Chapter 21: Secret Weapon
The name Molei was unfamiliar to Su Xiao, but since she was a Battle Angel, it reminded him of the pink-haired girl he had seen upon first entering this world. She had proposed cooperation back then, and Molei was likely her.
Currently, there was only one Violator in this world. When the other three Violators would arrive was still unclear to Su Xiao. He only knew the approximate time through Reincarnation Paradise's prompts—it could be two days later, a week later, or even longer.
Whether those three Violators would enter this world simultaneously or arrive one after another was also uncertain. The only known intelligence was that among this batch of Violators, one was exceptionally strong. Her name was Feishi, and Battle Angel Molei called her the strongest Violator of the Seventh Rank.
From Molei's plea for help, Su Xiao deduced one thing: the Violator in this world was starting to panic. Originally, this person had been drawing aggro to buy time.
But now, that Violator's behavioral patterns had completely changed. They had begun actively seeking out Battle Angels, Rangers, Pioneers, and others within this world.
Undoubtedly, this was a very dangerous move. Battle Angels, Rangers, and Pioneers were all formidable opponents, and there was a real risk of being killed instead.
Yet despite this, the Violator was frantically hunting these people down, intending to "cleanse" this world. This contradictory behavior indicated that the Violator was afraid—afraid of someone's arrival. If they didn't "cleanse" this world before that person came, they might die.
Time was limited. Su Xiao needed to accelerate his development. At the very least, before Feishi arrived, he had to reach full capacity—that is, 300,000 soldiers.
Not only that, but he also planned to upgrade the [War Lord] title once more. That would require a large number of titles, and triggering side quests or hidden quests was the fastest way to obtain them.
Tomorrow was the agreed deadline. If he couldn't capture Segona City by then, Su Xiao would lose his position as Grand Commander, and everything would become meaningless.
After arriving at the front lines and witnessing the Dwarves' war machines, Su Xiao admitted that he had previously underestimated Segona City.
Segona City had 50,000 garrison troops and countless war machines of all kinds. It was very likely that before his own soldiers could even charge forward, they would be swept by the war machines, with more than two-thirds falling.
This wasn't Su Xiao boosting the enemy's morale. The fact that Segona City had stood firm at the border fortress for so many years, stuck like a thorn in the "throat" of the Flame Sand Kingdom, spoke volumes.
No wonder Uno and Caross were willing to hand over 20,000 soldiers. With Segona City's defensive strength, even if they sent their most elite troops, they couldn't take the city in a short time.
After the Battle of Rongsha Fortress, Su Xiao still had over 36,000 soldiers remaining. When the battle ended, he had Kaisa and Oss make a killing on the battlefield.
Weapons, shields, and armor sets—they had captured over 50,000 sets. The armor couldn't be used directly, but it could be sold to nearby friendly fortress cities. As for the weapons and shields, over 80% could be used immediately. The Dwarves' forging craftsmanship was commendable.
Outside the camp, things soon became lively. As before, the method was to first break up the defeated troops' organization, detain high-ranking officers and send them back to Sand Capital, and demote mid- and low-ranking officers to common soldiers.
After intense reorganization, Su Xiao checked through the War Lord title to see how many soldiers he had under his command.
[War Lord title has been activated to maximum effect.]
[Currently commanding soldier-type units: 72,590.]
The number of soldiers was growing the more he fought, but this wasn't enough. Su Xiao needed a more stable and faster method of recruitment. Intercepting troops from other Grand Commanders was certainly quick, but the other Grand Commanders weren't fools—they wouldn't keep losing battles, and without defeats, there would be no routed troops.
Unable to think of a more stable recruitment method for now, Su Xiao decided to take a different approach. Since he couldn't recruit soldiers quickly, he would reduce his own soldiers' casualties during battle.
Laughter and chatter came from outside the camp. Kaisa, acting as Quartermaster, was directing dozens of Centurions to distribute gold coins to the soldiers. One gold coin per enemy killed—this promise had to be kept.
"Woof~"
Bubu Wang lay on a small bed inside the tent, his resentful little eyes seeming to say, "Next time we go to war, I'm not activating the aura anymore, or it'll interfere with reconnaissance."
The aura's range was more suitable for small teams. Su Xiao didn't plan to have Bubu Wang activate the aura again. With too many allied troops, the aura's consumption increased exponentially. If it were just Su Xiao, Amu, Baha, and Beini, Bubu Wang could keep the aura on 24/7 without any issue.
With nothing else to do, Baha landed beside Su Xiao and asked, "Boss, still no news from Amu?"
"Not yet."
"He didn't end up in the sea again, did he?"
Baha sounded worried, but his grin was gradually turning mischievous.
"Probably... not."
Su Xiao cleared his throat and sat at the wooden table, mixing something. It pained him to do this—the resources consumed were enormous. If not for the circumstances forcing his hand, he wouldn't be doing this.
As night fell, the soldiers at the encampment gathered in small groups. Some were playing "Cro cards" inside the tents, with limited alcohol allowed. In other units of the Flame Sand Kingdom, this would be strictly forbidden. Su Xiao didn't care about such things. With the soldiers' physiques, a small amount of alcohol was fine. As long as they could win battles, nothing else mattered.
At 11 PM that night, Su Xiao walked out of the tent with Bubu Wang and Baha, holding a long wooden box.
"Sir, everything has been prepared as you requested."
Oss held a torch, while Kaisa peered over from a distance.
Oss led the way, and Su Xiao arrived at the rear of the encampment. Metal pillars nearly half a meter thick were driven into the ground, with only half a meter exposed above the surface. In reality, these pillars extended nearly a hundred meters underground, the result of thousands of soldiers working together.
Hundreds of such metal pillars were driven into the surrounding area, forming a circle. Each pillar was connected by iron chains, which bound a colossal creature. This was a Giant Rock Dragon, a wild one in its prime. A Holy Soul had controlled it, making it fly to the border.
The Giant Rock Dragons tamed for passenger transport were nothing like this wild one. When this wild Giant Rock Dragon crouched on the ground, it was already over ten meters tall. How massive it would be when it stood up and spread its wings was unimaginable.
"Roar."
A deep roar came. The Giant Rock Dragon's mouth was bound with iron chains, and three super-massive collars were fastened around its neck, each surrounded by countless chains.
Boom! Boom!
When the Giant Rock Dragon sensed someone approaching, it began to struggle. The ground within half a kilometer trembled, and dust was kicked up with every movement.
"Not a bad specimen."
Su Xiao opened the long wooden box in his hand. Inside were only two items: a core formation diagram and an arm-thick glass cylinder. The liquid inside the cylinder was pitch black, and as it surged, it seemed to form a giant beast with wings.
Crack, crack, crack~
A crystal layer climbed up Su Xiao's left hand. He took out the core formation diagram from the box. Just then, he felt something grab his leg.
"My dear friend, whatever you're holding in your hand, you absolutely must show it to Kaisa!"
Taking advantage of his height, Kaisa clung tightly to Su Xiao's leg. Su Xiao lifted his right leg and shook it twice, but couldn't shake Kaisa off.
No wonder Kaisa was holding on so tightly. In his life, there were three things he valued most: first, money; second, more money; and third, Alchemy.
"This is a Lowe-type formation diagram, with strong permeability and symbiosis. You can't touch it."
"Lowe formation diagram?"
Kaisa's eyes were full of curiosity. This fell into a blind spot in his knowledge.
"Lowe-Hark formation diagram, originating from the Wasteland Star, with a history of 2,157 years. It has gone through 129 generations of refiners. Lowe formation diagram, Heart-Biting formation diagram, Wasteland Star Legacy—all these names work... Any more questions?"
After explaining the synthesis structure, operating principles, stabilization methods, and material selection of the "Lowe formation diagram," Su Xiao signaled for Kaisa to let go.
"This, this, this—you're just telling me all this? Wait, let me find a pen to write this down."
Kaisa was almost dancing with excitement. Alchemy knowledge was incredibly rare. If the value of alchemy formulas was 100, then the value of this kind of knowledge was at least 2,000 or more. Sometimes, just a tiny difference in mixing ratios required hundreds of thousands or even millions of Paradise coins' worth of materials to slowly experiment. Perfecting this knowledge might require tens of thousands or even hundreds of thousands of experiments. The difficulty and hardship involved could only be understood by alchemists.
The Lowe formation diagram had been refined by 129 generations of alchemists over 2,157 years, using their lives, time, and resources. To put a value on it—in the eyes of an alchemist, this knowledge was priceless. But to an outsider, it was just a collection of obscure and difficult patterns.
Within the Alchemy Codex, the Lowe formation diagram was as insignificant as a speck of dust. If Kaisa ever saw the Alchemy Codex, he would need some time to calm down from his frenzy.
Ignoring Kaisa, who was already trembling, Su Xiao pressed the Lowe formation diagram onto the Giant Rock Dragon. The giant beast seemed to sense danger and struggled even more violently.
Thump! Thump!
It was like an earthquake. Several half-meter-thick metal chains snapped.
"ROAR!!"
The chains around the Giant Rock Dragon's mouth broke. It raised its head and roared, sending layers of shockwaves outward.
"Shut up."
A blue light flickered in Su Xiao's eyes. Instantly, the Giant Rock Dragon fell silent. The rock-like skin on its body trembled as the "Lowe formation diagram" inside its heart was activated.
Su Xiao walked up to the Giant Rock Dragon. Although this creature was strong, it was still too weak against the Dwarven forces.
He controlled the Giant Rock Dragon to open its mouth full of sharp teeth. Su Xiao exerted force with his hand, cracking the glass cylinder.
He tossed the glass cylinder into the Giant Rock Dragon's mouth. Once inside its throat, the cylinder quickly dissolved. The black liquid inside seemed alive, dispersing and sinking into the Giant Rock Dragon's throat.
With a thunderous crash, the Giant Rock Dragon's head hit the ground. The rock-like skin all over its body rapidly turned black, then shifted to gray, becoming dry and covered in cracks.
If this Giant Rock Dragon survived, it would transform into a new species. If it died, Su Xiao would have suffered a massive loss.