If You're Heartless, So Am I

The Swamp Lord's greatest strength is its ability to condense earth elemental energy to devour its targets. It is a dual-elemental monster of water and earth, and also possesses a slight corrosive ability. The best way to counter it is with fire elemental magic attacks.

The [Gun Flower Vine Demon] is a plant-type monster and is also afraid of fire.

Although the two Lord-tier monsters were troublesome, they were not insurmountable, especially for the Mage Corps of City of Radiance, who could only deal with them in a few rounds of fire magic.

But ironically, they joined forces and created a "siege tactic" that baffled everyone.

The current situation is that fighting is not an option, and not fighting is also not an option.

Fire Magic can burn an entire wall in an instant.

If a few more high walls were erected, the artillery's line of sight on Steel City would be completely blocked. At that point, forget about bombarding the Beast Tide; it's questionable whether the shells would even be able to penetrate those mud walls.

Water, earth, and wood spells should not be used indiscriminately. Not only will they not harm the enemy, but they will also "aid" the enemy, providing elemental nourishment to those two lord monsters for nothing.

Wind, thunder, light, darkness

While these niche elemental spells are quite effective, the number of such non-mainstream elemental mages is already small, making it impossible for them to form a cohesive fighting force. It's no wonder they can't do anything to the two lords for the time being.

But if we don't fight them, they slowly advance towards the base.

Although the ground near the base is solidified by magic, the Swamp Lord cannot turn this area into a swamp.

But

These two lord monsters weren't there to attack the city at all; they were just "tool monsters" to pave the way!

This first wave of attacks alone shattered the hopes of the hunters who had previously held some expectations for the "Mage Corps."

Seeing that the vines had already spread up the city walls and were impossible to cut off, everyone knew that a melee was about to begin.

"Prepare for battle! Load your muskets!"

"Fourth Tier or higher Transcendent, prioritize killing the two Lord monsters!"

"No one is allowed to retreat without authorization. Anyone who disobeys will be executed!"

"."

The commander's loud shouts echoed throughout the city walls.

This is also one of the reasons why the "City of Radiance" was able to gain a foothold in the dangerous region west of the Alkolon Mountain Range.

Its almost ruthless hunting system forces the scattered hunters to unite in the face of war.

If this were any other place in the other two great empires, most hunters would choose to flee immediately upon seeing this overwhelming Beast Tide.

Once the army collapses, the battle is over; they might as well just wait to die.

With Beast Tide in front and a "Enforcement Team" behind, they were stuck, unable to advance or retreat.

The hunters gripped their muskets tightly, their faces resolute.

"Damn it, I'm probably going to die here tonight!"

"I've been hunting in the wilderness for ages, I knew this day would come. Hehe, if I survive tonight, I'll be rich tomorrow!"

"Exactly! If I survive, I'm going to go to the best brothels and hire a few handsome men to play with for ten days or half a month!"

"Fight to the death, brothers!"

"."

The hunters who came to the City of Radiance were mostly Transcendent individuals who risked their lives for wealth and power. They were already mentally prepared to die in battle.

Therefore, even in such a desperate situation, the vast majority of people remained full of fighting spirit.

But Lei is different.

"I'm just here to buy soy sauce, and I can't even relax?"

Rein, standing on the city wall, was speechless.

I thought I could get through this peacefully by staying at the base for a while, but I never expected this disaster to strike out of nowhere.

As expected, if you don't court death, you won't die.

They slaughtered the entire tribe, and then they had to hang up their heads?

Well, now they've met their match in retaliation.

"Just how many monsters have come?"

Looking around, Rein saw the tidal wave of monsters following behind the two lord monsters and sighed repeatedly.

I've learned a lot tonight.

I finally got to see many of the magical beasts described in the encyclopedia, and they were still alive.

Before our eyes,

The [Swamp Giant Crocodile], Beast King tier over forty meters long and ranked at the Fourth Tier, led at least a hundred of its minions as it crawled out of the swamp in a grand procession.

When they run, it's like an earthquake. The adult Ironhead Rhinoceros, weighing 30 to 50 tons, is a herd of hundreds that surges and tramples.

Decapitator Crab, as big as a calf, could slice a person in half with a single pincer strike, and it was strutting in arrogantly.

[Thunderhorn Hippopotamus], [Rainbow Poison Lizard]

There are many, many more examples like this.

Encountering just one of these magical beasts on a normal day would be enough to give some small or medium-sized Scavenger Gang a run for their money.

Now, families and even entire clans are charging up the city walls like madmen, following the path laid out by the two lords.

And that's not all!

Behind this group of behemoths capable of withstanding artillery fire, there is also a vast army of small animals.

Rein glanced over and the "Mind Core" quickly identified the quantity.

[Striped Spider] Quantity * 10000+, [Swamp Boa] 2000+, [Silverhead Leopard] 100+, [Water Centipede] * N+

The numbers appearing on my retina are still rising rapidly.

The monsters within sight were densely packed, layer upon layer, making one's scalp tingle. Almost every moment, new monster species kept pouring out of the fog.

After tonight's battle, the Magical Beast Encyclopedia will need to be updated with quite a few more pages.

But what's worse is yet to come.

"Look! Something is falling from the sky!"

"Hmm, it looks like a beehive?"

"Oh no, it's the [Overlord Poison Bee]! Be careful not to get stung, its stinger can pierce through a protective aura, and it has a strong Paralyzing Toxin!"

"Use fire to burn their wings."

"."

Experienced hunters immediately recognized what the Blue-tailed Hawk had dropped.

The several truck-sized beehives fell directly into the base and shattered into pieces.

The queen bee inside the hive lay dead on the spot. Then, countless yellow, venomous bees, as thick as an arm, burst forth from the mist, their eyes red with rage, seeking revenge.

Buzz, buzz, buzz

The base was filled with the deafening buzzing of anti-swarms, sending chills down everyone's spines.

These poisonous bees are fragile; an ordinary person could kill them with a single blow, but they are also deadly. A single sting can guarantee paralysis.

Now, everything is ready.

Amphibious landing capabilities across land, sea, and air, enabling all-round, no-blind-spot attacks.

Rein finally witnessed the methods of the high priest of the Kalman Tribe.

From the very beginning, this Beast Tide was determined to wipe them out completely.

The battle was destined to be incredibly brutal from the moment the two "Lord-tier" monsters appeared.

Tens of thousands of hunters went on a killing spree with their muskets.

However, there were simply too many monsters.

The berserk monsters, utterly unafraid of death, charged forward relentlessly.

"The city walls can't be held! Open the gates of the Mechanical City and let us in!"

"Open the door! Help us!"

"."

Everyone understood that the base would be breached tonight, a foregone conclusion.

In their desperation, the hunters could only place their hopes for survival on the three steel castles.

Once the city walls are breached, the ground camps will soon become a playground for monsters to trample on at will. Only the three steel Mechanical City may be able to hold out until the end.

The castle has Magic Tower, cannons, and enchanted armor, making it difficult for even lord-level monsters to breach.

At this very moment, on the "Radiance Thirteen" Mechanical City.

This Mechanical City, designed specifically for war, is both offensive and defensive, and its "warfare form" had already changed long before the war began.

Steel armor plates rose up from the ground inside the castle, completely enclosing each compartment and forming numerous "refuge rooms" of varying sizes.

The city walls also have anti-climbing spikes, oil, and piercing mechanisms.

The monsters couldn't climb up, and the poisonous bees couldn't get in, so they posed minimal threat to them.

The main refuge room is where the most powerful and influential people in the Mechanical City gather.

Many of these elegantly dressed gentlemen and ladies were nobles from Omar and Sid. They were inexplicably drawn into the safari and encountered such a sudden turn of events, leaving them somewhat bewildered.

The screams from the city wall rose and fell, chilling the listener to the bone.

Someone asked the castle commander, "Should we... open the gate?"

Before the commander could speak, someone immediately screamed in strong opposition.

"Don't open it! The vines of the [Gun Flower Vine Demon] have already covered the base of the Mechanical City. Once the door is opened, it may not be able to be closed."

"That's right. Those hunters can at least wear down some magical beasts. Once we let them in, all the pressure will be on us! If the magical beasts rush into the Mechanical City, we'll be in danger."

"Those hunters died, so be it. Why drag us down with them? If they want to make this money, shouldn't they be prepared to die in the mouths of monsters?"

"Exactly, guarding the camp is their duty. Those guys are paid to be out there killing monsters. Now that they're in a little danger, they're thinking of hiding in the city. How ridiculous!"

"Hmph, it's easy to get money when things are fine, but when trouble comes, they want to hide and seek refuge. It's absurd! We pay taxes, so we deserve protection; they take the money, so they should fulfill their duty to protect the base!"

"."

The suggestion to open the door was immediately rejected.

The Mechanical City is, after all, the private property of the Five Great Families. Although they were summoned here, it is still their private property.

Not opening the door is not illegal; at most, it's just a lack of humanity.

The castle commander couldn't say anything.

At this moment, a combat strategist suggested, "Should we organize the guard regiment and Mage Corps to go down and support them? Once the hunters' defenses are breached, the pressure on our Mechanical City will be immense."

From a rational perspective, this is actually the most reasonable tactical choice.

There was also an invincible Mage Corps on the city wall, almost all of whom were unharmed;

The nobles were all accompanied by personal guards, who possessed the finest equipment and were generally of high rank. When united, they formed an extremely powerful fighting force.

Going to provide support will not only boost morale, but will also prevent the Beast Tide from breaching the city walls, at least for the time being.

However, this suggestion was immediately rejected.

"Why should we? If the guards go down, who will protect Mechanical City? Who will protect us?"

"No! My guards and I were only assigned to defend the Mechanical City; we weren't responsible for supporting anyone!"

"We will not allow it either."

"."

The commander frowned as he listened.

Opposition is growing louder, and if they are Forced Conscription, it is likely to cause an immediate mutiny.

Moreover, this commander was originally from one of the Five Great Families. Even if reason compelled him to agree with the advisor's suggestion, family pressure would likely cause the order to fail before it even began.

After a moment's hesitation, he could only sigh and say, "The distress call has been sent out. Let's concentrate our forces on defense. Tonight will be a fierce battle; whether we ourselves can survive is uncertain, and Mechanical City may not be able to hold out."

"Yes, sir."

Almost identical scenes were playing out in the three Mechanical City.

These upper-class individuals, unusually, maintained a tacit understanding, and none of them opened their city gates to let the hunters seek refuge inside.

No one came to help.

The scale of this Beast Tide was unprecedented, "destructive," and it took everyone by surprise.

After the battle had dragged on for more than half an hour, the Mechanical City showed no sign of opening its gates to let them in.

Despair and panic spread among the crowd.

The "Beast Tide" showed no signs of abating, with more and more monsters rushing onto the city walls, while the casualties among the hunters were increasing.

Everyone understood that the higher-ups in the Mechanical City had no intention of letting them in, or even coming down to provide support.

Some people climbed up the Mechanical City, but were regarded as monsters by the mages and were all blasted down.

The people of the Mechanical City also knew that they couldn't set this precedent. Once someone successfully climbed the city wall, countless others would follow suit.

This action, however, only fueled the hunters' despair.

They felt isolated.

The Beast Tide is the enemy, and those on the Mechanical City have also become "enemies".

They're the only ones working themselves to the bone like fools.

"Damn it! Those guys from the Mechanical City won't save us at all!"

"Don't expect them to take pity on us and let us in. Let's fight for our lives."

"They won't let us into the city, and they won't let us down the city wall?! If we hadn't risked our lives to stop them, would those bastards in the Enforcement Team have even been able to point their guns at our backs?"

"."

Now everyone understands that the people of Mechanical City just want them to wear down the Beast Tide and reduce the pressure on Mechanical City!

Because of the road paved by the [Gun Flower Vine Demon], the city wall has become completely meaningless.

The city walls had become a blood and flesh millstone, with the corpses of monsters piling up thicker and thicker.

The reason they've been able to hold out this long is entirely because the hunters are risking their lives.

They risked their lives to hold off the enemy, doing everything in their power to prevent the camp from being breached; little did they know that those guys in the Mechanical City had no intention of providing any support whatsoever.

But in order to survive, they had no choice but to continue fighting.

But is this the best option?

Obviously not.

Suddenly, someone suggested, "Brothers, we're going to die anyway, let's charge down the city wall and fight in the camp! Enforcement Team dare to fire, let's fucking kill them!"

Upon hearing this, the crowd on the city wall immediately began to consider retreating.

Fighting in close quarters with Warcraft is not a good tactical choice, as it makes you vulnerable to being scattered and chipped away at.

However, this choice allows the "Beast Tide" to shift its main attack target!

The three Mechanical City are located at the three corners of the base. Once the flesh and blood walls of the hunters are no longer in place, they will instantly become three conspicuous "nails" and become the primary targets of monster attacks!

That would greatly reduce the pressure on the hunters.

If you can survive, it really depends on your own abilities.

Upon hearing this, everyone instantly understood.

"Charge! Get off the city wall!"

Once the first person made the call, a second and a third immediately followed.

In the blink of an eye, like an anthill bursting its banks, the crowd surged back down from the city wall like a tidal wave.

At first, the Enforcement Team could kill a few "deserters" as a warning to others. But the next second, thousands upon thousands of hunters and magical beasts instantly overwhelmed them.

The wall of flesh and blood crumbled, and the monsters lost their target.

The steel castle, where cannons continued to roar, immediately became the perfect target, and the "Beast Tide" instantly turned its attention to the three Mechanical City!

A small number of magical beasts rushed into the camp to hunt down the hunters; but the vast majority, such as the "Lord-tier" and "Beast King tier" behemoths, shifted their attack targets to the Mechanical City.

Upon witnessing this scene, the high-ranking figures in the Mechanical City turned pale with fright and became furious.

"Damn it! Those bastards actually abandoned the city walls!"

"As expected of despicable lowlifes, utterly devoid of any sense of contractual obligation!"

"Damn it! They violated the hunting laws of 'City of Radiance'! They should all be executed! They should all be executed!"

"These fools! How could they abandon the walls? It's over, the entire camp is finished!"

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