Kobold Titus excitedly swung his bloodstained flail, blood splattering everywhere.

  Although he failed to activate his bloodline power and only managed to snatch one enemy from Bran's group, when the flail smashed through a Hyena Man's skull, the gushing blood and brain matter ignited a surge of exhilaration within him, as if the thrill of battle had set his whole body ablaze.

  Behind him, the black wolves and Kobolds quickly began clearing the fallen bodies, carefully dragging them into the nearby woods to prepare for burial.

  This was their usual practice, avoiding leaving traces that might invite more trouble. The only one who didn't move was Alec.

  Alec lay low in the grass clutching his notebook, furiously jotting down notes. He kept recording the squad's behavior, words like"brutal" and"rough" appearing frequently in his notes.

  After completing the reconnaissance mission, Draven split the scout team into three squads.

  Dorian led one squad responsible for monitoring the Hyena Men's movements, while Samuel and Alec followed the serpents and Bran's group respectively, always recording and reporting information.

  Draven had instructed them to meticulously record the team's performance. Although Alec wasn't sure what use these records would serve, he still devoted himself diligently to the task.

  A few Hyena Men clearly weren't enough. Bran shook his bloodied great axe and shot Titus a displeased glare.

  Titus had the nerve to snatch his prey, which irritated Bran greatly. Titus pretended not to notice and didn't think much of it—just smashed down with his flail again, feeling utterly satisfied inside.

  The two called the team to lie in ambush once more, their eyes fixed deeply into the forest, hoping to encounter a few more prey and satisfy their craving.

  Unfortunately, no Hyena Man emerged from the woods for the rest of the evening.

  Bran felt the grass beneath him growing warm from body heat and shifted his position slightly. Just as he was about to rest, a shadow suddenly flickered in the distant forest.

  Bran's heart leapt with joy. He was about to draw his great axe and charge when Titus grabbed his arm.

  "Don't move. I smell serpents."

  Titus pulled Bran's arm with effort. Though his strength wasn't comparable to the black wolves, his keen sense of smell told him this was serious.

  Sure enough, Green Serpent's figure flashed ahead in the forest, and Bran felt the pressure on his arm release.

  Bran spat out the blade of grass he had been chewing on. Although he didn't understand what Green Serpent was up to, he knew the matters in the forest no longer concerned him.

  He turned and fixed his gaze once more on the Hyena Man village. Whether his great axe would have some work tonight depended entirely on that place.

  Meanwhile, Green Serpent led the serpents and the undead corpses controlled by the necromancer to the designated location before dusk.

  The leader had yet to appear, and Green Serpent did not know his exact whereabouts, so he waited on site according to plan.

  In fact, Draven had already made a circuit through the Hyena Man village. The leader was a high-ranking one backed by Ragnar, but from the start, Draven hadn't taken the Hyena Man leader seriously. Cloaked in a magic lizard cloak and suppressing his aura, he boldly entered the village.

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  The so-called village was actually a complex network of caves. These caves weren't naturally formed but dug out by the Hyena Men themselves.

  The entire hilltop was almost hollowed out, with only a stone wall blocking the entrance, which made the place less easily discovered by outsiders.

  On the surface it seemed secure, but its defenses weren't strong. If he brought his two short-horned demon bulls to stomp around on the hill, the place might collapse.

  However, Draven's purpose in launching this war was not purely to annihilate the Hyena Men. Plundering population and resources was one goal; training the army was equally important.

  Otherwise, if he and Ragnar fought head-on, the Hyena Man tribe would likely have been completely destroyed long ago.

  After moving stealthily through the caves like a ghost, Draven roughly gauged the Hyena Men's strength. They had about two hundred hunters responsible for hunting outside, and roughly the same number of defenders stationed.

  The rest, besides the leader and his entourage, were mostly elderly, weak, sick, and women and children.

  What surprised Draven was that there were over a hundred Kobold slaves here.

  But these details weren't the key issue. The Kobolds' own combat strength was undeniable; those skinny, bony slaves posed no real threat. Their plan mainly relied on these strong warriors to suppress the enemy.

  The only headache for Draven was the complex structure of the caves. The tunnels twisted and turned endlessly; if the battle didn't end quickly, once the Hyena Men retreated deep into the caves, the situation would become extremely troublesome.

  The cave terrain gave the enemy a natural defensive advantage, making pursuit difficult.

  Draven circled the village once, memorizing the main cave routes. After leaving the village, he found a spot where no one was paying attention and quickly sketched a rough map, marking the key entrances and passages.

  As dusk fell, he returned to Green Serpent and the others. Draven gathered Green Serpent, Gregor, and fourteen bloodline warriors of the Serpent tribe, and thoroughly explained the layout of the Kobold caves and the potential dangers.

  Looking at the complicated sketch, Green Serpent and the other serpents were stunned. Could a battle really be fought this way?

  Wasn't it just about rushing in and fighting to the death, and if they won, that was the end of it? Except for a few who could transform, the bloodline warriors' reactions were about the same as Green Serpent's.

  After all, demi-human tribes were famous for charging recklessly—tactics and intelligence were secondary; rushing in blindly was the way to go.

  But now that the leader had prepared everything so thoroughly, everyone had a clear understanding. Their eyes sparkled with excitement, convinced this time the victory was guaranteed.

  Draven looked at their excited faces, feeling both tired and helpless inside.

  "Do you really think the plan is perfect? What if they retreat deep into the caves?" He pointed at the winding routes on the map, his voice filled with doubt.

  Green Serpent scratched his head and said without hesitation,"We just go in and fight!"

  "Digging tunnels? That's what we serpents are good at!"

  Draven shot him a cold glance, knowing better than to expect them to understand complex tactics. So he pointed at the map again, patiently revising the plan, explaining the details and countermeasures.

  As Green Serpent listened, his excitement gradually cooled. He finally understood that even without the involvement of the succubus tribe, the serpents would sooner or later lose to the werewolf leader. This was no fair war—it was a cruel struggle full of scheming and calculation.

  However, Green Serpent secretly liked this feeling.

  After working busily for a while and finishing all preparations, night had completely fallen.

  In the Hyena Man village, the leader Sardon was restless. He felt a strange irritation—his hunting party had been out all day and still hadn't returned. Could the rainy season have made them forget the dangers of the wild night?

  This was a crucial moment, and Sardon didn't want the tribe's combat power to suffer. The rich prey was right in front of them; how much they could tear off depended entirely on the tribe's strength.

  Although the leopard and black tiger clans talked big, it was always the Hyena Man tribe that charged first into battle.

  Sardon paced calmly and sent out a team of tribesmen to search for the missing hunters.

  When a group of twenty or thirty men slowly appeared within Bran's sight, he finally couldn't contain his excitement—his eyes gleaming with anticipation. According to the plan, these Hyena Men were their prey.

  As the enemy drew closer, Bran suddenly leapt up, and Titus followed suit, barking and swinging his chain hammer fiercely.

  The slaves behind them also howled and charged forward. Within moments, the twenty or thirty Hyena Men were completely surrounded by Bran and his group.

  Not far from the village, the leader of the Hyena Men, upon seeing Bran and the others appear, immediately shouted a warning loudly.

  "How dare you cause trouble at my doorstep—are you looking for death?" he roared.