Volume One: The Infernal Lord’s World Chapter 31: The Charge

"Attack!"
Seeing the enemy's formation, both Chen Gu and Allen felt considerably relieved. The adversaries were the lowest-ranked skeleton soldiers among the undead, numbering around six hundred. For the moment, nothing else mattered—this was undoubtedly good news.

"Sparks: Scorched Earth."
Chen Gu acted decisively. The enemy had formed a phalanx in the forest, which was the perfect opportunity for him to unleash his attack. Over a hundred and sixty fire spirit crows soared toward the skeletons. These fire spirit crows were different from those accompanying the elven hunters. While the ones with the hunters worked in pairs and couldn’t coordinate for a large-scale assault, Chen Gu's crows were managed as a unified force. They needed no coordination with elves; they were an army unto themselves.

As they flew over, the crows spread out, but upon reaching the skeletons, they gathered into a wedge formation. The skeleton hero, seeing this, immediately realized Chen Gu possessed some sort of charge ability. Raising his longsword, he shouted an order, "Raise shields and charge, don’t—"

Before he could finish, five sparks burst from each fire spirit crow. The sparks swelled in midair to the size of balloons, then crashed down onto the ground. They landed precisely where the skeletons were charging. The moment they hit, explosions erupted, the earth blasted as though struck by bombers. The skeletons at the front were hurled skyward, their bodies blasted to pieces before they even hit the ground.

Those behind paid no heed, trampling over the remnants of their fallen comrades, surging relentlessly forward, unfazed by the explosions. Just then, the elven hunters loosed their arrows. There were over four hundred hunters present. As they released their volleys, the arrows rained down upon the skeletons like a storm. The hunters' fire spirit crows joined in as well, two sparks leaping onto each arrow, transforming them mid-flight into blazing projectiles.

The skeleton hero had not anticipated any of this. He had expected to encounter only a handful of elven archers. Though the elves were famous for their precision and rapid fire, the skeleton soldiers were naturally gifted at dodging arrows. Half the time, piercing attacks would simply miss them, and their thick armor gave them added protection. In the skeleton hero’s mind, he would suffer minimal losses before reaching the elven lines.

But never had he imagined that Chen Gu’s fire spirit crows would unleash such devastation, or that the elven hunters’ arrows would be imbued with fire. By the time he tried to rally a defense, it was already too late. The flaming arrows struck the skeleton soldiers, and with a thunderous boom, those hit were blasted off their feet as though struck by explosives.

Next, more than four hundred bloodshadow wolves leapt forward, their fangs sinking into the arms of skeletons wielding spears—their weakest point. The bloodshadow wolves, with jaws perfectly suited to shattering bone, tore weapons from the skeletons’ hands. Immediately after, Chen Gu’s corpse vines burst from the earth, dragging down any skeletons still standing.

A second volley of arrows followed, pinning the skeletons to the ground. In this relentless onslaught, by the time the skeleton hero realized what was happening, fewer than a hundred of his soldiers remained.

Yet the skeleton hero showed no fear. Mounted on his skeletal warhorse, sword raised high, he charged straight at Chen Gu, the remaining skeletons charging alongside him. For skeleton soldiers, death was but the beginning; they had no need to fear it. If reduced to fragments, they would rise again in a few days, resurrected by the power of the undead domain—perhaps even stronger than before.

Thus, neither the skeleton hero nor his soldiers ever considered their own survival. Upon seeing the enemy, they charged without hesitation.

Seeing the surviving hundred still dare to launch a final assault, Chen Gu could only shake his head in silence. At this moment, Allen spoke: "Elven Sword Dance, engage. Vine Druids, prepare."

There were six Elven Sword Dancers in total—three originally recruitable, the others promoted from wood elves. At Allen’s command, they surged forward, twin blades flashing.

Their movements were like leaves in the wind, drifting and gliding back and forth. With each flutter, their bodies darted forward sixty or seventy meters, their steps too swift and elusive for the eye to follow.

Both the Elven Sword Dance and the Vine Druids were considered intermediate units among the elves—elite troops. Above them stood the core and champion ranks. Core soldiers could reach level seven, champions as high as nine. The Elven Sword Dance and Vine Druids before them were trained to level three, with a cap of five—a respectable standard. Even if the skeleton soldiers reached their maximum level, they would still fall short of the elves’ starting strength.

As the sword dancers clashed with the skeletons, their twin blades found the gaps in the armor, slicing through the skeletons’ bone frames. With every step forward, two or three skeletons fell, yet the dancers pressed on, unimpeded. They knew their true purpose was not to eliminate the skeleton soldiers, but to bring down the skeleton hero.

After breaking through his defenses, the six sword dancers attacked from multiple directions, their blades sweeping like a gale, striking accurately at the skeleton hero. The hero, astride his warhorse, flipped down in a deft maneuver, his longsword flashing through the dancers’ blades and plunging into the chest of one.

"My sword is fast enough," he declared calmly.
Only those with true strength could be called heroes. Yet, though he slew one sword dancer, he could not evade every strike. After three fierce exchanges, he managed to bring down two more, but in the end, he fell beneath a curved blade.

As the skeleton hero fell, his skull shattered, revealing within a thumb-sized piece of obsidian.