Chapter 483

And their strength is great, so they move quite quickly.

They passed through one forest after another; in a single night, they could cover at least three hundred kilometers.

This is a speed utterly unattainable by ordinary people.

Even elite military units rarely march this fast.

They did not sense the approaching danger.

And to cross the human lands as swiftly as possible and reach the Sacred Flame Forest, their route was essentially a straight line.

This gave those with intent an opportunity.

Outside another forest, the cavalry of several hundred riders caught up, but the elves had already left that forest.

"These elves move fast—I've chased them for days just to catch up. From their route, they're heading north. Aside from cavalry, ground troops can't catch them. Send a messenger—tell the Imperial Prince to head straight for the Ovis Forest to the north; they'll likely stay there for a day."

The lead armored cavalryman said.

The sky began to lighten.

"It's almost dawn. Let's find a place to rest."

In the thousands-strong elf group, a small elf said.

This elf tribe was unmistakably the Wind Elf Tribe; they excelled in wind magic and were highly skilled archers.

"Yes, there's a large forest over there. Let's rest there."

Another elf said.

Thus, the elf group headed toward that forest.

In truth, in a forest of considerable size, they could march during the day too—but after traveling all night, their bodies and spirits were weary, so rest was natural.

The elf group quickly slipped into the forest and, using magic, set up small wards around the perimeter before resting within.

The sky grew fully bright.

In the forest, the elves rested quietly; several elves took turns on watch at the forest's edge.

The elves remained vigilant.

In fact, every time they passed through a forest, they concealed the traces of their passage.

But while traces could be hidden, a force of thousands inevitably left behind some lingering aura—and it was this aura that their pursuers used to track them.

Soon, the sun rose high, and all the elves fell into sleep.

Around this forest, vast armies had already arrived.

The number of these armies was immense—tens of thousands on each side, surrounding the forest from three directions; the only unencircled side was no concern, for it was a sheer cliff.

The armies had not yet revealed themselves, waiting for the encirclement to be fully completed to avoid alarming the prey.

"Akachi, are you certain there are thousands of elves in this forest? Why can't I see a single one?"

At the forest's front, a man dressed in lavish robes said.

"Imperial Prince, I swear there are definitely thousands of elves."

The armored knight named Akachi said.

The Fifth Imperial Prince gazed at the distant forest and said: "Thousands of elves—each can fetch at least two million gold coins; the finest may sell for ten million. Of course, killing the finest would be a waste—elves' bodies are strong; one can be played with for a long time. Akachi, for this encirclement, I've emptied my entire lifetime's savings and summoned Master Hoke. If you're wrong, your head will roll."

Akachi spoke with full confidence: "Imperial Prince, rest assured—I've followed them for over ten days. There's no mistake."

The Fifth Imperial Prince glanced at him: "Ten days? So you've chased them from the Fourth Prince's territory. Did you notify the Fourth Prince too?"

Akachi quickly shook his head: "I dare not!"

The Fifth Imperial Prince snorted: "Good. If your information is correct, after capturing them, I'll reward you with ten elves."

Akachi's face lit up with joy: "Thank you, Imperial Prince!"

"Report, Imperial Prince—the encirclement is complete!"

At that moment, a messenger arrived to report.

The Fifth Imperial Prince waved his hand and ordered: "Issue my command—attack!"

"Woo—woo!"

Horns blared.

Hundreds of thousands of troops marched steadily toward the forest.

The forest was large, stretching over five kilometers in length, but hundreds of thousands of troops were more than enough to surround it.

These troops were exceptionally well-equipped; their armor gleamed, clearly forged armor adorned with countless magical runes.

This army was clearly elite—even more refined than the original two hundred thousand royal troops of the Heling Kingdom.

Their commotion instantly alerted the elves within the forest.

"Danger! Human troops are here!"

An elf's voice rang out.

Instantly, all the elves in the forest awoke.

"Lidia, what do we do? We're surrounded on three sides!"

An elf asked a female elf wearing a floral crown.

Clearly, this elf was the chieftain of the Wind Elves.

"Go—we break out through the west!"

Lidia acted decisively at once.

Speaking, she drew her longbow from her magic pouch and charged forward first.

Thousands of elves swiftly drew their longbows and curved blades and followed behind her.

Thousands of elves quickly burst from the forest and headed toward the human army to the west.

"Hmph. The west is our most elite heavy infantry—they choose to break out there? Foolish. Inform them: don't strike too hard. Killing these elves would be a waste."

At the forest's front, the Fifth Imperial Prince sneered dismissively.

Outside the forest, as thousands of elves surged forth, tens of thousands of heavy infantry, upon their commander's order, simultaneously slammed down their heavy shields, forming a wall of bronze and iron.

These warriors were all elite soldiers, at least First Rank; a shield wall of tens of thousands above First Rank was enough to inspire despair!

But Lydia did not stop—she dashed forward at high speed toward the heavy infantry.

In her hand, the arrow was already nocked, and on the green shaft, magical energy surged continuously.

Then, Lydia released the string with a sudden jerk.

"Swoosh!"

The green arrow shot toward the heavy infantry; as it advanced, it stirred up fierce air currents, which grew stronger and stronger—by the time it reached the front of the infantry formation, it had summoned a massive Long Juanfeng!

"Heaven above!"

The front-line heavy infantry revealed expressions of utter horror—they tried to flee, but it was too late!

The massive Long Juanfeng crashed into the heavy infantry formation, lifting countless soldiers and their shields into the sky.

"Aaaah~~"

Some heavy infantry were flung high into the air, then slammed back down with crushing force, screaming as they crashed into the crowd, toppling entire rows of men.

"Run, escape!"

The rear-line heavy infantry no longer cared about the elves—they scrambled wildly to the sides, but the Long Juanfeng moved too fast; they could not dodge in time and were swept into the sky.

The entire thick battle line of heavy infantry was violently carved through by this Long Juanfeng!

"Quick, follow me through!"

Lydia shouted.

She herself stopped, drew her bow again, and shot an arrow straight upward.

There, a wizard flying in the sky hastily cast a defensive spell—but Lydia's arrow pierced through it; the wizard's staff blazed with brilliant light, finally halting Lydia's arrow.

Thousands of elves swiftly passed through the channel and vanished behind the infantry formation.

Lydia was the last to leave the channel; in the sky, the wizard's face glistened with cold sweat—he dared not attack again.

"Damn it!"

Seeing this, the Fifth Imperial Prince cursed aloud.

"Your Highness, that elf's archery is too powerful—I dare not approach closely!"

The wizard flew up and said.

"A tribe of just a few thousand elves—how powerful could they possibly be? Master Hoke, you are a Grand Archmage!"

The Fifth Imperial Prince, watching the elves disappear, was furious!

"Yes, that elf is at most Sixth Rank—but her wind magic is too potent; with wind magic enhancement, her arrow range far exceeds my magical attack range."

Master Hoke still trembled at the memory of that arrow.