I, transformed into a vampire girl, sparked the Industrial Revolution.

Chapter 248 Marine Corps Sharp Knife

"Fire!"

The roar of cannons echoed across the land, joining the symphony of the war, as dust swirled before the rough, massive, and powerful steel structures.

The M4A3E8 "jumbo" had just fired a 76mm shell when the high-explosive shell shattered the infantry gun not far away.

Compared to the 3rd Marine Brigade of the Amerlane Marine Corps, which had experienced the Southern Training Grounds, the Holy Army's defenses were like a shredder facing a blank sheet of paper. The enemy was nothing new, and even less impressive than the White Army in the training grounds. It should be noted that the White Army in the training grounds were equipped with RPG-2 launchers. They had direct access to the National Armored Vehicle Research Center, the National Artillery Research Institute, and the Amerlane Military Industrial Research Institute, and were entitled to enjoy the latest weapons, including advanced test tanks such as the XM41 light tank and the XM26 tank.

And what about the Holy Army? Tanks? None of them. Artillery? They didn't even have artillery capable of penetrating the side of the M4A3E8, and their meager number of heavy artillery pieces were not yet ready for use.

"Destroy the strongpoints! Charge! Charge! Charge!"

Marines armed with FAL automatic rifles spread out under the support of Sherman tanks riddled with Browning machine guns. Behind them, M7 Priest self-propelled guns provided support. The small and elite Marine Corps relied heavily on armored support. The 1st Marine Brigade of Amerlane relied on armored spearhead tactics to attack Salerno.

Marines hold onto their helmets, most of which have rope nets or helmet covers to protect them from shrapnel and enhance their concealment.

"Overlord, Overlord, this is Ocean Tomahawk AB1-1. We are advancing along the road. Enemy resistance is weak. Repeat. Enemy resistance is weak. Over!"

"Overlord received. Ocean Tomahawk AB1-1, there are friendly fighter jets on duty in your combat zone. You have a plan to obtain air support within the next three hours. Over."

"Thank you! Overlord, Ocean Tomahawk AB1-1 complete!"

The communications soldier hung up the radio, patted the battalion commander, who was also wearing a helmet, and nodded. Standing next to him were two men whose armbands indicated they were JTAC members of the Marine Corps.

"Gentlemen, this is our unit. This is Hill 102, a vantage point overlooking the entire highway. The brigade command has ordered us to capture this hill. There are approximately two enemy regiments on it, equipped with infantry guns and supporting fire. At the top of the hill are two stone buildings, and the reconnaissance battalion has discovered enemy machine guns and artillery inside."

"Four Sherman tanks from Armored Platoon A will provide you with support. Air support is on standby for the next three hours, so stay alert, gentlemen! We are Marines!"

"Whoa!"

The order from the field command was quickly relayed down by the sergeants, and a platoon of Sherman tanks and several Willys Jeeps left the road and assembled on the other side of the hill.

Below the hill, a simple platoon command post was set up. With the help of the trees and tanks, the platoon leader quickly spotted the hill and the buildings on it.

Hill 102 is nothing special; it has no official name, either with the church or the Marines. The two buildings on it were already in disrepair, but they were fortified during the Naples Revolution as a defensive position to control the road from Naples to Salerno.

From there, one can overlook the entire highway, with a clear field of fire. It was only natural that the Holy Army commander deployed a large force there as one of the main positions, with several reserve units standing by behind it.

"Enemy attack!!!"

The tolling of bells echoed across the hilltop as naval aviators, guided by the JTAC, swooped down and dropped deadly aerial bombs on the high ground. These cheap iron bombs exploded on the positions, destroying tall stone towers, ripping up positioned infantry guns, and killing the soldiers on duty.

"Enemy attack! Below!!!"

Next came four Sherman tanks, which emerged from the woods, accompanied by infantrymen positioned behind them, leaving only soldiers standing on the hoods to operate the .50 caliber machine guns.

For the Church, arms imports were not an official policy, but each bishop did his best to purchase weapons for the Holy Army under his command. The Maxim machine gun was not a cheap weapon, and the same was true for the Church. However, after lightly touching the church's underground warehouses, which were filled with the people's hard-earned money, some bishops still purchased this weapon for their troops.

But for the Amerlanxi Marines, who were already skilled in using armored forces, machine guns were high-threat targets, but not insurmountable ones. Alice's investment in the tank and armored vehicle industry paid off at this moment. The surviving machine guns spewed flames, and these Maxim machine guns, imported from the Dwarves or the Desert Empire, sprayed deadly bullets at the tanks, but all they got in return was clanging and ricochets deflected by the main armor belt.

"Machine gun position! One high-explosive round ready!"

"Fire!"

"Target destroyed!"

"High-explosive shell loading!"

"I saw him! The machine gun emplacement is still there! Damn it!"

"fire!"

The tank was filled with roaring sounds. The sounds of cannons, gunfire, radios, and engines were deafening to the crew, and everyone had to shout commands to be heard by one another.

Bang!

"We've been hit! Damn it! Infantry guns!"

"I saw it! I saw it! Give me a high-explosive round!"

"High explosive is good!"

"Fire!"

The infantry advanced step by step behind the tanks until they could see the faces of the Holy Army on the position. Only then did the Marines, who had been waiting for a long time, disperse and fire at the Holy Army with their FAL automatic rifles.

For Amerlane soldiers, the recoil of the FAL automatic rifle was "barely tolerable," and the penetration power of the 7.62x51 full-power round was considerable, but the trade-off was that the recoil of continuous fire was uncontrollable.

However, no one complained. When your weapon has a 20-round replaceable cartridge magazine and both single-shot and burst-fire modes, what else is there to say?

The various rifles in the hands of the Holy Army were no match for the FAL automatic rifles. Suppression, advance, grenades—the three basic tactics of the Amerlane infantry were now being employed.

"suppress!"

A rifleman burst into the trench. His comrade, armed with an M870 shotgun, fired a shot to the left and then to the right without aiming, clearing the trench in an instant. The rifleman then raised his rifle and began to fire in bursts.

Indeed, most of the Amelansi infantry used burst fire, while the fully automatic fire was mostly provided by the MG3 general-purpose machine gun. The Holy Army was almost driven out of the first trench by the continuous automatic fire.