Chapter 838: The First Battle of the Xiuluo Holy Star Alliance (6)

Inside the main warship of the Weiguang Fleet, Energy Distribution Zone B-4.

This place is filled with thick energy conduits and humming converter banks.

Two Alicia squads are moving rapidly along a relatively wide main conduit corridor in a standard alternating cover formation.

Their task is to head to the backup Command Node in the center of the ship to execute sabotage and information theft.

Captain Liana gives a hand signal, and the squads immediately stop, dispersing to take cover behind conduits and large equipment.

Her helmet tilts slightly, listening for any abnormal sounds beyond the humming of the equipment.

It is too quiet, quiet to the point of being abnormal.

The defense of this path leading to the critical area seems too weak.

"Something feels wrong, Captain."

Deputy Captain Karna's whisper sounds over the squad's encrypted channel.

"It's like a trap."

Liana takes a deep breath, just as she prepares to order a retreat and change the route.

Boom! Boom! Boom!

Suddenly! From the two intersecting corridors they had just passed and the shadows of the maintenance platform above, over a dozen disc-shaped magnetic-adhesion high-explosive Hand Grenades are thrown.

They land in the center of the Alicia members' hiding spots and behind them!

"Grenades! Evasive maneuvers!"

Liana's warning has only just left her lips!

The explosions detonate almost simultaneously!

Shockwaves and shrapnel sweep through the narrow space.

Two Alicia soldiers who failed to fully hide behind cover are torn to pieces!

Shattered Carapace Armor and flesh slam against the conduits!

Before the fire and smoke of the explosions have dissipated, dense fire flies in from three directions!

Energy Beams strike the metal conduits and equipment, splashing dense electric sparks and molten metal droplets!

"Crossfire! We've been ambushed!"

Karna's voice carries anger; his Akatrun Laser Gun quickly pokes out, and a precise burst burns through the helmet of a Fengqi regular soldier peeking out to fire from a side corridor, but it immediately draws fiercer fire suppression, causing sparks to fly from the converter he is hiding behind.

Liana quickly assesses the situation.

The enemy's firepower is extremely intense, and they were well-prepared, occupying an absolutely advantageous terrain. The retreat route has been sealed off.

"Squad A! Suppress the left flank! Squad B! With me to clear the right flank! Heavy weapons! Take out that platform above!"

Liana's voice is very calm; even in this desperate situation, she still issues orders quickly.

The only two Akatrun Missile launchers are immediately set up.

An Alicia soldier heaves a launcher onto his shoulder, just as he locks onto a firing point on the platform above that is strafing with a rotating Energy Cannon.

Pfft!

An Energy Beam from the shadows in the distance instantly pierces his neck!

He falls without a sound.

"Sniper! There's a professional sniper!"

Another soldier roars as he moves to fill the gap, disregarding everything to shoulder the Missile launcher.

"For the Emperor! For Alicia!"

He roars as he pulls the trigger!

Whoosh—Boom!

The micro-Missile flies out trailing a tail flame, successfully blowing the Energy Cannon firing point on the platform above away, along with the person and the weapon.

But almost simultaneously, at least three Energy Beams strike him at once.

His Carapace Armor is torn apart, and his entire body is sent flying backward, slamming heavily against a conduit, falling silent.

Having lost effective support from heavy weapons, the Alicia warriors fall into an extremely passive position.

Although the Laser Guns in their hands are precise, their rate of fire and power appear inadequate when facing the Heavy Energy Rifles and full-coverage Power Armor of the Fengqi heavy infantry.

They can only struggle and fire back by relying on the complex terrain.

An Alicia female soldier weaves between the conduits, her Laser Gun firing in continuous bursts, hitting the joints of two Fengqi heavy infantry attempting to flank them, temporarily stalling their movement.

But just as she hides behind a thick conduit, a magnetic-adhesion Hand Grenade silently sticks to the conduit above her head!

Boom!

The explosion shatters the conduit she was hiding behind, and high-temperature steam and metal fragments instantly devour her.

"Heretic!"

Nearby comrades let out roars, and their firing becomes even more frantic.

Alicia soldiers fall one after another.

Their Laser Beams can leave scorch marks on the enemy's Power Armor, or even occasionally hit a visor or joint to cause damage, but it requires several precise hits to the same spot to effectively penetrate.

Deputy Captain Karna attempts to organize a charge to open a gap.

"Charge with me! For the Emperor! For..."

His words remain unfinished.

A Fengqi heavy infantryman jumps down directly from a height, his heavy Power Boots crushing Karna's knees, while the Energy Battle Axe in his hand hacks down fiercely, splitting Karna's helmet and the skull inside into two halves!

Only the last three soldiers remain by Captain Liana's side.

They back up against a massive Energy Core converter, making their final stand.

Her arm is grazed by an Energy Beam, leaving a charred wound.

Ammunition was also running low.

"Captain... we..."

A young soldier revealed half of a blood-stained face, eyes filled with complex emotions, yet the hand gripping the gun remained steady.

Liana looked at the shattered corpses of her comrades around her, and at the enemies steadily approaching from the shadows.

She knew the Task had failed; they could not reach the target point.

She took a deep breath, tore off the nearly non-functional Communication Device, and used her last bit of strength to speak to the three remaining soldiers, as if also speaking to herself.

"Alicia... there is no retreat. The last bullet! The last breath! For those brothers and sisters who have fallen! Let these bastards know, Human... never surrender!"

She raised her Laser Gun and inserted the last Charging Pack.

"For the Emperor!!!"

She let out a final battle cry.

"For the Emperor!!!"

The three Alicia soldiers, eyes red, let out a hoarse response.

The Laser Beam lit up one last time, firing toward the enemies' visors and joints.

Dense firepower engulfed them.

Captain Liana was struck by at least five energy beams simultaneously, her figure instantly riddled with holes.

The last Alicia soldier exhausted all energy, drew a Combat Knife and lunged at an enemy, the Combat Knife carving a scratch into the opponent's chest plate, only for their skull to be smashed by the enemy's backhanded rifle butt.

The gunfire ceased.

Energy Distribution Zone B-7 fell into a deathly silence, with only the hissing of leaking pipes and the crackling of burning flames.

Twenty-one Alicia soldiers, all killed in action.

Their sacrifice did not yield tactical results, yet in the most tragic way, it interpreted the courage and dignity of Human soldiers in a desperate situation.

A Fengqi Assault Company Sergeant stepped over the corpse of Captain Liana, scanning the battlefield indifferently.

"Cleanup complete. Target eliminated. Report to command: the encountered Xiuluo Holy Indigenous have been completely annihilated. Continue searching for remaining assault landing units."

His voice, through the helmet, was without a ripple.