Blood tax

Chapter 598: The Squadron's Rapid-Firing Guns and the Battle of June 6

June 6, dusk.

The Arendelle fleet passed through the battle zone, and the rumbling of artillery in the distance indicated that they had entered the rear of the Canaan defense line. The golden and white light in the dense forests in the north was shrouded in a blue halo, as mysterious as a shadow.

The elves were able to reach here not because of insufficient manpower, loose blockade or negligence. The few entrances and exits of Canaan were all protected by fortresses and natural terrain. Those borders without military guards were also surrounded by the Tyrne River, dense birch and maple forests and dark swamps.

The banks of the Tyrne River east of Canaan were either densely packed forests or steep cliffs. The fleet could not find a port to land, and people and equipment would fall into the water. Deep in the forest were stinking swamps filled with poisonous insects and mutated monsters.

Throughout the Second Era, no army managed to survive the passage through the Underbog.

The Confederacy once sent a large number of agents to investigate the roads and sewers there, but most of them disappeared without a trace.

Harandil, who had just survived Cherkassy's trap, was thrown onto Arandel's ship by Roland and was responsible for the meaningless mission of "Operation Catapult".

The squadron slowed down to avoid attracting Canaan's attention. However, it seemed that all these efforts were unnecessary. The roar of the steam engine and the black smoke were easily exposed during the day, but the waters in this area were like the mouth of the abyss, swallowing up the afterglow of the sunset.

The desolate and silent lower river was completely motionless, and the occasional forks in the river were like huge black mouths, emitting a hissing wind.

The darkness thickened, and by dusk the riverbank was almost invisible.

In the distance, in the direction of Canaan City, a pale blue mist floated, showing a diffraction phenomenon similar to the aurora. The air was filled with an extremely uncomfortable smell, and the dissipated magic energy had spread to the edge of the forest and into the water.

The Whispering Forest has already begun to corrupt and mutate in this area.

Along the way, the squadron received some agents stationed by the river. They were all in a trance and listless, as if something was branded deep in their souls.

"Are we almost there?" asked Arendelle on the bridge.

Harandil was silent for a long time. After a while, he realized that the captain was asking him a question and quickly answered:

"It's there."

"Oh," Miss Captain gripped the sword at her waist, "it went quite smoothly."

Assault boats and transport ships began to move steam engines, pipes and various equipment to the shore. The advance agents had cleared a piece of land here in advance, but in just a few days, a large area was eroded by dark swamps and dense forests.

Harandil and the staff also took out their equipment and prepared to disembark. Everyone looked depressed, but no one refused the mission.

“Arson is useless, and cutting down trees won’t last long, the vegetation here grows incredibly fast.

"Please inform the General Front Committee that the time planning must be accurate and that the situation on the scene must be confirmed with us before the action."

"I will, go ahead! Mirantis gave me the task of protecting you!" The captain looked at their equipment with great interest, "What are you wearing?"

"Straw sandals."

Harandil and his team had oversized straw sandals tied to the soles of their shoes, and walking on them over the swamp was like gliding on tiny rafts.

"It's made of bark and branches, which prevents us from sinking into the mud," Harandil said. "All people and equipment must wear special straw sandals and be tied with safety ropes, otherwise they will disappear in the darkness if they are not careful."

"Wish ya'll good luck!"

After seeing off the work team, Arendelle immediately returned to her command post. Under the escort of the Berrenhill and several gunboats, transport ships were continuously bringing in supplies in the narrow temporary space, and setting up lighthouses and buoys at the forks of the river.

"If Canaan ambushed a fleet here, they would definitely be able to sink us all into the water!" Arendelle took a sip from a cup of sweetened black tea. "But~ the environment here is so strange, there is really no need for a pointy-eared fool to waste precious manpower to deploy a permanent fleet... The battle on the front line is raging, could Canaan still conjure up a fleet from his pocket?"

She muttered to herself. The officers and sailors were busy on the deck, as if only by working non-stop could they get a moment of peace by the gloomy swamp.

Suddenly, there was movement in the darkness.

A familiar breath and bone-chilling coldness surged out almost instantly. The whirlpool rolled and the black water surged. Under the night sky, a warship with tall black sails suddenly appeared silently in the field of vision. The vertical and wide bow and streamlined lines were like a black sword, sharp, dangerous and extremely elegant. The tattered sails fluttered in the wind, clearly a shroud raised by the ghost of the dead.

"Port side, Alombis!" "The giant ship of the dead - 'Alombis'!"

A sudden strong wind blew up on the river, and the sky was filled with terrifying wailing sounds, with a chilling and murderous aura that was breathtaking. In the howling wind, the ghost ship spread its huge black sails, emitting a terrifying scream like a night owl, and in an instant it accelerated to a speed as fast as a lightning bolt, with a terrifying ramming angle heading straight for the middle of the Berrenhill.

The shadow that announced the doom of all ships and sailors, the flagship of the undead creatures, like a lance cut from the bones of a death knight, went straight for the flagship of the squadron. Behind it, dozens of slender black boats emerged from the water like beetles in a tomb! They lined up in a dense formation, igniting black flames one after another in the strong wind, and rushed straight towards the fleet!
Self-destructing ship!
In a flash, Arendelle, who was standing on the bridge, pulled out the Orchid Water Blade and swung it into the air. She reached out to grab the cable and stepped on the side of the ship:

"Right rudder! Brunhill, forward 4!

"All ships are ready for impact."

The river responded to Arandel's seal, and the waves suddenly rolled violently, pushing the Brenhill. The sailors manipulated the sails and accelerated the steam engine to maximum power.

The engine was spinning wildly, the boiler was making a terrible roar, and the black water waves stirred up by the bow were cut and crushed by the hull. Arendelle's hair was blown away, and her long hair fluttered wildly with the military flag.

The majestic warship seemed to be the incarnation of the water god, cutting a smooth arc on the black water.

Alombis passed astern of the Brunhilde.

"Starboard, salvo!"

"volley--!"

All the officers and soldiers on the ship were ready to go, aiming at the ghost ship rushing to the right rear. The artillery opened fire at the fastest speed, using this brief advantageous position to pour out ammunition. Chain bullets and grenades dragged red trails and fell on Alombis, setting off patches of black and red flames.

Burning fragments flew through the air. Alombis seemed to be slapped by a huge hand and almost flipped over on its side on the river. The hot shells set its masts and rigging on fire, burning into a huge torch on the river.

"It's no use using the same trick twice!" Arendelle snorted and ordered again, "Navy guns, attack the incoming suicide ship."

Under the emerald moonlight, dozens of suicide ships came in droves like evil spirits in the dark. The sailors of Brunshill set up the rapid-fire guns on the side of the ship and concentrated their firepower to intercept the ghost fleet while firing the naval guns.

The Quintuple Rapid-Fire Cannon is one of the decisive weapons invented by Roland. It is the latest rear-loading light cannon! The five barrels share a set of loading, firing and shell extraction mechanisms. The loading, firing and shell extraction are completed by the hand crank. It is small in size and light in weight. Due to its high rate of fire, it is particularly lethal to lightly armored targets when using grenades at close range, and is specifically designed to defeat small units. When performing landing combat missions, the Marines can even dismantle the cannon and install it on assault boats close to the shore to provide fire support.

This new type of close-in weapon system completely surpasses the old-style battleships' self-defense firepower, but it is very expensive and produces little ammunition, so it can only be used by new battleships with the highest priority, such as the Brunswick.

The artillery fire from Brunswick became more and more accurate and more and more intense. The swarming fire ships were covered by a hail of bullets and began to explode one after another.

Bright red flames rose from the river surface, and violent explosions were heard one after another. Burnt debris flew in the air. The hull was torn and twisted, and the canvas was swallowed by the fire snake. The sky-high fireworks lit up the river surface like daylight, and the black smoke lingered for a long time.

“What a trouble—!”

Arendelle resisted the urge to rub her hair. The covert operation was so vigorous that it was impossible for Canaan not to notice it. More importantly, the appearance of the undead meant that Salorian had returned to this world. With his domain defeated, he would definitely use all his means.

……

On June 6, the battle entered its third day.

Intelligence from last night showed that Salorian had returned to this world, and the undead creatures he controlled began to assist Canaan in fighting in multiple locations.

The good news is that the Ultimate Shoggoth did not appear, and the twisted will of the Void Realm has not yet arrived.

At dawn, the sound of military trumpets and drums rose and fell, streams of blue water flowed out of the camps, and thousands of soldiers formed dense marching formations according to their respective flags. They went directly from the camp to the front line. The staff had already marked the marching route with flags in front, and the camp flags were also planted on the positions of the camps.

The hussars and dragoons who were to serve as the vanguard had already been dispatched. They would follow the battle deployment and prevent the elven rangers from harassing the army in formation.

集结很快完成，塞瓦斯托第1军、第1、第2、第3、第6、第9军、第12军和维罗纳第2军一线排开，犹如海洋淹没了大地，密集的兵刃在朝阳下煦煦生辉。

At the same time, a large army was coming from all over the country. The feathers on the blue uniforms and helmets of the main forces such as the 10th, 15th and 16th Armies were leaping on the plains like surging waves.

The grand military formation banned all magic. The wizards on the elves' side had been feeling severe physical discomfort since yesterday. However, they provided an endless supply of spiritual energy to the front line to catalyze the summoned withered magicians.