Starting from the Planetary Governor - Chapter 529

Chapter 527, Major Changes

Ossena and Thaddeus soon met at the Winged Planet’s starport.

After completing some paperwork, the two chatted for a while.

Their topic was the ongoing war.

“Has the Governor already departed from Wrathful Owl?”

“Yes,” Ossena replied. “They’ll probably arrive in two days.”

“Then that should be the time.”

Hearing this, Ossena’s expression remained somewhat melancholic.

She sighed, “How wonderful it would be if there were no war at all.”

Thaddeus remained silent.

He and Ossena had worked together for decades. Even though they had never cultivated a personal relationship, their interactions outside of work were limited. But they shared a revolutionary friendship forged over decades; they were comrades.

And for this reason, Thaddeus understood that Ossena’s sentiment wasn’t a sign of weakness on the part of the Alliance Prime Minister.

Rather, it was a certain… reluctance.

Over the years, economic development has flourished throughout the Dragonhawk Segmental Region. While development has progressed in various regions, with some areas experiencing ups and downs, overall, the region has been able to adapt to local conditions and strive for positive development. Ossena has devoted considerable effort to this endeavor, and to date, significant results have been achieved.

While the majority of the Alliance’s resources have been channeled toward war efforts over the past few years, even though the war hasn’t officially begun, everyone in the Alliance understands that they will eventually face the Iron Fury Stone to the north. The disparity in strength between the two sides is significant, requiring the exploitation of resources, the development of armaments, and the expansion of the military to mount a decisive battle.

Even though the Alliance has poured significant financial resources into armaments, the prevailing environment remains peaceful, and the massive production of armaments has indirectly stimulated economic development. While this stimulus may be somewhat unhealthy, it is nonetheless a genuine development.

Once war truly begins, the situation will clearly be different.

Thaddeus sighed at this thought,

and then his heart hardened again.

He said to Ossena, “This is a war that cannot be avoided. If we don’t prepare, the Iron Armor’s troops will descend upon us.”

“Why, after sweeping across the Spider Web Universe, did the Iron Armor’s main goal continue to expand to the north and west, instead of moving south? Isn’t it because we are always vigilant and always prepared for war? We are a tough nut to crack, so the war didn’t find us.” “

But this situation can’t last forever.”

“More than three years ago, on the northern battlefield, the three founding chapters of Infinity, Blood Angels, and Bats all arrived, each sending a company. The Black Crusaders even had a squadron in place, with thousands of Black Crusaders commanded by a fleet marshal. He also assumed command of the entire western battlefield. The forces led by him, combined with the strength of the seven surrounding chapters, as well as a large number of Astra Militarum and Imperial Navy, constituted the main force of the northern battlefield;”

“On the Western Front, the Phoenix Chapter, the parent chapter of the Phoenix, has dispatched a massive force, led by the current Phoenix Lord, Su Lie. Several chapters have also gathered here, most of which are Phoenix daughter chapters. While they haven’t explicitly raised their banners, their intention is to avenge the ‘Bauhinia’ and ‘Starbreaker’ chapters, which were annihilated in the great rebellion a hundred years ago. Furthermore, the Inquisition, unwilling to accept defeat, has stormed in once again. They’ve summoned the renowned Death Legion and mobilized over four thousand Battle Sisters of the Blood Rose.” “

So, the combined forces on the Western Front are even more formidable than those on the Northern Front.”

“That was probably when Iron Rage Stone was closest to defeat. Our military and political departments were dragged into meetings with the General Staff day and night, discussing whether we should also join the war and join the fun from the south. After all, not to mention the war situation, we still lacked widespread mobilization. Large-scale participation in the war in the Spider Web Universe would have placed immense political pressure on us from both the Imperial and Universe governments. Chancellor Ossena, you should understand this much better than I do.”

Hearing this, Ossena nodded repeatedly.

Indeed, the Alliance was having a difficult time during that period, and she was the one bearing the brunt of that political pressure.

From above, both the Imperial Central Government and the Universe Government were constantly urging the Alliance to send troops as quickly and as soon as possible. Even with Gallardo, who had been persuaded by President Gu and helped alleviate some of the pressure on Holy Terra, the Alliance still faced a difficult situation.

Gallardo was having a tough time, too. Not only had he been unable to secure a seat on the Supreme Council for the past four years, but his position as Chancellor of the Military Affairs Department was also becoming increasingly precarious. The Imperial Military Affairs Department was also full of factions and factions. They questioned why Gallardo was shouldering all the pressure on the Alliance.

However, this pressure soon subsided.

It wasn’t a change in the Alliance’s behavior, but rather a dramatic shift in the situation on the two main battlefields, the Northern and Western Fronts.

Both fronts, with their legendary military groups participating, completely stabilized the war situation over the next year. Despite their formidable strength, the Ironclad Legion couldn’t maintain their dominance on both fronts.

Their range of operations was squeezed, and even massive counterattacks on both fronts pushed the Ironwrath Stone forces back into the Spider Web Realm.

At this point, the Alliance felt less pressure. Mainstream public opinion held that the Empire had assembled such a powerful force, and the current war situation was in its favor. The Ironwrath Stone, having dared to rebel, were on the verge of destruction.

Whether the Alliance participated in the war was no longer crucial; not participating would have meant losing a faction to share in the fruits of victory. Moreover, this could be used to attack Prime Minister Gallardo…why not?

The “constant meetings” Thaddeus mentioned were referring to this phase.

The Alliance was anxious, worried about not being able to rush in and claim the cake. Gallardo, back on Holy Terra, was also anxious, contacting the Alliance several times, asking if a change of strategy was necessary.

It was during this phase that Gu Hang, as supreme leader, decisively declared: maintain the previous strategy.

Under his leadership, the Alliance maintained strategic composure.

Then, the overall situation began to shift in a confusing way.

In the initial months, the Imperials were so powerful on both the northern and southern fronts that even Humphrey Paul was forced to temporarily withdraw.

Although no major battles were fought, the Imperials had made significant strides in reclaiming some rebellious planets, boosting morale.

The Ironclad Chapter’s avoidance of the Imperials’ offensive certainly preserved valuable manpower, but it also somewhat undermined their previously adopted “prestige strategy.”

People couldn’t help but murmur. Although the Iron Rage Stones had made a big noise, compared to the vastness of the Empire, they were still just a small, isolated force. The Empire hadn’t even mobilized its war machine yet; if necessary, it could deploy more forces. But right now, the Iron Rage Stones looked like they were about to collapse. How could anyone trust them?

The situation in the past where the local people would surrender as soon as the armored troops arrived is no longer seen.

Conversely, in the northern sector, a sector encompassing over a dozen worlds, interconnected and united, had simply raised the banner of rectifying the chaos. Local forces began to rebel against the Iron Armor’s officials and garrisons, actively contacting the Imperial Army.

The northern commander, Marshal Almar Ewing of the Black Crusaders, agreed to the request and assigned the Infinite Chapter company involved in the northern sector’s operation to the task.

When these blue-armored warriors arrived at the target sector, things initially went smoothly. The one hundred elite warriors of the Founding Chapter, highly skilled in combat, combined with the fleet and Astra Militarum forces under their command, instantly reversed the situation in which the Iron Armor forces had violently suppressed the local “rebellious forces.”

It was estimated that the entire sector would be reclaimed in no time.

Just as everything was proceeding smoothly, a violent uprising erupted on the lower levels of one of the sector’s hive worlds.

A cult had emerged at this juncture to stir up trouble.

Initially, the Infinite Warriors paid little attention to the situation. Iron Armor’s influence hadn’t been completely eliminated, so that was undoubtedly the highest priority. A cult uprising at the bottom of a planet’s hive… honestly, similar rebellions were happening all the time throughout the universe.

It was a problem, but clearly of low importance.

However, events quickly unfolded beyond anyone’s expectations.

Subsequent intelligence revealed that the majority of the rebels were human, but the local planetary defense forces also reported unusual activity, suggesting the presence of some non-humans among the rioters.

They resembled a hybrid of humans and some insectoids, their skin purple, blue, or green—in no way resembling a normal human.

These individuals often served as core members and commanders within the cult’s organizational structure.

This was a matter of considerable concern.

But before the Infinity Warriors could escape their suppression operations on another planet, the situation suddenly deteriorated beyond repair.

A large number of Void Zerg began to appear among the cultists, and communication with the entire world was quickly lost.

Then, once the Infinity Warriors had grasped the gravity of the situation and urgently boarded their ships to reach the system, they encountered a Hive Fleet at the system’s jump point.

This was an ambush they hadn’t anticipated, resulting in a crushing defeat for the Infinity Warriors, with no survivors.

Immediately afterwards, this Hive Fleet launched a ferocious attack, rapidly ravaging the entire sector and beginning to attack neighboring sectors.

Coincidentally, the area where the Void Zerg Hive Fleet was wreaking havoc was precisely blocking the Imperial army’s offensive on the northern front.

Coincidence?

No one would have believed it.

The battle on the northern front instantly intensified.

This Hive Fleet wasn’t particularly large, at least compared to the larger Hive Incursions seen in Imperial history.

However, it was more than enough to bring Marshal Ewing’s northern front to a stalemate.

A brutal battle erupted across dozens of planets in an instant. Looking at the star map, it seemed as if a jagged, irregular line was drawn across the northern part of the Spiderweb Universe.

The Void Zerg were a threat that could not be ignored, and they continued their relentless assault towards the north. Humanity could not ignore the threat of these mindless insect beasts, or they would devour everything in their path and destroy every planet they passed through.

Originally intended to fight a rebellion, the northern front inexplicably transformed from that moment into a desperate battle against the Void Zerg.

Almost simultaneously, the Ironclad Chapter gathered its strength and launched a series of counterattacks on the western front.

The Ironclad Chapter deployed almost all its forces.

On the western front, not only could defected Space Marines from three different Chapters be seen, but most importantly, battlefield reports indicated that the Ironclad Chapter itself had deployed at least tens of thousands of Space Marines!

This was compared to the normal strength of ten Chapters!

These renegades, clad in black and gray armor, repeatedly used their superior numbers to repel and even cripple numerous Phoenix Chapters.

In one siege, they even annihilated an entire company of the Phoenix Chapter!

The Western Front, once advancing triumphantly, not only failed to advance into the heart of the Spider Web Realm, but was actually driven back.

Chapter Commander Su Lie lived up to his reputation. He quickly gathered his troops and, seizing opportune moments, delivered a few brutal blows to the Iron Armor, halting the entire front’s retreat.

But he was no god. The Space Marine strength disparity between the two sides remained significant.

Despite the six distinct Chapters under the Phoenix Lord, no one was prepared to send out their entire force. Each Chapter sent only one or two companies, and at most, five or six. All told, the Space Marine force numbered just over two thousand at its peak.

Over eight hundred had been killed or wounded in the previous battles.

Although he also killed or injured approximately a thousand Space Marines on the Iron Armor side, the force strength ratio between the two sides was still nearly ten times.

Su Lie could only be thankful that although the number of Space Marines was significantly different, the navy and the Astra Militarum were not much different from the large-scale mortal forces of the other side. Otherwise, he would not be able to stabilize the front line and maintain the stalemate, and he would probably be driven out of the Spider Web Space Domain with a single blow.

But despite this, he could not care less about face and kept requesting more reinforcements from the rear, from the surrounding space domains, and from Holy Terra.

Without sufficient reinforcements, he would be driven out sooner or later.

(End of this chapter)