Blockades were just the first step. The southern region was vast, and its borders were long. Sealing it solely with landmines was neither feasible nor realistic.
To cite the simplest example, any direction could break the blockade simply by sacrificing a pack of swift hounds to trample through the minefields.
To counter this, the military implemented a dynamic blockade plan, establishing hundreds of monitoring stations along the blockade perimeter. Through radar and other technological means, they formed a massive surveillance network.
Next came the plan to implement large-scale, precise drone strikes, relying on this monitoring network.
After decades of development, drone strikes had become a crucial component of military operations. The equipment was ready, the personnel were available, and the training and tactics were all in place. They could be deployed to the battlefield immediately upon receiving orders. It wasn't that new methods or tactics were always better, but regardless of their effectiveness, the research and development of equipment and the training of personnel required significant manpower, resources, and time. And what the military lacked most was precisely time!
A large number of drones flew into the jungle, searching for traces of swift hounds. Once a target was spotted, it would be immediately subjected to devastating strikes. And it wasn't enough to simply bring them down; their heads had to be shattered to count as a kill.
Initially, the drone strike tactics yielded excellent results, with over a hundred swift hounds eliminated daily, inflicting heavy casualties on the packs. For a time, the southern region almost became a forbidden zone for swift hounds. However, within a few days, the situation took a 180-degree turn: the drones could no longer find the swift hounds!
Analysis suggested that the swift hounds possessed extremely keen senses of smell and hearing, and it was highly probable that the packs had learned to recognize the sound of the drones!
Just as Ou Zhanpeng was thinking this, the dog packs appeared, running swiftly through the dense jungle. The leading swift hound suddenly braked hard, letting out a low whimper.
The dog pack immediately scattered, each finding a hiding spot, disappearing in the blink of an eye.
Moments later, drones silently flew over the jungle, finding nothing.
Subsequently, the dog packs regrouped and continued their run.
The southern region was renowned for its excellent environment, with dense vegetation offering superb concealment. Ou Zhanpeng was not surprised by this development.
Various signs indicated that the swift hounds only gathered temporarily when preparing to launch an attack. At other times, they remained dispersed and hidden, exhibiting a mastery of guerrilla warfare tactics.
The military was forced to change its approach, relying on roads and rivers to deploy thousands of automatic machine gun turrets, employing this crude and simple method to establish another layer of blockade.
However, much like the minefields, these automated firing points achieved brilliant results at first, but became useless within three to five days. Some firing points were even damaged by the swift hounds.
The situation grew increasingly severe, and this was considered the better scenario. Other regions were in utter chaos.
In the Middle East, the American base was subjected to continuous harassment by the dog packs. The death toll had exceeded forty thousand, more than half of the total garrison strength!
Of course, only a portion of these deaths were due to the swift hounds' attacks. A considerable number were the result of ambushes by local resistance forces. The Americans had been the dominant power in that region for decades and had never experienced such a humiliating defeat.
European allies were also suffering greatly from the dog pack harassment. Within just a few days, cities near the coast were almost entirely evacuated.
However, this wasn't entirely the fault of the dog packs, as the coastal cities in Europe had already been largely deserted due to the rampant sea monster attacks. Now, they were simply completely emptied.
Africa suffered the most. It seemed that upon discovering the weaker resistance in this region, the alien species had continuously increased their military investment. Large packs of swift hounds broke through the defense lines and entered the cities, effectively eradicating several cities overnight.
The buildings remained, but the people were gone.
All the allies across the Blue Star were furious about this outcome, but there was nothing they could do. It wasn't that their armies weren't trying hard enough, but rather that their allies were too bizarre.
Africa was truly a magical land. Heaven had bestowed upon Africans superior physical prowess, but also a lax and undisciplined nature, a severe lack of organization, discipline, and team spirit. They would fight desperately for tribal interests, but for national interests, to sacrifice... What was a nation? Did it have anything to do with them?
The result was that the already unstable front lines were pushed back further and further. Conversely, tribal militias achieved some victories.
Of course, one couldn't blame everything on environmental issues. War was always a reflection of comprehensive national strength. Africa was poor and underdeveloped, utterly unable to support the consumption of modern warfare. Expecting the armies there to withstand large-scale swift hound attacks was indeed asking too much.
Looking at other regions in contrast, even if they couldn't withstand the swift hound offensive, they could still evacuate coastal residents to safe areas.
In essence, because the alien species had always considered the equatorial region a priority, most of the swift hounds were deployed to lands near the equator. This resulted in Africa being the worst off, followed by Kalimantan, then South America. Other allies faced much better situations and suffered far fewer losses.
It was under these circumstances that the experiment welcomed its most critical turning point. A Yun-80 heavy transport aircraft landed at the airport on one side of the base. Besides two shipping containers, the aircraft carried four mobile modules and an experimental team of seventeen people!
Ou Zhanpeng was ordered to greet the experimental team. As soon as they disembarked, he immediately escorted them to the experimental field. Meals were hastily consumed in the vehicles while transitioning.
There was no alternative. It wasn't that the base didn't value them, but rather that superiors were urging them on. The current military slogan was "efficiency first," and in the face of the mission, all red tape had to be put aside.
Displeased? Go aside. Weren't they soldiers?
A large iron cage was already set up in the training ground. Nearby, six smaller iron cages held swift hounds.
Ou Zhanpeng pointed at the cages and said, "Engineer Zou, we are ready. We can start anytime."
The previous research team had completed their mission and ascended via the Earth-Moon express yesterday, currently en route to the moon. The new research team was dispatched from higher up. Their leader was just over thirty but not yet forty, and his team members were also very young.
Zou Zhou adjusted his glasses and nodded, saying, "Then let's begin!"
His team members immediately sprang into action, carrying several boxes from the shipping containers. Upon opening them, they revealed what appeared to be a formidable-looking robotic dog!
By this time, intelligent weapons such as drones, robotic dogs, and robotic insects had long become indispensable components of military equipment. Military dogs had become a thing of the past.
Ou Zhanpeng considered himself something of an equipment expert, but he had never seen this type of robotic dog before. "Is this the latest model?"
"An improved version," Zou Zhou replied concisely.
Sensing that he was a man of few words, Ou Zhanpeng wisely kept quiet and watched the experimental personnel arrange the equipment with keen interest.