The Iron Star’s Sixth Legion had established a solid interception line.

Every six hours, the Demon Eye reconnaissance chain transmitted an updated set of data. The latest observation report showed that the total volume of the beast tide was decreasing, but its area of diffusion was expanding.

It was like trying to block a running faucet with your palm; the main flow was stopped, but water was squeezing out between the fingers.

Jarvis generated a map of predicted dispersal routes every hour.

Allen stared at the red trickles on the sand table, which resembled capillaries, superimposing them one by one onto the topographical map of Zone 18 for comparison.

Which routes would pass through the mining areas.

Which routes would bypass all facilities and head straight east.

Which routes had the highest Magical Beast density.

Which routes had terrain suitable for an ambush.

After completing the comparison, he already had a solid grasp of the battles to come.

"Jarvis, classify all dispersed targets into three levels based on their Magic Power readings."

"Below 2000, mark them yellow, code name: Small Fry. From 2000 to 4000, mark them orange, code name: Hard Bone. Above 4000, mark them red, code name: Problem."

[Classification complete.]

On the sand table, the dense swarms of red dots instantly changed into three colors.

Yellow was the most numerous, appearing everywhere, with an estimated count of just over six thousand.

These were apprentice-level Magical Beasts and those just reaching the level of a First-level Wizard. A Spider Slayer or a PX-1B could handle them one-on-one, and a single volley from a Purgatory Platform could reap a large number of them.

The latest intelligence showed eighty-six orange light dots, scattered across the various routes. Each one was a being on the level of a Crystal Shell Scorpion King, not necessarily losing in a one-on-one fight with a Freedom Gundam. Storm Falcons carrying Crystal Armor-Piercing Bullets could hunt them from the sky, but it would require multiple, precisely guided hits.

There were seven red ones, each with a Magic Power fluctuation between 4,000 and 5,800. They were extremely dangerous, possessing spell-like shields and a Regeneration Ability. Two of them exceeded 5,000.

To hunt a single Rock Armor Earth Dragon leader of this caliber, he had once deployed six Freedom Gundams plus a Big Boy.

Now there were seven of them.

He only had five Big Boys in stock. Manufacturing them wasn’t difficult, but the daily output of Crystallized Seeds was limited. Fortunately, he had intentionally stockpiled some, and using the entire reserve would allow him to build another twenty-one.

"What if we use conventional tactics? Form up on the border and brute-force it?"

[Interception efficiency would be low.]

Jarvis’s reply was instantaneous.

[Ammunition reserves are insufficient to sustain continuous suppressive fire. The number of Golems cannot cover the one-hundred-and-twenty-kilometer-wide front. The defensive line would be torn apart upon contact, leading to a total collapse.]

The data was cold and honest.

Not enough ammunition, not enough Golems, not enough time.

Allen’s face was devoid of expression. The Mechanical Mind had locked away all his negative emotions.

Allen had long anticipated this situation and had already made meticulous plans and deployments.

’So we can’t let them charge over in a cluster.’

He continued his review, reconfirming the offensive and defensive tactics for the Black Tide Campaign.

’Offensive Tactic: Over-the-Horizon Strike.’ 𝑓𝘳𝑒𝑒𝓌𝘦𝘣𝘯ℴ𝑣𝘦𝑙.𝘤𝑜𝑚

’There is only one objective: whittle down their effective strength as much as possible before they set foot in Zone 18.’

On the sand table, two echeloned zones extended outward from the western border of Zone 18.

The first echelon, from 200 to 600 kilometers out, formed the outer defensive perimeter.

This was the hunting ground prepared for the Storm Falcons.

Eighty-four Storm Falcons were organized into seven attack waves of twelve units each, striking in rotation.

Their mission was twofold. Ground-to-surface: hunt the orange-marked "Hard Bone"-class ground Magical Beasts, using their high-altitude advantage to drop Crystal Armor-Piercing Bullets for precision elimination, with an estimated three to five rounds needed per target. Air-to-air: intercept and destroy incoming swarms of Flying Magical Beasts.

It was best not to let a single winged creature through. Once air superiority was lost, the ground forces would have to divert their attention to deal with threats from above.

The Demon Eye reconnaissance chain would provide coordinate guidance for the entire duration. The Storm Falcons wouldn’t need to find their own targets. They would just receive data, fly over, drop their payload, pull up, return to rearm, and do it all over again. An assembly-line operation.

The second echelon, the 200-kilometer area outside the western border, was designated the inner defensive perimeter.

Spider Slayer IIs and Purgatory Platforms would be pushed forward beyond the western border of the zone, deploying in a net-like formation.

Six hundred and sixty Spider Slayers would be deployed in squads of five to one hundred and thirty-two ambush points.

They would use their low profiles and the terrain for concealment, conducting guerrilla warfare within this area of strategic depth to mop up the Small Fry.

The Purgatory Platforms would be set up on every high point. The moment Magical Beasts formed a local cluster, they would be blanketed by Crimson Lotus Magic Missiles. Pinpoint accuracy wasn’t necessary; those things were designed for area saturation anyway.

’The core principle.’

’If a problem can be solved with ammunition, we don’t plug the gap with Golems. As for those seven red "Problem"-class Magical Beasts...’

’The six Freedom Gundams will be formed into an independent hunter-killer squad.’

Allen tapped six blue diamond-shaped markers on the sand table. "They will not participate in holding any defensive lines in the early stages; they will remain mobile at all times. They will carry a Big Boy on each sortie. The Demon Eye will track the red targets continuously, and they will look for advantageous terrain to perform a decapitation strike at the opportune moment."

"Any place, any time, seize the opportunity, by any means necessary."

Having finished planning the over-the-horizon strike, Allen shifted his focus back to the interior of the zone.

’Defensive Tactic: Three-Layered Blockade.’

He didn’t use the word "line."

A defensive line implied holding it to the last man. He had no intention of holding any single line to the death.

"Jarvis, mark the predicted routes of all scattered Magical Beast groups and overlay our asset distribution."

A complex network diagram appeared on the sand table. The red routes branched out like rivers. Some would crash directly into mining areas, some would pass right through the gaps between facilities, and others would deviate completely, heading straight for his Mentor’s territory to the east.

’There’s no need to kill every last Magical Beast.’

The positions of all mining areas, workshops, and camps were highlighted on the sand table. The Magical Beast groups whose routes wouldn’t pass by his facilities had their trajectories marked with gray dotted lines, cutting straight through the open areas of Zone 18 and pointing further east.

That was where the Forged Fire Fortress was located.

’Let them pass.’

His Mentor’s Golem Legion outnumbered his own by hundreds of times. These stragglers weren’t heading for his doorstep, so he might as well let them go to their deaths.

He had no obligation to eliminate all the beast swarms, but he still had to prevent them from gathering to attack his workshops and mining areas, and he needed to wear down their numbers as much as possible to alleviate the pressure on his Mentor.

Therefore, the ones that needed intercepting were the Magical Beasts whose routes were likely to pass through his mining areas and workshops.

The first blockade: the western border. The main ground forces of the Third, Fourth, and Fifth Golem Legions would deploy, primarily composed of Pacifists and Demon Eye II Aerial Fortresses, forming an interception belt along the front.

The second blockade: the central depth line. This would be composed of the Magma Lake Workshop to the south with the Second Golem Legion stationed there, the Three Forks Canyon Camp in the center, and the garrison detachments at the various still-operational mining areas.

These strongpoints would use the terrain to their advantage, fighting independently to intercept any Magical Beasts that penetrated the first blockade.

The third blockade: the workshop core zone. The First Legion plus two Freedom Gundams.

This was the final failsafe. If the first two blockades were completely breached, this was his last line of defense.

He could not afford to lose it.

All deployments had been gradually put into place over the past few days. On the sand table, blue icons spread out in a dense formation, each node marked with troop configuration, ammunition load, retreat routes, and contingency plans.

Allen surveyed the overall strategic situation one last time.

’Not perfect.’

His forces weren’t deep enough, his ammunition wasn’t plentiful enough, and the quality of his Golems wasn’t high enough. If more than two of the seven red targets charged into the zone at the same time, his margin for error would be razor-thin.

But there was no such thing as a perfect defensive line in this world, only an optimal solution.

This was his optimal solution for now.

"Jarvis, begin the countdown for the over-the-horizon strike tactic."

[The first attack wave of Storm Falcons will enter the operational area in fourteen hours. Demon Eye reconnaissance chain data link is normal. All units have completed self-diagnostics.]

"Ammunition?"

[Storm Falcons fully loaded. Purgatory Platforms fully loaded. Crimson Lotus Magic Missile inventory increased to 14,600. Crystal Armor-Piercing Bullets: 1,556. Big Boys: 5. Various aerial bombs and bunker busters: 1,500. Conventional ammunition production lines continue to operate, with a daily replenishment rate of approximately 3%.]

"The Sixth Legion?"

[Production is 16% complete.]

’It’s still growing. Growing every single day.’

Allen nodded and said no more.

In the Meditation Room, three Craftsman’s Hands were still tirelessly carving components.

He closed his eyes, his main consciousness sinking into his Sea of Spirit to continue carving the Will Rune.

Deep within the Sea of Spirit, the unfinished fifth Core Matrix stood silently, waiting for its creator to fill it in, stroke by stroke.

’Thirteen months is too long.’

He had to seize every moment.