Relying solely on the Tier 7 bugs produced by the brood lords, it was certainly impossible to hold back a concentrated swarm of Tier 8, Tier 9, or higher.
Once the north was stabilized, half of the unicycles stationed there began moving to the south via maritime transport.
Next would be the focused attack on the Dawn Empire's capital.
Although the battle in the Capital Province represented the country's primary struggle, nearly a million bugs continued to strike surrounding areas, attempting to bypass the capital and push into the southern reaches of the empire.
The scale of the secondary and tertiary forces in various regions was still staggering.
If they concentrated all their forces solely on taking the capital without maintaining the perimeter, the enemy in the rear would likely find an opportunity to regroup and launch a pincer movement against the Swarm from all directions.
Of course, in terms of combat power, the current Dawn Empire was no match for the Zerg.
In just a single month, the country had mobilized tens of millions of soldiers from its population of several hundred million. Even with decades of preparation, such efficiency would be hard to imagine even on Earth.
But that is the nature of civilization. When a people are united from top to bottom and supported by efficient production, information transmission, and logistics, their mobilization capability can grow exponentially.
Only the Dawn Empire's strength could contend with the bug-like Zerg for so long.
In truth, the Swarm's advantage relied heavily on its countless fodder units, which tied down the empire's formidable mobilized legions. Without them, the outcome of this war might have been very different.
Now, some of the more aggressive units had approached within 50 kilometers of the capital city.
The Zerg used a very concentrated force of Armored Heavy Cannon Bugs in this wave.
This tactic was actually Xia Jin's idea.
Although the Swarm had ceased production of these units, an army without armored units felt incomplete. During breakthroughs, the firepower of the Armored Heavy Cannon Bugs remained highly flexible; if they encountered stubborn resistance, they could simply call for missile support from the rear.
The ravagers had become the primary siege units, capable of engaging armor and fortifications from a distance while launching mortars—in the form of plasma fireballs—at close range. Having been upgraded to handle StarCraft-level ground warfare, their firepower now utterly overwhelmed the empire's forces.
At this time, 1,600 heavy cannon bugs were concentrated on a 10-kilometer-long charge line, where most of the Zerg's firepower was invested.
Covered by countless aerial units, this vanguard pierced deep into the heart of the imperial defense lines. Though imperial soldiers armed with individual weapons were everywhere, they were powerless to stop the massive Swarm advance under the suppression of overwhelming rocket fire.
The battle raged for a day and a night. Although the advance was slow, this sharp blade finally stabbed right in front of the capital city.
The next morning, a group of broodlings was the first to break into the city's outskirts.
Brutal street fighting officially began!
The Swarm had prepared extensively for such urban combat. Infested lurkers were deployed in mass, their long-range earth spikes sweeping through a radius of several kilometers. For imperial soldiers hiding on the ground floors or in the basements of buildings, these attacks were an absolute catastrophe.
Just a few infested lurkers could block an entire street.
And the ravagers' high-angle fire dealt a devastating blow to anyone in any area of the streets.
Scourges hovered overhead, constantly monitoring everything below and providing precise intelligence for the rear's fire strikes.
Half a day later, the people of the empire finally reacted, forced to have most soldiers hide on the second floor or higher.
But this was exactly what Xia Jin wanted.
That afternoon, a massive bombardment from the air and from afar began.
Countless banelings were dropped onto the battlefield, exploding into terrifying venom and covering the entire city in terrible corrosion.
This was followed by rocket strikes covering various buildings.
While laying siege to the city, the main forces in the surrounding areas continued to suppress the empire's forces elsewhere. The urban assault was grueling; with imperial soldiers everywhere and entire legions periodically returning to the city to reinforce it, the Swarm units on the front line faced a constant challenge.
In the center of the plaza, dense anti-aircraft fire made the Zerg's repeated saturation strikes yield little result.
But under such massive consumption, the plaza being blown up was within expectations.
The Emperor himself once again requested support from the Goddess of Dawn.
And this time, a strange object fell from the sky, landing directly in the middle of a Zerg concentration. A terrifying fireball covered everything with blinding light.
“Pfft.”
By the time Xia Jin realized what was happening, it was too late.
The attack from space instantly wiped out more than 100,000 of her bugs.
“It's probably a hydrogen bomb.”
She was more than familiar with this weapon.
Rate on N.U.
