Chapter 573 - Bombarding the Edgarton Stronghold

Asskickers United sharpened their swords. The trebuchets sent Alliance of Mages’ forces into a panic. This was their first time seeing this kind of siege weapons, which towered over the Armoured Ice Catapults. Their destructive power probably wasn’t any weaker either.

The Armoured Ice Catapults had already caused them enough suffering. Now trebuchets were added into the mix. They felt extremely depressed.

In front of these giant trebuchets, the thick walls of the Edgarton Stronghold had become their graves.

「Boss, everything is ready!」

「We’re just waiting for your go-ahead!」

「Those bastards from Alliance of Mages! From the moment we entered Moonlight City, they’ve been hiding in their stronghold. They think they’ll be fine if they just keep turtling? What a bunch of idiots!」

「I’m really glad we have Nirvana Flame as our boss. No matter what, he will never let us suffer unnecessary losses. Or turn us into practice dummies for the enemy’s catapults like those idiots hiding in their stronghold over there!」

Seeing the preparations were complete, Nie Yan messaged Bladelight,「You guys can begin.」

「Good! Those are exactly the words I’ve been waiting for!」Bladelight responded to Nie Yan. He then shouted in the group chat,「Brothers, let the battle begin! Today we’ll flatten the Edgarton Stronghold! Open fire!」

「Flatten the Edgarton Stronghold!」The guild chat exploded with battle cries. As soon as they heard the battle was beginning, their excitement rose to a zenith.

After Bladelight gave the command, the six trebuchets fired all at once. One boulder after another drew large arcs in the sky, travelling over 2,000 meters, and fell toward the Edgarton Stronghold.

「My god! What kind of attack range is this!」the players from Alliance of Mages cursed after seeing the boulders flying their way.

“Divine Flame, what do we do?” Crazy Magic anxiously asked. Staying inside the Edgarton Stronghold meant certain doom, and charging outside was also the same. The only path ahead of them was death.

“How the hell should I know!? I should be the one asking you!” Divine Flame replied in a depressed tone. Asskickers United’s long ranged firepower was too fierce. They would lose at least 80% of their forces charging through this no man’s land. By the time they arrived in front of Asskickers United’s forces, they would have no manpower left to fight!

At this time, six boulders flew into the Edgarton Stronghold!

「Boom! Boom! Boom!」After crashing into the Edgarton Stronghold, these boulders continued rolling forward, destroying countless buildings. Some unlucky players happened to be in their path and were crushed into meat patties.

The interior of the Edgarton Stronghold was transformed into ruins. The craters left by the boulders extended far into the distance.

Beside the six trebuchets, the players of Asskickers United were hard at work.

“Our aim was too high just now. Lower the power by one notch. Adjust the trajectory for Trebuchet #6 by 12° west,” Smoke Stub directed.

Everyone was worried the trebuchets’ range would be too short before, so they set the power to the highest. Who could’ve known that they would be so powerful. In an instant, the boulders landed inside the Edgarton Stronghold. Their target was actually the catapults on the walls. As long as the catapults were destroyed, their own catapults could advance forward. Under Smoke Stub’s orders, they adjusted the trajectory of the trebuchets.

Groups of three Warriors hurriedly carried more boulders over.

Shortly after the payloads were loaded, the trebuchets were launched again. Another six boulders flew through the air, heading straight for the Edgarton Stronghold.

“Get the boulders here faster. Team #3, pay more attention when adjusting the trajectory! Pay more attention to your aim before launching!” Smoke Stub shouted in an imposing tone. Under his orders, they worked meticulously, not daring to dally in the slightest.

Battered continuously, large chunks of rock broke off from the walls of the Edgarton Stronghold.

Crazy Magic glanced back, only to see rising flames and scattered ruins. He couldn’t even begin to estimate their losses. He had invested a ton of money to build up the Edgarton Stronghold. Seeing his hard work destroyed, he felt like pieces of flesh were being carved out from his heart.

“We only have two options,” Divine Flame said. Just as these words left his mouth, a boulder crashed into a nearby catapult, sending wood splinters flying out.

The Armoured Catapults which had dominated the battlefield so far were like straw structures in front of the trebuchets.

After several rounds of bombardments, only five out of the 11 Armoured Catapults remained standing on the Edgarton Stronghold’s walls. Of those five, three had taken heavy damage.

Crazy Magic ducked his head low to avoid the flying splinters. “What two options?” he shouted. The bombardments from the trebuchets were too loud.

“One, we abandon the Edgarton Stronghold and retreat back to Moonlight City. There we can take our time to think about our next move. As long as our forces are still intact, there’s still hope,” Divine Flame said.

“Never! I absolutely won’t abandon the Edgarton Stronghold!” Crazy Magic instantly shot that idea down. Their foundation in Moonlight City would be gone once the Edgarton Stronghold was seized. The guild would fall by at least two levels, and they would become stray dogs. Who knew how many players would leave. At that time, whether or not Alliance of Mages could continue to exist would be up in the air. Cao Xu might even force them to assimilate into Divine Protectors. If he suffered this kind of humiliation, he would never find the face to raise his head again.

Hearing Crazy Magic’s refusal, Divine Flame wasn’t the least bit surprised.

“What’s the second option?” Crazy Magic asked.

“We gather everyone and have a final showdown with Asskickers United, right here. Anything is better than taking this beating lying down!” Divine Flame replied.

After turtling for so long, many players from Alliance of Mages were fed up. The guild chat was flooding with complaints.

“What the hell!? Are we going to fight or what? If we’re just going to keep letting ourselves get bombarded by those trebuchets, I’m leaving the guild!”

Several players suddenly withdrew from Alliance of Mages.

“Motherfuckers! Note down the names of all those who left the guild. All those who withdraw right now, don’t blame me for coming for your heads later!” Crazy Magic cursed.

The dissent in the guild chat was silenced for the time being. Crazy Magic knew he had no choice. He gritted his teeth. “Fine if you all want a fight, I’ll give you one!”

「Everyone, listen well! This is a life or death crisis for Alliance of Mages. If we win, I’ll compensate each person fully for their losses. For every enemy you kill, I’ll reward you 100 gold. I, Crazy Magic, am a man of my word! As for those who try to leave at this time, don’t blame me for being impolite in the future. Heed my commands. We’re going to slaughter our way out!」Crazy Magic shouted. He had picked this move up from Nie Yan. One had to be brave in desperate straits. If he still wasn’t willing to make some sacrifices at this time, Alliance of Mages was done for. Even though he was fully aware he would be breaking the bank in the event they won, he still pushed through.

Crazy Magic’s words were ironclad. As soon as he gave out his orders, Alliance of Mages immediately began mobilizing.

Divine Flame passed down the orders to cooperate fully with Alliance of Mages to the players of Divine Protectors. Once Alliance of Mages fell, Divine Protectors would be next. They naturally had to give it their all.

Asskickers United’s six trebuchets launched one boulder after another. These boulders arced through the sky and crashed into various places. Some landed inside the Edgarton Stronghold while others fell just short. Still others were a bit more accurate and struck the walls, instantly killing several dozen players.

In the beginning, the players operating the trebuchets weren’t very experienced, constantly aiming short or wide. Every round of boulders landed more accurately though, as they quickly learned how to work these machines. At their hands, the Edgarton Stronghold was reduced to a pitiful state.

The might of the trebuchets left Asskickers United’s players awestruck. The Edgarton Stronghold shook and moaned under the bombardments.

Alliance of Mages’ casualties had already breached 6,000. Meanwhile, Asskickers United still hadn’t suffered any losses.

The trebuchets were quite amazing. You could hit the enemy, but the enemy couldn’t hit you.

At this moment, various places received word that Crazy Magic was having all of Alliance of Mages converge on the Edgarton Stronghold. The 700,000-player army was finally making their move.

Bladelight, Smoke Stub, and the others also received this news.

Bladelight immediately passed this news to the commanders below him, telling them to prepare for battle!

Their army of 300,000 players was a hodgepodge of various powers from Holy Empire, Radiant Sacred Flame, Sapphire Shrine, the War God Tribe, Battle Crazed Alliance, and Asskickers United’s five branch guilds. Asskickers United’s main forces were naturally unperturbed, but the forces from the other guilds were much weaker.

The enemy comprised 700,000 players. They were outnumbered more than two to one!

This was going to be a tough battle. Once the spells started flying, Asskickers United could rely on one thing, and that was their Armoured Ice Catapults!

The other commanders of this battle were Sleepy Fox, Nightbreak Trickster, Fa Lan, and the others. They had the experience of commanding their own guilds. Their strength wouldn’t be lacking too much.

Hordes of Alliance of Mages and Divine Protectors players emerged from the surrounding hillsides and mountain ridges. They let out battle cries. The gates of the Edgarton Stronghold also started opening. Crazy Magic and Divine Flame led several tens of thousands of players toward Asskickers United’s forces.

“Everyone, charge! Wipe out Asskickers United!”

“Looks like they’ve finally had enough.” Bladelight smirked. They had already been expecting this. “Come! Alliance of Mages. Let’s have our final showdown!”

“Alliance of Mages’ forces are coming. Everyone, don’t be nervous. Ready the Armoured Ice Catapults!” Bladelight commanded. He had the demeanor of a general. Smoke Stub, Paladin of the Elegy, and the others were in charge of other areas. Asskickers United’s forces quickly mobilized.

37 Armoured Ice Catapults were loaded with ammunition shells, ready to fire.

“Hold, hold, wait for them to come a bit closer!” Smoke Stub ordered the players operating the Armoured Ice Catapults.