Chapter 33: Buff/Debuff
The battlefield gradually quieted down. Due to the incident at the ancient tree fortress, the previous battle had shifted from a siege to a plains battle.
Although they had been beaten badly, the Elf Elder Ruth's forces were not completely annihilated. With 100,000 Dawn Warriors as the main force, plus over 50,000 elven archers, Ruth led these 150,000 troops to break through the encirclement.
Even so, the elven race's 450,000-strong army was forever left behind here. In the history of the elven race, this was the most painful battle of all. The reason was that the enemy had lost less than 10,000 men.
That's right, this battle was so unbelievable that the total casualties of the Wolf Cavalry Legion were 9,785. It wasn't that the elven race was weak, but that they were sandwiched and beaten, very miserably.
In the previous battle, the elven race's surroundings were charged by the Wolf Cavalry Legion, and the center was the rampaging ancient tree fortress. They simply couldn't form a defensive formation.
That wasn't all. Above them, the Demon Flame Dragon Barbatos was spewing dragonflame. The most hilarious scene was that when Barbatos spewed dragonflame, he incidentally 'enchanted' the ancient tree fortress.
The tree roots of the ancient tree fortress, each as thick as a bucket and over a hundred meters long, were ignited on the surface. After gaining the 'Flame Enchantment', the ancient tree fortress whipped the elven warriors, causing them to howl in agony.
The enemies the Wolf Cavalry Legion actually killed were less than 100,000. The rest were severely injured by the ancient tree fortress and then finished off by the Wolf Cavalry Legion. Many were simply whipped to death by the ancient tree fortress.
Earlier, Ruth led 150,000 elven warriors to break out of the encirclement. Su Xiao naturally wouldn't let that go. He had already sent 200,000 Wolf Cavalry to pursue. Now that the battle at the ancient tree fortress was over, he left 50,000 Wolf Cavalry behind and sent the rest in pursuit.
The Demon Flame Dragon Barbatos soared into the sky. On its back, Bubu Wang sat crouched beside Su Xiao. Capturing the ancient tree fortress, Bubu Wang was definitely the MVP of this battle.
The wind whistled past their ears. Over ten minutes later, Su Xiao looked down from above and saw the Wolf Cavalry engaged in battle with a 30,000-strong force of Dawn Warriors. This enemy unit was covering the retreat of the main force.
The enemy troops below, stretched out in a long line, could indeed block the Wolf Cavalry's pursuit, but this was no different from a suicide mission. From this discipline, it was clear that the elven race's Dawn troops were not to be underestimated.
A total of 420,000 Wolf Cavalry were in pursuit, divided into two groups: front and rear. The front group had already been blocked by the Dawn troops. Although they couldn't hold out for long, it bought Ruth time, allowing him to lead the main force in retreat.
Su Xiao only observed for a few seconds before ordering Barbatos to continue flying forward to pursue the main force led by Ruth.
Ten kilometers ahead, about 100,000 elven warriors were sprinting across the plains. They gradually scattered, each group of about 10,000. As for which group Ruth was in, it was hard to find. The hidden mark Su Xiao had left on Ruth had been removed by someone.
A few minutes later, these elven soldiers completely dispersed. Although scattered, their goal was clear: the Aier Great Forest. Only by escaping back there would they be safe.
"Roar."
A dragon's roar came from above. Hearing this roar, the tens of thousands of Dawn Warriors running across the plains stopped. They all unstrapped the strong bows from their backs. It had to be admitted that Barbatos couldn't withstand a volley of this scale.
Last time at Moonlight Fortress, he had experienced the volley of the Dawn Warriors, which nearly killed him on the spot.
As for the arrows of ordinary elven warriors, Barbatos didn't care much. His dragon hide was very thick; he only feared the strong bows of the Dawn Warriors.
"Don't be afraid. For Lord Ruth, we cannot flee!"
A Dawn Warrior shouted, looking at the black dragon in the sky. It was flying too high, not yet within her range.
Just then, the Wolf Cavalry charged from a distance. Nearly 100,000 Wolf Cavalry, like a torrent, engulfed this 10,000-strong Dawn unit.
Controlling the Demon Flame Dragon Barbatos, Su Xiao used his aerial advantage to pursue and kill three more enemy groups but still couldn't find Ruth.
A few minutes later, Su Xiao caught up with a fourth enemy group. Without even needing to carefully sense, he knew Ruth was among these Dawn Warriors.
Amid the chaotic sounds of running, Ruth had already changed into the armor of a Dawn Warrior, blending in with the crowd.
"All troops, halt."
Ruth's order was given. Over ten seconds later, this 12,000-strong Dawn unit stopped.
With a loud crash, the Demon Flame Dragon Barbatos landed. Once on the ground, he no longer feared the strong bows of the Dawn troops, because Su Xiao was on his back.
"Kukulin Bai Ye, our elven queen has come to rescue me."
After saying this, Ruth let out a long sigh. He still couldn't figure out how this disastrous defeat had happened. The black liquid, or perhaps blood, he had seen earlier had an inconceivably strong corrosive power.
The sound of running came from behind Su Xiao. 420,000 Wolf Cavalry gradually regrouped. The remaining 50,000 were at the ancient tree fortress.
The reason Su Xiao didn't order a full charge was that the enemy's main force had also arrived.
Rumble...
A force of several hundred thousand elven troops marched in with orderly steps. When they stopped, they formed several square formations, each commanded by an elven elder.
The two armies faced off. Su Xiao stood beneath the Demon Flame Dragon Barbatos, and behind him were Wolf Cavalry with fierce eyes. Just one look at them would make an ordinary person's legs tremble.
A hundred meters away, tens of thousands of elven warriors stood in square formations. Their armor was exquisite, their weapons gleaming. Between the formations was a path over ten meters wide, leading to the rear.
A pure white, majestic, slightly larger elk walked along the path between the formations.
On the elk's back sat a female elf in a white gauze dress with long golden hair. Her features were soft yet dignified. It was the Elf Queen.
A golden-white light radiated outward. Seeing this light, the Wolf Cavalry's eyes became dazed, and the fierceness on their faces gradually faded. Some wanted to lie down and sleep, others wanted to find a patch of land to farm. Their fighting spirit was completely gone.
With a bang, blood energy spread out. The Wolf Cavalry affected by the Elf Queen's aura snapped back to alertness, their consciousness returning to normal.
"Great Lord of the Chaos Legion, war is not the only way to resolve the conflict between us. Continuing to declare war on the elven race will only lead to mutual destruction. Duoyin is stronger than us."
The Elf Queen's expression was gentle, and her words carried a unique charm.
[Warning: The Hunter is being subjected to Mind Soothing.]
[Judging...]
[Judgment complete. The enemy's Charm attribute is 1920 times that of your own. You will bear the full brunt of this buff/debuff effect.]
[Excess Buff Effect: For the next 600 seconds, you will recover 450 Health Points and 52 Mana Points per second (total recovery of 270,000 Health Points and 31,200 Mana Points).]
[Excess Debuff Effect: For the next 600 seconds, you will be subjected to the Hunt of Love (Mind Charm).]
[Due to the Blade Grandmaster trait, the debuff effect has been negated.]