Chương 38: Battle (Part 1)

On the other side, Li Qinwu, who was busy researching a new type of crossbow, was interrupted by a crisp system notification in his ear. [Ding! Your companion, Dog-Witch, has been captured by Dragon-Fang.]"Huh?" Li Qinwu was utterly dumbfounded. What happened? Dog-Witch got caught? Did the poisoning plot leak? He felt a wave of irritation wash over him. Dammit, that guy was more of a liability than an asset.

The scent of Red Poison Berries mixed with meat was incredibly faint; even for a Kobold, it was nearly impossible to detect unless they sniffed intently, and even then, it just smelled like a light fruity fragrance. If Dog-Witch had followed orders to drop the meat and leave, there was no way he would have been caught. Did that idiot disobey orders? Did he do something extra? The Kobold tribe would be furious. A decisive battle was likely imminent. However, Li Qinwu wasn't overly worried.

Looking at the five modified ballistae before him, his heart swelled with confidence.

"Since that's the case, we'll settle this ahead of schedule. Let's see who truly rules this forest!" Early the next morning, before dawn, Li Qinwu ordered his troops to "bury the pots and cook"—a final hearty meal. Once the soldiers were fed, he led the army westward. He needed to choose the battlefield. His army now possessed a significant number of long-range weapons, meaning he needed open ground to engage the Kobolds effectively.

The troops crossed mountains and ridges, eventually arriving at the colossal, ashen banyan tree. Li Qinwu selected this spot at a glance. For some reason, this area was barren; aside from the giant tree atop the hill, not a single blade of grass grew within a half-mile radius. Li Qinwu led his troops up the slope to the base of the tree and began fortifying the position. The five ballistae were placed at the highest vantage point.

The Goblins took sharpened wooden stakes they had brought along and lashed them together with vines to create chevaux-de-frise (anti-cavalry spikes). These spikes were placed on the flanks of the army, forcing the enemy to attack from the front. This allowed Li Qinwu to concentrate his elite forces in the center to withstand the main assault. Once the preparations were complete, Li Qinwu climbed the eerie, gray-black tree. Standing at the highest point, he peered toward the Kobold settlement.

He saw birds being startled into flight in the distant forest. The enemy was near. Hana walked to the base of the tree and shouted up to him, "There's something wrong with this tree. I sense an ominous magical aura coming from it." Li Qinwu rolled his eyes at her.

"Please, lady, anyone can see that. Look at how pitch-black it is, and look at the barren wasteland around it. Do you really need 'advanced knowledge' to figure that out? If you have something actually profound to say, say it fast! I'm busy! Otherwise, go comfort Dang-Dang; he's going to be very important later." Ensure your favorite authors get the support they deserve. Read this novel on Royal Road. Li Qinwu's tone was sharp. He was about to face a force two or three times his own size.

One wrong move and everything would be lost. He was feeling the pressure. Hana huffed, clearly displeased with his attitude. Li Qinwu glanced down at her and softened slightly.

"Miss Hana!" Hana turned back, seeing the serious expression on his face.

"Miss Hana, if I lose, run back to the human world and change your name. The world is huge; there's bound to be a place for you. Don't go back to Gobu-Fort. If I die, the Goblins will return to chaos. If they smear mud on themselves, humans won't be able to smell them." Having said his piece, Li Qinwu returned his focus to the forest. Hana stood dazed for a moment, clutching the hem of her clothes, her expression filled with unease. Birds continued to rise in the distance, closer and closer.

Finally, fifteen minutes later, the blare of a horn echoed from the forest's edge.

"They're here!" Li Qinwu took a deep breath and roared at the Goblins below: "The enemy is here! According to our drills... FORM UP!!!" The Goblins moved with mechanical precision, forming into squares. The front line consisted of Li Qinwu's 40 system troops and the 8 humans. They wore heavy Horned Crocodile plate armor, carried the best iron weapons, and held sturdy shields. They were Li Qinwu's core anvil. Mixed behind these heavy infantrymen were 30 spear-wielding Goblins.

Their job was to find openings and thrust their spears through the gaps in the front line to thin out the attackers. On the left and right flanks, behind the wooden spikes, stood Goblins armed with various polearms—one hundred on each side. These were the ones who had followed Li Qinwu the longest, survived several rounds of decimation, and undergone six hours of daily military drills. Fed on monster meat, thirty or forty of them had surpassed 1. 3 meters in height, showing signs of evolving into Hobgoblins.

Though not system troops, they were disciplined soldiers. With crocodile leather armor and the terrain advantage, they could hold the flanks. Behind them were 30 Goblin archers led by Gobu-Bow, using the crossbows handed down from the Hobgoblins. They were the primary ranged threat. Finally, there were the five modified ballistae. Li Qinwu had developed a "special ammunition" for them, the details of which he kept hidden for now. On the other side, the Kobold army arrived.

Amidst the blaring horns, a dense mass of Kobolds marched out of the forest and onto the barren earth. Leading them were over 100 Great Kobolds, ranging from 1. 6 to 1. 8 meters tall—the counterparts to Hobgoblins. Because they had natural fur, fangs, and claws, a Great Kobold was naturally stronger than a Hobgoblin in a naked fight. But in total war, with armor and weapons involved, that innate advantage was negligible.

These Great Kobolds were equipped with stone hammers, stone axes, bone armor, and crude wooden shields—quality-wise, they were several tiers below Li Qinwu's gear. Behind the elites trailed a swarm of roughly 1, 000 common Kobolds. They were a motley crew of various breeds and fur colors, looking like a disorganized rabble. They acted like one, too—yelping incessantly, urinating on the spot, and snapping at each other.

Most were unarmed, seemingly expecting to fight a metal-clad army with nothing but claws and teeth. After the rabble made their appearance, the heavyweights arrived. Four towering Ogres emerged from the forest, carrying a massive palanquin. Atop the palanquin sat a throne made of bone, where the towering Dragon-Fang rested. The sunlight caught his golden scales, making him shimmer—he certainly knew how to stage an entrance. His golden eyes locked onto the Goblins on the hill, narrowing slightly.

The "lowly" Goblins hadn't charged out in a chaotic mess to be slaughtered; instead, they had formed a disciplined battle array. This displeased him. He glanced at his own chaotic, yelping army and snorted, even more annoyed. He raised a strange, curved blade of unknown material and pointed it forward.

"ATTACK!"