As the first rays of sunlight shone on the earth, the people of Muxi City, still fast asleep, were awakened by the shaking of the ground and a low murmur.
People pushed open their doors, went out into the streets, and, in unease and panic, turned their gaze toward the east of the city.
There, dark clouds covered the entire sky, gradually blocking out the light coming from above.
Some sharp-eyed people climbed onto their rooftops and looked into the distance. They were so frightened by what they saw that they fell to the ground and screamed.
"That's not a dark cloud, it's a necromancer!"
Tens of thousands of undead birds and bats gathered together and flew over Twilight City, like a giant black tornado, swirling and circling endlessly. The scene was as terrifying as the end of the world.
The city's towers sounded alarm bells, a signal ordering everyone to take shelter indoors.
Just as the people on the street were scattering in all directions, a black whirlwind made of undead birds suddenly swooped down onto the main street of the city, pulling several people who couldn't escape in time into the air.
Blood rained down on the ground, and the screams were chilling.
In just a few seconds, the victim's remains were completely devoured, leaving only bare bones scattered on the street.
A long, drawn-out horn sounded from the city, and squads of elven Crusaders ascended to the top of the city tower.
One after another, pale blue water balloons flew out of the tower windows and rose into the city sky.
Just as the water sphere reached its highest point, clusters of fireballs followed closely behind, shattering the water sphere and turning it into thick fog that enveloped a large part of the city.
The undead birds entered the fog and, like mosquitoes encountering poison, fell from the sky, scattering all over the streets.
Holding binoculars, Cumberland stood on the eastern defensive line, observing everything in the city. He said to his adjutant, "Order the garrison to cease their attack. The vaccine concentrate is extremely precious; not a single drop can be wasted."
After the adjutant relayed the order using the honeycomb on the dragonbone armor, he said to Cumberland, "My lord, the flying undead have arrived, which means the undead horde on the ground won't be far behind."
Cumberland nodded and said, "Raise the alert level and have the Thunder Beasts reach the designated combat location."
One hour later.
A thick, dark shadow appeared on the eastern horizon of Muxi City.
These shadows grew larger and thicker.
As the shadows slowly approached, everyone realized that the entire mountainside was filled with undead.
Humans, livestock, and wild beasts—these undead, though covered in parasites, still retain a semblance of their original forms.
There are also some strange undead that use parasitic limbs as the skeleton of their constructs, assembling all sorts of severed limbs and flesh onto their bodies, making them look like a group of monsters that have returned from hell from a distance.
The three thousand knights of the Twilight Knights, riding exotic warhorses, stood in neat rows at the forefront of the defensive line.
Behind them was a temporary central formation made up of nine hundred Crusader soldiers and ten thousand Holy Guard City and Silver Ring City soldiers.
Further on were the reserve forces, composed of militia and cultists, and the support troops consisting of war beasts.
This is all the troops that the eastern defense line of Muxi City can send.
Cumberland clearly understood that today's battle was crucial to boosting morale and stabilizing the defensive line, and it concerned the success or failure of the entire battle.
Using his Eagle Eye ability, the adjutant scanned the battlefield and whispered to Cumberland, "Sir, previous intelligence indicated there were 300,000 undead. It seems that number was underestimated."
Cumberland sighed, a rare occurrence for him: "At this point, whether the enemy has ten thousand more or less troops doesn't make much difference... What worries me more is that something seems off about the other side."
Something's not right?
Upon hearing this, the adjutant turned back to look at the battlefield. Looking at the overwhelming undead in the distance, he did sense that something was amiss, but he couldn't quite put his finger on it.
Cumberland provided the answer: "These undead are too quiet."
The adjutant was taken aback: "Quiet?"
Cumberland: "In the previous battles, the undead were like a pack of mindless beasts that only knew how to kill. But now that they've discovered us, they haven't immediately charged. Don't you find that strange?"
The adjutant realized what was happening: "Now that you mention it, it does seem a bit..."
Cumberland recalled the strange phenomena of the past few days: the disappearance of the dragon god, the rise of the giant tower, and the abnormality of heaven and earth. His unease grew stronger.
Just as he was deep in thought, the horde of undead began to move.
Two undead armies, composed of beasts and animals, numbering around 50,000 in total, split off from the left and right flanks of the horde of corpses. Taking advantage of their speed, they maneuvered around to the flanks of the battlefield, forming a triangular formation with the central horde of corpses, thus trapping the forces of Muxi City.
Upon seeing this, the adjutant's eyes widened in shock.
Cumberland frowned and muttered, "I guessed right, there is indeed someone controlling these undead."
Faced with three interlocking undead armies, the adjutant panicked: "Sir, shouldn't we retreat behind the city walls?"
Cumberland glared at his adjutant: "Idiot! Look at the troop types and troop strength comparisons before you speak!"
"Retreating to the city walls means abandoning our greatest advantage—cavalry—and engaging in a pointless stalemate. In this situation, offense is the best defense... Issue the order: the entire Knights will move out, targeting the undead vanguard on the left flank!"
Seconds later, the Knights of Twilight sounded their horns to advance.
Three thousand knights, clad in dragon bones and riding exotic warhorses, charged at lightning speed toward the undead vanguard, which was more than ten kilometers away.
Faced with the undead army composed of beasts, the knights formed a triangular wedge formation, and with their immense impact, they completely pierced through the undead's formation in a single charge.
Watching the parasite-infested beasts being sent flying through the air by the iron hooves of warhorses, Cumberland turned his gaze to the central formation of the undead horde.
A considerable commotion broke out among the horde of undead, with some breaking away from the main force and attempting to attack the cavalry.
But soon, the undead that had broken away from the central formation were like hyenas on a leash, forcibly pulled back into the horde of corpses.
Ignoring the knights who were repeatedly attacking the vanguard of the undead, the main force of the undead horde began to advance rapidly towards the city walls.
Cumberland put away his binoculars: "Whoever is controlling these undead, this person may not have commanded an army much, but at least he's not an idiot."
Cumberland turned to his adjutant: "Pass down the order: all cavalry units, after scattering the enemy vanguard, must not linger. Take a short rest, then outflank the enemy's rear!"
Gazing at the undead army surging in like a tsunami from afar, Cumberland once again ordered: "Central formation, prepare to withstand the impact! Thunder Beasts, take your positions!"
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