Munitions Empire-Chapter 1207: Fire Island 1127

The entire plan was massive and intricate.

First, in response to the widespread airstrikes by the Tang Army before landing, Shenwu Erlang and Army General Shenwu Sixteen, stationed on New Island, decided to counteract by deploying the main forces near the southern positions of the island, where the Tang Army was most likely to land.

The advantage of this approach is that even if the roads are destroyed or if the Tang Army Paratroopers launch an unexpected attack, they can still ensure substantial troop strength near the beach to engage the Tang Nation landing forces in decisive combat.

After all, this battle is essentially a decisive confrontation between the two nations, and the deployment of as many troops as possible represents General Shenwu Sixteen’s resolve.

Meanwhile, Shenwu Erlang is tasked with the defense of New Island’s interior. His Third Corps, which had suffered heavy losses, along with the 300,000 provisional militias recruited on New Island, will be responsible for annihilating the Tang Army Paratroopers.

They are scattered throughout the island, so regardless of where the paratroopers land, the troops nearby can swiftly mobilize and engage them right after they touch down.

Furthermore, relying on hidden field airports across the island and a dense network of anti-aircraft guns, Shenwu Sixteen is confident that air superiority will not be easily lost. His Zero Fighters can continuously take off to pose a threat to the enemy’s naval and air forces.

To support operations on New Island, Mirage Country has deployed over 600 aircraft in this region—a considerable number, representing almost everything Mirage Country can muster.

Among these aircraft, at least 170 are prepared for kamikaze attacks. The island hosts numerous new pilots with low training levels, but their resolve to sacrifice everything for Mirage Country has been firmly set.

Simultaneously, Mirage Country’s navy will secretly deploy a batch of hastily assembled kamikaze speedboats on the east and west sides of New Island. These boats are considered Mirage Country’s trump card.

If the Great Tang Empire’s landing fleet appears in the southern waters of the island as anticipated, Mirage Country’s kamikaze speedboat units will launch nocturnal attacks after sunset, aiming to inflict significant damage on the Tang Army fleet.

In summary, once the enemy fleet retreats, Shenwu Sixteen is confident that with the advantage of troop strength, he can crush the Tang Army’s landing forces on the beach and achieve a phased victory in the campaign. freēnovelkiss.com

He was unsure whether the Tang Army would relent, but he believed that if he could defeat their offensive twice consecutively, there might be a chance to force a truce with Tang Nation and secure a breathing space.

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On the Tang Army’s side, the strategy was straightforward—the principle of brute strength overwhelming skill. Leveraging their absolute superiority in tactical weaponry and equipment was Tang Nation’s consistent style of combat.

In fact, Tang Nation hadn’t been idle in the past few months. Its massive propaganda machine operated at full throttle, accusing Mirage Country of violating conventions by using naval mines in sea battles and landmines in ground warfare.

Nations worldwide had signed treaties prohibiting inhumane weapon use, which included various weapon types such as white phosphorus bombs, landmines, and naval mines—many of which were first used by the Great Tang Empire.

Clearly, Mirage Country had violated these agreements.

The Great Tang Empire, as the initiator of the war, accusing Mirage Country of treaty violations, did indeed carry a touch of irony. Yet, it was the Great Tang Empire’s accusation—who dared to take it lightly?

After over ten days of media debates, when the Great Tang Empire presented battlefield footage, dismantled landmines, naval mines, and other evidence, the number of nations advising them to let the matter go dwindled.

Mirage Country itself knew it had no defense—it had done these things and couldn’t refute them. Finally, it adopted a blatant attitude like, "Yes, we did it—so what can you do about it?"

In response, Tang Nation formally declared the activation of its retaliation mechanism and reserved the right to punish treaty violators. However, the Great Tang Empire’s propaganda confidently declared that it would refrain from using prohibited weapon types against Mirage Country in its retaliation.

This effectively amounted to announcing to the world that it wouldn’t use prohibited white phosphorus bombs to retaliate against Mirage Country. Amid applause and cheers, other nations praised the Great Tang Empire’s moral standards.

In truth, they wanted to see what other secret weapons the Great Tang Empire had, apart from white phosphorus bombs. If the Great Tang Empire couldn’t produce weapons comparable to white phosphorus bombs, other nations would carefully weigh the cost-effectiveness of using landmines and naval mines.

The subsequent developments were straightforward. As planned, Tang Nation’s air force prepared its Flying Fortress Bombers and H-6 bombers stationed on South Island, equipping them with various bombs that had been in production but had never been used until now.

The Flying Fortress Bombers, being relatively outdated, were uniformly armed with incendiary bombs; the advanced H-6 bombers carried new fuel-air explosive bombs.

The two types of bombs had different effects and levels of destructive power, but both were undeniably terrifying weapons. According to the plan, the Tang Army would conduct five carpet-bombing raids across New Island, using these new bombs to thoroughly ravage the area.

Some air force commanders even suggested using some of the less "clean" new bombs from the Great Tang Empire’s arsenal to give Mirage Country’s Goblins a chemistry lesson on the importance of gas masks! They wanted to teach these treaty violators a brutal lesson.

The plan was still under review—Luff was still considering the overall impact of chemical weapons on the war. However, many figures suggested using them in a few cities on New Island to achieve a shocking effect that highlighted the Great Tang Empire’s overwhelming military power.

After all, this world lacked such bans, and, following their "brilliant idea" of using chemical weapons generously first, they planned to push for a global prohibition afterward. The Great Tang Empire’s leadership had little qualms about deploying chemical weapons.

Before the Great Tang Empire’s fleet had gathered, Tang Nation’s air force launched 100 Flying Fortress Bombers loaded with incendiary bombs, targeting various locations on New Island.

The incendiary bombs ignited nearly everything from Mirage Country’s coastal positions to the inland woodlands and farmlands. The fires raged on, leaving the defensive forces of Mirage Country in misery and causing heavy casualties.

Despite Mirage Country’s desperate firefighting efforts, they were dwarfed by the scale of the fires, rendering their efforts akin to a drop in the ocean.

The blaze burned throughout the day and continued into the night. Under the glow of the flames, Flying Fortresses took off again, dropping more incendiary bombs.

The raging inferno lasted until morning. Flames soared several stories high at their peak, while thick smoke billowing into the sky covered the surroundings in black ash, rendering the landscape unrecognizable.

A Mirage Country tank parked near the flames had long been completely burnt inside and out, leaving only a twisted shell glowing red against the firelight.

Soldiers who failed to retreat in time had already been charred to cinders, and the defensive positions, roasted by the heat, had been severely burned and destroyed. Dense smoke enveloped everything, as Mirage Country’s garrison, after exhausting themselves through a day-and-night struggle, finally decided to abandon parts of the area.

By noon that day, Tang Army returned with incendiary bombs. Thousands of bombs were dropped directly into several cities on New Island, turning them into raging firestorms.

In the afternoon, jet bombers carrying fuel-air explosive bombs struck another coastal defensive position of Mirage Country. The fuel-air explosive bombs caused massive casualties among Mirage Country’s troops hiding in their bunkers, many killed outright or suffocated from lack of oxygen within their shelters.

Survivors stared blankly at the distant fires, their spirits shattered.

Shenwu Sixteen had never anticipated that Tang Army’s specialized bombs could wreak such havoc on his meticulously built fortifications. Left in a daze, he despondently questioned why his air force had failed to intercept the enemy’s attacks.

In truth, his air force wasn’t to blame—records from that day showed that Mirage Country launched 330 aircraft sorties to intercept Tang Nation’s bombers.

Other than losing 30-plus Zero Fighters to H-6 bombers, Mirage Country’s air force achieved no results. This was consistent with Tang Army’s operational report from that day, which recorded only one Flying Fortress bomber malfunctioning and crashing into the sea, with all pilots recovered by nearby destroyers without casualties.

In the days that followed, Tang Army refrained from organizing large-scale bombings, but the fires on New Island burned for five consecutive days before they were barely extinguished.

By the time the fires were mostly subdued, nearly all villages and cities in Mirage Country had been destroyed, with only scattered buildings and trees remaining. The entire island was shrouded in black smoke.

Some of the ash even drifted to South Island, tainting the air there with the acrid smell of burning debris. For days, everyone’s nostrils were filled with black soot, and even stepping outside required wearing masks.

Mirage Country’s foreign envoys began pleading to the international community by the third day, decrying Tang Nation’s brutal tactics. Their previous arrogant attitude of "what can you do about it" had vanished entirely, replaced by descriptions of a bombardment that was utterly merciless.

The entire farce continued to unfold, yet the Great Tang Empire’s bombardment of New Island’s defensive positions had only just begun.

Two days later, Tang Nation initiated another round of bombing as scheduled—more incendiary bombs, massive quantities of them. This time even the H-6 bombers carried incendiary bombs to target cities and villages already reduced to rubble.

Flames roared anew, transforming New Island into a literal "island of fire." Mirage Country’s defensive lines disintegrated in the blaze, with what little remained rendered nearly unusable.

Previously hidden in dense woodlands, the fortified positions had been reduced to barren land—the wooden structures and bunkers had been destroyed.

Reconstruction was virtually impossible, as disturbing news arrived from Shen Haiping: a massive fleet from Beiyuan and Linshui had already set sail, marking the start of the Great Tang Empire’s second landing operation!

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16 chapters still owed to you all…