Martial arts ascend to the gods

Chapter 465 Feigned Collapse
Zhou Leng felt as if he had returned to the Mammoth Tribe, where he could crush ordinary ferocious beasts with absolute superiority.

Before long, the second wave of humans stormed into the mine, still in a state of half-defense and half-attack.

As more and more human troops joined from the rear, the battle broke out once the number exceeded ten thousand.

With nowhere left to retreat, the monsters unleash their ferocious bloodlust and fight to the death against humanity.

Humanity's momentum is unstoppable, and its unity is as solid as a fortress.

Zhou Leng and the three Great Innate Realm experts specialize in killing ordinary Innate Realm experts.

Slaughter all the innate demons; the innate beings kill demons as easily as killing chickens.

Ordinary monsters, having lost their spiritual support, quickly collapse.

In just one hour, all 20,000 monsters in the third mine were wiped out.

Most of them were miners from giant insects and orcs.

After the great victory, the command center began preparations for defense.

Zhou Leng reviewed the intelligence; the mission was complete, and he needed to return to Tiger Hill Fortress, where he was no longer needed.

Ten minutes later, the alarm sounded, and intelligence was delivered.

The group of monsters escorting the resources is returning from the Demon Prison and is speeding towards the rear of the Third Mine.

Zhou Leng realized he couldn't escape and was preparing to defend when he suddenly remembered a tactic that the ferocious beasts had refused to use before.

Zhou Leng found Gao Yunbo and said, "Commander Gao, the monsters rely on their average strength being higher than that of humans, and their strategies and tactics are always crude. If the enemy is led by the Heavenly Calamity Envoy himself, we are helpless, but since it is an ordinary monster team, we can completely feign defeat."

"We'll have some of our orcs feign a rout and flee towards them. After all, the greenskins are a well-known breed in the Ten Realms; the enemy will only despise them, not suspect anything. Meanwhile, we'll send a large army to pursue them. Once the two sides clash, we'll launch a surprise attack, disrupting their army and coordinating with the main force's attack. We'll have a high chance of defeating them."

Gao Yunbo hesitated for a moment, then said, "This is a bit risky."

"What's so big about it? Even if we're exposed, we can either retreat or confront them head-on. It's all innate, so what's there to be afraid of?"

Gao Yunbo paused for a moment, stared at Zhou Leng, and said, "I think I understand now. Whether it's the disguise to enter the third mine or this feigned enemy retreat, they are just ordinary military tactics, nothing particularly brilliant. The problem is that normal staff officers wouldn't dare to use them, but you do."

"Many of our soldiers are actually intimidated by the power of the monsters. They are fine strategically, but once it comes to tactics, they become hesitant and unwieldy."

“When we fight, we consider all possibilities and especially avoid taking shortcuts. You are different from us cautious regular troops, and also different from those fearful pioneering companies. It seems that you have never been afraid of demons in your bones.”

"I'm a little curious, you're such a calm person, how come you're so brave?"

Zhou Leng didn't answer, thinking to himself that if the other side were an army of ferocious beasts, he would be calmer than all of them.

What's so scary about demons?

Is it comparable to a swarm of dragons, or a legion of giants?

Gao Yunbo said, "Wait here, we'll discuss it right away."

Just fifteen minutes later, the commanders and staff agreed.

It's not that they've become radicalized, but rather that with the fall of Tiger Hill Fortress, Water Island Demon City desperately needs a landmark victory to boost morale.

Even in defeat, they won by first capturing the bridge and then attacking the camp.

If they win, it will be a triple victory of capturing the bridge, raiding the camp, and breaking through the enemy lines. Such an achievement is extremely rare throughout history.

"Done!"

The majority of the entire army was concentrated in one place.

A total of 139 people, wearing the Demon Rings, transforming into orcs, and carrying Demon Bombs, can safely retreat even if they are discovered.

The innate beings played the role of fleeing orcs, escaping in panic at dawn.

Behind them, the five thousand most elite warriors were scattered and loosely pursuing.

More than 20 kilometers away, they encountered a large army of monsters carrying supplies back to their camp.

Upon seeing the familiar greenskin rout, the demon leaders cursed and told them to immediately return to the orc ranks.

More than a hundred fake orcs slunk to the back of the group.

Then, the five thousand elite human troops regrouped and slowly retreated.

This demon army numbered nearly 20,000. Despite their long journey, upon seeing such a small number of human enemy troops, they had no other choice but to launch an attack immediately.

The human warriors seemed to have been driven to the brink and turned to fight back.

In the dark of the early morning, the two sides collided like two waves.

Suddenly, supersonic, demonic spears appeared behind many of the innate spellcasters of the demon army.

Puff puff……

Human beings with innate martial arts suddenly rose up and launched an attack.

In an instant, more than fifty innate demonic creatures perished, and the same number of innate demonic creatures suffered severe damage.

"Fake!"

"These orcs are humans in disguise!"

Having revealed their identities, the innate martial artists split up and acted separately.

The other innate martial artists were in groups of several, but Zhou Leng was different from the other great innate martial artists.

They first disguised themselves as orcs and killed several Xiantian beings. When they were pursued, they hid behind obstacles and transformed into demons.

The group, posing as demons, wreaked havoc before transforming back into giant insects.

Zhou Leng and his companions were fast and skilled in light footwork, killing as they fled, leaving the innate demons helpless.

More than a hundred innate martial artists turned the demon army into a complete mess.

The demon army had no choice but to concentrate its forces at the Innate level to hunt down the Innate martial artists.

Zhou Leng and the other innate martial artists also gathered together, and instead of getting entangled with the innate demons, they went around killing indiscriminately in the demon army.

Ordinary monsters were no match for the innate charge. They were like a troop of elite, fully armored cavalry, trampling back and forth in the chicken farm.

Despite being disrupted, the monsters, relying on their numerical advantage, managed to hold on.

When the second wave of troops arrived, most of the innate martial artists changed tactics, running and throwing demon spirit bombs at areas densely populated with demons.

It is more accurate than war machines.

Boom...boom...boom...

A dazzling display of fireworks illuminated the morning in the magical city of Shuizhou.

While the demons were disoriented by the explosions, the human army launched an attack.

"Slay the demon!"

"Slay the demon!"

"Slay the demon!"

The warriors shouted loudly and fearlessly charged towards the demon.

Zhou Leng and the Great Innate Realm cultivators targeted lone ordinary Innate Realm demons, swiftly attacking and killing them without hesitation.

The fiery arc of the greatsword melting the wall pierced the night sky.

No monster could withstand the strike of this legendary greatsword.

After holding out for only ten minutes, the monster army retreated steadily.

Thirty minutes later, the morale of the monster army finally collapsed, and they scattered and fled.

After a chase, the human army returned to the battlefield, carrying the demonic supplies scattered across the ground, and headed back to the Third Mine.

Three consecutive major victories were hard-won, and the command sent a battle report to its superiors.

With three consecutive victories—capturing the bridge, raiding the camp, and breaking through the enemy lines—along with a large amount of demon resources, the command headquarters held an unprecedented ten-minute celebration.

Zhou Leng and the Hidden Warriors rested at the Third Mine for a morning before returning to the Tiger Hill Fortress with a portion of the team.

Unlike the previous battle on the shores of Taihu Lake, where many enemies were killed, the caravans also provided assistance, and it was a rescue battle, and the sea monsters were not defeated.

This time the enemy was smaller in scale, but its significance was completely different and its value was far greater.

This marks the first time in this Water Island battle that a regular army under the Humanoid Alliance has systematically annihilated a large monster army and recaptured a strategic location.

This sounded the first clarion call of the Humanoid Alliance's counterattack.

The following day, the Supreme Court and the Demon City Army Headquarters issued a special commendation order.

Codenamed Monkey King, he officially received the "Individual Special Grade Merit" and "First-Class Combat Hero" awards. The 7th Division received the "Collective First Grade Merit" award, the 7th Division Hidden Warriors Brigade received the "Collective First Grade Merit" award, and the main force attacking the Third Mine received the "Collective First Grade Merit" award.

Such instances of being rewarded the day after a battle are rare, but whenever they do occur, they are inevitably accompanied by the most difficult moments.

Every wartime hero is a shining star, illuminating an era.

When Chen Shouhu and Wang Boxiong received the news, their expressions were incredibly complicated.

On one hand, the two hoped that Zhou Leng would continue to hide and wait for the Grandmaster to exert his power, thus avoiding all interference.

On the other hand, seeing Zhou Leng rise to prominence, which he couldn't stop no matter how hard he tried, made him genuinely happy.

The special-grade merit and combat heroism are enough to protect Zhou Leng for a period of time.

Wang Boxiong made up his mind that after the battle of Shuizhou Demon City ended, he would keep Zhou Leng locked up in Xiantian Mountain and forbid him from leaving until he reached the Grandmaster level.

Chen Shouhu calculated Zhou Leng's age and muttered to himself.

"That little bastard is really lucky. He has a special-class merit and a first-class combat hero at such a young age. I had them at the same time, but I was five years older than him."

"Luckily, I suppressed the application for the Hundred Battles Hero, otherwise the Monster World would have gone crazy if another Hundred Battles Hero was added."

"For monsters, even if someone is a top-tier fighter or a first-class combat hero, it's still just a battlefield achievement. Someone might get lucky or accidentally gain merit."

“The Hundred Battles Hero is different; he has killed hundreds of Innate Realm experts and is a martial arts genius that they fear even more.”

"Barring any unforeseen circumstances, once this battle is over, with just a little more effort, he might be able to obtain the next level of Special-Class Combat Hero. The next step is the 'National Medal,' which is impossible to obtain in this battle. The next step is the highest level, the 'Great Dragon Merit,' which is impossible for anyone other than a Martial Saint."

"Furthermore, this kid's internal energy healing ability is so strong. When he advances to the Grandmaster level, we'll give him a 'Hua Tuo Medal'."

As Chen Shouhu spoke, he looked at the large map screen in front of him.

The bright red Tiger Hill Fortress stands out like a nail on the Shuizhou map, particularly glaring.

"Ten days, at most ten days..."

If Tiger Hill Fortress cannot be captured within ten days, the 7th Division and the Martial Arts Brigade will have to lead their troops to press forward.

He will personally travel to Tiger Hill Fortress.

At that time, the Shuizhou army will face its most difficult moment.

"This calamity-bringer always manages to grasp the key to the battlefield. Hmph, does he really think we humans will be led by the nose by him?"

Chen Shouhu shouted, "Pass down the order: whichever team captures Tiger Hill Fortress, I will apply for a 'Collective Special Merit' for that team!"

Zhou Leng returned to his camp outside Tiger Hill Fortress and rested for only half a day before volunteering to fight as a free warrior in the siege.

Zhou Leng requested a large number of steel spears, covering himself in dust and dirt to minimize his presence.

As the sun began to set, a siege team arrived outside the city walls under the cover of the siege magic cannons.

Looking up, behind the city wall, stood a huge black banner of calamity.

On the city walls, a large number of spellcasters and archers launched an attack.

Zhou Leng gripped the steel spear tightly and observed carefully.

(End of this chapter)