CHAPTER 429 INTENTIONAL RETREAT
Upon the next sunrise, the Crimson Dragon Army concluded the deployment of three thousand soldiers
under the command of Dunn. The soldiers joined by two squads of spirit manipulators were tasked to
attack the weakening front line of the Timber Deity Empire.
As Dunn's army focused on damaging the weak front line of the Timber Deity Empire, Marin and
Sabina led an army of six thousand soldiers and three squads of spirit manipulators. They sneakily
deployed an ambush attack on the west side of the Hippo Land, ready to attack the west front line as
soon as the Timber Deity Empire army fought back.
The entire mission was led by Rocky who stayed behind with his army of less than one thousand
soldiers.
Under the leadership of Dunn, the army adhered to the plan and easily gained the upper hand in their
battle against the Timber Deity Empire troops. It only took Dunn and his three thousand soldiers an
hour to fully damage the enemy's weak front line.
Not long after Dunn's successful penetration of the Timber Deity Empire's front line, sounds of fighting,
crying, and screaming filled the air.
As Marin anticipated, the raid launched by Dunn's army disrupted the defense front line of the Timber
Deity Empire. Soon after, more soldiers were deployed to fight against Dunn's troops.
Marin and Sabina took no time to hatch a plan. Upon realizing what was happening to Dunn's troops,
they deployed their soldiers and the squads of spirit manipulators. They attacked from both sides of the
west of the Hippo Land and focused on penetrating the front line of the Timber Deity Empire from both
sides.
After an excruciating battle, Marin and Sabina's six thousand soldiers were all gathered in the center of
the battle ground. They planned to press forward to the enemy's den. But first, they had to cross the
forest that separated them from the camp of the Timber Deity Empire army, and destroy their remaining
defense line.
With a quick exchange of confident looks, Marin and Sabina were ready to lead their army into the
forest that would take them to their enemy's lair.
Then, the forest began to tremble as trees all around shook with force and shadows appeared and
disappeared into the darkness.
In the forest, Rocky—who was supposed to be left behind—emerged. He stood stoically as he watched Content held by .
the ongoing battle in front of him, showing no intention of offering help.
"There are much fewer soldiers in the west side than what we have prepared for," Rocky muttered.
"This is a problem." From the outlines of the forest, Rocky saw Marin and Sabina appear quickly, taking
a deep breath, and charging into the depths of the forest where the battle was happening.
Then, soldiers from the Timber Deity Empire appeared from the deep parts of the forest. "Run!" they
cried in panic. "The Crimson Dragon Army is coming!" "We can't stop them!" another voice screamed in
fear.
Upon hearing the announcement of the panicked voices, the Timber Deity Empire troops quickly ran
out of the forest.
Marin didn't want to let them get away. "Everyone, charge!" she commanded. She led the soldiers to go
after the Timber Deity Empire troops and attack their main camp.
Before she could go any farther, Rocky appeared in front of Marin and gestured her to stop.
"Rocky?" Marin asked, surprised. "What are you doing here?" she continued. She thought Rocky
wasn't supposed to join their attack.
"Commander Marin," Rocky started calmly, "I think we should stop for now." When Marin did not
respond, Rocky squinted his eyes and fixed his demeanor. This time, he made sure she realized it was
an order.
"What do you mean?" Marin asked. She held Rocky's steady gaze.
"I said we should stop for now and go back to camp," Rocky repeated.
"Why should we go back?" Marin probed, this time with more conviction. "The soldiers of the Timber
Deity Empire are afraid of us," she continued. "If we continue fighting, I'm sure we'll win!" Marin was
baffled at the command of Rocky and she made sure he saw it.
The other commanders and soldiers noticed what was happening and started to pay attention. They
looked at Rocky with confused looks.
"Look at these," Rocky gestured at the footprints the Timber Deity Empire army had left. "They were all
running towards the same direction. They were pretending to escape when they must have been
leading you towards a trap." Rocky explained, hoping that his men would understand.
"I'm surprised you noticed that too." Then, they saw Sabina's delicate figure walk towards them. Sabina
also thought that there was something strange about the way the Timber Deity Empire army retreated.
It was too orderly, as if it was part of a plan. Upon realizing this, she quickly commanded the army to
stay in place and intended to warn Marin. However, Rocky reached Marin first.
If it was only Rocky who made the conclusion, Marin wouldn't have believed it. However, she trusted
Sabina's judgment and so she started scrutinizing the footprints herself. She realized that they were
both correct—there was indeed something unusual about them. Feeling a kick of shame at the thought
that she nearly walked into the enemy's trap, Marin blushed. She quickly glanced at Rocky and
gathered her composure. "Everyone," she announced, "return to camp!"
Towards the direction of the footsteps of the Timber Deity Empire soldiers, in the deepest part of the
forest, an army of one thousand bowmen stood still. They were bowmen of the Timber Deity Empire.
Under the command of Commander Wei, they stood tensely, waiting for the Crimson Dragon Army,
prepared to go to battle.
Hours had passed and there were still no signs of the Crimson Dragon Army's appearance.
"Commander Wei," someone called. It was a spirit manipulator running towards Commander Wei.
"Why hasn't the Crimson Dragon Army come yet?" Commander Wei asked impatiently. The spirit
manipulator stood in embarrassment, avoiding the threatening glare of Commander Wei.
"The Crimson Dragon Army retreated," the spirit manipulator finally said. Silence fell between them.
"What do you mean?" Commander Wei asked, his voice steadily rising. "What do you mean they
retreated?" he repeated with more force. Commander Wei made sure everyone saw just how angry he
was.
"They have seen through our plans," he muttered.
"Damn it," he cursed. "We wasted so much time here!" Go back to camp!" Angrily, Commander Wei led
the army back into camp.
Dunn, who was busily attacking the soldiers of the Timber Deity Empire, saw a signal of retreat surge in
the air. He looked at it confusedly, but still ordered his army to retreat.
"Commander," Dunn greeted. "What happened? Why did we come back?" Dunn patiently waited for
Rocky to answer.
He saw Marin and Sabina approach, Marin's face curled into a horrid expression.
"It seems like the Timber Deity Empire knew about our plan," Rocky explained. "They have set us up
for ambush and were leading us towards a trap. Perhaps the weakened defense line found by
Commander Marin was intentionally left for us to find." Rocky bowed his head in dismay.
"You think they left it on purpose?" Marin said, horrified at the idea that they were walking into a trap.
"Perhaps you're right," Sabina supported Rocky. "Perhaps the defense line wasn't really a simple
defense line. It was a trap. They were trying to lure us into attacking them further only so they could
eventually have us fall for their plan." Cold air stirred the room.
Dunn and Marin stood silently, their faces pale in shock.
"It seems that we have underestimated them. Commander Ji is far more experienced than we thought."
Rocky stared wistfully at Sabina. Upon hearing her analysis, he felt a surge of appreciation for her rise
up inside him. He was happy to know that Sabina and he shared the same line of thinking.
"I encountered a similar strategy in the army before," Sabina recalled. "As soon as we get deep into the
defense line, they will switch roles. The defender will become the attacker and launch violent attacks.
The person who thought of using such a tactic must be very skilled. We are going against a person
who seems to be far from ordinary," Sabina added thoughtfully.
"Well," Rocky said, "it seems like we have an exciting battle ahead." After exchanging looks with the
team, Rocky's lips curved up.