Longzang

Chapter 195 will be outside

The people in the sky were silent for a moment, then the woman dressed as a concubine said, "Even if they want us to take action, a single qi circulation is enough as a price. This child is not bad."

The middle-aged man from the Xu family also said, "In a life-or-death battle, he possessed a priceless treasure without hoarding it, and he never forgot to take care of his colleagues and subordinates. He has the demeanor of a great general."

After a few words of praise, they suddenly noticed an ordinary-looking middle-aged man standing beside them.

The old man surnamed Cui asked, "Brother Li, what brings you here?"

The middle-aged man pointed, and two figures lit up in the chaotic battlefield below. These were two of the sixteen young masters from aristocratic families, a man and a woman.

“These two children weren’t particularly outstanding in the family, but recently they’ve suddenly made remarkable achievements and their merits have improved by leaps and bounds. The family was curious, so I came over to see what was going on.”

On the battlefield, the two young men of the Li family were fighting fiercely. They both used long spears, and their spear techniques were refined and without any superfluous movements, which made the people in the sky nod in approval.

The old man surnamed Wang suddenly exclaimed, "These children's marksmanship is seven or eight parts similar. Did they all learn it after they came here?"

The middle-aged man from the Xu family said, "That should be the case. Yi'er has learned swordsmanship and has never been exposed to gun techniques. She was not interested in guns to begin with."

Spears are weapons of war, enormous in size, and even when crafted into magical implements, they are difficult to extend or retract at will. Furthermore, spear fighting emphasizes drawing blood with a single thrust and defeating the enemy in one strike, so almost no noble ladies learn to use spears.

A glint flashed in the eyes of the woman in palace attire as she said, "If you really only learned it here, then it's truly remarkable that you've mastered such marksmanship in just one month."

To receive even a single word of praise from her is truly rare indeed.

The two old men stopped playing chess and began to carefully observe the battlefield.

To the northeast, a massive army surged forward like an iron torrent. Many dark blue banners fluttered in the ranks, each embroidered with the character for "speed" in gold. The banners conveyed a unified spirit, and the soldiers marched in perfect unison, each step covering a distance of ten feet. They could cover a hundred miles in half an hour.

The central command consisted of rows of large carts, which were also magical artifacts, with wisps of cloud emanating from their undersides. Despite their enormous size, the wheels left only shallow tracks on the road.

A bird flew straight into a central chariot, landed, and transformed into a soldier, saying, "General, we have ascertained the movements of the Witch Clan! The central army of 80,000 men is 300 li away from us. The rear army of 50,000 men is 380 li away from us. The central army can cover 100 li in an hour, while the rear army can cover 80 li."

Inside the vehicle stood more than a dozen generals, half of whom were still wearing the uniforms of the Northern Frontier. These men exuded a murderous aura, and their presence was clearly superior to that of the others.

Yue Jinshan looked at the map, silently calculating the directions, and suddenly said in a deep voice, "There's a trap!"

The generals, somewhat puzzled, all looked at Yue Jinshan. Yue Jinshan asked the soldier, "Did you personally witness the true strength and weakness of the central army?"

The soldier dared not lie and said, "I did not approach. I was afraid of being detected by the Great Shaman, so I observed the army's aura from a distance and calculated it based on the size of the formation and the number of soldiers on the outer perimeter."

This is common practice in the military; otherwise, some high-ranking shamans also possess some ability to monitor the heavens and earth. These scouts are merely at the Dao Foundation stage; if they get too close, they will be caught.

Yue Jinshan said, "Investigate again! Send more men, no matter the cost, I need to know the true strength of the Wu Clan's central army!" The soldier's face hardened, and he accepted the order and left. With this order, countless lives would be lost at the hands of the Wu Clan.

Yue Jinshan frowned and said slowly, "Just as I predicted, the main force of the Wu Clan is not in the central army, but in the rear, waiting for us to pass through. When we prepare to wipe out the rear army in one fell swoop, we will find that we have encountered the main force of the Wu Clan. This Wu army... its target is not the boundary, but us!"

Many of the generals were Yue Jinshan's old subordinates from the northern border, and they naturally trusted their commander's abilities. One of them said, "Then let's just go and fight them!"

Another general said, "Or we can speed up and head straight for the central army. If the Wu tribe is really bluffing, their front and rear armies are nearly a hundred miles apart, which is enough for us to defeat the central army first."

Both of these men were fierce generals from the northern border. Another general, transferred from the Western Jin Dynasty, said, "Why don't we garrison here and wait for the Wu army to arrive? Then we can rest and wait for them to tire themselves out, and we will surely win."

The Northern general said, "That won't do! What if the Witch Army destroys the realm first, then turns back to fight us?"

"The destruction of the realm has nothing to do with us."

The Northern general said unhappily, "Dividing our forces to be devoured is a cardinal sin in warfare. Even if we want to use the realm as a stepping stone, we must launch a surprise attack when the witch army is attacking the realm. Only in this way can we inflict more casualties. How much strength can a mere realm have? The witch army will not lose much even if they swallow them. At that time, we will still be facing the witch army with its strength intact, and we will have no worries about the rear."

The domestic generals, however, disagreed: "The territory is full of rioters. If they all die, it will actually reduce the trouble. Even if they don't suffer much damage, we can still wipe out a few thousand witch soldiers. Why don't we wait until the war over there is coming to an end before setting off? That way, we can catch up with the witch soldiers cleaning up the battlefield and fulfill the king's wish. Wouldn't that be the best of both worlds?"

The northern general glared and roared, "Our allies are in trouble, yet you remain unmoved? If you were in the northern frontier, you bastard, I'd be the first to chop you up!"

"That's enough." Yue Jinshan said calmly, which silenced the generals.

He stared at the map for a moment before saying, "Continue forward and head straight for the rear army! We've all fought against the Liao barbarians in the northern frontier. If the Wu tribe wants to fight, we can test their mettle."

The domestic general's expression changed slightly, and he said, "Sir, the witch army has come prepared. Is there any need for us to engage them head-on? Why don't we attack the central army first?"

Yue Jinshan said calmly, "After defeating the central army, we still need to attack the rear army. As long as we defeat the main force of the Wu army, their central and front armies will be ours."

The northern general was even more dissatisfied, cursing and saying, "Who do you think you are, asking so many questions! How the commander-in-chief fights is none of your business! If you don't want to fight, get out and leave your troops behind!"

The general dared not say anything more, but glared fiercely at the northern general, his eyes filled with resentment.

With Yue Jinshan's order, the army slightly changed direction, increased its speed, and surged towards the rear of the Wu army.

But the army had only advanced a few dozen miles when suddenly a blue eagle swooped down and transformed into human form before Yue Jinshan. This man was dressed in a blue official robe with a jade belt, the color of a court official's attire. Upon appearing, he declared, "His Majesty has ordered you to immediately halt the march and forbid any engagement with the witch army!"

The northern generals were in an uproar, while the generals at home remained silent, exchanging glances discreetly.

Yue Jinshan pondered for a moment before accepting the imperial edict, placing it on the table, and saying, "A general in the field may disobey the emperor's orders. As I command a large army, with a formidable enemy ahead, I am free to act as I see fit. Issue the order: the army shall continue its advance!"

(End of this chapter)