That's not how you use a witch!

Chapter 58 The Fall of Zimo Territory

"All troops, listen to my command! Follow me and kill!"

Using the dim light of the two moons, Gorman raised his nearly two-meter-long sword and spurred his horse toward Zi Mo Ling.

Behind him, more than a thousand elite heavy cavalry charged forward, their iron hooves thundering as they pounded the ground.

It took them more than two days to cross the Molten Bones Mountains—legend has it that there was once a sky city in the heavens where ancient people imprisoned witches. It fell here at the end of the last era, and its remains melted in the flames, permanently changing the landscape of the mountains, hence the name Molten Bones Mountains.

Over the years, the legendary Sky City has long been buried by mud and sand. When Gorman marched, he only saw some weathered pillars and unrecognizable ruins. However, the core of the city, located on the mountainside, was shrouded in fire all year round.

Legend has it that it is an inextinguishable cursed fire, imprisoning the souls of countless witches. Creatures that approach the flames will either die in convulsions or be transformed into evil beasts in a living hell.

As a soldier, Gorman didn't care about those distant legends, only about the current military situation—the Ronghai Mountains had rugged terrain, with vertical and broken roads, and in some sections, only one person and one horse could pass at a time. Marching in such a place was a major taboo for military strategists.

Furthermore, in order to avoid the effects of the cursed fire, Gorman had to take a longer route after consulting with Anthony.

Throughout the march, his heart was in his throat: if the scouts and patrols of the western border discovered their tracks, if one-tenth of the troops from Fulong Valley were on the surrounding highlands, if Zimo Territory or other nearby territories were on guard, they would all pay a heavy price.

To Gorman's surprise, none of the above "ifs" occurred.

They encountered no obstacles until they crossed the Ronghai Mountains and entered the visible distance of Zimo Territory.

Gorman realized that his clash with the Thorn Territory had made him overestimate the average level of the West, and that his caution and prudence were completely unnecessary when applied to the other West Territory scoundrels.

So he stopped being submissive and, after a short rest, launched an attack.

When the cavalry were less than two hundred paces from the city wall, the drunken guards finally woke up as if from a dream and ran in terror toward the alarm bell.

However, before he could ring the bell, a rebel accomplice in the guard killed him with a single blow and then opened the magnificent and splendid gates of the Purple Mound Territory.

Thus, the rebels stormed into the city without bloodshed.

The territory guards, caught off guard, rushed into battle without even having time to put on their armor and helmets. However, just as their commander had gathered his forces, he was cleaved in two by the onrushing Gorman.

Then he struck again, sending another soldier who was trying to resist flying into the air.

"Follow me and kill! Let's massacre Zi Mo Territory!"

Seeing the territory guards lose their fighting spirit and scatter in all directions, Gorman laughed heartily, finally releasing all the anger he had suffered in Fulong Valley.

It turns out that his defeat in Thorn Territory was not his fault; it turns out that he was still the rebels' number one general; it turns out that conquering a marquisate was so easy!

The cries of agony soon echoed throughout the territory, coming from both guards and civilians.

The rebels looted and killed house to house, and this wantonness was the reward that Manstein had personally promised them for breaching the city, and it was also the source of the rebels' powerful fighting force.

When Humphrey, still in his pajamas, rushed to the Marquis's mansion, the flames and swords of the rebels had already spread to within his sight.

The guardian witch who commanded lightning killed dozens of rebels, but was ultimately outnumbered and fell in the crowd when surrounded by high-ranking rebel knights and several witches.

Humphrey watched as the leading officer finished off his witch, then pointed his long sword at him from afar, a cruel and mocking laugh on his face.

"what!"

Humphrey was instantly sober, his pajamas soaked with cold sweat.

"My lord, this is no place to linger!"

The chief knight drew his sword. "My lord, proceed immediately! I'll cover you!"

He then charged towards the rebel army with his sword, but was quickly overwhelmed by the crowd in the chaos.

Once he came to his senses, Humphrey disregarded the chief knight and fled with the remaining two witches.

He had a total of four witches under his command, one of whom had already sacrificed herself in front of him, and the whereabouts of the other were unknown—they were all top-tier elites, yet they were so weak and vulnerable in front of the rebels!

"What a useless piece of junk..."

During the retreat, Humphrey cursed through gritted teeth, his heart filled with despair.

Zi Mo Territory suffered such a devastating blow, and years of hard work had vanished. His standing in noble circles would undoubtedly plummet, and he would likely be punished for his inadequate preparations for war. Humphrey now felt a pang of regret: if he had followed the baron's advice to prepare for war, would the outcome have been different?

"My lord, my mission is complete."

Seeing the witch in the lead stop, Humphrey paused for a moment and looked around.

This wasn't a city gate, but a dead end. He didn't remember any secret passages nearby.

Then Humphrey saw rebel soldiers emerge from all directions, their mocking expressions indicating they had been waiting there for a long time.

"Nora, what are you doing!"

Humphrey glared angrily at the witch, but before he could finish speaking, a crimson blur blurred his vision: the witch had stabbed another witch in the chest with her backhand, used her rock-hard claws to rip out the still-beating heart, and then crushed it to pieces.

"Of course I'll do what I'm supposed to do."

She then tossed aside the broken heart and went straight to Humphrey, whose face had turned pale.

"My lord, my mission is to send you to hell."

"etc--"

Humphrey's mouth gaped open, his legs trembled with fear, and his groin was soaked from incontinence. Before he could say anything, he felt the world spinning around him.

In his last moments before consciousness sank into darkness, he saw his headless body and the whispering rebels:

"Is this all the marquises in the Western Territory are? They're not even as good as the one in Dragon Fang Territory."

"Marshal, you're being too conservative. It won't even take two months to conquer the Western Territory..."

Zi Mo Ling is not an isolated case.

On this turbulent night, similar scenes are unfolding across various territories in the heart of the Westerlands.

Realizing the inadequacy of these lords' fighting strength, Manstein directly divided his forces into seven routes and launched a bold and decisive attack.

With no natural barriers to hinder them, the Northern cavalry, already adept at field battles and raids, moved through the enemy territory with ease. In less than four hours, six territories fell into the hands of the rebels, the closest being only about twenty kilometers from Frost's territory.

Of all these territories, only Rainbow Territory miraculously withstood the onslaught.

Its lord is Earl Victor—ever since that victory celebration, Victor has been preparing for war according to the Thorn Territory's strategy.

Although he failed to identify most of the rebel spies, the defensive fortifications around the territory were barely adequate, and the mercenary group he hired at great expense was far inferior to the militia of the Thorn Territory in terms of combat strength and discipline, he became the winner of the night in comparison to his lackluster colleagues.

"Damn, this is a bit tricky."

After finally managing to wipe out the Rainbow Territory mercenary group, the rebel officer in charge saw that it was already dawn and knew that the area was not far from Frost Territory. He knew that if they delayed any longer, things might get complicated, so he had no choice but to call a retreat as Gorman had previously ordered.

"Just you wait! Next time, I'll definitely take your head!"

Before leaving, he made sure to threaten Victor, who was cowering on the city wall.

Victor didn't dare to breathe until he was sure the rebels were completely gone, then he collapsed as if he had regained his life.

At this moment, the city walls and surrounding areas were already littered with the corpses of the defending soldiers. Even his last remaining witch was covered in wounds and leaned against the steps, unable to get up.

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