Chapter 677.5: Extraordinary Feat — Multi-Lung
The orcs roared and surged forward, ignoring the flying bolts.
But soon, they discovered a cruel truth.
Their curved swords and heavy hammers barely sparked against Ashes' armor.
They couldn't even scratch him!
"Haha! You savage fools! Taste the hammer of justice!"
"Thunder Smash!"
Grinning viciously, Ashes used his battle helm to pinpoint the strongest orc warrior.
With one swing, he shattered the incoming spiked mace.
The hammer didn't stop, slamming through the warrior's armor and into his body.
The fearsome orc warrior instantly lost all life, collapsing like a ragdoll.
After taking down the ferocious orc warrior, Ashes immediately targeted another one, slightly weaker.
The latter didn't retreat either, fearlessly charging in.
Boom!
Surging blood and surrounding weapons smashed fiercely into the Thunder Magic Armor.
The flickering lightning surged into the bodies of the orcs amidst a shower of sparks.
Ashes still didn't attack them, instead picking out the next most threatening opponent.
No matter where the orcs came from, Ashes charged only in one direction.
Eliminate the threats first!
As for the rest of the orcs, Ashes relied on his furious lightning and formidable defenses.
He withstood their attacks head-on and only grew more ferocious as the fight went on!
The madness in the eyes of the orc scouts gradually turned into deep despair as the battle continued.
How could they possibly win against such an enemy?
Only three to four minutes later...
Hundreds of crossbow bolts pierced the area through and through.
Nearly 200 orcs were turned into corpses.
One-third of them had been physically crushed to death by Ashes.
Ashes checked his Thunder Magic Armor, finding durability and defense had dropped by less than 1/20.
Seeing another wave of roaring orcs charging in, he sneered and gave the order to retreat.
"Log the battle results. We're pulling back. Let them come and die."
It took the orcs nearly half an hour to push through the cannon and crossbow fire to within a hundred meters of the Bay Territory adventurers.
But all their efforts were in vain.
They could only watch helplessly as the Bay Territory adventurers calmly packed up their magical cannons and crossbows and easily fell back again.
They didn't even care about the incoming orc threat!
At over a hundred meters apart, the orcs posed no real threat.
Some elite orcs desperately sprinted forward, hoping to cover the distance in ten to twenty seconds.
Boom!
Crack!
Bang!
A dazzling array of traps detonated one after another.
They became hidden death reapers, swallowing the charging orcs.
Even worse for the orcs, a trench eight or nine meters wide lay between them and the Bay Territory adventurers.
The few who managed to jump in and climb up again...
Were instantly met with a hail of crossbow bolts.
Blood-soaked corpses tumbled back down.
A group of adventurers had kept their distance from the trench, sniping the orcs with powerful crossbows.
More and more orcs fell with howls.
The rest jumped into the trench in pursuit.
But in their eyes now gleamed confusion and despair.
They had no idea how to keep fighting.
Orcs were not afraid of death!
From birth to adulthood, their lives had always been war and battle.
But precisely because of that, they had rich combat experience.
Against the almost shameless tactics of the Bay Territory adventurers, they had no answer.
All they could do was roar and howl in vain.
It was the only way to mask the fear in their hearts.
This battle... really was on the verge of collapse.
The enraged orc commander stared hard at the messy map.
He glared at the cloaked Cole Elf envoy beside him and roared without hesitation:
"How far is it to the river you spoke of?"
"How many more soldiers must we sacrifice?"
The Cole Elf envoy fell silent upon hearing this.
Even he hadn't expected Bay Territory's adventurers to wield such powerful long-range artillery and deliver such a shocking defense.
They'd originally come to fight Bay Territory's regular army—and now they couldn't even meet them face to face?
Getting sent packing by some low-ranking nobodies?
He quickly calculated—if Bay Territory was allowed to continue such unrestrained attacks...
The orc army, already down over 2,000 elite soldiers, could be wiped out by relentless ranged fire within three or four hours.
They hadn't even managed to inflict any real harm or threat to the adventurers.
What frightened him more was that the Cole Elf army, still undergoing reform and upgrades, had no advantage in ranged weaponry.
In fact, they were at a clear disadvantage!
"No, we must acquire a batch of Bay Territory's ranged weapons..."
"Whether magical cannons or dragon-hunting crossbows, the Cole Elves must master manufacturing and improvement methods!"
Realizing this, the Cole Elf envoy spoke decisively:
"We're about three kilometers from the river. Bay Territory can hold us off one more time at most."
"We can supply a batch of spell scrolls to boost movement speed."
"As soon as they start withdrawing, have the orc army accelerate immediately..."
The orc commander merely snorted at this, grumbling:
"We'll cooperate like this one more time!"
"If we don't get the results we want, then we're stopping right here in the Dark Forest."
Behind him, countless orc tribes were itching not to linger in the Dark Forest but to pillage the Carl Plains.
The cloaked Cole Elf envoy nodded silently, a cold glint flashing in his eyes.
He understood the orc commander's meaning well. He also knew the Cole Elves couldn't yet do without their "help."
What truly scared him was Bay Territory's rate of development!
Yes, he was scared!
Even though the Cole Elves had billions in population and over a million powerful soldiers,
They were constantly tied up by internal affairs and couldn't fully mobilize.
How long would this go on?
When could they finally wipe out the ever-expanding threat of Bay Territory?
These tangled thoughts raced through his mind. Gritting his teeth, the Cole Elf envoy finally issued an order.
"Prepare to assist the orc army in their next assault!"
Hidden Cole Elf scouts hesitated over the looming threats and challenges, but eventually acknowledged the order one by one.
When had it started?
That they no longer even qualified to face Bay Territory directly?
"Heh... it's time!"
Lockfa, flipping through stacks of intel with a proud look, said crisply:
"Whether we earn greater authority and get to reshape the next battle mission depends on this fight."
Hearing this, Dale felt no pressure at all.
He issued orders step by step, quietly waiting for the distant orc army to charge forward.
Come and die!
The neatly lined-up magical cannons lit up and fired on command.
Torrents of magical firepower burst within the orc army.
The terrifying explosions even made the charging orc commander uneasy.
But the scattered orc troops weren't deterred by the blasts and continued their furious charge.
They ran full speed, stepping over traps without care.
The jungle terrain limited the bombardment's power, unlike open plains.
Still, over a thousand orcs perished under the destructive barrage.
The remaining 7,000-plus orcs, roaring with hatred and rage, charged in like demons.
They were ready to strike at full speed the moment Bay Territory retreated.
But when they closed in to about 300 meters, Bay Territory still hadn't budged.
Instead, behind the magical cannons, another 30-40 heavy, long dwarven cannons had been deployed.
Boom! Boom! Boom!
Steel shells flew forward, mowing down orc warriors in swaths.
The orc commander felt something was very wrong.
But there was no turning back—he had to press the assault.
He could only hope the hidden Cole Elves would quickly cast speed-enhancing spells.
The orcs charged another 200 meters!
Only then did the orc commander vaguely realize that the cannons weren't on flat ground at all—
They were mounted on earthen ramparts, allowing flexible angle adjustments for sustained bombardment.
Monsters!
These flame-spewing beasts filled the orc commander with dread as he gripped his axe tightly.
He locked eyes on the Bay Territory adventurers manning the cannons and let out a beast-like roar:
"Kill!!"
The 100-meter gap vanished in an instant.
The orc commander thought his army would face trenches and crossbow fire.
But suddenly he saw, right in front of the adventurer ranks—
Over ten figures in metallic armor were charging straight at them.
All clad in Thunder Magic Armor!
At that moment, waves of magical light fell on the orcs.
Speeding them up dramatically.
In just a few breaths,
Those armored figures slammed into the orc line.
Seeing the incoming metal monsters, the orc commander roared without hesitation.
His already massive body bulked up even more.
Dense crimson battle aura formed into a scarlet, dazzling set of armor.
His giant frame grew more intimidating and monstrous.
Roaring furiously, he leapt toward the charging metal figures.
Both hands gripped his great axe, swinging down with full force.
That swing was unstoppable!
Lockfa glanced up at the hulking figure and calmly spoke into the comms:
"Found an Extraordinary-tier orc commander..."
"Perfect. Let's capture him for research!"
The moment he finished speaking, a surge of thunder shot upward and struck the airborne orc commander.
Crack!
Smoking and in agony, the orc commander roared and tried to bring down his axe.
But Lockfa activated his flamethrower, blasting forward over ten meters.
The orc's axe slammed into the ground.
Before he could yank it free,
Lockfa spun stylishly around to his rear.
His thunder-charged fist smashed down on the orc commander's raised hands.
Fist against fist!
Lockfa watched his own punch shatter the orc commander's fists, then continued through to his skull, knocking him out cold.
"Extraordinary-tier impact registered..."
With a glance at the damage warning, Lockfa drew his glowing Oni Blade from his back and charged the oncoming orc army.
Behind him, forty to fifty eager adventurers raised gleaming black flamethrowers and unleashed them upon the unguarded orc ranks.
Whoosh! Whoosh! Whoosh!
Walls of flame instantly engulfed the charging orcs.
Screaming and struggling, they were overwhelmed within seconds, falling and flailing in fear.
Thunder-armored adventurers charged in gleefully.
Slaughtering the flame-wreathed orcs without mercy.
The orcs had to die!
The roar of all kinds of ranged weapons echoed through the jungle.
The crazed orc army melted away like ice under the sun.
Again and again, they shouted their battle cries.
And one by one, they plunged into death.
Hidden Cole Elf envoys stared blankly at the slaughtered orc army.
They saw the charred corpses and ashes, their eyes full of disbelief and fear.
"Magical cannons, improved dwarven artillery..."
"Crossbows capable of sustained fire, terrifying magical weapons that spit flame dozens of meters..."
"And these unstoppable magic armors..."
"Just how many dangerous weapons does Bay Territory still hide? Do we truly understand anything?"
What the Cole Elf envoys had seen and heard, full of dread and disbelief, was delivered to the Cole Elf council.
For whatever reason—perhaps to strategize carefully...
The Cole Elves temporarily suspended further "probes" of Bay Territory.
June 25th.
Bay Territory.
Bay City.
Clear skies.
In the underground lab,
Matthew beamed at the screaming orc test subject.
Looking at its robust lungs, brimming with vitality, and the glowing "Extraordinary Feat — Multi-Lung," he exhaled in satisfaction and said:
"Thanks to our orc bros and troll allies for the materials and support."
Without the inspiration and Fate Energy they provided,
Matthew couldn't have gotten what he wanted so quickly.
Extraordinary Feat — Multi-Lung LV1:
Constitution +1, Strength +1, Agility +1, Stamina +20%, Burst Power +20%.
Special Ability: Lung Cannon Shock, +10% to shout-type skills and feats, +10% bonus to offensive power!
Matthew was very pleased with this feat.
It further enhanced the Dragon Warrior's endurance in combat.
The boost to internal organs and thoracic blood vessels was a major supplement.
The next challenge was:
How to "safely" replicate it in a Dragon Warrior.
"Hmm, tell the adventurers to ease up. Let more orcs and trolls in."
"If we scare them off, who'll keep supplying us?"