Volume 1, Chapter 44

On the plains surrounding Fort Garros, dozens of knights from the Ashurmos Church were desperately spurring their horses toward the fortress, bringing along the slaves they had just rescued! Every knight’s face was etched with terror, their bodies trembling under the crushing pressure of the vast Shadow Essence! Even behind her mask, a flicker of emotion appeared on Mengxi’s stunning face.

The sudden appearance of such a massive horde of Abyssal Demons outside the peaceful forest was something no one had anticipated.

Under normal circumstances, the gradual gathering of Abyssal Demons according to their instincts could be detected, allowing for early preparations. To have such a vast number congregate instantaneously in such a short time suggested that they were being commanded by some powerful entity.

Was it a demon king tier?

Of course, the knights of the Ashurmos Church currently had no time to ponder why the Abyssal Demons were surging out of the forest in such numbers. Their only thoughts were how to escape the clutches of the demon horde and how to stop a force of this magnitude!

To that end, Mengxi had chosen to head for Fort Garros. Among the nearby strongholds, only the massive Fort Garros possessed enough manpower and defensive capability to temporarily hold back this horde. Only then would they have the time to summon reinforcements and eliminate these Abyssal Demons right here.

However, as the number of Abyssal Demons behind them grew exponentially, even Mengxi began to doubt the feasibility of her plan. She wondered if Fort Garros could truly withstand the onslaught. Within the horde behind them, several terrifying existences at the sixth tier peak had already appeared…

Glancing back at the dark, overwhelming tide of Abyssal Demons, Mengxi couldn’t help but suck in a breath of cold air.

At the same time, the young woman’s pale violet eyes filled with gravity, and a hint of doubt took root in her heart.

Why are these Abyssal Demons…

Mengxi wasn’t sure if it was just her imagination, but she felt as if these demons were… intentionally keeping their distance from them?!

What on earth?!

However, among those being pursued by the Abyssal Demons, not everyone was so consumed by panic. Sitting on a warhorse and protected in Mengxi’s arms, a certain pink-haired girl didn’t feel a shred of fear.

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No matter how hideous or terrifying the Abyssal Demons “chasing” her were, in the eyes of this pink-haired girl, Miss Yumo, they were no different from children playing a game of tag.

Rather than any illusory fear, Yumo currently felt a mix of complex emotions and a touch of curiosity. She thoughtfully patted the sturdy back of the black horse beneath her.

So this is a red-hoofed warhorse? It’s my first time riding one. The ride isn’t too bad… Yumo murmured to herself.

Spirit beasts were creatures that could be tamed by humans, while those that could not were called magical beasts or lower-level wild beasts. In human armies, the most common spirit beasts were black griffins and red-hoofed warhorses.

The red-hoofed warhorse wasn’t particularly strong in combat, in fact, it could be called quite weak, but it possessed incredible endurance and running speed. A fourth tier warhorse could outrun most fifth tier experts. Combined with acceleration magic, even a fifth tier Abyssal Demon would find it difficult to catch up. For this reason, they were highly favored by many knights.

Emmm, it is quite fast. Ordinary Abyssal Demons that aren’t speed-types really would have a hard time catching it…

Glancing at the dark mass of subordinates behind her, Yumo gave the warhorse beneath her a rare look of approval. Then, she turned her gaze toward the distance.

And that over there should be Fort Garros, right?

In front of her, at the edge of the endless border wall, a majestic and massive military fortress stood tall upon the snowy plains! To prevent Abyssal Demons from invading the interior, the Snownight Empire had built a grand Great Wall along its borders, constructing numerous military fortresses at key points along the wall and stationing large numbers of troops there.

Abyssal Demons instinctively prioritized attacking populated areas. Having so many people stationed inside the fortress significantly increased defensive capabilities and effectively attracted nearby Abyssal Demons to attack. Even if a small number of demons weren’t drawn in, the patrols near the ordinary city walls were generally capable of eliminating them.

Through this method of defense, Windward City had guarded the Snownight Empire’s border for centuries.

Of course, this defensive strategy worked fine against brainless, ordinary Abyssal Demons. If a demon king tier were to take action, they could easily lead the horde to strike through a weak point in the defenses. Only an idiot would bang their head against a fortress; it was arguably more useless than a certain defensive line from World War II…

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Strictly speaking, Yumo was slightly disappointed by such defensive measures.

However, for today, Yumo intended to let the Abyssal Demon horde “foolishly” test the defense line. According to Saibok, Windward City was currently in a state of highest combat readiness. Almost all the regular army troops in the city had been dispatched to the various fortresses.

If they attacked now, she should be able to get a good understanding of humanity’s current combat capabilities, right?

After several hundred years without facing an Abyssal Demon army, just how much weight did these regular human forces still carry?

Yumo was quite curious about this. She needed to understand the current combat strength of the regular human army so she could better arrange the scale of future Abyssal Demon invasions.

Thus, after a moment of deliberation, Yumo tacitly allowed Li Mo’s unauthorized initiative. Of course, she would still have to give that brat a good lesson after they returned…

While Yumo was lost in thought, another male knight carrying two slaves steered his warhorse close to Mengxi. Though his face was still pale with shock, a glimmer of hope had emerged in his eyes.

“Lady Mengxi! I have successfully sent the distress signal to Lady Bai Yanluo!”

“Oh?” Hearing this news, the silver-haired girl felt a rare sense of relief. “Finally.”

“What do we do now?”

“We enter Fort Garros first and use the fortress’s defensive systems to stall the Abyssal Demon horde. Once Bai Yanluo and the reinforcements from Windward City arrive, we should be able to resolve this crisis…”

Looking back at the massive horde of Abyssal Demons pursuing them, Mengxi’s words seemed to lack some of her usual confidence. No one knew how many high-rank Abyssal Demons were hidden within a horde of this size…

“In any case, activate all auxiliary acceleration scrolls! We need to get into Fort Garros first!” Mengxi hurriedly ordered the knights beside her.

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However, before the girl could finish her sentence, a powerful sense of crisis suddenly surged into her mind, causing her eyes to shrink! She looked ahead in disbelief!

?!!!

That? That was?! Oh no!

“Quick, get out of the way!!”

“Huh?? What?!” The male knight looked at his squad leader in confusion.

However, before Mengxi could explain, a scorching fireball descended from the sky! It struck the stunned male knight dead center!

BOOM!!

Accompanied by a thunderous roar, fire erupted! A scorching wave of magic power burst outward!

In an instant, the knight who had barely escaped the demons’ maws, along with the two slaves he carried, perished instantly beneath the fireball! They were reduced to charred corpses and then trampled into fragments by the pursuing Abyssal Demons…

Additionally, several other knights were caught in the fireball’s explosion and thrown from their horses, only to be torn to shreds by the demons swarming from behind amidst piercing screams…

Seeing this, Mengxi grit her teeth and looked up toward the sky in fury.

That fireball… was it anti-army magic??

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At that moment, tens of thousands of crimson fireballs and pink energy cannons were pouring down from the sky like a torrential storm! They unleashed their violent energy upon the earth, the Abyssal Demons, and the knights themselves!

In an instant, countless brilliant crimson flowers bloomed within the dark tide of demons, and the searing heat dispelled the bitter cold of the plains! While it heavily damaged many Abyssal Demons, it also brought the knights of the Ashurmos Church to the brink of disaster!

There was a bombardment of fireballs in front, and a pursuit by Abyssal Demons behind!

And the source of these attacks was, undeniably, Fort Garros ahead of them!

Looking at the Fort Garros garrison that had already activated its anti-army magic, a murderous intent flared in Mengxi’s eyes.

There was no doubt about it, the other side had abandoned their initial agreement. They were actually bombarding the knights along with the demons behind them!

“Krimde, you bastard…”

As soon as she spoke, another massive fireball roared toward Mengxi.

Seeing the crimson fiery energy rapidly expanding in her vision, Mengxi acted decisively and pulled the pink-haired girl into her arms! She whispered softly in the girl’s ear, “Hold on tight…”

The pink-haired girl: “Huh??”

In the next instant, a brilliant silvery-white light suddenly rippled around the girl, transforming into a continuous thrust concentrated in Mengxi’s legs! Just as the fireball was about to strike them, Mengxi leaped to the side while holding the pink-haired girl!

They narrowly avoided the fireball’s blast, while Mengxi’s red-hoofed warhorse and a fifth tier Abyssal Demon behind them were instantly swallowed by the scorching flames…