Necromancer, summoning 055? What the heck?

Chapter 282 The Human Army Enters the Razor Corridor During the Eastern Expedition

It's already quite cold.

The cold winter air swept across the northern border of Dongguan, erasing the pale green of the land and replacing it with a blanket of white snow. The vast snowfield stretched to the horizon, seemingly merging with the equally pale sky.

Dongguan Territory, once a prosperous human territory and a strategic stronghold, has now been largely reduced to a forgotten wasteland. Continuous wars have repeatedly ravaged this land, erasing villages, buildings, and all traces of human life, leaving only crumbling earthen walls half-buried in snow and charred beams pointing diagonally towards the sky.

On such a day of heavy snowfall, the flag of Zircon Territory crossed the mountain passes of Dongguanling and Liulishan.

A black torrent slowly and steadily crawled across the land.

This attack took a considerable amount of preparation time.

According to normal military logic, such weather should not be used to mobilize a large army. However, after a brief consideration, the Marquis of Monroe persuaded the Crown Prince of Greenpine and the generals to support the decision to send troops to Zircon Territory.

There are three reasons on the table.

Firstly, it seems that the battle in Emerald City will not see any major changes. The Zircon Territory's army, as a reserve force, is basically in reserve and will not be needed.

Instead of wasting resources here, we should move to the east and finish this punitive war that we'll have to fight sooner or later.

Indeed, the leaders of Zircon Territory also believe that this battle is inevitable sooner or later.

The wounds that Liushuang inflicted on Zircon Territory still ache faintly. As for Chen Mo, well, that little guy from the Marquis of Monroe's family whose name he can't even remember, his grave is still missing the head of an enemy as a sacrifice.

To paraphrase the domineering words of Zircon Prince Hysen, the only enemies of Zircon Territory are the dead and those about to die.

Then the eldest son was hung up and whipped again by the Marquis of Monroe.

The second reason is that although this kind of weather is bad for humans, it will make the orcs even more uncomfortable.

If war breaks out along this northern route, the presence of orcs must be taken into account. If those neurotic orcs feel threatened when attacking Skyfrost City or Vast Ocean Territory, they might suddenly come out and strike, which Zircon Territory might not be able to withstand.

With the weather freezing cold and snow falling heavily, the orcs are all holed up in their fortresses, making it virtually impossible for them to intervene, thus minimizing the possibility of complications.

Thirdly, the story is also a bit dramatic – who would have thought that this military expedition would actually make a fortune?
That's right, the Xiyue Federation to the south also holds a grudge against Hanhai Territory. Qingze City has now become the latest joke among the noble circles.

When the Green Pine Kingdom told Xiyue that they were considering sending troops to teach that disobedient remnant of the Cloud Mist a lesson, Xiyue immediately raised her hand to answer, eagerly stating:
"We, Xiyue, will cover all expenses related to the troop deployment!"

Then the Han Hai Territory has truly met its doom, and there is no other way but to fight!
With generous donations from patrons and the fact that the war effort had already prepared ample supplies, Zircon Territory was able to calmly re-equip its well-organized troops before setting out, and bring enough supplies to support a series of high-intensity battles.

They also conscripted a large number of laborers from several neighboring territories to form a continuous transport fleet, ensuring a steady flow of supplies and energy to the front lines.

With everything in place, the army marched straight to the north.

Lord Monroe, who personally led the central army, rode an exceptionally magnificent tall horse. The horse was covered in a heavy winter coat, and the billowing hot air from its nostrils condensed into puffs of white mist in the air.

The marquis on horseback wore a suit of plate armor meticulously crafted by a master craftsman, covered by a dark purple cloak with green lines. Although his temples were streaked with gray, his back was straight, his eyes were sharp, and he exuded the fierce aura of a famous general of the kingdom.

The "twin peaks" in "Crystal emerges from the Twin Peaks" refer to the Marquis of Monroe on the south bank of the Crystal River and the Earl of Liuyun on the north bank of the Crystal River.

Of course, the Twin Peaks no longer exist. Although the Green Pine Kingdom has come up with a bunch of new names like the Three Heroes, Five Heroes, and Twelve Knights for the sake of sounding better, in Marquis Monroe's heart, with Flowing Cloud dead, there are no more rivals among the southern kingdoms that he can take seriously.

Heroes often admire each other, and the fact that Liu Yun's son is just as despicable as one's own child makes it all the more relatable.

Well, it seems Liu Yun has given birth to a nice daughter.

Should we capture it and breed it with our own children to slightly improve their genes?

The Marquis of Monroe was lost in thought.

This war is different from the past. Neither Dongguan Territory nor Hanhai Territory has the goal of occupation, but rather direct destruction.

This kind of battle is easier to fight.

Demolish their cities, seize their grain, and bring back men's heads and women's wombs—this is what brutal war machines excel at.

Despite their chaotic thoughts, the troops marched without stopping for a moment. Behind the Marquis, dark gray banners fluttered in the cold wind. The generals and soldiers of Zircon Territory, clad in thick fur cloaks lined with leather armor and even stuffed their helmets with thick fur, advanced through the ankle-deep snow, forming three orderly columns: front, middle, and rear.

Apart from the crunching sound of snow underfoot, no one made a single extra sound; they were truly battle-hardened elite soldiers.

However, a sudden commotion ahead shattered this strict order.

The officer who arrived on horseback had a hoarse voice, “My lord, urgent military report from the front! The troops of Skyfrost City have launched a preemptive strike and are annihilating our scouts!”

"Do they still dare to leave the city?"

Marquis Monroe straightened his back even more instantly, his grip on the riding crop tightening unconsciously. Clearly, his opponent's unconventional actions had greatly surprised him, and also greatly excited him.

What's the point of not resisting? The more fiercely you resist, the more exciting it will be to fight.

However, the battle report that followed made the Marquis's face turn completely somber.

This is no longer just a matter of "leaving the city"; it is clearly a meticulously planned and highly efficient massacre targeting the Zircon Territory's reconnaissance forces!

Prior to this, Tian Shuang City had long ago taken measures to completely close the city, locking the city gates and strictly cutting off entry and exit, adopting a tortoise-like posture of "strict defense and no reckless fighting".

It was precisely because they judged that the enemy would hold the city to the death that the Zircon Territory troops had to spend a lot of precious time and manpower preparing supplies and building siege equipment in this terrible weather, and transport these big things to the front line with great difficulty, braving the wind, snow and mud.

It was precisely because of the enemy's timid attitude that Zircon's reconnaissance troops boldly advanced to a distance of several kilometers outside the city. The closest troops even dared to roam directly at the edge of the archers' attack range on the city walls, closely monitoring every move in the city and waiting for the arrival of their main force.

Then, according to the intelligence officer's report, just yesterday, the other side suddenly dispatched several elite troops to directly pursue and kill Zircon's scouts. The scouts, caught off guard, suffered heavy casualties.

How devastating was it? Ninety-nine percent of the troops were killed, which was practically equivalent to the complete annihilation of the army!
"How can this be?"

The reconnaissance soldiers dispatched by Zircon Territory to the front lines are unlike ordinary troops; each one is an elite soldier.

They are quick-witted, agile, and experienced. In order to ensure mobility and reconnaissance range, they are equipped with top-quality ground mounts and even a number of flying mounts!

Hundreds of such elite scouts, and only a few escaped because they were at the very back or were extremely lucky? It's like a supernatural story from the battlefield!
"My lord, the enemy is an elf, and they have deployed high-ranking elven archers!"

"According to the descriptions of the few surviving scouts, the enemies who launched the attack were generally of the fourth rank or higher, and there seemed to be quite a few fifth-rank or even higher-ranked magic archers mixed in among them!"

"The weapons they use have an extremely long range, extremely high accuracy, and are equipped with lock-on tracking and multiple magical effects, making them completely unavoidable! They can launch a pursuit from several kilometers away!"

"Their air force is quite large, and they ride a variety of mounts. So far, we have seen dragon eagles and pegasus, but the most numerous are wyverns."

Monroe suddenly interrupted the intelligence adjutant: "Have the orcs intervened?"

"No orcs were found. It seems... it seems they just somehow acquired a bunch of dragons!"

"Their attack came too suddenly, just before my army was about to arrive. The children were eager to perform well, so... they got even closer!"

"...This, this is like an elaborate trap."

Marquis Monroe's face twisted slightly.

"You mean, the elven archers, riding orc dragons and wielding weapons of unknown origin, stormed out of the human city and routed my reconnaissance forces?"

“Yes, Your Excellency,” the intelligence officer replied, forcing a smile, but his tone was unusually certain. “I questioned each of the soldiers who escaped, individually and repeatedly. Their descriptions may differ in details, but the core situation… is completely consistent!”

That's the truth!

Sigrún has taught at the Iceland University of the Arts as a part-time lecturer since and was Dean of the Department of Fine Art from -. In – she held a research position at Reykjavík Art Museum focusing on the role of women in Icelandic art. She studied fine art at the Icelandic College of Arts and Crafts and at Pratt Institute, New York, and holds BA and MA degrees in art history and philosophy from the University of Iceland. Sigrún lives and works in Iceland.

In terms of the total number of professionals, even with the combined number of professionals in Han Hai Territory and Tian Shuang City, Han Hai Territory is still far behind Zircon Territory. However, if we put aside the low- and mid-level professionals and only look at the high-level professionals at the current stage, Han Hai Territory is not much worse than its opponent.

The reason is simple: the Vast Ocean Territory has just taken over a large number of the Redemption Legion from the Silvermoon Forest of the Elves. Their average lifespan is over two hundred years, and among them are Silvermoon Elders and Elven Governors, who are the backbone of the forest self-defense faction among the Elves. In a group of more than four hundred people, there is not a single low-ranking member.

Without completing the first transformation, one is not even qualified to join the Legion of Atonement.

Chen Mo's confidence in launching a direct confrontation with the enemy at this time stemmed partly from this.

Iona was able to spare the lives of this group of elves mainly for two reasons.

Firstly, the number of elves is too small, so even in brutal political struggles, the losers usually end up losing power and stepping down. Elven society tries to avoid killing each other to the death.

This is an unwritten, tacit understanding.

Secondly, as the ancestors of psionic applications and pioneers of magic manipulation, elves are extremely skilled in using magical restrictions, far surpassing the human race's mastery of controlling professional magic scrolls.

As the Redemption Legion, these elves were subject to extremely strong psionic shackles to ensure that, in most cases, Lord Chen Mo's normal commands could be executed.

However, after arriving in the vast sea, these elves were listless for a long time.

The failure of the political struggle left them disheartened. After a brief period of observation, Chen Mo decisively changed their name to "Frostflow Guard".

Although Frostfall didn't need their protection, the name still brought the elves some comfort.

Then, Chen Mo began to add equipment to this unit.

In terms of traditional mounts, the Han Hai Territory has camel-like beasts, giant sand beetles, many centaurs that ride themselves, and a number of true cavalry. However, in terms of air force, it has always been very weak.

The main problem is that the flying creatures capable of carrying the knights into the sky are too difficult to obtain.

Lord Chen Mo plundered everywhere, but in the end he could only assemble a small air cavalry squad of about a dozen men, which was more symbolic than practical.

The turning point came during Sargeris' first siege of Skyfrost.

During that phase, the Vast Ocean Territory dealt a heavy blow to the opponent's bipedal wyvern cavalry, and after the opponent initiated a large-scale retreat, it gained many opportunities by using noble crests and battle banners, and captured a number of prisoners.

The captured orc warriors were sent to labor camps for reformation, undergoing ideological education and physical labor. Their wyvern mounts, however, became the focus of the Vast Ocean Territory's development program.

Having acquired a certain number of orc flying creatures, the Vast Ocean Territory created a rather unique air cavalry system, which was then fully assigned to these high-ranking ranged warriors after the arrival of the Elven Redemption Army.

The elves could naturally sense the lord's respect.

As for weapons, they naturally used composite bows.

Don't be fooled by Lillian and Angus's staunch opposition to composite bows in the forest; back then, it was a matter of stance. Whatever the opponent agreed with, I had to oppose. Otherwise, how could I unite my own group?

Now that we're already losers, we should still use the good compound bow.

Thus, a force emerged that can be called the pinnacle of cold weaponry in the vast sea region.

They are highly skilled and well-equipped, with all members equipped with remote communication and command equipment, space-based navigation guidance systems, and various far-infrared and thermal imaging reconnaissance tools. In addition, the armored belts next to their mounts are filled with weapons of all sizes.

For example, smoke grenades, flashbangs, and flares.

The reason they didn't use firearms was precisely because the compound bow was more effective than a gun in the hands of the elves.

Lilan Light Song had sighed more than once that if this weapon were available in Silvermoon Forest, there would be no chance for Eona.

Such a force, combining magic, technology, excellent equipment, and top-notch individual combat power, would naturally be easily defeated by the Zircon Territory's elite but still traditionally-based reconnaissance cavalry.

In the following days, although the main force of Zircon Territory continued to advance slowly and steadily in the wind and snow, their "eyes" and "ears"—the main reconnaissance force—had been completely suppressed by the elusive and remotely scouting air force of the Vast Ocean Territory, and their range of operations was almost compressed back to the edge of their own vanguard's formation.

It's almost like groping forward with your eyes closed.

Of course, with their numerical advantage, these elven air cavalry did not dare to get too close. So, five days later, the army arrived outside Skyfrost City and set up camp at a safe distance.

The siege is about to begin.

Marquis Monroe issued a pre-battle mobilization order: "Pass down the order that the first warriors to storm the walls of Skyfrost City will be rewarded with 100 gold coins and promoted three ranks! After the city falls, you are allowed to plunder for three days!"

Driven by this wild inspiration, the vanguard of Zircon Territory roared and, braving the wind and snow and carrying siege ladders, launched a fierce assault on the cold city walls under the cover of the advancing army behind them.

Then, the Marquis of Monroe was dumbfounded.

There were just too many people who rushed onto the city wall.

Of the first batch of 3,000 elite daredevils who launched the charge, except for one who twisted his ankle on the frozen city wall while running too fast and was now crying and pounding the ground in distress, the other 2,999 men all made it to the top of Tianshuang City unharmed and without bloodshed.

There were no expected torrents of defensive stones, no barrage of arrows, no roaring magical attacks, and no gleaming swords or spears on the city walls.

Apart from the elven air cavalry unit that was constantly patrolling and sniping scouts, there wasn't a single living person in the entire Frost City. The seemingly formidable defenses on the city walls were actually all made of wood carvings and straw.

As the elven air cavalry of the "Frostguard" retreated into the distant mountains, the city was emptied of everything, from residents to garrison troops, from supplies to livestock—not a single tile was left behind.

The only living creatures they could find were some rats, which seemed to be starving and on the verge of death.

Skyfrost City was indeed not a large city, but after absorbing the local vagrants of East Gate, its population once exceeded 70,000. The entire city was moved away just like that, and this decisive approach greatly exceeded Marquis Monroe's expectations.

Standing atop the walls of Skyfrost City, Marquis Monroe's face was ashen. Looking back at the heavy military formations he had set up on the snowy plains outside the city, the forest of swords and spears, the battering rams, watchtowers, and catapults lined up in a grand display... he felt a mouthful of blood churning in his throat, but he had to force it back down.

"With so many people, they couldn't have left without a sound. Investigate, find out where they went?"

Where can we go? The answer is almost obvious.

All the traces, whether tire tracks, footprints, or marks of rest stops and meals along the way, clearly point in the same direction—the Razor Corridor winding between mountains and desert.

Relocating tens of thousands of people over hundreds of kilometers sounds difficult, but with the well-organized and well-supplied Han Hai territory, it's actually not that big of a deal.

At this moment, Marquis Monroe had to admit a reality: he had "conquered" Skyfrost City, but it was practically the same as not conquering it at all.

Next, he would have to face the Han Hai Territory, a region with a population of nearly 90,000, and the original battle plan would have to be completely readjusted.

But no matter what, we still have to fight. Once the arrow has been shot, there's no turning back!

After staring at the map and pondering for a long time, the Marquis of Monroe issued a series of attack orders.

"Establish a temporary camp in Skyfrost City as a base for transferring supplies!"

"Order the rear guard to immediately become the vanguard! Reorganize according to the aforementioned second set of operational strategies, and advance the entire army in three routes: north, central and south."

"The main force on the northern front shall proceed along the main road of the Razor Corridor and keep a close eye on the movements of the orcs within Flag Mountain."

"The central line troops, advance along the ancient desert trails, search along the way, and eliminate the desert dwellers!"

"Southern forces, bypass the Tiloo Oasis and advance into the mining areas of the Vast Sea Territory. At the same time, be wary of the elves in the direction of the Dark Forest!"

"The main force of the central army, follow me on the northern route, and advance towards Hanhai City!"

"Catch these scurrying rats, tear them to pieces, and throw them all into the endless sea to feed the fish!!!"

Thus, after more than three hundred years, the desolate and treacherous Razor Corridor once again welcomed a large-scale legion from the human kingdom.

However, their target was not the former pride of the human race, Razorfen Downs, nor the White Deer Plains occupied by orcs, but rather the territory of the human race—the Vast Ocean Territory.

(End of this chapter)