Chapter 140
To force an unresponsive enemy to the negotiation table, a decisive blow was needed.
“A victory—that’s the only way.”
Yes, they needed a decisive victory, one that even the Immortal Cult would have no choice but to acknowledge.
The reason the Immortal Cult continued to underestimate the Alliance forces was simple—they believed that the harsh winter had put the Alliance at a disadvantage, making it seem like the Immortal Cult held the upper hand.
…But the truth was far from what Jung Dong-gun and Han Seong-geun assumed.
“You’re telling us to negotiate because you won?! Are you mocking us?!”
“We won’t negotiate until we win!”
“Do they think we’re weak?! Are they taunting us, saying we can’t fight?!”
From the Immortal Cult’s perspective, the Balhut Cult’s attempt to negotiate after their victories was nothing more than provocation.
After all, while the Immortal Cult had claimed territory, the Alliance forces had seized all practical advantages.
What the Immortal Cult had gained was nothing more than ruined land in Northern Ulsan, while the Alliance forces had taken valuable strategic assets.
To them, the idea that the Alliance was now offering a “fair” and “merciful” negotiation felt like an insult—a mockery disguised as diplomacy.
“This will be difficult… The Immortal Cult is still pressuring us.”
“The conditions for victory will be strict, no doubt.”
But from Jung Dong-gun and Han Seong-geun’s perspective, the Immortal Cult’s continued aggression made them assume that the enemy had no interest in negotiations.
“For a decisive victory, we need to retake Northern Ulsan and secure the bridge to Southern Ulsan.”
And they weren’t wrong in their reasoning.
Aside from Ulsan Airport, all of Northern Ulsan was under Immortal Cult control, including the bridges leading to the south.
Effectively, the Immortal Cult controlled most of Ulsan, which meant they had access to all its resources.
From the Alliance’s perspective, it made sense that the Immortal Cult would refuse to negotiate until they had fully secured Ulsan.
Thus, the Alliance had no choice but to shatter their arrogance completely.
“Then the plan is simple: we retake the bridge to Southern Ulsan. That’s it.”
“Commander, you’re oversimplifying things!”
Yes, if they could capture the bridge, the Alliance forces would claim an undeniable victory.
By securing the bridge, they could physically sever the connection between Northern and Southern Ulsan, isolating the Immortal Cult’s forces in the north from their main base.
There were alternative routes, but once the main transportation hub was lost, the security of those paths was no longer guaranteed.
Essentially, if the Alliance could seize the bridge, the rest of Northern Ulsan would fall like dominoes.
Jung Dong-gun had pointed this out, but his statement was so blunt that Jina Ahn frowned, complaining about the lack of detail in his explanation.
“The bridge is a critical connection between North and South Ulsan. The Immortal Cult is well aware of its importance and has stationed a large number of Undead troops there.”
Han Seong-geun nodded in agreement with Jina Ahn, pointing out that the Immortal Cult wouldn’t ignore such a vital transportation hub.
Indeed, the bridge was heavily guarded, with Undead soldiers stationed at all times.
Approaching recklessly would only lead to slaughter.
“That’s right. The bridge is crawling with Undead forces. A frontal attack would be disastrous. There are probably high-ranking Necromancers stationed there too. Their curses and debilitating spells would be devastating for our troops. If we get hit by those, neither I nor our soldiers will be able to fight properly.”
“We understand.”
Jina Ahn acknowledged that a direct assault was impossible, citing the Necromancers’ curses as a major obstacle.
The Alliance forces had nearly suffered disaster in the East Sea due to the Banshee, a special Undead entity.
Given that experience, Jung Dong-gun nodded in agreement.
“Yes, that’s if we attack head-on. But what if we don’t?”
He revealed to his strategic advisors that he had no intention of fighting head-on in this battle.
If a frontal assault was too dangerous, then an alternative strategy had to be considered.
“We could try an alternate route, but it’s too far, and we’d be spotted before we even get close. Plus, that route is already under Immortal Cult control. We know they’re using it too.”
Jina Ahn immediately dismissed the idea of using a secondary route.
Both the Alliance and the Immortal Cult were aware of the alternative paths, and the Immortal Cult had been actively using them to disrupt the Alliance’s supply lines.
“If there are no more monsters in the mountains, then soldiers skilled in mountaineering could cross over. But only a small force could make it. We’d be too outnumbered to take the bridge.”
Using the mountains to bypass the main roads was a potential option, much like the Immortal Cult had done before.
But while the Immortal Cult could sacrifice thousands of Undead without hesitation, the Alliance didn’t have that luxury.
“If we’re spotted, we’ll be wiped out.”
And that was the fatal flaw in the strategy—the Immortal Cult had already demonstrated its weakness.
If an army attempted to sneak through the mountains and was detected, it would be annihilated before it could retreat.
The Immortal Cult could afford to lose troops, as they were Undead, but the Alliance couldn’t.
Their soldiers were human—and human lives mattered.
If the Balhut Cult were to employ this method, their already limited number of soldiers would be depleted in no time.
“First of all, we have no intention of attacking through the alternative route.”
Jung Dong-gun agreed with Jina Ahn’s opinion and firmly stated that there would be no flanking attack through an alternative route.
“Could it be… you’re talking about the navy? A naval crossing operation?!”
“That’s right. We plan to deploy part of our naval forces for a river-crossing operation.”
At Jung Dong-gun’s words, Han Seong-geun speculated that if they weren’t using land routes, their only option was a naval assault.
Indeed, with support from the Eastern Sea Fleet, they could transport a significant number of troops via warships and land them in Northern Ulsan.
Then, by ambushing the Undead forces stationed at the bridge, they could coordinate an attack with their main army from the front, executing a hammer-and-anvil tactic to crush the enemy.
“You said the Eastern Sea was important, didn’t you?”
The problem was that, for the Balhut Cult, the Eastern Sea was a territory of economic interest.
As such, they couldn’t afford to pull out their naval fleet carelessly, which was why the navy had not participated in the war until now.
“The Eastern Sea Fleet didn’t just get dragged around by the Ghost Fleet for no reason. Our navy has been continuously engaging them, studying their appearance times and conducting investigations.”
However, the Balhut Cult hadn’t been idle either. They had already identified the appearance pattern of the Ghost Fleet.
“The Ghost Fleet always appears when the fishing boats are operating in the Eastern Sea. Usually, they show up around 3 a.m., then retreat when the fishing operations end. In other words, their primary mission is likely to disrupt fishing activities.
Occasionally, they target cargo ships, but in those cases, we can coordinate with the U.S. to adjust the arrival schedule of container ships as we see fit.”
The Ghost Fleet had strategically appeared only at times favorable to the Balhut Cult, and outside of those specific hours, they were nowhere to be seen.
This meant that during the hours when the Ghost Fleet was absent, the navy could be redeployed for the war in Ulsan.
“So basically, we can use the navy when the Ghost Fleet isn’t around?”
“Of course, we still need to maintain coastal surveillance, so we can’t deploy too many ships. But even with just a few vessels, isn’t it enough to cross the river?”
When Jina Ahn questioned if they could use the navy, Jung Dong-gun clarified that they couldn’t deploy the entire fleet.
However, with just a few ships, they could ferry at least a company-sized force across the river.
The enemy had no countermeasures for a river-crossing operation, so if they secured a foothold, the rest of the battle would involve coordinating attacks from both sides of the bridge.
Moreover, with naval artillery support following the river, the success rate of the operation was significantly higher.
“Yes, the odds are very high. So, when are you planning the operation?”
“Normally, we start fighting at 7 a.m. and end around 4 p.m.. Part of it is because the enemy’s offensive exhausts us, but another key reason is that by 4 p.m., the sun sets, and the world turns dark.”
As Jina Ahn agreed that the operation was feasible, she asked about its execution timeline.
Jung Dong-gun explained the usual combat schedule between the Alliance forces and the Immortal Cult—battles typically began at 8 a.m. and lasted until 4 p.m..
Of course, instead of large-scale battles, most engagements consisted of raids or small skirmishes, as the Alliance actively avoided full-scale conflicts.
“When it gets dark, identifying friend from foe becomes difficult. The Undead seem capable of distinguishing allies, but they struggle with our traps in the dark. Thanks to that, we’ve managed to eliminate some big ones.”
Another key factor was that, in Korea, the sun completely set by 4 p.m., plunging the battlefield into darkness.
In the pre-apocalyptic world, streetlights and city lighting would have illuminated the night, but with the power grid failing, entire cities were now shrouded in darkness.
The Alliance forces struggled to fight in the dark, while the Immortal Cult, though able to operate at night, couldn’t see the traps set by the Alliance, forcing them to retreat instead.
“At 7 p.m., we will have our elite soldiers well-fed and initiate the river-crossing operation.”
“7 p.m.? That’s too early—they’re not even asleep yet.”
Jung Dong-gun stated that the ambush would take place at 7 p.m..
However, Jina Ahn thought it was too soon, arguing that at that hour, the enemy would have just finished eating and would still be relaxing.
“The enemy leadership must be exhausted from the prolonged battles. Even our frontline soldiers are swapping shifts due to fatigue.
The commanders have been fighting every single day for a month straight—they must be drained.”
But that was pre-apocalypse logic.
This was now a war zone, and 7 p.m. was precisely when the enemy would be most vulnerable.
After dinner, drowsiness from food coma would set in, and because they wouldn’t expect an attack at that hour, they would be at their weakest.
Most people assumed that night raids would happen at 10 p.m. or later, targeting soldiers in deep sleep.
Instead, Jung Dong-gun planned to reverse that expectation, launching the assault when they were least prepared.
“True… Even mages need to rest after using spells continuously. Necromancers won’t be an exception either.”
Another key point was MP consumption—even the most powerful spellcasters had to rest after extended battles.
Necromancers wouldn’t be immune to that limitation.
By leveraging all the intelligence gathered over the past month, the Alliance had crafted the perfect timing for their operation.
“Alright. That concludes the operation plan. Any objections?”
“None.”
“No objections.”
With Jung Dong-gun’s strategy set, both Han Seong-geun and Jina Ahn agreed without protest.
The Alliance forces would now begin preparing for the river-crossing operation.
“I’ve already dispatched Son Sang-hui to secure the Northern Ulsan harbor. The enemy barely noticed, since they’re focused on defending Ulsan Bridge.”
Jung Dong-gun had already deployed his most trusted lieutenant, Son Sang-hui, to seize the harbor in Northern Ulsan as part of the preparations.
“But that means the enemy has likely noticed our movements.”
The real issue was that this would alert the Immortal Cult to an imminent attack on Ulsan Bridge.
“Yes, but I instructed Son Sang-hui to secure an alternative route to mislead them.
The enemy will suspect we’re launching an attack, but they’ll believe it’s just a side operation rather than a full-scale bridge assault.”
By securing an alternate route, the Alliance was making the Immortal Cult think they were defending against a diversion, rather than a major offensive.
Meanwhile, at the center of this operation, Jina Ahn stepped forward.
“Then let’s prepare to retake the bridge.”
“You’re joining personally?”
“Of course! Who else but me, Jina Ahn, the strongest Awakener here, could do it?”
Her courage made Han Seong-geun worried, but she had already made up her mind.
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