Chapter 253 - 153: Oh No! It’s a Trap
Four days remained until the end of the month!
As sunlight spilled across the land, draping it in a golden coat, the Northern Expedition Legion and the Sniper Corps had already arrayed their forces on the plain.
The members of the Northern Expedition Legion hadn’t slept well, having been harassed all night by the Sniper Corps, but they were only mentally fatigued. There were no serious issues.
The Shield Soldiers of both armies formed a line, their bodies shimmering with buffs of every color. Behind them, the ranged units stood poised and ready.
Further back, the catapults and cannons were also prepared to fire.
In the world channel, lords from both sides had started pay-to-view livestreams, and the crowd of onlookers had to grudgingly pay up to watch.
This was a rare, large-scale legion brawl with maxed-out special effects—better than any blockbuster movie.
After a brief standoff, the Northern Expedition Legion made the first move.
Catapult after catapult launched massive boulders toward the Sniper Corps’ position.
The soldiers of the Sniper Corps were completely unfazed. The front-line Shield Soldiers tightened their grip on their shields, watching as the flying boulders fell lower and lower, finally landing in the empty space before their formation. They breathed a quiet sigh of relief.
"Hahaha, you idiots! Everyone knows you use catapults in every battle. Did you really think we wouldn’t be prepared?"
"We calculated the distance perfectly! Your catapults can’t reach us!"
"You bunch of brainless fools!!"
In the world channel, a lord from the Sniper Corps began taunting the Northern Expedition Legion, provoking them into cursing back.
In order to get their catapults in range of the Sniper Corps’ soldiers, some lords had them pushed down the hill, positioning them behind their own ranged units to fire.
This time, the boulders launched by the catapults flew right into the Shield Soldier formation.
The Sniper Corps soldiers scrambled to dodge the boulder impacts, and their orderly ranks immediately fell into disarray.
"Hahaha, keep on taunting! See? The range is just fine now!"
"Go on, run back to your camp if you’ve got the guts!"
"Arrogant fools!!"
The lords of the Northern Expedition Legion started their own taunts. ’So what if the range was too short? All we had to do was get a little closer, right?’
"Pah! If you’re so tough, push all your catapults down! I bet you don’t have the nerve!"
"What’s there to be afraid of? Don’t think we haven’t seen your basic cannons over there."
"You think you can win an artillery duel against us with the range of those basic cannons?"
"It’s not like we never went to school. The principles behind basic cannons are simple—everyone has a few. We just couldn’t be bothered to bring them! Cannons are strong in the late game, sure, but the range of basic cannons is no match for advanced catapults!"
Seeing that the catapults they had moved down were effective, the lords of the Northern Expedition Legion had their men push the rest of them behind their ranged troops.
More catapults launched more boulders, completely disrupting the Sniper Corps’ Shield Soldier formation. They were forced to temporarily retreat and regroup outside the catapults’ range.
"Hahaha~~"
The lords of the Northern Expedition Legion roared with laughter at the sight. They ordered their men to move the catapults forward again, preparing to pursue the Shield Soldiers.
At the same time, the commander ordered the Cavalry to be ready. The moment the Sniper Corps’ front-line Shield Soldiers were disrupted again, they were to charge the enemy army.
BOOM~ A deafening roar echoed. While the catapults were still on the move, countless flaming Fireballs flew over from the Sniper Corps’ position.
The group of catapults was immediately devastated. These Fireballs were actually burning iron spheres of extremely high temperature. The wooden catapults were instantly set ablaze.
The Fireballs that hit the ground also caused violent explosions, blasting massive craters into the earth.
Some Fireballs even exploded in mid-air, creating immense destructive force. Not only were the catapults wrecked, but nearby soldiers were also caught in the blast.
"This is bad! The power and range of their cannons are all wrong! Get the catapults back, now!"
"And the troops in front of the catapults, fall back in an orderly fashion!"
...
The lords shouted frantically, but the catapults were too clumsy. Before the soldiers could even push them back, another roar sounded as countless Fireballs rained down again.
"AHHH—"
"HELP—"
Screams rose and fell one after another. The soldiers operating the catapults abandoned their posts and fled toward the rear.
When the cannons roared in unison again, the targets had shifted to the slowly retreating front-line Shield Soldiers and ranged units.
The Shield Soldiers immediately used their Shield Wall skill. Groups of them knelt on the ground as massive shields materialized before them. (They were individual shields, not linked together.)
THUD~ THUD~
The Fireballs slammed into the shield wall with a series of dull thuds.
A few unlucky Shield Soldiers were hit by consecutive Fireballs; their shield walls shattered, and they were killed instantly. Most of the Shield Soldiers, however, were unharmed.
Once the cannon volley was over, the Shield Soldiers immediately dismissed their shield walls and continued their retreat.
The Mages at the rear remembered to cast a speed buff on the Shield Soldiers, and the Northern Expedition Legion’s troops made it back below their camp walls before the next cannon volley.
The Sniper Corps’ Cavalry sighed in disappointment. They had been ready to charge in and mow down the Northern Expedition Legion’s Shield Soldiers the moment they broke ranks, but they hadn’t expected them to retreat so quickly. They could only watch from where they stood.
"Weren’t you so brave a minute ago?"
"Why are you retreating? Keep charging!!"
"You cunning bastards! Just wait until we’ve built new catapults, then we’ll settle this! We can build catapults whenever we want, but if your cannons break, they won’t be so easy to fix!"
In the world channel, the lords from both sides erupted into another fierce argument.