240: Control the fortress

At dawn, the blazing flames rose to meet the morning sun, dispelling the curtain of night.

The Fel Orcs camp was completely annihilated by Renn and the Wolf Pack; not a single Evil Beastman escaped the wolves' hunt, and after the battle, blood stained the earth red.

Renn waved his staff and used a massive fire to bury the entire camp and the corpses of all the Fel Orcs. These followers of an evil god could not be allowed to leave behind even their remains, especially with over ten thousand corpses; only by burning them clean could Renn feel at ease.

The silhouettes of the Wolf Pack were stretched and magnified infinitely against the backdrop of the soaring firelight.

Alman stared blankly at the burning Fel Orcs camp, the scent of roasting meat permeating the air making him feel somewhat nauseous.

"Dora, you guys head back first!"

"Once I've handled matters at the fortress, I'll come find you to deal with this thing together."

Renn looked at the evil god statue, which had fallen silent under Dora's spell; this thing wouldn't be easy to deal with.

"Alright!"

"Then we'll be going now!"

Dora flapped her wings and left with Anatolis, and the Wolf Pack dispersed as well.

"I issued a martial law order yesterday, closing the fortress and forbidding anyone from leaving. You ran out here without permission—do you have no respect for my orders?"

Renn came before Alman. He had noticed Alman's arrival not long ago but simply hadn't paid him any mind.

"Your Highness!"

"I... I just felt something unusual over here... I..."

Facing Renn, Alman was now so nervous he couldn't even speak clearly.

Alman never imagined that a single moment of curiosity would lead him to witness a Legendary battle where three Legendary Experts annihilated the Fel Orcs.

He had guessed that Renn was a Legendary, but he never dreamed that Renn had two more Legendary Experts under his command.

"Your Highness!"

Alman knelt on the ground. Renn stood before him, his figure appearing so grand under the firelight, with the occasional crackling sound coming from the raging flames.

The fire at the Fel Orcs camp could be clearly seen from the nearby Iron Wall Fortress, but with Renn's martial law in place, no one went out to investigate.

At daybreak, Renn returned to the Iron Wall Fortress.

The Border Defense Army within the fortress was astonished to find that the Fel Orcs army outside had vanished, and the Fel Orcs camp had been turned to ruins.

Linking it to the fire at dawn, everyone knew the Fel Orcs army was finished, though no one knew who had eliminated them.

Clever individuals thought of the martial law Renn had issued yesterday and guessed that the Fel Orcs's bizarre fate might be related to him, but they could not confirm it and could only speculate in secret.

Regardless, the threat of the Fel Orcs had temporarily vanished, and the Border Defense Army in the fortress breathed a sigh of relief.

Not long after, Ross led the Fourth Legion to the Iron Wall Fortress on schedule and began the reorganization of the Border Defense Army.

With the noble children and previous high-ranking officers of the Border Defense Army gone, and Renn personally overseeing the command, Ross's reorganization proceeded very smoothly. This was especially true once the low-ranking soldiers learned they would have the chance to learn an extraordinary Breathing Technique; they immediately offered their loyalty to Renn.

Renn and Ross already had experienced cooperation in transforming and upgrading armies. In just a few days, the nearly forty thousand Border Defense Army troops in the Iron Wall Fortress had completely sided with Renn.

Inside the Iron Wall Fortress Mage Tower, Alman was receiving several unfamiliar guests.

"Master Alman, where is the ancient Magic Array the Lord mentioned?"

Fiona was already impatient to study the ancient Magic Array Renn had told her about. She was currently stuck at Silver Peak and desperately needed an opportunity to break through to the Gold Rank.

Fiona had a premonition that she would definitely gain something this time.

Alman smilingly received these distinguished guests. Regarding Fiona's request, he arranged for one of his disciples to specifically lead her to study the ancient Magic Array beneath the Mage Tower, then Alman focused all his attention on another guest.

"Madam, if you have any needs, please do not hesitate to speak. I will do my best to fulfill your requests."

Facing the lady before him, Alman's tone was somewhat fawning, yet he didn't feel it was improper at all, nor did anyone else around him think his behavior was wrong.

When Alman saw Alistair, he was intimidated by her powerful strength.

Alistair, who was at Gold-rank Peak with one foot in the Legendary realm, was currently searching for an opportunity to break through to Legendary. Having already touched the threshold of Legendary, her aura would occasionally emanate outwards—a sign of an impending breakthrough.

Every time Alistair emitted a sliver of powerful magic fluctuation, the hearts of Alman and the surrounding mages trembled.

Compared to facing Renn, who could restrain his aura, Alman's perception was much more intense when facing Alistair. Her magic fluctuations even disturbed Alman to the point where he found it difficult to control the magic within his own body.

This powerful strength amazed Alman, and when he learned that Alistair was Renn's wife, his shock was beyond words.

Renn's own strength was already unbelievably powerful, and now even his wife was a powerful mage. Alman felt that his understanding of the world had been redefined since meeting Renn.

"Let's look at the ancient Magic Array first!"

"We can talk about other matters later!"

Alistair was also very interested in the ancient Magic Array. Since the matters she had on hand weren't urgent, she decided to check the Magic Array first.

"Yes, Madam, this way please!"

"I will personally lead you there!"

Once the officers from the Red River Territory took control of the various key positions throughout the Iron Wall Fortress complex, this large-scale fortress group, famous in the North, was completely in Renn's hands.

Renn stayed at the Iron Wall Fortress until February 1242, returning to the Red River Territory only after everything at the Iron Wall Fortress was on the right track.

Upon returning to the Red River Territory, Renn first called for Fornal to arrange for the relocation of some of the people living around the Iron Wall Fortress complex to the vicinity of Blackstone City next spring.

The jurisdiction of the Iron Wall Fortress complex was not small, and tens of thousands of ordinary vassals lived within its range. It was too dangerous for these people to live near the fortress, and they provided no help; instead, the Border Defense Army had to look after them. It was for the best to migrate them to the vicinity of Blackstone City, which lacked a population.

Additionally, Renn needed to construct a road leading directly from Red River City to the Iron Wall Fortress.

Neither migrating people nor building a road were small projects, but fortunately, the current Red River Territory was large enough and possessed sufficient manpower and resources. Carrying out both projects simultaneously was not difficult.

"Lord, you've even taken the Iron Wall Fortress."

Hearing that Renn had become the commander of the Iron Wall Fortress, Fornal was somewhat shocked. As a man from the Rage Bear Territory, the name of the Iron Wall Fortress was like thunder to his ears; he never expected that one day his own liege would become the master of the Iron Wall Fortress.

Renn glanced at Fornal, this elder of the Derrick Family who had dedicated his life to the family.

Originally, Fornal was getting on in years, and his declining energy could no longer keep up with the demands of the increasing territory affairs.

Unexpectedly, after drinking several bottles of magic potions bestowed by Renn, Fornal experienced a second spring. He looked as if he had rejuvenated by over a decade, his energy suddenly becoming vigorous enough to continue serving Renn.

However, Fornal was no longer responsible for too many government affairs. Renn had established various administrative departments and distributed the territory's affairs to the heads of each department, while he himself handled the coordination; Fornal now simply assisted Renn.

Fornal's grandson, Yiven, was also growing quickly. Not only did the boy have quite a talent for mage cultivation, but he was also exceptionally brilliant at handling government affairs. Not even eighteen yet, he could already proficiently handle various matters in the Government Affairs Hall.

Renn planned to let Yiven train for a while longer before putting him in charge of the various affairs of the Government Affairs Hall. Fornal would then mainly be responsible for the management within Red River Fortress and providing some assistance to his grandson.

"The Iron Wall Fortress belongs to His Highness the Grand Duke, not to me, Renn."

Renn corrected Fornal.

"But in the future, it can be mine!"