There can't be a Harvest Moon in the RimWorld.

The bald man looked over with unwavering eyes, silently answering his question and making his choice.

Eaton said, "Given the current situation, our only chance is to proceed according to our original plan. The plan that Master and I devised is inherently invincible. As long as Master can get here, our victory is undeniable."

"But the biggest problem now is whether you, sir, can see through the Loader's Territory's conspiracy. I suspect the Mad Lord has already sent men to the trade zone under the pretense of inquiring, thus delaying your movements. If his scheme succeeds, we will lose this precious time, and our chance of rescue will be indefinitely postponed... Many of us may not see the light of day..."

The bald man nodded: "Then what can I do?"

Eaton said, “Now, we need you to instill a strong belief in the soldiers and inspire their potential. Even if the troops are mentally as good as saints in their first battle, they cannot accurately recognize their own strength. They are prone to arrogance when things are going well, and they are prone to fear of the enemy and avoidance of battle when things are going badly.”

The bald man grabbed his sidearm and prepared to return to his post to begin his morale-boosting efforts on the remaining squad members.

However, before leaving, Eaton grabbed his shoulder and said, word by word, "I've only told you this much for now... We're like being in a massive fault line right now, every second life is slipping away from us, every step will lead us into an irreversible abyss, we must leap with all our might to get back to solid ground..."

"Whether this battle succeeds or fails now depends entirely on you!"

…………

To the pirates' utter frustration, the cunning attackers immediately took advantage of the complex terrain to set up a market fortress, stubbornly resisting amidst the chaos of the construction site.

At this point, the pirates' round grenades, due to concerns about friendly fire and attack range, had become useless. After blowing up two crumbling walls to clear the battlefield, they were all confiscated and the pirates retreated from the battlefield in disappointment.

But the situation has now been drastically reversed, which has greatly boosted the morale of the pirates. The situation has shifted from an unfamiliar strategic defense to a well-prepared infiltration attack, which is very gratifying.

The pirates, rifles in hand, split up and attacked along the barricades. The group gradually entered the dangerous urban warfare zone. Pirate snipers immediately set up their positions, and heavily armored pirates, carrying heavy blast hammers, charged forward frantically, instantly entering the chaotic battlefield.

A bullet flew a great distance and struck an attacker's arm. A spray of blood instantly exploded into a mist, and the person behind the wall immediately collapsed.

But immediately another hand reached out from behind, dragging the wounded attacker behind a safe wall, where another person filled the gap and continued firing into the distance.

The pirate henchman, separated from the main force, was now mixed in with the assault team, gun in hand. He swallowed hard, hesitating whether to rush forward and claim the credit. His thought was that if he were the first to breach the enemy stronghold, or even seize the coveted armor, his achievement would be unforgettable, and he might even be selected for the next space conscription team, escaping this barren land.

Just as he was about to charge after the others, a hand grabbed his clothes.

He turned around and was surprised to find that the man was the same small-time leader whose fate had been unknown just moments before.

Blackbeard's pirate lieutenant was covered in blood, and his leg was also injured. He could barely stop the gushing blood, but he couldn't control the seepage. He was in so much pain that his face twitched and turned pale.

"Boss! You're not dead!" the pirate henchman exclaimed in surprise.

The pirate captain glared at him angrily: "You just want me to die?!"

"No, no... I clearly saw you fall off the roof just now, how could..."

The pirate leader took a deep breath and said bitterly, "I deliberately fell down and pretended to be dead, hoping to steal a piece of clothing from the people who were blown up after they left. But they actually defended the spot! I got up to run away, and someone shot me in the thigh..."

The saying goes, "A snake tries to swallow an elephant," and this guy, relying on his cleverness, almost lost his life. The pirate henchman hesitated for a moment before speaking rashly, only whispering, "It's good that you're alive... Um, boss, I'm going to charge that firing point. You take good care of your injuries..."

The pirate captain, grimacing with anger, slapped him on the forehead: "Go up? Are you in such a hurry to be reincarnated? What good will it do you to go up there like that?"

"But... they're already injured. If we don't launch an attack here, we'll have no chance of gaining an advantage elsewhere..." the henchman said aggrievedly.

The pirate leader said, "Just because you can't think of it doesn't mean I can't do it. Listen to me, and I guarantee you'll have a chance to make a big profit."

"But head...this thing..."

"What are you afraid of! Go on..."

"But I..."

"If you still don't go? Then I'll tell others and see if they're as stupid as you..."

"No! I...I'll go!"

The two whispered to each other in the corner for a while, and finally the pirate henchman walked out from behind the wall with a conflicted look on his face, and ran forward awkwardly to catch up with the attacking team.

The pirate henchmen ran slowly, so they gradually fell behind the group. They crawled into a bunker side by side with another pirate and began firing at the enemy at a leisurely pace.

After a series of urgent shouts, a new wave of attack was about to begin. The pirate henchmen listened intently to the commands from afar, crouching low in a charging stance.

But when the real order came, he pulled something out of his pocket, unplugged it, and quickly stuffed it into the backpack of the pirate next to him. Then he started to back away against the flow of people, falling down and running away on his hands and feet, as if there was a terrifying demon in front of him.

The pirate, feeling the weight of his backpack, began his charge, his mind solely focused on breaking through enemy lines and seizing equipment, oblivious to the familiar, faint clicking of the timer behind him...

The time was neither long nor short; just seven seconds later, as he charged forward toward the position, raising his submachine gun to fire, he turned into light!

In that instant, a massive shockwave erupted from his body, blasting the pirates charging alongside him into pieces, then knocking down a load-bearing wall, and then crushing another house on the other side... As a result of this escalating impact, heavy buildings collapsed in droves, burying the attackers firing from behind the houses, along with the charging pirates, under the rubble!

Chapter 460 The Last Line of Defense

"Which bastard did this?! I'm going to shoot him!"

The pirate commander in this area, his eyes blazing with rage, fired into the dust, uttering desperate curses.

To eliminate just two enemy soldiers, he lost twenty of his own men—a completely unprofitable trade. Even worse, everyone would assume it was the result of his ruthless orders. This would mean that neither the pirates nor the higher-ups would ever trust him again!

"Why did that guy self-destruct?! Is he an idiot?! Where did he get the grenades? They were all retrieved!"

The impotent rage continued, and the pirate captain quickly pretended to be injured, mingling with the wounded soldiers and sighing, while straining his ears to listen to the sounds in the distance.

After a while, a disheveled pirate came running back from a distance, acting suspiciously like a thief.

As he passed the pirate leader, he pretended to check his wound, sat down, took out a bandage to bandage himself, and whispered, "Boss! It worked! All thanks to the grenade you secretly hid!"

Blackbeard's pirate quickly covered his mouth, cautiously glanced around, and seeing that everyone was focused on the distant explosion and had no time to pay attention to anything else, he released his grip and said, "Don't talk nonsense! This grenade was used a long time ago! It has nothing to do with me!"

The pirate henchman grinned slyly, nodded, and then gently pulled back the corner of his robe to reveal a glint of silvery metal. He whispered, "I got the armor! There were two men crushed to death by the wall over there, and I climbed up and took off a piece! Unfortunately, their men caught up immediately, so I had to retreat! But there's another armored corpse over there that I covered with a stone; they definitely won't see it! I'll go get it after they leave!"

The pirate leader's face lit up with delight. He patted him on the shoulder, then laboriously limped away with his injured leg, saying, "Well done! Let's hurry. They'll definitely check this place later, and if someone recognizes you, we'll be in trouble. Let's hide with the other groups over there..."

"Understood, boss! I'll walk in front and take the bullets for you!"

"Get out! If you're really sincere, take off your armor and give it to me!"

"Well... hehe..."

…………

After hearing the explosion, the bald man quickly turned from the southeast to the west and found the attacked squad.

"How are you doing? Why was there an explosion?" the bald man asked the squad leader.

The squad leader, a former town garrison commander, gritted his teeth and said, "They're insane! They're actually using people to transport bombs! To conserve ammunition, we only fired when we were close enough, and they ambushed us. One of our brothers was killed under the house, and another is missing!"

The bald man was silent for a moment, then stretched out his hand and chanted to the battered squad: "Supermen are not afraid of sacrifice. Supermen are the ocean, and their contempt will sink in the sea. All things are separate, and the dead are released on the spot."

Upon hearing the familiar words, the squad members' eyes finally hardened again, and they whispered in agreement, "Understood! Long live Lord Shafulin!"

They then picked up their guns together and filled the gaps in the position once again, beginning a long and arduous battle.

The bald man then passed by four more squads and gave them a lecture on loyalty to the emperor and patriotism. He called on all the squads to work hard, be superhuman, grit their teeth and defend their positions, maintain their courage without wavering, ensure that not an inch of their positions are lost, give full play to their initiative, enhance their morale, and resolutely implement Lord Seven's battle plan, using brilliant results as an answer to their hard work!

All officers and soldiers also expressed that they will respond to Alexander's mobilization, keep in mind Seven's instructions, grip their guns tightly, grit their teeth, tighten their belts, raise their spirits, remember the kindness, and make vows. They will arm themselves with the spirit of "three tightnesses and three rises" to do their best to complete the mission of the Battle of Sabre Bay and ensure the achievement of the goal.

After finishing all that, the bald man wiped the sweat from his bald head and went back into Eaton's command post.

"Eaton, I'm back! The soldiers' morale is relatively stable, and their determination to fight is strong enough. But do you know what I just encountered? I ran into..."

"Explosion." Eaton interrupted his chanting without hesitation, pointing directly to the makeshift map on the ground. "It wasn't just your position; the enemy attacked all three sides just now. People are now wearing our armor and charging the positions head-on. A total of nine men have been killed—we've lost an entire squad..."

"What!" the bald man exclaimed in surprise, clearly not expecting the situation to be so dire.

Eaton's expression was also grim as he stared absently at the setting sun. "Night is approaching, and their attacks have gradually subsided after that final assault. They definitely intend to launch an attack under the cover of darkness. Our truly difficult time is about to begin."

The bald man gritted his teeth and said, "That won't do! I'll go out and mobilize them again. We can't let their plan succeed. They come at night, so we'll fight them at night!"

But Eaton refused, saying, "That won't do either. It would allow the enemy to capture more armor, which would be detrimental to us... I need to think of a solution. Give me some time..."

The two men remained silent in the command post when suddenly a panicked soldier burst in, disregarding discipline, and shouted to Eaton, "It's bad! Commander! Our rear is under attack! Someone is approaching us from outside the city!"

Upon hearing this, Eaton's pupils instantly shrank to pinpoints: "Say it again! Are you sure it's the rear?!"

The soldier nodded firmly: "Yes! We were transporting ammunition in the rear when we were suddenly caught in a hail of bullets. Two camels in the supply convoy were killed! We fought tooth and nail to get the supplies out!"

In the current situation, the vanguard has driven into Sabre Bay like a wedge, while the rear remains on the edge of the territory, forming a narrow diamond-shaped defensive line.

Since the rear was all flat land, Eaton sent his supervisory team, along with the fat man and the camel caravan, to guard the rear. A simple firepower network on the plains was enough to stop the pirate army, so the enemy was not foolish enough to commit a large force to a decisive battle on the flat ground.

But now, an unidentified army has attacked from the rear, so the only possibility is that the pirates have sent their troops back!

In other words, the loader's leader not only tricked them, but also let the pirates roaming the wasteland go free!

They were even willing to give up the easy prey in front of them in order to form a pincer movement and kill them completely!

Eaton was stunned for a moment, then slammed his fist on the table and shouted, "This is betrayal!"

The bald man was also startled, vaguely sensing that something was wrong, and quickly asked, "What should we do now?"

Eaton drew his gun and gritted his teeth, saying, "Abandon the position, everyone charge towards the port! We must take advantage of their retreat and exploit their blind spots to break through!"

The bald man, his face pale, said, "What about the fat man? What about the supplies? Doesn't this breakout mean abandoning all supplies and logistics?"

Eaton stared at the bald man, his face ashen: "Alexander, it's too late... Given the disparity in troop strength, the fat man and the supplies have probably already fallen! This is our last chance while they're looting the supplies!"

He stepped out of the civilian house that served as his command post, fired two shots into the air in the setting sun, and shouted, "Everyone, come and collect the last batch of supplies! Then break out with all your might, don't maintain formation! The destination is the spaceship at the port!"

"That will be our last line of defense!"

Chapter 461 Desperate Situation and Dream

After Eaton announced the news, morale on the field visibly plummeted.

Holding your ground and waiting for the enemy to tire themselves out is a strategy, but being attacked from the rear and forced to break out can only be described as a sorry state.

The last batch of ammunition and supplies that arrived was only enough for one charge. How far they could advance and how many enemies they could kill were all unknown.

The bald man, his eyes bloodshot, stared at the hordes of dejected soldiers, clenching his fists and roaring, "Show your spirit! This isn't war, we're going to our deaths! Do you want to die a pathetic death?!"

After saying that, he pulled the bolt of his gun and charged ahead of the circle of ruins outside the position, running towards the direction where the sun was setting.

Seeing this, the remaining sixty or so men of the Reverse Lightning Legion, including the wounded and shot survivors, stepped out of the battle line and began a decisive battle they could not win.

These warriors, born from slavery and deserters from town guards, had, through long training, lost all thoughts of laziness, shirking responsibility, or desertion. In this wasteland, survival depended on forming groups, so the only option left in their minds was to obey orders.

In the darkness, the shortbow once again proved its worth. Each draw of the bow fired a sharp arrow after a brief thud, threatening the pirates' safety.

After leading the charge for a while, Eaton excitedly shouted, "The enemy must be planning to lure us in under cover of darkness. They have already withdrawn their main forces, leaving only a few feints in this combat zone!"

He walked along a path with his back against the wall, then rolled on the spot and decisively fired, killing an enemy who peeked out. "We'll continue the assault, taking advantage of their withdrawal and handover! As long as we can break through their central defense zone in the chaos, we can reach the finish line!"

Then, the two squads charged from the left and right flanks under cover of fire, like two sharp knives slicing through the enemy's pocket. To wage a deep battle, one needs sufficient depth, and the weakest point is often the deliberately fortified center of the position.

The very invention of this formation, characterized by a strong flank and a weak center, was a coincidence. It is said that in the most famous Battle of Marathon, it was precisely because the infantry in the center hesitated to advance that this formation, with its strong flanks and weak center, and its prominent flanks with the center positioned further back, was created, allowing them to turn the tide and defeat the Persians.

However, if the central wave fails to stop the charge, then the pocket formation will turn into a bread formation that is cut off and surrounded.