The Paladin in the Abyss-Chapter 656 - 680: Holding the Troops Still

Chapter 656 -680: Holding the Troops Still

On the plains before Volcano Fortress, a massive battle involving over fifty thousand soldiers was unfolding, with ten thousand demons of an invading army facing off against a force of demons four times their number. Before coming to the Abyssal Plane, Lancelot had fought half his life’s worth of wars, but none of them could compare in scale to what he saw before him. Moreover, although he had participated in countless battles, never before had he found himself waiting in the reserves after the battle had started as he was today.

Most of the time, the Rebel Army faced overwhelming odds, and as one of the most powerful knights under Albert’s command, when had he not been among the first to set foot on the battlefield? Contrary to his expectations in this mercenary force recruited by the Demon Lord, he actually had the chance to stand by and watch.

However, after watching for a while, Lancelot suddenly realized a problem and said to Sonam,

“General, that Abyssal Demon Refinement who led the forces to attack Twin Bridges Town, he seems to be missing here?”

“What?” The six-armed Serpent Demon frowned upon hearing this, squinting and surveying the battlefield for a good while before replying with uncertainty, “Hmm… that fellow called Baboli does seem indeed absent, strange…”

“Could it be because of unfavorable combat outcomes that led to his dismissal?”

“Dismissal? Who here could dismiss him?” Sonam shook her head, “That guy bragged proudly about his title as Viscount before Twin Bridges Town, and he was also the Commander of the first legion, which means he serves not Archduke Aphnas but one of the Great Demons from another layer of the Nine Hells. They lend their troops to the Blood War Commander at the behest of Asmodeus, which refers to that bitch Zariel who turned from Angel to Demon, but Zariel only has the right to command them, not to replace the commanders of the troops.”

“I see,” Lancelot, hailing from nobility himself, immediately grasped the situation, “But how do we explain the current circumstances? If I recall correctly, the previous intelligence indicated that ‘Destruction Flame’ Visuvius had fallen into the demons’ trap outside Volcano Fortress, with the three legions that marched with him nearly annihilated, and he himself had fled severely wounded after being surrounded by four Abyssal Demon Refinements. But we eliminated one Demon Refinement in the skirmish the day before yesterday, and none of the three present on the battlefield now are familiar faces…”

“Hmph, this bunch of Barto scum is planning some crafty scheme again, aren’t they?” Sonam looked grimly at the battlefield ahead, where the battle had just begun, and the demons were still consuming their opponent’s strength with cannon fodder, “Let’s see… the numbers seem to match up. That’s indeed the scale of three Demon Legions.”

“The ambush by the Stygian River was carried out by a complete Demon Legion; in that encounter, they lost a general as well as at least a third of their soldiers,” Lancelot mused, “And before that, the Demon Legion that attacked Twin Bridges Town also suffered losses of over half its life force. Combined, that’s about the size of one legion…”

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“Four minus one equals three, it adds up,” the six-armed Serpent Demon appeared satisfied with the resolution of this complex mathematical problem, “Facing four Demon Legions might be difficult for the allied forces, but if there’s only three left, we should be able to devour them!”

“But this doesn’t explain the extra Abyssal Demon Refinement that appeared,” Lancelot cautioned, “If this additional Demon Refinement general also brought a legion with him, then there should be four legions, not three. I’m guessing they’re likely to appear where we least want them, at the time we least expect it…”

“Damn it!” Sonam raised her massive serpent tail and heavily slapped it onto the ground, “Where could this place be that you’re talking about?”

“I don’t know,” Lancelot managed to suppress the urge to laugh, replying with a serious face. Sonam’s action just now was like that of an angry little girl stomping her foot, and it was oddly cute, “But I suggest we hold off on advancing and observe whether the situation will yield any new developments. You also said that if we’re facing three demon legions, the alliance forces stand a good chance. If that’s indeed the case, then the enemy will have to show their hand sooner or later.”

“Makes sense,” Sonam nodded, “The mercenaries have managed to defeat a demon legion in a head-on battle before, and although many of them died, those who survived are tough… If those invaders from Barto Hell really have kept a legion in reserve, we should be able to handle them!”

“But there’s another issue…” Lancelot’s face showed hesitation, “Can we really afford to hold off indefinitely? Does the alliance have something like a supervisory team in place?”

“Of course,” the six-armed Serpent Demon glanced at him, “I am it.”

———————————————

Like shepherds, the Babu Demons were constantly driving the Coward Devils to charge forward, while the Beard Demons wielding large cleavers moved in unison to disembowel enemies. In front of the demon lines, the bodies of dead demons quickly piled up, the flowing blood soaking the dry, cracked ground, turning it muddy as if a heavy rain had just fallen.

Although demon infantry were butchering the enemy at an alarming rate, they weren’t without losses—there were simply too many Coward Devils, and there would inevitably be the occasional careless blow or exceptionally tough individual. Moreover, as the bodies stacked higher, some Coward Devils began to climb atop their comrades’ corpses, leaping over the heads of the front-rank Beard Demons. While nearly all of them were killed before they hit the ground, their actions were enough to create chaos within the orderly, scale-like demon formations.

By Lancelot’s estimate, in just ten minutes, the demons had sustained a loss of at least five thousand Coward Devils, while the demon legion’s numbers didn’t even approach one-tenth of that figure. However, the situation quickly changed as some Middle Rank Demons, unable to contain their inner impulses and rage, began to join the charge alongside the cannon fodder.

Here were not only common heavy infantry like Berserk Demons and Brezu Demons but also relatively Low Rank demons like Ghouls, Crafty Demons, and other types. Their large figures stood out among the diminutive Coward Devils, naturally becoming the focus of the enemy’s attention. Still, their sharp teeth, lethal claws, and resilient physiques caused significant trouble for the demons.

Most impressive to Lancelot were the Brezu Demons, these goat-headed humanoid demons shared his taste in weapons, favoring gigantic weapons even taller than themselves, such as Great Swords, pikes, tridents, and giant scimitars. Despite their skinny frames, looking like refugees fleeing famine, the strength within them matched that of a well-trained Human Knight, and their weapon skills earned Lancelot’s praise.

Moreover, once wounded in battle, Brezu Demons would enter a Berserk State known as Blood Fury, making their attacks more ferocious and seemingly impervious to pain, making it difficult to interrupt their actions. The downside was that this did not truly increase the life force of Brezu Demons, instead causing them to die more quickly due to reckless behavior. But before being completely killed, they were sure to take down a great number of enemies. When confronted with ranks of polearm-equipped enemies, there was no better demon for breaking through.