"Hold! Everyone hold your ground!"
Taiwen Merlin roared hoarsely from his command position.
He watched as the army he took such pride in had turned into a chaotic mess.
Countless soldiers began to flee to the rear, completely ignoring orders.
His heart bled.
Once upon a time, his Griffin Knights Regiment was the sharpest sword of the Empire, invincible and peerless.
But today, in this damned river valley, this sword had been snapped in two.
"Father! We can't hold them back!"
A blood-covered commander rushed to Taiwen and shouted in despair.
"The weapons of those savages are too terrifying! We can't break through their lines at all!"
"And that monster... that leader... he's not human!"
Taiwen's face was ashen to the extreme.
He knew, of course, that they couldn't hold on.
Those twenty steel monsters that constantly spat tongues of fire were crazily harvesting the lives of his soldiers.
Every time that 'da-da-da' sound rang out, a swath of Imperial warriors fell.
And that savage leader, who had single-handedly crippled his son and the Mage Corps, filled him with an even deeper chill.
"Retreat. Pass my command, the entire army..."
Taiwen opened his mouth with difficulty, preparing to give the order to retreat.
However, he no longer had the chance.
"Kill—!"
Akomann and Ignis's voices rang out almost simultaneously from the front of the battlefield.
After gouging through the Imperial army's flank, the Ember Fire Legion led by Akomann plunged ruthlessly into the chaotic infantry phalanxes of the Imperial army.
"The entire army! Forward!"
With an order from the Black Rock Tribe's commander, the main Black Rock Tribe phalanx, which had been holding its position steadily, finally began to move.
Clack! Clack! Clack!
The shield-bearers in the front row marched with uniform steps, pressing forward slowly like a moving wall of steel.
Behind them, the soldiers of the Rifle Battalion followed closely.
They were no longer stationary targets, but had become mobile turrets.
"First row! Fire!"
Bang! Bang! Bang!
"Second row! Ready!"
"Forward!"
"First row, fall back and reload! Second row! Fire!"
Amidst the roars of commanders at all levels, the Black Rock Army's rifle phalanxes demonstrated terrifying tactical discipline.
Using the platoon as a unit, they alternated between firing, advancing, and firing again.
The dense rain of bullets never ceased.
A web of death woven from bullets constantly loomed over the heads of the Imperial army.
The soldiers of the Roland Empire collapsed completely.
What they were facing was not an army at all.
It was a precise, cold, and relentlessly advancing killing machine.
They saw no hope of victory, no hope of survival.
Their only thought was to flee!
To flee from this hell!
"Trying to run?"
Wu Liang watched the Imperial Soldiers turning to flee, a flash of coldness in his eyes.
He raised his hand and gave a sharp whistle.
Roar—!
An earth-shaking tiger's roar came from behind the Black Rock Army's formation.
The sound carried endless majesty and fury, as if it would shatter the very sky.
Every man and horse on the battlefield felt a fear stemming from the depths of their bloodline the moment they heard this roar.
Some warhorses were even so terrified that they collapsed on the spot, foaming at the mouth.
Taiwen Merlin whipped his head around.
He saw a giant tiger, with a body as large as a house, leap out from the rear of the Black Rock Tribe.
That tiger was covered in cyan fur, patterned with black lightning-like stripes.
Its limbs were thick and powerful; every leap could cover a distance of dozens of meters.
The most striking feature was its forehead, where a golden 'King' character mark emitted a faint glow.
"A demonic beast... it's a high-level demonic beast! A Storm Tiger!"
A learned noble beside Taiwen screamed out.
The Storm Tiger, Fenglei!
"Fenglei, go play."
Wu Liang's voice reached Fenglei's mind through their mental link.
"Roar!"
Fenglei let out an excited roar.
It loved scenes like this the most!
Its figure turned into a bolt of cyan lightning, instantly charging into the fleeing crowds of the Roland Empire.
Puchi!
With just a light swipe of its blade-sharp claws,
five or six Imperial Soldiers, along with their armor, were instantly sliced into several pieces like tofu.
Crackle—!
Fenglei opened its bloody maw, and thick bolts of cyan lightning spat forth, exploding within the crowd.
Soldiers struck by the lightning were instantly turned into charred corpses.
It was like an out-of-control heavy tank, rampaging through the Imperial army's lines.
Claws, fangs, lightning, gales... wherever it went, it left behind only a trail of severed limbs and charred bodies.
If the maxim heavy machine guns were a slaughter of technology,
then the Storm Tiger Fenglei was a crushing blow of magic.
When technology and magic appeared simultaneously in the Black Rock Tribe's camp, they brought the Roland Empire a double, unsolvable despair.
"It's over..."
Taiwen Merlin watched the giant tiger ravaging his army as soldiers fell in swathes.
His body swayed, nearly falling from his warhorse.
He knew he had lost.
He had lost utterly.
Just then, a unit of Black Rock Tribe cavalry flanked them.
They were all dressed in light leather armor, holding round shields in one hand and several short javelins in the other.
Their mounts were not noble purebred warhorses,
but hybrids bred by the Black Rock Tribe itself, which had better endurance and were more suited for mountain combat.
This cavalry unit numbered no more than five hundred men.
But the timing of their appearance was perfect.
"Throw!"
At the commander's order, five hundred cavalrymen threw the javelins in their hands with all their might.
Whoosh! Whoosh! Whoosh!
Five hundred javelins converged into a small black cloud in the air, covering Taiwen Merlin's command position with a sharp whistling sound.
"Raise shields! Protect the General!"
Taiwen's guards roared, raising their shields over their heads.
Clang! Clang!
A dense series of impacts rang out.
Most of the javelins were blocked by the shields.
But a dozen javelins still managed to pass through the gaps between the shields.
Puchi!
Blood splattered.
Several guards fell with miserable screams.
Taiwen's warhorse was also struck in the hind leg by a javelin, collapsing to the ground with a mournful cry.
Caught off guard, Taiwen fell heavily from his horse's back.
At that moment, the entire command system was completely paralyzed.
The Roland Empire's army lost its last shred of organization, turning into a flock of sheep fleeing in all directions.
And the Black Rock Tribe's army was the pack of hungry wolves chasing them from behind.
They began a frantic pursuit and slaughter.