119: Surround

In the center of the battlefield where flesh and blood flew, several core combat circles suddenly erupted with terrifying pressure and energy fluctuations far exceeding the ordinary.

Karl and Shirei, two battle-hardened Peak Gold Rank Knights, charged from the left and right like two bolts of gold and blue lightning, heading straight for the Minotaur Chieftain, 'Bedrock'. The greatsword in Karl's hand burned with blazing golden battle Qi, swinging in wide, sweeping arcs. Every strike was like a thunderclap, carrying the fierce power to shatter mountains. Shirei, holding a long spear, moved as swiftly and unpredictably as the wind, his attacks being tricky and sharp, specifically targeting the gaps and joints in Bedrock's defense. The two cooperated tacitly, combining hardness and softness to firmly entangle Bedrock's astonishing brute force and heavy defense, causing him to roar repeatedly, unable to break free or direct the battle for the time being.

On the other side, the battle was even more tragic. The Orc Legion Commander, Batu, a berserk warrior who had stepped into the Elementary Earth Rank, held a terrifying giant axe the size of a door. Every swing of his axe carried the heavy sensation of tearing the earth apart. Fighting alongside him was his deputy, Augus, a veteran Peak Gold Rank powerhouse whose battle Qi condensed into a silver light as solid as substance. One crushed with power while the other excelled in technique; together, they besieged the Earth Rank Intermediate Boar King, Kustu.

Kustu's eyes were as red as blood, his body bearing some scorch marks and scratches from the previous Magic Crystal Cannon explosions and Elise's arrows. However, these pains instead aroused the most primitive ferocity deep within his Bloodline. He roared, dancing the hideously shaped double-edged battle-axe in his hand like a windmill. Violent dark-red Earth battle Qi gushed out, faintly forming a violent whirlwind force field around him, clashing head-on with Batu's giant axe and parrying Augus's tricky sword thrusts. The strength of the Earth Rank Intermediate was indeed formidable; even facing a siege by the same-ranked Batu and a Peak Gold Rank, he remained incomparably brave. Wherever his battle-axe pointed, the ground cracked and airwaves rolled, forcing Batu and Augus to temporarily avoid his edge and look for opportunities. But Kustu also couldn't easily defeat these two tacitly cooperating powerful enemies, and the battle fell into a violent stalemate.

Meanwhile, Angus was like a combination of a cold death god and a precise brain on the battlefield. He did not participate in the top-tier duels but stood on horseback on a slightly higher slope, his command flags waving constantly. His calm voice echoed across the battlefield through messengers and horns: "Left wing spear formation, advance thirty paces, squeeze the enemy's space! Right wing archers, cover-fire on the routing clusters! Central army saber-and-shield soldiers, follow the gap opened by the Orcs and expand the results! Ignore scattered resistance! Target: Annihilate the enemy's effective forces!"

Under his command, the Star Sea Territory army was like a highly efficient killing machine, with a tight formation and clear division of labor. The Orc Coalition Army, whose morale had collapsed and whose organizational structure was in disarray, could not organize any effective resistance at all. Groups of dozens or hundreds who hastily gathered were split, surrounded, and annihilated by the tacitly cooperating Star Sea Territory squads in the blink of an eye. Blood stained the earth, and the sounds of wailing and blades entering flesh were incessant. Defeat spread through the Orc Coalition Army like a plague.

"Retreat! Retreat toward the southwest! Enter the mountain forests!" Kustu forced Batu back with an axe strike and took a moment to glance at his troops, who were collapsing like an avalanche. A cold sense of despair finally rose in his heart. He knew that if they didn't retreat now, today's army of fifty thousand would likely be buried here. He let out a roar full of unwilling rage and issued the retreat order.

Bedrock also swung his hammer forcefully to knock back Karl and Shirei, bellowing in response, "Minotaur warriors, follow me!"

The retreat order was the final straw that broke the camel's back. The coalition army, already on the verge of collapse, completely lost its last bit of will to resist. Countless Pig-Headed People and Minotaurs threw down their weapons and turned to flee for their lives toward the dense forest and hilly areas in the southwest, which they believed to be safe.

"All units, hear my command! Pursue! Take no prisoners, annihilate the enemy with all your might!" Seeing this, a cold light flashed in Angus's eyes. He pointed his command flag forward and issued the order for a general pursuit.

"Kill!!!" The earth-shaking battle cries rose again. The soldiers of Star Sea Territory had morale as high as a rainbow, charging like tigers out of a cage to cut down the fleeing Orc Coalition Army. Along the way, lagging Orcs were constantly caught and cut down, and the scene completely turned from a pitched battle into a slaughter of routing troops.

While Kustu and Bedrock fought hard to cover the rear, repelling the closest Star Sea Territory elites, Batu, and the others, they also gathered some relatively intact personal guards and retreated toward the southwest along with the fleeing crowd. Angus led the army in hot pursuit, like a pack of wolves driving a flock of sheep, constantly biting and weakening the defeated army from the rear and flanks.

Between the pursuit and flight, the battlefield gradually shifted. The hills undulated, and the trees became denser. The fleeing Orc Coalition Army, in their panic, plunged headlong into this woodland that seemed like a place to hide.

Just as Kustu breathed a sigh of relief, thinking he could use the terrain to take a breather and regroup his defeated soldiers—

From deep within the seemingly calm forest ahead, a cold and clear horn suddenly sounded!

"Wooo—!"

Immediately following, countless heavily armed human warriors appeared from behind trees and rocks as if emerging from the ground, instantly forming a tight defensive line and blocking the routing army's main escape route! They were silent, but their eyes burned with hunting-like excitement and killing intent. They were the five thousand most elite members of the 'Star Sea Legion' under the command of General Ocean!

"Fire!"

With an order, a dense rain of arrows from the thousand borrowed Divine Arrow Army poured out from the woods on both sides, shooting toward the Orc fugitives crowded on the narrow road, immediately causing another round of wails.

"Star Sea Territory, Ocean is here! You defeated troops, why haven't you surrendered your heads yet!" A clear yet majestic shout rang out.

A beam of battle Qi light as blue as seawater soared into the sky from the forest. General Ocean, clad in deep blue armor and holding a bright silver long spear, took the lead. Like a reef parting the waves, he charged straight toward the core of the defeated army and the most conspicuous Boar King, Kustu! A glint of cold light from the spear tip arrived first, and then the spear thrust out like a dragon. The blue battle Qi transformed into the phantom of a roaring water dragon, carrying a vast and majestic yet extremely condensed power, piercing straight toward Kustu's chest!

Ambushes ahead, pursuers behind!

Kustu's pupils shrank. He never expected that the humans would have actually ambushed such an elite fresh force here! At this moment, he had been fighting for a long time, his battle Qi was heavily consumed, he was wounded, and the sudden ambush shook his mind. Facing Ocean's sharp spear strike, which had been gathering momentum and was at its Peak of spirit and energy, he roared and swung his axe to block. However, he felt a heavy, solid, and long-lasting force travel through the battle-axe, actually making his arm slightly numb and his blood surge. He couldn't help but retreat several steps, 'deng deng deng'!

"Dammit!" Kustu gritted his teeth, the fire of rage in his red eyes almost erupting.

However, before he could adjust his breath to counterattack, the pursuers from behind had arrived!

Angus, Karl, Shirei, Batu, Augus... the top combat power and main army of Star Sea Territory had already slaughtered their way up from the rear, forming a perfect pincer movement with Ocean's ambush in front!

Despair, like a cold tide, completely submerged the remaining Orc Coalition Army. They were compressed onto the narrow forest road, unable to advance or retreat, with no way to heaven and no door into the earth.

Countless Orc Coalition soldiers began to scatter and flee.

Kustu and Bedrock stood back-to-back, surrounded by several Star Sea Territory powerhouses, with sounds of desperate killing and dying wails all around. Ocean held his long spear, the tip pointing from afar, his blue battle Qi locking onto Kustu. Angus sat on his horse on the periphery, his cold gaze scanning the field as if looking at turtles in a jar.