600 - 609
Chapter 600: One Way Portal
Translator: Oneshotwonder Editor: Hitesh_
The wind blowing through the valley passage suddenly picked up the intensity. On the command of Yin Tianzong, all soldiers charged up their soul energy and tilted their body so that they met minimum resistance as they waited.
After a while, the strange gale subsided, and the insistent keening of the mountainous wind returned. After a few cautious moments, the warriors moved on.
The further they went on the passage, the more unease Yin Tianzong felt. He felt a pressure what was not only from the harsh and forbidding environment, but also from a strong presence of a malicious energy.
The path had changed significantly as well. The trees started to hug the road, and soon, the path had reduced to the width that only allowed only one person through. Cliffs that were straight drops were present on each side of the path; below, the dark air current howled with a murderous intent.
The warriors traveled in pairs, slowly treading forward. This was a test of their endurance; fast and furious would only get them killed.
The soldiers at the back of the group waited patiently for their turn. The wait itself was a challenge of their inner balance.
Five pairs of warriors had already passed the choke point, and when the sixth pair were about to cross, the wild gale came up again. The soldier charged up GN shield instinctively; however, the movement had made the mastery caster loosen his hold on the METAL warrior. Having lost his anchor, the wind picked him up like a piece of parchment. Lu Liang, the unfortunate caster, cried out for help, but his voice was carried away by the wind too. In less than a heartbeat, Yin Tianzong plunged into the depth to save the caster. He hurled a cable toward the caster in front of him while both of them were still falling. The other end of the cable was tied to Vorenus.
Vorenus's GN force soared up and was ready for the weight of two warriors. Once Lu Ming felt the cable beside him, he quickly gripped it and wrapped it around his body. Vorenus felt the snag at the end of the line and momentum of the two warriors in the chasm. Vorenus shouted as he doubled up his soul energy. Inch by inch, he hauled the two warriors out of the abyss.
As soon as Yin Tianzong reached the landing, he helped Vorenus to pull the caster out. Lu Ming was already unconscious when he was finally pulled to safety. The impact with the cliff had rendered him unconscious.
The party moved on. Xiao Libie felt a strange mixture of shock, fear, and trepidation. Seeing how they had worked together to avert the crisis, Xiao Libie knew that they would eventually conquer Mount Dynamo; not even the coldness could stop them.
Eight hours later, they were finally out of the narrow path. Even the soldiers themselves felt it unbelievable that they could pull through.
As soon as they passed the narrow path, the wind was blocked by the towering peaks from both side, and the temperature seemed to have risen significantly as well.
Looking back at that frozen hell, this place seemed like a paradise.
Yin Tianzong scanned the surroundings, looking for traces of Wang Tong. If they could make it, surely Wang Tong could too.
"Do a headcount! Medics, please attend to the injured."
After the headcount was conducted, it was found that five METAL warriors had paid the ultimate sacrifice while trying to protect their mastery partners. Those casters who had lost their companions sat in a corner silently and sullenly while thinking how many zergs they had to kill in order to repay the debt.
After a while, Yin Tianzong finally found out the reason that he couldn't find any trace of Wang Tong's soul energy. This clearing seemed to be the source of the force field disturbance, and the chaotic energies had blocked the presence of any soul energy in this area. Not only were the energy signals blocked, the warriors soon found out that they simply couldn't charge up their soul energy any longer.
"Captain, look here. An arrow marking! It has to be Boss" A soldier shouted.
Yin Tianzong closed in and saw an arrow was freshly marked on a cliff. He noticed that the cliff wall was made of extremely hard ice, and he wagered that other than Wang Tong, no one would be able to carve an arrow sign without any soul energy.
"Lun Duo and Tan Bu, I want you two to look after the injured and the casters. The rest of you, follow me!" Yin Tianzong commanded. He was convinced that Wang Tong was caught up here by some development; otherwise, he would have already returned to them.
Wang Tong had indeed made it to the clearing. Although his sea of consciousness had sustained a great deal of damage, he couldn't stop. There was something hiding inside these deep mountains, and he needed to find out what it was. He left a mark for Yin Tianzong and moved on.
Yin Tianzong and his soldiers pressed forward while the injured received treatment behind them. They would catch up sooner or later, and finding Wang Tong was much more urgent. Something told Yin Tianzong that Wang Tong was in knee deep trouble.
Although they were unable to use their soul energy, the warriors traveled at an amazing speed thanks to the exceptional physical condition. Huge ice walls towered beside them, their size and shape suggesting that they were the product of drastic terraforming. In order to make Mars inhabitable, the early humans had used advanced technology to terraform Mars, changing its terrain, rivers, and atmosphere. As a result, some areas were so heavily modified that their natural elements seemed to be full of contradictions.
Mount Dynamo was one such region. Thankfully, these areas remained anomalies on Mars, and once settled, the humans never bothered to correct their mistakes.
These blue ice walls were not entirely made out of ice, since it was much tougher than normal ice. What was even stranger was that the temperature seemed to be rising as the soldiers reached higher elevation. These unnatural phenomena worried the warriors as they became more convinced that Wang Tong was in trouble.
Yin Tianzong led the group from the front, stress and unease written all over his face. After some time, Yin Tianzong saw a glowing white light ahead of him. As he got closer, he noticed that the light came out of a gate, except that it wasn't really a gate at all. It had the shape of a gate, but in the middle was a film of shimmering silvery liquid. Its hinge was made out of fleshy substances.
Guan Dongyang caught up with Xiao Libie and asked in confusion. "What the heck is this thing?"
Xiao Yuyu approached the contraption and cautiously touched its rim. "It's a one-way space portal to the hive."
As the chief medic, Xiao Yuyu had learned extensively about the Zergs. She had seen such a portal in texts, and the thing in front of her matched the description perfectly.
But, why was there a space portal in the middle of nowhere? Everyone thought about the same question. Three hundred years ago, the Zergs were defeated on Mars, but were they really eliminated by the humans? A portal like this required decades to build, and the Zergs only occupied mars five years ago. Therefore, it had to be left by the original queen mother five hundred years ago. Regardless of what was on the other side, the portal's existence meant danger to the humans.
"Move in!" Yin Tianzong commanded and then disappeared through the gate, the rest of soldiers following him. Xiao Libie heaved a sigh and lamented how fearless these soldiers were.
As soon as they entered the portal, they found themselves inside a giant hall with living undulating walls. The room's color was dark green, and they were standing on a wet carpet of fleshy substance. This had to be the hive.
When they looked up, they saw Wang Tong floating close to the ceiling with dead Zergs all around him on the ground. Among the dead Zergs was a giant queen; her skull was smashed to pulp, and eggs were littered everywhere around her.
The eggs were large in size and came with a hard shell. On top of the shell was a restraining field of soul energy set by Wang Tong.
Yin Tianzong felt that as soon as they went through the threshold, he was able to use his soul energy once again.
"Block all entrances!"
"Roger that!"
Everyone took a position and prepared for the next wave of attack.
This was as close the soldiers had ever gotten to the home base of the Zergs. The well-hidden location of the portal meant this hive was very important to the Zergs.
Yin Tianzong looked around and found out that the eggs were placed in a pool with emerald liquid. He had never seen such treatment of the eggs before. All things suggested that this was not an ordinary lair.
On the living walls were many entrances and exits. Everyone stood where they were and refrained from entering any of those holes. After all, they were inside a living organism, and those tunnels could be sealed in an instant.
Chapter 601: Zergs' Lab
Translator: Oneshotwonder Editor: Hitesh_
No one dared to let their guard down. This could be the experimental lab of the Zergs that the humans had been searching for so many decades. Some people believed that they were guarded entirely by the dark ones, but they hadn't seen a single dark one among the dead Zergs. Despite its obscure location, Wang Tong and his soldiers and came across it by luck.
After a few cautious moments, Zergs started to appear from behind the holes on the wall, only to be greeted by the human warriors' belligerent attacks. This hive was ancient, and it had never been attacked by any human forces. However, once the humans came, they wreaked havoc with abandon.
It didn't take long for Tan Bu and Lun Duo to catch up with Yin Tianzong. The reinforcements quickly threw themselves into the battle; their injuries were too mild to hinder their ability to slaughter.
The had done this many times, so the soldiers knew exactly what to do to maximize their damage as a team. Without Wang Tong giving an order, the soldiers moved closer to the source of the Zergs and built a defense around the existence of those holes on the wall. They could not let the Zergs get close to Wang Tong and interrupt his battle with the eggs. These eggs not only appeared different than the normal ones, but they were also able to fight back. What surprised Wang Tong even more was that they also had soul energies.
The queen had sniffed Wang Tong out as soon as he stepped through the portal. However, she was quickly dealt with before she could sound the alarm. Wang Tong's killing blows and revealed his strong soul energy and attracted the Zergs toward him. The queen had soul energy inside her, and that made Wang Tong make up his mind to kill her outright instead of using her as bait.
The queen's death cry sounded indignant; she was so close to hatching the most terrible Zergs the humans had yet seen.
The soldiers' suspicion was right; this was one of the most important experiment labs of the Zerg. The reason they were so hidden was that they were set up in a hive, which was either in the space or deep underground. This hive, for example, took the Zergs decades to create a hole deep enough to hide it. And for centuries, it had waited patiently as the queen tinkered with the genes of her next brood of hatchlings.
For five hundred years, they were able to carry out the morbid experiment undisturbed; but their days were numbered.
The battle was more intense than anyone had thought. If Yin Tianzong and his warriors hadn't arrived in time, Wang Tong might very likely have been trapped in the hive with thousands of Zergs and the terror within the eggshells. Whatever was in the egg possessed an incredible soul energy. It was the results of generations of genetic mutations and modifications. Perhaps, they were bred specifically to counter the mastery casters.
It finally occurred to Wang Tong that the passage on the precipice which absorbed any form of energy was not prepared for the humans; it was a device used by the Zergs to absorb radiation energy to feed the eggs. Once these Zergs were hatched and arrived in the battlefield, they would be able to disrupt human warriors' soul energy output, and severely undermine the humans' defensive ability.
Wang Tong's knee-jerk reaction was to destroy these eggs, but he was able to hold back his impulse and decided to control these unborn Zergs using his soul energy and turn the Zergs' weapon into humans' advantage.
However, it was easier said than done. These Zergs had put up fighting against Wang Tong's restraining energy even before they had hatched. Having failed many attempts, Wang Tong was about to give up and destroy these eggs when Yin Tianzong showed up. This much-needed assistance made Wang Tong continue his taming of the Zergs with a newfound confidence.
Using soul energy wouldn't work, so Wang Tong attempted to cover the egg with his golden soul essence. Ordinary Zergs were no different from machines, but the soul energy in these Zergs had made them sentient. At this stage, not only did they need the queen's physical protection like all eggs would, but also required the queen to fill their sentient mind with Zergs' code of conduct. Without the poisonous preachings of the queen, these Zerg' minds were clean slates.
As the golden light glowed brighter on the surface of the eggs, some green lights were trying to pierce through the golden shimmer. The new Zergs had felt something was amiss—this was not their mother—and they fought back. Wang Tong was taken aback by these baby Zergs' power; if the queen were successful in her plan, these little monsters would have wreaked havoc in the human world.
Despite their powerful inborn soul energy, these baby Zergs started to falter as the green eggs started to change color from the center, slowly turning gold. Once one egg had completely turned golden, the Zerg inside joined Wang Tong and started to convert its brothers and sisters. Wang Tong was pleasantly surprised by how quickly the tables had turned. In a heartbeat, most of the eggs had become golden. He scanned the tamed eggs with his soul energy and felt the monstrous form inside. Wang Tong did not know what kind of Zergs they were going to be and thought it was very likely a brand new breed. He couldn't help but marvel at the Zergs' skills in splicing genes. He wondered how long it took them to evolve into a gene splicing master.
As the little Zergs became more manageable, Wang Tong started to survey the battleground.
Battle Wolf was working industriously to stop the Zergs' advancement at the openings on the wall. They vented their anger and frustration from the march all on the Zergs. As the commander of the force, Yin Tianzong moved amongst the soldiers to make sure that every fire team had adequate support. Meanwhile he checked on Wang Tong from time to time, making sure he was still doing alright.
Xiao Yuyu stood behind the soldiers, constantly patching up their wounds by using the divine light spell.
Although the soldiers were holding their ground, they had no idea where they were and where should they go after this.
The battle had already been going on for an hour, and all the soldiers were still able to perform their task with the precision and consistency of a clockwork.
Xiao Libie had seen many things in his life and had also led many battles by himself, but never had he seen any team so tenacious and sharing such a deep bond. The two hundred or so soldiers worked toward one goal, and everyone was ready to sacrifice for each other.
Although, they were not the only team that had great teamwork, as were the units under Zambrotta. However, their teamwork was different; it was more than just teamwork, it was an unswerving trust in their comrades. The soldiers who charged to the front never had to worry about their exposed back even if a Zerg was about to attack them from behind. They knew that their teammates have them covered.
These soldiers acted the way they did not because they had high moral standards. Instead, it was their instinct to trust each other, look after each other, and die for each other.
After a while, the Zergs finally stopped coming in. It wasn't because they had run out of soldiers, but because the entrance had been sealed off by the dead Zergs.
Despite the brief absence of danger, the soldiers didn't let their guard down. Wang Tong also finished his business and landed back on the ground, next to his friends. In the emerald pool, the surface of the Zerg eggs was suffused with a faint golden gleam.
"Looks like we had entered the Zergs' hive. I think our original plan is spoiled." Guan Dongyang grimaced.
Wang Tong shook his head and then said, "Not necessarily. I had killed the queen as soon as I got here. She is the only connection of this hive with outside, so I doubt the Zergs out there would know of our existence. Even if they have noticed us, it will take a while to mobilize their forces to this godforsaken place. We just have to find a way out as soon as possible."
"A way out?" Guan Dongyang asked sarcastically as he looked at the dozen or so blocked holes. "What are you planning to do with these eggs?"
"I have no clue yet. They are a new breed that is able to interrupt with human soul energies. I thought what the heck, might as well use them if we can. At least, they could be our cannon fodder."
Chapter 602: Deep Blue
Translator: Oneshotwonder Editor: Hitesh_
In a heartbeat, the substance in the emerald pool drained away as the eggs grew in size. Although everyone felt it was gross to look at, they conceded that it was just the nature of an unborn fetus.
Kacha! Kacha!
These eggs cracked, generating bone-chilling noise. Everyone readied their weapons as their instincts told them to.
By then, the eggs had grown to epic proportions as they cracked from the middle, revealing a pair of ice-cold stares. These newborn monsters snarled as two flashlights like eyes were fixated on Wang Tong.
Yin Tianzong and other warriors acted out of instinct and backed away. No one could bear the soul-devouring gazes of these monsters. These Zergs looked different than their normal counterparts: not only were they entirely blue from head to toe, but they were also covered with a layer of ice like scales. Soul energy rippled about these beasts, and their scales were suffused with a golden sheen, making them look almost divine. However, those two giant tusks that protruded out from under their lower lips betrayed their beastly origins.
A monster leaned its body forward, exposing more of its body and the light relived its bipedal nature. The hall had fallen pin-drop silent at this point.
Wang Tong closed his eyes and felt the soul energy of these Zergs as he tried to communicate with them they way their queen mother would. To his pleasant surprise, they didn't resist. These Zergs lowered their front legs and plodded out of the eggshell completely. They turned around and started munching on what was left of the eggs, shell and all. Once they wolfed down their cocoon, they grew in size again. The smallest of them was fifteen feet tall, and the largest eighteen feet. The biggest one also had much darker scales than the rest; it was evident that he was the leader of the pack.
The newborn Zergs started to growl, and the Zergs outside the hall answered. However, their voices were laced with confusion. The guardians of these newborn Zergs had realized that their angels of death had already turned on them.
Wang Tong sent a signal to the Zergs, willing them to find a way out. Almost immediately after, the earth groaned and trembled, and the emerald pool suddenly collapsed from the bottom, revealing a secret tunnel. The Zergs slid down the tunnel without any hesitation.
Wang Tong scanned his human companions, and their stupefied looks amused him. He cracked a smile and then said, "Come on! Let's go."
Wang Tong jumped into the dark tunnel without any hesitation as the other warriors followed suit.
The tunnel was dark and very long. When they reached the bottom, they found themselves in a giant cavern the size of a city. The extraordinary vista had left everyone in awe. One could get easily lost in this labyrinth, but luckily for Wang Tong, he had the newborn Zergs to lead the way.
After some time, the initial shock finally subsided, and the soldiers' mood started to lighten up a bit. They felt grateful for Wang Tong's efforts in taming these wild beasts; otherwise, they would have never gotten out of here. The cave system was enormously large and complicated, each turn and brow a fresh vista. No wonder the Zergs would be able to hide under the humans' noses for so many centuries.
Seeing how nimbly these monsters moved in such dubious lighting, the soldiers felt slightly uneasy. What would they be like if Wang Tong didn't tame them? The answer was in their eyes, which held the ice cold intent to kill. The horn on their forehead could disturb the soul energy to a great degree.
As the group plodded on, Wang Tong scanned his minions with his soul energy. Even after being placated by his golden soul essence, these beasts were hungry for murder and blood. Their creator must have spliced all the aggressive genes of all races together to create such monstrosity.
In fact, humans presented an unprecedented challenge to the Zergs. Of all the races they had annihilated using sheer numbers, the humans were the only one that not only survived their onslaught, but also thrived. The humans had pushed their vanguard units back and permanently cut off the communication between the vanguards and the main forces. In desperation, the remaining Zergs in the human world had to look at genetic mutations in order to survive.
Rapid expansion and overwhelming numbers had always been the queen's strategy; however, it had failed before the humans. Plus, the humans' reproductive rate was not low either. In the three hundred years that followed the great war, the remainder Zergs struggled on their last leg.
After some time, the human soldiers noticed commotion ahead of them; instinct readied them for battle in an instant.
Wang Tong conceded that the Zergs would not let them escape so easily. His men were exhausted after climbing the mountain; he wagered that there might be more casualties than he had expected if he didn't have the help of these new minions.
Wang Tong raised a fist to signal his group. The human soldiers quickly rearranged their formation into a defensive stance. Five minutes later, a tsunami of Zergs came at them, threatening to engulf them.
The monsters squealed in excitement; Wang Tong knew they were ready to battle. He sent a soul energy signal, and the hundred or so blue monsters charged at the Zergs with abandon.
While the soldiers readied their weapons, they wondered how Wang Tong's minions would fare against their brothers and sisters. Although they were newly born, they were the same size as those giant Zergs.
The solider didn't have to wait long before they got their answer. They watched in amazement as the monsters formed a single line of charge. They lowered their heads so that their horns were pointed forward, and then they sent out waves of soul energy from the tip of the horns. The soul energy from all the horns weaved a web of destruction in front of the line; it cut through the flesh of Zergs like butter. Even the heavily armored Tank Zergs were reduced into blocks of bloody stumps after the monsters charged past them.
After they reached the center of the Zergs' formation, they truly started to show their deadliness and combat abilities. They came up and stood on their hind legs like a humanoid creature as meter long scythe-shaped weapons protruded from under their front arms. One flat sidearm sweep would claim the lives of half a dozen Zergs.
The human soldiers were stupefied by the display of strength. Wang Tong's eyes were lit up with hope as he watched his minions and realized that he had found another weapon against the Zergs. The monsters were unfazed by the overwhelming numbers of enemies; they quickly devoured one or two of their victims in order to replenish energy and keep fighting.
These Zergs were the queen's newest attempt in breeding the ultimate Zergs. Since it was an experiment, she didn't create a lot of these soldiers. She had spliced together many gene segments from different species, many of which were completely alien to humans. The goal was to breed a new kind of Zerg warrior that was able to counter the humans' soul energy attacks. The queen who was in charge of this hive was one of the mother supremes. She probably had never thought that her life would have ended so abruptly at the hands of a human.
"Boss, these monsters are quite the helpers. I wonder if we can tame them and turn them into our mounts?" Tan Bu asked while his eyes lit up with interest.
The mountainous terrain meant that no vehicles could be operated safely here. Even in the areas where maglev vehicles were allowed, their flimsy construction would not survive the battlefield. The lack of mobility had been an ongoing issue for the warriors. However, with these powerful mounts, they should be able to come and go at will on the battlefield.
Everyone nodded in agreement and looked to Wang Tong expectantly.
The battle in front of the human warriors had ended very quickly. The newborn Zergs had finished off all of their enemies and started to munch on their corpses. Wang Tong sent a signal to them using the soul essence, and the Zergs responded immediately. They stood in a neat row just as Wang Tong intended. The leader of the pact slid closer to Wang Tong and lowered his head obediently.
Wang Tong rubbed the scale on its back; the Zerg purred and lowered itself onto all fours. Its savage nature was gone in an instant, and if it could cradle inside Wang Tong's arm, it surely would.
Wang Tong studied the smooth back of the beast and realized how easy it would be to ride on top. It was as if they were breed was made to be the dark ones' mounts.
Wang Tong pulled himself up on the back of one beast, and then it slowly stood up without any sign of protest. He was pleased by the Zerg's acquiescence, so he laughed and said, "Good boy! I will call you…Deep Blue!"
Chapter 603: Monster Riders
Translator: Oneshotwonder Editor: Hitesh_
As if the monster was elated by his new name, he lifted its forelegs and neighed almost like a horse. Its forelegs thudded heavily on the ground, and its trepidation affected the other Zergs too as they started to join their leader.
"Hey you guys, get yourself a mount!" Wang Tong shouted, and the soldiers rushed to the beasts to find their Zerg companion.
Not only these Zergs were docile before Wang Tong, they knew that these humans were their master's friends. Therefore, they let the soldiers pat them and look around. However, there was a limit to their acquiescence. Some of the soldiers got too familiar with the beast, and they got a stern but safe warning from the animals.
Wang Tong sat down at patted Dark Blue and muttered, "Let your brothers be a bit gentle."
Tan Bu was the most anxious of all soldiers. He lopped toward one of the formidable beasts and hopped on. However, the beast didn't let him saddle on top for more than a second as it reared and pitched the rider off. The monster looked at Tan Bu on the ground with a contemptuous glare.
Everyone laughed at Tan Bu; meanwhile, they felt that they had got it all wrong. It was the beast which was choosing the soldiers instead of the other way around.
"Tan Bu, let out your soul energy and try to tame it. " Wang Tong said with a light-hearted smile.
"Balls! I will teach you a lesson not to make fun of me again!" Tan Bu grunted and then turned on his GN force. He tried to restrain the beast with his soul energy, but the beast fought back using the energy from his horn.
Not even dark ones were able to fully utilize the power of soul energy, much less the Zergs. The ability of these beasts was unprecedented. Although these beast's soul energy had a drastically different form compared to the humans, it had the same makeup as humans'. It was not hard to imagine how much damage these beasts could have done to the human world if they were not tamed by Wang Tong.
The struggle between the beast and Tan Bu reached a stalemate. It was a friendly battle, since neither of the combatants wanted to harm their opponent.
After some time, Tan Bu finally got the upper hand, so he closed in and hopped onto the beast's back once again. The beast shook his body a few times, but less violently than its previous protest. Tan But cranked up his soul energy further until his mount had stopped moving about. That was when Tan Bu realized that the beast was feeding on his soul energy. These beasts were hungry for soul energy just like they would be for food. After a while, the monster stopped absorbing Tan Bu's soul energy altogether as it looked back at his new master in a docile manner.
The others were elated by the development and started to experiment on their own. The magnitude and intensity of the soul energy was not the key in taming these beasts; it was the connection.
Wang Tong had tinkered with these monster's eggs, and therefore, it was easy for him to find such connection with any of the beasts. Although it might cost the soldiers some of their soul energy, as long as the beast considered the soldier worthy after they had a taste of their soul energy, the other human soldiers should be able to tame them with ease.
Yin Tianzong had tamed his mount very quickly. However, the field medics had met some trouble in their tasks. Xiao Libie also found the beast that belonged to him. As he rode on his mount and communicated with it with soul energy, he marveled at how convenient and powerful it would be on the battlefield.
During the time of mecha warfare, the mecha mounts performed sluggishly on the battlefield. It was inevitable that the humans would sooner or later create mounts that were commanded by soul energy. Not only would it be able to make the human more mobile on the battlefield, but it would also preserve the human soldiers' limited endurance. However, these mounts required advanced gene technology. The Dower family was the pioneer in this field, and they were able to create a few soul energy mounts. However, none of those mounts could pass the test of the battlefield due to their physical limitations. Not only those mounts lacked endurance, but also soul energy.
Although humans thought it was impossible to instill soul energy into wild beasts, Zergs had done it. One had to acknowledge the uncanny ability of the Zergs to edit genes. Perhaps this was a gift of their god?
Everyone was confident that with the help of these creatures, they would be able to overcome any challenge the Zergs would throw at them. Once the soldiers had claimed a mount, they started to appreciate the convenience and effectiveness of soul energy connections. The mount was so responsive that it was as if they and the beasts were fused together into one living organism. The strong bond between the soldiers and their mount meant that they would not only work as one with their beasts, but the existing fluid teamwork among team soldiers would not be disrupted because of these mounts.
With the protection of these beasts, even mastery caster would be able to charge at the front and be personal with their enemies.
Everyone's face was lit up with joy, and their hearts filled with a newfound confidence.
Wang Tong raised a fist and shouted, "Let's go!"
Deep Blue snarled and pressed onward, with the rest of the bests following it orderly.
Joined by soul energy, the soldiers felt their bond with these beasts deepening. They no longer saw them as beasts, but instead, as their loyal friend. Since these beasts looked like an oversized wolf, the team decided to call their mount direwolves.
Everyone gave a nickname to their mounts. Whenever the human soldiers saddled on their back, the direwolves would loosen their scale to provide some cushion for their master. Everyone on the team was eager to encounter Zergs so they could fight with their best friends.
However, the direwolves' speed was too fast for the Zergs to catch up; therefore, they didn't encounter any of them. The direwolves were born in these caves, and therefore, they knew all the shortcuts. Before long, they saw a bright light and sunshine. It wasn't until then that the human soldiers realized that they had made it to the other side of Mount Dynamo.
They had made it!
…
When Wang Tong was absent, the tide of the war had changed again.
Despite the series of defeat in his home territory, Moye had doubled down on the attack at the front line. He gathered forces and attacked the human defense line the third time. Even though the Zergs had a significant disadvantage at the northern front, the overall number of Zergs was overwhelming. Meanwhile, after Michaux and Lie Jian's retinue had suffered the catastrophic defeat, the two Martian heroes had been struggling to stay alive in the Zerg territory. They had been refusing to request for help from the main human force, neither did the two ditch their injured soldiers behind to flee home. It was evident that they had prepared for the worst from the get-go.
Although Michaux and Lie Jian had done things differently compared to Wang Tong, all three of them were not afraid of death, much less the Zergs.
However, bravery and mettle could only carry one so far. The hard reality was that the Zergs were about to overwhelm them at any time.
The situation at the third line of defense was even worse. Every day, the war claimed hundreds of lives on both sides. However, the Zergs' rate of replenishing was much faster than humans', so they had the absolute upper hand.
The humans conceded that they had already lost the best timing for retreat. Even if they pulled back from the line of defense, they would not be able to regroup and fight again in such a tattered state.
Einherjar Lie Jintian, Zambrotta, and the Kaedeian princess all had attended the battle in person. Their appearance on the battlefield was a clear message to all the soldiers: Humans would fight to the death!
On the third day after the battle had entered a stalemate, humans' first group of GN gunners finally arrived on the battlefield. This development had greatly alleviated the severe imbalance humans had in numbers. With the GN guns, anyone who had enough strength to pull the trigger would be able to join the force.
Although the GN gun units still lacked experience in offensive missions, they were more than capable of hiding behind the defensive cover and blow the Zergs' heads into pieces.
The war had yet again reached a tipping point. Once the humans were able to hang in there until more GN gun units were trained and arrived on the battlefield, they could gain a decisive advantage over their enemy very quickly.
Application for joining the GN gun unit quickly piled up as everyone wanted to go to the frontlines and contribute to the war. Meanwhile, all cities used their expense budget and tried to squeeze out more coins to purchase provisions for the army.
Chapter 604: Zerg Massacre
Translator: Oneshotwonder Editor: Hitesh_
It was the slow reinforcement at the northern front that had given humans time to cobble together a GN gun unit. Xie Su had spent a lot of time looking for Wang Tong, and by the time they conceded that he had gone missing, it was already too late as the GN gunners had already reached the frontlines.
In other words, Wang Tong was the culprit of this subpar performance of the Zerg army.
Moye was very dissatisfied with his troops' performance during the war. He had expected them to have already taken over Mars a few months ago, but they were still unable to break the humans' line of defense. In a fit of anger, he made up his mind to kill all humans on Mars once he had defeated their army.
The delays in the reinforcements aside, Zergs still had the upper hand in the war. A huge uncertainty still hung above the humans' head, since till this day, Michaux and Lie Jian were nowhere to be found. These two warriors were essential in preserving human morale. Their death would be an unthinkable loss for the humans.
The two warriors represented not only themselves, but also the two most powerful factions of the Mars. Lie Jian was House Lie's best candidate to inherit the family power, and the same went for Michaux. Although Susu was able to inherit Michaux's title, she had far less authority over the sect members than her brother. If another Zhang Guanming surfaced from the sect, the sect would be doomed without Michaux.
The public desperately needed a strong leader while both of their heroes was missing in action.
As the Martian public anxiously awaited the return of their future leaders, another human started to wreak havoc deep behind the enemy line. Once Wang Tong was out of the mountain and into the plains, he charged his three hundred deadly retinues into a Zerg city.
He didn't even bother to cover up his tracks this time; his attack was so conspicuous that the Zergs had spotted him from miles away.
Their target was Ontario City, one of the largest city in the Zerg land. When the city commander saw Wang Tong, he was on his way to investigate the distress signal from Mount Dynamo.
Three days ago, Wang Tong might have avoided the Zergs' main force and charged right into his empty city instead. However, it had occurred to Wang Tong that taking one or two cities meant nothing if he couldn't get under the dark lord's skin.
He was well aware of the intricate power balance between the dark lord and Patroclus. He knew that between the two, Moye was the one who would never relate to his existence. Capturing Wang Tong meant as much to the dark lord as winning the war on the human. If the dark lord lost his purpose in the eyes of the mother supreme, he might as well wait for Patroclus to come and claim Mars for himself.
Even the lower level dark ones feared death and were addicted to their life, much less the powerful and intelligent dark lord.
As the dark one's army charged toward Wang Tong, he stood up in his saddle and shouted, "Formation!"
Although the dark ones had no clue who this group of human soldiers was, they knew they had to do away with them. It was too far away from human settlements to encounter a group of traveling merchants. They charged at the human intruders without given their identity too much thought.
When the dark one was finally close enough to see Wang Tong's face, he finally recalled the face of the human devil on the posters; but it was already too late.
What was worse, these human devils were all riding on top of angry blue demons. Together, they charged forward with such ferocity that the dark ones felt their heart stop beating in fear. When the dark ones finally gathered themselves and were about to strike back, their heads had already been detached from their shoulders. Wang Tong didn't waste his precious time playing with these dark ones. He and his army killed all of them in one swift charge. The human soldiers rode on toward Ontario city without even sparing the dead corpses on the ground a glance.
Deep Blue and his brothers possessed an incredible mobility on the battlefield. They could reach six to seven meters high in one leap, and therefore, were able to bring the human soldiers through any hurdles on the battlefield with ease. The direwolves' mobility coupled with the soldiers' incredible strength made the pair a perfect match. The soldiers felt grateful for having their direwolf assistants. After all, nothing felt more exhilarating to a human warrior than completely dominating the Zergs on the battlefield.
When the human warriors arrived in Ontario, it was apparent that the news about the city lord's death hadn't reached the dark ones inside the city yet.
Meanwhile, it had also occurred to the human warriors how quietly their direwolves were able to travel, since none of the dark ones seemed to have noticed them approaching. These creatures were the perfect weapons that the Zergs had created for the dark lord's favorite blood kin.
However, not only had Wang Tong stolen the Zergs' hard-earned product, but he had also silenced the queen mother forever. It would take another queen mother decades of research to reproduce these perfect weapons.
"Dongyang, Yuyu, get ready!" Wang Tong rose to the sky and looked at the city with a birds' eye view.
"Zergs, I will teach you to be afraid of fire!"
Guan Dongyang shouted and then started to chant a spell. Suddenly, his body was aflame, and a fireball had formed in between his palms.
Xiao Yuyu didn't say anything as she swung her body around and rose to the sky in the most elegant manner. The formation of Battle Wolf changed without Wang Tong issuing a single command. The mastery casters stood in the middle while the METAL warriors protected their flanks.
Wang Tong was only responsible for giving the first attack order, and the rest was up to Guan Dongyang. Everyone in Battle Wolf had their responsibilities. Despite Wang Tong's ability, he was not in charge of absolutely everything; otherwise, he might as well be in charge of nothing.
Trust was imperative, because trust was what made each and every team member strong. Only when a soldier felt that he could trust himself and was fully trusted by others would he draw out his full potential during the combat.
A giant fire dragon charged at the startled dark ones and Zergs. The city wall could not withstand one single effortless charge of the direwolves. Seeing these blue demons that suddenly burst through the wall, the Zergs fled the streets in fear.
It took the dark ones a while to gather themselves and organize counterattacks. The battle that followed suit was epic. Never once had the human soldiers slaughtered the Zergs with such ease. The human soldiers released years of suppression in a fit of uncontrollable rampage.
The direwolves knew their dark one cousins well, particularly their weaknesses. Their sharp claws were capable of piercing through the dark one's cranium, killing them in one strike. Meanwhile, their soul energy attack rendered the dark ones defenseless. The soldiers would have paused and marveled at their beastly companions' abilities if there were not so many dark ones waiting to be killed.
In one afternoon, all Zergs in Ontario were killed by the rampage. Deep Blue devoured the fat queen, blubber and all. Meanwhile, the rest of the direwolves feasted on the dark ones.
These direwolves not only brought death to the dark ones, but also fear and a sense of dread.
The news about the fall of Ontario quickly spread among the Zergs and the humans.
After the human Devil didn't flee to safety as many dark ones had suspected, he had gone back to hell and brought help with him back to the Zerg world.
The reason that the battle of Ontario was able to catch so much attention was that the nature of the battle had changed. However brilliant the previous battles were, those were surprise attacks. The battle of Ontario was a full on frontal assault.
Many people felt that Wang Tong and his men could survive the previous battles solely because of luck. If Wang Tong were slightly off in his timing, the dark ones would be able to have enough time to gather force and destroy his retinue with ease. However, as luck would have it, in all the previous battles, Wang Tong and his soldiers were able to walk out of danger unharmed.
As everyone's mood had hit rock bottom after Michaux and Lie Jian's defeat, their hope was rekindled by the news from Ontario. The heir of the Blade Warrior had attacked the city and sacked it with ease. After they had delivered such a huge blow to the Zergs, they disappeared like phantoms coming straight from one's nightmares.
Moye was beyond furious. He could no longer stand this insistent insult and humiliation. He had spent many resources to build a lab in Mount Dynamo, thinking it was the safest spot since the humans would never reach it. Who would have thought that the human war band would be so crazy as to cross the impassable mountain range?
So far, Moye was still oblivious of the power of the direwolves. Therefore, he hadn't been able to comprehend his loss fully. His main concern was that Wang Tong's actions would undermine mother supreme's trust in him.
If he couldn't even keep Wang Tong in check, who could prove to mother supreme that his evolution path was the right one for the Zerg race?
Chapter 605: Outburst Of Anger
Translator: Oneshotwonder Editor: Hitesh_
The news raised the dark lord's hackles. The event at Ontario forced him to make some compromises. He sent a final warning to the northern warden; the latter wouldn't get another chance if he failed again. If he failed to capture Wang Tong before he entered the central core area of the Zerg territory, Xie Su should consider himself dead.
The Zergs around Ontario immediately started their search, combing the area in thousands. Wang Tong was already very near the heartland of the Zerg territory; two cities away at most.
Xie Su had just arrived at the frontlines, but after receiving the dark lord's stern letter, he turned around and stormed back. The war was not nearly as crucial to the northern warden as his own life. Although his absence at the frontline meant the sub-par performance of the northern front would continue, Xie Su was convinced that he had made the right decision for himself.
Since the warden himself had returned to see to Wang Tong's capture, every city lord worked round the clock to find Wang Tong.
"Mr. Harmon, I am sure you have heard about dark lord's dissatisfaction related to this…mess. I hope you can offer me a helping hand! I won't let you do it for free, of course!"
His life was at stake, so Xie Su had no time to don the warden's mask. His face now was one that desperately needed help.
Harmon had a calmness cast in his eyes. From a safe distance, he had been watching the development unfold and observing the dark ones' reaction as the matter unfolded. He reckoned that Wang Tong had helped him to expose all the weakness in the dark ones. They might have looked haughty and invincible when they had the upper hand, but they fell apart quickly before challenges. Patroclus was right; no race was able to suddenly evolve into perfection without passing the test of time. What the Zergs lacked the most right then was not only intelligence, but also wisdom.
Evolution didn't bestow wisdom to the humans; mistakes did, many mistakes. The wisdom had helped human ferry across troubled waters. Zergs had thought that as long as they could eliminate the harmful desires in humans, sex, drink, etc., they would be fine. Little did they know that desires came with fifty shades and more. Each facet of the desire was capable of bringing destruction to the entire race. Greed, for example, if left unchecked, would tear the Zerg community apart from the inside very quickly.
Thus it was that Patroclus had never taken the dark ones too seriously, and every immortal divine general knew it. Some divine generals suspected that the mother supreme was the only reason Moye was still alive. In the eyes of mother supreme, all Zergs, Immortals, and dark ones were her children, and deserved chances to prove themselves.
It wasn't until Harmon saw the desperation in Xie Su's eyes that he fully understood why Patroclus never considered Moye a worthy opponent.
The immortals, on the other hand, were born as humans first, and therefore possessed the human wisdom that the dark ones lacked. Although the sudden surge of power would disturb some of their members' inner peace, those members were quickly dealt with and expelled from the group. Patroclus never said being an immortal meant one had reached perfection; it was just a prerequisite. An immortal would only become a perfect being after years of competition with each other.
One method for the immortals to purify themselves was through war. The same went for Patroclus. He was already a perfect being in the universe, but he needed more; he wanted to be a god, and therefore, he needed a god-like opponent.
If Moye were not Patroclus's opponent, then it had to be Wang Tong. Harmon was the first person to have realized this.
"General Xie Su, I know we have lost some new Zergs during Wang Tong's raid at the lab, but what kind of weapon are we talking about? I wager it had a great deal to do with their sudden surge in power. I need to know what we are up against first." Harmon thought about it and then said.
"Dynamo Hive was one of the highest rank hives on Mars. It was over three centuries old, and had always been in charge of the gene program. When Wang Tong attacked, they were very close to completing a research program that sought to breed a new Zerg that could be used as the mount for the dark lord. I don't have lots of data on these Zergs, but I have heard that they were capable of disrupting the humans' soul energy. Meanwhile, they could replenish their vigor by devouring their opponents." Xie Su announced sullenly. He had no jurisdiction over this lab, but unfortunately, this hot mess happened to be inside his territory.
Harmon furrowed his bows and appeared troubled. Wang Tong's reckless move of crossing the mountain came as a surprise to him. He had learned about Mount Dynamo and its valley of death. No one with a shred of sanity would dare cross the mountain. The fragile human body could not withstand the elements, and as a former human himself, Harmon knew that very well.
However, Wang Tong and his men had somehow miraculously made it through the mountain. Not only that, but they had also managed to steal the Zerg's research and destroy the hive.
The thought of what Wang Tong was capable of made Harmon skin's prickle for the first time since he became an immortal. He conceded that he had been underestimating Wang Tong all this while. He should no longer treat him as one of his students, but an enemy who was far serious a threat than even death himself.
"Is there any weakness in these new breeds? If we can do away with these beasts first, Wang Tong will quickly lose his edge."
"Well said, Mr. Harmon! Once Wang Tong enters the heartland, I will be in grave danger. Therefore, I have to find him before that happens. I will crush him with my own fist then!" Xie Su said with a contemptuous tone. He doubted that Wang Tong could stand a chance before him.
However, Xie Su's confidence would not answer his question at hand: where was Wang Tong? Xie Su would have to find out his whereabouts before he could make it to the heartland. Moye was not well known for giving second chances.
Sensing the urgency of the matter, Harmon finally agreed to help the distressed warden. "Don't worry! I won't let Wang Tong slip under our radar!"
"Thank you, Mr. Harmon. I am grateful for our mutual understanding. Despite your minor slip up a few weeks ago, I still have faith in you. You can help me find out where Wang Tong is and leave the rest to me." Xie Su's slit eyes gave a hard glint as he spoke.
"You have my words, warden. If I fail to find Wang Tong, I will plead guilty in front of Moye myself." Harmon said thinly, unfazed by the threat.
Xie Su was so committed to catching Wang Tong that he had stopped the attack at the frontline altogether. He was smart enough to realize that Wang Tong was Moye's real target, and not the red planet.
He had spared every soldier he had to spread them across the landscape like a carpet to search for the human devil. Meanwhile, Harmon and his immortals were stationed at each city and choke points, determined to capture Wang Tong. 'Fool him once, shame on Wang Tong; fool him twice, shame on him.' As a matter of fact, Harmon wagered that if he miscalculated one more time, he would be looked down upon by other immortal divine generals as well.
The change in the Zergs' attack at the frontline was palpable. Zambrotta seized the opportunity and pushed the Zergs back a few hundred miles.
However, the Zergs didn't seem to mind the setback as they remained focused on Wang Tong.
Despite the advancement humans had made at the northern front, the overall progress of the war was very slow. Nonetheless, the breakthrough at the northern front had allowed the human forces a brief respite.
Wang Tong didn't plan to leave the Zerg territory. The situation was slowly truing into his favor. Not only was Deep Blue was able to devour his enemy's flesh, but also their mind. Through Deep Blue's mind-reading ability, Wang Tong had learned the plan of Xie Su. Knowing that Xie Su had halted the frontline attack altogether, everyone was pleased that their plan had worked.
Having fought at the frontline, Xie Libie was particularly grateful for this news. He knew that his decision of following Wang Tong had been right.
"Harmon has been the vice principal of Capth. I cannot believe that people as prestigious as him would betray humans."
After chatting with her teammates, Xiao Yuyu agreed that Mars had it much easier than the other planets. Despite Moye's brutality, they didn't have to deal with betrayals. No wonder the morale of the Earth united front was so low, as they had to fight their loved ones who had turned into monsters.
Chapter 606: Trap Was Set
Translator: Oneshotwonder Editor: Hitesh_
The tiny opening in the northern front had given the Martian united front an opportunity to wage a counterattack. The goal of the counter was not to defeat Zergs; instead, it was supposed to be a strategic show of strength, hoping to keep the pressure on the latter.
The Zergs wouldn't have understood the concept of pressure before the dark ones were born. The primitive Zergs hardly ever thought about battle tactics, since they lacked both intelligence and emotions. Timing was the key in implementing any military tactical moves, and Wang Tong's task was to provide such opportunity for human resistance.
While the Zergs were turning the world upside down in trying to find Wang Tong and his retinue, the human warriors didn't just hide in a cave— not like there was any cave to hide from the get-go. Instead, they turned around and tried to stay ahead of the Zerg search parties. However, they were still too slow.
In three days, they had over a hundred skirmishes with Zerg search parties, and no one on the team had slept ever since they left Ontario. The situation could have been worse, and if not because of Deep Blue and its brood brothers, half of the team would have already been killed.
Each time the human warriors were encircled by the Zergs, it was the direwolves who had brought them out of danger. Their incredible mobility meant that they could easily break out of the encirclement and flank the Zergs from behind.
In a large open field, the soldiers were taking a brief respite. They had once again successfully outmaneuvered the Zergs, and the soldiers were waiting for Wang Tong's further instructions.
"Our plan has worked! Judging by the number of Zergs that are looking for us, I say Xie Su is really pissed."
"I think it's about time to enter the core area. Once we do, I think it's not just Xie Su who is going to get pissed, Moye too." Wang Tong cracked a smile. "How is everyone doing? I know we hardly had time to sleep, but I have to give you guys a fair warning. Once we enter the core area, we will have even less chance to take a nap."
"No problem! You think too little of us. It is not only you who is good at falling asleep." Xiao Yuyu said.
During the on and off of perilous battles, knowing how and when to sleep was also a life skill. It was easy enough to fall asleep when the moment was right, but it was difficult to learn to have the guard still up while sleeping.
The soldiers learned the skills very quickly after they crossed the border to the Zerg land.
Xiao Libie was a new addition, and therefore, he was still trying to get used to the life in Battle Wolf. Although he was a legendary level warrior, he was the least experienced in handling the situation they were in. When he first joined Battle Wolf, he was confident that his ability would rank in the top three. However, in only three days, he knew that it was an overstatement calling himself even one of the top ten warriors of Battle Wolf. Even some girls could handle sleep deprivation, hunger, and fatigue better than him.
Despite the unprecedented challenge he was facing, Xiao Libie knew that it was only the beginning. However, the difficulties also convinced him that he had made the right choice in joining Wang Tong.
Guan Dongyang unfurled the map and spread it across the table. The leaders of the retinue were plotting their next move. The road to the central block of the Zerg land was heavily guarded. By then, not only the Zergs, even the Martians knew that Wang Tong was after Moye's castle.
Regardless of whether Wang Tong was able to defeat Moye, the Zergs could not let a small group of the human soldiers infiltrate into their heartland. If that happened, it would make the world know that those dark ones were inferior to humans. The war with humans had blown the dark ones' ego to an epic proportion. So, they could not bear the thought of humiliation; they had to stop Wang Tong at all cost.
When Xie Su sent out all of his troops to kill Wang Tong, Moye didn't say a thing. He had wanted to recruit Wang Tong and make him a dark one. But after seeing what Wang Tong was capable of, he decided to do away with the potential risk.
Wang Tong and his friends scanned the map, calculated their moves, and weighed the options. Suddenly, a unit city caught everyone's attention. It was a perfect spot to leave memorabilia for their fellow Zerg opponents before they left for the central area.
…
"What? Disappeared again?" Xie Su snarled. In a fit of uncontrollable anger, he squeezed the messenger's head until it caved in and became a blob of mush in his hand.
"General, we have placed layers of defense on the way to the central block. They wouldn't have passed through unnoticed. I bet they are hiding somewhere, conspiring on their next move." Harmon rubbed his chin and pondered on. He had done a thorough personality check on Wang Tong and started to think from his opponent's perspective. What Wang Tong wanted was not another city or the lives of the dark ones. He wanted to help the front line. Along the same line of thinking, the central area was not Wang Tong's goal either.
Seeing Harmon close his eyes and fall into his own reverie again, Xie Su frowned annoyingly. It had been harder and harder for him to contain his anger, and more often than not, he felt his defeat was everyone else's fault.
"Hua Li, bring me the map."
"Yes, Principal!"
The young and handsome looking young immortal used to be an elite student from Capth. When Harmon turned to Patroclus, he took an elite army with him. These elites of the former A class academy were convinced that Patroclus' actions were offering humanity another chance, a transformation into something much better. Their youthful minds were full of ideals, and were easily swayed. Somehow, Patroclus was not only able to justify his actions, but also had persuaded them that they were the future of humanity. Whoever stood before them was against a better future.
On the map, the young immortal had marked the Zerg's defense lines clearly. It was evident that Wang Tong would never be able to pass these lines unnoticed.
The obvious left only one possibility to Wang Tong's sudden disappearance: he was up to something. Harmon knew right away where Wang Tong was going to attack next: Kashan!
The moment of epiphany elated the old principal, as he jumped out of his chair and announced, "It's Kashan, Wang Tong is going after Kashan! Haha! What a conspicuous fool!"
Xie Su was startled by Harmon's outburst. After he realized what Harmon had said, he muttered to himself, "That's suicide."
Xie Su couldn't make sense of it. Kashan was the largest city in northern district, and was the most heavily guarded.
Attacking the city with a small force is no different than begging for defeat.
"Haha, this is the wide spirit of humans. The more dangerous a place is, the more likely one is to succeed. Most of the armies in Kashan are out about searching for Wang Tong, and the enormous size of the city gives Wang Tong more angles to wage his assault. It is the perfect target." Harmon's voice sounded almost like a compliment. He marveled at Wang Tong's ability to go with the flow and change his plan on the spot. What a pity that he wouldn't be recruited to work for Patroclus; otherwise, the world would have already belonged to the immortals. The humans on Mars had no hope of surviving the Zergs' invasion until Wang Tong showed up and changed things around.
However, Harmon would not let him have his way any longer.
"Are you sure?"Xie Su asked incredulously.
"General Xie Su, no one can be certain of anything, but this is my best guess."
"You have been wrong once. How sure are you this time? What if this is another ruse?" Xie Su asked.
Harmon didn't mind the threat and put down. Xie Su's barking sounded like a child's ramblings to him.
"I am very certain he will go to Kashan. You should get ready. However, we don't need to pull more soldiers back from the front line. I think what we have now should be enough to handle Wang Tong if we are prepared." Harmon said thinly. He lamented that if he were not here on Mars, no one here would be able to stop Wang Tong from claiming the planet.
"No problem! Do you think I will need to pull all the scouts back?"
Harmon shook his head and said, "Let's pretend that we know nothing. The more we act out, the more likely we will jinx it. We need to prepare our welcoming party very quietly."
"Haha! Very well then! I have been looking forward to meeting this human devil!" Xie Su swung his cloak around and sauntered out of the meeting room. The plan was clear: he wouldn't gather a massive number of Zergs; the defensive forces of Kashan and his retinue of golden dark ones would suffice.
The trap was set, and he only had to wait for Wang Tong to rise to the bait.
Meanwhile, the immortals were also preparing for the upcoming battle with Wang Tong. Five years ago, Capth was defeated by Ayrlarng; yet five years late, Hua Li was determined to avenge that humiliating defeat.
…
Somewhere inside the Zerg controlled territory, a campfire burned furtively and low. Of all the two hundred House Lie elites that Lie Jian had brought with him, only two were still awake. The rest of the soldiers were soundly asleep, and the camp had fallen pin drop silent. Tomorrow, more hard battle for survival awaited them.
Chapter 607: Ancestral Sword Attack
Translator: Oneshotwonder Editor: Hitesh_
"Young master, our rations are low. We need to find more…Otherwise, our men will not be able to make it through." Lie Wushuang urged.
"What did Wang Tong and his men eat while they were out here? I am sure that we had brought more food than him. Yet, they have been here much longer than us." Yin Kun complained. The elite soldiers of House Lie were all powerful and ambitious warriors. Before they entered the Zerg land, they were confident that their expedition would be a smashing success. However, reality quickly taught them a hard lesson.
"What did they eat?"
No one had enough energy to ponder over such questions. Luckily, the team's morale was still unshaken. After all, they were the best soldiers of the most prestigious house on Mars. However, they could not feed on their reputation and honor. Therefore, Lie Jian would have to figure out a solution to the food crisis sooner than later. In addition, they need to know what their next move was, as they couldn't simply sit here and wait for the Zergs to pick them off. But, where could they go when they were in such a terrible condition?
They were stuck.
"They must be starving just like us, unless they ate the Zergs…Haha…ha…"
The solider's laughter died halfway as he registered half a dozen serious glares at him. Everyone knew that it was only a joke, but the more they thought about it, the more it made sense to them.
Lie Jian pushed himself up and announced, "Regardless of how they could make it, we need to live and we have to eat whatever we can get. Our end goal is to enter the central area of the Zergs' territory. I will not turn back before setting foot in Moye's headquarters!"
"Yeah!" The soldiers agreed with him in unison.
"What about Michaux? What happened to him?"
"He had it worse than us. Most of his men were casters, so when the Zergs got close… He has only a hundred or so men left. " Lei Jian nodded and then waved in dismissal.
Wang Tong was back after being missing for a while. Not only was he alive, but he had also crossed Mount Dynamo. "Mount Dynamo…" Lie Jian murmured the words. It was one hell of a high-risk, high reward act, and what a reward it was! Wang Tong had delivered a blow to the dark ones right when they thought that they were going to win the war any time soon. Ontario was destroyed, the northern front compromised; Moye's plan seemed to fall apart quickly. In stark contrast to Wang Tong's achievement, Lie Jian's mission had been a complete failure.
However, Lie Jian didn't give up; he would never give up until the last moment.
Once he entered the Zergs' heartland, he could finally join forces with Michaux. Although they wouldn't have a great army by then, all the soldiers who survived would be elite warriors. Therefore, they would still have a chance.
Lie Jian learned at a young age that the more dangerous a task was, the more likely it was going to succeed. Plus, he had expected so many casualties even before he started the mission. In his stone cold heart, the lives of his soldiers were simply numbers. He was not fighting for the human race, but for himself. He was determined to let people on Mars, including their children, and their children's children, remember his name.
…
Just as Harmon had anticipated, Wang Tong showed up around the city of Kashan. As soon as he got near the city's suburb, he was discovered by the Zergs' scouts.
Xie Su was elated by the news. Wang Tong had plagued his mind for too long, and it was finally time to made an end to this nightmare. Xie Su and Harmon arrived at the city lord's residence and waited for Wang Tong.
Wang Tong led his man and charged at the city; the direwolves were at the forefront of the charging formation. This was going to be a long battle, so the soldiers need to spend their energy wisely.
Dark ones quickly appeared all around the human warriors, and it was apparent that Wang Tong had led his soldiers into a trap. However, the dark ones quickly realized that despite their advantage in number, their attack were as useless as shooting meatballs at hungry wolfs. Before the enemy could get close, the direwolves would send out soul energy waves to disorientate the attacker, and then the human warriors would charge and chop the defenseless Zergs into pieces. The initial attack of the Zerg only lasted a couple minutes before the attackers were either killed or fled.
Wang Tong and the leaders of the retinue haven't even moved a finger yet.
Harmon furrowed his brow as he noticed something was amiss. These dark ones shouldn't have been so weak. He quickly reckoned that it was those beats that had weakened the dark ones.
He had no time to ponder over how Wang Tong was able to gain control of these Zerg beasts, as Wang Tong and his army had almost reached the city wall.
Harmon's lips curved into a contemptuous smile as he registered a fatal flaw in Wang Tong's plan. He shouldn't have been so reckless and attacked the biggest Zerg city. It was a high-risk, high reward game; but if Wang Tong lost, he would lose everything. The moment he decided to come after Kashan, Wang Tong had already lost the battle.
"Let them in!" Harmon commanded with a smile.
Xie Su shrieked a command as the dark ones moved away from the city gate. Battle Wolf stormed pass these passive Zergs and rode into the city. The further they went, the more dark ones there were. Despite their commander's order to leave the humans alone, they hissed at the human devil with much hatred.
"Haha, long time no see, Wang Tong." Harmon and Xie Su lowered themselves to appear in front of the human soldiers. Behind them were a group of golden dark ones and immortals.
Deep Blue snorted at Wang Tong's enemy while the latter spoke, "Principal Harmon, nice to see you."
"The pleasure is mine! I wonder if I could have the honor of inviting you to the moon so that we could start this world all over. You know better than anyone that your current path leads to a dead end."
"Dead end. How so?" Wang Tong cracked a smile.
Harmon shook his head and said, "You should ask that to yourself. Save your words…If you still don't want to become one of us, I will have to do away with you."
"Is that right? As a matter of fact, I should be grateful for you to give us such a great opportunity to do away with you! There, tough guy, are you the northern warden Xie Su? I want you to know that my name is Wang Tong, and I will be your death."
Harmon refuted, "You are courting death!"
Xie Su snarled and shot a thousand bone shards at Wang Tong. Out of the blue, all warriors of the Battle Wolf turned around and started off toward where they came from. Their escape move looked so in sync that it was apparent that it was orchestrated. But why? Why would they take so much effort in getting into the city only to run away right away?
Even if they wanted to run away, Xie Su would not let them run too far.
"Kill, Kill, Kill!" Xie Su rose to the sky and shouted. All dark ones swarmed toward the human soldiers to intercept their escape.
The human soldiers quickly divided into two groups: Wang Tong, Yin Tianzong, Vorenus and Xiao Libie formed one team, and the rest warriors the other. Xie Su was hot on Wang Tong's heels himself, and he ordered the other dark ones to chase after the second group.
Soon, a group of golden dark ones and some immortals got the four human soldiers surrounded in the middle.
"Wang Tong, you have nowhere to run this time." Hua Li shouted.
"Hehe, are you, Hua…Hua something? What the hell is wrong with that wing? Are you cosplaying? I am not really into that…It's sort of an acquired taste, you know?"
Harmon furrowed his brow again as he conceded that he had underestimated the speed of these beasts. In a heartbeat, the beasts had already carried the human soldiers out of the encirclement. However, they still didn't stand a chance as they were outnumbered by at least four to one.
"Tianzong, Vorenus, and brother, Xiao, hold onto your hats!" Wang Tong laughed.
KOM!
Wang Tong's sent a burst of soul energy from inside of his system; his clothes were suffused with a golden gleam.
"None of you shall leave the city alive!" He shouted at the dark ones.
The enemy's face paled as soon as they registered Wang Tong's power. Even Yin Tianzong was taken aback by the display of might. He knew that Wang Tong was powerful; level twenty-three at least. But, Wang Tong's sol reading in that burst of energy was at leave level twenty-five.
"You have hidden your power well." Harmon could no longer maintain his calm countenance.
"Haha…A small trick, prepared just for you."
Wang Tong's face had become stone cold as a giant golden blade appeared in his hand. At the sight of this, Yin Tianzong backed away. This was not his battle to partake, and his job was to make sure no dark one escaped the city.
Even now, Xie Su still had it wrong. Wang Tong wasn't locked up in the city with him; he was the one who was locked up with Wang Tong.
"Charge!" Xie Su shouted.
A group of golden dark ones charged at Wang Tong with abandon. But in an instant, golden flames sprout out from Wang Tong's body as the human devil slowly rose above the ground. He held the golden sword with both hands, upright. Without moving at all, he commanded the sword to turn like a dial on the clock. Golden soul energy bloomed around Wang Tong as he opened up his sea of consciousness.
Suddenly, everyone except for Yin Tianzong was blinded by a burst of golden light. Yin Tianzong knew this was the coup de grace of the sword grandmaster, and he knew only one person who had mastered it before Wang Tong: General Li Feng.
Soul Essence Attack—Ancestral Sword Attack!
When the golden light finally receded, there were no more dark ones on the battleground.
Chapter 608: Total Success
Translator: Oneshotwonder Editor: Hitesh_
Hua Li shouted a battle cry and unsheathed his blade. He had been a level twenty-one warrior before he joined Patroclus. He was convinced that Wang Tong would be spent after unleashing such a deadly coup de grace, and therefore, would not be able to defend his level twenty-one attack.
He was right in thinking that the soul essence attack was draining. However, he had no idea just how much power there was in Wang Tong's system; he would never be able to comprehend that.
"Too slow! Is that what you got for giving up your soul?" Wang Tong flicked a finger and sent a pack of energy at Hua Li from the tip of his finger.
Bang!
Hua Li's blade shivered into hundred pieces. He looked down at a giant hole in his chest as old memories flooded his mind. The monster inside his chest plopped out of the hole and slumped on the ground in its death. Hua Li didn't die right away; he struggled to stand still, but failed. Looking around him, none of the immortals seemed to care about his demise. Was this what he had become?
"General Xie Su, we need to join the forces. Otherwise, we will both die here!"
"Very well! Move!"
Xie Su snarled and charged at Wang Tong while brandishing his long bone blade. He was taken aback by Wang Tong's power; it was at least level twenty-four. He regretted not charging with the golden dark ones when he still had the chance. Now, all his elite dark ones were reduced into ashes, and he had no other option but to work with immortals.
Harmon uttered a command, and the rest of the immortals charged. Some of them were after Wang Tong, and some were after Yin Tianzong.
Xie Su charged up his soul energy, tapping deeper into the energy crystal for power. Overloaded, the crystal shone with a bright purple cover. Wang Tong remained calm and unflinching. Before he was about to attack, he closed his eyes, opening them at the very last moment.
KOM!
The immortals and the dark ones heard a deep boom, and then they saw Wang Tong's attack coming at them.
Wang Tong attacked his enemy with the Layered Fist of Tong at full force. This was a battlefield, not a sparring stage; therefore, he wouldn't waste time on frivolous move sets. Every attack should make his enemy hurt.
KOM!
The blow landed on Xie Su, who had never felt so much pain in his life before. The blow was tearing his body apart, sinew by sinew. He felt his life ebbing away as he caught a glimpse of Wang Tong.
The immortals attacked Wang Tong with abandon. Although their aim was right, their blow wasn't able to reach him as they were blocked by a mastery shield.
It finally occurred to the immortals that Wang Tong was not only a METAL warrior but also a mastery caster. The mastery shield eventually crumbled. But, its protection had given Wang Tong enough time to gather himself and strike back.
Wang Tong was determined to achieve a decisive victory in this battle. He would make himself an exemplar of valor, and use his actions to encourage the human soldiers fighting at the front line. He didn't come here for the city of Kashan; he was here for Xie Su. Killing Xie Su would be another loud and clear message to the world: humans would win the war in the end!
The dark ones had overlooked one important fact about themselves. They were no longer the simple and primitive Zergs; they had a full range of feelings and emotions like a human did. Just like in the human society, once the leader of the pack was gone, the rest would disband and give up the fight easily.
The Zerg society was still undergoing drastic changes to catch up with their human counterparts. It had taken humans thousands of years to transform from a slavery society to a modern one, and Zergs would have to achieve that in a matter of a couple of years. The Zergs' backward social system had given the humans a chance.
They had to kill Xie Su, for once he was gone, the people of the northern front would finally be liberated.
Wang Tong didn't attack the immortals, instead hurling the fist toward Xie Su. Fear flickered in Xie Su's eyes as death claimed him.
Any intelligent creature who was capable of feeling would fear for their lives in danger; it was their instinct. Ever since human soldiers discovered that the dark ones' innermost feelings were not that much different from theirs, they were no longer afraid of them. As the soldiers grew bolder, the dark ones started to fear the humans.
Once Xie Su was killed, the knee-jerk reaction of those immortals was to run away. They didn't want to get involved in this fight from the outset. They joined the fight thinking they held a decisive advantage in numbers. However, Wang Tong's level twenty-five—or above—power was way beyond their pay-scale. So, they decided to turn on their heels and bolt.
However, their realization came too late; Yin Tianzong had already blocked their only escape route.
Wang Tong twisted Xie Su's head off his shoulder and threw it to Yin Tianzong. Yin Tianzong took the ugly head and rode toward Battle Wolf.
Meanwhile, Battle Wolf shocked their enemies' formation constantly using their direwolves. Once they charged their beast into the thicket of Zergs, they would pull back out, regroup, and charge again. They were most vulnerable when they were pulling out of the Zergs' formation, and a few soldiers were already injured.
When Yin Tianzong arrived on the battlefield, Battle Wolf was about to start their fourth charge. Yin Tianzong rode to the front of the charging formation, looking down at the Zergs. He lifted Xie Su's head and shouted, "This is what's left of their commander, KILL!"
The hideous head gave the soldiers a second wind, but the sight rendered the dark ones panicked. Already, a few dark ones had forsaken their teammate and bolted toward the safety behind the city wall.
Without any hesitation, Battle Wolf charged down at the Zergs.
Meanwhile, Vorenus and Xiao Libie were mired in the fight with the fleeting immortals. They conceded that their transformation had improved their physical condition by leaps and bounds. They could only deal any real damage to them if they landed a blow on their weak spots.
However, when Wang Tong joined the fight, he finished the immortals with one flat side slash.
"The leader of the pack has gotten away." Vorenus said as he scanned his surroundings using his soul energy, but the leader of the immortal was nowhere to be found. Wang Tong didn't answer right away; instead, he gathered the soul energy back into his sea of consciousness and then smiled.
"Well, I said we would leave them memorabilia…Haha." Wang Tong could have killed Harmon with ease, but he reckoned that he was better left alive as a permanent reminder to Patroclus who he was dealing with.
"Let's go and see how everyone is doing."
"Leave the rest to us! Haha." The thought of plowing through the Zergs with his direwolf made Vorenus excited.
The development left Xiao Libie in awe again. Never had he thought that so many incredibly powerful soldiers could have served under one banner. What made this retinue even deadlier was Wang Tong's sharp mind and astute strategies.
Wang Tong's power was way beyond level twenty-five, but he had held back his power and used only what was necessary to lower the guard of his real enemy: Moye.
When Vorenus and Xiao Libie arrived at the main battleground, the battle had already turned into a slaughter. The warriors chased after the fleeing Zergs, picking them off one after another before they reached the wall.
Deep Blue was already munching on the dead Zergs. These dark ones were more nutritious than the primitive Zergs. Some dark ones who dared to look back caught a glimpse of the horrific scene: a beast eating their own kind, armors and all. There was nothing that could bring more joy to the hearts of the human soldiers than the fear and panic in the eyes of a dark one.
This was payback time!
Not everyone had partaken in the merciless slaughter. Xiao Yuyu upheld her duty as she ran industriously from one wounded soldier to another, patching them up and casting healing spells. All the while, she lamented how reckless these soldiers were on the battlefield; some had kept on fighting despite the serious wounds that covered their bodies.
When the soldiers entered the city, they dismounted and let their direwolves loose to pick off any Zergs in hiding. Meanwhile, the human soldiers marched on foot to the queen.
When they arrive their destination, Deep Blue and the other direwolves had already dragged the queen out of her burrows. The soldiers cheered while the naked queen shivered in fear.
Wang Tong waved a hand at Deep Blue. The beast uttered a command to its pack, and they dragged the queen to a bush to feast on it.
"We have hit a jackpot! Look at this!" Tan Bu shouted, carrying two bottles of fine liquor.
"This is your favorite rice wine, boss!"
Chapter 609: A Sliver Of Hope
Translator: Oneshotwonder Editor: Hitesh_
"Yeah, that's what you are good for, kissing boss's a*s! Haha!" Duo Lun jested with a wry smile.
"Buzz off! Didn't you know that bragging is also a skill? Am I right, boss?" Tan Bu's confidence knew no bounds.
"Great, thank you! Made on Earth too! Haha! Take whatever you want and burn the rest!" Wang Tong said.
A group of scraggly figures emerged out from the human soldiers.
"Wait, hero! Can you please take us with you?"
Yin Tianzong furrowed his brows. He noticed that these were the human slaves that the dark ones kept in the city. Years of confinement had taken the luster out of their eyes; however, their otherwise blank faces were ridden with surprises.
"Lun Duo, give some of our rations to them."
"Head north, that's where general Zambrotta is. You will all die if you follow us."
The humans were victims of Zergs' unthinkable tortures, and the will of resistance in them had long since died out. Lun Duo had left them enough ration to reach Zambrotta and a few maglevs. They knew that his group was the famous human devil and his deadly retinue, so none of them dared to ignore their suggestions.
Since the Zergs were distracted by Wang Tong, this group of refugees had a chance of getting to safety. The death of Xie Su had also increased their odds of survival.
After the human soldiers had pillaged the city of its food, they razed it to the ground and stormed toward the central area of the Zerg land.
Kashan was taken down, with the head of the northern warden on a pike. The news quickly spread like wildfire and reached the human side.
Every city was steeped in joy and celebration. This was a miracle!
What Battle Wolf had achieved before they took on the mountain journey was incredible, and now, this was an unbelievable act out of a high tale. Kashan was the largest Zerg city, and it was destroyed with a snap of Wang Tong's finger. More relevant to the home front, Wang Tong had killed Xie Su, which meant the defending soldiers could start a full-on offensive attack at the northern front.
This was an opportunity of a lifetime, so the human resistance acted on it quickly. The attack was a success, and had alleviated a lot of pressure from the battlefield.
The Zergs were caught off guard. Even Zambrotta and turned his force around and joined the rest of the human resistance forces at the north to attack the Zergs from both sides.
Soldiers stationed at other parts of the frontlines doubled up their defense, making sure that the Zergs would not break while they waited for the perfect moment to lash out.
Just as Wang Tong had calculated, the death of Xie Su brought total chaos to the northern section of the battlefield, since the art of commanding troops could not be easily mastered by any dark one.
Overall, Xie Su had been a competent commander, but the same could not be said about the blood kin that got assigned as the new warden. He was an extremely powerful dark in a one on one combat, but a laughably impotent general.
Due to bad management and outright horrible decision, the Zergs had suffered two catastrophic defeats in a row. Zambrotta and the main forces were able to join forces as they had planned successfully.
The development had connected the head and the tail of the defensive line, making it much stronger than ever.
It had been a while since the humans had achieved any meaningful victory over the Zergs. The success in the north had boosted the resistance's morale significantly.
But, despite their triumphant advances, the human soldiers didn't brag about it. Instead, their lunchtime conversation mostly involved another group of soldiers in the heartland of the Zergs' territory.
The leader's name is Wang Tong, and he was the heir of the legendary Blade warrior.
At the onset of Battle Wolf's success, everything believed that luck was the main factor contributing to their cause, and Michaux and Oddin could have done it better. However, that was far from what had happened afterward.
When surprise attack was getting old, and everyone thought Wang Tong's operation would come to a halt, he proved in the battle of Kashan that he didn't need the element of surprise from the outset.
The psychological effect of Wang Tong's success on the human soldiers was palpable: they no longer feared the dark ones, and some even felt that the Zergs were much inferior to the human in many ways.
Even in their wildest imagination, no one saw Wang Tong attacking Kashan. It was irrational if not outright suicidal. The anecdotal evidence collected from a group of human refugees seemed to suggest that Wang Tong and his retinue were not humans to begin with. They were devils and demons, just like the Zergs had purported. They could kill the dark ones just like squashing a bug. There had been no battle; it was a massacre. The mounts of these demon riders were also straight out of hell.
The exaggerated stories got further distorted from mouth to mouth until it was commonly believed that Wang Tong and his units were flaming ghostly retinues that wielded sickles as their weapons. This group of hellborn soldiers was charging directly to the heart of Zerg land.
The heartland contained great secrets, as well as the Zergs' most important war facilities. It was also where Moye's castle stood. The devil was going after Moye, and everyone wished that he could succeed and deal with the plague of Zergs once and for all.
However, it was easier said than done. The Divine Master had tried it when he was at level twenty-six, yet, he could only gravely injure Moye at the cost of his life. With the dark ones' incredible healing speed, the humans wagered that the dark lord should have already fully recovered.
"I am sorry my lady, but I can't stand it! Everyone is talking about Wang Tong this, Wang Tog that. It is as if the Hall of War Drum just sat around and did nothing!" Shaunger complained after a trip back from the downtown. She was still very mad at Wang Tong for rejecting Brenda.
Brenda cracked a smile, "You silly. If not for him, we would never have achieved such victory. He is a hero. Don't you like a hero?"
"Hehe, of course, I do. But, he is not a hero…He is an idiot!"
"Don't' talk about him like that Shuanger."
"Hehe…Why are you still on his side, my lady? Do you think he will change his mind?" Shuanger asked.
Brenda shook her head in resignation. Shuanger's words had hit the mark. Not only did she adore Wang Tong, but she also worshiped him like a god of valor. Brenda had a very sensitive soul, that was easily affected by Wang Tong's heroic and gallant demeanor.
…
Meanwhile, the confederation's fleet had already reached Mars' outer space. The fleet had fought a few skirmishes on their way, but each time, Samantha relied on her keen judgment and saved the day.
"Looks like the situation on Mars is getting better. We need to establish communication with Wang Tong as soon as possible." Samantha said during a meeting.
"I will go!" Karl sprung out of his chair immediately. However, he was greeted by disapproving head shakes.
"What? Why can't I go?" Karl piped up.
"Your talent is needed here on the ship." Samantha cracked an understanding smile.
"Let me do it; I knew this place pretty well," Sysco announced. Everyone nodded in approval; not only was Sysco a competent fighter, but he also knew Wang Tong very well.
"Very well. You will be on your own when you get down there, so be careful."
"Roger that! I will find Wang Tong, I promise."
The rest of the meeting was about the proposed plan of waging an assault on the Zergs around Mars' moon: Ceret. Their goal was to contain the Zergs fleet capability.
After much deliberation, the fleet officers reached a final plan of attack, and the meeting got over.
After everyone had left the meeting room, Samantha made a cup of tea for herself. She stared at the misty water as she was absorbed in reflection.
The responsibility on her shoulders was immense, and sometimes, she even doubted herself. But most of the times, she was convinced that her decision was right. Ma Xiaoru was much better for Wang Tong than she would ever be. However, it bothered her that she still could not forget about Wang Tong after so many years. She dreamed of coming to Mars, to be close to Wang Tong again. During their travel in the space, Samantha had heard about what Wang Tong had done for the people of Mars, and that news filled her heart with a newfound confidence.
As memories came back to her, Samantha's face was flushed red. The intimate night that they had spent together seemed like ancient history now. Many people in her fleet chased after her, but she had rejected every single one of them, as if she was not interested in men at all.