The loyal Steel Heavy Cavalry of the Dragon clan and the flesh and blood bodies of the Orc Army clashed, erupting in a sudden roar, and the battlefield instantly became a hell woven with blood and bone.
Led by the terrifying Dragonborn Centaur Chiron, the Steel Heavy Cavalry, carrying a rolling tide of dust and a resounding clang, directly crashed into the Orc Army, which had not yet managed to set up its defensive formation.
The knights forged of steel and iron were like an irresistible torrent of blades, directly cutting through the Orc Army; countless Orcs met their fated end the moment they faced the initial impact.
These Orcs futilely roared and raised their weapons, but were instantly shattered by countless flashing steel blades, their broken bodies trampled into mud by the steel torrent.
Orcs who raised their shields were also cut down, along with their shields, by the interlacing, gleaming blade-light; the Orc spellcasters were still raising their staffs, loudly chanting spells, but before the glow of magic could rise, the steel torrent had already trampled over their broken bodies and swept through.
Crushing everything in its path, invincible!
The Dragon clan's Steel Heavy Cavalry, carrying unparalleled impact, had already pierced through the flesh and blood forest of tens of thousands of Orc Army in this short moment.
These knights were like mountains and fire; their steel bodies were as towering as mountains, and their blazing blades were as swift as fire; even a True Dragon would not dare to face their blades and bloodthirsty flames head-on.
The seemingly powerful and solid formation of tens of thousands of Orc Army directly entered the verge of panic and collapse; countless Orcs, in their retreat, dissolved and disintegrated their originally loose formation.
Thud, thud, thud.
The Dragonkin monster's long blade severed several grappling hooks, and then his sturdy body swept past two True Dragons trapped in the net of chains, leaving only a commendatory and deep roar: "Follow me, follow me, do not betray the blood of the Dragon clan, and destroy with me!"
Rumble, rumble.
The steel torrent swept past the True Dragons, blades cutting down surrounding Orcs, severing the shackles that bound and trapped the True Dragon s, and then surged forward without stopping.
Roar!
The two True Dragons let out angry roars; even though they were bleeding all over and their scales were shattered, they had already fallen into the True Dragon's rage and berserk battle.
Carlit and Ellie slammed their claws into the ground, their scales and muscles contracting and twitching, shaking off the blood-stained arrows and barbs on their bodies; their wing claws supported the ground, and their four limbs began to pound as they ran, the True Dragon s joining the torrent of steel and iron.
The remaining dozens of Wyvern Knights in the sky screamed excitedly, returning from the sky, following on both sides of this rampant, unstoppable heavy cavalry, their long moon-blade war-blades gleaming with bloodthirsty light.
Meanwhile, the Beast cavalry on the periphery of the Orc Army, those Kobold and Green GoblinKnights wielding short bows and short crossbows, rode their beasts, circling the outer edges of the Orc Army like kites, distracting the army's attention.
However, the casualties they caused were not much less than those caused by the Centaur cavalry.
Single-shot firearms needed to be reloaded after each shot, but their power was enough to penetrate the tough hides of giants on the prairie; Orcs whose formations were disrupted by heavy armored cavalry were simply dense rows of targets in front of these Beast Knights.
They aimed and fired recklessly, then retreated to reload, and then returned, repeating this set of actions.
The short crossbows and short bows carried by other Kobold and Green Goblin were not as powerful as firearms, but against the defense of most Orcs, which was merely simple animal hides, they could still cause a large number of casualties.
"Surround them, surround them."
Several Orc tribal chieftains stood beneath their tribal banners, roaring and bellowing, directing the surrounding Orc Warriors to try and block the advance of this heavy cavalry, to trap it, and then gradually wear it down.
But sand and dust swirled wildly, and the steel storm was fierce; this steel torrent, led by the powerful Dragonborn Centaur, was unstoppable.
The True Dragons roared, their steel claws and iron tails sweeping through the tangled grass and gravel, tearing and striking, following the cavalry unit as it pierced through the entire Orc Army.
The gradually reddening eyes of this Dragonkin monster also noticed the banners surrounded by Orcs; as long as these Orc chieftains were slain, the Orc Army would immediately collapse.
And the Orc cavalry not far away had already returned, now approaching the battlefield, accelerating their advance towards the direction where the True Dragon Heavy Armored Cavalry had broken through the Orc Army; in a moment, a clash would occur.
Those Orc cavalry were the most elite troops of the entire Orc Army; many of their warriors also wore armor and carried excellent weapons, and led by that powerful Orc chieftain, they were bypassing the obstacles of the Orc Army, charging rapidly from the periphery.
"Form up, shield bearers to the front, strengthen the defense!" the Orc chieftain shouted loudly under the banner, wanting to regroup the scattered Orc Army and restore their formation.
Meanwhile, the Centaur Chiron, with the cavalry unit that had pierced through the army, redirected their course and quickly regrouped; his eyes, gradually turning the color of a Red Dragon, swept over the silent cavalry unit.
Although these warriors were strong enough and fully clad in sturdy heavy armor, about a dozen warriors were still knocked down by the strong Orcs using their flesh and blood, or sent flying by heavy hammers, exchanging blood for blood, withering into mud, forever silent on that battlefield.
The rest of the heavy armored warriors, however, did not suffer any serious injuries; the sturdy iron armor could not be breached by the crude weapons of these Orcs, only leaving traces, but having pierced through tens of thousands of troops, it also left these powerful knights quietly panting.
Their blades were stained with blood, the enemy's blood and shattered flesh had dyed their dark iron armor dark red, but the eyes of these warriors grew brighter and more fervent.
"Our goal is to completely defeat these Orcs here; we cannot let these Orcs advance a single step into the heart of our territory," this Dragonborn Centaur said with powerful momentum, his True Dragon features becoming increasingly prominent.
His red mane was like steel wire, his crimson horse tail like an iron broom, and the blood scales all over his body steamed with heat, like the misty sulfurous aura of a Red Dragon.
His fangs interlocked as he surveyed the fully prepared heavy armored knights, emitting a steel-like voice: "The Spear of Kogmora will crush any enemy standing in its way; the will of the great lord Kogmora is with us."
"Even if our flesh perishes, our souls will forever return to the Holy Temple; I demand that you follow my steps until my body falls."
The strongest and most powerful Centaur monster under this True Dragon raised his blood-stained long blade and let out a chilling roar: "We sacrifice the enemy's blood to the Holy Temple, and the enemy's skulls to the Throne!"
"Flesh perishes, forever returns to the Holy Temple, blood sacrifice to the Holy Temple, skulls offered to the Throne!"
Countless steel warriors raised their long blades and roared their assent!
The two True Dragons also raised their heads and let out roars that shook heaven and earth.
Boom! The torrent of steel and iron rolled again, launching another charge under the leadership of Chiron, the Centaur King, whose body was enveloped in a fiery hue.
The earth trembled as if ten thousand horses were galloping, and a surging tide of sound crashed directly into the Orc Army's defensive line.
This time, the Orc Army's organized line was even more fragile than before; the Centaur Warriors and mixed heavy armored cavalry were no longer silent; they let out terrifying roars, their long blades like thunderbolts from the sky, an unstoppable and awe-inspiring heavenly might.
"Advance, advance, crush everything!" The surging sound wave was as terrifying as muffled thunder, and the blazing blade light was swifter than lightning.
The shield wall organized by the Orc Warriors was shattered in one charge, their gripped spears forcibly broken, heads rolling down, and hot blood gushing from necks.
The two True Dragons ran on both sides of the heavy armored torrent; the magic of these two female True Dragons had been squeezed dry, but they still had their claws as sharp as swords and their bodies as strong as heavy armor.
They were like two war machines dancing wildly on the battlefield, charging and sweeping, tearing the enemy's flesh and blood, and crushing the enemy's tendons and strong bones.
The entire battlefield was a hell intertwined with blood and flesh, and the source was the bones and blood of the Orcs; no Orc could survive in front of the mad True Dragon army, unless he was forged of steel and iron.
"Kill them, stop them!" The Orc chieftain raised his war banner, urging the Orc Warriors to attack.
"We should retreat and regroup with the Great Chieftain, then reorganize the army; the formation has been broken up now, it's hard to stop them!"
The Orc guard beside him shouted loudly; that unstoppable steel torrent was charging in their direction, the shocking battle cries swept by the strong wind, and the heavy smell of blood carried by the wind made even the brave Orcs tremble with fear.
"No, no leader will leave his war banner; I will stand here and tell every warrior that their leader is never afraid."
The Orc chieftain roared: "Attack, attack, carry the war banner, follow me, charge!"
But even the most fearless courage would be crushed under the steel torrent; the guards led by this brave Orc chieftain were routed by the heavy armored cavalry in a single blow; his raised war spear pierced through a warrior, and then was shattered by several flashes of blade light.
War banners fell one after another, and the steel torrent also suffered losses, but under the repeated charges and breakthroughs of the mad True Dragon army against the Orcs, these armies, composed of various tribes, finally began to completely collapse, fleeing in all directions across the grassland.
The Beast cavalry on the periphery, those Kobold and Green Goblin riders, had also suffered heavy losses by this time; the True Dragon's steel army deliberately avoided the front of the Orc cavalry, wanting to first defeat the Orc infantry.
Those Orc cavalry also couldn't charge into their own formation, so those Orc cavalry also began to eliminate these Beast riders.
But the remaining Beast cavalry began to bypass the fleeing Orcs and converge towards their own cavalry army, because the time for the final decisive battle had arrived.
The Dragon clan's steel army and the Orc's cavalry stood facing each other across countless fleeing Orcs, separated by more than a thousand meters.
Puff, puff, puff.
The Orc mounts were restlessly pawing the ground; although these Orcs were the elite of the Orc Army and had not expended much energy, they still dared not be careless when facing the heavily depleted True Dragon army.
The smell of blood in the air was already nauseating, and the strong Great Orc Chieftain Dettanreined in the True Dragon beast beneath him, gripping his war spear tightly in his hand.
He knew very well that if he could win this cavalry duel, then their Orc Alliance would still have a chance; he could still use the momentum of victory to rally the remaining army.
Although the army was scattered and routed, the losses were not so heavy as to be unacceptable; there were still over thirty thousand Orc Warriors.
It just so happened that most of those Orc chieftains had been killed, so he could legitimately unify all the Orcs, twisting these Orcs into a more cohesive rope, capable of exerting greater power than a loose alliance.
Those True Dragon soldiers, they cannot be given any more rest time now; the Great Orc Chieftain, the powerful Dettan, raised the war spear crafted from a shadow True Dragon's spine in his hand and roared loudly: "Orcs, never slaves!"
"Orcs, never slaves!" These most elite and strong Orcs echoed in unison, following their chieftain, galloping forward, unwavering, even if it meant breaking through their own Orc kin.
Thousands of cavalry, mighty and vast, charged forth.
"Follow me, stick close to me, until my flesh perishes." Centaur Chiron exhaled deeply, stopping his panting; the spare long blade he had switched to was already somewhat chipped.
"Until flesh perishes!"
Behind him, Kari, the former leader of the Centaur, and Kari's mate, Centaur Trogdor, these two powerful warriors second only to Chiron, also stopped their panting and spoke at the same time.
Their sturdy armor was dented, and their inner armor was soaked with dark red bloodstains, some from enemies, some from themselves.
All surviving warriors roared with renewed spirit, regrouping.
Chiron's steel-like teeth closed, and his strong four hooves began to pound again, running; behind him were the brave Dragonkin.
The steel torrent restarted; mountain collapse against tsunami, both surged forward relentlessly!
...
The roaring cannon fire immediately blasted open a large breach in the Golden City's walls; fortunately, this outcome was already within Akzi's expectations, and all soldiers had retreated into the barbican, and the two Metal Dragons had also returned safely.
Kadilos, with two giant crossbow bolts still embedded in his back, finally managed to climb into the city walls at the last moment.
Fortunately, the barbican was originally built to defend against the Orcs' artillery attacks, so it was built on the side of the central street of the Golden City, almost giving up half of the city.
If the Orcs' artillery wanted to attack the barbican, they would have to relocate their positions, moving them near the outer walls of the Golden City to reach the barbican's defenses, which gave the True Dragon army a chance to rest and recuperate.
But for some unknown reason, in the past few days, the Orcs' warriors have rarely participated in the attack, and their artillery positions have not moved; most of the time, the Fishmen have been attacking the city.
Moreover, the Fishmen's intention to attack was far less than their intention to loot the city; a large number of Fishmen poured in through the collapsed city walls.
Then, like bandits, they rushed into buildings, carrying away gold, silver, and jewels that could not be taken, or statues and other exquisite crafts that could not be taken.
Only a small number of Fishmen, after failing in their attempts to attack the barbican, also turned into scavengers. These Fishmen even dismantled and carried away exquisitely carved house pillars, which greatly disgusted the True Dragon soldiers.
Every day, the city was accompanied by large-scale fighting. Without the threat of artillery, the Dragon clans warriors also swept through the seemingly endless Fishmen in this familiar city.
Large numbers of troops were rotating and resting, replenishing lost armaments and supplies. After all of the Dragon clan's dependents were reorganized into an army to participate in the war, a large amount of logistical work was carried out by those who volunteered to be conscripted.
Farn and other soldiers who volunteered to become war reserves were also dispatched to transport large quantities of arrows, shells, and food to the Golden City.
During periods of low intensity warfare, these reserve soldiers were allowed to participate in defense, using bows, firearms, and swords in practical training, which allowed this batch of reserves to grow rapidly.
Due to his excellent martial arts, outstanding qualities, and strength, Farn has been named a centurion of the reserve legion, leading nine soldiers to patrol the city walls, checking for omissions and making up for deficiencies.
This is the highest rank a new recruit can achieve; a centurion must be a veteran who has experienced combat and received meritorious awards.
"Boss, with your superb martial arts and powerful strength, why would you want to be an ordinary soldier? With your ability, you could do anything better than this."
The young soldier next to him, whose facial hair had just receded and become coarse, was smilingly talking to his captain. After days of training, these young soldiers also began to relax and were no longer as tense as before.
Farn looked at the collapsed city walls, the blood-stained streets everywhere, and the dilapidated houses, feeling a little regretful for the once prosperous Golden City.
Hearing what his subordinate said, the corner of Farn's mouth, hidden by his thick beard, curved upwards. "Our homeland is threatened, and someone always needs to stand up. Although my ability is limited, I am still willing to contribute to my homeland."
"Besides, if the Dragon clan's dependents can sacrifice their lives to protect the Golden Land and its people, aren't we also members of the Golden People? I really cannot comfortably enjoy their protection and indulge in the warmth created by bloodshed."
"Hehe," the young soldier scratched his head, saying somewhat embarrassedly, "I didn't think as much as you, Captain. I just want to drive these Orcs away as soon as possible so I can go home and farm. I can't let these beasts ruin the five acres of land I just opened."
Farn reached out and patted the young soldier's shoulder, chuckling softly, "We are all the same!"
Several True Dragons landed in front of the Dragon clan's treasury with the Young Red Dragon, Kadilos, who was about to fall into eternal slumber. Several White Dragons had already been unchained, but their daily living quarters remained here.
Without a summons from the Blue Dragon Akzi, these True Dragons could only move around here and guard the True Dragon's treasury.
During this time, many adventurers tried to fish in troubled waters and were hanged by the Dragon clan's soldiers on tree stumps outside the canyon.
There were also some adventurers with exceptionally good stealth who made their way into the canyon and were frozen into ice sculptures by several White True Dragon, placed in front of the treasury as toys and backup food for these White Dragons.
And now, these White Dragons have a new task: they not only need to guard the Dragon clan's treasury when not summoned, but also to protect the safety of this dying Young Red Dragon, who is about to enter the divine realm in hell.
Alina, Alfred, and Ocean Dragon Nakson all came here. The Young Red Dragon's body was too heavy; to avoid shaking this Red Dragon to death during transport, several True Dragon had to carefully and quickly transport him back.
Whoosh,
The shadow from the sky fell, and the enormous body of the Adolescent Blue Dragon Akzi landed beside the several True Dragons. Looking at the Young Red Dragon, whose aura had fallen to rock bottom, the Blue Dragon still opened his mouth and spit out a clear, glowing fruit with a rich life essence.
This was a fruit from the Tree of Life that Akzi had retrieved from his own lair, a spoils of war from the conquest of the Green Field Forest plane.
These powerful fruits were hidden by each True Dragon in what they considered the safest place—their own lair—and sealed with magic.
Akzi had originally planned to swallow this fruit when he entered his adolescent slumber to enhance his life essence and better develop his bloodline.
But facing the dying Young Red Dragon, this Blue Dragon still restrained himself with an extremely strong will, deciding to feed his life fruit to this Red Dragon who had bled for the True Dragon.
"I'm sure Germott and Kalon would make the same choice at this moment," Blue Dragon Akzi looked reluctantly at the glowing fruit in his claw, his pupils showing greedy and pained expressions.
"He's dying, stop looking, Akzi," Alina's eyes also held greed, but she had also received the same spoils of war, so she wasn't like Ocean Dragon Nakson, who was even drooling.
"Anyway, you can still apply for compensation from Kalon. If you really can't bear it, use mine," Alina said somewhat eagerly. Saving this Young Red Dragon was a conclusion reached after all the True Dragons discussed it.
After this battle, although several True Dragons were somewhat dissatisfied with the Young Red Dragon's uncontrollability, their recognition of the Red Dragon increased slightly, elevating him from a tool True Dragon that could be abandoned at any time to a more useful tool True Dragon.
The Blue Dragon Akzi sighed reluctantly and still stuffed the life fruit into the Young Red Dragon's mouth. He kept muttering, "Not only do I need to apply for compensation from Kalon, Kadilos, you also need to work for the True Dragon for free for two hundred years after you recover, to repay your debt!"
"No, two hundred years is only enough to repay your debt. You need to add another hundred years as compensation for the damage to my spirit. For you, I sacrificed this incredibly precious treasure, which truly pains me!"
The Young Red Dragon, whose body was covered in wounds and holes but had been slightly alleviated by healing magic, opened his mouth and swallowed the fruit. The immense life energy slightly invigorated this Red Dragon's spirit, and he finally opened his closed eyes.
"Hmph, is my life, Kadilos, only worth three hundred years?" The Young Red Dragon struggled to lift his head, stubbornly sticking out his long neck.
...
Even after a rather brutal war, the Orc Army still numbered close to eighty thousand. These Orcs had, in the past few days, moved all the armaments and supplies from the ships and built military camps on the flat ground outside the Golden City.
Only Prince Garn and his elite guard remained stationed on the largest flagship, not stepping a single half-step onto the shore.
At this moment, Prince Garn stood with his closest and most trusted adjutant, who was also his strongest warrior, Kalon, looking distantly at the dilapidated Golden City and the Fishmen, who, despite being bloodied, were still in high spirits.
"These foolish and short-sighted Fishmen, who actually stopped our advance because they were afraid the Orcs would take their treasures, their heads are truly filled with seawater."
The powerful Orc warrior Kalon's inverted tusks twitched, and the contempt and disdain in his eyes were already evident.
"Heh, after all, it's half of the Golden City. If we didn't have a bigger goal, even I would be tempted. The wealth of the Golden City exceeds my imagination."
Prince Garn leaned on the railing of the deck, looking meaningfully towards the Fishmen camp, where countless exquisite artifacts were placed, along with piles of gold, silver, and copper coins, awaiting inspection by the Fishmen Prince's guards.
"Those Wyvern Knight are constantly harassing and damaging our ships, trying to cut off our supply lines from the sea. If this drags on, our food and supplies will soon be exhausted without replenishment. Gahn, we should break through this city as soon as possible."
The Orc warrior Kalon said in a deep voice.
Recently, the Dragon clan's Wyvern Knight have been constantly looking for opportunities to ambush, having destroyed and sunk dozens of ships at sea. Fortunately, all supplies have been moved ashore, otherwise the Orcs' losses would have been even greater.
"Half of the Golden City will not satisfy these Fishmen. They will soon finish plundering. At most, in two days, they will start attacking that barbican. We don't need to rush. Let these Fishmenscout the way for us. A large city is best suited for fierce fire. I don't want the Orcs to rashly enter that city."
The Orc Prince smiled faintly.
Fierce fire was the intense fire that once caused fires on the sea. Because it burned fiercely and seawater could not easily extinguish it, it was called fierce fire by the Orcs.
"And the bodies of those Fishmen can also become our food," the Orc Gahn said coldly, "Once those Fishmen have hit enough walls, they will naturally invite us to participate in the attack."
"As long as we can quickly break through the city's final defense, we can send back news. Those stingy old guys, seeing success, will naturally go all out."
"And we can rely on the Golden City to hold out, waiting for reinforcements, or directly launch an attack. The choice is in our hands."
"To quickly break through the last line of defense, the resistance encountered will not be so easy. Should we release it and directly crush this line of defense, lest the night be too long and the dreams too many?"
The Orc Koreth's gaze turned towards the hold of this massive flagship.
The huge hold had now been opened, revealing a giant iron cage that occupied two-thirds of the hold.
Each iron bar of the cage was incredibly thick, dark and heavy like a pillar, and covered with dense magical runes, clearly intended to suppress and pacify the creature within the giant iron cage.
The creature sleeping in the iron cage was enormous, its slowly beating heart sounding like a heavy drum, deep and powerful.
Its tail was as straight as a hemlock, its muscles sculpted like hard diamonds, and its bones harder than steel. It was called Behemoth in Dragon Language and Elvish, and in Orcish, or translated into the common continental language, its name was—Behemoth!
Prince Garn shook his head, "No, we cannot perfectly control it. It will serve as my ultimate weapon for slaughtering True Dragon, and it is our crucial trump card. It cannot be released so easily."
"However, I only hope we don't need to use it, that would mean we will be isolated and helpless," Prince Garn stood on the deck, looking at the Golden City in the distance, and said faintly, "Then we will become pawns, and can only go all out!"