Xiao Xun's head buzzed. It seemed he couldn't personally lead the charge anymore; the enemy wasn't playing by the rules.
Then came another barrage. Wu Wang had no intention of charging. He planned to blast the city to rubble and then "reap the rewards" inside.
Under the cover of the balance, Xiao Xun, along with the remaining Star Envoys and legion commanders, descended from the city wall. Xiao Xun glanced at the city wall, which was on the verge of collapse.
"This can't go on. Huh?!"
Xiao Xun looked at Aries. He was a spatial mage and also wielded fire magic.
He then picked up two jars and handed them to Aries. "Use your magic to infiltrate the enemy's formation, ignite them as I described, and then immediately throw them into crowded areas before returning."
Aries, holding the two jars, nodded. He cast spells with both hands and vanished from his spot.
He reappeared behind Wu Wang's main force. They were only concerned with taking cover in their fortifications, firing cold shots and artillery from above, not daring to attack head-on.
Although the magic cannons couldn't harm them, they were suppressing them so much that they couldn't lift their heads.
Xiao Xun feared that once the bombardment stopped, the enemy would launch a full-scale assault. To buy time, he ordered the magic cannons to fire one by one, with a thirty-second interval.
Later, the interval was extended to two minutes because the magic cannons had a long cooldown period. Firing every thirty seconds would create a ten-minute gap.
Aries placed down one jar and, with a wave of his left hand, ignited the flames, setting alight the cloth strips. As Xiao Xun had instructed, he threw them towards the most densely populated areas.
Upon contact with the air and flames, the oil instantly exploded, engulfing Wu Wang's fortifications in a sea of fire.
At this moment, Aries bent down, picked up another jar, and tossed it over in a similar fashion.
As the two "firebombs" detonated, all the gunpowder that Wu Wang's army had placed outside for convenience exploded, triggering a strong chain reaction.
Now, Wu Wang's army had no choice but to charge, even without an assault. The skeleton soldiers, braving the danger of the magic cannons, poured out of their fortifications and charged towards the city walls.
The soldiers above shouted down to Xiao Xun, "Lord Swain, the enemy is attacking."
Xiao Xun clapped his hands. "Haha! Aries has made a great contribution this time."
He then yelled up, "Relay my orders! Fire! Launch a full counterattack."
Wu Wang's army, engulfed in fire, hadn't yet realized that someone was acting behind them, mistakenly believing it was a wildfire ignited by dry weather.
As they charged towards the city walls, they felt something was amiss. Why was it so quiet all around?
The silence sent chills down the spines of Wu Wang's skeleton soldiers. Battlefield silence often hid greater dangers, signaling more intense combat.
Suddenly, a jar flew down from the sky, its tip still burning. Then another, and another, and another...
Countless fiery ceramic jars rained down, exploding among the skeleton soldiers. Sparks flew everywhere, illuminating the sky in front of Kache City's gate.
The skeleton soldiers instinctively threw up energy shields, only to find themselves trapped in a sea of fire, with nowhere to run. They were thoroughly roasted.
At this point, Kache's city gates were wide open. Xiao Xun's Phoenix Army resolutely followed his orders, leaving no one behind, and all participated in the attack. Even Polgard, who was brought in as the grand finale, achieved the highest kill count of the battle.
Wu Wang's army was annihilated. Wu Wang himself was blasted into smithereens, his form unrecognizable, leaving only his golden eyeballs.
Although Xiao Xun's Phoenix Army won this great battle, their casualties were also extremely heavy. He recognized the gap between the enemy and his own forces, not just in terms of technology, but that the enemy was a skilled fighter, no less competent than himself, and had learned systematically, rather than relying on "amateurish tricks" learned from playing games.
Looking at Midoroya's map in the military camp, Xiao Xun marked the analysis of the enemy and our situation with a pen.
"Why didn't the Scourge Legion simply take the main road to the capital? Why did they come to attack such a small city like mine?"
One of the grand legion commanders said, "Perhaps it's because Lord achieved a great victory in the capital the day before yesterday, and the enemy feared they weren't our match, so they decided to take a detour. Little did they know that our wise and mighty Lord Swain had already foreseen their plans."
His explanation was objective, but to another legion commander, it sounded like pure flattery.
It was understandable; he had the most casualties and losses this time, so he wasn't in a good mood.
As the sky began to lighten after another night of intense fighting, Xiao Xun, unable to bear it any longer, gave a few instructions and fell asleep.
The two grand legion commanders made some arrangements and also went to rest.
Xiao Xun slept soundly until late morning. No one dared to disturb him. Any matters were first resolved privately by the two legions, and then they planned to report to Xiao Xun.
At this moment, the battlefield courier returned, delivering a letter from the Empress to Xiao Xun.
Xiao Xun opened the letter. It was written in neat handwriting: "I heard you achieved a great victory. Congratulations. I have urged the other five dukes to find a solution for the matter you mentioned. Rest assured on the front lines. By the time this letter reaches you, the Mid-Autumn Festival should have passed. Your parents called, and I took the call. They said you were on a business trip abroad. They asked you to call them back after you return home. I have good news for you: the game from your company has become a huge hit, receiving excellent feedback, and its download count has exceeded a hundred million. The company is planning to go public, and they're preparing a celebration banquet for your return."
Xiao Xun jumped up excitedly, leaving the Twelve Star Envoys stunned. How could he be so happy when the battle on the front lines was so dire?
Just then, a messenger ran in, "Your Highness Swain, the Orc General Bortu requests an audience."
Xiao Xun put away the letter, his expression instantly falling. "He wasn't here during the intense fighting yesterday. Why is he coming today?"
The messenger lowered his head, not daring to look up. "Then how should I reply to him?"
Xiao Xun looked at Aries's eyes and licked his lips. "If it really comes to it, how about this!"
He took off his sable fur cloak and the dress the Empress had made for him, tossing them to Aries. "Let's switch. You'll be Commander Swain, and I'll be Aries."
Aries hesitated for a moment, then took off his black robe and put on Xiao Xun's clothes.
After putting them on, Xiao Xun shivered. He thought, "Why is this robe so thin? Doesn't he find it cold?"
He stood there and looked at the surrounding Star Envoys, feeling something was missing. He looked at Aries again, then took off Aries's mask and put it on himself.
Then he said to the messenger, "Let Bortu come in!"
"Yes."
Soon, a burly man with a black bear's head walked in. He looked around and his gaze landed on Aries. "Are you Duke Swain of Santiloman?"
Aries was extremely handsome, especially his sapphire-blue eyes, which were captivating.
"Indeed."
Bortu thought to himself, "The rumors are true. This Swain is just a pretty boy who relies on others. What skill does he have to have won against the Scourge twice?"
Aries saw the disdain in Bortu's eyes. "It seems you have a lot of opinions about me."
Bortu waved his hand. "How could that be? You are the Grand Commander, and the only one to have ever defeated the Scourge Legion. We Orcs have always respected the strong. How could I have any opinions about you!"
Aries remained expressionless. "Then, what is the purpose of your visit?"
" 'Purpose' is too strong a word. I heard from your subordinates that you want us, the Orc army, to defend two cities together, forming a pincer formation for mutual support."
Aries raised an eyebrow. "You disagree?"
Bortu's lips curled upwards. "How could I? I've looked at the map. Your city has only a very narrow road in front, and the capital of Midoroya is behind. I don't know what those Scourge Legion fellows were thinking this time, coming through such a narrow passage. However, your idea of using us Orcs as cannon fodder is really unacceptable."