yasinovel Chapter 176 Night Raid on the Stronghold
Chapter 176 Night Raid on the Stronghold
Three days later, the night wind in Wolf Tongue Valley made the withered grass on the rock walls rustle.
The soldiers lay in ambush on the cliff faces for two whole days, their armor plates pressed against the cold rock. No one spoke, no one lit lamps. The darkness was heavy, even the moonlight was mostly obscured by clouds, with only occasional streaks of grayish-white light leaking through the gaps in the clouds, illuminating the gravel at the bottom of the valley before quickly fading away. Leng Feng lay prone behind a protruding rock at the forefront, his fingers resting on the surface, feeling a faint tremor from the ground—a troop was approaching in this direction.
The evil army entered Wolf Tongue Valley about half an hour later than he had anticipated. The five-hundred-man column, escorting three supply wagons, slowly advanced along the valley path. The two leading evil generals rode low-level evil beasts, their hooves pounding the gravel with a series of dull thuds. Their formation was loose, their conversations carrying from the valley entrance, occasionally punctuated by laughter, making them seem like a group of ordinary soldiers on the move, completely unsuspecting. The lead general didn't even look up at the cliff faces on either side; his bone sword hung loosely at his waist, the scabbard's rope swaying with the horse's movements.
As the procession reached the middle of the valley, the two evil generals were already walking side by side in front of the grain wagons. Suddenly, countless torches lit up the cliff face. The dense flames ignited simultaneously on the rock face, like a long line instantly set ablaze, illuminating the entire canyon as if it were daytime. Immediately following was a rain of arrows, pouring down from both sides. The first volley of arrows pierced the middle of the procession, and several evil soldiers carrying flags fell with a thud. The second volley of arrows struck the grain wagons; the evil beast pulling the lead wagon, struck by an arrow, roared and reared up, causing the wagon to tilt violently to the side and overturn in the middle of the road, blocking the path behind.
The evil general's shout rang out amidst the chaos, short and hoarse, as if something was blocking his throat.
"We've fallen for their trap! Retreat! Retreat!"
His command was cut off on the third repetition. The boulders piled up at the valley entrance were pushed down at Chu Fan's order, rolling down the slopes to the middle of the path, jamming each other and blocking the valley exit. Moving them would take at least the time it takes for an incense stick to burn. The evil soldiers were trapped in the middle of the valley, blocked in front, rained down arrows from behind, and with boulders constantly falling from the cliffs on both sides, squeezing them towards the center. Their formation was completely thrown into chaos.
Chu Fan placed his hands on the ground at the main array eye, channeling his spiritual energy into the earth to trigger the pre-laid array patterns. Golden array patterns simultaneously lit up the valley floor and the rock walls on both sides. The ground beneath the feet of the evil soldiers seemed to be covered by a transparent net, their movements becoming sluggish. Each step required more effort than usual, and when they tried to unleash their evil power, the array patterns suppressed their energy flow, cutting off their output to about 60%. Lin Chen stood on the edge of the cliff, watching as the evil soldiers below were gradually compressed into a relatively narrow area in the center of the valley by the array patterns and rolling stones. He then gave the order: "Kill!"
The youth army swooped down from both sides of the cliff simultaneously. Shield bearers led the way, followed closely by spearmen, their formation already deployed in mid-air. Upon landing, the front ranks practically slid across the ground, shields facing outwards, striking the legs of the evil soldiers in the front ranks, causing them to lean forward, allowing the spearmen behind to follow up with thrusts. Shouts of battle, the clash of weapons, and the howls of evil beasts echoed through the canyon. Under the dual pressure of the formation and its array, the evil soldiers were almost powerless to resist. The Evil-Controlling Array, in particular, was like cutting off the most reliable tool for those soldiers who relied on evil power in combat. Each activation of evil power brought stagnation and collapse, forcing them to fight hand-to-hand with their weapons. Without the support of evil power, their counterattacks became weak. In less than half an hour, more than half of the five hundred evil soldiers had been wiped out.
Two evil generals attempted to break through. Leng Feng intercepted the one on the left, his battle blade slashing horizontally, forcefully knocking the opponent's bone knife from his hand. Then, with a swift turn, the blade sliced into the man's neck. The other evil general charged towards the valley entrance, attempting to leap over the pile of boulders. Lin Chen pursued from the flank, using the overturned grain cart for leverage, and thrust his sword into the man's back, the tip piercing his chest. The evil energy dissipated from the wound's edges under the scorching heat of the star energy.
While cleaning up the battlefield, several boxes of sealed poison were found hidden in the grain carts, enough to poison the drinking water supply of an entire fortified city overnight. Chu Fan found a token on the waist of a corpse, the back of which was engraved with the evil insignia of the Black Wind Valley stronghold. After examining the token, Lin Chen immediately made a judgment—this stronghold had already dispatched most of its forces, and according to the evil race's garrison practices, the rear defenses would inevitably be weak after the main force was deployed. He left two hundred soldiers at the scene to guard the grain and prisoners, and led the rest to Black Wind Valley overnight. The two places were only thirty li apart, and it would take an hour to reach them by fast horse.