On Fire
The surviving slaves were terrified. They let out a cry and turned to run away.
"Those who retreat will die! Supervisory team! Advance!" The Sauron Army at the rear roared, his eyes bloodshot.
The Supervisory team immediately drew their cold blades and, without hesitation, cut down several of the fastest deserters, forcibly halting the retreat.
"Second team! Go! Keep digging! Use their Gunpowder pack! Blow up the city wall!" The officer brandished his War Saber, driving a new batch of pale-faced slaves clutching replica Gunpowder pack, once again surging towards the blood-soaked base of the city wall.
On the city walls, the defending soldiers who had just dropped their Gunpowder pack had no time to catch their breath before they were forced to face once again the enemy swarming up the Cloud Ladder and the arrows raining down from the sky.
With almost no chance to catch their breath, the second wave of attacks from the Sauron arrived!
A new batch of slaves, driven forward and threatened with death by the cold blades of the Supervisory team and the arrows from behind, howled in despair. Like a tidal wave, they surged once again across the nauseating "bridge" made of corpses, rushing towards the smoke-filled, blood-soaked base of the city wall.
What they held tightly in their hands were no longer chisels, but small, imitation Gunpowder pack wrapped in oilcloth!
Braving the occasional arrows and rolling stones falling from the city walls, these slaves scrambled to the base of the wall, found the gaps that had been chiseled or blasted open, lit the fuses with trembling hands, and desperately stuffed the hissing Gunpowder pack deep into the cracks between the bricks and stones. Then they turned and ran for their lives!
"Bang! Boom!!!"
One explosion after another rang out at the base of the wall! Although the power of a single Gunpowder pack was far less than that of the heavy packs dropped by the defenders, the continuous explosions combined to create astonishing destructive power!
The ancient city wall trembled violently from the explosion, large chunks of brick and soil falling down in a flurry. The internal structure of the wall, repeatedly impacted, began to loosen, and cracks spread out like a spider web.
The defenders on the city wall could even feel the tremors beneath their feet, almost losing their footing, and their morale was severely impacted.
"Don't let them bomb anymore! Throw explosives! Bomb these bastards to death!" Otto roared hoarsely, his eyes bloodshot.
The defending soldiers gritted their teeth, and together they lifted the specially made package containing forty kilograms of gunpowder and shrapnel, lit the fuse, and threw it down from the top of the barricade!
Boom!!!
An even more violent explosion erupted below the city walls! Flames shot into the sky, debris flew everywhere, and the newly assembled slaves and Sauron soldier who were trying to scale the walls were instantly engulfed and torn to pieces!
The explosion had an immediate clearing effect, briefly creating a bloody vacuum at the base of the city wall.
However, the Sauron attacks came like waves, one after another!
The defenders had just breathed a sigh of relief after another successful breach of their defenses when the third wave of attacks arrived!
This time, the slaves who charged forward were not holding Gunpowder pack aloft, but lit Molotov cocktail!
These emaciated and exhausted slaves, with their last ounce of strength, hurled the blazing clay pots toward the city wall!
Most of the Molotov cocktail, due to the throwers' lack of strength, only hit the outer walls of the city, with flames flowing down the walls and scorching the bricks and stones.
However, a few lucky Molotov cocktail managed to fly over the crenellations and land among the defenders on the city wall or on the platform behind them!
"Bang! Crash!!"
The earthenware jar shattered, and viscous flames exploded and splashed instantly!
"Ah! Fire!"
"Help me!"
Screams erupted! Several soldiers who couldn't dodge in time were splashed with flames, their leather armor and clothing instantly ignited, turning them into writhing figures of fire!
The companions around them panicked and tried to swat the soil with sand or clothing, but to little avail.
The flames were still igniting the arrows and timber piled up to the side, and the situation was critical!
At this critical moment!
A chilling current, like an invisible giant python, suddenly shot out from behind the city gate!
The cold front precisely covered the area where the flames were burning. Wherever it passed, the raging flames were extinguished instantly, as if choked by an invisible hand, leaving only wisps of smoke and a patch of charred black.
Even the soldier who was engulfed in flames and screaming in agony had his flames extinguished instantly. Although his skin was burned, at least his life was saved.
The surviving soldier, still shaken, collapsed to the ground, panting heavily, and instinctively looked in the direction from which the cold front had originated.
In the shadows at the entrance to the inner city staircase, Morian slowly lowered his raised staff, his eyes resolute.
Although Karl had strictly forbidden him from directly participating in frontline attacks and confronting sorcerers head-on, he was permitted to provide necessary magical support and emergency assistance from the sidelines.
His timely intervention saved his companion's life and prevented the fire from spreading.
Morian nodded slightly to the soldiers who were looking over, then turned his gaze back to the brutal battlefield ahead, gripping his staff tightly, ready to face the next crisis at any moment.
The Sauron offensive was like a never-ending wave, one wave after another!
Before the chaos caused by the Molotov cocktail had completely subsided, a new wave of Sauron infantry charged forward, howling!
They not only climbed the Cloud Ladder, but some even threw lit imitation Gunpowder pack onto the city walls!
"Boom! Boom!"
These Gunpowder pack exploded on the city wall. Although the lack of iron pellets and fragments meant that the damage was mainly caused by the shockwave, resulting in minimal direct casualties to the defenders hiding behind the crenellations, the loud bangs, blast waves, and billowing smoke greatly disrupted the defenders' formation and firing rhythm.
People and horses were thrown into chaos on the city wall, and visibility was blurred.
"Opportunity! Build the city walls!" The Sauron Army seized this precious moment and roared fiercely!
The Sauron Plate Armor Knight, who had been poised to attack, pounced once again like sharks smelling blood!
Heavy combat boots thudded on the Cloud Ladder, and cold armor reflected a bloody light in the setting sun. Braving the sporadic arrows, they fearlessly leaped onto the ramparts!
"Spearmen! Hold the line! Kill!" The defending officer's shouts were already hoarse.
The city walls instantly transformed into a meat grinder! The defending spearmen formed tight ranks, their long spear tips darting out and retracting like venomous snakes from the gaps in the crenellations, only to stab out again!
Each extension and contraction was an attempt to shove the newly emerged Sauron knights off the city wall.
Screams filled the air as Sauron soldier were repeatedly stabbed in the face, throat, or through gaps in their armor, falling off the city walls with angry roars of despair.
However, the Sauron Knights were equally ferocious!
They used sturdy round shields to protect their vitals and parry the spears thrusting at them. Whenever they found an opening, they roared and leaped onto the city wall, wielding Battle Axe and maces to engage in close-quarters combat with the defenders!
The Sauron infantry continued to climb up more and more Cloud Ladder, and the number of Sauron landing points on the city walls increased, quickly turning the battle into a brutal melee!
The sounds of clashing swords, breaking bones, dying screams, and furious roars were deafening!
Every inch of the city wall became a line between life and death. Soldiers from both sides grappled with each other, using their teeth, their fists, and every weapon at their disposal to desperately try to kill the other.
Blood soaked through the city bricks, flowing down the walls and congealing into dark red ice in the setting sun.