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"Hey, are you really an orc?" The white dragon carrying me through the air, using the telepathic bond between dragon and rider, persisted in saying, "Even I, a dragon who has long dwelled in the frozen lands, know that orc lords always vie to join wars. Not only can they claim war spoils and captives, but the conquered lands can also be converted into merit, which can be exchanged for rewards at the War God Temple or from the Orc King. In a major battle like the Northern Campaign, the captives alone can significantly boost a lord's army strength. Your proxy back in your territory must have used every means to join in."

"Hehe..." I was momentarily speechless and could only manage a foolish laugh. After all, my main mindset still stemmed from my previous life. Though I became an orc in this life, I came from the lower ranks and was engrossed in martial arts until I was fifteen. My exposure to the upper echelons of orc society was less than a year, so it was natural to forget orc customs at times. Orcs differ from humans; while the primary production method for humans is agriculture, which requires a large labor force and can be severely disrupted by war, the main production methods for orcs are hunting and herding. Among the five major combat races, except for the bovine race, the others are almost entirely detached from production. For them, battle is the source of honor and wealth, and the purpose of survival.

The current proxy in Fontainebleau is a lioness named Katherine, the daughter of the previous Orc King. After her father's death, her once vast family gradually weakened under the expansion of the current Orc King. This talented young woman, possessing both the abilities of a Sword Master and a High Shaman, struggled to support her family while plotting revenge against the Orc King Samantha, even going so far as to manipulate me, who controlled the gold trade route of Fontainebleau. Unfortunately, her family lacked her resolve and instead allied with the Orc King, even attempting to use her marriage to the Orc King to their advantage. This ultimately led to Katherine completely breaking ties with her family and becoming my top subordinate.

Now that Fontainebleau's forces have appeared on the northern ice plains, it is undoubtedly Katherine's idea. I trust her abilities completely, given her elite upbringing. Since she chose to participate in the war, there must be sufficient reasons and plans. The current issue is that the orcs already have the upper hand on the battlefield and will soon crush the barbarian army. However, our forces suddenly arrived, and not just any forces—this includes high-level mages and clerical elites, nearly ten thousand regular barbarian warriors, and Radiant Temple's Holy Knights, enough to alter the course of the battle.

Fortunately, the one commanding the battle is Katherine. This princess-like young woman, born into a prestigious family, has impeccable strategic planning. She had reconnaissance soldiers deployed near the battlefield long ago. As our forces began to approach, the orc army started changing formations, preparing to withdraw. First, the wolf cavalry harassed and restrained the enemy from the flanks, then the half-orc units retreated, and finally, the Minos warriors maintained a strict formation to resist the barbarians' counterattack, step by step retreating.

The hatred between orcs and barbarians is immeasurable. Seeing they couldn't break through the Minos Great Maze Formation, a loud, clear whistle sounded from behind the barbarian battle line. A heavily armored barbarian, wearing a full-face helmet and wielding a blue crystal spear, charged forward, his body radiating the brilliant light of a Sword Emperor, unleashing a torrent of cold energy straight towards the Minos warriors' defensive line.

A barbarian Sword Emperor! I didn't expect to encounter a Sword Emperor here. When our forces split to attack, I chose to protect Mr. Pang's main unit, while Knight Hein, the leader of the Sacred Sword Knights, led the team to provide support. Although I am only seven or eight kilometers from the battlefield, which is a short distance for a dragon to fly, it is too late for me to intervene now. The Minos Great Maze Formation, derived from the Eight Array Diagram I taught, is marvelously versatile, but it cannot withstand the attack of a Sword Emperor wielding an epic divine weapon. If the formation is broken, the barbarians will take advantage of the situation, and the outcome will be beyond human control.

Fortunately, the orcs have a strong enough presence to handle the situation. Just as the barbarian Sword Emperor approached the Minos warriors' formation, a golden sword light pierced the void, steadily blocking the blue crystal spear.

Dressed in blue armor, silver-plated, with golden hair elegantly coiled, her posture graceful and her face as pure as snow. One of the world's ten divine swords, "Holy Sword—Covenant," shimmered with mysterious purple runes. It had been two years since I last saw Katherine, the breathtakingly beautiful lioness with whom I share an inexplicable connection.

"She seems a bit more gaunt; it looks like these two years have been tough on her." Thanks to the Nine Yin True Qi and the enhancement from the Dragon King's aura, my senses are far sharper than those of ordinary people. What would appear as a mere black dot to others from several kilometers away, I can see clearly. "But how did her martial qi improve so much? Although the 'Emperor Martial Tyrant Technique' has the effect of doubling combat power and excels in challenging higher levels, to confront a barbarian Sword Emperor, Katherine's martial qi needs to be at least Eighth or Ninth Rank of Moon Flame."

While the "Emperor Martial Tyrant Technique" is the most powerful martial art on the continent, its advancement is extremely difficult. In this world, martial arts are based on martial qi, which is a force forged through battle, not something that can be improved through mere hard practice. To quickly enhance martial qi, besides using special means that sacrifice future potential, the only method is to constantly face life-and-death situations, grasping the essence of life at the brink of destruction. For example, I have the Nine Yin True Qi to replenish my martial qi, allowing me to avoid spending a long time accumulating strength. Even so, I had to survive several life-threatening encounters with Sword Saints and super monsters to advance my martial qi to the Tenth Rank of Sword Master. When I left Fontainebleau to enter the human world, Katherine's strength was only at the Fourth Rank of Sword Master. In just two years, if she had only practiced diligently, she might have advanced by one rank at most. Now, with her strength increasing by four or five ranks, she must have faced life-and-death battles several times more than I have.

"Katherine, you've truly worked hard." These past two years have certainly not been peaceful for Fontainebleau. From the information I gathered at the Temple, the Holy Oss Empire, one of the four great religious countries, and the four countries upstream of the Red River, all crossed the Duchy of Langton, with whom we had an alliance, to launch at least three wars against Fontainebleau. However, since all three wars ended in crushing defeats, the participating countries tried their best to conceal the news, preventing me from learning the detailed course of the battles. But judging from Katherine's rapid increase in strength, the battles must have been extremely fierce. "Hmph, Oss Empire, the Red River Four Countries, and the Duchy of Langton, who only put in effort without results, once the Northern War ends and the orcs launch a full-scale southern campaign, I will make you understand the consequences of crossing Chen Xuanfeng."