Chapter 438 Victory at Torrent Pass!
In the forest north of Torrent Pass, shouts of killing and gunshots shook the earth, and a fierce and bloody battle began.
On one side are the farmers from the Principality of Campbell, and on the other side are the farmers from the Twilight Province.
Just yesterday evening, the arrival of reinforcements from the Principality of Campbell completely shattered Fenian's attempt to win a quick victory.
He knew that on the open plains, even if the army composed of farmers in his hands had the upper hand in numbers, it would be difficult for him to go head-to-head with the well-equipped and well-trained regular army of the Principality of Campbell.
Without any hesitation, he immediately issued a retreat order and withdrew all 100,000 green forest troops into the forest north of Riliu Pass.
This is his home court.
Children of the Running River are born hunters, and every farmer in the Twilight Province is as familiar with the forest as the legendary elves!
He has no doubt that as long as he relies on the complex terrain and cleverly deploys the encirclement, he can use wave after wave of bullets and arrows to separate, surround and devour these lackeys loyal to the nobles!
Just like the two battles before they arrived at Riptide Pass!
At that time, he had less than 100,000 soldiers under his command. Facing Earl Grayger, who was superior to him in terms of both military strength and extraordinary power, he cleverly used the terrain to make the latter fall into his own trap during the exhausting rush for reinforcements!
I have to say that there is actually nothing wrong with this plan.
The Green Forest Army has twice the number of Campbells, and has even sent Bronze-level and even Steel-level Extraordinaries to the Centurions. What they are best at is guerrillas.
However, Fenian still underestimated the strength of the "Northern Rescue Army" and slightly overestimated the strength of his men.
Earl Grayger is just a tyrant, and the peasants under his command are not essentially different from them. However, the Campbell people in front of them are different. They are a group of farmers who have already stood in front of the gate of industrialization. They are a force ahead of an era!
As Campbell's army advances into the forest, Fenian's proud ambush finally begins!
Horns sounded from all directions in the forest, and thousands of Green Forest Army soldiers roared out of the woods and launched the first round of offensive towards the army of the Principality of Campbell, trying to drown this group of uninvited guests who broke into the forest into a sea of people.
Unfortunately, the first thing they encountered was the vanguard of the Northern Relief Army—a chasseur unit composed of two hundred grenadiers.
These two hundred young men are tall, powerful, and most importantly, fearless of death!
Faced with the overwhelming shouts of killing and the oncoming rebels, they not only had no fear, but instead burst into shouts of excitement.
"Brothers! Monster spawning!"
"The dog planning is awesome! What a big battle!"
"Hahahahaha! I finally feel good after eating the cake that the dog has been planning for so long!" 嗷嗷婷婷的狠!
That is obviously not the power of old farmer Campbell...
It is clearly the strength of an extraordinary person!
The exploding grenade exploded in the forest, hitting five or six Green Forest Army soldiers who were caught off guard.
And soon they discovered that the grenade was not an exception.
The grenadiers on the opposite side each have ridiculous arm strength, and the distance of the bombs even exceeds the bow and arrow in their hands!
Fenian watched helplessly as his ambush force ran into a group of lunatics who didn't care about casualties.
They only focused on charging, and then raining bullets on the Green Forest Army's front line, ignoring the rain of arrows shot from all directions, and completely unafraid of death!
This group of madmen who were not afraid of death tore apart the Green Forest Army's vanguard line in an instant, so that before Fenian's carefully deployed encirclement had time to close, they were knocked off their feet by the oncoming grenades, and the army was almost defeated...
At this moment -
Their real nightmare had just begun!
While the "silly guys" of the Principality of Campbell were tearing apart the defense line with their lives, Campbell's main force also launched a general attack.
——!
With the sound of cannons, the company commander drew his command sword and led the private soldiers standing in three rows to advance forward in an orderly manner.
Not just moving forward -
The moment Campbell's phalanx brought the rebels' line into range, the three rows of soldiers immediately stopped, and the first row took the lead in firing the first round of volleys. Then the third row moved to the front and opened fire, followed by the second row at the end of the team... The phalanx on the entire battlefield moved forward slowly and slowly!
"Bang bang bang——!!!"
The smoke instantly filled the entire forest!
Facing the volleys from the Northern Relief Army, the green turbans who tried to form an encirclement were like primitive people. Armed with muskets and crossbows, they were often hit by two or three rounds of ruthless lead bullets before they could even reach the enemy!
Campbell's soldiers moved forward steadily while firing, and even the obstacles in the forest could not separate their formation.
They had already rehearsed today's encounter in the Silver Pine Forest in the north of Thunder City.
Many of the soldiers are veterans who have fought against the Demon King Dragon. Even many platinum-level demon generals have died in their hands. Now it is no problem to deal with a ragtag group of people!
The continuous firing of volleys formed an insurmountable wall of fire and blood in the forest north of Torrent Pass. Wherever it passed, both living people and tree trunks were beaten to pieces, and their skin and flesh were torn apart!
It is not only the flintlocks on the front line that are noisy, but also the artillery in the rear!
Smoothbore cannons and mortars roared in unison on the plain behind. The roaring shells flew over the treetops like meteors, scraping bloody corridors one after another in the middle of the Green Forest Army!
Although the artillery deployed by the Green Forest Army in the hilly area quickly fired back, they soon encountered counterfire from Campbell's mortar unit!
In just a few volleys, the Green Forest Army's artillery fire ceased, and their positions were turned into ashes.
Fenian's proud jungle guerrilla tactics turned into a joke in the face of well-trained soldiers and absolute firepower superiority.
This can no longer be called a war -
It is a complete one-sided massacre!
Tens of thousands of Green Turbans were routed by well-trained Campbell soldiers on the battlefield where they were best at.
Everyone is like a drowning person submerged in a flash flood, and can only escape in a smoke maze with no exit.
Hands over the mountains and plains were people taking off their headscarves and running away. Some people not only threw away the things in their hands, but even ran away with their straw sandals.
Just like when they got together passionately and tied the turban on their heads...
"This group of trash!"
Looking at the deserters running around in the forest, Finnian's face was filled with anger and panic, his fists were clenched and his nails dug deeply into his flesh.
Things developed far beyond his expectations.
He originally planned to rely on his familiarity with the terrain to give the principality's army a head-on attack, but he did not expect that the two sides were more than one order of magnitude different in tactics and strategy!
Campbell's soldiers with high morale advanced into the depths of the forest unstoppably, advancing under the cover of organic artillery.
Faced with that absolute firepower, the individual combat power below the fine steel level was completely useless, and for the extraordinary power above the silver level, it was obvious that the Campbell Knight with profound knowledge had the upper hand.
Even if the power given by Chaos is more destructive in reality, those knights who have been blessed by priests can defeat them one by one with tacit cooperation.
Finian's men have only just mastered this power, just like they have just received the weapons given by Chaos.
After all, war is not like throwing dice while drinking. Whoever gets the higher number wins.
What's more, no one can see all the dice except the gods.
Him can only avoid the edge for the time being...
Finian no longer hesitated and led his bodyguards to break out towards the north. Standing in front of them were both Campbells and deserters who had taken off their turbans.
No matter who they were, all those who dared to block his way were shot dead by the bows and arrows in his hands and the short crossbows of his guards!
Just as he was about to escape, a group of cavalry with shining armors attacked his flank.
Looking at the gleaming lances and the mighty Campbell's flag, the faces of the guards gathered around Finnian clearly showed uncontrollable panic.
Theresa pointed her lance at the bandit leader standing in the formation and shouted sternly.
"It's over, jungle rat Finnian, a traitor who betrayed the monarch, a murderous demon! He won't be caught without restraint!"
After all, the knight is more educated. The series of titles made Finnian almost not react, but he was talking about himself.
"My name is the Shadow of the Jungle! I can't afford to wear so many hats!"
He laughed loudly, put his hand on his bow, looked at the knight on the horse, and responded unceremoniously.
"As for the traitor who betrayed the monarch? I thank you for your compliment!"
Theresa held the reins with a sneer on her lips, and the holy spell made her look like a descended god.
Including the knights behind her.
...I think your brain has been completely damaged by the shit poured into it by Chaos, and you can't even distinguish between praise and curse."
The attack power of this sentence was so weak that Finnian didn't feel angry at all, and even wanted to laugh a little.
"Chaos? I think you are the ones who sold your souls to Chaos! Just like the nobles hiding in the castle! Where were you when we were hungry? Where was your oath not to let the people die from hunger and cold! You will always only remember the part that is beneficial to you!"
Theresa looked at him indifferently and said indifferently.
"What about your people? In your oil pan? Or on the rack drying the meat? I don't think you are full. You are fuller than the defenders in the castle."
The right way to improve the soul level is to practice the teachings of Saint Sith, use the truth in your hands to build legends, be worshiped by people, and obtain miracles from the gods.
In addition to this approach, there are also some shortcuts to take.
For example, killing many, many people, or using rituals to please the evil spirits in chaos.
She didn’t know what this guy had done, but it was obviously not possible that he had moved the gods and improved his cultivation through his good deeds.
Even if it were to be moved, the one who would be moved would probably be the gods in the chaos.
Facing the accusation from the knight, Finnian laughed.
And I am not a king, where do my people come from! Theresa's lips curled up into a sneer.
"Becoming a de facto king, but not claiming to be a king? What a clever trick, I have to praise you, even the remaining obligations have been completely ignored by you."
Having seen through her bluff and delaying tactics, Finnian was tired of communicating with her and drew the bowstring in his hand.
"A mere knight dares to speak so brazenly in front of me. It seems you don't know what real power is."
"Oh? Then tell me, what is real power."
A majestic voice came from not far away. Finnian looked over subconsciously and saw a knight riding a horse through the chaotic battlefield.
Hands of dazzling blond hair were tied into a circle on the back of her head. Her fair and upright face was like a marble sculpture in front of a church. Under her slender black eyebrows were eyes as sharp as swords.
He almost thought it was an elf coming from the running river... Every Llane person in the Dusk Province had heard the legend about her, although no one had seen it with their own eyes.
However, Finnian soon came to his senses. The Campbells on the opposite side would never be able to obtain the blessing of the river spirit.
Seeing Her Royal Highness Irene coming from behind, Teresa held the reins with one hand, respectfully stepped back and returned to the cavalry formation.
Now she is no longer the girl who needed to be protected by herself a few years ago. Even when facing the devil in the maze, she can fight without losing.
Fenian narrowed his eyes and glanced at the sword on the knight's waist. Suddenly he seemed to understand something and laughed again.
「没想到坎贝尔大公居然是个小妞。喂，你多大了？毛长齐了没？老子只对熟透的果实感兴趣。」
面对那轻佻的言语，艾琳不为所动，只是淡淡笑了笑。
“I am the Grand Duke’s sister, so I don’t need to worry about my age.”
“Why didn’t he come?”
“To deal with a character like you, there is no need for my brother to take action.”
“Oh? It seems that your brother has not taught you not to use adults’ weapons as toys.”
Fenian's smile remained unchanged, but his eyes gradually became dangerous, and a trace of ecstasy and greed flashed deep in his eyes.
How strong can a young yellow-haired girl be? As long as she is held hostage, this battle may turn around!
Finian's eyes flashed with fierceness, he no longer held any reservations, and his platinum-level tyrannical strength exploded in an instant!
The majestic power of chaos converged on the long bow in his hand, transforming into a dark green arrow that was placed on the string.
Then, he loosened the bowstring with the force of thunder!
This arrow was aimed at her horse!
Having guessed that this rat would attack by surprise, Irene didn't panic at all when faced with the sudden thunder strike. She just put her hand on the "Light of Praise" on her waist with an expressionless face.
Long before she came here, she had completed preparations for the arrival of the souls of her ancestors. We won't let this rude guy escape like some damn little devil in the Silver Pine Forest!
The moment she pressed her right hand on the hilt of the sword, the golden light burst out from her body and condensed into a majestic and ancient knight's shadow, completely covering her!
This time she was calling none other than her father, Aaron Campbell—the former king of the principality who killed the demon king Reggie Dragon!
Finian's eyes flashed with panic, and his face distorted by frenzy showed an expression of disbelief.
That golden light was shining with power far beyond his understanding!
"Diamond, diamond level?!"
"No——! This is impossible!"
Irene Campbell does not have diamond level strength, but that does not prevent her from harnessing this power beyond herself in the name of the Light of Praise!
At this moment——
She is not fighting alone, but standing together with the ancestors who once protected the people of the Principality of Campbell!
That dazzling light was like a sacred hammer, slamming into the dark green arrow shadow that exuded an evil and vicious aura!
There was no explosion.
Not even a sound!
The power of chaos melts the ice and snow in the dazzling light, just like an ice cone falling into magma.
Finian didn't even have time to scream, nor did he have time to shoot a second arrow, nor did he even have time to muster extraordinary power to resist.
Everything about him was burned to ashes under the hot light, whether it was his body, or his ambitions and desires!
“…Those who are not recognized by the ‘ancestral souls’ cannot control the Light of Praise even if they are flowing with the blood of Campbell. You should really understand the epics of your neighbors.”
Putting the Light of Praise back into its scabbard, Erin looked at the Green Forest Army soldiers behind Finnian expressionlessly.
"What about you? Do you want to try it too?"
No one wants to try it.
Even among the servants of Chaos, not everyone has gained platinum level power.
Looking at the strong man who killed "Lin Shadow" Fenian with one sword, all the guards suddenly turned pale. They dropped their weapons and knelt on the ground to surrender.
Irene nodded towards Teresa, handed over the task of capturing the prisoners to her and her men, and then rode back to the army without any delay.
Looking at the departing figure, every knight in the principality's eyes shone with respect from the bottom of his heart.
Only Irene herself noticed the sweat rolling down her pale forehead and falling onto her armor... That victory won with overwhelming force was not really as easy as she showed.
· Harnessing power that does not belong to oneself comes at a price. The only good thing is that she is still young and will not burn out as easily as his father...
· …
· With the death of Finnian, the Green Forest Army began to collapse in an organized manner, and the battle in the northern part of Turbulent Pass finally came to an end.
Under the leadership of Eileen Campbell, the Northern Rescue Army relieved the siege of Torrent Pass at the cost of less than a thousand casualties.
Not only did they annihilate the rebel army that was ten times their size, they also killed Finnian, one of the twelve leaders of the Green Forest Army, in just one battle!
For the soldiers who followed Her Royal Highness Eileen Campbell to the north, this was undoubtedly a hearty victory!
The soldiers cleaning the battlefield were either whistling, chatting and laughing, or happily counting the captured weapons and supplies.
Although these poor devils couldn't find a few copper coins on their bodies, and the seized equipment couldn't be sold for a lot of money, that's not what they came for.
"I don't know how much land this battle can buy for my son."
"Hehe, I think the area next to Riptide Pass is good! And there's no one there, so it would be a pity not to plant something!"
"Don't think about it, let's wait until we survive..."
"Ha, if all the people waiting for us are this kind of people, I think it's okay to start thinking about it now!"
"Indeed, these guys are too weak, incomparable to the previous demon king in Thunder County. I really don't know how they defeated their own lord!"
"I think the king of Lane is no more than that!"
The whole military camp was filled with a relaxed and happy atmosphere.
Not only the "normal soldiers" were like this, but also the group of tall "idiots", with happiness written all over their faces.
Perhaps the Green Forest Army’s combat effectiveness was too weak, but most of them who rushed to the front survived.
At this moment, they were bragging loudly about their recent achievements, and even complained that the battle ended too quickly and they were not satisfied.
"I hope I can meet some decent opponents in the next match." [Punch a monster] He couldn't help but clicked his tongue, and his face showed that he was still unfinished.
[Master Perm King at the entrance of the village] scratched his head, staring at the player interface that only he could see, confused, "Wait a minute, why didn't you add contribution points?"
Professional nuclear submarine maintenance: "Maybe it was turned into land and given to us."
Master Perm King at the entrance of the village: "Where is the land?"
Professional maintenance of nuclear submarines: "As usual, of course, the event is settled after the event is over."
The woodcutter: "... Damn, why is it so troublesome."
Master Wang Wang of the village: "I suddenly panicked when I didn't see the event announcement..."
The dog planner shouldn't even use this virtual reward for nothing, right?
It shouldn't be...
Singing the song of victory, the Northern Rescue Army, led by Eileen Campbell, returned to the castle called Torrent Pass.
However, unlike the soldiers with high morale, Irene did not see much joy on her face, but there was a trace of heaviness in her eyes.
On the way back to the castle, all she saw were burned villages, barren farmland and empty pastures.
The war turned everything here into scorched earth, and the ruins turned into a paradise for crows. The acrid smell of smoke was mixed with a rotten stench that she didn't want to distinguish, and there were only aimless undead wandering among the wreckage.
Some priests had unbearable expressions on their faces. They raised their scepters and silently recited incantations, casting holy light to save the wandering souls.
"These scum..."
Theresa was riding beside Irene, looking at the burned-out remains of a farmhouse on the roadside, and cursed in a low voice.
"This group of man-eating beasts... They are not resisting tyranny. They are just a group of beasts that enjoy destruction and slaughter!"
That’s not necessarily the case.
Irene stared silently at the ruins and the death wandering among the ruins, not completely agreeing with Theresa's statement.
The two things are not contradictory.
But one thing is for sure, if the Dusk Province is as prosperous as the Principality of Campbell, people will never do such extreme things even if they are dissatisfied.
At least in her opinion.
After a long time, Irene said in an extremely firm voice: "Theresa, we will definitely restore order to this land."
Theresa nodded respectfully.
"The sword in my hand will always follow you, Your Highness."
When they arrived at the gate of the castle, the surviving commander General Pierce, holding a long sword and his remaining soldiers of less than a hundred people, greeted them at the door.
Although these veterans are exhausted, their backs are still straight.
They are also victors.
Facing an enemy that was a hundred times their size, they resisted to the end with determination to die, and finally waited for the reinforcements that they didn't know would come.
"Your Highness Eileen, on behalf of all the garrison at Riptide Pass, I would like to thank you for your help... I believe you must have obtained the approval of His Majesty the King or His Excellency the Governor, so I won't ask any more questions and leave this to you." Pierce thanked you in a hoarse voice and at the same time handed over control of the castle.
Whether they had authority or not, it was better for the Campbells to take the castle than to let it fall into the hands of the mob.
At least they still believe in the morality of knights.
At least they won't kill the villagers hiding in the castle.
"Thank you for your hard work, Mr. Pierce. Please let my military chaplain heal your wounds." Irene nodded and said solemnly.
"Haha, thank you very much." Pierce did not refuse.
At this time, he suddenly noticed the heaviness on Irene's face that was inconsistent with victory. He vaguely guessed something, so he grinned at the corners of his chapped lips and continued.
"...The place where the Green Forest Army passed was like a locust crossing the border. What you see now is just the beginning. If your next stop is Twilight City, you will see more miserable scenes than this along the way. All I can say is, please be prepared, Your Highness."
Irene was silent for a long time and suddenly said.
"General Pierce, I heard someone say... It was the nobles of the kingdom who gave up their obligations first. Is this true?"
General Pierce was slightly stunned when he heard this, as if he did not expect to hear this sentence, and a trace of complicated emotions flashed in his turbid eyes.
He did not answer directly, but looked back at the dilapidated castle behind him, and then at the scarred brothers who lived and died together.
"I don't know who the people you are talking about are, and I don't want to defend those people."
He looked at Irene again and said word by word.
"I just want to tell you, I don't."
As he said this, he pointed to the warrior behind him.
"Neither did they."
Irene saw the answer in his tired but extremely determined eyes, and then bowed her head to greet this respectable veteran.
“I understand.”
She was about to enter the castle.
However, at this moment, a sentry on horseback rushed towards this side at a high speed, and did not get off his horse until he reached the edge of the castle.
Seeing the solemn look on the sentinel's face, Irene did not blame him for his rudeness, but immediately asked.
"What happened?"
The sentry did not dare to neglect and reported it immediately.
"Your Highness! My brothers and I found the artillery position of the Green Forest Army. There were a total of six siege guns there, and they were all destroyed by our mortar troops."
Swallowed a gulp of saliva, and he continued in a difficult voice.
"Where we found the corpse of the Rat Man..."
(End of this chapter)