Necromancer, summoning 055? What the heck?

Chapter 330 Stealth Assistance: High Priest White Fang Asks the Gods (Part 1)

Autumn colors are in full bloom, staining every inch of the rocks and every tree on Qishan Mountain.

Lieutenant Angus, an elf, pressed his body into a crevice in the forest, revealing only a telescope, and looked at the massive black line below the mountain.

From a high vantage point, the mountain range resembles the prominent veins on the back of an elderly farmer's hand, crisscrossing, steep, and rugged, stretching across the plains, hills, and desert.

The mountain is dotted with vast expanses of fiery red and gold, the last splendor of various hardy trees fading in the cold wind. Thin clouds clung to the mountainside, occasionally opening and closing slowly, making the obscured scenery appear and disappear, adding a touch of desolation.

Beneath these magnificent and precipitous mountains, a turbid stream is slowly emerging from the northern mountain pass.

"Finally... they've arrived."

That was the orcs' autumn hunting army.

Behind a large tree entwined with vines, old cat Daryl slowly put down his binoculars, stroking the binoculars' casing—made of some unknown material—with his rough fingers, his eyes filled with envy.

Using both hands and feet, the old cat moved a few steps close to the ground, then approached Angus and several other Hanhai officers, and whispered his report.

"There are far fewer orcs this year!"

"There are at least 30% to 40% fewer than in previous years. You can't really tell from the infantry because the ranks are too long and you can't see the end of them. But you can see it clearly from the cavalry. The wolf riders' formation is very loose."

"I heard a few days ago that the plains orcs have been making trouble, saying that they didn't get much loot in the past two years, many warriors died, and they suffered heavy losses, so now they don't want to send any more warriors!"

Angus nodded, indicating that he understood.

As an elf from Silvermoon Forest, he had never experienced the orcs' autumn hunt before and did not know the scale or feeling of the orc army's southward march in previous years.

Having personally experienced the Battle of the Razorfen Downs, the current Hanhai army is at the peak of its confidence and morale, and doesn't take the orcs seriously.

Angus himself was an absolute fanatic among them.

As one of the best among the younger generation of elves, at less than a hundred years old and as a male elf, he dared to challenge the position of Elven Guard Captain Ysera Brightwing. This not only required sufficient strength, but also great courage.

However, fate played a cruel trick. In the power struggle within the elves known as the "Eternal Court Coup," the Watchers leader he followed, Lyran Lightsong, was defeated, and their entire faction was almost wiped out by the Regent Elder, Eona.

Um, "Eternal Court Coup" is the name used internally by this group of elven redemption soldiers. In the official elven historical records, it has been classified as "Silver Moon Suppression"!
As the defeated, this group of elves was given the title of "Redemption Army" and was sent to the remote Vast Sea Territory.

For these elves, this was a humiliating exile, but Angus soon discovered that this vibrant land might be the stage he had always dreamed of.

The vast ocean is quite friendly to the elves, especially to the male elves!

Due to their ancient traditions, the Elven race has always maintained a relatively strict matriarchal social structure. This is not just about maintaining the hereditary succession of the queen, but rather that the entire society, from top to bottom, from the distribution of power to the division of labor, is almost entirely dominated by women.

Female elves naturally held power and bore the primary responsibility for combat and defense. Thus, throughout history, the generals and elite warriors who charged into battle in the elven army were almost entirely women.

Until a few hundred years ago, during the devastating war that caused the elves to lose vast swathes of their homeland, a war comparable to the collapse of a kingdom, countless female elven warriors shed their blood on the battlefield, falling in droves. As a result, male warriors were increasingly conscripted into the army.

But this is ultimately a long process of transformation, and hundreds of years have passed. There is still not a single male elder among the elves. Angus, as the captain of the guard of the outer Redwood Highlands, is the pinnacle of male elf status.

Aiona, determined to reclaim her homeland, has been pushing for the elevation of men's status, but the old elves' ideas are still too deeply ingrained, making change so slow and difficult.

Angus was frustrated. He firmly supported Lylan Songstress, not because Songstress was more friendly to men, but because the Watchers were relatively weak and were willing to give them an elder's position in order to win the support of male elves.

However, after arriving in the vast sea and becoming a prisoner, Angus unexpectedly discovered this vast stage.

The reason is simple: the main force of the Han Hai, from officers to soldiers, is almost entirely composed of men.

In this situation, the Elven Redemption Army can operate independently without much problem, but once joint operations are involved, the command will naturally prioritize male Elven warriors.

For example, on this mission to the White Deer Plain, the team was led by Daryl the Cat and Aiden the Snake, the supervisor from the Vast Ocean Territory, and the soldiers responsible for reconnaissance and guard duty. All of them were male. Under such circumstances, it would be almost impossible for the army to arrange for female soldiers to accompany them.

Regardless of strength or weakness, it's purely because it's inconvenient. Even urinating requires hiding far away. How much vigilance is required for that?
Thus, in just over six months, a situation arose in the Elven Redemption Army of the Vast Sea, which was later reorganized into the Frost Guard, where men and women were almost evenly matched and evenly matched.

If he can achieve one or two more victories, Angus is confident that he can build an independent elite male elite team!

Gathering his thoughts, Angus turned and leaned against the rock, carefully tucking the binoculars into his tactical backpack and glancing at his watch.

How much longer do we have to walk?

"Sir, that's hard to say!"

Old Cat hunched over and took two steps closer: "From here, head west, past Eagle Peak, and wade across the river upstream. It should take about ten days to reach Rhino Moon's territory!"

"But given the current situation, with the orc army coming down, there are definitely more patrols on the roads than usual, and the checks will be much stricter. We probably can't travel as usual; we have to be careful and go slower!"

"Don't worry, we know this route very well, and we'll definitely get you there safely!"

Daryl carefully picked up the binoculars, wiped them again and again with the lining of his worn-out leather coat, and handed them back to Angus with obvious reluctance on his face.

Because of the existence of mages' reconnaissance spells, coupled with the scouts' exceptional eyesight and hearing, although Starry Sky also had some telescopes, they were expensive, ineffective, had a short field of view, and were bulky, so they could not be effectively promoted.

Old Cat had heard wandering poets say that this prop, called "red and green eyes" in the city, was at most used by idle noblemen and young masters to peep through the windows of the noble ladies next door.

It's said that you can tell what to do next by the color of the curtains; for example, red means your husband is home, green means he's waiting, and yellow means you can all come together...

The bard's vivid description captivated the old cat.

However, the binoculars carried by these officers in the Han Hai territory were vastly different.

It could see far and clearly, and there was no sign of any magic! For these "Restoration Society" members who had been operating in orc-controlled areas for years, it was practically a miniature artifact!
Angus noticed Daryl's reluctance and waved generously, "It's yours, keep it for yourself!"

"We're pressed for time and can't afford to delay, so let's get going. Don't be too timid; we'll warn you if there's any danger on the road!"

Old Cat was overjoyed, his face beaming with delight. Angus turned to face the human communications soldier carrying a large iron box with a long antenna extending from the top, and said in Dongxia language, "Commander Chen, my idea is to report the intelligence about the orcs leaving the pass to headquarters, and also share our team's location with the base in real time, requesting the command center to provide 'Sky Eye' support!"

"it is good!"

As the orc wyvern riders in the distant sky gradually moved away, the squad once again embarked on the road to the heart of the plains.

Qishan's perilous terrain truly lives up to its name! And Old Cat and his men are indeed very familiar with the roads.

He led his team, sometimes swinging across gaps using concealed, reinforced vines, sometimes squeezing sideways through narrow rock crevices that could barely fit one person, gliding along steep cliffs and bottomless fissures, making their way through paths that were barely worthy of being called roads, obscured by boulders and dead branches.

After a difficult trek, they finally managed to leap down from the ridge on the north side of Qishan Mountain and enter a relatively flat area of ​​low mountains and hills.

The danger level here is much higher than on the mountain.

The old cat skillfully led the way, occasionally offering a few words of advice. "Be careful here. You all must follow my footprints. There are many traps and pitfalls set up by the orcs here. Although they are abandoned now, who knows which corner might still be hiding some deadly things? Getting caught in a trap will be a terrible ordeal!"

"A few years ago, if we had taken this route, several of our brothers would have died or been injured on the round trip!"

"Don't go near that forest on the left. There's a small flock of thunderbirds there, which the Steeltail Tribe keeps here. Those things have incredibly strong noses, and their cries are like thunder. If you startle them, you can attract patrol teams from more than a dozen orc villages around here."

“Sir, you’ll have to make do here for a bit. This road is long, and wolf riders may pass by at any time. I’ll go ahead and scout the way, while Aiden leads you behind, following my markers as you slowly move forward…”

The old cat practically pressed its body to the ground, shuffling forward while muttering to itself.

“If the wolf riders see us, I’ll lure them east, and then Aiden will lead the way…”

It's clear that this safe passage was explored and forged with the blood and lives of countless generations of members of the "White Deer Restoration Society."

However, these sacrifices, tactics, and sentiments become exceptionally pale and powerless in the face of the modern technology of the Vast Ocean Territory.

"No need. From here on, you will follow my instructions!"

Angus put on his tactical headset, and soon a series of messages entered his ears.

"At the three o'clock position, 3.6 kilometers away, a suspected squadron-level beast cavalry is moving eastward along the transportation line. They are expected to pass the major intersection in about 27 minutes. It is recommended to stay put for ten minutes to avoid the enemy!"

"There is a small orc squad at five o'clock, numbering no more than ten, rank unknown. At the current pace, they will arrive at your current location in fifteen minutes. Please take cover in advance."

Guided by the "monitoring" navigation system activated in the Vast Ocean Territory, the Angus squad sometimes hid in place, sometimes took a break in the mountains, sometimes sped along the road, and sometimes, not wanting to waste time, directly ambushed and eliminated scattered orc scout squads.

The walk was more comfortable than strolling in my own living room.

Although they didn't know the principle behind it, it was enough to amaze Daryl the old cat and Aiden the snake, making them feel awe and respect.

After making their way to a secluded hideout of the Restoration Society, Old Cat looked back in disbelief, clasped his hands together, and murmured to himself, "This is...this is a blessing from God!"

Angus smiled slightly.

"No, this is the Chairman's instruction!"

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.

After leaving the protection of the Qishan Mountains and truly stepping into the Bailu Plain, everyone clearly felt that the surrounding space was shrinking rapidly, and the sense of oppression in the air was increasing exponentially.

The wind on the plains seemed to carry a fishy and oppressive smell, recklessly swirling up the dust and withered grass from the harvested fields, cleaning the earth until it was clean and stretching as far as the eye could see.

With binoculars set up, gazing into the distance, one could see scattered, rugged wooden and stone camps of orc tribes on the horizon, with wisps of smoke occasionally rising into the blue sky.

Each plume of smoke marked a gathering point for an orc tribe, carrying a suffocating sense of oppression for these wandering members of the "White Deer Restoration Society."

Old Cat Daryl led his team through a maze of left and right paths, eventually hiding in a secluded safe house in the valley.

In the bushes behind the safe house, Old Cat, in front of everyone, took out a small bird whose feathers were almost identical in color to the dead leaves. After quickly examining it, he fed it something, then tossed it high into the air. The dead leaf bird flapped its wings and disappeared into the sky.

“This is a ‘messenger bird’!” the old cat explained to Angus. “It will tell Moon that we have arrived and everything is fine.”

He rubbed his hands together, his face showing apology: "For the next few days, we'll probably have to wait patiently here. After Chief Moon receives the message, he will send someone to quietly check this rendezvous point. Only after confirming that it is absolutely safe and there are no traces will they send someone to take us to the next rendezvous point."

"The plains are not like the mountains; enemy spies may be everywhere, and there are many traitors who would betray their comrades for a few pieces of dried meat. Going directly to the camp is too dangerous, so we can only make contact layer by layer in this way. Please understand, sirs..."

Angus stamped his foot in frustration. Clearly, the unknown days ahead were making the elven captain anxious. However, seeing the young human officer beside him slowly lowering his hand, he could only take a deep breath and sit down helplessly.

When in charge of combat, the elf is the captain, but outside of combat, he must obey the orders of the squad supervisor.

The elf captain didn't quite agree with this; in terms of individual strength, he could crush the opponent with one hand.

However, he also knew very well that if he really killed the other party, his own elders would not hesitate to kill him and then carry his head to Lord Hanhai to beg for forgiveness.

This is a supervisor from Hanhai!

The little guy's name is Chen Yuanfeng, and he is only fourteen years old. On Earth, that would be the age when he has just learned calculus.

Chen Yuanfeng's appearance was still quite immature, and his rank was indeed not high, not even reaching the third-tier silver armor level. However, he was one of the lord's first students, a personal disciple, and a first-term student of the Hanhai Naval Academy.

The human officers who were selected through a rigorous process to enter the Hanhai Naval Academy were all children of slaves who were sold to Hanhai in the early days. Because they had not yet completely broken their backbone like their fathers, the lords regarded them as still having some potential, and thus they were given the opportunity to receive basic education.

During the cultural learning process, a group was eliminated; when it came to character assessment, another group was eliminated; and when it came to intelligence assessment, yet another group was eliminated. Ultimately, only a very small number of people were able to enter the Hanhai Naval Academy.

The final graduation rate of Han Naval Academy is less than 30%!
Many of these lords' personal guards were given names by Chen Mo himself; one could roughly tell their rank and status in the military academy just by looking at their names.

The earliest group followed the lord's surname "Chen" or "Xia". Later, as the population grew, common surnames such as "Lin" and "Li" were gradually added.

The second character in their name indicates their ranking within the military academy system, essentially a form of seniority.

In the first round, the lord provided eight characters: "Inheriting the Primordial Era, Reviving the Glorious Era!"
Chen Mo's original intention in setting this up was twofold: firstly, to make it easier for him, who was incapable of naming himself, to come up with a new name; and secondly, to make it easy to remember, so that people could tell which batch of students a student belonged to just by hearing their name.

In practical terms, Chen Yuanfeng's surname Chen and the character Yuan are immediately recognizable to locals as the earliest and most core of the lord's inner circle, representing the golden status of Han Hai!
Since there are no nobles in the vast ocean, people can only use the metal grades they know as a standard for classification.

Let alone Angus, who is not even a hundred years old, even if Elder Iona, who is five hundred years old, came, she would treat this teenager with great respect.

Chen Yuanfeng exchanged a few pleasantries with Daryl the Old Cat, then quietly called Angus aside and offered words of comfort.

"Now that we're here, there's no need to rush!"

"Before we set off, the commander-in-chief repeatedly emphasized to me that it was not easy for these people to survive in the orc-controlled area. Behind every rule, countless lives had been sacrificed. We must try our best to respect their rules!"

Angus nodded in response, "I know, but it's really unnecessary. 'Sky Eye' has already found their base, and we're still here playing along with their act..."

"Yes, knowing is one thing, respect is another!"

"In terms of individual combat skills and real-world fighting, you, Lieutenant Angus, are the expert; I am far inferior. But when it comes to the true path of development, you know very little, or rather, very few people on the entire Star Continent understand it!"

"I've only learned a little bit!"

"Our commander-in-chief is knowledgeable, so listening to him is definitely the right thing to do!"

Chen Yuanfeng patted the badge on his chest forcefully—

A sickle, a hammer.

(End of this chapter)