Ashen Dragon

To enter Aivendel, one must first pass through a narrow valley in front of Black Stone Mountain, which the dwarves call the Road of Glory.

The terrain here is treacherous, with towering rock walls on both sides, and a fractured belt connected by a stone bridge in the middle, flanked by majestic stone statues.

They are the gods of minerals and gemstones, Du Masong; the dwarven god of heroic combat, Kranjadin Silverbeard; the dwarven god of hunting, Saed Hal; and the dwarven gods of defense and guardianship, Gund Guxin.

Deeper along the Road of Glory stands a goddess with a thick beard, who the dwarves find exceedingly beautiful—she is the dwarven goddess of love and fertility, Shelindor.

As the gateway to Aivendel, this place is easy to defend but hard to attack.

On the nearly vertical rock walls on both sides, there are tunnels dug by dwarves and defensive fortifications built, with watchtowers atop the cliffs.

And at the end of the valley is an incredibly sturdy wall, which the dwarves proudly call the "Beastman Tombstone."

Over thousands of years, thirteen invasions by the northern Beastmen have occurred, with eight stopped right outside the "Beastman Tombstone."

The wall is covered with old, mottled blood stains, and despite repairs, the severe battles that took place here are still evident, showcasing its great achievements.

The dwarf warriors, clad in heavy armor, skillful with the crossbow and short spear, stand ready on the city wall and lurk in the tunnels on the sides of the rock wall.

Above the city wall, a dwarven general, Tur Aaron, clad in beast skin heavy armor and wearing a bull horn helmet, lifts his head and drains a barrel of fiery liquor.

Wiping the residual liquor from his lips, his cheeks turning red, his eyes nearly shooting fire, he roars to the dwarf soldiers in front of him: "Brothers!

This time we must keep them outside the wall, so these beastman bastards can't even see the walls of Aivendel!

Smash them!"

The rich smell of alcohol permeates the city wall, but no one finds it pungent.

For dwarves, drinking before a battle to keep their spirits and enthusiasm high is more than normal.

Seeing their leader partake in such heavy drinking, the dwarven soldiers' morale is boosted even more, they raise their war hammers high into the air, letting out exhilarating cheers.

"Long live King Ed!"

"Smash them! Aivendel shall never fall!"

"The High Mountain Kingdom is eternal!"

The dwarves appear on the hills, in the tunnels, on the city walls, standing steadfast, waiting for the Beastman Army to emerge.

The last invasion by the Beastmen was four hundred years ago, only experienced by the oldest dwarven priests, and most dwarf warriors weren't even born yet.

Nonetheless, the dwarves still have abundant confidence, for they believe — the High Mountain Kingdom has the finest equipment and the strongest warriors in all of Fianso.

"These damned followers of Guosh, if not for them, I'd still be drinking joyfully at the feast."

The dwarven general, Tur, curses as he climbs up the watchtower, looking towards the distance, and the sight soberly strikes him.

"Great Moradin..."

He sees countless frenzied beastmen occupying the wilderness afar, like a mottled tide, mixed with hill giants, ogres, and goblins.

Beastman cavalry riding worgs gallop across the land, while in the sky, vultures and giant eagles circle, along with numerous devil mercenaries from Hell.

Witnessing this terrifying sight, his hands tremble slightly, unable to keep a firm grip on his goblet, and the barrel still holding some liquor falls from the city wall, shattering to pieces.

Though touted as the bravest warrior of the High Mountain Kingdom, Tur Aaron never anticipated the Beastman Army to come so aggressively and with such overwhelming force.

Compared to the Beastmen, dwarves have an absolute advantage in physical strength. Although shorter than the average human, their high-density muscles and stout stature make them significantly heavier than most,

Dwarves are born warriors, highly skilled in combat, resilient in will, able to withstand physical and magical damage, flattening enemies with their self-forged heavy hammers, and among them, the shield dwarves of the High Mountain Kingdom stand out.

But they have one fatal flaw—their numbers are few, and their reproductive capability is weak.

Even as the dwarven nation of the High Mountain Kingdom, the most populous in all of Fianso, its population does not exceed one hundred thousand, with most dwarves scattered through the mountains.

In the capital of the High Mountain Kingdom—Aivendel, there are merely over twenty thousand dwarves, and excluding the old, weak, sick, and disabled, only about twelve thousand warriors can resist the Beastmen.

On the barren Wuge Prairie, the Beastmen breed recklessly without restraint, almost overturning the turf in search of food.

For centuries, dozens of Beastmen tribes have fought and slain each other according to their bloody traditions, competing for the favor of Guosh.

Until now, the powerful Beastman Chief, Batu Skullcrush, leading the Red Teeth Tribe, has successively conquered twenty-three major clans and one hundred and fourteen minor clans.

He has united over one million Beastmen of Wuge Prairie, marshalling all their strength, in compliance with the great Father God Guosh's will, once more to invade from the south.

Including the mercenaries from Hell, as well as goblins, ogres, and hill giants—the slave races, the scale of the Beastman Army has reached tens of times the number of dwarves stationed in Aivendel.

This is a terrifying figure! Most dwarf warriors haven't seen this many Beastmen in their lives.