As the pure young girl drank the viscous substance in the cup, Amelo’s thoughts inevitably began to wander.
Xia Jin seemed to sense something and narrowed her eyes slightly. “Are you thinking about something inappropriate?”
Amelo: “...”
“You really were thinking about something indecent, weren't you?”
Amelo coughed awkwardly. “Well, I...”
“Shut up!”
Whoosh—
Xia Jin swung the cup, and the liquid inside splashed out, smearing all over Amelo’s face.
...
On the shores of Clearwillow Lake, the united army was still in a standoff with the gnoll forces that were arriving in a continuous stream.
At this stage, they had already captured over 5,000 square kilometers of territory.
On the gnolls' side, there was a sense of deep anxiety.
“Three tribes have already been defeated. Where on earth did these humans find the support of magic beasts?”
The new tribal patriarch looked at the gnoll warriors behind him who hadn't yet realized the severity of the situation, and his heart began to bleed.
The other patriarchs around him also had solemn expressions.
At this moment, rows of catapults appeared within the human ranks in the distance.
Over a dozen soldiers set up the machines and watched with their own eyes as several banelings crawled onto the ammunition slots.
“Is this really okay?” the battalion commander of this squad asked, feeling a bit uneasy as he turned to glance at the zergling beside him.
The zergling nodded.
“Phew.”
To be honest, their mindset had shifted from fear at the beginning to excitement now.
These insects were too strong, and they could form such a perfect cooperation with humans.
Catapults plus banelings... once launched, they were definitely a crude version of a cannon.
Once tossed into the enemy formation, a single blast would clear a massive area.
The key was that in mid air, the banelings could actively use air currents to fine tune their direction, essentially acting as if they were equipped with guidance systems.
“Everyone get ready! Notify the shield warriors in front to form a defensive line!”
Once the catapults were all in a state of readiness, the legion commander shouted at the top of his lungs.
The messengers waved their flags, sending the orders to the distant troops.
Soon, the entire legion began to move.
The dense crowds moved in neat, organized lines, forming a powerful front with tight phalanxes. They raised their long rectangular shields, creating a solid, impenetrable wall.
Under the sunlight, the metallic sheen rippled like water. Accompanied by the dull sound of clashing gear, the scene was extremely spectacular.
“Countdown: 3, 2, 1... Fire!”
Whoosh, whoosh, whoosh!
Over a hundred banelings were hurled by the machines, flying toward the dense ranks of gnolls in the distance.
In fact, careful observation would reveal that nearly two thirds of the banelings were concentrated on the few powerful individuals among the enemies.
The others scattered, falling into the densest parts of the enemy lines.
Boom!
Boom, boom, boom, boom!
As the banelings landed, the gnoll forces were immediately blown to pieces.
This wave of attacks left two tribal patriarchs dazed.
In a previous encounter between the two sides, they had only faced a small number of hydralisks and zerglings.
Although the enemies' performance was terrifying, there were still ways to win by relying on the gnolls' tenacity and wisdom.
But now, facing this biological weapon with such ridiculous explosive power, everyone in the rear fell into an eerie silence.
The gnoll legion of several thousand was thrown into complete chaos by a single volley.
The tragic state of the vanguard was truly terrifying to the gnolls in the rear who hadn't been affected yet.
Their morale was already wavering.
Some human archers began to release fire arrows specifically targeting the gnolls' fur.
The arrows falling like rain didn't cause much less damage. Fire attacks had always been a lethal move for humans to suppress the gnoll race.
“Patriarch Hio, the enemy is starting to advance. Let the gnolls charge. Now is not the time for hesitation.”
Seeing the expression on the chieftain's face, another patriarch nearby couldn't help but speak up.
“Understood.”
Hio nodded dejectedly.
Gnolls weren't skilled in magic. If their raw strength was inferior to the enemy's, then they really could only fight a war of attrition.
These lands by the lake had been painstakingly defended by gnoll ancestors over the years at the cost of their lives.
The fish in the water could provide them with basic protein, and the soil in many places could grow grain obtained from the humans.
It could be said that they had learned a lot from the humans.
But...
The humans would never allow a foreign race to grow strong so quickly.
The only reason they hadn't faced a fatal attack for so many years was due to the internal chaos among humans, which made it impossible for them to unite against the gnolls.
“Patriarch Tiger, send out 5,000 of the fastest gnolls. We will circle around to another direction and launch a surprise attack on the enemy’s flank. The other units will launch a frontal assault to distract those humans.”
The patriarch before him frowned, then nodded. “Let's try it.”
Among the enemies currently entrenched ahead, there were 40,000 humans from the lord's army and 10,000 from the Swarm.
Although the humans' average strength was weaker, they were still not to be trifled with.
The gnoll patriarchs didn't dare to underestimate any opponent.
They began to secretly mobilize their elite troops, taking a detour behind the relatively steep earthen slopes on the side.
However...
At the very moment they were about to run out from behind the slopes, over 2,000 insects abruptly appeared in their line of sight.
The two sides stared at each other, eyes wide, completely stunned.
Rate on N.U.
