Munitions Empire

The northern front of the Gobur battleground was littered with countless craters, and it was rare to see any trees that were still intact. Most of the large trees were left with only bare trunks, tilting precariously between the two armies' lines.

If one looked closely, almost every large tree had several bodies sprawled haphazardly underneath. This was because there was always the belief that these large trees could serve as cover, allowing one to survive a few seconds more amid the storm of bullets and shells.

In reality, these locations were often the focus of the enemy's machine guns and Ranger sharpshooters. Those hiding here were quickly killed, often even faster than those soldiers who simply lay flat on the ground.

The entire battlefield rose and fell intermittently, and the visibility was not particularly good, but if one was careful to stay prone and then leap forward, one could avoid most of the bullets.

However, that's how people are; in the face of great terror, in the face of death, how many are brave enough to stand and step forward?

The stalemate at the frontline had persisted for nearly a month, and everyone felt that the war was close to its end.

No one was able to breach the enemy's defenses; everyone could only huddle in the trenches, listening to the sounds of artillery and counting the days. This kind of war was a test of endurance, obviously very dull and hopeless.

Maritime transport was in complete chaos; the prosperity of the Endless Sea had long since vanished, and today, the majority of trade ships seen belonged to the Tang Kingdom.

The maritime department of the Great Tang Group possessed a vast number of cargo ships, and thanks to these vessels, trade in the Endless Sea still continued uninterrupted.

However, prosperous trade routes had been reduced to just a few, and it became an unspoken rule that the merchant ships traversing these routes could not be attacked, as these routes were not considered war zones.

As a result, Dorne's goods had to be shipped from Hotwind Port, Gobur's cargo ships took a big detour via Chu Country's routes, and the Ice Cold Empire's merchant ships didn't care, they directly diverted to navigate around Shenguo.

The shipping routes from Brunas to Dragon Island and to Linshui in Dongwan naturally remained untouched, as anyone with a sane mind would not provoke the maritime dominance of the Tang Kingdom upon seeing the terrifying 305mm caliber cannons mounted on the five-meter-high sides of the ships. Continue your journey with My Virtual Library Empire

Joking aside, their entire fleet was not even a match for a single Tang warship. Who would want to trouble themselves at such a time?

Moreover, even without such fearsome battleships present, no one was willing to provoke the Tang Kingdom.

Every country was purchasing ammunition and military equipment from the Tang Kingdom to replenish their front-line losses; at such a time, angering the Tang Kingdom would be madness.

Just a few days ago, the Laines Empire had borrowed 3 million Gold Coins from the Great Tang Group to continue their border warfare.

The situation in the Dorne Kingdom was slightly better due to the rubber trade, having more ample funds on hand.

Nevertheless, Dorne's envoys were still constantly active in Brunas, hoping to secure loans of over 10 million from the Great Tang Group.

The money wasn't urgently needed by them, it was more that they didn't want it borrowed by the Laines Empire! In their view, borrowing more themselves meant the Laines Empire would be able to borrow less.

As the war continued at a stalemate, its influence started to spread into the economic sphere. The issues of civil life, which had been gradually improving, began to erupt within the countries.

The premise of deflecting a crisis is to achieve victory, but if there are no benefits to be gained from the war, then the shock brought by the war itself would only exacerbate domestic tensions.

Corruption issues within the Empire of Nanla began to slowly emerge, and the people's displeasure with the decadent Empire grew, leading to unrest in some areas.

The war had only erupted six months ago, and although most of this discontent could still be suppressed and controlled, the Empire of Nanla was just barely maintaining stability.

The same issues also appeared in the rapidly expanding but unstable Laines Empire; people in the Germelin "region" broadly believed the new Emperor intentionally sent them to the front lines to die.

Citizens of the newly occupied regions were unwilling to join the army and fight, feeling they were being targeted; people from the original regions like Leite had their own grievances, believing inhabitants of new territories like Germelin should not enjoy any privileges—if the people of Germelin didn't go, then they from Leite wouldn't either.

Added to that, the Northern Ridge, Jade City, Brunas, and other traditional regions were not under their control, with the powerful troops of Northern Ridge technically part of the Laines Empire, though they had long become semi-independent. These vexing issues had caused Leines I much annoyance of late.

The Dorne Kingdom was similarly caught between a rock and a hard place, with pressure from the Laines Empire to the north and engagement in warfare with the Gobur Kingdom to the south, resulting in a quite passive conflict.

What started as surprise attacks had now turned into trench warfare. Even with the Twin Giants of the Empire, Bolton and Strauss, matters were not looking up.

Strauss was forced to head north to deal with the Laines Empire's hundred thousand troops, leaving Bolton to face the protracted battle with the Gobur Kingdom in the south.

Both sides employed airships and had anti-aircraft guns for interception, sustaining heavy losses. Even the airship troops, akin to suicide squads, were a one-time expendable resource, facing missions from which they never returned.