Otherworld Advance Team
Chapter 1386 - 1379: Ending in Defeat

Chapter 1386: Chapter 1379: Ending in Defeat

Because they used black powder as the explosive, the grenades thrown by the Demon Clan Grenadiers often burst into a massive amount of white smoke, causing those in close proximity to easily feel the shock and the awe-inspiring impact.

At this point, the battlefield was a complete mess, with the ground covered in corpses and all kinds of weapons and armor, including broken limbs and pools of blood that had collected in low areas.

The high intensity of the battle meant that neither side had a chance to collect the bodies, nor even time to assist their comrades. The wounded could only lie among the dead, emitting moans and praying they would not be affected by the next wave of combat.

Thanks to their superior weaponry, the Dongsheng army, having no General to lead them, suffered several times the casualties of the Demon Clan army. Although the Demon Clan army also had significant casualties, their fighting will was still very strong, repeatedly charging and then rallying, with almost no sign of collapse.

At this stage of the battle, it didn’t matter which side was just anymore; they had completely become enemies, continuing to fight fueled by the resentment in their hearts, even without orders.

The Demon Clan’s infantry, in line formation, collaborated with the shield bearers and Artillery to repeatedly repel the repeated attacks of the Dongsheng army, causing them severe casualties. Besides, the Demon Clan Cavalry also roamed the corners of the battlefield, accurately sniping at potentially valuable targets.

These cavalry had achieved great success, killing over half of the major and minor Dongsheng officers, severely disrupting the command reorganization of the Dongsheng army.

As the battle drew to a close, the Dongsheng army was hardly in any order. After retreating and resting briefly, they charged again, not even requiring the motivation of an officer.

On the Demon Clan’s side, both the infantry and Artillery had become numb by this time, their ears deafened by the continuous booming of guns and cannon, with many even starting to experience bleeding from their ear drums.

They reloaded bullets and fired over and over, then countercharged, stabbing at these oncoming Dongsheng soldiers with bayonets. Some of the Demon Clan soldiers had their bayonets snapped off, so they picked up a nearby sword to strap to their waist and charged with it in hand.

The Cavalry of the Dongsheng army suffered heavy losses in this battle, with more than half of their 5,000 riders lost, prompting the Dongsheng commander to urgently order them to withdraw from the battle and stand by.

Even the rich and powerful Dongsheng army couldn’t afford the consumption of Cavalry, demonstrating that, no matter the world or era, Cavalry has always been a costly military branch.

The Dongsheng army’s insane offensive was simply to try to stop the continuous shelling by the Demon Clan. However, their intentions were obliterated by the tenacity of the Demon Clan.

While fighting valiantly at the front lines, at the rear, the Demon Clan Mortar was maintaining high-intensity fire suppression around the clock, bombing both the Dongsheng army’s camp and the formation to support the front line.

The Dongsheng army attempted to send out Cavalry to hit the Demon Clan’s Artillery positions in the rear, but they couldn’t handle the surrounding Demon Clan Cavalry, which made their movement instantly detected and countered by the Demon Clan, leaving them no chance to execute their plan.

After several hours of intense bombardment, the Dongsheng camp was in ruins, with waterproof tarpaulins unable to withstand the high temperatures generated by explosions, igniting quickly and spreading throughout the camp.

The decisive symbol of the battle’s end was when a shell struck and killed the commander of the Dongsheng army; this was the last straw for the already struggling Dongsheng forces, who then began to flee continuously.

This time, they genuinely couldn’t fight any longer; with their command structure collapsed, they were unable to organize effective resistance. Meanwhile, noticing the Dongsheng army’s retreat, the Demon Clan immediately issued a command for a general charge.

Screams of battle filled the air as the Dongsheng soldiers, disheveled in retreat, dropped their weapons and shed their armor to lighten their load and run faster.

The battle continued until late at night, and finally, the Demon Clan’s army was stopped by Dongsheng’s cavalry, which halted their pursuit and began to regroup gradually.

In this battle, Dongsheng’s army of 50,000 was completely annihilated, with over 20,000 casualties and more than 8,000 captured. Since then, Dongsheng’s army was severely weakened; to some extent, this battle marked the successful conclusion of the second phase of the Demon Clan’s counterattack, with the Demon Clan’s army once again achieving comprehensive victory in the second phase and reclaiming two-thirds of the territory in West Outer Heaven.

Yunji’s proactive attack had earned her satisfactory gains, leaving Dongsheng’s army no longer capable of organizing an effective resistance to stop the advance of the Demon Clan’s army.

However, the cost of this battle was also significant, with the Demon Clan’s army suffering over 10,000 casualties, including more than 4,000 killed in action. For an army of only 30,000, this could be considered a pyrrhic victory.

Nevertheless, no matter how one puts it, this victory had symbolic significance. It signified that the Demon Clan’s army would take absolute dominance in West Outer Heaven, and Dongsheng’s army could no longer act with impunity as before.

The War in West Outer Heaven should be the largest war the Advance Team had experienced since entering the Otherworld. The forces directly involved in the combat exceeded 200,000, and counting logistics, both sides probably had over a million personnel.

It still needs to be clarified that, due to the General’s absolute military power, Dongsheng’s army seldom inflated their troop numbers and reported the actual size of the forces involved. If logistics and reserve forces are included, Dongsheng’s army’s total combat personnel would likely be between 700,000 and 800,000; claiming a million would not be a problem.

In contrast, the Demon Clan’s army, being at a disadvantage compared to Dongsheng’s, tended to inflate their numbers. However, they were relatively modest and did not indulge in rampant exaggeration.

For instance, in this offensive, the Demon Clan’s army had 30,000 troops directly involved, so they claimed to have 50,000. Whether Dongsheng’s army believed it or not, they still deployed an army of 50,000 to intercept.

Influenced by a variety of media portrayals, Cheng Ziang and others had always felt that battles involving tens of thousands of people were not very impressive, seeming more like village skirmishes. They believed that real wars should start at half a million.

However, experiencing today’s battle had completely reversed their severe misconception about war numbers.

In today’s battle, Dongsheng’s army committed over 10,000 troops at once, and the Demon Clan’s army also deployed over 10,000 for the confrontation. Yet, it was this fighting between 20,000 to 30,000 soldiers that turned the battlefield into something akin to the end of the world.

Rivers of crimson blood pooled into small streams, and the ground was covered with layers of corpses and countless severed limbs and flesh. What was once grassy terrain had turned into a bright red mire after being soaked with blood and repeatedly trampled.

The smell of gunpowder in the air was difficult to dissipate for a long time, mixed with a heavy stench of blood, which made one involuntarily vomit upon inhalation.

Cheng Ziang remembered when they were still students and simulated World War One on a virtual machine; the bloody scenes remained vividly in his memory.

War would never become milder or more humane with the upgrading of weapons. On the contrary, as the lethality of weapons increased, wars would only become more brutal and more violent.

Such devastating conditions forced Cheng Ziang to begin reflecting on his inexplicable expectations for war. In just one day, more than 4,000 soldiers from the Demon Clan’s army had permanently left this world.

Initially, Cheng Ziang had no real concept of the magnitude of losing 4,000 people, but when he stepped out of his tent the next morning and saw the dense mounds of graves not far away, a profound sense of grief overwhelmed him.

At that moment, he seemed to understand Luo’er’s long-standing determination. If problems could be resolved peacefully, Luo’er was willing to try anything. Indeed, war was too cruel—if disputes could be settled peacefully, who would choose to slaughter each other instead?

Now, on the second day after the battle had ended, the Demon Clan’s army was still clearing the battlefield. They buried their compatriots’ bodies separately while stripping Dongsheng soldiers, throwing their bodies into large pits for a collective burial, giving these adversaries a decent farewell.

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