Gu Ya was somewhat bewildered by the orders from headquarters. There were still countless enemy aircraft in the sky; why the sudden ceasefire?
Had headquarters been captured?
Had the people in power chosen to surrender? To negotiate with the Black Star?
No, that was impossible. Xianxia would not negotiate with invaders. Moreover, even if a few high-ranking officials surrendered, it wouldn't deter the resolve of all Xianxia citizens to protect their homeland.
“Gu Ya, what do we do? Headquarters issued this order under unclear circumstances, something isn't right. Hey, say something, why are you mute at such a crucial moment?” Qiao Weiwei complained urgently.
“I don't know either,” Gu Ya replied, connecting to the public communication channel.
The channel was silent, as if the backend server had been damaged.
And it was only the public channel that had disappeared; other channels still had signals.
“Regardless, you need to replenish your ammunition. Let's head to the nearest ammo resupply point first. Watch out for enemy aircraft around you,” Gu Ya instructed.
After retracting his Kuer Nu, Gu Ya summoned You Yin and led the Unfettered Red towards the ammo resupply point a few kilometers away.
Along the way, Gu Ya looked at the devastated Xianxia City and sighed coldly in his heart.
Some scattered guerrilla soldiers hid within damaged buildings, peering out cautiously.
“Hey!” a guerrilla soldier crouching on a half-broken floor slab waved at You Yin and shouted, “What's going on? Why is it so quiet all of a sudden!”
Hearing his words, Gu Ya suddenly realized that the sounds of explosions, mecha roars, beam energy discharges, and all sorts of cacophonous noises had vanished.
The entire Xianxia City seemed to have returned to the quiet state before the war. However, the abundance of rubble and mecha wreckage on the ground served as a reminder that the war was still ongoing.
You Yin raised a hand in an unclear gesture, then pressed his right index finger against his left palm, indicating no combat missions at the moment. He then pointed forward, signaling his intention to resupply ammunition.
The guerrilla soldier shouted into the dark interior of the building behind him, and soon, over a dozen guerrilla soldiers armed with various weapons emerged.
They vigorously patted the thick, dust-colored tactical suits on their bodies, kicking up large clouds of dust.
Following that, the dozen or so guerrilla soldiers moved in tactical formation, cautiously observing the front, rear, and above, as they followed You Yin towards the ammunition resupply point.
Along the way, Gu Ya encountered more ground assault mechs, tanks, assault buggies, and spider-type assault mechs of the defending forces.
In just a few kilometers, thousands of ground defenders had fallen in behind Gu Ya and Qiao Weiwei.
It was evident that there were still quite a number of ground defenders in Xianxia City.
It was only upon reaching the resupply station that Gu Ya understood the reason behind the ceasefire.
Gu Ya and Qiao Weiwei stood before a massive ammo replenishment mech, listening to an engineer in a grim, wry smile say, “Only 297 defending mechs remain.”
“Ah?” Qiao Weiwei exclaimed in surprise.
The engineer's inappropriate wry smile vanished as he solemnly stated, “Yes, I heard it from the company commander. One of Xianxia's War Gods has fallen, and out of 958 defending mechs, only 297 are left. Ground forces suffered about eighteen thousand casualties. And the enemy...”
“The enemy lost about twenty-seven thousand mechs.”
“Heh…” the engineer gave a proud, slight smile, “This battle will definitely go down in human history. Do you know, Bai Ling War God alone took down five thousand three hundred enemy aircraft.”
Gu Ya nodded with a heavy heart. Although the defending forces had suffered heavy losses, the enemy had paid a greater price.
Unfortunately, the remaining forces were insufficient to resist more enemies.
Next, they would have to head south of Xianxia City to see what exactly the higher-ups intended.
‘If the higher-ups want to negotiate or sign some unequal treaty, I’ll kill those who fear death first, then vanish into the Xianxia City mountains and engage in guerrilla warfare. As long as I’m alive, the enemy won’t have an easy time,’ Gu Ya vowed in his heart.
Qiao Weiwei tugged at Gu Ya’s sleeve, her expression stern as she reminded him, “Gu Ya, we should go.”
Judging by her demeanor, she had reached a similar conclusion as Gu Ya.
Despite her pampered young lady appearance, Qiao Weiwei was certainly not someone who feared death or would compromise her principles.
The Unfettered Red’s ammunition had been fully replenished.
As Gu Ya and Qiao Weiwei re-entered their mechs, the sky had already begun to darken.
This grueling defense of the city had lasted nine hours, with both sides having paid a heavy price, and the victor remained undecided.
Flying over the utterly ravaged Xianxia City, no lights were visible within the city, and countless fires raged through it, resembling a sky full of fallen stars.
When You Yin and Unfettered Red arrived at the area directly south of Xianxia City, all the defending mechs were in position.
Gu Ya emerged from his mech and quickly entered a barracks set up under a heavy transport mech, where the eight surviving War Gods were already waiting.
“What’s going on?” Gu Ya whispered to Ye Zhenjun, bending down beside him.
Ye Zhenjun sighed through his nose and said heavily, “The enemy’s high command is negotiating with ours. It seems the enemy also doesn’t want to destroy Xianxia City, which has hundreds of years of history.”
“What’s there to talk about!” a burly man covered in tattoos of bold pronouncements roared in anger, “To put it bluntly, they’re a bunch of cowards! Damn it!”
Ye Zhenjun’s gaze turned icy towards the man.
Gu Ya remembered him as the fourteenth-ranked War God, though he couldn’t recall his name.
“Any news?” Gu Ya asked softly.
Ye Zhenjun nodded and said quietly, “Don’t worry, our Supreme Commander will not compromise. We’d rather fight than surrender. Moreover, we still have over a hundred thousand troops gathered in various cities. If it truly comes down to a fight to the death, it’s hard to say who will prevail.”
“What about the reinforcement troops?” Gu Ya continued to ask.
“They should arrive in about two days. The enemy is currently fighting the reinforcement troops. Don’t count on them; the enemy will definitely deploy heavy forces to block the reinforcements,” Ye Zhenjun said.
He paused before continuing, “According to intelligence reports, this Black Star commander, Mu Ye Xingchen, is actually from Xianxia.”
Gu Ya lowered his head, remaining silent.
He knew that the higher-ups were preparing to stall for time, waiting for reinforcements to arrive.
More than the safety of Xianxia City or his own, Gu Ya was more concerned about Ye Ying at this moment.
He wondered if she was among the reinforcement troops and prayed for her safety.
“Don’t worry,” Ye Zhenjun, sensing Gu Ya’s concern, patted his shoulder and said softly, “I’ve learned through some channels that Little Ying is still at Kuanghai Peak.”
Gu Ya nodded, slightly reassured.
Leaving the oppressive barracks, Gu Ya stepped out into the wilderness outside Xianxia City. Ahead lay the negotiation encampment, guarded by both armies.
Gazing at the negotiation encampment and then back at Xianxia City behind him, Gu Ya felt a profound sense of gloom.
The enemy’s true strength, while not superior to the Xianxia defenders, was not made of paper.
If the negotiations failed, and the final decisive battle truly occurred, he didn't know how many more would perish.
Xianxia City was on the brink, and the Xianxia nation had reached a point of survival or demise.
Time ticked by, and as the dawn’s first light began to break in the east.
The doors of the negotiation encampment were forcefully pushed open.
A group of high-ranking commanders emerged from the encampment with stern faces and displeased expressions, boarded jeeps, and sped down the high earthen mound to return to the encampment outside the city.
Gu Ya followed the convoy, returning quickly.
Upon entering the encampment, he saw the Supreme Commander seated with a serious expression at the head of the conference table.
To his right sat a host of War Gods, while his left was empty.
The high-ranking officials who had returned from the negotiations took their seats on the left side of the conference table.
As soon as they were seated, a senior official from Xianxia’s Strategic Bureau, seated to the Supreme Commander’s left, spoke, “The other side has put forth two conditions. If satisfied, they will withdraw their troops and guarantee their exit from the Xianxia Ding war zone.”
“Condition one: Maintain the existing state, with city defenders no longer launching sorties. Furthermore, the Xianxia City defenders will not be reinforced.”
“And condition two…”
Before he could finish, all the negotiating high-ranking officials present turned their gazes towards Gu Ya.