Chương 41: Battle (Part 4)

"Stab! Stab! Give it your all, STAB!" Li Qinwu roared again and again. His bellows stimulated the nerves of the Goblin spearmen, driving them to carry out their killings mechanically. Their usual grueling military drills were paying off now. The Goblin spearmen stood firmly in place, just as they did during posture drills, thrusting in time with Li Qinwu's cadence—it was as orderly as a child's marching exercise. This disciplined aggression was highly effective.

Every thrust of the spears was met with one or two agonized shrieks. The once-imposing Great Kobolds took a heavy blow to the face, leaving a row of bloody corpses before the heavy infantry's shield wall. It had to be said, the Kobolds were valiant. They swung their stone hammers and axes against the shield wall with reckless abandon, seemingly unconcerned about being skewered.

The Hobgoblins weren't soft either; they occasionally delivered shield bashes to shove the enemy back before swinging their axes in wide arcs, nearly every strike splitting a canine skull. Throughout the brutal melee, Li Qinwu kept a sharp eye on the battlefield. The enemy numbers were overwhelming, completely enveloping his front line. The Kobolds were packed so tightly they were shoving one another forward in a state of utter chaos.

Most importantly, the water balls Hana had thrown earlier had made the ground incredibly slick. The constant trampling turned the area into a muddy quagmire, and Kobolds were constantly slipping and falling. Failing to take the position and hindered by the terrain, the Kobold vanguard's organization collapsed. Li Qinwu decided the time was right. He dropped his blood-stained spear and opened his tactical interface: Press [2] to select the Ogre Dang-Dang, [F1] [F3] to Charge!

Dang-Dang, who had been "slacking off" by the tree, let out a heaven-shaking roar. He snatched up a massive tree trunk and charged headlong toward the Great Kobolds. Li Qinwu simultaneously ordered the center heavy infantry to split to the sides, clearing a death lane for the behemoth. The Great Kobolds at the front thought the Goblin shield wall had finally broken. They were just about to rush in for the slaughter when they came face-to-face with the raging Dang-Dang.

Terrified, the Kobolds' fur stood on end as they turned and tried to flee, yelping in fear. But the muddy ground became their nightmare; the more they panicked, the harder they fell. Dang-Dang crashed into the chaotic ranks, swinging his tree trunk like a whirlwind, sending Kobolds flying in every direction. In the blink of an eye, four or five elite Great Kobolds were reduced to mincemeat. The rest, having lost what little morale they had left, tucked their tails and bolted.

Taken from Royal Road, this narrative should be reported if found on Amazon. A few tough ones tried to fight back, hacking desperately at Dang-Dang's thighs. But with the combination of Horned Crocodile armor and his thick, calloused skin, their stone weapons couldn't even leave a scratch. Instead, the minor stings of the impacts only enraged Dang-Dang. He roared, his swings growing faster as the massive trunk slammed down repeatedly.

Anyone brave enough to attack him was turned into paste; even those grazed by the trunk were sent spinning away with broken bones. Single-handedly, Dang-Dang tore the Great Kobold formation to pieces. Li Qinwu seized the opportunity and ordered all units to advance, swinging his greatsword as he joined the fray. The Kobolds suffered a total rout. Paralyzed by terror, many urinated as they fled—a physiological response of their species to extreme fright.

Li Qinwu led his men in a relentless pursuit, leaving a trail of bodies up the slope. Inside, Li Qinwu felt a pang of regret. He only dared to lead his 40 system troops in the pursuit, not trusting the common Goblins enough to let them join the charge. He feared they would lose their heads in the bloodlust, ignore his commands to retreat, and get trapped in the enemy's main camp.

I need to find a way to train Goblin generals who can lead independently, Li Qinwu resolved silently, thrusting his sword into the back of a fleeing Great Kobold to claim 24 experience points. He then ordered the halt. They had reached the 300-meter mark from the Kobold camp. Li Qinwu looked at the contorted face of Dragon-Fang in the distance and once again raised that provocative finger.

"You son of a bitch, I'll kill you within three days! Hah-tui!" After finishing his trash talk, Li Qinwu led his troops back the way they came, completely indifferent to Dragon-Fang's murderous glare. After two rounds of defeat, the Kobold morale was in shambles. They had lost over 300 men, and the sight of their corpses carpeting the slope was chilling. In contrast, the Goblins had suffered only single-digit casualties, and their bodies were carried back to their lines.

To the Kobolds, this was demoralizing—they had paid a massive price and hadn't even secured a single enemy corpse. The common Kobolds were discouraged, and the chiefs were even more distraught. The dead were their primary assets.

"Lord Dragon-Fang, what should we do? Should we keep attacking? At this rate, all our warriors will be dead!" one chief pleaded, only to be silenced by a cold glare from Dragon-Fang. Dragon-Fang ordered, "Regroup! Prepare for the third assault!" The chiefs yelped uneasily, clearly disagreeing with the command. Dragon-Fang ignored them. He pried a bone from his throne and threw it at one of the Ogres carrying him. That Ogre was an ashen gray with an incredibly thick calloused layer.

Standing over six meters tall, he was even more robust and fierce than Dang-Dang—a prime adult Ogre in his peak years. The giant looked back at Dragon-Fang with anger in his eyes. Dragon-Fang stared back coldly, unafraid. After ten seconds of tension, the giant let out a heavy breath, averted his gaze, and grunted in the Ogre tongue. The four Ogres lowered the throne together and stood in a line, picking up their weapons. Dragon-Fang addressed the chiefs: "The testing is over.

Now, I will send the Ogres into battle. Have your kin follow behind them. Once the Ogres smash the Goblin lines, rush in and tear every green thing to shreds!" The chiefs breathed a sigh of relief. The enemy had one Ogre; they had four! The advantage was theirs! However, no one noticed the flicker of unease in Dragon-Fang's eyes. He looked at the Goblin position, watching Dang-Dang squatting on the ground playing with mud, and felt a deep confusion: Why is that Ogre helping Goblins?

Does he no longer care about his own cub?