Chapter 1608: Goblin Aircraft
At this time, the several turret guns on the roof of the train also turned. Amidst the dull roar of the cannons, thick, huge steel spikes were fired at the surrounding Wolf Riders.
Even those that didn’t hit directly, the powerful impact of the steam alone was enough to blast a large pit in the ground with the steel spikes, causing the Wolf Riders around to be thrown off their mounts.
One giant wolf was hit directly, the steel spike pinning it to the ground, and the goblin rider on its back was instantly crushed into pulp.
The giant wolf, despite such a massive impact, was not dead. It struggled, impaled on the two-meter-long steel spike, but could not break free. Even so, it proved how tenacious the vitality of the wolfmen was.
Seeing the power of the steam turrets, I felt that the goblins’ raid was doomed. Although they were still trying to throw detonators onto the train roof, the turrets were protected by metal walls around them and were not easily destroyed by explosions.
Goblins were inherently very timid creatures, ferocious when winning, but easily scattered when losing. Facing an invincible iron train, they should have fled very soon.
However, at this very moment, another wolf howl came from a distance: “Awoooo!!!”
I used my God’s Eye and saw that the wolfman had changed mountains in such a short time, keeping the train within its sight.
“It seems to be saying, ‘Airborne deployment?’ What is that?” Weis, who could understand the wolfman language, asked. Although she understood every word, she couldn’t grasp the meaning of a particular term.
“It seems I was mistaken. That wolfman not only joined the goblin tribe, but is possibly their leader, or at least a high-ranking general,” I sighed. From my God’s Eye, I had seen some incredible things.
Soon, others also saw it. Several small dots appeared from the other side of the mountain. As they flew closer, they became clearer.
“What is that? A dwarf aircraft?” Even Via was surprised, looking at the sky. Despite her dislike for sunlight, she wanted to see what was flying in the sky.
“No, they are aircraft manufactured by the goblins themselves. I didn’t expect them to have these things too,” Karina exclaimed in amazement.
What flew over were more than a dozen extremely crude wooden vehicles. They looked as if they were made of wood and leaves, with only a simple skeleton covered in beast skin. Most parts, including the cockpit, were open-air, or rather, the bottom was even hollow, just a frame.
On top, there was a propeller made of three tree leaves, spinning at high speed. The leaves were very large and extremely hard, and even at such high speeds, they didn’t deform at all. They were likely leaves from some kind of tree monster.
Then, on each wing of the vehicle, there were two more leaves that flapped rapidly back and forth. These leaves also remained straight, providing forward thrust.
If I were to classify it based on my previous life’s knowledge, it would be a helicopter. But I was very reluctant to admit it could be called a helicopter. This simple wooden structure not falling apart in mid-air defied my understanding of materials science and structural engineering.
This was not just a concept from my previous life; even with my knowledge and evaluating this simple aircraft with the alchemy and steam technology of this world, the conclusion was that it should immediately fall apart. Its not crashing was a miracle.
However, my knowledge did not suggest it couldn’t fly. The power of this simple aircraft came from a steam tank at the rear, with pre-stored high-pressure steam providing motive force to the wings and rotor. The extremely tough monster tree leaves provided sufficient lift for the aircraft.
I was mainly concerned that the wooden frame could not withstand the kinetic energy of the steam spray, and even the air resistance generated during flight should have caused it to fall apart.
In the narrow yet surprisingly spacious cockpit, sat one large and three small goblins. I used such contradictory descriptions because, if calculated by the wooden frame structure alone, the cockpit was indeed narrow. But their upper bodies could extend out of the frame, which made it spacious.
The larger goblin was likely the pilot. They wore glasses and leather clothing, better than that of the Wolf Riders on the ground.
The goblin pilot held a very simple rudder, which was connected to the side wings and the overhead rotor through old-fashioned steel wires. I thought it would require great strength to pull that control stick in mid-air.
As for the three passengers, they looked like miniaturized goblins. Their skin was still green, and they were only about knee-high to a human. Compared to the pointed chins and noses of goblins, they appeared much rounder.
These little guys were called “Peejins” or “Snotlings,” a subspecies of goblins. Other subspecies included Bugbears, Hobgoblins, Dark Goblins, Goblins, and Nottabrains, but Peejins were likely the lowest-ranking beings among goblins.
They were likely on the aircraft because of their small size and light weight, allowing more to be carried without putting too much strain on the aircraft.
As for their duties, I saw they had a circle of bombs strapped around them, suggesting they were the bombardiers.
“Oh no! Those steam cannons were meant for anti-air, but now they’ve been lowered to target the ground!” Margaret cried out worriedly. She, as expected, cared more about humans.
Her analysis was correct. Due to the fierce attack by the Wolf Riders earlier, the steam turrets had lowered their elevation to target the ground, and it would take some time to raise them again.
The goblin aircraft were already flying above the train. The Peejins grabbed bombs, lit them, and dropped them towards the train cars.
“Boom! Boom!” A series of fireballs exploded on the train. Many train cars lacked armored plating on their roofs, and were directly pierced by the bombs. Thick smoke billowed up, and some cars that had been firing back just moments ago were silenced after one round of bombing.
At this point, the rooftop turrets hastily raised their barrels. A forward turret, with the aid of steam power, was quite fast. It was about to raise its muzzle, and whether it could deter the aircraft and drive them away with its firepower depended on it.
Just then, something surprising happened. Three Peejins from each of the aircraft jumped out. They spread their arms, holding canvas stretched on wooden poles, forming a simple glider.
“No way?!” I was startled and suddenly remembered the wolfman’s earlier shout. This was an airborne unit, meaning these Peejins were not bombardiers; they were paratroopers!
Then, Peejins began to jump out of the aircraft one after another. They used their gliders to control their flight. Although many were blown away by the wind, some successfully landed on the train roof.
As they flew, they threw bombs at the turrets. The Peejins who landed on the roof directly dropped the bombs onto the top of the turrets.
“Boom!” The recently raised turret was destroyed.
