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"Haha, no need to comfort me. In fact, Samanda's decision to advance at this time likely has some unknown backing we're unaware of, and we haven't disclosed the secret tactics of the elven island to Samanda. So, regardless of the accuracy of our deductions, half of it is for our own gain. However, Samanda secretly undermined me when he was in the elven nation, and now he intends to use our forces as cannon fodder in his advance. It's only fair that we turn the tables on him. Hmph, if he can't take Saint Spirit Mountain on time, I’d love to see how long he’ll have to delay his big coronation," the figure in white said with a laugh. As the dust settled, the aura around him gradually faded, revealing the coldly handsome form of a silver-haired werewolf.

The blue female figure beside him also retracted her combat energy field that repelled the dust, revealing her golden hair, blue dress, and a stunningly beautiful visage as majestic as a goddess.

These two were none other than Chen Xuanfeng and Catherine, the masterminds behind the move. To influence the course of the war, they had no choice but to insert a piece into the interactions between the orcs and humans. As for what results such actions would bring, no one could predict.

Heroic Werewolf Scroll, Chapter 51: Hearing the Sigh of Peace from the East Sea

Time passed through the winter of the year 1406 in the War God's calendar.

Due to unexpected cold and frequent uprisings in the occupied territories, Orc King Samanda's long-planned campaign to destroy Saint Spirit Mountain ultimately failed. The towering holy mountain still stood in the way of the orc alliance's plan to reclaim the entire western continent, as well as on the path to the orc king's imperial ambitions.

Meanwhile, the suddenly famous dark magic apprentice, Enrico Willy Young, was causing a stir. Throughout the winter battles, he repeatedly achieved feats that astonished the world. Although he never directly clashed with the orc army nor captured any cities, the number of orcs who died under his surprise attacks had already reached tens of thousands. Moreover, large numbers of human residents, guided by him, escaped from orc-controlled areas, either fleeing to human-held territories or organizing guerrilla warfare. As a result, nearly half of the territory once belonging to the Vikings and a third of the Golden Plains ruled by the Holy See's vassal states became war-torn lands. The orcs, ultimately disadvantaged by their lack of numbers, could only fortify defenses in towns and along major roads, unable to muster enough troops to clear all human territories. Thus, in the dense forests, mountains, rivers, and lakes, the resistance forces found ample space to operate.

Such achievements not only caught the orc alliance off guard but also surprised the human leadership. Various empires, which had previously deemed the western continent a lost cause, secretly changed their minds and began increasing support to this region, hoping to fan the sparks of resistance into a raging fire.

However, as time went on, Enrico's situation gradually changed.

Ever since he inexplicably obtained a "Black Crystal Bone Dragon," Enrico became invincible in small to medium-sized battles. This strange bone dragon was nearly as formidable in close combat as a "War Behemoth" and had the advantage of flight, making it nearly impossible for armies of a few thousand to deal with. As a result, many operations that might have otherwise resulted in heavy losses were completed without a scratch. This led to a steady increase in the troops rallying under his banner, and with the constant influx of warriors drawn by his fame, Enrico's followers soon swelled to over ten thousand.

To address the survival needs of such a large army, Enrico had to divide his forces into several smaller teams for more flexible operations, while also abandoning a purely guerrilla strategy and beginning to occupy villages and towns to establish bases. This, in turn, attracted even more people. Before long, even the Holy See sent many of its elite forces to join his rebel army. Eventually, even the infamous "Death Knight" Hades personally visited Enrico, expressing his willingness to cooperate in the war effort.

This is often how human nature works. Although Enrico had previously fully thought out his strategy and was determined to adhere to guerrilla warfare, as more and more people gathered under his command and the orc army seemed less formidable than he had anticipated, this young man, barely sixteen, couldn’t help but have second thoughts. Enrico knew that if he let his subordinates fight independently, many would likely die due to their inability to seize opportunities. His youthful heart couldn't bear to see his comrades perish, and his string of victories had also fostered a sense of ambition and pride. After much deliberation, this young magic apprentice finally changed his previous plans, began gathering troops, and resolved to engage in several major battles with the orcs.

While the war in the western continent was intensifying, other regions were also undergoing changes.

The first to see a shift was the "Mermaid Empire," which had changed its tune and reconciled with the Yellow Dragon Empire.

The Mermaid Empire had been officially established for thousands of years. Due to the separation of land and sea, terrestrial civilizations knew little about them, and their origins were the subject of much speculation. Some believed they were a branch of the orcs, while others claimed they were a subspecies derived from elves. No one could be certain of their true origins. The only thing known for sure was that the oceans contained many intelligent aquatic races. The Mermaid Empire, primarily composed of mermaids, gathered many minority groups to form a large nation with tens of millions of people. However, it was not a hegemonic power, as annual battles from the outer seas consumed much of their energy.

The oceans of this world were several times larger than the land. Many believed that these waters were entirely the domain of mermaids and other intelligent aquatic races, but this was not the case. The depths of the ocean, with pressures as heavy as mountains, were perilous even for super magical beasts like sea dragons and hydras. If they ventured into the depths of thousands of meters, they risked being crushed by the water pressure, let alone mermaids, who were not much stronger than humans. Thus, the living range of mermaids and other aquatic races was generally within a hundred meters below the sea, with three hundred meters being the limit. Based on this, the Mermaid Empire's territory was actually the shallow continental shelves, relying on islands. The entire continent had only four major continental shelves near its shores: one around the elven nation, another near the undead island, neither of which were suitable for mermaid habitation. The remaining two were north of the Arctic ice fields, covered by thousands of kilometers of icebergs, cold and devoid of sunlight. Therefore, only the southern seas of the Yellow Dragon Empire were suitable for the mermaids to establish their nation.