Chapter 288: One Shot, One Soul
Boom!
A deafening sound like thunder reverberated through the town's airspace!
Countless Cursed Rune Rays tore through the void, almost simultaneously striking the energy field on the surface of the Wizard Tower. Instantly, large areas of distortion appeared, and the entire force field fluctuated violently, as if on the verge of collapse.
Faced with the siege of over three hundred Magic Ships and two Star Fortresses, the Wizard Tower of Black Suo Tower could no longer hold out after destroying more than seventy Magic Ships and prepared to break free.
However, just as it was about to act, the Star Fortress on the left suddenly unleashed a dazzlingly thick bolt of lightning that slammed into the Wizard Tower!
Like the last straw that broke the camel's back, the energy field of the Wizard Tower collapsed with a thunderous crack.
“Plasma Cannon? Damn it, how can such a turret be mounted on a War Creation that isn’t even a Wizard Tower?”
The Black Suo Tower Wizard inside the Wizard Tower roared in shock and anger.
Unfortunately, anger couldn’t change the situation. With its energy field down, the Wizard Tower was immediately exposed to the firepower of numerous War Creations. In an instant, a torrent of cannon fire swept in, submerging the Wizard Tower!
More than ten figures rushed out of the Wizard Tower, scattering and flying in all directions.
However, the Star Alliance was already prepared. Just as the howling cries of wolves erupted, dozens of Twilight Wolves charged in from all around, roaring as they blocked the Wizards of the Black Suo Tower.
Immediately afterward, the Star Alliance Wizards also rushed out of the Wizard Tower, joining in the pursuit!
With the combined attack of the Wizards and the Twilight Wolves, the ten-plus Black Suo Tower Wizards were swiftly wiped out.
Storing the Black Thunder, which had run out of energy, into his Space Ring, Sheman glanced at the damaged Black Suo Tower Wizard Tower nearby, a smile breaking across his face.
“After fighting for over a year, this is the first time we’ve captured a Black Suo Tower Wizard Tower.”
Artier walked over, a matching smile on his face.
Sheman laughed. "Black Suo Tower is too cautious; the Wizard Tower rarely operates alone and retreats immediately if things start to go south. If we hadn't set a trap, capturing one this time wouldn't have been so easy."
They had prepared for this operation for over two months, risking ambushes while staying near a Wizard Tower that had been deliberately lingering on the edge of the occupied area, painstakingly luring the enemy step by step into their trap.
Fortunately, the final outcome was favorable.
Although they lost nearly a hundred Magic Ships, capturing a Small Wizard Tower made this loss completely acceptable.
At this time, the battle within the town was also nearing its end.
Countless Black Wolves were running rampant, tearing through the town and systematically eliminating the remaining resistance, while ignoring the unarmed civilians and surrendering soldiers.
After all their troops were transported into Ulan Plane, the Star Alliance changed their battle tactics, using wolf packs and the Golem Legion as their main attack force, while the Magic Knight Order provided support to assault the towns of Ulan Plane.
Compared to the longer breeding cycle of Magic Pattern Knights, the production cycle of Golem Puppets and Black Wolves was much shorter, allowing them to sustain higher losses without concern.
Under the Star Alliance's relentless offensive, with little regard for casualties, their occupied territory expanded nearly four times in the past year!
Although this area amounted to less than one percent of the entire Ulan Plane, achieving such results was impressive, considering that the War Creation faction had no real advantage and could only advance with ground troops.
After eliminating the last remnants of resistance in the town, Sheman left some people to clean up the battlefield before returning to the Winterwind City garrison with the damaged Wizard Tower.
"Well done."
Upon hearing the report from Sheman and Artier, Lize nodded with a smile.
The War Creation strength of the Star Alliance and Ulan Plane was comparable. If Ulan Plane lost a Wizard Tower, once the Star Alliance repaired it, they would gain one more Wizard Tower.
This difference, when weighing the gains and losses, was equivalent to a gap of two Small Wizard Towers.
After praising Sheman and Artier a few times, Lize had them step down and arranged for people to begin repairing the Wizard Tower.
Having completed these tasks, she finally arrived at the laboratory where Su Nan was working.
In the center of the spacious laboratory stood a massive turret. Its metallic surface was covered in a dense pattern of strange "Fulu" (runes), with various types of Magic Gems embedded at the intersection points.
Su Nan stood beside the turret, seemingly making final adjustments.
"Is this the newly developed Pulse Cannon Type III?" Lize asked with interest.
Su Nan, having anticipated her arrival, replied without looking up, "That's right, it’ll be finished today."
The synthesis of Pulse Cannon Type III wasn't particularly difficult; what truly took time was producing a sufficient number of Pulses for synthesis and testing their compatibility with the Starlight Wizard Tower.
In its current form, the Pulse Cannon Type III was already the best option after Su Nan's many adjustments.
The power of a single Pulse Cannon was enough to reduce the Mystic Lock Defense Energy Field (standard, unenhanced) of a large Wizard Tower by more than 80%.
As for a medium Wizard Tower, one shot could completely obliterate both the Energy Field and the tower itself!
Its power was worlds apart from that of the Pulse Cannon mounted on ordinary large Wizard Towers!
However, such astonishing power came with an enormous energy consumption. Even with a simplified version of the Elemental Furnace's energy supply, it could only support the Pulse Cannon Type III firing three times at most.
After three shots, with less than 10% of its energy remaining, it would essentially become combat ineffective.
Su Nan had previously mentioned the power of Pulse Cannon Type III to Lize, and upon hearing that this new weapon was now complete, her eyes couldn't help but light up.
“With this weapon, we can change the current stalemate.”
Su Nan nodded slightly, then added, “Actually, considering cost-effectiveness, Pulse Cannon Type III is somewhat wasteful of energy. If we appropriately reduce its power and instead upgrade and improve other turrets, while cooperating with the Energy Field, we could make steady progress on the battlefield. The results would definitely be better than simply relying on the Pulse Cannon Type III.”
The Pulse Cannon Type III was powerful, but it was essentially a one-shot wonder; after those three shots, the Starlight Wizard Tower would be left without significant fighting power.
If the energy from the three Pulse Cannon Type III shots were better distributed between offense and defense, the Starlight Wizard Tower could certainly achieve far more glorious results in a single battle than simply destroying three Wizard Towers.
However, reaching that level would require substantial modifications to the Starlight Wizard Tower's other facilities.
Time was short; Su Nan didn't have enough time to upgrade everything comprehensively, so they were limited to this approach.
Before long, Su Nan completed the final adjustments and ordered Tower Spirit Number 3 to control the Golem to carry the cannon away and install it in the Wizard Tower. Then he asked Lize,
"How have things been on the front lines recently?"
"It's been fairly smooth. Sheman and Artier just seized a Small Wizard Tower. After a few months of repairs, we'll have another Wizard Tower on our side."
"What about the ground troops’ losses?"
"Our resources are abundant; the Golem Puppets can produce them endlessly, so the Golem Legion's casualties are minimal. However, the wolf packs have taken quite a hit lately from the intense battles. The death rate of the Black Wolves has far exceeded their hatching rate."
"And what about the Black Suo Tower's battle losses?"
Lize replied without hesitation, "They're taking even more losses than us."
The Ulan Plane didn't have a Biological Nest, nor could they, like the Star Alliance, extract massive profits from Magic Stone trades. Relying solely on their own plane and the headquarters’ supply of resources, they certainly couldn't match the insane troop production of the Star Alliance. Every soldier lost was a soldier gone.
As time passed, the military strength of both sides would only grow more disparate.
Even without the Pulse Cannon Type III, Su Nan believed that in a hundred years or so, the Star Alliance could gain a complete advantage in the war.
When the Wizard Civil War ended, they might even be able to conquer the Ulan Plane.
But he didn't want to wait until then.
"It's time to escalate the offensive," Su Nan said.
Lize responded seriously, "We've already scouted the location of Ulan City; it's about five thousand kilometers southwest of the occupied zone. If we attack there, we will undoubtedly force the Ulan Plane's garrison into direct confrontation. Once we take Ulan City and destroy their command center, the enemy will descend into chaos for a time."
Su Nan said without the slightest hesitation, "Then attack Ulan City!"
As the order was given, Winterwind City quickly came alive.
A large number of Magic Ships and Star Fortresses departed from Winterwind City, providing protection for the Wizard Tower as it set a direct course for Ulan City. Tens of thousands of ground troops marched in an imposing procession toward Ulan City.
Ulan City immediately learned of the Star Alliance's movements. While mobilizing their troops to prepare for battle, they also summoned their leaders to discuss strategies.
"What is the Star Alliance planning?"
"They aren’t actually thinking of seizing Ulan City, are they?"
"That's unlikely; they've tried before."
Over the past year, Star Alliance and Ulan City had engaged in several all-out battles, with neither side gaining the upper hand; both had suffered pointless losses. As a result, Star Alliance mostly relied on their more advantageous ground forces for advancements, seldom deploying large numbers of War Constructs at the same time recently. Now, with Star Alliance suddenly launching such an offensive, it was truly perplexing.
Luke raised a hand to interrupt the discussions and said in a deep voice, "Regardless of Star Alliance's intentions, since they want to fight, we can’t back down either. Ulan City is our headquarters; should we really be afraid of the Star Alliance?”
Everyone found this reasonable, and their internal conflicts ceased; they all volunteered to join the battle.
Soon, numerous Wizard Towers and Black Sota Dreadnoughts ascended into the sky above Ulan City. At the same time, a large number of Golem Puppets and Knights poured out of the city, organizing themselves into formations on the plains, ready for a major confrontation.
The Golem Legion was positioned at the center of the formation, flanked by countless Knights riding beast-like mounts that resembled horses but had scaly limbs.
These powerful Knights were clad in fine armor, wielded Refined Steel longswords, and radiated a formidable aura, their morale high.
"Are those Ulan City's Fire Scale Knights?"
Inside the Wizard Tower, Su Nan gazed at the elite cavalry regiment displayed on the Light Screen, intrigue gleaming in his eyes.
For over a year, he had devoted most of his time to synthesizing the Pulse Cannon, occasionally paying attention to the war situation, but only at a major strategic level. He had rarely set foot on the battlefield, and this was his first time witnessing the Fire Scale Knight Order.
"That's right," Lize said. "These Fire Scale Knights possess power at the Great Knight level, and the Fire Scale Beasts they ride are no weaker than the Black Rock Leopards. Moreover, they are all equipped with Magic Pattern Constructs. In terms of combat power, they are not much different from Magic Pattern Knights."
The Knight Legion fostered by the Wizard Faction, featuring Magic Pattern Constructs and Exotic Beast mounts, represents standard equipment. Overall, they tend to possess legendary combat capabilities.
The Star Alliance's Magic Knight Order is not unique, but if they have any advantage, it is that a higher proportion of their forces are equipped with Second and Third Level Magic Rune Constructs of Knights.
After all, they have invested sufficient military funds!
While Su Nan and Lize conversed, the Star Alliance army had already completed their rest and was lined up in formation.
Seeing this, Su Nan immediately issued the order to attack.
Wooo!
A loud horn sounded, echoing across the sky above the Plain.
As the sound reverberated, the Star Alliance army began to advance slowly, like a massive, unparalleled beast crushing everything in its path.
At the same time, a deep, resonant voice rang out above the Ulan City army.
"Attack!"
In the next moment, the war drums atop Ulan City's walls began to beat.
The army began to move slowly, gradually picking up speed, and with a momentum like mountains toppling over the sea, it charged fearlessly toward the enemy.
The two armies collided like two raging torrents, instantly sending blood splattering and limbs flying in every direction!
Deafening battle cries surged toward the heavens!
From above, the front lines of both armies were already locked in chaotic melee, engaged in a brutal slaughter akin to a meat grinder!
Simultaneously, the War Creation in the high sky also began to clash, unleashing cannon fire and energy beams at one another.
Almost immediately, dozens of Magic Ships from the Star Alliance shattered and disintegrated.
On the Black Suo Tower side, one Black Sota Dreadnought plummeted to the ground in flames.
Observing the Star Alliance's formation, which appeared unchanged, a trace of doubt flashed in Luke's eyes.
He had thought that Star Dream's initiative to attack Ulan City was due to some hidden trump card, but looking at the enemy's lineup, it didn't seem to be the case.
"It's probably just a probe by the Star Alliance."
Luke relaxed completely and focused on commanding the battle.
The Star Alliance's recent offensives had become increasingly fierce. Since the enemy was delivering themselves to their doorstep today, they should seize this opportunity to weaken their strength.
While the battle raged on, the Starlight Wizard Tower remained motionless in the high sky, showing no signs of movement.
Su Nan's eyes were fixed on the distant Wizard Tower.
It was a Large Wizard Tower, surrounded by smaller towers that seemed to guard it like the moon surrounded by stars. Even another Large Wizard Tower fell under its protection.
If there were no surprises, the higher-ups of Ulan City should be in that Wizard Tower.
Su Nan waited patiently, watching as rays of cannon fire pierced through the array formed by the Wizard Tower and the Black Sota Dreadnought, occasionally striking the Large Wizard Tower and gradually eroding its energy field's durability.
Estimating that the time was right, he finally issued an order.
"1, activate Pulse Cannon Type III!"
[Received command, activating Pulse Cannon Type III.]
Glimmers of starlight suddenly appeared atop the Starlight Wizard Tower, the light rapidly expanding and turning into a dazzling sphere reminiscent of the sun.
In the next moment, an extremely bright beam of light shot out, piercing through the void like a bolt of lightning, instantly crossing thousands of meters and precisely hitting the heavily guarded Large Wizard Tower.
In astonished disbelief, the crowd watched as the energy field surrounding the Large Wizard Tower twisted for a moment before suddenly shattering!
"How is that possible?!"
Luke's expression turned ghostly as he witnessed this scene.
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