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Chapter 468: Bring It On
Boom!
Whoosh!
Wild flames spread wantonly among the orc army.
Elio fixed her gaze on the approaching orc scouts and shouted without hesitation:
"Fire! Take them down!"
Bolts shot through the air with a piercing sound, covering the orc scouts from several hundred meters away.
Poisoned bolts were lethal, even for elite orcs.
After being struck, they could barely run a few steps before collapsing, screaming as the poison took their lives.
Elio recalled the poison production facility at the edge of the Druid greenhouse, a glimmer of expectation in her eyes.
In the future, Bay Territory's development would accelerate, and its strength would grow exponentially!
The small number of orc scouts, losing nearly half their numbers, chose to retreat and flee.
Even so, Elio remained vigilant, ordering the sentries to observe carefully while calculating silently.
"We can still fire three more rounds!"
Whoosh! Whoosh! Whoosh!
Watching the final barrel of Wildfire Oil soar through the air, causing the blazing inferno to swell and spread wildly, consuming more orcs, Elio decisively issued the order to retreat.
After dismantling the most valuable core components, all the trebuchets were abandoned on-site.
As the operators left, the Wildfire Oil placed on them shattered and was set ablaze, consuming the trebuchets completely.
Following Elio's orders, everyone retreated to the excavated underground space.
Here, a faintly glowing teleportation array instantly transported everyone away.
As their vision cleared, those familiar with the contingency plan quickly scattered in all directions.
Walls were erected everywhere in all directions.
On top of the walls, rows of crossbows were arranged.
Waiting on this side, Filia breathed a sigh of relief upon seeing Elio return safely and asked:
"How did it go?"
Turning to look at the silent teleportation area, Elio recalled the recent scene and answered without hesitation:
"We got lucky. Took out about 2,000 orcs and delayed them by roughly two hours."
Filia blinked in surprise, her excitement evident as she exclaimed, "Impressive efficiency! We can set up two more rounds."
However, Elio shook her head, hesitated for a moment, and said:
"Although the efficiency was good, it's too dangerous to attempt again."
"Moreover, the iron caltrops alone cost 20,000 gold coins. Each trebuchet is worth 200 gold coins, and each barrel of Wildfire Oil costs 5 gold coins. We destroyed 20 trebuchets and used 20 roundsâ4,000 barrels of Wildfire Oilâfor a total cost of 44,000 gold coins."
"If 44,000 gold coins can eliminate more than 2,000 orcs, it's a worthwhile trade."
"But if we factor in the destroyed small teleportation array, even with the discount from Bloodmoon City, it still costs 40,000 gold coins. That makes it a loss."
"âŚ"
Filia noticed the contradictions in Elio's "economic" warfare.
If saving gold coins were the goal, Bay Territory wouldn't need to limit adventurers' abilities or numbers.
After all, plenty of adventurers were willing to risk their lives for the 10-gold-coin bounty for killing a single orc.
Bay Territory not only restricted the adventurers' capabilities but also dispatched its own soldiers to fight the orcs.
This actually consumed more gold coins!
Yet, Bay Territory placed great importance on lives, whether of soldiers or adventurers.
For this reason, Bay Territory was willing to spend significant extra funds to ensure this principle.
Sensing Filia's "doubts," Elio ordered the soldiers to remain vigilant, looked toward Jifan entangled with the wolf riders in the distance, and smiled as she explained:
"Safety first, victory second, efficiency third."
Bay Territory's wealth was built and accumulated through the collective efforts of everyone in the territory.
It was precious and absolutely not to be wasted.
Besides laying extensive iron caltrops, Bay Territory had many other methods to stall the enemy.
For instance, Macaron deployed engineering golems to dig deep pits and reset the traps.
Even strong orc soldiers would not trigger themâonly heavy siege equipment would cause the ground to collapse with a bang.
As a result, numerous siege engines threatening the walls fell into the traps.
Additionally, the orc army encountered various traps on their way forward.
Small, concealed pits filled with poisoned spikes.
Poisoned water jugs, automatic killing traps, and devastating spell trapsâŚ
Having suffered significant losses, the orc army, after witnessing the grim fates of those who fell into the traps, inevitably slowed their advance, despite their fearlessness of death.
What would have taken half a day now stretched until sunset before the orcs finally saw the towering Scarlet Pass.
Found on Book Bar with no errors!
Along the way, 5,000 orcs fell to the traps.
The frustration and anger ignited the fury of all the orcs, who glared at the Scarlet Pass with bloodshot eyes, roaring incessantly.
Matthew looked at the enraged orcs, then turned to Angela, who was brimming with confidence. She gave the order:
"Call them up!"
A few adventurers with booming voices, aided by Amplify Spell, shouted loudly in orcish:
"We've been waiting for you! What took you so long?"
"They must have been scared, dawdling along the way."
"Orcs are all the sameâbig bodies, tiny courage."
"Come on, you cowards! Come meet your death!"
"âŚ"
The loud taunts reached the orc army, and the already bloodshot eyes of most orcs turned completely crimson.
However, to Matthew's surprise, these orcs didn't recklessly charge forward like most others they had encountered before.
Despite their rage, they showed restraint, refraining from attacking. Instead, they began preparing siege equipment and setting up camp.
"As expected of the Red-Eyed Orcs from the fourth-largest tribe. Their combat discipline is remarkable."
Among the orcs Bay Territory had faced, only the Blackstone Orcs could compare to them.
Matthew knew the Red-Eyed Orcs well, having dealt with them for months as a player in his previous life.
Many players considered them quite "troublesome."
The Red-Eyed Orcs boasted formidable individual combat prowess and coordinated tactics rivaling many formal armies.
They were one of the most threatening tribes among the orc's top ten.
Their ability to craft siege engines like "battering rams," "catapults," and "ladders" spoke volumes.
It was precisely because of their strength that Matthew wanted to "test" them early.
He needed a large amount of Destiny Force and merit. Bay Territory's army required the "baptism" of war, the orcs needed to complete their deal with the mastermind, and the mastermind wanted to eliminate Matthew.
With so many objectives converging, it was inevitable for sparks to fly.