The Final Preparations

The heavy wheels rolled over the muddy ground, leaving a series of low, creaking sounds.

The caravan that had struggled to reach Blackpine Fief was actually quite large.

Sacks of sturdy burlap filled with Old Wheat were piled high on the cart, and bundles of Pig-Iron Spears collided with each other with a rough clanging sound as the cart bounced.

The heavy carriages in the middle of the caravan, covered in lead, were completely sealed off, but the pungent smell of the High-Purity Sacred Flame Grease still wafted into people's noses on the wind.

There was one crucial element missing.

There were dozens of large carts, but not a single piece of Holy Silver.

The quartermaster escorting the vehicle was an old soldier missing half of his left ear. When handing over the ledgers, he didn't show anything unusual, but he moved very quickly.

When Shien's gaze fell on the empty Special Supplies Requisition Form, the veteran met his gaze, shook his head very slightly, and there seemed to be a deep meaning in his eyes.

He carefully put away the receipt and quickly led the convoy back on the road.

In the study of the Inner Fortress, the fireplace was burning brightly, with the firewood occasionally sparking a few flecks.

Shien leaned back in his high-backed chair, reading the letter the bishop had given him, his eyes remaining completely unmoved.

With a quick release of two fingers, the parchment fell into the brazier at his feet.

The flames immediately engulfed the paper, which quickly curled up and turned black, eventually turning into wisps of ash that smelled of burnt wood.

It seems that the power struggle at higher levels has affected the front lines.

Actually, he had almost thought of this when he came to the Eternal Night Wall.

Otherwise, why would it be entirely these newbies filling the Graymist Defense Zone?

Shien reached out and opened the thick, leather-bound hardcover copy in the center of the table.

Fortunately, I still have some savings, which should be enough to get through the Blood Moon Season.

The Purified Water Stone Trough are full, and the Old Wheat in the granary is enough to feed six hundred people for three whole months.

The newly delivered batch of Premium Grease has completely filled the fuel pool under high pressure.

As long as Blackpine Fief is not breached, at least our ancestors will not starve or freeze to death, and the Main Sacred Flame Altar will not go out.

Several commanders have arrived one after another.

Shien walked to the tactical Sand Table and pushed the leather ledger in front of everyone.

"Make things clear first." He tapped the account book cover lightly twice.

"The food and Purified Water are enough to last us through the Blood Moon Season, and the newly delivered ointment is enough to keep the Main Sacred Flame Altar burning for three months in overclocked mode."

The commanders' previously tense shoulders visibly relaxed a bit.

But Shien changed the subject. "The problem isn't the food, it's the consumption in the later battles. The last batch of resources came in too little. When the Blood Moon Season really comes, many things may not be able to last for a full sixty days."

"Based on wear and tear, if you continuously kill fifty Low-Tier Ghoul with Ordinary Silver-Plated Longsword, the silver layer will be almost completely worn away."

But once the Blood Moon fully descends, we won't just be facing scattered Magic Creature, but also hordes of Werewolf and even more troublesome higher-level species."

Fabien's face immediately darkened.

He knew that without the suppression of that silver layer, the berserk Werewolf could charge into the formation even with several spears, and overturn the front row men and shields together.

Shien looked up at the people in the room and said, "We're not refusing to provide Silver-Plated Weapons; we'll issue them as usual. The problem is we can't waste them."

The wooden pusher landed on the outermost ring of the Sand Table, including the Rending Fang Trench, Groundspike Formation, and Poison Water Ditch.

"For the first three rings, try to wear them down with the cheapest means possible. Use trenches, Caltrops, Poisonfire, Falling Stones, and spear formations. If these can solve the problem, don't rush to use Silver-Plated Arrows and Steam Repeating Crossbow."

Especially arrows; once they're fired, they're consumed. We should avoid wasting them if possible. If we really need to draw the bow, we should prioritize using Ordinary Heavy Arrows, and recover as many as possible afterward.

He paused, then pointed to several Dark Bunker and high platforms.

"The same goes for the Heavy Repeating Crossbow. That thing isn't for clearing out trash; it's for smashing big things. If you can slowly grind down Ghoul or other low-level Magic Creature below the third rank in the first Third Tier, don't reveal your trump card prematurely."

Once the Werewolf and High-Tier Demonic Beast are truly capable of colliding with the latter two rings arrive, then let the silver-plated weapons and Heavy Repeating Crossbow pierce their throats.

The room fell silent for a moment.

Fabien closed his eyes, quickly going over the casualties, losses, and depth of the defensive line in his mind. After a long while, he opened his eyes and nodded emphatically. "My lord is right, I have no objection."

Ivan nodded, "Me too."

The other officers also bowed their heads in agreement.

The numbers in the ledger are there, and there's no better way to solve this kind of problem.

"Since no one has any objections, let's distribute it according to this guideline."

After saying this, Shien didn't stop walking; he pushed open the door and stepped into the biting cold wind outside.

The Blood Moon had not yet risen, but the edges of the sky above Blackpine Fief were already tinged with a dark purplish-red.

The Blood Moon Season event should be happening in just a few days.

Shien walked along the main road and arrived at the outer perimeter of the Blackpine Five-Ring. He inspected the area in circles, something he had been doing every day for the past month, but today he had a special purpose.

The outermost Rending Fang Trench disappeared into darkness. The slope, repeatedly doused with ice water and waste oil, was now frozen hard and slippery, gleaming coldly under the Blood Moon.

Further on, there was Second Ring, filled with spikes and tripwires, with Nightshade Poison Threads lying between the cracks in the Frozen Tundra, so thin they were almost invisible.

From the Third Ring to the Fifth Ring, the Venom Mist points, Demolition Positions, and Bone-Eroding Net tighten inwards layer by layer, like tightly bound iron chains.

Inside the Dark Bunker jutting out from the city wall, rows of Semi-Automatic Steam Repeating Crossbow were belching white steam.

The water in the boiler had boiled over, and a low, muffled sound came through the iron casing, like something inside was panting heavily.

The trenches were filled with armored soldiers waiting for orders.

Those who once had empty eyes on the road to exile are now quiet, but their eyes are firm.

As Shien walked by, a series of crisp metallic scraping sounds rang out.

That was the sound of soldiers rising, pounding their right fists on their chests, and saluting him.

He walked through the Fifth Ring road and finally stopped in front of the restricted area moat closest to the Inner Fortress.

The trench was neither deep nor wide; it resembled Flow Channel encircling the foundation of the Inner Fortress.

The bottom of the trough was not paved with bricks, but filled with a layer of Ash-Gray Hard Shell, and the edges of the stone trough were engraved with Rune.

These lines are far from regular; from a distance, they look like a ring of wounds forcibly sewn onto the ground.

At each of the four corners, a third-tier Source Blood Demon Crystal is embedded.

The red light flickered and danced within the stone base, like four hearts that had been dug out alive and then pressed back in to continue beating.

Victor was squatting by the stone trough, his one arm supporting his knee, his only remaining left hand repeatedly touching the patterns in the cracks of the stone.

Yarrow stood to the side, his fingernails still clogged with unwashed stone chips, looking extremely nervous.

Hearing footsteps, Victor looked up abruptly.

His single eye was bloodshot, and beneath his exhaustion lay an overwhelming, barely suppressed excitement.

"The final trump card has been played. That kid Yarrow... he's a monster. Without him, this brilliant design simply couldn't have been made."

When his name was called, Yarrow shrank back, his face flushed slightly, and he scratched his messy hair, looking a little embarrassed.

Shien didn't speak, but slowly squatted down, placing his hand above the center of the Rune Array.

Even through the stone surface, he could still feel the vibrations coming from below.

The four Primordial Blood Crystals were pulsating in a fixed rhythm.

With each jump, the surrounding rough Rune would light up, as if a stream of heat was flowing into the cracks in the stone.

Unlike ordinary arrays, it doesn't feel light and breezy; instead, it carries a sense of oppression that makes people instinctively uncomfortable.

Shien stood up and glanced down at the ring of grayish-white stone troughs.

After a moment of silence, he calmly said, "It's best not to use it."