Chapter 224: During the Hill Attack
Strictly speaking, people like them could not be considered an army. Even after an initial three months of studying, all they learnt was how to master the fighting methods in Planet Norma. In fact, they were still far from being a real army.
Strict discipline and close cooperation were two aspects that eluded them, but they completely suppressed the guarding forces on the hill in terms of momentum at least.
Chen Dao showed ample zeal for command work, but when the real battle started, he focused more on his spellcasting. Gu Xiaoyue, for all her complaining, still rested obediently next to him. Without that woman robbing him of his limelight, the subsequent events could be regarded as Chen Dao’s personal performance.
After all, he was a spellcaster possessing abilities second only to Gu Xiaoyue. He had been obsessed with online games since he was a child, so he chose the same aggressive fire spells. Compared to his flame b.a.l.l.s, everyone else’s were not even on the same level.
Chen Dao had mastered the Flame Ball to its fullest. The burning ball of fire was dark red, had a higher temperature, and had a more accurate flight trajectory. The violent explosion was much more intense when it struck the fortress, and objects vaguely resembling limbs were seen shooting into the sky.
The others followed close behind and a couple of spa.r.s.e spells followed one after another. The types of spells that a freshman would have mastered were very limited. Attack spells were also limited to Energy Bombs, Wind Blades, Flame b.a.l.l.s, and the like. Fortunately, their opponent seemed to lack the necessary spell and were quickly suppressed after being crushed by those spells.
Xiao Lin and the others took the opportunity to speed up the charge after some pressure was relieved off them. In fact, the thrown spears and axe threatened him very little. Although the thrower was strong, the trajectory of the throws was very simple. Those who died under the initial wave of attacks were really unlucky, but after some tricks, it was much more difficult to strike Xiao Lin again.
At most, Xiao Lin had only previously led teams during online games and it was impossible for him to have the experience of leading a troop in real-life, but a person who has no knowledge must have some common sense. If Xiao Lin was certain he would not be hit by the long-range weapons, then other monitors or instructors would basically have the same ability to ensure that they could reach the bottom of the fortress without any injury.
Other people did not have such confidence though. Many people might not generally pay much attention to talented students, and it was only then that they had a realization of how big the gap actually was.
Even though they managed to save a small amount of redemption points in the first two monthly exams, buying life potions alone was already a pinch, let alone Black Iron-rank or even Bronze-rank armor. Without the support of basic skills as well as defensive armor, they would either die or be maimed even with a mere sc.r.a.pe by a flying axe. In fact, dying like that was not so bad after all. Those who had half their arms sliced off could only writhe in pain on the floor. Screams could be heard even from the foot of the hill, sending everyone’s emotions into a downward spiral.
Those who were still charging had their own cla.s.smates or friends, and deserting them at such a point in time was certainly out of the question. Even if Chen Dao had suppressed the attack with those magic spells, their mental strength was limited after all. If the enemy seized the advantage to launch another wave of attacks, the wounded who fell on the hillside would certainly die.
Those people therefore began slowing down. They carried up the injured individuals and took them back to the safety zone at the foot of the hill. Though there was nothing wrong with their actions, they forgot that they were already halfway to the top of the hill. Their mission was to take control of the fortress within the shortest time possible so as to allow subsequent people to enter continuously, otherwise it would only end in greater casualties.
Although Xiao Lin was at the forefront, he constantly paid attention to the situation behind him. The scene prompted him to lament to himself. After all, none of them were soldiers and their drawbacks were finally revealed.
Upon seeing that there was some chaos in the crowd and the speed of the charge was greatly slowed down, Cheng Ming and the other squad leaders were getting anxious. Regardless of how loudly they discouraged the others or how sternly they reprimanded them, the outcome was not as they expected.
It was futile to continue like that, and something had to be done.
Xiao Lin stopped for a while and raised his head to glance at the towering fortress. The distance was getting very close. He took a deep breath and made the decision to activate his Miracle skill. It was less than an hour since he first activated it and there would be immense pressure on his body. However, it is not the time to be considering all that.
On that occasion, he converted all his attributes to agility, and along with the bonus effect of the Elementary Agility scroll, reached a total of 40 points. Most importantly, that attribute was also affected by the Elementary Speed Boost.
If calculated as a whole, Xiao Lin’s speed had reached a terrifying level. He no longer cared about anyone else behind him and rushed to the front at once. Cheng Ming could only feel the wind blowing in front of him and stared blankly at the Xiao Lin’s rushing figure in front of him.
Xiao Lin was silently calculating the distance as well, and when he was less than 20 meters away from the fortress, he raised the Peakfire Staff in his left hand and sent flame bullets shooting out constantly. He did not change his attributes into intelligence, and the flame bullets he shot out became slightly lower as a result. However, the burning bonus of the Peakfire Staff meant that the burn effect was quite amazing.
Being burned was not a pleasant experience. If the enemy did not have enough fire resistance or a spell defense armor of the same level, the continuous burning sensation was much more uncomfortable than death.
In fact, Xiao Lin was rather average in his casting speed since he did not transform his attributes to intelligence. Fortunately for him, the rapid casting of the Flame Bullet made up for it a little, but even so, it was difficult to form a real and effective threat to the enemies of the entire fortress.
In any case, a real war was not dependent only on pure calculation. The enemies that Chen Dao’s flame ball burnt to pieces had nowhere to avenge their grievances, but Xiao Lin was unlucky because the enemies he burnt would grit their teeth with the desire to vent their anger and tear him into pieces.
To put it in layman’s terms, Xiao Lin’s lone army has successfully incited the enemy’s animosity. Nearby targets were always easier to hit than distant targets, thereby leading to a very odd incident.
Enraged by Xiao Lin’s contemptuous att.i.tude, a dense wave of throwing axes and spears flew over the fortress again. Even though Chen Dao’s huge flame ball soon struck everything, the wave of attacks was almost entirely directed at Xiao Lin. Everyone looked over in shock and could not help but break into cold sweat for Xiao Lin.
Xiao Lin did not expect to draw everyone’s attacks toward him that easily, though it was actually his plan all along to attract some attacks and create enough leeway for the rest.
The problem was that the wave of attacks came too quick and too fiercely, almost to a point where it was overwhelming.