Steel torrents pioneering a different world

Chapter 186 The First Step in Controlling the Forest! The East is indeed stirring things up! The cave-dwelling half-human is astonishing! (Please subscribe)
The helicopter rotor made noise, whipped up a gale, and tore off large clumps of leaves from the trees below, sending them flying everywhere.

The fully armed butcher gripped the rappelling rope, and after a brief moment of weightlessness in the air, his combat boots slammed heavily onto the soft humus.

Without a moment's hesitation, he quickly untied the ropes and adjusted his non-lethal assault rifle and arm shield to the most comfortable position.

Almost at the same time, an invisible chill crept up his spine, and his mind felt as if it had been stuffed with a wad of cold cotton.

The special-purpose paper protective gear hanging on his chest spontaneously combusted without fire, turning to ashes. Only a cool sensation remained, dispelling the mental discomfort.

"Here we go again."

The butcher spat under his breath.

These elves' mind magic is indeed hard to defend against, but fortunately, the special advisors in the logistics department are quite capable.

The specially designed disposable paper protective gear is highly effective, preventing soldiers from falling into those deadly hallucinations.

He glanced at his equipment and found he still had plenty, which reassured him, but he remained vigilant about his surroundings.

A calm report came through the squad channel in my headset.

"Enemy activity detected at seven o'clock ahead, seven... ha, a group of elves. Did they think we didn't spot them?"

"Received, drone to deliver hypnotic gas."

"implement."

A palm-sized drone silently took off and weaved through the forest. Its electronic signals were specially processed so that they were almost unaffected by magic.

After a few soft popping sounds, pale yellow smoke quickly spread through the distant woods.

Through the infrared mode of his tactical goggles, Butcher could clearly see several figures swaying and struggling in the smoke, and he could vaguely hear a few suppressed coughs.

He tightened his fully enclosed helmet, lowered his body, and gave his teammates a signal to prepare for an attack.

"on!"

There were no shouts, only the subtle rustling of tactical equipment. The Butcher and his three teammates formed an arrowhead, advancing forward under alternating cover, the whole process resembling a silent tactical dance.

After a few minutes, the battle was over.

The seven elves collapsed to the ground, their bows and daggers scattered around them, their faces still showing struggle and anger, but their bodies were completely out of their control.

Biological anesthesia—how terrifying!
The soldiers quickly tied them up with special straps.

"Casualty report?" the captain asked in the channel.

"Goupu has been shot in the arm with an arrow!"

"The team medic, go over there!"

A soldier carrying a medical kit rushed over immediately, cut open Goup's combat uniform sleeve, and an arrow pierced through his forearm.

"Damn it, those elves reacted really fast. The smoke almost knocked them down, and they still managed to deflect a few arrows." Goup grimaced in pain, but he still didn't hold back his insults.

He was the unluckiest; he had taken at least several arrows, one of which pierced through his thin armor and injured him.

When I get back, I must ask the engineering design team to continue optimizing our protective equipment.

"Alright, the arrow didn't hit any blood vessels and it wasn't poisonous, you're lucky." The team doctor disinfected the wound while quickly treating it.

The butcher looked at the captured elves and then pulled out the mission terminal on his wrist.

The Elf squad, which covered an area of ​​tens of kilometers as detected by the drone, had been wiped out by them and several other squads.

He scrolled down to look at the leaderboard, which resembled a game scoreboard!
Goodness, the three teams next door finished their battle five minutes earlier than them, and even captured two more people.

"A bunch of animals, is it really necessary to be so meticulous?" the butcher muttered irritably. "Even if they're this meticulous, the credit for the mission still goes to us!"

A teammate who was bandaging the elf's wounds chuckled upon hearing this: "Captain, have you forgotten? Whoever captures more prisoners can exchange for more points when we get back."

The butcher's lips twitched, and he was about to say something when a calm and serious voice suddenly rang out in everyone's combat channel.

"Command announces: The outer perimeter capture operation is complete. All units shall immediately proceed to the second phase of the operational plan..."
-
War is beneficial to humanity, which has eased the atmosphere in the rear somewhat.

The Otherworldly Special Materials Research Institute, located far from the command center, is a completely different battlefield from the frontline command center.

There was no gunpowder smoke in the air, only the low hum of the instrument cooling fans and the smell of high-purity alcohol disinfectant.

A dragon egg, about the size of a human head and with an overall grayish-metallic color, rested quietly on the experimental table.

"Good news has come from the front lines: the energy supply to the condensed matter ghosts has been completely depleted. Apart from magical fluctuations and radiation from weapon explosions, the energy levels in the forest belt are now extremely low!"

"That's good. It seems we don't need to work overtime and can focus on our research."

Everyone laughed.

"Professor Wen, the energy consumption in the forest is so high, do you think this thing could be used as a... magic battery?"

Professor Peng adjusted his reading glasses, staring intently at an energy absorption curve on the screen that had just begun to flatten, his eyes gleaming with an almost fanatical light.

Professor Wen Min, who looked a few years younger, wanted to refute, but swallowed her words.

"As a battery?" She pondered for a moment, quickly searching her mind for the information she had gleaned from the elven captive Anise. "Theoretically... it seems possible."

Annies explained that the dragon egg itself is the highest-grade magical energy storage container and the best magic drive core.

“Professor Peng is right. If elves can use them, there’s no reason why we can’t.” Wen Min’s mind was instantly opened. “But it’s such a waste to use them as batteries! Why not just hatch a dragon and then study it properly?”

"The female elf captive Annies said that the dragon inside the dragon egg is very cruel and cunning, and difficult to tame. If you want it to obey, you will probably have to use some technical means to forcibly intervene."

“Of course!” Professor Peng nodded with a smile. “Let the interrogation team work harder to uncover the secrets of the elves. We’re practically the saviors of this dragon egg! If we can find a way to hatch it, maybe we can open a magical zoo!”

The comrades who returned from the retreat said that when they found this thing, the roots of the red-leafed, white-barked tree almost covered the dragon egg, and the soldiers had to use a lot of effort to free it.

According to Annies, the dragon egg will be destroyed when its energy is completely depleted.

From this perspective, they really are the saviors of the dragon egg.

"How do you hatch them? They said hatching dragon eggs is very difficult," someone asked.

"Just keep burning it at a constant temperature!"

Upon hearing this, Professor Peng chuckled, and the wrinkles on his face smoothed out.

The other researchers couldn't help but laugh when they heard this.

According to Annies's information, dragon eggs require a specific environment to hatch and take a long time.

Although the dragon egg sacrificed by the elves was full of vitality, its magic and life force were almost completely drained, and the scales protecting the dragon egg were in trouble.

Under normal circumstances, it is estimated that they will not hatch even after several decades.

"Using our technology, we will simulate the most suitable high-energy environment for it, converting electrical energy, thermal energy, and radiant energy into the purest magical energy and feeding it into it! The dragon egg can supply magical energy, and we have also discovered that this thing can absorb other photoelectric energy, so in theory it can also accelerate catalysis!"

The old professor became more and more excited as he spoke, pointing at the dragon egg as if he were describing a magnificent blueprint.

"Think about it, if we figure this out, we might be able to control magical creatures!"

Just when the atmosphere was just right, an untimely voice broke in.

"Professor Qian, why don't we just treat it as a magic energy charger! Activating dragon eggs and researching uncontrollable magical creatures are too uncertain. We don't need too many unstable things. Let's research its use for charging and activating our special protective equipment, especially equipment that lacks energy!"

As we all know, some scientific experiments, especially biological experiments, are always prone to encountering impossible factors.

And people haven't figured out what magic particles are.

At this moment, everyone is actually thinking about hatching the dragon eggs first, and then fantasizing about controlling the dragon?

Isn't this just a delusional person who wants to fly before they've even learned to crawl?

Elves are so skilled in the study of magical energy, yet they haven't hatched any dragons?

Humans with only a superficial understanding of magical energy want to control everything?
This is a very... very irrational idea!
Everyone looked at Professor Qian and noticed that he had a serious expression and wasn't joking. They pondered the analysis in his words.
"Ah...this...this is valuable research material. It's a waste to just use it as a battery. We should hatch a dragon!"

"That's irrational. We haven't even figured it out yet, why are we messing around with these things?"

"Gentlemen, this thing is precious in another world, but we will definitely encounter more of it in the future."

"I'm more curious about how it drives magic and powers so many condensed matter ghosts than how to use it," Professor Qian said, his eyes brimming with pure curiosity. "Right now, all we know is that magical particles stably produce Bose-Einstein condensed matter energy through some kind of resonance reaction that we don't yet understand!"

"Moreover, with the help of strange trees and some strange rituals, we can make magical particles resonate with humans. If we can discover the energy of the dragon egg, it may accelerate our ability to control magical particles."

At this point, Professor Qian swallowed hard: "Even without studying condensed matter reactions, just studying the energy conversion and supply methods of this stuff could allow us to grasp a new holy grail of physics energy!"

He walked to the control panel and pulled up several sets of data.

"And charging magical energy is the simplest thing to do!"

"Ladies and gentlemen, as you all know, we previously discovered that magical particles themselves possess extremely strong fusion and catalytic properties."

He switched the image to a pattern resembling a circuit diagram on a dragon egg: "These things are very similar to the electrical energy we've been studying. Since elves can extract magical energy, what if we could also master charging and discharging technology? Could we then use it to manipulate the red maple trees in the entire forest in the future?"

"Will the forest still be the forest of the elves then? We can completely kick the elves out of the magic network and take control of the entire forest!"

Recharge? Kick out the elves and take control of the forest?

Everyone present was stunned.

Professor Peng and Wen Min exchanged a glance, both seeing astonishment in each other's eyes, followed by intense admiration...
-
The Star Anise Building is a specialized area for collecting various information from the East, and also serves as the nerve center for gathering intelligence from all over the world.

Inside the office, Peter yawned deeply, a few tears welling up in his eyes.

The coffee on the table had gone cold; he had clearly had another sleepless night!

"Sir, this is the latest compiled data and intelligence."

The subordinate placed a stack of documents on his desk gently, as if afraid of disturbing his boss, whose temper had recently become volatile.

Peter rubbed his temples and casually flipped through the documents.

He's really had a tough time lately trying to earn money to cover his losses!
His meticulously planned wedding failed due to hotel issues, and the wedding, which cost him tens of thousands of dollars in savings, ended in a mess.

The wedding was postponed, and the fiancée remained the fiancée, not the wife!
I still have a long way to go working as a laborer!
To make up for his depleted wallet and to soothe his fiancée's wounded heart, he gritted his teeth and applied for a small project with a limited budget, aimed at researching the potential threats posed by Eastern cultural products.

A trivial project, destined to be thrown into the shredder.

But no one expected that after his superior, Mr. Johnson, saw the report, Mr. Johnson added several zeros to the project and elevated it to the level of "global cultural dominance and strategic cultural security".

The report then ended up on the desks of Mr. Smith and his colleagues.

These powerful figures who control the purse strings of Congress have an almost pathological passion for any issue that can be linked to national security.

What they like best are enemies that are invisible and intangible.

Thus, Peter's tiny project, after layers of embellishment and professional polishing, was transformed into a massive cultural confrontation plan with a total value of $150 million.

150 million!!!
Dollar!!!

Mr. Smith and his ilk understand all too well the importance of the cultural sphere.

Behind them are people who practically control major media outlets worldwide, capable of turning black into white and funerals into celebrations.

That young man in his thirties, who was later posthumously honored as Saint Charles, is one of their most recent outstanding works.

Peter glanced at the documents handed to him by his subordinate, initially with a nonchalant attitude.

It's nothing but the same old tune, talking about the little tricks that Easterners have been up to lately.

For example, sending positive and uplifting videotapes and artistic works to some underdeveloped areas for free, selling digital copyrights at extremely low prices, and actively cultivating people who appreciate their culture.

They did the same.

Once a nation becomes powerful, exporting its cultural works abroad not only generates revenue and cultivates the market, but also subtly transforms that market.

But when he saw the next item, he sat up abruptly.

His former suzerain state, the British Empire, has its most famous fantasy strategy game company, GW, which is now being pursued by a group of self-proclaimed "die-hard fans" from the East!
Peter's breath caught in his throat for a moment.

He himself is a loyal player of GW Wargames, and has several Space Marine models with half-painted parts at home. Although he is very unhappy about the emergence of the Female Guard, it is ultimately their culture.

If the other side controls the GW, then it's not cultural export, but rather undermining the foundation!

He continued flipping through the pages, his heart pounding faster and faster.

Data shows that Dongfangren not only acquired GW, but also actively participated in the competition for various important Western cultural IP copyrights, from movies to games, leaving no stone unturned.

"See, I told you they were doing this!"

Peter slammed his fist on the table, splashing a few drops of cold coffee from his cup.

His face showed no anger, but rather an expression of near ecstasy.

The fatigue vanished, replaced by the excitement of a hunter discovering the trail of his prey.

"It sounds a bit far-fetched, but comparing the information from the past two days, all the problems have become clear." He muttered to himself, pointing heavily to the news that GW's president was joining the negotiations and might be acquired. "Perhaps, I am what the Easterners call... the chosen one? The hero who first thwarts the enemy's strategic plot!"

He laughed, a laugh like a lottery winner.

That's great! Not only is the 150 million yuan project funding secured, but he can also apply for an additional "emergency fund".

Perhaps he could discuss with his fiancée about replacing their car with a new energy vehicle manufactured in the East and registered in Mexico?

He thought this to himself, and then burst into laughter.

"Boss, we have new intelligence! It's about the Eastern Grasslands!"

Grassland?
Is it from the Eastern Martial Arts Arena?
No, it must be about that new grassland city.

Peter took the message and read it, and found that it was indeed true.

The other side has seen a significant increase in logistics and various transportation activities in the past day or so, and their people have also detected some ammunition transportation and supply activities.

Peter rubbed his chin, glanced at the documents, and then pulled up the satellite information compiled by his subordinates.

"They mobilized so many vehicles and supplies in just one day? They must be incredibly wealthy!"

There was a time when they were just as extravagant in terms of military spending.

Training and various exercises keep them very busy; pilots need to fly at least 300 hours a year.

Nowadays, military spending increases every year, but training costs and various other expenses do increase frequently.

Pilots used to have 300 hours of training, but five years ago, that number dropped to less than 180, with some second-tier pilots even falling to 150 hours per year! Now, the average annual flight time for Eagle fighter pilots has decreased to 81.6 hours, a drop so severe it angered even Smith.

If flight training can't keep up, how can we guarantee the combat effectiveness of the troops?
He sighed, thinking that the gap in strength between the two sides was widening.

If we wait until later...

He felt extremely distressed when he thought about the overwhelming attack on them, which prevented their planes from even taking off!

"Thank goodness there's truth in this, otherwise we really would have started fighting!"

Peter thought to himself, then skillfully navigated to the website that was redirected to information about military exercises in the East. He found that the East had indeed issued notices in the near future, saying that new military training would be conducted.

"Ha, these are really small matters. I don't think they'll be such big deals in the future!"

In recent years, people from the East have been undergoing more and more training in various ways. According to accurate intelligence from relevant personnel and the analysis of most people, they estimate that a major event will occur in a few years.

ding dong~
Two notification sounds rang out. One was from his fiancée; the other was from Johnson's son... no, it should be said that it was from the child who identified himself as a girl.

Peter snapped out of his thoughts, opened the message, and saw that it was from his fiancée saying that she had left a lovingly prepared meal in the refrigerator.

She went on an urgent business trip and is expected to be away for several days.

Upon seeing this, he immediately returned the call.

"...Okay, okay... Be careful on the road, um... OK... Yes, it will all pass. What we've been going through are bad days, but bad days will eventually pass..."

After ending the call, Peter felt a sense of感慨 (gǎnkǎi, mixed feelings).

This is what it means to be unable to control your work!

Although her awful boss hated working overtime in other locations, she had an extraordinary passion for her job.

Thinking of this, he went to the bathroom, washed his face to relieve the fatigue caused by staying up late, and then sorted and categorized the documents.

"Hmm... let's rearrange the order."

Then, following Johnson's reading preferences, he placed the approval of funding for the cultural survey activity, which he most wanted to get approved, at the end, and put the matter of mobilizing supplies from the Eastern Grasslands, which he considered completely unimportant, at the top, and even thoughtfully labeled it with a green tag!
“Ha, that way, Mr. Johnson will be paying particular attention to the funding approval for the cultural survey.” He chuckled, then first sent it to Mr. Johnson’s confidential work email address, and then to his personal email address.

Although this violates the principles of office confidentiality, it is something that the Star Anise Building often does.

Using a private email account is so convenient; not only is sending and receiving messages very fast, but the key is that you can view them anytime.

Moreover, it wasn't just him who opened an email account; many others did the same.

For example, Commissioner Smith, and people from various departments of the Eagles.

Even spicy food is like this.

The confidentiality agreement was drawn up by the Eagles, but the working hours were their own.

They couldn't possibly waste their precious vacation time on something that was absolutely confidential.

Moreover... anyone bold enough to hack into their email account would have been physically fed to sharks long ago!
After he finished tidying up, he dialed his boss Johnson's number.

Strangely enough, every time his fiancée said she was going on a business trip to another city, Johnson would always happen to be on vacation during those days.

Peter couldn't help but feel envious. If he had Johnson's qualifications, he could have an extra month of paid vacation every year, not counting weekends. Who wouldn't want that?

The call connected, and Johnson's slightly nasal breathing came through the other end.
"Speak, what is it?"

The voice was strange; Peter felt that Johnson must be doing something important in his life.

"Sir, I'm sorry to disturb your vacation." Peter's tone was humble and respectful, but a different picture was already forming in his mind.

There was a pause on the other end of the phone, and then, besides Johnson's somewhat rapid breathing, he could vaguely hear a woman's suppressed laughter, as well as the crisp sound of ice cubes hitting a glass.

That old man, he really knows how to have fun.

Peter cursed inwardly, but quickly got into work mode. He first reported on the mobilization of supplies at the Eastern Grassland training ground, in a flat, emotionless tone, as if he were reading a dry, rambling account.

"...Based on our observations, the frequency and scale of the material mobilization are within the scope of regular exercises, and the initial assessment is that it is a seasonal routine training exercise with a low threat level."

After presenting this smokescreen he had carefully placed at the top of the report, he changed the subject, and his tone became more enthusiastic.

"But, sir! We've made a major discovery regarding cultural infiltration!"

He deliberately emphasized the word "significant," describing in detail the acquisition of GW by Eastern capital and the fierce competition with Western capital in multiple cultural fields.

The breathing on the other end of the phone had clearly changed; it was no longer languid, but rather carried a hint of excitement.

“Very good, Peter, excellent! That’s the key point! The Federation needs people like you!” Johnson’s voice was full of approval, but his breathing was strange. “I’ll mark it on the report!”

Peter was overjoyed, but remained humble: "Sir, without your discerning eye, we wouldn't have achieved such success."

"Keep digging deeper, keep a close eye on the cultural infiltration of Easterners! This matter should be given the highest priority... Oh, shit... I'll talk to you later, I'm busy right now, I'll check my emails later!"

Before he could finish speaking, Peter clearly heard the sound of someone eating on the other end of the phone.

Hmm, it tastes like melted ice cream.

Then came a sigh.

Peter's lips twitched; he was incredibly envious.

"Yes, sir!"

The moment the call ended, the respect on his face vanished, replaced by a sense of triumphant satisfaction.

He immediately opened the department's funding approval system and skillfully entered Johnson's verbal authorization code.

An emergency public relations expense request of 500,000 yuan was submitted.

Approved almost instantly.

Peter's fingers flew across the keyboard, and the 500,000 dollar budget was quickly allocated to him.

250,000 yuan was transferred to the subordinate department's account for subsequent "investigation" activities.

The 50,000 yuan was distributed as a team bonus to a few core colleagues to shut everyone up.

He transferred the remaining 200,000 directly to an offshore company account he controlled, under the guise of a third-party information consulting fee. After deducting some fees, $100,000 went to Johnson, while he pocketed $50,000.

Yes, the wedding room will feature a marble countertop from the East, which will be luxurious yet very understated.

"I'm such a genius!" he exclaimed contentedly, leaning back in his chair.

Just then, his personal cell phone beeped.

It was a social media post from his fiancée, whom he follows.

He casually clicked on the photo, and in it, his fiancée was wearing sunglasses, holding a cocktail, and smiling brightly.

The caption reads: "A short break after a hard day's work, a fulfilling day! #BusinessTravelLife!"

Peter smiled, gave it a thumbs up, and replied: "Keep it up! Work hard!"

A short while later, Johnson, the boss he was following, also posted an update.

It's a post from someone working overtime in a hotel; they look pretty miserable!

He pursed his lips, thinking to himself that his boss was indeed a boss, always trying to show off.

With that thought in mind, I gave it a thumbs up and then threw myself into my busy work.

He considered himself a highly trusted subordinate of Johnson, and that he needed to get things done whenever things got busy.

ding dong~
The phone rang again.

Upon opening it, I discovered that it was a message from Johnson's son... no, his biological daughter.

Looking at the picture sent by the other person—a picture of himself wearing white stockings, with long, flowing hair and light olive skin—he swallowed hard. Suppressing his nausea, he replied, "Very good, very energetic!"

"Haha, really? Shall we explore together sometime? I wonder if little Peter will like it~"

Peter: "..."
-
Another world!
Belgas Ironhammer rode his Gru beast through the steep mountain forest.

These omnivorous creatures, with goat's feet, boundless stamina, immense strength, and fierce and warlike nature, are the most loyal and reliable companions of the cave-dwelling half-humans.

Thanks to their strength and ability to climb mountains with ease, Grumon can appear out of nowhere and launch attacks.

"Xu~"

With a shout from Balegas Hammer, his hundred-man squad came to a swift halt.

What an elite mountain warfare force!

"Belegas, after we leave the mountains, the Long-Eared Beast's territory is just twenty kilometers ahead. As a gesture of goodwill, we need to lead the Grumon along!"

"Damn it! This is going to kill us!" Bellergas Ironhammer looked at the dense forest and kicked a rock with his short legs.

The cave-dwelling half-humans are strong, but also short, averaging about one meter in height. Those over 1.6 meters are considered exceptionally gifted, legendary warriors.

The strong half-human height is only a little over 1.2 meters.

Making these short-legged creatures walk more than 20 kilometers without riding Gru beasts is going to kill them!

"Bellegas, we can't afford to clash with those long-eared guys!"

"I know, I know!" Bellegas Hammer cursed as he dismounted from Grumon, then took food out of Grumon's bag, which was carrying rations, and fed himself and Grumon.

"Eat and drink your fill before you go! I hate those vegetarian buffets with long ears!"

The numerous cave-dwelling half-humans dismounted from the Grumon, then ate to replenish their expended energy.

Half an hour later, the troops set off again.

Upon reaching the forest boundary, in order to demonstrate their harmlessness, they chose to lead the Grumon on a leash, which caused their short legs to slow down considerably. It wasn't until nearly dark that they finally encountered the spirit blocking their path.

The pair of elves blocking their way wore dark green cloaks and light blue leather armor, and carried bows. They did not show any hostility towards them.

"Belegas the Half-Man, this is not your territory. Why have you brought your troops here? Tell us your purpose!"

Bellergas slammed his massive, fan-like hand onto his armored chest with a dull thud.

His booming voice rang out: "Who do we have here? It's Natalia! Long time no see. Weren't you patrolling in the north?"

The elven rangers behind Natalia frowned slightly, but she herself remained calm, simply watching him quietly.

"Tell me why you've come, Bellergas!"

"I'm not going to beat around the bush with you anymore." Bellegas took a step forward, his short, stocky frame exuding an overwhelming aura of intimidation. "You know about those human bastard armies in the south, swarming around the gates of our kingdom like flies, don't you?"

Before Natalia could answer, he continued, "The day before yesterday, it was like fireworks were going off in your forest, with several suns exploding out! We felt the earth shaking in the mountains. Our magical instruments also detected very strange magical fluctuations."

At this point, Bellergas changed the subject, raising his thick eyebrows and forcing what he thought was a friendly smile.

"Hey Natalia... could it be that those human bastards sneaked into your forest and used some new kind of magic to level one of your cities?"

He blinked, his tone revealing an undisguised schadenfreude: "How big of a loss is it? Do you need our Iron Hammer Tribe to lend a hand? We may not have many other skills, but we're quite good at smashing human tin cans."

The cave dwellers behind him stood up straight, not very tall, but full of imposing presence, their eyes filled with anticipation for a good show.

Bellergas was secretly pleased. His words not only made his intentions clear but also tested the other party's strength and weakness, and also disgusted these long-eared people.

That's killing three birds with one stone.

Back when he first started dealing with these elves, they almost came to blows over after just a few words. His diplomatic skills are truly becoming more and more refined.

However, Natalia's expression remained unchanged, as if she hadn't noticed the barb in his words.

Her voice was clear and cool, like a stream in the forest: "Those were some internal tests of my tribe, unrelated to humans. Thank you for your concern, Bellegas, everything is normal within our territory."

Upon hearing this, the elven rangers behind her exchanged glances, their eyes filled with confusion.

A young elf couldn't help but frown slightly.

Wait a minute... Before they set off, the priest clearly instructed them through the sacred tree to get these half-humans to the place where humans were casting forbidden magic as soon as possible, and then have the half-humans prepare for battle, right?
Because of the previous magical backlash, a large number of vengeful spirits have appeared there, and these tough-skinned creatures are needed to check on the threat of humans attacking from the north.

How come the captain blocked the way as soon as he opened his mouth?
Natalia knew the priest's orders, but she knew these cave-dwelling half-humans with their brains full of muscles even better.

When dealing with them, being too direct is the worst approach.

These guys are inherently rebellious.

If you enthusiastically invite them to help, they'll definitely think you have some kind of scheme, either to swindle them out of their steel, forged weapons, or to take advantage of them, and nine times out of ten they'll stubbornly refuse.

But if you say, "It's fine here, don't come over, we don't welcome you!", their damn curiosity and paranoia will immediately kick in.

They'll think you're hiding something good, or that you've encountered some incredible opportunity and are deliberately keeping it from them.

To deal with this kind of rock in the latrine, you have to do the opposite.

Natalia's gaze swept over Bellegas, and sure enough, she saw a hint of suspicion flash in his eyes.

It became.

Bellergas Hammer stroked his beard with his stubble fingers, squinting as he tried to glean some clue from Natalia's expressionless face.

"Something's not right. Your long-eared expression looks really strange!"

He leaned forward and shouted in a gruff voice, "You sent messengers to our commander in a great hurry, saying that a great enemy of mankind has attacked and we must join hands to wipe out those southern bastards!"

Natalia's eye twitched almost imperceptibly.

"Then why didn't you cooperate before? You're too late!"

There was a hint of coldness in her voice.

If there had been some humanoids assisting them in disrupting the humans' vision, perhaps the enemy wouldn't have been able to spare so many troops.

These guys may have a bad temper and be stubborn, but they are very good at mountain warfare and adept at avoiding aerial threats.

"Hey! Our king and the lords have all had too much to drink and have forgotten!" Bellegas grinned, revealing two rows of strong teeth, and laughed with self-righteousness.

This lame excuse almost made Natalia laugh in exasperation.

She suppressed her anger, each word seemingly squeezed out from between her teeth: "Is everyone drunk?"

How could a kingdom come up with such an absurd reason when faced with such important military intelligence?

Moreover, these guys have used being drunk as an excuse to freeload countless times!

What a self-important clown!

"Ha! Yes, you are so clever!" Bellegas showed no shame whatsoever, but instead patted his chest triumphantly. "You know, we half-humans are addicted to alcohol. It's perfectly normal for us to forget some trivial things when we're drunk!"

Natalia took a deep breath, suppressing her anger, and said coldly, "The southern humans have not attacked our forest kingdom, nor are there any human armies within the forest. You may return!"

Bellergas Hammer's small eyes darted around, and he became increasingly suspicious of those long ears.

“That won’t do!” he immediately retorted. “We must go to your forbidden area and take a look! We need to check if the restrictions there are broken, so that we can prepare in advance if there are any problems!”

"It's not time for the annual inspection yet!"

"No, we're here!" Bellergas Hammer declared righteously. "Didn't we miss several months last time because we drank too much? We came early this time to make up for it!"

Natalia was once again amused by this absurd logic.

These single-minded bastards always manage to come up with lies that are so obviously illogical!

Fortunately, I had already figured out their temperaments.

Natalia sneered inwardly, but her face remained calm: "You can go. But I must warn you, there is no human army in the forest right now, but there is a well-equipped human army in the Land of Winter. They are incredibly ferocious, cunning, and evil, and they possess forbidden weapons that can be used at will! They attacked us first! They caused us heavy losses."

She paused, then added, "Our new city of Erangel also experienced a terrible time, all because of them."

In the past few days, they learned of the tragedy in Xincheng.

The elves were both angry and afraid, terrified that the humans might suddenly attack them on iron birds.

The attack speed, power, and destructive force of those guys' iron birds were far beyond what the flocks of birds they controlled could compare to.

"The human army of the north? What nonsense are you talking about?" Bellegas frowned and asked.

"Nonsense? No, this is the truth. Those humans have now gathered near the Milk River, very close to your border. They can visit your kingdom at any time!"

“Impossible!” Bellegas blurted out. “No one could… Natalia with long ears, are you lying to me again?! I was talking about the humans in the south, why are you bringing up the north!”

"Believe it or not." Natalia, not wanting to waste any more words, turned around. "Let's go. Weren't you eager to see if the forbidden land that seals away evil is safe?"

Bellergas's eyes darted around even faster, but a nagging thought began to creep into his mind.

The arrogance on his face faded, and he began to quickly recall what had happened.

A little over a month ago, he did execute a number of glacial tribesmen who had crossed over from the Frost and Snow Mountains in the north; those guys were crying out that they wanted to flee to the south.

They were muttering something about an undead uprising in the Land of Winter, and a strange army of humans...

He thought it was just a bunch of nonsense made up by those savages to survive.

Could it be... that something really happened in the north?

But how did they get here?
Are the Devil's Sea and their heavily guarded Tranquil Bay just for show?

And near the Trembling Sea!
Are the Iron Fleet they've blockaded there all useless cowards?!

Bellegas was puzzled, but his professional instincts told him that if there really were people in the north, then they might be in trouble.

It should be noted that their most important defensive lines are all in the south, with all kinds of treacherous fortresses, deadly trap networks, and a large number of defensive strongholds located there.

Although the north also built many guard posts relying on the towering mountains, they were incomparable to the fortresses in various parts of the south.

Bellegas thought it over carefully, then ordered the two Gru cavalrymen to hurry back and request permission to send a reconnaissance force north to check the situation there.

If there really is a human army, they must hurry up and mobilize their troops!

"Damn it, if it really is..."

The thought of humanity launching a pincer attack from the north and south while the kingdom's forces were concentrated in the south filled him with dread! Countless tribes within his kingdom would be destroyed, farmland burned, and armies decimated.

This must be thoroughly investigated!!!
(End of this chapter)