The cavalry in the distance began to accelerate!
Under Marba's command, the Holy Crusaders, now Alienation massive shields, were positioned at the very front of the formation.
Because of their practical ability to Directed Alienation, these already strong and robust Holy Crusaders can not only Alienation into shields, but also add supports to them to mitigate the impact of enemy attacks.
Marba stared intently at the approaching cavalry in the distance, wondering if they would actually fly directly over the heads of the shield bearers.
If they're really foolish enough to do that, the soldiers behind them wielding long blades and spears will make them pay dearly.
The armored cavalrymen accelerated and were about to reach the first rank of shield bearers when, in the next instant, they all simultaneously pulled their Hoofed Beast and began to turn.
The entire Holy Crusaders army was like a boulder in the middle of a river, while the cavalry were like the surging river water. The moment they came into contact with the water, the boulder sliced them apart and they began to move around the boulder.
This was not unexpected by Marba. Any commander who values his troops would not choose to charge the shield line when the enemy has already formed a defensive formation. Unless the situation is urgent, such losses are absolutely unacceptable to ordinary people.
Based on this calculation, these cavalrymen probably didn't intend to engage them in a direct confrontation. Therefore, their remaining offensive options should be quite limited, and the most likely option is definitely...
"Watch out for projectiles!"
Marba gave another order, telling his soldiers to watch their heads, while continuing to shout:
"Free firing, no need to wait for a volley!"
"Yes!"
The soldiers responded with a roar, then took aim at the cavalrymen who were sometimes near and sometimes far.
The cavalry seemed to sense the changes in formation, also increasing the speed of their Hoofed Beast and constantly dodging the attacks by turning.
At the same time, they also threw out a large number of strange spherical objects. These spherical objects were like Fragility bubbles about to burst. Whether they hit the large shields or landed on the ground in the formation, they would immediately explode and release what was inside.
The contents of these spheres were varied; some made the Holy Crusaders dizzy, others emitted a strong, pungent odor, and still others burst open into caltrops made of small spikes, making the surrounding Holy Crusaders afraid to even lift their feet.
However, the Holy Crusaders did not come away empty-handed. As the knights approached to hurl their weapons, many of them locked onto the knights and opened fire.
However, the outcome was not as smooth as they had anticipated.
The armor worn by those people was quite defensive. When the sharp arrows came flying at them, they would dodge the ones that would hit their heads, but they simply took the hits head-on.
After the arrows finally pierced through the armor's outer shell, most of them got stuck between the mechanical parts, with only a very small number managing to pass through the obstacles and reach the cavalrymen's bodies.
Even so, the damage was not serious; the arrow that pierced through the outer casing, shell, and parts before penetrating the flesh was already at its last gasp.
Even when pierced in the back by arrows, the cavalrymen would simply smear a clump of green paste on their backs and then completely ignore the wounds, riding their Hoofed Beast away.
This effortless maneuver left many Holy Crusaders astonished and frustrated, as if the enemies might pull the arrows out of their bodies and shoot them back at any moment...
Faced with such a defense, their attacks were simply... completely ineffective.
Ironically, it was the archers who hadn't aimed at the cavalry in the first place; they had instead aimed their arrows at the cavalry's Hoofed Beast.
The armor on these Hoofed Beast ' bodies almost completely overlaps with the bones of their limbs and spine, meaning that these mounts do not have effective abdominal protection, and shooting the Hoofed Beast ' abdomen is not difficult for the Holy Crusaders.
Thanks to the efforts of a small group of dedicated individuals, a number of Hoofed Beast that had been struck by arrows soon began to behave strangely.
The physical pain causes them to subconsciously deviate from their original operating mode.
However, the knights on their backs were prepared for this. They quickly stuffed something unseen into the mouths of the Hoofed Beast, which soon restored their composure.
A small number of Hoofed Beast did suffer serious injuries to vital organs, but the riders on their backs jumped onto their companions' mounts and sped away before the Hoofed Beast died completely, even taking the core of the Hoofed Beast's armor with them, leaving only some severely wounded Hoofed Beast lying on the ground panting.
Marba should have been happy about this situation, since before the Demonic Tide broke out, many of the demons' war machines were stolen from humans and then modified by them.
If he could bring those armored Hoofed Beast back to base for research, he believed that it wouldn't be long before his cavalry's Hoofed Beast could be equipped with similar gear.
The unfortunate thing is that his goal at that moment was to launch a blitzkrieg against the enemy, and there was no turning back, let alone time to study and improve cavalry equipment.
Seeing the cavalry advance further and further away, Marba ordered them to stop and regroup, and the results were quickly obtained.
The enemy cavalry suffered zero casualties in this attack!
The cavalry circled the entire legion and attacked for half a day, yet not a single person died?
Marba looked at the Grand Knight Commander in disbelief. The Grand Knight Commander, whom he had personally promoted, spoke of this news with a face full of worry, showing no joy whatsoever.
Marba quickly asked the other party to explain the legion's current situation in detail, and soon gained an understanding of the predicament.
While the Holy Crusaders did not suffer any fatalities, a significant number of soldiers were wounded or had their combat effectiveness reduced.
The explosive spherical projectiles hurled by the cavalry can be roughly divided into three types:
The first type releases a large amount of sweet-smelling smoke after it breaks open. Soldiers who inhale it usually feel dizzy, weak in the limbs, and powerless. If they cannot leave the smoke-covered area quickly, they will faint on the spot.
The second type of spherical object, upon bursting, would splatter a pungent sap, seemingly an extract from some Aberration plant. This sap evaporated rapidly within the ranks, causing the Holy Crusaders to frown and their eyes to water uncontrollably.
The last type of spherical object is the most sinister. After bursting open, these spherical objects will shoot out special wooden spikes in all directions. Once they pierce flesh, they will immediately Drain life and take root and sprout. Within four or five breaths, they can establish a root system.
If the spikes are not removed during this period, they will use their roots to firmly grip the bones of the Holy Crusaders soldiers, continuing to Drain nutrients, making removal even more difficult.