Chapter 1633: Chapter 1550: Bloody Battle East of Ben
“Crack!” An illuminating flare exploded in the sky, lighting up the nearby area already riddled with craters. Under the cold glow, a Tang Army paratrooper aimed his gun grenade at the location where the illuminating flare had shot up.
He aimed with great composure, and the spot filled with Dwarf soldiers was promptly engulfed in swirling dust from the grenade explosion.
The Dwarf machine gunner didn’t have time to set up his weapon before shrapnel hit him, causing him to fall on the path of advance.
The positions of both sides were too close. The Dwarfs did not expect the Tang Country paratroopers to be bold enough to place them at such proximity before starting retaliation, firing so fiercely right away.
Just like plastic touched by fire, the Dwarf troops’ vanguard just melted away. Hundreds of soldiers didn’t even understand what happened before being killed by the Tang Army.
Out of nowhere, a few Black Hawk helicopters poured their rockets on the Dwarf troops. Explosions erupted one after another, even directly hitting some Dwarf tanks and turning them into wreckage.
Subsequently, the Dwarfs had to split part of their forces to the south to cover their flank: The Navy Marine Corps occupying position six had dispatched forces northward, seriously threatening the flank of Ice Cold Empire’s 1st Corps.
Around midnight, when the western 2nd Corps became surrounded and had to fight for survival, the Dwarf’s 1st Corps 1st Armored Division launched a real attack.
A type-10 tank wobbled over a crater, passing a burning wreckage of a friendly tank, advancing towards the Tang Army’s positions.
In the trench, a Tang Army paratrooper inserted a rocket into the launcher tube, pulling the safety off the warhead. He rested the ready launcher on his shoulder and loudly warned his comrades who were firing, “Rocket!”
Everyone instinctively ducked their heads as the paratrooper stood up, aimed at the approaching tank, and pulled the trigger.
“Whoosh!” The airflow pushed dust behind him, coupled with bright fire, as the rocket shot straight towards the imposing-looking type-10 tank.
“Boom!” A massive explosion was heard, amid billowing smoke, the silhouette of the type-10 tank gradually came clearer; it continued forward for a dozen meters before stopping, then lay immobilized.
Bullets like raindrops struck around the Tang Army anti-tank soldier’s hiding position after they spotted the enemy, desperately hoping to kill the one who just destroyed their tank.
“Damn it!” The dense shower of bullets kicked up dirt that fell down, making heavy sounds on steel helmets. Some mud trickled into the collar, causing the Tang Army soldier loading the rocket to curse out loud.
“Fifty meters! They’re about to throw grenades!” The nearby platoon leader alerted his soldiers, then raised his assault rifle and wildly swept towards the distance.
“Boom!” A Dwarf impatiently threw a hand grenade, but due to the distance, the grenades exploded ahead of the Tang Army positions, causing little damage.
The explosions however made the Tang Army soldiers retreat while shooting, giving the Dwarf’s attacking troops an opportunity for a big advance.
“For the Empire!” A Dwarf holding a rifle fitted with a bayonet stood up, loudly encouraging his comrades. Medals hung on his chest, proof of his participation in the war against the Poplar Empire.
“Long live His Majesty The Emperor!” A group of Dwarf soldiers shouted in response, climbing up from the ground and stepped heavily, charging towards the nearby Tang Army trenches.
“Ratatatatata!” Unexpectedly, the Tang Army machine guns buried on the flank roared, a burst of tracer bullets instantly knocked down swathes of Dwarf soldiers. They fell like wheat being scythed, with thirty or so perishing in a flash.
“Flank! Flank!” The attacking Dwarfs noticed the lethal flank machine guns, loudly warning their allies. A bullet cut short his shout, clutching his chest as he fell, while surrounding Dwarf soldiers, alerted by his warning, spotted the hidden Tang Army machine gun crew.
“Ura!” With cries, part of the Dwarfs changed their attack direction, seeking temporary cover, pulling out grenades to throw near the Tang Army machine gun positions.
“Boom!” A grenade exploded in front of the machine gun, the kicked-up dirt forced the two Tang Army machine gunners to squint.
“Boom!” The second grenade exploded, nearly flipping the two machine gunners. Dirt showered their bodies, seemingly about to bury them.
“Boom!” The third grenade exploded inside their trench, shrapnel pierced the bodies of two Tang Army machine gunners. Blood and torn cloth flew everywhere, and the machine gun lost balance, tumbling to the side.
Seeing an exposed machine gun position taken out, the grenade-throwing Dwarf soldiers cheered with joy. They rose from the ground, continued forward, only to be struck down by incoming bullets…
The Tang Army positions remained rock solid, and the ice ancients’ 1st Armored Division’s offensive failed to make any breakthrough. As more tanks got destroyed, the first attack seemed to fall into a stalemate.
The Tang Army hadn’t faced opponents with such huge casualties yet unwilling to surrender before, while the Dwarfs were equally astounded by the unyielding battle spirit of the Tang Country paratroopers.
Both sides seemed fueled by rage. After Xiang Ziyu learned of the loss of 17 members from his camp, instead of ordering a retraction, he personally led a localized counterattack.
The Dwarfs deployed 20 new tanks, rolling over friendly corpses and wreckage of previously destroyed tanks, launching another assault.
The fight lasted until approximately 12:40 AM, when both sides ceased: The Tang Army lost about 30 members defending their positions and consumed significant munitions; the Dwarfs’ armored battalion and infantry regiment were forced to retreat from the battle.
What halted further bloodshed was the arrival of 50 Datang Empire Air Force H-6 bombers. These aircraft bombed behind the Dwarfs, attacking the Ice Cold Empire’s 1st Corps’ follow-up forces.
Dozens of tons of bombs sobered the Dwarfs, followed by Intruder Attack Aircraft dropping precision-guided munitions, causing substantial losses of heavy weaponry and forcing them to pause, reconsidering how long they should keep fighting.