The crowd of players from the Bull Man Tribe gradually dispersed. Lei Su received invitations from several player teams of the Bull Man Tribe. Although these teams were not top-tier, Lei Su gladly accepted their invitations and joined them to enter the dungeon together.
To Nie Yan’s pleasant surprise, an additional fifty strong first-rate players followed Lei Su into the Bull Man Tribe. These players were all under Lei Su’s command, often teaming up with him for dungeon raids. Among them, a few individuals were nearly as powerful as Lei Su. Nie Yan began to understand that Lei Su had strong team support. With such an elite team and substantial financial backing, Lei Su’s achievements were indeed justified.
The arrival of these more than fifty players felt like a lucky windfall to Nie Yan. Normally, it would take a significant effort for Nie Yan to assemble such a group, but now they had come knocking on their own. These fifty players remained under Lei Su’s command, but in the event of any major incidents within the guild, they would assist the Bull Man Tribe alongside Lei Su.
After settling matters at their current location, Nie Yan was preparing to continue hunting skeletons with Xie Yao and Tang Yao. Just as they met at the edge of the teleportation circle, they received news: Qin Han had already led a massive skeleton force into the territory of Carol City from its southern border. Additionally, large groups of skeletons had been spotted near Nisod City and Ker Te Cheng. Qin Han had already begun organizing the skeleton army to besiege the fortress of Ker Te Cheng, targeting its weakest points to capture the stronghold and strengthen the skeleton forces through slaughter.
Nie Yan and his companions could no longer continue hunting skeletons peacefully. They quickly mobilized the Bull Man Tribe’s player forces to engage Qin Han’s skeleton army in direct combat.
Fort Rabit was in peril!
Fort Ellenson was in peril!
The two smaller forts of Ker Te Cheng were attacked first, as an endless swarm of skeletons surrounded them and launched a full-scale assault.
Guo Huai obtained some intelligence related to the skeleton army from within Divine Punishment, revealing the latest figures: the skeleton army had grown to two million strong, with seven to eight thousand of them being lord-level skeletons. Such a military force was indeed terrifying.
The Suoluo Fortress of Kerte Suoluo, a crucial passage for entering Carol City from Kerte City, had already shown signs of skeletal activity outside its walls.
Nie Yan studied the map and concluded that Qin Han’s next target would undoubtedly be Suoluo Fortress. By seizing it, Qin Han could completely cut off the connection between Nisod City, Kerte City, and Carol City, isolating these two cities from the Bullman Tribe’s control before defeating them one by one.
Nie Yan stared at the map for a long time, deep in thought. Strategically, Suoluo Fortress was of utmost importance—as long as it remained under their control, he could deploy his Ironclad Catapult Legion at any moment to advance and crush the enemy. Kerte City was mostly flat plains, allowing for easy movement. With Suoluo Fortress as their stronghold, they could both attack and defend. The battle to resist the skeleton army would begin right here!
Nie Yan began to deploy a large number of Ironclad Catapults toward Suo Luo Fortress, along with a significant number of high-level players.
Since inter-city teleportation had not yet been activated, the Bull Man Tribe players could only teleport to the nearest town to Suo Luo Fortress and then ride their horses there, taking about fifteen minutes.
Nie Yan, Xie Yao, and Tang Yao rode their flying mounts to Suo Luo Fortress. In the previous war, Suo Luo Fortress had been reduced to ruins by the Bull Man Tribe’s Ironclad Catapults, but after reconstruction by the Bull Man Tribe, the fortress had risen again, grander and more magnificent than before.
Nie Yan and his companions climbed onto the city walls and looked into the distance. A few skeleton soldiers wandered the plains in the far distance, merely scouts of the skeleton army. The true main force had yet to arrive.
Nie Yan began to meticulously arrange the defenses and also modified the terrain outside Suo Luo Fortress. These preparations were conducted in secret, known only to a few trusted members of the Bull Man Tribe.
Before long, around sixty to seventy Ironclad Catapults had been deployed to Suo Luo Fortress, lined up in a row on the flat ground within the fortress walls. These catapults could attack areas up to five or six hundred yards beyond the city walls.
After completing a series of preparations, Nie Yan had Guo Huai equip the six thousand Bull Man Tribe players defending the fortress with many items effective against skeletons, including Holy Judgment Scrolls, Vine Entanglement Scrolls, and more.
Suo Luo Fortress had now been fortified by Nie Yan into an impregnable fortress.
In the following days, Nie Yan successively received several messages: Rabit Fortress and Ellenson Fortress of Korte City had fallen one after another. The skeleton army continued its sweeping advance toward Fort Baget, destroying countless villages and towns along the way, like an unstoppable flood.
Nie Yan stayed near Suo Luo Fortress for several days. On the third day, he received news that Cui Can Dao Guang and Sun had successfully advanced to top-tier professions. Nie Yan had anticipated this outcome, as the two were certainly capable of completing the advancement. While he was happy for them, Nie Yan currently needed Magus or Divine Priests more urgently, as these classes were clearly more crucial in large-scale wars.
Nie Yan monitored the progress of the class change quests for players such as Shi Li Hua Sha, Hei Se Tian Tang, and Hei Se Di Yu, but they would still require at least another half a month to complete their transitions. Meanwhile, the situation had grown increasingly urgent. After the skeleton army overran more than a dozen fortresses in Ker Te Cheng, they began advancing toward Suo Luo Fortress in overwhelming numbers.
A large number of skeletons, estimated at around three to four hundred thousand, had already gathered several thousand yards outside Suo Luo Fortress. Facing such a massive skeleton army, Nie Yan would never send his players to intercept them in the open field. Once they left the protection of the fortress walls, the players would become prey for the skeletons.
The massive skeleton army marched toward Suo Luo Fortress, and a great battle was imminent.
Receiving news from the roaming thieves outside, Nie Yan, standing on the city walls, allowed himself a faint, almost imperceptible smile. It was finally beginning.
In a clearing in the middle of the skeleton army, Qin Han, clad in a black robe, gazed at the distant towering fortress walls. He had just received a report from his subordinates that the rogue Nie Yan had already set up defenses at Suo Luo Fortress, waiting for him to attack. Qin Han allowed himself a contemptuous smile. Did Nie Yan really think that a few fortress walls and defenders could stop his skeleton army? Nie Yan’s thinking was too naive.
The skeleton army swept through everything in its path, destroying villages and towns, and routing every player guild it encountered, which caused Qin Han’s ambitions to swell endlessly. With millions of skeletons behind him, Qin Han naturally did not regard Nie Yan’s small Suo Luo Fortress as a serious threat. Once Suo Luo Fortress was destroyed and they passed through a nearby canyon, his skeleton army would sweep across the entire Carol City, completely uprooting the Bull Man Tribe!
Qin Han recalled how Nie Yan had taken him down with just two arrows last time, and his heart flared with anger. That had definitely been the greatest humiliation he had faced in the game, and he was determined to make Nie Yan pay double!
Attack!
A powerful wave of mental energy radiated from Qin Han, signaling his command.
Receiving Qin Han’s command, the skeleton army began to move slowly, like a surging tide, rushing toward Suo Luo Fortress.
Standing on the city walls, Nie Yan gazed into the distance. An endless sea of white skeletons stretched out before him. No wonder the NPCs of the Greenlan Empire described these skeletons as locusts—they truly resembled a swarm of locusts.
Gradually, the skeletons drew closer, reaching a distance of about a thousand yards from the fortress walls. The front line encountered some flame traps set by the Bull Man Tribe, and large areas of fire erupted, igniting the nearby forest. Under the raging flames, large numbers of skeletons screamed in agony and were reduced to fragments. However, even so, they failed to halt the skeletons’ advance.
After burning for more than ten minutes, the flames slowly subsided. In the following period, the skeleton army encountered various other obstacles—pits, earth spikes, and firestorms, among others. At least ten thousand skeletons were destroyed by these traps.
With the front unable to break through, Qin Han grew increasingly furious. Under his command, the skeleton army did not halt its advance but instead charged toward Suo Luo Fortress with even more ferocity, rushing forward relentlessly. No matter how many skeletons fell ahead, the ones behind would continue to advance over their fallen comrades without hesitation.
Eight hundred yards, seven hundred yards, six hundred yards…
The skeletons were getting closer, creating immense pressure on the players inside Suo Luo Fortress.
“Nie Yan, boss, they’re coming! Should we use the catapults to bombard them?”
Another player glanced at the speaker and replied, “Forget it! They haven’t come within five hundred yards yet; the catapults can’t reach them!”
As the skeletons approached, the atmosphere inside Suo Luo Fortress became increasingly tense. If they were facing any other guild, they wouldn’t have lost their nerve, but they were up against mindless skeletons. Many of them had encountered these skeletons before—these creatures were like indestructible cockroaches, often moving in swarms and fearlessly charging forward. Players killed by them would even become part of the skeleton army. Facing such foes, anyone would feel helpless, especially now that they were facing a horde of millions of skeletons!
Nie Yan smiled calmly and shouted loudly, “Everyone, there’s nothing to be afraid of. With such high walls, these bastards can only pile up their numbers to climb over. Mages and Priests, use your magic to smash them until they’re too battered to fight back. Kill as many as you can. Even if they manage to break through, the fortress is stationary, but we are alive. We can always run if we have to. If anyone’s legs aren’t fast enough, they’ll just have to accept their fate.”
A few chuckles spread through the crowd, easing the previously tense atmosphere somewhat.
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