The tactical focus of the Lena Tower City's defenders was mainly to delay the advance of the Algon. The reason behind this strategy lay in their insufficient troops and firepower. Even at their strongest, the defenders of Lena Tower City could barely withstand the Algon's swarm tactics. Now, with less than half of their pre-war strength in both manpower and defensive firepower, it was even more challenging for them to sustain against such a massive Algon offensive.
Therefore, the strategic thinking in Lena Tower City was clear. They aimed to delay the battle until daybreak and then use the daylight when the Algon paused their attacks to reinforce their defenses. In addition, their hopes for a breakthrough rested entirely on the shoulders of the Savior.
Throughout the entire night, the soldiers had lost count of how many artillery shells they had fired. By morning, the front lines of the first defense chain resembled a field devastated by a dense meteor shower, filled with craters of all sizes. The once vast green grasslands had turned into scorched earth. The steel tanks stationed at the first defense chain had been blasted into metal fragments under the continuous barrage of artillery fire, creating fires that illuminated the night sky. Though soldiers at the rear couldn't see the battlefield, they could imagine the intense and brutal scenes faced by the frontline defenders as they fought the Algon throughout the night.
The battle on the first night lasted for eight or nine hours straight, an experience most ordinary people couldn't comprehend enduring amidst such intense combat. Fortunately, the initial problems of insufficient firepower and troops didn't immediately manifest, allowing the experienced defenders to manage the night battle without significant setbacks. As the faint light of dawn appeared on the horizon, the Algon's massive army ceased their intense assault, quickly consolidating their formations into defensive postures before the sun rose. With the sky illuminated by the sun, the Algon's forces finally stopped their movements and entered a temporary state of semi-hibernation.
Watching the Algon stop their attack as planned, the defenders of Lena Tower City finally breathed a sigh of relief. However, they knew it wasn't yet time to relax. Besides assessing the losses from last night's battle and replacing damaged weapons and equipment, they had to quickly complete the construction of the remaining defense fortifications before tonight's battle against the Algon.
"The good news from the front is that the Algon haven't broken through our first defense line. However, the bad news is that since our overall defense structures are less than fifty percent complete, the defensive capability of our first defense chain has been significantly reduced. Based on last night's battle, our first defense line won't hold out for long against the Algon's attacks, so we must strengthen the defenses of the second defense chain," Eva informed the members of the Skull Special Operations Team after receiving the battlefield reports.
At this moment, the members of the Skull Special Operations Team in the rear of the battlefield had already gathered together, waiting for Eva to issue the next set of instructions. However, Haoyun noticed that only a few dozen members were present, and Karl was absent. Although Haoyun knew that the missing members had probably infiltrated the front lines to better monitor the Algon's movements, he couldn't help but worry about Karl's safety.
Seeing Haoyun's concern, Eva specifically reassured him that Karl, like the other absent members, was hiding on the front lines and continuing to monitor the Algon's movements to assist Lena Tower City's defenders. Eva assured Haoyun that Karl and the others were safe, as there were no casualties in their team from last night's battle.
Furthermore, Eva informed Haoyun that due to Wang Defa's deep infiltration into enemy territory with Karl, they had to disable their communication devices to avoid the risk of the Algon intercepting their signals and endangering them. Therefore, except for Eva's ability to contact Karl and the others when necessary, no one else could reach them. However, Eva assured Haoyun of her full trust in Wang Defa's leadership in reconnaissance, ensuring Karl's safety under his command. If Karl and the others encountered any danger, Eva promised to inform Haoyun's team immediately.
Regardless, knowing that Karl was alive eased Haoyun's concerns to some extent. Therefore, after listening to Eva's briefing on the results of last night's battle and the morning's task arrangements, the three of them returned to their trench. Since Haoyun and his team were relatively new recruits in the team, Eva arranged for them to rest in the morning to avoid affecting their combat performance tonight. Thus, Haoyun and his team found a quiet corner, tasted the chocolate cake made by Delong, and discussed last night's battle.
"Why do I always feel like this battle is so weird?" Jia was the first to complain in the private chat system.
"Yeah! Fighting all night under the sky, my back aches and my legs hurt like I've been dismantled. Ah! This kind of blind artillery firing is really boring! I really don't understand why they don't just let us go to the front line to fight the enemy face to face!" Haoyun rubbed his lower back and agreed.
After previous skirmishes, Haoyun knew very well that dealing with these Algon was like a high-level player with an eight-star and eight-jewel dragon-slaying knife fighting against a group of newly spawned Level 1 characters in a beginner's village. It didn't take much effort to knock them all down like cutting vegetables. Therefore, since the battle began, Haoyun's desire for battle was very high, always eager to engage the Algon in close combat again. After all, it was a slaughter, who wouldn't enjoy casually fishing in the pond?
Taken from Royal Road, this narrative should be reported if found on Amazon.
Dao Lao glanced disdainfully at Hao Yun and said, "Dream Jia meant that although the Westberg people have completely surrounded the Lena Tower Mountains with overwhelming military force, the effectiveness of their attack last night was rather lackluster. Despite holding an absolute advantage in military strength, they failed to leverage it during last night's battle, which is indeed quite strange."
With Dao Lao's explanation, Hao Yun understood what Dream Jia meant by "strange" and said, "Perhaps it's because Lena Tower City had prepared its defenses in advance, preventing the Westberg people from launching a sudden attack like they did on Old Zion City. Although Lena Tower's defensive fortifications are not fully completed, it must be acknowledged that after more than ten thousand years of warfare, these humans have a deep understanding of Westberg's tactics. Hence, their defensive structures and strategies are highly targeted. Otherwise, how could they successfully repel the Westberg people's attack when less than fifty percent of their overall defense construction was completed? You should know that the Westberg people mobilized nearly the same scale of troops as they do every hundred years when they attack the human main cities."
"I understand all of that. But what I mean is, the tactics chosen by the Westberg people last night were highly illogical. According to reports from the front line, the Westberg forces deployed included the floating airships and tanks we've seen before, along with numerous fleets of floating warships. However, during last night's attack, they neither dispatched a large number of aircraft and tanks to support infantry assaults, nor did they use the heavy artillery of their warships to bombard our defensive positions first, to better assist their infantry in charging our defenses. On the contrary, the Westberg people let the infantry lead the attack and then provided some support using medium to long-range firepower. This kind of hit-and-miss strategy by the Westberg people would be strange indeed if they managed to breach Lena Tower's defenses!"
"Hmm? Now that you mention it, that's exactly how it was last night. It seems that throughout the night, we were the ones using heavy artillery to bombard the enemy, and our defensive positions did indeed suffer little from enemy long-range artillery attacks," Hao Yun realized, still lacking any real concept of large-scale battle tactics.
Thus, Hao Yun changed his line of thought and asked, "So, are you suggesting that the Westberg people did not launch a full-scale attack on us last night?"
Dream Jia nodded and said, "Very likely. According to the information from Old Zion City, the Westberg people's attack rhythm and intensity have clearly increased compared to before. Moreover, their attack on Old Zion City was not just for show; they were aiming to completely destroy Old Zion City. However, it's evident that the Westberg people's intensity in attacking Lena Tower last night was far less than at Old Zion City. Plus, they insisted on launching infantry charges that would cause significant casualties to their own side, under conditions of powerful fire support. Doesn't this make their actions even more bizarre?"
"Could it be that the Westberg people didn't anticipate Lena Tower City preparing its defenses in advance, so they recklessly launched an attack on us, catching them off guard? Or perhaps those Westberg people only appear strong but are actually a bunch of brainless fools? Otherwise, how could they, despite having overwhelming advantages, spend more than ten thousand years in futile efforts to completely occupy this planet?" Hao Yun speculated.
"If we say brainless, it should be that the behind-the-scenes power controlling these Westberg people is brainless. However, since they know how to use that divine technology to create Westberg people, it means they certainly have high intelligence. So, normally, the mastermind behind the Westberg people should not design such a botched strategic tactic," Dao Lao remarked.
"Could the mastermind behind the Westberg people have some kind of special fetish? Maybe they enjoy causing suffering to others while inflicting painful losses on their own army as well? Perhaps the mastermind behind the Westberg people is a psychological masochist?" Hao Yun shrugged, speculating wildly.
Surprisingly, after some thought, both Dao Lao and Dream Jia found some merit in Hao Yun's speculation from a certain perspective. Perhaps the mastermind behind the Westberg people was indeed a sadist with a penchant for inflicting and enduring suffering. Hence, directing the Westberg people to attack Earth NX was not solely about quickly occupying it but rather about enjoying the process of tormenting others while suffering themselves. Well, if that's the case, then the mastermind behind the Westberg people is quite deranged! Thinking this through, Dao Lao and Dream Jia, with their extensive experience in the lower world, couldn't easily dismiss Hao Yun's seemingly outlandish speculation. After all, in this vast world, there's nothing too bizarre they haven't seen before.
As Hao Yun, along with the other three upper world priests who had the blessing of divine power, did not exhaust much mental energy last night, they naturally didn't need much rest. Therefore, after exchanging thoughts on last night's battle, the three of them voluntarily returned to their units and continued to engage in preparations for the next round of battles.
Today's weather remained exceptionally clear, with sparse, white clouds drifting in the azure sky. Breezes gently brushed across their faces, ensuring that even under the full exposure of the sun, it didn't feel overly hot. Usually, in such beautiful grasslands under clear skies and gentle sunshine, one would feel relaxed and at ease. However, around the Lena Tower Mountains' grasslands, one could only sense a strong sense of oppression and crisis. Looking into the distance, the black smoke rising into the sky from the grasslands and the large fleets of floating warships suspended even further away made it clear that this grassland was far from the serene paradise it appeared to be. Because by nightfall, this place would once again become a suffocating purgatory.
As Hao Yun gazed into the distance at a massive floating warship resembling an aircraft carrier, Eva's voice sounded behind him once again, "That big guy is the Westberg people's aerial fortress. It's said that such a carrier serves as their mobile command center for operations. All combat commands received by the Westberg people on the battlefield are transmitted through that carrier."