[{"data":1,"prerenderedAt":-1},["ShallowReactive",2],{"origin-black-dragon-necromancer":3,"chapter-black-dragon-necromancer-black-dragon-necromancer-chapter-53":6},{"origin":4,"title":5},"chinese","Black Dragon Necromancer",{"chapter":7,"nextChapterSlug":19,"prevChapterSlug":20,"totalChapters":21,"novelImage":22},{"id":8,"novel_id":9,"title":10,"slug":11,"index":12,"content":13,"wordcount":14,"created_at":15,"updated_at":15,"volume":16,"translator":17,"content_hash":18},2312813,4521,"Chapter 53","black-dragon-necromancer-chapter-53",53,"\u003Cp>“Sharut, the Fang Legion has suffered heavy losses. Although injured and disabled soldiers can be repaired through the Regeneration Furnace, we have still lost warriors. Following the Duke’s orders, we must form a new legion—you will select half the men from the Fang Legion.”\u003C\u002Fp>\n\u003Cp>“My lord, rest assured. I will handle the formation of the new legion. I guarantee the Ironcast Legion will achieve combat readiness within a year without disrupting next year’s Abyss training plan.”\u003C\u002Fp>\n\u003Cp>“Good. I trust your ability, Deputy Commander Orwell. The Fang Legion’s replenishment training is now yours. Though the Fang Legion has a fixed structure, the losses and troop withdrawals this time are substantial—your task is heavy. Do not be careless.”\u003C\u002Fp>\n\u003Cp>“My lord, rest easy. Bullmen never fear hardship. I swear the Fang Legion will remain the Duke’s most formidable fang—next year in the Abyss, we will write anew the legion’s own glory.”\u003C\u002Fp>\n\u003Cp>“Excellent. The Duke’s domain needs men like you. That’s all for now. Begin selecting new recruits. When the soldiers return from leave, training starts immediately. Good luck.”\u003C\u002Fp>\n\u003Cp>“Finoda, have the demon corpses been sorted yet? This cannot be taken lightly—demon corruption is extremely dangerous.”\u003C\u002Fp>\n\u003Cp>“My lord, rest assured! When have we, the Underdark gnomes, ever disappointed you? All have been logged and stored. Lady Klasuna has already sent inspectors. For items we can process, she will send a list within a month. For those we cannot, we’ve already contacted various factions for sale.”\u003C\u002Fp>\n\u003Cp>“Lady Tali, following the Duke’s orders, we will soon launch a cleanup operation in the Underdark—to deter restless factions and to train the Rapid Response Force. Do you have any issues?”\u003C\u002Fp>\n\u003Cp>“No issues. But given the Underdark’s complexity, I intend to lead the mission personally—to avoid surprises like chromatic dragons or mind flayers. The Rapid Response Force is my own creation.”\u003C\u002Fp>\n\u003Cp>“Understood. But remember—the Rapid Response Force is not an army. Do not attack drow or gray dwarf cities. That is the Garrison Force’s duty. Your main task is to purge goliaths, kuo-toa, and similar forces.”\u003C\u002Fp>\n\u003Cp>…………\u003C\u002Fp>\n\u003Cp>The Rapid Response Force’s vanguard scouts were a squad of twelve elite jackal-headed scouts. Their gray fur blended almost perfectly with the Underdark’s rocks; specially padded boots let them move without a sound.\u003C\u002Fp>\n\u003Cp>Along the main road to Blackclaw Fortress, Captain Brokenfang first detected anomalies. He raised his left hand—the entire squad froze instantly. He pointed to several seemingly ordinary shards of stone scattered on the ground. But Brokenfang sniffed lightly, then used his claw-tip to gently pry one aside—beneath it lay a thin, taut filament nearly identical in color to the ground.\u003C\u002Fp>\n\u003Cp>“Goliath tripwire bomb,” Brokenfang signaled with gestures. “Connected to a rockfall net above. Step on it, and we become paste.” They bypassed the trap, but their spirits sank. The goliaths’ cunning was well-earned—this was merely the outer perimeter.\u003C\u002Fp>\n\u003Cp>To avoid increasing traps and patrols on the main road, Brokenfang led his squad into the natural limestone forest known as the “Thousand Caves Labyrinth.” Here, stalagmites rose like pillars, corridors twisted and tangled—perfect for concealment. Yet it was also the goliaths’ favorite haunt for hidden sentries.\u003C\u002Fp>\n\u003Cp>As they crossed a narrow rock fissure, the rear jackal-man suddenly felt a chill at his neck! He dropped his head instantly—a nearly invisible metal wire sliced across where his throat had been, deeply embedded into the adjacent pillar. It was a goliath razor-hunter’s throat-line.\u003C\u002Fp>\n\u003Cp>Almost simultaneously, heavy footsteps—metal boots crunching on gravel—came from ahead! A goliath patrol was turning the corner, less than twenty meters away. Retreat was impossible; the steps were right upon them. Exposure meant mission failure.\u003C\u002Fp>\n\u003Cp>Brokenfang made an audacious decision without hesitation. He emitted a short, sharp squeak mimicking a startled rock bat. The entire squad froze as if paused—each member instinctively sought the nearest shadow: curling into hollows of pillars, pressing into ground crevices, even one member diving headfirst into a cold puddle, leaving only nose and mouth exposed.\u003C\u002Fp>\n\u003Cp>The goliath patrol approached, torches flickering, their light nearly illuminating the rock behind which Brokenfang hid. One goliath soldier seemed to sense something—he sniffed, staring for several seconds toward their hiding spot. Time froze.\u003C\u002Fp>\n\u003Cp>Brokenfang could hear his own heart thundering in his chest. He gripped his blackened shortblade tightly, ready to strike the killing blow the moment he was exposed. Fortunately, the goliath merely muttered, “Damn draft,” and followed his squad onward.\u003C\u002Fp>\n\u003Cp>Only when footsteps and torchlight vanished completely around the tunnel’s far end did the jackal-men stir like statues reawakened, slowly seeping from the shadows to continue forward. Each man was drenched in cold sweat.\u003C\u002Fp>\n\u003Cp>Emerging from the labyrinthine “Thousand Caves,” Brokenfang and his squad faced a relatively open slope littered with jagged rocks and glowing fungi. The Blackclaw Pass stood at its end, built against the Underdark’s natural cliff face—its towering walls echoed with the goliaths’ crude commands.\u003C\u002Fp>\n\u003Cp>Crossing this open ground was suicide. Liezhao ’s nostrils twitched—the air carried not only sulfur but also the goliaths’ distinctive body odor and the metallic tang of traps.\u003C\u002Fp>\n\u003Cp>He signaled complex gestures—the squad scattered like gray smoke, adopting the “Ghost Leap” advance. They used every rock’s shadow, every patrol’s glance shift, for brief, lightning sprints, then froze instantly at the next cover, merging with the stone. Their movements were swift and silent—only the heavy thudding of their hearts betrayed them.\u003C\u002Fp>\n\u003Cp>Along the way, using their keen senses, they detected and avoided three goliath pressure-plate traps and one nearly invisible tripwire. During one maneuver, they nearly collided head-on with a patrol emerging from a side passage. Liezhao  slammed his companion’s head down; all five pressed flat against a rock fissure, listening as heavy footsteps and clanking armor passed mere inches away—even smelling the thick stench of sweat on the goliaths.\u003C\u002Fp>\n\u003Cp>After arduous progress, they finally reached their designated observation point: a disused ventilation shaft exit overlooking most of the fortress interior. Through the rusted grating, the sight made Brokenfang’s pupils contract—the goliaths’ strength far exceeded intelligence reports.\u003C\u002Fp>\n\u003Cp>On the inner parade ground, at least five to six hundred goliath soldiers trained in orderly formation, wielding standardized longswords and spears. More soldiers moved between barracks, hauling siege equipment and supplies. Roughly, garrison strength exceeded fifteen hundred—not counting those on leave or stationed elsewhere.\u003C\u002Fp>\n\u003Cp>They spotted four tamed, crudely armored war wolves, locked in massive cages—clearly for assault or pursuit. At the fortress’s highest command post, they saw a goliath taller than the rest, clad in leather armor embedded with iron plates, bellowing orders at several subordinate captains—clearly deploying defenses.\u003C\u002Fp>\n\u003Cp>The walls were not only high but bristling with spikes and iron thorns. The sole gate was a thick, iron-banded wooden door, appearing extremely sturdy. Along the ramparts stood several crude yet devastating ballistae and catapults, their ammunition piled nearby.\u003C\u002Fp>\n\u003Cp>Most critical: they saw watchtowers at each corner of the wall. Fixed sentries manned them, and the towers themselves were embedded with large, flickering green crystals—inferior versions of True Sight Eyes, capable of detecting invisible units—a grave threat to stealth forces.\u003C\u002Fp>\n\u003Cp>The broad main slope led directly to the gate but lay fully exposed to defenders’ fire, riddled with traps—suicide. He noted the southeast flank: a stretch of wall built against a natural cliff face. The cliff was steep but climbable, and due to its treacherous terrain, fewer defenders and less watchtower attention. Below lay a vast pile of boulders—ideal for assembly and concealment.\u003C\u002Fp>\n\u003Cp>At the northwest corner stood a massive drainage channel, its iron grating severely rusted. Though it might contain water, sludge, or guards, it was unquestionably the best route for infiltration and chaos.\u003C\u002Fp>\n\u003Cp>Fixed sentries were lax, often dozing. Mobile patrols circled the fortress roughly every forty minutes on fixed routes. When passing Shadowstrike Cliff, they accelerated due to complex terrain and observed more carelessly.\u003C\u002Fp>\n\u003Cp>Outer patrols were conducted by goliath infantry, eight to ten per squad. Their routes appeared random but favored fixed water sources and open high ground. Patrol intervals ranged from one and a half to two hours.\u003C\u002Fp>\n\u003Cp>Brokenfang recorded everything he saw with his claw on special waterproof black sheepskin paper, using symbols and diagrams only jackal-headed commanders could read.\u003C\u002Fp>\n\u003Cp>Forces: approx. 1500 goliaths, including war wolf units and one Gao Jie chieftain.\u003C\u002Fp>\n\u003Cp>Defenses: reinforced walls, ballistae\u002Fcatapults, True Sight Eye towers.\u003C\u002Fp>\n\u003Cp>Weaknesses: Southeast “Shadowstrike Cliff” defenses relatively weak; northwest “Filth Path” penetrable.\u003C\u002Fp>\n\u003Cp>Patrols: Wall cycle 40 minutes (cliff section lax); outer patrols 1.5–2 hours.\u003C\u002Fp>\n\u003Cp>He rolled the parchment, slid it into a hollow fang container, and handed it to the squad’s most agile and silent member, “Grayshadow.” Grayshadow took the fang and vanished like a true shadow—soundless, along their path of approach.\u003C\u002Fp>\n\u003Cp>Brokenfang and the remaining members stayed frozen like statues, waiting to confirm the drainage channel’s internal conditions and the goliath chieftain’s next moves. Their mission was far from over—every heartbeat still danced to death’s rhythm. But the intelligence they gained had become the key to whether the Rapid Response Force could bite into this hard bone with minimal cost.\u003C\u002Fp>",1487,"2026-06-20T13:10:04.638Z",1,"Qwen3-Next 80B","c354bec19b757bcc96327d1821a90ef05102c3e8a51aa858d90fb29d7c62a715","black-dragon-necromancer-chapter-54","black-dragon-necromancer-chapter-52",145,"https:\u002F\u002Fnovelzhen.com\u002Fimages\u002Fcovers\u002Fblack-dragon-necromancer-cover.jpg"]