Real Mount and Blade Game

The ancestral tomb's bottomless passageway seemed to connect to an endless abyss. Shen Mu's steel torrent trod through mountains of corpses and seas of blood, guided by the blazing purifying light of the Holy Tree Knights, resolutely marched toward the core that devoured all light.

The gravel beneath our feet scraped against the filthy, frozen black ice and broken bones with a sickening grating sound. The air was thick with the stench of sulfur, rotting flesh, and despair, and every breath felt like swallowing scalding sand.

The armor of the Allied soldiers was stained with the filthy blood of the gnolls, which quickly evaporated and purified under the halo of the "Bristle Garden," leaving dark red marks. Only their eyes burned with the flames of a death wish, conveyed by Shen Mu through the [Tallinn] network of steely will.

Just then, the "Shadow of the End," which had been looming over the battlefield like a giant, ominous heart, suddenly paused in its twisted shadow!
It seemed to finally awaken from its greed that had devoured the Anhe Legion, and sensed the cold and pure edge of order that pierced through layers of filth and went straight to the core—the purifying light belonging to the "Thorn Barrier" and the indestructible array will of the human alliance.

The enormous wolf silhouette began to twist and shrink violently, emitting a silent, threatening howl. Its form rapidly faded before everyone's eyes, as if it were trying to break free from some kind of constraint and return to a deeper, more core existence.

However, just as the "Shadow of the End" was rapidly fading—

“Ouch——!!!”

A deafening roar, sharp enough to tear the soul apart, suddenly erupted from the deepest part of the ancestral tomb!

This howl was not uttered by a single creature, but by the desperate resonance of countless twisted souls.

Then, a second, a third… countless overlapping roars, filled with pain and rage, surged out from the depths of the dark tunnel like a tide, drowning out all the sounds of fighting on the battlefield.

In front of the human alliance's formation, the enormous interior space of the ancestral tomb, constructed of primitive megaliths, suddenly appeared.

In the depths of darkness, shrouded in a thick, almost tangible, filthy black mist, the ground writhed violently, and countless shattered gnoll skeletons, rotting flesh, and glowing abyssal crystals were being kneaded and stirred by an invisible giant hand.

Accompanied by nauseating, sticky tearing sounds and the cracking of bones dislocating, enormous, deformed, and blasphemous beings crawled out and stood before the allied forces.

They are the "false gods and evil spirits"!
Each one was several meters tall, as if they were flesh aggregates formed by forcibly mixing together a dozen gnolls and everything organic and inorganic that could be found on the battlefield.

On the bloated torso, seven or eight or even more jackal heads were fitted together at various bizarre angles, some roaring ferociously, some howling in pain, and some hollow and numb, with saliva and filthy blood constantly dripping down.

From both sides of the torso, a dozen or even twenty thick, twisted limbs covered with bone plates or abscesses extend out, each limb gripping a rusty scimitar, a giant axe, an iron hammer, or simply made of sharp bone spurs.

Their steps were heavy and chaotic, each step causing the ground to tremble, radiating a suffocating, terrifying pressure that was a mixture of divine blasphemy and abyssal filth, a hundred times more powerful than any of the previous abyssal wretches!
What's chilling is that these twisted monsters didn't just rush out randomly. They moved swiftly through the black mist, forming several thick lines of flesh and blades—a chaotic yet efficient abyssal force—within the narrow entrance space of the ancestral tomb, thanks to some kind of chaotic yet efficient abyssal will!
The countless jackal heads turned towards the human ranks simultaneously, and hundreds of eyes burning with murky green flames or scarlet blood light locked onto the light screen of the thorny barrier.

"Target locked! False god abomination cluster! Threat level: highest!" Within the Tarlin network, the voice of the staff officer in charge of monitoring trembled slightly, but his information transmission remained accurate and precise.

Shen Mu's gaze was as cold as ancient ice, unwavering in the slightest. The appearance of the pseudo-divine abomination was a manifestation of the Abyss's core's death throes, signifying that the ultimate source had been driven to the brink of despair!

"Long-range strike cluster!"

Shen Mu's voice, transmitted through the Tallinn network, was instantly imprinted in the consciousness of every remote commander.

The Rhodok Heavy Radiant Burst Crossbow array, which had been poised to unleash its destructive roar, was the first to do so!
"Target ahead: cluster of pseudo-divine abominations! Fire a volley—fire!" Commander Bandark's voice was like the scraping of steel.

Buzz - boom! ! !

Dozens of perfectly condensed, bucket-thick, radiant explosive crossbow bolts tore through the air, trailing long tails of light, like divine lightning, and struck precisely the densest area of ​​the pseudo-divine abomination array! The explosion instantly engulfed several pseudo-divine abominations in the front row, the purifying energy and the explosive shockwave combining perfectly.

The false god abominations that were directly hit had their countless heads and limbs melt and vaporize rapidly like wax in the dazzling white light; the shockwaves also tore apart and ripped apart the smaller false god abominations and the surging abyssal wrecks around them like rag dolls, plowing out several huge blank areas burning with the flames of purification in the filthy front line!

The residual purification energy at the point of impact of the crossbow bolts formed tiny energy vortexes, continuously burning away the abyssal aura that was trying to fill the void.

No sooner had Rhodok's devastating attack ended than the Vegia's Frost Arrow Archer phalanx unleashed its onslaught!
"Cover-up fire! Frostbite!" The voice of the Vaegir archer commander was calm and swift.

Buzz! Whoosh whoosh whoosh—!
A curtain of arrows, composed of azure magical ice energy, rose into the air, tracing a graceful arc, and precisely covered the rear of the pseudo-god abominations and the heads of the Abyssal wrecks preparing to charge on both sides.

Countless icy arrows pierced deep into the target's body or the ground, and terrifying extreme cold air erupted instantly!

Crack! A thick layer of magical ice, shimmering with a ghostly blue light, spread at a visible speed. The movements of the charging pseudo-godly abominations suddenly became incredibly sluggish, thick icicles forming at their joints, each step accompanied by a piercing cracking sound of ice shattering and a muffled thud of muscles tearing; many abyssal wrecks were directly frozen into stiff ice sculptures, shattering into a pile of ice shards under the shoving of the following troops.

The momentum of the entire pseudo-god abomination swarm was forcibly slowed down and frozen, creating excellent conditions for the advance of human infantry.

"Swadia! Rhodok!"

Shen Mu's order followed immediately.

"Infantry phalanx! Shield wall advance! Pikemen—forward!"

Major Caranzo, the Swadian heavy infantry commander, roared in unison with the senior Rhodok spearman commander as he directed his infantry formation.

The clanging sound of steel rubbing together merged into a torrent!
"Ha!" The Swadian heavy infantry roared, thrusting their massive tower shields forward, their edges interlocking to form a steel wall with almost no gaps, covered in the faint glow of the thorny barrier!
Beneath the shield, the heavy base of the tower shield was deeply embedded in the rubble, as stable as a mountain.

From the gaps above the shields and between the shields, countless Swadian spears and Rhodok super-long steel spears, gleaming with cold light, pierced out like a steel jungle, their tips pointing diagonally to the sky, carrying a chilling killing intent.

"Forward! Fight for the fortress!"

The steel wall began to relentlessly crush forward!

Swadian infantrymen, with synchronized steps, used their shields to push aside the frozen, sluggish, or attempting-to-charge abominations and wretches in front of them.

Each impact of the shield wall produced a dull thud, and each thrust of the spear was precise, deadly, and efficient!
Against the sluggish Abominations, Swadian pikemen were tasked with precisely targeting the relatively weakest points on their torsos or supporting legs for a powerful thrust; while the seasoned Rhodok spearmen displayed chilling piercing skills. Utilizing the advantage of their extra-long spears, they moved from a safe distance, thrusting, retracting, and thrusting again with mechanical precision and speed. Each thrust was like a viper's hiss, accurately piercing the joints of the Abominations' extra arms that were wielding weapons, the backs of their knees, or directly into the eye sockets and throats of their howling heads!
Countless twisted limbs and wailing heads broke and shattered under the cutting of the steel thorns.

The entire infantry formation was like a massive and intricate grinding wheel of flesh and blood. Accompanied by the impact of shields, the piercing of spears, the shattering of bones, and the dying howls of monsters, it advanced slowly, steadily, and unstoppably, carving a passage through the filthy wall of flesh and blood!

"Heavy cavalry! Prepare to charge!"

Shen Mu's voice was like a warhammer striking steel.

In the relatively open rear of the ancestral tomb, the steel torrent formed by the already assembled Swadian heavy cavalry and the reserve force of the Holy Tree Knights emitted a low hiss.

The knights lowered their visors, gripped their lances and warhammers tightly, and their armored warhorses puffed out white breaths as they anxiously pawed at the gravel beneath their hooves.

Their gazes pierced through the ranks, fixed on the gap in the pseudo-divine abomination being torn open by the infantry phalanx. A chilling killing intent permeated and accumulated within the ranks, waiting only for the command to unleash a devastating thunderbolt.

"Khergit horse archers! Flanking maneuvers! Free hunt!" The Khergit commander's order was concise and powerful.

The experienced Khergit horse archers, already roaming the flanks, moved like a pack of wolves, maintaining their distance from the main battlefield, bows drawn and arrows nocked, their sharp eyes scanning the edge of the battlefield.

Their arrows seemed to have eyes, accurately striking the Abyssal Scourges who were trying to outflank the infantry phalanx from the flanks, or the special individuals in the False God Abominations who were clearly emitting mental fluctuations and trying to command or cast spells.

While their harassment was unlikely to directly kill the massive pseudo-god abominations, it effectively disrupted the Abyss's formation, delayed flank threats, and cleared obstacles for the main force's advance.

Shen Mu's gaze pierced through the chaotic battlefield, precisely locking onto a pseudo-divine abomination located in the center of the formation. This abomination was exceptionally large, and its core emitted the strongest fluctuations of corrupt divine energy.

It appears to be one of the core nodes of this group of twisted creations. "Holy Tree Knights! Target, the leader of the Central False God Abomination! Spear of Purification!" Shen Mu's order was directly given to Knight Commander Kalanzo.

At the same time, he channeled a pure energy of order toward the Knights through the Tallinn Network.

"In the name of the sacred tree! Purify the filth!" Kalanzo raised his warhammer, which burned with the flames of judgment, and his voice was like thunder.

The core members of the Holy Tree Knights, who had been waiting in the wings, responded instantly.

They formed a sharp, triangular assault formation, and the intricate runes on their armor suddenly lit up, resonating with each other to create a powerful array of radiant light.

The knights at the very front, including Caranzo, had lances with no tips, but instead had highly compressed holy light energy, like liquid platinum, condensed at the tips!
boom--!
Several enormous beams of light, each more than half a meter in diameter and composed entirely of divine purifying energy, shot out from the Knights' ranks like spears of judgment!

They ignored the ordinary pseudo-divine abominations that were slowed down by the infantry formations along the way, and bombarded the leader pseudo-divine abomination that Shen Mu had designated with perfect accuracy!
Sizzle—!!!

Like a red-hot branding iron being plunged into filthy oil!
The divine purifying energy and the defiled, blasphemous divinity underwent a most intense annihilation reaction!

The false god's leader let out a roar that was even more shrill and painful than all the previous howls combined!

On its massive body, the area struck by the light spear instantly vaporized and evaporated, revealing a writhing core inside that shimmered with filthy divine light!

A dozen or so heads exploded simultaneously, and dozens of arms flared wildly in the purified flames before turning to ashes!
Its proud protection of impure divine energy is as fragile as paper in the face of pure holy light energy amplified by the rules of the "Bitter Garden"!
Although it was not killed in one blow, the attack clearly dealt a severe blow to its core. Its massive body began to tremble and collapse violently, and the light in its core dimmed rapidly.

The terrifying purifying power even affected the other pseudo-divine abominations around it, causing them to cower and utter fearful cries.

After the holy light passed, several huge, terrifying penetrating wounds, with molten gold-like purifying energy flowing from the edges, were left on the massive body of the leader, the pseudo-god abomination. Its mobility was greatly reduced, and its aura plummeted.

"Heavy cavalry! Target: the gap in the enemy lines! Charge!" Shen Mu's timing was impeccable!

Just as the false god's leader was severely injured and the chaos around him intensified, the order to charge was given!
"For Swadia! For the Bastion!! Kill—!!!"

Bandak took the lead, raising his heavy hammer high above his head and letting out a roar that shook the battlefield.

The Swadian heavy cavalry, who could no longer contain themselves, suddenly clenched their horses' bellies and laid their heavy lances flat!

Boom, boom! ! !

The earth groaned under the iron hooves! The steel torrent started and accelerated instantly! With some of the knights of Bandak and the Holy Tree Knights as the sharpest spearheads, like a steel torrent bursting its banks, it crashed into the gap in the infantry formation that had been torn open by the Holy Light and weakened by the false god abominations!

Impact! Crushing! Shattering!

The terrifying power of the heavy cavalry charge was on full display at this moment! The pseudo-divine abominations, weakened by the holy light and scattered by the infantry phalanx, could only be destroyed in the face of the steel torrent carrying enormous potential energy!

Lances pierced through massive flesh and blood, warhammers smashed twisted skulls, and armored warhorses trampled the wrecked corpses blocking their path into a bloody pulp!

Bandak's heavy hammer, carrying the force of a thunderbolt, slammed into the core of the body of a pseudo-god abomination that was trying to stop him. The blow, containing armor-piercing and shock-inducing power, shattered the core, and the massive body crashed to the ground!

Caranzo's flames of judgment raged through the cavalry charge, igniting everything in their path. The charge of the heavy cavalry completely shattered the false god's attempt to reorganize the frontline formation, dividing and scattering it!
Where the steel torrent passed, it left behind only a path of destruction paved with filthy blood, minced flesh, and broken weapons!
The wails of the false gods became the main theme of the battlefield, and their numbers began to decline sharply under the absolute tactical advantage and highly efficient coordinated attacks of the human alliance!
However, the madness of the abyss is far beyond imagination!
The birth of the False God Abominations was itself a product of despair. Even when they were torn apart and severely wounded, even when their leaders were seriously injured by the Holy Light, the surviving, dying, or even half-dead False God Abominations, along with the endless ordinary abyssal undead gnolls behind them, completely catalyzed by the will of the abyss, erupted in a final, hysterical frenzy!

"Woohoo—!!!" There was no reason, no fear, only the purest desire for destruction.

The broken, monstrous abominations dragged their crumbling bodies, ignoring the spears piercing their flesh and the burning holy flames, and wildly swung their weapons with their remaining limbs, smashing them against the tower shields of the Swadian infantry; they even used their massive bodies as battering rams, recklessly crashing into the steel shield walls!

The ordinary abyssal undead gnolls surged like a black tide, wave after wave, trampling over the corpses of their comrades, sacrificing themselves entirely, and frantically pounced on the spear jungle, using their bodies to block and break the spears, and their claws to tear at the edges of shields and the leg armor of the infantry!
"Hold on! Don't retreat!" the Swadian soldiers roared, their muscles bulging, their tower shields deeply embedded in the ground, their shoulders bracing against the back of the shields.

But the force of the impact was too great! Crack!
Under the continuous impact of several remnants of false gods and dozens of inferior beings, the tower shield finally succumbed to its strain. The metal on the shield's surface twisted and shattered under the corrosion of the corrupting power and the immense impact!
The soldier behind the shield coughed up blood and was thrown back, instantly creating a small gap in the defensive line! Immediately afterward, several more tower shields groaned under the relentless, frenzied impact, and the shield wall began to twist and dent!

The experienced Rhodok spearmen thrust with all their might, but after their spears pierced one, two, or even three enemies, they often couldn't pull them out in time before being grabbed and dragged by the surging enemy!
Even more fearless and reckless individuals climbed up the spear shafts and pounced on the spearmen!

The corpses piled up in front of the lines at an alarming rate, the slope getting steeper and steeper, even exceeding the height of the shield wall!

The remaining enemies, standing atop the mountain of corpses, launched a swooping attack from above!

The filthy blood, like a viscous waterfall, flowed continuously down from the mountain of corpses, soaking the soldiers' boots and leg guards, and even trying to seep into the gaps in their armor, bringing a cold and corrosive sensation.

The soldiers' stamina was rapidly depleted under the frenzied output and high-intensity defense. Every impact of the shields made their arms go numb, and every thrust of the spears felt ten times heavier than before!
"Sir! The shield wall of the third squad on the left flank is under too much pressure! We need reinforcements!"

"The spears of the right-wing Rhodok phalanx have been dragged out in large numbers, and the formation is loosening!"

In the Tallinn network, urgent calls for help from frontline officers echoed continuously. The soldiers' roars began to be punctuated by heavy breathing and a hint of barely suppressed wavering.

Even with the amplification of the "Bristle Garden" rules, and even with the soldiers' well-trained and fearless nature, the steely will and flesh-and-blood bulwark felt immense pressure in the face of this "mountain of corpses" offensive, which relied purely on numbers, madness, and filthy will, and disregarded their own deaths.

The steel forest of Swadian heavy infantry and Rhodok veteran spearmen, under the relentless onslaught of filth and flesh, emitted a chilling groan, as if it were about to break!
Shen Mu stood at the core of the thorny fortress, witnessing the faltering of the front line. His face showed no panic, only a growing solemnity and calculation.

He clearly "saw" the nodes in the [Tallinn] network representing the physical strength and will of the frontline soldiers rapidly depleting, and he also "saw" the filthy divine energy in the core area of ​​the abyss fluctuating violently during the abyss's frantic counterattack, like boiling water being thrown with a boulder—a sign that power was being consumed in large quantities and was about to reach its limit.

"Kalanzo!" Shen Mu's voice pierced the ears of the Holy Tree Knights commander, who had just completed a charge and was adjusting his formation, through the network.

"Here!" Caranzo's voice was breathless, but his fighting spirit remained high.

"Target, the Corpse Mountain node ahead! Light of Judgment! Open the field of vision for the phalanx! Heavy infantry! Hold the line! Reinforcements are on their way! Rhodok reserves! Spearmen, fill in!" Shen Mu's orders were clear and forceful.

Instead of immediately deploying the final reserve team, he chose to use the strongest purifying power to tear open a gap at the most critical juncture!
"Holy Tree Knights! Judgment Light Array! Target: High Point of the Mountain of Corpses! Purify!" Without hesitation, Kalanzo instantly mobilized the remaining strength of the knights. The knights once again gathered holy light, this time not into spears, but into a huge, fan-shaped purification light screen, like a divine broom of light, sweeping fiercely towards the highest point of the mountain of corpses!

Boom! Boom!

The corpses swept by the purifying light curtain, along with the abyssal wreckage that climbed and leaped above them, melted away like ice and snow! The pungent smell of burning mixed with the purifying aura spread out.

The mountain of corpses that had exerted such a tremendous pressure on the infantry formation was cleaved in two! The previously obscured view instantly opened up, and the overwhelming pressure lessened considerably!
"Ha! Swadians! For the Emperor! Push back!" Seizing this precious respite, the Swadian soldiers behind the shield wall unleashed new strength, using their shoulders and their lives to straighten the twisted shield wall once again!

The Rhodok reserve spearmen waiting in the rear immediately filled the gaps on the front line, and their gleaming spears once again solidified the steel jungle!

After a brief period of instability, the battle situation was forcibly stabilized once again.

The human alliance's formation, like the most resilient reef in a storm, withstood the raging waves but never collapsed. Amidst mountains of corpses and seas of blood, they steadfastly and relentlessly crushed the black core deep within the ancestral tomb, a core pulsating with terrifying divine defilement.

The final judgment is descending irresistibly with each shield bash, each thrust, and each flash of purifying light.

The source of chaos, hidden deep within the core of the tomb and composed of the "Node of the Primordial Divine Remains" and the "Hand of God," is already within reach! (End of Chapter)