The Final Battle with the Faith Order, Part Two

However, the apostles still managed to raise an army and dispatched a force to block the enemy's attack while attempting a counterattack to see if there was any chance to recapture the fortress at the valley entrance.

However, they misjudged the number and fighting strength of the enemy that entered the valley. At first, the troops sent out encountered a barrage of gunfire from the Expeditionary Army. After a series of shots, the Faith Order's troops were quickly routed.

Upon receiving the battle report from the front lines, the apostles were also surprised. Although they had sent a small force, it was an elite unit composed of the Order Warriors. How could it have been defeated so quickly?

Only then did the apostles realize how formidable their enemy was.

So all the apostles sent out a large number of messengers, wanting to gather all the Order Warriors as soon as possible, including the several Faith Order militias that had been sent to be stationed in the Barbarians settlements, which also began to assemble in front of the valley under the orders of the messengers.

The apostle also sent messengers to risk crossing the valley exit in an attempt to contact Mizhene's forces.

Although the enemy launched a surprise attack, the apostles still believed that Mizhene's forces might suffer heavy losses, but could not be completely annihilated, after all, his 4,000-strong force was not weak in combat.

The apostles wanted to contact Mizhene and have him lead the remaining troops to cooperate with the main force in the battle, preferably launching a simultaneous attack to force the Expeditionary Army to divide its forces, thus giving the Faith Order a chance to recapture the Valley Pass fortress.

However, they misjudged Mizhene's thoughts, assuming that Mizhene was loyal to the Faith Order. As a result, the messenger they sent was immediately taken into custody by Mizhene.

At this moment, Mizhene also learned that the Expeditionary Army had successfully captured the valley fortress. Although he had only heard continuous rumbling sounds and did not know what had happened on the battlefield, he knew what the Golden Sunflower military flag raised above the fortress meant.

He hadn't expected the troops sent by the Duke Golden Sunflower to be so powerful and formidable, which caused his previously wavering heart to begin to tilt in one direction.

He then sent a messenger back, telling the apostles that he would immediately lead the remaining troops to cooperate with the main force in a coordinated attack from both inside and outside, to recapture the valley fortress.

After the messenger left, Mizhene sent another messenger, this time to Santos's Expeditionary Army.

In his letter, Mizhene clearly stated his agreement with the Faith Order Headquarters: he would create a disturbance outside the city, and then the Faith Order Headquarters's army would launch a counterattack.

But the Expeditionary Army only needed to defend one battlefield; his troops would only pretend to be there and wouldn't actually fight.

As a gesture of goodwill to reassure Santos, Mizhene will enter the Expeditionary Army as a hostage before the operation begins.

After Santos received the letter from the messenger, he was initially worried that Mizhene might have some ideas. Four thousand troops were entrenched behind the Expeditionary Army, which was a potential threat even though he had arranged for troops to keep watch.

But after seeing that Mizhene in his letter, Santos was willing to give Mizhene a chance.

His cooperation would be very helpful in the upcoming battles. In addition, he is a powerful figure in the Faith Order and knows the Faith Order very well. He can help the Expeditionary Army to eliminate the Faith Order more effectively and quickly, which will be beneficial to the subsequent operations.

Meanwhile, Santos decided to cooperate with Mizhene's plan, which would allow Mizhene's troops to report on the entire operation of the Faith Order and their actions, and also enable the Expeditionary Army to keep abreast of the situation on the Barbarians side.

However, Santos did not expect that even though the Expeditionary Army occupied the valley entrance, the Faith Order still had a passage connecting the valley to the outside, and contacted Mizhene so quickly.

Fortunately, that passage was not meant for too many people; it was only used by scattered messengers and envoys.

Otherwise, if the Faith Order suddenly sends an army to infiltrate outside the valley, the Expeditionary Army might be caught in a pincer attack and might not be able to cope.

With the cooperation of Mizhene, Santos gained full control over the movements of the entire Faith Order's army. The Faith Order's actions were essentially transparent to the Expeditionary Army, allowing Santos to adjust his troop deployment more easily.

Two hours later, the apostles of the Faith Order gathered all the mobile forces at their disposal. Apart from the guards of the Holy Land and the Venerable Lord's residence, the apostles dispatched their own guards.

A full 15,000-strong Faith Order armed force marched to the front of the valley, with Order Warriors making up 40% of them—the elite of the Faith Order Headquarters armed forces.

The children's troops split into several groups and approached the fortress. They thought they were being very discreet, but little did they know that the Expeditionary Army already knew about their movements.

The Expeditionary Army took the opportunity to adjust its troop strength on the front of the fortress, sending several detachments equipped with Type One Rifles to the front battlefield, while the Artillery on all the high ground was already aimed at the location of the Faith Order and ready to fire at any time.

The battle broke out quickly, and the first sounds came not from inside the fortress, but from outside the valley.

The apostles of the Faith Order also heard the booming cannon fire and shouts of battle erupting outside the valley.

The army commanders of the Faith Order assumed that Mizhene had led the charge, and they quickly ordered their troops to follow suit.

Although we don't know the situation on Mizhene's side, since they have already been attacked by the enemy, they probably don't have many troops left. If we can't coordinate with their battle in time, and the main force is launched late, it may cause Mizhene's efforts to be in vain.

Meanwhile, the Order Warriors in the main force learned that their brothers were fighting outside the city, and naturally they were not willing to fall behind. So they shouted slogans and charged towards the Expeditionary Army with their weapons.

However, they were first greeted by a burst of gunfire, like popping beans, Order Warriors who rushed to the front were immediately shot to the ground.

Their armor was pierced, and countless snowflakes burst forth.

However, the Order Warriors were now aware of the enemy's methods, and coupled with their fervent loyalty to the Faith Order, they were naturally unafraid and charged forward resolutely.

They believed that once they charged into the enemy ranks, the enemy would no longer dare to use that weapon.

Moreover, the Order Warriors were very confident; if the enemy had such terrifying weapons, so did they, and the Faith Order's apostles had also dispatched a special force.

A group of Order Warriors dressed in purple robes were seen mingling among the charging troops, each carrying something resembling a javelin on their back.

If Keledu were here, he would surely recognize what these people were carrying in their hands and on their backs—it was a Sacred Artifact of the Faith Order, because of the wonder of "Judgment."

These strange metal rods, called "Judgment," when connected together in an array, can unleash a variety of powerful chain lightning bolts, enough to destroy any life.

These have always been the Faith Order's greatest asset, and it is thanks to these Sacred Artifacts that the Faith Order has been able to exist to this day.

These purple-robed warriors carrying the "Judgment" did not follow closely behind the main force. Knowing the heavy responsibility they bore, they always kept their distance from the front, ensuring that the "Judgment" would not encounter any problems.

Thus, the Order Warriors launched repeated attacks on the Expeditionary Army force's formation, and the Expeditionary Army, equipped with Type One Rifles, resolutely fought back.

Although the rifle squad's firepower was dense, the rate of fire of the Type One Rifle was still too slow, and the single-shot loading rifle could hardly guarantee a continuous barrage of fire.

Even with the rifle squads using a four-rank rotational firing formation, they still couldn't stop these die-hard Order Warriors from getting closer and closer.

The sacrifices of the Order Warriors were rewarded; the Expeditionary Army had no choice but to order the riflemen to retreat, allowing other units to take over the battle.

Fortunately, only one-third of the Expeditionary Army was re-equipped; the remaining troops were still mainly armed with cold weapons, and their weapons and armor were complete. These troops stood in formation, ready to fight.

Soon, the two sides engaged in close combat, with a large number of Order Warriors rushing to the front lines and fighting the Expeditionary Army.

These Order Warriors truly lived up to their reputation as veterans of the Faith Order; each of them possessed exceptional combat skills and an extremely tenacious fighting spirit.

Even though the Expeditionary Army was equally elite, it had to retreat repeatedly in the face of the desperate fighting of the Order Warriors in order to maintain its battle formation from being crushed.

Seeing this, Santos knew he couldn't wait any longer, and he quickly issued an order.

The Artillery positions, which had been prepared at the high ground for some time, immediately began to move. First, the cannons roared, and then a large number of shells were hurled into the rear of the Faith Order army.

The series of explosions stunned the Faith Order's army, which had never seen Artillery before.

Some of the Order Warriors initially thought it might be an accidental injury from the Sacred Artifacts, but upon seeing the purple-robed Order Warriors also lying on the ground, they realized it must have been an attack by the enemy.

At this moment, the rear guard of the Faith Order army was separated from the front guard by artillery fire and could not break through at all.

The horrific scene at the front was witnessed by the Faith Order's commanders, who knew they had to withdraw their troops; otherwise, the densely packed Faith Order formations would be sitting ducks.

Left with no other option, they had to call a retreat, and the Faith Order's army immediately began to withdraw.

The portion of the Faith Order legion that was at the forefront fighting the Expeditionary Army could not retreat. At this moment, they could only continue to fight desperately against the Expeditionary Army to prevent it from having the opportunity to pursue their allies.

This fearless fighting style earned the respect of the Expeditionary Army. Santos felt it was a great pity that so many elite warriors had died, and Santos decided to give them a chance to live.