The fourteen heavy crossbow bolts fired by the two Mountainbreaker Crossbows had never been capable of more than hitting somewhere in the general direction. Under the relentless attacks of the ice spikes raining down from above, more than half had already gone off course, flying wildly into nearby mounds or the ground and blasting up heaps of dirt. The display was terrifying, but only a few bolts were lucky enough to hit the two Black Abyss Elephants.
The larger Black Abyss Elephant swung its trunk and knocked one bolt aside, while its huge, sturdy tusks deflected another. Even so, its heavy body staggered back several steps, showing that the heavy crossbow bolts packed quite a punch.
The smaller Black Abyss Elephant was somewhat weaker. It only had time to use its tusks to deflect one bolt before another struck its foreleg.
A piercing elephant's cry rang out, making the worldly martial artists closest to it clamp their hands over their ears, nearly driven mad. The Black Abyss Elephant hit by the heavy crossbow bolt collapsed to the ground, blood gushing from its foreleg. But it had only been wounded; the bolt still hadn't killed it in one blow.
The larger Black Abyss Elephant flew into a rage at its companion's injury. It reared up on its hind legs, then brought its feet down hard. The whole ground shook violently.
Bang! Bang!
The enormous Black Abyss Elephant began to charge, rushing toward the several military formations that were already in complete disarray.
"Oh no! That black-haired giant elephant is too terrifying. Princess, retreat!"
The elderly general summoned all his strength to cleave apart an ice crystal falling from the sky, his body shivering uncontrollably from the cold. His face was filled with grief. The ice spikes carried a bitter chill; even