The climate on the Impassable Mountain Range always lagged behind that at the foot of the mountains.
Previously, Maozhao didn't quite understand this saying, but now he finally understood its true meaning.
As the Month of the Evil Moon ended, most towns had entered the snow-melting season. The sound of trickling water could be heard everywhere, and newly sprouted green shoots could be seen in the damp soil by the roadside. However, on the Impassable Mountain Range, everything remained the same. Most areas were covered with white snow, and the edges of the cliffs were hung with strings of icicles taller than a person. When passing through the paths below, one always worried whether these thick "needle tips" would suddenly fall down.
If it weren't for the help of the hummingbirds and the God's Punishment Witches, they wouldn't have been able to transport the heavy weapons to the predetermined position on their own.
However, what made Maozhao even more uneasy was the target of this mission—the demons' mobile fortress.
It was just too big.
Even though it was still more than twenty kilometers away, it could be observed directly without binoculars. It almost occupied half of the northern sky, and both its outline and aura were out of place with the surrounding world. The exposed rocks were pitch black, angular, and seemed to have been carved out by a knife and axe, forming a sharp contrast with the reviving Fertile Plains.
Above the floating land, there was a thick red mist. It was highest in the central part of the fortress, and then slowly spread around. At the edges, only a few wisps remained, cascading down along the low points of the terrain, looking like red ribbons hanging around the land from afar.
This huge object put a great deal of pressure on Maozhao.
In the past, a distance of twenty kilometers meant absolute safety. Both sides were still tiny black dots on the ground, making it difficult to detect or engage. But now, this distance felt like it was close at hand, and he felt that he could be knocked down and crushed by this mountain that was floating towards him at any time.
Compared to the enemy's fortress, their own position and artillery seemed somewhat insignificant.
Perhaps the headquarters also considered this point, which is why they gathered together these officers who had been following the army in battles both south and north.
He retreated back into the hidden sentry post and let out a long breath of white air.
Deep breathing helps to relieve tension, which is also what His Majesty often taught.
"What's wrong, scared?" Youpi bent down and leaned over.
"Bah!" Maozhao glared at him fiercely, "How could I be scared!"
"It's not something to be ashamed of," the latter picked up the binoculars and peeked out from the observation port of the simple fortification, "To be honest, this reminds me of the scene when the artillery team first faced the Longsong Stronghold's knight charge."
Maozhao was slightly stunned.
He naturally wouldn't forget his first experience on the battlefield—it was also shortly after the Month of the Evil Moon, and he was facing a menacing enemy. He almost dropped the solid cannonball he was carrying on his own foot several times. Before becoming a member of the army, he couldn't have imagined that he would one day be able to stand upright in front of the charging knights, confronting them head-on, instead of kneeling down and begging for mercy or turning around and fleeing.
Although he thought he was about to die at that time, his legs were shaking like a sieve.
This time, however, the opponent had become a floating land.
When the memories in his mind overlapped with reality, Maozhao found that his heartbeat suddenly slowed down a lot.
"I remember, you were so nervous that you almost stuttered."
"Heh, don't just talk about me, even Captain Vanna wasn't any better." Youpi stared at the target and said, "But at least we didn't forget to fire the cannons, and that's enough."
Maozhao nodded almost imperceptibly.
Indeed, there was nothing great about being afraid, as long as they could fulfill their duties—no matter if the enemy was noble knights or a floating continent, the only thing they had to do was to fire the cannons.
"Wait, there's movement on the fortress!" Youpi suddenly lowered his voice, "It's Fear Beasts, the demons are reacting!"
"So fast?" Maozhao's heart tightened. This distance was still far from the artillery's range. If they were discovered by the demons too early, the interception operation would probably end in failure.
"A very large number… Oh my God," Youpi swallowed, "Probably more than a hundred!"
He quickly raised the binoculars as well, and saw black dots constantly flying out of the red mist and gathering in a row at the edge of the floating land. Maozhao was all too familiar with this scene. Obviously, the enemy was gathering their forces, and an attack was about to begin. However, the position where the demons were gathering seemed a little off…
The two looked at each other and realized almost at the same time, "They've discovered the fake camp!"
Compared to the real interception position, many cannons were also placed on another preset position, but they were all models made of wood and paint on the spot, and they were not covered with camouflage nets. It seemed that this arrangement had obviously worked!
According to the plan, the enemies from the sky would be intercepted by the sky knights.
There was no doubt that the better the teammates fought, the longer the decoy point could be hidden.
"I wonder if they've noticed the enemy's movements…" Maozhao muttered. Due to the red mist that came with the floating land, no witches were arranged to accompany the interception force, which also made it impossible for the artillery to contact the entire army. Compared to fighting with the full assistance of Lightning and Maggie, their vision was undoubtedly much narrower at the moment. But thinking that there would be more and more such situations in the future, he could only get used to this change as soon as possible.
"Don't worry," Youpi clenched his fist and said, "You must know that the one leading the sky knights is that Lord!"
…
"This is Maggie, observing the demons' movements, goo!" Tilly's cockpit sounded with the report from the Exploration Team, "Direction, east three o'clock; number one hundred and three, there are large Fear Beasts in the formation, more than one, goo!"
"Received." Tilly casually injected magic power into another Listening Rune, "The enemies are moving, and the possibility of a mobile demon eye cannot be ruled out for the time being. Seagull One continues to circle and wait for further instructions."
"Understood," Andrea replied, "Are you going up?"
"Mmhmm." She responded lightly, "Say hi to Sylvie for me, piloting the aircraft should be pretty good, right?"
"Your Highness… When can you come back? I, I always feel like it's going to fall down at any time!" Sylvie's cries could be faintly heard from the rune.
"Concentrate!" Wendy interrupted her immediately, "Grip the joystick tightly, just like in training, I'll help you with the rest."
Since obtaining the Phoenix, Tilly had begun looking for a successor. Rather than hiding behind the scenes, she hoped to avenge Ash herself. In the end, Sylvie took over this important task and set the shortest record from training to actual flight. Of course, in addition to her "enthusiastic teaching," Wendy, who was becoming increasingly skilled at controlling the wind, was also a key factor. As long as it wasn't reckless manipulation, it would be difficult for the glider relying on Wendy's power to have problems.
"Uh… That's basically the situation." Andrea rubbed her forehead, "Except for Sylvie being a little dizzy, everything else is basically normal."
"Very good, then I'm leaving."
"Tilly!" Andrea's voice suddenly rose.
"I'm listening."
"Be… careful."
Tilly smiled slightly, "Yeah, everyone too."
She reached out and turned on the radio switch, tuned the frequency to the public channel, picked up the walkie-talkie, and said, "Attention everyone, the Fear Beasts have appeared, intercept them according to the planned schedule—this sky belongs to us!"
Although only two Skyfire aircraft had radios installed so far, this was enough to divide them into three squadrons to carry out a scissor-style interception.
"Second Team Leader, Gude, roger."
"Third Team Leader, Heinz, roger."
"Now, sortie!" Tilly accelerated, leading a group of twenty-five Skyfire aircraft out of Seagull One's cruise route and flew rapidly towards the northwest.