Chapter One Hundred and Four: Finally, the Thunder Rolls

The battle remained fierce. Ever since the military exercise began, Kevin had cut down enemy commanders and wiped out entire units one after another. At last, he managed to commit a truly absurd blunder: he shot and killed an allied soldier who was taking a dump. Kevin hurried away, yet deep down, he did not feel that he had done anything wrong.

Kevin had ample reason to conclude that the man belonged to the Blue Army, because while defecating, he had been facing the Red Army. Under normal field-combat conditions, one had to remain vigilant at all times. When relieving oneself, it was more sensible to turn one’s back toward one’s allies and face outward, making it easier to spot the enemy and react accordingly. But in peacetime, if one had to relieve oneself nearby, and still pointed one’s backside at one’s own comrades, forcing them to watch everything come out, that was rather…

Kevin could understand why the fellow had been facing the Red Army. Perhaps he had been suffering from diarrhea; otherwise, he would not have squatted down nearby while the two armies were engaged in battle. If it had been a real battle, then even if one had to soil one’s trousers, one would first hack the enemy to death. Which mattered more—one’s life or one’s shit? Thus, in actual combat, there generally would not be anyone squatting by the roadside to relieve himself.

If Kevin encountered a similar situation again, he would still shoot without the slightest hesitation—and once he started, he would unleash a furious barrage, giving the other side absolutely no chance to catch its breath. It was only a military exercise, but if everyone took it seriously, then the rules of the battlefield could still be applied.

The sky gradually darkened. As dusk approached, the Red and Blue Armies had already been fighting for more than half a day, and both sides had suffered enormous losses. More than half of the Dragonhawk forces in the air had been wiped out, while not a single member of the Pegasus forces had died. At first glance, the contrast was enormous, almost beyond the bounds of common sense in a battle between two armies. Yet neither commander found it surprising.

The Dragonhawk troops were indeed an entire level below the Pegasus Knights. Besides, this was not a fight to the death; their main task was reconnaissance. They had been deployed in scattered formations, and whenever they encountered the enemy, they fled rather than fought. Even when they struck back, they were no match for their opponents.

What was more, the Pegasus Knights had been designated as Dragon Knights for the exercise. Their speed and techniques could not possibly increase, but their defensive attributes could be judged accordingly. Even after taking three or five arrows, they would not die. Their recovery was also astonishingly strong; after resting for a short while, they could return to the fight.

There had been a reason the aerial troops had remained on the ground from the very beginning. It was simply that their logistics could no longer keep up, leaving them no choice but to fight a decisive battle.

With nightfall approaching, how would the fighting continue after dark? Neither commander gave the matter much thought. They would fight however they had been fighting before.

The ones who suffered were the directing staff. Monitoring the entire battlefield had become an enormous problem. The ground forces were still manageable, but once night fell in the sky, everything became pitch-black. Even if there had been enough parrots, it would still have been difficult to keep up with everyone’s speed.

Simply declaring a victor and loser was obviously inappropriate. There were too many variables, and the battle was a long process. The Dragonhawk troops might discover something that could greatly influence the outcome. Yet if they could not be monitored, the Dragonhawk soldiers could simply die and then fly back up again, which would clearly be unreasonable.

Fortunately, the thunder the Red Army had been awaiting finally appeared.

The sky grew exceptionally dark. At last, a flash of radiance illuminated heaven and earth, followed by rolling thunder. All the aerial forces hurriedly descended. After all, this was only an exercise; there was no need to cause actual deaths.

Heavy rain began to pour down. For the Red and Blue Armies, who had been fighting all day, it was an immense nuisance. Yet they still could not rest. The thunderstorm was the tactical support the Red Army had been waiting for, and such a rare opportunity could not be missed. The Blue Army clearly understood the Red Army’s intentions as well, and naturally could not sleep peacefully. They had to remain on guard.

Once the aerial forces of both sides landed, it was as if both armies had temporarily gone blind. The battle would now depend on their hard military strength.

In that regard, however, the Blue Army still held an advantage. The Pegasus forces were not limited to aerial combat; on the ground, they were essentially cavalry. The Dragon Knights had been given the same characteristic. The Dragonhawk riders, on the other hand, were far less capable in ground combat. In effect, the Blue Army had gained an entire group of elite soldiers out of thin air.

At the same time, none of the Blue Army’s giant magic staves had been lost, although they could no longer cast forbidden spells. The use of forbidden spells naturally had its limits. Otherwise, they could simply freeze the entire map and guarantee victory.

The directing staff would never permit such a thing. They had strictly stipulated that each giant magic staff could cast a forbidden spell only twice. The first had carved out a frozen route, killing large numbers of Red Army troops while cutting off their logistical supplies. The second had frozen two Sword Saints to death. Both uses had already been spent.

Even so, a giant magic staff could still use low-level spells to wipe out an entire regiment with ease. The Red Army, however, knew nothing of this.

The Red Army also possessed a giant magic staff, but only one. It could cast just a single forbidden spell, so they treasured it greatly. With their aerial superiority completely stripped away, they had not dared to bring it out—not even at night. But now that the thunder had arrived, they no longer had to worry.

The Red Army raised its giant magic staff and immediately began using a crystal ball to search directly for the location of the Blue Army’s command headquarters. Without knowing the direction or exact position, searching with a crystal ball involved a certain element of luck. Moreover, the target might notice the search if he was sufficiently perceptive. In theory, a Saint-tier expert would certainly detect it, but even those below that level might not be completely unable to sense it.

If the enemy searched back through a crystal ball, the result would be a direct clash between giant magic staves.

One staff against ten was unquestionably a losing proposition. Such a move could only be used when one was prepared to stake everything on a single strike. If the enemy command headquarters were destroyed in one blow, they would have no chance to retaliate.

And now was precisely such a moment.

Three mages surrounded the crystal ball with solemn expressions. One supported it with mental force, another burned a fire beneath it, and the third fanned the flames. Their eyes remained fixed on the constantly shifting images within the crystal ball.

Nearby, Orson and the other Red Army commanders stood watching. The map was only so large, and there were only a handful of places that could serve as a command headquarters. Whether aboveground or underground, some trace would inevitably be left behind. The Red Army commanders had long since studied the matter. No matter how cunning their opponents were, they could not violate the common sense of warfare entirely.

Sure enough, the image suddenly brightened.

The figure of Richard, supreme commander of the Blue Army, appeared within the crystal ball. Several regimental commanders stood beside him, and a sand-table map lay before them. Richard still wore a solemn expression, as though his face had never changed.

“They’re inside the mountain.” Orson reached his conclusion at once. “Shut down the crystal ball immediately! Prepare the giant magic staff and cast the forbidden spell Earthshaking Ruin on the target!”

“Yes!”

“We’re leaving at once!”

Orson immediately raised his hand and led several important regimental commanders in a rapid retreat.

Once the order was given, no one hesitated. Shutting down the crystal ball at once was intended to minimize the chance of being detected. After all, there were no Sword Saints left. Although some people might possess exceptionally sharp senses, if the detection had lasted only an instant or two, they might dismiss it as an illusion.

Orson’s immediate departure was meant to prevent them from all being buried there in the event of a mistake and an enemy counterattack.

In a real battle, the commander-in-chief might have seemed to be “fleeing in the face of the enemy,” which would damage morale and invite gossip. But since this was only an exercise, no one cared. Those who died early might even have to thank him for giving them the chance to eat roast meat ahead of time.

The giant magic staff began operating immediately. Earth-elemental energy gathered around it in a frenzy, while yellow magic circles and runes lit up in the air. A moment later, the magic circles dimmed, signaling that the forbidden spell had been successfully released.

Orson and the other regimental commanders hurried back to their own headquarters. Once there, they did nothing but stare at the third-party supervisor.

If the spell had succeeded, then the Blue Army headquarters had been destroyed, and the exercise was truly over. There was no reason for the directing staff to tamper with the result. Surely they could not declare that the mountain had been able to withstand a forbidden spell.

The troops would probably have difficulty learning the news immediately, but if the exercise had ended, the supervisor before them would announce it. Thus, every commander stared at him, and the headquarters fell completely silent.

The supervisor smiled bitterly, fully aware of what they meant. Yet all he could do was meet their gazes. Though he said nothing, he had already revealed the answer.

“So they’re still alive?” Orson sighed.

The supervisor was helpless. In the end, he simply walked out of the headquarters alone. Rain continued to fall outside, accompanied by flashes of lightning and peals of thunder. The supervisor stood beneath a single umbrella.

Several commanders refused to believe it. The forbidden spell had clearly been cast. Only moments earlier, they had seen the Blue Army’s supreme commander sitting there and chatting within the crystal ball. How could the spell possibly have missed?

The commanders followed him outside, each carrying an umbrella, and surrounded the supervisor as they continued to stare at him.

The supervisor: “…”

A short while later, a communications mage hurried in and reported, “Report! Our giant magic staff has been destroyed. Every soldier over there has been killed!”

“Alas!” Orson let out a long sigh. “We miscalculated.”

“That’s impossible! What kind of setting did they have?” The commanders were indignant.

“Teleportation!” Orson slammed his fist onto the table. “The instant they realized they were being watched through the crystal ball, they teleported away! We shut down the crystal ball immediately, so we didn’t see them leave.”

“Then where are we supposed to find them now?” one commander demanded angrily.

“Now…”

Before he could finish, the ground suddenly shook violently. Clearly, a powerful spell had struck somewhere nearby.

The commanders’ faces turned pale. The enemy’s counterattack had come far too quickly. The Red Army possessed no teleportation technology. The crystal-ball search had very likely revealed the presence of a high-ranking commander. Once the enemy had fired from the giant magic staff, the time and route of his escape could be estimated!

The Blue Army had evidently studied the location of the Red Army headquarters long ago and had designed several suspicious sites. The place closest to the giant magic staff was unquestionably the primary target.

Orson had originally thought that leaving the giant magic staff would be enough. He had not expected the Red Army’s counterattack to be so fierce.

The Red Army commanders were all extremely tense. None of them knew what their current status was. Were they dead?

At that moment, the supervisor came back inside after stepping out. Everyone immediately questioned him with their eyes.

The supervisor was speechless. He simply walked outside again, opened his umbrella, and stood in the rain to avoid the awkwardness.

Orson drew his conclusion. “It seems we’re still alive!”

Several commanders were unwilling to give up. They followed the supervisor outside, opened their own umbrellas, and continued staring at him. One of them even asked, “Are we really still alive?”

The supervisor: “…”

“Quick!” Orson suddenly remembered something. “We can’t stay here any longer. Move toward the front line immediately! Quickly! Disguise yourselves as much as possible. Put on ordinary soldiers’ clothes!”

Having the general location of the headquarters exposed was already troublesome enough. The enemy’s magic was formidable and might soon blanket the entire area. With their giant magic staff destroyed, mounting a counterattack would be difficult. The commanders had no choice but to try to hide themselves among the ordinary troops.

“Report, sir!” the communications mage reported once more. “The attack on our giant magic staff was not a forbidden spell. It was merely a giant fireball spell!”

“What? Send orders to the troops at once! Find the source of the enemy’s giant magic staff. Capture them at any cost!” Orson slammed his hand against the table.

If it had been a fireball spell, then its flight path would have been visible against the night sky. There would be traces to follow. Even without aerial forces, they could still track it back to its source.

“Wait! What if it’s a trap?” one commander immediately objected. “They may have dared to use it precisely to lure us over!”

“Exactly! And they have teleportation arrays. The instant the giant magic staff fires, they can teleport away. We wouldn’t be able to catch them!”

“Then what do you suggest we do?” Orson sneered.

The commanders fell silent.

“Since you have no better idea, do as I say. Tell the troops on the front line to proceed with extra caution.” As he spoke, Orson had already taken the lead and rushed out of the headquarters.

Meanwhile, Kevin was advancing through the darkness. The rain came down in torrents, and he had not bothered with an umbrella. Carrying one in the wilderness was inconvenient anyway. If he got wet, then so be it; there was nothing else to be done.

A fireball streaked across the sky, and Kevin saw it. He also heard the parrot relay its orders.

Without giving it much thought, he immediately headed in that direction.

Halfway there, a patch of fire suddenly appeared in the distance. It seemed that some unit was stationed there. Starting a fire during such heavy rain was no easy task, so it was almost certainly the work of mages. Lighting a fire recklessly in the middle of the night was no different from setting up a target, so those people were probably all “corpses.”

To ensure his safety, Kevin had the parrot contact headquarters and ask whether any Red Army troops were stationed in that area. He was told there were none.

Then the people ahead were either corpses or Blue Army soldiers. The former seemed more likely.

If there were corpses, naturally he had to search them. This was not some frozen wasteland. Kevin tried to approach quietly, drawing closer and closer.

By the light of the fire, he could see Red and Blue soldiers sitting together, chatting and laughing. They had set up three or five shelters to keep out of the rain.

Clearly, only “corpses” could understand how to enjoy themselves so thoroughly.

Kevin stopped hesitating and walked forward slowly. The moment the people saw him approaching, they fell silent as one. Every pair of eyes turned toward him.

“Hey!” Kevin smiled and greeted them.

No one answered. They continued staring at him.

Kevin began to feel uneasy under their gaze. “What’s wrong? Is it really so strict that you aren’t even allowed to say a word?”

Two people stood up, but when they saw the rain outside, they hesitated. The atmosphere felt far too strange to Kevin. He stopped moving and went no farther. The two sides were about ten paces apart. Kevin stood in the rain, while the “corpses” remained beneath the shelters.

“Why aren’t you saying anything? Are you messing with me?” Kevin observed them carefully, but the light was too dim for him to see clearly.

The people exchanged glances. They seemed to want to laugh, yet they still said nothing.

“Then I’ll shoot you for a while first. You’re corpses anyway.”

Kevin drew his bow and fired eight arrows at one of the Blue Army soldiers who had stood up. Every arrow struck and clung to the man’s body, yet he showed no reaction whatsoever.

Kevin stopped suspecting anything and took two more steps forward.

Suddenly, several people nearby stood up and gathered beneath the shelters.

Kevin stopped once again. His heart tightened, and he turned to the parrot.

“Go! Take a careful look and find out what’s going on!”

The parrot flew over. Several soldiers immediately reached out to grab it, but they were clearly worried about actually injuring the bird and did not use much force. The parrot escaped and hurried back.

“They’re zombies!” it cried. “Their badges all say they’re zombies!”

Kevin staggered back two steps in shock. “There’s a setting for that too?”

The zombies merely smiled.

To be honest, the atmosphere was horrifying. Kevin even felt as though he had encountered real zombies. Fortunately, these “zombies” were lazy enough to remain beneath the shelters rather than venture out into the rain.

Otherwise, Kevin might not have been so lucky.

To be continued.