Zero Casualties

At 11:12 PM, Tieluo, the Sandfolk chieftain who was resting with his eyes closed on a large Moke Swift Dragon, received news that the exploration team they had sent into the military outpost had been blown to bits by a booby trap.

Enraged, the Sandfolk chieftain twitched his snout, which resembled a caiman's, and then fed the surviving members of the exploration team, who had returned with severe injuries, to his mount. It was a Swift Dragon King, its size almost comparable to the Tyrannosaurus Rex of Earth's prehistoric era. It opened its massive jaws and swallowed the injured soldiers, who were too terrified to even scream, in a few bites. It then smacked its lips, as if disappointed by the taste.

Chieftain Tieluo, a Black Scale—though he always claimed to be a King—then kicked over a trembling Yellow Scale Servant Soldier beside him and began whipping him fiercely with an electrified whip.

All the Red Scale and Yellow Scale Sandfolk nearby held their breath, daring not to make a sound. Only the Blue Scale Sandfolk, leaning against a War Chariot and incongruously wearing an Imperial Style Armored Helmet, watched the scene with amusement.

Chieftain Tieluo didn't stop whipping the Servant Soldier, who was now barely alive on the ground, until he felt slightly better. He couldn't help but glance at the Sandfolk in the armored helmet leaning against the War Chariot and cursed inwardly, "You damned fake alien brat! If I didn't need you to drive the War Chariot, I'd beat you to death right now! A mere Blue Scale Artisan, and you dare to sit while looking at my noble Black Scale!"

Little did he know, the other party was thinking the same thing: "He's just a barbarian slave owner. He's never seen the Sea of Stars or bathed in the Light of Civilization. Ignorant, foolish, arrogant, and overbearing. I really don't know where he gets his sense of superiority."

Indeed, progressive Sandfolk like the Blue Scale Chariot Captain, who had received "Higher Education" and seen the world beyond (Great Stars), found it difficult to consider their own kind, with their minds full of caste distinctions, as their own people anymore.

Although these five War Chariots were bought with Chieftain Tieluo's own money, the Chariot Captain and his crew were "Civilized Persons" trained by the "Collaborators'" Secret Training Camp. They had mastered skills like War Chariot operation, combat training, military communication, and artillery, and could speak fluent Galactic Common Tongue. Their "barbaric slave owner chieftain" couldn't command them at all.

"I already warned you. Since the Earthlings abandoned their base, they wouldn't leave anything usable behind," the Chariot Captain said with a mocking tone, his gaze like that of someone looking at a scavenger bum.

"Hmph, even the corpses of dead Hairless Monkeys are useful! I'll hang their heads on flagpoles as a warning, and I'll leave their bodies to feed the dogs!"

"So the ten-person squad and their Swift Dragon mounts were all blown up by the traps left by the Earthlings! You gained nothing and suffered heavy losses before even engaging the enemy!" the Chariot Captain retorted. "Duke Tieluo, we are the combat experts. Please heed our advice next time, won't you?"

Chieftain Tieluo gave him a sidelong glance, then suddenly drew his sword and cut the prostrate Servant Soldier in half: "Hmph, I feel much better now."

Truly an incorrigible barbarian slave owner! The Chariot Captain looked at the Servant Soldier, who died with his eyes wide open, with a hint of pity and a flood of emotion. He hadn't expected that before receiving his "Higher Education," he himself had been part of the barbarians.

To save the Sandfolk, to win our independence and freedom, we cannot rely on these slave owners and nomadic chieftains. Or rather, they are more detestable than humans! Only we, the new youth who have seen the vast world, are the backbone of the nation! After this campaign, it's time to seriously consider the future of our race. We must seize power from these fools, establish a unified government, new schools, and a new army... Hmm, then I can retire and find a school to teach astronomy to children. This is the first lesson for everyone to understand the world, and it's what I love doing most!

The Chariot Captain pondered the future of his race with great concern for his people, then heard Chieftain Tieluo shout loudly, "Move out, those Hairless Monkeys can't run far!"

With the chieftain's order, over forty cavalry, along with five War Chariots that looked awkwardly integrated, quickly advanced towards the northern mountains.

Vehicles and cavalry—it sounded like a pairing full of flaws, and one felt they wouldn't be much faster than lightly armored infantry on two legs. But in reality, this seemingly mismatched force moved with surprising speed. Within an hour, they could see the northern peaks.

It must be admitted that although Chieftain Tieluo was a prehistoric chieftain full of caste thinking, his judgment was accurate. The Black Panther Vehicles, powered by homemade batteries, couldn't run fast, and the residual heat and scent were obvious traces. Moreover, the main mounts of these Sandfolk warriors—the Moke Swift Dragons—not only had keen senses of smell and could detect heat sources, but they were also excellent pursuers. Furthermore, these animals, bearing some resemblance to Earth's prehistoric carnivorous dinosaurs, ran extremely fast, had abundant stamina, could pounce, bite, and tear, and were covered in rather thick scales, making them almost perfect predators.

Land creatures comparable to vehicles in long-distance travel, and large predators at that—this would be utterly unscientific on Earth, but this was, after all, an alien planet far from the galaxy, so it was understandable.

Thus, in just over an hour, the group arrived at the foot of the mountain. The chieftain could even see the entire profile of the mountain range, resembling the head of a terrifying, round-faced giant beast ready to devour people.

Chieftain Tieluo hesitated and waved for everyone to stop, preparing to send a few more scouts ahead to investigate. But when he was about to call out names, all the Red Scale and Yellow Scale Sandfolk shrank behind the Tanks, none daring to show themselves.

The chieftain roared in fury and was about to drag out two more slave soldiers to feed to his mount when the Chariot Captain climbed out from the hatch on top and said, "The gentleman who came from that side has made it clear: this group of Hairless Monkeys suffered heavy losses! Everyone is injured, and they only have lightly armored troop transports, while we have five Tanks, giving us an overwhelming advantage! They cannot be our match! The terrified Earthlings should have already fled into the mountains by now."

Chieftain Tieluo found this reasoning quite sound. The giant Swift Dragon beneath him had been restless since a while ago, clearly smelling the scent of its favorite food—this brute had eaten humans before and particularly liked the taste.

It was clear that the fleeing group of Hairless Monkeys must be very close.

"Prepare to ad..." Tieluo had just opened his mouth when he heard a whistling sound cutting through the air. Before he could react, he saw the Chariot Captain's head explode into a spray of bloody fragments, splattering his face.

The Swift Dragons and Sandfolk descended into chaos. Even the drivers and gunners of those War Chariots were thrown into confusion. As for the chieftain himself, he remained in a state of daze for nearly half a minute.

After a while, the remaining War Chariot crews subconsciously opened fire in the direction ahead. Ion beams struck the distant mountain range, creating a pile of falling rocks but killing not a single enemy. The only benefit was that the azure glow finally brought a trace of light to the pitch-black night. Although far inferior to professional flares, it still allowed the keen-eyed Sandfolk to barely spot the enemy's tracks. They saw a few figures hastily scrambling into a canyon at the foot of the mountain, then disappearing.

The canyon was not wide and was inconspicuous amidst the steep, undulating mountains. Even in daylight, one wouldn't find it without specifically looking for it. However, upon closer inspection, it seemed wide enough for War Chariots and Swift Dragons to pass.

"Kill those Hairless Monkeys! I want their heads to soak in wine!" Chieftain Tieluo roared. Clad in Composite Material Armor obtained from the "Collaborators" and wielding a two-meter-long Horse-Chopping Great Saber made of High Carbon Crystal, he led the way, riding his massive Swift Dragon first.

This is how leaders from the martial and virtuous City-State Nomad Era were. Their personal strength and courage determined their prestige, so they had to be brave!

The War Chariot crews and Sandfolk naturally followed. The former hesitated somewhat, but with their captain dead, they didn't know who was in charge. Although they had received professional Armored Soldier training, their expertise was limited, far from being "elite."

The Sandfolk, with hot heads, charged into the canyon, and within minutes, the terrain had compressed them into a single-file line. The head of the snake was naturally the brave and peerless Chieftain Tieluo, while the tail was a most cautious Yellow Scale Sandfolk, constantly looking around, riding the smallest Swift Dragon, appearing ready to flee at any moment... Oh, he wouldn't escape. A giant boulder, falling from who knows where, crushed him and his mount flat on the spot. The rolling boulder also completely blocked their retreat.

BOOM! BOOM! BOOM! Landmines buried in the canyon—actually modified Grenades, not professional anti-armor mines—still caused considerable casualties and immense chaos in such a confined space. Drivers swerved wildly to avoid the explosions, crashing into the mountain walls, rear-ending other Tanks, or running over their own men riding dragons. This created a chain reaction that led to the entire army's collapse.

The War Chariot crews wanted to retaliate, but they didn't even know where the enemy was, and the cannons' elevation couldn't be raised that high. A few brave souls opened their hatches and tried to operate the machine guns, only to be picked off by the dense fire coming from both sides.

As for Chieftain Tieluo... he and his massive Swift Dragon were caught directly in the barrage of fire from above. Their mangled bodies were mixed together, neither of them intact.

"Charge!" an impassioned voice faintly echoed in the canyon, but it was immediately drowned out by a louder sound.

"Charge your head! If there's anyone still able to move, keep firing!"

The Sandfolk despaired but could only blindly dodge and fire randomly at their surroundings. Their shooting stance instantly reminded Yu Lian of the vast, mysterious land of his homeland, rumored to be the cradle of humanity. He couldn't help but glance again at Sergeant Youyou, who had just shouted "Charge!"

The Big Black Guy flinched, trying to disguise himself as an emotionless killing machine, and focused all his attention on firing at the enemies within the canyon.

His shooting posture was standard, and his accuracy was good, much more professional than his compatriots on that vast and mysterious continent.

Yeah, I really miss home. Maybe I should set a small goal for myself: go home or something?

Lost in thought, Yu Lian watched as all the Sandfolk who could still move were knocked to the ground. At this point, the soldiers in Power Armor slowly emerged from their ambush, cautiously approaching the War Chariots. As Yu Lian had instructed beforehand, they delivered a final shot to the groaning Sandfolk and Swift Dragons on the ground, then lifted the hatches of the immobilized Tanks and tossed a Grenade directly inside. After repeating this four times, cries of despair erupted from the last Tank, and a few Blue Scale Sandfolk scrambled out, crawling and begging for surrender.

Thus, at just before 3 AM on November 14th, the soldiers of Military Outpost 12 concluded their fifth battle in three days.

But this time, they suffered zero casualties.