Chapter 945: The Tide of Golems
Leon casually cast a Fireburst spell at Hubert's face, sending him flying, then glanced around.
"Get ready for battle."
With just those words, everyone instantly fell silent.
All eyes turned to Leon, faces filled with confusion. They had just taken this orc fortress—what battle could possibly be next?
Just as everyone was wondering, a surge of violent magical energy erupted outside the fortress. The sound of metal clashing crashed over them like a tidal wave.
The mage legion instantly dropped whatever they were doing and rushed toward the fortress gates. Reina leapt into the air, flying for the entrance, while Hubert, face twisted in a snarl, hefted Slaughter and charged forward like a humanoid berserk dragon.
After all, Leon had already blown apart the fortress gate with a four-element explosive spell. If someone barged in now, it would be a total humiliation.
When everyone reached the gate, they saw the Alchemical Golem Army already locked in battle with the enemy outside.
Looking out, the field was packed with gigantic beasts two or three meters tall—some even reached five or six meters.
Some were enormous spiders, each leg stretching seven or eight meters, glinting with a cold, razor-sharp light. As their eight legs moved, the air itself was torn apart, filling the battlefield with a shrill, slicing howl.
Others crashed forward like Kodo Beasts, rampaging through the front lines. When the Bladewalker Alchemical Golems slashed at them, sparks flew, and within seconds, these Kodo-like monsters were carved with dozens of wounds—yet not a drop of blood spilled, and their charge never faltered. They barreled through several Bladewalker Alchemical Golems, heading straight for the fortress gate.
All kinds of monsters surged forward like a beast tide, madly assaulting the fortress. Behind them, clouds of dust billowed as the earth trembled with a thunderous roar.
Only now did everyone realize in shock that these monsters were all Alchemical Golems—most under Level 30, but there were thousands of them, a monstrous army of golems...
These fearless, death-defying Alchemical Golems fought on, unfazed by minor wounds. Once their numbers reached a certain threshold, they became as terrifying as the undead—overwhelming everything through sheer quantity.
A Level-30 Bladewalker Alchemical Golem tore apart a Level-25 Spider Alchemical Golem, but was instantly swallowed by the golem flood. After wounding four Monster Alchemical Golems, it was trampled by a herd of Kodo-like beasts.
It was like a brave lion falling into a stampede of wild buffalo—within two seconds, it was ripped to pieces, nothing left but a heap of scrap metal.
There were only two hundred Alchemical Golems guarding the fortress gate. Even if they were all Level-30, they couldn't stand against this horde of low-level golems.
The Bladewalker Alchemical Golems were forced back, drawing closer to the gate. Behind them, the first wave of the Alchemical Golem Army rushed in to join the battle.
The Spellcaster Alchemical Golems raised their arms, runes blazing across their bodies. Waves of fire and frost gathered, and as they unleashed their spells, the sheer density caused everything to collapse, turning into a raging elemental storm that swept through the battlefield.
The assault from the monster golems was finally slowed. Two hundred Level-30 Spellcaster Alchemical Golems, plus dozens more at Level-35, proved even more effective against these hordes than the mage legion itself.
Wide-area spells swept across the battlefield in a raging torrent, instantly blasting the front ranks of Monster Alchemical Golems into heaps of shattered parts.
The unstoppable charge of the Monster Alchemical Golems was finally suppressed. Most were melee types, with few spellcasters among them, but their defenses were terrifying, and their magic resistance far exceeded that of ordinary golems at the same level.
Compared to these monsters, Leon's mass-produced Alchemical Golems of the same level couldn't match their defenses.
Just as the charge was suppressed, a bizarre shriek erupted from behind the Monster Alchemical Golems—like children screaming at the top of their lungs.
From the billowing dust behind the Monster Alchemical Golems, waves of fire, frost, wind blades, and rolling stones descended in a chaotic storm of four-element spells, blanketing the Alchemical Golem Army.
The sheer number of spells rivaled the full power of Leon's Spellcaster Alchemical Golems. As the barrage fell, a dozen Bladewalker Alchemical Golems were instantly overwhelmed, and the counterattack slowed.
Then, as the dust cleared behind the Monster Alchemical Golems, hundreds of small, gray-skinned orcs could be seen riding atop the golems, driving them forward like a herd into battle.
Their bodies were covered in glowing Spellmarks, flickering with eerie light. These orcs unleashed powerful spells—stronger even than the Blazeforge Orc Warlocks.
It wasn't just one or two—all of them had spellcasting abilities surpassing those of Blazeforge Orc Warlocks at the same rank. Most importantly, they wielded four-elemental magic, far more versatile than ordinary orc warlocks.
"Gray Orcs! Everyone, be careful!"
William spotted the small orcs and screamed at the top of his lungs.
His scream startled everyone.
Gray Orcs are one of the eight major orc races of the Blazeforge Realm. They're considered outliers among their kind. Most Blazeforge Orcs rarely produce mages—many have abyssal bloodlines, becoming warlocks and mastering abyssal magic. It's rare for orcs to wield orthodox elemental magic.
But Gray Orcs are different—they can cast spells just like human mages. Their bodies are covered in Spellmarks, similar to those of Dark Elves, granting them powerful magic. At the same rank, even humans can't match the spellcasting prowess of a Gray Orc.
But that's not the main reason they're considered outliers among the Blazeforge Orcs.
They're short, almost dwarven in stature, but lack dwarves' robust physique. Every Gray Orc is skinny, and even the strongest among them are smaller than most human women—thin arms, thin legs, looking like a starving horde of gray-skinned goblins from afar.
Their frail bodies are weaker than even human soldiers, let alone regular orcs.
Typical orc warriors are huge and burly—their arms thicker than a human soldier's thigh. Some orcs are so massive, their arms are wider than a human warrior's waist, their strength almost monstrous.
That's why, when cursing Blazeforge Orcs, people always say these idiots have muscles for brains.
With bodies so frail, Gray Orcs have no warriors at all, making them true outliers among the Blazeforge Orcs.
And these gray-skinned folk aren't nearly as prolific as other orcs, either.
Most orcs breed like rabbits—every winter, wherever orcs border human kingdoms, there's always some skirmish, all because they're just that good at multiplying.
A massive population means massive food pressure. When winter comes, if they don't raid for supplies and let some orcs die off, there's no way the tribe could survive in peace. More deaths would follow.
It's normal for an orc family to have a dozen kids. Practically every household welcomes new orc children each year. If not for the high infant mortality rate, their sheer numbers could drag down even a human army.
But Gray Orcs are different—their birth rate is so low, it's actually worse than in some human towns.
That's why there are so few of them.
Despite their tiny numbers, they're still recognized as one of the eight major Blazeforge Orc races—mainly because almost every Gray Orc is an alchemist!
They're masters of alchemy, especially at making Alchemical Golems. In a Gray Orc tribe, even a naked little brat can whip up a crude labor golem, and an adult Gray Orc is at least a fully-fledged alchemist.
Their frail bodies are offset by their vast armies of Alchemical Golems. In war, a few hundred Gray Orcs marching with thousands of golems is perfectly normal. Against a thousand-strong orc army, these few hundred can sweep the field with golems alone.
After all, Alchemical Golems aren't living beings—they're fearless, fight on even after losing limbs, and can keep casting spells. But orcs of flesh and blood lose fighting power even from minor wounds.
Protected by their golems and backed by powerful magic, the combat strength of Gray Orcs already surpasses that of ordinary orc armies.
Now, the Gray Dwarves drove their Monster Alchemical Golem army in a frenzied charge. Leon's own golem army, facing soulless constructs instead of orc warriors, couldn't match their usual effectiveness.
To Gray Orcs, low-level golems are just cannon fodder—they don't care about losses. Especially those Level-10 Monster Alchemical Golems: no matter how many die, the Gray Orcs won't bat an eye. Any adult Gray Orc can easily make a dozen of them.