Chapter 429: Chapter 429: Iron Rock City

The wizard on the high platform raised his hand to quiet the crowd and continued:

“Iron Rock City has been occupied, but the surrounding situation remains complex. The remnants of resistance forces, lurking Awakened, and potential Erosion Bodies need to be cleared and controlled. The legion requires more personnel to head to Iron Rock City to execute post-occupation order maintenance, resource inventory, and deep-cleaning tasks.”

After Iron Rock City was breached, it essentially signified the fall of the entire Toulouse Territory.

However, due to the vastness of the Toulouse Territory, it is impossible to completely occupy it in a short time, and there are more or less some resistance forces present.

According to the intelligence received from the front, the remaining main force of the Toulouse Territory is accelerating its retreat to leave Toulouse Territory.

This force still has a certain combat capability and is advancing towards the northeast, preparing to enter the interior of the Buren Continent to rendezvous with the forces there.

From the northeast direction of the Toulouse Territory, one can directly reach the inland area of the Buren Continent, where there is a gorge, and beyond the gorge lies a vast plain.

This plain was once an ancient battlefield where many wars had been fought.

Currently, the city-states in the inland area of the Buren Continent are basically on war footing, having already gathered troops to prepare to resist the invasion of the United Legion.

The troops retreating from the Toulouse Territory are obviously in contact with those on the other side.

According to reconnaissance from the front, people over there are also responding to the retreating forces here.

What Duke and his team need to do now is to continue moving forward and reach Iron Rock City to clear the surrounding areas.

…

An hour later, Duke, Vivian, and the other members of the Seventh Squad boarded three large floating airships specially designed for transporting personnel and materials.

The floating airships slowly ascended, and a fleet of dozens of airships set off towards the location of Iron Rock City.

Through the porthole, Duke could see the rapidly changing landscape below.

Gradually leaving the relatively barren area where Goose Peak Castle is located, the land below became increasingly fertile, with more cultivated farmland and larger villages and towns appearing.

However, the scars of war were also clearly etched upon this land.

Many villages had evidently been ravaged by fire, either billowing with thick black smoke or completely desolate.

On the ground, the troops of the United Legion’s slave creatures, resembling black streams, were advancing along the roads, and occasionally, the flashes of energy and dust from small-scale battles could be seen.

After flying for about half a day, the silhouette of a gigantic city gradually became clear on the distant horizon.

That is the capital of the Toulouse Territory, Iron Rock City.

It is situated on a vast black rocky mountain, a treacherous position that is easy to defend and difficult to attack.

The city’s walls are tall and massive, constructed entirely of locally quarried black iron rock, making it look from afar like a giant black beast perched atop the mountain.

At this moment, the city walls, which originally should have been flying the flag of the Toulouse Clan, were instead lined with four different flags representing the Four Great Wizard Organizations.

This gigantic city also paid a heavy price, as closer inspection revealed multiple damaged sections of the enormous walls.

The southern wall facing the main force’s direction of attack had several huge breaches, where wizards and numerous slave creatures were currently conducting repairs.

The walls were covered with blackened traces of cannon fire, giant claw marks, and craters left by magic attacks, silently recounting the intensity of the previous battles.

The airship did not fly directly into the city but landed in a large camp temporarily cleared outside the city.

A large number of wizards and slave creatures had already stationed there, with tents, workshops, and piles of supplies as tall as mountains. Although orderly, the atmosphere was permeated with tense anticipation of battle.

Duke and the others disembarked from the airship and, led by a wizard who came to meet them, walked through the outer camp, entering Iron Rock City through a slightly less damaged side gate.

The scene inside the city was even more shocking than outside. Many of the buildings lining the streets had been reduced to rubble and debris, with charred beams and broken furniture strewn everywhere.

Even the intact buildings mostly had their doors and windows tightly shut, walls covered with wartime scars and blackened blood stains.

The air was thick with the scent of gunpowder, blood, and an oppressive sense of despair.

Teams of fully armed knights and wizards patrolled the streets, their eyes alertly scanning every corner.

Occasionally, some emaciated, numb-eyed indigenous residents could be seen, clearing the rubble and corpses on the streets under the watch of knight soldiers. They were transporting the bodies of their compatriots onto carts to be taken out of the city for centralized handling.

More often seen were prisoners of war, chained together, heads hung in dejection, being driven by slave creatures to temporary prisons built outside the city.

These so-called prisons were simply large cages without any decent facilities. Various wastes piled up inside, emitting an overwhelming stench.

The living conditions inside were even worse than those of the slave creatures.

If it weren’t for the legion dispersing some medicinal liquids inside, diseases would likely have broken out rapidly.

In the city center, the originally splendid lord’s mansion and city hall building complex had now become the temporary command center of the United Legion, heavily guarded with potent energy fluctuations barely perceptible.

Duke, Vivian, and the other members of the Seventh Squad traversed the heavily guarded streets and finally arrived at a mansion in the southeast area of Iron Rock City.

This place originally seemed to be the residence of a noble from the Toulouse Territory. The architecture was both luxurious and sturdy, with an independent courtyard enclosed by high walls. It was now evidently requisitioned by the legion as the temporary base for the Seventh Squad.

“Your Seventh Squad is assigned to stay in this building. Allocate your rooms and keep everything tidy, always on standby,” the wizard leading them instructed expressionlessly before turning away.

Catherine was not present as she was still dealing with affairs outside, leaving them to make arrangements by themselves.

They pushed open the heavy carved wooden doors and entered, the interior decoration still somewhat hinting at its former opulence.

However, many of the valuable items had long been looted, leaving only some bulky furniture covered in dust.

The air carried a faint moldy smell mixed with an unfamiliar scent left by previous occupants.

Everyone chose their own rooms, and Duke and Vivian intuitively picked adjacent ones.

The rooms were large, each with a private washroom, and from the windows, a part of the inner courtyard and the distant street were visible.

After tidying up a bit, Duke planned to explore the surroundings and see if he could gather any specific information about the mission area.

After settling in, he and Vivian decided to go out together.

The next couple of days were designated for rest, and generally, no tasks would be assigned, allowing for freedom of movement.

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