Maximus knew of at least three types of catapults: one that launches stones through a torsion device, with the crossbow cannon being a typical example; another that uses elastic materials, such as large wooden bow arms pulling bowstrings to launch stones, exemplified by Cao Cao's thunderbolt chariot at the Battle of Guandu; and another using leverage to launch stones, primarily referring to the weighted catapult.

The reason Maximus chose the weighted catapult was that among various catapults, it was the most powerful. In historical records from his previous life, there were many accounts of it being used to break through thick stone walls. Moreover, its construction wasn't too complicated. Considering that they were only attacking wooden walls and held an advantageous position, with the enemy not daring to engage in field battles, he even downsized the catapult, simplifying some auxiliary devices and relying more on human power for pulling...

At the end of the year before last, he handed the blueprint of the weighted catapult to the engineer Spukala, asking him to organize craftsmen to begin trial production. During this period, he, along with his attendant, went to inspect several times. It wasn't until the machine was thoroughly perfected, exhibiting strong performance, that the craftsmen from the Public Works Department began large-scale production last summer. However, everything remained confidential externally, and only the Chief of the Ministry of War, Legion Commanders, and Great Captains discreetly witnessed its power at the weapons testing ground. So, before the start of this war, not only were the Brochi people unaware of it, but ordinary Nix Soldiers were also kept in the dark.

After the war started, the engineering team loaded the various parts of the weighted catapult onto ships and transported them here. Therefore, it only took a day yesterday to fully assemble it in the temporary camp, allowing it to be put into use today.

Look at these dumbfounded Nix Soldiers behind him; they were also shocked by the powerful might of the weighted catapult, and their morale soared higher.

The entire southeastern wooden wall trembled continuously amidst the roaring sounds. After a while, a section of the wooden wall would collapse, and after another while, a tower would fall...

The Nix Soldiers occasionally let out thundering cheers, yet they refrained from taking other actions.

It was some of the Brochi Warriors who couldn't bear such hellish torments, risking a charge out of the fortress, attempting to destroy these terrifying machines.

Unfortunately, the area in front of the camp was filled with traps, with only one safe road leading to the fort gate. As they rushed out along this road, fully armed Nix Soldiers arrived in front of the catapult to form a shield wall, first intercepting the enemy, then crossbow soldiers came up from both flanks to fire crossbow arrows at the enemy in the middle together...

The Brochi Warriors left behind hundreds of corpses, embarrassingly fleeing back to the fortress, no longer daring to take any risks.

The catapult's attack continued, and even with the complete retreat of Brochi Warriors from the fortress walls, it did not stop. The prolonged throwing caused certain wear to the catapult itself, resulting in situations like broken wooden poles, wheels falling off, and disassembling of the base.

When the southeastern gate and the connecting wooden walls on both sides were all destroyed, the formerly six-meter-high sturdy southeastern wooden wall was like a harvested wheat field, leaving only a jagged row of stubs.

Finally, that enormous and frightful machine ceased swinging its wooden arm, and the terrifying rumble also faded away. However, not a single Brochi Warrior dared to return to the ruins of the wooden wall.

At this moment, the Nix Army made new movements: dozens of wooden box cars were pushed to the front of the formation through the passages within the military formation, forming a line with an interval of less than three to four people wide, passing through the catapult, slowly moving toward the fortress...

Behind these box cars were not only laborers responsible for pushing them but also Nix Supply Personnel holding shovels, tampers, and other tools.

Nix Infantry and Crossbow Soldiers followed behind them for protection.

At a distance of about fifty meters from the fortress wall, these box cars came to a halt.

It turned out the box cars were filled with soil. Supply personnel used shovels to pull the soil down from the cars, laying it thickly on the ground, and then tamping it down with tampers...

The spot they stood on was the furthest distance the Brochi Spearman could throw a javelin from the top of the wooden wall, but now the wooden wall had been destroyed, leaving them standing inside the fortress, helplessly staring with no solution.

Supply personnel focused on laying thick soil and tamping the ground firmly. Although slow in progress, no one in the whole team got injured during the advancement, rendering the painstakingly laid traps by the Brochi people wasted.

The box cars shuttled back and forth with soil, with the reformed ground constantly extending towards the fortress... When this troop was less than thirty meters from the fortress wall, Elix began urging the spearman to return to the ruins of the wooden wall, to throw javelins at the enemy, preventing them from continuing to destroy the traps.

However, the Nix Army was well-prepared; the Nix Crossbow Soldiers behind the supply personnel bared their fangs. As soon as the Brochi Spearman arrived at the wooden wall ruins and before raising their arms, the Crossbow Arrows already prepared were fired.

The crossbow's range exceeded eighty meters, and twenty to thirty meters was its optimal killing range. The Brochi Spearman, without armor and no wooden wall as a shield, instantly fell, frightening the survivors to crawl back desperately.

The prowess of the Nix Crossbow Soldiers was something Elix had deeply experienced. Four years ago, in the battle by the Kolana River, the Nix Crossbow Soldiers showcased their might, leading to the collapse of the Brochi Army. He barely escaped death amidst the chaotic army, managed to flee into wild mountainous areas, living rough for several days, until he was rescued by his people who came out to search and return to the territory, falling gravely ill because of it...

But Elix couldn't just stand by and watch the Nix people destroy all the defensive facilities in front of the fortress, allowing their troops to easily penetrate into the fortress unimpeded. Thus, he ordered again: for the warriors to form a shield formation on the ruins of the fortress wall, to defend against the enemy crossbow soldiers' shots, while the spearman hid behind the shield formation, throwing javelins and attacking the earth-laying Nix people.

Bricks, learning from the painful experience of Nix Crossbow Soldiers in the last war, began to improve the protective equipment of the warriors, mainly replacing the simple and thin wooden round shields with large square shields like the Nix people, concentrating workforce and resources to produce large square shields. These were laminated with multi-layer wood, greatly increasing the square shield's thickness and naturally increasing its weight severalfold, causing Light Infantry to lose agility and become sluggish. Yet even against close-range throws from spearman, they gained certain defensive power with the new shield in hand.

But when the Brochi Warriors formed a shield formation on the fortress wall ruins, with the spearman hiding behind it, the Nix catapult swung its massive arm again, hurling stones over the supply personnel, towards the fortress wall ruins.

Amidst wails, the Brochi Warriors scattered in all directions.

The Nix People's catapult began to move forward slowly, occasionally firing a stone to force the frightened Brochi Warriors into retreating deeper into the fortress, far from the fortress wall ruins.

As a result, the Nix Supply Personnel more easily eradicated the traps in front of the fortress, leveled the ground, and finally filled the trench. Consequently, the Nix Army's southeast attack on Sinbaisbed became a smooth path.

The war horns sounded again, the massive Nix military formation finally began moving forward, and the soldiers who had rested for most of the day showed not a hint of laxity. Instead, their morale was high. They even hoped the enemy's resistance could be stronger so that their military merits might be greater.

As the Nix Soldiers crossed the trench and stepped over the ruins of the fortress wall, the warriors led by Elix charged again, blocking the Nix Army, preventing them from further penetrating the fortress.

The southeastern fortress wall of Sinbaisbed was just over a mile long. Elix, deploying over three thousand warriors and some civilians in one go, could completely block the Nix people on the ruins of the wooden wall, preventing them from leveraging their numerical superiority. Moreover, with both sides entangled in combat, the Nix people's terrifying machine dared not hurl stones again.

Elix planned this way, knowing that the Nix Soldiers were combat-effective and held an advantage in field battles. However, now that Sinbaisbed faced life and death, the Brochi Warriors intending to protect their home could only fight desperately to the end.

Yet, amidst their fierce battle, four large siege engines resembling towers were pushed to the forefront of the trench. Squads of crossbow soldiers climbed to the top layer along wooden ladders, drew bows, and nocked arrows, shooting downwards.

In the melee, the weighted catapult indeed dared not fire stone bullets, avoiding friendly fire. However, with the wooden wall destroyed, the four-meter-high siege carriages, termed "Well Railing" by Maximus, stood out prominently on the battlefield. Crossbow Soldiers positioned at the top could precisely shoot at the Brochi Warriors in combat. No matter how thick their square shields were, they couldn't defend above. One after another, they got shot in the head, shoulders, and neck, collapsing...

The Brochi Warriors, already low in morale, couldn't hold out long before starting to rout...

Sinbaisbed had only two fortress gates. With the southeastern side occupied by the enemy, the populace and fleeing soldiers mingled, fleeing in panic out of the southwestern gate. However, the Nix Army, which previously landed here, had long been arrayed in anticipation. Their task wasn't to take cities but to ensure that Sinbaisbed's populace was captured in one sweep.

When Maximus saw the Nix Army flooding into the fortress like a tide, he knew the battle was already over. Next would be rounding up the stragglers, cleaning the battlefield, seizing grain and supplies, appeasing the Brochi populace, and taking over the entire fortress...

Not only did the army need to station inside, but officials from various departments who arrived by ship, along with the temple Priests, also had to carry out their duties according to the pre-set plan.

Four years ago, the Nix Tribe conquered Segestica using both military and political means simultaneously. After meticulous preparation over these years, the Nix Tribe trained more experienced administrative officers and developed more conquest strategies. It is believed that this time, conquering Brochi would be smoother.

Confident, Maximus did not follow the army into the fortress but instead turned his horse around and returned to the temporary camp, arriving at a tent just in time to encounter the military doctor coming out.

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