Arica Eagles circled and danced above the encampnts, gathering in greater numbers. Their small round eyes set in red heads greedily gazed down at the two encampnts nestled between the mountains, and at the bipedal tribes in various attires within. Based on their shallow avian experiences, these ground-dwelling bipedal tribes would continue to slaughter each other, contributing more food to them.
The encampnt at the mouth of the valley was built of wood and stone, primarily stone. After the Gunpowder burned out, the flas were quickly extinguished, leaving only trails of smoke drifting with the wind. An inexplicable fragrance wafted through the smoke, along with so low moans. During the Samurai’s search, the moaning gradually ceased. The encampnt was nearly empty, yielding virtually no significant spoils other than so fresh pumpkins.
Thereafter, four hundred Vanguard barbarians escorted an equal number of captives towards the mouth of the valley. anwhile, Black Wolf Torc, personally carrying the Commander’s great flag, led one thousand Vanguard barbarians and one thousand Pamus Samurai to the front encampnt at the valley’s entrance. The mountain-side encampnt was packed to capacity with Samurai clad in Cotton Armor and wielding War Clubs.
Black Wolf briefly took stock and frowned.
Although the legion had successfully taken the front encampnt at the valley’s mouth using Gunpowder Weapons, the casualties were substantial. Three hundred Vanguard soldiers had fallen, especially the two hundred-man teams that threw Clay Tribulus, nearly annihilating themselves along with the Guajili Canine Descendants. Several Crossbown from the Temple had also suffered losses. Roughly two thousand Canine Warriors had been at the front encampnt. Over four hundred had escaped in the carnage, more than a thousand died or were mortally wounded, leaving just over four hundred captives as the spoils.
"Red Cat Tribe, you are stricken from the ranking of great tribes thanks to the battle at the valley entrance! The Canine Descendants should recognize the might of the Kingdom now!"
Torc stood in the center of the encampnt, his foot on the tattered Red Cat banner. He looked toward the rear encampnt at the valley entrance, two miles off, where the distant sounds of battle had long ceased. A sinister premonition crept over him.
"Black Wolf Commander, Ico’s night raid squad must be like porcupines caught amongst wolves, dood to die. This battle you waged… the casualties are indeed..."
spa was visibly worried. He looked to the west and then back at Black Wolf, his expression tinged with reproach.
"Hmm?"
Torc suddenly turned around. His gaze was fierce and icy, making spa lower his head. Monts later, Black Wolf clenched his fists silently, then shouted to the Vanguard soldiers.
"Rest for a quarter! Continue the assault on the rear encampnt!"
Two miles away, the Guajili people’s rear encampnt was a scene of bleakness. Hundreds of Red Cat survivors, bloodied and dirtied, flooded into the encampnt, causing a sudden drop in the morale of the Defending Army.
The Red Cat Tribe was a major tribe of six thousand people, boasting two thousand Tribal Warriors and four hundred Red-headed Warriors, ranking second in the valley. However, after this battle, only slightly more than four hundred of its warriors remained, with barely sixty to seventy Red-headed Warriors left, likely insufficient to maintain its previous status, removing it from the list of major tribes.
Mizili’s face was ashen, his heart in turmoil. He stood dazed under the Red Frog banner at the center of the encampnt, facing the wide-eyed Keka.
"Mizili, don’t be like a scared armadillo! After losing a battle, you hide in a hole, curling up in fear. It’s only a loss of most of your warriors and Red-heads. Your tribe is still intact, absorb a few smaller tribes, recover over a few years, and you’ll be fine! Rest assured, you’re fighting for everyone, Fox and I won’t target your tribe..."
Keka laid a beefy arm on Mizili’s shoulder, giving it a pat before quickly asking,
"Red Cat Tribe occupies strategic encampnts, how could you collapse so quickly?! What is the Aztec Witchcraft? How did you lose? Speak quickly, the Aztecs will be here soon!"
Hearing Keka’s promise, Mizili’s eyes briefly brightened. He sighed deeply and started detailing the battle at the front encampnt.
"Keka, you must have also heard the thunder. First, the Aztecs suppressed the encampnt with their powerful Crossbows. I withdrew half the ordinary warriors to the rear… Then two squads of Samurai charged, throwing smoky Clay Balls. When the Clay Balls burst, they exploded with roars and flas, shooting countless Clay Arrows. The Red-heads suffered heavy casualties, the wall fell... The warriors panicked, the Cactus Tribe’s soldiers pressed in, while Crossbows suppressed from behind... We couldn’t hold any longer!..."
"Powerful Crossbows that shoot far, smoky exploding Clay Balls…so that’s how it was."
Keka’s eyes widened in thought, fingers running through his red hair. Then, with a sweeping gesture of his hand,
"Mizili, take the retreating warriors into the valley first, don’t let them affect the morale in my encampnt! As for fighting, it’s up to us, Red Frog Tribe!"
After finishing, Keka no longer paid attention to Mizili, but hurriedly arranged the encampnt defenses.
"Trusted aide, how much wood and stone do we have left in the encampnt?"
"Not much left. There are a few dozen boards and several piles of stones…"
"Dismantle the sheds at the back of the camp, place the wooden boards at the front of the wall, and stack the stones at the front as well! Let the Hunters hide behind the wood and stone. Also, create a few gaps for easy strikes!"
Keka barked commands, then asked again,
"Have the warriors conscripted from nearby common tribes arrived yet?"
"Chieftain, a thousand warriors and able-bodied n have been summoned, and they are gathered behind the camp. However, the regular tribes are reluctant to hand over their elites; none of them have red hair and will probably be of little use,"
"No matter, follow !"
Keka, slightly overweight but remarkably agile, strode to the rear of the camp where he saw hundreds of tribal warriors forming a large circle around the thousands of able-bodied n mustered. He looked around the circle and climbed a small hill. He vigorously waved his thick arms and roared.
"Warriors before , listen! The brutal Cactus Tribe has reached the mouth of the valley, and your tribes are right behind! If the Cactus Tribe breaks through into the valley, all tribes will be sacrificed! Next, you must fight for your tribes and resist the Samurai of the Cactus Tribe!... The sacred wind brings the color red! Those willing to charge out of camp will be given two bags of food each! Who dares not to go?"
Upon hearing the call to charge from the camp, the tribal able-bodied n looked at each other, but for a mont no one spoke. After a while, a dozen young Canine Warriors stood up and shouted.
"Our tribe is in the western side of the valley! This is the eastern side, naturally it’s for the eastern tribes to defend! We want to go back and protect our own tribes!"
A low outcry followed imdiately among the crowd. Looking at the dozen who stood up, Keka’s expression remained unchanged. He nodded and then roared again.
"Anyone else who is unwilling to charge? I give you a quarter of an hour!"
With a dozen taking the lead, other Canine able-bodied n also beca bold. One by one, another seventy to eighty able-bodied n stepped forward, requesting to return to their tribes. Many of the remaining warriors’ expressions flickered, their faces wavered, yet they just watched for the ti being.
"Good! Ti is up!"
Keka’s eyes bulged, and his face showed a murderous intent. He suddenly swung his large hand.
"Those who stepped out, kill them all!"
Hundreds of Red Frog warriors dressed in cotton armor, holding war clubs, fiercely stepped forward. They swung their weapons rcilessly, knocking down the nearly hundred able-bodied n who stepped out and then ruthlessly stabbing them to death. Facing the elite of the Red Frog Tribe, the able-bodied n from various tribes had no chance to resist. The dying screams were short and intense, blood flowed imdiately, soon staining the soil red.
"Good! In this cruel wilderness, only warriors bold enough to charge deserve to survive!"
Keka nodded in satisfaction. He looked at the remaining nine hundred Canine able-bodied n and bellowed.
"Everyone, sar your faces with the sacred red from the blood on the ground! I swear upon our ancestors, two bags of food each, to be delivered directly to your tribes. Now, each of you take a shield and a Stone Spear, and fight for your tribe!"
The Canine n, fearful yet compliant, obeyed the order. They sared their faces with the vivid red mark, like a sacred curse.
Keka looked around and instructed his red-haired trusted aide by his side.
"Incorporate them into the assault squad, in groups of two or three hundred. As long as I command from the front, drive them to charge out of the camp! When the next batch of able-bodied n is summoned, do as I just did!"
"As you command, mighty Chieftain!"
The trusted aide nodded respectfully. Keka turned and looked at the front camp on the east. The flas in the campfire had died down and the thick smoke was gradually dissipating. Large groups of Aztec Samurai were starting to mobilize within the camp, clearly, a new battle was approaching.
Keka pondered, then looked towards the back of the camp to the west, at the already cold pile of corpses.
"Cut off the heads of the Otomi curs! Take their identity-symbolizing vine hats. Then, in front of all the warriors, throw them about two to three hundred paces outside the camp. Hmm, let the Aztec see as well!"
"Inform the guards, the despicable Cactus Tribe wants to launch a surprise attack, and a thousand have already been killed by us! The Cactus Tribe’s Samurai before us are no match for us either! We, the Red Frog Tribe, are the most warlike tribe on the wilderness!"
"As you command, wise Chieftain!"
The aides imdiately took their orders. Soon, hundreds of Canine Warriors burst out from the camp. They ran down the long slope and then forcefully hurled the heads they carried. Cheers from the Canine in the camp erupted, significantly boosting morale.
The Canine’s cheers carried far. Black Wolf Torc raised an eyebrow and squinted towards the rear camp not far away. The sharp-eyed Black Wolf was just as intense, but after watching for just a few monts, he burst into a great rage.
"Damn Canine, daring to provoke like this! Temple Crossbown, fire to suppress; Vanguard, launch imdiately!"
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