Chapter 205: The Beginning

Following the shrieks and shouts, the approaching Orcish gradually drew near, and white arrows were the first to pierce the sky.

Those belonged to the archers of the Kingdom of Gondor, who showered the charging Orcish with volleys of arrows.

The black tide was so dense that the Human archers did not need to aim at all; layer after layer of Orcish collapsed to the ground under the assault of the arrow rain.

Even though most of the Orcish held crude wooden shields in their hands, the arrows would still find the gaps and strike their bodies.

However, the enemy was not without the power to fight back, nor would they let the Human archers slaughter them at will.

The Orcish archers mixed within the ranks, after running to a certain distance, were directed by a tall, pitch-black Uruk and began to launch a counterattack against the Humans with the bows in their hands.

Their numbers were far greater than the Humans'; the pitch-black arrows they shot were very sparse at first, but as more and more Orcish holding bows gathered, the arrow rain gradually thickened, eventually becoming like a black hail covering the sky and earth, flying toward the Humans before them.

Meanwhile, their companions beside them brandished various filthy and crude weapons, laughing wildly as they stepped into the mud and foul-smelling ponds before them, charging toward the Human archers who were currently firing.

As for those tall Trolls, they let out roars like wild beasts and leaped directly into the ponds to wade forward, their thick-jointed hands gripping iron Battering Rams tightly, while using pitch-black large Shields to defend their vitals as they advanced.

Their goal was to charge into the Gondor military formation, tear through the enemy's defense from the center, and provide a more advantageous environment for the Orcish behind them to slaughter.

Only by breaking the enemy's formation could their numerical advantage be better utilized.

The increasingly dense arrow rain from the Orcish caused the Gondor archers, who had been concentrating on dealing with the enemy, to begin suffering heavy losses.

Some Elite Infantry holding large kite Shields stood beside the archers under the officers' orders, helping their comrades block the arrows descending from the sky.

Such assistance allowed the archers to focus their attention on dealing with those Orcish entangled in the mud.

This was the advantage brought by the terrain, and they needed to seize it as much as possible.

However, such an advantage soon ended, as a large number of Orcish died under the arrow rain while wading through the mud.

The corpses they left behind after death gradually paved a portion of the mud pond, actually connecting into paths across this muddy land.

The large group of Snaga that followed closely behind laughed wildly as they stepped on the paths piled with corpses, closing in on the Human formation behind the mud pond.

At this moment, the Gondor soldiers ordered to hold the position could already see the hideous and terrifying faces of the Orcish clearly.

And faster than the Orcish were those Trolls who waded directly through the water.

They roared while sprinting through the ponds, their eyes glowing with a faint red light, staring fixedly at the enemies right before them.

Facing the enemy's approach, "Eagle Eye" Du De quickly issued an order for the archers to retreat; they had brought many arrows, and this was not yet the moment for the archers to risk their lives in close combat.

Amidst bursts of horn calls, the Gondor infantry marched with steady steps, advancing a dozen meters and standing about ten meters away from the pond.

The Noldor Rangers, who had been carefully hidden within the Human army, suddenly revealed their figures.

With their agile forms, they kept weaving through the military formation, searching for suitable shooting positions and timing to deal with those Trolls wading over.

This was an order Allen had given them directly.

Moreover, before the battle began, Allen had told his subordinates that Trolls were not simple, savage beasts; these bloodthirsty and cruel creatures also possessed a certain level of intelligence.

To kill them, taking them by surprise should have a very good effect.

Once these troublesome fellows discovered that someone could truly threaten their lives, the Trolls would hide their vitals even better.

In that case, it would be very difficult to kill them in a short time.

And right now was a very good opportunity, because most of the Trolls' attention was focused on the Elite Infantry at the very front of the line.

The gradually shortening distance also allowed the Noldor Rangers, scattered in different places, to find shooting angles that could bypass the Trolls' Shields and strike their vitals directly.

As the Trolls' massive figures drew closer to the bank of the pond, the Noldor Rangers one after another drew the extremely powerful Noldor Composite Bows in their hands.

The tall figures of the Elves standing up stood out among the Humans, instantly attracting the attention of some Trolls.

But this situation was within the Rangers' calculations; the targets they each sought were mostly the Trolls running in the center of the enemy formation.

Those fellows did not notice the Elves at all and were still foolishly charging forward at this moment.

As the Elves quickly pulled the strings of their Noldor Composite Bows, sharp Noldor Enchanted Arrows emitted shrill whistling sounds, flying toward the Trolls who were facing their doom without knowing it.

Before shooting, the Noldor Rangers aimed at the Trolls' vitals, such as their necks, heads, and eyes.

The Noldor Enchanted Arrows, shimmering with blue and white light, nailed fiercely into the Trolls' bodies after flying at extreme speed.

And that originally incredibly tough cuticle that could protect the Trolls was now like butter cut by a hot knife, useless under the attack of the Noldor Enchanted Arrows.

The Trolls, suddenly attacked, did not die after their vitals were struck; instead, while roaring madly, they tried to use the large Shields in their hands for protection.

Especially those Olog-hai with even greater vitality, who actually accelerated their running speed.

Only, after being injured, their reaction speed was clearly greatly affected, and they were completely unable to dodge the Noldor Rangers' continuous shooting.

Soon, those Trolls in the very center of the formation let out deafening roars before dying and collapsed into the pond.

As for the remaining Trolls, they accelerated their charge once more and used their Shields to protect their heads tightly.

Facing the thick Shields in the Trolls' hands, even the Noldor Composite Bows combined with Noldor Enchanted Arrows did not have much effect.

Even if an arrow pierced through a Shield, it was difficult to continue harming a Troll protected by one.

Only those Trolls with slow reactions and truly low intelligence died under the Noldor Rangers' second wave of shooting.

By now, half of the Trolls had remained in the pond forever.

And the thirty-two Noldor Rangers had also poured out at least five hundred Noldor Enchanted Arrows in this short period of time.

Among the troops in Allen's hands, only these Noldor Elves, with their superb archery skills and excellent physical fitness, could ensure that their arrows would accurately fly toward their locked-on targets under such a high frequency of shooting.

And these highly penetrating enchanted arrows were brought to this world by these Rangers.

Allen's development in Pendor had not yet reached the point where he could purchase Elven equipment at any time.

These arrows possessing magical power were truly becoming fewer with every use.

The lethality that the Noldor Rangers erupted with in a short time caused the Gondor soldiers, who had been prepared to face the Trolls' charge, to burst into cheers.

Although the Gondor soldiers could still muster the belief to fight against those massive monsters, they also knew in their hearts that, facing such behemoths, the possibility of them surviving was too small.

Now, before these monsters had fully approached them, more than half had already died, which greatly boosted the spirits of the soldiers standing at the very front of the line.

However, the distance of the pond was limited after all; these monsters, moving their feet frantically, still ran onto the bank and charged toward the Humans before them like a storm.

And at this moment, the second contingency plan Allen had arranged began to take effect.

Ten Mertheim Deathsworn loyal to Allen jumped out first amidst roars, brandishing the greatswords in their hands while running quickly, intercepting the Trolls on the right side of the formation.

These battle-hardened veterans, even while wearing heavy armor, could perform agile movements on the hard ground.

Amidst their dodging and weaving, they evaded the thunderous attacks of the Trolls.

They were able to achieve this only because the armor they wore was forged by their own hands, allowing them to fully utilize their physical prowess—which far exceeded that of ordinary men—while ensuring excellent protection.

And the sharp, heavy longswords in the veterans' hands could, while dodging attacks, carve wound after wound into the Trolls.

Yet, they were facing thirty or forty Trolls after all; when the enemy began to swarm them recklessly, the situation of the Death-Defying Swordsmen themselves became precarious.

The Gondorian soldiers standing at the front of the formation were unable to step forward to rescue them, because when facing an enemy like Trolls, a numerical advantage is sometimes not a good thing; instead, it would interfere with the duel between the Death-Defying Swordsmen and the Trolls, causing the death of their own comrades.

At this moment, the Noldor Rangers standing within the ranks used the bows and arrows in their hands to strike at the Trolls' less guarded parts, such as their arms and legs, assisting the Death-Defying Swordsmen in the battle.

But this could not change the course of the battle; the Trolls' powerful vitality and limbs that feared no pain made it very difficult for them to die under such attacks.

The battle fell into a stalemate for a time, while the Orcish army had already approached the battlefield along the path piled with corpses.

At this moment, a small Ithilien Rangers unit, led by Beleg, suddenly charged out from behind the infantry.

These descendants of Ithilien, with their firm gazes and faces devoid of the slightest fear, paid no heed to the Orcish army that had already approached them.

Instead, they quickly circled to the side of the Trolls, drew the massive Purple Willow Longbows in their hands, and used arrows tipped with green feathers to shoot dead many Trolls who were locked in combat with the Death-Defying Swordsmen.

Such an act, in a battle fraught with crisis, was likewise a great feat capable of changing the course of the battle.

Among the people of Gondor, there is always a portion of Warriors whose courage far exceeds the imagination of ordinary people.

After completing such a feat, these descendants of Ithilien drew the longswords from their waists and engaged in fierce combat with the Orcs that had rushed to their side.

And the Death-Defying Swordsmen, now without opponents, quickly arrived at the side of the Rangers, swinging their longswords again and again, hacking down one Orc after another that swarmed up.

The Gondorian soldiers who had originally held the line, under the orders of their officers, quickly arrived at the side of their comrades and engaged in fierce battle with the Orcs.

The Trolls located on the left side of the formation were intercepted by squad after squad of Imperial Guard holding spears.

Facing these massive and frenzied monsters, only these elite troops of the Kingdom of Gondor could barely cope.

Moreover, the Gondorian elites who had originally stood behind them, under the orders of their lord, very boldly bypassed the battlefield of the Imperial Guard and the Trolls, rushed to the bank of the mud pit, and intercepted the enemy in the water.

Facing the weak Snaga, these battle-hardened Gondorian soldiers handled the situation with ease.

Furthermore, some militiamen holding polearms were also assisting in the battle behind them.

As long as they were not forced to face the cruel and terrifying Trolls, the Gondorian soldiers could fully stabilize their lines under the Orcish assault.

The archers who had retreated behind the infantry, under the leadership of "Eagle-Eye" Du De, competed with the Orcish archers in the art of archery.

Beneath a sky where black arrows and white arrows crossed, a dam composed of Humans, colored white and blue, was blocking the endless black tide.

Those Trolls engaged in the melee behind the dam fell one by one under the siege of the elites, but they still caused much damage to the surrounding Humans.

Three of the Mertheim Deathsworn under Allen's command lay on the ground, their survival uncertain.

And the White City's most elite Imperial Guard, even with the help of the Noldor Rangers, suffered extremely heavy losses, with dozens killed or wounded in their entanglement with the Trolls.

However, after eliminating the Trolls before them, they rushed to the front line of the battle without the slightest pause.

The Noldor Rangers, meanwhile, aimed their targets at the Uruk archers further away, though they had switched to ordinary Cone-headed Arrows.

At this moment, the Rohirrim guarding the left side of the army formation moved, with Sengel taking the lead, riding a white Mearas as he charged out.

Following closely behind him was the Eored belonging to the Second Marshal, with hundreds of cavalry converging into the sharpest tip.

They had to intercept this fast-maneuvering enemy force, lest this enemy cavalry unit circle to the rear of the Gondorian army and disrupt the main battlefield.

The white horse Flag fluttered in the air; the Rohirrim following the King in the charge sang aloud amidst the churning of hooves, and that song, filled with fearlessness and heroism, drifted over the entire battlefield.

The leader of the Easterlings looked at the Flag representing the King of Rohan, and an endless, raging fire ignited in his heart; the feud between the Easterlings and the Rohirrim was equally ancient, dating back over a thousand years.

Amidst his roar, a black Flag unfurled in the wind, revealing a winged golden dragon roaring at the sky.

Subsequently, these barbarian tribes from the East, led by their leader, abandoned the plan to circle the rear and charged toward Sengel's white horse and green Flag.

Seeing this, Sengel naturally noticed the golden dragon black Flag; he pointed the Spear in his hand toward the enemy and roared at his companion.

"Snowmane, aid me in the charge!"