Munitions Empire

Chapter 579: 538 Ways to Turn the Tide of Battle

On the ground, the word “tragic” could no longer describe the scene: Qi Army’s airships were burning one after another, instantly turning the entire base into a blazing inferno.

There were at least a few thousand workers inside the base, all serving the airships. Some were preparing hydrogen gas, others were repairing equipment, generating power at the electric plant, or cooking in the canteen…

These thousands of workers, plus the pilots, pilot apprentices, commanders, and other support personnel, amounted to nearly ten thousand!

Now, they were all engulfed by the great fire, roasted into jerky, burnt into charcoal.

The soldiers on the outskirts hadn’t suffered heavy losses, but nearly everyone in the core area had no chance of escape. The fire was simply impossible to quench, and people didn’t even dare to approach it.

If the wind direction changed even slightly, those in the downwind would be in grave danger. They would be burned to death by the flames before they could flee, or would simply suffocate as the fire consumed all the oxygen.

"Retreat! Leave this place!” Seeing that the target they were supposed to protect had turned into a sea of fire, the commander from Qi Country said to his subordinates.

He was unwilling to let his men die here. Seeing the fire grow so massive, it was time to leave, or what, wait till they were cooked?

Thus, the Tang Army on the outskirts immediately began to retreat, while the Tang Air Force fighter units up in the sky were utterly bewildered.

They still had four-fifths of their bombs undropped, and now their target had been utterly destroyed. Were they supposed to keep dropping their bombs madly into the flames?

Clearly, that was impossible. So, they could only pilot their planes back, preparing to take out their frustration on the Qi Army frontline positions by dropping all their remaining bombs during the return flight.

If the Qi Army in the frontline defensive positions knew this, they would surely be speechless. Their Qi Country’s target was too fragile to exhaust the enemy’s ammunition, so all the enemy’s bombs were left over…

The airship units of Qi Country had been on high alert last night, barely sleeping, only to be annihilated within the span of a few short minutes.

Literally annihilated—all the airships were reduced to ashes, then the unexploded munitions in the airship’s ammunition storage exploded in sympathy, blasting the already molten frames of the airships into the sky.

The workers inside the instantly ignited factories didn’t even get the chance to escape before they were turned into medium-rare steaks, and then into charred corpses, eventually being burned into white ash.

The airship unit that Shireck had supported Qi Country with was completely wiped out, millions of Gold Coins down the drain, along with numerous casualties on both sides… Qi Country’s Air Force was effectively out of the war.

…

On the western front of Qi Country, it was already broad daylight. The Tang Army’s offensive kicked off once again, and Liu Guozhu’s tanks received the order to continue advancing, starting their forward push.

Originally, the attack on Luo Town was supposed to be the task of the 4th Armored Division, but Redman decided to pull back the units that had suffered heavy losses on the first day and arrange for them on a less intense front.

So, Liu Guozhu, who had received the Cavalry Medal Third Class on the first day of battle, was ordered along with his troops to march towards Luo Town and seize the position threatening the safety of the Third Prince’s rear.

The tank units, just like during training, filled up with fuel, loaded up with ammunition, and set out, except that this time, they were followed by even more supply trucks and a large number of infantry who had just arrived the night before.

They were now going to switch defense zones with the 4th Armored Division, so there was no chance of battle at the onset. They would pass through areas already occupied by their own troops, and only then would they encounter the temporary defensive lines hastily constructed by Qi Country.

The Qi Army had been busy all night; it was impossible they had done nothing. They would have built defensive fortifications in the areas they occupied, at least digging trenches or the like.

"Get ready! The radio is filled with voices from the Air Force communication officers! They’re trying to identify ground targets!” Liu Guozhu, half out of his tank, looked at the road infantry had just managed to clear the night before and heard the voice coming through his headphones.

His tank followed right behind another, advancing along a road flanked by wheat fields. Here and there on the roadbed, they could still see overturned carts and the corpses of dead soldiers.

There had clearly been a brief skirmish here. The Qi Army had left behind about seven or eight bodies and then most likely surrendered.

Because Liu Guozhu saw a large number of tents and miscellaneous items discarded beside the corpses, and even two 90mm caliber Shireck howitzers.

These were designed specifically to counter the Tang Army’s 75mm caliber infantry guns, with a larger caliber aiming to outgun the products of the Great Tang Group.

Unfortunately, these cannons were too heavy and could only be dragged by horse carriage, which made them inconvenient to maneuver and use.

"Roger that! I understand!” Seeing the tank in front had stopped, Liu Guozhu also switched his communication channel and instructed his driver, “Stop the tank!”

His tank had also stopped by the roadside, with cars occasionally whizzing past on the other side. He, the gunner, and the loader all climbed out of the tank, and then the three of them frantically rummaged through the clutter box on the side of their tank to find a huge Dragon Banner.

They were going to cover the engine deck with this Dragon Banner to provide a recognition signal for the friendly forces above, so that the Air Force could distinguish between the retreating Qi Army and the advancing Tang Army troops.

"Next time we can just paint the national flag on top of the tank! That way we wouldn’t need to go through all this trouble,” the loader complained while securing the wrinkled Dragon Banner.

"All right! At least this way we can avoid getting killed by our own people!” Liu Guozhu said as he tucked one corner of the Dragon Banner into a gap on the engine hatch cover.

The entire tank unit was busy providing identification signs for the aircraft above, with the red Dragon Banner also draped over the engine covers and the rear storage boxes of vehicles.

Just at that moment, there were squadrons of Stuka Dive Bombers roaring past in the sky. Like flocks of seagulls, these planes crowded the sky and headed towards the Qi Army’s frontline positions.

"Got to say, with these guys, they’re pretty reliable,” Liu Guozhu looked up at the sound of engines, and watched the Stuka Dive Bombers heading into the distance with admiration.

These aircraft would crush the enemy’s defensive will before the tank units even began their attack, and could even directly shatter the enemy forces.

They could replace artillery, providing support that was both more accurate and more timely, smashing any attempts by the enemy to regroup and counterattack.

With their support, the ground troops’ advance was lightning-fast. Most of the infantry sang songs all the way, taking prisoners without even having a real fight break out, and reached the areas they needed to occupy.

Each dive of these formidable aircraft came with a terrifying sound, and every bomb dropped would accurately hit the most crucial spots, immediately destroying important enemy targets.

While Liu Guozhu watched these Stuka Dive Bombers disappear into the distance, he saw even more planes flying over his location.

It was his first time seeing these planes; they were larger and the noise of their engines was even louder.

The B-17 bomber fleet, after bombing the King City of Qi Country and Nanye on the first day, received orders early that morning to begin carrying out tactical missions.

Qi Country actually didn’t have many strategic targets to offer, and there were not many places worth bombing repeatedly—by the time the industrial district of King City would recover production, it would likely be seven or eight days later.

And nearly 100 B-17 bombers couldn’t just be left idle, so it was only natural for them to continue taking off to bomb the Qi Army’s frontline defensive troops.

Though the accuracy of level bombing was doubtful, its impact in terms of sheer power was definitely ten thousand times that of the Stukas. Dropping bombs like raindrops on Qi positions, the deterrent effect was not much less than the screaming Stukas.

"What kind of planes are those?” A curious Liu Guozhu asked, not really knowing who to. Obviously, neither his gunner nor his loader would recognize the highly classified B-17 bombers.

"Who knows, but… definitely our planes, that’s for sure,” the gunner looked up at the departing B-17 bombers and replied with a laugh.

On another road, the 2nd Armored Division had already begun its rampant charge towards Nanye. They broke through the hastily constructed defense lines of the Qi Army in just 30 minutes, without any delay.

The steel tide of 50 tanks crushed 4,000 Qi soldiers, then pushed the surrendering Qi troops, dozens of Qi artillery pieces, and supply wagons and trucks off the road, advancing forward with the infantry trailing behind.

Only after breakfast did the third prince of Qi Country hear the news that his defensive line had been breached once again.

Another shocking piece of news was that the Tang Army’s troops were closing in on Nanye, and it seemed that the retreat routes for both him and his older brother were about to be cut off.

"Your Highness! We must consider retreating now! Staying here brings no advantage anymore,” a general spoke up, reminding the third prince.

With the border defense line thoroughly breached and the gap in danger of widening with little hope of closure, continuing to hold their positions after the breakthrough was tantamount to waiting for death.

"Then what do we do?” The idealess third prince looked to his subordinates, asking in desolation.

He had lost here, and his claim to the throne was almost certainly slipping away, how could he not feel despair and despondency?

"Retreat! Retreat towards Nanye from Luo Town! Now… if we can hold Nanye, there might still be a chance to turn the tide of the war!” The general spoke up directly in response, “Though Nanye is unfortified, it still has 10,000 defending troops! If we can take 30,000 elite troops there promptly, we can reverse the unfavorable situation and stabilize the defense lines anew

"Yes! Yes!” The third prince grabbed onto this lifeline eagerly, quickly agreeing, “Retreat! Retreat at once!”

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