Zhan Long

Chapter 782 - The Flame Axe Army's Crushing Defeat

Columns of soldiers marched along the coastline. Flagbearers waved their banners in the wind, the insignia of a battle axe embroidered into them. The forty thousand soldiers from the Flame Battle Axe Army quickly crossed the beach. Several of the cavalrymen were carrying heavy wooden logs. They urged their horses deep into the sea and began to stab the pikes into the ground. However, the sand was too soft and runny, decreasing the chances of success for these pikes to stop any ships.

……

“Withdraw and maintain your guard!” Robert stood at the front of the army. He rode on a magnificent horse and loudly shouted orders. He turned around to glance at the observation deck. He was looking for my position. I could see a cold smile on his face, as though he were mocking me. After all, he was the general of the Flame Axe Army and he carried the Zhe Nan family name. He was two whole tiers above me in terms of position, and so naturally he was pleased with himself.

I couldn’t help but laugh at this. The emotional intelligence of these NPCs was getting higher and higher, they were practically no different from real people.

“They’re coming…”

I could see Pearl’s lip tremble as she said, “Let us see just how much strength and power our canons carry!”

King Rob smiled, “Pearl, don’t worry too much. These are Dragon Crystal Canons. I don’t expect them to fail your expectations. Besides, the Flame Axe Army isn’t a ragtag band. There is nothing to worry about with them holding the front lines!”

Pearl nodded, “Yes, understood, father!”

I rested my hand on the hilt of my Dragon Reservoir Sword and stood beside Pearl. Without moving, I stared into the distance and watched as the boats drew nearer. At the same time, I heard a messenger relay an order behind me. He wanted the Royal Army to begin preparations to fill gaps at a moment’s notice. Although, in reality, even I didn’t have much confidence in the battle power of the Flame Axe Army.

A few minutes later, I could already see the Hybrid Demon Warships on the coastline. They were around three hundred meters from the beach and had finally entered our range of fire.

“Hua!”

King Rob suddenly stood up. “Hua La La.” His armor clamored as he did so. He raised his arm and let it fall, yelling, “Fire the Dragon Crystal Cannons!”

The orderly swung the signal flag with all his might, motioning to the soldiers down below. Cannons exploded all along the coast. Countless Dragon Crystal Cannons, Magic Crystal Canons, and Volcanic Canons let loose. Smoke and powder floated over us in massive clouds. The next moment, I saw numerous fiery lights on the ocean’s surface. It was just as the king had said, the Dragon Crystal Cannons and the Volcanic Cliff Canons were truly terrifying weapons. A direct hit would smash the Hybrid Demon boats into smithereens!

Explosions occurred all along the horizon. The Dragon Crystal Cannon’s enormous strength created surges of waves that crashed against the shore. The Flame Dragon Army, Xia Yu Army and the Royal Army’s flags all fluttered fiercely from the shockwave. Quite a few of the flags had actually ripped off their poles from the momentum. [Legend], [Hero’s Mound] and [Zhan Long]’s front lines were not far away, and so they had been pushed back several feet. Just the opening act of this battle was enough for everyone to gulp in amazement.

However, even while facing against such a fierce cannons, the soldiers of the Revered One seemed to care nothing about their lives and continued rushing their boats towards the beach. It was like there was no end to the number of boats we needed to hit. Even while we sunk a few, a dozen more would take their places. I could see the robes of the Revered One, rocking with the waves, giving off a ferocious aura.

Very soon, we could see the individual demonified soldiers. Originally, they were soldiers of the Ba Huang City army, but now they were all labeled under one name ——Warriors of the Revered One. They were all Level 2-4 Hybrid Demons. There were also differences amongst their strength levels. Some of the smaller ones had the strength of a level 7 Hybrid Demon, and were between Level 135-145; Practically on par with many of the players today.

……

“Almost at contact!”

Pearl gripped her fist and muttered, “Father!”

A cold light flashed in King Rob’s eyes, “Pearl, calm down. Look at your Brothers, they’re still able to sit in their seats.”

Pearl bit her lip and said, “I’m sorry father, but I cannot achieve that.”

“No matter. Very soon, you will learn just how to deal with these damned Hybrid Demons!”

One after another, the ships charged towards the beaches. “Peng peng peng!” Their hulls smacked against the ground. The front of these ships were wrapped in steel plating, and they quickly smashed apart the wooden pikes. One after another, enormous planks fell into the water and the Revered One’s Warriors came ashore with battle axes and swords in hand.

The Flame Axe Army had already constructed a defensive line. A large group of shield bearing soldiers were guarding the front lines. The shields that they carried were all about the same height as a man. Furthermore, the defensive line looked almost like a shield wall. Rays of light pierced through the chinks and cracks between each shield, shining upon the soldiers faces and revealing the terror and uncertainty of the future they faced.

While the Flame Axe Army was one of the empire’s main forces, it had never quite gone up against the Hybrid Demons. And so, naturally, they wouldn’t be able to maintain complete calm as they faced these terrifying creatures for the first time. Some of the soldiers were even drenched in cold sweat as hot tears formed at the corner of their eyes. It was as though they knew that they weren’t going to make it past this night.

Night fell and the hordes of Revered One’s soldiers continued surging against the Flame Axe Army. Cannons exploded in the distance endlessly. As before, the cannons on the banks continued to fire at the large ships at sea. The Revered One had brought at least a hundred thousand soldiers. Killing them all at sea was not a very viable possibility.

……

“Prepare!”

Marquis Louis drew his longsword and shouted, “Hold your positions!”

In the next moment, the countless warriors rushed against the defense formation. They stabbed their long blades and swords into shields, desperately clawing at any opening in the shield. The second a gap opened, they would drive in and take a bit right out of the neck of the soldier behind it. Screams rose into the air. The Flame Axe soldiers valiantly fought back, pushing their spears forth. In the end, these Hybrid Demons weren’t invincible, and many of them ended up dying on the stick.

“Halt!” The marquis roared. He charged forward with his sword in hand and cut down one of the Revered One’s archers. Blood spurt forward onto his face, creating a fierce look. However, the marquis didn’t think twice and continued his efforts in holding the front lines.

“Father, careful!” Robert shouted.

In the dark, an enormous figure suddenly rushed onto shore from the war boats. It swung a battle axe in the air and roared. “Peng!” The axe smashed into the shield. A dozen or more of the Flame Axe soldiers were sent flying. Under the moonlight, the figure looked even more terrifying and its screeches pierced through the hearts of everyone who heard.

I stood at the edge of the deck. Just watching made my heart wrench with panic. I shouted, “Raise the torches!”

Specks of light rose up all along the coastline as the Flame Axe Soldiers raised their torches. Under the firelight, I could see that the gigantic figure was covered with some kind of needle. It looked like a half beast half man that was decomposing. It was called “The Decimator.” It was a Level 7 Hybrid Demon, Level 144 monster. No wonder the Flame Axe soldiers couldn’t stand against it. Tht monster’s stats must be insanely high.

These “Decimators” appeared all across the battlefield, and very soon, gaps began to appear in the Flame Axe Army’s shield wall. It was not long before it would collapse completely.

……

The Marquis Louis was soaked in blood. He yelled as he was chased by three of the Decimators. His own battle axe had even been chopped in half. I could see that one of his arms had been nearly chopped off, rendering it useless. He screamed as he fell off his horse. Luckily, he was quickly saved by a general and successfully retreated. Louis was shivering from his fright. He shouted, “No, we can’t, the Flame Axe Army cannot hold against this. Retreat!”

And jsut like that, the reputable, fifty thousand man Flame Axe Army was completely defeated in less than ten minutes.

“Kill them! Kill them all!” A voice shouted from the darkness. The more I focused on it, the more familiar it sounded. It was Luo Lin. Even while we could hear his voice, we couldn’t tell where it was hiding.

The Revered One’s Army fought like crazy against the Flame Axe Army. In the end, the defeated army was chased back towards its own formation in a small wave. The reality was, the Flame Axe Army was the first to fight, and against such a strong enemy, there were only two results, either to be completely decimated, or to be forced back. And if they weren’t fast enough, they wouldn’t only drag their own forces down.

“D*mm*t!”

The crown prince Theodore stood up in a rush of anger. He pulled out his sword and swung it, yelling, “Flame Dragon Army, heed my call, release the arrows on the Hybrid Demons. Do not let them near our formation!”

Hooves clattered against the ground. The one handed Marquis dropped to his knees before us, clutching his bleeding wrist. He glared at Theodore and shouted, “Your highness! My Flame Axe warriors are mixed into the Revered One’s troops. Please, take back your order. Otherwise, my entire army will be killed!”

Theodore coldly smiled, “You’re a defeated general, what right do you have to say as much? If the Revered One’s army gets close to our central camp and endangers father’s safety, will you be able to take that responsibility?”

The Marquis stiffened and shouted, “Theodore!”

Theodore raised his arm, “Release!”

A mass of arrows flew into the air and rained down upon the ground, striking into human and monster flesh. While the Revered One’s soldiers were being shot down, so were the Flame Axe soldiers. They were being killed at the same rate. I could see the Marquis’ heart being wrenched out as his comrades died under the arrows of their fellow soldiers. He knelt before the heavens and cried out, “Gods, how could you allow such cruel slaughter?!”

I clenched my teeth and walked up, “Your majesty, killing people like this will affect the morale of your soldiers. How about you stop the arrows?”

Theodore coldly looked at me, “General Li, aren’t you being a little too soft hearted? You’ve witnessed the Revered One’s cruelty. If we allow him anywhere near the core of our army, can you even imagine the consequences? Are you planning on taking that responsibility?”

I stared into Theodore’s face, and suddenly felt a shiver run down my back as I realized just how cold hearted this crown prince was. I could barely recognize him as a person. Pearl tugged on my arm, signaling me to not speak any more.

King Rob stood up and furrowd his brow, “General Li’s words are not without reason. But, is there really no other way better than to shoot these Flame Axe Soldiers down?”

I took a deep breath and said, “I am willing to lead my Royal Army forth and hold off the Revered One’s troops so that the Flame Axe Army has time to retreat!”

A peculiar expression flashed in King Rob’s eyes, “General Li, have you thought through what you are proposing?”

“Yes sir!”

“Then go!”

……

I walked forward and leapt off the deck. I quickly summoned my Flying Scythe Horse and charged forward. I then summoned my little tiger and quickly dashed towards the Royal Army’s encampment. At the same time, I pulled out my Dragon Reservoir Sword and Zhen Yue Blade, killing all of the Revered One’s Soldiers in my path. These were all the henchman of Luo Lin. Whenever I thought of the pain that Frost suffered when she was betrayed by him, an unquenchable anger rose up in my throat. No matter whether or not we could actually hold off those Northern Hybrid Demons, Luo Lin must die!