After ending the call with the Alliance, Li Ke immediately sent a communication request to the Legion. After reporting through layers of escalators, he finally contacted General Griffin, the general commander of the Legion in Luoxia Province.
However, when he threw out the prepared proposal, Griffin's answer was beyond his expectations-
"Dream on." Looking at the face in the holographic image, Griffin smiled coldly.
Li Ke was stunned for two seconds and tried to persuade.
"You have no chance of winning. If you sit down to negotiate now, you can still keep Oasis No. 2."
Griffin stared at him for a while, with a hint of sarcasm at the corner of his mouth.
"Do you think we need that oasis?"
Li Ke pressed his brows with a headache.
Negotiations with the Legion are far more difficult than negotiations with the Alliance.
He thought he had done sufficient research and preparation, but the price he offered still did not arouse the other party's interest.
This made him feel a little frustrated.
"So what do you want? We can always talk about it."
"What do you want? Hahaha."
Griffin suddenly laughed out loud as if he had heard a very funny joke. After a long time, he looked at the man in front of him and continued in a sarcastic tone.
"You who are still weighing the pros and cons will not understand."
Without waiting for the man on the holographic screen to speak, Griffin casually waved his right hand and hung up the call hastily.
"You don't need to report the call from the academy to me again."
The guard in bulletproof armor saluted respectfully.
"Yes!"
Griffin nodded calmly.
"Go down."
The guard turned and left the tent.
He was the only one left in the spacious tent.
Sitting on a palm wood carved chair, Griffin quietly looked at the silent night sky outside the curtains and the shadows on the curtains that flickered because of the brazier.
Klas...
McClan...
The most fanatical died first, and then the stupid.
Even though he didn't like the way those two acted, it didn't stop Griffin from respecting them.
Compared to those traitors who raised their hands to surrender and those cowards who were afraid to move forward, they all fought for the ideals of His Majesty the Marshal to the end like heroes, and paved the way for the Weilant people to conquer everything with their blood.
"Back then, we agreed to plant the flag of the legion at the highest point of the Great Rift Valley together, and return to Triumph City with the glory of victory..."
"It's so lonely."
Reaching out and picking up the brass wine pot, Griffin poured himself a glass of red wine. The bright red swaying in the wine glass rekindled a trace of desire in his turbid pupils.
"Twisted and stupid guys like you, hell and heaven will definitely not take you in... In this case, just stand there and open your eyes."
Even if all the plans failed, he still held the last trump card in his hand.
He would use his actions to tell those two idiots that caution is not out of cowardice, and he, who is loyal to His Majesty the Marshal, has never been afraid of death.
As long as his sacrifice is meaningful, he will not hesitate to give up this flesh and blood.
"... I will fulfill your long-cherished wish."
Even if the price is himself.
Pouring the wine in the cup into the brazier, looking at the flying sparks and carbon dust, Griffin's face burned with madness.
"Come on."
Evil, ugly, chaotic barbarians...
I guess you are ready.
...
Oasis No. 3, Honey Badger City.
Under the towering river bank was a billowing smoke, and the dusk in the distance fell with the gradually subsiding artillery fire.
Before the ground troops arrived, the Iron Heart, under the guidance of the Goblin Corps aircraft, carried out rounds of bombing on the suburban positions.
The bunkers and trenches standing in the wheat field were almost completely buried by the dust raised by the shells.
After suffering nearly a thousand casualties, the soldiers of the escort army who were left behind finally couldn't stand the fear of death, raised their hands and surrendered, and walked out of the trenches.
The Honey Badger City, which blocked the legion for three days, was taken down by the Death Corps and the Restoration Army of the Honey Badger Kingdom in just two hours.
He rushed to the edge of the city, raised his arms and shouted, holding a rifle and shouting.
"Brothers! Occupy the City Lord's Mansion! The valuable intelligence and information are all there, don't let the NPCs get ahead! Remember not to kill those who surrender, try to catch them alive!"
The power beasts following behind him had green lights in their eyes that could scare children, and the survivors were so scared that they didn't even dare to come out of the house to welcome the king's division.
"Ahhh!"
"Take them down!"
In less than two hours, a survivor settlement with a population of hundreds of thousands was taken down.
This MVP should be settled!
On the other side.
Looking at the devastated capital so close, Marshal Yade of the Restoration Army felt his eyes moisten and thousands of thoughts swirled in his chest.
He dismounted and knelt on the ground, pulled out the sword from his waist, stuck it in the ground as a tombstone, and prayed devoutly with his palm on the blade.
"Father... Mother... I'm back."
The guards beside him also dismounted and knelt on one knee.
At this time, a messenger trotted over.
Seeing Marshal Yade kneeling on the ground, he quickly knelt on the ground and reported.
"Report to the lord! When we were recovering the river bank, we caught several running dogs of the Falcon Kingdom... They were installing explosives on the river bank, preparing to blow up the grace bestowed on us by the spirit of the sand sea. Please tell me how to deal with them!"
Yade slowly stood up from the ground, pulled out the sword stuck in the ground, and handed it to the messenger.
"Chop off their heads with this sword and place them under the river bank."
The messenger's eyes flashed with hatred. He took the sword from the marshal with both hands and said.
"Yes!"
The Alliance does not kill prisoners, but they don't have so many rules.
For the villains who betray their faith and soul, the desert dwellers have their own ways to punish those sinners.
After explaining everything, Yade turned back to the horse, waved the reins, and led the guards into the city.
The battle in the city is over.
The governor appointed by the Falcon Royal Family has escaped, leaving only a servant who was in charge of the account. He didn't have time to escape and was captured alive by the Alliance.
The City Lord's Mansion is currently under the control of the Death Corps.
And the Restoration Army under his command has recaptured the castle and palace that once belonged to them.
The flag of the legion was torn off by the soldiers who climbed up the river bank and replaced with the flag of the Honey Badger Kingdom rewoven with devil silk.
Looking at the flags fluttering on the river bank, the residents of the city came out of their homes and stood on both sides of the street to welcome the soldiers entering the city.
Looking at the ragged, pale and thin people on both sides of the street, Yade felt a pang of pain in his heart.
The famine on the land blessed by the spirit of the sea of sand is simply a blasphemy against the gods.
He looked at the captain of the guard next to him.
"Open the granary and distribute the food to them."
The captain of the guard showed difficulty on his face and reported in a low voice.
"The granary is under the control of the alliance."
Yade was silent for a while.
"Take me there."
The captain of the guard took the order.
"Yes!"
The granary was not far from the city lord's mansion. While controlling the city lord's mansion, the soldiers of the alliance also controlled it at the same time.
Yade noticed that these people were not soldiers of the Death Corps. Their uniforms and badges should be the first corps of the alliance.
"Who is in charge here?" He shouted at the soldier at the door of the granary.
It was beyond his expectation.
The person who came out from behind the wall was not an officer of the Alliance, but a woman dressed simply in jeans and a T-shirt.
"It's me."
While standing at the door, Theresa looked nervously at the man riding on the warhorse.
Just as she expected, almost at the moment when her face appeared, Yade on the warhorse narrowed his eyes.
The guards beside him clenched their horse rifles, and their eyes flashed with hatred without exception.
Several soldiers of the Alliance looked at each other, took two steps forward and stood next to Theresa.
They were not interested in the grievances of the desert residents, but the manager ordered them to protect the safety of this person, so no one should think of hurting her.
"What are you doing here?" Holding the reins in his right hand, Yade raised his hand to signal the cavalry behind him to put away their weapons, and looked at her coldly.
Theresa took a deep breath and told the truth.
"I am the person appointed by the Alliance Refugee Home... The Alliance gave us the seized food for resettlement and asked me to do everything possible to rescue the residents here-"
Before she finished her words, she was interrupted by the angry voices of the guards behind Yade.
"That is the food looted from our land!"
"The people of the Honey Badger Kingdom do not need the legion's lackeys to rescue them!"
"Bah!"
"You saw it." Yade shook his chin back and squinted at the woman in front of him, "The warriors of the Honey Badger Kingdom do not need your help. Give us the key to the granary and we will rescue those hungry people."
"As for you, go wherever you want, just don't block our way."
He didn't have to embarrass an unarmed woman.
But that didn't mean he would give her a good face.
Facing the murderous momentum, a drop of sweat ran across Theresa's fair cheek.
Although a flash of instinctive panic flashed in her eyes, she did not retreat, and still stared at the man riding on the warhorse.
"How do you plan to save those hungry people?"
Yade answered without hesitation.
"Distribute the food to them."
As expected.
Theresa was not at all surprised by his answer.
How could the princes and nobles born in a wealthy land experience hunger, how could they understand what the hungry people were thinking, let alone the experience of dealing with famine.
Like the acting king of Summer, in their eyes, the problem could be solved as long as the food was distributed.
However, the reality is far from that.
The root cause of the famine caused by war is not entirely due to the lack of food, but the lack of social order and the stagnation of social production activities.
She did not fully understand those complicated theories, but she knew that simply distributing food was far from enough after working at the grassroots level.
Theresa took a deep breath and continued.
"...There are 80,000 registered residents in Honey Badger City, and there are only 6,000 tons of food in the granary. How can you ensure that everyone can fill their stomachs?"
Yade frowned.
"This is not easy. 70 kilograms per household is enough for them."
Theresa continued to ask without blinking.
"Is it the same for a family of three and a family of six? How to deal with families who have lost their labor force and unregistered residents?"
Yade said impatiently.
"Then divide it by head."
"That's even more impossible...Adults will snatch food from children, and strong men will snatch the weak and old. Even if the residents of Honey Badger City are law-abiding and don't steal or rob, there will be people who buy the uneaten food from them and sell it to them at a high price when they eat their own children."
Yade stared at her with a sullen face.
The captain of the guard standing beside him shouted sternly.
"You're talking nonsense! How could the people of the Honey Badger royal family do such a thing!"
Theresa: "Maybe, they are noble and pious enough, but there is a way to avoid tragedy, why must we pin our hopes on morality and faith."
The captain of the guard said coldly.
"It's not the turn of the legion's lackeys to teach us how to do--"
"Shut up."
Yade scolded him and squinted at the woman.
"You tell me what to do."
Theresa took a deep breath and said seriously.
"Set up relief points in various parts of the city, divide communities, and distribute food uniformly by community. While rescuing the hungry, register their names, ages, heights, weights, families, and occupations, and organize people with labor to participate in post-war reconstruction and reclaim farmland outside the riverbank."
"Keep those who are unable to work alive and not starve to death, and let those who are able to work eat and use their strength in the right place. They will be tight for a while, but as long as they can hold on until the next year's harvest, everything will be fine."
"Believe me... We have enough experience and ability to deal with it. If you don't trust me, you can send someone to watch me."
Theresa looked at Yad seriously and said.
This is the work experience she has accumulated in the past few months.
This is what the Alliance did in the area of Ruigu City in the southern part of the Valley Province, which is much more effective than directly distributing food to the hungry.
"My Lord... She is the princess of the Falcon Kingdom." Looking at Yade who was lost in thought, the captain of the guard couldn't help but be anxious, and lowered his voice to remind, "Those people even blew up the river bank in order to destroy us!"
Yade didn't say anything, but glanced at the alliance flag next to him, and finally looked at Theresa who was staring at him nervously.
"Why did you do this?"
Theresa was silent for a while, smiled bitterly and shook her head.
"I don't know... You may not believe it, but it will make me feel better."
Maybe...
I can only trouble the manager to convince him.
However, just when she thought so, the development of the matter was beyond her expectations.
As if he believed her statement, Yade waved his hand back and signaled the guard to turn around.
Before turning around, he threw a sentence.
"... If you have troubles that can't be solved, you can come to the castle to find me."
Theresa breathed a sigh of relief, lowered her head and said softly.
"Thank you."
It's best to resolve conflicts in this way.
She did not ask them to forgive the mistakes made by the Falcon Kingdom, but she still wanted to do something with her own identity.
As for the reason——
Perhaps it was because of the answer given by the acting king of the Honey Badger Kingdom, Summer, when he was asked on the Iron Heart that day, "What status do you stay in the Alliance?"
'(She) is a person liberated by the Alliance. '
'... Whether it is the residents of Oasis No. 3 or the residents of Oasis No. 2, they are all victims of this war. '
The voice did not hesitate at all.
'We will liberate them. '
...
It was twelve o'clock in the morning of the wasteland time.
The official website of another world was bustling.
Debt Eyes: "Hahaha! We took over the Honey Badger City in two hours! I just want to ask you if you are awesome!"
Quit Smoking: "666!"
Elf King Fugui: "Tsk, that's nothing, we annihilated a division in two hours! (rolling eyes)"
I am the darkest: "That's right! And the Legion and the Falcon Kingdom's large forces have retreated to Oasis No. 2. You who are cleaning up the battlefield will never meet the main force!"
Construction Site Boy and Brick: "It doesn't matter! We liberated Oasis No. 3! (proud)"
Elf King Fugui: "Damn!"
Irena: "Speaking of which, the next one is Oasis No. 2. (slipping (laugh)"
Canyon escape mole: "We will arrive at Bicester Town tomorrow. The Legion has built a lot of fortifications there. It is estimated that there will be a tough battle."
Night Ten: "@Battlefield atmosphere group pangolin brother, where are you?"
WC really has mosquitoes: "Tell me, what's going on with you. (smirk)"
I am the darkest: "Damn! Where is he? He was online just now."
Night Ten: "Is he really doing something bad? ?"
An hour ago, many people saw the Battlefield guy popping up online, and he mentioned in the post that he had retreated with Korwe to Bicester Town, the logistics hub of Oasis No. 2.
As a result, he suddenly disappeared while chatting.
Thinking that he usually goes offline in the toilet, everyone can't help but worry.
The @ symbol was all over the post.
Perhaps he had a premonition that someone was making up a story about him. Under the @ of many players, the Battlefield guy finally came out belatedly.
"Ahem... there's new news, big news, absolutely explosive!"
Fang Chang: "Big news is okay."
Quanshui Commander: "Did you persuade Kolwe to surrender? (side-eyes)"
Debt Big Eyes: "How did you persuade him? (smirk)"
I'm the Blackest: "Tell me, brother, does it hurt? (curious)"
Battlefield Atmosphere Group: "Get lost!"
Teng Teng: "(????ω????)"
Ye Shi: "Don't talk nonsense, GKD!"
Battlefield Atmosphere Group: "Ahem, about the movements in the distant Triumph City... things are a bit complicated. I just sorted it out and submitted it to the task interface. I'll go outside and open a post to explain it in detail later."
It took about two or three thousand words for the battlefield guy to describe in detail the conflicts of interest of the Legion's Eastward Expansion Faction in the new post.
Simply put, there were three "generals" in Luoxia Province before.
The highest-ranking one was General Kraus, a five-star commander of ten thousand men, followed by Griffin, and then McLen.
All three were once the backbone of the Eastward Expansion Faction of the Legion, advocating the conquest of the Great Rift Valley, the birthplace of the Post-War Reconstruction Committee, and projecting power to the entire Middle Continent through the Great Rift Valley.
However, the Eastward Expansion Faction did not have an advantage within the Legion, and even the Eastern Legion did not fully support the march to the east of the Great Desert.
In order to gain the support of Triumph City, the Eastward Expansion Faction headed by Kras launched the first expedition, but due to insufficient preparation, Kras died in the first expedition.
Griffin inherited Kras's basic operation in Luoxia Province and adopted a series of strategies. Including winning over the Bugla Free State economically, inciting the Bone Chewing Tribe to sweep across the central and southern parts of the Valley Province, and militarily supporting the Falcon Kingdom to annex the kings of Luoxia Province, etc.
However, his plan obviously did not go smoothly. Not only did he fail to conquer the countries in the desert, he was even pushed back to Oasis No. 2 by the Alliance.
Now Griffin only has one card left to use.
That is to sacrifice ten 10,000-man teams and himself, as well as the Legion's vassal in Luoxia Province, in exchange for the "sympathy" of other factions in Triumph City for the Eastward Expansion Party.
In fact, it is not entirely sympathy.
Whether it is for the prestige of Triumph City, or for the promising young officers in the ten 10,000-man teams and the Willant nobles who came to the front line to gild themselves, the Legion will definitely respond to this war supported by the enterprise.
The biggest possibility is the battle in heaven between the two "fallen empires".
This is also what the enterprise has always tried to avoid.
There are obvious differences in the opinions of the players on whether to continue the fight.
Canyon Fleeing Mole supports continuing the fight.
The reason is simple. He just experienced the feeling of a wave of steel torrents, and he hasn't had enough. If the enterprise and the Legion really fight, the Alliance may be able to fish in troubled waters.
Instead, he hesitated to paddling on the edge.
The situation in Oasis No. 3 was beyond his expectations.
According to the incomplete statistics he collected from the Lord's Mansion of Honey Badger City, the total population of Honey Badger Kingdom decreased by 5% in just one month of occupation.
It's not that he is full of sympathy.
If it was an order from the headquarters, he would go to Oasis No. 2 without hesitation and fight to the end with those stubborn lunatics.
If he just continued to fight, he could not see where the end of this war was.
"I agree to drive the Legion out of Luoxia Province. This is the war they started, but I'm not sure what to do after this. Unless we have the ability to push the front line to Kaixuan City, this endless war will drag us... and even everyone into the quagmire."
Fang Chang: "In fact, I think it's meaningless to argue whether to cease fire or not. If the Legion is unwilling to let go, it's useless even if we agree to cease fire. (squinting)"
WC Zhenyou Mosquito: "How about beheading Griffin? I'll donate a plane! (smirk)"
Tail: "Oh! It feels so exciting! Tail votes! (｀?′)Ψ"
Sis: "If Comrade Pangolin can get him It is possible to find the coordinates... but it seems that this will be worse. "
Funnel Commander: "Well, the best situation is to capture him and force him to surrender. But to be honest, if he is willing to sacrifice ten thousand troops... I am afraid he has made up his mind to die to show his determination."
Construction site boy and brick: "It's a headache... why do I have to think about these things? Just tell me where to fight. (Dizzy)"
Fang Chang: "Because this is our alliance. (Slanting eyes)"
...
Just when the players were discussing whether to continue fighting, Chu Guang, who was sitting in the captain's office of the Iron Heart, was sitting in front of the computer and peeking at the screen.
Although most of the time his small players, for the purpose of making fun, the suggestions made by his big account "A Guang" are of little reference value, but when it comes to key decisions about the future of the alliance, Chu Guang is still willing to see what the players and cloud players think.
As Brother Fang Chang said, this is an alliance for all survivors, and naturally it is also an alliance for players.
But what surprised Chu Guang was that this time Pangolin brought him another incredible piece of information-
That is, the governor appointed by Kaixuan City is going to Luoxia Province!
And he is going there with the mission of peace talks!
After finding out the bottom line of the opponent, the next thing will be much easier.
"...It seems that I really have to compensate Brother Pangolin with a set of power armor."
After recovering this unexpected trump card, Chu Guang smiled and closed the webpage, and then looked at Xiaoqi who was sitting on the edge of the pen holder.
"Xiaoqi, call Vanus for me."
Xiaoqi saluted playfully.
"Okay!"
After waiting for a while.
Vanus, who was on duty on the airship, soon came to the captain's office.
Without mentioning the matter of Helium III, Chu Guang briefly recounted the college representative's prediction of the future situation in Luoxia Province and the possible strategy of the legion to the Weilant who had served as the legion's centurion.
After listening to Chu Guang's statement, Vanus thought for two seconds and then spoke.
"The representatives of the academy should not be joking... If Griffin suffered a serious defeat in Luoxia Province, the Legion would definitely not let this war end hastily."
His statement was very conservative.
But Chu Guang could hear what he meant and nodded gently.
"Well, I know."
In fact, it was not just the academy.
Including the enterprises, they discussed with him about stopping while they were ahead. Yi Chuan even hinted to him that the Supreme Council was willing to give them a little compensation for this.
Of course, it was still in the name of aid.
"The alliance needs space and time for development... Now we have gained space, but we are still a little short of time."
"What do you plan to do?" Vanus looked at Chu Guang.
If the opponent is the Eastern Legion's garrison in Luoxia Province, the alliance undoubtedly has equal strength.
But if the opponent is the entire legion...
I am afraid that it will be difficult for the academy and the enterprise to win decently.
He was very curious about what the man in front of him would choose.
"... I need to buy time for the alliance."
Chu Guang stretched out his index finger and drew a virtual stroke in the air, unfolding a holographic map on the desk.
The center of the map was the southwest corner of Oasis No. 2 - the location of Falcon City.
That was the capital of the Falcon Kingdom!
"... Our pilots finally gained air superiority, and I don't intend to give up. The flag of the alliance has not yet flown over the capital of the Falcon Kingdom. Now let our boys go home, they will definitely not accept it."
Vanus looked at Chu Guang in surprise, and raised his eyebrows slightly.
"Are you going to ignite this gunpowder barrel?"
"Of course not," Chu Guang paused and continued, "According to intelligence, the governor from Triumph City is on his way to Oasis No. 2. His mission is most likely to negotiate... and we will take the capital of the Falcon Kingdom before he arrives at Oasis No. 2."
Vanus frowned slightly.
"The Legion will not sit idly by and watch Falcon City be occupied by us... If it really comes to that, even if the governor comes with a mission to negotiate peace, the situation here will probably lose the basis for a ceasefire."
Chu Guang said concisely.
"So we won't occupy there."
Vanus was stunned.
"So what you mean is..."
Chu Guang smiled faintly.
"We will plant the flag of the alliance on their palace, destroy their military factories, railways, road networks and fortresses as much as possible, disintegrate their war potential, and make the war-weariness of the princes and nobles and the common people as full as possible... Let them pay the price they deserve."
Looking at Vanus who was surprised, Chu Guang paused and continued.
"Then, we will withdraw."