Chapter 859- Punishment and defeat
The giant dragon bloodline of the Fire Dragon Cavalry and the beast king specialty had a crushing advantage against the other cavalry. When they charged over, everyone in the way was cleared out. Flaming Cloud City players and NPCs weren't able to block them at all. I directly activated [Icy Wings], stepping into the air to chase and kill the Flaming Cloud City players. Three thousand Fire Dragon Cavalry broke through the Flaming Cloud City defense line and became the first unit that entered Flaming Cloud Plains.
However, right as we passed the Flaming God Castle, cannon sounds spread out from the front. Many Dragon Crystal Cannons and Flame Dragon Cannons exploded out in the crowd as I had expected. The India Region NPCs and players were already laying in ambush waiting for us. Looking out, there were at least a hundred Dragon Crystal and Flame Dragon Cannons placed together. The cannon fire explosions continued endlessly. No matter how strong the Fire Dragon Cavalry was, they weren't able to block such damage. Instantly, a large number of them either got injured or died. Li Mu's eyes turned red from anxiousness, "They are obviously trying to block us here. Xiao Yao, what should we do? Directly charge over and continue to destroy their heavy cannon unit?"
I swiftly shook my head, "Don't. We will split into two wings to chase over. First, let the Fire Dragon Cavalry find stable footing in the southern part of the Flaming God Mountain Range. Then we won't be clumped up together and become the living targets of the Dragon Crystal Cannons. Quick, you bring the [Valiant Bravery] men to the left and I will bring [Zhan Long] to the right!"
"Great!"
Everyone pulled their weapons and charged over. I turned right immediately. As expected, there was a black suppressive patch of players already waiting there for us. On average, their levels ranged from 140 to 147 — there weren't any sixth job players at all. Thus, we could assume that their main guilds weren't here and these were just some second-rate ones who were sent to stop us. There was nothing to fear. I swept my blade out and the Dragon Reservoir Sword landed onto a shield formation. Energy reverberated about, causing a bunch of shield-wielding enemies to be flung aside. Under my sword and the effects of the [Icy Wings] strike, there was actually an energy force on the ground which shocked the Indian players. No one dared to fight the 1,800 [Zhan Long] Fire Dragon Cavalry behind me.
"Kill!"
Old K held up this battle axe, smashing a corner of the shield formation. He used [Whirlwind Slash] to clash with the group and instantly many players were directly smashed to pieces in the air. Mocha, Li Meng Yao, Yue Yao Yan, Star Blade, and One Second Hero continued to charge forward, all of them exuding sharp sword energy. The [Whirlwind Sword Break] ability exploded out in the crowd and instantly ripped the enemy apart. The 1,800 Fire Dragon Cavalry turned into a long dragon with me at the helm as we charged out along the mountain range. With that, the Flame Dragon Cannons and Dragon Crystal Cannons stopped their attacks. If they continued, it would be really useless and the dragon crystals and gunpowder were also limited in supply. Thus, they couldn't waste it like that.
In the back, another large amount of Steel Blade Cavalry charged over. Under the cannon fire they launched their attacks to cover the people in the wings. Lin Wan Er, Song Han, Yue Qing Qian, Dong Cheng Yue, and the main force players were all clumped together along with a bunch of players who were good at using the wind element. Arrows and spells landed onto the Flaming Cloud City player group. We immediately used a king-level guild like [Zhan Long] while Flaming Cloud City did not. Therefore, they were at a disadvantage right from the start.
[Zhan Long]’s close to forty thousand players swiftly entered the plains and surged towards the two wings like a wave. We needed to have a stable footing first. Behind us was the [Flying Dragon] elite cavalry. Drunken Spear held a halberd and led them over, his spear tossing aside two players. Then, several shield players fell off their horses and died. [Thousand Layer Wave] was a stacking ability that increased in damage per stack, similar to my [Wind Carrying Slash]. However, my [Wind Carrying Slash] cooldown was too long and it could only be used against people that were strong enough.
Flaming God Canyon became a huge attack passageway. [Judgment], [Prague], [Hero’s Mound], all charged out and battled the opposing players. With a push, the Flaming Cloud City players couldn't defend anymore and started to back off.
After roughly three hundred yards, there was an NPC army base. This NPC army had roughly seventy thousand people with the infantry troops at the front and archers at the back. Behind them was a dense bunch of troops holding axes. Those axe handles were really long and looked really heavy. This should be the special soldier type that belonged to Flaming Cloud City.
Lin Wan Er activated her [Unyielding Spirit] effect and battled for a while. After killing over a dozen players, she came to my side and said, "That is the [Punisher Army] ranked fifth in the Flaming Cloud City and they have seventy thousand troops. However, close to two million players also joined the guild as members."
I nodded, "I also saw that. Is the India Region really planning to rely on the [Punisher Army] to block us north of the Flaming God Mountain Range? They are too innocent..."
"That shouldn't be the case." Lin Wan Er laughed, "If the India Region NPCs and players are so shallow, then this war would be simple. Unfortunately, the success rate won’t exceed ten percent. The India Region players aren't noobs."
"Oh, I also think so. Last time Drunk Maple and Clear Black Eyes allowed let us see the tip of the iceberg with their skills. The group that came this time might not be the real enemy."
"Let's be careful and take it step by step. We don't need to rush for merit and there are still chances for us to take down Flaming Cloud City."
"Yes!"
Holding onto my Dragon Reservoir Sword, I stepped into the air. I was very fortunate to have Lin Wan Er, this beautiful deputy guild leader. Moreover, she was my advisor. Although she wasn't as knowledgeable about war as much as me, her heart was more calculative and she also had the mind reading ability. Under some circumstances, she would be of great help. Unfortunately, the mind reading time in game was really short-term thinking and figuring out the enemy’s overall plans wasn’t so simple. After all, if they aren't thinking about it, you wouldn't be able to pick it up.
...
Soon, a [Zhan Long] member riding on a war eagle landed from above. It was a young twenty-year-old guy who respectfully stopped beside us, "Guild Leader, Deputy Guild Leader, I have already scouted the surrounding areas. With the five thousand yards, these are the only people. [Punisher Army] players and NPCs together total to about 2.42 million. Apart from that, there are a few small medium-sized guilds. We only need to face seven million of them, which is less than twenty-five percent of their region's strength."
Lin Wan Er nodded, "Understood, continue to scout."
"Great!"
The war eagle cried out as it charged right into the sky and continued to circle above to observe the entire battlefield. This was one of the pros of flying cavalry players compared to the wind elves. Wind elves could at most be forty yards off the ground and they would still be within attack range. Flying mount players could fly hundreds of meters, apart from Frost Forest dragons. Those dragons had strong stats but they were restricted. [Zhan Long] had a few commendable war eagle cavalry with weaker stats, but their flight wasn't restricted and they were best for scouting and spying.
I turned around, bringing Lin Wan Er to continue another hundred meters forward. The Flaming Cloud City near us slashed down and our bodies were covered in a lot of fresh blood. In the back, Princess Pearl led the Chang Feng Army and the Royal Army elites into Flaming Cloud Plains. The heaven-covering group of players was like a wave drowning the borders of Flaming Cloud City.
Han Yuan held his battle axe and hollered, "Royal Army, prepare to charge!"
I couldn't help but feel a little speechless, this guy really didn't know how to cherish men. The Royal Army only had twenty thousand cavalry and such a charge would sacrifice a ton of them. But who cares! This was just a game, and after killing, the Royal Army will level up. So be it. To be able to level was also a good thing!
Horse hooves shook the ground. The twenty thousand Royal Army cavalry instantly completed their charging movement. The huge army moved their legs and blades in unison as they charged towards the camp of the Flaming Cloud City NPCs. The Fire Axe Army, Chang Feng Army, and the Fire Dragon Army cavalry also charged. Pearl seemed to have noticed that the strength of the NPCs here was limited which was why she was planning to instantly crush them!
The ground was slightly damp, a plain after rain caused dirt and mud to fly up under the horse hooves. The swords in the hands of the cavalry all shone with cold light as they slashed down, stabbing into the group of [Punisher Army] troops, especially the Royal Army men who were covered in heavy armor. The men and horses were already really heavy. Along with the armor, they weighed at least a hundred kilograms. Luckily, the horses were all good. If not, how could they take such weight? The heavy cavalry charged into the enemy shield formation at high speeds; they could only cry out as they were stomped dead into the mud. The spear unit spears broke under the heavy armor. This [Punisher Army] really couldn't compare to the Royal Army in terms of levels and weapon grades. The lieutenants of the Royal Army already had BOSS-tier level items whereas only the [Punisher Army] captains were at that level.
Intense clashing sounds continued as the sound of blades and weapons slashing into bodies caused one's heart to shake. The five armies of Tian Ling City charged together and [Punisher Army] couldn't block them anymore. The surrounding players didn't even have a chance to fight back and they were destined to collapse!
...
In the crowd, [Punisher Army] General, level 158 Demon Harvest Tier BOSS Xing Lu, carried a sword — his eyes opened wide as he hollered furiously, "Immediately retreat! Retreat! We can't block them, damn it. Barry, that asshole, purposely let us die here after saying that Tian Ling City would only send a few million. There are at least tens of millions here!"
In truth, there were close to twenty million troops if one counted the players too.
In the crowd, a major hollered, "Sir, what about our Dragon Crystal and Flame Dragon Cannons? These are our strength and power!"
Xing Lu shouted, "Forget about them, let's leave. As long as we are alive, the army lives. Even if we have these cannons, it will be useless. Everyone retreat towards the south. A few of our camps are there!"
"Yes, sir!"