Chapter 725 Scorched Earth

The train moved forward, and the scenery outside the window was peaceful and tranquil. There were large patches of wild wolfberry flowers on the grass outside the New Richmond train station, blooming luxuriantly and lovely.

In front of him was a vast square field. Eastel could imagine the plump ears of wheat that would eventually be dyed golden in autumn and bend the stalks. The best time of the year is always golden.

When it comes to harvest, the huge empty warehouses in New Richmond will be filled to the brim. The Empire's agricultural subsidy policy is well implemented on planets like Heliok and is very effective.

The long-lasting famine at the end of the old Federation era is still fresh in people's memory. The only memory of that era is endless war, hunger and death.

On so many planets, so many farmers and private farmers are on the verge of bankruptcy, and the number of people who starved to death far exceeds those who died in the war. To this day, there is still a large amount of abandoned land, and its area can accommodate countless water oases.

Ister thought that the Zerg and Protoss certainly could not understand why Emperor Augustus called on the people to plant more land, nor could they understand their love for their homeland.

New Richmond was left behind in the blink of an eye. When the maglev train drove onto a section of viaduct, the vast and beautiful water source oasis was in full view. This is exactly what they yearn for, a quiet and peaceful life.

Multiple roads intersected below, and the endless siege tanks, armored personnel carriers and Hellfire tanks gathered into a long iron-gray dragon, and heavy trucks carrying War Wolf walking mechas roared past one after another.

Highly mobile mechanized troops can play the greatest advantage in flat areas. They can quickly break through and divide and surround the enemy, or provide strong support for the infantry.

When the new recruits in Ister's platoon saw this scene, they felt that they were invincible and seemed to be in high spirits. This is a good thing, better than hiding in a corner and sobbing like a litter of unweaned kittens before going to the battlefield.

On the battlefield, only fear always accompanies you.

As the train went faster and faster, the city of New Richmond was completely out of sight. This oasis was unusually vast, and there was even a grassland landscape, where large water birds ten feet tall and predators with three eyes lived.

These amazing animals were obviously not unaware of the impending disaster, and they were running in groups on the grassland, and even panicked and crashed into the moving armored vehicles. Generally speaking, only a terrible fire would cause such a scene.

In any case, the swarm is a living natural disaster, they are endless and eternal. Humans in the Koprulu sector have always faced the threat of the swarm.

Those planets that could not protect themselves eventually perished without suspense, and the survivors migrated like a flock of migratory birds escaping from the severe winter, and there was no difference between them and the animals in the water source colony.

At this time, the imperial soldiers in this carriage seemed very calm, either wiping and maintaining their electromagnetic rifles, or squinting their eyes and taking a nap. The veterans were much calmer about what was about to happen. They had also participated in the most tragic battle in the Koprulu Sector.

In the communication channel, Sergeant Rhodes was still telling the recruits about their battle in the Imperial storage world Brocas Hull. Seven fleets and more than two million soldiers participated in that battle. The enemy was the Sutur Hive, which suddenly launched a surprise attack through the wormhole.

Although the Empire finally won and drove the invaders out of Brocas Hull, they paid a huge price, even more than the swarm.

The tactics of the Sutur Hive were not very clever, but they were very effective. When the local defenders were unable to react in time, the Sutur swarm broke through Brocas Hull's orbital defense system and occupied all military facilities and supply warehouses.

When the Imperial fleet arrived at Brocas Hull after hearing the news, the Sutur fleet in orbit chose to retreat immediately. When the commander of the fleet, General Gustav, hurriedly sent the Marines to recapture this planet that was vital to the Empire, the disaster happened.

The Zerg did not use any interference to disrupt the Imperial Army's command and communications, but the surviving Brocas defenders conveyed the wrong message to the fleet in orbit. They completely misjudged the number of Zerg troops on the ground because the Lurkers, Cockroaches and Banelings that had infiltrated the underground did not launch an attack.

This destroyed the first batch of Imperial troops that landed. 100,000 people were killed or wounded in less than an hour, leaving only a few thousand people. Another 100,000 people were on the way, and later they were all finished.

At the same time, Surtur's Zerg Hive Fleet appeared again and struck back, leaving the Imperial Fleet exhausted and unable to withdraw.

The Imperial command channel was in chaos, and the Imperial soldiers on the ground were massacred, but General Gustav made a completely different judgment on the situation. He believed that the situation on Brocas could still be saved, and the landing troops were just surrounded and there was still hope for rescue. Obviously, he could not ignore the requests for help on the ground and the screams that filled the entire channel, and he couldn't bear it.

So, the remaining 300,000 people also set off in the airdrop capsule.

In contrast, the Sutur Swarm paid very little price. It was a terrible massacre.

The soldiers and officers who participated in the battle admitted that the battle was very cowardly. They used to think that the Swarm was more inclined to win by numbers, but it was not the case.

After the battle, General Gustav was really to blame. The pain and regret made his spirit deteriorate, and soon there was news that he was seriously ill.

The reputation of this general, who had been loyal to Emperor Augustus since the days of the Revolutionary Army, was discredited. Rumors abounded in the army. Among them, the most popular was that Gustav was infected by zerg parasites and invaded his brain due to his personal style. Welcome, it is said that the personal doctor sent by the emperor later detected gonorrhea in his body.

Sergeant Rhodes, who was on this side, was already frothing and excited as he talked about it. He thought about several big dramas in his mind, and also talked about the conflict between several generals in the navy.

In fact, this argument is untenable. If Gustav had been controlled by the zerg, he could have brought the fleet into the swarm.

Easter's platoon also participated in the battle of Brocas. They were lucky enough to not be among the 500,000 people who first landed, but they saw 500,000 corpses on the landing site.

The failure of this battle had a series of extremely serious consequences for the empire, which indirectly led to the retreat to Helioke.

Brokas Hel is also the Empire's largest logistics supply center in the star field. It stores a large amount of materials expected to be sent to the front line, including ammunition, gas fuel and food. The losses are so large that the Imperial army in the star field is unbearable. , the front-line troops were forced to fight under more unfavorable conditions.

Even the best army cannot continue fighting if supplies are lacking.

"I like it here, and I hope the water source will not be lost." Alexis comes from a place with little water. He is a native of the Shirok people. Most of his homeland is covered by barren land like the Sahara Desert. cover. There, even an oasis like a water source cannot be found.

"If we cannot defend here, then their next attack targets will be Ynoth and Venus, followed by Vadona and Velidia, who will eventually reach Korhal." Private Lin said : "We will fail miserably."

North is Lin's hometown, an ocean water world with a tropical style, beautiful and charming, with dotted islands located on the vast waters. That planet once belonged to the Protoss Empire in its heyday and was regarded as a holy land.

But when Lin's ancestors arrived in Noth, they found only seven castles and their ruins, inscribed with the prophecies of the Protoss Mad Prophet Khyar.

By the time the protoss of Daraam reiterated their territorial claims to the planet, the Terran humans had already colonized it. At that time, the Tyranid Empire and Daraaam were in their honeymoon period, and Noth was already far away from Saguras. Very far away, the matter was later resolved through diplomatic means.

This is mainly because the current rulers of the Durham Protoss are the Templar class. If they were the Arbitrator class, a holy war would be indispensable.

"It looks like this." Under the full-coverage helmet of the Marauder that shone like obsidian, William said absently:

"Humanity is going to perish, do whatever you want. Merciful God, we are going to be finished, who cares about human beings."

The Marauder armor is much stronger and taller than ordinary power armor, so William can only sit in the "privilege seat".

"We must fight to the last bullet. Even at the last moment, we must fight with bayonets, just like the Char Legion did in Xion." Rurik has participated in several battles, but he still looks like a passionate young man. So full of enthusiasm.

Rurik, who was born in Tarsonis and grew up in Umoyan, has a great sense of honor. Everyone in the Ister Platoon feels that he is an excellent candidate for the Royal Guard. Of course, this is not all praise.

"Boy, this won't be of much use. One person's courage cannot change the fate of all mankind." William said.

"With the courage of all mankind, we can defeat even God." Easter said.

"You always like to say nice things." William changed the topic: "Khar's coming is different. Augustus Mengsk can turn defeat into victory every time. I wonder what he has in mind this time."

"Of course he has," Middlebrook said. "Everyone knows that our battles at Grantz, Tartarus, Brochus Hel, and here are part of the Imperial war plan."

"I think their plan is to 'implement a more flexible command strategy,' which usually means firing a few shots and running away," William said.

Even after encountering several major setbacks, the Imperial Army still effectively blocked the advancement of the Golden Fleet and the Insect Swarm on many important battlefields. They deployed heavy troops in the sparsely populated star field to attract the firepower of the golden fleet and keep the protoss away from the hub world. Although the cost was staggering, the goal was finally achieved.

But they still cannot change the fact that they are constantly retreating. UNN reports good news but not bad news, but its defense line is retreating every day.

"Even if he really has a plan, he won't tell us these big-headed soldiers. The zerg will also spy on our intelligence." Easter said.

As I spoke, the train was still rumbling forward, and there were gradually more palm groves, and there were several hills on both sides of the railway track.

Compared with the active volcanoes of Red Rock Star, which are often several miles high, these are just inconspicuous hills. Even so, in the eyes of the locals, these are already remarkable mountains. Children born in New Richmond have never seen the vast ocean, and this colony is just a small island in the vast ocean of proud water.

It's still calm ahead.

The calmer it was, the more uneasy Ister felt.

At this moment, in other parts of Heliok, the battle had already begun. Orbital firepower and airborne troops were clearing large hatcheries and fungal blanket clusters on the planet to curb the endless expansion of the swarm.

"As long as these stink bugs are still alive at this time, we will not be safe for a day." Troy was just saying that the train on the move had a huge tremor and stopped at a terrifying speed.

Ister estimated that several carriages had derailed.

"Open the door!"

William roared and pushed open the door of the carriage. The marines in Ister's platoon immediately rushed out with weapons.

In front of them was an extremely chaotic scene. Many huge tunnel worms were breaking out of the ground, and there were many flying alien insect creatures with purple shells in the sky.

Zerg, they are extremely terrible opponents. Since the end of the Battle of Tartarus, Ister's nightmares have never lacked the terrifying faces of Hydra Hydralisks.

The Zerg plunder genes to transform themselves. They do not use swords, guns and armor, but claws, biochemical weapons and shells instead. Humans will improve their weapons, while the Zerg have their own "bioengineers" who use continuous evolution to perfection instead of upgrading military engineering.

To deal with such monsters, Marshal Horace Warfield gave a standard answer based on experience in the teaching manual of the Steeling Officer Academy: burn them and leave no one alive.

"Tunnel Worm!"

"Queen Worm! One o'clock!"

"Spores attack!"

"Hide!"

The Zerg will not play by the rules.

"Cockroaches!"

"Damn, they are everywhere!"

Chaos.

When Istel's troops opened fire, a large number of Zerg covered with purple shells emerged from the tunnel worms.

Every major invasion of the Zerg will not be without the presence of the Jörmungandr Zerg. The deep purple shell torrent is an indelible nightmare in the hearts of the Tyranids. They have brought countless blood, corpses and death.

Since the beginning of history, the Jörmungandr swarm has always been one of the largest and most aggressive large-scale hives.

Jörmungandr's Lord Ark is cruel and cunning. The Dark Templars have launched assassination attempts against him many times, but all failed.

At this moment, the Protoss Phoenix fighters also appeared in the sky. They evaded the human detection system and appeared like ghosts. Istel knew that they must have missed an Arbiter.

"Where is our air force?"

How can we fight this war with the Protoss bombing in the sky and the bugs running underground.

If the Protoss can't deal with the Imperial fleet in high-altitude orbit, they will send troops to land and destroy the defense forces on the planet.

A group of fanatics appeared a few hundred yards away from Istel, across a train.

That was the attire of the Templars in the Golden Age. They were already slaves of Amon, but the content of the battle cry had not changed.

"En Taro Khas! En Taro Adun!"