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Chapter 203: Chapter 175: Bloody Battle at Thermopylae (2)

A full thirty cannons!

The Beastman Wolf Cavalry scouts who had gone ahead earlier hadn’t been able to get too close, so they only saw a portion of them. Based on their report, General Griff had estimated that Thermopylae had between ten and fifteen Magic Crystal Cannons.

However, he had just carefully counted them himself. No matter how he tallied them, the number of craters left behind by the human Magic Crystal Cannons was thirty!

"How could there be so many?" Griff frowned.

Thirty Magic Crystal Cannons was far beyond his expectations.

That last barrage, while not annihilating all the Kodo Beasts, had killed the vast majority of them. The entire Beastman military array had been blown into disarray.

It was a scene of divine punishment!

"Inform the second unit. The elites are to fill the gaps immediately. The rest will remain on standby," General Griff commanded.

...

"What was that?! My god, what was that?!" Hans couldn’t help but exclaim.

Hans had also witnessed the astonishing scene. Dozens of deafening booms—or perhaps just a dozen—had erupted from their own side. Regardless, the sight of the sky filled with the Energy Balls from the Magic Crystal Cannons had left an indelible impression on him.

Dozens of massive Energy Balls had exploded in the Beastman camp opposite them. Hans even saw several Beastmen get blasted into the air, sent flying straight toward the sky.

"They’re coming! Quiet! On your guard!" Captain Jason was the first to snap out of his shock.

The Beastman Extraordinary Infantry was now charging the walls of Thermopylae again. This time, the Magic Crystal Cannons hadn’t predicted their advance.

It had to be said, the quality of this Beastman army was truly impressive. A normal Imperial Corps of the Beastman Empire would have likely seen its morale completely collapse after a barrage like that, one that could be compared to divine punishment.

And yet, the Beastman military array was only in chaos for a moment. Roars soon erupted from their ranks once more, though this time, the yellow mist enveloping them was much fainter.

But no matter how faint the mist became, one fact was indisputable: shortly after the bombardment, the Beastmen had immediately regrouped and launched another, albeit less effective, battle charge.

This level of organization was beyond what any ordinary army could achieve.

Hearing Captain Jason’s words, Hans couldn’t help but tighten his grip on the shaft of his spear. Standing behind the captain, he stared nervously at the Beastman Transcendents sprinting toward the wall from below.

"Loose!"

At Bo Yang’s command, the hundreds of Frankish Watchers on the ramparts raised their Magic Crossbows, aimed at the charging Beastman Extraordinary Infantry, and fired.

After the order was given, Robson stared intently at the group of Beastman Transcendents before Thermopylae, his heart filled with apprehension.

’To be honest, I’ve never tested the limits of the Frankish Border Watchers myself. I have no idea if these crossbow bolts can actually inflict significant damage on these Transcendents.’

’After all, these Beastman Extraordinary Infantry are as fast as cheetahs. The Gray Dwarf Heavy Infantry my Frankish Watchers wounded in the past were only wearing light armor.’

’Clearly, that isn’t the case with this group of Beastmen.’

’Of course, I prepared for this. The crossbow bolts have all been enchanted with Magic Potions, but as for their actual effectiveness... I have no way of knowing.’

...

Wood stared at the crossbow bolt that had bounced off his armor, leaving a distinct mark. For a moment, his mind went blank, and he didn’t know how to process his shock.

’I’m a Silver Sixth Tier Transcendent! Even though I wasn’t running at full speed, I’m not a target some common archer can just hit.’

’Was that a Divine Archer?’

’But even for a Divine Archer, isn’t the force behind that bolt a little too strong?’

Although Wood hadn’t been directly struck by the bolt, he could make a rough judgment from the force transmitted through his armor. It likely had enough power to pierce the defenses of a Bronze Second Tier. If a Bronze Third Tier’s defenses were uneven, their chances of being wounded were extremely high!

As for the bolt’s sturdiness, Wood could only say it was passable. What shocked him most was the soldiers’ accuracy.

Force and sturdiness could be achieved through external means. But a soldier’s precision? That was something else entirely, not something just anyone could achieve!

Amateurs watch the spectacle, while experts see the technique. As a Purple-blooded Beastman, Wood himself was a highly skilled archer. But he had to admit, he couldn’t hit a target moving that fast. At the very least, he knew he couldn’t hit himself.

That kind of skill required long-term practice, vast combat experience, and an archer’s absolute mastery of their weapon!

’Is this an isolated case, or...?’

"AOOO! ROAR!"

"Argh! Damn it! My eyes!"

The cries from his fellow Extraordinary Soldiers quickly told him the answer. This wasn’t an isolated case; these were the enemy’s standard-issue troops.

As the Commander of the Beastman Extraordinary Infantry, Wood was outfitted in shining silver armor. His fellow Extraordinary Soldiers weren’t so fortunate.

Although the Beastman Imperial Family controlled thirty percent of the Beastman Empire’s iron mines, they were responsible for supplying fifty percent of the nation’s professional army. Moreover, these armies were not all directly affiliated with the Imperial Family.

A long time ago, many clans within the Beastman Empire began to use the Imperial Standing Army as a pretense to leech off the Beastman Royal Family. The crucial point was that as the Imperial Family declined, they gradually lost their ability to control these groups!

The Beastman Empire was already notorious for its large armies and scarce iron mines. This scarcity wasn’t the only reason its armies went without iron armor, but it meant that within the Empire, a single suit of iron armor cost what many officers saved in half a lifetime.