Chapter 535: Digging such a massive lair, are you trying to hook a few heavyweight fish?

Damn, what a vicious scheme!

The Wolf King stood up, pacing back and forth in the royal tent like a predatory beast that selects its prey, his face fierce.

Fortunately I possess world‑shaking wisdom; I didn't fall for the damned Pioneers' trick, otherwise…

No!

Who was duped?

Clearly this is my own brilliance and might!

It was my world‑shaking wisdom that let me see through that woman's ploy at a glance.

I saw her malicious intent; she was just a plain spy, which is why I didn't fall for her!

……

Even so, these humans are too beastly—how can they use such a method to test an old cadre who's been widowed for years?

These are no ordinary upright monkeys; a heavy blow is required!

So the Wolf King pondered briefly, clenched his teeth, steeled his heart, and simply dispatched another twenty‑thousand troops to reinforce the barbarian plains.

He also drafted a letter, telling A Xi Bao to loosen a few restrictions, act boldly, and the father king awaits your good news!

However, perhaps the Wolf King's intention was good, but the plan went bad because the operation was overly bold.

—He felt the wild frontier was already in his grasp, so to save time he ordered this reinforcement to set out this afternoon.

As a result, the twenty‑thousand warriors had just climbed the slope and officially entered the barbarian plains when the winter sun set early.

Heavy clouds loomed overhead, dense canopy above, and the forest turned in an instant into a place where you couldn't see your own hand.

"Ah?"

The wolf commander responsible for leading—or escorting—them felt his heart drop instantly—something's gone wrong!

But some matters aren't up to him; he must grit his teeth and announce to the whole army to walk with torches, careful not to get lost.

The forest terrain's complexity needs no explanation, especially now that fresh snow has fallen, covering the ground with thick leaves and snow.

Not to mention the mud pits and beast lairs that swallow you if you're careless, even the slick ravines are now covered.

So now, the falls, broken bones, cliff drops, even those who simply get lost—accidents keep coming one after another.

One must understand these beast‑people are valuable labor, the so‑called "warriors," revered pillars in their respective Tribes.

If they die on the battlefield, the leader can at least return, perform the rites, and gloriously send the warrior's soul back to the beast god, giving the family closure.

But if they end up here with broken limbs, even disabled, crushed, missing, alive yet unseen, dead yet no corpse!

This…

Thus the tribe chief and the heads of the warrior squads mustered courage, banded together, and approached the wolf commander to offer suggestions.

They said, "Sir, the road conditions are terrible; why not camp here for a night and continue once daylight reveals the path?"

However, in the Wolf King's Court, the royal law is paramount, something even a division commander cannot alter.

The Wolf King said to depart this afternoon, so they must arrive before dawn; otherwise it's a missed deadline, and the leaders will be executed.

If this delay costs a war opportunity, ha, how many of his court warriors' heads would be insufficient!

Thus this commander won't tolerate your dragging and slow progress; daring to defy the royal command? You're courting death!

Of course, there was another line the wolf commander didn't utter, which is—

—Anyway, you're not soldiers of our Wolf King's Court; whose son are you, dead or alive?

Naturally, no matter how they beg they won't relent; instead they demand the army speed up, or else…

Before the commander could draw his blade, the terrified chief and heads fled, taking on the exploitation work, returning to boil their own tribespeople.

But it's like a math problem; sports, that sort of thing, he truly can't handle.

After all, even if you threaten with death, you can't make Loki suddenly spawn and swing Hulk around to smash back and forth.

Consequently, after a short time, the originally tight formation of twenty‑thousand beast‑people turned into a continuous "fire dragon".

The wolf soldiers ahead may have already crossed a mountain, while the small tribe warriors behind are still on the previous one, sweating profusely in the deep winter.

When the column is this chaotic, whether there's one more or one fewer flicker of fire in the woods no one cares.

Without knowing whose guidance they follow, whether they head toward the stronghold or elsewhere becomes irrelevant.

In short, when dawn broke, the wolf commander stared at the looming black citadel; as he exhaled and turned back, he suffered a heart attack on the spot.

But there's no need to worry about the commander's safety, for he soon won't have to worry about his heart at all.

—It was gouged out by the angry wolf prince's own hand.

"You bunch of idiots, you really ruined my big plan!"

He tossed the blood‑soaked meatball onto the ground, and A Xi Bao lifted his left foot and crushed it to powder.

When they entered the mountain they were twenty‑thousand strong; after a night, upon reaching the stronghold, even counting the lice on them they couldn't tally twenty‑thousand—what a horse‑step is this that only a wolf could do?

Worse still, their marching column stretched too long, and control over each segment was completely lost.

Thus A Xi Bao couldn't even trace the members' whereabouts; he could only set up a few tents here and wait for the scattered troops to find their way back.

Think about it—how will future generations describe this battle?

The great Wolf King A Xi Bao led a hundred‑and‑fifty‑thousand army to assault the high tower, capturing countless territories; yet casualties were only a thousand, and fifteen thousand went missing!?

Back at headquarters, the Wolf King was stunned upon seeing the beast‑people warriors emerge from the forest; learning the situation, he wore it like a mask of anguish.

So one can only say father and son were of one mind; the two almost simultaneously let out a wail of "Ahhh, my lifelong glory!!!"

And A Xi Bao, whose heart had just been stirred by successive victories, now fell silent again, reviewing the whole incident over a Pioneers' milk cake,

Although the mastermind had already been brutally executed by him, he as a leader still understood the commander's condition; even a blunder couldn't be this severe.

Moreover, even if the column stretched and the rear got lost, given the beast‑people warriors' physique and minds, and the relatively short distance, out of fifteen thousand at least ten thousand could be recovered.

In fact, by that afternoon only two to three thousand beast‑people warriors reported back to the six strongholds, including headquarters, a retrieval rate under one‑fifth.

"There's a problem!"

Although A Xibao had no evidence, he dared to guarantee that such abnormal data meant humans were meddling!

So before the sun set again, the new order from the Wolf Prince spread to the five beast‑man cities on the wilderness.

【Once night falls, any garrison at an outpost must not act rashly; all communications must rely solely on messengers, with no mistakes allowed.】

Of course, A Xibao also feared that messengers might be ambushed en route or be outright traitors, causing orders and intelligence to be tampered with, leading to all sorts of mishaps.

Therefore, whenever any side sends a letter, it must have a wax seal on the outside and the commander's great seal inside; if anything is missing…… the messenger will be executed on the spot!

Messenger:???

Hey buddy, I just make a living with my legs—what did I do to anyone? Why are you all trying to kill me?

Damn it, I'm quitting!

A Xibao: "Add a line—if you don't work, you die."

For the next three days, the royal court's troops also refrained from rash moves, merely letting the garrisons of the five cities adapt to the environment, repair defenses, and wait and see what would happen.

But before, pioneers would occasionally be seen here and there; these past days they have vanished completely, and the occupied zone has been dead calm for three straight days.

Even saying, "Look at me, you look at me—we eat well every day, as if we've even gained a few pounds."

"Ah… this…"

A Xibao instantly felt like a red‑nosed clown being toyed with in the palm of that damned swarm of mosquitoes.

He had just lain down in bed, ready to sleep, when the mosquitoes flew to his ear and buzzed frantically.

If he just gave up and didn't care, by morning his hands or feet would be covered in bumps as numerous as a tic‑tac‑toe board.

If anger rose in his heart, he'd leap from his warm blankets, grab insecticide and a fly swatter, turn on the light, and go on the offensive!

Okay, it's dead quiet—his huge bedroom has not a single flying thing.

So……

So on the fourth day, after A Xibao had spent another uneventful daytime, he finally resolved to launch a new offensive the next day—only to discover that tonight was unusually calm.

Because even until late at night, the city of Hancheng where he was stationed received no messages at all from the satellite cities.

Not to mention useful intelligence—even the ordinary messengers that each city must send out every hour to report safety to the main city never appeared.

No need to guess—this is definitely the enemy's doing!

So the Fox King hastily summoned A Xibao and the Ox King for a meeting to discuss how to respond to the humans' sudden attack.

The Ox King's opinion was to charge straight in, breaking myriad methods with a single force.

The three of us will attack together, sweeping them out one by one—how could humans have a chance to resist?

The Fox King's view, however, was to hold the troops in place.

Anyway, each satellite city has a garrison of 20,000, enough to withstand a siege of 40,000; it could hardly be taken in a single night.

Better to wait until sunrise, when the situation is clear, before acting—this would minimize the chance of operational errors.

As for A Xibao's thoughts, they are more complicated: first, as a level‑70 warrior, he personally favors launching action right now.

But now the enemy is hidden while we are exposed, the situation unknown; we have three level‑70 fighters in total, whereas the enemy can at least threaten one of them.

Thus any battle plan could leave one spot defenseless, allowing an enemy lying in wait to swoop in and seize it outright!

"Uh‑uh."

If she hadn't watched A Xibao grow up with her own eyes, the Fox King would suspect he might be a human child.

Goodness, were you bullied by humans as a kid? You talk like a braggart, constantly claiming you're invincible!

But no matter what, the Fox King, who originally held the initiative, still felt a sense of helplessness—his whip too short to reach.

……Damn, intelligence really is that crucial!

It's all because those damned wolf pups can't use magic—otherwise I could just hook up a magic conduit and have real‑time communication!

But this is also the Fox King's idle grumbling; magic conduits are convenient, yet they consume so much magic that they can't be used daily.

Back then, Ji Ming also relied on the dungeon's infinite magic to take Wendigo's calls at will; otherwise, even a casual touch would drain him.

So after thinking it over, the Fox King still decided to play it safe.

Leave the prince in charge of the home front, while she and the Ox King lead a 30,000‑strong force to the nearest satellite city to scout the situation.

That way, the troops left to guard the main city will be numerous, and the reinforcements sent to the satellite cities will also be plentiful—making it the safest split‑up approach.

But just as the Fox King and Ox King finished their preparations and were about to leave the city, they suddenly heard the clamor of war drums and horns blaring together.

"Enemy!"

The Fox King cast three lightness techniques on herself in succession, shooting up like a swallow to the spot on the city walls where the alarm was loudest.

Here the garrison had already clashed with the people below; magic and arrows poured down like a torrent, making the streets below shriek and wail in agony.

Having sworn brotherhood with the Wolf King, the Fox King is actually a blood‑thirsty killer at heart.

It's a shame that since the war began she's had few chances to strike—but now she's finally got her opportunity.

"How dare a petty thief invade the royal court's majesty—come get some!"

With a cold snort, she swept her staff through the air, tracing a huge circle and raining down hundreds of fire‑burst spells like a heavenly maiden scattering flowers.

If a ordinary mage's fire‑burst is comparable to a hand grenade, then the signature fire‑burst volley of a mage like her is at least equivalent to a line of bombers plowing the ground.

The incoming enemies naturally went pop‑pop‑pop, a large swath blown to smithereens; none dared approach the walls any longer, squealing as they fled in rout.

However, since it's fire magic, the fire‑burst necessarily produces light when it detonates; amid the flickering, the Fox King hadn't even begun to laugh wildly before she spotted some very familiar figures.

"Wait a moment!"

She quickly hurled a few light spells that trailed like meteors, illuminating the blackness beneath the city walls like flares.

Then the Fox King was astonished to discover that those running up from below were not the so‑called enemies at all, but……

A swath of fallen beast‑man warriors: "Brother, they're our own!"

The Fox King didn't dare land; instead she hurried back into the city and summoned A Xibao.

"Dear nephew, hear me out…"

"Ah?"

A Xibao didn't know why Aunt insisted he come to receive these inexplicable "reinforcements," but the situation was urgent, and he didn't have time to ask much, so he hurried over.

Yet when he asked carefully, he got a baffling answer.

"Your Highness, we have received your secret letter stating that 400,000 human main forces are attacking the stronghold, the assault is quite fierce, and we are to dispatch more troops to support you!"