Chapter 247: King vs. King

The two places where the bright purple signal flares rose were the battalions that had already been severely crippled, and this time, Wu Qingsong committed even more forces to these locations. By the time Raman arrived at the Sirisio Garrison’s battalion, there were barely any mastiff soldiers left alive. All that remained below were shadows of undead creatures scurrying in every direction.

Unlike before, Raman didn’t bother chasing them. Instead, he threw a few fireballs at the clusters of undead, just to make his presence known. He then rushed off to the third location.

That battalion had left camp as ordered, marching deeper into the encirclement, planning to set up camp at a forward outpost previously constructed by a detachment. Wu Qingsong had already been preparing to ambush this battalion after nightfall, and he had gathered a large number of zombies to hide nearby. This allowed him to send his undead forces after them shortly after they left their previous camp.

Although they’d been warned about what was coming, some things only become clear when you’re actually facing them. Even with their enhanced night vision, the darkness still posed a challenge for these soldiers. But for the undead, nightfall wasn’t a problem at all.

This regiment came from Baron Elyar’s territory, specifically from Rem City, a place Wu Qingsong knew all too well. 

In fact, many of them had dealt with the Silvermoon Wolf Clan for quite some time. After the great fire in Rem City, and the death of their regiment commander at Nina’s hands, they had pretty much given up on causing trouble for the Wolf Clan. Instead, they focused on looting nearby civilians and slaves.

Even among the various conscripted units for this campaign, this regiment stood out as one of the most undisciplined and weakest in terms of combat effectiveness. 

They had shown their bravery during the massacre of the wolfkin villages, but when faced with undead soldiers, their courage lasted barely twenty minutes. Once the undead war wolves charged, the entire regiment crumbled from the center, falling apart completely. Soon, everyone was desperately fleeing into the surrounding forest, only to be swiftly overwhelmed by the undead.

This development left Wu Qingsong, who was watching from the distant forest, momentarily stunned. He had been prepared for a prolonged standoff here. He expected to lose a significant chunk of his forces under Raman’s magical onslaught. But he had never anticipated that they would hand him such an unexpected gift.

Without missing a beat, he ordered the undead to scatter once again. 

Just as he did, Raman arrived. He glowed with a blinding red light, and began raining down spells on the stragglers who hadn’t yet dispersed.

Wu Qingsong could feel the subtle connections between his soul flame and the undead soldiers rapidly diminishing, but it didn’t bother him much. In fact, it was exactly what he had anticipated and wasn’t worth regretting.

A mage’s magic wasn’t limitless. 

Even for someone like him, who exceeded the norms of this world, Wu Qingsong could only endure the deep soul-crushing pain, bit by bit, as he purified those soul fragments.

He didn’t believe for a second that this elf could keep up such intense firepower indefinitely.

Since it was clear a decisive battle would take place tonight, the more magic Raman used up here, the less he’d have left for what was coming next.

Wu Qingsong even deliberately let some groups of zombies gather together as they retreated. He hopped to draw Raman’s attention and make him waste more fireballs.

But Raman quickly caught on to the trick. He stopped wasting his magic and instead circled swiftly above the forest, then flew deeper into the encirclement.

‘He’s looking for the wolfkin!’

Wu Qingsong cursed under his breath and immediately ordered his undead to move.

Suddenly– Thwack! 

Something slammed into Raman’s magical barrier, causing it to flicker and ripple. It startled him for a moment, and then more of the same projectiles rained down from the forest below.

The magic barrier surrounding both Raman and the giant eagle flickered continuously. It sent out ripples like waves as it blocked the sudden barrage of attacks.

Crossbow bolts?

Raman quickly figured it out and immediately pulled up higher. He seethed with anger at the battalion that had been wiped out by the undead.

Useless fools!

Crossbows were standard-issue equipment in the Imperial army. It was also widely used by local garrisons and mercenary groups. Difficult to craft due to their complex design and packing far more punch than regular bows, they had always been a crucial weapon for suppressing various rebel forces.

Against rebels wearing nothing but crude leather armor, or sometimes no armor at all, a single crossbow bolt could cause devastating injuries. In contrast, the rebels’ hunting bows struggled to pierce the soldiers’ heavy armor—thirty meters was all it took for a volley to break any rebel charge.

But when used against undead, these powerful weapons were little more than an inconvenience. The bolts might slow their movement slightly, even if their bodies were riddled with arrows. 

During earlier battles, Wu Qingsong had seized nearly 800 crossbows from the enemy, and he had carefully stockpiled them for moments like this.

Two or three hundred undead surged through the forest, launching an attack on Raman and diverting his attention back to them. 

Wu Qingsong seized the opportunity, he grabbed Liuli and sneaked through the darkness towards the spot where they had split up from Ling and Daryl earlier. Behind them, explosions of fire lit up the night as Raman unleashed his magic from a safe distance, wiping out any threats to his safety.

For a mage, long-range attackers were always the top priority.

“Wu? When’s it going to be my turn?” Liuli asked nervously, though there was a flicker of excitement in her voice. 

Ling had been proving more and more useful lately, while she had barely gotten a chance to contribute. It left her feeling a bit uneasy.

“Don’t worry,” Wu Qingsong reassured her. “Liuli, soon enough, you’ll get your moment!”

A mass of undead was moving alongside them through the darkness, but when they finally reached their destination, there was still no sign of Nina or the others.

Wu Qingsong began to feel uneasy. They should have arrived by now.

Just as he was about to move, a massive explosion rocked the distant forest.

Raman, who had been hovering in the air, hurling fireballs, immediately stopped and shot off towards the source of the blast.

“Damn it!” Wu Qingsong’s heart sank. 

There was no doubt about it—Nina and her group must have been caught up in that.

Were they being held up by the other elf?

Without wasting another second, he grabbed Liuli and poured a large cluster of soul fragments into the nearby undead war wolf, commanding it to sprint toward the explosion at top speed.

More undead followed in their wake.