Chapter 389: The Fierce Battle in the Frozen North
In the frigid north, a blizzard known as the Storm Snow descended, resembling the roar of a malevolent devil from the abyss. Undeterred by the relentless wind and snow, the Dawn Army pressed on like an unstoppable torrent of steel, marching resolutely across the already pockmarked snow-covered grasslands to confront one steel fortress after another.
As the players donned their equipment, they found themselves on equal footing with the orcs of similar levels. What had been a situation where hundreds of players struggled to defeat a single orc now turned into one where players engaged in 3 VS 1, 2 VS 1, and even 1 VS 1 battles. Players no longer feared orcs with low combat effectiveness unless facing boss-level orcs with exceptional durability.
At the moment when the armies engaged in close combat, it was the orcs who suffered heavy losses. Surrounded by countless players, the orc legions found themselves at a severe disadvantage. Orc warriors continued to fall under the onslaught of swords and magic.
Recognizing the dire situation, the orc commanders swiftly shifted to a defensive formation, attempting to fight and retreat simultaneously. However, the players were far from merciful. Having endured four waves of deaths earlier, they were now determined to exact their revenge.
Brandishing their swords with ferocity, players once again engaged the shield-bearing orcs, leaping over the shields to attack the rear rows. Chu Liuqiu, leading the charge, abandoned any pretense of unity and led the players in a relentless assault. He jumped onto orc shields and heads, striking down orc after orc.
Chu Liuqiu was no longer the diplomat he once was. Instead, he was a fierce warrior, leading countless players in a dance of death among the orc ranks. In mid-air, he dispatched an orc by thrusting his longsword into its chest, spraying hot blood onto his face. Without hesitation, he executed a peculiar maneuver, swiftly decapitating another orc with a slashing motion.
The second orc clutched its bleeding neck, blood spewing from its mouth before it crumpled to the ground, lifeless. In this manner, Chu Liuqiu dealt fatal blows to two orcs.
This battlefield tactic was effective and efficient – targeting vital Points to eliminate the enemy swiftly. Given the sheer number of enemies on the battlefield, conserving energy was crucial. Using special skills in every encounter would deplete their fighting spirit quickly. With Chu Liuqiu leading, the Professional players of Dawn City had an opportunity to shine.
Xiao Ayin, a shield fighter equipped with an Epic Level suit, managed to equalize the attribute differences between players and orcs. She effortlessly suppressed several orcs and rampaged through their ranks like a female tyrannosaurus.
Changli Jiuge had already initiated his dragon blood transformation upon entering the orc battle formation. In the presence of these middle-level orcs, he was a formidable beast with boundless power. With a pair of swords, he cleaved through thousands of troops, making quick work of any ordinary orc of the same level.
I Solitude led the players from the Shengshi Club into battle. Equipped with Intermediate Level epic gear, they swiftly paved a path for the player army. The strength of the chosen ones surged, and the orcs were forced to contend not only with them but also with countless magicians and Rangers.
Magic and arrows rained down like a tempest, shrouding the entire battlefield. Nowhere was safe. Death was an omnipresent companion.
Yet, in their determination to hold the line against the massive orc armies, the orc commanders had no choice but to deploy their high-level orc legions. Each military fortress harbored a high-level orc legion consisting of 3000 elite orcs.
These formidable forces leaped from the fortress walls, exuding an aura of invincibility. Once again, the chosen ones faced grim prospects as they were cut down in the ice and snow.
But this time, the players were instructed to resurrect on the spot rather than at the handsome flag. Perhaps some players chose the handsome flag to avoid dropping equipment. However, their blood was boiling, and they had no intention of retreating in the face of this battle. The flag of Dawn City waved high, and many players opted for on-site resurrection, ready to fight to the death.
As the players engaged the high-level orc Professionals guarding each military fortress, these orcs staunchly held their ground. However, with a resounding horn, the cannons positioned on the fortress walls fired simultaneously.
Boom!
Simultaneously, all ten military fortresses were transformed into dazzling displays of fireworks, courtesy of the shell explosions.
Many orcs who had taken their positions on the city walls were reduced to ashes by the unrelenting flames before they could even react. Craters marred the walls, and the once-sturdy arrow towers were overturned.
Among the fallen was a renowned Orc Archer, now either dead or engulfed by flames after jumping beneath the city walls to escape the onslaught. Unfortunately, they met their end impaled on countless sharp barbed pits outside the city, their mouths spewing blood and eyes filled with fear and despair as they were consumed by the flames.
There was no escape.
In the heart of the battlefield, William had incorporated burning oil into the artillery, adding a potent flame buff to their damage output. Of course, this artillery fire didn't inflict significant damage to other parts of the battlefield. Both sides' armies were too intermingled, and firing in the center would lead to friendly fire.
Yet, relentlessly bombarding the city walls was sufficient to make the fortress's defenders uncomfortable and disarm their archers, rendering them unable to retaliate. Just as the high-level Orc Legion descended upon the defenders like wolves among sheep, the high-level legion of Dawn City emerged.
They moved with the swiftness of shadows concealed within the darkness, akin to tigers and wolves lurking amidst the sea of foes. Swiftly, high-level warriors representing humans, Elves, and semi-elves, all clad in gleaming Dark-Gold Rank equipment, infiltrated the high-level Orc army.
In terms of equipment, combat prowess, and racial capabilities, the Dawn City high-level Legion showcased its formidable might immediately. Yet, the most astonishing sight was not the legion itself but the Dragon Blood Legion meticulously crafted by William.
Adorned in dragon scale armor and wielding weapons crafted from dragon teeth, scales, and keels, they resembled battlefield executioners, breaking through the high-level Orc Legion's formation in a heartbeat. Despite being of lower level and possessing lesser Dragon Bloodline, each Dragon's Blood Warriors was outfitted with an epic suit, making them William's most potent force and the mightiest Legion in the human empire.
The Dragon Blood, led by the elite Dragon Speaker corps, was unparalleled on any front.
When the Dragon Blood Legion graced the battlefield, they displayed their transformative power. Golden pupils glimmered in the snowy night, more terrifying than the orcs' own eyes. Most orc commanders held the epic rank, but upon seeing this Dragon Blood Legion, they desired nothing more than to eliminate these seemingly boundless threats.
However, high-level Elven Professionals, also at the epic level, appeared in the midst of the battle, their expressions indifferent.
As the Dragon's Blood Warriors transformed, dragon scales continued to grow beneath their skin, making it nearly impossible for anyone to pierce their final layer of close dragon scales, even if they managed to breach their dragon scale armor.
"Attack!" bellowed the Dragon Blood commander.
Hundreds of Dragon Speakers simultaneously raised their left hands.
Bang!
Countless colorful bursts of dragon breath erupted on the battlefield. This was the power of weakened dragon language magic. When combined, it resembled a roaring fire dragon soaring across the battlefield, reducing countless foes to ashes.
The high-level Orc Legion, confronted with this terrifying Dragon Blood Legion, had little hope of resistance. Nonetheless, the Dragon Blood soldiers paid them no heed, advancing across the battlefield like gods of war, leading thousands of troops to eliminate the orc soldiers who had yet to retreat to the city.
It was a one-sided massacre.
Dawn City boasted a high-level Legion of 50000 soldiers, stationed under ten military fortresses, inflicting severe casualties on the orcs who had previously taken advantage of their numerical superiority to slay four million players.
But could four million players' heads and experience really promote the orcs?
Clearly, the orcs had no chance to level up.
In just half an hour of bloody conflict, the ten orc fortresses had lost nearly one-third of their forces in the fierce competition. The remaining strength of each fortress did not exceed 60000, and the defeated soldiers finally retreated to their strongholds.
Just as they were about to seal the gates, the master of Dawn City, accompanied by hundreds of Grandmaster Level Professionals, entered the battlefield. These elite Professionals swiftly reached the South Gate of the ten military fortresses, where there was no defense to speak of.
William, too, selected one of the military fortresses.
Thus, countless players and warriors from Dawn City witnessed a thunderous bolt descending from the sky, striking the ground directly in front of the South Gate. The orcs attempting to enter the city were sent scattering in all directions by the shockwave.
"Close the city gates!" shouted some orcs. If those attackers couldn't return, so be it. The city gates had to be sealed.
One orc decisively severed the chain linking the city gate.
Click!
Boom.
Onlookers watched as the massive steel gate, weighing tens of thousands of kilograms, began its descent, about to crash into the earth.
Yet, beneath the city gate, a human figure suddenly materialized!
With one hand, he prevented the gate from plummeting. The ground beneath his feet crumbled, but William continued to hold the massive gate with a single hand. Even the area where his left hand gripped was undergoing deformation and melting.
More importantly, the prince, under relentless attack from countless orcs, including some master orcs, remained unmoved. He merely Pointed his longsword at everyone, even as countless orcs swarmed him.
"Is that enough?" he asked, his tone calm.
The orcs swallowed nervously, with some master orcs regarding him with terror. This man, bereft of equipment, was an absolute monster. Despite enduring countless attacks, he remained unscathed.
William inclined his head.
As he released the city gate with his left hand, he let out a resounding cry!
Then, with astonishing speed, he struck the bottom of the gate from below!
Boom!
The gate, of unfathomable weight, was forcibly propelled upward. Deformed and twisted, it pierced the wall before hurtling into the sky. Finally, it toppled over and landed within the inner city.
Countless witnesses stood in stunned silence, at a loss for words.
William clenched his fist and murmured, "What do you call that punch?"
"Destruction of the City!"