Loose Province.

The main warlords here are four, along with some smaller ones, but they hardly stand a chance against the four major warlords.

These past few days, the forces of the four major warlords have been expanding rapidly.

Ever since the Dawn Army eradicated the waiting monsters, these people knew that Ye Fan would definitely take retaliatory action against those who plotted against him. They just didn't know which direction Ye Fan would strike first.

The greatest possibility was to the south or north; the timing might differ, but everyone agreed that Ye Fan wouldn't spare any of them.

To prepare for battle, these warlords began emptying their coffers and traveled to Jiangzhou to procure weapons in recent days.

Jiangzhou has a very complete weapons production line and can even construct warships now. Other equipment is not a problem at all.

When it comes to purchasing, Zheng Jinnan's side doesn't accept New Coin but rather various supplies.

Oil, steel, gold, minerals—anything valuable in the apocalypse is welcomed by Jiangzhou.

Moreover, they demanded an extremely high price, almost wishing to empty the warlords' coffers in one go.

The warlords also had calculated ambitions; as long as they defeated Ye Fan this time, they could eventually recover what they lost.

If they lost, they might as well fully commit to Zheng Jinnan, becoming his direct subordinates rather than the current ambiguous ally relationship, which wasn't a big deal either.

These warlords knew that Zheng Jinnan was not the only prominent warlord in the Empire. In the central northern, western, and southern regions of the Empire, there were still significant warlords present. However, for now, due to great distances, inconvenient communication, and zombies everywhere, they rarely crossed paths.

But as their strength grew, clearing roads and restoring communication would inevitably happen.

At that point, to whom the Empire would belong is hard to say. Once they lost their power to compete, they would eventually belong to some great warlord or noble.

But until that moment, no one wanted to completely submit. This confrontation with Ye Fan was their last chance.

If they won, they would continue being warlords.

If they lost, they'd only be able to be generals in the future or even slaves.

This was a battle staking their lives, and none wanted to surrender easily.

A week after the Sea Monster landed on Dawn Island, the Dawn Army finally made a move.

The Dawn Army, without anyone knowing when, had already gathered in the central region of the Loose Province. They launched a fierce offensive on the two survivor bases near the two lakes in the province's south and north.

Both survivor bases had tens of thousands of people and couldn't withstand the onslaught of the Dawn Army. Within a day, they were all conquered, announcing their complete submission to the Dawn Army.

Upon realizing it, the warlords of the Loose Province also formed the Loose Province Resistance Alliance within a day, organizing an army of 300,000 to fight the Dawn Army to the end!

Among them, two warlord bases closest to Ye Fan's camp united to organize an army of 130,000. At the end of July, they simultaneously launched an attack on the Dawn Army from the two directions of the southern and northern lakes in the Loose Province.

And warlords from other places were also rushing to come. As long as these 130,000 troops could hold the Dawn Army for a few days, the 300,000 army would complete the encirclement, thoroughly crushing the Dawn Army, or at least driving them back to Dawn Island.

......

The northern line of the Great Lakes area is one of the main battlefields of this battle.

According to reliable information, the Dawn Army's Third Field Brigade, consisting of 20,000 troops mainly composed of infantry, is engaged here.

The southern line of the Dawn Army consists of 30,000 troops, including the Dawn Army Fourth Field Brigade, the First Battalion of the First Brigade, and numerous armored units, along with air support from Dawn Island, making it very challenging.

Following the strategy of solving easy problems first, this time, the forces of the Loose Province primarily targeted the northern line of the Dawn Army.

This doesn't mean they're not fighting the southern line; the southern line still needs to be engaged, but primarily to contain them so they can't support the northern line.

To annihilate this northern force of the Dawn Army, the Beihu Base, ranked second among the four major warlords, mobilized 400 tanks, 600 armored vehicles, over 1,000 artillery pieces, and 50,000 infantry. This was almost all the resources Beihu Base had, ready to completely wipe out these Dawn Army units.

The all-in approach by Beihu Base received high praise from Zheng Jinnan and the Alliance.

If all warlords were this diligent, how could the Dawn Army be so arrogant?

The warlord of Beihu Base, Imperial Count Wan Qingshan, also had his considerations.

Firstly, from a military perspective, the northern line of the Dawn Army lacks armored units. Facing an assault by armored legions, they certainly wouldn't be able to resist. Instead of waging a slow war, it's better to go all out and eliminate the enemy in one stroke.

From other perspectives, annihilating the northern line of the Dawn Army presents an opportunity for him to rise. Maybe with this great victory, Beihu Base can surpass Daqiang Base and become the leading force in the Loose Province.

Betting once may lead to winning.

Especially when Ye Fan, in response to a question from a Jiangzhou reporter, openly stated that he would not be the first to use Mushroom Bombs in wars against his own countrymen, Wan Qingshan became more determined to gamble this time.

For this battle, Wan Qingshan personally led the team to march out.

Now, the Dawn Army had captured a nearby base of tens of thousands but did not linger there. Instead, they continued to advance north, seemingly intending to bring the Beihu region under their control.

Wan Qingshan also seized this opportunity, directly setting the battlefield at the Beihu Plains region.

This is a vast plain with few zombies, and its open terrain is perfect for his armored units to shine.

After setting out, Wan Qingshan was in an extremely excited state.

Especially upon entering the planned battlefield, he was eager to engage with the Dawn Army immediately.

A group of military advisors accompanied him, providing strategic advice.

On the battlefield, fifty kilometers away, the Dawn Army had constructed layered defensive fortifications.

Various trenches, fortifications, bunkers piled in layers, all built using a large number of survivors from the bases they conquered.

But all of this played right into Wan Qingshan's plans.

"Generals, regarding the situation with the Dawn Army on the northern front, I believe everyone is clear. Does anyone have any suggestions for this battle?"

His army advisors and generals began to speak one after another.

"Count, first I need to confirm one thing: Is it certain that Ye Fan won't use mushroom bombs against us?"

Wan Qingshan nodded: "This should be somewhat credible. After all, even before the apocalypse, mushroom bombs weren't used casually. Since Ye Fan dared to promise this in front of news media, he likely wouldn't risk global outrage by breaking this promise."

"Then there's no problem. As long as they don't use mushroom bombs, this type of plains warfare, mainly with infantry of the Dawn Army, won't be able to withstand the assault of our armored corps."

"Sir, are we sure there's no air force near the Dawn Army? We currently lack air superiority. If enemy planes come over from Dawn Island or use aircraft carriers to come from the sea, we could suffer a major loss."

Wan Qingshan smiled: "No need to worry about that either. On the southern and northern battlefronts, the pressure is greater on the southern front for the Dawn Army. There are eighty thousand troops there, along with a significant air force engagement. According to reliable intelligence, the Dawn Army's air force and aircraft carrier group have been drawn to the south. Our southern colleagues are creating an opportunity for us. As long as we annihilate the northern front here, no matter the sacrifices in the southern line, it will be worth it."

This military advisor was convinced as well: "If there's no use of mushroom bombs and no air force, then I really can't think of any way this Dawn Army could defeat us. I think we can launch the attack now."

Some military advisors also suggested that the Dawn Army might be digging trenches and fortifications extensively to buy time. It's possible that reinforcements from the Dawn City direction, Gold City direction, or other Dawn Army might come over, so the battle should be swift and decisive.

After much discussion, Wan Qingshan and his group reached a consensus.

Attack, and attack swiftly, with no reservations.

Thus, after resting for a day, Wan Qingshan's troops from the Loose Province launched a large-scale attack on the Dawn Army the next morning.

Since neither side had air force involvement, Wan Qingshan's artillery lined up and began bombarding the Dawn Army's position.

A thousand guns roared for over half an hour, unleashing twenty thousand shells.

Once the artillery barrage ended, the armored units began their advance.

Four hundred tanks led the way, having upgraded from light tanks to main battle tanks, though not cutting-edge, they weren't completely outdated either.

At least facing rocket attacks, they could withstand one or two hits, which was a significant improvement.

The tanks spearheaded the advance, followed by eight hundred armored vehicles.

Over ten thousand soldiers rode in these armored vehicles, ready to dismount and clear the Dawn Army infantry from fortifications once the tanks penetrated enemy positions.

They were equipped with plenty of gear including explosive packs, demolition tubes, grenades, and more.

Some even carried flamethrowers, as everyone knew the Dawn Army soldiers were very battle-hardened, necessitating multiple preparations. These weapons were used against those stubborn Dawn Army soldiers.

Following the armored vehicles, a large number of troop carriers carried tens of thousands of infantry. Wan Qingshan spared no expense for this offensive, mobilizing all available vehicles just to secure a decisive victory.

The Dawn Army had no air force or artillery units here, allowing the Beihu forces to advance smoothly.

After about two hours, the Beihu units had mostly reached the designated battlefield.

They even saw the artillery-bombarded positions of the Dawn Army, which seemed deserted as if the Dawn Army had retreated.

"Could it be? Did the Dawn Army abandon their position and run?"

Wan Qingshan asked the communications officer, who quickly reported that the Dawn Army indeed abandoned this position and withdrew to positions ten kilometers ahead for redeployment.

"Hmph! Foolish, voluntarily compressing their strategic depth. They'll soon realize they have nowhere to retreat."

A wave of his hand signaled the Beihu Army to continue advancing.

Soon, all units were deep within the battlefield.

Just as they approached the Dawn Army positions, a loud buzzing sound suddenly came from the sky ahead.

Seeing the dense swarm of dark specks in the sky, like locusts, Wan Qingshan's expression suddenly turned extremely grim.

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