Munitions Empire

The sky had completely darkened. Normally, the Tang Army would cease its attacks at this time, because nighttime combat presented too many disadvantages for them, far less comfortable than during the day.

But this time, the Tang Army fired illumination rounds and began a frenzied assault on the Dahua military positions in the already darkened evening. Caught completely off guard, the Dahua defenders even lost the outer defensive positions south of Fengjiang City.

Amidst the relentless artillery fire, the Tang Army's vanguard rushed into a building on the edge of the city. The ground was still littered with various ammunition boxes that hadn't been taken away in time, and some bowls and chopsticks were still set on the tables, suggesting that some Dahua soldiers had just been eating dinner there.

"Check the ground carefully! Don't get taken out by booby traps!" The squad leader slung his assault rifle behind him, grabbed a piece of rough paper from the table, and using the light that hadn't completely faded outside, looked over the text on it.

Nothing important—it was just a list detailing the use and replenishment of ammunition. It seemed to be a small munitions storage point near the front line, unlikely to hold any significant maps or documents.

"Clear!" A Tang Army soldier, after inspecting the whole yard, entered the house and said to his squad leader, "They all ran, didn't leave a single person behind."

Due to the barrage, the walls of the courtyard had collapsed, and there were two huge craters on the edge of the yard. The massive shockwave had even destroyed the nearby hovel along with the surrounding wall.

Not far away, one could see the trenches built by the Dahua troops, but now they too were deserted. Another infantry squad had taken over the place and was fortifying the position.

Further ahead was a perimeter wall that looked somewhat sturdier. Beyond that wall lay an abandoned factory, with half of its chimney still faintly visible.

"This'll make the commander happy. We've reached the edge of Fengjiang," the squad leader said with a victorious smile on his face as he peered through the window at the wall.

Their 7th Army had really made a name for themselves this time, fighting nearly ten kilometers, breaking through countless enemy lines, and finally reaching this point!

The factory's perimeter wall was also riddled with holes and had collapsed in many places. It was easy to guess that the Dahua troops must have organized a new defensive line against the outer wall, though it was unclear exactly how many men were deployed there.

As he observed the wall, a number 4 assault gun supporting the attack of the 7th Infantry made its way to the side of the courtyard. The infantry squad that followed took cover and began resting, with many pulling out biscuits and crushed instant noodles to sate their hunger.

There was no chance for hot meals on the battlefield, so one had to replenish one's strength in the simplest way possible. The Tang Army was relatively well-off in this regard—the Dahua military did not have such a variety of foods.

The squad leader of the recently arrived infantry walked into the house, rifle in hand, and greeted the earlier leader, "How is it? Have you checked out the front?"

"Not yet. The wall over there looks quiet, but I think there are at least two machine guns," replied the first squad leader, pointing outside at the distant factory wall.

His infantry squad had dwindled to just 7 men; he didn't want to lose more men here, so he slowed down the pace of the attack.

"We'll take the lead. Do you have machine guns? Set up a support fire on the flank?" Suggested the newly arrived squad leader, peering out the window before ducking back in.

"Right, I'll establish a machine gun position on the flank to cover your advance!" The other squad leader nodded in agreement.

"Got hand grenades? Lend me some," the other squad leader continued, pressing his demand, "You'll get your share of the credit when we go back."

"No need," the generous first squad leader gestured. His troops had fought their way here and did not lack this kind of cooperative combat merit.

During their previous assaults on Qin Army positions, as long as half of the battle merit was assured, their unit could expect a collective commendation, with each receiving a Blade Medal, that was certain.

"Thanks!" The latter squad leader nodded, then called for people to collect the spare hand grenades and ammunition. Their progress to this point had largely relied on borrowing ammunition from each other.

Replenishing ammunition during an attack was not always easy to keep up with, so units had to rotate, allowing the unit in the main assault to wait for reinforcements to arrive, and then switch battle positions or simply hand over their ammunition for the main unit to continue using.

Soon, another round of attacks began, with the Tang troops advancing toward the yard wall under the cover of the number 4 assault gun.

The Tang Army squad leader, who had moved to a flanking position with his machine gunners, noticed Dahua troops near the yard wall on the move.

The enemy didn't seem to have many men, and one machine gun had already revealed its location, firing to try to repel the Tang Army's assault gun.

"See that machine gun? Suppress it!" the squad leader shouted, pointing at the enemy machine gun spewing flames in the distance.

The machine gunner set up his weapon and aimed at the distant enemy machine gun, then pulled the trigger, beginning to fire in bursts.

Due to the force of the pull, the ammunition belt hanging by the side of the machine gun jerked, and several casings fell to the ground with a clinking sound.

When the ripping sound of the machine gun fired up, Dahua's position silenced immediately. Bullets struck where the machine gun had just opened fire, shrouding the area in white smoke.

Soon, Dahua's defending forces discovered a Tang Army machine gun position on their flank; seven or eight soldiers tried to approach it, to eliminate the threat.

They carried their weapons, hugging the base of the courtyard wall as they moved closer, but were pinned down en route by the squad leader's assault rifle.

The opposition didn't expect the Tang Army's gunfire to be so fierce. They beat a hasty retreat, leaving behind two or three bodies shot in the middle of the road.

The distant battle raged on; the tread of a Tang Army No. 4 assault gun rolled over a section of the courtyard wall, sending Dahua's defenders scurrying for cover.

Following Tang soldiers began lobbing hand grenades over the wall, a series of explosions lifted a huge cloud of smoke, and Dahua's defensive line started to collapse.

Some soldiers threw down their weapons and knelt to surrender, while others carried their weapons and bolted toward the factory. The fleeing defenders were then cut down by bullets from behind, collapsing beside the factory.

Meanwhile, some lucky Dahua soldiers reached the corner and hid behind the factory, but the fighting by the courtyard wall persisted.

The remaining Dahua defenders who neither surrendered nor fled continued the fight, leaning on their battered positions as they fired wildly at the No. 4 assault gun.

A bullet hit the assault gun's armor, sparking a shower of sparks; a nearby Tang Army soldier seemed to be hit by the ricochet and fell to the ground.

Immediately, his comrade dragged him to relative safety, only then seeing that a ricochet had hit his unfortunate friend's arm, leaving a bloody hole.

"You're okay! It's just a shot in the arm!" Seeing his comrade screaming in agony on the ground, the rescuer shouted loudly.

With his shout, the assault gun in front fired a shell, its blast momentarily deafening everyone.

Behind the tank, the machine gunner lay down next to a destroyed bunker, and then aimed the machine gun at the enemy position still resisting.

The assistant gunner supported the ammunition belt, waiting for the gunner to be ready to fire. The rip of the machine gun sounded again, the dense tracer bullets outlined against the darkening sky looked like dazzling lasers.

"Over there! Over there!" With a relatively clearer vision, the assistant gunner saw Dahua soldiers trying to retreat and loudly alerted his gunner.

The gunner adjusted the machine gun's sweep angle, knocking down Dahua soldiers who had jumped from the trenches.

The battle continued, with Tang troops who had followed up overrunning the factory's perimeter. They stormed into the factory amid fierce gunshots.

Forced to abandon the now useless scrapyard, Dahua troops left behind some damaged machinery and a cache of ammunition as they fled in disarray to another building.

But before they could reach the other factory, a No. 4 assault gun fired a new shell straight through the wall of the building, collapsing a section of it.

Thinking they had found new cover, the Dahua military emerged even more disheveled; they popped out of the refuge only to be felled by the Tang Army soldiers waiting outside.

The intense gunfire continued. When the Tang Army thought they had captured the factory, Dahua troops organized a large-scale counterattack.

This time, Dahua forces went on the offensive as Tang troops defended within what had become half-ruins of the factory.

The fierce battle for this not-so-important place went on all night, with the sound of gunfire echoing through the sky. Around midnight, the Tang Army bombarded the outskirts of the factory, the intensity shaking the earth and sky.

The vigor of Dahua's counterattacking troops softened after the artillery strike, perhaps fearing additional reinforcements would be met with even fiercer artillery fire.

Eventually, as dawn broke on the second day, Tang Country's 7th Infantry Army still held control over the factory. They had pushed into Fengjiang City, fulfilling their promise.

Although the day's battle claimed the lives of over 1,000 Tang Army soldiers, the Tang Army's irresistible advance also fully made the Qin Army and Dahua military realize that they faced an enemy armed to the teeth with steel—a powerful beast.

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Today, one more update. Dragon Spirit wishes everyone a happy New Year's and hopes the pandemic ends soon. May life return to normal, good health to all, and resilience against all illnesses.