Chapter 730.2 WHERE'S MY MEN???? THEY WERE JUST HERE

The first to detect the attack were the players patrolling with Deathclaws.

Less than a minute later, all 200 players stationed on the mountain had logged in simultaneously. Under Sideline Slacking's command, they turned the Goblins' ambush against them.

Within a single hour, the 2,000 strong Goblin force had suffered more than 50% casualties, forcing the survivors to flee in panic.

The battle had gone so smoothly that Sideline Slacking never even bothered calling the troops resting at the foot of the mountain. His force handled the attackers easily.

The only thing that surprised the players was the fact that "Goblin" had originally been a nickname they themselves invented for the short green creatures. Yet now, the creatures were actually running around shouting "Goblin! Goblin!" at one another.

Wiping blood from his entrenching shovel, Drumhead Washing Machine muttered regretfully, "Damn. We were too careless. If we had known the developers were going to let us name them, we should've called them Cowardlins instead."

Lapulasi's face changed instantly. Before he could even wipe the blood from his hands, he hurried over and covered Drumhead Washing Machine’s mouth. "Holy shit! Are you trying to get yourself killed by insulting the developers right here?!"

Midnight Umbrella scratched his head. "But the problem is, Mutant Humans don't really look like ogres..."

No Lady stroked his chin and thought for a moment. "Actually, they do eat people. That's pretty similar."

Midnight Umbrella paused before nodding. "Uh... I guess that's true."

Maybe it was just his imagination, but he felt that the Goblins that day were noticeably stronger than the day before. Not only were they more vicious in combat, they were also far more troublesome. Some even strapped explosive barrels to themselves and charged in for suicide attacks.

The most unbelievable part was that those creatures, who previously only fought individually, had actually started working together as a group.

Who knew what ridiculous strange technology those lunatics had unleashed this time? If they kept evolving at this rate, the War for Paradise might turn into a full-blown Invasion of Heaven.

"Damn, things seem pretty lively down there!" a player peering down the mountain suddenly exclaimed excitedly.

During the brief period they had spent fighting, the Wislanders' airship had already arrived at the battlefield. The big-nosed fellows had even brought along a massive machine that looked suspiciously like an Imperial AT-AT Walker.

That was the Bison the administrator had been fascinated with.

And it wasn't just the Army. The Academy and Enterprise had arrived at Guardian Manor Military Base as well, along with their personnel and vehicles.

Seeing the curiosity on everyone's faces, Sideline Slacking knew exactly what they were hoping for and laughed. "Hang in there a little longer, everyone. The rotation shift is almost here!"

Lapulasi pointed at the corpses scattered across the mountainside. "What do we do with all these bodies? Bury them?"

The frozen mountain soil was harder than iron. Even though their physiques made them effectively immune to disease, nobody wanted to spend time next to what amounted to a giant bacterial breeding ground. Besides, their teammates were stationed below the mountain. Even if they didn't care about themselves, they still had to think about everyone else.

Fortunately, the solution came quickly. Midnight Umbrella rolled his eyes and came up with an idea. "Hey, we can feed them to Eye Owe Money. His wives eat everything."

"Hahahaha, holy shit, you’re right!" Drumhead Washing Machine, whose face was still covered in blood, burst out laughing, along with everyone else.

Even Sideline Slacking couldn't help grinning and gave a thumbs-up. "You're a fucking genius!"

...

Back in the military base that had filled up in practically a day...

Eight Orca transport aircraft sat on the runway, their massive bodies resembling whales resting on land. Nearby stood 20 Cloudfly planes, their blade-like flexible wings reflecting cold glints under the sunlight. There were also nearly 100 silver-white heavy trucks parked neatly across the plain like rows of geometric blocks that had the logo of Ideal Group prominently displayed beneath the front bumpers.

They were the Enterprise's 100th Mechanized Mountain Division.

They had flown directly over the eastern mountain ranges of the Brocade River Province aboard Orca transport planes, deploying in batches across the eastern plains before assembling and advancing over together.

That was probably the first time the Enterprise had sent troops to a battlefield so far from home.

However, they weren't the only ones showing off their toys. The Academy was doing the same. In addition to the Alpha Mobile Task Force that had arrived by train, nearly 20 shuttle-shaped flying vehicles roughly 20 meters long descended onto the eastern side of Guardian Manor Military Base. Although they utilized plasma engines, their slow, graceful descent suggested that plasma thrust wasn't their sole source of lift.

Like Academy research vessels and Army airships, they appeared equipped with anti-gravity systems.

The heavily armed Alpha Mobile Task Force marched over in perfect synchronization. Perhaps intentionally showing off, they took a route through the northern side of the camp, walking directly between Enterprise's 100th Mountain Division and the Army forces.

Meanwhile, the Bugra Free State’s Hound Special Unit remained comparatively low-profile. Their few dozen military trucks sat quietly behind the Army contingent.

Unaware of all the subtle rivalries, Eye Owe Money and Construction Boy stood outside the base staring in amazement and their mouths hung open.

The Army, the Enterprise, the Academy, the Bugra Free State, the Xilande Empire... There were also countless survivor factions they had never even heard of before. All of them had gathered in one place!

The camp resembled a giant military expo, or perhaps a military parade. Everywhere they looked were strange and exotic vehicles and weapons.

Eye Owe Money gulped once. "Construction Bro..."

"Hm?"

"Nothing, I was just wondering..." He paused before wondering out loud, "Doesn't this kind of feel like a military parade?"

Construction Boy froze for a moment before slapping his thigh. "Holy shit! Now that you mention it, it really does!"

Wasteland Alliance Leader, huh...

Though admittedly the New Alliance's foundation still seemed a little shaky, that didn't matter. As long as their Administrator stood firm, it was fine.

At that moment, all he wanted to do was scream. "Our administrator is fucking awesome!"

Just then, the two suddenly spotted a familiar face among the crowd.

"Su Ming?!"

Hearing someone call his name, Su Ming stopped and looked over in confusion. He didn't recognize either of them. "... Do we know each other?"

"We've met, we've met," Eye Owe Money said with a grin as he stepped forward. "Back in the Sunset Province. This is Construction Boy and I'm Eye Owe Money!"

"Oh! You’re our teammates from back then!" Recognition dawned on Su Ming's face. He almost commented on how weird their names were, but decided that would be rude and swallowed the remark. "It's been a long time, almost a year since we last met."

"Yeah. A whole year." Before Su Ming could comment further, Eye Owe Money quickly asked, "By the way, weren't you with the 26th Assault Team?"

"Yep." Su Ming nodded. "Is something wrong?"

Construction Boy stared at him and asked, "You got promoted?"

Su Ming laughed. "Promoted? Not really. I'm a noncommissioned officer and a professional sniper. If becoming an instructor counts as a promotion, then maybe..."

Eye Owe Money scratched his head. "But weren't you with the assault unit before? Is the Enterprise’s assault teams connected to their regular army system?"

He wasn't trying to gather intelligence. The whole thing just seemed bizarre. It felt like a security guard suddenly becoming a military instructor.

Seeing the confusion in his eyes, Su Ming smiled. "We don't really make that distinction. The 100th Mountain Division was expanded directly from the 26th Assault Team." He coughed awkwardly and continued explaining, "Honestly speaking, we don't even have a standing army. The Highest Council pulled everyone together and told us to train them up as preparation for the future."

"There are a lot of newcomers in the division. We might even need your help teaching them later."

Since they were allies, he didn't bother hiding anything.

Construction Boy was completely stunned and his brain refused to process it. "But... you're called the 100th Mountain Division. If there's a 100th, shouldn't there be 99 divisions before it? How can you not have a standing army?"

Su Ming scratched the back of his head and mumbled, "Well..." He grinned sheepishly and explained, "To be honest, when mobilization first started we were called Division 001. Then Commander Yun thought that sounded kind of lame and suggested changing it to the 100th. It sounded more impressive."

Suddenly remembering something, his expression changed. He glanced nervously toward a nearby airship and lowered his voice. "Oh, and don't go spreading that around. And if you accidentally do, don't say you heard it from me."

Eye Owe Money and Construction Boy stared at him in complete disbelief.

"Holy shit?!"

"That's genius!"

They can do that?!

Thinking back, they really had been intimidated by the designation when they first heard it.

...

While the two were still reeling from learning the massive military secret they ran into by accident, chaos had erupted at the nearby train station.

Xilande Empire soldiers had crowded together in a massive cluster as something seemed to have gone wrong.

After receiving reports from his subordinates, Li Jinrong, who had just finished receiving the Enterprise’s representatives, immediately rushed over.

The survivor factions gathered from across the wasteland all had different cultures and traditions shaped by two centuries of separate development. Conflicts were inevitable.

The administrator had specifically warned him to keep a close eye on the people from the Poro Province. Still, he had never expected trouble to arise on the very first day.

Upon arriving, he quickly located the furious officer demanding to speak with the train station authorities.

"I am Li Jinrong, commander of the Southern Construction Corps and the officer responsible for this base." He looked at the man before him and asked, "And you are?"

The tall man lifted his chin proudly and extended a hand. "Babita. I am a Horsefolk and a Baron. Also, I am the general of the Xilande Expeditionary Army."

Ignoring the string of titles, Li Jinrong got straight to the point. "So, General Babita. What seems to be the problem?"

"What seems to be the problem?!" Babita exploded suddenly. "I can't find my soldiers! And you're asking what the problem is?!"

"You... can't find your soldiers?" Li Jinrong blinked and glanced at the massive crowd behind him. "They're right there."

Seeing him "pretend not to understand," Babita became even angrier. "Not just them, I have 30,000 men! Several trains arrived, but no matter how many times I count, I only find two divisions! You people lost 10,000 of my soldiers!"

Li Jinrong nearly coughed up blood. "How can we possibly lose 10,000 soldiers?!"

"How should I know?!" Babita roared. "They were riding your trains! You said logistics were your responsibility, now they're gone! How can you not be responsible?!"

Apparently feeling this he wasn't forceful enough, he shouted even louder. "We paid for this service!"

That part was true. The New Alliance hadn't provided logistics out of charity. Transportation capacity and resources had simply been packaged and sold to allied factions at discounted rates.

10,000 missing soldiers was a serious problem. If 10,000 trained soldiers suddenly appeared somewhere inside New Alliance territory, even unarmed, it could still become a major issue.

Realizing the severity of the situation, Li Jinrong's expression changed. Not daring to waste another moment, he told Babita to wait and hurried off toward the train station communications office.

Before investigating where the soldiers disappeared, he first needed to identify every train that had transported them and every station those trains had stopped at.

...

At the same time, over 1,000 kilometers away off the picturesque coast of French Fry Harbor, several transport ships floated on the sea.

Sweat dripped from the brows of the soldiers on board as they stared blankly at the shoreline.

The officer standing at the bow gulped nervously. Looking at the heavily armed people waiting on shore, then at his adjutant, he gulped again. "... Tell me something."

The adjutant looked equally confused. "What?"

The officer hesitated before speaking. "... Did we get on the wrong ship?"

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