Sudden Arrival

Without giving the group time to react, the assembled gnolls, led by their captain, launched their charge almost immediately.

Gnolls are generally larger than humans, and the sight of nearly two-meter-tall figures charging in formation could send shivers down the spines of many adventurers who hadn't witnessed such a scene before.

Fortunately, Zhang Yuan was still able to think clearly. While gripping his longsword and preparing to engage, his mind raced:

"There are simply too many of them. There are only four of us. We'll be worn down and defeated, and without reinforcements, I fear we'll all die here."

"But where would reinforcements come from? Wait, aren't they the reinforcements?"

Suddenly remembering something, the man raised his cloak with a mix of surprise and hope.

I, the Gnoll Captain, lead the charge!

The leader of this gnoll squad was named Ingot. Hailing from a remote gnoll fortress, he had, for reasons unknown, wandered to this place.

Relying on his strength and physique, Ingot had, after defeating the previous leader, successfully taken control of all the gnolls in this area. Of course, he also inherited the former leader's more than thirty beautiful female gnolls.

Earlier that afternoon, Ingot had found it strange that the gnolls sent out hunting hadn't returned. Fortunately, his keen sense of smell led his scouts, following the scent and the smell of blood, to discover the bodies of their comrades.

He didn't grieve the loss of a few subordinates, but with such an incident occurring so soon after he became leader, it felt like a challenge to his authority! Especially when he heard that one of his favorite female gnolls was crying inconsolably over the death of a particular gnoll.

Upon questioning the female gnoll, she simply stated it was her sworn brother. Fine, even if it was to avenge his harem, he couldn't let the killer go.

Following the scent all the way, he finally cornered the killer in this forest.

"Die!" Ingot roared, brandishing his halberd and striding forward.

But suddenly, the detestable human before him somehow transformed into an overwhelmingly beautiful female gnoll. Ingot swore that even in the gnoll fortresses, even if he picked from the most stunning matriarchs among the gnolls, he wouldn't find a female gnoll as exquisite as the one before him.

"She's mine!" Ingot's eyes turned red. He looked at the other charging gnolls, feeling that these damned creatures were coming to steal his destined mate. "Grrr! All of you, die!"

Just as the gnolls charged forward, Zhang Yuan thought of his cloak. He cast three Charm spells in succession, controlling the lead gnoll captain and the two soldiers behind him.

The three gnolls who had been leading the charge immediately turned back, changing direction and swinging their weapons at their own companions. Their ferocity was so intense, it was as if they had a deep-seated hatred for each other over a stolen mate.

The gnolls, facing a counter-attack from their own comrades, descended into chaos. Especially when the attacker was their own leader, they could only fight defensively against the three turncoats, being pushed back steadily.

The enemy attacking from another direction was smaller in number, and the remaining three could still resist their assault. The large gnolls couldn't do much against the two short and tough Dwarf Shield Axe Warriors. Those wielding long weapons could chop down from above, but those with short axes were truly suffering, having to stoop like whack-a-moles to fight. One wondered if they would lose some bodily functions after this battle.

More critically, though shorter, the dwarves weren't lacking in strength. Their chopping attacks were easily blocked by the gnolls' shields, while the dwarves' low sweeps were powerful and relentless, always targeting the lower body, which was truly despicable. After a short exchange, one of their companions had already undergone an amputation, and another was even worse off, having lost his "trouble-maker."

Zhang Yuan decided to pick on the weaker ones. He directly ordered Tiny to use its throwing skill, grabbing a gnoll and hurling it into the enemy ranks.

With a flailing companion falling from the sky, the remaining six gnolls were knocked to the ground by the impact. The three who had already coordinated their attacks surged forward. Zhang Yuan was not to be outdone; with just two sword strikes, two gnolls who were still trying to get up permanently fell.

However, before they could finish off these defenseless enemies, the gnolls on the other side finally made a decisive move and eliminated their charmed comrades.

Killing the three charmed companions cost them two of their own lives, and the remaining seven gnolls charged forward with renewed fury.

"Minsc, deal with the remaining two gnolls. Kagan, Bard, you and Tiny hold them off. I'll prepare a spell."

The large figure grabbed his greatsword and went to engage the two gnolls who had just gotten back up. Kagan, muttering to himself, raised his shield and positioned himself in front of a certain unscrupulous mage.

However, the enraged gnolls were ultimately not easy to deal with. Blocked by the dwarves and Tiny, they split into two, flanking from the sides and rushing directly at Zhang Yuan.

Forced to stop casting, Zhang Yuan drew his sword and charged at one of the gnolls. Rather than be attacked from both sides, he decided to eliminate one threat.

The gnoll, with its height advantage, delivered a powerful overhead chop. Having anticipated this move, Zhang Yuan dodged it with a lazy roll and immediately attacked the gnoll's left side. The caught-off-guard gnoll swept its halberd across.

The opponent's long weapon had too great a range, but it also had the weakness of inflexibility. Gripping his longsword with both hands, Zhang Yuan, barely managing to parry the blow, used the momentum to roll forward, closing the distance to the gnoll's feet. Before he could even get up, he thrust his sword into the gnoll's calf. It was a battle between "Might of the Mountain Chop" versus "Foot-Grooming Swordplay."

The gnoll, its left leg pierced, stumbled and nearly fell. It used its halberd to steady itself before standing firm. Just as Zhang Yuan prepared to press his advantage, another gnoll arrived, accompanied by the whistling sound of a greatsword cutting through the air.

In a hasty move, Zhang Yuan swung his longsword to meet the attack. The price of deflecting the incoming blow was his longsword being knocked away. The gnoll behind him, despite its injured calf, refused to miss this chance for revenge. Gritting its teeth and stabilizing itself, it launched a vicious thrust at its adversary.

However, gnolls are not mindless golems. The pain still affected its attack, and a slight shift in its movement caused the halberd, originally aimed at Zhang Yuan's back, to instead pierce his waist.

Zhang Yuan twisted to evade the enemy's sneak attack. The distance was too close, and his hasty evasion was not very effective.

Even with the protection of Mage Armor, the halberd's blade still slashed a bloody gash across Zhang Yuan's waist. Roaring in pain, he jumped into the gnoll's embrace and punched its nose.

Perhaps the nose is a weakness for all canids, and gnolls are no exception. The gnoll, hit in the nose, bled profusely from its nostrils and cried tears, its face, resembling that of a husky, looking like a sauce shop.

"An inch shorter, an inch more dangerous." Trapped by the gnoll's direct charge, the gnoll, despite holding its halberd, couldn't do anything to the much smaller Zhang Yuan. It threw its halberd to the ground, grabbing the culprit's neck with both hands, intending to crush him to death.

An ordinary person, choked by a two-meter-tall monster like this, would have no hope but to wait for death. But Zhang Yuan's high constitution gave him a chance to fight back.

Gasping for breath, Zhang Yuan retracted his neck, tensed all the muscles in his neck, jammed one hand into the gnoll's nostrils, and reached for his waist with the other.

Hanging at his waist was the dog-leg knife, which he had brought with him to this world and had specifically sharpened.

He drew the knife in a reverse motion, unleashing his remaining strength: twisting his waist, drawing the blade, swinging his arm, slitting the throat – all in one fluid motion.

The dog-leg knife, a product of modern metal craftsmanship, was not as potent as a magical weapon, but it was still no match for a gnoll's flesh, especially its vulnerable throat.

The gnoll's entire throat was cut open, and its neck seemed to be half severed. It immediately lost all strength, its dull eyes and the fountain of red from its neck signaling the complete departure of its life force, leaving only its stiffly tensed hands still gripping its enemy.