Munitions Empire-Chapter 994 - : 916 Assault Breacher Vehicle

“It’s finally our turn to enter the fray!” The Dahua tank commander, who had half his body sticking out, put down his binoculars and pressed the talk button to issue an attack command to his driver: “Advance! Cover the infantry’s charge.”

After issuing his command, the tank beneath him began its advance. Due to the uneven ground, his body slightly swayed with the tank’s bumps and jolts.

The Type 3 tanks on the flank also started their tracks rolling forward, followed by a dark mass of infantry, numbering in the hundreds.

The most elite force of the Dahua Empire’s Armored Corps, equipped with the powerful Type 5 tanks, lined up in front of their positions to provide cover for the infantry, launching the largest single assault by the Dahua side since the outbreak of the Fengjiang internal conflict.

An entire battalion of infantry charged at the Fengjiang defenders’ line under the cover of two companies of Type 5 tanks and two companies of Type 3 tanks.

The tank commander of the Type 5, who had been half-exposed in the turret, ducked back inside and secured his hatch.

Through the narrow slit of the observation window, he could see the battlefield shrouded in gun smoke, as well as the Fengjiang defenders’ positions still undergoing violent explosions.

Over 50 artillery pieces provided covering fire for this attack, raining shells down upon the Fengjiang troops’ positions, raising thick smoke that blotted out the sky and looked utterly despairing.

Under such intense artillery coverage, it’s hard to say how much of the defenses could remain intact; the scarce forces stationed there would also suffer substantial losses.

Due to the artillery barrage, the secondary troops entering the positions would also be hindered, resulting in a brief vacuum of forces within these bombarded defenses.

And this time, the greatest reliance for the Dahua Empire’s troops were these Type 5 tanks, with front armor thickness exceeding 120 millimeters, slow-moving but with a formidable deterrent power.

“Directly ahead! Machine gun bunker!” Among the smoke, an exposed machine gun bunker was spewing flames. The Dahua commander, spotting the target through the observation window, gave a calm command to attack.

He was a one-in-a-thousand commander, with naturally outstanding abilities. His command of the Empire’s best tanks was also the source of his confidence.

The tracks of the tank rolled over a corpse long begun to rot, crushing the bones wedged within the treads’ gaps, inching towards the enemy defense line.

It wasn’t that these Dahua Empire tanks leisurely took their time; it was simply that their engines couldn’t make their tanks move any faster.

These tanks could only advance at a speed less than 15 kilometers per hour, and when encountering larger obstacles, they needed to consider if they should take a detour.

But these tanks traded speed for heavy armor: even a Panther Tank with a long-barreled 75mm gun might not penetrate the frontal armor of these Type 5 tanks in a normal combat range.

Although the Dahua Empire’s medium-caliber 90mm tank gun was still underperforming, it was indeed a good choice for the Type 5 tanks, intended as “breakthrough assault vehicles.”

On one hand, its calibre was large enough to serve as a makeshift “assault gun,” and on the other hand, it had some anti-tank capabilities, doubling as an Anti-Tank Gun.

Perhaps even the Dahua Empire’s tank designers themselves didn’t realize that they inadvertently created, not a qualified tank, but a model of “inferior rat-style breakthrough assault vehicle”…

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So, when not facing real tanks like the Panther, which could reverse faster than they could advance, the Type 5 tanks could indeed display astonishing combat power in the right settings.

While bullying the Fengjiang defenders who lacked advanced tanks, the Dahua Empire’s heavy tanks could be described as invincible.

That machine gun bunker spewing flames only lasted a few minutes before it was blown sky-high by a 90mm shot from a Type 5 tank.

The Dahua Empire’s elite main force, well-trained and high in morale, demonstrated their worth in a less tense crushing battle: hitting the target with their first shot, they immediately set the tone for their side.

With suppression lifted, the Dahua troops immediately got up from the ground and continued their advance. They were getting closer to the Fengjiang defenders’ positions, and the ground became littered with more and more craters.

The opposing Fengjiang defenders quickly identified these Type 5 tanks, imposing figures even more formidable than the Type 3 tanks.

Then these Fengjiang defenders immediately brought up their strongest anti-tank weapon available: a 76mm Anti-Aircraft Gun.

At about 700 meters away, the 76mm AA gun fired, but the first shot missed its target. The AA gun kept trying to fire and destroy these Type 5 tanks, but at a distance of 500 meters, a 76mm shell struck the armor of a Type 5 tank and was incredibly deflected!

Yes, the shell was deflected! Everyone saw the shell, swift as lightning, and then it actually hit the front armor of Tank No.5, before being ricocheted into the sky.

Perhaps because Tank No.5 was not directly facing the 76mm gun, the armor was at a good angle. The sight of the shell being bounced off completely shattered the morale of the nearby Fengjiang defenders.

The Dahua Empire Tanks that had spotted the Anti-Tank Gun position began to halt, then one after another they aimed their barrels at the 76mm Anti-Aircraft Gun.

Two shells almost hit simultaneously near the 76mm gun, kicking up a cloud of dirt. Then a third shell hit the target squarely, blowing the 76mm gun’s parts into the air. Nearby Fengjiang soldiers were either killed or injured, utterly losing their combat capability.

“It’s like they can’t take a single hit!” Seeing the enemy’s Anti-Tank Gun position destroyed, a Dahua Empire tank commander inside the turret scoffed, continuing to give orders: “Cross the trench! Keep moving forward!”

Following his command, this Tank No.5 started charging towards the Fengjiang defenders’ trench. The few remaining Fengjiang soldiers in the trench scattered like birds and beasts, not even contemplating resistance.

Dahua Infantry leaped into the heavily damaged trench, only to find the Fengjiang army’s corpses lying around in disarray.

These bodies were easily recognizable by the comfortable Tang Country military boots on their feet, and the M35 Steel Helmets scattered in the trench made it very clear these were Fengjiang defenders.

The wide tracks crushed the concrete reinforced edges of the trench, then carrying dirt crossed over the top of the trench, and likewise smashed the opposite edge on the backside.

Due to the Tank’s immense weight, the trenches suffered various degrees of damage as Tank No.5 passed over them.

The following Dahua Infantry immediately felt relief, as the leading heavy tanks had cleared most of the obstacles for them.

All the machine gun bunkers were without exception destroyed, and the remaining Fengjiang defenders who couldn’t escape had no choice but to surrender. Since it was impossible to withstand the rampage of these Tank No.5’s, a circular defensive fortification seemed to be collapsing.

In the Dahua Empire, such wavering generally spelled the end of a defensive line: They weren’t Tang Army, lacking Tang Army’s relentless courage and tenacity to counter-attack.

“What? Hello? Speak clearly! What? We’ve lost the front line?” Inside the command post, the Fengjiang commander, gripped by a sense of powerlessness, was furiously bellowing into the phone.

Intermittent gunfire could be heard over the phone. The reporting officer was also frantically saying: “Enemy tanks can’t be penetrated! Can’t penetrate! Both 76mm guns are gone! I have no Anti-Tank Guns left!”

“If you have none, you still must hold the line! No step back is allowed! Understand? No retreat, not a single step!” the Division Commander ordered hysterically from the division headquarters.

His superiors had given a strict order to hold the line at all costs, but now his division seemed to be the focus of the enemy’s assault—just a few minutes before, his 2nd battalion had also reported their positions were close to collapse.

“Sir! I must retreat! The enemy is just a few tens of meters away!” The voice over the phone said this and then hung up, completely ignoring the order of no retreat.

“Division Commander! Division Commander!” At this moment, an officer hurried in, reporting desperately: “It’s over! Our positions are completely overrun… 1st battalion is retreating, 2nd battalion has already collapsed…”

“Damn it…” The Fengjiang Division Commander had intended to have 3rd battalion hold the line, but after a moment of thought, he changed the order: “Retreat! Burn everything and get out of here!”

He grabbed a Steel Helmet from the wall and placed it on his head: “Why hit our own so hard. If you have the guts, go fight the Goblins…”

Saying that, he walked out, followed closely by his adjutant. Nearby officers and administrative staff had already started throwing some documents on the ground, ready to set them alight.

That day, the flank of the circular defensive line on the west side of Fengjiang was breached, and the Fengjiang defenders, who had no desire to fight, began a great rout. They abandoned the other defensible circular defensive lines and started retreating towards Fengjiang.

This retreat covered nearly one hundred kilometers, only stopping 20 to 30 kilometers from Fengjiang.

After all, Fengjiang was right behind them, and continuing to retreat would mean they had nothing left.

Therefore, on the basis of the existing makeshift defense line, these Fengjiang Troops, reinforced by mercenaries from Mirage Country, began to fortify this line.

Meanwhile, the pursuing forces of the Dahua Empire had no more strength to advance after chasing for nearly 100 kilometers, and could only stop in place, awaiting follow-up Troops.

During this period, they encountered many troubles, such as the Fengjiang Troops sabotaged the railway during their retreat, like losing air superiority…

Nevertheless, Zhao Chen still achieved a resounding victory, and now his vanguard forces were very, very close to Fengjiang.