Castle of Black Iron

Zhang Tie didn’t know whether he was fortunate or not. Only after staying in Mocco City overnight, he had encountered such a large-scale battle situation.

Many people who planned to leave the city were gathering in the northernmost city wall of Mocco City. Watching so many demonized puppets, many people were so scared that their face even turned pale. When something reached its million level, it would be overwhelming in front of you even if they were ants.

At this moment, what was rushing towards Mocco City were not ants but the army of demonized puppets.

At least two demonized puppets corps were rushing towards Mocco City.

At this moment, most of those on the city wall of the north gate along with Zhang Tie were demon hunters. Some of them were paladins. Actually, demon hunters were not greatly different than paladins. Demon hunters were powerhouses with military background while paladins were powerhouses who wished to defend demons in Selnes Theater of Operations voluntarily. The two parties both had rich experiences in fighting demons and demonized puppets. Many demon hunters were commission officers. Because of this, the garrisons allowed Zhang Tie and the others to watch what was happening outside the city in the city tower.

The saplings and newborn weeds were quivering, causing ripples in the pond beside the saplings and newborn weeds. The ground was booming like it was thundering. It was caused by more than one million demonized puppets who were running. Looking away at the distance, the demonized puppets were forming a big, dirty and fierce tide.

Including Zhang Tie, everyone held their breath to wait for the attack.

Right behind the city wall, there was a turret which was higher than 50 m. All the people in the turret were working hard.

On the top of the turret, there was a huge mobile platform which looked like an astronomical observatory. Inside that platform, a huge over 1000-ton mechanical flywheel was swiveling rapidly. Beneath the flywheel were two sets of steam engines. The driving force provided by the steam engines turned into the speed of revolution of the huge flywheel. Above the flywheel, complex steam mechanical devices were automatically loading huge, odd gear-shaped items into the projectile positions of the flywheel.

Because there were two boiler rooms downstairs, steam would be transmitted upwards through pipes. Even in winter, the temperature in the turret would still be higher than 35 degree Celsius, not to mention now. In the turret which was was over 40 degree Celsius, each human fighter was oozing sweat all over. Almost all the fighters here were in the bare upper body, a pair of short pants and a pair of shoes. However, at the critical moment, each person was sticking to their own position while staring at the commander who sent orders. Everybody became intense. However, nobody felt frightful. As a human fighter who garrisoned in the steam centrifugal turret silently, it was time for them to show their value. Many people could only have such a chance one or two times in their whole lives.

A Chinese captain with fortitude look and black eyes was standing in the turret and observing the direction of the demonized puppets corps using telescopic rangefinder before sending orders one after another.

”Direction 2...”

”Projection angle 65...”

”Loading centrifugal gear bombs...”

”Largest load...”

”Maintain the largest revolving speed of the flywheel...”

With the series of orders, the metal platform at the top of the turret which was higher than 50 m slowly moved while the huge gun muzzle opened and raised towards the sky...

”Brothers, are you afraid?” That commissioned officer moved his eyes away from the rangefinder at the critical moment as he threw a glance at those fighters who were garrisoning in the turret.

Those fighters’ age ranged from 16 to above 60. Some were constantly spading coal into the boilers by shovel; some were gazing at those pressure gauges and tachometers in front of them; some were covered with tools and observing the running operation of those steam pipes inside the turret. Some operators were sitting before the operating table and manipulating the pile of metal drawbars and dials. In the underground bomb loading room, over 20 tough men were gazing at the bomb belt in front of them and waiting for the orders from above.

”Fear what!”

”Just beat those b*stard!”

”Yes, no matter what, we are common low-end soldiers. On the battlefield, we might be killed before chopping down any demon. However, in here, by manipulating such a big weapon, we will make a comeback with only one launch. To fear what?” Soldiers in the turret replied loudly.

”It’s not enough to make a comeback; we need to make at least 1000 times more. If you make less than that, don’t tell others you’re following my order!” The Chinese captain joked as he turned solemn at once, ”Attention, ready...”

The inside of the turret became quiet at once. Only the huge centrifugal flywheel hummed...

In less than 10 seconds, a roar sounded in the turret...

”Launch...”

Closely after the order ”Launch”, the great centrifugal linear velocity turned into the initial velocity of the ammunition on the flywheel at once. With a shriek outside the turret, a group of centrifugal gear bombs had flown towards the far...

...

This was Zhang Tie’s first time to witness a battle facing a city in such a scale.

At this moment, the entire Mocco City had been fortified. There were over 100 centrifugal turrets with the largest range in the city. The moment the demonized puppets surged into the range of the centrifugal turret, over 100 centrifugal turrets opened fire almost at the same time. Zhang Tie raised his head and saw hundreds of black points drawing a distant parabola towards the demonized puppets corps over 4 miles away. After over 10 seconds, they all fell into the camp of demonized puppets.

The moment the huge wheel-sized metal gears fell on the ground, they sprung up once again. Due to their great momentum, they kept rolling forward, crushing demonized puppets dozens of meters ahead. As a result, a lot of demonized puppets’ blood and fleshes sprayed in all directions with broken tendons and bones...

Standing on the tower over the city gate, Zhang Tie saw those huge centrifugal gears causing over 100 red bloody traces. In the blink of an eye, those bloody traces disappeared as they were submerged by the following tide. For those terrifying demonized puppets, they didn’t know about fear and pain at all.

Zhang Tie felt that powerful steam centrifugal shell was like a kurbash which slashed onto those monsters rushing towards Mocco City crazily, leaving bloody traces on their bodies. However, those monsters didn’t stop moving forward.

After 20 seconds, over 100 gears flew off once again and fell towards the distance, leaving 100 more bloody traces, which disappeared in a wink...

Like mad cows, the black tide grew crazier among the constant shrieks.

After launching 10 rounds of shells, the vanguard of the black tide had already been 3 miles away from Mocco City.

Among a wide area of thick rising smokes, Zhang Tie saw over 1,000 armored vehicles and tanks accelerating towards the demonized puppets from outside the Mocco City. At this moment, those who dared rush towards the black tide by armored vehicles were real heroes.

In order to deal with those demonized puppets, the wheels on both sides of those armored vehicles had been installed with blades.

The moment the two parties collided with each other had those demonized puppets been sent flying backwards. Some were crushed; numerous were cut into halves. At the same time, the armored vehicles shot out bolts through steam ballistas. Each time they shot blindly had they at least penetrated through two demonized puppets...

After being heavily cracked by human armored troops, those demonized puppets’ tide-like attack was curbed at once; however, it was temporary.

Demonized puppets could barely be killed. Even though they were cut into halves, they would not die in a short time; instead, they could still move. As to the penetrating injuries, unless their fragile head or necks, which contained central nervous system, were penetrated through, those injuries were not fatal to demonized puppets at all.

Gradually, the demonized puppets started to launch a counterattack. Numerous demonized puppets jumped on the armored vehicles and blocked the loopholes and peepholes with their own bodies while others swarmed up the armored vehicles like ants that biting beetles. After their limbs being chopped off, the demonized puppets were struggling and trying their best to insert their weapons into the pedrails of the armored vehicles; some of them even put their own arms or bodies into the pedrails or wheels to break down the armored vehicles.

After being blocked by piles of demonized puppets, armored vehicles could not launch bolts anymore...

When the pedrails were destroyed, the armored vehicles started to turn around in the same place; some could not even move anymore...

Being surrounded by demonized puppets, the drivers in armored vehicles could not see the forward direction; as a result, their armored vehicles collided with other armored vehicles. Some of them even drove into gullies...

While others kept surging forward...

Only after a few minutes, the collision between steel and demonized puppets which were barely killed had entered a climax.

Not all the demonized puppets were blocked by armored vehicles. When a part of demonized puppets surrounded the armored vehicles, the others just ignored them and continued to surge towards Mocco City while uttering weird roars.

At this moment, the firm fortifications made of steel and cement outside Mocco City started to work while the long-distance ballistas on the city wall of Mocco City also started to roar. Facing the dispersed strike which was like raindrops, a large area of demonized puppets fell down; however, they struggled to pick themselves up from the ground. The entire Mocco City boiled like a piece of hot, red steel in a split second...