As the Anlon defenders of the Hercule bridgehead retreated, large numbers of imperial troops have gradually occupied various areas and have even begun to clean up the battlefield.
General Vance ignored the dissuasion of his adjutant and other senior officials and insisted on entering the bridgehead in person to check it out.
The rain in the sky had slowly stopped, and the priest Kuni and clergy of the Hailing Group returned to the ranks and offered to accompany General Vance into the bridgehead. The leading nun of the Moon Church had been seriously injured in the previous fight with the stream of light, so she stayed in the rear barracks to rest.
The group walked into the bridgehead, and all they saw were scattered rubble and burning ruins. Blood-stained medical bandages lay at their feet. The corpses of many enemy soldiers were being collected in an orderly manner by the Imperial Army and piled up in a corner, as if they were going to be burned together.
The surroundings were filled with the strong smell of gunpowder, coke and blood, which intertwined and were very pungent. The adjutant seemed to have long been accustomed to this smell. Holding a report in his hand, he calmly said to General Vance beside him:
"General, Anlong's army originally planned to evacuate through the underground tunnel they had dug in advance, but this plan seemed to have been discovered by Governor Jack. He sent out his extraordinary subordinates to intercept them in time, and the Undead Stranger Corps under his command also participated in the pursuit, resulting in a great victory... Even the enemy's General Myersa was captured on the spot!"
The adjutant's tone was very pleasant.
But he soon noticed that General Vance's face was not very good.
The adjutant instantly realized that the general had always disliked the Church of the Seven Gods, and even more disliked clergy interfering in the war situation. Although Archon Jack's actions benefited the Imperial Army greatly and could even be said to have been a great help, it obviously touched the general's bottom line.
So he quickly added:
"Well, Miss Floin, the 'adjutant' of Governor Jack, promptly informed several legion commanders who were fighting in the bridgehead at the time, and our army then surrounded them. Otherwise, the enemy would have a high chance of escaping the encirclement... Because the situation was urgent at the time, I was unable to inform you immediately."
General Vance raised his hand to stop his adjutant from speaking.
He just said indifferently:
"Yes, I understand."
At this time, a small group of imperial soldiers came running, led by a captain. Dozens of them, carrying flintlock rifles and a miniature monocular telescope on their chests, came to the general in an orderly manner and stopped to salute.
"The 11th Legion Royal Support Battalion, the 2nd Fox Battalion Reconnaissance Team, greets His Excellency the General."
"Captain Hallowin."
General Vance recognized the man and nodded with his hands behind his back.
"Did you find anything?"
"General, yes."
Captain Hallowen nodded solemnly.
He immediately asked his men to take out a stack of freshly compiled reports from their backpacks and handed them to the general. On them were some written records and black-and-white photos taken with a portable camera.
"Our soldiers searched carefully in the buildings of the bridgehead and found some secret doors leading to underground areas... After further exploration, we found that thousands of high-explosive gunpowder barrels were buried underground in the bridgehead. Even under the supporting pillars of the Hercule Bridge, there were similar explosive packs."
General Vance's eyes shrank as he carefully read the report in his hand, which also included an assessment made by professionals within the Imperial Army. The results showed that these explosives could not only raze the entire Hercule bridgehead to the ground, but also collapse the bridge and even destroy all Imperial troops within a few kilometers of the bridgehead.
"General, please leave the battlefield immediately and return to the rear. It is too dangerous here!"
When the adjutant heard what the captain said, he broke out in a cold sweat and hurriedly tried to persuade him.
However, General Vance just waved his hand.
Although he realized the severity of the incident, he did not panic. Instead, he looked at the captain and asked:
"The report said that the reason those gunpowder barrels did not explode was because of an abnormal situation?"
"Yes, General."
The captain nodded.
"According to our deduction, the enemy originally intended to detonate explosives while evacuating, destroying the bridgehead, the bridge, and our troops, but the gunpowder barrels could not be detonated for unknown reasons... Here are some gunpowder we collected, please check it out."
As he spoke, he handed over a small paper bag the size of a palm.
General Vance took it with a frown and opened it. Inside was a handful of black gunpowder powder, which looked completely normal.
But when the general observed it carefully for a moment, he suddenly discovered that the gunpowder seemed to have some deep dark green luster flowing, wriggling, and even emitting a faint smell of corruption.
The knowledgeable General Vance recognized at a glance that this was the influence of a mysterious force.
"The methods of the extraordinary side..."
The general muttered something, but his subordinates heard it and they all looked quite surprised.
A hint of thought flashed across General Vance's eyes, and after a moment, his expression changed slightly.
By this time he had realized that the enemy's previous behavior of constantly moving those gunpowder barrels on the high wall was actually just a cover to stimulate and trick them into attacking the bridgehead. The ultimate goal was to blow the Imperial Army and the bridgehead into ashes together.
"Damn bastards!"
General Vance cursed angrily.
Although he guessed that the enemy would set a trap at the bridgehead, he did not expect such a terrifying "self-destructive" explosion. He would rather destroy this strategically important military fortress than bite them like a vicious dog. If these explosives had not been interfered with by some extraordinary means and could not be detonated, the imperial army would have suffered heavy casualties at this moment!
After a few seconds of silence, the general uttered a sentence with difficulty:
“Someone is helping us…”
The adjutant, several senior officials accompanying him, and the reconnaissance team were all very surprised. They couldn't help but frown and tried hard to think about the general's words.
"How's the situation with Governor Jack now?"
General Vance suddenly turned around and asked his adjutant.
The latter came to his senses and quickly pointed to the top of his head behind him.
"Another reconnaissance team sent a message more than ten minutes ago that Governor Jack seems to have ended the battle and successfully killed the enemy's extraordinary person!"
As the adjutant spoke, an expression of admiration appeared on his face.
He knew very well what happened behind the bridge. The nun of the Moon Church revealed the identity of the attacker, who was the embodiment of a saint-level high-end force... Governor Jack single-handedly killed him, which was truly a strong demeanor. He not only ensured the personal safety of the general and the top leaders of the command, but also eliminated a major hidden danger for the imperial army.
"Let's go and take a look."
General Vance thought about it, then turned and walked towards the stairs leading to the high wall.
"Yes, General."
The entourage hurried to follow.
After a while, the general, with the help of his subordinates, struggled to climb up the dilapidated high wall platform. The adjutant kept reminding the general to be careful of the gravel under his feet to avoid tripping and falling.
The several strong and powerful bodyguards who were newly recruited also followed the general closely at all times, paving the way for him and providing escort.
"Don't treat me like a three-year-old! I've fought in countless battles in my life. I'm not a weak boy scout!"
General Vance angrily shook off the support of his guards and almost drew his gun, which scared his guards and adjutant so much that they quickly apologized.
After the general calmed down, he snorted coldly and walked towards the young man in a black hat who was sitting casually on the edge of the broken wall not far away with his back to the crowd.
The other party seemed to be silently overlooking the bridgehead, one hand gently stroking the silver cane that he always carried with him.
When General Vance and his men approached, before they could speak, the other party spoke first without even turning his head:
"General, this battle is over."
"Well, yes."
General Vance was not offended by the other party's failure to stand up, but just nodded calmly.
"The bridgehead has been captured by our army. Most of the enemy troops have been killed and the rest have been captured. This Battle of the Hercules Bridgehead is our victory..."
The general took a deep breath, took off his military cap solemnly, and saluted the gentleman in the black hat with a standard Trisur Empire military salute.
“Although I don’t like the Seven Gods Church intervening in the war, I am still very grateful for your help to the military this time… You saved many lives, including mine, but this is not the main reason for my gratitude. Instead, you helped the Empire successfully seize the bridgehead. In the future, the Empire will continuously send troops through here to the heart of the Principality of Yaco, playing a vital role in restraining the main battlefield and the entire war situation.”
He said meaningfully.
The people around the general felt a little strange. Even though Archon Jack had made great contributions, it was not enough for General Vance to respect and praise him so much. Moreover, the general had never treated anyone from the Church of the Seven Gods in such an attitude, even if the other party was the Pope!
Chen Lun slowly stood up, leaned on his silver cane, turned to look at General Vance, and chuckled.
"How did the general know it was me?"
General Vance just shook his head.
"It's just my intuition... The three churches that participated in this battle, Priest Kuni and Sister Suha, have never given me the same unfathomable feeling as you do. I think... except for you, no one can do it, and no one dares to hide it from both sides and strangle this explosion that would have affected the entire war."
Although he never admitted his misjudgment and mistakes from beginning to end, Chen Lun was well aware that those in high positions in this era rarely admitted their mistakes. General Vance's words actually revealed a hint of regret and frustration. The other party was willing to lower his posture and give up some of the face of the imperial general to say these words, which was enough to show his respect for the other party.
Chen Lun nodded, but said indifferently:
"General, you are too kind. This is just a reckless and risky attempt."
"Excessive modesty is actually extreme arrogance, Mr. Jackspeight."
General Vance obviously didn't buy it. He was now certain that the ability of the young man in the black hat in front of him was far beyond his superficial description.
This person is no ordinary person as he is able to turn the entire battle situation around by himself.
In the future, the other party will definitely reach a higher and further position.
Based on his experience and vision over the years, Vance firmly believed in this speculation.
"After the war, if you have the chance, you can come to my mansion as a guest. Although my house is a little old, I have a collection of fine wines that I believe will satisfy you."
General Vance put his military cap back on and smiled, a rare moment.
Everyone looked at the general in surprise.
Chen Lun also seemed a little surprised.
He did not say in a disappointing way that he did not like drinking, but just nodded, put the silver cane on his left arm, bowed slightly, and agreed happily.
"Of course, it is an honor for me to visit the general's residence."
*
*
*
Inside the Hercule bridgehead, the Imperial Army cleaned up the battlefield in an orderly manner, and the players followed some wounded soldiers back to the base camp behind the bridge with satisfied smiles.
Among them, the team headed by Dongyang Chenxi attracted the attention of many circus players. Almost everyone focused their eyes on the young man walking in the front, and kept talking to him in low voices, with expressions of envy, shock and admiration on their faces.
"Shit! It's true!"
"Polaris has been promoted to mid-sequence?!"
"How dare you call the old man by his name? How dare you! You should call him 'Brother Beizi'!"
"This is too exaggerated! I have just barely reached level 35 after taking the spoils from the bridgehead battle, but he is already at Sequence 7. I can't even see his level, just a bunch of horizontal bars, just like a stupid red-name elite monster..."
"So, Brother Beizi is at least level 55?!"
There was a continuous hissing sound of people gasping for air, and everyone felt terrified.
Feeling the burning gazes of others, Polaris looked calm.
The Dragon King who was walking beside him was like a qualified lackey, bending over, carefully leaning his head over, and asked with a smile:
"Hey, Brother Beizi, how does it feel to be promoted to the middle sequence? Do you feel like... you are full of power and can blow up a planet with one punch?"
"You've read too many online novels, Aaron. I suggest you take some brain-dead movies to cure your chuunibyou delusional disorder."
The golden dog curled his lips and complained.
"What's wrong with reading online novels? It can cultivate your sentiments and broaden your horizons! It's better than some people who spend all day playing "Secret Times" or "Virtual Girlfriend". I'm more concerned about your health. Do you want to see an electronic doctor and have your 'intravenous tube' repaired?"
The Dragon King shook his head and said something sarcastically.
Gnollhead Gold was immediately furious and almost wanted to transform into a minotaur to fight with the other party. Fortunately, his best friend Forgotten Wuji held him back, otherwise the two of them might have caused a commotion and were warned or even punished by the accompanying military personnel.
At this time, Polaris looked at the two of them and shook his head:
"I do feel that my body has become much stronger... No, I should say that I have been reborn. According to Teacher Jack, this is an extraordinary qualitative change. The specific description may not be as exaggerated as you said, but it should not be a problem to beat ten 'previous me'."
“So outrageous?!”
Everyone widened their eyes.
Dongyang asked curiously:
"Are there any new skills or features? You said before that fortune tellers are more functional, but magicians shouldn't be, right?"
"How should I put it..."
Polaris scratched his head and pondered for a moment.
"It's hard to define this sequence, but I always feel that its abilities are more bizarre and changeable, with a low lower limit and a high upper limit... Although there is only one skill, it has great potential for development. I would like to ask Teacher Jack for advice later."
"Honestly, Polaris, I really envy you... You got first place in the extra mission again this time, and you're rewarded with Jack personally teaching you skills. No one is more suitable than you. If we weren't doing the mission together, it would be hard not to suspect that Jack was giving you special treatment."
The centaur laughed.
Then he sighed again:
"I hope you won't leave us too far behind in the future, otherwise we will be too embarrassed to play with you..."
"In short, if you keep trying so hard to become stronger, you'll have no friends."
Weiyin added suddenly.
Everyone couldn't help but burst into laughter, and Polaris also smiled.
Soon, everyone returned to the base camp. They saw from afar Mr. Jack walking with General Vance of the Imperial Army, and senior military officials were following behind them.
"What a great card..."
The Dragon King couldn't help but sigh.
"Stop talking nonsense, let's go find Jack to claim the award later."
The centaur suggested.
Everyone looked expectant.