Within less than five days of their arrival at the first hub city and the joint construction of defenses with the first batch of reinforcements from various directions, the united army found itself forced to abandon its front lines and retreat three times in the face of the advancing abyssal tide that had been slaughtering its way through.

There was no choice—retreat was the only option. As mentioned earlier, abyssal creatures never tired; they could launch ceaseless attacks twenty-four hours a day without counting casualties. The joint army, however, couldn’t sustain such continuous assaults.

Not to mention humans, even beastmen known for their robust physical qualities couldn’t fight for continuous hours without eating, drinking, or sleeping. Especially the mage legions, capable of inflicting the maximum damage on the abyssal tide, once their magical energy was depleted, they had to abandon the front lines and temporarily regroup.

Otherwise, without the firepower suppression, relying solely on melee combat, no matter how many armies there were, they would eventually be overwhelmed by the tireless ocean of abyssal creatures.

Particularly those flying in the sky, unbelievably massive creatures known as Abyssal Worms by the winged people. Even though the powerful ones were making efforts to restrain them, if any of them broke into the army’s defense lines, relying solely on brute force would result in devastating blows.

Bertram’s army had suffered significant losses multiple times because of this. The forces he had painstakingly cultivated, representing the crucial strength of the southern region of the Human United Kingdom, were depleting at an alarming rate.

Other countries’ armies also suffered heavy losses. Although the winged people had fought against the abyss for several years, it was against hundreds or at most thousands of abyssal creatures. However, in this massive onslaught, the number on the battlefield faced by the Human United Kingdom alone exceeded one hundred thousand.

At this rate, they probably wouldn’t be able to hold on for much longer before facing defeat.

The current objective of the operation had shifted from initially halting the abyssal tide to buying time for civilians to retreat in the rear.

Several neutral central countries, including the Bolt Kingdom, the Nobos Iron-Blood Empire, were swiftly evacuating their citizens to the north.

Everyone knew the severe consequences of letting the abyssal creatures devour unchecked, so the efficiency of the retreat operation, coordinated by various joint organizations, was remarkably high. This was not only to help others but also to slow down the expansion speed of the abyssal forces as much as possible.

Bertram rubbed his stiff forehead and turned to look at the royal guard behind him.

“Where is the rear support now?”

His personal guard was a young soldier in his twenties. Although he hadn’t been in the military for long, he was meticulous in his thinking and efficient in his work. Bertram, after discovering this through occasional observations, promoted him directly to his current position.

The Duke and Southern Military Commander had always been like this—favoring capability over personal connections; as long as one was competent, he would employ anyone.

“The results of the communication from three hours ago indicate that the emergency support sent by the royal city has passed Wangyuan City. It should arrive in about three to five days. As for the reinforcements from the Eastern and Western Military, they are still within the country and may take up to a month. And you know about the situation in the North… It’s probably difficult to send reinforcements from there.”

Seeing Bertram’s gradually darkening expression, the royal guard helplessly advised.

“General, they should already be traveling light and at full speed. Our army is not like those monsters; they can’t just charge forward blindly. Haste makes waste.”

“Tch…”

As the personally cultivated royal guard, Bertram couldn’t ignore the reason the other party mentioned. However, difficulties were difficulties, and if they waited for the reinforcements to arrive at the current speed, these several countries, including the Bolt Kingdom in the far north, might have already completely fallen.

“Tell those guys, it doesn’t matter for regular troops, but the mage legions and elite forces must push themselves to the limit. Even if they temporarily break away from the main army and exhaust their mounts, they must arrive in the shortest time possible!”

Wearing the magnificent armor symbolizing the marshal’s position, but possessing no extraordinary strength himself, the strategic-minded general paced a few steps in place and raised his hand to add.

“If they start making excuses, tell them, in this war, Her Majesty has entrusted me with full authority, and any delay or evasion will be directly regarded as disobedience to the royal command!”

“Yes, sir!”

The royal guard was about to turn and give the orders when a series of conspicuous warning signals and enormous alert sounds suddenly exploded in the sky. Both of them changed their expressions simultaneously.

“Here they come again, not even ten minutes since the last wave ended! Those damn monster bastards!”

As Bertram hastily rushed into the command center downstairs with the royal guard, the place had already entered an urgent wartime state.

A large number of kingdom soldiers ran around with weapons, documents, and equipment, their faces revealing uncontrollable fatigue.

There was no way around it. Even Bertram, the grand general, hadn’t had a solid night’s sleep since entering the battlefield against the abyss. Fighting, defending, retreating, constructing new defenses—similar events had occurred several times in just a few days. Not only the soldiers but even the high-ranking commanders who hadn’t set foot on the battlefield found it hard to bear, and their spirits were depressed due to consecutive defeats.

That’s why Bertram was extremely anxious.

Perhaps they could still barely hold on for now, but once morale or casualties fell below a certain threshold, it would be like an avalanche of defeat.

“Everyone get into position immediately! Order the Sixth Legion for the first round of rotation, followed by the Third and Second Legions. How is the recovery of the mage units?!”

A staff officer with notes approached immediately to report the situation.

“General, the first batch of mage units has mostly restored their magical power, and they are ready for battle. However, the Third Legion had just withstood the most intense onslaught in the previous wave. Many wounded soldiers haven’t even completed their treatment yet. Is it a bit…?”

“Nonsense! Do you want the severely depleted First and Fourth Legions, with only about half of their strength left, to face it? Their high-ranking officers are almost dead. If we don’t adjust and send them up, are we preparing to feed the abyssal creatures? Shut up and get it done!”

“Yes, yes…!”

The staff officers were evidently well aware of the situation Bertram described. Despite their concerns, they could only rotate according to the general’s instructions.

Due to the differences in military organization and races among various country’s armies, forcefully mixing them together would only hinder each other. Therefore, the current situation involved each force being responsible for defending a specific area, maintaining communication, and coordinating operations or retreats.

The native armies of the neutral central countries were too weak. The Nobos Iron-Blood Empire might be somewhat better, but the Bolt Kingdom had a makeshift army that would be nothing but cannon fodder on the battlefield.

Therefore, they were assigned to assist in the evacuation of civilians, leaving the defense of this particular line solely to the forces of the Human United Kingdom.

However, they also had a very noticeable advantage.

The area where the Human United Kingdom’s forces were located, once known as the “Forest of Calamity,” had now become the frontline against the abyss. It was said that a massive miracle had occurred there not long ago.