Chapter 77: Surpassed in the Rankings

In the days that followed, Chu Cheng stayed put in the Crossroads Fortress, dedicating himself wholly to training his weapon skills. To speed up his improvement, he even spent some reputation points to bring in a few defeated orc prisoners from the dungeons to serve as his sparring partners.

With a steady supply of opponents, his weapon mastery advanced rapidly. He promised his sparring partners that if they trained with him for half a month, they would be spared from execution and sent instead to work as miners—a fate more believable than outright release.

As time passed, the atmosphere within the Crossroads Fortress grew palpably tense. More and more soldiers were being transferred to the northern outposts. Chu Cheng was not oblivious to the world outside; through Zhang Chunlei and his homeroom teacher, he kept himself well-informed.

According to his teacher, the fortress had made the decision to assemble a force to attack the Orc King's main tribe. Numerous missions were being issued to eradicate the scattered orc tribes east of the Blackwater River, spread across the vast wilderness. Sun Yu and others had already pinpointed their locations and, together with students from several other classes, were fighting those tribes in the wilds.

Chu Cheng paid these developments little mind. No matter how many of those minor tribes were wiped out, it would have little effect on the overall evaluation. What truly mattered was the upcoming major event. If clearing these small tribes made a difference, no one would have outpaced him, as he had already destroyed more than anyone else. Better to play it safe.

Time flowed on, and after half a month, Chu Cheng finally raised his bow and shield skills to mastery in one go. After making some preparations, he left the Crossroads Fortress and set out for the northern outpost.

The Human Northern Expeditionary Army was about to march, and he needed to report in. Upon arrival, he learned from Duan Yuqin that while the main force had yet to set out, the army's vanguard had already established camp beneath Blackstone Bastion.

As the largest outpost outside the Orc King's domain, Blackstone Bastion had to be taken first. Instead of moving with the main force, Chu Cheng reported in and accepted a mission before joining a supply convoy headed out with the logistics team.

The convoy crossed the Blackwater River, traversed the wilderness, and finally arrived at a stretch of stony wasteland, where Blackstone Bastion stood stark atop a rocky plateau. The orc stronghold was built entirely of stone, its walls bristling with spikes and crowded with orc defenders, along with war machines such as catapults and ballistae.

Over a thousand human vanguard troops had pitched their camp just out of range of the catapults, and mounted scouts circled the bastion, ready to thwart any orc breakout.

No sooner had Chu Cheng arrived with the supply team than he received a message from Zhang Chunlei:

“All seven classes are here, discussing the assault. Want to join us?”

“Are you launching the assault now?”

“Is Class One leading it?”

“They’re here, but it’s not a joint operation. Everyone has their own plans,” Zhang Chunlei explained. “The rewards for capturing the bastion are huge. The previous bounty still stands: if we can take the fort without the Northern Army’s help, there’s a total of fifty points and three access privileges, plus 2,500 reputation and a reward of 20 gold, with the boss loot counted separately.”

Chu Cheng asked curiously, “You think you can take Blackstone Bastion without the Northern Army? As far as I know, though the orcs were recently defeated, many stragglers have holed up in the bastion. The number of defenders is several times higher than before, and you surely can’t muster a hundred cannon fodder like last time.”

“We can, actually—and this time, we can summon even more cannon fodder,” Zhang Chunlei replied. “We’re also better prepared. They have a way to open the gates directly, no need for a protracted siege.”

“Oh?” Chu Cheng, previously disinterested, found his curiosity piqued. “Are you sure they can open the gates?”

“Of course. If they couldn’t, who would lead the charge?”

“Is it really that easy?”

“If they had this ability, why not use it on the Orc King’s inner city, where it matters most?” Chu Cheng mused. The inner city of the Orc King’s tribe was even more heavily fortified than Blackstone Bastion, though the gates themselves weren’t much tougher. If they could breach Blackstone’s gates, they could do the same to the inner city.

“Unless, of course, the method can be used more than once.”

“Strange… why didn’t they use it before?” Chu Cheng scratched his head. “If the gates really can be opened, fine—but the key question is, how will the rewards be split?”

Zhang Chunlei replied at once, “The gate-breaking tool is in Sun Yu’s hands. He’ll use it to open the gates and summon a horde of cannon fodder to lead the way. In exchange, he wants half the points and all three privileges. The remaining points and 20 gold will be split among us, and he’ll forgo all the boss loot.”

“Ha, so he gets the best part in the end,” Chu Cheng scoffed. “Ask him for me—if I join, what’s my share? Any bonus for tanks?”

“I’ll check.”

In less than a minute, Zhang Chunlei responded, sounding a bit awkward: “Um, Sun Yu says he wouldn’t dare trouble you.”

Chu Cheng: ???

“Got it,” he replied. “Well, well, trying to keep all the spoils for himself!”

He ended the communication, stroked his chin, and smiled faintly: “You think you can keep me out so easily? This bounty isn’t yours alone—anyone can claim it.”

Moreover…

His gaze sharpened, and a plan took shape in his mind.

Half an hour later, the joint team was ready and began summoning their cannon fodder. Most were elemental creatures or summoned beasts like bears and boars; some used scrolls to summon squads of orcs or human soldiers.

Soon it was Sun Yu’s turn. He produced a scroll glowing with a faint red light and activated a massive magic circle, bathing the surroundings in crimson. As the circle flared, it summoned the projection of an Abyssal Forge Demon, towering five or six meters tall.

Abyssal Forge Demon Projection (Lord): An exalted archdevil from an unknown realm, level 50, with 320,000 health.

As soon as the demon appeared, Chu Cheng felt a sudden heat between his brows and sensed a powerful will brush against his mind. Looking up, he saw the freshly summoned demon staring directly at him.

What…?

The gaze vanished as quickly as it came—almost as if it had been his imagination, had he not felt it so clearly.

The summoned Abyssal Forge Demon began casting spells, quickly calling forth three or four hundred lesser and intermediate devils. With a sweep of its massive claw, the horde surged toward Blackstone Bastion with bloodcurdling cries.

“Bold, aren’t they?” Chu Cheng mused, glancing towards Sun Yu, surprised at his audacity.