Valley Manor, indeed a rare place of beauty in this Wasteland World.
At least, that's how it was from a scenic viewpoint.
A narrow river meandered gently by, its untainted water source nourishing the surrounding land and fostering a patch of green.
A fence built of broken stones enclosed the large area of shade. Scattered buildings adorned the area, and crops in the fields grew robustly, swaying with the wind as if to boast of the forthcoming bountiful harvest to the world.
The time was approaching dusk, and the river's water reflected the sunset's glow, twinkling with gold, like a mirror that made the surrounding scenery even more beautiful.
The sky slowly turned a soft orange, the afterglow of the setting sun gradually disappearing, replaced by the brilliant starry sky—Rage Owl Star had no natural satellites, no moon—so the farmland around the small river bay was half bathed in the sunset's afterglow, half illuminated by starlight, presenting a beautiful and peaceful scene.
"So beautiful," Yan Fangxu remarked with emotion, "I haven't seen such a sight in a long time. Since I've been either on a starship or, after landing on Rage Owl Star, all I've seen is devastation. The last time I witnessed a scene like this was many years ago."
"I can't bear to ruin it either," Gu Hang responded casually, "but I'm even less willing to let the goods I want stay here, then be harvested by that man named Wohan as a means to jack up grain prices after he's hoisted them. Such a beautiful manor and farmland, if fate has brought us here, we will make it even better."
An hour ago, the troops led by Gu Hang had already arrived at this place and dealt with the sentries on the perimeter.
Next, they began to regroup nearby. The manor became tense due to the sentinels' loss of contact, but Gu Hang didn't care. His men had already surrounded the area; they could ignore anyone trying to flee, but it was impossible for anyone to leave dragging a large amount of supplies with them.
While the soldiers regrouped, Gu Hang admired the scenery, and the people inside the manor trembled.
When the sun had just set, the designated time for the attack had arrived.
He said to Yan Fangxu beside him, "Let's begin."
Scattered soldiers started their assault outward, and four black armored vehicles emerged from the sparse woodland, their engines roaring and echoing through the valley. The leading Mechanized Servant Infantry, wielding 'Strikers', charged towards the defensive line of Valley Manor, their bullets cutting through the air with piercing screeches.
At the same time, mortars began pounding Valley Manor, with explosions raging like thunder from hell, smoke filling and enveloping the manor. Where the artillery reached, vegetation was engulfed in flames, the ground became utterly shattered, and sparks and debris harshly struck the stone walls and rooftops of the manor, emitting bursts of thumping sounds.
The raiders also immediately mounted a resistance, taking advantage of the buildings and stone walls to return fire. The sound of gunfire was so intermingled that it was impossible to tell who was shooting; one could only see bullets flying through the air, kicking up dust and stone chips.
The raiders' resistance was exceptionally fierce, with perhaps a couple of hundred people inside. Facing mortar bombardment, a hailstorm of bullets, and casualties, they still dared to stand firm and fiercely return fire.
Both in terms of equipment and combat will, these foes were far more formidable than the 'Prisoner' bandits they had encountered before.
The 'Prisoner' bandits had been using hand-crafted iron pipe rifles, not only were they horribly inaccurate, but their power was also weak, hardly making a dent in the Mechanized Servant Infantry's plastisteel plate vests. At that time, the main casualties in battle were caused by mutated green-skinned beasts.
The mercenary troops active around Revival City, however, weren't equipped so poorly. They at least had automatic rifles to use, with much more intense firepower, bullets that were stronger, and a high degree of accuracy. They were even equipped with machine guns.
Taking cover, they had the advantage against the attacking Mechanized Servant Infantry, and from time to time, a soldier would be shot down.
A fallen soldier wasn't necessarily dead. Their bulletproof vests and helmets, though lightweight, were still made of alloy plastisteel with excellent performance and could save their lives. Those who fell were generally shot in the legs, and a considerable proportion could return to the ranks after their wounds healed.
But overall, the struggle in the attack was visibly growing. And as the soldiers got closer to the manor, the more difficult things became. The closer the distance, the more precise and fierce the enemy's fire became, and the soldiers would suffer particularly heavy casualties.
At a distance, the enemy's bullets hardly pierced the body armor, but up close, they didn't have to pierce through to be lethal, as the unprotected face, neck, and limbs were much more likely to be shot.
Under normal circumstances, if Gu Hang wanted to quickly take down the manor, there would have to be casualties. If they were to assault by force, he feared that it might cost them half a company in casualties.
To avoid heavy losses, they would need to be prepared for a long siege. Digging trenches on the outer perimeter, extending inward, a prolonged standoff and exchange of fire, and non-stop bombardment from mortars until the enemy's manpower and ammunition were reduced to a relatively low level. Then they could launch a final assault, which would keep casualties within control.
However, Gu Hang was not willing to suffer high casualties, nor did he intend to drag out a protracted fight with these mercenaries.
He had weapons that could settle the situation decisively.
And he had two of them.
The first were the four Strider V-Type Armored Vehicles. Once they closed the distance, their mounted machine guns roared in rapid fire. The 45mm twin-barreled cannons fired rapidly, spewing out projectiles—hard to say whether they should be called bullets or shells—sweeping across a section of broken stone walls.
Each large-caliber bullet carried immense destructive power, shattering stone and splintering debris, leaving the walls unrecognizable.
The mercenaries relied on the walls for cover, but they were utterly incapable of withstanding such a ferocious attack.
The four Striders advanced while mercilessly sweeping their fire.
Shells ripped through the walls and tore apart the bodies of many mercenaries, the grisly scenes terrorizing those nearby.
After the Strider Vs opened fire, the mercenaries' intensity of resistance was firmly suppressed.
With the Mechanized Servant Infantry Company held back, the Wasteland Infantry Company moved up with the four Striders, forming a second wave of attack. Even the mortars' positions began to advance with the Striders' forward push, and as the distance closed, the precision and destructiveness of the mortars continued to increase.
At that moment, a mercenary suddenly emerged from the side, carrying a tube-shaped weapon in his hands. It looked rough in construction, but it was undoubtedly a rocket launcher.
Whether by a stroke of luck or truly exceptional skill of a seasoned veteran, he nailed it with a single shot.
Aiming, firing, the rocket propelled by a long tail flame, solidly hit one of the armored vehicles that was firing.
The mercenary smiled, promptly discarding the launcher and preparing to find new cover.
However, just as he ducked behind the wall, he felt the wall next to him crumble, was violently flipped over, and landed on the ground, his vision filled with a mist of blood.
He saw his own hand flying away, saw his lower body not far to the side.
He was desperately aware of his situation: he had been hit by a high-caliber machine gun, his waist blown apart. The cover he relied upon did not provide any protection, the stone wall was blasted into flimsy fragments.
But what seemed impossible to him was that the very vehicle he had hit with the rocket launcher had killed him.
The last scene in his eyes was the armored vehicle emerging from the gunsmoke, without a scratch on it.
Why was this?
He died in pain and confusion.