Chapter 598.5: When Yaya Conquered the Skies
The fierce assault by elite troops did not achieve the overwhelming breakthrough the Cole Elven commanders had expected.
They could never capture the walls on the frontlines, suffering heavy casualties.
In less than half an hour, more than 2,000 elite Cole Elves were lost.
The battles in the flanking forests were fierce but made no progress.
The painstakingly gathered golems and war puppets were destroyed before they could even reach the walls.
In a blink, the commanders found themselves out of options.
They could stubbornly continue the assault to wear down the enemy's numbers and stamina.
But faced with such heavy losses, they hesitated.
Eyeing the fierce fighting in the forests, the Cole Elven commanders decided to gamble again.
"All Extraordinary Rangers, attack the forests and secure the flanks to form a pincer!"
In response, the remaining 300-plus Extraordinary Rangers charged into the woods.
They had heard that a group of arrogant enemies had killed an Extraordinary Ranger scout team.
Outnumbering the enemy, they had no intention of letting them escape.
Hidden in the woods, Thorn coldly watched more Cole Elven elites enter and turned to the 500 Katachan Jungle Warriors ready behind him:
"Brothers, it's time to earn glory and wealth."
Every Katachan warrior's eyes burned with battle spirit.
Most of them had never fought as Bay Territory warriors before.
Months of training had greatly improved their strength, leaving them eager to prove themselves.
Other soldiers had plenty of battle opportunities; they had only training.
They enjoyed unprecedented supplies,
No longer risking death in deadly twisted jungles just to survive.
Nor using primitive weapons that couldn't penetrate enemy armor.
They now had customized enchanted weapons and equipment.
They freely learned any combat skills, ate magic-infused food, and rapidly grew stronger.
But this "unearned" prosperity wasn't as satisfying as they had imagined.
They craved real battle, to fight for the territory's future.
Now, the opportunity had come!
Under the lead of dozens of powerful Katachan modified warriors,
They split into over ten squads.
And charged toward the Cole Elves besieging the Earth Dragons.
Thorn silently observed the wounded Earth Dragons, estimating how much longer they could last.
Beside him, Dale had already targeted a suspicious Cole Elven Ranger.
He noticed something odd about this enemy.
Though chased by Earth Dragons, he never fell into real danger, keeping a perfect distance.
Whether by luck or skill, such an opponent had to be eliminated quickly!
As two besieged Earth Dragons collapsed screaming,
The rest entered a berserk frenzy.
Thorn waved his hand, giving the attack order and diving into the thorny underbrush.
Bang! Bang! Bang!
Dozens of magic muskets, each worth over 2,000 gold coins, spat fire simultaneously.
Spinning bullets flew out, hitting 80% of their targets.
Their ordinary enchanted armor could not block the extraordinary-level bullets, leaving bloody wounds.
Well-prepared Extraordinary Rangers dodged the volleys successfully.
Though fast, the bullets couldn't hit their ultra-quick reactions.
Excited, they whistled to signal a counterattack.
Over a hundred Extraordinary Rangers charged toward the gunfire.
Even while running, they displayed superb archery skills.
They showcased the full flexibility and talent of the Cole Elves.
But just when they thought the enemy would flee, another volley of gunfire rang out.
The frontmost dozen Extraordinary Rangers screamed and fell, bleeding heavily.
Others immediately slowed down, trying to climb nearby trees.
Thorn burst from the bushes, stabbing a heavy hunting knife into a Ranger's chest.
The ambush was too sudden; the stabbed Ranger was still mid-climb.
His strength drained instantly.
Crack!
A hand grabbed and twisted his neck.
His body collapsed, finally alerting nearby Rangers, who roared and attacked Thorn.
Undaunted, Thorn swung his hunting knife at three charging Rangers.
Clang!
Ding!
After the clash of blades,
The Rangers stepped back, hands trembling from the shock.
Before others could rush in, Katachan warriors burst from trees and bushes.
They had already spotted the enemy's weakness: lack of physical toughness and fearless spirit.
Feeling underestimated, the Extraordinary Rangers fought angrily.
The battle was fierce and fast.
But within moments, the outcome was clear.
Over 30 Extraordinary Rangers fell in the first exchange.
Nearly all Katachan warriors were wounded.
The remaining Rangers realized they were fighting lunatics and monsters.
The Katachans ignored pain and charged madly, trading blood for blood, life for life.
Noble and graceful Cole Elves
Could never match the life-and-death ferocity of Katachans.
They hesitated for a heartbeat—and that hesitation cost them their lives.
The strong, reckless Katachans lived!
The weaker, hesitant Extraordinary Rangers died!
Especially horrifying were the wounded Katachans, with swords and arrows still lodged in their bodies, grinning madly as they charged.
Many Rangers fled.
Some kept fighting, but most ran.
Close-quarters slaughter left them disoriented, desperate to survive.
Outnumbered and demoralized, the Rangers fell apart.
The victorious Katachans didn't even bother finishing off the remaining surrounded 20 Rangers.
Calmly, they raised their second magic muskets.
Facing black gun barrels and seeing their comrades fleeing, the remaining Rangers surrendered.
Similar battles elsewhere ended the same way.
Thus, the first 10,000-strong Cole Elven clearing force lost all their Extraordinary Rangers.
They either died, were captured, or lost the will to fight.
Logically, they shouldn't have crumbled so easily.
But repeated defeats, heavy losses,
And the psychological pressure of the Scarlet Moon's influence,
Left them broken.
Facing the top jungle fighters, the Katachans,
In their most confident domain, they were crushed.
Demoralized and helpless, they couldn't recover.
The elite clearing force continued attacking for half an hour before Tigris withdrew them in disgust.
Over 4,000 elite Cole Elves had fallen, causing widespread panic.
That 1,000 Bay Territory soldiers could do such damage was unimaginable.
Gritting his teeth, Tigris realized if he didn't break the first few blockade lines soon,
He would face dozens more.
Without hesitation, he sent in two more clearing forces!
As they advanced under cannon and crossbow fire,
Yaya swooped down from the clouds, baring a savage grin.
Deep breath!
"Roar...!"
Devastating flames blasted down the slope.
Splitting the advancing army in half.
Over 500 Cole Elves were burned to ash, and their scattered counterattacks couldn't touch the swift Yaya.
The clearing forces pressed on stubbornly.
Then, fireballs rained from the sky.
Boom!
Boom boom!
Explosive fireballs wreaked havoc, killing ten or more elves at a time.
Patiently waving his staff, Matthew, overflowing with mana, unleashed endless spells for revenge.
After her successful raid, Yaya didn't dive recklessly.
She targeted the airborne griffon riders.
Though brave, the griffons were no match for her.
With a swipe, Yaya snatched them out of the sky.
Their claws and beaks couldn't even scratch her.
The griffon riders no longer dared to ascend, ceding the skies to Yaya.
With total air superiority,
Yaya seized the chance.
Using a simple, cost-effective tactic,
She made the Cole Elves suffer.
Grabbing anti-gravity enchanted containers,
She flew hundreds of meters above them.
Opened the container doors.
And dumped deadly "weapons."
Stones!
That's right!
Over ten tons of stones rained down.
Even prepared, the elves couldn't avoid them.
Under gravity, even a fist-sized stone could kill.
Let alone stones weighing dozens of pounds.
Many unlucky elves had their skulls smashed.
Others lay groaning, maimed.
Chaos erupted among the Cole Elves.
Hearing over 40 kill notifications, Matthew smiled brightly and signaled Yaya to continue.
It was cheap, effective,
And risk-free.
No better way to kill!
Yaya could reach any spot in seconds.
Dropping stones never bored her.
"Killing one elf yields weapons and armor worth 80–300 gold."
"A container of stones costs less than ten black breads to feed ogre and goblin handlers."
"Thousands-fold profit ratio!"
"What's wrong with throwing stones?"
"Even hundreds of thousands of Cole Elves can't stop it!"
"Pocket money, bounty savings, morale crushing—all in one!"
Yaya's plan was flawless!
The Cole Elves fell into chaos under her bombardment.
Even magical shields could only protect a few.
Most soldiers ran in panic.
The army began to collapse.
Watching Yaya from afar, Tigris and Councilor Kaledor showed despair.
The retreat was truly becoming a rout!