Chapter 140: Those Must Be Fake

The river water surged, and a cool breeze blew gently.

The Nine-Nation Alliance gradually stopped about a hundred meters from the south bank of Zuli River. Their formation was a bit scattered, the horses’ neighs were chaotic, and their footsteps were uneven. After they stopped, even their raised flags were somewhat crooked. The knights at the front of the formation sat proudly on their horses like swans untouched by worldly matters. Even someone who knew nothing about military affairs could see this was a ragtag group. Compared to the Black Armored Army’s strict discipline and imposing momentum that moved like mountains and seas, this group was far inferior. It was hard to believe they were a regular army.

However, the Miscellaneous Army itself was very confident in their strength.

“One charge and we will take Shampoo City, making that foolish and arrogant little King Alexander kneel and cry!” The King of Shenhua Kingdom raised his whip high on his horse, looking spirited.

“Pass my order: after the city is broken, sell all men in Shampoo City taller than a cart wheel as slaves. Teach this evil country a good lesson!” The King of Chanba Kingdom was excited. His soldiers had already prepared iron cages and chains for loading slaves.

“I want that damned little king to kneel under my horse and beg. I heard he has a fiancée who is quite beautiful. Hehe, maybe she can mop the floor and clean chamber pots for me in the Royal Palace of Luneng Kingdom…” The Crown Prince of Luneng Kingdom lifted his helmet’s visor, a lewd smile in his eyes.

“Hahahaha!”

Hearing the Crown Prince of Luneng Kingdom’s words, all the men laughed knowingly.

Even the rough soldiers behind the kings raised their swords and spears high, laughing loudly. Jewels, wealth, and women had always been the best incentives for soldiers to fight bravely.

“However, I suggest giving Shampoo City one chance. Send someone to deliver a message, telling them to lower the drawbridge and surrender within one minute, and release the princes of various countries they have barbarically detained. Otherwise, even if we risk punishment from the Empire, we will wipe this evil country off the map of Zenit today.” The Lord of Redwater City glanced at the other kings around him and spoke unhurriedly.

The strongest force in the alliance was Redwater City.

The King of Redwater City commanded a team of about six hundred men. It was the most well-equipped and high-spirited among the nine teams. It even included a hundred-man heavy cavalry unit that called itself Flame God Iron Hooves. The knights, fully clad in black iron armor, rode uniformly on fourth-level Magical Beasts called Blazing Beasts. These Blazing Beasts looked very much like warhorses, with sharp horns on their heads. They were said to be hybrid descendants of the sacred unicorn. They were naturally swift as the wind and had amazing load-bearing capacity, making them the best choice for forming cavalry units.

It was said the reason they could obtain so many Blazing Beasts was that the previous Old King of Redwater City had a stroke of luck. He happened to encounter a large mercenary group in distress and took advantage of their situation to buy over forty Blazing Beast cubs at a low price. After more than twenty years of careful breeding, they now had over a hundred. This was also why Redwater City could advance to a third-class Vassal State without many strong experts guarding it. It was said that even the two princes of the Zenit Empire, Your Highness Arshavin and Your Highness Domingos, who were fiercely fighting for the throne, had sent olive branches to Redwater City, precisely because they had their eyes on this hundred-man Flame God Iron Hooves troop.

A single knight and his mount from Flame God Iron Hooves weighed at least five to six hundred pounds. They galloped like the wind. If they were allowed to charge at full speed on a plain, their frontal impact could even overturn a city wall. Legend had it that this heavy cavalry’s combat power was unmatched among the sixty third-class Vassal States of the Zenit Empire.

When the King of Redwater City spoke, although some of the other kings were displeased, might made right, and most agreed with the plan. Only that Noblemage who had been scared out of his wits by Shampoo City’s volley of arrows disagreed with the suggestion. He clamored to charge into Shampoo City and set it on fire, reducing it to ashes. However, this alliance was clearly not united; each force acted on its own. But no one was a fool. After seeing Shampoo City’s treacherous terrain, they all wanted to preserve their own strength. Although they flattered this minor Noblemage from the Imperial Capital Saint Petersburg on the surface, no one actually listened to him.

But what the arrogant alliance leaders did not expect was that before they could send an envoy to deliver the message, a loud creaking sound of chains dragging suddenly rang out. They saw that Shampoo City had actively lowered its drawbridge. With a loud boom, the ten-meter-high steel bridge deck heavily landed on the south bank’s bridge surface at the broken part of the stone bridge. Amid the rising dust, it looked like a terrifying sacred Dragon had suddenly descended on the bridge.

“The drawbridge is down… Could it be they are scared and want to surrender before the fight even begins?” one king said proudly with a smug laugh.

The dust settled.

The alliance was surprised to find teams of Shampoo City soldiers marching in neat steps across the bridge to the bank, beginning to set up their formation. At the front were twenty shield soldiers, carrying three-meter-high refined iron Tower Shields in pairs of two. Their steps were heavy, each footfall leaving a deep imprint. Looking at those Tower Shields that resembled giant iron doors, the nine kings and the soldiers behind them who had been clamoring moments ago all shivered in unison, suddenly feeling that the sun was a bit cold.

Following the twenty soldiers carrying those exaggerated shields were fifty archers.

Compared to the somewhat intimidating twenty Tower Shield soldiers, these fifty archers were not particularly remarkable. They did not even have complete armor, wearing strange tight cloth outfits. Their bow-carrying shoulders were draped with animal hide polished dark and shiny. The longbows on their backs were slightly larger than usual, one size bigger than ordinary longbows. Each had less than a hundred arrows in the quiver on their back.

“Such a small number of archers isn’t even enough to fill the gaps between our teeth. My soldiers would kill them all with just one swing of their swords… Haha, how pathetic of the sixth-class Vassal State Shampoo City to even bother showing this!” The Crown Prince of Luneng Kingdom curled his lip disdainfully. The soldiers behind him laughed loudly, banging their swords and blades in agreement.

Opposite, Shampoo City’s formation continued.

Right behind the archers came over thirty burly men. They still wore no armor, their piecemeal cloth armor looking rather shabby. Compared to the alliance soldiers in bright armor, it was like the difference between Nobles and beggars. However, the weapons in the giants’ hands were somewhat terrifying—each held a two-meter-long Great Axe with a blade as exaggerated as a door panel. The axe blades gleamed coldly under the autumn afternoon sun. The design of these axes was truly exaggerated. If the axe body were really made entirely of black iron, a single Great Axe would weigh at least three to four hundred pounds. For ordinary soldiers, forget using such an axe to kill enemies; even lifting it would require all their strength.

“Oh, how is that possible? Those must be carved from wood, painted with black and silver dye. Fake, they must be fake!” The King of Blackwater Kingdom was frightened, muttering to himself as if having a fit.

His view was shared by everyone around him. Even the initially proud Wind Magic mage curled his lip and said, “They must be fake. Only fools would be scared by their appearance. Haha, I think even those dozen or so Tower Shields earlier must be fake too, probably just nailed together from wood!”

Despite saying this, the alliance’s morale had clearly been affected by Shampoo City’s fierce appearance. It was like a fiercely burning flame being doused with cold water. At least for now, no one was clamoring to charge; they all hesitated in place.

Right behind the Great Axe giants came a fifty-man infantry square.

This square was finally somewhat normal, though considerably less impressive than their predecessors. The weapons in their hands were a chaotic mix: some held half-swords, some gripped long sticks of varying thickness, some carried rusty Two-handed Swords, some held wood-handled fire axes, and some carried blacksmiths’ flat hammers… Their formation was also somewhat messy. They varied in height, not particularly strong, looking less like soldiers coming to fight and more like coarse farmers coming to the riverside to watch the excitement.

“Haha, look! They’ve finally shown their true colors. This is the real level of tiny Shampoo City!” someone sneered contemptuously.

“Just a bunch of farmers… Fighting such enemies is an insult to my army and soldiers!”

“Such a country has no reason to exist…”

The alliance leaders quickly became optimistic again, smugly watching Shampoo City’s performance as if watching clowns.

Just then, there was a new change on the bridge—

A team of about twenty men formed a cone-shaped formation and slowly moved out. Each wore Heavy Knight Armor covering every part of their bodies. It seemed the heavy armor made the soldiers’ steps somewhat unsteady; they moved very laboriously, taking one step and resting for three, seeming out of breath. The heavy armor on their bodies had not yet had a chance to protect its owners but had already exhausted them.

“Oh, heavens! I think their king, who must have water in his head, is insane. He actually sent infantry out wearing heavy cavalry armor…” The King of Redwater City laughed heartily. He glanced at the over a hundred heavy cavalry behind him, all clad in full heavy armor. His laughter was full of disdain, like a splendidly dressed Sun-level Master seeing a roadside beggar pretending to be an expert in front of him: “Flame God Iron Hooves could turn these walking knights into a pile of scrap metal in just one breath!”

“What a pity for those over twenty sets of Heavy Knight Armor. They look quite good. They’re all mine now!” The King of Shenhua Kingdom coveted them. Everyone could see those armors were fine items. If equipped on knights, they could definitely arm a powerful cone-shaped cavalry squad.

“Whoever grabs them first, gets them!”

The other kings’ eyes gleamed one by one. How could they easily give such a fat piece of meat to others?

But what they didn’t know was that from afar, seeing the over a hundred heavy cavalry troops of Redwater City in the opposing alliance camp, His Majesty the King Sun Fei, who had just finished his indulgence in the Back Mountain underground caves and rushed over upon hearing the news, was also drooling and shouting: “Wahahaha, excellent! A full hundred Blazing Beasts! They’re all mine, haha, all mine! Pass my order: we must try to capture them alive… These kings are so enthusiastic. I only wanted them to compensate a few Gold Coins, but they actually took the initiative to deliver equipment to my door!”