182: Chapter 182 Blackrock Fortress and the 'Butterfly'

The night was like ink, and the stars filled the sky.

As the party of Lister and Chief Lin Mu drew closer to the front line, a pitch-black stone fortress slowly emerged from the hazy depths caused by the howling blizzard.

Black Stone Fortress had been built specifically between the thoroughfares connecting the two tribes to defend against invasions by the Black Wolf Tribe.

It was constructed primarily from hard black stone, fused with other excellent materials like sand and metal, and had stood for decades.

Flanking it were rows of rolling black peaks, barren and devoid of life.

Though the mountains were not high, they were more defensible than Black Stone Fortress itself, for they had a name: Dead Mountain.

Anyone who stepped into the mountains never returned; as for where they went, or whether they were dead or alive, no one knew.

Furthermore, because one end of Dead Mountain bordered the Shadow Leopard Tribe and the other bordered the territory of other tribes to the north, the Black Wolf Tribe could never take a long detour to attack the White Cat-Ear Tribe.

Given this situation, they had once tried to send an army across Dead Mountain, but the result was that the army disappeared into the mountains without a sound, and not a single person returned.

That attempt made the Black Wolf Tribe fully realize the horror of Dead Mountain, so they had no choice but to honestly attack Black Stone Fortress.

In truth, this was not because their strength was insufficient, but because they knew full well that the casualties from a frontal assault on Black Stone Fortress would be too great.

If they could attack via other routes, naturally no one wanted to waste troops.

Taking advantage of the cover provided by the blizzard and the night, the party of Lister and Chief Lin Mu quietly passed through the inner gate of Black Stone Fortress.

As soon as everyone entered, a chilling, oppressive atmosphere rushed to meet them.

Looking around, figures clad in beast-hide armor hurried through the biting wind and snow.

Every rough, frostbitten face bore a look of deep exhaustion.

From the surrounding camps, cries of pain could be heard from time to time.

Combined with the residual bloodstains on the ground and the large number of broken arrows, it was clear that Black Stone Fortress had only recently finished an intense battle.

Seeing this, Chief Lin Mu and the others of his tribe could not help but show looks of heartache, while Lister and his group, though calm in expression, felt their hearts grow heavier.

At this moment, the defenders of Black Stone Fortress who noticed them stopped in their tracks, their faces filled with excitement and joy.

"The Chief has arrived!"

"Look, there are many tribal reinforcements behind the Chief!"

"That's great, we don't have to bear such heavy pressure anymore!"

The solemn, oppressive atmosphere that had filled Black Stone Fortress was instantly dispelled by the exuberant cheers of the Soldiers.

Even though the cheering was loud, it was still swallowed by the howling blizzard within this small fortress, not attracting the slightest attention from the Black Wolf Tribe outside.

"Scott greets the Chief!"

Accompanied by a clear male voice rising above the howling wind and snow, a middle-aged man wearing beast-hide armor walked with large strides toward Lister and the others.

Seeing the person's face, Chief Lin Mu revealed a warm smile and asked with concern, "Uncle Scott, are you alright?"

"Haha, thank you for your concern, Chief."

Scott, having reached Chief Lin Mu, laughed heartily and patted his shoulder naturally, saying, "With you and the tribal reinforcements here, I feel better than ever."

Chief Lin Mu smiled and nodded; he knew Scott's personality well and knew he would never utter empty flattery.

"Chief, who are these people?"

Scott, whose gaze had fallen upon Lister's party, saw the smile on his face suddenly freeze.

The intangible, heavy pressure radiating from them made him, a mid-level mental power warrior equivalent to a Silver Mid-Tier, feel extremely uncomfortable.

"Uncle Scott, come, let me introduce you."

Chief Lin Mu smiled broadly, turned to Lister, and introduced him: "This is Lord Lister Howard, the Pioneering Lord of the Pedan Kingdom, which borders our tribal territory to the east."

"The people beside him are his Knight Captains—"

After a detailed introduction, the solemnity on Scott's face turned back into a joyful smile, even more intense than before.

In truth, Chief Lin Mu bringing tribal reinforcements had only made him feel a little relieved; the heavy pressure hanging over his head still remained.

After all, the entire army of the White Cat-Ear Tribe combined was no stronger than Asa's side.

The subsequent battles would still depend on the specific performance of both sides, and if the Black Wolf Tribe were to mobilize more tribal reinforcements, their situation would be even more difficult.

But now, this pressure had completely vanished; he had not expected Chief Lin Mu to reach a cooperation with such a powerful Pioneering Lord of the Pedan Kingdom in such a short time.

Moreover, this was not an ordinary commercial cooperation; even the Lord himself had personally led troops to the front line to help them.

Such great kindness made him, a grand commander with rich war experience, unable to help but express his excitement and thank Lister repeatedly.

As for why Lister was willing to contribute so much to the cooperation, he couldn't be bothered to overthink it; wasn't it enough that the person was here now?

Chief Lin Mu interrupted Scott's thanks and said, "The weather is too cold. Uncle Scott, Lord Howard, let's go into the tent and talk."

"Oh, oh, I am truly sorry, Lord Howard."

"It's fine."

After speaking, Lister walked side-by-side with the two into the tent, Red and the others followed closely behind, while the other knights were led by Soldiers to be assigned their living quarters.

Inside the tent, the warmth of the stove permeated the air, and the chill on Lister and the others was quickly dispelled.

Sitting around the conference table, Scott began to report the current situation of the war.

Since the Black Wolf Tribe launched their campaign against the White Cat-Ear Tribe, they had launched multiple attacks on Black Stone Fortress.

The intensity of their attacks alternated between strong and weak, with the goal of exhausting the mental strength of the Black Stone Fortress defenders.

But fortunately, the White Cat-Ear Tribe was known for their mental power, so this method of attack had some effect, but not a significant one, which was why they had not succeeded in taking the fortress.

However, starting in the last few days, the attacks by the Black Wolf Tribe had become increasingly fierce, and the Soldiers' offensives seemed fearless of death.

There were several times when Black Stone Fortress was almost captured by Asa's side; if not for the sturdiness of Black Stone Fortress and the firm will of the White Cat-Ear Tribe defenders, the flag above Black Stone Fortress would have been changed long ago.

Regarding the sudden fierce attacks by Asa's army, Scott guessed that something had happened at the Black Wolf Tribe's base.

However, whether it was something the White Cat-Ear Tribe was hoping for, there was no way to know.

After a short meeting, everyone enjoyed a delicious dinner, and Lister's party returned to their assigned tents to rest.

However, Lister did not rest immediately; instead, in his tent, he held a pre-battle meeting with Red, Spartacus, Sejin, and Aier.

Sitting cross-legged on a soft fur blanket, Lister scanned the four people sitting on either side and said calmly, "Tomorrow we will join the battle. According to Commander Scott, due to some reason, the offensive of Asa's army has become increasingly fierce."

"Therefore, the pressure we face starting tomorrow will increase exponentially, but there is no need to worry too much; after all, our knights have experienced many battles with magical beasts."

"This time, I hope the knights who came to support me can all achieve good merits and return alive with me, without a single one missing."

"This point will require you all to do your best in terms of command."

"Yes, Lord Lister." The four nodded heavily and responded solemnly.

Nodding slightly, Lister was actually not too worried about this, after all, besides Red, who had participated in many wars against the Orc Race in the north, the other three had also undergone many practical training sessions against magical beasts while in the territory, which had greatly exercised their command abilities.

Now it was just a matter of replacing magical beasts with humans, and the difference was not particularly large.

Of course, he was also prepared for the death of his subordinate knights, for the battlefield was extremely dangerous, and a moment of carelessness could mean losing one's head.

However, without experiencing bloody battles, how could one become a stronger and more mature transcendent?

His gaze swept over the faces of the four, and he ordered, "I don't need you to kill many enemy troops in tomorrow's battle; first, let the knights familiarize themselves with the enemy's attack methods to prepare for possible future wars."

"Of course, having just arrived here, we also need to give Chief Lin Mu a gift to stabilize the morale of Black Stone Fortress, and also to help us gain a firm foothold here."

"I have already decided on the gift; besides Asa and that Mid-Tier Totem Warrior with Silver Mid-Tier strength, just pick one from the heads of the other enemy mid-tier totem warriors."

"As for the subsequent operational plans, let's proceed according to what we discussed earlier."

"And regarding the issue of the Black Wolf Tribe increasing their offensive intensity, I will have the Magic Cloud Eagle notify Raymond, who has been following us, to go to the Black Wolf Tribe to investigate."

The four felt nothing wrong with the relaxed tone with which Lister spoke of beheading the Black Wolf Tribe's mid-tier totem warriors.

Although there were many transcendents on Asa's side, their high-end power was far inferior to theirs.

If it weren't for the fact that Lister needed to delay the progress of the war, they could have charged directly into the camp of Asa's army and slaughtered them.

The pre-battle meeting ended quickly, and the four, except for Lister, all excused themselves and returned to their respective tents to rest.

After they left, Lister gave the investigation task to the Magic Cloud Eagle and then soaked in the hot water bath prepared for him by the Soldiers.

Although Black Stone Fortress was on a war thoroughfare, some basic facilities were still available, otherwise, it would be very difficult for the defenders to stay here for a long time.

The hot water was infused with some fatigue-relieving potions, which made the slight fatigue Lister felt from a day of traveling completely vanish without a trace.

While soaking in the hot bath, he began his divination for the day—

The four divination messages were as few and as many as ever, but only one of them he deemed useful.

[Divination 3: Recently, Manteqiu, the third son of Black Wolf Tribe Chief Howell, successfully advanced to a Mid-Tier Totem Warrior.]

Based on the content of this divination, he deduced that the change in the offensive of Asa's army in recent days should be influenced by this event.

Or more accurately, it was the Asa faction within the army that was affected.

According to the intelligence on the Black Wolf Tribe that Chief Lin Mu had introduced to him, among Chief Howell's children, only the second son, Asa, should have been the most outstanding.

Compared to him, the other children were far behind in all aspects, especially in totem cultivation, where they were completely incomparable to him.

Yet now, this obscure third son, Manteqiu, had suddenly made a name for himself and become a Mid-Tier Totem Warrior.

This was tantamount to dropping a bomb within the Black Wolf Tribe, directly changing the existing situation of the next heir's dominance.

Normally, since Asa had dominated for so long, even if Manteqiu advanced, it would not cause much impact.

After all, most of the factions in the tribe had already leaned towards Asa under his solicitation, and it was not that easy to shake that.

However, due to Asa's tyrannical personality, the factions within the tribe that yearned for wolf-like ideology could not fully accept him.

Therefore, they only leaned towards Asa, rather than directly submitting to him; they did so simply because they had no other choice before.

But now it was different; the third son, Manteqiu, not only advanced to the same realm as Asa but also had a much, much better personality than Asa.

Although he was not exactly a good person, his attitude towards those factions within the tribe was very good, and the way he treated them made them feel very comfortable.

This led to the fact that in recent days, those factions that had originally leaned towards Asa began to make contact with Manteqiu.

As for Chief Howell, he had always maintained a cold, bystander attitude, with no intention of interfering.

It was precisely because of this that Asa became anxious and wanted to capture Black Stone Fortress as quickly as possible to prove himself.

Lister had heard too much about this kind of internal strife, and it was actually difficult to attract his attention.

What really caught his attention was the problem of Manteqiu's breakthrough; as far as he knew, Manteqiu should have been the one with the least cultivation talent among Chief Howell's children.

According to Chief Lin Mu, Manteqiu should have remained at the level of a Primary Totem Warrior, equivalent to a Bronze Primary-Tier Knight, for a long time.

But now, overnight, Manteqiu had transformed into a Mid-Tier Totem Warrior, directly crossing a major realm.

He really didn't believe it if there was nothing wrong with such an unusual breakthrough speed.

However, the divination information did not explain the specific situation; perhaps he had obtained some precious resources, or perhaps he had obtained other opportunities.

As for the situation of accumulation leading to a breakthrough, it was possible, but it was absolutely impossible to be this exaggerated.

He had always been very concerned and careful about such unknown, huge changes occurring within the enemy.

After all, a butterfly flapping its wings could cause many major changes, and Manteqiu's sudden advancement was not impossible.

With his mental power, he dispelled the divination information and continued to soak in the hot water bath comfortably, thinking about some operational details for the arrival of tomorrow's battle.

The winter night lasted a long time, and even at dawn, the night was still pervasive.

Lister, who got up early, washed up and brought Red and the others to the main tent.