Chapter 271: Storm and Hammer

Ferrera was astonished to discover that the human defenders had actually withstood the Ether Spell attack without collapsing.

He immediately realized that, beyond the fact that the Auxilia before him were relying on fortifications and possessed combat capability and willpower exceeding the human soldiers encountered previously, there was another important factor.

His Aether Masters had expended a great deal to deal with the Golden Mechanical Eagle.

Ferrera also thought of the Fulao generals at other strongholds, who were all leading their squads to launch attacks on other warships.

【The human army must be annihilated as soon as possible so the spoils can be seized.

Otherwise, by the time they arrive, I will not be able to obtain all the spoils.

We have already lost contact with the Governor; how much respect they still hold for me, the supreme Commander of this Planet, is a question.】

Thinking of this, he issued an order to the Fulao Warriors.

"Attack!"

The Fulao Warriors surged into the trenches and launched their attack.

A Fulao Warrior savagely swung a Fulao Boliren, hacking at the Carapace Armor of an Auxilia Commander.

The blade, resembling smoking crystal, easily sliced through the heavy armor and struck the Commander's shoulder.

The moment the edge of the blade touched the shoulder, it shattered into a multitude of tiny fragments that burrowed into the wound.

The Commander let out a scream; he felt his shoulder being sliced by countless short blades.

He exhausted his remaining strength, raised his pistol, and pulled the trigger at the Xenos's head.

Blood mixed with debris splashed across his face, and his body was also torn apart by the Boliren, falling into a pool of blood.

Dukaien discovered that no Auxilia soldier could gain an advantage in close combat.

【Lord Ninglu once said that the Fulao people's Boliren could even cut through power armor.】

Dukaien did not immediately order the Solagu Clan reserve to move out; it was not yet the time.

He pressed the rune on his Power Axe and strode toward the most strained part of the defensive line.

Gabriel and the Iron Father followed on his sides.

Gabriel's Mechanical Eagle ran and leaped toward the Fulao, raising its claws and pushing forward with force.

Over a dozen Fulao Warriors were swatted away; their chests were crushed or their arms broken as they fell to the ground.

As a Techmarine and "Archaeologist" Mechanical Eagle, he was more adept at Psychokinetic "Heavy Strike" than others of his kind.

Dukaien collided head-on with the Fulao Thousand-Man Squad, swinging his Charged Axe Blade to launch a fierce attack against the Xenos.

Gabriel and the Iron Father raised their bolters and fired at the Fulao Warriors.

The bolters roared, and every shot tore a Xenos apart.

The blue Disruption Field shimmered, illuminating Dukaien's scarred face as he slaughtered the Xenos Reavers.

Suddenly, a bolt of psychic lightning struck him.

Dukaien did not fall, but his body stiffened.

Two Fulao Warriors rushed over; Dukaien swung his axe violently, cutting the two Fulao Warriors in half at the waist, while simultaneously feeling a sharp pain in his abdomen.

Because his body was paralyzed, his movements were a split-second slower, and a Fulao Boliren cleaved through his power armor and cut into his superhuman physique.

Dukaien pulled out the Boliren, raised his hand, and flicked it, driving the Boliren into the body of a Fulao Warrior.

He felt his Larraman Cells clashing with the Boliren, and the bleeding at the wound slowed much more than usual.

Dukaien did not retreat; he had raised the Storm, so he had to hold firm.

Even in pain, he still controlled the situation; he noticed that the line had been breached at the four o'clock position, and he knew he had to commit the Iron Hands reserve to support the Auxilia.

"First Squad, to sector A-X of the line."

The battle continued, and Dukaien committed one reserve after another.

Two Honor Guard members of the Order Shadow followed two Iron Hands squads respectively as they stepped onto the battlefield.

They fought while recording the events.

Soon, Iron Hands died in the fighting.

The Order Shadow were puzzled by this; although they had studied some of the "Storm Walker" battle cases before, especially the battle reports from Rust Star, they still could not understand.

When the main force of the Solagu Clan would finally move out.

Dukaien's wound healed, leaving several cracks on his Mark I Thunder-pattern armor.

Finally, at the tenth hour after the battle began, the moment the Storm General had been waiting for arrived.

All the Fulao had joined the battlefield; it was time to bring down the Hammer.

Dukaien issued the order on the command channel: "Hammer!"

The Solagu Clan's massive fleet of Gunships, bombers, and artillery sounded in unison, conducting a saturation bombardment on the dense areas of the Fulao.

The Order Shadow members, positioned on the Gunships, bombers, and artillery respectively, saw the overwhelming artillery fire killing the Fulao in droves, tearing a massive gap in the most densely packed area.

They thought in unison: 【The first strike of the Hammer is to rely on absolute firepower superiority after the enemy has fully committed to the battlefield, tearing a massive gap in the most dense area, just like a spiked hammer.】

In the final stage of the bombardment, the Storm General's second Hammer fell.

The Solagu Clan dropped the Spearhead, with the two Order Shadow members following the armored units and the Iron Hands ranks respectively.

The Spearhead struck from the center of the breach, launching a reaping offensive against the Fulao in all directions.

The Auxilia, under Dukaien's command, waited for reinforcements before their line collapsed.

The Spearhead pierced into the Fulao ranks from the rear; despite being outnumbered, the iron torrent crushed every obstacle in its path.

Ferrera was horrified to discover that the battle, which he had previously dominated, had suddenly turned, and his line was torn apart in an instant.

He turned and fled in terror, and just then, a figure in black armor blocked his path.

"Xenos, die!"

The ancient armor on Dukaien's body rattled and rang as he charged toward Ferrera.

Ferrera did not linger, raising his psychic staff to release fire spells while turning to flee.

The Mark I Thunder Armor ignited in flames, scorching Dukaien's body.

Yet he did not stop his pace, pursuing the Fulao Commander closely.

The flame-engulfed black-armored Warrior caught up to Ferrera after a dozen steps, swinging the Charged Axe Blade to slash viciously at the Xenos.

Ferrera raised a flame shield while simultaneously swinging the Fulao Boliren to strike at the enemy.

The blue-shimmering Disruption Field tore through the flames and struck Ferrera's body.

Having killed the Xenos, Dukaien felt his left arm empty; he was dazed for a moment and whispered with a bitter smile.

"I will have to replace it with a mechanical arm too."

"This will bring me closer to the Gorgon; the Gene-Father will be pleased by this."

The Order Shadows discovered that the Fulao were torn apart by the Solagu Clan's assault, scattering into countless disorganized squads of various sizes.

After treatment by the Apothecary, Dukaien completed reorganization and resupply with astonishing efficiency, launching mechanical assault after mechanical assault against the fragmented and disorganized Fulao.

As the Storm General used "Storm and Hammer" to tear the Fulao apart and conduct the final sweep, Ninglu also led his team to storm the Fulao's largest Fortress on the northern planet of the Cydonia System.

(End of chapter)