Chapter 135: Reinforce Beisha!

Chu Xiao would never allow his soldiers to die in vain, especially not for a meaningless sacrifice!

After finalizing the combat plan and reaching the assembly points, everyone led their respective troops forward according to schedule.

Judging that the time was right, Chu Xiao fired the first shot. Seeing that the attack had commenced on Chu Xiao's end, the others immediately launched their assault against the Dark Lord!

The sound of gunfire completely bewildered the Dark Lord. It had no idea what was happening; shouldn't the battle be taking place in Beisha? Why were there gunshots here?

While the Dark Lord was still puzzled, a robot rushed in and reported the outside situation. Just as the Dark Lord was preparing to organize its robots to beat back Chu Xiao, it saw that Chu Xiao's forces were simply too overwhelming.

With no other choice, it had to order the forces in Beisha to halt their attack and quickly fall back to reinforce. Upon receiving word that the Dark Lord's army was retreating, Irving promptly relayed the news to Chu Xiao!

Chu Xiao, however, did not intend to retreat just yet. Instead, he had Irving take a few men to plant decoy mines along the retreat route to slow down the Dark Lord's pursuit!

Once the mines were set, Irving fired a signal flare, and everyone prepared to withdraw. Recognizing their intentions, the Dark Lord ordered the robots to entangle Chu Xiao and wait for the main force to arrive so they could annihilate them in one fell swoop!

Everything unfolded just as Chu Xiao had anticipated. The Dark Lord indeed gave chase, and shortly afterward, several muffled explosions echoed through the area as nearly all the pursuing robots were blown to pieces.

"Commander-in-Chief, you are truly a god among men! You even anticipated that the Dark Lord would pursue us!"

"I've simply fought against the Dark Lord many times and understand its tendencies quite well."

However, these mines only eliminated the Dark Lord's ground units; the aerial robots continued their relentless pursuit, closing in rapidly as Chu Xiao fought and retreated simultaneously.

"Commander-in-Chief, you go ahead. Leave some men with me, and I will hold them off!"

To repay Chu Xiao, Irving had already resolved to die to ensure the safety of Chu Xiao and the others. That was the nature of the people of Beisha: they always repaid a debt of gratitude!

Chu Xiao did not agree to his request. Seeing that time was running out and the Dark Lord's reinforcements were fast approaching, Irving pushed Chu Xiao away, urging him to take his men and leave immediately while he blocked the robots!

Mu Keyan and Dell rushed over with reinforcements to help fend off the robots, giving them a glimmer of hope as everyone fought and retreated until they finally broke through!

"Thank goodness you arrived in time, or we would have had no wings to fly away today!"

"You're too kind, Commander-in-Chief. We are allies now, after all; if you hadn't held off those robots, we wouldn't have escaped so easily."

If Dell hadn't led his men back, Mu Keyan would have simply retreated with her own forces. Because of this, Irving harbored resentment toward the people of the United States, and Dell likewise despised the actions of the U.S. side.

"Thank you all very much. If not for you, Beisha would surely have been doomed!"

Irving bowed deeply to Chu Xiao and the others once again. No matter how much he despised the United States, he could not abandon basic etiquette, especially since they had dispatched troops to aid Beisha.

"The Dark Lord's behavior this time is very strange. Even during previous attacks on Beisha, it never deployed this many robots. Why the sudden massive offensive?"

Chu Xiao felt that something was amiss, but everyone else considered it mere coincidence, figuring that because Beisha was located in a remote area and lacked heavy weaponry, the Dark Lord had simply chosen to target it first.

Seeing that everyone shared this view, Chu Xiao's suspicions abated somewhat, though he still felt a lingering sense of unease, hoping fervently that his instincts were wrong.

"How is Beisha? Are the casualties severe?"

Chu Xiao was deeply concerned about the situation in Beisha. The region was already chronically short of medicine and medical supplies, and after such a massive onslaught by the Dark Lord, the wounded must be countless!

"Although the situation is grim, we can still manage it."

Hearing this, Chu Xiao felt a bit relieved. After such prolonged combat, other resources were manageable, but medicine was scarce, with the Nine Provinces barely having enough for themselves.

Yet Chu Xiao knew well that the three nations faced severe shortages of medical supplies. Originally, they could barely manage to be self-sufficient, but after several campaigns, the situation had become precarious.

Following this battle, Beisha had suffered over fifty percent casualties. If the Dark Lord launched another attack, they would likely struggle to resist. Chu Xiao wanted to suggest that they break down their forces and disperse them among the other three nations, but he didn't know how to bring it up.

Although he was currently the Commander-in-Chief, this matter concerned a sovereign nation, and he ultimately lacked the authority to make such a decision. Handled poorly, it could even fracture the alliance!

Still deeply worried about Beisha, Chu Xiao decided to visit the region personally before returning to Pearl City. A grand convoy of several thousand vehicles rolled out toward Beisha!

At that moment, Irving's phone suddenly rang. After answering the call, his expression shifted instantly, turning exceptionally grim.

"The Dark Lord has launched another attack against us. I'm afraid we won't be able to hold out much longer!"

It would still take some time for Chu Xiao's forces to reach Beisha. Naturally, the Dark Lord would maintain defenses and leave some robots behind to guard its lair, but Chu Xiao ordered full speed ahead to reach Beisha as quickly as possible!

Suddenly, Chu Xiao understood why the Dark Lord hadn't pursued them earlier, choosing instead to head straight back to Beisha to resume its attack—it was clear that the Dark Lord was determined to take Beisha at all costs this time!

When Chu Xiao and his forces finally arrived at Beisha, the Dark Lord had already breached the city. The scene was utterly tragic, with corpses strewn everywhere. Overcome with fury at the sight, Irving prepared to charge into the city single-handedly.

Chu Xiao stopped him. Once Irving calmed down, Chu Xiao instructed him to contact people inside the city to assess the situation.

Irving dialed Church's number, but after a long ring, there was no answer. He then called his trusted subordinate, Odyssey, who reported that Church was leading a force in urban guerrilla warfare against the Dark Lord's robots within the city.

Odyssey had already evacuated the citizens to the mountains and was now preparing to reinforce Church, swearing to defend Beisha to the death!

"I implore the Commander-in-Chief to lend your aid, otherwise Beisha will not escape destruction!"

Irving bowed deeply to Chu Xiao. Naturally, Chu Xiao would not sit idly by. Helping Irving to his feet, he immediately issued the order to reinforce Beisha and rescue Church!

Just as they prepared to enter the city, they were intercepted by the Dark Lord's ambush. The Dark Lord had long since stationed forces outside the city; if Chu Xiao came to reinforce Beisha, these robots could buy precious time for the forces inside the city to retreat.

Having achieved its goal of severely crippling Beisha, the Dark Lord promptly ordered the robots inside the city to pull back. This time, the Dark Lord's intention was not to completely annihilate Beisha, but rather to leave it incapable of interfering with others for a considerable time to come.

The Dark Lord sought to defeat them one by one, striking at their living forces and leaving them overwhelmed and helpless. Seeing the robots retreat, Chu Xiao did not order a pursuit, choosing instead to enter the city and search for survivors.

Beisha now resembled a wasteland, with thirty to forty percent of its buildings destroyed by the robots. Upon finding Church, Chu Xiao learned that out of a force of over one hundred thousand people, fewer than fifty thousand remained, most of whom were wounded.

Hearing this news, Irving flew into a rage, wishing he could instantly destroy the Dark Lord for the tens of thousands of compatriots slaughtered in this battle!