Chapter 35: Chapter 35: Pincer Attack
These are the Arrow Pigmen, archers among the Beastmen, and notably, Heavy Archers.
The arrows of the Arrow Pigmen are generally difficult for heavy armor to defend against. Even if blocked, the immense strength would still cause shock injuries, or even instant death on the spot. This is where their strength lies.
Unfortunately, this time they're up against Skull Soldiers.
The Heavy Arrows traveled with imposing force, but most of the attacks simply passed through the gaps in the Skull Soldiers' bones. Only a few hit the bones and merely broke them, causing no significant damage to the ordinary bones.
Only a few arrows that broke the Skull Soldiers' spines could be seen still crawling on the ground in an attempt to continue fighting.
Only those that hit the head could take down the Skull Soldiers on the spot.
The Undead are fragile indeed, but if not hit, there's nothing one can do.
Hao Si frowned as he saw the little success his men had: "No good, the Skull Soldiers are too much of a counter to us." As a powerful troop on the battlefield, when had they been countered like this?
At that moment, Hao Si somewhat regretted his decision; had he known earlier, perhaps he wouldn't have chosen to enter the battle.
"Leave it to us," Muras said. He too admired such a powerful archer troop. If it were his people facing them, this wave of arrows would have cost his tribe untold losses.
As the arrow barrage was ineffective, Hao Si ordered his men to stop the attack.
Ahead, the Skull Soldiers, after being attacked, surged forward like a swarm. The Wolf Riders at the front had already engaged with the Skull Soldiers, and the battle intensified in an instant.
The Wolf Riders were fast, their blades sharp, aiming for the Skull Soldiers' heads with each strike.
Leveraging the charge power of their mounts, they were quicker than the Skull Soldiers in all aspects. Before the Skull Soldiers could retaliate, their heads were sliced off, stripping them of their combat power. Just one encounter led to a pile of Skull Soldiers being slaughtered.
But then, the Wolf Riders who charged too far ahead were blocked.
This was a battlefield, and the Skull Soldiers, being Undead, knew no fear.
The results were costly as the Skull Soldiers firmly held the Wolf Riders at bay. The Wolf Riders, having lost their mobility, couldn't parry the surrounding Skull Soldiers' blows, and after killing a few, they were stabbed to death.
Some Wolf Riders, not strong enough, even had their long blades stuck in the bones.
The Skull Soldiers, unkind and cordial, struck back with a sword to resolve them.
On both sides, the Lizardmen also charged, using spears similar to harpoons. They formed a dense formation to encircle and slaughter the Skull Soldiers.
With a longer attacking range, their losses were not as substantial.
Muras furrowed his brow; this was his first encounter with the Undead Troops and he was somewhat unaccustomed. Normally, such a charge would break through any troop, tearing through as it went.
However, this mode of attack was utterly ineffective against the Undead.
Facing those unafraid of death, the vulnerability of having mobility without defensive capabilities was fully exposed. The immense losses made Muras feel as if he was gasping for air.
"Hao Si brother, have your Arrow Pigmen charge. Consider this a favor I owe you; I'll return it later."
Hao Si thought for a moment with a furrowed brow, then nodded in agreement. What he valued was not the favor, but the reality that he was now bound by the circumstances of the battlefield. Now, he could not retreat a step further, otherwise, he would face an even worse situation.
A large number of Arrow Pigs were released, showcasing the specialty of the Arrow Pigmen.
Those Arrow Pigs charged with their spikes, strong in both defense and attack, scattering any regular army early on.
Even the Skull Soldiers, facing such an assault and ineffective in their attacks, were overwhelmed. With these Arrow Pigs joining in, the dense formation of the Skull Soldiers was finally broken.
At that moment on the battlefield, the number of Skull Soldiers was not as many as that of the Beastmen.
Once the formation was broken, the Wolf Riders quickly tore it apart and then divided and annihilated them.
"Look quickly, the Skull Soldiers are starting to retreat, that direction must be their main camp."
Signs of defeat appeared among the Skull Soldiers, and the commander at the back seemed very decisive, ordering the Skull Soldiers to start retreating. Those who couldn't retreat turned around to continue fighting, buying time for their comrades.
But due to the problem with the Skull Soldiers' intelligence, there was still a huge chaos, which only grew worse.
Not long after, out of nearly a hundred thousand Skull Soldiers, less than twenty thousand had escaped.
Looking at the Beastmen, they had lost less than two thousand, mostly those Wolf Riders who had charged too quickly at the start.
"Follow them, don't let them escape," Muras roared, charging ahead with a long sword that cleaved several Skull Soldiers in two.
The Strength attached to the long sword directly obliterated the Souls of the Skull Soldiers, killing them on the spot.
Others followed closely behind, their momentum like a rainbow. But what they didn't realize was that step by step, they were moving through the forest and entering a special terrain surrounded by two small hills.
When the army fully entered this area, a large number of Skull Soldiers suddenly appeared ahead, dense and seemingly endless. "How are there so many? Just how strong is the force this time coming over?"
"There's no Black Iron level, nor can we find their commander's position. Let's probe first, and if it doesn't work, we'll retreat."
No one wanted to suffer significant losses; they were not Undead Creatures.
"Finally, they have come over, but what happened before, I couldn't see. No, I can't even see here."
Fang Jie frowned as he looked into the distance, uncomfortable because he had no idea what the situation ahead was and couldn't directly command, which was troubling. But he knew, if he showed himself, it would be a death sentence.
Those Beastmen opposite had strong long-range Attack Power, truly enviable.
If the Skull Soldiers also had this kind of long-range attack ability, this battle would have been much easier.
A large number of Skull Soldiers surged forward, fiercely fighting at the front, while those at the back who couldn't reach the front experienced a crushing crowd. In such a scene, it was impossible for those Beastmen to tear open the enemy's formation.
Even the Strength of the Bronze level couldn't achieve this.
"Not good, a large number of Skull Soldiers have appeared behind us."
At that moment, an Arrow Pigman suddenly came running. Several looked back, only to see more and more Skull Soldiers emerging from the forest behind them.
"This is bad, we've been tricked. We need to retreat quickly," Ganier realized something was wrong.
But with such a large force, retreating hastily was not an easy task. Before they could prepare for retreat, they found more and more Skull Soldiers appearing behind them, completely filling up the entrance.
Unlike the front Skull Soldiers, these Skull Soldiers were arranged in square formations.