Chapter 2787: Blooming

"Kill!"

The Imperial soldiers shouted in unison, their morale instantly peaking at 100 points. They thrust their sharp swords into the ice, and once the ice energy had permeated the blades, they charged at the nearby Flame Demons.

The Flame Demon army, which had been unstoppable just moments ago and had caused over 200,000 casualties to the Duoyin side, was now falling like wheat being harvested.

Out of the 4.7 million Flame Demons, a large number had been killed or wounded in just 20 minutes, and the battle had become completely one-sided.

Su Xiao stood on a mound behind his own camp, his gaze calm. He took out a pocket watch made by the Dwarves from his pocket and checked the time. It was almost time; this grand decisive battle was merely an appetizer.

Before the battle began, Su Xiao had been clear about one thing: the Flame Demon army was too chaotic and difficult to command. A short-lived chaotic battle was fine, but in a protracted war, his side would surely lose. He had never doubted that Duoyin's capability for frontal warfare was the strongest on the Star Fall Continent.

Behind the enemy lines, a sheathed knight's sword stood on a high platform. Two large hands pressed against the pommel of the sword. The Commander-in-Chief, Gate, surveyed the battlefield, a trace of a smile appearing on his face.

"The King has prepared everything. War Demon, how will you respond?"

After pondering for a moment, Commander-in-Chief Gate issued his second order: in fifteen minutes, release the second batch of Ice Wings. Before the war, Duoyin had secretly gathered all their mages to create three batches of Ice Wings through ritual formations.

Commander-in-Chief Gate was not overly joyful about the current results; the Elves were the best example of what happens when arrogance leads people to do foolish things.

"My lord, urgent report!"

"Speak."

"Spies report that the War Demon is leading the Wolf Cavalry Legion, the Treant troops, the Ghost troops, and the War Crossbow troops in a retreat toward the rear."

"Hmm?"

Commander-in-Chief Gate's eyes narrowed, his presence naturally imposing. The battlefield was too vast, and with the large amount of ice shards obstructing the view, it was impossible to see the situation behind the enemy lines.

"Mr. Gate, the War Demon has been beaten back by us."

"The War Demon excels at cavalry raids, but now that they have reached the frontal battlefield... Hahaha."

"I propose we do not pursue, but first annihilate the enemy's Flame Demon Legion. This is their main force. Once they are all wiped out, our main army can press forward, and even the Wolf Cavalry Legion won't be able to stop us."

Several deputy commanders wore joyful expressions, but Gate frowned, contemplating what might happen next.

"Retreat, retreat immediately!"

Commander-in-Chief Gate's order left the deputy commanders stunned, and the messenger on the side was also bewildered. However, on the battlefield, Gate's orders were absolute.

"Pass the order down: the Fifth Legion is to retreat."

"The Eighth Vanguard Legion, withdraw from the battlefield immediately."

One by one, the deputy commanders passed the orders down. It must be said that these Duoyin officers had plenty of war experience; on the battlefield, the Commander-in-Chief's orders had to be executed.

Just before the Duoyin retreat order had fully reached the front, the 3,275 Flame Giants on the battlefield stood frozen in place. In the iron baskets behind their necks, the Snake-men had long since vanished without a trace.

With the death of a large number of Flame Demons, plus the Wolf Cavalry's interception and rearguard actions, Su Xiao's main force had already withdrawn. The Imperial soldiers had been enjoying the slaughter of the Flame Demons too much, and with the obstruction of the nearby ice shards, they hadn't noticed that the enemy had begun preparing to retreat half an hour ago.

All 3,275 Flame Giants, along with all the Flame Demons, thrust their hands into their own chests. They were not living creatures at all; they lacked self-awareness, let alone fear. They were war weapons created by Agamemnon.

Almost at the same time, all the Flame Demons and Flame Giants tore open their chests. Especially the Flame Giants, who were over ten meters tall; after they tore open their chests, magma compressed by alchemy formations surged out, spraying up to a hundred meters high.

With a 'whoosh', a super-giant flame ring emerged on the ground of the battlefield, rapidly forming a super-giant array.

This was the super-giant alchemy array Su Xiao had laid out when he came into contact with the dragon flames while Barbatos was breathing them. The function of this array was simple: first gather energy, then erupt.

The soldiers on the battlefield were not stupid; they all fled toward the periphery amidst the surging magma, but it was too late.

Thud!

The earth shook, and the surging magma was suddenly flattened. All the Flame Demons and Flame Giants shattered, turning into more magma, and the ice on the nearby ground was instantly melted.

With a boom, it was like a blooming magma flower, enveloping four-fifths of the battlefield. In just an instant, the battlefield went silent.

The battlefield was very quiet, quiet enough to be suffocating. The Imperial soldiers around the battlefield who had managed to survive stared blankly at the magma flower not far away. The heat scorched their cheeks, causing them faint pain, and their hair and beards were singed and curled.

Clang~

A long sword fell to the ground. This battle had terrified the surviving Imperial soldiers, leaving them with no will to fight.

It was either victory or defeat. In this battle, neither side had a way out. If Duoyin won, the Chaos Legion would cease to exist and be completely slaughtered.

Looking at the magma flower ahead, Commander-in-Chief Gate's lips trembled. He understood now that from the very beginning, the enemy had never intended to fight a decisive battle with them. The entire battlefield... was a trap.

In just a few seconds, Commander-in-Chief Gate seemed to have aged a dozen years, and the hair at his temples had turned white.

"Lord Gate, the enemy's Wolf Cavalry Legion has bypassed the battlefield from the north. They, they..."

The messenger stopped halfway, afraid to continue.

"Have the enemy forces entered our territory?"

"Ye... yes, my lord."

"In what direction?"

"It seems to be... heading straight for the Royal Capital."

"Assemble all troops! Reinforce the Royal Capital immediately!"

Commander-in-Chief Gate's eyes turned red. However, the speed difference between infantry and cavalry destined this remaining frontline force to only eat dust behind them.

The magma explosion just now had killed over 80% of the Duoyin main force. Conversely, the Flame Demon Legion was completely wiped out. Both sides suffered roughly equal casualties.

Inside Duoyin territory, the Demon Flame Dragon Barbatos flew high in the sky. Su Xiao stood on the dragon's back. Below him were the 530,000 Wolf Cavalry. During the previous chaotic battle, the Wolf Cavalry Legion had basically not taken action, all to preserve their strength.

After successfully bypassing the main battlefield, the Wolf Cavalry Legion charged into Duoyin territory, driving straight in. Su Xiao's goal was clear: to capture the Duoyin Royal Capital.

A decisive battle with Duoyin would take a long time, and more importantly, he felt that he likely couldn't win, which was why he had spent a long time preparing in Black Melt City.

Using the decisive battle as a smokescreen, he made Duoyin concentrate their forces, and then sacrificed the Flame Demon army. Even if it wasn't a one-for-one trade, it would still severely damage the enemy.

The Flame Demon army could not be kept. Su Xiao was very clear that the Flame Demon army was Agamemnon's power. Once he turned against Agamemnon, it would inevitably become a force Agamemnon used against him, so Su Xiao left the Flame Demon army on the battlefield forever.

The only thing truly worth trusting was the Wolf Cavalry Legion he had cultivated along the way. As long as he captured the Duoyin Royal Capital, he would still be the final victor. Duoyin was an empire; once it lost its complete power structure, Duoyin was not scary.

Su Xiao checked his achievement mission, "Enemy of the Strongest." As expected, it was already in a completed state. Duoyin's reputation had reached -300,000 points (Deadly Enemy). This was normal; the previous battle had hit Duoyin too hard.

Traveling at full speed, bypassing a dozen Duoyin interception units, at 5:00 PM, as the twilight glow shone from the horizon, the Duoyin Royal Capital appeared in the distance. This was the place Su Xiao truly needed to break through. ===== CHAPTER 2788 =====