Chapter 236: Chapter 200: It’s Awesome Following the Lord
Even when grievously wounded and knocked to the ground, they still had the strength to move. They would then lunge forward again, desperately trying to drag the soldiers of the Thorn Corps down.
This life-for-a-life tactic made the soldiers hesitate. It was an unspeakable psychological shock.
Once dragged down, they would be pulled into the darkness by a sudden flurry of hands and feet from the crowd, vanishing without a trace. Only a few bloodcurdling screams would be left behind as a warning to the others.
The heavy snowflakes landed on their armor, instantly melting into water. It flowed through the gaps into their inner layers, mixing with sweat to soak their bodies. Then, as the howling wind blew, a wave of cold enveloped them, but it still couldn’t extinguish the fire and fury in the hearts of both sides.
Both sides were now fighting for survival. If the Wilderness People didn’t advance, they would be chopped into meat paste by the group of Minotaurs behind them, whose blood ran as cold as ice. And if the Thorn Corps failed to hold the line, they would become food.
There was no simple distinction between good and evil here, only a battle for their respective interests.
Life and blood were being consumed at a terrifying rate.
Levi had already lost count of how many Wilderness People’s bones he had shattered with the Double-Handled Giant Sword in his hands. After slaughtering the first wave of Wilderness People, relying on his unparalleled individual combat prowess, he decided it was too inefficient and switched to Dual Swords.
Now, the newcomers were practically charging over the bodies of the fallen. As far as the eye could see, the view was still filled with a dense mass of savage-faced Wilderness People.
After an unknown amount of time, a sudden, tremendous BOOM captured everyone’s attention.
A Giant Stone, propelled with immense force, flew from the rear and smashed hard into the crowd of Wilderness People ahead. The Giant Stone rolled down the slope, crushing an untold number of bones, and a string of heart-wrenching wails rang out.
’Did Heather’s Magic Power recover already?’
The Lord thought subconsciously, but he quickly realized something was wrong.
Because this was just an ordinary Giant Stone, with no trace of Magic Power surging within it. It definitely wasn’t created by Shaping Magic.
"Lord, it’s reinforcements! It’s reinforcements!"
Levi’s confusion was soon answered. Si Kai was yelling and screaming in excitement, like a baboon in heat spotting a red rear end.
"Thank heavens, our Legion Commander has finally arrived with his men."
Fu Jin, who had recovered some of his Magic Power, used the shared vision of his Snowbird to see soldiers under the Thorn Corps banner on the edge of the Shadow Forest, shouting commands as they assembled a Catapult.
Giants lifted one Giant Stone after another into the sling. Then, as the winch was released, the counterweight dropped with a CRASH, and the Giant Stone was flung high, soaring over several hundred paces to smash into the crowd on the other side.
A squad of Heavy Armored Infantry holding Steel Shields was advancing methodically toward them, with Lancers and Archers behind.
A typical formation: shield and spear cover with Bow and Arrow volleys from above.
Though simple, it was undeniably and exceptionally practical.
Facing this forest of steel, the poorly equipped Wilderness People were beaten back again and again. Often, before they could even get close, they were mostly cut down by the rain of arrows that filled the sky.
Those who managed to reach the shield-bearers were stabbed to the ground by Long Spears, three blades in length, before they could even get close. They were then trampled under the chests of countless soldiers weighing over two hundred pounds, and quickly stomped into a pulp of flesh and mud.
Combined with the long-range strikes from the Catapult, it was the last straw that broke the camel’s back. The Wilderness People could no longer withstand the pressure.
The gruesome Hell of flesh and blood tested every nerve of those still coming. They wailed, dropped their weapons, abandoned their comrades, and began to flee backward in droves.
No matter how the Minotaur overseers roared or how many they chopped to pieces, it was no use.
It was like an avalanche, utterly impossible to stop by human effort.
The battle cries gradually died down, leaving only the irrepressible sounds of agony from the wounded scattered across the ground.
"It’s finally over. Damn it, that’s the first time I’ve thought Wilderness People are harder to deal with than a regular army." Panda threw down his long saber and plopped onto a pile of corpses. His towering, iron-like body made the corpses CRUNCH, and a few eyeballs, unable to take the pressure, shot out.
"But I gotta say, Lord, charging into battle with you is fucking awesome!" Panda grinned, his furry face caked with clotted blood, looking absolutely terrifying.
He had followed behind the Lord, not needing to think about a single thing. All he had to do was lower his head and hack away. The enemy was like lambs to the slaughter; a simple swing of his weapon was all it took to reap their lives.
But he had to admit, it was also truly exhausting.
His arms were so sore now he couldn’t even hold a stick of bamboo.
"Oh? Then are you interested in following me for good?" the Lord suddenly asked with a smile.
"Haha, the weather’s really nice today." Panda looked at the overcast sky and the heavy snowflakes, pretending to admire the scenery.
’I really want to slap myself,’ he thought. ’Why the hell did I have to bring that up?’
To be fair, he really liked Lord Li. He was ridiculously good to them, and his strength was undeniable. But the Panta Race were people who valued their promises. Since he had promised Fulina back then, he couldn’t just turn around and pledge himself to someone else.
So, being caught in the middle was awful, and he could only choose to pretend he hadn’t heard.
Levi didn’t press the issue. It was like boiling a frog in warm water—he had plenty of time. Whether it would work out or not was something only the future would tell.
Only a few soldiers of the Thorn Corps were still forcing themselves to stand at attention. Most were leaning on each other, looking for a place to rest. Their gasps for air merged together, as if they were all having a collective asthma attack.
Heather sat on the snow with no regard for her image, her two pointed ears twitching constantly. Her face was terrifyingly pale, but she wore a knowing smile.
In this battle, she had used every last ounce of her strength. Not a single drop of Magic Power remained. Now she just felt dizzy and nauseous, unable to speak a single word.
’But... we finally held on.’
She would never have to return to that dark, sunless, oppressive world.
Levi took off his helmet and threw it to the ground. The twisted, dented iron CLANGED as it rolled into the distance. He opened his mouth and spat out a mouthful of thick blood.
It wasn’t his blood. It was from others that had splattered onto him and pooled together.
Although he had taken several heavy blows from Minotaurs head-on, deforming his Armor and helmet, he himself was not actually injured.
Looking out, the ground, a mixture of blood and mud, was littered with disordered corpses of all kinds of strange races. You could walk at least a hundred paces without your feet touching the ground, just by stepping on them.
At a rough estimate, this horde of Wilderness People had lost at least thirty percent of their numbers before they could no longer sustain the casualties and began to rout.
This casualty threshold was comparable to that of an Elite Corps.
Before this, if someone had told him that Wilderness People would only start to rout after taking thirty percent casualties, he would have slapped them across the face without a second thought.
If a bunch of Wilderness rabble could withstand that kind of casualty rate, then every last one of Debei’s legions was worse than rabble.
"My Lord, are you all right?"
Heather, having recovered some of her Magic Power, walked over. She was proficient in some Healing Magic; if the Lord was injured, she could certainly provide Treatment.
Most of her future was now riding on this Lord. She couldn’t just stand by and watch something happen to him.
"I’m fine."
Levi shook his head and forcefully tore off his deformed Armor. With each layer he ripped away, clumps of flesh and gore collapsed from within.
Then he stretched his back and loosened his muscles.
Panda, standing to the side, was filled with utter admiration.
Every last one of them was dead tired, without even the strength to lift a hand.
But Lord Li, who had been the main force, clearly still had energy to spare. His constitution was as strong as a Giant Dragon’s.
Heather’s eyes sparkled as she watched. The Zor Elves all admired strength, and the more powerful the Lord was, the more he earned her favor.
’Only the strong are worthy of my service!’
Levi opened his panel and glanced at it. His experience bar, which had been as steady as an old dog, had shot up by a large chunk. The last little bit of empty space could be filled with just one more battle.
As his Level got higher and higher, his leveling up had also begun to stagnate.
But good things come to those who wait. At his current level of Power, every single extra Attribute Point was a huge improvement.
"Everyone, you’ve worked hard!"
Just then, a resonant, powerful voice came from behind.
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