West of the Shule River Basin, in the jagged ravines that lined the dried-out riverbed, the European forces had dug in. It was one of their new strongholds this side of the western border, a strategically placed fortress complex that combined natural terrain, enchanted bunkers, and overlapping mana-barrier fields.
From this position, they could strike deep into Gansu, controlling the highlands and cutting off several civilian escape routes.
The camp buzzed with grim confidence. Their elite strike force had been rotated in hours ago, seven S-Rankers, handpicked from the Coalition's European High Command.
Their mission was to destroy the expected retaliation strike team that the Chinese would definitely send out, now that the beast waves had been contained.
They were flanked by fourteen A-Rankers, three small platoons of elite mecha pilots, and two dozen spellcasters arranged in overlapping wards along the ridge lines.
