Chapter Six: The Surprise Attack on the Verdant Spearwood Tribe

"The gas grenades are really effective," Li Mingxing said excitedly after the battle. Once again, his poison had played a decisive role, paralyzing all the harpies for half an hour.

Yet, seeing Li Mingxing so pleased with himself, Aisha shook her head and replied, "That won't do. Actually, there are many magical ways to immobilize people as well. I took a look earlier—these harpies all had certain countermeasures prepared. If it weren’t for the unique nature of your poison, it’s likely they wouldn’t have been paralyzed for even a minute."

Hearing this, Li Mingxing realized he had been too careless. He thought about it and decided to drop the subject, instead asking about the situation with the harpies.

Aisha knew quite a bit about these matters. This time, Li Mingxing had used a mix of stealth and force to capture the harpy tribe.

There had originally been about five hundred harpies in the tribe. Of these, over two hundred refused to surrender—Li Mingxing killed some and imprisoned the rest.

Among the remaining harpies, there were about one hundred seventy white, melee-type harpies. The majority, around eighty, were first-tier in strength, about sixty were second-tier, and only thirty or so were third-tier. At last, a single fourth-tier harpy surrendered to Li Mingxing.

According to the harpies, this fourth-tier one, called a Harpy Matron, had just advanced in rank. Besides her skill with curved blades, her mastery over wind had reached level four (master rank). None in the tribe could match her speed, and she could even perform four consecutive aerial attacks in a short span—ordinary harpies could manage only one.

There were also one hundred thirty blue, magic-type harpies. About sixty were first-tier, fifty were second-tier, and fewer than twenty were third-tier. Yet, three fourth-tier Harpy Witches had joined Li Mingxing’s forces.

These Harpy Witches differed from the Harpy Matron; each had achieved level four control over lightning. Individually, they could cast a Lightning Spell in thirty seconds, but if they joined forces, they could unleash a Chain Lightning of devastating power.

Though Li Mingxing was uncertain of the loyalty of these new recruits, their presence had relieved his predicament of lacking troops.

With a temporary stronghold secured, Li Mingxing could now consider himself integrated into this alternate world. The next step was to use his three hundred-strong force to subdue all the neighboring tribes.

Naturally, his first target was the Greenlance Centaur tribe, who had previously attacked him. The tribe’s two strongest warriors—one had already fallen to Li Mingxing’s hand. With his current force, he might reap great rewards in assaulting them.

Most importantly, Li Mingxing learned from the harpies that a group of outsiders had recently arrived at the Greenlance tribe. He needed to find out who they were and what impact they might have on his plans.

At the same time, he wished to test his harpy modification plan, to see if the new weapons he’d equipped them with could yield even better results.

Because of these factors, conflict with the centaurs was inevitable. In preparation, Li Mingxing had the harpies hide all their unhatched eggs and temporarily abandon their settlement. Every harpy joined the war party, heading directly for the Greenlance Centaur tribe.

In the forest, news could travel fast. No sooner had Li Mingxing’s force taken flight than the Greenlance tribe learned of their approach, and they knew Li Mingxing was coming for them.

At this very moment in the Greenlance camp, the centaur chieftain was politely addressing a dwarf with a bushy red beard. “Honored guest, as you can see, it’s not that I’m unwilling to join you in Dragon City, but we are under attack right now. Once we’ve dealt with our immediate enemies, we can discuss this matter further. What do you think?”

The dwarf, towering in his own stocky way, casually hefted his giant axe and used its polished blade as a mirror to tidy his beard.

“It’s not that I disagree, but the orders from Dragon City are urgent. We’re already late setting out. You can’t expect the two great lords of Dragon City to wait too long, can you?”

“Honored guest, we have no choice. If we attempt to migrate now, the harpies will attack us from behind. None of us will reach Dragon City intact,” the centaur chieftain explained carefully.

“That’s not my concern. I know my friends have already led the unicorn herd away. If I can’t bring you back, that means I’ve failed. And if I fail, my death will not be an easy one. But before I die, I’ll make sure you all go down with me,” the dwarf replied, standing up as he spoke.

Behind him, over thirty stout dwarf warriors also rose to their feet. The killing intent radiating from them was palpable—these were not men to trifle with.

Confronted by this display and recalling Dragon City’s might, the centaur chieftain finally relented. “Very well, I’ll order preparations at once. But you must let us leave a force behind to guard against the harpies, and we must also take our ancestral totem with us. That is our final demand.”

The dwarf waved his hand dismissively. “So be it, but move quickly. If you keep our masters waiting, your days in Dragon City won’t be comfortable.”

With that, the dwarf hefted his axe and led his men outside—the centaur dwellings in the trees were hardly suited to dwarves. The houses, built high and large, swayed with every breeze, making it feel like being on a ship.

And dwarves, real or otherwise, were particularly sensitive to water—none would ever enjoy the sensation of sailing.

Once everything was arranged, the dwarf hurried down to the forest floor, watching the centaurs above leap about, preparing yet again for a great migration.

Just then, the dwarf heard a strange sound, though the foliage blocked his view. He could only hear a rapid “thud-thud-thud” from the trees, followed by the centaurs’ cries of pain.

It was then the dwarf realized the centaurs had spoken the truth—the harpies really were attacking.

The dwarf grew anxious. This centaur tribe was his responsibility, and if they perished, his mission would be a failure. He didn’t hesitate, but ran back into the centaur camp, axe in hand.

Clambering into the trees, he let out a cry: “Heavens! Are those really harpies? How do they have such weapons?”

Every harpy in the sky now wielded a tube—a simple blowgun, the most basic of ranged weapons.

This weapon was easy to make and simpler still to master. Anyone could learn the skill in no time, and with their control over the wind, harpies could quickly achieve precision strikes with blowguns.

Coating the darts with poison and carrying a large supply of projectiles, the harpies now possessed formidable ranged attack power.

Even when the centaur javelineers hurled their weapons at the harpies, the winged warriors could simply spin and dodge in midair. The battle had become hopelessly one-sided.

Seeing this, the dwarf shouted, “Chieftain of Greenlance, what are you waiting for? Run, unless you want your people to die!”

The centaur chieftain was just about to order a retreat when, from below, a voice rang out: “I can smell the woody scent of hill dwarves. Stone above, kill them all!”

The dwarf didn’t recognize the voice, but his warriors began shouting, “Duergar! How can there be duergar here? Brothers, take up your axes—let’s kill them!”

“No, you fools!” the dwarf leader bellowed, “Your orders are to stay with me!”

“Sir, we came here for battle, not to protect you. Don’t stop us from fighting our mortal enemies!” With that, the dwarf warriors leapt down from the tree.

But they met a hail of gunfire from Li Mingxing’s Dwarven Bombardiers. Under the aim of more than a dozen muskets, a third of the dwarves fell before they hit the ground.

After firing three rounds, the Bombardiers, as was their habit, tossed aside their muskets and prepared to charge with axes. At that moment, Li Mingxing’s Dwarven Sappers shouted, “This is none of your business now!”

The Sappers surged forward, but before they could engage, the Blackstone Champion, who had stood silently at Li Mingxing’s side, spoke up. “There’s a special unit of hill dwarves among them.”

“Oh?” Li Mingxing replied. “How confident are you against them? If you’re at least fifty percent sure, go ahead.”

Grinning, the Blackstone Champion hefted his battle-axe and charged into the fray.