Longzang

Chapter 1048 Talking Nonsense in a Serious Way
The Great Wilderness Spear Saint, exuding majesty, glanced at the thousands of rebel soldiers below, then casually pointed to three of his adopted grandsons, saying, "You three, cooperate with my captain to escort these brats back to the main camp. The remaining four, come with me; we'll wipe out the tens of thousands of government troops following behind!"

Wei Yuan immediately dispatched a hundred soldiers, led by a captain, to escort several thousand rebel prisoners back to camp. Then, Wei Yuan led the remaining five thousand heavy cavalry to turn around, sail downstream, and attack the government troops who were advancing along the river.

Xiao Jingyuan had placed his elite troops on the left bank to prevent them from being wiped out by Lu Jiande in one fell swoop. However, the commanding officer was guarding against light cavalry. Upon hearing the earthquake and the sound of hooves, he quickly changed formation, setting up shields and spears, while archers and crossbowmen responded from the inside.

This government general was a capable commander, and he responded swiftly. However, the ground trembled more and more violently, the muffled sound sending chills down the spines of many veterans, whose faces gradually paled as they listened.

Wei Yuan stood in the air, surrounded by his four adopted grandsons. Below, his generals led heavy cavalry, divided into three groups, charging towards the government army's positions from different directions!
The heavy cavalry thundered as they charged toward the government army's formation. At a distance of a hundred feet, their numbers had increased to their maximum. Then, the knights raised their lances, and gunfire erupted, instantly filling the air with a layer of white smoke!
The powerful bullets shattered the shields, tore through the leather armor of the government troops, and then easily pierced their chests, sending them flying backward.

In the blink of an eye, large numbers of soldiers fell from the government army's ranks, and gaps appeared everywhere in the shield formation. The sudden chaos impacted the archers in the rear, and even when a few arrows hit the cavalry, they couldn't penetrate their plate armor.

The heavy cavalry continued their charge through the hail of arrows, but two riders fell before they reached the front lines!
Wei Yuan immediately used his divine sense to cover the two riders, recorded the data, and prepared to find out why they had been shot down.

At this moment, the heavy cavalry finally charged into the enemy lines, with huge crashes echoing one after another. The terrifying force of the charge would often send more than a dozen people flying!
The heavy cavalrymen who entered the battle showed no fear. Holding spray guns, they fired shot after shot, each shot taking down three or five men.

As the first rider broke through the formation, more and more heavy cavalry followed, and then the entire heavy cavalry charged out!

The general leading the army, Ji Jun, was filled with shock and despair. He could tell from just one charge that the first wave of thousands of heavy cavalrymen were all Dao Foundation cultivators!
But this was not the time for shock. The general stood in the center of the formation, a halo emanating from him that covered the entire army. He then quickly gave orders, and the army immediately underwent a series of complex changes. In the brief moment when the heavy cavalry broke through the formation and regrouped, they actually formed a neat shield formation again.

"What a talent!" Wei Yuan was immediately taken aback, then pointed at him and said to his four adopted grandsons behind him, "Take him down, alive!"

The four sworn brothers immediately became spirited and charged forward with murderous intent. At this time, the morale of the government troops was already in disarray, and their support for their commander was limited. In addition, they had the advantage of numbers, so the sworn brothers were not afraid of their opponents who had achieved perfect Dharma form.

Besides, even if they can't win, there's Wei Yuan behind them who can send Lu Jiande, a mid-stage Imperial Realm cultivator, flying thousands of feet away with a single blow! Having their master standing behind them is the greatest source of courage for these dogs.

So the three adopted grandsons plunged headlong into the enemy ranks. They were all seasoned veterans, and immediately began using their magical powers to bombard the ordinary soldiers, forcing the general to intervene. The general was then pulled from the ranks and subjected to a fierce magical duel. Meanwhile, the other officers in the army, who were about to come to their aid, were ambushed by the only female adopted grandson among the four, and were instantly severely injured.

By this time, the heavy cavalry had completed their formation, transforming into a long single-row array, and slowly approached. This time, Wei Yuan ordered them to stop concealing themselves, so the heavy cavalry no longer charged into the enemy lines, but instead bombarded them from a distance. The government army's formation was peeled away layer by layer, like an onion.

More than ten figures flew out from the government army on the opposite bank, crossing the river to try to rescue them, but Wei Yuan suddenly appeared, blocking their way, and said with a forced smile: "If you don't want to die, go back to the other side! This holy spear does not kill nameless people."

A group of people opposite them surrounded an elderly general with gray hair and beard. The old general stared intently at Wei Yuan, then suddenly said, "Go back!"

The generals were puzzled and could only follow the old general back. Only after returning to the main army camp did they have a chance to ask, "General, why didn't you fight him?"

The veteran's face was grim as he slowly said, "Without the support of military aura, I'm afraid I'm no match for him. And their military aura..."

The generals finally reacted, turning around to look. Only then did they clearly see the metallic aura of military might emanating from the opposing force, and everyone was shocked! A single thought crossed their minds: Who in the world could possess such a military aura? Could it be…?

One of the generals said, "But General Chen..."

The old general's voice remained unchanged: "He can only hope for the best."

After forcing Xiao Jingyuan back, Wei Yuan returned to the battlefield and shouted at the general who was fighting bitterly, "Why don't you surrender? When are you going to surrender? Do you want to watch all your brothers be killed to enhance your pitiful reputation?"

The general glanced down, his eye twitching. Seeing his loyal brothers being slaughtered in rows, his heart ached. He gritted his teeth and said, "This humble general, Chen Daolin, is willing to surrender! Do as you please, just spare my brothers!"

Wei Yuan said calmly, "Letting them go is impossible, but we can let them live. Give the order now for them to lay down their weapons and surrender, and they will be spared!"

Chen Daolin had no choice but to order the entire army to cease resistance. He could not delay any longer, as every moment of delay would result in the deaths of many more soldiers.

In a short period of fighting, the 30,000 government troops suffered over 10,000 casualties and another 10,000 wounded. Chen Daolin had witnessed countless horrific scenes on the battlefield, but he had never imagined that his own troops would suffer such heavy losses in such a short time. This was not a battle, but a massacre!

A moment later, Chen Daolin was brought before Wei Yuan. After questioning him, Wei Yuan learned that this 30,000-strong force was actually Xiao Jingyuan's most elite army, and Chen Daolin was his right-hand man. Chen Daolin's Dharma form was that of an Iron Cavalry Flying General, which could enhance the army's morale and significantly improve its combat power.

Xiao Jingyuan's original plan was to use this force against the rebels, sending it to intercept their main force. He reasoned that Lu Jiande would inevitably send his renowned light cavalry to break through their lines, only to find themselves unexpectedly biting into a steel plate and breaking all their teeth in the process. Then, this force would hold their position along the river, while Xiao Jingyuan simultaneously crossed to provide support and led his troops to cross at the ferry. Ordinary soldiers couldn't cross without boats, but the Dharma Masters and Daoji Colonels could.

Xiao Jingyuan had been biding his time, intending to use this elite force to launch a surprise attack on Lu Jiande's light cavalry and reverse the tide of the war.

He never expected that what awaited him was not Lu Jiande's light cavalry, but Wei Yuan's fully armored heavy cavalry! Moreover, more than half of this heavy cavalry were Foundation Establishment cultivators!
Xiao Jingyuan had intended to ambush a vicious wolf, but instead, he encountered a Tyrannosaurus Rex.

Wei Yuan was quite impressed with Chen Daolin and said, "You're quite capable. So, how about it? Do you want to work for me from now on? If you do, your future is bright. If you don't, I'll chop down all your brothers!"

Chen Daolin was both amused and exasperated. How could anyone persuade someone to surrender like that?
He bowed deeply and said, "As long as you treat my brothers well and do not wantonly harm the people, I... am willing to give my life!"

He hesitated for a moment. If he hadn't hesitated, Wei Yuan wouldn't have believed him so easily.

As one of the most valiant generals in the imperial court, and having just turned one hundred, Chen Daolin has a bright future ahead of him. As long as he can achieve the goal of creating the world of Xinxiang, he can be considered a top candidate for the future Grand General, and being granted the title of Duke is not out of the question.

Suddenly being defeated and captured, and then forced to join the rebels, is a psychological blow that most people cannot bear. It would be abnormal if they did not hesitate.

Wei Yuan was overjoyed to have subdued Chen Daolin. Adding to this the seven adopted grandsons who had sworn blood oaths, ingested deadly poison, and had remote-controlled poison bombs implanted in their bodies, this attack had netted eight powerful Dharma Aspects in one fell swoop—a considerable gain. Wei Yuan then ordered his men to treat the wounded soldiers and remove all the corpses.

Seeing this, Chen Daolin's expression finally improved a lot.

……

Several days later, the latest developments of the rebels were being discussed in the Ji Kingdom's court.

Naturally, what Prince Ji heard was a series of great victories, except for the occasional, accidental, or unforeseen loss of a few counties. After the Minister of War and the General of the Mighty Expedition finished their reports, Prince Ji's mood improved considerably.

At this moment, Sun Chaoen stepped forward and said loudly, "Your Majesty, I have heard that there has been a major change in the rebel army recently. I wonder why neither Minister Yu of the Ministry of War nor General Weiyuan has mentioned it."

Prince Ji was taken aback and asked, "What has happened?"

Sun Chaoen said, “A new rebel army has recently emerged, whose leader calls himself the ‘Great Wilderness Spear Saint.’ It is said that they have already raised their banners and are trying to seize the position of the chief of the rebel leader Lu Jiande. The two sides have already fought many battles, and Lu Jiande has suffered repeated defeats. The battles that I have heard about seem very similar to the great victory reported by the Minister. They are very similar.”

These words were too blunt, and Minister Yu's expression immediately turned somewhat unpleasant.

Another minister said, "Great Wilderness Spear Saint, Great Wilderness? This title sounds like it comes from the land of mountain peoples?"

Sun Chaoen said, "Lord Wang is indeed learned. I heard that the man came from the land of the western mountain people."

Prince Ji was quite interested and said, "This man actually managed to defeat Lu Jiande so decisively, he's got some skills! How come I've never heard of such a person before? Where did he get so many soldiers?"

Sun Chaoen said with a serious expression, "After the Great Wilderness Spear Saint left the Western Regions, he found eight thousand heavy cavalry in the wilderness. Then he found a large number of weapons and equipment in various places and formed a rebel army."

Even Prince Ji, who was used to hearing absurd jokes, was dumbfounded. It took him a while to recover before he said, "You found eight thousand heavy cavalry?"

Sun Chaoen said solemnly, "That's right, we are fully equipped and manned."

Prince Ji wanted to laugh out loud, but couldn't quite manage it. So he turned to the Director of the Imperial Observatory and asked, "Is what Minister Sun said true?"

Prince Ji originally intended to make a joke, but unexpectedly the Supervisor actually said, "I have calculated that the Great Wilderness Spear Saint did indeed pick up eight thousand heavy cavalry."

This left the entire court stunned.

(End of this chapter)