Great Wilderness Demon Lord

Wugu glanced at the battlefield out of the corner of his eye, his anger and resentment almost bursting forth.

He stared intently at Xiao Yunlan, whose breathing remained steady, knowing that he could not gain any advantage tonight, and that if he dragged it out any longer, his entire army might be wiped out.

"Yong Gou! You're lucky today!" Wugu squeezed out these words through gritted teeth, forcefully pushing Xiao Yunlan back half a step with his sword, and then let out a sharp whistle.

Upon hearing the news, the remaining elite Wolf Rong troops desperately tried to break free from the encirclement and retreated in disarray.

The cavalrymen who were there to provide cover charged forward and provided cover with mounted archery.

"No need to pursue them too far!" Xiao Yunlan stopped Zhao Meng and the others who wanted to give chase. "Strengthen the defenses and clean up the battlefield!"

The defenders stopped as ordered, and the archers unleashed several more volleys of arrows at the fleeing figures, leaving behind a few screams of agony.

Under the firelight, no fewer than fifty wolf-like corpses lay scattered inside and outside the trench in the southwest corner, most of them elite soldiers.

The defending troops also suffered more than 20 casualties, and the ambush area was littered with blood.

Under the desperate cover of his guards, Wugu leaped onto the giant wolf, turned back and glared fiercely at Xiao Yunlan, who stood tall amidst the corpses and flames. His eyes were as venomous as icy wolf fangs, before he disappeared into the darkness without looking back.

The night raid ended in a crushing defeat for the Wolf Rong.

Uncontrollable cheers erupted throughout the city, but were quickly silenced by the generals.

Xiao Yunlan leaned on his sword, slightly out of breath, watching the direction the wolf warriors had retreated, his face showing no joy.

They won this battle, but it was only a minor victory.

They killed dozens of enemies, but failed to capture or kill Wugu, let alone break the siege.

On the contrary, his direct confrontation with Wugu made him realize more clearly the extraordinary nature of his opponent.

If it weren't for the advantage of terrain, ambush, and a slight opening in the opponent's anger, the outcome of a one-on-one fight without using demonic powers would be unpredictable.

Moreover, after this defeat, Wugu will only become more vigilant, making it even more difficult to lure him again.

He turned to look at the soldiers who were beginning to clear the battlefield, at the silent prisoner camp in the darkness, and at the towering ice wall.

A cold wind carrying the stench of blood rushed towards us.

The road to breaking the deadlock is still long.

Tonight, on this path, only a small but solid step has been taken, stained with blood and calculated schemes. But where will the next step lead?

Deep within his dantian, the long-suppressed demonic flames seemed to stir slightly due to the intense battle and pervasive bloodshed.

Xiao Yunlan took a deep breath of the cold air and pressed them back into the depths.

-----------------

As dawn broke, the battlefield had been largely cleared.

The fifty-three wolf-like corpses were dragged to an open space away from the city walls, their armor and weapons were searched, and then they were doused with oil and set on fire.

The billowing black smoke tumbled in the gray-white sky of dawn, like a pillar of shame for the Wolf Barbarians' defeat that night, and also like a silent demonstration against the North Bank camp.

The bodies of the 21 fallen soldiers were carefully carried back and temporarily placed in a secluded spot that had been cleared, awaiting burial when conditions permit.

More than thirty people were injured, with varying degrees of injury. They had already been sent to the medical tent for treatment, their suppressed groans mingling with the smell of blood.

The southwest corner of the ice wall, where the battle raged most fiercely last night, bears the marks of knife cuts and axe blows, along with a large amount of splattered and congealed blood, which looks particularly gruesome in the morning light.

Zhao Meng was leading his men to clean and repair the surfaces using a mixture of snow water and ice shards. The clanging and banging of the hammering broke the silence following the fierce battle.

Xiao Yunlan did not rest.

He first inspected the medical tents, checked the condition of the wounded, and instructed the medical officers to do their best to treat them. He then looked at the remains of the fallen soldiers, remained silent for a moment, and said to Manager Wu, who was in charge of the matter, "Write down their names. The post-war compensation will be doubled, and my Xiao Family Chamber of Commerce will bear the full cost."

Manager Wu nodded in agreement, his eyes red-rimmed.

He then went to the prisoner-of-war camp.

The "performance" here last night and the subsequent strict control measures did not cause any real riots, but the tense atmosphere was still clearly perceptible.

The jackals huddled in the shack, most with empty eyes. Only a few were secretly watching Xiao Yunlan with complex expressions, including fear, numbness, and a faint hint of awe that they themselves might not even be aware of.

After all, they could hear the shouts and fires outside the city last night, and they could guess what was going on.

This young human general once again repelled the wolf-like barbarians.

Xiao Yunlan's gaze swept across the camp, lingering briefly on the faces of several jackal leaders who had participated in the "acting," before he nodded slightly to the scarred convict beside him.

Scarface understood and whispered, "Don't worry, Captain. The extra rations we promised them were secretly given before dawn. Nobody dared to say a word."

"Keep an eye on them." Xiao Yunlan said only four words before turning and leaving.

These prisoners are relatively safe now, but after this night, their assessment of the situation will likely be more desperate or confused, requiring closer monitoring.

Finally, he returned to the top floor of the bastion and looked out over the north bank.

There seemed to be some commotion in the Wolf Rong camp; figures could be seen running quickly, but there was no sign of them gathering and leaving the camp.

Wugu suffered a great loss and is now licking his wounds and trying to rebuild his morale.

In the short term, there are unlikely to be any major actions, but small-scale harassment and tighter blockades will probably follow.

"Captain." Zhao Meng came over after finishing his business on the wall. He looked tired, but his eyes were bright. "Last night's results have been tallied. Fifty-three enemies were killed, at least ten of whom were leaders of the Wolf Rong tribe at the level of a ten-man captain."

Thirty-seven intact scimitars, fifteen bows, hundreds of arrows, and a number of leather and iron armor pieces were seized.

Our side suffered 21 dead, 7 seriously wounded, and 24 lightly wounded. Our brothers inside the ambush area... lost 12.

He paused, then lowered his voice: "They're all skilled."

Xiao Yunlan remained silent.

Trading the lives of twelve elite veterans for over fifty elite Wolf Warriors might seem like a bargain, but in this isolated city, every veteran capable of fighting is incredibly precious.

This is a price that must be paid.

"The fallen brothers will be recorded for their merits at the highest level, and their compensation will be increased by 30%," Xiao Yunlan said slowly. "The seriously wounded will be treated to the best of their ability, and there is no need to skimp on the necessary medicines."

In addition, everyone who participated in the battle last night will receive a commendation and their rations will be temporarily restored to full for three days.

"Yes!" Zhao Meng replied, then hesitated for a moment before asking, "Captain, last night you fought with that Wugu..."

"He's very strong." Xiao Yunlan didn't hide anything. "His strength is astonishing, his swordsmanship is fierce, and his combat experience is extremely rich. If we hadn't taken the initiative in the ambush and disrupted his mind on the battlefield, the outcome of a one-on-one fight would have been unpredictable."

Zhao Meng's face showed worry: "Then what about later..."

"We'll talk about the future later," Xiao Yunlan interrupted him. "After this defeat, Wugu won't easily give us another chance to ambush us in the short term. But our predicament hasn't changed. Our food supplies are dwindling every day, and we remain cut off from the outside world."

He turned to Zhao Meng: "While cleaning up the battlefield, treating the wounded, and repairing the city walls, let the brothers get some rest. Also, starting today, send more sentries to keep an eye on the north bank, especially their routes and methods for transporting supplies and disposing of corpses. We need to know more."

"The captain is thinking..." Zhao Meng seemed to understand.