novelraw Chapter 452 - 443: Clash
Chapter 452 - 443: Clash
It must be said, even among the Demon Race, the troops under Sigmund’s command, accustomed to long-term battles, are considered elite.
Despite the overwhelming Elemental Spirits whirling with heart-stopping thunder and tempests, presenting a terrifying formation, the two Demon battalions, upon receiving orders, resolutely charged ahead.
The frontline heavy-armored soldiers roared in unison, fiercely smashing their massive shields inscribed with simple runes into the ground. The runes lit up, interlinking to form a dim energy barrier.
The follow-up soldiers thrust their spears through the gaps between shields, the brilliance of Combat Techniques intermingling with the thunder erupting around the Elemental Spirits, producing a deafening cacophony.
The clash between flesh and pure elemental constructs was intense. The Demon Race’s line inevitably showed indentations and casualties under the initial impact, but with their discipline and fearless savagery, they somehow managed to hold back this tempestuous onslaught of wind and thunder with mere flesh and blood.
Almost simultaneously as the infantry engaged, the rear Demon spellcaster unit completed their chant.
Blood Arrows, Fireball Technique, Ice Blade... various spells arced over the heads of their frontline comrades, spilling toward those Storm Elemental Spirits.
The collision between magic energy and elemental shells was fierce, with Elemental Spirits emitting silent shrieks and disintegrating into uncontrolled currents and chaotic winds under the barrage of dense spells.
If this continues, Sigmund might truly take down these powerful Storm Elemental Spirits with minimal cost.
But the humans were clearly not going to stand by idly.
Under the adjutant’s coordination, two thousand Puki Masters quickly formed into two flanks, each leading over ten thousand Pukis like two tides of white, circumventing the intense clash between Storm Elementals and the Demon vanguard and launching an attack on the Demon army from the side — Storm Elementals wouldn’t differentiate between friend and foe in battle.
Meanwhile, the adjutant shouted loudly toward Inanna, who was concealed within a Heavy Armor Puki’s abdomen: "Commander! Order the attack!"
"Alright!" A muffled response came from within the heavy Rock Armor.
The adjutant was somewhat annoyed; after leaving the Elemental Disorder Zone, the young lady inexplicably decided to hide inside a Heavy Armor Puki.
Although the real command was done by the adjutant himself, the nominal commander cowering in hiding somewhat affected the morale.
Fortunately, the subordinates were all Puki Masters, and Pukis were the main force, minimizing the impact on morale. Otherwise, he wouldn’t know how to fight this battle.
What he didn’t know was that all these arrangements were demanded by Lin Jun.
Lin Jun didn’t want Sigmund to see the Pink Puki and thus associate it with himself.
For Lin Jun, winning this battle was easy, even overly simple.
He could entirely forcefully manipulate Sigmund’s body, delivering a fatal blow to Virelis at close range, leaving her either dead or crippled, instantly ending the battle.
But...
Wouldn’t that just turn Lin Jun into a loss-making worker for the humans!
If that truly happened, with his understanding of Sigmund, that guy would definitely compromise on the spot, going to all lengths to perish together with him.
And Sigmund is one of Lin Jun’s most important assets!
This chubby body needs Lin Jun’s careful protection as it’s a treasure!
If the world’s destruction is inevitable, relying on this body could allow enjoyment for over a dozen more years!
Therefore, the real challenge for Lin Jun in this battle was how to silently utilize his own advantages to help Inanna achieve at least an evenly matched situation without Sigmund noticing.
After all, Sigmund commands a complete Demon army; to win in a fair contest would require bringing over all his resources from the Northern Territory.
However... Sigmund actually called his forces a motley crew...
Eight thousand Pukis moved!
...
The flanking Puki Master units quickly engaged in a close encounter with the approaching Demon forces.
After a round of sporadic arrow and Mushroom Cannon exchanges, the frontline units of both sides collided fiercely, plunging into chaotic close-quarters combat.
In an instant, all manner of bizarre attack methods erupted across the battlefield.
Self-destructive Pukis exploded amidst masses of Demons, spewing thick poisonous mist from mushroom caps, leaping electric arcs coursed through metal armor, and highly corrosive liquid splattered sizzlingly on shields.
This demon army was clearly not accustomed to these various attack methods, and their formation quickly fell into chaos, suffering heavy losses.
After leaving behind many casualties, the damaged demon forces retreated in disarray, relying on the dense volleys of arrows from the rear archers to barely stabilize the line and disengage.
The initial victory greatly boosted the morale of the human Puki Masters, but tightened Sigmund’s furrowed brow.
How could his phalanx be repelled in direct combat by enemies primarily relying on magic pets?
This is simply absurd!
Yet he knew that it wasn’t because the soldiers were cowardly.
The strange and varied attack methods of the Pukis really caused a significant headache for troops lacking experience in dealing with them.
As a veteran commander seasoned in battle, Sigmund naturally wouldn’t panic due to a single setback.
With just one round of engagement, he identified the weaknesses of these Puki Masters and decisively adjusted his deployment.
The newly reinforced demon forces no longer rushed to engage in close combat with the Pukis, instead holding their position firmly.
At the same time, the rear archer units were enhanced with magic, unleashing a continuous, dense rain of arrows on the advancing Puki groups.
In the whistle of arrows tearing through the air, countless arrows rained down, pinning a large number of Pukis to the ground. The Puki Masters, if they wished to continue their assault with the Pukis, had to bear enormous losses.
This was not the end.
A troop of five hundred Blood Knights were deployed, led by Sigmund’s adjutant, maneuvering around the Storm Elemental Spirit and the Pukis, and flanking the Puki Masters.
The battlefield was outside the valley, on relatively flat terrain with few obstacles, which was not advantageous for the Puki Masters.
Sigmund’s two-pronged response immediately put the Puki Masters on the defensive.
If they did not commit a large number of Pukis to forcibly break through the rain of arrows, they couldn’t pose a significant threat to the demon lines; but if they sent out all their Puki forces, the Puki Masters would be ripe for picking by the watchful Blood Knights—a single charge from the five hundred Blood Knights could shatter a thousand Puki Masters.
"It seems, this is all they can do."
Just as Sigmund spoke with a touch of disdain, the battle situation suddenly changed.
A large number of Self-destructive Pukis under Lin Jun’s control hurtled out from the Puki Master’s formation!
Unlike the miscellaneous cannon fodder, this batch of elite Self-destructive Pukis were covered in hard shells, their bodies curled into dense spheres, charging at the flanking Blood Knights with astonishing speed under the influence of [Acceleration Level 9]!
Sigmund’s adjutant was not incompetent either, reacting swiftly, tightening his reins, and commanding the knights to turn and evade at full speed, while organizing a counterattack: "Fire a volley of blood arrows!"
The scarlet arrows formed from concentrated blood pierced through the air, shooting towards the overwhelming flow of Pukis.
However, the results were unexpectedly disappointing.
Not only did the incomprehensible speed of the Pukis play a role, but crucially, their unified [Chitin Shell Level 10] provided defense far superior to ordinary Pukis.
Unless a blood arrow hit dead on, even a glancing shot could only make a Puki roll several times, completely unable to effectively halt their charge, unlike the other side where the miscellaneous Pukis were being mowed down by the rain of arrows.
"Cease attack! Full speed retreat to the main formation!" Seeing the weak counterattack effect and the spheres rapidly approaching, the adjutant decisively ordered, abandoning all entanglement, retreating with full force.
But it was too late, the short-distance sprinting speed of the Pukis far exceeded that of their mounts!
With a series of explosions, dust rose, and shock waves instantly swallowed the rear of the Blood Knights.
In the end, of the original five hundred elite cavalry, only a little over two hundred managed to retreat in disarray, thanks to the adjutant’s personal efforts in the rear guard to block the onslaught.
Most of the knights who didn’t make it back were not immediately killed by the explosions, but had their horses’ legs blown off, falling as infantry.
Without mobility and isolated on the battlefield’s flank, their fate was sealed against more incoming Self-destructive Pukis.
Blood Knights are not simple infantry that can be easily replenished, and losing nearly three hundred in a probing flank maneuver pained him deeply.
"It seems this ’rabble’ is not that easy to handle." The schadenfreude from his roomate in his ear made him even more furious.
At the same time, Sigmund completely put away his underestimation, mobilizing more units that were originally on standby under his orders, ready to properly engage these so-called Puki Masters and find out their true strength!