# Chapter 19: The Surprise Came Too Suddenly
Drip, drip, drip～
Blood dripped along the edge of the square black stone table. Grand Commander·Niboso held a curved blade, his long hair scattered.
"Cough, cough, cough..."
The Vice Commander leaned against the wall, the light membrane that had enveloped the stone room slowly dissipating.
"You... how could you be this strong."
The Vice Commander clutched his throat with one hand, unceasing blood seeping through his fingers.
"The glory of the Peniel Family? How many years ago was that?"
Grand Commander·Niboso spoke with a smile, using his curved blade to cut his own long hair. Every time he fought, his hair would grow rapidly, which gave him a headache.
"Only losers think every day about whether the times will change. Are you a direct descendant of the Peniel Family?"
Strands of black hair fell to the ground. After cutting his hair short, Niboso patted the hair stubble off his shoulders.
"Investigate thoroughly before staging a mutiny. After all, I was called a demigod decades ago. The last Sand Emperor of the Peniel Family was executed by my own hand."
With that, Grand Commander·Niboso flicked his curved blade, which pierced through the Vice Commander's throat, pinning him to the wall.
The smile on Grand Commander·Niboso's face gradually faded. He didn't care about the Vice Commander's betrayal. What truly concerned him was the surrounding battlefield. He was indeed a demigod, but if his troops were all killed or scattered, he would die here too. The Secret Lu army had too many methods for dealing with demigods.
At the edge of the Rongsha Fortress battlefield, Su Xiao's troops had just arrived when they were blocked by the Secret Lu army.
Su Xiao had nearly 60,000 soldiers under his command. Although they looked like a ragtag militia, they still attracted the attention of the enemy's Supreme Commander·Spring Iron Sheep.
Spring Iron Sheep didn't send too many soldiers. Instead, he deployed an elite force of 20,000 troops to break up this "ragtag army."
The attacking dwarf force was called the Storm Hammer Legion, one of Secret Lu's elite units. It was a 20,000-strong heavy shield infantry, highly skilled at intercepting reinforcements and cavalry.
Boom, boom, boom...
The sound of orderly marching came from ahead. The elite dwarf force advanced at a moderate pace.
A series of dull thuds came from behind this dwarf force. Over a thousand metal crossbow bolts flew in. These metal bolts were over five meters long, with numerous wind holes at the tail, allowing them to emit wind whistles while spinning at high speed during flight.
These metal bolts arced through the air before all splitting apart, transforming into a rain of gleaming crossbow bolts. Conservative estimates put the number at over 100,000.
The Secret Lu dwarves' war weapons were far too powerful. In this regard alone, they were at least several times stronger than the Flame Sand. If not for the difference in Gray Souls within the soldiers' bodies, the Flame Sand wouldn't even qualify to fight the Secret Lu.
Su Xiao's soldiers all stopped charging, raising their light shields above their heads and curling up their bodies, trying to avoid being hit by the metal bolts.
Thump, thump, thump...
After the dense impact sounds, at least several hundred of their own soldiers fell.
"Charge! Gold Shield, no, the enemy is right ahead!"
A soldier roared, nearly scaring himself to death. How could he shout "Gold Shield" at a time like this? He should have shouted "For Honor!"
"Kill!"
As soon as the words "Gold Shield" were uttered, the soldiers recalled their Grand Commander's earlier words: kill one enemy, earn 1 Gold Shield.
Gold coins were good things. Even if the soldiers didn't have wives or children, they had parents. They fought on the front lines not only to defend their homeland but also to bring a better life to their families.
"Follow me, charge! Kill one dwarf, 1 Gold Shield!"
"Kill!"
With the dual boost of the War Lord and gold coins, all the soldiers charged forward. Even if crossbow bolts rained down from above, nothing could stop them.
After successive collision sounds, the soldiers clashed with the enemy elite. Since they had no war weapons, they charged straight into close combat.
Pfft!
Blood splattered everywhere. A soldier wielding a heavy sword with one hand cleaved a dwarf soldier in two. He was stunned for a moment. In the past, this heavy sword forged by Secret Lu dwarves required both hands to wield. Now, there was no such need. Using the heavy sword as a one-handed weapon was just right.
What this soldier didn't notice was that a trace of life force spread along the blood on his sword, eventually seeping into his arm.
Perhaps feeling that the arrow wound on his shoulder no longer hurt, the soldier pulled out the bolt from his shoulder and turned his gaze to a Secret Lu dwarf.
Their eyes met. The Secret Lu dwarf's heart clenched. He saw a pair of somewhat bloodshot pupils, giving the feeling that he was no longer facing a human, but a demon on the battlefield.
"Haha, hahaha!"
A soldier covered in blood threw his head back and laughed. His pupils were now completely bloodshot. His only thought was to kill every living thing he saw.
The bloodshot-eyed soldier turned to look at another nearby soldier from his own side. They exchanged glances for a moment, nodded to each other, and then charged at other nearby enemies with agile steps.
At first, the Storm Hammer Legion didn't notice anything unusual. As one of Secret Lu's elite forces, though not top-tier, they were accustomed to winning. Facing a ragtag enemy army, they felt a sense of superiority, keeping their morale above 90 points.
But about half an hour into the battle, the Storm Hammer Legion sensed something wrong. Their enemies were like madmen, not caring about their own lives at all. As the battle continued, their pupils grew increasingly bloodshot. Some who should have been dying from their wounds kept fighting, like an undying slaughter legion.
Behind the enemy lines, in front of a tent.
Over a dozen dwarf soldiers guarded the tent's entrance. A sheep head pattern was printed on top of the tent. In the Secret Lu Kingdom, sheep were animals that couldn't be slaughtered. Secret Lu people ate meat from any animal except sheep. War sheep were companions, not livestock for slaughter.
Inside the tent sat a stocky dwarf, flipping through battle reports on the table. Judging by the glass of wine beside him, he was in a good mood. This was Spring Iron Sheep, the supreme commander of this battlefield.
"Old friend, you won't hold out much longer."
Spring Iron Sheep picked up an oak cup, took a big gulp of strong liquor, then looked at a lame man inside the tent, a hint of disdain in his eyes.
"That old friend of mine won't die at your hands."
The "old friend" Spring Iron Sheep referred to was Flame Sand Kingdom's Grand Commander·Niboso. Spring Iron Sheep had fought him for many years. Though they had never met, they had a mutual sense of recognition.
"His Vice Commander will bring his head."
The lame man in the tent spoke. He wasn't a Secret Lu native but a Flame Sand native.
"Let's make a bet. If Niboso dies at his Vice Commander's hands, this 'Luo Steel Sword' is yours. Don't underestimate it; it was once the Sand Emperor's personal sword."
"Oh?"
The lame man became interested. After thinking for a moment, he pulled a crystal from his bosom, with golden light surging inside.
"If I lose, this Thunder Sheep's Holy Soul is yours."
"Deal."
Spring Iron Sheep laughed heartily, placing the Luo Steel Sword on the table.
Hurried footsteps came from outside. A dwarf in leather armor rushed into the tent.
"Lord Iron Sheep, battle report from the Storm Hammer Legion."
"So fast? The Storm Hammer always brings me surprises."
Spring Iron Sheep opened the battle report and saw the blood-red words on it: "Storm Hammer Legion, completely annihilated."
Spring Iron Sheep narrowed his eyes, put down the report, and leaned back in his chair to think. As the supreme commander of a local battlefield, Spring Iron Sheep had this much composure. He was wondering why sending the Storm Hammer army to deal with a ragtag force resulted in their complete annihilation. Had they been ambushed by enemy beast cavalry?
Just as Spring Iron Sheep was pondering how the Storm Hammer force was wiped out, a dwarf officer in tattered armor rushed into the tent.
"Lord, save us."
"Speak slowly."
"Lord, an enemy force of over 50,000 soldiers attacked our Third Legion."
Hearing this, Spring Iron Sheep breathed a sigh of relief. An enemy force of 50,000 against the Third Legion's full strength of 120,000—they could definitely hold.
"Lord, the Third Legion can't hold much longer."
"What!?"
This time, Spring Iron Sheep finally lost his composure. If the Third Legion's defensive line was breached, the battle was as good as lost.
"Who's the army commander leading those 50,000?"
"Lord, the one leading those 50,000 isn't an army commander. It's the Flame Sand's Grand Commander."
"Grand Commander?"
Spring Iron Sheep was slightly puzzled. A Grand Commander leading only 50,000 soldiers was very unusual. He asked, "Did someone from the nearby war zone arrive? Which one?"
"He's a Grand Commander named Kukulin Bai Ye."
"Kukulin Bai Ye? Never heard of him. Oh, right, he's from the Brave Skull Tribe."
Spring Iron Sheep's brow furrowed deeper. In his impression, this was a minor figure who had been escorting merchants in the Flame Sand Kingdom. He knew the name only because of the Brave Skull Tribe identity.
Actually, Spring Iron Sheep didn't need to worry about this, because he would soon remember this name firmly, and then hate it with a burning passion.