1024: Chapter 137: Exchange Lands (Request for Monthly Pass) 1024: Chapter 137: Exchange Lands (Request for Monthly Pass) Blood had stained the prairie, and corpses piled the earth.
The expedition army, having just ended the battle, seemed to have emerged from hell itself like God Slayers.
Despite the scorching sun overhead as he stood before his troops, Hudson still felt a chill.
Just moments ago, a tribe of tens of thousands of orcs was annihilated under the blades of the expeditionary army.
Similar battles had occurred many times since they entered the great prairie, and nearly every day saw orc tribes decimated by the expeditionary forces.
By now, no one bothered to keep count of their victories.
Even slaughtering numerous ordinary orcs could no longer lift their spirits.
“Send the order, call back the scattered troops, and move the whole army southwest—we are going to carve a path of blood!”
Hudson commanded with murderous intent.
Even the most elite troops were human, and constant slaughter on the vast prairie inevitably led to physical and mental exhaustion.
Since their landing, every soldier of the expeditionary army had claimed several orc lives.
Those who had slain over a hundred were not few.
The title “Grassland Slayer” was firmly attached to Hudson.
Orcs who narrowly escaped death would spontaneously do his propaganda.
As long as orcs existed, he was the most terrifying Great Demon King.
After all, the fearsome Abyss Demon King remained a mere legend, not as acutely painful as reality.
If time could be reversed, probably ninety-nine percent of the orcs would oppose starting this war.
War brought them nothing but slaughter, and no other benefits were seen.
Establishing illustrious careers on the battlefield, plundering wealth from the Human World, and reaching the peak of their lives had all but become mythical tales.
No one really achieved their wishes despite the long duration of the war.
It was still manageable when they attacked the Prairie Seven Kingdoms.
Although those folks were mostly poor, they were at least easy to defeat.
The enemy would crumble during the fight, providing at least some spoils.
But things changed with the invasion of the Alpha Kingdom.
After conquering seven provinces, they still didn’t manage to get any decent spoils.
After Hudson took command, the situation grew even more embarrassing.
Forget about seizing wealth—he hadn’t even seen a single report of victory before the enemy was on their doorstep.
Reality and ideals differed too much, inevitably disturbing the beasts’ hearts.
Despite the ferocity of the expeditionary army, not many tribes were entirely annihilated; losing a fight didn’t mean they couldn’t escape.
Mounting a war horse and fleeing in any direction, as long as one could outrun a comrade, they might escape disaster.
The most tragic were the agrarian tribes—they couldn’t outrun those on four legs.
Facing the pursuit of the expeditionary cavalry, only a very few lucky ones survived.
Escaping the pursuit of the expeditionary army didn’t mean their troubles were over.
The vast prairie was filled with dangers—wolf packs, the undead, venomous worms…
These were trivial; the real danger were “orcs.”
If they ran into a tribe of the same species, it was still fine.
But unfortunately entering a hostile species’ territory meant getting roasted was only a matter of time.
After a tribe was crushed, the number of orcs that died at the hands of their own kind wasn’t necessarily much less than those killed by the expeditionary army.
Duke Daniel deeply detested this kind of fratricide, issuing strict orders against it multiple times.
But in the end, everyone acted as they did before.
It wasn’t just on the prairie—even in the military camps, if a soldier accidentally entered the wrong camp, they might end up as someone else’s meal.
Hatred was one aspect, but more stemmed from a lack of resources.
Countless low-ranking orcs went hungry year after year.
Although the tribe might have cattle and sheep, none belonged to them.
Not eating meat for months was the norm.
If the harvest was poor, dying from hunger wasn’t unusual.
Harsh living conditions led to warped values.
The corpses of their own species became an important source of meat, to say nothing of other species.
“Move quickly, a large troop of cavalry is coming!”
Hearing his companion’s call, the victorious Leopardman quickly cleaned up the battlefield and retreated, not forgetting to take the corpses of the Boar People from the ground.
In the distance, Duke Daniel, who personally witnessed this scene, felt particularly heavy-hearted.
The Empire was on the brink of survival, and the various species within the country still didn’t cease their internal strife.
The scene before him wasn’t isolated; it occurred constantly where he couldn’t see.
“Guards, capture all those fleeing bastards.
I want to see what they are made of to dare ignore my orders!” Daniel, Duke, ordered with a furious face.
To reduce infighting among species, making an example was unavoidable.
If it hadn’t been witnessed, it might have been ignored, but since it was seen, it couldn’t be overlooked.
Most importantly, the offenders weren’t from the Five Royal Clans but merely a middle-strength species.
Slaughtering them wouldn’t cause much trouble.
“Third Battalion, follow me into battle!”
As his voice fell, a group of Wolf Cavalry had already charged out.
The slower Wolfmen showed a look of frustration.
It was a rare chance to make an impression in front of the Commander in Chief, and it just slipped away.
Compared to the bloody combat on the battlefield, pursuing a group of fleeing Leopardman was significantly safer.
Elite forces remained elite.
In less than half an hour, the Third Battalion returned with a group of despondent Leopardman before Duke Daniel.
“Marshal, spare our lives!”