Chapter 89

"Was it the personal action of the Martial Vigor Divine Marquis?" Wu Meng stood in shock for a moment before asking in amazement. Even if he felt his guess was reasonable, he still thought it was too incredible for the Martial Vigor Divine Marquis Dong Liang to appear at Yulong Mountain at this time.

Chen Hai, Shen Kun, Zhao Shan, and others could not yet fathom the true power of Dao Dan and Dao Tai realm supreme experts. It was hard to imagine that a few sword strikes could split a steep mountain several thousand meters high.

Chen Hai had witnessed the methods of Dragon Emperor Cang Yu and Zuo Er, and the various anomalies in the Blood Cloud Wasteland. He knew that splitting a mountain several thousand meters high with just a few sword strikes was not within the capabilities of a Dao Dan realm expert.

Even for a Dao Tai realm expert, they would need to use an Earth-grade supreme or Heaven-grade magical treasure to possibly stir the elemental energy within a radius of four to five hundred miles, gathering it into a single sword strike.

But was Dong Liang, the only Heaven-listed Dao Tai realm supreme expert in the various counties of Hexi, the only one?

However, even if there were other Dao Tai realm supreme experts in Hexi who remained in seclusion, they would not easily reveal their strength. The one who made the sword strike on the stone mountain should be the Martial Vigor Divine Marquis Dong Liang himself.

General Dong Liang of the Great Protectorate had already arrived at Yulong Mountain!

Chen Hai, Wu Meng, and Zhou Jun realized this and found it hard to believe. They had guessed that the war with the He Xiang Army was imminent, but they did not expect the Martial Vigor Divine Marquis, General Dong Liang, to personally come to Yulong Mountain to oversee the situation, nor did they expect him to personally open the passage for the army to move south.

No one answered Wu Meng's question; everyone was extremely shocked and could guess the same thing.

After a while, Zhou Jun regained his composure and asked, "What should we do? Should we go back first?"

Before they set out, they were ordered to infiltrate the heart of Yanchuan Prefecture to reconnoiter the enemy situation. Before Li Xianghai gave the order, he probably did not know that the Martial Vigor Divine Marquis had already entered Yulong Mountain. According to reason, they should immediately return to the main camp and wait for further orders.

At this moment, the elemental energy in the direction of Tiebi Mountain gathered again, the wind reversed, and a cold wave howled toward the northwest. Soon, a towering sword reappeared. From a distance of three to four hundred miles, they felt that the sword was as long as a finger. By proportion, the sword of elemental energy was likely one to two kilometers in size.

What a concept!

In the eyes of the soldiers of the Martial Vigor Army, the Martial Vigor Divine Marquis Dong Liang was like a god. Only a god-like existence could wield such a massive sword of elemental energy.

Seeing the towering sword of elemental energy strike the mountain again, from a distance of three to four hundred miles, the mountains and ridges trembled and shook, and loose rocks rolled down into the valleys on both sides.

The snow clouds covering the sky were torn apart by the massive disturbance, revealing a pale yellow, somewhat eerie crescent moon. At this moment, they could see the vortex-like fish-scale clouds swirling and changing unpredictably in the sky above.

"No, we will proceed according to the original plan!" Chen Hai looked up at the unpredictable sky, pondered for a moment, and then said resolutely.

"The plan has changed. Returning to the main camp now would not be considered a violation of military orders," Zhou Jun misunderstood Chen Hai's intention and explained.

Previously, the Great Protectorate General's Office had assigned Marquis Dong Shou to command the Yulong Camp, and everyone assumed that Dong Shou was the overall commander of the war against the He Xiang Army. The various combat and reconnaissance plans formulated by the Yulong Camp were based on this.

Now that everyone guessed that the Martial Vigor Divine Marquis had personally arrived at Yulong Mountain, it was clear that the Great Protectorate General's Office had a much larger plan and ambition for the war against the He Xiang Army. The middle and lower-level officers of the Yulong Camp would not have been informed in advance, so the plans needed to be significantly adjusted. It was likely that the Yulong Camp would no longer be the main force attacking the He Xiang Army.

Wu Meng also felt they should return to Li Xianghai's tent to await further orders.

Shen Kun and Zhao Shan also came over, puzzled as to why Chen Hai insisted on sticking to the original plan. The sixty or so bandit slaves did not care; they were already used to following Chen Hai's lead.

"The Great Protectorate General's Office has created so much smoke, and we are completely in the dark. The He Xiang Army must also be caught off guard," Chen Hai frowned, secretly admiring Dong Liang's strategic prowess. The war between the Martial Vigor Army and the He Xiang Army was both well-prepared and highly sudden and deceptive. His next actions would also need to change accordingly.

Chen Hai shared his thoughts with everyone.

"Since the Great Protectorate General's Office has revealed its final fangs, we have reason to believe that the main force moving south will no longer be the Yulong Camp. The Yulong Camp is likely just a supporting force on the flank. If we return now, we will be assigned to the flank force advancing into Lanchuan Prefecture...,"

Zhou Jun and Wu Meng nodded. They all believed that the combat plan would be significantly adjusted, but they still did not understand why Chen Hai did not want to return.

"Since the Great Protectorate General's Office has made such meticulous arrangements, and the Martial Vigor Divine Marquis is personally leading the main force south, the goal must be to annihilate the He Xiang Army's main defensive force in Lanchuan Prefecture," Chen Hai continued. "This task can only be accomplished by the Martial Vigor Divine Marquis personally leading the main force, to ensure the He Xiang Army has no time to react. If we return and are assigned to the flank force, we might not even get a taste of the action..."

Seeing the greedy look in Chen Hai's eyes, Zhou Jun and Wu Meng also felt a sense of excitement.

Currently, the He Xiang Army's northern defense mainly relies on large cities like Yanchuan Prefecture, with tens of thousands of troops concentrated in these core cities.

These cities will also be the main targets of the Martial Vigor Divine Marquis's main force. The primary responsibility of the flank force is to protect the main force's flank. They might remain at Yulong Mountain as a reserve, or be assigned to guard supply lines, or take over enemy cities that have been cleared by the main force.

In short, the flank force will have a hard time getting the best opportunities in the early stages of the war, likely just following behind the main force to clean up the aftermath.

If that's the case, they really won't get a taste of the action.

If that's the case, they shouldn't easily return to the main camp to await further orders.

Chen Hai and Zhou Jun hastily ended their cultivation in the Upper Seven Peaks and joined the army to achieve glory in the war against the He Xiang Army. How could they be content with not even getting a taste of the action?

However, the situation had developed beyond their expectations. If they did not return to the main camp to await further orders and wanted to act independently, what should they do?

In this war, their sixty or seventy people were just a negligible force. What could they accomplish?

"Should we continue to infiltrate the heart of Lanchuan Prefecture? Isn't that too risky?" Zhao Shan asked. He had long recognized that the young master was not one to follow the rules. But at this moment, he could not understand what the young master could achieve with just a few dozen people. With the situation changing rapidly, he saw no opportunity to take advantage of the chaos and preferred to be more cautious, returning to the main camp first.

"The He Xiang Army's attention is focused on Heyang Valley. They don't know how many troops the Martial Vigor Army will launch from Yulong Mountain. How could infiltrating Lanchuan Prefecture be dangerous?" Chen Hai, who had struggled to survive in the Blood Cloud Wasteland, did not think the situation would be particularly complex or dangerous.

Even if their sixty or seventy people faced a Dao Dan or Dao Tai realm expert, they could still retreat safely.

The He Xiang Army has tens of thousands of elite troops deployed in the north, but at this moment, how could they possibly pay attention to areas outside Heyang Valley?

"We will circle around to the back of Yanchuan Prefecture,"

In addition to Zhou Jun and Wu Meng, Chen Hai also called over several leaders selected from the bandit slaves, including Qi Hanjiang, to discuss the plan. He used his finger as a knife to roughly draw a map of the northern counties of Lanchuan Prefecture on a stone cliff and explained his not yet fully formed plan.

"Facing the sudden attack of the Martial Vigor Army, if the He Xiang Army cannot foresee and set a trap for the Martial Vigor Army, they will not be able to hold the line at Yanchuan Prefecture. They should retreat to Hechuan Ridge or try to stabilize their position there. At that time, the aristocratic families that fled to Yanchuan Prefecture and other cities to avoid the war will continue to flee south in panic. After the Martial Vigor Divine Marquis tears through the defenses of Yanchuan Prefecture, there will be a large number of fleeing soldiers heading south. From Yanchuan Prefecture to Hechuan Ridge, there is a depth of seven to eight hundred miles, with mountains and hills crisscrossing, providing many opportunities for action..."

"Good, the fleeing soldiers will be in a panic, with the Martial Vigor Army in pursuit. They will have no will to resist, making it an excellent opportunity for us to ambush and gain military merit!" Zhou Jun said excitedly.

Zhou Jun, Wu Meng, Shen Kun, and others, who were trained by proper Dao academies and aristocratic families, were excited by Chen Hai's words. They saw the opportunity to gain significant military merit by waiting behind the He Xiang Army's defenses for the Martial Vigor Divine Marquis to break through.

At that time, the He Xiang Army's fleeing soldiers would be in a panic, with the Martial Vigor Army in hot pursuit. They would not be able to engage in prolonged battles. By occupying advantageous terrain and launching surprise attacks, they could gain a lot of military merit.

Chen Hai's plan was extremely bold, but Zhou Jun, Wu Meng, and Shen Kun knew that without taking risks, how could they achieve great feats?

For Qi Hanjiang and other leaders from the bandit slaves, they did not care about military merit, but the prospect of ambushing fleeing aristocratic families from Yanchuan Prefecture and other cities made their eyes shine. How much loot could they plunder?

Zhao Shan could only smile bitterly. He naturally did not support Chen Hai's independent action, especially in such a complex situation. However, this bandit cavalry was the young master's private army, and they were all very bold and greedy. No one would oppose the young master, and he could only remind the young master to be cautious and avoid exposing their whereabouts before the enemy's defenses collapsed.

Everyone quickly agreed to move south and discussed how to conceal their movements. At this moment, the direction of Tiebi Mountain began to gather the towering sword for the third time, with each strike taking less than the time to burn an incense stick...

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