Under the curtain of a moonless night, the wind stirred up columns of smoke. The light of torches started to glow in the darkness, like wil-o'-the-wisps flickering in the wind. One speck of light after the other, lines of fire surged forward like a tide from the end of the sky.
"Boom——"
A deep horn sound made the air tremble, the screeching of mine carts rolling over iron tracks echoed alongside it, heralding the prelude of an upcoming battle.
"Roar!!!" A mysterious glow lit up in the darkness, like magma flowing down from the clouds. At the very moment the Magma Demon raised its arms, an earthy orange glow, bright and fiery like lava, burst forth from its chest.
With a heavy punch came a "bang". A small demon soldier fell backwards, its weapon flying out of its hand.
As the weapon rolled on the ground, it chipped off a piece of its sharp blade. Reflected in the light was the crowd stirring, as helpless as mosquito larvae struggling on the surface of autumn water.
In an instant, a war cry erupted. It was unclear who first screamed, "Ambush! Ambush! They're coming, they're coming!!!"
With the emergent shouts, the camp instantly boiled over with many demons rushing out half-dressed in armor. This sight only added to the panic of their companions, who were rushing towards the entrance of the camp.
The first demon to emerge heard an explosion and saw two lifeless bodies. They thought someone had invaded the camp, so they rushed to inform their commander as fast as they could.
However, the demons who noticed their rush mistook it for a direct enemy attack, causing even more chaos in the camp. They didn't have time to put on their armor or grab their weapons, they just ran in the direction everyone else was running.
The commander, who was similarly not wearing his armor, rushed out of his tent, shouting, "What's going on!? Who's invaded us?! What are you doing?! Stop running!!"
The awakened demons were searching for the enemy, but due to their lack of discipline, they scattered aimlessly like headless flies. They were quickly singled out and captured, screams cut through the night, further escalating the panic among the other demons.
"It must be them! They've definitely invaded!! Those damn slaves!! Grab your weapons, I'm going to slaughter them!!!"
"Grr!! They're done for! I just saw a fire over there, I'm going to tear them apart!!!"
"They've been hiding so long, so they've finally shown their faces? Just wait and see, grr!!!"
For a while, cries, roars, and curses filled the air, but the commander's shouting was of no avail.
When complete chaos broke out in the camp, the commander realized his worst fear; their camp was under attack.
In relatively classic warfare, one must always guard against one tactic, that is, the camp raid.
In simpler terms, in traditional wars, soldiers needed only to possess combat skills. They just had to obey commands and be able to fight. Anything else was a waste of resources.
To make their units both obedient and battle-ready, commanders had to establish a strong leadership position. To do so, they had to enforce a very strict military discipline, especially in the strict armies of ancient warfare.
Discipline and instinct are almost the opposite. Discipline commands fearlessness in the face of death, but fear of death is the instinct of any intelligent life.
In the intense and tense battlefield, one is surrounded by military discipline and ruthless enemies, and death seems always imminent. The only time of relaxation comes during rest periods. After a taxing battle or harsh training, fatigue loosens mental grip. This is the time when sudden intense stimulation can trigger a primal reaction.
Batman's strategy was to combine geographical tactics and psychological warfare to achieve victory without bloodshed and break through the defense.
The workers were familiar with the terrain, so much so that they could navigate through the mines with their eyes closed. They knew where there were small trenches, shelters, secret layers and cracks. These past few days, they disrupted the enemy around the seventh mountain using these tactics.
As is well-known, defense is not just about sitting in a camp. It involves sending out scouting troops, building defensive fortifications and daily patrolling. The scouting and patrolling troops, as well as the sappers who build the fortifications, became their targets.
The tactics they used were consistent: divide and conquer, advance when the enemy retreats, retreat when the enemy advances.
Large heavy-armor demon soldiers could not be part of the scouting team. Lighter demons, while not as strong, could easily fall into traps or be surrounded by big workers. Survival was minimal. In the first few days, the defense forces of the seventh mountain lost three patrol squads and two scout teams due to these tactics.
Logically, one would counter-attack after suffering a loss, but they were on the defensive and could not launch a full-scale attack, or they risk being lured away from their post.
Batman's troops were like a small knife, continuously cutting away at the outer defense of the seventh mountain. The enemy was in pain and anger, but couldn't effectively counter-attack.
When the heavy-armor troops led by the regular army went to engage, the enemy avoided combat and used the mountains for defense. A small force was not enough to attack.