Chapter 25: Total Annihilation
Su Xiao aimed [Soul Shadow Hunter] at the dwarf lying on the ground, but just as he was about to pull the trigger, a familiar sound of something cutting through the air came from above.
Having grown accustomed to the battlefield, Su Xiao knew what it was without looking. That distinctive sound could only be a "Green Phosphorus Fire Bomb."
And indeed it was. A "Green Phosphorus Fire Bomb" the size of a water vat flew in an arc. Based on his initial estimate, it would likely land a few meters away from him.
The power of green phosphorus fire was obvious to all. Moreover, a new wave of tribal troops was already surging toward Su Xiao. Once the "Green Phosphorus Fire Bomb" hit the ground, it would be difficult for him to escape the burning zone. Realizing this, he abandoned the idea of killing the dwarf on the ground and instead aimed [Soul Shadow Hunter] at the "Green Phosphorus Fire Bomb" midair.
The bomb spun in the air, making it much harder to hit.
"Kill him!"
"Revenge for our fallen brothers!"
"Hold him down! The green phosphorus bottle is coming—let's all die together!"
The surrounding orcs and dwarves charged forward, their eyes burning with a desire to tear Su Xiao apart alive.
Over a dozen imperial soldiers rushed toward him, but Su Xiao kept his crossbow aimed, his breathing slowing as the sway of the crosshair diminished. At that moment, all he could hear was his own breath; the roars of the tribal troops faded into the background.
He pulled the trigger. The bowstring made a faint whistling sound as an energy bolt shot out.
The energy bolt flew at incredible speed, striking the "Green Phosphorus Fire Bomb" midair with pinpoint accuracy.
With a crack, the glass bottle shattered. The green liquid inside splattered through the air, reacting with the air to ignite green phosphorus fire.
A large swath of green phosphorus fire rained down onto the tribal troops, who screamed in agony as they were engulfed. The green phosphorus fire was insidious—not only was it extremely hot, but it also had strong adhesive properties, like molten plastic dripping from a burning object. Even a tiny speck on the skin would burn a deep hole into the body.
Having neutralized the threat of the "Green Phosphorus Fire Bomb," Su Xiao stowed away [Soul Shadow Hunter]. His counter shield expanded outward as his long blade carved through enemy after enemy.
Before long, Su Xiao stood atop a pile of corpses, looking down from a height.
The surrounding tribal troops charged fearlessly up the mound, determined to overwhelm him with sheer numbers.
Su Xiao, wielding a long blade as his primary weapon, was well-suited for group combat. Combined with his counter shield and Cyan Steel Shadow energy, the human wave tactic couldn't break him in the short term.
His mana and health recovered quickly, but stamina remained a persistent issue.
Su Xiao's stamina attribute was high, allowing him to hold out against the tribal siege for a long time. But he wasn't a machine—he would eventually tire.
In the previous battle, he had fought for an entire day and night, but he had often "slacked off" and even feigned death to recover stamina.
This time was different. Su Xiao urgently needed battle merits. If he couldn't earn enough this time, [Sacred Oak Branch] might be claimed by some adventure group pooling their merits.
Thus, in this battle, Su Xiao had to go all out. As his kill count skyrocketed, his stamina drained rapidly.
With a crack, his counter shield shattered for the fifth time. Fortunately, his mana had fully recovered from killing enemies, and a new counter shield immediately formed.
Whoosh—Boom!
From time to time, green phosphorus fire bombs, volleys of arrows, and crossbow bolt cutters flew through the sky. None of these were easy to deal with—they were all weapons of war.
From a bird's-eye view, the imperial and tribal armies kept surging toward the Black Soil Fortress. Soldiers on both sides died in droves, only for more to charge forward.
Explosions, the wails of the wounded, the deafening roar of battle cries, and the shouts of officers filled the battlefield with chaos. Many soldiers, blinded by bloodlust, even began to accidentally injure their own comrades.
At that moment, every soldier seemed mad. The fighting had reached such a fever pitch that even if the leaders of both sides wanted to stop the war, they couldn't. This battle could only end one way: one side would be driven off the Black Soil Fortress and forced back into their territory.
The imperial army fought to protect their homeland, while the tribal army fought so their people wouldn't starve or freeze. Both sides had valid reasons. Thus, the war would not stop until one side left a mountain of corpses behind and retreated.
The war world had three major war zones. If the other two had a danger rating of two stars, the Black Soil War Zone was at least five stars.
Relatively speaking, the Black Soil War Zone offered more opportunities for rewards, with danger and opportunity coexisting.
Of course, not everyone liked such opportunities—like the Symbiotic Alliance Adventure Group.
The Symbiotic Alliance was a medium-sized adventure group with 96 members, including the leader, putting it in the mid-range for group size.
The group's leader, Commander Ge, had his eye on [Sacred Oak Branch]. So, when the war began, he led his people up to the Black Soil Fortress.
As soon as they engaged the tribal army, Commander Ge realized something was wrong. The enemies' defense and attack power were far higher than in the previous battle. As for retreating from the fortress, that was impossible—too many friendly soldiers were pushing from behind. Even with Su Xiao's strength attribute, he had been forced onto the fortress by the crowd.
Facing tribal troops whose defense, attack power, and overall quality had risen several notches, the Symbiotic Alliance's main tank and two sub-tanks fell within an hour of the battle starting. They were hacked to pieces by over a hundred elite berserker orcs.
An adventure group was a cohesive unit, with members specializing in front-line combat, crowd control, fire support, and other roles. The moment the main tank fell, Commander Ge's face turned ashen.
In just five minutes, the Symbiotic Alliance was scattered by the tribal army. Their numbers dropped from 96 to 17, and the count kept falling.
Twenty minutes later, the Symbiotic Alliance was annihilated. Commander Ge died at the hands of an orc chieftain—a minotaur who made him taste the business end of its horns.
The first adventure group to be wiped out on the battlefield had appeared. The contractors from Reincarnation Paradise suffered heavy losses, and those from Apocalypse Paradise weren't faring much better, getting beaten to the point of questioning their existence by the imperial army.
Adventure groups disliked large-scale battles like this. They preferred to gang up on powerful plot characters or big bosses—that was their forte. With their well-coordinated abilities, most bosses fell to their teamwork.
But on the battlefield, such coordination lost its meaning. The sheer number of enemies was overwhelming. The larger the adventure group, the bigger the target, and the more soldiers they faced. What was once an advantage became a disadvantage—though if the numbers were equal, the adventure group would undoubtedly crush the soldiers.
Adventure groups weren't suited for this kind of battlefield, but one type of person was: lone wolves. Most lone wolves, even if they didn't develop multiple attributes, used skills or equipment to cover their weaknesses, leaving them without obvious flaws.
Moreover, lone wolves faced far fewer soldiers at once than adventure groups, making their survival more likely in war.
Of course, some adventure groups thrived on the battlefield by using their own soldiers as cover, avoiding the front lines. But doing so meant lower rewards than charging ahead.
Su Xiao enjoyed challenging war zones like this. He was already in his element among the tribal forces, cutting down enemies with every swing. Standing atop a towering pile of corpses, he caught the attention of both imperial officers and tribal leaders. The officers' interest meant promotions and rewards for him, while the tribal leaders' attention meant stronger enemies.
Su Xiao leaped down from the corpse pile, carving a bloody path through the tribal troops. He didn't want to attract the attention of overly powerful enemies. But as luck would have it, things didn't go his way.