First Light of a New Age

Chapter 179: Humans vs Beastmen

A/n: This chapter contains over 19,000 words. If you find yourself feeling tired or overwhelmed by the details, it may be best to set it aside until you have the time and energy to read it fully and comment on anything, as it could take several hours to go through carefully. You don’t need to rush, take your time. You can also pause and rest after finishing each scene and allow yourself to absorb it bit by bit rather than all at once.

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Second Civilization Zone, Border Wall, Border Between the People's State of Xinhua and the Immorgenaria Empire, Several Kilometers North from Heihe.

4th Year of the New Age, Tuesday, 1st Week, 10th Month of The Father.

Outside the 30-meter-tall border walls of Heihe, the city’s defenders stood in perfect formation like a steel tide bracing against the storm to come. 

Rows upon rows of defense troops filled the lines on top of the walls and on the ground while armored vehicles behind them were growling with engines left idling, rumbling like caged beasts eager to be unleashed.

The border wall itself was filled with weapons of war such as heavy artillery cannons squatting between reinforced battlements, railgun turrets tracked back and forth, and plasma batteries aimed squarely toward the horizon where thick dust clouds were rising across the plains.

At the very front of the defenders was Mayor Nie Yuan, who was standing like a steel giant planted in human form, grafted plating merging seamlessly with flesh and his shoulders were broad enough to bear the weight of an army’s hopes. 

This politician's body was a fusion of man and machine, powered by the finest cybernetic engineering from Xinhua’s megacorporations mixing with Austronesian's magi-tech, granting him the strength and resilience to rival a 2nd-Tier Transcendent. 

To the soldiers behind him, he was not only a leader but also a weapon in his own right, as dangerous as the arsenal mounted upon the wall.

His crimson artificial eye scanned the plains ahead while his officers were waiting tensely around him as if sheltering in his shadow.

“Report again,” Nie Yuan commanded metallically through the external speakers so every soldier along the wall could hear the steel in his tone.

“Mayor,” Colonel Wei replied crisply, though his face was taut with unease. “The Immorgenarian Beastkin army is closing fast. Recon drones confirm a force no less than 400,000 strong at a minimum. Furthermore, multiple magic signatures detected multiple high-level threats among them… only several were confirmed at the Transcendent level.”

The gathered officers felt unease at the reports. A hundred thousand enemies alone would test Heihe’s defenses, but bolstered by elite champions of near-divine power like Transcendents could threaten to overwhelm them entirely.

“Why?” asked one commander with disbelief roughening his voice. “There’s been no declaration or border disputes. Nothing to justify this kind of aggression.”

Another slammed his fist against the console of a portable command board. “It makes no sense! We’ve had treaties in place since contact was made! Why would Immorgenaria risk total war?”