The fall of Steel Rock brought the last rich harvest to the expeditionary army. Hundreds of tons of obsidian were urgently transported back to Haimen Pass. This extremely precious ore has been refined and is very strong and can be enchanted. It is rare.
High-quality materials, whether it is used to manufacture war machines, weapons, armor equipment, or even city walls and fortresses, obsidian has amazing value.
However, only steel rocks produce obsidian in the Old World. This place has been in the hands of the Greenskins for many, many years during the Great Disaster Era. Otherwise, the great engineers at Haimen Pass would not have thought of going to the New World to find obsidian.
Now, all the obsidian mined by the Greenskins in the Steel Rock has become the capture of Ryan and the others, and the hundreds of years of accumulation of the Iron Claw tribe have become the trophies of the expeditionary force. Ryan even found the legendary last Thor in the Steel Rock.
When I received the Elector Golden Crown from Elector Eldrad, Ryan thought for a moment and decided to return it to the Empire.
After capturing Iron Rock, Ryan chose to plunder and then destroy it as always. This green-skinned fortress with a history of thousands of years was completely destroyed, and then the army began to break camp and slowly move south.
The army began to suffer difficulties.
Skarsnik sent a large number of wolf cavalry to constantly harass and attack the army's supply lines. The cunning goblin wolf cavalry could move freely in the badlands. Skarsnik gave up fighting the army head-on and instead let go
Lion and Belegar went south, hit and run, using various ambushes and traps to eliminate the vanguard and scouts, slowly disintegrating and dividing the confidence and numbers of the expeditionary force bit by bit.
The expeditionary army encountered difficulties. As it went south, the environment in the badlands became increasingly harsh, with water sources and fodder becoming less and less. Logistics relied on supplies from the Haimen Pass-Junku Fort direction. However, after being attacked continuously, Lane and
Belega had to detach another 5,000 men to protect the logistics route.
After losing 1,500 vanguard troops in a row, Lane had no choice but to order the expeditionary force to slow down and march slowly to prevent being ambushed.
The hot climate made many soldiers fall ill, and the consequences of acclimatization began to show. The army suffered a lot of non-combat attrition. There were fewer and fewer greenskin fortresses along the way, and there were very few things that could be plundered. The morale of the army gradually deteriorated.
In the slump, Ryan hopes to win a few battles to strengthen his team.
It was confident, but the cunning Skarsnik didn't give it a chance at all. On the contrary, it planned to fight Ryan and the others. Greenskins kept rolling in from all directions throughout the bad land. The expeditionary force fought several encounters.
Each suffered losses, but none of them encountered Skarsnik's main force.
From Iron Rock to Wallaya, the expeditionary force took about three months.
Skarsnik set up ambushes many times, but Belegar discovered them all. The scouts and reconnaissance armies of both sides fought several times, with each winning and losing. However, it became increasingly difficult for the expeditionary force to march into the sea of green skins, and the heat was too hot.
, desert, dry, rugged terrain and complex and changeable climate all tortured the expeditionary force, and every step forward had to pay a huge price.
By August, when the scorching heat gradually subsided and the expeditionary force arrived at the sad place of Walaya, the total number of troops was less than 30,000.
Fortunately, the Unicorn Guard sent by Francois arrived at the front line with 5,000 people and carried a large amount of supplies, providing a certain amount of reinforcements. The wounded soldiers withdrew, and the merchants took away the seizures and trophies, and the army was able to survive.
Pack lightly and travel lightly, when the army arrives in late August
When the team finally approached Valaya's sad place, Belega carefully surveyed the terrain and immediately saw through the numerous ambush set by Skarsnik again. The King of the Eight Peaks and the King of Knights personally went into battle and wiped out the ambush in the mountain road behind them.
A Thousand Goblin Wolf Cavalry.
Immediately afterwards, Belega, who was extremely familiar with the terrain of the Roof Mountains of the World, led the expeditionary force to bypass Skarsnik's ambush circle through a secret passage, and broke into Valaya's sad land first. The magic crystal cannon was under the command of Belega.
The artillery shelled the most vulnerable part of this green-skinned fortress.
The lower end of the wall directly caused the city wall to collapse. While Skarsnik was still waiting for the expeditionary force to enter the ambush circle, Ryan and Belegar had already taken the lead and entered Valaya's sad place, wiping out the three thousand green skin defenders here.
army, and set up an ambush to wait for the predicted greenskin rear attack.
However, the situation was surprising. Seeing that his ambush had no effect, Skarsnik unexpectedly chose to retreat and disappeared into the bad land. In this way, the two sides tried back and forth for three months, always on a small scale.
Confrontation.
The exhausted expeditionary force was no longer able to pursue the greenskins who had disappeared into the badlands. The army withdrew into the sad land of Valaya and camped to rest in the Dwarf Ancestor Hall deep in the mountains.
After setting up camp, both Ryan and Belegar knew that there was no time to lose. Lane led about 5,000 people, and Belegar led a vanguard army of about 2,000 people, and began to explore where the Valaya Gate was. The rest of the army was led by
Led by Kalad, they were stationed in the Hall of Ancestors, waiting for signals from Ryan and the others.
Now, in the deep and wide dwarf underground tunnel, Ryan is followed by Veronica and Orika, and Belega is followed by the chief engineer of the Angland clan, Hal Hafer, the gold digger and the chief talisman.
Craftsman Slud - The Honest, the army slowly advanced with torches in the underground tunnel.
The light is very dark, and there are no enemies around for the time being. The griffon Imperius is following Ryan, Belegar is walking beside Ryan, and the chief rune craftsman of the Angrund clan, Slud-Honest, is exploring the way ahead.
, ancient dwarf runes and guide stones that have turned very gray guide the direction of the army's advance.
"Gronny's beard, I can feel that something has desecrated the tunnel of our ancestors." Belega said towards Ryan and the others: "That is a very dirty and corrosive power. Obviously, before us,
Someone has already been to this place. It’s strange that the tunnel was sealed when the Master Rune Craftsman sealed it.”
In the faint firelight, the human armies looked around nervously. Veronica occasionally released a small flaming skull to illuminate the ceiling of the underground tunnel. The army walked slowly. They had been marching for several hours. Ryan
Holding Mjolnir in hand
, he hung the Goddess of Vengeance around his waist. After several months of marching, the face of the King of Knights had become a little weathered, but he seemed to be in good spirits: "It seems that we are indeed facing a new enemy, Belega."
Brother, can you confirm what force polluted the runes?"
"I don't know. If Thorik Ironbrow is here, he should be able to feel it, but I am not a master rune craftsman." Belega was a little helpless about this: "This road was told to me by Thorik.
He warned me not to take this road unless absolutely necessary, because it seemed to contain secrets about Walaya's ancestors."
"Well, won't we arouse the hatred of the rune craftsman master if we take this route?" Ryan was a little embarrassed. The reinforcements from the direction of Iron Peak Castle were an important boost in the battle of Eight Peaks Mountain.
"No, my ancestor, the heroic spirit of King Loen allowed me to do this." Belega sighed: "I used to think that I would not use the ancestor's sacred objects even if I died, but
After going through so much, I already understand that it may not be the original intention of the ancestors to shelve the sacred objects of the ancestors and enshrine them. We don't use them. Many of the sacred objects have been taken by the greenskins or Skaven and used to desecrate or carry out acts of violence.
Evil ritual, this is the real shame."
"Yeah." Ryan nodded.
The three main gods of the dwarves are Gruni, Valaya and Grimnir. The three main gods have been introduced in the previous article and will not be repeated here.
The three main dwarf gods once truly served as the supreme rulers, ruling the dwarves for thousands of years. Among them, Valaya was the common wife of Gruni and Grimnir (so the dwarves formed this tradition), and after the invasion of Chaos, they were
After the end of Alario, one of the three main dwarf gods
The God of War Grimnir decided to lead a small team to the Chaos Wasteland to close the portal of the Old Saint. At that time, all the dwarf ancestors opposed it, but Grimnir perfectly reflected the stubborn character of the dwarves. He insisted on
Go and disappear into the chaotic wasteland.
Gruni and Valaya felt extremely painful about their dereliction of duty. Afterwards, Gruni decided to pass the inheritance to his and Valaya's eldest son, Snorri Whitebeard. 302 years later, Gruni and Valaya
He led an army composed of the dwarf ancestors and gods to the Chaos Wasteland and tried to close the portal again. The remaining dwarves elected Snorri Whitebeard as the first high king of the dwarves.
It is worth mentioning that it was during this period that the Elf Empire (which had not yet been divided) established a close alliance with the dwarves. Snorri Whitebeard met Malekith, the son of the first Phoenix King, while fighting against the Chaos army in the wild.
, and formed a deep friendship together while hunting and destroying the last Chaos army left in the old world. Later, the trade between the elves and the dwarves became increasingly prosperous, and the mineral veins discovered by the dwarves became more and more abundant, so many new fortresses were built.
At that time, Malekith and Snorri Whitebeard had such a good relationship that they could wear a pair of trousers (unfortunately, they were not the same size) and could open the door to see what the other party was doing. Malekith also served as the Elf Empire's diplomatic ambassador to Eternal Peak.
, later Snorri-Shirabeard died.
While sleeping (Snorri was already over a thousand years old when the two sides met, and over two thousand years old when Malekith became ambassador), the first High King still held Malekith's hand and asked him to
Remember the covenant and don't betray it, Malekith even seriously agreed.
Sure enough, things like elves just can’t be trusted.
"Many parts of the ley network have fallen into disrepair, and the best-protected parts can only be barely passable. Thousands of years later, many ley network tunnels have collapsed due to earthquakes and landslides, and other parts have also collapsed due to earthquakes and landslides.
It fell due to the attack of foreign enemies." Belegar carefully checked the direction of the tunnel: "Oh, I recognize these ancient marks. They were made by the ancestor god Granni. Slud, it's up to you."
"Leave it to me." The rune craftsman Slude-the Honest came up to interpret the runes in detail. Only the blood of Granny can become a rune craftsman. Slude must navigate the countless forks and paths of the earth network.
Find the correct one in the mine tunnel.
After spending several hours, Slud-The Honest finally found the direction: "Yes, it is here, this road will lead to the Gate of Valaya."
"Let's follow!" Ryan immediately signaled the army to follow Slude. The human army and the dwarf army united together and walked cautiously towards the depths of the leyline network.
"God, I hate digging into the ground. This makes me feel like I have become a female dwarf." Veronica followed Ryan, and the Witch of Gloria held the Staff of Yundini in her hand, and the tip of the staff spit out breath.
The flames were burning, illuminating the surrounding environment. Even though she was a light fire wizard with the strength of the Holy Domain, the Witch of Gloria still felt extremely uncomfortable with this humid and dark environment. Judging from the expression on her face, she felt very uncomfortable.
"Oh, Ms. Veronica, if you are a female dwarf, there will definitely be many dwarf boys pursuing you." Belega made a joke. The King of Eight Peaks Mountain also knows that human beings are really not adapted to the underground environment.
He continued: "It's a pity that you are not beautiful or charming enough... Well, I mean, as a female dwarf, you are a failure."
"Hehehe~" Ryan couldn't help laughing.
Among dwarves, female dwarves only account for 10-20% of the total dwarf population. Therefore, female dwarves are regarded as the key to the inheritance and reproduction of the dwarf family. Any female dwarf will only receive the best protection and the highest level of rationing. Dwarf society
It is a typical male-dominated society, where men are entirely responsible for daily work, forging, and fighting, while female dwarves are only responsible for housework and raising children.
Since the number of female dwarves is rare, only the most powerful warriors and the highest-level craftsmen and engineers have the opportunity to marry (sometimes brothers marry together to marry a wife). In dwarven society, a person is strong, thick, and full of energy.
A muscular woman with a gourd-shaped figure and a strong waist
Dwarves are recognized as the "most charming", and if a female dwarf wants to get married, her husband's beard must be able to wrap around the female dwarf's waist, and he must be able to produce at least the same weight in gold as Veronica.
Enchanting, fair-skinned, beautiful and long-legged human women are considered standard ugly women by dwarves.
The dwarf Angland clan has said more than once that the Lane brothers are good at everything, but they have a problem with their aesthetics.
It is worth mentioning that female dwarves are prohibited from leaving their place of residence at will after marriage, and are also prohibited from engaging in the same jobs as male dwarves. All they have to do is manage money, housework and give birth to children. A female dwarf has a long childbearing age.
She will give birth to many children in her life. Ryan heard that the female dwarf with the largest number of Angland clan gave birth to thirty-five children in her life, five of which were girls.
"When I first learned about this, I was so angry that I was shaking all over. I was in cold sweat on a hot day. My hands and feet were cold. Chaos was empty. With Slaanesh in my hands, could this world be better? **What should you do to satisfy you? Tears of dissatisfaction
Pulled out, this world is full of oppression against women, when can women really stand up?" Ryan said with a smile.
"...You guy, I don't want to care about you now, get away from me." Veronica rolled her eyes at Ryan.
As time passed, the army entered a huge underground mine. This was obviously another ancestral hall of the dwarves, but it had been abandoned for a long time.
As the army entered the Hall of Ancestors, Slud-Honest identified the ancient rune stone. He spent nearly thirty minutes carefully confirming it and finally breathed a sigh of relief: "Yes, it is here. All the roads lead to the Eight Peaks Mountain.
Among the leyline network, only this place is still intact, but..."
"But?" Ryan came to this giant gate. The highway leading to Bafeng Mountain was completely blocked by a gate composed of stone walls. On the gate were engraved very, very ancient runes and a mural.
The gate is more than twenty meters high and nearly fifty meters wide, enough for three dwarf armies to pass side by side.
"But we need to know the secret word." Now, under the power of the runesmith, it began to glow.
Hundreds of dazzling stars surround a world. A golden phoenix-shaped crown stands between two big trees, and underneath is an anvil and a hammer. The branches of the big trees look like they are alive.
The ground wrapped around the door, forming a series of words, half in Elvish and half in Dwarf.
"Oh my god, it's Gruni's mark!" Belega said in surprise: "This door is at least five thousand years old. Brother Lane, come and take a look. Those pointed ears wrote on the door.
Some what?"
"Friend, you can pass just by opening your mouth." Ryan looked at the Elf text, and then looked at the Dwarf language: "It's the same here."
"Friends?" Belegar obviously remembered the shameful history. He waved the hammer of Angrond in his hand angrily: "Who is friends with these pointy ears!"
"Friends?" Ryan thought for a moment. He suddenly thought of something. The king immediately rushed to the gate and shouted in Elvish: "Friends!"
The door didn't move at all.
"Let me try?" Belegar came up and said a lot of things in dwarf language, including the name of the dwarf god, Belegar's family orders, ancestral oaths and some deep-seated hatreds, as well as all the names of the Eight Peaks Mountain Fortress.
The door still didn't respond.
"Strange." Belegar became impatient: "Damn it, Granny's hammer, what secret message did the ancestors set on this door?"
Everyone studied at the gate for nearly thirty minutes, but still found nothing.
Ryan was still thinking hard, but Orika came up from behind. The dark elf stood on tiptoes and kissed Ryan on the face. He smiled and motioned for Ryan to get out of the way: "Master, you have all made a mistake."
Orika walked to the ancestral gate. She changed her tone, using the language of the ancient elven empire, and said softly beside the gate full of emotion: "Our friend~"
Above the gate, Granny master runes and Valaya master runes flashed one after another, and the dwarves backed away or knelt down in awe.
"Rumble~" The door of the ancestors began to shake and emit bright light. The gears and pulleys that had not been opened for thousands of years began to work. The huge sound echoed deep underground. Just as the dwarves and the human coalition cheered in unison, behind them
, just where he came in, an extremely fishy strong wind suddenly blew, mixed with the roar and roar of the green skin.
Thousands of greenskin troops appeared at the door of the Hall of the Ancestors.