"What? That short gourd of an antique mentioned this Count?!"
Count Bran had just returned to the tree hall with two Gray Gravel Crystals picked up from the riverbank. Hearing Chen Yu's news, he was so shocked he wished he could grow an extra pair of wings and fly away immediately.
"Finished, finished! That fellow Arthur has fallen into her hands. He's doomed, absolutely doomed to be abused terribly, then disassembled into a pile of bones and thrown into a cauldron to be boiled into soup."
He paced back and forth in panic, his feathers all puffed up, his mind already sketching out the miserable scene of Arthur's funeral.
Chen Yu slowly squelched closer.
"Arthur is doing just fine. He didn't reveal your information. He's currently staying in the farmhouse of our undead compatriot, with an elf for company. He just can't return for a while."
"What?!"
Count Bran's pitch instantly shot up, his wings flapping sharply. His previous worries burst like a punctured bubble, "poof" transforming entirely into raging flames of indignation.
To vent his anger, he turned and began fiercely pecking at an innocent wooden stump nearby.
The more he thought about it, the angrier he became, pecking the stump at an increasingly rapid pace. The "tock tock tock" sounds became as dense as drumbeats.
"This Count decides to ignore him today, no, tomorrow too!"
The poor tree stump bore the full brunt of the Count's wrath.
Chen Yu paid him no mind, mounted Little Ka, his entire body equipped with eight Stone Swords and ten leaf Talismans—armed to the "teeth."
"Are you still going on today's great expansion? Once we scout the dungeon route, we can bring Arthur back early."
Of course, he still had his mind on the Goblin Army's obsidian mining area.
If they could discover larger Gray Gravel Crystals... hehe.
"Go, of course I'm going."
Count Bran's movements halted. He lifted his head, snorted angrily, but his eyes were clearly drawn by Chen Yu's words.
He fluttered his wings a few times, landed on Little Ka's back, puffed out his chest, and waved a wing, trying to adopt a completely indifferent posture.
"This is the Slime Kingdom's first large-scale war actively launched against external forces. As the kingdom noble most trusted by Your Majesty, how could this Count act impulsively over minor personal feelings?"
"This Count won't stoop to the level of that foolish retainer. However, I absolutely will not acknowledge him these two days."
"Your Majesty, let's depart! For the Kingdom!"
"Crack crack, for the King!"
Chen Yu rode Little Ka out of the tree hall and arrived at the leveled training ground in the western district.
Upon the compacted earth, the Magical Creature Army had already assembled completely—a dark, dense mass, silent and solemn.
The entire Magical Creature Army was divided into six formations.
The most numerous troop type was the ordinary "Poison-stinger Wasp Soldiers" formation, comprising five hundred regular wasp soldiers, their stingers sharpened, ready for action.
Two hundred "Beetle Logistics" troops carried heavy loads of Talismans, Gray Gravel Crystals, and Moss Monster rations on their backs.
In front of them were three special wasp soldier formations: fifty "Stone-stacking Wasp Soldiers," fifty "Bedrock Wasp Soldiers," and fifty "Explosive Wasp Soldiers," neatly arranged, some draped with leaf Talismans, others with red-tipped abdomens, all uniformly attired.
Before Chen Yu stood twenty of the most elite giant Wasp Guards in the Magical Creature Army.
Not only did they possess "Toxin Resistance" Lv.4 and "Mana Explosion" Lv.4, they were also draped with bedrock leaves they could tear for protection when necessary.
More importantly, these little ones had been raised by Chen Yu bite by bite of Spiritual Feeding. They were smarter than ordinary poison-stinger wasps, had longer lifespans, and had completely transcended the level of cannon fodder.
Gazing upon this solemn, murderous Magical Creature Army, even the still-sulking Count Bran felt his heart surge with excitement, a wave of heroic spirit rising in his chest, unconsciously straightening his posture even more.
"Oink oink~"
A familiar sound came from nearby. Peachy ambled over slowly and instinctively lined up behind the Poison-stinger Wasp Soldiers formation, her small eyes full of anticipation, as if saying:
Battle? Don't forget her!
Fight for the glory of great food!
"For delicious food!"
"Move out!"
Chen Yu waved his gel hand. Peachy immediately began oinking and trotting forward, taking the lead. As her massive body moved, the very ground seemed to tremble in response.
Behind her, the dense Magical Creature Army took flight, emitting a unified drone. Little Ka nimbly scurried to the very front to lead the way.
Peachy oinked: "Eat... eat..."
Little Ka seemed to understand. Not wanting to be swallowed whole by this enormous little sister, he hurriedly quickened his pace.
The Magical Creature Army marched forth with proud, high spirits, crossing the Forest Paths cleared yesterday.
Yesterday, a single wild boar charge from Peachy had broken and toppled oak trees along the way, clearing this very path.
The warm sun shone down. Without tree cover, the pervasive poisonous mist dissipated, posing no hindrance to the Magical Creature Army.
Soon they reached the ruined village, entering through the newly repaired passage gate. The interior space was surprisingly spacious enough to accommodate the enormous Peachy.
They easily reached the outpost within the dungeon.
"Thump, thump, thump..."
The slimes, under the leadership of the Chubby One, were still diligently decorating the newly built slime nest. Suddenly hearing these terrifying, approaching thuds, they huddled together in fright, trembling.
"Enemy, invasion!"
The Big Brother Slime emitted a trembling yet exceptionally resolute buzz, bravely hopping to the nest entrance, using his small body to block the way for all the little ones.
As the guardian of this fortress symbolizing slime hope, for his companions, for the King, he was determined to face this unknown threat.
The Chubby One quickly hopped over, releasing calming Pheromones.
"The King's army, passing through."
"King... army?"
The slimes' small eyes shifted from terror to confusion. After confirming it wasn't danger, intense curiosity instantly overwhelmed their fear. They cautiously peeked their little heads out from the nest entrance, observing the activity within the fortress passage.
The scene before them made their dewy eyes widen instantly, shocking them beyond measure:
"Thump!"
They saw their great King—that authoritative green Slime—seated majestically upon a fearsome-looking magical creature mount.
Behind the King, a giant beast moved slowly like a mountain range, followed by a seemingly endless black army emitting a low, unified drone.
This army marched in silence, radiating a heart-palpitating sense of power.
"Whoa—!" All the slimes let out a soundless gasp of amazement.
This moment's stunning scene was deeply branded into their young minds like a searing mark.
So... slimes could also be this powerful, this majestic!
The Magical Creature Army did not linger within the fortress. Following Chen Yu's lead, they flowed like a silent black torrent, gradually merging into the denser mist beyond the fortress gate, their figures ultimately vanishing into the hazy gray-white.
Entering the Mist Zone, the damp, cold fog immediately enveloped them.
Count Bran disdainfully shook his feathers, sullied by the moisture, feeling his noble plumage had been defiled.
But he quickly suppressed this discomfort, pulling out a crude, hastily drawn map from under his wing—this was the map drawn from memory by the Goblin Shaman "Dogtooth," marking several main routes from the Mist Zone to the obsidian mining area.
"Your Majesty, if that green-skinned short gourd didn't deliberately draw it wrong, there are three main routes to reach the obsidian mining area."