Otherworld Advance Team
Chapter 320 - 313: Confrontation

Chapter 320: Chapter 313: Confrontation

"Contact the observers from the United Command Department and inquire about the current situation!" Wang Xu issued the command rather calmly.

"Understood!" A staff member nodded, then left the office.

"Nightingale, send a message to Luo’er and the others, inform them of the current situation, tell them to be careful." Wang Xu continued to instruct.

"How about asking them to retreat first?" Li Si stepped forward and suggested.

"No, it’s quite chaotic in Yazhi City at the moment, their return wouldn’t benefit them. Although the situation here is vital, the reconnaissance of the Odelanqi and Masya troops is also crucial." Wang Xu rejected his suggestion.

He walked to the map and stared at the defensive layout on it. In the end, he couldn’t help frowning and asked, "How did Luo’er know that the Church planned to ambush the Earth’s army near the First Line Gorge?"

"Do you want to ask them?" Nightingale stopped her note-taking and turned to look at him.

"Forget it, let’s wait till they return. They should be cautious. This issue is serious, the casualties of over 100,000 people will inevitably intensify the animosity between Earth and Otherworld." Wang Xu muttered.

Nightingale paused, staring at the map for a long while, then at Wang Xu, with a look of hesitation. After a long silence, she couldn’t help asking, "The United Nations on Earth has a Security Council with five permanent member nations, correct?"

"Indeed, what’s the matter?" Wang Xu turned his head to look at her and asked.

"Nothing in particular," Nightingale narrowed her eyes, remained silent for a while, then had to say, "Isn’t it strange that not a single soldier from these five permanent member nations was harmed?"

Wang Xu was initially stunned at her words, then exchanged glances with Li Si. He turned back again to study the map: "Our troops along with the Russians decided not to send troops because of Luo’er’s warning, but..."

He continued to study the troop distribution on the map. "The America, UK, France army lined up for defense, led by NATO, the vanguard troops seemed to be the most advanced ones...Nightingale, what’s the extent of the forbidden magic’s damage radius?"

Nightingale stepped forward, drew a circle on the map with the First Line Gorge as the center, and then replied: "Judging from the current perceptions, if this forbidden magic is used on the plains, its residual power can reach the outskirts of Yazhi City at most. However, if it is used in the gorge, the power will intensify in the front and rear. If the entrance of the gorge is facing Yazhi City, its power should be able to reach the whole city."

"But the exit of the First Line Gorge is not aligned directly with Yazhi City," Wang Xu pointed a finger on the map and drew a line all the way to Yazhi City. He then frowned, "So, even if the residual power extends that far, it would perfectly avoid the defense zone of the Three Kingdoms."

"Boss, do you think there’s a conspiracy in this?" Li Si asked behind him.

"I wouldn’t go as far as to claim conspiracy, but it certainly is a little too convenient." Wang Xu replied.

"The United Nations is controlled by the five permanent member nations. If none of these countries suffer any casualties, those smaller countries, even if they clamor to fight Otherworld, will unlikely stir up much commotion, I reckon." Nightingale, fixated on the map, remarked dispassionately.

She was not tall, about a head and a half shorter than Wang Xu. However, he felt there was a startling energy in her petite body. With respect to the political exchanges between Earth’s nations, Nightingale, an Otherworld native from the Ancient States, seemed to have a clearer understanding than him, an Earthling.

"Look at it this way, even if these countries, having witnessed such heavy casualties, clamor for revenge, they probably won’t get it. As long as the Otherworlders are willing to sufficiently persuade the five member nations, this conflict should be able to be resolved. Major problems already diminished greatly, minor ones have already disappeared completely, as if these hundreds of thousands of people never even existed." Nightingale continued indifferently.

Wang Xu looked at her with admiration. Aware of his gaze, Nightingale raised her head to look at him and asked casually, "What’s the matter?"

"I’m pondering whether to let you join the decision-making layer of the Command Department. With your knowledge, you shouldn’t need to belittle yourself being a messenger." Wang Xu answered sincerely.

"The reason I serve as a messenger is because I don’t want to interact with too many people. I like to study in peace and quiet, not wanting to be around people all the time. Today, I’ve already exhausted the amount of words I had planned to use for a month. Therefore, I need to go back and rest, so unless there is something urgent, please refrain from calling me." Nightingale said indifferently, then turned around and left the office without another word.

"Though she may be introverted, she definitely should not be underestimated," Li Si exclaimed with heartfelt emotion as he watched Nightingale walk away.

"Don’t just stand there. Run along and gather some first-hand intelligence. We need to fully understand the situation!" Wang Xu urged him.

"Understood!" Li Si nodded, then bade the office staff goodbye and left the office.

After everyone had left, the office fell silent once more. Wang Xu rubbed his temples, trying to alleviate the nauseating dizziness. He stared at the map, thinking about Nightingale’s words, and plunged into deep thought.

The reason they hadn’t deployed troops along with Russia was all due to the warning from Luo’er. If Luo’er hadn’t warned them at that time, what would the outcome have been? Wang Xu was growing increasingly suspicious that this so-called Third Otherworld War was increasingly resembling a trap set by the Western countries. Their objective seemed to be hindering their growth by instigating conflicts between them, the Otherworld, and especially the Church Court.

With the constant influx of information, Wang Xu’s understanding of the current situation was becoming clearer. Firstly, it was confirmed that there had indeed been a massive explosion in the vicinity of First Line Gorge. Rescuers from the Blaiqi people found the corpses of fallen Earth soldiers all along their way.

According to incomplete statistics, this explosion caused the deaths and injuries of about 100,000 people, with several tens of thousands more suffering various degrees of injuries. The explosion was so horrific that more than 5,000 people were unaccounted for, presumably annihilated by the blast.

According to the intelligence, the fact that one-third of the troops survived could be attributed to the fact that the explosion occurred while the army was on the move, and therefore, not all of the 150,000 troops had entered First Line Gorge.

If all Earth’s military had completed their deployment in First Line Gorge at the time of the explosion, the entire force of 150,000 would have been wiped out without a single survivor.

From the Second Otherworld War to the present, despite Earth’s diligence in researching magic-suppressing potions over the past thirty years, the greatest cause of casualty among Earth’s soldiers was still the disruptive magic. Many Earth soldiers didn’t even get hit by the shockwave of the explosion but died immediately due to their bodies being overwhelmed by the thick magic that swept over them.

Five hours after the explosion, at the United Nations General Assembly, the US representative was the first to declare that the Church of Light in the Otherworld was behind this tragedy. Thus, the Church should bear the primary responsibility for the deaths of over 100,000 Earthlings.

His accusations were not unreasonable because in the human kingdoms of the Otherworld’s Northern regions, all archmages capable of casting forbidden curses were affiliated with and funded by the Church. As the Otherworld’s nuclear deterrent force, the archmages were firmly under the control of the Church. Even when the Northern countries were in fierce conflicts, they weren’t entitled to utilize archmages to cast forbidden curses.

Moreover, when the deployment plan was initiated, the Church had issued numerous warnings about launching military strikes against Earth’s invading armies. This was followed by the explosion caused by a forbidden curse. All of this made it impossible not to associate the Church with these events.

Consequently, the entire United Nations General Assembly turned into a massive grievance airing session, with NATO countries that suffered heavy casualties accusing the Church of brutality. Some countries even demanded that Earth reciprocate by detonating a nuclear bomb in the Church, making the Church the instant target of everyone’s fury.

After the explosion, the Church urgently conducted an internal investigation. To their surprise, they found that an archmage named Falok, who was capable of casting the forbidden curse that caused the explosion, had disappeared.

Though some within the Church were clamoring for a military counterstrike against Earth’s forces, the decision-makers hoped to drive out Earth’s people in a more peaceful manner. They could do nothing but admit that this explosion was the individual act of that archmage.

However, their ridiculous excuse sounded more like an awkward lie. How could Earth nations possibly believe such an unconvincing argument?

Without fully understanding the situation, the Church of Light quickly became the enemy of all Earth people. Led by the media’s coverage, Earth’s citizens clamored for Earth’s entire power to trample upon the Holy City of the Church and put an end to its brutal rule, completely forgetting the fact that they were, in fact, the invaders.

Under growing public pressure, the Security Council passed sanctions against the Church with a vote of three in favor, two abstentions. However, these sanctions didn’t do much harm to the Church. As representative of the conservative forces, the Church hardly interacted with Earth, so these sanctions were like scratching an itch through a boot—having little effect on them.

Over 100,000 bodies were gradually returned to Earth, and Yazhi City regained its peace. Since Earth hadn’t declared war on the secular kingdoms, they silently withdrew from Yazhi City after their silent defeat. The city returned to its usual bustle, as if nothing had ever happened.

Even though the Church was sanctioned, due to its limited interaction with Earth, the sanctions were as frustrating as punching cotton—ineffectual. The Earth nations that lost many of their fellow soldiers were aggrieved and repeatedly requested that the Security Council impose military sanctions on the Church.

However, they had already missed their window of opportunity. Since the Earth troops had retreated, the elite forces of the Church arrived and occupied Yazhi City, taking control of the entire Otherworld Gate. If Earth attempted another military strike, they would only face a severe backlash.

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