Chương 176: The Kirov Airship

High above the canopy, Li Qinwu stood aboard the airship alongside his system-generated troops, the Elder of the Water Drakes, and a few local guides as they hummed north through the clouds. Down below, a massive combined force of goblins and young Water Drake warriors advanced through the dense forest. Fearing that the Water Drakes might fumble the battle line through recklessness, Li Qinwu had ordered them to follow strictly five hundred meters behind the main goblin vanguard.

As they flew, Li Qinwu beckoned the Elder to his side and asked, "Elder, what's the deal with those strange black markings on the trolls? Do you have any idea what that jet-black monstrosity back there actually was?" Ever since stepping onto the airship, the Elder had been craning his neck and gawking at every corner of the cabin. Never in his wildest dreams had he imagined flying above the clouds. The experience was wildly surreal—and left his legs feeling like jelly.

He repeatedly flicked his tongue to moisten his eyes, taking a long moment to steady his nerves before answering.

"Your Majesty... the troll tribe worships the God of Gluttony—a horrifyingly evil deity originating from the northern trolls. It is said the northern clans were brutally purged by a powerful enemy, driving a desperate group of survivors south. They brought the dark faith with them, spreading it like poison through the southern tribes.

"Those who choose to devote themselves to the God of Gluttony voluntarily mark their skin with those ritual tattoos. Once their faith is recognized by the god, they receive a divine 'blessing.' Their appetites multiply exponentially, and they derive overwhelming, addictive pleasure simply from eating!" Li Qinwu scratched his head, genuinely bewildered.

"That's it? How is having a bigger appetite a 'blessing'?"

"Your Majesty, it goes far deeper than that," the Elder continued, shaking his head grimly.

"Trolls are innately aggressive and constantly engage in bloody internal feuds. Once a troll falls under the god's influence, their body weight skyrockets—giving them a massive physical advantage in tribal infighting.

"To match that brute strength, other trolls feel forced to embrace the god as well. Once an entire tribe is converted, they begin competing over whose faith is the most 'pure.' They gorge themselves into grotesque obesity and cover every inch of their skin in dark runes. That is when the true power of the blessing manifests.

"Your Majesty, surely you noticed—the fatter and more tattooed a troll becomes, the more terrifyingly powerful they grow. Their unnatural bulk doesn't slow them down at all; in fact, it makes them unnaturally fast.

"The fatter they get, the faster and stronger they become! This twisted logic drives every troll to obsessively gorge themselves, willing to do anything just to gain more power!" Li Qinwu's brows knit into a tight scowl. This so-called 'God of Gluttony' is using power as bait to fatten up its followers... Considering its name, is this dark god literally cultivating these trolls as livestock to feed on later? The Elder sighed, his expression turning bitter and pained.

"Your Majesty, the supreme chieftain of the trolls was a young warrior named Nakuja. For years, he led countless brutal raids against our Water Drake tribe.

"Ever since the trolls turned to the God of Gluttony, their ravenous hunger escalated, and their attacks grew far more frequent and violent. We lost countless brave warriors... and so many of our unhatched eggs.

"We even began noticing horrific reports of cannibalism among their ranks. As for Nakuja... he grew far too powerful for us to ever hope to defeat. Whenever he marched out, we had no choice but to surrender our nesting grounds, standing by helplessly as he gorged himself on our eggs until he was satisfied and sauntered away..." Stolen content warning: this content belongs on Royal Road. Report any occurrences. He hung his head, clearly haunted by the humiliating scars of their past.

Li Qinwu glanced out the window, watching a sprawling troll settlement take shape amidst the forest ahead. He spoke nonchalantly, "Well, the Water Drakes are part of the Alliance now. From this day forward, no one pushes you out of your wetlands, no one slaughters your warriors with impunity, and no one steals your eggs. Wherever the Circle-and-Star flag flies, freedom and order prevail!

"Lower the airship! Prepare the bombs!" Disengaging from the ambient mana currents, the airship's mana engine hummed to life as it consumed mana cores, slowly descending to an altitude of eighty meters above the ground. Directly beneath them lay a massive troll settlement—an early-agrarian stronghold complete with tall wooden perimeter walls, timber cabins, cultivated fields, and livestock pens, bustling with a dense population.

Looking up at the colossal shadow blotting out the sun, the troll warriors babbled frantically to one another. A few even hurled heavy stone spears toward the sky. With their immense physical strength, the trolls managed to hurl the spears fifty meters up into the air. However, the airship's gasbag was constructed from reinforced materials far tougher than standard canvas; the stone points scraped against the hull and tumbled back to earth. Moments later, gun ports along the lower gondola snapped open.

Dozens of musket barrels extended out into the open air, training squarely on the bewildered crowds below. BANG! BANG! BANG! BANG! Rolling volleys echoed across the sky. The airship transformed into a literal flying gunship, raining down an unyielding hail of lead that mowed down the trolls like wheat. (Ah, a flying gunship that never quite made it into my last two books finally makes its grand debut here!) At the rear of the gondola, the cargo hatch swung wide open.

Two goblins heaved a modified demolition charge into position, lit the fuse, and kicked it out the door. The weapon was essentially a standard demolition bundle wrapped thickly in dried branches and leaves to act as a shock absorber—preventing the charge from shattering upon impact and scattering black powder everywhere, which would diminish its explosive payload. The crude "aerial bomb" plunged toward the earth, crushing a helpless troll beneath its weight just as the fuse burned down to the core. BOOM!!

A violent explosion erupted in the center of the settlement. Black smoke mixed with severed limbs blew outward, sending a massive shockwave that flattened dozens of surrounding trolls. The airship drifted steadily forward, dropping bomb after bomb in a calculated line. A relentless chain of detonations ripped through the settlement, digging a string of gaping craters across the dirt—a fantasy-world incarnation of a Kirov Airship!

Driven half-mad by the terrifying explosions raining from above, the trolls abandoned all discipline and scattered in every direction. Some lost their minds entirely and scrambled inside wooden cabins for cover. Not that it mattered—the airship simply shifted targets and bombed the cabins. Its primary goal wasn't to slaughter every last enemy, but to completely shatter their command structure and create absolute chaos, providing cover for the ground assault.

While every troll had their head turned skyward in sheer terror, gazing helplessly at the floating metal leviathan, several deafening detonations shattered the settlement's outer wooden walls. The flimsy perimeter defenses collapsed into burning splinters, leaving massive, open breaches. With roaring battle cries, lines of goblin musketmen surged through the gaps. Their movements were disciplined and lightning-fast.

The moment they breached the perimeter, they fanned out to establish overlapping fields of fire, cutting down every hostile entity in sight. Once an entry zone was secured, small tactical squads broke off to methodically clear out any remaining pockets of resistance. And whenever the goblin marksmen cleared a sector, the eager Water Drakes trailing behind charged in with furious roars to occupy the ground.

They conducted a far more meticulous sweep, dragging hiding trolls out of timber huts and dark corners to beat them to death on the spot. The Water Drakes fought with absolute savagery. For decades, they had been nothing more than food on the trolls' dinner table, unable even to protect their own unborn young. Decades of accumulated humiliation and blood debts exploded all at once in a cathartic spree of vengeance! The trolls were utterly clueless as to what was happening.

They felt as if the sky had caved in overnight on their once-dominant species. The very goblins and Water Drakes they used to slaughter at will were now driving them like cattle, creating a surreal sense of absurdity that left them completely disoriented. Even more terrifying for the common troll was the complete absence of their leadership. Where were the King of Gluttony and the elite war-marked warriors? In a crisis like this, shouldn't they be out front organizing a counter-offensive?

Why hadn't a single one shown their face? Faced with overwhelming, incomprehensible firepower, the troll forces completely collapsed. Breaking ranks, they fled blindly into the surrounding wilderness in every direction. With minimal casualties, Li Qinwu claimed total victory over the troll stronghold.