Otherworld Advance Team
Chapter 1254 - 1247: Standoff Situation

Chapter 1254: Chapter 1247: Standoff Situation

The course of the war had not been completely reversed by a single victory. The retreating Dongsheng vanguard encountered the main force and, after resting and reorganizing, they advanced towards Lipei once more.

About five days later, the Dongsheng military arrived en masse. However, due to the previous bitter defeat, they didn’t dare to encamp outside of Lingyuan City, settling instead more than thirty kilometers away.

For them, this was already considered beyond the defensive perimeter, but for the air fleet with the capability to deliver fire from the sky, this was still within their defensive zone, still within the reach of their firepower.

Despite knowing the Dongsheng military had encamped thirty kilometers from Lingyuan City, Reimer didn’t take action but simply ordered the reconnaissance aircraft to maintain constant surveillance. On the ground, the Demon Clan also deployed scouts to monitor the Dongsheng troops.

The main reason Reimer did not act was the severe shortage of ammunition aboard the Helrandum, which was a very pressing issue.

Although their eastern expedition was nominally a military campaign, it was actually more of an inspection trip. Therefore, the airboats were mostly loaded with supplies, including food, water, and Magic Crystals, etc., with not an abundant reserve of ammunition. They had never anticipated encountering high-intensity warfare upon arriving at the East Continent.

Had it been only a scarcity of Magic Crystals, they could have resupplied locally, since they did bring craftsmen capable of mining the resource. But ammunition was something they truly couldn’t replenish there.

After all, although Abisien had entered the era of firearms, their manufacturing capabilities were too poor to produce modern ammunition that met firing specifications; essentially, they had one fewer shell with each one fired.

Fearing such a scenario, headquarters had equipped the Advance Team with Origin Submachine Guns. If they were still armed with gunpowder weapons like before, their weapons would have likely turned into mere fire sticks before long.

However, it still needs to be clarified that, in war, the role of weapons is often not as significant as that of people. It’s not that the more advanced the weapons, the smoother the war will go.

For Abisien, what the Advance Team and the Dwarves brought was not only improvements to weaponry and equipment but also revolutionary changes in battle tactics, strategies, and thought.

The Abisien military had basically entered the era of firearms. With slight adjustments and upgrades to weaponry and equipment, they could usher in the early stages of long-range warfare. Once they achieve industrialization, they would be able to enter the formal stage of long-range warfare.

The gap between long-range warfare and line-of-sight warfare is not just in visible distance, but also in weaponry, equipment, and tactical strategies.

As Abisien entered the stage of long-range warfare, it’s not to say that they could completely defeat the Dongsheng military, which was still in the line-of-sight warfare stage, but narrowing the gap in strength caused by the Cultivators was certainly possible.

Unlike the Advance Team that could only make constructive suggestions, the Dwarves who came to Lingyuan City put forward many innovative proposals, including weapon modifications and material processing, greatly enhancing the military technological level of the Demon Clan.

In most cases, war is the biggest driver of technological progress. Thus, faced with the threat of the Dongsheng military, the Demon Clan made rapid and thorough changes. There were already attempts to fit firelocks with Flintlock mechanisms, converting firelocks into Flintlock guns.

In West Outer Heaven, apart from people, there was hardly a shortage of anything. This made the reform efforts of the Demon Clan much easier. They improved the formula for gunpowder, processed stronger steel, and crafted new types of firearms.

Ten days after the last battle had ended, the Dongsheng military remained inactive, apparently planning something. In the evenings, Luo’er would walk alone in the garden, feeling desolate as he pondered the recent events.

He had discussed with Reimer and confirmed the fact that the air fleet could not return to the West Continent.

This campaign was originally planned to explore as far as possible, with supply airboats being discarded on the return trip to barely make it back to the West Continent.

But the discovery of the East Continent and the battle with the Scouring Sky Beast disrupted this delicate balance. Now, having fought against the Dongsheng military, the air fleet itself was severely lacking in energy. The question wasn’t about flying back, but whether it could stay afloat for a few more days.

According to Reimer’s idea, since they had discovered the East Continent, they should simply search for Magic Crystals nearby to replenish their energy. This was also why they brought craftsmen with them.

However, plans never keep up with changes. They indeed found an opportunity to replenish Magic Crystals, but now with the Dongsheng Empire invading West Outer Heaven, if they didn’t drive out these annoying foes, they would have no chance to replenish their Magic Crystals.

Before, he had considered if he could reconcile the conflict between Abisien and the Dongsheng military and then supplement with some Magic Crystals from the Dongsheng Empire, but the battle that ensued dispelled his thoughts.

Now, he had no choice but to cooperate with the people of the Demon Clan and place his hopes on them.

If the Airboat ran out of Magic Crystals to maintain buoyancy, it could actually still anchor on the water’s surface since nearly all Dwarven Airboats were designed this way. However, no matter what, they would definitely need to take to the air to return,

crossing the ocean to return to the West Continent, not to mention the long and obstructed path, simply the Leviathans within the ocean would be enough trouble for them.

Initially, he thought this was just a simple inspection mission, but now it turned out like this; and thinking of how he was again causing worry to those who cared about him, Luo’er couldn’t help but sigh.

"Why are you sighing all by yourself, don’t you like Lingyuan City?" Just then, he suddenly heard a charming voice from behind and was startled, prompting him to turn around.

He saw that Zisu had appeared behind him at some point, slowly emerging from the shadows. Her steps were indeed cat-like, making no sound as she moved.

After observing for several days, Luo’er had noticed the subtle differences between the Maoyou Clan and the Qingqiu Clan. Generally speaking, the Qingqiu Clan’s ears were sharper and bigger, and they were mostly oriented forward.

In contrast, the Maoyou Clan’s ears were rounder and some of them had patterns. Their ears were also mostly oriented forward, but compared to the Qingqiu Clan, their ears were directed slightly more outward and seemed more lively and agile.

The Maoyou Clan, true to their name, moved with steps that were very light and graceful, and even if they took cover in the bushes, it would be hard to stir too much disturbance.

So in Abisien’s army structure, the Maoyou Clan usually undertook the roles of scouts and musketeers, as their relatively petite size didn’t suit them for frontal confrontation with the enemy forces.

"You haven’t been observing me the whole time, have you?" asked Luo’er.

"Mmm-hmm." Zisu didn’t speak, but smiled with narrowed eyes, maintaining an ambiguous expression.

Luo’er felt he should keep his distance from her and avoid excessive intimacy. Last time, simply due to speaking a few too many cheesy words to her, he ended up causing Tangmo and Baiyue to be jealous for days, and even Fulajie’er, who was always devoted to him, didn’t show him a good face.

After all, as his attendant, Fulajie’er was like a guardian spirit; she watched over every interaction he had with others, and Luo’er didn’t want to anger her again.

"Leader Zisu, do you need something so late at night?" Out of concern for provoking Fulajie’er, Luo’er spoke cautiously and politely.

"Don’t call me leader, my sister is the leader," Zisu said with a smile.

"But after all, you are the representative of the Maoyou Clan," said Luo’er.

In the night, Zisu’s pupils were very large, appearing exceptionally bright in the light. Her gaze always carried a hint of mischief, making it difficult to guess her thoughts.

"Luo’er," Zisu didn’t continue the pleasantries and instead slowly approached him, then tilted her head and fluttered her ears as she asked, "Can you tell me about the Laurel Family?"

"You already know about them, don’t you?" Luo’er instinctively took a step back and dodged the question.

"Since I was little, I heard that hundreds of years ago during World War One, the Laurel Family was completely exterminated by the Human Race. At that time, I felt incredibly melancholic, imagining what the Laurel Family looked like, never expecting that they actually hid in the West Continent and were eventually saved by you guys," said Zisu as she smiled at Luo’er.