so easily.
Several years have passed, and these idiots still don't understand the new era's war model. It seems that giving them the best weapons is a waste, and they deserve to digest our garbage. "The ogre shook his head and said contemptuously.
He put down the telescope in his hand, proudly took out an "Emperor" brand cigarette and held it in his mouth.
"Sir, let me help you." The half-dragon guard next to him quickly came over diligently and spit out flames from his mouth to light him.
Because the ordnance sold by the Burning Ember Empire to the south is old inventory that has been accumulated for a long time.
With the Ember Technology Department climbing the technology tree at a high speed, the artillery in the hands of the coalition forces has lagged behind the empire by at least an era. Whether it was range, accuracy or power, they were all ruthlessly crushed by the Ember Legion's heavy artillery.
Just now, Datou easily discovered the coalition's artillery position - they didn't even have the consciousness to hide it.
Immediately, Datou mobilized hundreds of cannons, violently bombarded the coalition positions, and carried out carpet bombing, blowing these old artillery into real scrap metal in an instant.
"Cunning Imperial Man."
Walter looked at the artillery position that turned into a sea of flames, and immediately gritted his teeth and frowned.
After experiencing the bombing just now, he understood that the three kingdoms had been deceived by cunning imperial merchants!
Wherever the weapons they sell are new, they are obviously junk that has been eliminated long ago! And the gold coins used to purchase weapons were turned into artillery shells used by the Ember Empire to invade!
Thousands of heavy artillery roared in unison, countless shells pierced the sky, thick smoke covered the sky, and fierce explosions continued to occur in the coalition positions. The two armies had not yet come into contact, and the coalition forces suffered many casualties.
Fortunately, this situation did not last long.
Above the clouds, Barachiel slowly raised the lightning blade in his hand and issued an order to his heavenly army: "In the name of Heavenly Mountain, protect our allies——"
His voice was like thunder, loud and powerful, and his words were heavy.
Suddenly, the gleaming golden giants let out a dull war cry and appeared at the forefront of the clouds.
These heavily armored giants were covered in metal from head to toe, with a spear-like blade on one arm and a massive shield on the other.
——They are the Shield Angels and the stable cornerstone of the Celestial Legion. They withstand waves of devils and demons without any complaints, and resist deadly attacks from more powerful enemies.
At this moment, the Shield Archangel raised his huge shield, shoulder to shoulder, forming a tight steel wall in the sky. A huge light shield with a width of several kilometers spread out, intercepting almost all the artillery shells falling towards the coalition positions.
Violent explosions bombarded the solid wall again and again, making the Shield Gods tremble all over, but no one flinched, they just endured it silently.
The beautiful trumpeters and angels flapped their white wings and blew the silver horns in their delicate hands. The melodious music echoed over the coalition positions, healing the wounds of the wounded.
The Arcane Legion recited a spell silently, and along with strong energy fluctuations and flashing light spots around them, brilliant rays of light were blessed on the bodies of the coalition soldiers.
There were also meteors, fireballs, ice cones, lightning and other terrifying spells flying into the sky, attacking the Burning Ember Legion that was advancing rapidly not far away.
"Boom!"
A speeding steam tank was hit by a bolide. It burned and exploded instantly, turning into a pile of black smoking scrap metal.
On the towering city wall of Collins City, the thirty Sun God crossbows continuously shot out huge arrows trailing light, piercing through the steam tanks, armored vehicles and soldiers of the Ember Empire from a distance of thousands of meters.
The angry roar of the commander-in-chief of the armored forces, Dragonblood Marquis Arturo, came from the loudspeaker in the steam tank.
"For the Burning Ember Empire, and for His Majesty Cassius, the entire army must obey my orders and crush them for me!"
The steel behemoths let out roars that shook the wasteland, and fire suddenly burst out from those thick gun barrels, blasting towards the coalition army troops, producing terrifying explosions.
Under the steam tank's special armor-piercing bullets mixed with alloys, even the thick shield of the Shield Archangel is not indestructible, and the infantry in heavy armor will be blown to pieces.
Rich steam and billowing black smoke swept in, and these steel giants rushed towards the coalition soldiers.
"We in the Fadland Empire have never been cowards! Don't back down and protect our territory!"
"For Fadlan!"
The officers on the front line drew their sabers, let out heart-rending roars, and led the soldiers to rush to the tank, trying to surround the "beast" made of steel.
"Boom——"
However, the reality is not the story told by the bard. The spears of the coalition soldiers look so pale in front of the tank armor.
The steam tank ran over without hesitation, blood and minced meat splashed everywhere, and the tracks instantly became stained with blood. The steam tank still roared and marched, leaving only blood stains and debris on the ground. On the frontal battlefield on land, dozens of steam tanks as vanguards drove straight in, violently breaking into the coalition positions, tearing apart their defense lines, and dividing the coalition troops into countless scattered pieces.
These steam tanks used their powerful main guns to destroy the fortifications built by the coalition forces, and the infantry of the Burning Empire followed quickly behind the steam tanks.
They entered the enemy's position along the gap created by the tank's breakthrough, skillfully shot and threw grenades, forming a dense firepower network to cover the tank's advance.
After countless drills and exercises, the tactics of infantry-tank coordination are almost engraved in the bones of these imperial soldiers, almost forming a conditioned reflex.
Under the heavy hammer-like offensive of the Ember Legion, the soldiers of the coalition were caught off guard and fell in pieces like harvested wheat. For a time, the frontline battlefield was littered with corpses and filled with smoke.
If it were an ordinary army, it would probably have fallen into panic and completely collapsed under the torrent of steel from the Burning Ember Empire.
But the coalition forces in North IJssel are composed of extraordinary beings such as the remaining troops of the Fadland Empire, the Celestial Legion of Silver Heaven, and the Arcane Legion of the City of Ten Thousand Laws.
Under the raging offensive of the empire, they were only frustrated for a moment, and then quickly adjusted, found a way to deal with it, and launched a fierce counterattack.
The mages of the Arcane Legion chanted incantations, raised their staffs, and brilliant spells flashed, and the surrounding magic network fluctuated violently.
Various fire walls, stone walls, and force field walls blocked the steel behemoth. The clouds and fog produced by the spells obscured their sight. The bulging rocks overturned the tank, and the sharp ice spikes penetrated the armor.
There was even a space crack suddenly appearing, causing the steam tank that had no time to brake to fall into the abyss.
"You overestimated minions of the evil dragon! I will let you taste the wrath of the race of the Sun God!"
Those angelic descendants flapped their wings and hovered in mid-air, with intense fire in their eyes, like demigods descending into the world.
The angelic descendants all raised the exploding divine energy swords in their hands, pointed them at the sky, and released an extremely dazzling light.
Marquis Karen waved his sword and let out a trembling roar: "For the sake of Holy Fadlan! I will give you destruction with the sacred flame!"
"Boom!"
Several golden-red fire pillars dropped from the sky, instantly piercing through several steam tanks rushing at the front - including the "Old Man" class tank with great military exploits.
The engines of these steel behemoths emitted a piercing scream, and then exploded instantly, leaving only a few piles of smoking scrap metal, and the pilots among them were also wiped out.
The Barani angels above the clouds drew their bows and arrows, aimed at the Ember Legion on the ground, and fired metal arrows one after another. The lightning-like silver hair danced with these elven archers.
The arrow pierced the clouds and fell with a harsh explosion. They intertwined in the sky, dragging bright silver light tails, like a gorgeous meteor shower.
These arrows hit the steel behemoth and penetrated deeply into the thick armor, instantly creating an explosive whirlwind of sand, dust and snow inside the tank, completely destroying its internal structure.
There were also archers and divine envoys who all raised their bows and arrows, shooting the flowing arrows at the soldiers of the Burning Ember Empire, piercing their hearts flowing with dragon blood.
These infantrymen on the ground were completely unable to hit the angels on the clouds. They could only charge against the torrential rain of light arrows and step over the bodies of their dead comrades with difficulty.
The counterattack of the coalition forces was very effective. In just ten minutes, the Ember Legion lost 21 steam tanks. The Ember Legion had never encountered such an evenly matched opponent.
But the sky is not the territory of gods and celestial beings, and the Air Force of the Ember Empire is equally powerful.
Although in terms of quality, the flying dragons and dragons of the Ember Legion are slightly inferior to those naturally powerful and kind celestial creatures, in terms of quantity, they have a crushing advantage.
What's more, there are dragon-veined monsters that have received many dragon blood gifts and have strength that far exceeds those of their own kind.
"Ouch——"
The leader of the dragon army, the atavistic flying dragon Smaug, nearly twenty meters long, looked up to the sky and roared angrily. Its power was no less powerful than a real red dragon.
At the leader's call, thousands of bipedal flying dragons roared in unison. They flapped their wings chaotically and rushed towards the Celestial Legion like a raging tide.
Many of the flying dragons have a soldier wearing special clothing on their backs, but they are not knights with superb riding skills and strict requirements, but so-called "flying soldiers".
You must know that the flying dragons and sub-dragons of the Imperial Air Force are also clearly divided into arms. Among them are the "bomber dragons" equipped with bomb delivery devices, and the "combat dragons" equipped with machine guns and howitzers. The imperial flying soldiers are responsible for controlling these. Weapons of special forces.
"Da da da da——"
The machine guns on the chests of the flying dragons spurted out hot tongues of fire, and the machine guns mounted on their sides fired terrifying shells. The dense firepower immediately overwhelmed the Celestial Legion and made it impossible for them to raise their heads.
The angels could only hide behind the Shield Archangel and continuously shoot arrows to fight back. They had no time to take care of the coalition forces on the ground.
Bipedal flying dragons fell from the sky wailing, but some angels were hit by bullets and fell to the ground.
The leader of the Red Scale Conquerors, the Empire's Dragonblood Marquis Alger, rode on the broad back of the dragon-veined giant eagle, leading the real dragon knights to join the chaotic battle group in the sky.
Alger raised the flaming sword in his hand and rushed to the front of the team, shouting loudly: "For the Burning Ember Empire, for His Majesty Cassius, destroy them——"
"Charge with dragon roar!" The ever-burning sword in his hand pointed at the Celestial Legion.
Suddenly, hundreds of dragon knights charged at the same time. The dragon beneath them spread its wings, dived at high speed, opened its mouth, and let out a roar that resounded through the sky.
"Roar——"
For a moment, these dragon roars resonated wonderfully, and the group of hundreds of flying dragons seemed to merge into one body. The soldiers of the Celestial Legion trembled and shuddered.
A hundred-meter-long red dragon phantom appeared in their eyes, swooping down in their direction.
In an instant, the Red Scale Conquerors thrust out their spears, brandished their swords, and chopped off the shining golden heads, breaking through the defense line of the Shield Angels and creating a huge gap in front of the Celestial Legion.
After charging hard for a while, the red-scale conquerors climbed up at the same time, almost straight into the sky, preparing for the next dive, and the flying dragon army had followed them into the gap of the heavenly army.
The flying dragons flapped their wings, stretched out their heads, bit the bodies of the heavenly warriors with their fangs, and pierced their chests with the poisonous needles at the tips of their tails.
The machine gun on the chest and the machine cannon on the side will often spit out fierce tongues of fire, beating the fragile angels into sieves.
"Ouch - kill you!"
The white dragon had a ferocious face, waving its wings with bared fangs and claws, and rushed towards the Celestial Legion. She spit out extremely cold frost from her throat, freezing several Celestial warriors into ice cubes in an instant.
The two-legged flying dragons and sub-dragons fought hand-to-hand with the heavenly legions, entangled and fought together.
In the process, many flying dragons were pierced in the heart and beheaded by heavenly warriors. These loyal and brave soldiers carried the glory of heaven and fought to the end against the evil invaders.
But there are also ferocious flying dragons that tear the heavenly creatures into pieces, causing their flesh and blood to fly everywhere, and even the corpses become horrible to look at. Greedy flying dragons, their goal is also very simple - to vent their desire to kill, attract the emperor's attention, and obtain a nobler bloodline.
The clouds were dispersed by the fierce battle, even dyed gray-black by gunpowder smoke. The light of heaven intertwined with the fire and explosion of machine guns. The roar of flying dragons, the roar of heavenly warriors, and the roar of machine guns were all mixed together.
The corpses of flying dragons and celestial creatures, broken limbs and blood continued to fall, and the sky at this moment turned into a cruel millstone of flesh and blood. (End of chapter)