Chapter 176 Sunset and the Distant Road <TOC> Chapter 178 Battle Plan
Translator: SumTLMan
Though Eastern Xia could still move freely among the neighboring vassal states as if they were uninhabited, in the eyes of those with foresight and discernment, Eastern Xia had already begun to show signs of decline.
Fifty years ago, Eastern Xia was able to penetrate deep into the heart of the Xingdu Federation and punish the governors who attempted to unite the vassal states to besiege Eastern Xia. Nowadays, they could only project their military power within a few vassal states adjacent to the Great Swamp.
They had become a trapped beast.
Any team or group is bound to have traitors at their peak, let alone after they start going downhill.
If Li Mu were the mastermind behind the plot to destroy Eastern Xia, it would be impossible for him not to look for accomplices within Eastern Xia.
The strongest fortress is always breached from within.
After hearing Li Mu’s question, Li Mei scratched her head, somewhat bewildered. In her heart, all the people of Eastern Xia were united, and although there were disputes due to the plan to return to the ancestral land, they were still within a reasonable range.
Li Mu could only sigh and pat her head gently.
Li Mei’s combat talent was outstanding, especially after advancing to the fourth level, her strength surged once more. But aside from that, she was just a gluttonous little girl.
There were a total of seven commanders in Eastern Xia, and not all of them were like Commander Zhang; otherwise, there would be no Eastern Xia people fleeing to the Xingdu Federation.
Li Mu could only place all his hopes on Commander Zhang. Her jurisdiction was on the border of Eastern Xia, and she was on the front line of the battle against the Xingdu Federation for a long time. The 37th regiment under her command were among the most elite of all forces. She had served in the Great Xia Navy, the Joint Intervention Army, the Eastern Xia Republic Army, and had experienced countless battles.
The judgments she made would surely be inferred by the commander as well.
Li Mu took a deep breath to ease the frustration in his heart:
“Prepare to return to Avonigarda City. We’re about to put up a big fight.”
This time, on his trip to Avonigarda City, Li Mu didn’t bring many people with him, only Li Mei and Shen Luoyan.
On a real battlefield, the gunmen of Orin Town would only be a burden.
Avonigarda City was much more desolate than the last time Li Mu visited. The damage caused by the zombies had hardly been repaired, and the shops along the street had only hastily boarded up the holes in their walls. There were even remnants of broken bones and fingers in the corners of the streets.
In some places, there was new destruction, and the once towering clock tower had been reduced to a pile of rubble.
That was the Soul Cult’s retaliation against the governor.
There were a large number of soldiers and security personnel maintaining vigilance on the streets, stationed almost every few steps.
Li Mu had been using birds to monitor the city of Avonigarda. After his departure, the Soul Cult launched two counterattacks, detonating several bombs in the city’s wealthy and commercial districts, resulting in severe losses.
The Soul Cult even plotted to blow up the massive glass greenhouse outside the governor’s mansion using a disguised hovercraft laden with explosives, intending to flood the interior with radioactive dust to harm the Santanu family.
Unfortunately, the hovercraft was intercepted at the last moment, and the explosion caused by several tons of high-energy explosives was heard throughout the city of Avonigarda.
Although the crater with a diameter of several dozen meters was filled in, various rumors still circulated among the common people.
There were whispers that the real governor had been killed in the blast, and that the current inhabitant of the governor’s mansion was a man-eating monster.
The governor and the Soul Cult became sworn enemies.
After presenting their security officer’s badges, Li Mu and his companions were quickly brought to the camp. It was originally the base of the allied forces, and many of the once-crowded dormitories were now vacant.
The governor had chosen to convene the security officers from various jurisdictions, partly because his direct forces had suffered significant losses.
In the past month, both the security officers and the allied forces had seen a considerable number of casualties.
This abnormal loss prompted the governor, a political animal, to be more cautious and concentrate his armed forces.
He needed to send a strong signal to the outside world that the Santanu family was still powerful.
The accommodations provided for the security officers were luxurious single rooms, complete with clean bedding, private bathrooms, 24-hour hot water supply, and even a large wardrobe.
The dormitories for the officers and soldiers were much more modest, with over twenty people crowded into a single large bunk, filthy bedding, and poor ventilation causing a foul smell. Li Mu naturally would not let Shen Luoyan and Li Mei stay in the soldiers’ dormitory, so the three of them shared a room, with Li Mu planning to sleep on the floor.
Li Mu estimated that the operation would begin at least two days later, as security officers needed to be assembled from various parts of Avonigarda Province. The province was vast, and officers from remote jurisdictions would need at least two days to arrive.
During this time, he planned to try to figure out what Tippolava Momo was up to.
Logically, with the imminent appearance of the Divine Land, Tippolava Momo should be attempting to use various means to prevent the World-Ending Dragon from descending upon the wasteland.
However, strangely, Tippolava Momo had not contacted Li Mu at all up to this point. Moreover, Li Mu’s bird flock in Avonigarda City had not found any trace of the infiltrators.
In Li Mu’s hand was an illusory golden beetle, Tippolava Momo’s token, through which he could contact him in the dream realm.
The next moment, he pinched his hand and put away the golden beetle.
A fierce knocking sound came from outside the dormitory, causing the wooden door to thud loudly. If not for the door’s sturdy material, it would have been smashed open.
Li Mei had already vigilantly picked up the gun resting nearby, and the delicate chain on Shen Luoyan’s bracelet began to glow slowly.
Li Mu made a gesture, signaling them to relax, and then opened the door.
A pungent smell of alcohol assaulted their nostrils as three inebriated Xingdu security officers leaned against the door. Seeing Li Mu open the door, they tried to push past him and enter the room.
“Xian, we heard you’re quite the player, getting your two lovers security officer positions and bringing them to the dormitory for a twister party.”
The security officer in the middle belched, and when he couldn’t push Li Mu aside, he leaned in to look inside the room. Upon seeing Li Mei and Shen Luoyan, his eyes widened instantly.
“Amazing, hic, where did you find these beauties, hic, let us have a turn too.”
The other two security officers were even more impatient. Fueled by alcohol, they wanted to slap Li Mu to make him move aside.
If Li Mu had been a Xingdu native, they wouldn’t have dared to act so recklessly. Xia people were only considered second-class citizens in the Xingdu Federation. In the eyes of Xingdu people, Xians were as docile and timid as sheep. Let alone lovers, even their wives could be offered to them.
They had long been accustomed to demanding from and taking advantage of Xia people, with no one ever daring to resist.
Chapter 176 Sunset and the Distant Road <TOC> Chapter 178 Battle Plan