62: Chapter 62 What? A city flew in from overhead?

Two kilometers south of the Troglodyte territory, Robert was marching at full speed with over four hundred Earth Spirits warriors.

Among the three-person alliance, his unit type was the weakest, but his mind was the most agile.

After receiving the request for reinforcements from Hardy, he mobilized his troops immediately, bringing two heroes and rushing to support via the nearest route.

At this moment, marching alongside him was the army of the Orc lord, Brennan.

Over six hundred Orc warriors, broad-shouldered and thick-waisted, made the ground tremble as they ran.

The two forces merged when they were one kilometer away from Hardy's territory, their momentum growing significantly.

But the closer they got to Hardy's territory, the more Robert felt something was wrong.

Why was it so quiet?

Logically speaking, if Hardy were still resisting, they should be able to hear movement at this distance.

At the very least, firelight or the sounds of battle should be audible, right?

Yet, ahead it was pitch black and silent, eerily quiet.

Robert raised his hand to signal his entire army to stop.

Brennan shouted for a halt at almost the same time.

The two exchanged a look.

Robert opened the alliance channel.

"Hardy, are you still there? Report your situation."

No reply.

"Hardy?"

In the channel, only his own voice echoed.

Brennan also sent a message: "Hardy, respond if you receive this."

Still silence.

Robert's fingers began to turn cold.

He exited the alliance channel and sent a private message to Hardy individually.

Ding.

[This lord has fallen in battle and cannot receive messages.]

Robert stared at this line of text, speechless for a long time.

Brennan received the same notification on his end.

"Fuck." Brennan couldn't help but curse, "Hardy is dead."

"I saw it." Robert looked grave.

After a brief silence, Robert spoke first.

"Retreat!"

His tone held no hesitation, "Turn the whole army around and return the way we came."

Brennan naturally wouldn't object and immediately ordered the Orc army to turn.

Both units began to retreat.

After retreating for about two kilometers, Brennan finally spoke in the channel.

"Robert, what do we do next?"

"What do you mean?"

"I mean, are we going back to defend, or are we running away directly?"

Robert was silent for a moment.

"Go back and defend... do you think we can hold it?"

Brennan didn't answer.

Robert continued:

"Hardy had the most abundant resources, and his territory reached level four this morning, making it the highest level among the three of us."

"He dug over a dozen tunnels underground and buried thousands of traps on the surface. Even when Erosion Beasts appeared, he had zero casualties. Neither of us can compare to his ability to set up ambushes."

"But what was the result?"

"He was wiped out before he could even send a single request for help."

The channel went quiet again.

"Brennan, I have two options."

Robert continued, "The first is for us to combine our forces."

"I will transfer all my troops to your territory, and I will give you all my resources as well to help you reinforce your territory's defenses so we can give it a shot."

"The second option is for us to take everything we can carry and run right now."

Brennan thought for a while: "If we combine forces, what about your territory?"

"Of course, abandon it and give it to him!"

Robert said calmly, "My unit's combat power is inferior to yours, so defending my place is meaningless."

"By concentrating resources on your side, your Orcs can take a hit, and if we max out the defensive facilities, there might be a glimmer of hope."

"I only hope... he attacks my territory first, buying you time to reinforce your defensive facilities."

"What about running away?" Brennan asked.

"If we run, we have to go right now."

"Take all our resources, join our two armies, and run north."

"But the outside is filled with roaming Erosion Beasts; if we encounter them, we'll have to fight them head-on."

"Even if we escape alive, we will fall far behind other lords."

"By the time we rebuild our territories... you know how hard that is."

Brennan listened and felt that Robert made sense.

He was so angry that he kept cursing.

"Fuck, fuck, fuck!!!"

Then he said: "Then we defend."

"Are you sure you want to defend?"

"Of course."

Brennan smiled helplessly, "Either way, running is death. Even if we manage to survive by luck, we'd still be starting from zero outside."

"The surrounding areas are full of lords stronger than me; once a conflict starts, it's a dead end."

"Rather than waiting for death, it's better to seek it."

"At least we'll die knowing why."

Robert was silent for a few seconds before saying: "Alright. I'll transfer my troops to you now, and I'll send the resources over immediately."

"Good! I'm starting to reinforce the city defenses now, hurry up."

The channel closed.

Brennan led the Orc army to turn around and raced toward his own territory.

While running, he rapidly clicked on the defensive construction queue on his command panel.

Robert watched Brennan's retreating figure and shook his head slightly.

He also turned around, taking the Earth Spirits soldiers, and ran toward the direction of his own territory.

Half an hour later, back at his territory, Robert transferred all his warehouse resources into his inventory.

But as he looked at the resources, he fell into a dilemma...

Over three thousand iron ore, two thousand wood, one thousand five hundred stone, and ninety-two magic crystal fragments.

These items were enough for Brennan to raise his territory's defense by two levels.

But the problem was... even if he raised it by two levels, could it really stop that opponent who could instantly kill a level four territory?

A flash of hesitation passed through Robert's eyes, then turned to determination after a few seconds.

He ordered his entire army: "All troops, head southwest!"

Robert didn't look back.

"If Brennan wants to die, let him."

"I still want to live a few more days."

After Brennan returned to his territory, he began to reinforce the defenses.

The Orcs moved stones, dug trenches, and erected wooden stakes.

The entire territory was turned upside down.

Twenty minutes passed.

Brennan opened the alliance channel: "Robert, where are you? When will you arrive?"

But no one replied.

He frowned and switched to private messages.

"Robert?"

Read, no reply.

Brennan's expression sank bit by bit.

He pulled up the alliance map and found Robert's location marker.

That green dot was moving at full speed to the southwest.

The direction was completely opposite.

"Fuck you!!!"

Brennan was so angry his face turned red.

Robert led over seven hundred Earth Spirits, running desperately toward the southwest.

His calculations were very shrewd.

That reckless fool Brennan chose to defend the city, acting perfectly as a human shield.

By the time the opponent chewed through Brennan, he would have already escaped dozens of kilometers away.

The desert was dangerous, but at least there was still a chance at life.

If he really stayed to defend, it would be a dead end.

"Faster! Faster!"

The Earth Spirits had short legs and struggled to run.

But the fear of death was the best fuel, and everyone was running for their lives.

Just at this moment!

The sky behind them suddenly lit up.

A purple beam of light shone from behind, illuminating the entire area.

Robert looked back, his eyes widening instantly!

What? A city?

A bone-white city, spewing dark purple energy exhaust, was flying in his direction?

And... extremely fast?

The outline of the city grew larger under the moonlight, and the turrets on the circular walls were vaguely visible.

Robert's legs went soft instantly.

"Why..."

His voice was trembling.

"How did it know I was going to run?"