Chapter 827 - The First Sunrise
Chapter 827: The First Sunrise
On the morning of July 22, Moro’s 1st Armored encountered Country F’s 4th Armored Brigade on the outskirts of Tacloban City and exchanged fire.
Country F invested a total of 70 tanks, 120 infantry combat vehicles, 10 self-propelled artilleries, and 30 anti-aircraft guns. The tank units included 20 M1A1 main battle tanks and various UA armored vehicles. In addition, there was an enhanced support company to provide battlefield support.
For Moro, 60 tanks, 150 infantry vehicles and 20 self-propelled artilleries were deployed in battle. The main battle tank was T-80, and most of the tanks were the relatively outdated T-72 model.
Although there was a lack of armor power, the addition of Celestial Trade’s Armored Forces clearly reversed this situation.
Tiger IIs with A-type steel front armor combined with the Type-50 electromagnetic pulse cannon were tank destroyers on the battlefield. Although the tanks were independently researched and developed by researchers in the apocalypse lacking experience in armored combat, the leading technology still filled the shortcomings of actual combat experience.
M1A1’s armor piercing could only damage the side armor and turrets of the Tiger II. The M1A1’s armor, in a normal striking angle, was one shot in front of the Type-50 cannon.
At the same time, prior to close contact between the two sides, the artillery units of Celestial Trade used “Fireball-1” and projected hundreds of EMP rockets onto the battlefield.
Interestingly enough, while the anti-drone equipment purchased from UA wasn’t effective, the anti-EMP weapons were surprisingly effective.
When the rockets from Celestial Trade lifted off, white smoke was immediately sprayed on Country F’s armored units.
The smoke was composed of droplets of special contents and size, forming a simple “Faraday cage” within the white mist range. It protected the electronic equipment wrapped against EMP.
However, the basic anti-EMP method had obvious shortcomings. After the droplets were attached, the communications equipment of tanks and armored vehicles would fail due to physical electromagnetic shielding for some time.
But needless to say, they were still very effective in critical situations.
At least this time, Country F military didn’t suffer a breakdown in communication compared to last time. After they came into contact with the armored forces of Moro and Celestial Trade, at least they possessed the ability to fight back.
However, it was only the ability to fight back.
On the road from the beach to Tacloban, there were smoking tank wreckages scattered along the way. Some were M1A1s and some were T-80s or T-72s. In this tank battle, more than hundreds of tanks were destroyed. More than half of them belonged to Country F, and a small portion belonged to Moro.
As for Celestial Trade, the only destroyed Tiger II was directly hit by artillery from the top. The rest of the tanks had their belts destroyed at most or turrets damaged; none suffered a tragic fate from the M1A1s.
After Country F’s 1st armored brigade was eliminated, Moro’s 5th mechanized division that landed on the island began to march toward Tacloban at full speed. Sea Lions Special Forces took Blackhawk helicopters moving north to blow up the highway and stop the retreat of Country F’s garrison from Leyte.
Celestial Trade invested a brigade of troops on Leyte Island and quickly marched to the edge of the urban area with infantry vehicles. They engaged in intense crossfire with Country F’s Army in this region.
The vast majority of civilians in the city had already fled, leaving only a small number of people without sufficient time to retreat. After the impacts of the EMP, Tuckloban became a dead city. Rows of tall buildings were like tombstones, silently overlooking the soldiers who entered the city, and the explosives left behind dim sparkles
After the line of defense outside the city was broken down, Country F’s soldiers began to retreat into the city, ready to engage in urban warfare.
Walking next to a Moro armored vehicle, Zhang Feng looked at the window around him holding a Reaper Assault Rifle.
Eight Hummingbird drones were suspended around the armored vehicle and guarded against any unsuspecting rocket launchers that might protrude out from windows, or explosives dropped from rooves.
Suddenly, a rocket dragging a smoke trail flew toward the armored vehicle and destroyed armor hung on the left side.
“An enemy’s anti-tank team is on the roof!”
“At four o’clock, take them out!”
The gunner rushed behind cover and set up a light machine gun to unleash bullets on the window on the roof. Seeing that their strike failed, the enemy immediately retreated.
“The target is moving!”
“You made trouble and you want to run?! Go and catch them!” Zhang Feng cursed while giving instructions through the holographic screen and he assigned two soldiers upstairs to clear the anti-tank squad.
And just then, bullets suddenly shot across the street.
Country F’s soldiers crouching down behind the stores on the street set up their machine guns and rifles and fired at Zhang Feng’s team. Unprepared, the soldier standing in the front row took two shots to the chest. Fortunately, the polyethylene armor blocked the bullets and saved his life.
“Hide! Behind the shelter! Go!”
Two shots were fired at the opposite side of the street. Zhang Feng leaned against the back of the concrete wall and marked enemy targets with drones.
“This is the 121st team. Enemy troops were found in the southern side of Tacloban. It is estimated that there are forty soldiers. Requesting air strike support.”
“Shooter-3 received. Airstrike will take place in 2 minutes, please mark enemy units.”
“The targets have been marked!”
“…Received.” An Aurora-20 hovering in the air changed course and flew toward the target area.
The armored vehicles in the middle of the street were reversing while the gun turrets on top spat out trails of bullets toward the stores on the road.
The shop’s glass shattered to the ground; 20mm large-caliber ammunition easily tore off cement blocks from steel skeletons. The Country F infantry squad was pinned to the ground.
After the end of his message, Zhang Feng scanned the countdown of the air strike on the holographic screen. He then leaned out of cover with a rifle and turned on the thermal imaging function on the sight glass. He used semi-automatic firing mode, and with the help of armored vehicles, cleared the Country F soldiers hidden behind cover.
The air strike countdown hit zero!
In a flash, the street where the Country F soldiers were hiding looked like it was raided by a hurricane. The land was crushed by bullet rain from the sky. The dust spread around and blew two streets away. After seeing the shadow of Aurora-20 soaring away, Zhang Feng finally heard the roar of the cannon.
“Clear!”
Zhang Feng shouted and walked out of cover.
“Sh*t, the dust is all over my face now.”
“You should be glad it’s not something else on your face.”
“Hey buddy, don’t say unlucky things!”
The rifleman behind the concrete block stood up and wiped his face.
Zhang Feng grinned and helped his comrade up. He then knocked on the armored vehicle.
“Keep going.”
With the support of air strikes, all resistance forces were paper to them. Once they captured the city center, Country F soldiers still in the city would be completely separated by Moro’s armored forces. Either they threw away their weapons and uniforms to disguise themselves as civilians or wait to be killed or captured!
But just then, there was a light in the distance.
Zhang Feng narrowed his eyes slightly and looked in the direction of the rays.
Attracted by the same ray, the rifleman next to him murmured, “Sh*t, what’s that…”
The night sky was lit, as if there was a second sunrise.