Chapter 354: Merger

Across the vast grasslands, Benjamin led the Brambleford and Dunmere armies as they joined forces on the plains. Then, they marched straight toward Snake Pass.

It had been more than half a month since they set out from Preston, and along the way, they’d received news that the rebel forces in Preston had been suppressed.

"General, look!"

While on the move, Lancelot suddenly pointed at the mountains ahead. Nestled between the towering peaks stood a grand fortress; it was Snake Pass.

That was the northern gate of the Eldorian Empire.

"Snake Pass..."

Benjamin’s eyes gleamed. For years, this fortress, known as the strongest pass in the land, had been in reaver hands, serving as their main route southward.

If they could capture Snake Pass and station troops inside the fortress, it would turn into a launch point to threaten the reavers’ territory. The balance of power would flip. All the commanders looked at Snake Pass in the distance, visibly excited.

"Full advance! Take Snake Pass!" Benjamin shouted, and the Brambleford soldiers immediately quickened their pace.

Since entering the grasslands, they hadn’t seen any reaver soldiers, only abandoned tents.

Clearly, the reavers had retreated with the main army.

If Fern was truly dead, the entire Sunderland Tribe would face harsh punishment. With how bloodthirsty and cruel the reavers were, they might even massacre the entire tribe in his name.

That panic explained why the tribe was fleeing so desperately. Benjamin’s army needed to strike now, before the Order had time to reinforce Snake Pass.

By noon, the Brambleford and Dunmere troops arrived just outside the pass.

This former military stronghold was still held by the reavers. As they saw the reaver guards on the fortress wall, Benjamin ordered the troops to set up camp on the spot.

Liam began directing the artillery crews, pushing 150 cannons into position at the front lines.

In the past, the wall facing the reavers was the front of the fortress, while the side facing the Eldorian Empire was the rear military town.

Now, both the town and fortress wall were under reaver control. To take Snake Pass, they only needed to capture the town.

"Jayden, Martin!"

These two had performed well in the Preston campaign, so Benjamin brought them along for the Snake Pass attack. They also brought a hot air balloon.

"Here!" The two replied, running up.

Since the interior of the fortress couldn’t be seen from outside, Benjamin had them use the balloon to scout the area.

Following the order, the two quickly prepared to launch with the help of Brambleford soldiers.

"Heh heh, Commander, can we go up too?" Lancelot grinned shamelessly.

Liam and the other officers looked on eagerly.

They had all seen how impressive Lancelot looked riding a hot air balloon in Preston. Now, riding one had become a kind of honor.

Benjamin straightened his expression.

"This is a battlefield, not a game. If you want to fly so badly, I’ll ask His Highness to let you have a go when we return. But for now, stay sharp."

Then, as soon as he finished lecturing them, he jogged over to the balloon basket himself with a happy grin.

All the officers rolled their eyes in contempt.

Once Benjamin was aboard, the soldiers holding the ropes slowly released them, and the balloon began to rise. From above, the entire military town inside Snake Pass was visible.

Using a telescope, Benjamin carefully observed everything.

The town was a mess. Slaves and reavers were running around everywhere, climbing up the fortress walls.

Some of the reavers pointed at the hot air balloon, clearly agitated.

Benjamin sneered. ’Just this balloon alone is enough to scare them senseless.’

But then he frowned. Inside that not-so-large town, there were around 130,000 defenders, mostly slave soldiers, with some reaver troops mixed in.

After getting a clear view, he had the balloon brought down and returned to the ground.

"Commander, how’s it looking?" Lancelot asked.

"There are about 130,000 troops inside. Looks like Clinton guessed we might try to attack and left a strong force behind. Benjamin replied.

"One hundred thirty thousand?!" Lancelot was clearly troubled.

The reavers were usually the ones doing the attacking. Now that it was their turn, everyone knew siege warfare wouldn’t be easy.

Benjamin nodded.

"It’s too late to attack tonight. Same as always, set up the war wagons outside to guard against enemy cavalry. Set up camp, cook, and we attack at dawn."

The officers all nodded.

Then Benjamin gathered them to discuss siege tactics. Attacking a city defended by over 100,000 troops with only 40,000 of their own was nearly impossible.

"General, how about fighting fire with fire? Last year, during the Dunmere battle, the barbarians tried to blow up our walls. What if we plant explosives on their wall and blow it up? Once there’s a breach, our musket formation will make short work of them."

Benjamin nodded. "That’s a solid plan."

Liam added. "This time, the Dunmere army brought a new type of cannonball; it’s called a lime bomb. His Highness said it’s great for dealing with wall defenders. We should try it tomorrow."

"What’s the point of all that?" Lancelot shouted. "Let’s just blast them with all 150 cannons and send those mongrels straight to the afterlife!"

The others glanced at him but said nothing.

Benjamin shook his head.

"Leave guards on duty. The rest of you eat and rest. We attack tomorrow."

Lancelot scratched his head awkwardly and followed the others out.

The next morning, after breakfast, the camp’s bugle sounded for assembly.

The hot air balloon lifted again, with Benjamin on board, overseeing the battlefield.

As the attackers, the Brambleford army’s 40,000 troops arranged themselves outside the city.

The walls were packed with reavers, many of them armed with bows.

To be fair, Lancelot had been right the night before. After thinking all night, Benjamin decided to rely on the cannons—that was Qingzhou’s real advantage.

The 150 cannons were lined up side by side behind the city gate, spaced two meters apart, completely covering the front of Snake Pass.

Under the cannons were crates of cannonballs and gunpowder bags, fully stocked.

The Dunmere army even brought catapults and barrels of gunpowder, which could bombard the walls from 200 meters away.

The reavers weren’t so lucky. They had lost all their cannons in the Preston campaign.

Confident that they wouldn’t lose Snake Pass, they hadn’t brought any long-range weapons either.

Looking at the dense groups of defenders on the wall, Benjamin gave his order.

"Fire the cannons and smash them hard!"

Upon receiving the command, Liam grinned viciously and shouted. "Fire!"

BOOM! BOOM! BOOM!

In an instant, 150 cannons roared, spewing smoke and flames. The cannonballs smashed into the battlements, sending chunks of stone flying.

The main city gate of Snake Pass, under the fierce bombardment, was quickly turned into a shredded mess.