Chapter 667: "Scorched Earth" Tactic
Dense red light continuously emitted scorching heat.
A large amount of moisture evaporated, and many tiny creatures and plants emerged from the soil.
Unfortunately, it was already too late for them to escape.
The rising temperature turned the ground slightly red, completing a thorough disinfection and sterilization transformation.
It wasn't that Matthew was careless, but rather that the land of Catachan was simply too dangerous.
If he wanted to fully control this place, Matthew didn't mind "burning" it piece by piece.
The reason he could create such a large scorched area was thanks to the powerful effect of the fire elemental energy pool.
Using them as the core, he deployed dozens of secondary fire elemental energy reservoirs throughout the land.
As long as he introduced a large amount of fire elements from the fire elemental plane and let them freely release heat, the problem could be easily solved.
Of course, Matthew wouldn't activate such a large area at once, instead opting for experiments on small patches like this.
This allowed him to gather information and data while avoiding drawing attention.
Although Matthew didn't know about the existence of Evil Shadow Spirits,
These things had never shown themselves even in front of players.
But that didn't stop Matthew from maintaining his cautious and careful approach.
The means to attract targets naturally had to be as high-profile and flamboyant as possible.
The part that actually worked had to be as covert and careful as possible.
After obtaining enough information and data, Matthew temporarily stopped converting the land within his control into scorched earth.
In the future, Bay Territory would definitely conduct large-scale development of the Catachan sub-plane.
It would be impossible to apply the scorched earth tactic to all of the land.
Not only would it consume vast resources, but it would also be an enormous waste.
"We can conduct large-scale cultivation studies on various unique plants."
"Even if the top layer has been cleared, the land of the Catachan sub-plane remains extremely fertile."
"More importantly, the 'life energy' in the land is very strong, making it very suitable for the growth and cultivation of magical plants."
"We need to quickly establish various plantations and research zones to accelerate development of the Catachan land."
"Druids should be more cautious here, avoiding contact with certain dangerous beings and regularly checking both mental and physical conditions."
While assigning tasks to Elona, Matthew observed the gathering troops, his eyes revealing anticipation and contemplation.
Years of development and accumulation had reached the point of being tested.
The reason Matthew wanted to rally the elite forces of his territory before the first elemental tide and conduct this war against a quasi-cataclysm threat,
Was to gauge the current limits of Bay Territory's capabilities and adjust future development plans and pace accordingly.
If Bay Territory could achieve victory,
The development strategy would become bolder.
If they could withstand the pressure and maintain a relatively stable confrontation,
Then Matthew would accelerate his own power growth to further speed up territory development.
If Bay Territory failed in battle,
Matthew would be regretful, but not saddened or discouraged—instead, he would speed up the development of the "treasure" in his memory.
At that point, the territory's development strategy would shift.
Naturally, the pressure on everyone to progress would increase.
Most of the Evil Shadow Spirits' attention was still on the Catachan tribes.
Yet even so, they still devoted a fair amount of attention to Bay Territory's movements.
Sure enough, they quickly noticed the massing of Bay Territory's soldiers.
The Evil Shadow Spirits, who had deliberately pulled back their forces, weren't worried about Bay Territory's offensive.
On the contrary, they had been waiting for this moment.
Just as Bay Territory was collecting their information, they also needed more time and contact to understand Bay Territory.
"Roar...!"
A deafening dragon roar echoed from the sky.
The wyvern squad led by Yaya flew side by side toward the Catachan jungle ahead.
Yaya opened her mouth, gathering destructive flames and then unleashing them wildly.
The other wyverns also opened their mouths, following Yaya's trajectory and unleashing their breath recklessly.
Blazing flames surged into the Catachan jungle.
The burning jungle suddenly seemed to come alive, trying to snuff out the encroaching fire.
But Yaya had already anticipated this move. While advancing the flames, she released the fuel bundles gripped in her claws.
The blazing fire ignited the falling fuel bundles, which in turn set their contents ablaze.
Fwoosh!
Boom!
Small mushroom clouds erupted as crimson flames spread outward in waves.
The greedy flames instantly destroyed the approaching animated plants.
The violent expansion of the fire tore them into pieces and burned them to ash.
Before the Evil Shadow Spirits could react, they briefly lost control of that section of the Catachan jungle.
After the breath attack was completed, Yaya and the wyverns didn't rest.
Under Yaya's lead, they began targeting the larger animated plants.
These massive living plants usually served as plant conglomerates acting as control cores.
Soldiers on the ground struggled to detect their camouflage and eliminate them precisely.
But it was different for wyverns in the sky.
Large plants typically towered above others, making them highly visible from above.
Moreover, most wyvern riders were equipped with detectors for large animated enemies, further boosting their targeting accuracy.
Crack!
Yaya dove and easily snapped the thick trunk of a large tree.
Pale green sap spurted out, and the once still tree began to shake violently.
Yaya gave it no time to react. While it was still undergoing its animation transformation,
Her massive tail, powered by her momentum, struck the top of the trunk hard.
Crack!
The thick trunk split with a huge gash, then was violently torn down by Yaya's sharp claws.
The tree, now broken in two, lost its life in a shudder, leaving behind only jagged stumps.
The other wyverns were just as fierce, pouncing on their own targets.
Under Bay Territory's training, they had seen significant progress in size, strength, body structure, and unique talents.
Bay Territory's "rapid training" wasn't just for Professionals and soldiers.
These obedient wyverns quickly recognized the benefits after undergoing a few rounds of semi-forced training.
Especially under Yaya's guidance, they gradually received "enlightenment" from the Tree of Wisdom, greatly boosting their intelligence and cognitive ability.
Some wyvern sub-commanders had already begun developing and awakening the power in their bloodlines.
Most wyvern riders weren't just strong; they also registered and documented each wyvern's condition, tracking their growth and data.
Bay Territory's druid research institute had already drawn up plans to enhance and study wyverns and drakes.
Bay Territory wasn't opposed to the inclusion of other creatures.
Just like their cooperation with the Leviathans.
Crack!
The increasingly intelligent wyverns didn't recklessly clash with the trees.
After destroying their trunks, the wyverns quickly took flight again to avoid possible surprise attacks.
Yaya and her wyverns' destruction plunged the Evil Shadow Spirits' control over this region to its lowest point.
The ever-expanding fire spread like a ravenous beast.
The burning Catachan plants were no longer quiet—they revealed their terrifying and ferocious sides.
Some grew tentacles.
Some turned from trees into masses of entwined vines.
Some transformed into animal-like forms.
Others even mutated into twisted plant creatures, trying to escape the flames.
Faced with the terrifying blaze, most plants couldn't withstand the special force.
Burn!
The sheer number of plants couldn't resist the spreading fire.
The gathered twisted creatures, realizing they were out of control, began fleeing in all directions.
It was at that moment that Bay Territory's army surged out of the gates, forming up and advancing into the chaotic, twisted jungle.
Rumble!
The magic cannons all fired simultaneously.
The erupting flames exploded outward, shattering the spreading blaze and blasting most of the jungle plants into pieces.
The sweeping magical artillery fire cleared a wide, orderly area in the jungle.
Annie watched as the battered and broken trees were flattened by over a dozen massive magical bulldozers.
Seeing the large clearing opened up ahead, her eyelids twitched slightly—she immediately understood Bay Territory's battle strategy.
The danger level of the Catachan jungle was too high; if ordinary soldiers entered,
They would not only face various enemies with the homefield advantage, but also suffer terrifying non-combat casualties.
Both combat effectiveness and morale would take a massive hit.
Bay Territory's approach was even more domineering—since the enemy held the homefield, they might as well level the entire field.
Let's carve out a new battlefield!
The neatly arranged soldiers advanced in formation.
Their formation was no longer like before—no shield-bearers in front, no spearmen behind, no archers forming the rear.
The cannon operators pushing mobile magic artillery had actually taken the outermost positions of the entire force.
They fired continuously to both flanks and the front, bombarding the entire 500 to 1000-meter radius of jungle with magic cannons.
Agile scout teams roamed around the outer perimeter.
They eliminated the twisted monsters that had narrowly escaped and prevented them from approaching Bay Territory's lines.
As for the lucky ones that escaped by chance,
If they fled outward, they were outside the attack range.
Every step forward by Bay Territory's army was accompanied by the roar of cannon fire and bombardment.
Massive engineering golems quickly cleared the shattered plants under heavy escort from the army.
Watching all of this, various bizarre thoughts popped up in the Evil Shadow Spirits' minds.
"This tactic of theirs is kind of cheating!"
"We can't help it. We lack long-range attacks and can hardly threaten them."
"We do have some close-combat advantage, but they clearly have no intention of fighting hand-to-hand."
"Bay Territory's people are different from the Catachans—they've broken free from the constraints of melee combat..."
"Either we quickly catch up and develop ways to perform long-range attacks..."
"Or... we ignore Bay Territory for now and let them expand on their own..."
"They may have a lot of people, but compared to the massive Catachan population, they're no match."
"I think developing some ranged attacks is a good idea. It takes time to yield results anyway, so the earlier we prepare, the sooner it pays off."
"That would require a significant investment of resources and a relatively safe environment."
"Who's going to fund this?"
"Everyone chips in a bit—let's give it a try first..."
"Keep watching Bay Territory—if we see what weapons they have, we can mentally prepare in advance."
"Once we finish cleaning up the Catachans, we'll have plenty of time to wear Bay Territory down..."
"Bay Territory's approach definitely consumes a massive amount of resources and manpower..."
"Intelligent beings are always a hassle—if there's no benefit, they won't do things that waste effort for nothing."
"Exactly, just like all the other intelligent creatures..."
"Heh, yeah, that's how it is."
"Won't be long before they turn on each other..."
"..."
The Evil Shadow Spirits were indeed very familiar with intelligent beings—they understood their internal conflicts and how to exploit their own advantages.
They had a thick enough capital reserve and could afford to wait patiently.
Once they identified the enemy's weaknesses, they could use their vast resources to strike those weaknesses relentlessly.
Fortunately, Bay Territory's "greeting gift" was hefty enough to make them momentarily give up on attacking.
Their thinking was sound, but they underestimated Bay Territory's resolve and execution.
Without the Evil Shadow Spirits' manipulation and coordination, the twisted plants and creatures in the Catachan jungle could not stop Bay Territory's advance.
At each position, Bay Territory's army used magic cannons for bombardment, followed by large engineering golems clearing the remains, opening a straight path forward.
Especially with several mechanical Roadbreakers pushing sideways, they quickly raised two walls on the freshly leveled ground.
Sure, this was troublesome—each step forward cost a massive amount of energy and resources.
But the benefit was huge: it drastically reduced the soldiers' fear and dread of the Catachan jungle.
They understood their strengths clearly. Usually, there was no need to approach the jungle—they just needed to make good use of long-range attacks.
As Bay Territory's main army advanced in grand fashion,
The wyvern unit led by Yaya had already quietly left the frontlines.
It took the Evil Shadow Spirits quite a while to realize this—and when they did, they immediately became nervous again.
A few days ago, Yaya and Orianna had operated Yaya-1, hunting Catachan demons with unpredictable precision.
That incident had left a deep impression on all the Evil Shadow Spirits.
Now, at this critical moment in the battle, Bay Territory's trump card was missing—they had to find out why!
At that thought, the Evil Shadow Spirits suddenly felt that long-range attacks alone weren't enough!
Without aerial forces, there was no way to deal with Yaya and the wyvern riders!