Great Wilderness Demon Lord

During this probing attack, the jackals left behind more than forty corpses and several damaged rafts. Several defenders were also wounded by arrows, and one was seriously injured by a stray arrow.

"Retrieve the arrows and repair the walls." Xiao Yunlan said to Zhao Meng, watching the retreating enemy. "Especially those shallow pits carved out by the bone arrows, fill them in with ice water as soon as possible."

Zhao Meng responded and left.

Two days later, the jackals attacked again, on a scale similar to the last time.

This time they learned their lesson, avoiding known vulnerable areas on the ice, spreading out their formation more widely, and charging more decisively.

The battle lasted from dawn until afternoon. At one point, dozens of jackals rushed to the base of the wall and attempted to climb it with makeshift grappling hooks. There were even brief hand-to-hand combats at several sections of the wall, but they were all eventually repelled by the defenders.

Two probing attacks were successfully repelled by the defenders, who relied on ice walls and crossbows, keeping their casualties below twenty. However, the consumption of arrows was considerable, and a significant amount of logs and stones were used. More importantly, the ice walls withstood the impact, but some sections were exposed that needed repair and reinforcement.

The reinforcement work continued day and night. Driven by the incentive of "pardon for meritorious service" and strict military orders, the prisoners worked extremely hard.

The gap in the northeast corner has been completely filled, the wall has been thickened as a whole, and the top of the wall has been widened.

The ice embankment dug inside the wall has also taken shape, forming a simple second line of defense.

"Captain, the main structure of the ice wall has been reinforced," craftsman Lao Chen reported. "However, we're running low on timber, and the spare parts and repair materials for the catapults are almost gone. If the enemy comes again, we probably won't dare to use the catapults at full capacity, for fear they'll break down and be beyond repair."

Xiao Yunlan looked at the pile of rough timbers salvaged from the enemy's rafts piled up under the wall: "Make use of these too. Hold off on using the catapults for now, save them. The real battle hasn't even begun yet."

What concerned him more was that during these two attacks, the Wolf Rong cavalry had only been driving and supporting the enemy from the perimeter, without actually committing themselves. What were their main forces waiting for?

The peace in Shuofeng Plain did not last long.

Just as Xiao Yunlan gazed at the north bank, a warning bell ringing in his mind, a convoy of over thirty large carts, escorted by about fifty border cavalrymen, was slowly approaching Ice City from the southern wasteland. That was the first batch of supplies from the Xiao Family Chamber of Commerce.

Almost at the same time the convoy entered the rear of the Ice City, a group of about twenty Wolf Rong light cavalrymen suddenly charged out like arrows from the Wolf Rong camp on the north bank.

Instead of charging towards the front of the ice wall, they rapidly detoured westward along the edge of the ice, clearly intending to bypass the main battlefield and head straight for this seemingly weakly defended transport convoy!

"They're trying to intercept the grain!" Tieshan exclaimed urgently from the top of the wall.

Xiao Yunlan's eyes turned cold. The Wolf Rong were indeed not idle. They might be waiting for the time to launch a general offensive, but they were not letting go of any opportunity to weaken the defending forces.

If this transport convoy is hijacked, the blow to morale will be fatal.

"Open the small gate and prepare the horses," Xiao Yunlan said in a deep voice, taking off his cloak to reveal the Xuanjiao soft armor underneath. He needed to do it himself, and quickly.

Zhao Meng said urgently, "Captain, I will take men and go!"

"No, you guard the city and prepare for any changes on the front." Xiao Yunlan had already stepped down from the wall, led a warhorse out of the stable, and mounted it.

Shi Biao, along with ten guards from the Chamber of Commerce, had also mounted their horses and were ready to go.

"Follow me out of the city to meet the convoy and repel that wolf-like enemy. Remember, focus on driving away the guards; don't linger in battle."

The small door opened quickly, and eleven riders rushed out like the wind, darting diagonally between the Wolf Rong light cavalry and the caravan.

The Wolf Rong light cavalry also spotted the garrison that had suddenly left the city. The captain of the squad gave a whistle, and the cavalry formation adjusted slightly, sending ten riders to continue rushing towards the convoy, while the other ten turned to meet Xiao Yunlan and his group.

They clearly didn't take this smaller garrison seriously.

The two sides rapidly approached each other in the wilderness between the ice city and the convoy.

Xiao Yunlan took the lead. Deep within his dantian, the crimson aura of the Courageous Demon surged slightly, conveying an instinctive excitement for battle, but he forcibly suppressed it.

The key to this battle is a swift and decisive deterrent, not a bloodbath.

The two sides closed the distance to thirty paces. The wolf-like cavalry had already raised their bows.

Xiao Yunlan spurred his horse, and the green horse suddenly accelerated. Just before the enemy's arrow left the bowstring, he had already rushed into the enemy's cavalry within ten paces.

He drew his sword, its blade gleaming like snow, and dodged a wolf-tooth arrow, the edge of the blade slicing across the throat of a wolf-barbarian cavalryman.

Blood spurted out, and the body fell to the ground.

Shi Biao and his men also charged into the enemy ranks. The merchant guild's guards were all warriors from the north, skilled in ruthless swordsmanship and with excellent teamwork. Although they were slightly outnumbered, they fought the Wolf Rong cavalry to a standstill for a time.

Xiao Yunlan had a clear objective and went straight for the squad leader. The man recognized him as the leader and grinned maliciously as he swung his sword to meet him.

The two horses crossed paths, their blades clashed, and sparks flew. Xiao Yunlan sensed that his opponent was not weak, but his moves were somewhat stiff.

Using the speed of his horse, he slashed out with a more cunning angle for the second strike. His opponent was a little slow to parry, and the blade grazed his shoulder armor, sending sparks and bits of flesh flying.

The squad leader roared in pain and spurred his horse to fight again. But Xiao Yunlan gave him no chance.

The third strike incorporated a trace of the highly efficient combat skills bestowed by the Courageous Demon, as fast as lightning and as ruthless as a venomous snake, cutting into the opponent's defensive gaps and precisely piercing the seam of their breastplate.

The squad leader froze, looking down in disbelief at the blade embedded in his chest, before being kicked off his horse by Xiao Yunlan.

With their commander killed, the remaining wolf-like cavalry's offensive stalled.

Xiao Yunlan drew his sword and pointed it at them, his voice not loud but filled with killing intent: "Get lost!"

The wolf-like cavalrymen looked at the corpse of the quartermaster on the ground, then at the menacing general before them, and at the increasingly unfavorable battle situation around them. Finally, they let out a reluctant whistle, turned their wolf heads, and retreated northward.

Seeing that the situation was not good, the ten riders who had tried to attack the convoy also abandoned their target and fled in pursuit.

Xiao Yunlan did not give chase. He sheathed his sword and looked at the convoy not far away. The merchant guild manager escorting the convoy was clearly quite frightened, but the convoy was mostly intact.

The border cavalry guarding the area were regrouping. The captain leading the group clasped his hands in greeting towards Xiao Yunlan, his eyes showing a newfound seriousness.

"Let's go into the city," Xiao Yunlan said to Shi Biao, turning his horse to return to Ice City first.

The supplies arrived successfully. Arrows, iron, linen, cured meat, millet, salt, as well as urgently needed winter clothing and a small amount of spirits.

The defenders finally showed long-lost, genuine smiles. With these, they could hold out for a while longer.

After checking the supplies, Xiao Yunlan felt slightly relieved, but her gaze returned to the north. Although the Wolf Rong's raid had been repelled, it revealed a signal: they had not relaxed their surveillance and suppression of Ice City and were looking for any opportunity.

What alarmed him even more was that the main force of the Wolf Barbarians remained inactive. They drove the jackals to attack and sent small elite units to harass, while they themselves held back. This was by no means out of fear, but rather more like they were waiting for something, or... cooperating with something.

Recalling Xuan Chengzi's words about "bait," Xiao Yunlan's eyes darkened slightly. Regardless of whether there were bigger schemes behind the scenes, all he could do now was to defend the city beneath his feet and transform every resource delivered into tangible defensive strength.

The ice wall stood silently in the twilight. A true storm was perhaps brewing unseen. And he had to become strong enough before that happened.