Chapter 658: Chapter 658: Darkmoon Town

In the area near the city walls, dozens of medium-sized, sleek armed floating airships equipped with obvious turrets were docked.

Additionally, there were various locations where large war machines were either being inspected or assembled by engineers, such as siege golems towering seven to eight meters, equipped with multiple mechanical arms and heavy battering rams.

Passing through heavily guarded gates, equipped with tightly monitored magic arrays, one enters the interior of Darkmoon Town.

The town is neatly planned yet rugged in style; roads are compressed earth paved with gravel, flanked mostly by barracks, warehouses, workshops, and functional buildings quickly constructed from prefabricated parts.

The emblem of the Star Dome Commerce Association is seen everywhere, with personnel primarily consisting of armed guards, explorers, alchemists, and craftsmen, all moving hurriedly, mostly with a weary but competent demeanor.

Only a few personnel wearing imperial uniforms are present, mainly operating at communications towers, command centers, and resource allocation centers, responsible for coordinating, supervising, and liaising with the empire’s main forces.

Case briefly introduced while walking, “The town is divided into several zones; the northern area contains the main barracks and the commerce administrative center; the eastern area houses workshops and supply warehouses where your supplies and equipment maintenance are held; the western area is home to medical facilities and the magic laboratory; and the southern area is the training ground and slave creature legion deployment zone. Your temporary accommodation is in the explorer camp ahead, it’s relatively quiet and independent.”

He pointed to a row of relatively tidy wooden houses ahead.

“Settle down first, then gather at North Area’s briefing room number three in an hour where I’ll update the latest war zone intel, distribute basic supply packs, and outline our association’s initial plans towards Shadowmoon Canyon.

Remember, don’t venture alone into unmarked safe areas here, avoid leaving the illuminated areas of the camp at night, and it’s best to resolve transactions and conflicts through the commerce association channels.

Here, the Star Dome emblem offers some protection, but in the end, strength and caution are the keys to survival.”

Duke follows his squad members towards the assigned temporary wooden huts, his gaze sweeping over this resilient island of steel and light nestled within the Eternal Dark Forest.

The air is filled with the growls of the Slave Legion, the hum of mechanical operations, and the camp’s unique cacophony.

An hour later, Darkmoon Town’s North Area briefing room number three.

The room is brightly lit, dispelling the perpetual dimness outside the window.

A large dynamic map of Shadowmoon Canyon and its surrounding area, jointly drawn by reconnaissance crystals and magic, hangs on the wall. On the map, the blue representing the empire’s control zones interlocks with the dark green representing night elf areas of activity, while the canyon area is marked in deep red, with several blinking points suggesting energy reactions of suspected Moon Wells.

Case, the supervisor, stands before the map, with the six squad members and a few other individuals who obviously are senior combat personnel or reconnaissance experts from the commerce association seated. The air is filled with a serious atmosphere.

Of course, the Star Dome Commerce Association has more personnel here; this meeting primarily aims to give Duke and the new arrivals a systematic introduction.

To help them gain a comprehensive understanding of this war, facilitating subsequent planning and task assignments.

“Everyone, let’s get to the point,” Case uses a long slender metal pointer to indicate the canyon area on the map, “Our goal is to assist the imperial main forces, and within three months, effectively control the Shadowmoon Canyon area, and seize at least one ancient Moon Well with conversion value therein. This will significantly solidify our foothold in the region and pave the way for deep exploration to acquire key resources.”

He tapped the map: “The terrain of Shadowmoon Canyon is complex; it’s not a simple rift but a three-dimensional labyrinth consisting of a main canyon, several branch ravines, and an underground cavern network.

The Night Elf Shadowmoon clan has entrenched here for thousands of years, intimately familiar with every plant and secret trail here.

They excel at guerrilla warfare, ambushing, and harassment employing shadows, terrain, and plants; direct frontal assault would be incredibly costly and likely result in a stalemate.”

“Therefore, the imperial command and commerce association senior officials have jointly devised a strategy: multi-pronged advancement, combining deception with reality, special infiltration, and attacking from the center outward.” Case’s pointer marked several arrows on the map.

…

For the next session, Case explained the entire operation plan meticulously, while Duke and the others listened attentively, occasionally raising inquiries for clarification.

This war is divided into three phases in total: the first phase involves strategic deception and perimeter clearing, utilizing the slave creature legion and parts of the imperial regular army to maintain a continuous, high-profile yet slow offensive stance at the two main entrances in the northeast and northwest of the canyon.

Construct artillery positions, conduct frequent small-scale reconnaissance and harassment, creating the illusion of a traditional offensive from these directions, attempting to attract and pin down the Shadowmoon clan’s main defensive forces.

Meanwhile, elite small special squads are dispatched to infiltrate via several extremely concealed and difficult-to-access paths and underground dark river entrances marked on the map.

The second phase features vertical assault and division encirclement; once sufficient attention is captured via feigned attacks, and the infiltrating squads successfully establish relatively safe passages, assembled armed floating airships will conduct sudden, high-intensity fire coverage on the canyon’s upper parts and known elf anti-air positions.

Simultaneously, utilizing airships and large mechanical bodies equipped with assault pods, vertical troop deployment will be executed on key nodes within the canyon marked by infiltrating squads, disrupting the elves’ defensive rhythm, and implementing the strategy of attacking from the center outward.

Once vertical deployment succeeds, pre-assembled elite assault forces will initiate a swift breakthrough from one or more selected points on the feigned attack directions, aiming to quickly converge with vertically deployed troops, slicing the Shadowmoon clan’s defense line into several disconnected segments.

Upon successful segmentation, follow-up troops will advance to sweep and clear each partitioned area.

The third and final phase involves resource acquisition and defensive conversion.

After controlling major areas, immediately transition into defense mode, establish permanent defensive witch arrays and fortresses to fend off potential elven counterattacks.

Having completed the overall strategy, Case surveys everyone present.

“Our Star Dome Commerce Association team primarily focuses on the late first phase’s flank infiltration, the early second phase’s vertical deployment assault, as well as consistently targeting key goals, especially locating and seizing Moon Wells.”

He displayed another roster and task allocation chart.

“Based on your specialties and evaluations within the commerce association, assignments are now designated for specific tasks…”

The two newcomers who are level 2 mages are appointed to lead a team to accomplish their respective tasks; during this moment, Duke learns their names, and they briefly introduce themselves to each other.

He’s assigned to a team led by a level 2 mage named Ted, who is the stern old man accompanying him.

Source: Webnovel.com, updated by NovelKeep