novelraw Chapter 1523 437: The Great Victory at Rapids Pass!
Chapter 1523 437: The Great Victory at Rapids Pass!
In the forests north of Rapids Pass, the shouts of battle and gunfire shattered the earth, unfurling a brutal blood-soaked drama.
On one side were farmers from the Campbell Duchy, on the other, farmers from Twilight Province.
Just yesterday at dusk, the arrival of reinforcements from the Campbell Duchy completely crushed Finnian's plan for a rapid victory.
He knew well that on the open plains, even though his farmer-composed army boasted a numerical advantage, it would be difficult to engage head-on with the well-equipped and well-trained regular army of the Campbell Duchy.
Without hesitation, he immediately issued a retreat order, withdrawing all one hundred thousand soldiers of the Green Forest Army into the forest north of Rapids Pass.
This was his home ground.
The children of Rushing River are born hunters, and each farmer of Twilight Province is as familiar with the forests as the legendary Elves!
He had no doubt that as long as he relied on the complex terrain and cleverly deployed encirclement, he could use wave after wave of gunfire and arrow rain to divide, encircle, and devour these lackeys loyal to the Nobles!
Just like those two battles before arriving at Rapids Pass!
At that time, his troops had not yet numbered a hundred thousand, and facing Count Greygel, who surpassed him in both military strength and Extraordinary Power, he cleverly utilized the terrain to trap the latter in his own exhausting rush to relieve his forces!
It must be said that this plan was actually flawless.
The numbers of the Green Forest Army were twice those of the Campbell people, with even Bronze to Fine Steel Level Transcendents deployed among hundred-man teams, and they excelled at guerrilla warfare.
However, Finnian ultimately underestimated the strength of the "Northern Relief Army" and slightly overestimated the capability of his own men.
Count Greygel was merely a usurper, with farmers under him essentially no different from them. But the Campbell people were different, they were farmers with their feet already at the threshold of industrialization—a force leading an era!
As the Campbell army advanced into the forest, Finnian's proud ambush finally ignited!
Horns blared from the forest all around, as thousands of Green Forest soldiers charged from the woods, launching the first wave of assaults against the Campbell Duchy's army, trying to drown these uninvited guests in a sea of people.
Unfortunately, they first encountered the vanguard of the Northern Relief Army—a hunter soldier unit composed of two hundred grenadiers.
These two hundred men were tall and strong, and most crucially, they were fearlessly brave!
Facing overwhelming shouts of battle and the charging rebel army, they not only showed no fear but erupted in excited cheers.
"Brothers! Time to hunt!"
"Damn good planning! What a spectacle!"
"Hahaha! After being strung along by the damn planners for so long, finally time for some real fun!"
"Awoooooo! Total madness!"
The rebels watched as a tall hunter soldier lit the grenade filled with black gunpowder in his hand and threw it three to four hundred meters away with a single run-up!
That was clearly not the strength of the old Campbell farmers...
It was undeniably the power of a Transcendent!
The exploding grenade blossomed in the forest, catching five or six unsuspecting Green Forest soldiers.
And soon they realized that grenade was not an exception.
The grenadiers on the opposite side had absurd arm strength, their throwing distance even exceeding that of the bows and arrows in their hands!
Finnian watched helplessly as his ambush troops collided with a group of lunatics indifferent to casualties.
They focused only on charging forward, then unleashing a shower of grenades upon the Green Forest army's lines, completely disregarding the arrow rain from all directions, unfazed by death!
This group of fearless maniacs instantly tore apart the Green Forest army's vanguard lines, to the extent that Finnian's meticulously arranged encirclement had not yet closed before being blown up by incoming grenades, nearly collapsing in disarray...
And at this moment—
Their true nightmare had just begun!
As the Campbell Duchy's "Loud-mouthed Giants" tore open the defensive line with their lives, Campbell's main force launched a full-scale attack.
"Advance—!"
With the sound of cannon fire, the company commander unsheathed his Commanding Sword, leading the rank soldiers standing in three columns to march forward with tidy steps.
Not just advancing—
When Campbell's phalanx brought the rebel's lines into range, the three ranks halted instantly, with the first row initiating the first round of volley fire, followed by the third row advancing to the front row to fire, then the second row following in rotation to the rear row... the entire battlefield phalanx advanced and fired in sequence!
"Bang bang bang—!!!"
The smoke quickly engulfed the entire forest!
Facing the Northern Relief Army's volley, the Green Turbans attempting to form an encirclement were like Primitive People. Holding firearms and crossbows, they had often not yet reached the enemy before being struck dumb by two or three rounds of relentless lead bullets!
The Campbell soldiers continued to fire while steadily advancing forward, even the forest's numerous obstacles couldn't divide their formations.
Today's skirmish had already been rehearsed in the Silver Pine Forest north of Thunder City.
Many of these soldiers were veterans who had previously battled the Dragon Demon King, with even Platinum Level Demon Generals dying at their hands. Now dealing with a ragtag group was naturally no problem!
The continuous shooting formed an impenetrable wall of fire and blood in the forest north of Rapids Pass, where everything in its path, whether living or trees, was torn apart, beaten till scarred and mangled!