Chapter 984: Battle for the High Tower (Eighteen) (Patreon)

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In the midst of defensive operations, although there were more classic cases to refer to, manpower sometimes ran thin, just as demons did. In highly unequal conditions, turning the tide in a defensive battle was nearly impossible; it merely prolonged the inevitable.

As the door was breached, Batman remained unfazed, seeming to exhale in relief. He knew that the upcoming battle would be his turn.

Initially, General Putrescent hadn't regarded this suppression operation as significant. In his view, those miner slaves couldn't possibly pose any resistance. The gap between races was substantial; those naturally feeble miner workers couldn't stir up much trouble.

But to his dismay, things took a turn. The situation dragged on for two days and nights, nearly driving General Putrescent insane. He had just assured Belial Majesty that his team was ready for combat at any time, promising to be the sharpest edge on the frontlines. Yet suddenly, chaos erupted in his own mine. His meticulously trained elite soldiers couldn't even defeat the miners?

Obtaining the second-largest mine proved that General Putrescent was not incompetent. He realized that such an improbable event must have concealed some unknown secrets.

Hence, he refrained from hastily throwing his commander into the magma and instead meticulously reviewed the entire battle for the mountain. It was then he realized there was a formidable opponent on the other side.

As a general, Putrescent couldn't be ignorant of strategy and tactics. The mere probing and attacks from the first two rounds made it clear to him that the opponent was seasoned in warfare.

Unbeknownst to him, Batman had already obtained the answers beforehand. In the war he referred to, almost every adverse situation had occurred repeatedly, with solutions varying from effective to ineffective, some even miraculous.

Batman only needed to summarize briefly and make some adjustments, or perhaps none at all, considering that demon miners, despite their weakened stamina, were much stronger than humans.

With the discovery of the opponent's formidable skill, General Putrescent speculated that this might be a conspiracy orchestrated by other demon lords. They had sent spies into the mine secretly to incite war, causing issues for Belial's military preparations, displaying sinister intentions.

Given this, General Putrescent knew he couldn't underestimate his opponent. The other side likely had seasoned veterans like himself. Hence, he immediately took command, just as the demon soldiers breached the mine.

Upon entering the mine, they were bewildered. Before them lay a dozen forks, each devoid of any defensive fortifications. The previously aggressive miner slaves were nowhere to be found, leaving the entire mine eerily quiet.

When this situation was reported back to headquarters, General Putrescent was also perplexed. When he took over the mine, he received a map from his predecessor, but it only outlined the general layout of the mine.

With the mine being developed for over a millennium and passed through the hands of hundreds, if not thousands, of generals, no one had ever considered mapping out routes. No one had anticipated a miner riot, thus everyone was caught off guard. The problem was now thrust upon Putrescent, and the best solution he could think of was to have an old miner lead the way.

Unfortunately, all the old miners familiar with the central square were now in the central mine. His earlier decision to force all miners into labor had backfired, leaving him with no one to guide them.

Without knowledge of the routes, they had to proceed anyway. With sufficient troops, Putrescent decided to split them into three groups to explore the three central passageways first.

However, they immediately encountered issues. The largest, heavily armored demons couldn't fit through the tunnels. Designed for miners, the further they went, the narrower the passages became, eventually trapping the bulky soldiers halfway.

Even the tallest Lava Demons, reaching five to six meters, could barely navigate the three to four-meter-high tunnels by stooping. But for the massive demon soldiers, almost ten meters tall with their armor, squeezing into the tunnels was impossible.

The sorcerer demons accompanying the group attempted to widen the passages magically. Initially successful, they managed to pass through several tunnels. However, this method quickly drained their magic reserves as they progressed through tunnels spanning hundreds of meters, rendering it ineffective.

While some passages were widened by hundreds of meters, each route was similar in size, some even smaller. Relying solely on sorcerers to expand them wouldn't suffice, even with Belial's elite magic knights.

Hence, Putrescent had no choice but to abandon the plan of sending heavy-armored soldiers into the mine and instead deployed smaller, agile demons.

Though these smaller demons were physically smaller, they were still formidable in strength and well-equipped. While facing them head-on was almost futile, no one dared to confront them directly.

In the first passageway, as the leading team advanced, they were quickly forced back by a thick cloud of smoke suddenly billowing out. While many demons didn't require breath, they still could hold their breath for extended periods. However, this smoke carried spores, essentially a poisonous gas. Caught off guard, about half of the soldiers lost their ability to move after being choked back. The remaining half relied on the sorcerer's defensive shields to press forward.

As they reached ascending steps, they encountered rolling boulders cascading downward. The smaller demons couldn't withstand the assault of heavy rocks. Despite scrambling to escape, several were crushed into pulp.

Then came cave-ins, spike traps, falling ceilings, and concealed arrows at corners...

If seen through the eyes of these demon soldiers, the entire mine resembled the traps of a twisted paradise, with every few steps leading into a new peril. They couldn't discern where the attacks originated; they just retreated amidst screams.

Achieving this was largely thanks to the Imps' tunnels. These tiny, weak demons had their own ecosystem within the mine, aptly named the mouse hole.

While the main tunnels were designed for regular miners, the Imps had crafted a more intricate network for swift navigation, making the passages exceedingly complex.

Like many communal creatures with strong reproductive abilities, they intricately designed their tunnels to be labyrinthine, yet interconnected. Almost every fork could lead to their desired destination.

Although the Imps hardly understood the intricacies of trap setting, standing in their tunnels with pointed sticks, they knew precisely where to strike through armor gaps.

One poke might not seem significant, but with thousands of Imps in the mine continuously reproducing, if these demon soldiers were to write autobiographies afterward, their chapter on this ordeal would be titled "You Don't Understand Until You've Been Poked."

Fortunately, demon soldiers possessed self-healing abilities and were accompanied by sorcerers. Despite various traps hindering their progress, they managed, stumbling, to reach the first major chamber—the very one Batman had been working in.

Encircling a central mound, the demon soldiers couldn't see any enemies but felt surrounded, constantly on guard against potential attacks from all directions.

Though demons didn't require food, drink, or sleep, they still needed rest. Two days and nights of siege warfare had nearly exhausted everyone's energy. Progressing through long, dark tunnels while constantly wary of traps, their wounds constantly healing and reopening, was a psychological torment for any sentient being.

Finally, the leading demon announced a brief rest. However, as they rested, numerous slave miners suddenly charged out from various directions in the mine's passageways, wielding an array of weapons or hurling rocks at them.

These attacks were more irritating than lethal, but the hot-headed demons couldn't resist pursuing them into the tunnels. However, the miners, familiar with the terrain, vanished swiftly, leaving the demons to stumble into various traps.

The leader ordered them not to pursue, but the miners stood at the mine's corners, hurling objects at them.

Initially, they only threw spears and rocks, some unable to breach the demon soldiers' defenses. But later, they began hurling bombs, strange fluids, and toxic spores confiscated from Bug Bombers...

Among the light infantry were archers and magic users, yet the miners' only skill was their speed. After each assault, they vanished swiftly, leaving no time for the demons to ready bows or conjure spells.

Unfamiliar with the terrain, unable to catch up, and facing a barrage of traps, the demons couldn't rest undisturbed.

In reality, the leader understood that the best course of action was to retreat entirely, regroup, and then plan their next move according to the mine's layout.

However, they had already come this far. Retreating would mean enduring the traps again and losing resources upon re-entry. The troops would be rendered useless through repeated retreats and reentries.

The leader knew Putrescent's temperament well. Returning without any achievements would mean facing dire consequences. Continuing deeper into the mine would ensure their protection; only the soldiers would perish. And if they could capture one or two planners, it would be an opportunity for glory.

So, the leader decided to press on. What awaited them next, however, would not be as forgiving.

Subsequent traps weren't aimed at causing harm but rather diverting their progress. For example, spreading poisonous smoke in the center of the team, forcing some to run forward while others retreated, then springing a trap that pulled a demon soldier in, never to be seen again.

The passageways weren't spacious, preventing the formation of a proper defensive line. Instead, they moved forward in a single-file line, vulnerable to ambushes from all sides. Soon enough, the snake-like formation was sliced apart, with soldiers scattered and separated from the main force.

After this, they truly experienced hell. Batman had devised a comprehensive plan for combat within the mines.

First, all miners hid, avoiding direct confrontation. Then, through various harassments, the enemy's stamina and energy were drained. Once fatigued, the enemy's forces were divided into smaller units and systematically defeated.

With numerical superiority lost, even two or three demon soldiers couldn't withstand a pummeling from so many miner slaves. If they tried to flee, they'd be chased down by the miners familiar with the terrain. It was like being trapped with no escape.

Indeed, the answer Batman held was summarized in a single phrase: "Advance when the enemy retreats, harass when the enemy camps, strike when the enemy tires, pursue when the enemy withdraws."

As the battle temporarily eased, Batman, reflecting on his strategy alone, looked up. In the pitch-black expanse of the mine, he saw the old black-and-white movie still playing. The sound of wheels rolling over tracks grew urgent, echoing through the cavern, mingling with the blaring of horns through the nitric smoke, reverberating across the ancient land.

One figure after another passed through mountains and rivers, heading towards the vast distant lands. Their silhouettes, like the winds that had swept over the land for millennia, bore the weight of endless journeys without return.

Similarly standing in the abandoned mine, Schiller and Alfred caught the scent of nitric smoke carried by the wind from afar.

"You've plotted and schemed from afar, even at the cost of harming yourself, just to drag Batman into this war?" Alfred turned to Schiller and asked.

"Batman has learned much, even about Gotham," Schiller sighed faintly, looking towards the flowing lava river in the distance. "However, learning about Gotham alone is not enough to unleash his extraordinary talents."

"Gotham's darkness runs deep but not wide. Learning about Gotham is merely the first step out of the cradle for such a genius."

"No one enjoys war," Schiller paused for a moment, then continued, "but the forging of iron and blood in the crucible of war will fundamentally shape one's character."

"The trials of sacrifice and death amidst the turmoil, the grandiose loves and hatreds, affections and enmities throughout the ages, will truly transform a person."

"The personal conflicts of hesitation and doubt will ultimately be shattered by the waves of war and the vast, epic tales of history, reshaped into a steel-like soul."

Schiller lowered his head again, speaking in a somber tone. "Through the endless haze of war, he will witness the grandeur of many great individuals."

"One day, he will understand just how astonishing the spirits of those who once braved the storms truly were, how they shouted earth-shattering cries of—'Dare to change the course of the sun and moon.'"

Schiller's sigh dissipated with the wind, disappearing into the ancient desolate land, like a gust of wind, leaving no trace.

"If he cannot emerge from the world of turmoil," Alfred murmured softly, "he will never understand..."

"How astonishing the spirits of those who once traversed the storms truly were, daring to shout earth-shattering cries amidst a world in peril."

[Read at www.patreon.com/shanefreak, and thanks for the invaluable support!]

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Next Chapter>>Chapter 985 Battle for the High Tower (Nineteen)