Chapter 497: Paving The Way

Great Forest's eastern outskirts.

Not surprisingly, the region was filled with smothering black smoke rising into the skies while droves of rats roamed the wide-open plains outside.

Supreme Elder Haldir stood on the deck of the airship as it flew above the tall forest trees engulfed in flames before briefly disappearing into the clouds of black smoke.

Moments later, the airship reappeared on the other side of the black cloud, exiting the boundary of the Great Forest. The Supreme Elder waved his hands and dusted away the black smoke on his body.

"Do you remember the plan, captain?" Supreme Elder Haldir queried the person dusting the black smoke beside him.

"Yes, Marquis Haldir." The airship captain nodded in response. He had been briefed on the mission before they departed from Elvengarde earlier.

Supreme Elder Haldir nodded before gazing down on the ground behind their leading airship.

Several dozens of elven warriors had boarded the airship, awaiting the Supreme Elder's orders, while thousands more were making their way through the burning forest on the surface.

Shortly after, Supreme Elder Haldir gazed at the swarming sea of rat tide on the plains ahead before he nodded, "Let us proceed with the plan, captain."

"Understood, Marquis—" The captain suddenly paused before he gazed up in the sky with Supreme Elder Haldir.

Aria's figure could be seen standing on top of her ice-lightning sword as she descended and landed softly on the airship.

"Miss Aria, you've come. What about the young prince?" Supreme Elder Haldir greeted with surprise.

"He won't be coming yet. He still has something to do." Aria shook her head before saying, "How could you leave without these exploding pills, Marquis Haldir?"

A wooden crate filled with bottles of exploding pills was taken out from Aria's interspatial ring and dumped on the deck with a soft thud.

"Hold on, there's still more," Aria said while preparing to take out the remaining crates of exploding pill bottles in her interspatial ring.

"W-Wait!" Supreme Elder Haldir exclaimed with a raised hand to stop her before he said, "There's no need to take them all out now, Miss Aria. Let me distribute these first."

At the same time, the captain beside them broke into cold sweats as he gazed at the crate of exploding pill bottles by their feet.

Although they all knew that the exploding pills were not so easily broken, they still could not help but feel anxious.

The exploding pills were far too dangerous and had to be treated with utter care.

"Alright," Aria said before dropping her ring hand back down.

Shortly after, the Supreme Elder called an elven warrior over to take the crate away and distribute an exploding pill bottle to each warrior on board.

"Can I trouble you to distribute the rest to the warriors on their way over from below?" Supreme Elder Haldir requested.

"Alright." Aria nodded.

She hopped on her ice-lightning sword and took off to deliver the exploding pill bottles to the other elven warriors moving along the surface.

"Take us down, captain," Supreme Elder Haldir said, shortly after Aria left.

"Yes, Marquis Haldir!" The captain answered with honor, feeling mildly excited with a hint of anticipation for what was about to come.

"Lower the power output!"

"Increase the rotary speed!"

Shortly after barking out a few instructions, the airship began descending closer to the ground and attracted millions of rats in the surrounding region.

"I guess it's time I also make my preparations," Supreme Elder Haldir muttered before making his way forward to the front of the airship.

"Are we beginning, Supreme Elder?" One of the elven warriors on the deck quickly asked as the Supreme Elder approached them.

Supreme Elder Haldir nodded.

"Come. Your assistance are all needed. We are reinforcing the airship right now!" Supreme Elder Haldir urged.

"Yes, Supreme Elder!"

Shortly after, numerous vines proliferated from the seeds in everyone's hands before making their way to the edge of the airship.

They wrapped and weaved around each other, forming a thick woven layer of vines underneath the airship to reinforce the airship's outer hull.

As the airship pulled all the rats away from the forest outskirts, the elven warriors charged out of the burning forest and immediately took flight into the skies. 

Aria flew over and passed the crates over to their high commands for distribution.

Boom!

An exploding pill went off in the distance, engulfing hundreds of rats in its fiery flames while the surrounding vermin quickly fled from the burning spot.

At the same time, the drumming noise of the airship was loudly heard as it continued to descend towards the countless rats leaping at it.

However, the airship did not hover above their range this time.

No, the airship descended slightly further and rammed straight into the endless sea of rats and sailed on their mountain of flesh and blood!

Bam!

The heavy airship immediately bulldozed thousands of rats out of the way as thorny vines protecting the airship's hull ripped them to countless shreds!

At the same time, the strong impact of the collision sent the airship flying higher before it descended into the sea of rats once more like it was sailing through rocky waves on stormy weather.

Boom! Boom!

More exploding pills were tossed out from both sides of the airship as they sailed through the rat tide, paving the path southeast towards the Great Wall's direction!

"That's the signal! Follow the plan!" A high-level elven warrior immediately barked at the first sign of an explosion.

"Yes, sir!"

The army of elven warriors flying high in the sky immediately formed two divisions and separated themselves by rough 500 yards.

Shortly after the rat tide was attracted to their large numbers of fleshly bodies, the two armies of elven warriors began to fly in the same direction as the airship, albeit at a moderately slow pace.

Waves after waves of rats leaped towards them but fell short out of their reach. The situation was incredibly dangerous, and the sight, especially nerve-wracking for the elven warriors.

A single mistake would pull them down to their deaths, drowned and devoured clean by the swarming rat tide.

Nevertheless, they pressed forward with the plan.

Aria hovered on her ice-lightning sword in the sky and witnessed large numbers of rats crushed to death by their brethren as the two elven armies flew away from the Great Forest and pulled the rat tide along with them.

Shortly after, two tall walls made by mountains of rat carcasses were revealed in their trail.