Chapter 621: Ambush and Counterambush
Chapter 621: Ambush and Counterambush (Requesting Subscriptions, Favorites, and Votes)
Although James found Liam's arrangements a bit strange and wasn't entirely clear on their specific tactics, as a standard indigenous person of the Ferren World, he had ingrained the rules of following Mage or Paladin orders during battles. Therefore, he didn't continue to press for more information and instead quietly followed Liam's commands to complete his tasks.
As the night grew deeper, the movements of the four figures—three adults and one child—around the campfire became increasingly sluggish, as if they were falling asleep. Around three or four in the morning, a Black Shadow stealthily entered the camp. However, just as this Black Shadow approached the campfire, a transparent Barrier appeared before him, which he could not breakthrough.
The Warding Charm, a type of Magic, operates on principles vastly different from local Magic. As one of the few Rangers among the Orcs, this Black Shadow found that all the methods he had learned to disarm Magic Traps were ineffective against this particular Magic.
After emitting a long and two short crows' calls, four more Black Shadows emerged from the forest and joined him. After a brief discussion, one of them took out a scroll and released the Magic within it. Instantly, a bolt of Lightning struck the defensive Magic, shattering it.
At that very moment, several tents around the campfire discharged a flurry of Crossbow Bolts straight at the Black Shadows. Simultaneously, the figures by the fire released a dazzling light, and several prepared Magic spells flew toward the Orc Rangers. Caught between the crossfire, the five Orc Rangers were eliminated before they could react.
"Ugh." Suddenly, a horn sounded, and over twenty armored elite Orcs charged toward the camp from three directions, their eyes bloodshot. But just as they reached the campfire, the four figures by the fire suddenly fell forward into the flames, which instantly turned emerald green and exploded.
In an instant, the twenty or so elite Orc warriors were engulfed in green flames. The flames spread rapidly, turning them into green torches within seconds. As their bodies were consumed, the Orcs screamed and ran about, eventually collapsing and lying still.
This scene seemed to trigger something, and a loud noise erupted from the jungle, followed by a thunderous roar.
"Three warning Magics have been triggered in succession; they're coming fast", Liam's expression changed. Hearing the rapidly approaching sounds, Harper and James exchanged a worried glance, and Harper quickly said, "This must be Oberd himself in pursuit. The armored Orcs we just eliminated were his Guard."
"It seems he's discovered that the Siege Camp was a decoy", Liam raised an eyebrow. He had set up numerous traps in the Orcs' engineering camp, which had indeed deceived the Orcs trapped in the stronghold. However, those traps would have little effect on a master-level Orc Warrior like Oberd. Now, he had realized he was deceived.
"Hermione, have you found the Shaman's position?" Liam asked through the Phoenix Mark. When the group of elite Orcs charged in, Liam sensed that they had been bolstered by positive Spiritual Energy Magic. Orc tribes were known for their warriors, and casters were few. The only one who could accompany the Chief's guard and have command authority was the Shaman.
Considering that the twenty or so Orcs were the Chief's elite guard, it was easy to deduce that Chief Oberd had gone to the Siege Camp alone, while the remaining guard, led by the Shaman, attempted to ambush Liam and his team. However, they hadn't anticipated that Liam had set up a double trap, which ensnared all twenty elite warriors in one go.
Unlike the typically volatile nature of ordinary Orcs, the tribe's Shaman was often cunning and shrewd. For instance, this Shaman, upon the failed attack, realized that fleeing would expose him to Liam's forces. Instead, he quietly hid, waiting to regroup with the Chief and launch a counterattack.
Liam couldn't allow the Shaman and the Chieftain to meet and create trouble for him. Fortunately, after Hermione studied the power of death, she became extremely sensitive to the life around her. Soon, she detected the Shaman's position from the environment.
"There's an owl on the left pine tree. He's watching us", Hermione said through the Phoenix Mark. "This Transfiguration is similar to our Animagus form. Most people wouldn't notice anything amiss. But this Shaman probably doesn't know we deal with owls all the time. I immediately felt that this owl was a bit stiff, and upon closer inspection, it was indeed a human soul."
This was a flaw that only a Shaman would make. A Druid would never have such an issue. Now that the enemy's position was confirmed, Liam first contacted the Rose Crystal, then, under Hermione's cover, shot a Steel Dart embedded with an Opal, which carried an Instant Death Effect.
The Shaman, who had transformed into an owl to pass unnoticed, didn't expect a Mage to use such a physical method of attack. Caught off guard, he was directly hit in the chest by the Steel Dart. Even as a high-ranking caster, a Shaman's physical strength was not particularly strong, and especially in owl form, he was even more vulnerable. The Steel Dart's instant death magic was triggered, killing him on the spot. He then reverted to his original form and fell from the tree.
At that moment, the distant voice had already drawn near. Accompanied by a rustling sound, a towering Orc, over two meters tall, burst through the surrounding bushes and stood in the clearing that had previously been used as a campsite.
"Filthy scum, were you the ones who killed so many of my subordinates? Die!" The Orc Chieftain, upon seeing Liam and his companions, charged forward and launched an attack.
Hermione stepped forward and waved her hand, forming a shield of black mist to block the burning Flame Sword wielded by the Orc Chieftain. However, the black mist shield shattered like glass under the powerful force of the blow.
"An organic being reaching this level purely through physical strength", Hermione transmitted her surprise through the Phoenix Mark. Then, she tossed a palm-sized obsidian statue.
The obsidian statue expanded rapidly, soon transforming into a 12-foot-tall Troll. Unlike the Troll specimen that had been turned into a death puppet, this Troll Puppet had undergone a complete overhaul after Hermione received two Deathclaw Puppets from Liam.
This new Troll Puppet now had six arms. In addition to its original arms, it had grown two pairs of Deathclaw claws on its shoulders and ribs. Its originally flabby flesh had become as hard as the muscles of a Deathclaw.
The Troll Puppet was also clad in a layer of Valyrian Steel armor, and each of its original hands wielded a Mace.
The fully armed Troll immediately halted the Orc Chieftain's frenzied assault, giving Liam and the others the opportunity to launch their own attacks.
However, whether it was the plasma balls, black mist arrows, Crystal Shards, or Ranger Arrows, none of their attacks had any effect. After the smoke from the magic cleared, the Orc King was unharmed. An invisible Barrier surrounded his body, deflecting all the attacks.
This was a characteristic of warriors in this world. High-ranking warriors could resist low-level spells, and the Orc Chieftain, as a master warrior, could even withstand a direct Fireball Spell explosion.
"It looks like we need to bring out our true skills", Liam thought as he summoned Rose Madonna and activated its power. The others did their best to keep the Orc Chieftain occupied, giving Liam the time he needed to cast his spell.
(End of Chapter)
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