Chapter 265: Echoes of the Aftermath
Demon City, Cabinet Building, Military Minister's office.
The demon flame lamps cast long shadows of the candlestick, illuminating the campaign map spread out on the table, with the air filled with the musty scent of old scrolls and wilting tobacco.
Sitting behind the desk, Caesar Colin, dressed in a black military uniform, had a pipe in his mouth, with a rare smile gracing his aged yet dignified face.
Good news came from the direction of the Blood Red Wilderness.
The Aus Empire's army, intoxicated by the victory at Seldo Port, had organized a massive engagement half a month ago, attempting to engulf the Red Flame Legion retreating to the Blood Red Wilderness.
Perhaps they had acquired intelligence from within Hell, or maybe they had gleaned clues from certain traces. In any case, when the Empire learned that the notorious General Sebes had been taken down due to internal strife, they immediately organized three legions with a total force of over 150,000 to launch an offensive on the Blood Red Wilderness from three directions.
To ensure the seamless advancement of their operation, they even replaced the cautious General Hamoldon of the "Imperial Griffin" with a Duke possessing Diamond Level strength.
It's exceedingly rare for a Duke to personally go to the front lines; after all, the hardest parts of the human body are the femur and skull, but who would use these to engage in hand-to-hand combat?
General Balrog was given the perilous command to rally the remaining forces to organize a defense, retreating tactically while facing pursuit by the Human Duke, until ultimately holding out for the reinforcements led by the nearby Hell Lord to arrive.
Two Diamond Level powerhouses clashed, one was Diamond Level two hundred years ago, but hadn't fought seriously in half a century, the other was fifty years old and still strong, but rarely came to the front lines.
Their battle was so intense that neither had the leisure to care about anything else, and others were basically unable to intervene.
And right when their battle was at its peak, twenty "Hell's Flames" Magic Crystal Tanks launched a charge on the human cavalry across the wilderness!
Bones and flesh were shredded into fragments by the steel; the heavy tracks rolled like teeth across the ground, with the fire from the Magic Crystal Cannons opening a chasm in the waist of the 200,000-strong army like an abyss.
Seeing those roaring steel beasts, all the human soldiers were stunned, as if witnessing the final judgment described in the "Holy Word Book".
They hacked with swords, unleashed fireballs with scrolls, hammered, and even bit with their teeth… to no avail against the thick armor.
Even more lethal, a tidal wave of goblins, imps, and ghouls charged forward, ultimately leading to the total collapse of the 200,000-strong army.
Occasionally, a few Silver Level vanguards attempted to breach the tank's armor, but they too fell before the Magic Crystal Cannon.
To withstand its bombardment, one would need at least Gold Level strength, and even then, on a chaotic battlefield, trying to break through the dense crowd to disable the opponent's war machine was extremely difficult.
After all, for both Hell and the Empire, Gold Level represented a significant threshold.
Most ordinary commanders were at this level, while the Knights below them were mostly Fine Steel and Silver.
Above them were either clergy serving the Divine or nobles serving the Emperor… these individuals wouldn't readily risk the battlefield, since even ants, in great numbers, could kill an elephant. Dying on the enemy's territory would be troublesome, with the risk of souls not returning.
Caesar Colin could almost imagine how pathetic the escape of that Diamond Level Duke must have been.
The 200,000-strong army fled in disarray, losing helmets and armor…
Who knows what turmoil the Holy City of the Aus Empire would experience upon receiving this news.
Caesar's lips curled into an amused smile, and his half-closed eyes carried a profound expression.
Just as he drummed his fingers lightly on the table, lost in thought, light footsteps approached from outside the door, followed by a knock.
Extinguishing the pipe in his hand, he casually tossed it into a drawer, regaining an imposing demeanor before speaking steadily.
"Come in."
The door was pushed open, and a wave of heat followed.
Flame Demon Councilor Atlant stepped into the office, a faint crimson glow emanating from beneath his proper tailcoat, like a piece of living molten iron forged by a volcano.
Respectfully placing a proposal on the table, he spoke with a smile on his face, "Respected Prince, this is the new design proposal submitted by Baron Luo Yan from Black Wind Castle. Although I believe it can be approved directly without any issue, as you previously stated, all blueprints related to the 'Black Wind Castle New Armament Proposal' need your personal review, so I brought it to you."
Caesar raised an eyebrow, reached out to pick up the document, and began flipping through it.
The title of the document boldly read—"Hell's Flames No. 2 Vehicle" Improvement Proposal.
As Caesar perused it with interest, Councilor Atlant, standing beside the desk, enthusiastically introduced.
"Compared to the previous 'Hell's Flames' model, this vehicle, while maintaining the original armor thickness, adds multiple firing ports, allowing soldiers inside to engage in shooting more effectively during close-range combat."
He paused for a moment, then added.
"Additionally, he referenced the suggestions from the War Department to optimize the embedded magic patterns, reducing the energy consumption of magic feedback and gas shields by twenty percent, and adjusted the activation method… it's now only triggered when Bronze Level or higher attacks touch the vehicle body, thus preventing mistakes by goblin operators. Honestly, it's a genius design… he solved a problem that baffled our engineers for ages with just a piece of fragile ceramic."