Chapter 740: The Battle Begins!(2)

Translator: Dragon Boat Translation Editor: Dragon Boat Translation

Sonia and I_Love_Black_Stockings nodded simultaneously. Such an arrangement couldn’t be more appropriate. Since the strength of the Demon Reconnaissance Team had already been tested, there was no need to waste the elite forces of the Ocean Crown Champions.

As they say, top-tier horses naturally match up against other top-tier horses, and lower-tier horses against lower-tier ones.

The forces of the King Kong Island Guild and the Great Luminescent Sea’s army were just right.

After the war meeting ended, everyone dispersed to prepare for the upcoming battles.

Ji Chen opened the Lord Panel, where the current number of troops in the territory was updated, including the forces of the King Kong Island Guild, the Elven Empire, and Dragon Island.

Since the last recruitment one month ago, the Ocean Crown had recruited another 3,430 troops, swelling the ranks of the sixth-tier army to 19,120.

There were 3,080 Naga Iron Colossi, 3,080 Ocean Blood Dragons, 3,080 Dragon Horn Beasts, 750 Sea Crystal Wyrms, 850 Heavy Armor Toothfish Knights, 1,300 Lobster Nymph Spirit Archers, 780 Leviathan Dragons, 600 Light Sea Sovereigns, totaling about nineteen thousand troops.

Fifth-tier troops included 3,220 Crab Guardians, 2,570 Lobster Guardian Knights, 1,520 Water Nymph Archers, and 2,670 Silver Sea Pixies, totaling 99,812 troops, about ten thousand in each thousand-person team.

In addition to various scattered third and fourth-tier troops, the Ocean Crown’s army probably had about three ten-thousand-person teams.

After several months of rest and recuperation, the forces of the Great Luminescent Sea had seen significant improvements in both quantity and tier. They now possessed two ten-thousand-person teams of fifth-tier 6 to 9-star troops, and three ten-thousand-person teams of fifth-tier 1 to 5-star troops, totaling five ten-thousand-person teams.

The five batches of troops from the King Kong Island Guild had all arrived, with approximately fifteen ten-thousand-person teams of fourth-tier 5 to 9-star troops, seven ten-thousand-person teams of fifth-tier 1 to 5-star troops, four ten-thousand-person teams of fifth-tier 6 to 9-star troops, and five thousand-person teams of sixth-tier 1 to 2-star troops, totaling twenty-six ten-thousand-person teams.

The rest were all fourth-tier 5-star or lower troops, not even fit for cannon fodder, so they were not brought along.

Additionally, the Ocean Crown received support from Laphia, consisting of five elite elf thousand-person teams, including three ten-thousand-person teams of sixth-tier 5-star Royal Elf Rangers and two ten-thousand-person teams of sixth-tier 8-star Royal Griffon Divine Archers.

There were a total of 462 giant dragons on Dragon Island.

This was a formidable force second only to the sixth-tier army of the Ocean Crown. Each giant dragon was a hero unit, possessing combat power far surpassing troops of the same level, and would be the backbone of the resistance against the advanced forces of the Demon Army.

The entire Ocean Crown had a total of over three hundred and forty thousand troops, of high quality.

The goal of this war was to at least block the Demon Army in the Stormy Sea, firmly hold the front line of the New Moon Islands, safeguard the sea route between Lienhardt-Maple Principality and the Elven Empire, and persist until reinforcements from the Northern Continent arrived.

This was the objective, as well as the bottom line.

Once the New Moon Islands were lost, the demons would occupy this vital lifeline at sea, leading to the interruption of communication between the eastern and western parts of the Northern Continent, making it impossible to organize a concentrated naval fleet for counterattack, with extremely serious consequences.

Three days later.

As if having gathered enough information, the Demon Army finally began to move slowly, heading towards the New Moon Islands.

The sky was filled with dark clouds, pressing down as if looming overhead, while brilliant thunder serpents danced freely.

As far as the eye could see on the boundless sea, at the utmost limit of vision, a darker line appeared on the dim horizon, surging forth with billowing black mist.

It was a tide of black, composed of countless grim-faced demons, arranged in square formations, with dozens of squares forming even larger formations. Though they swam on the surface of the sea, it seemed as if they were treading on the ground, their hearts beating rapidly.

A strange, evil, twisted melody, as if from the abyss, emanated from the Demon Army, assaulting the ears with intense negative energy.

“That’s the demonic melody, used to disturb the mind and will. Weak beings who hear it will quickly fall into madness. But as long as you maintain your mental fortitude, you can become immune to it!” Lainekel said with a slightly tense expression on the city wall.

The others’ expressions changed slightly. Keeping their spirits strong, they indeed found that the eerie sound no longer reached their ears.

Prior to this, all residents of the Ocean Crown had been evacuated to the underground lizardmen world of the Ocean Crown, where the heavy rocks provided a barrier against such sounds.

However, the lower the tier of the troops, the greater the impact. They were all somewhat agitated by this pervasive sound.

Alice noticed this and immediately began to sing.

Her beautiful voice rang out under the gloomy sky, like gentle hands soothing the restlessness of many troops and heroes.

Many eyes turned to the exquisite figure, filled with gratitude.

“Thank you, Lady Alice, for your help.”

“Thank you, Miss!”

The Kobold Strategist looked at his guild leader, who looked like a lovesick fool, and couldn’t help but remind her in a low voice, “Guild Leader, you’re drooling.”

I_Love_Black_Stockings wiped the moisture from the corner of his mouth and said enviously, “When will I have such a good-looking and capable subordinate?”

“…When you say ‘capable’, you mean strong in strength, right?”

Distracted by this tangent, the Kobold Strategist and the other players from King Kong Island calmed down a bit, while I_Love_Black_Stockings looked at them with a smile.

Suddenly patting the Kobold Strategist’s shoulder, I_Love_Black_Stockings said, “I’ll take the lead, what are you all afraid of? Even if the sky falls, we’ve got the Islander to hold it up. There’s nothing to fear!”

The Kobold Strategist winced in pain, quickly escaping from I_Love_Black_Stockings’ grasp, “That’s a good encouragement, but don’t hit me!”

The guild members were immediately amused, and the tense atmosphere dissipated, replaced by a renewed sense of determination.

“That’s right, the Islander is epic-tier. With him here, the Wester-Mid Ocean is the safest place!”

“Indeed, we have hundreds of thousands of troops here, not to mention so many dragons, we’re as stable as can be…”

Ji Chen glanced at I_Love_Black_Stockings and the others, shaking his head with a light laugh.

As the Demon Army drew nearer, his expression gradually became serious.

With a firm voice, he loudly declared, “Prepare the entire army!”

Teams of a thousand soared into the air, swirling in the sky to form rotating black clouds. Lizardmen warriors climbed the city walls, operating alchemical cannons and machinery they had practiced hundreds of times.

Long-range units ascended the arrow towers and battlements, wielding powerful bows and crossbows aimed into the distance. Royal Elven Rangers moved with mechanical precision, lining up behind the crenellations, their arrows gradually shining with elemental light.

Countless marine units formed ranks along the coastline, clad in armor gleaming with a chilling light.

Heroes gripped their weapons, their faces showing no fear or hesitation, only a fierce determination burning in their eyes.

The dark and oppressive Demon Army, lacking in strategy or planning, surged forward without hesitation.

Countless demons, claws bared, charged toward the southern coastline.

As they entered the range of the cannons and arrows, the spell towers, alchemical cannons, and enchanted crossbows erupted with deafening blasts.

Countless explosions sent up plumes of white smoke, as hundreds of various projectiles arced through the air, following predetermined trajectories to accurately strike the foremost demons.

Boom—

Countless water columns shot into the sky, blossoming like flowers of water accompanied by the putrid stench of black blood and shredded flesh on the sea surface.

Arrows, like locusts in the gloomy sky, seemed to stealthily arrive unnoticed.

Some arrows silently disappeared into the sea, but many more rained down on the demons like a torrential downpour, each one causing a spurt of fresh blood.

Over just a few kilometers, the constant barrage of bombs and arrows was like a massive plow, thoroughly tilling the entire sea surface, with the splashes resembling churned-up earth and the demons akin to startled moles being blasted into the sky one by one.

“Beautiful! Blow these damn demons to pieces!”

I_Love_Black_Stockings hammered excitedly on the female wall, but the Kobold Strategist frowned tightly. He saw that although the bombardment was intense, countless demons were either worthless cannon fodder or mere scraps of meat.

However, even more demons were continuously charging from behind.

Every single one of them, without a doubt, were low-ranking, bottom-tier demons.

Certainly, this initial surge served merely as the demons’ disposable pawns and sacrificial unit, intended to exhaust their ammunition.