"Good, continue the expansion. Since they surrendered, send all those surrendered villagers here to help us defend this place. As long as we hold out for a few months until our army arrives, this stronghold will be completely safe," Zhou Yan said.
"Yes!" the soldier replied.
"En, now that we have captured this stronghold and acquired a mining area here, our military expenses are no longer a concern. Next, we need to establish defenses. This way, even if we encounter reinforcements from the alien races, we will have the power to fight back and won't have to worry," Zhou Yan said.
"Reporting, Commander, an enemy attack has appeared ahead!" At this moment, a staff officer walked over and shouted.
"Enemy attack? How is that possible? We are still far from those alien villages. How could an enemy attack suddenly appear?" Zhou Yan stood up in surprise upon hearing the staff officer's words. The other generals also looked very perplexed.
"Commander, these are magical beasts!" the staff officer shouted again after seeing Zhou Yan's reaction.
"Cavalry? Could it be those alien races we annihilated earlier?" Zhou Yan said.
"Yes, Commander, it is the cavalry of those alien races. They are advancing aggressively and at a very high speed. We are currently intercepting them," the staff officer said.
These magical beasts were all cultivators at the Divine King realm. Their speed was incredibly fast, and ordinary soldiers could not withstand them. The human soldiers were currently fighting desperately to intercept them.
"Good, you speed up the interception. Do not let a single magical beast escape. If they manage to escape, the threat to our human race will be immense," Zhou Yan said sternly.
Zhou Yan now knew that they had encountered trouble on this expedition. However, he was not yet sure of the strength of these magical beasts. If they were too powerful, his men might not be their match.
Therefore, Zhou Yan had to see it for himself.
"Boom, boom, boom~~~"
At this moment, explosions could be heard near Zhou Yan and the others. He knew that these magical beasts must have come from a certain direction. Only this direction had complex terrain suitable for the magical beasts' combat.
"I'll go on ahead." After Zhou Yan finished speaking, his figure instantly faded, turning into black smoke and rushing towards that direction.
Upon arriving at the valley, Zhou Yan saw a group of alien soldiers in a corner, engaged in a fierce battle with some human soldiers. Both sides were evenly matched.
"It seems these alien races are still unwilling to accept defeat and have sent so many troops to attack us. However, with these good-for-nothings, they are really not enough to make a dent," Zhou Yan said with a smile.
Although the human soldiers were retreating steadily, he knew that they must have some hidden tactics. However, Zhou Yan was not afraid. He had five hundred thousand elite soldiers under his command. Even if the alien soldiers were more numerous, Zhou Yan would still have ways to deal with them. Moreover, Zhou Yan believed that this war would be won easily.
While Zhou Yan was observing, an old man next to him said, "Commander, these alien soldiers are very powerful. Can we win like this?"
"Haha, don't worry. Although these alien soldiers are brutal, their strength is still a bit lacking. We will definitely win this battle. Now it depends on who can escape alive. No matter which side escapes, they will lead everyone to break through the encirclement," Zhou Yan said with a smile.
"Good, I believe in you, Commander. These alien soldiers cannot be our opponents," another general said next to him.
"Indeed, our soldiers' weapons and equipment are much better than theirs, and they are now surrounded here, making it almost impossible to get out," Zhou Yan said happily.
After Zhou Yan and his men rested for a while, they began to advance towards the northwest, this time targeting the villages. Not long after they left, about three kilometers away from this stronghold, a fierce battle was erupting. The leader of the alien soldiers was currently leading his troops in a desperate fight against the human soldiers.
"Sir, something feels off this time. Why are there so many soldiers in front of us? Why are there so many human soldiers in this stronghold? And they are all cavalry," the soldiers said to their leader.
"I don't know either. How did these people appear in our stronghold? Didn't we capture this stronghold? Why are there human soldiers here now?" the alien leader asked in confusion.
"Should we take a detour?" a nearby alien soldier asked.
"Detour? No, we will charge through directly. Since they dare to block us, they will all die. We will annihilate them all," the alien leader declared.
"Yes!" the soldiers replied and followed the alien leader, charging towards the human stronghold.
Zhou Yan was still observing inside the stronghold. He wanted to see what kind of soldiers these aliens were. If possible, he wanted to capture a couple of them alive. After all, these alien soldiers had a very strong will to fight. Capturing a couple of prisoners might reveal something.
Soon, Zhou Yan and his men approached the alien soldiers. Zhou Yan noticed that their physiques were similar to human soldiers, but their skin color was different. Some were white, while others were red. However, when these individuals were attacked, they would burst into flames.
"Are these people unusual?" Zhou Yan became immediately vigilant upon seeing the soldiers like this and began to prepare to deal with them.
"Sir, their combat power is extremely formidable. Their speed is very fast, and their physical condition is excellent. Even our arrows are ineffective against them," a soldier reported.
"En, I understand. These soldiers must have alien fire within them, which is why our arrows cannot harm them," Zhou Yan nodded and said.
"Those soldiers actually possess alien fire. That's truly terrifying. If our soldiers could all wield alien fire, the demon armies would be nothing to fear," a副官 beside him said.
"However, I suspect our soldiers will not have such abilities. This kind of alien fire is something only those demons possess. Others do not have it. Even among the demons, one needs to cultivate it. This is not something that can be easily obtained," Zhou Yan shook his head and said.