Demon Lord Tang Dynasty

The shouts of battle around them seemed to vanish in an instant, and the entire world fell into silence.

The importance of the commander's flag to the military is self-evident.

That is the soul of an army.

Historically, military achievements have been categorized into four types: charging into battle, being the first to scale the walls, slaying a general, and capturing a flag.

Among them, capturing the flag is the most important.

This demonstrates its importance.

The flag before us is undoubtedly even more special.

This is the Wei-character backing flag, a flag unique to Yang Lin.

In the hearts of the Sui army, this was a royal banner that would never fall and would never be defeated.

And now, this flag that would never fall has fallen before everyone's eyes.

Zhang Ziyan felt a chill run through her body in an instant, as if she had fallen into an icy abyss.

On the battlefield, any general with a modicum of common sense would know the consequences of having their own side's main banner cut down.

This is not the worst part.

Wuchuan City was merely a ruined city in the northern border region and was not considered part of the territory of the Sui Dynasty.

Currently, there are only a few thousand soldiers in the city at most, and even if you add the vanguard that Xue Liang took with him, it still doesn't reach ten thousand.

Ten thousand troops is certainly not a small number.

Even if all these people were wiped out, it wouldn't be considered a huge loss for the massive Sui Dynasty.

But if this flag bearing the character "Wei" (卫) and its powerful backing is lost, the most terrifying consequences will follow.

Zhang Ziyan didn't even dare to imagine it.

The loss of the royal banner will cause an earthquake not only in Bingzhou, but throughout the entire Sui Dynasty.

You must know that Yang Lin was the pillar of the Sui Dynasty.

If this supporting pillar starts to shake, the entire country will likely become unstable.

An ancient saying goes, "When the pillar of heaven breaks, the earth's axis collapses; when the sky tilts to the northwest, the earth sinks to the southeast."

The thought of those consequences made Zhang Ziyan feel as if she were falling into hell.

The royal flag slowly fluttered down, and the entire battlefield was put on pause.

But Gao Yi did not stop in place.

With a single step, he leaped off his horse and swooped forward like a large bird.

With his right hand forming a claw, he lunged out like a tiger pouncing on its prey and grabbed the iron rod in Zhang Ziyan's hand.

At the same time, Gao Yi's left hand also lightly slapped forward, directly pressing down on Zhang Ziyan's chest.

Gao Yi has never been one to show mercy to women, especially since they are on the battlefield.

Now that the royal banner has fallen, the Sui army is like a broken spine. We must take this opportunity to crush the last bit of the enemy's morale.

"Pfft~~"

Still in a daze, Zhang Ziyan had no time to react before being struck hard and sent flying backward.

"Being distracted on the battlefield is not a good habit."

Gao Yi, having usurped Zhang Ziyan's place, stood on her warhorse and chuckled softly.

He thrust the Dragon-Binding Staff, which he had just snatched from Zhang Ziyan, toward his head, just in time to catch the falling Banner of the Mountain King.

Gao Yi held a stick in one hand, and the royal flag hanging on the stick fluttered freely in the wind.

For a moment, all the Sui soldiers in the arena turned deathly pale.

The Dragon-Trapping Staff and the Mountain-Backing Banner are the faith of the Mountain-Backing Army.

The soldiers in the arena were all Yang Lin's subordinates. They had all charged into battle more than once, guided by the banner of the King of the Mountain, following the Dragon-Trapping Staff, and returned victorious.

The sight of the King of Kao Shan waving the banner of the Prince of Kao Shan with iron bars in a prison cell was enough to make all the Sui soldiers' blood boil.

But at this moment, the one holding the iron rod and supporting the royal flag was the enemy on the other side.

The Dragon-Trapping Staff is lost, and so is the Mountain-Backing Flag.

Even if they didn't want to believe it, they had no choice but to accept this nightmarish reality.

A genuine smile finally appeared on Gao Yi's face.

He knew the battle was over; they had won.

The Sui army's morale had collapsed and their will to fight had vanished.

Next comes the cleanup and the harvest of victory.

Gao Yi waved his right hand lightly, and the soldiers behind him instantly brandished their scimitars, letting out bursts of wild laughter.

At that moment, several Sui soldiers at the very front of the line suddenly lunged at Gao Yi as if they were in a frenzy.

Even Gao Yi couldn't help but show a hint of surprise in his eyes.

These soldiers didn't take any precautions at all.

Even the attacks themselves are not systematic.

In other words, they didn't seem to be attacking at all, but rather simply throwing their lives away.

Just as a few soldiers were charging forward like human shields, it was during this time that...

The others quickly helped the badly injured Zhang Ziyan up from the ground and slammed her onto the horse's back.

"Miss, the situation is hopeless now. Preserve your life and retreat quickly."

A soldier covered in blood shouted and then swung his sword down at the horse's rump.

The warhorse neighed wildly, carrying Zhang Ziyan, who was bleeding from her mouth and nose, as it galloped away into the distance.

"In the end, we underestimated Yang Lin's army."

Gao Yi shook his head.

These successive blows left even Zhang Ziyan completely stunned. She never expected that any soldier in the Sui army could recover so quickly.

Judging from the opponent's series of actions, it was not to kill Gao Yi, nor to turn the tide of battle, but simply to save Zhang Ziyan.

These men were no ordinary Sui soldiers; they were Yang Lin's personal guards, true veterans of countless battles, like death squads.

"Kill! Follow me and seize the flag!"

The soldier who had escorted Zhang Ziyan away did not flee, but instead brandished his long sword and charged towards Gao Yi.

Of the Sui soldiers on the field, only a dozen or so reacted and assumed a charging stance.

Many more are still in a state of chaos.

The loss of the command flag and the escape of the commander-in-chief, along with other unexpected events, completely shattered their fighting spirit, leaving them unable to recover or react in time.

But the instincts of elite soldiers suppressed them, preventing them from fleeing in all directions, so they could only stay in place.

With only a dozen or so soldiers, they certainly couldn't cause Gao Yi any trouble.

It was easily resolved in just a few moments.

"Put down your weapons, or you will be killed without mercy."

Gao Yi raised his eyes and swept them over the remaining Sui soldiers, coldly shouting.

Meeting his cold gaze, the group of soldiers who had no will to fight finally reacted.

First the first one, then the second, and then the third.

Soon, all the soldiers on the field gave up resistance.

"World Honored One, should we continue the pursuit and capture that wounded female general?" A Maitreya soldier beside him asked with fervent enthusiasm.

At this moment, almost all the soldiers behind him had the same expression.

They actually managed to snatch the Mountain King's Banner and the Dragon-Binding Staff! The World Honored One is indeed infinitely powerful and invincible.

As long as they follow the World Honored One, no one can be their match.

As for those who have died, how can that be called death? They have received the blessings of the World-Honored One and returned to the Buddha-land.

"Zhang Ziyan? Never mind."

Gao Yi shook his head.

It wasn't that he deliberately let the other party off the hook; he simply didn't have the means.

Now that the battle is over, the soldiers in other parts of the city will surely retreat from all directions.

With his limited forces, he couldn't besiege the city, nor could he possibly eliminate everyone.

Gao Yi wouldn't do something that would be thankless and exhausting.

As for Zhang Ziyan, if we split our forces to pursue her, we might not succeed.

After all, although Zhang Ziyan was seriously injured, she would definitely be able to gather some of the remaining troops once she recovered.

Zhang Ziyan is no match for Gao Yi; he shouldn't waste his time pursuing her personally.

Of course, since it was like throwing a stone into the sea, he couldn't be sure where Zhang Ziyan had escaped to.