Chapter 50

With sufficient troops, even if the undead monsters had a numerical advantage, it was useless. In the face of the endless waves of half-orc warriors under Zhou Tian, the undead monsters could not maintain their strength. As the battle intensified and more and more half-orc warriors joined, the undead monsters, without time to rest, could not kill every half-orc warrior they encountered without sustaining injuries. As minor injuries turned into severe ones, and their health points dwindled, the undead monsters fell one by one under the half-orc warriors' clubs.

At the beginning of the battle, most of the undead monsters were only slightly injured. However, as the fighting heated up and more half-orc warriors poured in, the undead monsters, unable to rest, could not kill the half-orc warriors without taking damage themselves. As a result, with their injuries worsening, they eventually fell one by one to the half-orc warriors' clubs.

As more and more undead monsters died at the hands of Zhou Tian's half-orc warriors, it meant that Zhou Tian's control over the Skeleton Cave was increasing. With greater control, the pressure on Zhou Tian's rear decreased, and the number of undead monsters attacking from the Skeleton Cave diminished. Even some of Zhou Tian's idle half-orc warriors were called to help defend against the higher-level undead monsters.

In the end, after nearly a week of fighting and countless casualties, Zhou Tian finally eliminated all the undead monsters in the Skeleton Cave, reclaiming formal control over the second level of the Skeleton Cave.

With this, Zhou Tian's first goal was achieved. Now, he just needed to find a way to keep the undead monsters out of the entrance to the Skeleton Cave to eliminate the threat within.

However, the problem was that it would not be easy for Zhou Tian to keep the undead monsters out of the Skeleton Cave.

Although Zhou Tian had anticipated this outcome and prepared to have his half-orc warriors block the entrance with their numbers, he had severely underestimated the strength of the undead monsters. With the enemy's strength clearly exceeding his plans, Zhou Tian's original arrangements now seemed too risky.

"If we can't hold out in the end, it will be disastrous." Thinking of the power of the undead monsters, Zhou Tian knew that if his half-orc warriors failed, the undead monsters might attack the Skeleton Cave again. If that happened, all his efforts would be in vain. Faced with such a situation, Zhou Tian did not want to take that risk if he had a choice.

However, Zhou Tian knew he had few options. If he stayed, he could ensure that the undead monsters would not enter the Skeleton Cave again in the short term. But if Zhou Tian was tied down here, his strength would not grow, and his source of troops would dry up. In the long run, this would lead to a bad outcome for him.

Therefore, instead of staying, Zhou Tian decided to take a risk and leave the defense of the Skeleton Cave to his subordinates. This way, the worst-case scenario would be losing the Skeleton Cave, but if Zhou Tian could rapidly increase his strength, he would eventually crush the undead monsters.

Having made his decision, Zhou Tian acted quickly. He left all the remaining half-orc warriors in the second level of the Skeleton Cave, taking only a small number with him, leaving 99% of his clan's combat strength in the Skeleton Cave.

Zhou Tian set up several lines of defense in the Skeleton Cave. The first line of defense was the passage from the undead monsters' lair to the Skeleton Cave. The entrance to the second level from the first level was the second line of defense. The entrance to the Skeleton Cave itself was the third line of defense. As long as these three lines of defense were not breached, Zhou Tian believed that even if something unexpected happened in the Skeleton Cave, the undead monsters would not easily penetrate his territory.

After making all the preparations, Zhou Tian left.

However, once he was out, Zhou Tian was troubled again. He had just solved the problem in the Skeleton Cave, but now he had to deal with another issue.

To combat the undead monsters, Zhou Tian needed to strengthen his half-orc clan. His plan was to take over some problematic territories. By occupying these territories, he had significantly increased the strength of his half-orc warriors, and he had narrowly reclaimed the Skeleton Cave from the undead monsters. However, the consequences of his actions were now beginning to show.

Zhou Tian's series of actions were all risky. With so many troubles coming at once, he had to risk his life to deal with them. If any part of his plan went wrong, he would face a series of setbacks. Neither Zhou Tian nor his half-orc warriors would likely survive.

The riskiest part of his actions was occupying part of the territory of the beast race monsters.

Although Zhou Tian's actions in the Skeleton Cave were risky, if he failed, he still had a chance to retreat. The worst-case scenario for him was losing the Skeleton Cave.

However, the situation was different with the territories he took to combat the undead monsters. By taking over these territories, he was truly risking his life.

Just by capturing a small NPC village, Zhou Tian received a significant reward, which showed the extent of the conflict between monsters and NPCs. Similarly, if he lost a territory, he would face a fatal punishment.

Zhou Tian's original plan was to take advantage of the fact that NPCs could not easily occupy monster territories and that they were unprepared for his actions. However, no one could guarantee that there would be no unexpected events. If something went wrong and he lost a territory, Zhou Tian would be in grave danger.