If I made you cannon fodder, how did you manage to achieve your goal of conquering the wolf's l

In the open space in the center of Blackstone Castle, amidst the wind and snow, the firelight flickered.

Zorlu, the centurion of the Black Wolf tribe, had his hand on the hilt of his sword, his eyes scanning the inner gate of the fortress ahead with a sinister look.

He was extremely burly, like an upright bear, and was covered in heavy, cold-forged iron armor. A polished cast iron breastplate on his chest gleamed with a cold light in the firelight.

Around him, a large number of elite barbarian troops were gathering, with dozens of barbarian soldiers carrying thick battering rams on their shoulders, preparing to launch a final assault on the inner fortress.

"Uri wa la!" Zhuo Lu urged impatiently in a barbarian language.

Just then, a sharp whooshing sound suddenly came from the dark alleyway on the west side of the open space.

Whoosh!Whoosh!Whoosh!

More than a dozen arrows shot out from the darkness and pierced directly into the ranks of the barbarian soldiers on the outer perimeter.

Several barbarian soldiers carrying torches were caught off guard and shot through the throat and chest, falling to the ground with screams.

"Enemy attack!"

The barbarian camp was instantly thrown into turmoil. Zhuo Lu turned his head sharply, his wolf-like eyes fixed on the alleyway to the west.

In the darkness, Xiao Hongluan calmly issued orders, holding a standard military bow she had taken for granted in one hand.

"Change crossbows and fire another volley!"

The twenty remaining soldiers of the Great Qian Dynasty behind him immediately raised their crossbows and bows and fired another volley at the barbarians in the light.

These remnants of the army had crawled out of piles of corpses, and their hearts were burning with rage. The arrows they fired were fierce and venomous, and several more barbarian soldiers fell to the ground.

Zhuo Lu was furious.

The outer walls of Blackstone Fortress had clearly been breached, and the defenders of Daqian had long since scattered like birds and beasts. How could there possibly be any organized forces that would dare to launch an attack?

"Kill them all!" Zhuo Lu drew his heavy curved sword from his waist and swung it forward.

More than thirty barbarian heavy infantrymen who were originally preparing to ram the door immediately changed direction, raised their tower shields, and charged towards the west alley entrance like a pack of mad beasts.

"withdraw!"

Having achieved her goal, Xiao Hongluan showed no reluctance to continue the fight and decisively ordered a retreat.

She led her team and quickly disappeared into the intricate network of abandoned houses.

These remnants of the Great Qian army, with their absolute familiarity with the terrain of Black Stone Fortress, were as slippery as eels. The barbarian soldiers, relying on their heavy armor and brute strength, pursued them too closely. As soon as they rushed into the alley, the first few stepped on the iron caltrops buried in the snow and fell to the ground with screams.

Before the barbarian soldiers could even stop, several thick logs suddenly rolled down from the collapsed walls on both sides, instantly throwing the pursuing troops into chaos. From behind the ruins, stray arrows shot out from time to time were like deadly venomous snakes, specifically targeting the unarmored necks and faces of the barbarian soldiers.

In an instant, the shouts of battle echoed through the alleyways on the west side. More than thirty heavily armored barbarian soldiers were firmly trapped in the complex terrain of the residential buildings, successfully diverting most of the attention of the main barbarian force.

Meanwhile, on the other side of the open space...

Like a ghost blending into the night, Xu Qingshan, along with Tie Niu, Zhou Laoqi, and others, silently made their way to a half-collapsed earthen wall less than thirty steps from Zhuo Lu.

"Sergeant, that guy wearing the wolf-tail helmet should be the commander-in-chief." Zhou Laoqi lowered his voice and pointed to Zhuo Lu, who was standing by the brazier cursing. "This guy is wearing heavy armor; ordinary arrows can't penetrate it at all."

Xu Qingshan narrowed his eyes, scrutinizing Centurion Zhuo Lu's defenses.

The cold-forged iron armor covered his vital points, and the cast iron breastplate was exceptionally sturdy.

If you try to shoot him with a strong bow from a distance, he will most likely be deflected. If he misses, the dozen or so guards around Zhuo Lu will immediately surround him like an iron barrel.

"If the powerful bow won't work, then we'll use the crossbow."

Xu Qingshan untied the powerful bow from his back and handed it to Tie Niu behind him. He then pulled out the simple crossbow that Bai Zhi had made overnight from his waist.

Although this crossbow has a rough design, its mechanism is made by forcibly tightening old arrowheads and thick hemp rope, resulting in an astonishing tension, making it specifically designed for close-range armor penetration.

A short iron arrow, sharpened to an extremely sharp point, was already placed in the crossbow hopper.

"You all wait here. No one is allowed to show their face without my order."

Xu Qingshan gave a brief instruction, then moved slowly outwards, his body pressed against the snow.

Thirty steps.

Twenty steps.

Just as Xu Qingshan approached a dilapidated car about fifteen steps away, an unexpected incident occurred.

A barbarian soldier, seemingly unable to withstand the cold wind, was cursing and carrying a scimitar when he walked towards the dilapidated cart, intending to use the cart floor to shield himself from the wind and relieve himself.

The barbarian soldier had just unbuckled his belt when he looked down and, in the dim light of the snow, suddenly met a pair of cold, indifferent eyes.

"Well--"

The barbarian's pupils contracted, and just as he was about to shout, Xu Qingshan, like a snow leopard suddenly leaping up, reached out with his left hand and forcefully covered his mouth and nose. At the same time, his right hand, holding a woodcutter's knife upside down, viciously pierced through the man's jaw from bottom to top, penetrating straight into his brain.

The entire action was completed within half a breath, without making a sound.

Xu Qingshan used both hands to slowly drag the heavy corpse into the shadows under the car, then casually pulled out a wood-chopping knife, not even letting the blood on the blade drip onto the snow outside.

He took a deep breath, adjusted his breathing, and continued to press forward.

At this moment, Zhuo Lu was distracted by the screams coming from the alleyway on the west side. Half of his troops were tied down, and the progress of ramming the door was forced to stop.

"Useless! Can't even catch a few dozen two-legged sheep!"

Zhuo Lu roared, turned around, and strode toward the brazier, preparing to personally supervise the battle on the west side.

Ten steps.

It's now!

Xu Qingshan suddenly straightened up from behind an old, abandoned wheelbarrow.

His eyes were cold, his arm was held straight, and the simple crossbow was raised to chest level, the muzzle locked directly onto the breastplate on Zhuo Lu's chest.

Pull the trigger.

collapse!

A crisp sound of a bowstring being plucked rang out in the wind and snow.

Because of the close proximity, the crossbow bolts traveled at extreme speeds.

Zhuo Lu only felt a faint killing intent coming from his side, and before he could even turn his head to check, the short iron arrow had already struck his chest.

Click!

The sound of metal shattering clearly reached everyone's ears.

The iron breastplate, strong enough to withstand sword and blade strikes, shattered instantly like a fragile shard of ice under the terrifying penetrating power of a crossbow at close range!

The powerful impact carried the short arrow directly into Zhuo Lu's breastplate, embedding it deep into his flesh.

"Ugh!"

Zhuo Lu let out a painful groan, his burly body being shaken back three steps. He stomped on the brazier behind him, shattering embers and sparks that flew everywhere.

He covered his chest with both hands, and warm blood immediately seeped out between his fingers.

"Protect the centurion!"

Zhuo Lu's dozen or so guards were shocked and drew their scimitars, roaring as they rushed towards Xu Qingshan.

The two barbarian guards at the forefront attacked with their twin swords, creating a net of blades that completely blocked Xu Qingshan's escape routes to the left and right.

Xu Qingshan struck successfully but did not retreat.

This crossbow can only fire one arrow. Although the breastplate was broken, it did not kill the target instantly. If they retreated, it would be extremely difficult to find another opportunity to behead the victim.

Facing the two blades coming at him, Xu Qingshan's eyes turned cold, and he quickly drew the steel curved knife from his waist with his right hand.

The muscle memory brought about by his intermediate-level swordsmanship erupted instantly. Instead of retreating, he took a step forward, narrowly avoiding the blade. In that instant, his curved sword drew a sharp arc, severing the Achilles tendon of the barbarian soldier on the left.

As the barbarian soldier screamed and fell to the ground, Xu Qingshan took the opportunity to kick him in the back, using his massive body as a human shield to slam him hard into the barbarian soldier on his right.

"Seventh Brother, Iron Ox! Stop the rest!"

With a loud shout, more than a dozen veterans, including Tie Niu and Zhou Laoqi, who had been hiding in the shadows, charged out like tigers descending a mountain.

"kill!"

Tie Niu brandished the captured battle axe, cleaving back a barbarian soldier along with his shield with a single blow. Zhou Laoqi and the others also pounced into the formation like wolves and tigers, directly intercepting the barbarian guards who were trying to return to their aid. The two sides instantly clashed.

The open space, where flames danced, was cleared away by human hands, leaving only Xu Qingshan and the injured Zhuo Lu.

Zhuo Lu snapped the arrow in his chest, his eyes twitching with pain.

He stared intently at the young man in front of him, who was wearing an old military uniform from the Great Qian Dynasty, a bloodthirsty glint in his eyes.

"You two-legged sheep who's courting death, I'm going to tear you apart!"

Zhuo Lu roared, wielding the incredibly heavy battle axe with one hand, and brought it down on Xu Qingshan's head like a mountain crashing down.

A strong wind swept across their faces, and even the snow on the ground was forced to scatter in all directions by the pressure of this axe blow.

Xu Qingshan did not choose to avoid the attack; the surging blood and energy accumulated in his body due to the repeated killings suddenly erupted at this moment.

Instead of retreating, they're advancing!

Xu Qingshan met the trajectory of the battle axe, suddenly exerted force with his feet, and his figure was like a lightning bolt that cut through the wind and snow, directly crashing into Zhuo Lu's iron tower-like body.

Blades clashed, blood was drawn and throats were sealed.