The atmosphere of summer giving way to autumn had already settled in. Golden Needle Valley was covered in silver flakes, with eagle tails and autumn welcome flowers spread throughout the woodland. After noon, sunlight streamed through the canopy like a golden curtain. Yet beneath this breathtaking beauty, something twisted and unclean had emerged. A Skeleton Army moved through the forest. Its pale bones looked as though they had been dug from the earth, and its movements were slow. Every step made the rust-covered chainmail rattling over its body. Black swords hung at its waist within their scabbards, repeatedly striking the metal buckles as they swayed against their snow-white hip bones, producing a strange, uniform sound. The rustling noises gathered together like waves and tides, sweeping across the valley.
As far as the eye could see, there were densely packed, dark flat-topped iron helmets and dancing, flickering flames. They stretched endlessly, resembling a gray-and-white ocean. The sea surged in from the eastern side of the valley, gradually flooding the lowlands, seeping into every gap and swallowing all living things. Wherever it passed, the snow-white bark of the Silver Flash Trees gradually withered, and even their leaves curled and dried as though their vitality had been drained away.
A small group of human knights trailed far behind. Fully armed in complete armor, they wore winged helmets and carried lances. The edges of their magnificent war robes hung down like tassels, clinging to the saddles of the Earth Dragons beneath them. These enormous dragons were also fully armored. Not only did they wear helmets fitted with metal battering horns, they were also covered in thick quilted armor used only during wartime. The armor was an inch thick, lined with a layer of metal rings and rivets, and offered even greater protection than ordinary