Chapter 175: Absurd Chase
Amn’s professionals also realized the earth elemental’s tactics, but they couldn’t find the earth elemental and didn’t dare to scatter, lest they be defeated individually.
Those distant spectator cannon masters, however, were like startled birds, turning and running, hiding in the soldier phalanx.
Commander Bahamund watched with twitching eyelids; these people were so arrogant before, but now they were cowardly, yet he couldn’t control them and could only pretend not to see.
For a moment, the battlefield became eerily quiet.
One minute, two minutes… a quarter of an hour passed quickly.
Everyone’s expressions were tense, eyes glaring until dry, but the earth elemental seemed to have disappeared and never reappeared.
On the city wall, Illyas couldn’t help but smile faintly: “You’re really bad.”
“This wasn’t entirely my idea.” Anse chuckled lightly, “I just gave the earth elemental a little pointer; the autonomy in combat is still in its own hands.”
The earth elemental’s intelligence was a bit low, but its combat judgment wasn’t bad; as long as commanded to play to its strengths and avoid weaknesses without stubborn head-on fights, its deterrent power was directly maxed out.
This was also one reason why wild earth elementals were easy to deal with, while earth elementals under spellcasters were hard to handle.
The Amn side also realized they had been played, but they were in a dilemma, unable to advance or retreat.
With the magic cannon turrets gone and several cannon masters dead or injured, they couldn’t attack, and leaving wasn’t easy either; it was obvious the enemy wouldn’t let them withdraw calmly.
Commander Bahamund raised his hand to lightly rub his sun temple; the accelerating pulsing blood vessels made him irritable.
He now seriously questioned the Five Elders Council’s expansion intentions; magic net disruption was not a good opportunity for Amn to expand outward—Legendary emerge in chaotic times, making enemies everywhere easily led to big trouble.
Like now!
Just as he hesitated, the ground suddenly exploded in a certain spot of a soldier phalanx; a massive stone giant burst out from underground, grabbed two soldiers, and spun them in place like a big windmill, sending over a dozen soldiers flying.
Then it flung the two soldiers like cannonballs, charged violently in a random crowded direction, kicking or stomping soldiers flying or to death along the way—gruesome and spectacular.
After crashing through the phalanx, the earth elemental didn’t stop, continuing to charge toward another phalanx, kicking up smoke and dust, its momentum terrifying.
No one dared to face its charge head-on; the phalanx collapsed in an instant, soldiers scattering in all directions, the scene extremely chaotic.
The earth elemental didn’t stop, throwing stones while running; stone projectiles whistled out, wounding on graze and killing on hit, occasionally striking multiple targets.
Bahamund exploded in rage, ordering the professionals and officers to block it. But the earth elemental knew they might have anti-magic arrows, so it didn’t linger; if it felt it couldn’t escape, it earth glided to change spots, specifically charging into crowded areas, disrupting the enemy formation into chaos, morale on the verge of collapse.
One earth elemental chasing one or two thousand people—this scene made those Amn officers’ faces burn with shame; if word spread, not only would they be mocked by colleagues, but also branded as incompetent cowards.
The professionals gritted their teeth inwardly, risking severe injuries to forcibly block the earth elemental; a burst of attacks shrank its size by a circle, at the cost of two of their own casualties.
At this point, the earth elemental was pockmarked all over, stuck full of arrows and javelins like a porcupine, with anti-magic arrows ready but unused.
On the city wall, Anse saw this from afar and decisively dismissed the summon.
The earth elemental’s form blurred, vanishing in the blink of an eye, already returned to the elemental plane.
The earth elemental wouldn’t die that easily; severe injury near death would auto-return it to the elemental plane, but it had done enough—no need to go that far; part on good terms.
The Amn side felt exceptionally frustrated; just as they were about to vent on the earth elemental, it wagged its butt and went home, nearly giving them internal injuries from anger.
Many then realized that after all their efforts, they had only been fighting a summoned creature, and the main force hadn’t even acted yet.
The officers immensely missed those masked mages they had despised and spat on; they cursed them usually, but without them, it seemed they really couldn’t manage.
Anse didn’t care what the enemies were thinking; he only knew this was a perfect chance to break the Amn people; after sending off the earth elemental, he focused again on spellcasting.
“”
「Metamagic: Quick Cast, Extend」+「Elemental Summoning-Air Elemental」!
Dozens of meters in the sky, the gentle summer breeze gradually turned violent, whistling winds rapidly converging in the center into a vortex.
Seconds later, a massive white cloud over four meters appeared in the vortex, cloud gases rotating, constantly changing shapes, occasionally revealing an abstract face.
This was the air elemental, in air form, able to pass through tiny gaps, controlling wind swirls and thunder, with dexterity reaching 20 points, possessing blunt attack, lightning, piercing attack, and slashing resistance.
Most crucially, it had flight speed faster than an ancient dragon!
“Go!” Anse pointed; the air elemental turned into a gale and vanished from the spot, heading straight for the scattered Amn army at astonishing speed.
Cloud gas arms like long whips grew from both sides of its body, about three or four meters; while low-flying, it swung its arms to whip the soldiers.
“Boom boom—”
Ear-piercing thunder exploded repeatedly; soldiers were sent flying one by one, bodies twisted, skin bruised purple.
【Target Death, gain 15 combat experience】
「Thunder Strike」 is the air elemental’s standard attack method, dealing 2d8+5（7-21） thunder damage on hit; even low-level professionals can’t withstand two hits, let alone common people.
“Retreat! Derik, cover those mechanists.” Bahamund hesitated no longer.
Shame is shame; losing some common soldiers was acceptable, as long as the mechanists were preserved, it didn’t count as “defeat.”
The soldiers were like pardoned prisoners, running faster than rabbits, everywhere across the hills and wilderness.
The professional team felt frustrated; they wanted to take down the air elemental but found it the complete opposite of the earth elemental—one impossible to hit, the other impossible to damage.
Not only impossible to hit, but impossible to catch; they could only watch helplessly as the air elemental whipped the soldiers like herding sheep.
The earth elemental could still be blocked; this one didn’t even give a chance to block.
It could fly, and flew thief fast. Being able to hit was useless; it wouldn’t fight you. Professionals just drew bows, and the air elemental was already far away.
Following Anse’s orders, while chasing soldiers, the air elemental quietly targeted those professionals; except for a few advanced professionals, it killed anyone isolated, showing no mercy.
This was war; killing had nothing to do with right or wrong.
Illyas watched the distant farce-like wilderness chase in the wilderness, feeling somewhat absurd, and said in surprise: “It’s over just like that? What spell is this?”
“Elemental Summoning.” Anse was also surprised; he had valued dragon summoning more originally, but didn’t expect Elemental Summoning to be much stronger than imagined.
“I’ve only heard of elemental summoning and conjure element; the spell effects are completely different from yours.” Illyas said wistfully.
Fourth circle 「Elemental Summoning」 can only summon one medium elemental spirit, with average combat power.
Fifth circle 「Conjure Element」 summons one large illusory spirit, not like the four elements but like a projection, immobile but with an added enemy-binding effect, lasting ten minutes.
Moreover, spellcasters mastering these two spells are basically wizards, occasionally druids and rangers; never heard of sorcerers awakening such spells.
“Mine’s a bit different.” Anse didn’t explain much.
The four elements forcibly summoned by 「Elemental Summoning」 would beat the spellcaster first if they lost control, after all elemental beings are innately free—this is quite dangerous for other spellcasters, since “breaking concentration” is too common.
Anse’s paladin oath made him naturally close to elemental beings; even encountering them in the wilderness wouldn’t immediately provoke hostility.
He guessed 「Conjure Element」 was an improved version of 「Elemental Summoning」, safer but with underwhelming power.
