My father-in-law Guan Yu, I persuaded Liu Bei to launch a surprise attack on Xiangyang at the beginn

"Retreat! The entire army retreats to the West Camp!"

A shout, filled with a mix of panic and determination, rang out across the battlefield. Zhang Yan, regaining her senses, yelled at the top of her lungs.

At this moment, the situation in Dongying was already precarious, but in Zhang Yan's mind, whether Dongying could be defended or not no longer seemed to be so important.

The most crucial thing right now is to retreat to the Western Camp alive and preserve the more than 20,000 main force troops under my command.

These 20,000 elite troops were the core force of the Han army at Dingjun Mountain.

If any of these 20,000 troops were to be lost, the Han army at Dingjun Mountain would surely collapse and be routed without a fight.

In this way, half of the 100,000 Han troops would be lost overnight, with unimaginable consequences.

At that time, Pang De would most likely take advantage of the situation to descend the mountain or cross the river to cut off the Han army's vital supply lines, putting the Han army in a desperate situation of starvation, or he could march eastward and attack Nanzheng, directly striking the rear of the Han army.

At this moment, how should Liu Shan, with only 50,000 troops, deal with the situation at Yangping Pass?
"We must retreat!"

Zhang Yan made a silent vow that even if it meant risking the fall of the Eastern Camp and the death of Qian Zhao, she had to retreat to the main camp.

Fate seemed to have no favor to him; it was all too late.

Just as Zhang Yan was anxiously turning his horse around, attempting to escape, a thunderous roar suddenly resounded behind him.

The sound, like the call of death, made Zhang Yan's heart tighten suddenly.

Zhang Yan turned around abruptly, her gaze instantly stunned by the scene before her.

Suddenly, a fierce general, wielding a long sword, descended from the north slope like a tiger cutting through the waves, attacking him with the speed and ferocity of a whirlwind.

Its momentum was unstoppable, and its speed was as fast as lightning.

"Pound!"

Zhang Yan's eyes widened, and an ominous premonition welled up in her heart.

He instantly understood that Pound's strategy was to capture the leader first, taking him down in one fell swoop to achieve his goal in one fell swoop.

"Zhang Yan, you treacherous dog, prepare to die!"

Pound's thunderous roar was filled with boundless killing intent.

In the blink of an eye, he appeared before Zhang Yan like a ghost, his long sword, imbued with the power of thunder, slashing down from the sky.

The long sword sliced ​​through the air with a sharp whistling sound, as if the scythe of death were being wielded.

The knife came too fast, so fast that Zhang Yan had no way to avoid it.

He didn't have time to think and hurriedly raised his knife to block.

However, Pang De's strength was already superior to Zhang Yan's, and now, taking advantage of his superior position and the momentum of his swooping down, his strength increased exponentially.

The power of this strike is so great that it is almost impossible to counter.

Let alone Zhang Yan, even if Lu Bu, who was once invincible, were to be reborn, he would probably find it difficult to withstand this blow.

"Click~~"

A deafening roar shook the heavens and the earth.

Zhang Yan felt an immense force crashing down on her, like Mount Tai pressing down on her.

He simply couldn't withstand that power.

His chest tightened, and he lost his balance, being sent flying, sword and all.

"I was actually no match for him in a single exchange?"

Zhang Yan, suspended in mid-air, was filled with endless astonishment.

He couldn't believe that he, a seasoned warrior who prided himself on his strength and bravery, was so utterly defeated by Pound.

Pang De had already caught up from behind, and with his long sword, he slashed through the air once more.

"not good!"

Zhang Yan cried out inwardly, wanting to react, but it was too late.

Pound's longsword slashed down like lightning.

"Crack!"

With a chilling sound, Zhang Yan's body was cut in two at the waist.

Blood gushed out like a fountain, staining the surrounding earth red. His bloodied body crashed to the ground, raising a cloud of dust. The death of their commander was undoubtedly a bolt from the blue for the Han army.

Upon seeing Zhang Yan killed, the morale of the Han soldiers on the left and right crumbled instantly, and they scattered like headless flies.

Pound looked down at Zhang Yan's corpse, a smug smirk playing on his lips.

"Soldiers of Yizhou, follow me, and we will wipe out the western camp of the Han army in one fell swoop!"

Pang De raised his blood-stained blade and pointed it in the west.

The morale of the more than 10,000 Yizhou soldiers was greatly boosted upon hearing Pang De's call to arms.

Like a tidal wave, they chased after the defeated Han army, heading west towards the main camp.

Meanwhile, in Xiying.

At this moment, Wen Qin was standing in the camp, urging his soldiers to hurry up and build the deer antlers.

"If the Grand Marshal were here, dealing with these people from Yizhou would be a piece of cake."

Wen Qin gazed in the direction of Dongying, muttering to himself, a hint of worry showing between his brows.

"Man Chong, Xun Yun, and their ilk are still far from possessing the wisdom and strategy of the Grand Marshal..."

Wen Qin sighed softly again, his eyes revealing a sense of helplessness.

Just then, dust and fog rolled in from outside the camp, like dark clouds obscuring the sky and the sun.

Thousands of Han soldiers were rushing toward the main camp.

The scene was one of utter defeat!
Wen Qin's heart skipped a beat, and an ominous premonition immediately gripped his mind.

He hurriedly ordered the camp gates to be opened, allowing the defeated Han soldiers to enter the camp.

The defeated soldiers surged into the camp like a tidal wave, shouting in terror.

"What's going on? Didn't General Anbei go to rescue the Eastern Camp? What's going on with you?"

Wen Qin grabbed a captain and demanded an explanation in a stern voice.

The captain fell to his knees with a thud, sobbing as he said:
"General Wen, General Anbei has been killed by that Pang De!"

Wen Qin's expression changed drastically!

He felt a buzzing in his head, as if he had been hit by a heavy hammer.

He had considered countless possible outcomes, but he never expected that Zhang Yan would die at the hands of Pang De.

"What did you say? Say it again?"

Wen Qin grabbed the captain and questioned him excitedly, his hands gripping the captain's collar tightly, his eyes filled with disbelief.

The captain let out a long sigh and, still shaken, recounted the whole story in a trembling voice.

As they passed by Dingjun Mountain, Pang De ambushed them halfway down from the mountaintop...

Pang De, single-handedly and unexpectedly, like a god descending to earth, killed Zhang Yan in one fell swoop…

Then, with another 20,000 Han soldiers, morale collapsed, and they scattered and fled like a pile of loose sand.

The captain recounted everything, his voice filled with lingering fear.

Wen Qin released the captain, took half a step back, and froze on the spot.

His eyes were vacant, as if his soul had been shattered.

"Fell into a trap!"

In Wen Qin's mind, these three words echoed like thunder, making him dizzy.

At that moment, he finally understood everything.

The plans to seize Dingjun Mountain, to feign cutting off their supply lines, and to attack Dongying were all schemes to lure the enemy.

All of this was Pang De's conspiracy, designed to lure Zhang Yan's main force past Dingjun Mountain so that Pang De could take advantage of the situation to swoop down the mountain and catch Zhang Yan off guard.

This must be Sima Yi's plan!

Among the Yizhou army, only Sima Yi, that cunning old fox, could always come up with such insidious schemes.

Having figured all this out, Wenqin stamped his foot angrily and sighed:
"If the Grand Marshal were here, how could the Crown Prince have fallen for that treacherous Sima's scheme!" (End of Chapter)