NEC Chapter 123: Ruin Exploration, Firepower Clears the Way

What exactly were ruin guards? Even Chen Mo, praised by Vast Sea Territory's people as all-knowing, couldn't explain it clearly.

According to the Magic Academy, this was called a "manifested spirit."

Ominous things formed by ruin cores that had condensed through some special mechanism, driving regional spiritual energy to coalesce in the magical black mist that had accumulated on ancient battlefields.

It was said these had no relation to the original soldiers, being merely aggregations of energy.

However, since mercenaries' and summoned creatures' swords could deal with them, it meant physical attacks were effective.

For Vast Sea Territory's forces, it was just a matter of a few more bullets.

"Bang! Bang! Bang, !"

Deafening gunfire echoed through Blood Fortress's ruins, shattering the century-old silence.

"Prepare to engage! Maintain positions, watch your crossfire coverage!"

Kaga's roaring voice continuously reverberated among the broken stone walls. As one of the earliest trusted generals to become the lord's confidant, Kaga had learned East Xia's tactical requirements most thoroughly and mastered them most completely.

What the assault team was deploying now was a standard comprehensive enemy-seeking formation, ready to engage at any moment.

Three columns front-left-right, each team with twelve combat members, arranged from position one to position twelve.

Since firearms were still relatively scarce, each squad's standard equipment included three assault rifles, two grenade launchers, various hand grenades, with the rest using cold weapons.

The middle and rear ranks mostly carried long-range crossbows, while the front ranks had swords, spears, and shields as support.

Walking at the very front was position one, wielding a long sword in one hand and a large shield in the other, responsible for pathfinding while observing the ground nearby, ready to alert teammates to suspicious pits, traps, and mechanisms.

Position two was a tall, sturdy centaur carrying a high-powered searchlight on his shoulder, armed with an assault rifle, also watching the front but responsible for observing the distance ahead, forming a staggered pairing with position one.

Those watching far weren't allowed to look near, and those watching near weren't allowed to look far.

According to tactical doctrine, the centaur in position two was forbidden from looking at the ground, so he could only hold his rifle in his right hand while his left hand rested on position one's shoulder, being led forward by position one.

Position three was responsible for watching the front-side sky.

Position four covered left-front, position five right-front, position six left-rear, position seven right-rear, position eight directly behind, position nine rear-side sky.

Position ten was responsible for observing the overhead drone footage, position eleven was command, and position twelve was the substitute.

Although theoretically, since several teams were advancing abreast, one side would necessarily be friendly forces requiring no vigilance, Kaga still arranged the formation according to the most rigid tactical doctrine.

No battlefield flexibility whatsoever, just following the strictest methods.

For these green recruits, fighting the way they trained was the greatest protection for them.

This fortress was said to have been razed by orcs, but clearly the orcs had done a rough job. Half-standing low walls, giant stones, and building debris several people tall were everywhere.

From time to time, one or two ruin guards would come roaring out of the shadows.

The warrior in the corresponding position would give a warning, "Enemy contact left-front!" raise his assault rifle for several bursts, and dispatch the charging enemy.

If enemy numbers were large and the squad leader issued an engagement order, then the entire squad's close-combat cold weapons would continue maintaining vigilance while all other firearms and long-range crossbows would turn to concentrate fire on the attack.

This tactical system had been drilled countless times. Initially, the team's movements were somewhat rigid. Whenever engagement orders came, there were always some warriors who shouldn't turn their heads panicking and looking back, losing their assigned watch positions.

The commanding squad leader would sternly rebuke, "Watch your position!" using punches and kicks to maintain the overall formation.

Soon, after just one or two brief engagements, the team's proficiency rapidly improved, gradually executing methodical offensive and defensive operations.

The "Night’s Edge" mercenary group members, ordered to drag behind the team and follow step by step, had completely freed themselves from their earlier panic and were quietly communicating among themselves.

"What are they carrying? Dwarven firearms?"

"Doesn't look like it. Dwarven firearms need reloading after each shot, but theirs seem to have unlimited ammunition. Must be magical items!"

"No magical fluctuations. Our captain is a mage, wouldn't he know?"

"Too terrifying. Not a single first-class professional among them, yet I feel they're more frightening than the duchy's imperial guards!"

"Captain, looking at this, can they really break through the second layer?"

Doyle shook his head, "Difficult!"

Walking quickly a few steps to approach the central main position of Vast Sea Territory's forces, Doyle issued a warning to Kaga.

"Captain, there will be intermediate-level ruin guards ahead. They often move in groups and are very dangerous. Please be extremely careful!"

Actually, without Doyle's reminder, Kaga had already sensed the different atmosphere.

The first forward reconnaissance drone's signal suddenly disappeared, not even knowing what had shot it down. Kaga had to order the drones above the battle line to advance while continuing to launch backup aircraft.

The rear-positioned drone's lens clearly recorded this scene.

The forward drone dragging a searchlight cast a bright yellow circle of light. Where the lens swept, behind that broken, tattered wall were ruin guards in groups of three to five, seven to eight, densely packed together.

A disturbed ruin guard raised its head, and red light could be faintly seen flashing under its rust-covered helmet. Then an arrow shot out from somewhere unknown, instantly shattering the forward drone into pieces.

Clearly, this was a main defensive line of the ruin guards.

Kaga pressed his communicator.

"All units, halt advance. Grenade launchers in position, prepare for bombardment!"

The Vast Sea pioneering squad concentrated ten grenade launchers at once. With the command "Fire!" the whistling high-explosive grenades exploded in brilliant flashes of fire among the ruin guard clusters, instantly illuminating this black mist-shrouded area bright as daylight.

After continuously washing the area with grenades for six rounds, the exploration force began true close combat.

The enemy density was too high. Although most clusters had been scattered by explosions, from behind those broken low walls, ruin guards wielding damaged spears, wearing shattered armor, or even bare-handed, kept charging forward endlessly.

Gunfire completely merged into an impenetrable web of death. The assault formation quickly contracted into a solid semicircular fish-scale array.

Shields positioned at the very front defended against enemy ranged attacks. Spears thrust out from behind shields like venomous snakes in neat, orderly fashion, while broadswords flashed with cold light as they slashed and chopped.

Hand grenades continuously flew out from the middle and rear ranks, with explosions echoing throughout the ruins.

Wave after wave of enemies were killed, turning into scattered rusted armor pieces on the ground.

In this fierce battle, two figures were particularly eye-catching.

One was the Dark Knight summoned by Doyle.

This fellow wasn't particularly imposing in stature, appearing even smaller than ordinary warriors, covered entirely in jet-black bone armor with flowing dark light, with two jumping points of cold light in his eye sockets.

High-tier undead creatures possessed intelligence. Doyle's Dark Knight had accompanied him for over ten years and had incredibly rich combat experience.

Even though Doyle could now summon Death Knights, he still regarded this Dark Knight as his core and ace.

This Dark Knight was like a dancer on knife edges, each strike cutting in at exactly the right moment, cleanly and efficiently severing ruin guards' heads with precision, efficiency, and ruthlessness.

Seeming unwilling to waste even a bit of strength, as the Dark Knight drifted through enemy formations, he left behind a ground littered with guard corpses.

The other conspicuous figure was Liu Zaiyue.

Unlike the Dark Knight's light elegance, this guy's fighting style could be called earth-shaking.

Simple Bull was holding a staff... no, it couldn't be called a staff anymore, it should be called a pillar, fully three meters long with a diameter approaching twenty centimeters.

This thing was an imitation of a beastman totem pole, beloved by those powerful-type beast warrior, a standard heavy blunt striking weapon. Although made from the cheapest gray cast iron, its overall weight still exceeded seven hundred kilograms.

After Chen Mo commissioned Seven-Radiance Garland Trading Company to buy it from orc tribes, Liu Zaiyue couldn't walk away when he saw this thing, even sleeping while hugging it. As for its effectiveness...

How to put it, getting knocked by this thing would not only imprint the totem pole's patterns on your face, but might even carve them into your bones.

The totem pole had several gripping rings nested front and back. Simple Bull wielded this thing with tremendous force, specifically drilling into areas where enemies were densely packed.

Seeing masses of enemy squads, Simple Bull relied on his thick armor and tough hide to charge straight in, following with War Trample for control, then grabbing the pillar and spinning in place.

Ruin guards touched by that giant pillar were either torn to pieces or smashed directly into the ground, ending these local battles.

Kaga led the core mobile group, wielding a long sword in one hand and an assault rifle in the other, moving at high speed through ruins and rubble, specifically targeting enemy ranged attackers. Once discovering arrows flying from somewhere, he'd immediately respond with a burst of bullets, making those ruin guards wielding longbows and crossbows, just emerging from the black mist, shake violently all over.

On the field were also four "Bedrock" combat robots carried by skeletons, their rotating radar towers and compound-eye sensor arrays slowly turning, with cold red dots precisely marking every energy reaction source in the black mist.

With vision spanning the entire field, they used heavy sniper rifles to pick off those ruin guards with relatively intact armor, especially those wearing helmets, which were typical characteristics of intermediate-level guards and above.

Although the "Night’s Edge" mercenaries were also fighting, in this battlefield environment, they could only handle cleanup work and deal with scraps.

Those ruin guards from past memories, once fierce and unstoppable, were like clay chickens and pottery dogs before such an organized force.

Doyle, recovering from his shock and confirming he no longer needed to conserve strength to protect his teammates, immediately fully displayed his specialty as a great undead summoner.

He summoned an entire squad of thick-skinned zombies from the void. These creatures had skin of an eerie dark blue color, like over-tanned leather, with thick liquid seeping from stitched areas, emitting a strong rotting smell.

The zombies stood like a wall at the very front, attracting most of the ruin guards' ranged fire.

The greatest advantage of undead creatures was that as long as the soul fire in their skulls remained unextinguished, even if shot full of arrows like pincushions, they could still stubbornly fulfill their meat shield duties.

However, this exhilarating offensive ultimately ended with the pioneering force's withdrawal.

The deeper they went, the more building ruins surrounded them, and the permeating black mist became increasingly viscous.

The density of ruin guards increased exponentially. Kaga even deployed 84mm recoilless cannons.

Whistling shells swept through, repeatedly blasting ruin guards to scattered pieces, but it was useless. There were always endless ruin guards surging forward.

The troops began frequently sustaining casualties, keeping the first aid teams and stretchers busy.

At this distance, higher-level ruin guards also began appearing.

This tall guard immediately attracted the alert group's attention upon appearing, prompting urgent warnings.

This fellow's armor was no longer rusted, broken pieces patched together, but relatively complete full-body armor gleaming with dim luster.

The humanoid guard's joint connections were covered with chainmail, the helmet's face mask was down, leaving only two deep slits from which flickering red light danced.

It dragged a two-handed great sword, charging toward the exploration team at extreme speed. Multiple assault rifles' firepower instantly concentrated on it, bullets continuously striking the heavy plate armor, producing dense explosive sounds like heavy rain hitting a tin roof, sparks flying!

However, this high-tier guard only swayed slightly, its charging speed barely slowing! Its breastplate clearly showed only a mass of dense dents and scratches.

"Roar, !"

Accompanied by a strange bellow, the great sword became a terrifying arc of light slashing down!

With just one sword strike, the thick-skinned zombie that had been holding the front line for over half an hour, riddled with various ranged crossbow bolts, was dismantled into scattered meat scraps.

If not for Doyle's Dark Knight arriving at the critical moment to the key position, using a series of exquisite blocks, dodges, and feint attacks to forcibly divert this giant monster's path.

Otherwise, once it crashed into the fragile center of the battle line...

The consequences would be unthinkable!

Finally, this big guy among the guards welcomed shoulder-fired missile baptism.

A massive fireball shot skyward, violent shockwaves sweeping in all directions.

The previously seemingly indestructible full-body plate armor was finally torn and twisted, collapsing thunderously in the raging flames, turning into scattered, scalding, smoking wreckage.

Chen Mo, who had been monitoring the scene, decisively called a halt to the troops' continued exploration and ordered withdrawal.

After experiencing roughly seven hours of combat, advancing about three kilometers, expending two basic loads of ammunition, and bringing back over ten lightly and seriously wounded, the first exploration mission was terminated.

Lord Chen displayed considerable magnanimity.

"Isn't this excellent? Our casualty exchange rate was fantastic!"

"As long as we keep fighting like this, no matter how many enemies there are, we can eliminate them all. It's just a matter of time."

"Hurry up and arrange for rest and reorganization. Oh, and expand the field medical center's scale a bit more!"

"Perfect, we'll fight them several more times. Consider it live combat training!"

[NEXT CHAPTER]