The Price of the Long Night

After the cheers subsided, reality pressed down on them.

In the Wounded Soldiers' Camp below the tower, a dying soldier with severed limbs was wailing in a low voice. The sound climbed up the cold stone wall and into everyone's ears.

With his back to everyone, Shien spoke directly, "Nian."

The Recorder swallowed hard, his teeth still chattering, "The Inner Fortress and outer ring area are completely destroyed. The stockpile of Refined Steel arrows is down to one-fifth of what it was, and the reserves of Sacred Flame Grease have fallen below the warning line, leaving less than a quarter."

The moment the numbers were displayed, the platform fell silent, with only the heavy breathing of the crowd breaking into silence.

The price was too heavy; even Shien didn't know what to say.

Looking into the distance, the outer defenses of Blackpine Fief had completely changed.

The First Ring the Rending Fang Trench and the Second Ring the Groundspike Formation were filled with the corpses of Magic Creature and our own soldiers, making them completely unrecognizable.

In the center of the explosion zone from the Third Ring to the Fifth Ring, the high temperature melted through the dark purple Frozen Tundra along with the corpses of thousands of Magic Creature.

The ground has now cooled, forming a dark reddish-black hard crust, with scalding heat still lingering at the edges.

At the top of the Dark Bunker in the salient, all four heavy Rune Steam Repeating Crossbow were disabled, not to mention the dozens of ordinary Rune Steam Repeating Crossbow that had been lost.

If the Sacred Flame Grease evaporates excessively, the radius of the platinum halo's suppression will continue to shrink.

The safe line of sight in front of the defensive line will also be eliminated.

The next wave of Mutant emerging from the Gray Fog won't need to cross that entire dead zone swept by fire; they'll simply stick to the outer wall of the Inner Fortress and smash their Corpse Poison -covered claws into the gaps in the shield wall.

On the other side Fabien raised his aching and numb arms, took off his dented Holy Silver helmet, and the light in his eyes dimmed. After overexerting his battle Battle Aura, his face was as white as paper.

His voice was hoarse, his exhaustion barely concealed. "A total of 710 soldiers were killed in action, and 443 were seriously wounded or rendered incapacitated."

Shien lowered his eyes. The price he had paid this time was already laid bare before him: over a thousand combatants and a completely destroyed defensive line. It was a truly shocking sight.

Even more terrifying is that the defenses had already collapsed when the Blood Moon Season was only halfway through.

"The losses have been settled." Shien glanced at the faces of everyone in the tower, realizing the tense atmosphere, and said, "Now let's calculate how much we dug out of the scorched earth."

The quartermaster's Adam's apple bobbed violently, his trembling hands turned to the next page of the heavy sheepskin ledger, and he turned to gesture to the two heavily armored guards behind him.

The guard lifted a heavy lead-plated iron box and placed it heavily on the long table.

The thick, Pig Iron clasp was forcefully pried open.

The lead cap was flipped open, and a strong, cloyingly sweet and pungent smell rushed out, instantly overpowering the burnt smell inside the tower.

In the dim light, seventeen fist-sized crystals lay quietly on the shockproof burlap.

The surface of the crystal was still covered with carbonized bits of flesh and black ash, while the dark red glow inside swayed gently in the cold wind, casting a reddish hue on the surrounding stone walls.

"My lord! Seventeen complete Tier Three Sourceblood! The high-pressure explosion on the outer perimeter burned through the Magic Creature's rotting flesh, but filtered out the core!"

There are still tens of thousands of Second Tier and Low-Tier Demonic Beast Sourceblood that haven't been fully collected yet!

For a border fortress whose outer shell had just been smashed, this was an enormous gain, but unfortunately it came at a heavy price in Blackpine Fief.

The crimson glow was reflected in Shien's icy blue pupils.

Suddenly he raised his right hand, pressed his palm against the heavy lead cap, and slammed it down.

"Bang!"

The Pig Iron buckle snapped shut again, suppressing the sweet, metallic scent and the crimson glow of blood. The quartermaster's unfinished words were also stuck in his throat.

"The inventory of spoils has been postponed. The High-Tier Magic Energy Pressure left by the chain explosions is temporarily keeping low-level Magic Creature away."

Shien pulled out a charcoal pencil and drew several thick lines heavily on the area of the defensive Sand Table that had been blasted out.

"The entire army rotated shifts in place, never leaving their armor. While they slept for two hourglasses, the Blacksmith Camp brought their tools and hammered out dull swords and replaced broken spearheads on the spot."

The charcoal pencil paused, then focused heavily on the depression in the center of the Sand Table.

"The entire Combat Engineer Camp and Auxiliary Soldier were deployed, the Inner Fortress backup building material warehouse was opened, and all the prepared defensive facilities were dragged to the front line."

Deploy along the edge of the main crater, reinforce the outer ring, and utilize the depth difference to directly transform it into a reverse-sloping trench.

A cold wind, carrying black ash, swept over them. Hundreds of engineers and Auxiliary Soldier quickly dispersed, stepping into the scorched area torn apart by the secondary explosion.

The military boots sizzled as they stepped on the semi-solidified, dark red shell at the edge of the shell crater.

The heat was still radiating from my feet, rising up through the soles of my boots and making my calves go numb.

--

"Smash it!" The foreman's voice was hoarse.

The hammer fell with a thud, and the thick oak stake slowly wedged itself into the scorched earth.

Those nearby immediately rushed to straighten it, then replaced it with the next one. Another group of engineers dragged the iron Caltrops forward, the chains taut and rattling loudly.

The metal scraped across the ground, leaving deep marks.

The pickaxe struck the edge of the semi-lava layer, exploding with sparks. Someone's hand was split open, blood flowing down the wooden handle, but he didn't care.

Nobody stopped.

Using only hammers, chains, wooden stakes, and their last bit of strength, they gradually leveled and reinforced the large pit.

The acrid smell hadn't dissipated, and steam was still rising from the wound, but a new line of defense had already been erected against it.

Rough and ugly, but enough to keep the Blackpine Fief in place for a while longer.

Once everyone had left, the tower floor fell silent.

The long-term, extreme coordination pushed Shien's brain to its limit, and as soon as that tension eased, his body immediately began to retaliate.

--

Shien closed his eyes, his fingers trembling slightly as he pressed his temples tightly. A buzzing sound filled his ears, and even the wind whistling past the stone stacks outside the window seemed to subside.

Within the sea of consciousness, the "Canon of Grace and Righteousness and Righteousness" silently opened.

A large amount of Reward Value suddenly poured in, and the points of light representing the more than four hundred surviving veterans were changing.

The previously fluctuating deep blue halo gradually tightened, and the chaotic ripples on the surface quickly faded away.

The prolonged bloody battles, military orders, rotations, executions, and rewards and punishments had completely turned this group of people into his loyal vassals.

This is the biggest takeaway from this battle.

The next instant, the azure light abruptly receded, and a burst of purple light shone forth.

Soul Anchoring complete, gaining new abilities such as Level Four Skill Replication and Soul Array Resonance.

The moment that new permission level appeared, Shien immediately severed the connection.

He finds even raising his hand too strenuous now, and has no time to think about the future. The most important thing is to let his body, which is almost burnt out, catch its breath.

He had just steadied his breathing when a flurry of hurried footsteps suddenly came from outside the tower.

"My lord! On the east flank! The bishop's mobile support has arrived!"

Shien opened his eyes, slowly straightened up while holding onto the edge of the Sand Table, and looked to the east.

At the edge of the Gray Fog, a platinum-gold line of fire was advancing straight ahead.

At the forefront were cavalrymen holding aloft the Sacred Flame Lantern, their armored warhorses galloping across the Frozen Tundra ground, their hooves thundering. Vast swathes of the Holy City Army pressed forward, their spears and armor plates flashing in the firelight.

Further in the center, several high-ranking Clergy guarded the bishop, the Church flag taut and fluttering in the cold wind.

The coldness in Shien's eyes gradually subsided.

They did come, but they were late.

The outer wall collapsed, the quiver was empty, most of the Steam Repeating Crossbow were ruined, all the blood that needed to be shed had been shed, all the places that needed to be blown up had been blown up, and all the Ghoul that needed to be killed had been killed.

If they had arrived half a day earlier, he wouldn't have had to use his final trump card.

But these people were still useful.

They will see with their own eyes that Blackpine Fief is still standing.

You'll see scorched earth blasted through, Magic Creature remains piled up around the craters, completely destroyed crossbows, and a new defensive line pieced together from wooden stakes and Caltrops.

You'll also see old soldiers who haven't even taken off their armor, lying asleep against the wall with their weapons, see engineers still fighting for hammers by the still-steaming pits, and hear the clanging of chains.

At this point, even the most blind person could see that Blackpine Fief was not just a dilapidated border territory on the verge of being abandoned.

It became a tough bone, a big bone that had just been gnawed into and was now covered in blood.