The Mighty Dragons Are Dead

Green Leaf Fortress was far larger and sturdier than Nameless Castle.

However, under the suppression of the Black, Yellow, Blue, and the remaining Grey Knight Order, Douson still spent half a day in dismantling one of the castle walls.

Next was a swarm of knights from the four Knight Orders rushing in.

Liszt, Trick, Jonas, and Levis, four elite Earth Knights who indulged in drug use, formed an ultra-luxurious combination. They bulldozed their way through, and in less than an hour, the siege of Green Leaf Fortress was over. This time, by assembling elite knights from four different Knight Orders, the casualties were fewer.

The Black Knight Order lost just five knights in battle and had ten seriously injured.

After three battles, out of the one hundred and forty-two knights in the Black Knight Order, fourteen had died, twenty-nine were seriously injured, leaving ninety-nine knights still capable of combat.

Besides military honors and Liszt's previous gains, there were not many spoils of war to be privately divided—just some gold coins.

Most resources had been moved, especially valuable goods, which were taken by the knights' relatives to Iron Hoof City—Marquis of Bull had long been prepared for the assassination of the Sapphire Dragon and the subsequent retaliation from the Grand Duke.

That very night.

The four Knight Orders, with their coin pouches bulging with gold, met up with the Earl.

"You've all worked hard," the Earl hosted a feast at the camp to welcome the commanders of the four Knight Orders. However, there was no drinking—just a hearty meal.

Jonas wore a look of shame, "I'm sorry, my lord, I've disappointed you!"

"Indeed, your performance was disappointing, Jonas," the Earl said. "Count Sned is just an ordinary Sky Knight, and his followers are far below you in quality. If it had not been for Liszt's support, your casualty rate would have far exceeded that of the opponent, and that's during a charge on flat ground!"

Jonas knelt on one knee, silent.

The Earl waved his hand, "You'll have to bear the consequences of this mistake yourself, but now, you still have a chance to make amends. Merge the Grey Knight Order into the Black Knight Order and serve as Liszt's deputy."

Jonas did not complain, "Yes, my lord!"

Liszt didn't mind.

He wasn't bothered by Jonas sharing a piece of the pie because he was the one who led the Knight Order, and all credit had to go through him before being distributed to the members of the Knight Order.

In the knighthood system, Great Lords are only accountable to Minor Lords and their directly affiliated knights. All military achievements of a Knight Order or Knight Squad led by a Minor Lord are credited to that lord. When the Great Lord distributes rewards to the Minor Lord, the Minor Lord then calculates how to share these rewards with his knights.

Now, Jonas's rewards would also be calculated by Liszt.

"My lord," he replied aloud, "with Viscount Jonas's assistance, the Black Knight Order can take on more tasks." His mind was already making calculations.

The more the Black Knight Order distinguished itself, the greater the likelihood of him being granted the title of Viscount.

As long as he became a Viscount, all was well—he could extract funds from Fresh Flower Town as rewards for his knights. Even if this meant incurring some debt in the short term, the ownership of Black Horse Island was the most crucial outcome.

The Earl understood Liszt's intentions.

He nodded, "Douson will be very useful, the Black Knight Order naturally needs to take on more tasks... Now, let's plan the capture of Celery Fort. We rest for a day and then commence the siege right away! Be the first to complete the purge of Bull Hair City!"

...

Bow and arrow suppression.

Douson released Magic Stone Grenades and Rock Spikes.

The whole day was spent repeating this routine, and Li Weiliam rode his warhorse, surveying the area below the fortress, ready to charge without hesitation towards Sned should he dare show his face and engage him in a fierce battle.

Once Douson's magic power was exhausted, the knight order would retreat.

After Douson had recovered, the knight order would charge again and continue the suppression with arrows.

Back and forth with this torment, the knights of Celery Fort could only watch helplessly as Douson dismantled the castle, bombarding it from windows and other spots. Each rock grenade blast would create cracks in the walls, and in less than two days, they would surely take down an entire wall, leaving Celery Fort wide open.

So the battle situation was as expected, and by the following morning, Count Sned of Celery Fort could no longer endure it.

Seizing the moment when Coral Island's knight order retreated to rest, he quickly led his knights out and launched a charge. Unfortunately, his every move was anticipated. They were constantly under surveillance with telescopes, and the every action of Celery Fort was monitored.

"The time for a decisive battle has arrived!"

Sea Wave Sword Saint Li Weiliam raised his longsword high, with one yellow and one green gemstone shining brightly on it: "Charge!"

The knight order of Celery Fort launched a charge, and the knight order of Coral Island also charged forward—Celery Fort had roughly three hundred knights, while Coral Island had about five hundred knights, a significant disparity in strength. Sned was an ordinary level Sky Knight, while Li Weiliam was a Sword Saint Level Sky Knight.

This battle, from the moment Douson joined the fight, had its conclusion already written.

A southwesterly wind blew, rolling up clouds of sand that enveloped the sky, and the two cavalry torrents rapidly approached each other. The thundering sound of hooves on the ground made it seem as though an earthquake had erupted within miles around, scaring all wild beasts and birds into fleeing in all directions, leaving only the uniform charge cries echoing across the battlefield.

"Charge!"

"All troops, attack!"

Liszt, riding a Li Dragon Horse, charged shoulder to shoulder with Douson. Facing such a deluge, he couldn't help feeling that an individual was insignificant; it was only through merging into one that the knight order became a true war machine. Various Dou Qi diffused and mixed, concentrating the spirit of every person into one.

That surging mixture of Dou Qi connected to the Dou Qi within each knight, boosting their bursting force by at least twenty percent.

Clutching the knight's spear in his hand, Liszt's body rose and fell with the gallop of the Li Dragon Horse, and suddenly, three lines from "The Song of the Great Wind" came to mind.

"When the great winds stir and clouds fly, my might spreads far and I return to my homeland. Who can bring forth the valiant to guard all sides!"

The spears were about to clash.

He quickly focused and gave the command, "Douson, Multiple Stone Spikes!"

Douson's magic power hadn't fully restored but unleashing Multiple Stone Spikes several times was not strenuous. Rock spikes like bamboo shoots burst forth in an instant, disrupting the formation of the knight order facing the Black Knight Order.

Their connected Dou Qi scattered.

The enemy knights lost their power enhancement, and their charge stumbled. Meanwhile, the Black Knight Order, with Liszt and Jonas at the forefront and the ferocious behemoth Douson adding two tons of Multiple Stone Spikes, tore through the opponents' defense in an instant, like three sharp knives plunging into the chest, beginning to gut them.

Splash!

The knight's spear pierced through an Elite Earth Knight.

The two cavalry torrents collided in a moment, with blood and flesh flying, Dou Qi and horses in a deadly dance. After breaking a knight's spear, Liszt immediately switched to another, and if there was no time to switch, they used their shields or drew their swords. In just a few breaths, the Black Knight Order, with the help of Douson, penetrated the enemy's formation.

Turning their horses around, the unified Dou Qi didn't scatter but immediately commenced a second charge.

Just at that moment, a thunderclap sounded in the sky.

Distracted, Liszt momentarily lost focus and looked up to see a mass of emerald green and a mass of pale purple light colliding violently in the sky.

Thunder roared, lightning flashed, and a downpour began.

Li Weiliam battled Count Sned a hundred meters in the air, their surging Dou Qi blooming, altering the weather itself.