Before Will could meet up with Woodshield's group, the cavalry using their slight speed advantage, managed to overtake Woodshield's team. The cavalry of the three families had also lived in the Wolfswood for generations, and their skill in maneuvering warhorses within the forest was unmatched.

The swordsmen with shields were not far from Woodshield's group. Once the cavalry intercepted them, the swordsmen would quickly catch up, leading to a two-sided attack that would surely cause Woodshield's group to collapse. Once the battle began, it wouldn't take long for the spearmen in the rear to arrive, putting Woodshield's group at risk of total annihilation.

Seeing the urgent situation, Will spurred his horse and galloped through the Wolfswood.

Before long, a group of tree folk, resembling wild beasts or fleeing refugees, appeared ahead. Leading them was Woodshield, muscular and agile. Looking at his nimble figure, no one would believe that he had been injured by a crossbow bolt in his leg just a few days earlier.

"Woodshield!" Will drew his sword. It was not Night, but the sword given to him by Harris. Night hung on Will's right side, without a scabbard. Being black, it was almost invisible against Will's black cloak.

The people around Woodshield raised their weapons and issued beast-like threats toward Will. Woodshield stopped them.

"My lord, I swear by the gods of the First Men, does what you said to me a few days ago still hold true?"

"By the gods of the First Men, my word remains true," Will said.

"My lord, but our numbers seem a bit too many this time."

"Even if they were doubled, we could still accept them," Will said. Currently, the Night's Watch was in desperate need of manpower.

The Wall stretched for three hundred miles and had nineteen castles. Each castle was a key defensive point along the Wall, requiring personnel to guard it to ensure safety. However, only three castles were currently manned: Shadow Tower, the second castle to the west; Eastwatch-by-the-Sea, to the east; and Castle Black, in the middle. The rest had been abandoned due to a lack of personnel, some so dilapidated that they were uninhabitable.

At its peak, the Night's Watch had over ten thousand combat-ready soldiers, with legions stationed in all castles. Now, there were barely a thousand left. Subtracting the administrative staff—which included carpenters, blacksmiths, farmers, hunters, pioneers, breeders, and so on—the actual number of combatants was around five to six hundred.

A force of five to six hundred fighters, divided into three parts, guarding a three-hundred-mile Wall, was a testament to how thinly stretched their forces were.

This was the reason the Night's Watch had to request manpower from the North, King's Landing, and other places. Year after year, with no volunteers willing to join the Night's Watch, the criminals from various dungeons became highly sought after by the Night's Watch.

Woodshield turned to his tribe and said, "This man is called Will, a ranger from the Night's Watch at the Wall. He saved my life, as well as the lives of Roia and the other five." Woodshield pointed to the arrow wound on his thigh, which still bore the black mark of a burn, but the internal wound had healed.

"This is the crossbow wound that Lord Will treated for me. We all know that once a wound from a blade becomes infected, it's either a prayer for the Old Gods' mercy or a wait for death."

The hundred or so members of the tribe looked at Will with wild, suspicious eyes. They clearly didn't trust the black-clad man on horseback, but they trusted their young leader, Woodshield. The young Woodshield was not foolish; he knew that without finding a protector, his tribe might be annihilated. For a young man to become the leader of a tribe, it was evident that Woodshield's leadership, combat skills, and personal charm were extraordinary.

Once the houses under the command of Deepwood Motte decided for some reason to destroy a small tribe in the Wolfswood, the tribe had no choice but to flee to the territory of the Howling Stone Tribe to the north of the Wolfswood, face total annihilation, or disband and have its members absorbed by other tribes.

Will said, "I swear by the Old Gods that once you join the Night's Watch, from this moment on, we will be brothers in life and death."

"The pursuers are here. Even if we want join, it may be too late," an elderly man said. The sound of hooves echoed as the cavalry overtook Woodshield's group and began to turn around, heading back to charge at them.

Will said, "Once you swear to join the Night's Watch, no one in the kingdom will dare to harm you. To kill a member of the Night's Watch at will is to break the law."

"The laws of the kingdom may have no binding power in the Wolfswood, especially against these houses." the elderly man said.

"Then I will fight with you, in life and death," Will declared, raising his sword.

Woodshield raised his sword, shouting, "In life and death together!"

"In life and death together!" The members of Woodshield's tribe roared in unison, their fighting spirit high, the previous panic of fleeing for their lives gone. Courage returned to them.

Ahead, the twenty-five cavalrymen from the three families slowed their pace, forming a line, and slowly approached Woodshield's group. They were in no hurry to charge, giving their comrades—the swordsmen and the spearmen—more time to catch up.

A few impatient and reckless tribesmen, unable to bear being trapped, rushed forward to engage in battle. Will urged his horse to block them, pointing his sword for them to return. This was a group without tactics, discipline, or formation, facing off against organized soldiers.

They were strong individually, but together, they were like a pile of scattered sand, consuming each other.

Will said, "Don't panic, everyone. I'll talk to their leader. All those with long weapons form the front line to deal with the cavalry. Those with short weapons move to the back, forming two lines to face the enemy's swordsmen and spearmen. Archers stay in the middle to support both sides. Don't get disorganized; listen to my commands."

Woodshield immediately repeated Will's words in the tribal language. The tribe followed suit, learning how to form a formation for the first time. Will signaled for Woodshield to restrain his people as he rode forward. The opposing leader, seeing Will's black cloak, warhorse, and noble sword, raised his hand, and the team stopped.

The cavalry team blocking the path was in no rush to attack as long as the enemy did not break through. Their companions were already within earshot, their banners visible, and the encirclement was forming.

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