Real Mount and Blade Game

Before the dust from the collapse of the ancestral tomb's massive gate had even settled, a sweltering heat wave, far more intense than the one outside, filled with sulfur, rotting flesh, and charred lava, surged out like a gigantic fist, slamming into the faces of the human alliance that had just stepped into the sub-plane.

The sight before them took even the most battle-hardened soldiers' breath away:
The sky was a congealed, dark red scab, churning with filthy, thick clouds that occasionally cracked open, letting down viscous, asphalt-like "raindrops" that scorched into the air upon landing. The earth was a cracked, charred crust of rock, with scarlet lava flowing through its fissures like the earth's veins, yet exuding the venom of an abyss.

Countless enormous, unidentified skeletons lay half-buried in lava and scorched earth, twisted and deformed, some still burning with eerie green phosphorescence.

In the distance, a mountain range composed of pure darkness and pulsating red light—the very core of the gnoll god Yenogu's utterly corrupted remains—stands at the heart of this hellish landscape. Each pulsation causes the entire Molten Heart Domain to tremble, releasing visible shockwaves of filth.

"Hold your ground! Deploy into the planned formation!"

Shen Mu's voice pierced through the [Tallinn] network, cold and resolute, instantly dispelling the fear in the hearts of some soldiers. His orders were clear and efficient, having already been transmitted to the minds of each commander via mental links before they even stepped through the gates.

"Swadian heavy infantry! Rhodok veteran spearmen! Outer ring defensive array! 'Wall of Sighs' erected!" the messenger roared, his voice piercingly high in the oppressive space.

The elite Swadian warriors immediately sprang into action.

With a dull thud, the heavy alloy tower shields, layer upon layer, fit together tightly, their barbs interlocking, rapidly constructing a steel Great Wall covered with thorny vine patterns on the scorching earth.

From the gaps in the tower shield, spears gleaming with a cold, icy light emerged like venomous snakes. The Rhodok spearmen gripped the ends of their spears tightly, the tips pointing diagonally at the ground, forming the first deadly forest of spears. The entire circular defensive line, about fifty paces in radius, resembled a giant, spiky steel hedgehog curled up on this infernal land. On the surface of the tower shield, the faint purification runes inscribed beforehand by the Holy Tree Knights glowed dimly, struggling against the pervasive abyssal corruption of the environment.

"Vegia Icewind Archer Phalanx! Rhodok Heavy Radiant Burst Ballistae! Center zone, tiered deployment! Target—all approaching filthy creations!" The order was given again.

The Vaegir archers moved with lightning speed, quickly finding relatively stable footholds in the central area, taking down their magical longbows, and nocking specially made arrows that shimmered with frost-white freezing air.

Their breath turned into white mist in the scorching air, their eyes sharp as eagles.

The Rhodok crossbowmen worked together to push several heavy Radiant Burst crossbows, which had survived the previous battles and undergone emergency repairs, onto high ground in the formation or reinforced bone mounds. The heavy bolts were loaded into the quivers that emitted a purifying glow, and the crossbow arms made a teeth-grinding sound as they were cocked.

Their mission was to slow down, freeze, and tear apart the dense enemy vanguard, and to provide long-range fire support for the infantry lines.

"The Holy Tree Knights! The Swadian Knights! Heavy Cavalry Group! Core Standby Area! Don your armor and mount your horses!" Shen Mu's voice carried an undeniable authority.

In the innermost circle, the Holy Tree Knights silently mounted their warhorses, which were also covered in mithril chainmail and had their hooves wrapped in non-slip, heat-resistant material.

Their warhammers, flails, and greatswords glowed with holy light, becoming the brightest source of light in this dark region.

The Swadian knights inspected their lances and longswords, while the heavy cavalry gripped their battering lances. Like a sleeping dragon, a powerful shockwave gathered in the core, awaiting the crucial moment to tear through the enemy lines and turn the tide of battle.

Commander Kalanzo stood at the forefront, his gaze piercing through the pervasive sulfurous smoke, fixed on the pulsating Black Core Mountains in the distance. The faint purifying aura released by the Holy Tree Knights combined barely created a small, relatively "clean" space in the core area, allowing the soldiers to catch their breath.

"Experienced Kujit mounted archers, steppe scouts! Patrol the outer perimeter of the defensive line! Fire freely, harass the flanks, and eliminate any stray threats!"

The nimble Kujit cavalry, like agile cheetahs, began to move rhythmically along the outer edge of the hedgehog formation.

Their superb horsemanship allowed them to maintain speed and maneuverability even on the rugged terrain filled with skeletons and lava fissures, and the arrows in their quivers were also coated with purification or burst runes targeting the abyss.

Under Shen Mu's cold and precise command, the hedgehog formation was deployed at an astonishing speed in the suffocatingly harsh environment.

Steel barriers, frozen arrows, and ready-to-go iron hooves form an island of order rooted in lava and bones.

The existence of this isolated island instantly enraged the ruler of this Melting Heart Domain.

Woo-woo-woo-woo!
Like a silent roar emanating from a pulsating black core, the entire lava landscape trembled violently. In the distance, lava rivers boiled and surged, and the scorched, cracked ground swelled up with pustules, which then burst!
The first wave of attacks came from cannon fodder at the very bottom of the abyss—the abyssal undead gnolls.

They seemed to have crawled out of the filthiest swamps of hell, their bodies covered in burning lava droplets, their crevices filled with charred mud, and their empty eye sockets burning with a pure desire for destruction.

They roared and howled, completely disorganized, like a raging torrent of filth bursting its banks, surging towards the steel hedgehog formation from all directions!

Their sheer number filled the field of vision almost instantly; the sounds of footsteps, bones grinding together, and lava sizzling as it burned bodies blended into a chilling symphony of death.

"Rhodok! Vikya! Covert fire! Scatter them!" Shen Mu's command fell like a cold guillotine.

Buzz—! Boom! Boom! Boom!
The Rhodok Heavy Radiant Burst Crossbow roared first. The massive beam of light, trailing a blinding purifying tail, crashed into the densest part of the gnoll horde like a miniature sun.

Amidst the deafening explosion, a blinding white light erupted, instantly vaporizing dozens or even hundreds of undead gnolls. The powerful purifying energy shockwave blew away and burned the gnolls on the outer edges, their filthy bodies sizzling as they melted.

The explosion site left behind charred craters, their walls shimmering with tiny specks of light.

"Ice Wind! Volley—!"

The voice of the Vikjani commander pierced through the aftershocks of the explosion. The Icewind Archers, who had been drawing their bows and ready to fire, simultaneously released their strings.

Boom!
Amidst a sickeningly sharp bowstring tremor, hundreds of frosty white streaks tore through the polluted air.

The arrows landed precisely in front of the gap created by the Radiant Burst Crossbow and on the heads of the gnolls swarming in from the flanks. *Thud thud thud!*

The sound of the arrow piercing flesh wasn't loud, but a terrifying burst of freezing air erupted instantly!

Crack!

Large numbers of gnolls were frozen in place, their movements instantly stiff and sluggish, covered with a thick layer of frost.

The undead gnolls at the forefront were frozen into ice sculptures while still in a forward-leaning posture, and were then smashed to pieces by their brethren surging from behind.

Frozen air spread out, forming slippery patches of ice on the scorching ground, throwing the charging gnolls into disarray and sending them sprawling. The collision of ice and fire generated a large amount of steam, blurring visibility, but the Vaegir archers didn't need to see clearly; they only needed to continuously and accurately bombard the dark figures surging within the steam.

The long-range attacks effectively slowed the advance of the jackal horde, but their numbers were simply too great, and they continued to surge forward fearlessly, trampling over the frozen, charred remains of their comrades.

"Infantry! Prepare to engage the enemy! Hold the line! Rifle fire, thrust!"

The roars of the Swadian phalanx commanders echoed behind the shield wall.

Boom!

The filthy tide finally crashed hard against the steel dam!

The dull, dense, and teeth-grinding sounds of impact instantly became the main theme of the battlefield.

The immense impact sent shivers down the spines of the front-line Swadian heavy infantry, the heavy tower shields radiating a chilling pressure and a hissing, corrosive sound.

The tower shield was dented and deformed from the impact, and the faint purifying light enchanted on the shield flickered violently, fiercely fighting against and dissolving the black aura entwined around the abyssal gnoll.

"Hold on!" the soldiers roared, bracing their shoulders against the inner support frame of the tower shield, their boots sinking into the scorching earth and emitting wisps of smoke.

Their unwavering willpower transformed into an invisible force, supporting the steel bulwark.

Just as the undead gnolls rammed into the shield wall, Rhodok's spear moved!
"prick--!"

With a unified command, a forest of spears shot out from the gaps in the shields like venomous snakes emerging from their holes! *Thud! Thud! Thud!*
Precise, ruthless, and deadly!
Weakened by ranged attacks and with their momentum blocked by shield walls, the gnolls became easy targets.

Spears imbued with runes of armor penetration, piercing, and faint purification easily pierced their decaying bones and withered muscles, penetrating their heads or vital organs that burned with soul fire.

The gnolls in the front row were like skewers of candied hawthorns, pierced by spears, their wounds gushing with filthy blood, broken bones, and internal organs, emitting mournful howls.

"receive--!"

The spear retracted with lightning speed, bringing with it clusters of filthy, bloody, and fleshy pieces.

A gap briefly appeared in the shield wall, revealing the hellish scene outside, before being filled by a new impact.

"prick--!"

Another precise thrust!

Like cold, hard killing machines, the infantry lines efficiently reaped the enemies who ran afoul of their spears. Tower shields absorbed the impact, while spears finished them off—a perfect defensive counter-attack formation.

The corpses of the undead gnolls quickly piled up in front of the shield wall, forming a natural obstacle that hindered subsequent charges of their kind.

"Kujit! Hunt them freely! Don't let them swarm!" Shen Mu's command echoed through the [Tallinn] network.

The Khergit cavalry patrolling the perimeter responded immediately. Experienced mounted archers drew their bows and fired precise shots at gnolls attempting to bypass the frontal assault or gather foul energy behind piles of corpses to unleash spell-like attacks.

Arrows imbued with explosive runes can often accurately shatter their skulls or interrupt their spellcasting. The scouting riders are more agile, using their speed advantage to skim across the edge of the battlefield like dragonflies, hurling burning oil canisters or potent purification scrolls into areas where gnolls are relatively densely packed, causing chaos and secondary casualties.

The first wave of attacks was forcefully contained at the perimeter of the steel hedgehog formation by the efficient and ruthless coordinated operations of the human alliance, the filthy spray shattering against the shield towers amidst the hail of bullets.

The corpses were piled up like mountains, and the air was filled with a terrifying stench of burning, blood, and sulfur.

However, the pulsating black core mountains seemed undisturbed. A flash of filthy light.

Awooo—!!!!

A roar far more violent and deafening than before, filled with endless pain and madness, swept across the entire battlefield from the direction of the Black Core like a tangible sonic cannon! The mountain of jackal corpses began to writhe as if alive, their bodies dissolving and merging!
A new threat has emerged!
No longer fragile cannon fodder. From the cracks in the earth and the rivers of lava, crawl out monsters of even greater size and more twisted, deformed forms—the gnoll-man pseudo-gods!
Some possessed three jackal heads burning with different colored evil flames, their bodies a mixture of lava and skeleton; others had the lower bodies of enormous centipede-like structures, their barbed limbs moving effortlessly through the lava; some had tattered bone wings on their backs, hovering low in the air and casting ominous shadows; still others resembled gigantic mountains of flesh, their bodies constantly oozing corrosive pus, each step causing the ground to tremble. The oppressive aura they exuded far surpassed that of the undead jackalmen, their filthy power forming a viscous black mist shield around them. Their goal was crystal clear—to crush that steel hedgehog radiating the abhorrent light of order!
The real test has arrived.

"Long-range cluster! Prioritize high-speed and flying targets! Energy cores and joints! Infantry! Prepare for the assault! 'Iron Thorns,' full power!" Shen Mu's command was swift and decisive, as cold as a knife.

The Vaegir archers immediately adjusted their targets. A dense barrage of icy arrows rained down on the low-flying winged abominations and the centipede-like, swift ground creatures.

The freezing air attempts to freeze their wings or joints, slowing their speed.

Rhodok's heavy crossbows targeted the massive, relatively slow-moving, flesh-mountain-type pseudo-god abominations and lava giants, slamming their radiant bolts, laden with destructive purifying flames, into their chest furnaces or heads, which appeared to be their energy cores.

Boom! Boom! Crash!
Explosions and freezing sounds echoed one after another.

A winged pseudo-god abomination was struck in the wing by a barrage of icy arrows. The freezing air spread, causing it to lose its balance and plummet to the ground with a howl, crashing into a group of undead gnolls.

The joints of more than a dozen segments of the centipede-like pseudo-god were precisely frozen, causing its speed to drop drastically.

The Radiant Burst Crossbow exploded in the chest of a Flesh Mountain False God Abomination, splattering filthy flesh and lava fragments everywhere, creating a terrifying hole, and emitting a painful roar.

However, these attacks can only cause damage or delay, but cannot achieve instant kill.

The False Abominations possessed incredible resilience; despite being riddled with wounds, they roared as they charged towards the steel defenses. The corrupted energy field emanating from them also significantly reduced the effectiveness of ranged attacks.

The first to arrive were several lava behemoths, pseudo-god abominations. Like moving miniature volcanoes, they slammed into Swadia's tower shield line with scorching heat and a foul stench!

boom--! ! !
Like a battering ram striking a city wall!
This impact was far greater than before! The sturdy tower shield emitted a teeth-grinding groan, the metal on the shield surface instantly turned red-hot and melted, and the enchanted purification runes flickered violently before abruptly going out!

The shield-bearing Swadian heavy infantrymen were struck as if by a heavy blow, spitting out blood and carving deep trenches under their feet. Several tower shields even shattered directly under the enormous impact and high temperature corrosion!
"Cover up! Hold the line!" The reserve team in the back row roared as they rushed forward, using their shields and bodies to block the gap.

The enormous lava claws scratched at the shield, splashing blinding sparks and scalding lava droplets, and screams rang out instantly.

"Rhodok! Thrust!!!" The spearmen, their eyes bloodshot, seized the slight moment of stiffness in the pseudo-god abomination's movements after the impact and thrust their spears out fiercely!
Ding! Puff!

The spearheads pierced the hard lava shells or skeletal armor of the false gods, producing a metallic clang or a dull thud as they entered flesh.

Some spears broke, while others successfully pierced relatively soft areas.

However, the size and strength of the false god abominations were too great, and the excruciating pain only fueled their ferocity!
A giant lava beast, its thigh pierced by a stab, went berserk and suddenly raised its massive hoof to stomp down!

The area of ​​effect was so wide that several Rhodok spearmen were unable to dodge in time and were trampled into a bloody pulp along with their spears!
The filthy lava blood splattered onto the shield wall, producing a terrible corrosive sound.

The defenses are under attack at several points simultaneously!
One of the false god abominations with bone spurs on its back even tried to leap over the shield wall from the side and above and pounce into the center circle!

Commander of the Holy Tree Knights, Kalanzo, narrowed his eyes and pointed his warhammer sharply at the monster: "Holy Light! Judgment!"

A thick pillar of purifying holy light descended from the sky, striking the leaping pseudo-god abomination precisely on the back, slamming it back to the ground. Its bone spurs shattered, its back charred black, and it let out a painful howl.

The Viktors immediately focused their fire, freezing him in place.

But more false god-like creatures are closing in. The three-headed jackal false god-like creature shook off the entangled undead jackal, opened its lava-flowing maw, and filthy energy condensed within it, its target aimed directly at the ranged cluster in the center!

"Thorn Barrier - Root Erosion! Transfer!" Shen Mu's pupils contracted slightly, and the [Tallinn] network instantly overclocked.

hum!
In the central area of ​​the Hedgehog Formation, the core of the Thorn Barrier magic array shone brightly!

On the ground, countless phantom images of thorny vines covered with sharp spikes, made of pure purifying energy, instantly spread out!

They were not attacking, but rather instantly forming a semi-transparent energy barrier in front of the remote cluster.

boom! boom! boom!
Three thick, foul lava breaths struck the purifying thorn barrier almost simultaneously!
The violent energy collision produced a deafening explosion!

The barrier fluctuated violently, and large swathes of thorny vines vanished, but it ultimately blocked the devastating barrage!

The dissipated energy shockwave swept across the surroundings, overturning some ballistae and archers in the central circle, leaving a scene of devastation, but the core strength was preserved.

The Rhodok crossbowmen took the opportunity to reload and aimed their bolts at the three-headed false god abomination that was briefly stunned after exhaling its breath.

The defensive line was teetering on the brink of collapse, and the pressure had reached its peak since the start of the war. The infantry phalanx was suffering heavy casualties, and the ranged units were being heavily targeted. The hedgehog formation seemed poised to be completely overwhelmed and crushed by this terrifying tide of pseudo-divine abominations at any moment!
Just then, in the core standby area, Shen Mu's cold gaze swept across the entire battlefield.

He saw the cracks in the shield wall, the brief disarray in the formation of the pseudo-god abominations due to attacks and injuries, and several powerful pseudo-god abominations that had broken free from the cover of the monsters behind them while attacking the ranged group, their positions slightly exposed.

"Heavy cavalry! Target—the False Divine Abominations flank! Holy Tree Knights, activate Purification Aura! Swadian Knights, wedge attack! Pierce them! Create space for the infantry!" Shen Mu's voice was resolute, like the clarion call of final judgment!

"For order! For purification! Knights of the Holy Tree! Charge with me—!!!" Commander Kalanzo raised his warhammer, burning with intense holy light, and was the first to spur his mount on!
"Swadia! Honor is my life! Charge—!!!" The commander of the Swadia Knights roared, lowering his face armor and raising his lance horizontally!
Rumble, rumble—!
The pent-up power, like a sleeping dragon awakening, instantly mobilized the steel torrent in the core standby area!

The Holy Tree Knights charged at the forefront, their purifying halos expanding rapidly, like tiny suns illuminating the filthy darkness!

Wherever the pure holy light passed, the pervasive black mist rapidly dissolved with a hissing sound, as if it had encountered its nemesis. Those low-level undead gnolls that approached were even turned to ashes!

The Holy Light realm forcibly carved out a relatively "clean" passage through the filthy tide!

Closely following behind were the Swadian Knights and their heavy cavalry! The heavy hooves trampled on the bones and scorched earth, producing a soul-shattering roar!

Knights clad in the heaviest armor, holding their gleaming lances level, formed an invincible triangular assault formation!

Their target was a three-headed jackal pseudo-god abomination whose breath had just been blocked by the Cleansing Thorn Barrier, leaving it in a brief state of paralysis and rage!
This monster was enormous and was positioned right behind and to the side of several pressure points in the infantry defense lines!

"Purification Spear!" Several Holy Tree Knights at the forefront roared simultaneously, concentrating their holy light energy at the tips of their weapons, transforming them into thrown holy light spears that shot first toward the head and joints of the False God Abomination!

Boom! The holy light exploded, interfering with the false god's perception and actions.

The next moment!
The torrent of steel crashed into it fiercely!
Bang! Crack!
With the immense kinetic energy amplified, the Swadian knight's heavy lance struck precisely the relatively vulnerable leg joints and waist-abdomen junction of the false god's abomination!
The Holy Tree Knight's warhammer and flail, imbued with immense force and purifying holy flames, slammed into its head and back!

Bones shattered! Lava and flesh splattered everywhere!
The destructive impact, imbued with divine power, instantly pierced through the body of this powerful pseudo-divine abomination!

It let out a deafening howl filled with endless pain and disbelief, its massive body being thrown off the ground and rolling backward like a giant bowling ball, slamming into the horde of false god monstrosities and undead jackals surging from behind!
This attack was like throwing a block of ice into a boiling pot of oil! Chaos erupted instantly!

The heavy cavalry broke through this point, but did not linger. Instead, they charged forward without stopping along the path opened by the holy light, like a red-hot knife cutting into solidified grease, continuing to expand their gains!
Their mission was to disrupt the enemy's offensive rhythm, create gaps, generate chaos, and relieve pressure on the infantry lines, rather than engage in a stalemate with the powerful false god abominations.

The effect was immediate! The soldiers on the infantry line, who had been under immense pressure from the three-headed pseudo-divine abomination on their flank, suddenly felt much less pressure! And behind the pseudo-divine abomination swarm, the offensive stalled due to the chaos and trampling caused by the one of its kind that had been knocked away!
"Infantry! Counter-push! Fortify the lines!" The Swadian commander seized the fleeting opportunity and roared at the top of his lungs.

The pike formation, now under reduced pressure, displayed astonishing resilience.

Soldiers in the rear filled the gap, the damaged tower shields were quickly replaced, and broken spears were gripped in new ones. They even seized the brief openings created by the chaos among the abominations, advancing several steps forward to solidify the defensive line on the outer perimeter and pushing more abomination corpses and rubble forward to build an even higher temporary barrier.

"Remote cluster! Cover the rear of the false god abomination! Block reinforcements! Khergit! Coordinate with the heavy cavalry to expand the chaos!" Shen Mu's commands were like precise gears, one link after another.

Rhodok ballistae and Vaegir archers immediately turned their fire on the monsters behind the swarm of pseudo-god abominations that had not yet joined the attack and were being affected by the chaos ahead. Explosions and frost erupted once again deep within the enemy ranks.

The Khergit horse archers appeared like ghosts at the edge of the chaotic area, their precise arrows aimed at the false god leaders or energy nodes that were trying to reorganize.

The Hedgehog Formation, having withstood the most intense onslaught of the False God's Abyss, finally regained its footing thanks to Shen Mu's precise command, the Holy Tree Knights' crucial purification charge, the heavy cavalry's deadly assault, and the infantry phalanx's tenacious resilience.

The corpses piled up even higher, and the steel ramparts were covered in filthy flesh and lava, exuding a unique stench of burning and purification by holy light.

The soldiers panted, seizing every second to recover their strength, their eyes fixed on the still surging abyssal tide on the outside, and the black core mountain in the distance that was beating more and more violently, as if it had been completely enraged.

The blade of judgment remains firmly held; though the hedgehog's quills are stained with blood, they remain sharp, deeply rooted in this hell of lava and bones.

The furious roar of the Black Core foreshadows an even greater storm to come, and humanity's iron will will withstand the most brutal tempering before the final judgment arrives. (End of Chapter)