MTLNOVEL Chapter 164: Window of Opportunity_1
Work, work... Yan Xing felt he was about to collapse from exhaustion.
Every day, he had to make a trip to Nuta City and then return to the Eternal Domain to handle affairs. Then he would move on to supervise the training of the Peacekeeping Forces in Stenchwater Forest. He also devoted most of his energy to the Alchemy Laboratory, where he tirelessly modified humanoid alchemy puppets, regardless of day or night.
At this time, Yan Xing finally realized the benefits of being a Mage. A brief period of meditation could substitute sleep, allowing him to finally achieve his dream of staying up all night until dawn. But such relentless, day-and-night work also left one physically and mentally drained.
Yet Yan Xing dared not slacken in the slightest.
「The great battle on the Wildwind Highlands had finally commenced.」
The long-prepared Orc and Elf alliance surged from the north and west. Like tidal waves, they advanced toward the Silvermane Principality's Wildwind Highlands Legion's control zones. They continuously destroyed numerous fortresses of the Wildwind Highlands Legion, their spearheads advancing, their military might impressive.
Marquis Anderson was the commander of the Silvermane Principality's Wildwind Highlands Legion. He adopted a combination of hard and soft tactics to counter the Orc and Elf onslaught. Against the Elven army descending from the north, he mounted a resolute defense, giving no ground. Marquis Anderson deployed a heavy force here, relying on a network of fortresses, engaging in a tug-of-war with the Elves. However many fortresses were taken, he was determined to counter-attack and reclaim them. He aimed to prevent the Elves from creating a breach and entering his rear from the west side of Thunderous Swamp, which would threaten Nuta City.
Facing the Orc army on the western front, the Wildwind Highlands Legion fought and retreated step by step, deliberately allowing the Orcs to gain many advantages. Marquis Anderson's strategy was based on an observation: although the combined Orc and Elf offensive seemed grand, there was discord beneath the surface. If the Elven attack did not proceed smoothly, the Orcs would not dare attack the Wildwind Highlands Legion too aggressively. Disdainful of the "fragile" and "cowardly" Elves, the Orcs feared that the Elves might not withstand the losses of war and might abruptly retreat. In such a case, the overly advanced Orc armies would have their flanks fully exposed to the eastern forces of the Wildwind Highlands Legion.
Therefore, as the Wildwind Highlands Legion's western troops executed a significant retreat, the Orc army was inclined to slow its pace of assault. After giving up a large number of fortresses, the Wildwind Highlands Legion could then concentrate their limited western troops within second-line strongholds, using them to establish a standoff with the Orc army.
For Marquis Anderson, the ideal state of war was to drag the situation into winter. By then, the Orc and Elf supply problems would surface, and they should opt to retreat and end the war voluntarily.
Of course, this was just Marquis Anderson's ideal scenario for the war. The situation in war changes in the blink of an eye, and no one knows what might happen the next day. However, as long as the Wildwind Highlands Legion avoided any significant, decisive errors, the Orcs and Elves would not gain too much advantage in the war's initial stages.
「This created the best window of opportunity for Yan Xing to enter Thunderous Swamp.」
During the month of preparation, Yan Xing constantly supplied the Werewolf Tribes deep in Thunderous Swamp with arms. He had already sold over 10,000 slingshots and 300,000 finger-thick bearing steel balls. Main quest rewards, such as armor and weapons, along with those swapped out by the Werewolf Tribe and his recruited army, were all sent by Yan Xing into Thunderous Swamp. Additionally, Yan Xing gifted each Clan Leader of the deep swamp Werewolf Tribes a steel flail and a suit of lamellar armor.
Armed with these, the emboldened Werewolf Tribes' strength soared.
In the depths of Thunderous Swamp, the Werewolves occupied a very small territory, yet their numbers far exceeded that of the Lizardmen. Previously, Werewolves struggled just to defend their territory and naturally did not dare to provoke the Lizardmen.
Now, with the extensive equipping of slingshots, the Werewolf Tribe's firepower had sharply increased. The oversized and weighted steel ball bearings, propelled by specially made high-tension rubber bands, left a bloody hole upon impact. The use of slingshots increased the Werewolves' hunting efficiency; their bellies were full, and so was their courage.
For instance, when encountering Lizardmen squads in the swamp forests, Werewolves would usually choose to avoid them. Even if hit by the Lizardmen's Bone Arrows, as long as they weren't dead or grievously wounded, Werewolves would typically swallow their grudge. After all, in wilderness encounters, it was difficult for Werewolves to gain an upper hand against the Lizardmen.
But in a recent encounter, faced with the mockery and arrow attacks of the Lizardmen, the Werewolves who had slingshots immediately retaliated. A melee ensued, with casualties on both sides.
The Lizardmen, accustomed to bullying Werewolves, certainly couldn't swallow this affront. The Werewolves, on the other hand, discovered that once armed with slingshots, they held a considerable advantage in mid-range shootouts with the Lizardmen. After assessing the casualties, they found the loss ratio quite favorable. The Werewolves suddenly regarded the slingshot as a divine tool that could reverse their fates.
Such small-scale skirmishes quickly spread throughout the depths of Thunderous Swamp. All Werewolf Tribes soon learned of an incident: a Werewolf hunting party had won an encounter against a Lizardmen Clan in the wilderness, despite their numbers being roughly equal.
The Eternal Domain immediately received a large order for slingshots.
Before Yan Xing could deliver the slingshots for this new order, the Werewolf Tribe and Lizardmen Clan that had previously clashed erupted into conflict once more. Subsequently, more Werewolf Tribes and Lizardmen Clans joined the fray. As casualties mounted on both sides, the scale of the war grew ever larger.
A war covering the central area of Thunderous Swamp had thus erupted.
「It was at this time that Eternal Domain completed its upgrade to a Fifth Level Territory.」
A Fifth Level Territory could construct infantry barracks and infantry training grounds, enabling the recruitment and training of Fifth Order infantry.
Infantry (Human Fifth Order Unit)
Attack: 8
Defense: 9
Damage: 6
Stamina: 25
Talent: Great Shield (When holding a shield in a defensive stance, it can generate a defensive force field to provide stronger frontal protection.)
Finally, Humans had a reliable melee unit. Human infantry were equipped with complete defensive armor, sharp greatswords, and sturdy shields. Both for offense and defense, they were a very effective type of unit. Their excellent physical conditioning allowed Human infantry to maintain a decent pace even when clad in full protective gear and carrying shields. In contrast, the militias, when donning full armor, had sufficient defense, but their movement speed...
Yan Xing had his reasons for not wanting to bring heavily armed pikemen to Nuta City.
Now, with the infantry training grounds established, all of the Eternal Domain's militias entered for training, preparing to be upgraded to Fifth Order infantry. The recruitment cost for an infantryman was 90 Gold per person, and upgrading a militia member required an additional 60 Gold. Their armor set was the same as that of the heavy pikemen; only the pikes needed to be exchanged for custom-made steel swords. An order for these swords was placed with the Dragon Spring Sword Manufacturer.
Yan Xing had collaborated with Count Theodore to build a fortress. The initial plan for this fortress was to station 100 Fifth Order infantry there. These infantry, equipped with bicycles, would work with the Griffons of Nuta City to patch defensive gaps in the western line.