A One-Sided Battlefield (8,000 Words)
The harassment continued on the second day, just like the day before.
Goblin transport activities have shown signs of a massive contraction. Some well-positioned supply depots that had not yet been attacked were hastily abandoned overnight.
The goblin heavy infantry began to assemble, choosing routes that offered easier terrain cover and equipped with anti-aircraft forces for escort.
Guided by a constant stream of intelligence from the drones, Katharine increased the size of her attack force in response. She issued orders to launch an attack on the heavily fortified transport convoys and continued to reap the rewards.
Although the efficiency could not compare with the first day, and even the attacking troops suffered multiple injuries during the counterattacks of the protective forces, the results were still acceptable.
Compared to the dragons' hunting-like posture, the goblin camp was naturally shrouded in gloom and their morale was low.
What made the command particularly desperate was that the dragon's continuous attacks on the supply lines were clearly a prelude to a large-scale operation!
A fierce attack from a dragon is clearly on its way!
Using a communication array, the goblins initiated real-time communication over a distance of several hundred kilometers. General Luowotan and his officers at the goblin frontline command held a tense emergency meeting with King Nilunke and his senior ministers at the Goldglint Fortress in the rear.
Over the past few days, King Nilunke has dealt with some disgruntled opposition leaders with an iron fist, temporarily stabilizing the internal turmoil. Militarily, this headstrong king, having learned a painful lesson, has realized his own inadequacy and has urgently recalled the veteran general Luowotan to take full command of military affairs.
Yesterday, this general, who was appointed to the mission in a time of crisis, urgently adjusted the goblins' logistical supply strategy to cope with the dragon's relentless air raids and alleviate the deteriorating situation.
Judging from today's results, although the situation remains severe, the attacks by the Dragon Race and the Final Bone Mad Machines have indeed been contained. General Luowotan also ordered the frontline troops to use local resources for food and halved their daily standard rations.
Goblins have a broad diet; if they're not too picky, they can barely survive on wild grasses, roots, and even insects. However, this inevitably leads to a significant decline in the soldiers' physical strength.
Faced with such a perilous situation, the goblins had no other choice.
At this moment, the old goblin general, with his white beard but still sharp eyes, was waving his withered arm, his spittle almost spraying onto the communication screen.
"Our core strategy must prioritize preserving our strength!" His voice was slightly hoarse from working for a long time.
"Are we just going to stand by and watch our land fall into ruin?" a minister asked indignantly.
"Blindly engaging in a direct confrontation with a powerful enemy will only result in the death of all our goblin warriors and the loss of our entire stronghold!" Luowotan rebuked sternly.
If the land is lost and the people (goblins) are lost, both the people (goblins) and the land will perish.
"Then tell me, how are we supposed to defeat our powerful enemy if things continue like this?" the rebuked minister retorted.
"Flexibility and maneuverability, with the primary strategic objective of delaying and attrition against the enemy!" Luowotan slammed his fist heavily onto the battle map. "The Final Bone Mad Machines and the Dragon Alliance seem unstoppable, but they have a fatal weakness—their terrifyingly massive resource consumption!"
This time, the minister who had questioned the minister fell silent, and the others wholeheartedly agreed.
The massive Final Bone Mad Machines weapons that rained down from the sky, possessing astonishing power, consumed a staggering amount of steel and gunpowder that left the goblins speechless. One minister in charge of logistics even lamented that the materials used to make these bombs, if converted into gold coins, would be enough to buy the lives of goblins!
While dragons possess unparalleled combat power, the food they consume is enough to feed thousands of humans!
"In contrast, our goblin warriors!" Luowotan straightened his hunched back, his voice carrying a tragic pride, "We only need half, or even a third, of the food humans have to sustain our fighting power! Weapons? A specially made 100-kilogram Dragon-Breaking Cone— shouldering it on our shoulders—is enough to contend with behemoths!"
He scribbled a circle on the map with his stubby fingers, decisively marking all twenty frontline cities as "abandonable." "Main forces maintain high mobility, while second-line troops hold their ground in the city fortifications, using space and fortresses to continuously deplete the supplies of the Final Bone Mad Machines and Dragons!"
Excessive battlefield attrition inevitably forces the Final Bone Mad Machines and the Dragon Race to halt their offensives for rest and resupply after each large-scale attack.
"A dragon cannot soar in the sky forever!" The military minister's eyes lit up, understanding the implication. "If they want to occupy our cities, they must land and establish a foothold!"
"That's right! If they want to rule the land they've seized, they must establish order and exercise jurisdiction on the ground!" Another minister exclaimed in realization.
"Our cities are like anthills, riddled with underground tunnels and hidden holes!" Luowotan's voice held the determination of a cornered beast. "We can organize countless resistance squads, infiltrate from all sides, and launch continuous surprise attacks, bleeding the dragons dry, drop by drop!" His tone became impassioned. "When they control more and more goblin cities, their forces are increasingly stretched thin, and they are too exhausted to attend to anything else, that will be the time for us to launch a desperate counterattack, reclaim our homeland, and win this war for survival!"
"This could even be a hundred-year war," a goblin strategist declared. "We certainly can't finish this in one battle, but goblins reproduce every ten years or so. While the next generation of dragons is still in their swaddling clothes, our population can double. By continuously wearing down the dragons in this way, we'll surely wipe out these arrogant lizards!"
Suddenly, a goblin official spoke up, his voice tinged with suppressed fear. "What if the Final Bone Mad Machines and the Dragon Race disdain ruling and, like us, choose to slaughter all the goblins in the occupied territories?"
****
While the goblin official's question was like ice water poured over the council chamber, Miao Xin was asking Su Ming the same question.
At this moment, the two were in the drone remote control center of the Ruby Base. In preparation for the upcoming general offensive, Su Ming had expanded the number of Rainbow Drone to ten, and they were being integrated into the combat sequence one by one.
Miao Xin's Skeleton Pig fingers flew across multiple drone devices. One of the drones captured a scene of goblin cooks having a picnic in the open air.
Miao Xin was filled with intense curiosity about the food of the goblins in this other world. She skillfully maneuvered her drone, diving close while manually adjusting the optical lens to focus, and took several high-definition photos with exquisite detail of the large iron pots set up by the goblins.
There is a communication delay of about 100 milliseconds between here and the drone, but Miao Xin calculated and predicted this completely, and completed the operation smoothly and effortlessly.
Su Ming couldn't help but applaud, "Well done!"
[Basic operation, don't be silly.] Miao Xin's message carried a hint of smugness, [So, when are you going to lift the speaking restrictions on me?]
"I'll unblock you when you learn the common language of this other world." Su Ming finished inputting and initializing the new drone equipment and closed the background management interface.
"I'm already learning," Miao Xin said insincerely.
Su Ming organized his thoughts and began to answer her earlier question, "If we adopt an extermination policy towards goblins, it will have three serious consequences." He held up three fingers. "First, dead goblins cannot be used by us. A land devoid of life and devoid of vitality is of no value to us."
Dragon Valley is vast but underdeveloped. Given the current size of the Dragon Race and the Final Bone Mad Machines, land resources seem excessive at this stage.
"Then what?"
"Dragon Valley itself is inhabited by millions of alien inhabitants, who are the main laborers and producers of this land," Su Ming explained. "Among them, goblins make up nearly a third of the population."
Miao Xin suddenly understood: [If we massacre the goblins in the occupied territories, it will inevitably cause panic and flight among the goblins living in Dragon Valley, needlessly weakening our own foundation and power.]
Su Ming nodded. "Not only that, it will severely damage our reputation, branding us as 'brutal' and 'evil' forces." He continued, "If this panic spreads, and conflicts arise between us and other races, the corresponding alien races on our homeland will also flee."
A force to which no living being is willing to serve is nothing.
[I thought you were planning to wipe out these annoying goblins.] Miao Xin scratched her head. [I misunderstood.]
"There's no other way. Some things, once done, will be extremely detrimental to our future plans," Su Ming replied. "These goblins aren't worth the price we pay to eliminate them."
[But taming and managing the goblins in the occupied territories will definitely be very difficult.] Miao Xin continued, maneuvering the drone to ascend, [Isn't it said that those who are not of our kind will surely have different hearts!]
With the help of the Dandelion signal base station, the data from the photos that were just taken has been transmitted back. Miao Xin zoomed in on the image and could clearly see the goblins cooking, using their dirty hands to grab a handful of twig-like things and scrape the densely packed, disc-shaped winged fruits on them into the steaming pot.
A large number of these branches were piled up to the side, and simply left on the muddy ground.
"Tsk tsk, the goblins really eat cleanly and hygienically," Miao Xin couldn't help but mutter. "But what are those leaves on these branches? They look like elm leaves?"
"Don't ask me." Su Ming glanced at the strange fruits on the screen and shrugged. "I've only heard of these things, never seen one in person."
****
But the staff at the command center recognized these things; they confirmed that what the goblins in the photo were cooking were elm leaves.
Although its name contains the word "leaf," elm seeds are actually the winged fruits of the elm tree; their thin, cicada-wing-like appearance makes them easily mistaken for leaves.
By mid-May, the season was over. The elm leaves had long since become dry and tough, with a coarse texture, and were past their best time for consumption.
"The goblins are doing this to ease the burden on logistics," the strategist analyzed, looking at the image on the screen.
Besides elm seeds, the goblin's pot also contained some other miscellaneous wild vegetables, in much larger quantities than before.
"So?" Katharine frowned slightly. The enemy's decision to tighten their logistics was predictable. Besides, what tactical value did the intelligence about goblins eating withered elm leaves have?
The staff officer turned and pointed to the high-precision aerial map of the battlefield spread out on the command platform, locating the area where the small mountain range Dangui Mountain, was situated. He pointed to a spot near the southern foot of the mountain, "These are the coordinates of the cooking point as captured by the Red Pig drone."
Katharine's gaze swept across the aerial map, and she quickly realized the problem: there was no large-scale elm tree population on the southern slope of this mountain range!
On the contrary, there are large groves of elm trees in the valley on the northern slope of Dangui Mountain. Normally, if goblins want to obtain a large number of elm leaves, they would have to cross this mountain range.
Goblins aren't picky eaters, so it's definitely more reasonable for them to travel over mountains and valleys just for the unpalatable taste of old elm leaves than to find other food locally.
Katharine carefully examined the terrain details of the Dangui Mountain area—the pictures showed no easy paths to cross, not even any decent mountain trails that people had walked on.
"This is the key to the problem!" The staff officer's voice was filled with excitement at finding a clue. "Red Pig's reconnaissance images are very clear; there are no traces of any large-scale passage on the surface of Dangui Mountain!"
Katharine's gaze returned to the photo of the cookhouse. In the picture, a mountain of elm leaves stood out beside the goblin's open-air stove.
Such a large number could not have come from a few scattered elm trees.
"You suspect that there's a tunnel hidden beneath the mountainside of Dangui Mountain?" Another staff officer came over and searched along the ridgeline, eventually stopping at a depression where the mountainside was relatively thin and there were obvious road traces on both sides. "This place is about two kilometers wide, and there is indeed a very high probability that a tunnel exists here!" he said excitedly.
"No." Katharine's lips curled into a slight smile. "It should be an underground facility." She gave the staff officer who had first raised the question an approving look. "Well done!"
From an overall topographical perspective, Dangui Mountain itself does not pose an obstacle to major transportation routes and can be easily bypassed. The only reasonable explanation for the goblins choosing to expend manpower and resources to excavate a passage here is to establish a hidden underground hub.
Katharine immediately picked up a pen and drew a striking red mark on the area, instructing, "Have Red Pig thoroughly search the Dangui Mountain area again!"
****
As more detailed reconnaissance information continued to be transmitted, the command center, after careful analysis, finally confirmed that beneath Dangui Mountain was either a hidden command center of goblins or a large-scale supply depot—regardless of its specific function, it was undoubtedly a target of great tactical value.
However, Dangui Mountain is a full 150 kilometers away from the front line. Launching a surprise attack from such a distance would be extremely difficult, and if too many resources were invested, it would inevitably affect the all-out offensive against the goblin front-line strongholds to be launched tomorrow.
Katharine was caught in a dilemma. She contacted Su Ming and reported the situation.
"We won't attack Dangui Mountain." Su Ming made his decision almost immediately after hearing the intelligence.
"I will arrange two special-type missiles," he explained. "Thinking they're safe just because they're underground, these goblins probably haven't learned how to write the words 'ground-burrowing thermobaric missile' yet."
Katharine really wanted to complain, "I don't even know how to write these words."
"It's the kind of thing we used to deal with the Radiant Chanter and the Choir back on Sacred Mountain, right?" she confirmed.
"Hmm." Su Ming nodded. "Why don't we take a gamble and see if the goblins hiding inside have the same level of resilience as the Radiant Chanter? One goblin for one copper coin?"
"I'll concede now and give you a gold coin." Katharine felt a wave of relief. "Then I'll wait for your missiles to arrive at the launch array."
"I'll arrange it right away," Su Ming said. "They should be in place by tomorrow afternoon."
Having solved this problem, Katharine felt a little relieved and offered another piece of information, "There's another target here; take a look at it as well."
Su Ming received the documents and discovered that this was the garrison camp of another goblin army, guarding an important supply point. Miao Xin, just like with the previous cook squad, used a drone to take a large number of clear photos of the camp from various challenging angles.
Among them were several goblins, whose handsome features were actually quite striking if you ignored their filthy military uniforms. There were even three goblins who were clearly of the same sex, captured in high-definition photos while they were fooling around behind the tents.
Su Ming glanced at the Skeleton Pig suspiciously. Miao Xin, with her unusually large appetite, wondered, "Can you even eat something like this?"
****
Katharine continued to report to Su Ming.
Thanks to the recent increase in captured goblin weapons, the command's technical analysis team has conducted in-depth research on goblin equipment. Based on photos provided by Miao Xin, they accurately reconstructed the size, shape, and various additional devices of the goblin main battle weapons in the camp and produced an evaluation report.
"Suspected to be an upgraded version of the Dragon-Breaking Cone '?" Su Ming frowned slightly as he looked at the analysis conclusion in the report. "Developed by goblins, an enhanced weapon used to deal with dragons?"
"The size has increased significantly, and the weight is estimated to have increased by at least 50%," Katharine added. "The specific performance parameters are still unclear, which introduces some uncertainty to our tactical arrangements."
"You want to attack this camp?" Su Ming guessed Katharine's plan.
"Yes," Katharine replied, "It's better for us to take the initiative now and find out the details of these new weapons than to encounter them after the general offensive begins tomorrow and then hastily react."
"I understand," Su Ming said knowingly. "Go ahead and do it. Don't be too reserved. I'll handle the communication with the Dragon Race."
"Okay," Katharine replied, then hung up and went to get busy.
In the channel, Zijin, somewhat puzzled, "What kind of riddle are you guys playing?"
"It's not a riddle," Su Ming explained to her. "This goblin force numbers about five thousand, which is quite large, and their defensive formation is very well-organized. Moreover, they are a full ninety kilometers away from our front lines. A raiding force cannot carry heavy bombs and other equipment, and a direct assault would easily result in casualties."
"War—there's never a war without taking risks."
From a strategic perspective, even if it comes at a cost, it's absolutely worthwhile.
"Katharine is, after all, a human commander who was parachuted in," Su Ming said. "Seeking permission is a gesture. Moreover, it's more appropriate for us to handle this kind of communication than for her to bring it up directly."
Zijin thought for a moment, "We should give her some support too."
As she spoke, she pulled Zhimeng and Gelie into the voice chat group.
Su Ming explained the attack plan for the goblin camp and the risks involved to Gelie and Zhimeng in detail.
"No problem, I'll go tighten the strings for the dragon cubs involved in the operation!" Gelie's deep voice rang out. "Necessary sacrifices are acceptable, but it's not worth it to lose one's life due to stupidity or negligence!"
"I thought," Su Ming said with a faint smile, "That you, Dragon King, would once again lead from the front and personally charge into battle, just like before."
During this time, Su Ming also heard many stories about Gelie's youth, when he was brave and unparalleled in the army, and who dominated the battlefield.
"If I were younger, I would definitely have charged to the front without hesitation," Gelie said frankly. "But now I understand that it is far more valuable for me to stay in the rear and hold the line than to be on the front lines fighting."
"Su Ming, you need to learn something," Zhimeng interjected. "You know, Dragon King Gelie used to be a notoriously stubborn man."
"When you lack ability, you can only rely on brute force to hold things together." Gelie sighed, with a hint of self-deprecation. "Now that we have real confidence, we dare to compromise and make changes." He turned to Su Ming, "But this operation—I heard that you, Su Ming, are going to personally go to the battlefield and participate in the attack?"
"I absolutely have to go this time," Su Ming said. "The key to the 'Dragon Goddess's Descent' plan is with me."
Two barely perceptible blushes rose on Zijin's cheeks. Su Ming solemnly read out the name of the plan, making her feel a surge of shame.
But he was completely unaware of this.
"I'm going with Su Ming this time." Zijin coughed lightly, trying to shift the awkwardness, "Ruixiuli's injuries have almost healed, so he'll be coming too!"
Gelie nodded, finally finding it somewhat acceptable. "Be extremely careful."
"I have something to discuss," Zhimeng said. "Elders Hongyao and Qingfeng, who were imprisoned in the Land of Ancestral Spirits, have submitted a request to join the battle. They hope to atone for their mistakes on the battlefield and guarantee absolute obedience to orders."
"Hongyao's broken claw injury has healed so quickly?" Su Ming was somewhat surprised; only about ten days had passed.
"They haven't fully recovered yet, but they can fight," Gelie affirmed. "With a little tempering of their personalities, these two dragons will be perfectly capable of serving as frontline assault commanders."
After a moment's thought, Zijin said, "It's good that they can set an example; allow them to fight!"
"The general offensive in the East of the Ridge region tomorrow will be under the full command and coordination of Katharine," Su Ming confirmed finally. "Can you ensure smooth coordination with the Dragon Legion?"
"Otherwise, what do you think I'm doing standing guard on the front lines, lecturing those troublesome brats every day?" Gelie laughed.
"I thought you just wanted to insult the dragon, "Su Ming thought to himself.
"In short, I will be in charge of the central command to ensure that military orders are strictly enforced and obeyed!" Gelie promised.
****
As night fell, Katharine's communications came through, reporting the final results of the raid: the tactical objectives had been successfully achieved.
Guided by drones that followed them closely, the dragons, having carried out a long-range raid, launched a thunderous frontal assault on the heavily guarded goblin defense force.
Unable to accurately assess the threat level of the enemy's new weapons, Katharine abandoned conventional tactics of probing and stalling in this operation. Instead, she decisively adopted the most primitive and violent fighting style of the Dragon Race. All the dragons, like a raging torrent, ignored the possible risks and charged straight into the goblin army, engaging in a fierce melee!
The battle intensified the moment they made contact. Until the situation was brought under control, a giant dragon, while tearing through the enemy ranks, was overwhelmed by a dense counterattack, and two undead observers perished in the chaos.
This is the inevitable bloody price to pay for directly charging into the enemy ranks and engaging in brutal close combat. No matter how powerful the dragons are, when they charge into the dense ranks of goblin soldiers, they become lone warriors fighting alone.
Any randomness on the battlefield, or the random gathering of powerful enemy soldiers, can lead to such unavoidable losses.
However, the extent of this loss was predictable. Katharine chose this method to prevent the goblins from developing new weapons in time, thus avoiding potentially greater risks.
After seizing the sample of the new weapon, the assault team, under the cover of the supporting unit, did not linger in battle and quickly disengaged, taking with them the remains of their fallen comrades.
The entire operation was swift and efficient.
With the tactical objective achieved, Katharine's tense nerves finally relaxed, and she let out a long sigh of relief. "My first time fully commanding the dragon legion in battle—at least I didn't embarrass myself."
"So you get nervous about this too," Su Ming said with a hint of teasing amusement. "I thought you were used to these kinds of situations."
"Used to it?!" Katharine's tone was filled with disbelief. "Su Ming, don't you understand? Incorporating a large number of dragons into the battle formation is a scene many commanders can only dream of!" Her voice was laced with excitement. "What's more, we're now commanding—over a thousand war dragons! An army composed of the most powerful creatures in this world! Do you even know what that means?!"
"Is that so?" Su Ming belatedly realized the problem. "How come I—didn't feel anything at all?"
"We're now the envy of countless colleagues!" Katharine was almost exasperated by his obtuseness. "Don't you have even the slightest bit of pride as a commander?!"
Compared to his mission to command his dream dragon, Su Ming's complete lack of awareness only fueled Katharine's resentment.
Su Ming tried to imagine what it would be like to select a thousand chimeras in the Warcraft game and have them attack an enemy base, and only then did he begin to get a slight sense of it.
"Hmm, I didn't consider that aspect," he reflected.
"After this battle, we'll absolutely qualify for the ranks of the world's top commanders." Katharine rolled her eyes; she was only lacking one impressive achievement to reach that point. "I'll have this battle's record engraved on my tombstone, so future generations will be envious!"
****
On the third day, the first light of dawn pierced through the clouds, and Project "Dragon God" was officially launched!
The Dragon Race army, like two unstoppable torrents, set off from the front-line base. They split into two routes, their sharp advances heading straight for the goblin defensive strongholds of Pinghe City and Zhuahe City!
This is the largest troop mobilization and movement on our side since the start of the war.
More than a thousand giant dragons of various shapes and sizes covered the vast frontal battle line, blotting out the sky. Following closely behind was an auxiliary force of 80,000 warriors from various races in Dragon Valley, accompanied by 50,000 camel-drawn beasts used for transport, advancing like a surging tide.
With the help of modern equipment and intelligent auxiliary systems, the information flow between the command center, commanders and soldiers at all levels, and undead observers scattered on the front lines is like a dense spider web, carrying out dazzling scheduling and coordination.
The real-time situation in front and behind is clearly visible on the screen.
Katharine even felt that this ability to coordinate information was a forbidden power on the battlefield. The enemy would completely suppress them in terms of organization and response capabilities, until they were defeated, and they would not be able to understand where the problem lay.
But this epic battle, which had kept Katharine so excited the night before that she could hardly sleep, actually gave her a strange sense of indifference once it truly began.
It's hard to accurately describe the feeling she had. Rockets from the long-range fire array rained down like a storm, completely flattening the outer positions. Supported by ample combat supplies, the dragons took turns diving, easily dropping heavy glide bombs on their targets.
Amidst the deafening explosions, vast stretches of goblin fortifications, along with the soldiers hiding within, were instantly reduced to ruins engulfed in flames and thick smoke.
The new goblin weapon captured in yesterday's raid has been cracked by the technical team overnight. Analysis shows that its range and tracking mechanism have been improved, and the relevant data has been pushed to all observers in real time. Every tactical squad on the front line has made targeted adjustments based on this.
On the reconnaissance side, under the almost obsessive control of "Red Pig" Miao Xin, the drones were able to observe the enemy formation with such detail that they could count the tiny toes.
The massive war machine operated smoothly and ruthlessly according to its predetermined steps. From the very beginning, the situation on the battlefield was devoid of any suspense.
As the main dragon horde gradually entered the battlefield, hundreds of dragons formed a tight attack echelon and began to advance into the depths of the goblin city. The muffled rumbling sounds continued incessantly, and large and small gray-black mushroom clouds constantly rose into the air from various tactical targets.
Even a complex of buildings constructed primarily of solid stone is as fragile as paper in the face of such devastating destruction.
Pinghe City, as the main target of the first phase of the attack, was under particularly intense pressure. Soon, the gates at the rear of the city were forcibly opened, and the remaining goblin defenders fled like a flood, abandoning the city and piling up in the nearby roads and forests.
"Cease frontal assault!" Katharine's voice rang out in the command channel. "Second squad, immediately flank from both sides and execute the interception!"
"Roger!" the captain replied. The squadron, which had been waiting on the flank, immediately bypassed Pinghe City and began to circle towards the city.
When the war shifted from the siege phase to a period of escape and pursuit, the carnage had only just begun!