Irina sees how the 10 fireballs finally impact the ground, unleashing an explosion that manages to eliminate several dozens of skeletons with ease. According to her estimates, thanks to her sharp eyes, that alone destroys about 150 to 200 skeletons, but that is nothing compared to the tide that continues flowing like a breach from a broken dam.
Meanwhile, Feicui Long has the 45 golems and the 350 undead distributed following a certain pattern. Four of the stone golems, two of the wooden ones, and one earth golem accompany him at the front area along with some undead, while each formation also deploys 4 stone golems, 2 wooden ones, but the difference lies in the number of earth golems. In the rear formations, 4 are deployed per formation, and in the front left and front right, 3 per formation, while the undead are deployed evenly.
Feicui Long nods satisfied when the impacts on the formations begin again. When he activates his third eye to see in the dark, he finally understands the full tactic of his opponent…
On all four sides of the hill, another undead army of about 1500 troops emerges. This time it is completely different from the birds and skeletons, which are not a threat even in such enormous numbers, since all the birds are in elemental realm grade 1 and the skeletons of the mortal races in grades 1 to 3. None of them can pierce his body strengthened by external cultivation, much less his tough golems and undead, who are all at peak grade 4 of the mystic realm.
But this new army… is extremely well equipped. They possess armor and artifacts. There are about 200 halberdiers, 300 spearmen, 200 warriors, and 100 undead cavalry, while the ranged units and those attacking the formations include 150 mages, 100 elementalists, 75 spiritists, 75 psychics, 150 archers, and 150 energy riflemen.
Irina, who finally realizes what is happening, pales and says: "What the hell, that's a professional army!?"
Feicui Long tries to calm her by saying: "Don't worry Irina, no matter who they are, with that power they won't be able to overcome my improved golems and my enhanced undead."
Irina, still worried, says: "But young master… how will we face such a precise tactic? There are too many, 2800 skeletons, 5 thousand undead birds, and on top of that 1500 troops."
Feicui Long shakes his head, a bit confident now that he has understood the enemy's tactic: "The skeletons and birds aren't a danger. They can't harm me or my golems or undead. The troops are many, yes, but if you look, many, if not most, are in elemental realm grades 5 to 9, while only a few are in the mystic realm. Originally, I had prepared in case we encountered a mystic realm beast tide, so I strengthened them even more with inscriptions on their bodies, not to mention my best weapons."
Some skeletons advance running toward the second formation on the hill path, while others gather around the hill's rocky parts that are over 7 meters tall. Taking advantage of some lesser giants among them, a few climb up only to be destroyed by the formations or by golems hitting them or other undead.
Feicui Long looks at one of the undead next to him, a faun quite tall for his species, standing at 2.5 meters, muscular and with eyes lit by a blue soul flame. He has runes and other types of inscriptions glowing across his body and is at the peak of grade 4 of the mystic realm.
Irina is very confused and says: "How will that undead faun help us?"
Feicui Long smiles and says: "Do it, throw them now, show Irina the power of one of my most recent works."
The faun stretches his hand toward something like a giant quiver on his back, only there are no arrows there but javelins. Each javelin is polished with glowing inscriptions. Then, flexing his muscles and with his eyes glowing, he throws it at high speed, which, with a piercing sound and covered in energy, impacts the skeleton tide, instantly destroying about 30 to 50 skeletons just from the shockwave.
Irina is very surprised: "That… was that an artifact he fired?"
Feicui Long shakes his head: "That's just a pseudo-artifact. I made them based on the ones their tribe already had, I just modified them to be stronger."
Irina then looks at the undead and sees many fauns and lizardmen and says: "Did you wipe out a tribe of fauns?"
Feicui Long shakes his head again and sighs: "No, in fact I had already noticed them. During the time I was building the triple workshop before bringing you all, I went out to hunt 1000 energy creatures, mainly focusing on highly numerous energy beasts like ants or numerous monsters, minor gnolls and minor thralls or demons like minor imps. Even if it seems otherwise, I don't like killing unless necessary, nor do I like upsetting the balance of the system."
The undead army resembling a professional army continues launching attacks in large amounts, along with the remains of the 300 undead that arrived first. Each attack hits the formations and their barriers.
Irina begins shooting her bow a bit more calmly and says: "But then… why did you kill them?"
Feicui Long looks forward and with his energy rifle also starts shooting and says: "I've seen many fauns and I know they're among the few in the monster clan below the spiritual palace realm that have intelligence similar to humans, so I expected them to be peaceful, so I ignored them while hunting, but they attacked me first. I was very surprised, but I only killed that scouting group."
The skeletons finally reach the second formation on the slope, bursting into pieces as soon as they touch it, but that doesn't stop them. They hurl themselves at the maximum speed they can reach, not caring about anything.
Feicui Long, without stopping his attacks for a single moment, then adds and says: "But the most surprising thing is that despite leaving no trace or sign of what happened, I was attacked again without apparent reason after a full month. From there, I ignored them after killing them once I finally gathered everything I needed, but later when my nieces went out to hunt something for training, they were attacked. Angry, I searched for the tribe. It made no sense or reason for them to attack us."
Irina is also a bit curious, but even so, her bow doesn't stop firing ice arrows: "Was it because they were close?"
Feicui Long smiles ironically and answers: "I wish, but no. I never knew the reason. Their tribe was 10 kilometers away and I never stole their prey or attacked them. In fact, none of us knew the location of their village. In any case, I ended up following them and exterminating all the fighters."
Irina now a little worried says: "Did you leave any survivors? Aren't you afraid they'll attack us later?"
Feicui Long then switches to the mixed bow to save energy and says: "I don't like killing innocents either. Besides that, I didn't go directly to kill the fighters. I lured them outside and killed them myself, then sent the converted undead fighters to eliminate the remaining guards without being noticed and then I left. And even if they do realize, with the new troops we'll be able to eliminate them completely."
Each arrow fired by Feicui Long pierces a skeleton, killing it instantly, while the bones make the ones behind trip, slowing the attack for a few moments.
Irina feels more at ease and curiously says: "But where did the lizardmen come from?"
Feicui Long, while firing arrows, says: "Those? That's kind of a curious anecdote. They're slender lizardmen with round scales. Their tribe is 70 kilometers away according to my map, but even so I ran into a scouting group. They're quite aggressive despite being a very weak species of lizardmen in the monster clan."
Irina then nods and says: "Although that's not surprising, lizardmen in general are quite aggressive even against beings that can wipe them out."
Feicui Long smiles and, thinking about the current situation, looks at the battlefield and says: "We're the same too, only that we're lucky that I prepared against the energy beasts, because this tactic of wearing down the enemies with weaklings meant to be sacrificed so that the real army can finish them off would kill many armies."
Finally, it is the turn of the undead melee attackers to advance. They all form complex formations as if they were still alive. The spearmen and warriors advance first with their shields raised, while the cavalry, which carry shields and spears but also bows, surround the hill firing arrows.
Irina nods but then notices the emblem on their chests and her face pales even more than before. She seems about to faint and screams: "They're… They're the Frozen Wind Mercenary Group!"
Feicui Long, surprised, asks her: "You know them?"
Irina nods and replies almost as if she can no longer hide it: "It's a group from my homeland, the land of the sacred ice bear, Nóvgorod. Although it was a supposedly weak mercenary group, with their strongest cultivators in the earthly palace realm, they had more than 3500 troops and that's what made them stand out since they served to neutralize minor threats easily…"
Irina continues shooting while trembling: "But one day… they just disappeared while carrying out a very important contract for the prince of the principality… their disappearance disturbed the entire principality, especially the ruler, the prince, who had a good relationship with the group's leader and owner and recruited the mercenaries of the Ice Eagle… my mercenary group to search for them…"
The undead birds circle around the hill as if they were vultures, waiting for the chance to swoop in for carrion, although in this case, they're waiting for the opportunity to destroy another formation.
Feicui Long momentarily stops his attack and touches her shoulder, only to say: "It's okay, you can do it Irina, don't hold that inside you, because even though we've only known each other for 2 months, after you signed the pact, your burden is my burden."
Irina, struggling to hold herself together, says: "That contract… that damn contract… when we looked for them and finally found them they were all dead and now undead, emanating an aura that felt so familiar to me… if only I had realized sooner where that aura came from, maybe all the others would still be alive…"
Irina now trembles more than before from a mix of fear, rage, and sadness: "That damn aura, that aura was the same, the same one that annihilated my family, the one that wiped out the entire duchy of the golden ice eagle, and the same one that would take away my second family, because after we engaged in combat we were winning easily. They were numerous, but my adoptive father was in the spiritual palace realm, we were one of the strongest mercenary groups in this area…"
Feicui Long, with just that, already understands almost everything, but even so, he remains silent and lets Irina speak. He wants her to vent a little…
Irina keeps talking: "When the undead army had been reduced to half, then it appeared, ice giants resurrected as undead, undead ice ogres, undead ice trolls, even undead millennial ice mastodons came out. There were too many, so many that I couldn't count. My brother, my sister-in-law, my niece and I, who were among the weakest, were forced to retreat while my adoptive father stayed behind exploding his spiritual palace to give us a chance to escape, only to later be captured by those damn slavers…"