The Blackpine Fief Retreats at Every Turn

The Silver-Sword Ghoul Commander slowly raised his Silver Sword, its blade pointing directly at Blackpine Fief.

The thick fog rolled and tore apart to both sides, and the rhythmic, heavy thud of boots pounding the ground rose from the depths.

Thirty-six Third-Tier Ghoul emerged from the Gray Fog.

This formation is completely different from the deformed cannon fodder on the periphery.

Leading the way were eight tall, shield-wielding zombie soldiers, each holding a massive iron shield made of bones and cast Pig Iron in one arm.

Refined Steel arrows rained down on the shield, sending up plumes of white smoke, but the shield wall pressed forward against the barrage, carving a path through the Venom Mist.

Behind the shield wall, ten heavily armored, split-armored cavalrymen simultaneously unleashed their power.

Dragging their heavy weapons, they charged forward through the gap in front, crashing into the narrowest passage between the Third Ring and fourth rings.

Fabien drew his Cross-Shaped Greatsword, and Platinum Battle Aura suddenly blazed on the blade.

Seventy Blackpine Heavy Knights surged out from the Hidden Passage like a torrent of steel, fiercely clashing with the Ghoul vanguard in the narrow pass.

Within the mud formation, Platinum Battle Aura and pitch-black death aura collided face-to-face.

Fabien rode at the forefront, his Cross-Shaped Greatsword slashing out with a sonic boom, the Broadsword cleaving the giant axe in the hand of an armored corpse rider.

But the Ghoul didn't retreat at all. Instead of retreating, it used its momentum to grab its rusty shoulder and slam it hard into Fabien's heavy shield.

The immense force blasted through him, instantly cracking the web between Fabien's thumb and forefinger as he gripped the shield. Blood streamed down the hilt of his sword, and a deep dent was slammed into the shield.

The truly insidious thing lies hidden behind the horde of corpses.

Six roaming chain- Ghoul positioned themselves in the most difficult-to-reach spots for the Knight, simultaneously hurling their chains under the cover of the cannon Undead Horde.

The rusty hooks and chains were covered in putrid slime, and they made a piercing shriek as they cut through the air.

As a Blackpine Knights who was performing a tiered rotation turned his horse, his forelegs were immediately entangled by iron chains.

The chain-hook Ghoul exerted force with both arms, dragging the entire horse off course. The warhorse neighed pitifully, its front leg snapping with a "crack," and both horse and rider tumbled heavily into the bloody mud.

The tightly knit formation of Knight was immediately torn open by this underhanded move.

Just as the two Knights who were trying to cover for their men charged forward, a second wave of hook chains entangled their heavy shields and shoulder guards, forcibly dragging them out of the formation.

The three high-ranking Knight who fell outside the battle line were instantly swallowed up by the Low-Tier Ghoul that surged forward like a black tide.

Countless sharp claws and fangs frantically dug and gnawed at the Holy Silver heavy armor, the screeching sounds echoing one after another.

The muffled thud of armor shattering had barely been heard when the screams were abruptly cut short by the pile of corpses.

Thirty-six Third-Tier Ghoul pushed forward layer by layer, inch by inch forcing the Blackpine Knights to retreat.

The entire front groaned under immense pressure.

Every time Fabien was forced back half a step, large sections of the surrounding earthen bunkers collapsed.

In the narrow trench, the Knight were still roaring, wielding their swords, and filling in the gaps, but the black, heavily armored tidal wave formed by the Third Tier mutated monsters was still slowly squeezing in, continuing to devour the last bit of breathing space in Blackpine Fief.

Inside the Inner Fortress command tower.

Shien frowned. The frontline strangulation battle had begun to spiral out of control. The problem was no longer just one or two breaches, but rather the entire defensive line was showing signs of a chain reaction of collapse.

On the flank, elite Ghoul were snatching out plague sacs filled with foul blood and shadow poison one after another, slamming them fiercely into the depths of the fourth ring.

--

Several fast Tier Second Tier Ghoul assassins were climbing up the high walls and towers, their claws already approaching the Pig Iron rails of the Steam Repeating Crossbow.

A cold glint flashed in Shien's eyes. "Order the Sacred Flame Altar! Fully open the bottom valve! Maximum overclocking intensity!"

A large amount of precious Sacred Tallow was roughly poured into the furnace.

The ever-burning Sacred Flame suddenly went berserk, and a white-gold pillar of fire shot straight into the sky, illuminating the entire Long Night Fief.

The virus sacs that were still airborne were instantly vaporized into black smoke by the high temperature, without even a chance to explode.

The Ghoul assassin, who was climbing upwards, screamed in agony in the light, his entire body quickly turning black as he tumbled and fell off the wall.

The cost was equally staggering; the reserves of Sacred Tallow plummeted like a floodgate had been opened.

But that was far from enough; the Ghoul Legion, led by the Third-Tier Ghoul, continued to advance steadily.

Shien raised his hand and slammed his right hand down. "All Steam Repeating Crossbow, fire at full power! Clear the field of fire! Heavy Repeating Crossbow, snipe Third Tier targets!"

The semi-automatic crossbows in the two flank Dark Bunker opened fire first, suppressing the conventional positions. Rows of Refined Steel arrows rained down on the front of the horde of corpses, specifically targeting and shredding the Low-Tier Ghoul and Magic Creature cannon fodder.

The nine heavy crossbows, positioned at key high points, were truly responsible for tackling the tough challenges.

They only target targets of Third Tier or higher, and once locked on, they deliver a fatal blow.

Before the Low-Tier Ghoul could even get close, they were swept down in swarms by the semi-automatic crossbows.

Those Third Tier monsters that could truly break through the enemy lines were singled out by the heavy crossbowmen.

The heavy arrow was coated with Holy Silver Powder, Armor-Piercing Rune on its shaft lit up in the Platinum Flame.

Nine piercing shrieks cut through the air, striking the battlefield below from above.

The shield-wielding, Third-Tier Ghoul at the very front was the first to be attacked.

It was still pressing forward with the iron shield against the corpse when it suddenly felt the air in front of it sink.

The next moment, the thick shield that had accompanied it through countless human fortifications first dented inwards, then exploded with a "boom".

The heavy arrow pierced through the shield, instantly shattering the skull. The ghostly green flames didn't even have time to fully dissipate before the entire head was reduced to blood and bone fragments in mid-air.

On the other side, a Ghoul with a hook chain, which was tightening its iron chain to drag away the fallen Knight, was also locked on the spot.

It had barely turned its head when it suddenly felt a chill right in the center of its chest.

The heavy arrow pierced through his chest and exploded out of his back, lifting his entire body off the ground before slamming into the depths of the Third Ring of mud walls.

The arrow's fletching was still trembling violently, and the entire earthen wall groaned in response.

This round of near-high-stakes, extreme firepower resulted in a terrifying outcome.

With just one volley, twelve elite Third Tier fallen warriors were instantly shattered, nailed to death, and blasted to pieces.

The enemy's core combat strength was reduced by one-third.

The remains scattered on the ground were still emitting white smoke, and the bits of flesh and black blood, washed away by the heat, smelled bitter and foul.

The soul fire in the Silver Sword Commander's empty eye sockets jerked violently.

It wasn't that it hadn't seen human Crossbowman and archers before, but it hadn't expected that this new territory would have such strong long-range firepower.

Low-level firepower is used to clear out and suppress Undead Horde, while Heavy Repeating Crossbow are used to target those above Third Tier, relentlessly killing its most valuable core members one by one.

That pang of heartache almost instinctively welled up inside me.

What chilled it even more was that the barrage of fire from Blackpine Fief seemed far from over.

The two flank Dark Bunker continued to spew white steam, and the intersecting firing arcs between the protrusions and the high ground continued to cut back and forth.

If its high-ranking soldiers take just half a step forward, another volley of heavy arrows awaits them.

But he didn't stop the Ghoul Legion.

The remaining twenty-odd Third-Tier Ghoul no longer pressed forward as straight as before.

After their companions were pinned to pieces by the heavy crossbow bolts, they had clearly figured out how to use the secret weapon of Blackpine Fief.

The first few were still trying to hold out, while those behind them began to constantly shift positions using the pile of corpses and the broken shield wall.

Even so, a few Third-Tier Ghoul were a beat too slow in their dodge and were pinned to the mud wall on the spot.

The pace of advance slowed down, but the momentum of the advance did not stop.

They continued to move forward, but this time, each step was more sinister and harder to kill.

The low-level zombie horde was still pushing forward relentlessly; as those in front fell, those behind stepped over the corpses to fill the gap.

The semi-automatic crossbows were still firing, and the Heavy Repeating Crossbow were still picking off targets, but the dark figures in the Gray Fog kept pushing forward layer by layer, as if they were determined to swallow the entire Blackpine Fief along with its inhabitants.

They survived five more Blood Moon Tide.

The Third Ring and fourth rings are now unrecognizable. What was once the core of the meat grinder's deep defensive positions is now nothing but mud, piles of corpses, and half-exposed Pig Iron.

The ghastly green Venom Mist was gradually dispersed by the cold wind, and the traps at the bottom of the ditch were mostly filled with Magic Creature corpses, broken wood, and shattered stones.

But the Knight and infantry of Blackpine Fief clung to these two rings, using the remaining trenches to drag them back piece by piece and push them forward layer by layer, trapping the Ghoul elites in the mud and piles of corpses, trading their flesh and blood for time.

Fabien, along with his remaining Knight, relentlessly ambushed and killed enemies between the Third Ring and fourth rings.

But even after dragging it out this long, the defensive line is nearing its end.

The crossbow fire network on the high ground has been squeezed out of large, hard-to-cover blind spots by the relentless onslaught of the Ghoul Legion.

The Heavy Steam Repeating Crossbow are almost out of arrows, and even the stock of ordinary Steam Repeating Crossbow is less than a third left.

Blackpine Fief had nearly 4,000 combatants before the battle, but since the start of the Blood Moon Season, almost half of them have been lost.

In this single battle, more than a thousand people died.

At the top of the tower, Shien's brain was still working at high speed.

--

Battle damage and troop movements were constantly updated, and he completed the final simulation in a very short time.

There was no room for complacency.

Sending more infantry and Third Tier Knight into that muddy ruin will only cause the casualties in Blackpine Fief to multiply.

The stupidest thing to do is to waste the lives of those who can still fight on a few broken outer rings that have already lost their advantage.

Shien raised his eyes and immediately ordered a retreat.

The array of lights on the tower suddenly lit up, the blinding red light forming a continuous expanse in the wind and snow.

The bells, representing alternating cover retreats, rang out one after another, striking the bottom trenches.

The most vulnerable time to collapse is often when retreating.

But at this moment, the armored soldiers of Blackpine Fief displayed a terrifying discipline.

The front row retreated first, the back row moved up, and the wounded were dragged in layer by layer, while the shield wall was pulled back section by section.

But everyone knows the truth.

This is the last remaining outer line of defense we can rely on.

Behind the Fifth Ring is the Inner Fortress, which contains Workshop, granaries, and civilian quarters.

If they retreat any further, Blackpine Fief will truly be finished.