Those breaths that have been compressed in the chest since before the battle began can finally be exhaled deeper at this moment, and then inhale air that does not smell so much of ashes and sulfur.
No one spoke, but the silence was warm, like the residual warmth of a heated room that continues for a while after the fire is removed.
In the distant sky, the last batch of Demon Dragons that flew out are slowly returning.
They are some of the smaller dragons in the group, and their speed and endurance are weaker than the other Demon Dragon. During the battle, they are arranged in the rear echelons to perform finishing and covering tasks.
At this moment, they were returning to the camp from the far end of the battlefield, their flying posture was slightly looser than when they first set off, and the frequency of their wings beating had decreased, like the last round of travelers on their way of the day.
Occasionally, a very faint spark that has not been completely extinguished floats out from their throats, which flickers in the night wind and then dissipates.
Just when everyone thought that tonight's battle had been settled, and only the casualties needed to be counted and fuel for the fire replenished, Redd's senses captured some unusual subtle changes.
He was standing at a slightly higher observation position on the inside of the wall, holding the hilt of Dark Sister in one hand, and his eyes paused for a moment on the Demon Dragon that were slowly returning to the team.
The first thing that caught his attention was not the visual or auditory changes - there was a vibration that was so weak that it was almost undetectable on the rammed earth pavement that his feet were stepping on.
That kind of vibration is not like the movement of people or dragons in the camp. It is a deeper and slower-paced conduction, which seems to spread outward from a location below the ground that cannot be directly seen.
The frequency is very low, and the intervals between each time are roughly equal, as if something huge is moving at a steady speed deep underground, and it is touching deeper rock layers.
Its volume, its weight, and its every step were squeezed, passing through the soil and sand with a very low time delay, reaching the small patch of ground where he stood, and then disappearing, as if nothing had happened.
Ordinary people would not notice a vibration of this magnitude.
It's not even a "vibration" - it's more like the density of the ground beneath your feet has changed slightly at a certain moment.
It's like a huge creature slowly turning over deep in the earth. People who are as far away as the surface will not feel it move, but will only inadvertently find that the soil under their feet is a little tighter than before.
If Redd had not stayed on this land long enough and had seen with his own eyes the faults caused by this creature when it broke through the ground and the surface that was hollowed out and collapsed again, he might have ignored it like others.
His fingers tightened slightly on the hilt of the sword. A sense of alertness that had been stored in long-term memory but resurfaced at this moment climbed up along his spine and landed on the edge of his consciousness.
He had wandered around Valyrian Peninsula long enough and encountered some beings that had survived on this land and were more difficult to deal with than the ordinary creatures that were parasitized by Cursed Power.
One of them was particularly impressive to him. That kind of creature was accustomed to walking underground. It would not appear on the surface of its own initiative unless it was attracted by food, disturbed by vibrations, or the prey happened to be standing on the ground above it.
He, Ehm, and King Ghidorah once cooperated to hunt one of them, and it took a lot of effort to completely solve it.
Because it spends most of its time hiding underground, it will only occasionally reveal part of its body briefly when hunting for prey, and then quickly retract below the ground.
That creature is difficult to deal with, has a large attack range, and has the ability to drag prey larger than itself into the ground. It is one of the few beings that can pose a substantial threat to Demon Dragon.
He stood for another moment, feeling the vibration from the ground beneath his feet again. It was getting stronger. It was still very weak, but the frequency was closer than before.
Redd didn't wait any longer.
He tilted his head slightly, turned his gaze to the direction of the hill where King Ghidorah was located, and issued an order through his mental link, asking him to order all Demon Dragon to take off immediately and not stay on the ground.
At the same time, he raised his voice and shouted in the direction of the camp in the night wind, "Everyone, cheer up, spread out, don't get together. Watch your steps."
The sound was not loud, but it was particularly clear on the battlefield at the beginning of the break. When it passed through the ears of the resting soldiers, it was like someone suddenly dropped a stone in their cooling breath.
Douglas was the first person to react to the sound. He was standing on the inside of the wall near a fire and was rearranging the rotation order of patrol posts.
When he heard the shout of Redd, his movements stopped for a moment, and then he quickly turned around.
He did not ask Redd why he issued such an order at this time. After confirming the source and direction of the shout,
He almost immediately grabbed the shoulder armor of the two guards and pulled them to both sides from where they were. His voice was quick but not high, with a suppressed intensity:
"Run to both sides and pass on the order - everyone spread out and watch your step. Anyone who dares to get together will be kicked away."
His movements were rough but efficient. After saying this, he pushed the chest of the nearest guard with his elbow and asked him to set off immediately. At the same time, he was already walking in the other direction along the inside of the wall.
While walking, he shouted to the soldiers who were resting. Sometimes he would quickly reach out and grab the arm of someone who was standing there, take him two steps away from where he was, and push and drag him towards a more open area.
The soldiers who were resting against the walls and piles of rocks reacted quickly after hearing the order. They didn't even have time to ask why, and they stood up before they could think about it.
The body was extremely exhausted, and some people's knees shook slightly when they stood up, but the moment they finished shaking, they took the first step, quickly spread out to the side, and kept distance from other soldiers, while their eyes were fixed on the ground under their feet.
No one spoke, no one raised any questions, those who were driven away did not ask "why", and those who shouted did not explain "why".
All actions are completed in silence, like a rapidly unrolled rope, pulling every node on the entire rope as it is pulled from one end to the other.
Most of those people were elites selected from hundreds of thousands of slave armies, and had undergone rigorous training in Volantis for more than a year.
Their muscle memory has engraved orders and prohibitions into their bone marrow, and their bodies execute orders faster than their minds, even if they are still doubting in their minds and their limbs are already moving.
And the constraint that goes deeper than training is that they know what will happen if they disobey orders.