Chapter 247: Dangerous Situation
Those who were still casting the Flame Ball were a little perplexed with Xiao Lin’s guidance. The spellcasting movements and chants that they learnt were the standard ones that they learnt in cla.s.s, but truthfully speaking, there was no absolute criterion for spellcasting movements. The key was gathering the elements up and recombining them using the established order.
The process of achieving that goal was endless and varied, but the academy was worried that the students might deviate from the right way. After all, many bad habits were difficult to change once firmly entrenched into a beginner, which was why the academy had always taught the most standard moves to the students only.
In fact, Xiao Lin did not have much experience in that and could only give some guidance to the freshmen who used the Flame Ball. He never once talked about any other spells for fear that his guidance was erroneous.
As for the Flame Ball, not even Gu Xiaoyue might be able to match Xiao Lin as of right then. The skill book Xiao Lin had was left by the masters of years past, and many of the lessons were very helpful to the freshmen even if they only learnt a fraction of it.
Its effects were unknown, but judging from the looks of surprise on the faces of those who accepted Xiao Lin’s suggestions, it ought to be rather good.
A one- to two-second increase in casting speed, or even a 10% increase in power, was a big enough effect in fierce battles.
The orcs’ siege was more violent than the previous day and there was no stopping them even when noon came. Everyone on the inner side of the fortress had to grit their teeth and continue the fight.
Humans were not machines after all, so no matter how powerful those defense towers were, it was still humans that operated them. It was a repeat of the previous day, where more archer towers were destroyed in that afternoon’s closely-fought tussle, as the orcs had finally approached the outermost line of defense.
The earlier arrangement finally came into play at this moment. Each arrow tower was equipped with two people, and one of them would take out the weapon and descend the tower to engage in a direct fight. That was the first time they faced battle at knife point after two days of war.
An average-strength freshman was hardly capable of holding out against an orc in a one-on-one battle, and although the end result was more or less the same, they were at least able to stall some time and prevent the outer defense towers to be destroyed less quickly.
The fierce fights intensified, and the casualties on the fortress began increasing rapidly. Most deaths were downright tragic, and the orcs had clearly surpa.s.sed them in terms of fighting spirit. Xiao Lin even saw a seriously injured and soon-to-be-dead orc tear the flesh off another person’s face. The person was probably scared out of their wits when they turned around to flee back to the fortress. Sadly, the person only managed to run halfway before a weapon was thrown right into his heart from behind.
Blood spilled all over the hillside, and it was finally the humans who contributed a larger amount of blood.
At that point, the effects of Xiao Lin’s continuous guidance and pointers were gradually beginning to show. The extra efficiency gained whenever they casted spells afforded them sufficient mental power to continue casting spells in the remaining time.
It might not have been obvious in the morning, but the added efficiency began manifesting itself when the war fell into a stalemate. The suppressive spell attacks from the fortress wall were very important, especially when the surrounding spell towers were starting to misfire. Based on Xiao Lin’s understanding of war in that world, a mage unit was almost equivalent to the artillery on Earth—its biggest function was to stunt the enemy range of advancement and suppress any attacks.
Several cla.s.s monitors were also feeling the pressure. They ran back and forth, either boosting morale or loudly condemning those who were gradually being overtaken by fear. In short, everyone was giving it their all as much as possible.
After spending all that time guiding them, Xiao Lin had already said everything that needed to be said. As he looked at the worrying situation below the wall, almost half the defense towers seemed to be in danger. About ten or so minutes ago, Cheng Ming—who had also realized the importance of those peripheral defense towers—decisively led a charge consisting of those who could stare death in the face. They formed a temporary line of defense in front of the defense towers to delay the damage inflicted by the orcs.
The effect however, was not that great. In the end, the orcs were simply overwhelming in their number. They had invested a total of more than 3,000 individuals in their troops, which was enough to attack a small town. Meanwhile, the students inside the fortress added up to only a few hundred people.
Xiao Lin waved his hand, and tore off the bandage after realizing he was not in too much pain. Although Zhou Feng and Qin Chuan immediately rushed forth to stop him, Xiao Lin glanced at his rosy palm and stunned the both of them with the effects of his recovery.
“It’s fine now.”
“You’re going to join the battle?” Qin Chuan asked in a doubtful tone.
Zhou Feng had been with Xiao Lin for longer, and to some extent, understood the latter’s character more. Still, he did not approve of it. “What’s the use of you going up there! I’ll stick to the earlier suggestion, that it might be better to give this fortress up.”
Xiao Lin smiled bitterly and shook his head. Strategically speaking, the resurrection tower was still under construction within the fortress and must not be abandoned. Otherwise, it would mean that the battle was a complete failure. From a personal point of view, even if they retreated, they had absolutely nowhere to go. It was an endless sea behind them, where an unnamed fleet was lying in wait!
Before he left, Xiao Lin did not forget to request the Elementary Speed Boost spell from Gu Xiaoyue. It was not very useful in defensive battles, because elementary speed boosts only increased one’s movement speed, not one’s attack speed. However, she did not have the habit of asking in too much detail, so even though she was a little confused, she decided to just wave her wand and bestow a halo on Xiao Lin.
“Don’t worry! I won’t let you die here, even if it means fighting with all my life!” After leaving them with that sentence, Xiao Lin strode out of the fortress. Gu Xiaoyue’s expression was still as cold as ever, but her heart tightened for some unknown reason.
On that occasion however, there were two other squad leaders and three instructors who went along with Xiao Lin. As if sensing the moment the fortress door opened, a small group of orcs left the opponents they were engaged with and did not seem to care that their backs were completely open to attacks. They immediately rushed toward the soon-to-be closed door, intending to use their bodies to jam a gap and stop it from being shut.
Xiao Lin sneered slightly. He raised the Holy Soul Sword up high, and swung an arc in front of his body. Flame sword aura shot out, and the range of its attack was relatively far-reaching. The orcs, which were about seven or eight meters away, were caught off guard and failed to defend themselves. One individual was sliced in half on the spot, with its colorful internal organs spurting all over the sky. The remaining two or three orcs were also blasted away by the fire and rolled down the hillside.
“Find somewhere to defend yourselves. Don’t stand in my way!”
After Xiao Lin uttered that sentence, he did not hesitate to turn on his Miracle skill and transform all his attributes to agility. Then, he executed the Phantom Steps and rushed to the frontline of the battlefield.