Battle Strategy: Luring the Enemy Out

Compared to Pei Shao, Zhong Qingshu also followed the intelligence team around, seemingly doing useless work.

But the fact that she can speak now clearly means that she has found a point that the intelligence team had not discovered in her intelligence gathering.

Based on past experience, if Zhong Qingshu speaks up, it means she already has a definite guess and deduction.

With a hint of joy, upon hearing that they had taken the wrong path, Su Mo's mind immediately began to race, trying to figure out what Zhong Qingshu was trying to say.

Disaster is imminent.

If this alien race, numbering as many as 20,000, cannot be found quickly, they might launch a surprise attack on the lowlands the day before the ocean's arrival.

Su Mo is not afraid of a tough battle, but if the Hope's conditions for entering the sea are disrupted, that would be a big problem.

"The initial assessment was flawed."

What was the initial assessment?

"Quantity? Motive? Or purpose?"

pondering this sentence, and looking at the chaotic and complex routes and terrain on the map, Su Mo kept thinking carefully about which step had gone wrong.

The initial assessment of the quantity came from infiltrating Clark.

The number of 20,000 was also obtained by extracting information from him. As for other corroborating evidence, the only proof is the fearlessness of other alien races on the World Channel.

But is there really 20,000? Or is there 20,000 right now?

"You mean they may have already completed their infiltration, but their numbers are still far from reaching that value?"

Suddenly, recalling the scene where the Female Lion Man summoned Space Rift after winning a battle with the kobolds, Su Mo seemed to have grasped a clue from the darkness.

If he hadn't infiltrated the area, Curse Tiger Clark would never have so readily stated the number 20,000.

Other races wouldn't receive any information either, so why would they be so upset?

After all, if they fail to take down Su Mo in this wave, it would be a heavy blow to the morale of the alien races.

There are still several possibilities.

"First, they have already completed their infiltration, but unlike humans, they have the means to survive without food or water, hiding underground where we cannot see with the naked eye."

"Secondly, they have accumulated a lot of rewards from racial battles. When the designated attack time arrives, they will open the rift to summon their people and launch a large-scale attack."

"Third, they can only quickly assemble and attack after being attacked by the ocean; before that, it's not possible."

Of these three possibilities, the third is unlikely, while the other two are possible. Unfortunately, we lack sufficient intelligence and resources to observe them.

"However, now that we've come this far, do you think this question is even relevant to us?"

After saying that, Zhong Qingshu shrugged, closed her notebook, and gave Su Mo time to think.

"It's definitely meaningful! Twenty thousand alien races is no small number!"

"If we can't quickly find their methods and location, and they sneak into our low-lying area in the dark and summon 20,000 alien races, it will be too late then."

Before Su Mo could speak, Pei Shao, who was standing to the side, realized what was happening and hurriedly said something.

According to Zhong Qingshu, the quantity, the location of the infiltration, and even the methods are meaningless.

What's the point? Sitting in a depression, foolishly waiting for the enemy to attack, and then after the battle, you'll know exactly how they infiltrated.

But since we've already reached the stage of confrontation, what's the point of knowing how the other side infiltrated? What's the point of establishing an intelligence organization then?

It would be better to disband on the spot and join a combat organization to fight head-on.

Seeing that Su Mo neither immediately stopped Pei Shao nor responded to his "anxious" appearance, Zhong Qingshu smiled but remained silent.

The intelligent girl had gained some understanding of Su Mo's way of thinking after spending a long time with Su Mo.

Furthermore, Zhong Qingshu believed that Pei Shao would not understand this point.

But Su Mo, who knows more about the secrets of the wasteland and the interactions between different races, can certainly figure it out; he just needs someone to guide him and broaden his thinking.

"If quantity is meaningless..."

That leaves only motives and purposes.

What are their motives? What are their goals?

He casually pulled over the map, looked at the terrain marked on it, and at several important entry and exit points, Su Mo began to think more deeply.

"The alien race's motives are clear: I have a great deal of influence among humans, and they know I may have the power to change the course of the war."

"Therefore, I am a crucial part of the sniping plan devised by the Five Great Royal Clans. If they don't stop me and allow me to reach the center of their planned battle, the plan may very well change. Their motives cannot be wrong."

"So, setting aside their motives, what is their purpose? And what tasks did the Five Great Royal Clans assign them?"

In the development of modern weapons, whether it is fighter jets in the air, warships at sea, or even armored forces on land, they are all relentlessly developing in one direction.

Invisible!

The invisibility here doesn't mean disappearing, but rather figuring out how to evade the opponent's eyes—the "radar."

In modern warfare, making yourself invisible to the enemy essentially guarantees a 99% chance of victory.

However, such methods did not exist in ancient warfare.

Before scouts discover the enemy's movements, the most important measure of a strategist's leadership ability is guessing! This guessing doesn't mean random speculation, but rather guessing the thoughts of the enemy's strategist and their objectives.

If you can guess the enemy strategist's attack strategy, you can prepare in advance, set a trap, and wait for the enemy to fall into it.

"If the Five Great Royal Clans have assigned me as their target, then attacking from there, especially with everyone in Hope Village present, will be extremely difficult in the early stages."

"Even if they think they outnumber me and can win this battle, they should consider whether I still have the means I used to slay the god last time, so I can take them all down with me."

"After all, they have their own purposes; they're not just working for the Five Great Royal Clans. If they can survive, who would willingly choose to die?"

Based on the guessing method, the first thing that can be determined is that the alien race's target is not Hope Village, nor the Underground Shelter, but rather themselves, who can influence the wasteland situation!

"So, since the mission target isn't me, and it's not something that obviously involves horrific casualties or danger, then it can only be..."

"All you need to do is stop me from reaching the center of the 'vortex'?"

Seeing that Su Mo grasped the key point instantly, Zhong Qingshu's face immediately showed a knowing smile, and she quickly replied:

"Yes, their target is very clear: you. And their goal isn't to fight you to the death at all."

Their goal is to stop you.

"Your survival, your command of the destroyer, and even your evacuation of everyone from Hope Village —none of this will affect the alien race's plans."

"As long as you don't go to the places they forbid you to go, there's really no difference between you being alive and you being dead."

"Even if you really do that, and let them know now that you're not going, I guarantee these lurking alien races would come out and throw you a farewell party without any problem."

The alien race's plan is currently known only to Su Mo, Zhong Qingshu, and Connie within the entire village.

With Pei Shao present, Zhong Qingshu pointed to the north of the conference room and then made another cryptic remark, not fully explaining her meaning.

From the very beginning, when they heard that the number was 20,000, everyone actually went down the wrong path due to inertia.

This includes intelligence organizations as well.

The alien race is not a machine, nor is it a zombie that is fearless and only wants to eat people. They have intelligence and they have aspirations.

For the alien race, Hope Village, including Su Mo, had a population of just over 150.

Compared to other shelters, even if the aliens were fools, they would know that the gains and risks were not proportional at all.

Why did they gather to attack Hope Village?

Just to avenge Su Mo? To avenge Su Mo killing the Dog God? Analyzing the motives and objectives, a direct attack is simply impossible; statistically speaking, the probability is a huge "0"! "Between different races, because of tribal wars where victory brings rewards, they are not a unified force."

"When there are shared interests, everyone can still pretend to get together, each with their own ulterior motives!"

"But what do you have to give in order to make them obey you and risk their lives for you?"

"That's the problem. How much would it cost to send a force of 20,000 men on a suicide attack, risking their lives? Could the Five Great Royal Clans afford it?"

"We can't afford it!"

Reaching out, Zhong Qingshu took the map and folded it several times.

After being folded in half, all the depictions of other directions on this huge map were folded inside.

Only the road through the Great Canyon remains to connect us to the outside world.

Suddenly, the view became much clearer.

"To attempt to remotely mobilize a force of 20,000 men for an encirclement operation without knowing where the enemy is going, thus forcing you to advance in the direction they have chosen."

"Let alone the Five Great Royal Clans, even if you brought Zhuge Liang or Sima Yi to command, they wouldn't have the ability."

"Therefore, from the very beginning, we made a mistake, seriously underestimating their objectives and the instructions given to them by the Five Great Royal Clans."

"What they want to do is never to kill us, but to stop us."

"Through this is the only Great Canyon that can be navigated out by boat."

After picking up her pen and drawing a straight line that radiated out from the Underground Shelter all the way to the Great Canyon, Zhong Qingshu said nothing more and handed the stage entirely over to Su Mo.

At this point, although Pei Shao was still completely bewildered, his face clearly showing his confusion: Who am I? Where am I? What are they doing? Su Mo, as the recipient of the information, had fully understood what Zhong Qingshu was trying to say.

The alien races will not attack.

As long as they don't take this route and instead head towards the center of the vortex from other directions, these alien races won't stop them.

In other words, they are like roadblocks. You don't need to understand where the roadblock is now or how it will suddenly appear when you are passing through.

All you need to know is that they're there.

"So, now it's quite simple for us to find this hidden team before the disaster strikes?"

"All I need to do is drive the Earth Tiger through this Great Canyon, and they'll just appear on their own."

"Right?"

Knowledge is power.

With the advantages of modern military systems combined with the ideas of ancient military strategy, and given sufficient intelligence support, conclusions can be drawn with remarkable ease.

"Yes!"

"However, I don't recommend you try to lure the snake out now; the risk is too great."

"Without the advantage of playing at home, it will be difficult for us to win this unknown battle."

"If you don't want to see sacrifices."

Looking at Pei Shao, who was still seemingly sleepwalking beside her, Zhong Qingshu looked through the porthole toward the location of Hope Village.

The meaning is self-evident.

This battle is worth fighting, but it's unnecessary.

When alien races forcibly attack a low-lying area, the gains are disproportionate to the risks, and the same applies when a low-lying area attacks an alien race.

Every villager who sacrifices their life represents an irreparable loss for Hope Village.

It's very likely we won the battle; less than half of the villagers on the mountain have survived! "No, no, no, you misunderstood. Who said I was going to lead people to fight directly?"

"Luring the snake out of its hole, that's no simple matter. Tomorrow, no, before disaster strikes, give me some time. Tell me the exact location of this alien race."

"I will not only walk through this canyon, I will walk through it in front of all the alien races and all the humans!"

As soon as he finished speaking, he saw the same look of confusion on Zhong Qingshu's face as on Pei Shao's.

Su Mo laughed heartily, stood up, and announced the meeting was adjourned.

This time, we've truly stolen a "heavenly Heaven Stealing Secret"!