The waiting Crossbowmen in the rear immediately split into three rows, stepping forward and raising their heavy crossbows.
Everyone raised their bolts 45 degrees and put their fingers on the triggers.
"First row! Fire!"
"Buzz!"
Nearly a hundred repeating crossbows buzzed simultaneously!
The dense bolts instantly rose into the air, covering the flanking wolf pack like a dark cloud!
"Whoosh whoosh whoosh whoosh!"
The sharp sound of tearing air made one's scalp tingle.
The Wind Wolf pack currently maneuvering had no time to react at all.
"Pfft! Pfft! Pfft!"
The rain of arrows fell!
Every bolt carried enormous kinetic energy.
Within fifty paces, it was enough to pierce standard leather armor, let alone the meager fur of a Wind Wolf.
Blood splattered, and wails filled the field.
In just one volley, over fifty Wind Wolves were pinned dead to the ground.
"Second row! Fire!"
Before the wolf pack could recover from the chaos, the second wave of arrows followed immediately.
Dozens more Wind Wolves fell.
"Third row! Fire!"
"First row, reloading complete! Fire!"
..."Terrifying lethality!"
Although Akomann had anticipated this, her heart tightened when she saw the scene.
This kind of weapon and this battle formation were truly horrifying.
Fortunately, Wu Liang was no longer her enemy.
"Is this the power of the Black Rock Army?"
"Too... too incredible. This is practically a unilateral slaughter!"
Wei Xian stroked her greatly swollen belly, muttering to herself.
She glanced at Eliza beside her, who was also immersed in shock.
They had both experienced countless hunts and battles and knew the terror of the Wind Wolf.
In their memories, any encounter with a Wind Wolf pack meant bloody close combat and heavy casualties.
But the current scene completely changed their preconceived notions.
"War is inherently the most efficient form of slaughter."
Wu Liang merely smiled faintly at the reactions of the two women, his tone placid.
"Our Female Warriors are precious. I don't want to see any of them die in the mouths of these beasts."
"Problems that can be solved with equipment and tactics should never be fought with flesh and blood."
Everything happening before him was within Wu Liang's expectations, and perhaps even exceeded them.
After the recent test, Wu Liang was very satisfied with the performance of these repeating crossbows.
The rate of fire and power of the heavy crossbow were far superior to ordinary bows and arrows, and training a bolt-shooter was much easier than training an archer.
While everyone was astonished, the continuous, alternating firing of the three rows of Crossbowmen created a seamless death zone in front of them.
The Wind Wolf pack screamed repeatedly; these beasts were completely stunned.
Their proud advantages in speed and maneuverability were useless against the indiscriminate area attacks of the Black Rock Army.
"Awooo!"
The Alpha Wolf suddenly let out a roar, attempting to reorganize the pack.
But now, throughout the entire Black Wind Valley, apart from the Black Rock Army formation, not a single Wind Wolf remained standing.
There were only Wind Wolf corpses everywhere and the stench of blood.
"Awoo..."
Pfft!
A bolt pierced the head of the Wind Wolf Leader. Wu Liang put away the repeating crossbow in his hand and handed it back to the nearby Female Warrior.
"Clear the battlefield! A portion of people maintain vigilance to prevent surprise attacks from any missed Wind Wolves."
Wu Liang shouted, but everyone was still dazed.
The battle... just ended like that?
The Black Rock Army suffered zero casualties.
The Female Warriors of the Black Rock Army experienced the meaning of overwhelming destruction for the first time.
Although they were all participants, they were still too shocked to speak while looking at the wolf corpses covering the ground.
All of this originated from that man, from his new weapons and tactics.
Akomann turned her head and looked at the man walking toward her.
Wu Liang didn't show much emotion on his face.
It was as if this satisfying major victory was merely a trivial matter in his eyes.
The more he acted this way, the deeper Akomann's awe for him became.
"Wu Liang, we won!"
Akomann walked up to Wu Liang and spoke excitedly.
Ake Man's black leather armor was currently stained with a few drops of wolf blood, making her heroic face appear even more striking and cold.
"The Black Rock Army has won its first battle! We completely annihilated the Wind Wolf pack with zero casualties!"
"That's right, we won, Akomann. You trained the Black Rock Army very well."
Wu Liang didn't spare the praise, carefully reaching out to gently wipe a spot of blood from Akomann's cheek.
"I told you I trust you with this army. You did a great job!"
The touch of his skin and his words of approval made Akomann's heart skip a beat, and her cheeks flushed slightly.
She felt that all the hardship and sweat she had expended were worth it in this moment.
Wei Xian and Eliza exchanged a smile nearby.
"Go, let the Female Warriors clear the battlefield."
"Collect everything usable—wolf hides, wolf meat, wolf bones. Bring back everything useful, especially the bolts. They aren't easy to manufacture."
Wu Liang patted her shoulder.
"Yes!"
Akomann nodded heavily, turning to issue the command.
"Everyone! Clear the battlefield immediately!"
"Recover all bolts! Count the spoils of war! Hurry!"
"Roar!"
The Female Warriors responded in unison, bursting into cheers of victory!
Everyone, with high morale, began the cleanup work, pulling bolts from the wolf corpses, wiping them clean, and recovering them.
Then they began stripping the wolf hides and butchering the wolf meat.
Although this Wind Wolf meat was coarse in texture, it was a valuable source of food, enough to feed the Tribe for a while.
The wolf hides were excellent materials for making leather armor and warm clothing.
These were all precious resources.
"Lord Wu Liang, should we return to the Tribe now?"
"With so many wolf hides and wolf meat, this is a huge harvest!"
A Squad Leader excitedly ran over to ask for instructions.
"No rush."
Wu Liang waved his hand, his gaze fixed on the depths of Black Wind Valley.
"Akomann."
"Here!"
"Take a fifty-person squad and come with me into the valley to look for these two types of stones."
Ake Man looked at the two stones Wu Liang took out of his satchel, feeling confused.
One was grayish-white, and the other was pitch black.
"Alright, I'll call people to go now."
Although Akomann was confused, not knowing what these two stones were, she knew that anything Wu Liang brought up must be important.
Soon, Akomann gathered a team, and under Wu Liang's leadership, they began a carpet search of the entire valley.
Wei Xian and Eliza followed behind Wu Liang, and Eliza asked curiously:
"Wu Liang, what are those two things you just took out?"
Wu Liang smiled, not answering directly.
Instead, he countered, "What do you think our Tribe lacks most right now?"
"Lacks?"
Wei Xian thought for a moment.
"We have grain, cloth, and salt now. It seems we don't lack anything."
Eliza was more perceptive and said thoughtfully:
"It must be charcoal. We never have enough to burn. The tribesmen have to chop down large amounts of trees every day to make charcoal."
"Clever."
Wu Liang lightly scraped Eliza's nose, eliciting a playful protest from her.
"Eliza is right, but only half right."
"We need energy—fuel that burns longer than charcoal—so that our smelting efficiency can be greatly improved."
Hearing this, Eliza and Wei Xian instantly understood something, and their beautiful eyes widened simultaneously.
"You mean..."
"Exactly. I discovered a secret here a month ago."
"This valley not only has Wind Wolves but also rich Open-Pit Coal Mines and limestone deposits."
"Coal mine? limestone?"
The two women were confused; these were unfamiliar terms.
Wu Liang raised his hand and pointed toward the depths of the valley, a smile playing on his lips:
"Yes, today's objective wasn't just the Wind Wolves, but them too."
"Otherwise, why would I go to such lengths—training soldiers and upgrading equipment—just to wipe out a pack of beasts?"