Necromancer, summoning 055? What the heck?

Chapter 123 The First Arrival of the Han Hai New Army at the Fortress
Doyle is a fourth-tier necromancer of the Eternal Night level and the leader of the [Nightblade] mercenary group.

You wouldn't guess from the name that this mercenary group has anything to do with necromancers. After all, for wealthy merchants, associating with necromancers always makes them feel a little uncomfortable.

Ironically, these guys are the big spenders on mercenary missions, offering dozens or even hundreds of gold coins for a single escort mission. In comparison, doing missions for various governments is not much different from mining or doing manual labor.

If you encounter a ruthless nobleman, it's practically like doing charity.

There are plenty of clever people among the nobility, and even more scoundrels.

I just got scammed by some jerk. After the mission, I didn't even make back the team's expenses. If Doyle hadn't taken the most damage with his undead creatures, the death compensation would have bankrupted the mercenary group.

That's right. Nobles can be ruthless towards mercenary groups, but mercenary groups have to abide by the strict industry regulations of the Mercenary Guild.

This is similar to how some large corporations can do whatever they want, while small companies have to obediently abide by the law. It's too easy for them to manipulate you.

With the team's cash flow running out, if things continue like this, they may not be able to maintain their status as a mercenary group and will have to be downgraded to a mercenary squad.

Doyle gritted his teeth and accepted the mission to assist in the pioneering work of Blood Fortress.

【Nightblade】 is a medium-sized mercenary group with 32 members. In addition to the fourth-tier leader and deputy leader, there are 12 third-tier professionals. After accepting this mission, they carefully calculated the reward, left a small number of people to guard the main camp, and 【Nightblade】 set off ahead of time and arrived at the outer perimeter of Blood Fortress.

After leaving the camp, the members began to carefully clear out the magical creatures on the perimeter, at least to leave a good impression on the upcoming big spender.

Deputy Commander Gadi returned covered in dust, looking somewhat worried.

"These magical creatures are getting tougher and tougher!"

"The Blood Fortress has stood for over 180 years. What new pioneering lord could possibly breach it? Commander, are you perhaps..."

Doyle looked at his old buddy who had been with him for over a decade and knew what he was worried about.

Doyle gestured to the black warrior beside him to pour Gedi a glass of water, and patiently explained:

"I've thought about this for a long time, and I don't think it's a big problem!"

“I’ve inquired about it. This lord has been in that saltwater beach area for less than half a year. When he went there, he only brought a dozen or so mercenaries, the highest of whom was no more than the third rank.”

"During this period, they have been recruiting people everywhere, but not many people are willing to go to that godforsaken place. In other words, the other side has at most twenty or thirty professionals."

"What do you mean by attacking Blood Fortress and pioneering new lands? I bet it's just some young nobleman coming here on a whim to have some fun."

The deputy commander gulped down half a bag of water and wiped the water droplets from his beard: "But what if he forces us to go deeper into the area?"

"It's the same principle: if the enemy has fewer people and isn't strong enough to wipe us out, then we can't force them to their deaths, right?"

"You know the situation in the regiment. After the last war, several old brothers' wounds haven't healed yet, and the compensation from the duchy is still delayed. The regiment has been covering all the costs. If we don't find a big job soon, we'll fall apart!"

"Don't worry, I promise you, I will never risk the lives of my brothers. If there is any danger, I will stop the mission and leave immediately!"

Seeing the reluctant and helpless look on Vice Commander Gedi's face, Doyle patted his broad shoulder: "Alright, alright, I heard that the lord of Saltwater Beach is also a necromancer. Maybe he can take care of us a little because of the Lord of the Underworld!"

Suddenly, a loud trumpet sound came from the outside.

The sentry reported that the vanguard of the enemy sand people had made contact with the mercenary group's outposts, and the employer's entourage had arrived!

"Let's go greet them!"

A few minutes later, standing at the observation post outside Blood Fortress, Doyle, along with all the mobile personnel in his regiment, watched as a red flag was slowly raised from the top of a distant sand dune.

A centaur carrying a battle flag paused briefly on the sand dune, then waved the flag from side to side.

Soon, the earth seemed to begin to tremble slightly, and one group after another of centaurs rose from the sand dunes.

These burly, strong men weren't wearing armor, but rather coats with a mix of brown, yellow, and white shards, creating a hazy, indistinct effect as they moved. Doyle didn't yet know that it was called desert camouflage.

Each centaur carried a large pack on its back, with bags hanging on its sides. The angry horses, like dragons, swept down the ground like a whirlwind, instantly encircling them from the front, left, and right in a large arc.

The mercenaries of 【Nightblade】 gripped their weapons tightly, and Doyle could already hear the dull thud of his old buddy's arm guard hitting his waist armor.

Fortunately, the centaur troops did not charge directly at the mercenary group. The cavalry on the left and right bypassed the mercenary group and headed straight for the rear camp, while the centaurs in front split into two, forming two neat rows in front of the mercenary group.

Immediately afterwards, large numbers of camels began to appear on the sand dunes.

Adhering to the Dongxia style of never fighting an unprepared battle, Han Hai led a full 160 camels and beasts. The long procession had appeared on the sand dunes a dozen minutes ago and had not yet finished moving even a dozen minutes later.

However, the lord who was with the group did arrive.

There were two guards, one on the left and one on the right. On the left was a minotaur warrior who was nearly three meters tall, and on the right was a human silver-armored warrior clad in full heavy armor. Behind them were sand people and a follower who looked like a translator. Therefore, the one in the middle who looked incredibly young must be the lord.

Doyle bowed down somewhat hastily.

The size of the enemy far exceeded my expectations. Could it be that they are really going to attack Blood Fortress?
What followed only confirmed his worst fears.

We carefully accompanied the Lord of the Vast Ocean back to the camp, where the centaur team that had arrived earlier had already set up two lines of defense.

An arc-shaped defensive line stretched outwards, covering all passages leading to the outside world in the plaza in front of Blood Fortress City, while a straight defensive line stretched inwards, blocking the space between the tent of [Nightblade] and the camp chosen by the lord's subordinate.

Centaurs shuttled back and forth, constantly dropping packages of various sizes and supplies at different points along the defensive line.

Then Doyle saw skeleton spearmen emerge from the bags dropped by the centaurs.

Doyle rubbed his eyes. Yes, despite the strange protective sheaths covering every joint, the shape and frequency of its movements clearly indicated that this was the lowest-grade skeleton spearman.

They don't even have bone guns...

Doyle couldn't even remember the last time he'd seen such cannon fodder from the underworld.

After the skeletons crawled out, they found the nearest tools and began digging a hole in the ground. Behind them was a low-level resurrected psychic who leaned on a snake staff and swung two long horns, swaying back and forth like an overseer.

Even a novice necromancer is a rare find. Doyle is now completely certain that this lord is indeed a necromancer, and a rather novice one at that.

The second-tier resurrected psychic will have a bat wing unfold from their bone staff, and will also gain a skill called [Death Frenzy]. This skill can greatly increase the speed and agility of the target by continuously consuming the life force of the living or the soul fire of the dead, allowing them to "slay ten swords in one second, each one a decapitation!"

After reaching the third tier, the bone staff will unfold into a complete two-winged bat form and gain its final skill, [Soul Cripple]. Upon successful casting, it greatly reduces the opponent's speed and agility, essentially turning them into a paralyzed patient.

The power of the resurrected psychic lies more in its latter two skills. It abandons the future growth of this powerful underworld spellcasting unit and drags it out early to summon skeletons... How to put it, it feels like using a unicorn to pull a millstone.

But no matter how inexperienced he is, he is a lord, a lord who currently holds the power of life and death over his group.

The fact that the Nightblade mercenary group was able to take on the Blood Fortress mission shows that they are quite familiar with this area.

Standing before the opened map, Doyle nervously explained things to the young lord opposite him.

"Most of the magical creatures roaming around the fortress are dark monsters formed from the remains of dead orcs. Because the Scarlet Fortress does not allow them to enter, they can only linger outside the ruins of the fortress for a long time."

“These guys are not difficult to deal with. We have cleared out all the monsters in the city square and will not be bothered by them for a while.”

"The second level of the Blood Fortress begins at the ruins of this city wall, the outer city shrouded in black mist. Here are the remnants of tens of thousands of fortress warriors who died in the battle. Amidst the turbulent flow of magic, they generally possess the strength of a second or third-tier warrior, with some leaders even reaching the fourth tier."

"As for the inner city of the third level, no one has ever touched it, but according to records, it was the most brutal place in the final battle of the fortress, where at least a thousand first-class professionals of humans and orcs died..."

Doyle glanced furtively at Chen Mo's expression and cautiously tried to advise him: "Your Excellency, this ruin is extremely dangerous. I think you must be extra careful..."

"Great! You've done a good job with the preliminary work! Very thorough!"

Chen Mo stood up and instructed the accompanying translator: "According to the contract, allocate the initial expenses to them first."

"Now we're going to get to work. Time is tight and the task is heavy, so everyone get moving!"

Doyle let out a long sigh.

“Geddy, I’m taking Darth Vader and the old guys in to keep them company. You…you stay outside and guard the place with the kids!”

"Even if we don't come back, this money should be enough for you to get by for a while!"

Following the lord's orders, the troops of the Han Hai Territory dug trenches and built fixed fortifications overnight. They also set up active phased array biological detection radars on the high sand dunes and deployed sandman sentries at a distance.

The main force, having rested and recuperated, began their march toward the ruins of Blood Fortress the following day.

Upon entering the black fog zone, visibility dropped to less than fifty meters. The mages in the night began casting light spells to dispel the heavy gloom as much as possible.

The ground was covered with broken city wall bricks, eroded by wind and sand, which would crumble into powder with the slightest step.

From time to time, there were sounds of clashing weapons, roars, and faint singing, sometimes loud and sometimes soft, floating around everyone's ears, like an untuned stereo, sometimes near and sometimes far!
Suddenly, a shadow burst out from the black mist.

The Black Knight summon at the forefront delivered a precise slash, smashing the Ruins Guardian before it could even touch the Black Knight, and it vanished in the whooshing sound of the weapon.

Liu Zaiyue, an old ox who was entering for the first time, shook his head: "Isn't this pretty simple?"

"My lord! These things are endless, and the more armor plates they have, the stronger they become. Eventually, they will be everywhere!"

The ruins guard we just saw was indeed only wearing a small piece of breastplate, so he must have been an ordinary soldier.

Just as Doyle said, the deeper the team went, the more numerous and intense the remnant guards became.

They hadn't gone more than 300 meters when wounded began to appear in the group. One of the Nightblade warriors was surrounded by multiple ruin guards, and the Black Knight couldn't cover him in time, leaving a huge gash in his waist and abdomen.

Doyle's lips trembled as he directed the mercenaries to frantically bandage his wounds, and he once again made a request to Captain Kaga of the Vast Ocean Assault Team.

"Sir, we can't... we can't go any further in! It's too dangerous inside!"

Kaga didn't even glance at him, raising his right arm high: "All units, form assault formation and continue the advance!"

Doyle was utterly desperate.

Although none of the little guys here could withstand a single blow from his high-ranking Black Knight, Doyle still dared not resist.

There are brothers outside, and family back home. The Nightblade mercenary group cannot bear the guilt of betraying their lord in battle and harming the pioneer lord.

Then, he heard a command that sounded like heavenly music, one that he could hardly believe.

"Tell your men to back off and stop blocking our way!"

A few dozen seconds later, the [Nightblade] team, having survived the ordeal, formed a tight circle and watched as the warriors from the Vast Ocean Territory took over the front line, forming a wedge-shaped battle formation pointing straight ahead.

After observing for so long, Kaga has basically figured out how the [Night Blade] clears the way.

After turning on the communicator and having a brief conversation with Chen Mo, who remained outside the ruins and was observing the scene through the video system, Kaga issued a series of commands.

"Turn on the lighting system!"

"Release the reconnaissance drone!"

"Skull Squad Assault Team, advance! Maintain distance!"

"Fire freely upon spotting the enemy, while maintaining cross-fire cover!"

"attack!"

The light from more than a dozen searchlights pierced through the black fog like bright, sharp swords.

Gunshots rang out loudly in this ancient and profound fortress ruin.

(End of this chapter)