World Online

by Srtyi

Earth Online – a virtual MMORPG that takes place in the future year of 2190 – a game that everyone will bet their futures on. Set in a map that is ten times the size of real-world Earth, players battle for supremacy in the first game to feature personal adventure, territory construction, and grand warfare. For every death you experience in the game, your level would drop back to 0.

18. 505

Read The World Online - Chapter 505- Situation in the World online free - Light Novel Full

Chapter 505- Situation in the World

Translator: ryangohsf

Editor: Nora

Post-awakening his bloodline, filth covered Ouyang Shuo's body.

After a simple wash up, Ouyang Shuo visited the treatment room to take a look at the badly injured Shi Wanshui.

Chiyou's shocking strike had knocked him out, and he still had not woken up. The doctor that followed the troops could only help him bandage his wounds and treat the physical wounds.

The doctors in the Shanhai City Army, especially the legion level doctors, were all the elites that the Medical Division developed and trained. Some were even players who were specialists in real life.

Hence, although Shi Wanshui's injuries were grievous, it was not too big of a problem. As for his internal injuries, they could not do anything about them. They would need to wait for Shi Wanshui to deal with them himself when he woke up.

Of course, there were still some risks.

If Shi Wanshui did not wake up early enough, and his internal injuries took too long to heal, it could leave behind problems. In the worse case scenario, he could lose all his martial arts skills.

To someone like Shi Wanshui, losing his skills was the same as losing his life.

When Ouyang Shuo saw the situation, he did not hesitate and took out the Peiyuan Pill. Then, he passed it to the doctor to give it to Shi Wanshui.

As expected, after Shi Wanshui consumed the pill, he immediately looked better. His ashen white face started to have some red.

The doctor took his pulse and turned around, "Lord, don't worry. General Shi is fine."

Ouyang Shuo nodded, "Take good care of him." He turned around as he spoke these words. Since the war had just ended, there were still many other matters he needed to attend to.

After he returned from the treatment room, Ouyang Shuo met Shi Hu in the main hall meeting.

"Greetings, my Lord!"

Although Ouyang Shuo was the Barbarian King, in the military, Shi Hu still called him Lord. The great shaman had trained up this mountain barbarian warrior. Be it in terms of IQ or EQ, he was top class.

He had the simplicity and honesty of the mountain barbarians but also the quick thinking of the Han people. These two different characteristics mixed together to form his unique character.

Pushing Ouyang Shuo to kingship was his most eye catching performance.

"Stand up!"

Ouyang Shuo sat on the leader seat, the war axe and the small book on the table.

When Shi Hu heard this command, he simply stood on the spot.

"These two items, do you recognize them?"

Ouyang Shuo pointed to the axe and the book on the table, smiling as he asked this question.

"I do!"

When they collected Chiyou's corpse, Shi Hu was present. Naturally, he recognized both items. Especially the Heaven Splitting Axe, which was the symbol of Chiyou. All the mountain barbarian warriors dreamed of this weapon.

"Now, they are yours!"

Ouyang Shuo's words were simple, but they Shi Hu stunned. His heartbeat quickened; his heart was about to explode from his chest. All of a sudden, he did not know what to say.

"Why, you don't like it?"

This general followed the rules too strictly sometimes. As a result, Ouyang Shuo wanted to tease him.

"Lord, this is too precious."

Shi Hu still had not regained his composure.

"Just take it, you deserve it." Ouyang Shuo stood up and placed the two items into Shi Hu's hands.

"Thank you, Lord, for your reward!"

Seeing that, Shi Hu knelt on the ground once more and respectfully bowed.

Ouyang Shuo nodded and returned to his seat, "The meaning and power these two items represent, I am sure you understand. I only hope you don't insult their name."

"Yes!"

Shi Hu nodded his head vigorously; his face completely red. Of course, he knew what the Heaven Splitting Axe meant; it was a symbol of climbing up to the strongest warrior throne.

Whether he could make the throne his own would depend on his personal strength.

The Lord could give him weapons, but the Lord could not help him stop the gossips and doubts.

The mountain barbarians had always worshiped the strong and everything depended on one's own power.

"At the appropriate time, spread the Hell Slaughterer True Manual to Shi Bao and Lei Jingtian." Ouyang Shuo was not going to act like Chiyou and only let one person cultivate it.

Of course, since it was an emperor rank cultivation technique, it had a high requirement on talent and comprehension, so it was not something that every warrior could cultivate

Ouyang Shuo wanted the Hell Slaughterer True Manual to end at his time.

"Understood!"

When the Lord mentioned Shi Bao and Lei Jingtian, he was obviously warning Shi Hu to not grow arrogant. There were still other talented mountain barbarian generals behind him.

The mountain barbarians he obtained this time would require generals from his army to lead them. It was more suitable for a mountain barbarian general to lead the mountain barbarian force.

"Back down. On the side of the mountain barbarian army, you still need to put in more time and effort."

Although the mountain barbarians had surrendered and recognized Ouyang Shuo as their king, in the end, they had still lost. As a result, their emotions were a bit out of control, which could potentially lead to them causing chaos.

Since the overall situation was a huge rush, they did not have a full month like the Battle of Zhaoqing to reorganize. Ouyang Shuo was planning to leave in just two days.

"Understood!"

Shi Hu nodded and backed down.

After Shi Hu left, Ouyang Shuo finally had the time to read the battle report that the Black Snake Guards sent.

Zhongyuan Region.

Piao Linghuan and Chun Shenjun's two armies had entered together. However, they faced Zhangchu's army's heavy resistance. Their advances were totally controlled and suppressed.

The entire battlefield had entered a stalemate situation, where victory was tough to decided. News had spread that Di Chen was ready to send his troops down south at any moment.

Hence, the battle situation in the Zhongyuan Region was wholly uncertain.

Southeast region.

Xiong Ba's and Zhan Lang's north and south pincer attack placed Huangchao in a terrible situation. After all, they had already lost at the hands of Zhan Lang. Along with their lack of generals and troops, their weaknesses were exposed.

Based on what the Black Snake Guard stationed at the Jianye intel station had analyzed, if things continued smoothly, they would decide victory in a month.

Zhan Lang and Xiong Ba were both opponents that could not be underestimated. One of them was maturing by the day, and his military talent was showing. The other was an old fox with a lot of help.

With these two working together, it was enough to give Huangchao a headache.

In comparison, Gong Chengshi and Xunlong Dianxue, who both belonged to the southeast region, seemed dull. In the end, not every commoner Lord could grow as strong as Ouyang Shuo.

The part that disappointed Ouyang Shuo was that the alliance Gong Chengshi had formed had not crossed the border till date. It was not that Gong Chengshi did not attack, it was just that his allies did not want to take the risk.

Obviously, Gong Chengshi's control of the Jiangchuan Province was rather weak.

As for Xunlong Dianxue, as a province stood in the middle of them, he was a total onlooker. Ouyang Shuo had instructed him to just give up on hopes of joining in on the southeast battlefield. He should just assist Bai Xue's Consonance City.

Ouyang Shuo was just trying to quickly cut back his losses.

This chaotic war situation had exposed the weaknesses of the Shanhai Alliance. After this war, the prestige of the Shanhai Alliance would not be as high.

On the other hand, the Yanhuang Alliance finally showed signs of making a comeback after the previous setback.

Southwest Region.

Facing the two hundred thousand troops of Taiping Country, even with the help of Luo Shixin's division, Consonance City troops faced defeat after after.

In just a week, they lost four cities.

In the middle part of the war, Bai Hua had to request help from her brother, Moon Shines over the River. She could only ask him to gather twenty thousand adventure gamemode players to join the war.

The moment players died, their levels would fall to zero, and they would lose all their items.

All the members of Qingfeng Pavilion were elites, and it was not easy for them to reach their current level. Who knew how much work Bai Hua and Moon Shines over the River had to put in to make them willing to join.

Solely the compensation fees for the players who died could empty their treasury. However, Bai Hua was forced to the edge of the cliff, so she went all out.

In Ouyang Shuo's last life, Bai Hua probably also used this trump card.

Of course, in his last life, without the existence of Shanhai City, their situation was better, and they could gather up a bunch of allies.

Ouyang Shuo still remembered that Taiping Country in his last life did not cause much of a storm.

In this life, the reason why Taiping Country could act so arrogant was because of Ouyang Shuo. It was because Ouyang Shuo had allowed the birth of such a monster.

Bai Hua could be said to be taking the blame for Ouyang Shuo.

Ouyang Shuo did not feel good about this matter, which was why he sent Luo Shixin's division over and persuaded Xunlong Dianxue to send his troops.

Ouyang Shuo bore the teleportation fees for Xunlong Dianxue's division.

Luckily, under the help of both the adventure gamemode players and Xunlong Dianxue, Consonance City managed to maintain their defense line.

This was also the first time that adventure gamemode players had joined a city war on a large scale.

Who knows what kind of chain reaction Qingfeng Pavilion would cause on the future of the China region.

At the very least, Lords would grow more and more interested in the various guilds.Looking at the battle report, Ouyang Shuo's brows relaxed.

To word it nicely, after the Battle of Wuzhou ended, the hardest time for the Shanhai Alliance had ended too.

After dealing with the Chiyou Army, with Ouyang Shuo unexpectedly becoming the Barbarian King, the strength of Shanhai City had risen instead. At this time, no matter how they assigned their troops, they were too strong.

As such, Ouyang Shuo wanted to hold a meeting to plan for the following military operations.

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Chapter 506- Attacking Taiping Country

Translator: ryangohsf

Editor: Nora

8 PM, Ouyang Shuo held a meeting.

Attending the meeting, apart from Shi Hu and Shan Zhu, the rest were all at least major generals. Of the two of them, one represented the 1st division of the Dragon Legion, while the other the 3rd division of the Tiger Legion.

Before the meeting, Han Xin reported the losses of the battle.

"In this battle, including important members, we lost a total of 21,500 men. Amongst which, the Leopard Legion 2nd division suffered the heaviest casualties of more than half. Even their major general, Wei Zhang, was killed."

When the generals heard this report, there was a moment of silence.

The Shanhai City Army could be said to have lost both soldiers and generals in this battle, suffering heavy casualties.

More than eighty percent of the soldier losses came from the Leopard Legion.

The three thousand Divine Martial Guards had also suffered many causalities in this battle with the Blood Guards, losing seven hundred men. Surprisingly, the Guards Division, including Shi Wanshui's and Shan Zhu's divisions that acted as the reinforcements, suffered the fewest casualties.

"Out of the one hundred thousand mountain barbarian soldiers, apart from the casualties, seventy thousand have surrendered. They await us to organize them. As for how to do so, Lord, please instruct!"

Han Xin bowed to Ouyang Shuo and returned to his seat.

In the Battle of Wuzhou, Shanhai City had lost twenty thousand troops to capture seventy thousand elite mountain barbarians. All things considered, Shanhai City had gained more than fifty thousand more troops.

Of course, if Ouyang Shuo did not unexpectedly become the Barbarian King, these mountain barbarians would not easily submit. They would either try to escape, or they would get killed for resisting.

Ouyang Shuo nodded and looked at the generals; he solemnly said, "The Battle of Wuzhou has ended. However, there remains a bigger scale war waiting for us. Generals, we cannot slack now."

"Yes, my Lord!"

The generals replied in unison; they all looking exceedingly serious.

"Shan Zhu!"

Ouyang Shuo directly started to appoint roles.

"Present!"

Shan Zhu did not think that he would be the first general to get called.

"You will lead the Tiger Legion 3rd division to set off tomorrow and rush to the Lingnan War Zone. After handing your forces to General Cao Gui, return to Shanhai City and report to the Military Affairs Department."

The Tiger Legion had already been drafted into the Lingnan War Zone. Since the Battle of Wuzhou had ended, Ouyang Shuo naturally needed to return Cao Gui's division to strengthen the defense on the east.

As for Shan Zhu, he was Ouyang Shuo's choice for the major general of the iron armored beast division he had planned.

From Du Ruhui's letter, Animal Husbandry Director Xia Houying had worked hard to breed the iron armored beasts in the valley, and it was slowly working out.

The Combat Logistics Department had already started to craft armor for the iron armored beasts. The iron armored beasts equipped with full armor would form a terrifying presence on the battlefield.

Shan Zhu was from the Li Race. As such, he understood the iron armored beasts the most. He was also a strong general, so he was the best choice for becoming the major general of the division.

The members of the division would be chosen from the mountain barbarian soldiers.

"Yes, my Lord!"

When Shan Zhu heard the command, doubt filled his heart. The Lord asking him to lead the troops to Lingnan War Zone was not the weird part. The weird part was the Lord asking him to return alone.

However, he could only keep his confusion to himself.

Apart from sending away Cao Gui's division, Ouyang Shuo placed emphasis on the Leopard Legion. The Leopard Legion now lacked close to twenty thousand members. How to fill up that gap posed a huge problem.

Ouyang Shuo decided to form a heavy armored infantry division from all the mountain barbarian prisoners; they would be under Zhang Han. All the current soldiers under him would be moved to other divisions.

Apart from that, Shi Wanshui's division, apart from keeping the two regiments, the remaining soldiers would enter the Leopard Legion. With that, the number of Leopard Legion soldiers would basically get restored.

The remaining shortfalls could only wait till after they defeated Taiping Country.

Moreover, such a reorganization did not just give the Leopard Legion the elite mountain barbarian soldiers but also gave them the experienced soldiers of Shi Wanshui's division.

Along with the trial by fire of the Battle of Wuzhou, the strength of the Leopard Legion did not fall. In fact, it had increased instead.

Shi Wanshui was badly injured. Even after consuming the Peiyuan Pill, he only woke up temporarily. As for truly recovering, it would take more than a month.

It was the same as saying that Shi Wanshui's legion had lost their main general.

Hence, Ouyang Shuo decided to just name the colonel of the 2nd regiment of Shi Wanshui's division as the deputy major general. He would lead the division, bringing along Shi Wanshui and the body of Wei Zhang over the one hundred thousand mountain passage and back to Lianzhou Prefecture and the Mulan Stronghold.

The three regiments of mountain barbarian soldiers would return with Liao Kai. These soldiers were sent into Er'Lai's division. Before this, he only had two regiments of heavy armored mountain barbarian infantries. Hence, Ouyang Shuo decided to form a pure mountain barbarian infantry division in one go.

The three regiments from Er'Lai's division nicely entered Shi Wanshui's division.

With that, the three legions of the Shanhai City Army were totally split up, and they were not mixed together in battles.

The Dragon Legion would be housed in Mulan Stronghold, the Tiger Legion in Lingnan War Zone, and the Leopard Legion temporarily in Wuzhou Prefecture.

After this whole reorganization, there were still a total of fifty thousand mountain barbarian warriors left, which were formed into four independent divisions. As for their names, it would be confirmed after the battle.

Of course, one of the divisions were prepared for the iron armored beast division. However, as it was currently wartime, Ouyang Shuo kept the division by his side to face the threat of Taiping Country.

The major generals of the four divisions, apart from Shi Hu who became the major general of the 1st division, the remaining three would temporarily come from the generals of the Divine Martial Guards.

The commander of their forces would temporarily be Ouyang Shuo.

Ouyang Shuo did things this way because he had no other choice. After all, the mountain barbarians had just decided to switch sides. Apart from him, no one else could control them.

Furthermore, they were the best choices for heavy armored infantry soldiers. Ouyang Shuo naturally would not be so silly to break them apart and place them into various divisions.

The mountain barbarian heavy armored infantry divisions would form the most terrifying forces.

As for the two major generals of the heavy armored infantry division, Er'Lai was one of them. Needless to say, he had been leading them for a long time, so training and suppressing the new members would not be too difficult.

Zhang Han, this famous general might seem quiet, but he was a vicious person. If now, how could he manage to train a bunch of Lishan prisoners into such a strong army?

As such, Ouyang Shuo would not need to worry if he allowed Zhang Han to lead one division. If it was other generals, even Di Qing, Ouyang Shuo would have to worry.

After the reorganization, Ouyang Shuo had two legions, including the Guards Division and four mountain barbarian divisions for a total of two hundred thousand elite troops.

This time, Ouyang Shuo wanted to see how the Taiping Country showed their arrogance.

The next day, Shan Zhu and Liao Kai led their troops and left.

Han Xin led the Leopard Legion; they would stay at the command center for two days. First, to complete the organization of the troops. Second, to deal with post-war affairs.

Two days later, he would lead them south. Along with the Dragon Legion, they would pincer the Taiping Country south forces outside of Mulan Stronghold.

Ouyang Shuo, on the other hand, would lead the Divine Martial Guards, the Guards Division, and the four mountain barbarian divisions into Chiyou City to announce the birth of a new king.

The end of the Battle of Wuzhou did not mean that Wuzhou Prefecture had entered Shanhai City's rule.

At the very least, Ouyang Shuo had to obtain the recognition of the various tribes.

After all, those that had witness his coronation were only these mountain barbarian warriors.

The other tribesmen, especially those who lived in the city, did not see it.

Hence, he needed to show his existence at the fastest speed possible in case some other matters occur.

Ouyang Shuo brought the Divine Martial Guards and Guard Division along to prevent accidents. With such a key power in his hands, even if something bad happened, he would have the strength to face it.

Apart from that, ruling Wuzhou Prefecture would also be a problem.

In contrast to Leizhou and Zhaoqing, the people who ruled Wuzhou were all mountain barbarians. The Han people in the prefecture were all looked down upon. Between the two races, a deep conflict always ran.

After obtaining Wuzhou, the problem of balancing interests of both sides would be a huge problem.

If he took away the power of the mountain barbarians straight away, it would definitely come back to haunt him. But it he did not restore the position of the Han race, the economy of Wuzhou would not be able to rise.

Although Chiyou ran Wuzhou well, in terms of economy, it was a total mess.

The entire Wuzhou Prefecture was a burden.

Its economy was no different from a backward society.

Hence, to push it back on the right path was a long and arduous journey.

The key was to choose a suitable governor. This person must be firm to be able to suppress the mountain barbarians, and they must also have smarts and flexible knowledge to balance out the interests of both races.

Apart from that, the governor must be economic minded to revive the economy.

Last night, Ouyang Shuo had already sent a letter to Xiao He and Fan Zhongyan, appointing Fan Zhongyan as the governor.

At the current moment, only he could perform this job.

Xiao He would naturally cover the administration director position. As for the official evaluation, Xiao He would carry on with it, and it would not stop.

Before Fan Zhongyan led his officials over to take care of Wuzhou Prefecture, Ouyang Shuo needed to personally take charge of the situation.

Baiqi and Han Xin would settle the matter of Taiping Country, so there was not much of a problem.

Ouyang Shuo had to remind himself of his identity; his role was to settle his rule. Leading troops to war could be left to others to handle.

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Chapter 507- Secret of Chiyou City

Translator: ryangohsf

Editor: Nora

The red clouds hung overhead, and the cooling breeze blew down.

Ouyang Shuo led his troops and walked through the wilderness, feeling the different and more warm atmosphere of Wuzhou Prefecture.

When he went past the Devil's Slope, he could smell the slight scent of osmanthus flowers. In this serious wilderness, such a smell jolted one to their senses and helped them regain focus.

"Where is this place?"

"This slope is where Chiyou stopped his troops."

"Does the mountain have osmanthus flowers?"

"That's right. On the mountains, there is a whole patch of osmanthus trees. However, because the weather in the wilderness changed, all the osmanthus flowers that bloomed withered in a day."

When Ouyang Shuo heard these words, he looked at the peak in silence. Others could not see through his expression.

After a long while, he opened his mouth once more, "Since this is where Chiyou and his troops stayed, and there are also Osmanthus flowers, it can be considered a treasured land. Let's just bury Chiyou at this peak!"

Originally, Ouyang Shuo planned to bring Chiyou back to the city to bury. However, he had changed his mind.

"Yes, my Lord!"

The army stopped and conducted a simple burial for Chiyou.

The moment the burial ended, a system notification sounded out in his ear.

"System Notification: Congratulations player Qiyue Wuyi. Burying mountain barbarian leader Chiyou, displaying values and virtues, and touching the mountain barbarians. Loyalty of all mountain barbarians increased by 10."

When Ouyang Shuo heard this notification, he let out a long sigh.

Ouyang Shuo had learned a lot from what happened to Chiyou. In the wilderness, one's personal strength was limited. In order to achieve what one wanted, they needed good people by their side.

Do not just pay attention to Ouyang Shuo's strength increasing by the day. His heart remained as resolute as iron, and he would not let his achievements get to his head.

As the wind blew across, it brought away Ouyang Shuo's sigh and the fragrance of the osmanthus.

As the army left, the Devil's Slope fell quiet once more.

From this day on, every 10th month of the year, the osmanthus flowers on Devil's Slope would bloom exceptionally beautifully, as their fragrance spreaded far and wide, making this a popular scenic location.

Everyone knew that the devil of a generation was laid to rest here.

Gaia 2nd year, 10th month, 25th day, Chiyou City.

After four days of traveling, Ouyang Shuo arrived outside of Chiyou City. A day earlier, Shi Hu had already led the vanguard group and rushed here, announcing the results of the Battle of Wuzhou.

When they heard the news that their leader, Chiyou, had died in battle and the army had fallen, the mountain barbarians in the city fell totally silent at first. Then, an uproar broke out. Especially the news that Ouyang Shuo was crowned as Barbarian King; it caused a huge wave in the city.

All their shock and surprise was gathered into one sentence.

"Chiyou City was going to change!"

At that moment, there were actually people sowing chaos in the city, but Shi Hu suppressed them.

As the vanguard officer, Shi Hu's duty was to ensure that before the Lord arrived, Chiyou City would be under Shanhai City rule and there would not be a second voice.

If not, it would mean that he had failed to perform his duty.

Of course, some people were happy. At the very least, those Han people felt delighted. However, they could not display their feelings.

The mountain barbarian rule over the past year had left a large shadow in their hearts.

At the south gate, Shi Hu had gathered up the various tribe leaders, including some core people. They lined up orderly on both sides of the city gate to welcome Ouyang Shuo.

Based on the olden city concept, the south gate was the most important gate. The true south gate of the country was called the 'country gate'. The Big Ming Gate during the Ming Dynasty and the Big Qing Gate during the Qing Dynasty were true south gates.

Ouyang Shuo entering the city through the south gate was a very clear signal. After today, he would be the new owner of Chiyou City and Wuzhou Prefecture.

The various tribal leaders stood outside of the city, bearing the cold winds. Although their faces did not dare to show any complains, they were unhappy in their hearts. They had not truly recognized Ouyang Shuo, this new king.

However, they were helpless, as Shi Hu had led the vanguard force to coerce them into this; they had no other choice.

Chiyou had moved the army in Chiyou City. Only some scattered forces remained, and they were totally not a match of Shi Hu's forces.

In the hands of all the tribes, there were not any powers or troops that could compete with them.

Chiyou defended fully against all the tribes, and he drafted all their elites into the army. The various tribes were not allowed to keep soldiers.

Even then, they still held a sliver of hope in their hearts that this was a lie. Or rather, when the mountain barbarian army returned, the tribal leaders hoped to get their members back.

Unfortunately, when the huge army appeared outside the city, the numerous tribal leaders were stunned.

In the serious and disciplined military formation, Ouyang Shuo wore the Mingguang Armor with his red cape. He rode on the King Qingfu Horse and slowly approached under the protection of the Divine Martial Guards and the mountain barbarian soldiers.

Undeniably, the various mountain barbarian warriors had already recognized the rule of this Barbarian King.

With no troops in their hands, there was nothing they could do.

The faces of the various tribal leaders suddenly turned ashen white. In their hearts, they felt really bitter.

As he past the various tribal leaders, Ouyang Shuo did not even dismount; he just proceeded directly into the city.

The huge army waltzed into Chiyou City.

At this point, the Han race people in the city could finally confirm that Chiyou had really died. The new ruler of Chiyou City was a Lord. Most crucially, he was from the Han race.

Instantly, numerous Han people walked into the streets to view the celebrations of the army.

Occasionally, they would let our cheers and each cheer was louder than the next.

This was the first time Ouyang Shuo had received such an intense welcome. The Divine Martial Guards and the Guards Division held their chests up high like heroes returning victorious.

The mountain barbarians, on the other hand, looked toward this huge army with complicated expressions.

Some were confused, others in awe.

After he entered the city, Ouyang Shuo immediately ordered the four independent divisions led by Shi Hu to move into the barracks. No other random people or strangers were allowed in or out.

Including the mountain barbarian warriors, they were not allowed to contact their family.

Ouyang Shuo was not ready to give the various tribes a chance to contact their tribesmen.

The Guards Division would take over the defence of Chiyou City. The guards of the Lord's Manor would naturally be taken over by the Guards Division as well. With that, no one could stir up problems in the city.

Seeing Ouyang Shuo act so careful, those tribe leaders who were planning something looked worse and worse.

When everything settled down, Ouyang Shuo still had not asked to meet all of them. He was hellbent on leaving them out to dry. On the other hand, he asked people to move all the files of Wuzhou Prefecture into his reading room for him to browse.

The more he saw, the worse his expression grew.

On the way here, Ouyang Shuo had already predicted the horrendous situation that awaited him. The people struggling to survive, the rulers suppressing them, and the conflicts between mountain barbarians and Han people.

After looking at the file, Ouyang Shuo felt even more speechless.

The entire Wuzhou Prefecture was not a system. Rather, it was Chiyou's personal territory.

The various cities did not have officials.

It only had the royals of the various mountain barbarian tribes abusing their power.

The entire prefecture did not even have a decent industry.

Apart from agriculture, it was mining and equipment crafting, there was not a single merchant.

The population of Wuzhou Prefecture was the lowest out of all the prefectures, at around half of Lianzhou. A large number of the Han people had left their homes, as they would rather leave everything behind to try and escape this place.

Ouyang Shuo grew more and more frustrated. In the end, he just threw the book aside. This whole mess would be up to Fan Zhongyan to handle.

The only thing that made Ouyang Shuo happy was probably the Chiyou City Treasury.

Wuzhou Prefecture had its back facing the one hundred thousand mountain, and the mountain barbarians had found two large-sized gold mines in it. As there was not any commerce, the gold was not spent, so it was just gathered in the treasury.

Preliminary estimations had the total gold at no less than one hundred thousand.

At least that would settle the starting construction fees for the prefectures.

Ouyang Shuo had used the income of the territory for these few months to purchase iron ore and coal, so he did not have any extra funds to support the construction of Wuzhou.

Originally, Ouyang Shuo was getting ready to borrow more money.

In Chiyou's room, Ouyang Shuo discovered two books.

One was called the 'Jiuli Blood Domain True Manual,' which taught one how to train the mountain barbarian Blood Guards.

Ouyang Shuo took a closer look before closing it. The training methods described were simply too cruel and immoral.

Thinking about it, Ouyang Shuo decided to just burn the entire book in a fire. Such an evil technique should not be allowed to exist. He should destroy it in case it caused problems.

The other book was called the 'Jiuli Nine Crafting Method.' It described the crafting methods of the Jiuli tribe. The armors of the mountain barbarian army was crafted from this technique.

This was decent.

If he gave it to the Combat Logistics Department, the research of the Shanhai City weapons would have some progress.

Other than that, there was just some random stuff that was not worth mentioning.

Strictly speaking, Chiyou was not a Lord that abided his power. The place where he stayed was really humble.

Even maidservants were rarely seen.

The only flaw was that he was just too violent. Based on what the servants said, Chiyou still liked to eat raw meat. Huge pieces of beef, dripping with blood; he would directly eat it raw.

When Ouyang Shuo heard this, he felt speechless.

After taking a short walk in the manor, Ouyang Shuo got up and left. He decided to take a look at the courtyard where Chiyou trained the Blood Guards.

Although he had destroyed the manual, Ouyang Shuo did not want to leave without seeing this place.

Everyone had curiosity in them.

The entire courtyard had no one living near it in hundreds of meters. Even when Chiyou led his troops and left, no one dared to enter and take a look.

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Chapter 508- Ming Dynasty Cannon

Translator: ryangohsf

Editor: Nora

10th month, 25th day, Chiyou City.

Before Ouyang Shuo even walked into the courtyard where Chiyou trained the Blood Guards, a bloody scent gushed out from within.

"Open up the gates!"

The Royal Guards Captain Chen Dameng, stepped up and kicked the wooden gate into pieces after he heard this command. He smashed the door aside, not even bothering about the lock.

"So rough!"

Ouyang Shuo shook his head and walked into the courtyard.

What he saw inside caused his face to instantly turn ashen white.

Inside the courtyard, it was practically hell on earth.

He saw broken limbs scattered everywhere. Blood covered the courtyard walls, and there were many bloody handprints. Even the floor was dyed in blood.

Numerous flies and bugs were enjoying a 'feast' in the courtyard.

At the corner of the courtyard was a stone pool, five meters long and three meters wide. A thick blood scent permeated from the pool.

Upon closer inspection, it was actually a massive blood pool, an utterly bottomless pit with many white bones dispersed. Fresh blood filled the entire pool, and it would occasionally bubble.

Wasn't such a scene only possible in hell?

Ouyang Shuo remembered the contents he skimmed through in the manual. He knew that this pool was the key. Each day, the Blood Guards would soak themselves in the pool to absorbed the vigor and vitality from the blood.

The bones in the pool must belong to the Han Race people, who were captured to become the nutrients of this pool. Such a huge pool of blood, how many people were actually sacrificed?

Such a scene was grievously immoral.

Only the devil would do such a thing, treating human life like dirt and the Han people in his territory like dogs.

Even the faces of Chen Dameng and the others turned ashen white when they saw this scene, and they were about to vomit.

"Open this land to the public for a day. After that, destroy it." Ouyang Shuo did not have the heart to continue looking so he turned around.

"Yes, my Lord!"

Chen Dameng replied resolutely; anger filled his eyes.

As a person from the Han race, seeing his people face such treatment, he obviously did not feel good.

The moment the mystery of the courtyard was revealed, it immediately caused an uproar amongst the people.

Do not mention the Han people, even when the mountain barbarians saw this scene, they felt furious, as some of the broken limbs belonged to the mountain barbarian warriors.

Numerous loved ones, be it Han people or mountain barbarians, found the bodies of their family members in the courtyard. They cried out in agony.

The image of Chiyou tumbled.

The tribal leaders of the various tribes did not dare to act arrogantly anymore. They all ran to the Lord's Manor to meet the Lianzhou Lord and recognize his position as Barbarian King.

Ouyang Shuo did not care much about these actions.

He was planning to make these tribe leaders a little more eager.

After he returned to the manor, Ouyang Shuo still was not able to calm down.

The scene of the bloody pool replayed numerous times in his head; he could not wipe it away. The cruelness of the wilderness had appeared in front of him and knocked on his senses.

Originally, Ouyang Shuo thought that he was cruel enough, thought that he could face all kinds of cruel acts. Who knew that Chiyou's actions would once again cross his bottom line.

The cruelness of the wilderness far surpassed his expectations.

No wonder they said that blood and bones filled one's road to emperor.

Ouyang Shuo could not help but ask himself, Was he really prepared?

"Lord, there's urgent military matters!"

The military intelligence officer's arrival broke his train of thought.

When Ouyang Shuo heard these words, he took the letter the military intelligence officer had received from the relay. The letter was from Baiqi, and it reported the latest situation at the Mulan Stronghold.

Mulan Stronghold.

After half a month of preparation, they had transported numerous siege weapons and grain resources to the South Camp.

A batch of secret weapons arrived along with the items.

Apart from that, Hong Xiuquan sent an extra fifty thousand troops. He even sent the orders that they would stop at nothing to take down Mulan Stronghold.

The current Tianjing City had less than forty thousand troops stationed.

Everyone thought that Hong Xiuquan was crazy.

In reality, how could the Hong Xiuquan who was given a second life be a fool? In his hands, he held a secret manual that needed a harbor to fulfil his ambition.

Hence, even if he paid the greatest of prices, he needed to take down Mulan Stronghold and attack Lianzhou Prefecture. As such, he worked together with Chiyou.

Hong Xiuquan's determination would not be shaken.The south army of the Taiping Country was formed from the south and west troops, along with the fifty thousand from Tianjing, they now had a total of two hundred thousand troops.

The main general was Yang Xiuqing, with young general Li Xiucheng as the deputy general. Apart from them, there were two other generals, Li Fengxiang and Chen Yucheng, who were the generals of the left and right troops respectively.

Hong Xiuquan was determined to take down Mulan Stronghold and open up Taiping Country to the ocean.

A day before Ouyang Shuo arrived at Chiyou City, during the 10th month, 24th day, the south troops finally attacked Mulan Stronghold.

Defending the stronghold were the 3rd, 4th, and 5th divisions of the Dragon Legion. Apart from that would be the 1st division of the Tiger Legion led by Zhao Sihu.

As for the Lianzhou Prefecture Garrison Division, they were awaiting orders in Mulan City.

The first wave of Taiping Country had suffered unprecedented casualties.

As the top stronghold in Nanjiang, how much money and manpower was thrown into the Mulan Stronghold? There were a one hundred three bow arcuballistas and fifty trebuchets, which launched a huge welcoming blow to the south army.

Before they even got close to the foot of the city wall, rocks and arrows pelted them.

The three blow arcuballistas shot out sharp arrows. Not only were the weapons long ranged, it also shot in high quantities. It was basically a human meat grinder.

A total of one hundred three bow arcubalistas and 150 normal arcubalistas were placed on the walls, forming a huge defensive line.

The arrow rain was like a modern day machine gun, recklessly spending ammo.

In just a morning, they had used up fifty thousand arrows and bolts, a terrifying number. Only Shanhai City could manage such a huge consumption of bolts and arrows.

Apart from the arcubalistas, the trebuchets were also highly destructive.

Mulan Stronghold had prepared modified fireballs from the stones. The alchemical fire oil that Ouyang Shuo had crazily purchased a year ago appeared once more.

The soldiers covered numerous giant stone balls in oil. After ignition, they became giant fireballs that smashed into the Taiping Country army formation.

The closely packed formation was virtually heaven for the fireball.

The moment one smacked down, it caused a wide area of damage. The fire burned numerous soldiers, who let out cries of pain.

The number of fireballs were uncountable.

This time, the Taiping Country forces were thrown into total chaos, and they could not even form up.

Under both of these defence weapons, in just one day, the south troops lost fifteen thousand soldiers. Moreover, they had not even touched the wall of the stronghold.

This time, be it Yang Xiuqing or Li Xiucheng, both were stunned.

Such a fortress was not something anyone could take down.

Just as Baiqi thought that the Taiping Country Army would back off, they actually mercilessly assaulted the stronghold again on the second day. They seemed to be following the notion of 'Not stopping till they got what they wanted.'

In front of the firepower of Mulan Stronghold, they had no choice but to bring the secret weapon of Taiping Country out early. Along with the army, in the midst of their formation, five cannons appeared.

These cannons were Hong Xiuquan's secret weapons.

When Hong Xiuquan started the uprising, the Qing Dynasty was reaching its end. The use of cannons were really commo. Hence, when he appeared, he naturally obtained the Ming Dynasty Firearm Making Technical Manual.

Helplessly, the making of cannons, be it the requirements on raw materials or skill, were very high level. As a result, the failure rate was extremely high as well. Moreover, increasing the number of cannons would not increase the damage output once they gathered too many, so it was not suitable to equip a large-scale army with these weapons.

Hong Xiuquan wanted to attack Mulan Stronghold because he wanted to find a port to build warships. After equipping them with cannons, he could fulfil his ambition.

Five cannons formed an astounding strength.

Facing the copper and iron gates and walls of the stronghold, they blew hole after hole. If this continued, Mulan Stronghold would actually fall.

Regretfully, they only possessed five cannons, which also had a short range. As such, they needed to use troops to protect the cannons and pushed them near the wall under the fire of the arcuballistas and trebuchets.

All of a sudden, both sides suffered heavy damage.

The walls of Mulan Stronghold were damaged, while Taiping Country lost troops. A trebuchet had even destroyed one of their cannons.

A day had passed and Mulan Stronghold. Although the cannons had surprised them, they did not face true danger yet. That night, Baiqi immediately ordered the Lianzhou Prefecture Garrison Division to move in to help the defense.

The Taiping Country south troops similarly were not feeling good, as they had lost ten thousand more soldiers. If this carried on, the south army would collapse before they even passed the stronghold.

That night, Yang Xiuqing sent a letter to Hong Xiuquan, asking to retreat. He advised they changed the strategic position to Chuanbei Province on the north.

Regretfully, Hong Xiuquan rejected his suggestion.

This was also the first time the two of them had differing opinions. One must know that the position of Yang Xiuqing in Taiping Country was only second to that of Hong Xiuquan.

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Chapter 509- Foundation of Aristocratic Family

Translator: ryangohsf

Editor: Nora

Mulan Stronghold had suddenly turned into the hot spot of the southwest battlefield.

Since Hong Xiuquan insisted on fighting, Yang Xiuqing naturally needed to follow his orders to the end no matter the sacrifice. After all, at least in the current moment, Hong Xiuquan's prestige in Taiping Country was unassailable.

Just as Taiping Country's south army was attacking Mulan Stronghold, Han Xin led the Leopard Legion to rush his troops to assist Mulan Stronghold, as he had received instructions from the Military Affairs Department.

Since they had spent two days at the command center, even if they rushed, they could only reach Mulan Stronghold at the 28th at the earliest.

Hence, Baiqi's troops needed to defend for at least two days.

Apart from that, they had just occupied Wuzhou Prefecture, and it was not officially under Shanhai Territory's rule. As a result, the logistical supplies of the army came from Zhaoqing Prefecture.

One could say that Han Xin leading his troops to Mulan Stronghold was a risk in itself. However, Han Xin was a person who would grasp his chances; he knew that if this chance was lost, it would not come again.

Taiping Country attacking Mulan Stronghold meant that their attention was solely on the frontline. The moment the Leopard Legion attacked them from the back, they could lose immediately.

For victory, Han Xin was willing to take this risk.

As for the Liao Kai's 1st division of the Dragon Legion, they were still traveling through the one hundred thousand mountains. They most probably would not make it in time for this battle.

Furthermore, due to the current situation in Wuzhou Prefecture, Ouyang Shuo did not dare to send the Guards Division.

Using just one division to control the entire Wuzhou Prefecture was something that already caused Ouyang Shuo to feel fear. After he left the courtyard, he ordered Lin Yi to lead two regiments and one mountain barbarian division to sweep all the other powers in Wuzhou Prefecture.

The number of mountain barbarian tribes in Wuzhou numbered in the hundreds. Amongst which, sixty lived in Chiyou City, while the remaining became the powers in Wuzhou Prefecture.

The day that Ouyang Shuo reached Chiyou City, he had already instructed Wang Feng to lead a one hundred man squad to post notices to announce Shanhai City's rule.

Based on the letter that Wang Feng sent back, some places had even locked out the Divine Martial Guards.

Facing these ignorant mountain barbarians, Ouyang Shuo naturally had to show his hand. He also wanted to make use of the chance to clean out the stubborn powers in Wuzhou Prefecture. Such actions would help clean out the obstacles for Fan Zhongyan and his rule of Wuzhou Prefecture.

The Black Snake Guards, including the Military Intelligence Division, had never given up on infiltrating the various counties and cities in Wuzhou. Under the help of both intelligence organizations, Lin Yi's lightning operation would definitely succeed.In the letter from the Black Snake Guards, they reported that Tianjing City only had forty thousand troops stationed. Ouyang Shuo was actually tempted to just lead the Guards Division and the four mountain barbarian divisions to attack it and remove their main camp.

In truth, this idea was actually exceedingly tempting.

After thinking about it clearly, Ouyang Shuo decided to give up the idea for three reasons.

Firstly, Tianjing City was not easy to occupy.

After Hong Xiuquan received a second life, he would definitely run his city well. Based on what the Black Snake Guards sent, the city walls of Tianjing City, including the defences, were all top grade in the wilderness.

Based on grade, it was half a grade higher than a prefecture and laid between a prefecture and a capital city. If one gave him a little more time, he could truly achieve the scale of a capital city.

Hence, without siege weapons, taking it down was just a pipe dream. Not for other reasons, but because he was sure that there would be cannons mounted on the wall.

Cannons might not be good for sieges, but for defending purposes, they were a real killer weapon. Shooting down from the walls, if the enemy lacked protection, it would really kill anything in its path.

Its power and killing ability was even scarier than the three bow arcuballista.

With only the current independent mountain barbarian divisions, Ouyang Shuo did not have the confidence to take the city down.

Secondly, Xunzhou Prefecture was not some back garden.

Hong Xiuquan's rule had religious teachings as its core.

Hence, in Xunzhou, be it the officials or the people, they were all the believers of the Taiping religion.

Ouyang Shuo believe that the moment he entered their territory, no matter how careful he acted, his troops would be revealed to Hong Xiuquan, and they would have nowhere to hide.

Hence, a sneak attack was completely impossible.

Hong Xiuquan's rule was truly an iron bowl. All the people in Taiping Country were his believers, and they acted as his eyes and ears. Any movement, however slight, could not escape his attention.

In comparison, Chiyou's rule was merely cruel and inhumane.

Thirdly, Wuzhou Prefecture was not stable yet.

This instability did not just lie in the previously stated elements, as there was a more important point—he had to defend against the Wannan City-state up north.

After the Battle of Zhaoqing, any neighbor of Shanhai City had realized an important point—if they did not want Shanhai City to swallow them, just defending was not enough. They needed to maintain vigilance at every moment. Moreover, when the moment arrived, they should even attack, attacking as a form of defense.

If not, at any moment, they could be like frogs in warm water, getting killed off one by one.

Furthermore, the leader of Wannan City-State, Caiyun Zinan, was not a simple figure. Before this, he was so quiet. However, during the Battle of Julu, he had finally revealed his strength.

Moreover, the moment he showed himself, he had actually achieved 'it is fine if I stay silent, but I will shock the world if I act.'

For the Wannan City-State to be built up in such a short time, apart from the threat of Shanhai City, Caiyun Zinan's prestige in the alliance was another reason.

In comparison, both Xunlong Dianxue and Gong Chengshi were inferior.

Ouyang Shuo did not think that after the Wannan City-state was established, they would act like a well-behaved baby. At the crucial moment, Caiyun Zinan would still have the courage to cross swords with Shanhai City.

Hence, Ouyang Shuo did not dare to relax his control on Wuzhou Prefecture.

Based on the intel from the Black Snake Guards, Caiyun Zinan and Yuan Ping had been talking. Between the two, they had probably come to an agreement to form an alliance and attack Shanhai City at the same time.

As such, the situation at both the north and east sides of Shanhai City was a case of if one acts, both would. Further expanding the territory would be really difficult.

At such a time, why would Ouyang Shuo take the risk and attack Jingdou?

With his character, he preferred to stay safe than sorry.

As long as Han Xin's legion reached Mulan Stronghold in time and destroyed Taiping Country's south troops, with the two legions, they could easily destroy Xunzhou Prefecture.

Stability was the goal that Ouyang Shuo had set. As long as he was stable, Shanhai City would not fall. However, if he was rash and took unnecessary risks, the enemy might have a chance to come back.

The difference between Ouyang Shuo and Di Chen was that his foundation was not thick enough.

Be it Di Chen, Chun Shenjun, Zhan Lang, Xiong Ba, or even Sha Pojun, who was near to destruction, they could still stand back up and even improve no matter how many times they lost to Ouyang Shuo.

What did they depend on? They depended on the deep pockets and foundations of their aristocratic families.

But Ouyang Shuo was different. Although he used his advantages to help the territory increase their foundation, he had reached a crucial stage. If he suffered a massive setback, there was a chance that he could never crawl back up.

Why?

Because Ouyang Shuo's personal foundation was not strong enough. If he tried to play solo, he definitely was not the opponent of the aristocratic families.

However, he could make use of the advantages of a second life, and the specialty of the territory to acquire more historical talents. He would also develop the locals so that he could fight against the aristocratic families.

Hence, Ouyang Shuo could not commit a mistake. The moment he did, a bottomless pit awaited him.

The China region had a weird phenomenon, and it was one that Ouyang Shuo only noticed recently. That would be that compared to his last life, at the same stage, the territories of Di Chen and the others were stronger.

Why?

That was because Ouyang Shuo had forced them to grow quickly.

The role that Ouyang Shuo played in the China region was pretty much a 'sh*t stirrer'. However, he did plated his role too well, so he had totally woke up this bunch of kids from the aristocratic families.

This kind of situation was similar to the catfish effect.

Ouyang Shuo was the catfish in the pond.

When Ouyang Shuo realized this problem, he truly did not know whether he should laugh or cry.

10th month, 26th day, the third day of the battle.

The south troops of Taiping Country were ready to go all out. Close to two hundred thousand troops charged out.

The most eye catching aspect was none other than the remaining four cannons.

After learning their lesson from yesterday, Yang Xiuqing ordered the men to rush some protection for the cannons overnight to prevent them from being destroyed by the trebuchets.

The cannon was strong, but it was also incredibly expensive.

Apart from cannons, the south army also had a second killing move—hundreds of moving arrow turrets. To prevent the arcubalistas from suppressing these turrets, the south army needed to create some height.

This time, it was a battle of the archers of both sides.

Apart from that, the frontline of the south army contained only sword-shield soldiers.

Yang Xiuqing's goal was very simple, and he did not expect to break through within a day, nor did he expect to rush up the city walls and engage in hand to hand combat yet.

He wished to maintain the fire power of the cannons and try to destroy a portion of the wall. He wanted to create a chance for tomorrow.

Apart from that, he aimed to destroy the arcubalistas and trebuchets on the walls.

If he did not destroy them, the south army could not attack up the city wall.

Yang Xiuquan was born poor, and his family had survived on agriculture and burning coal. However, he was an extremely talented and smart person. Be it in terms of politics or military, he had performed exceptionally.

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Chapter 510- Blowing a Massive Hole

Translator: ryangohsf

Editor: Nora

In history, Yang Xiuqing had taken control of Taiping Country matters. If he did not grow overly ambitious and greedy, trying to replace Hong Xiuquan, his achievements would not have ended there.

As a result, the Hong Xiuquan in the wilderness was extremely wary of Yang Xiuqing. From the start, he had placed the latter in the military and totally did not want him to play a part in national matters.

Hong Xiuquan was decent In terms of building his religion, forming the organization, and using his powers. However, when talking about running a country, he was a true and true outsider.

Hence, the three prefectures of land under Taiping Country were not doing so well economically. Only Hong Xiuquan's personal prestige allowed them to maintain their rule.

The people under their rule were all living miserable lives.

Even though times change, one's personality did not.

Although Hong Xiuquan was not as extravagant as in the past, he still enjoyed life at suitable moments.

In this life, Hong Xiuquan was a person who held onto his power.Turning back to the battlefield, Yang Xiuqing led his troops to launch the third attack on Mulan Stronghold.

On the battlefield, smoke bellowed.

Hong Long!

The continuous blows of the cannon placed Mulan Stronghold under a strenuous test.

The south troops of Taiping Country did not fear death. The soldiers carried their iron shields, not afraid of dying, as they valiantly defended the four cannons, determined to blow a massive hole in Mulan Stronghold.

How powerful was the Ming Dynasty cannon?

The great bombardment eventually blew a huge hole in a corner of the east city wall.

"Aim at that hole and burst it open!"

The cannon commanding officer looked excited, as he saw the light of victory.

The four cannons shot to collective, one after another the 'thunderclap bullets' pummelled the city wall, enlarging the hole.

Due to the deficiencies of the Ming Dynasty cannon itself, it was quite terrible in terms of accuracy. Out of the four cannonballs could hit it, it would be considered really lucky.

During the Ming Dynasty, guns or cannons were both used on a large scale. However, why didn't they completely replace cold weapons like the west?

There were four main reasons.

Firstly, cannons needed to be able to fire 'blooming cannonballs'—cannonballs that would explode.

Why? Only an exploding cannonball could turn the cannon from a siege weapon into a ground war weapon and cause large scale damage. If they only shot iron cannonballs, the damage would be naturally limited.

Meanwhile, an exploding cannonball would release numerous fragments and cause a wide area of effect damage.

The cannon barrel of the 'Toxic Fire Feibo' created during the Ming Dynasty was crafted from wrought iron, and it used over 10 types of gunpowder. The cannonballs themselves were made of cast iron and contained sulphur poison. After being shot, it would fly three hundred meters and explode, injuring people.

Unfortunately, this technique did not mature during the Ming Dynasty, so it did not see large scale use.

Later, during the Qing Dynasty, not only did the technique fail to improve, it actually went backward. They started to use iron as its core and even stone to replace cannonballs.

Before the self-strengthening movement, the power of the Ming Dynasty cannons naturally only reached the power of toys.

During the 19th century seventies, Zuo Zongtang went out to sea and found the 'blooming cannonballs' at Shanxi Fengxiang. He was filled with emotion, "Such a lethal weapon was in China three hundred years ago, causing someone to pay attention to this. How did the island race people conquer the seas, while we were stuck being arrogant for more than tens of years?"

During the opium war, the conservativeness of the Qing Dynasty in terms of weapons had caused them to pay a hefty price. Before the self-strengthening movement, in two hundred years of the Qing Dynasty, their thermal weapons were even weaker than that of the Ming Dynasty. Compared to the progressiveness of the Ming Dynasty, one could see the flaws of the Qing Dynasty ruler.

Secondly, the cannon was not flexible.

The cannons were not flexible, so they were not suitable for gathering together. The Ming Dynasty cannons, be it the short barrelled mortar Folang Jichong or the Hongyi Cannon later, none of them were flexible.

Although the short barrelled mortar was not that big, it still needed to be nailed to the ground prior to firing. The Hongyi cannon was originally a ship cannon from the Portuguese, weighing hundreds of kilograms. As such, it was cumbersome and only suitable for defending.

On the contrary, the westerners had cannons that were light, and they could use horses to form cannon formations in a short time. The Ming army also had cannon carriages, but the power of the mounted cannon was too small.

Just like the five cannons Taiping Country had transported from Tianjing. They had already expended so much time and effort to get these weapons to Mulan Stronghold. If not, there would be ten or even more cannons on the current battlefield.

Thirdly, they needed a sufficient number of gunner troops.

Even if an arquebus had a greater advantage than bows, not to mention the flintlock gun that could fire four to five bullets per minute. During the battle of Japan, Oda Nobunaga's three section gunner hit was famous for an era.

Regretfully, the Ming Dynasty never had a meaningful gunner force.

Those big and small handguns were standardized. Some even needed people to use it, which was highly inconvenient.

Fourthly, cannons needed the ability to control fire.

Fire control meant gun regulation, such as gun length and gunpowder loading techniques. Without these controls, the hit rate would just be a massive joke.

An elite gunner had to estimate the distance from the enemy before taking a shot. Although one could estimate through the use of a telescope, the method of moment could allow for more accurate guesses of distance.

At the start of Chongzhen's rule, the Ming army had already started to mass produce the Hongyi cannons. However, unlike the westerners who used instruments to raise their accuracy, the Ming army lacked such tools, which always remained the weakness of the many gunners of the Ming army.

After Hong Xiuquan acquired the Ming Dynasty Firearm Making Technical Manual, he naturally lacked the ability to improve the cannons. To produce them was already highly difficult.

Hence, the four cannons of the south army were merely average in terms of accuracy.

The four of them successively aimed and shot for a morning, but only eight cannonballs struck the hole—the others all missed.

This scene caused Yang Xiuqing's face to turn totally black but there was nothing he could do about it.

During the entire morning, the south army lost another six thousand men. All things considered, they had already lost thirty thousand men with no progress.

Thinking about Hong Xiuquan's letter that asked him to go all out, Yang Xiuqing's expression grew worse and worse. He ordered the troops to hold on, and they would not retreat until they destroyed the wall.On the city walls of Mulan Stronghold, Baiqi's expression was unprecedentedly serious.

Although the enemy cannons had not succeeded, they still greatly shocked Baiqi.

As a general born during the Warring States Period, he was a complete stranger to firearms. Seeing the enemy push out such a monster that could blow through their thick walls, how could he not feel shocked?

Baiqi noted that the appearance of cannons would revolutionize the future battles.

As a god general, he would not be content with his current standards, and he would desire to continuously improve. After this war, it was time for him to increase his knowledge of firearms.

It seems like it was just a matter of time before the enemy destroyed the wall.

Baiqi immediately ordered the soldiers to move ten Knife Blockage Chariots near the area of the city wall that was under attack.

Knife Blockage Chariots were defence weapons used to block and jam up the city gate. There were twenty steel knives at the front, and the chariot could be pushed toward the hole. It could kill enemies, while blocking all their arrows and stones. This made it difficult for enemies to climb.

Hence, the Knife Blockage Chariots were the best weapon for when an enemy breached the city wall.

Mulan Stronghold had a complicated city gate design. Not only did they construct two consecutive Wengchengs, they also used huge stones to block up the main city gate, and one must use machinery to pull up the stones.

This machinery was modified after the Mohists moved in.

Hence, to the south army of Taiping Country, it would be easier for them to directly destroy the wall than to break through the gates.

Mulan Stronghold's only weakness was its lack of a city protection river.

Now that the enemy wanted to destroy the city wall, Baiqi could only move the Knife Blockage Chariots to increase the defence.

Apart from that, Baiqi also summoned Er'Lai, asking him to lead the two heavy armored mountain barbarian infantry regiments of the 3rd division to wait at the north city wall, which was currently under attack.

The moment the enemy broke through, a bloodbath would ensue.

To block the enemy's attack and defend the hole would be the key to this battle. At this moment, Baiqi naturally had to move the elite troops of the army to join in the defence.

In the entire army, there was no group more suitable.

With everything planned out, Baiqi heaved a sigh of relief, as he had already planned for the worst.At 2 PM, the biggest change in the battlefield finally happened.

Hong Long!

As one iron cannonball accurately struck the gaping hole, the enemy finally broke apart the wall at the east.

Instantly, the Taiping Country south troops let out deafening cheers; it was like they though they had already won.

Yang Xiuqing's expression also changed for the better. He knew that the current morale was good, and he did not need to continue the attack tomorrow. He immediately ordered the troops to launch their most vicious attacks through the huge hole in the wall.

They needed to win with this fight.

The ones at the front were the troops led by Li Xiucheng.

"Kill!"

The young General Li Xiucheng led the vanguard troops, which were the most elite infantry under him. They charged toward the hole; their eyes blood red. They did not care about death.

And the moment that the city wall was broken, the Shanhai City soldiers quickly cleared out the rocks and stuck two Knife Blockage Chariots into the hole.

The mountain barbarian heavy armored regiments led by Er'Lai waited behind the chariots. Luosha, who Er'Lai had mounted, roared; it was eager to just rush into battle.

The most difficult part of this siege and defence battle would occur at this relatively narrow hole.

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Chapter 511- Overbearing Fiend

Translator: ryangohsf

Editor: Nora

Yet another sunset.

The only difference was that the sunset today was exceptionally devilish; the orange red sun and the blood red clouds created a suppressive feeling, covering the skies.

Looking out, the heavens and the earth were utterly red.

Moving and tragic.

The autumn breeze blew across, bringing along a low, whirring sound.

The bloody battle at the bottom of the Mulan Stronghold city wall had ended. The thick-armored mountain barbarian warriors rested on the city walls, as they gasped for air.

Knife marks and blood stains covered their armor.

Not far from them, the hole in the city wall had bodies littered around it. Some were mountain barbarians, but most of them were Taiping Country soldiers. Their yellow army uniforms were really eye catching on the battlefield.

In the intense battle in the afternoon, both sides gave it their all around this hole; neither party wanted to back off. The small hole was like a zone that prohibited all life. Whoever dared to walk in would be like someone walking into an abyss. Only the strongest warriors could struggle out of this venture.

There were many times that the Taiping Country troops had rushed through the hole, fearlessly attacking the stronghold. However, they were forced back time after time by Er'Lai and his mountain barbarian warriors.

The control over this small area changed five to six times in just an afternoon.

Every inch of land was smothered in the fresh blood of numerous warriors.

Many scattered blood stains covered the wall; it looked extremely cold and chilling under the sunset glow.

This was the most brutal battle since the war between the two sides had started.

Relying on the stubbornness of the mountain barbarian warriors, Shanhai had managed to defend the base. Not only that, Er'Lai had also captured a big fish—the deputy general of the south troops, Li Xiucheng.

As one of the pillars of Taiping Country, he was born from a poor family. When he was young, he would search for food with his parents, leading a exceedingly arduous life.

After joining the Taiping Country Army, his intelligence and bravery in battle let him quickly climb the ranks from a normal soldier to a young general. After the Tianjing chaos, Chen Yucheng, Li Shixian, and Li Xiucheng helped calm the situation and obtained victory of Jiangbei camp, Sanhe Dajie, Jiangnan camp. Hong Xiuquan then titled Li Xiucheng as King Zhong.

After Tianjing fell, Li Xiucheng was captured and killed.

Although Li Xiucheng looked gentle, he was a resolute and steely person on the inside. From the day he was born poor, he had paid a lot of attention to the pain and lives of the people, putting his efforts into promoting the people rather than earning titles and fame.

Li Xiucheng's opponents, such as Zeng Guofan, said that he was crafty like a fox but also genuinely brave.

When he led the troops to attack the hole, he charged too far in front, and the soldiers were not able to guard him. As such, Er'Lai took the chance to injure and capture him.

His capture pushed the afternoon battle into a white-hot stage.

Seeing their general captured, Li Xiucheng's forces went crazy, and they fearlessly launched wave after wave of attacks. They did not even care about their lives.

Even the strong mountain barbarians could not handle such a fierce and ferocious force. If it was not for Er'Lai being an absolute monster and raising the morale, the Taiping Country soldiers would have managed to charge in.

Even so, the mountain barbarian soldiers suffered heavy casualties.

A total of five hundred elite mountain barbarians were out to rest under the city wall, while the dead Taiping Country soldiers numbered in the thousands.

During this clash, no less than four thousand soldiers died at the hole.

At the end of the battle, just the corpses alone plugged up the hole. The Taiping Country soldiers had no choice but to clean them out time after time before they could launch their attacks.

When the sunset appeared, Li Xiucheng's forces were utterly broken.

Even so, these bunch of men still wanted to charge forward. One could see how much Li Xiucheng meant to them, and he was definitely loved for them to act so crazy.

Finally, Yang Xiuqing personally gave the order to Li Xiucheng's remaining troops to leave the battlefield."Boys, get up. The commander-in-chief has spoken. You have all done well and should be rewarded!" A coarse shout suddenly broke the quiet and peaceful atmosphere.

Of course, the one who had spoken was the general who contributed the most, Er'Lai.

This overbearing fiend had never known fear or exhaustion. After an afternoon of intense battle, the strong mountain barbarian warriors all laid on the ground in exhaustion.

On the other hand, this main general treated it like nothing had happened. After the battle, he immediately ran to Baiqi to ask for rewards.

When he returned this time, a pure smile was plastered on his face.

As he had left in a hurry, he had not cleaned up the blood on his face. His smile moved his facial muscles, along with all the dried up blood.

When the soldiers saw that, they all felt a chill.

Of course, the mountain barbarians respected their general, Er'Lai, from the bottom of their hearts.

Mountain barbarians were a race that respected the strong.

And Er'Lai was synonymous with strength.

During the battle in the afternoon, no less than a hundred people died under his double halberd. Needless to say, his shocking one shot had even captured the enemy general.

Such achievements made all the mountain barbarian warriors look on in awe.

Er'Lai was strong, and he even had a hint of selfishness and arrogance, but he would not look down on these warriors. As a result, the mountain barbarians treated him as one of their own.

Some of them even joked that mountain barbarian blood definitely coursed through his body.

If not, how could his personality and actions be so similar to them?

Even toward their Commander-in-Chief Baiqi, the mountain barbarians did not show as much respect.

However, this time, they were really too tired.

They were so tired that their brains had stopped working, and they just wanted to lie on the walls and have a good sleep.

When Er'Lai saw their reactions, he felt unhappy and shouted in his deafening voice, "Hey, my boys, I've praised you all in front of the commander-in-chief. Why, after just one afternoon, you all don't have the strength to reply?"

The soldiers could only roll their eyes toward their general's mocking.

Seeing the way their general was still moving and shouting with so much energy, there was nothing the soldiers could say.

"Haha!"

Observing the scene, Er'Lai was delighted and laughed boisterously.

The current Er'lai was like a great devil, as he could still laugh so happily on the battlefield.

As he laughed, he remembered the important matter and announced, "The commander-in-chief has orders, the 1st and 2nd regiment are all given grade 6 rewards. All soldiers will upgrade 1 rank. At the same time, the commander-in-chief even said to increase your meals tonight and give you barbecued meat!"

This time, the mountain barbarian warriors regained their energies, and their eyes simultaneously lit up.

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Chapter 512- The Craziness of Religion

Translator: ryangohsf

Editor: Nora

Ever since the Shanhai Military pushed out the military rank system, the ranks to the soldiers were like their lives and honor.

The soldiers did not expect Commander-in-Chief Baiqi to act so generous; he actually promoted all of them by one grade; this was such a great reward.

When Er'lai saw their reaction, his mood was also extremely good. He laughed, "My boys, let's go and eat some meat. If we head there too late, the good meat would be gone!" As he spoke, he walked toward the camp.

Hua la!"

The mountain barbarian warriors, who were lying lifelessly on the city wall, suddenly felt a surge of energy; they ran faster than even rabbits toward the camp.

"Haha!"

Er'Lai let out a devil-like laugh at this sight.

Compared to the festivities in Mulan Stronghold, the south camp of the Taiping Country was bitter and sad.

The pain and successive failures they experienced while attacking, along with the enemy capturing deputy general Li Xiucheng, had caused their strong and resolute mental strengths to wane.

After backing down from the battlefield, Li Xiucheng's remaining forces went to the commander tent and shouted, demanding that General Yang Xiuqing send troops out tomorrow to save Li Xiucheng.

The insolence of these soldiers utterly infuriated Yang Xiuqing.

The soldiers that led this movement were captured and given twenty strokes of the whip.

Observing their general's fury, the Taiping Country soldiers felt emotionally cold. The entire camp remained silent, and no one dared to make a sound. When the soldiers ate their meals, they also did not dare to speak out loud.

Yang Xiucheng locked himself in his tent and did not meet anyone; he did not even eat dinner. Only at 9 PM did he suddenly inform all the generals to gather for a meeting.

A short while later, the generals gathered in the commander tent, their hearts pounding out of their chests.

The ones to lead were naturally Lin Fengxiang and Chen Yucheng.

Lin Fengxiang, who led the left troops, was a famous general of their north advancing army. He was also born as a farmer. He joined the Taiping Army as a member of the Palace Guards and climbed the ranks to Jinghu Lord.

Back then, the north advancing army of the Taiping Country fell into a terrible situation because they went too deep in without enough grain. Moreover, it was winter. Year 1854, they backed off to Fu City, where Ji Wenyuan died, and they retreated again to Dongguang Lian Town.

Year 1855, 2nd month, the Qing army attacked Lian Town. Commander Lin Fengyang fought and dealt heavy damage to the enemy. In the 3rd month, Lian City was lost and Lin Fengxiang was captured. Later, he killed himself in Beijing. At that point, he was thirty-one years old.

After which, Hong Xiuquan granted him the title of Qiu King.

Although Lin Fengxiang was not of noble birth, he was calm in battle, and he could lead the troops into battle and command them effectively. Hence, he was an important general in the ranks of Taiping Country.

The general of the right troops, Chen Yucheng, was a young general that was as famous as Li Xiucheng. Similar to other generals of the Taiping Army, Chen Yucheng was also a Hakka person. He was given the title of Ying King after his valiant fights and battles.

Chen Yucheng had moles below both of his eyes, so his foresight was as strong as those with four eyes.

Year 1862, Taiping Country traitor Miao Peilin tricked him and sent him into the Qing camp. In front of the enemy, he was righteous and did not give in, choosing to kill himself. At that point, he was only twenty-six years old.

Chen Yucheng was also one of the few amongst the Taiping Army proficient in martial arts skills. Since a young age, he had trained his spear art. As a result, he was given the title of 'Thirty Brilliant Back Spear Thrust.'

The two of them, one left and right, while the other generals sat based on their positions and rank.

Yang Xiuqing, sat at the front, completely expressionless. He looked around and said, "The failure today isn't enough to decide the outcome. We still hold the advantage and the initiative of the battle."

After these words, Yang Xiuqing paused, like he needed to boost his own confidence before spoke the next words out loud, "As such, we mustn't feel demoralised, and we can't have any other thoughts that we shouldn't have. I'll start this off with something that sounds bad, but no matter what the price, we must take it down."

"We pledge our loyalty to the king till death!"

The soldiers replied in unison, filled with passion and eagerness.

One had to say that Hong Xiuquan's brainwashing was simply too amazing.

On this matter, Ouyang Shuo was far off him.

Amongst the Taiping Country, be it generals or soldiers, they were all passionate believers of the world that Hong Xiuquan described.

The strength of belief was exceedingly terrifying.

Although the Taiping Army had suffered successive defeats in three years, this strength allowed the army's morale to remain unaffected, and they were still raring to go.

"Great!" Yang Xiuqing suddenly got up and said, "Since that's the case, tomorrow, we will go all out. If one hole can't break it open, we will break two, three holes. Even if the Mulan Stronghold is made of copper and iron, it can't block our determination."

"Fight till the end!"

When the generals heard these words, they felt grew crazier and more passionate. Even Lin Fengxiang and Chen Yucheng felt their blood boil.

Of course, at this time, the generals obviously did not mention the captured Li Xiucheng. After all, to the generals of Taiping Country, the moment they were captured, killing themselves was the best choice.

No one expected him to survive.

The king had mentioned that if the soldiers of the army died loyally, they would receive immortal life in their heavenly country.

For this reason, the actions of the remaining Li Xiucheng troops infuriated Yang Xiuqing. These soldiers had touched a huge scar and wound of the army.

"Go and prepare!"

Yang Xiuqing did not gather the generals to think of a strategy. He only wanted to raise their morale. As for tactics, apart from forcing the attack, there was no other way.

After sending them back, Yang Xiuqing led out a long sigh.

Yang Xiuqing was clearer of the situation than anyone else.

If this carried on, even if they managed to take down the stronghold, they would still lose half their troops. After taking it down, a huge army definitely awaited them behind the mountains.

For a port, to sacrifice so much, was it worth it?

Hong Xiuquan's decision left Yang Xiuqing feeling highly doubtful. He admitted that building warships could show the strength of the cannons.

But, weren't they rushing it?

The advance of the west troops were not as smooth as they had imagined. After obtaining a few victories at the start, they now faced the stubborn defence of the enemy.

The west troops were in a stalemate.

At this point, to sacrifice the south troops for no reason was not worth it. Be it reinforcing the west troops or attacking the north, both were great choices.

Yang Xiuqing could not understand why the king would not bend.

In truth, when he first appeared in the wilderness, he could sense the doubt and wariness of the king.

This kind of doubt made no sense to Yang Xiuqing.

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Chapter 513- Tough Nut to Crack

Translator: ryangohsf

Editor: Nora

As the sunset faded away, only scattered stars remained in the sky.

Even the constant red clouds, under the cover of the night sky, temporarily left the field.

The Mulan Stronghold, which was enshrouded in darkness, was like a sleeping beast. It laid in wait at the mouth of the valley, deep and silent. This was the only time that this giant human meat grinder would emit a thread of warmth.

Torch after torch lit up on the city walls, forming a fire dragon along the city wall.

The soldiers in charge of the night patrol wore iron armor, and they carried long spears. They braved the night wind. Squadron after squadron walked on the city walls. The night was long, so the soldiers gathered together to discuss their life stories and gossips.

The huge battle that ended during the day naturally became one of the hot topics of their conversation. They had never seen cannons before. Then, there was the courage of General Er'Lai, and the strength of the mountain barbarian soldiers; every one of these topics were enough to pique their interest.

"That iron pimple was so amazing. Moreover, that huge cannonball could actually blow through the city wall. I was guarding on top of the city wall and was nearly scared to death."

"Er'Gouzi, you are really useless!"

"Haha!"

The soldiers around all burst out into laughter.

The night was long and arduous, having something to tease made it much easier.

That face of the young soldier nicknamed Er'Gouzi instantly turned red. He was so angry that his back instantly straightened, and he retorted, "San'Pizi, don't show off in front of me. Why not you go and try? The blow was enough to make a person deaf, and my ear is still whirring now."

"I'll try; who's afraid of who!" San'Pizi was not old, but he was an unreasonable fellow. Filled with courage, he smacked his chest, "Tomorrow, I'll request to be moved to defend there."

"Great!"

The soldiers around him cheered out.

When San'Pizi heard their response, he felt more and more delighted; it was like he had won a battle.

"Have you all heard?"

Just at this time, a soldier came over and tried to attract the attention of everyone.

"What?"

"The mountain barbarian warriors that defended the hole in the day were promoted a rank by the commander in chief. At night, they also had good meat. Those fellows are having it good."

"Haiz, their lives are real good. When will such a good thing happen to us?" The young soldiers had never known fear; they only wanted military rewards.

"You guys ah!" An older soldier stepped out, "They exchanged for the rewards with their lives. The battle in the day was so brutal you know? Five hundred or so of those big mountain barbarians died in battle, even though they were wearing precious iron armor like the Buren Armor."

"If you were the ones that went up, the moment you got up, you all would probably be killed!"

"Hey, old man, don't look down on us."

This time, the young soldiers were unhappy. They were like wild dogs, as they barked out. Those who did not know what was happening would think that they had rushed into the enemy camp under the cover of the night.

"That's right. The mountain barbarian soldiers are amazing, but we aren't scrubs either."

The soldiers all chimed in, wanting to display their bravery.

As they would say, there was no first in culture, but there was no second in martial arts.

In the military, the various divisions and various soldier types competed with one another. These soldiers were also part of the Dragon Legion. As part of such a strong legion, their tempers and confidence levels would naturally be much greater.

Apart from the Divine Martial Guards, there probably was not another group that could make them admit defeat willingly.

When the older man saw this, he shook his head speechlessly, as his eyes flashed with a reminiscent look. Thinking back to the old days, he was also a hot blooded man that followed the Lord into such life and death situations.

Being young was truly great!

A sound that one did not know if it was a sigh or a thought about the past lingered in the cold night sky.

At the story's location, the giant hole, loud ping, ping, pang, pang! noises rang out, even in the dead of night. Under the instructions of the commander in chief, the construction squadrons of the various divisions started to repair the walls. They were trying to block up this gaping hole in a night.

Looking over the city wall, it was line after line of tents.

Mulan Stronghold was a military fortress, so its architecture naturally emanated a thick military style. The tents were all neatly placed, and they looked really appealing to the eye.

As the stronghold was built near the mountains, they had sufficient stone. Furthermore, due to the battle requirements, the stronghold was mainly built from stone and green bricks.

On the other hand, wood was rare in the stronghold.

The architectural style of the entire fortress had a clear military style—hardy, simple, and practical. Even the commerce region and the commoner region in the stronghold were not an exception.

The most eye catching structure in the stronghold was naturally the base of the Dragon Legion.

The army was not housed in a normal area. Instead, they stayed in a five-storey-high stone tower. If one stood at the top of the tower and looked out, they could view the entire north wilderness.

The office of Baiqi was built on this level.

Naturally, this also became the command center of the entire army.

The night sky was pitched black. However, Baiqi's room light continued to burn bright. The men under him were clear that their commander was a work maniac.

It was the dead of the night, and the entire stronghold was totally quiet.

Just at this moment, the sound of footsteps sounded out in the walkway, breaking the peace and quiet of the night. Shortly after, an officer of the Military Intelligence Division walked into Baiqi's room and bowed.

"General!"

"How was it? Did he tell us anything?"

Baiqi had buried his head on his table, writing the battle report for the day. He was ready to pass it to the Lord who was thousands of miles away. Seeing the military intelligence officer enter, Baiqi placed down his brush and asked this question, as he raised his head.

"No, he's really stubborn, and no matter how much we torture him, he won't say a word." The stubborn fellow mentioned was naturally Li Xiucheng, who they had captured during the day.

"What a tough nut of crack!"

"I've failed you. Please punish me, my general!"

Baiqi did not say much, but it was enough to scare the military intelligence officer. Naturally, he thought that Baiqi was unhappy with their results.

If he was unhappy, he was naturally unhappy about the Military Intelligence Division and the officer. Thinking up to this point, cold sweat formed on the young officer's forehead.

The entire Dragon Legion had seventy thousand soldiers, and all of them feared Baiqi. Even Er'Lai and Shi Wanshui, these kinds of famous generals, felt uncomfortable in his presence, and they did not dare to act out of hand.

It was not because Baiqi was fierce but because he was vicious.

During the Battle of Zhaoqing, his viciousness not only scared the enemy but his allies as well.

"No one said to punish you."

Baiqi waved his hand, "Since that's the case, just lock up the guy."

"Yes, my general!"

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Chapter 514- Switching Sides

Translator: ryangohsf

Editor: Nora

"Remember, do not let him kill himself; I want him alive."

At the end, Baiqi was still not fully at ease, so he reminded the military intelligence officer.

Baiqi had a rough impression of Li Xiucheng. When he discussed matters with the Lord, the Lord had given him a short evaluation of all the generals.

Amongst the Taiping Country generals, there were three that the Lord paid the most attention to. They were Shi Dakai, Li Xiucheng, and Chen Yucheng. Hence, Baiqi naturally needed to keep Li Xiucheng alive.

As for how the Lord would manage to convince him, it was not within Baiqi's consideration range.

"Do not worry, my general!"

As the intelligence officer spoke these words, he turned around and left. Li Xiucheng had continuously tried to kill himself since the captured, and he declined food in protest. However, if the young officer could not even handle such simple matters, he was unsuitable for his occupation.

The Military Intelligence Division was not useless.

After the short interruption, Baiqi continued to write the battle report. He also wrote of the situation regarding Li Xiucheng at the end.

That evening, the report was passed through the relay to Chiyou City.

Wuzhou Prefecture Chiyou City, Lord's Manor.

Similar to Baiqi, Ouyang Shuo was still awake. The Battle of Mulan Stronghold concerned the entire situation. Without receiving the latest battle report, Ouyang Shuo could not rest at ease.

Just half an hour after Baiqi sent the battle report, Ouyang Shuo received it.

The appearance of cannons astonished Ouyang Shuo. He did not expect Taiping Country to actually possess such a bug weapon; he was really feeling a cold sweat for Mulan Stronghold.

Of course, this was a dangerous situation but also a great chance.

Just the thought of Hong Xiuquan holding the relevant technical manual made Ouyang Shuo's his blood boil.

Cannons were something that Ouyang Shuo had yearned for for a long time.

Of course, he did not think that with cannons alone he could step into the thermal weapons era.

Such thinking was not practical.

Ouyang Shuo just wished to equip the warships with cannons. With that, the navy could use cannons instead of just bows.

A navy squadron with and without cannons were two utterly different concepts. One could even say that cannons were an indicator of whether the squadron was a local squadron or a squadron that could survive in the seas and oceans.

Without cannons, the squadron could basically only travel through inner rivers. Ouyang Shuo ambitions for the oceans meant that he could not accept that.

The appearance of cannons presented a divine opportunity.

Apart from that, cannons could also be placed on the city walls to increase the defence. Think about that, with both the three bowed arcubalistas and the cannons, the territory defence would be a huge nightmare for the enemies.

Most importantly, the existence of No.7 Institute meant that Shanhai City had the ability to modify and improve the Ming Dynasty Cannons.

With that, they could close the technological gap with the western countries.

All of the above were enough to make Ouyang Shuo feel pumped up.

Thinking about these points, Ouyang Shuo immediately wrote a letter to Black Snake to ask him to use the spies hidden in Xunzhou Prefecture. Especially those in Tianjing City; they needed to investigate those cannons.

Most importantly, he needed to confirm whether the cannons that appeared in Mulan Stronghold were rare or mass produced; this would confirm whether the technical manual existed.

Compared to Wuzhou Prefecture, the Black Snake Guards and the Military Intelligence Division were highly successful in their infiltration of Taiping Country. After all, when Hong Xiuquan had entered the wilderness, the two intel organizations had fixed their eyes on him.

Furthermore, they had recruited people on a large scale, so it was naturally easy for them to infiltrate.

Till date, the spies of the two organizations had spread across the three prefectures of Taiping Country. One could even say that beside the important people of Taiping Country, spies of the Black Snake Guards had infiltrated every other group.

Ouyang Shuo believed that Black Snake would definitely give him a satisfying answer.Li Xiucheng's capture surprised Ouyang Shuo. Of course, his stubbornness was also expected. These Taiping Country generals were all famous for being as stubborn as rocks.

Before dealing with Hong Xiuquan, Ouyang Shuo did not have any high hopes of persuading any of the generals.

Even when they took over Taiping Country in the future, Ouyang Shuo would not instantly make use of these fallen generals. To the current Ouyang Shuo, loyalty was the most important aspect.However, towards Yang Xiuqing and the like, Ouyang Shuo was planning something.

After Li Xiucheng's capture, as the main general of the south troops, Yang Xiuqing would definitely be chided by Hong Xiuquan. These two opponents in the last life would grow further and further apart.

Thinking about this point, Ouyang Shuo immediately wrote a letter to Baiqi

In it, he wrote, 'Yang Xiuqing can be used, but one must treat him carefully. If the Taiping Army fails, general can release him to go against Hong Xiuquan.'

Although Yang Xiuqing was an ambitious person, that was during the chaotic times of the uprising army.

If he was given some chances in a peaceful time, he could have become a famous official. His experiences were somewhat similar to Cao Cao.

However, since he was born in a poor environment and lacked the chance to study, he fell upon his current situation.

Ouyang Shuo wanted to let Yang Xiuqung go against Hong Xiuquan so that he could gain influence in Tianjing Country. His core goal was still to obtain the technical manual.

When he replied to the letter, it was already the dead of night.

Ouyang Shuo stood up and walked to the window, only to see that it was pitch black outside. In the sky, a huge red star shone with a devilish crimson glow; it was the most eye catching object in the sky.

"Devilish star representing something bad is going to happen?"

When Ouyang Shuo saw this star, he muttered to himself.

10th month, 27th day, the 4th day of the Battle of Mulan Stronghold.

Seeing the hole that they had spent so much effort to blow open being fixed in a night, Yang Xiuqing nearly vomited blood in fury.

Trying to blow open the city wall was not practical anymore. Thinking back to the bloody battle yesterday, Yang Xiuqing felt fearful. He was not a stubborn person, so he immediately changed his strategy.

Yang Xiuqing ordered his troops to change the targets of the four cannons to the three bowed arcubalistas mounted on the city wall. They would destroy the strongest weapon of the enemy.

The various troops, with the help of weapons such as siege chariots, arrow turrets, siege turret, and scaling ladders, launched wave after wave of attacks on the Mulan Stronghold city wall.

Of course, all these actions were a waste of energy.

Under the leadership of Baiqi, the defence of Mulan Stronghold stood as stable as Mount Tai. The vicious attacks of Taiping Country seemed scary, but it posed a far smaller threat than yesterday.

When Yang Xiuqing saw these results, his face blackened.

Facing such a situation, he had no more plans, so he could only throw all his troops in. The moment he thought about the strict letter that he receive, Yang Xiuqing felt more and more depressed.

The huge battle lasted all the way from morning to afternoon.

The evening sun slowly set and the sunset hung overhead.

Just as the soldiers on both sides thought that the Taiping Country would retreat and end the battle for they day, a shocking change occurred further up on the battlefield.

Behind the Taiping Country, the rumbling noises of horse hooves thundered.

Looking out, one could see a huge army charging straight toward the back of the Taiping Country south army. All of a sudden, their killing intent boiled, and the dust on the ground was sent flying.

When the generals of Taiping Country saw this army, they felt flustered, and their faces turned ashen white.

Consecutive days of battles had made the Taiping Country Army grow complacent about protecting their backlines. Especially the battle today, where they sent all their troops up to the fight.

Facing the enemy forces, there was nothing they could do. They could only look on and watch the enemy start a slaughter in their backlines.

All of a sudden, Yang Xiuqing's mood sank into an abyss.

"It's over! Everything is over!"

A feeling of despair festered in his heart.

An uncontrollable panic ensued. Thinking about the eyes and reactions of the king, Yang Xiuqing's heart was like sealed by ice, never to feel a thread of warmth.

And this despair quickly spread throughout the army.

Everyone knew that the Taiping army was dead.

The troops that rushed here were naturally the Leopard Legion led by Han Xin. Under his leadership, the Leopard Legion had reached the stronghold a full night earlier.

Just an hour ago, the Leopard Legion was ten kilometres away, and it was already 5 PM.

After numerous days of rushing, the troops were exhausted.

Looking at the sky, Zhang Han suggested for the army to take a break and attack the next day.

"No!" Han Xin resolutely declined, his reaction firm, "Our troops are tired, but the enemy has fought for a day and are even more tired. This is the best chance. If we miss it, the enemy would be well rested tomorrow. To destroy them, we would need to put in two, even three times more men and effort."

In his eyes, excitement flickered, "Order the troops to grit their teeth. When we succeed later, I'll personally ask the Lord for rewards."

"Yes, my general!"

When Zhang Han and the other generals heard his words, they felt impressed.

Following which, the entire army struck out before the enemy noticed, and their cavalry acted as the vanguard. The huge infantry force covered them from behind, collecting their battle rewards.

Under the steely mentality of Han Xin, the Leopard Legion displayed astonishing killing strength. The already tired army did not seem exhausted at all, as they were sent forth. They all looked like tigers.

Of course, their high morale and movement speed were partly thanks to Han Xin's specialty.

He increased morale by 40%, movement speed by 30%, defence by 20%, and killing strength by 25%.

Along with the buffs of Zhang Zhan and Di Qing, it was basically adding wings to a tiger.

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Chapter 515- End of the Road

Translator: ryangohsf

Editor: Nora

If Han Xin was an assassin, Baiqi would be a great swordsman.

When Baiqi saw the Leopard Legion launch a sneak attack on the Taiping Country Army troops and throw the enemy into total chaos, he did not sit still and do nothing. He immediately ordered the 3rd, 4th, and 5th divisions of the Dragon Legion to leave the city and join the fight.

With that, the Taiping Army faced a pincer move.

Yang Xiuqing, Lin Fengxiang, and Chen Yucheng wanted to form up the defences of the army. Unfortunately, things had happened too quickly. Although the Taiping Country army had been through a lot of training and were not beginners, they still had not reached the level where they would not make mistakes.

In the face of such strong power, they could do nothing at all.

The timing that Han Xin had chosen was simply too lethal. He attacked when they were the most tired and also when they felt the most at ease. The soldiers were already thinking about backing off and having their meal.

Who would have known that they would suddenly face a life or death test? Fate was always so cruel, dealing you a lethal blow when you least expected it.

The large scale collapse of the Taiping Country Army occurred right before their eyes.

The sunset grew brighter and brighter; it had already spread past half the sky.

The merciless slaughter did not slow down despite the arrival of darkness. Each man on the battlefield faced a life or death test.

The tens of thousands of Taiping Country Army soldiers were performing their final struggles. Their deafening shouts reverberated through the wilderness, and their voices echoed off the city walls.

On the battlefield, soldiers would fall at every moment, collapsing into the bloody ground under the sunset.

The orange red sunset dyed this current moment in a beautiful light.

This was the color of life.

The last moment before the soldiers fell, their eyes would reflect this special sunset.

Beautiful, while holding a little warmth.

The red sun that hung in the sky finally had enough and hid below the horizon. The night sky finally arrived and a few rare stars appeared.

The killing shouts in the wilderness finally neared their end.

The shouts grew weaker and weaker. In the wilderness, a blood ocean flowed.

The war horses neighed and smoke spread.

The one hundred thousand odd Taiping Country south army soldiers were finally broken in one swoop.

Most of the soldiers either fought or tried to run.

Seeing that they had no chance of victory, some even chose to surrender. Many of the soldiers were commoners that Hong Xiuquan had brainwashed and tempted. They joined the military to live.

Hence, they cared about their lives more than anything else.

Line after line of soldiers and wave after wave of men surrendered.

They placed down their weapons and stood solitary on the blood red battlefield, filled with helplessness and fear.

Even the sounds of weapons falling to the ground appeared incredibly ear piercing.

These were the sounds of a lost country.

At its brightest moment, Taiping Country suffered this lost. Consequently, they would fall to the bottom of the valley. After this battle, less than ten percent of their two hundred thousand soldiers remained.

At this moment, Yang Xiuqing and the other generals gave up their final struggle. They led their elite troops to a final attempt of breaking out.

Unfortunately, be it Baiqi or Han Xin, they would not let that happen. The most elite forces of both legions were sent out to surround the escaping troops. When they saw such menacing enemy troops and their main generals escaping, many of the Taiping Country Army soldiers finally surrendered in despair.

Under the night sky, they would definitely fail to outrun them.

Which was why they would rather choose to live.

After all, everyone cared about their own lives.

This hunting operation finally ended in the dead of night.

Facing the chase, the three generals of Taiping Country all had different fates.

Lin Fengxiang led his troops to try and break out from the southwest, but Shao Bu's division cornered them. Their forces had suffered heavy casualties. In the end, Lin Fengxiang died in battle, and the soldiers could only surrender.

Chen Yucheng's forces tried to escape from the northwest, but Sun Chuan Lin's chased them. The god archer shot and captured Chen Yucheng.

Seeing their general captured, the soldiers could only helplessly surrender.

The only one that escaped was Yang Xiuqing.

The one in charge of chasing him was Mu Guiying. Under Baiqi's instructions, she allowed Yang Xiuqing to luckily escape. To cover for him, his forces had suffered heavy casualties.

In the end, only three thousand people escaped along with him.

At the end of the battle, this life or death battle, apart from the three thousand that escaped with Yang Xiuqing and a few lucky ones that escaped into the forest, the rest either died or surrendered.

The Taiping Country south army had disappeared into dust.

Along with this collapse, an important pillar of the Taiping Country fell. How far could Taiping Country go with one leg broken?

Everything was still unknown.

The most crucial battle in the southwest region had come to an end.

In the night sky, Yang Xiuqing led the remaining three thousand men and escaped. They had run over twenty kilometres, and they only stopped to rest after they could not see any chasing troops.

The soldiers took out their drinks and dry rations in silence, and they started to start a fire to cook. Others either gathered some sticks and twigs for the fire or went to collect water with their water canteens and bottles.

Some dragged their exhausted bodies to act as sentries.

The entire group was terrifyingly silent.

Under the mighty glow, they all felt numb and terrified. The face of their main general, Yang Xiuqing, was so tight that it looked like it could tear at any moment.

After simply eating some things, all of them went to sleep, as it was late in the night.

They would set off once more the next morning.

After personally checking on the sentries, Yang Xiuqing dragged his exhausted body and walked into his temporary tent. Unfortunately, everything that happened in the day replayed in his mind, and he could not fall asleep.

"Hu!" Yang Xiuqing got up.

Outside the tent, it was still pitch dark; the only glow came from some stars.

Yang Xiuqing wore his coat and walked out of the tent. He raised his head and looked at the sky, deep in thought. The night sky seemed to give him an eureka moment, as his thoughts grew clearer and clearer.

A night breeze blew across, bringing along a slight chilliness. As a result, he unknowingly pulled the cape around his body.

At this moment, Yang Xiuqing was really thinking about too much.

About the king, Hong Xiuquan; about the fate of the entire Taiping Country.

This defeat made one thing clear to him. Although Taiping Country seemed strong, it was like a sandcastle. Just one wave would break it apart.

Thinking about this point, Yang Xiuqing felt more pained. It was him who sent them on this path. In the night sky, his body seemed lonely and helpless.

"What's the general thinking about?"

Suddenly, a low voice sounded out from behind him.

"Who?"

After all, Yang Xiuqing had spent a long time in the military, so he had a built-in sensitivity. With a Shua! he drew the sword by his waist; his weapon shone with a cold light.

When he turned his head, he saw a normal soldier. However, he did not look familiar.

"Whose man are you, and why are you not in your tent?"

In his words, there was anger and annoyance. He did not like it when his men did not follow the rules.

"General!"

At this very moment, the sound of him drawing his blade had alerted the soldiers on patrol, so they rushed over.

"General, you do know that your death date is coming, right?"

The face of this normal soldier looked totally unfazed, and his words caused Yang Xiuqing to shiver. A coldness appeared in his eyes.

"I'm fine; you guys can continue patrolling."

Yang Xiuqing frowned. First, he sent away the soldiers that were on patrol. Then, he turned to the weird soldier and said, "Follow me." As he spoke these words, he walked toward his tent.

The weird soldier followed quietly from behind.

Within the tent, Yang Xiuqing suddenly turned around. His eyes suddenly turned sharp, and his killing aura was suppressive. He stared right at the soldier and enunciated word by word, "Speak, you, who are you?"

"Who I am does not matter. What matters is that I can help you."

"Heh, big words!"

"Let's put it this way. General, you know the situation you are about to face, right?"Yang Xiuqing could not rebut these words. He was not a fool, so he knew the arduousness of his current situation. Thinking about the ice cold eyes of the king, he felt a shiver run down his spine.

"With his wariness toward you and your big loss of both men and generals, how could he allow you to leave?"

The soldier did not hold back his words, and he exposed the exact situation that Yang Xiuqing faced.

When Yang Xiuqing heard these words, his face turned darker and darker; he kept silent.

Just at this moment, the soldier suddenly changed his tone, "Don't you have doubts about why the king would be so wary of you?"

"You know?"

When Yang Xiuqing heard these words, his eyes widened, and even his words started to shake.

This problem was the biggest knot in his heart. Ever since he entered the wilderness, he was completely loyal toward both the king and the country.

He did not expect the king to doubt him.

This kind of feeling was simply too uncomfortable. Ever time he spoke with the king, he could feel a pair of eyes judging him from behind.

That kind of feeling made one's hairs stand on their ends.

However, this very night, a weird soldier told Yang Xiuqing that he had the answer to the greatest riddle that plagued Yang Xiuqing's heart, so how could he not feel shocked?

In the air, the smell of a brewing scheme wafted.

"I know a little." The soldier nodded, "If you can trust me; I'll tell it all to you."

"Speak!"

Yang Xiuqing was also an exceptional person. He calmed himself down and focused, waiting for what the soldier would say.

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Chapter 516- Weird Military Order

Translator: ryangohsf

Editor: Nora

"Regarding this matter, we have to start from history…."

During this quiet night, in a temporary tent, Yang Xiuqing learned about the start of the Taiping Country uprising and every interesting matter that happened.

The soldier stopped at what happened in Tianjing. After hearing all of this, Yang Xiuqing had mixed feelings.

In history, Yang Xiuqing had walked down the path of no return due to his ambition.

After hearing the description from the soldier, Yang Xiuqing's heart felt like a stirred up ocean.

The mystery from before was completely answered.

At this moment, Yang Xiuqing felt absolutely blurred; he even felt a hint despair.

If he led his troops back to Tianjing City, would King Hong Xiuquan still forgive him?

The chances were slim.

The soldier looked on at Yang Xiuqing with a mixed expression.

This soldier was a high level spy that the Military Intelligence Division had hid at Yang Xiuqing's side. His mission was to, at the crucial moment, utterly destroy the relationship between Hong Xiuquan and Yang Xiuqing. He was to recruit Yang Xiuqing over.

"I have a plan that can help general transform from a caterpillar to a butterfly. Only, would you be willing?"

When Yang Xiuqing heard these words, he sent the soldier a wary look and asked, "You spent so much effort to approach me; you probably have some motives. Why, you still can't tell me who your Lord is?"

"With your intelligence, you've probably guessed it already!"

The soldier laughed, appearing exceedingly confident.

Yang Xiuqing was astonished, "Don't tell me, is it Shan…."

"That's right!"

"Hei, didn't expect that, didn't expect that."

"My Lord has admired you for a long time. He says that if you go over, you will definitely be well utilized." As he spoke, the soldier took out a secret letter and passed it to Yang Xiuqing.

Ouyang Shuo had specially passed this letter through the Military Intelligence Division. Of course, he had written it two months ago.

The letter only spoke of a bunch of promises.

It was not just this spy; the other spies also carried similar letters. When they time was right, they would pass these letters to the enemy members.

After Yang Xiuqing read the letter, his heart felt flustered, and he was unable to stay calm.

Ouyang Shuo had promised Yang Xiuqing the role of governor.

Governor, be it in Taiping Country or Shanhai City, was a hugely important role.

Such a promise was filled with sincerity.

Although the letter only contained a few lines, Yang Xiuqing could still sense the magnanimity of the Lianzhou Lord. When contrasted to the wary Hong Xiuquan, the two were literally incomparable.

To be able to work for such a Lord was a great blessing.

One had to say that Ouyang Shuo's title of 'Mightly Lord' played a huge part in this. This sort of influence was massive on a historical person.

If it was someone else, it would not be so easy to convince Yang Xiuqing.

Yang Xiuqing did not expect the Lianzhou Lord to plan so far. He had buried so many cards in Taiping Country long ago.

With that, one could see how badly they were infiltrated internally. Amusingly, Hong Xiuquan actually thought that everyone in his country believed in him and was loyal.

Thinking about this point, the future of Taiping Country looked bleaker and bleaker.

As they would say, good birds would leave for greener pastures.

Since Hong Xiuquan could not trust him, Yang Xiuqing could only change his Lord.

In the end, Yang Xiuqing let out a long sigh and stored the letter in his pocket, "From today onward, you will be my bodyguard!"

When a person was at their most desperate moment, they would be unable to reject any helping hands.

Yang Xiuqing was not an exception.

"General is smart!"

The spy was delighted and backed down.

As for the specific plans, they naturally needed to discuss it later.

After all, it was already so late, and the two had already talked for so long. Any longer and they might attract unneeded attention.

The soldier was not worried that Yang Xiuqing would expose him. The smarter the person, the more they would be able to balance pros and cons. To Yang Xiuqing, going forward was the deep abyss and backing off was the clear sky.

It was an easy choice.

Yang Xiuqing was not loyal to Taiping Country to such a point.

Outside the tent, the night sky grew darker and darker. It looked like ink, and one could not even see their own fingers. After tonight, the fate of Taiping Country would be like the night sky, unable to see any light.

10th month, 28th day, Mulan Stronghold.

When the sun rose up once more, a busy scene started outside of Mulan Stronghold. As the battle had ended so late last night, they did not have the time to clean up the battlefield.

When the sun shone onto the battlefield, a shocking sight greeted the eye.

On the numerous miles of the battlefield, corpses were strewn all over, and blood rivers flowed. After a night, the blood had sunk deep into the soil.

Preliminary estimations found that just last night, at least fifty thousand soldiers had died on the battlefield.

Taiping Country Army really had so many staunch believers.

Baiqi and Han Xin stood on the city wall. They looked out at the battlefield, not making a sound.

The two legions had successfully linked up and worked together to destroy the south army. As for what to do next, they were waiting for the Military Affairs Department's or rather, the Lord's instructions.

The battle report from yesterday had already been sent to Chiyou City.

At this morning at the latest, they would receive a reply.

Post battle calculations show that they had captured 120 thousand men. They had also obtained a lot of resources, including twenty thousand war horses and the four cannons.

Apart from that, out of the four enemy generals, one had died in battle, while the other two were captured.

This battle was a complete victory for Shanhai City.

Of course, the two legions had also paid a price in the final bloodbath. A total of ten thousand of their soldiers laid to rest on the field outside of the stronghold.

Han Xin turned his head and took a glance at Baiqi.

Toward this Asura, Han Xin felt a sense of worship, but he was not happy to lose out to Baiqi. He always wanted to compete with Baiqi for the position of god general of the Shanhai City Army. He would not give up easily.

What about Baiqi?

No matter when and where, Baiqi would always wear a solemn expression that no one could see through.

In this battle, both of them had performed well.

However, in comparison, the long distance decisive sneak attack was the key to this victory. Hence, in this battle, Han Xin had gained a slight edge.

The name of war immortal was really well given.

"General, the Lord has sent a letter!"

Just at this moment, the military intelligence officer that stayed in Mulan Stronghold hurried over.

The two of them turned around at the same time, and their eyes lit up.

The Lord replying so fast was actually something that surprised them.

As the main commander of the battle, Baiqi took the letter, read it, before passing it over to Han Xin.

After Han Xin read the letter, he remained silent.

The Lord's instructions in the letter baffled both of them.

After a few congratulatory words, the letter described the plans for both legions.

The Lord ordered them to rest up and prepare for a few days after the two legions met up at the stronghold. Liao Kai would lead the 1st division to rush to the stronghold. Then, they would strike.

They would hand the fallen Taiping Country soldiers over to the city protection division.

The two legions would set off from the stronghold and split into two, one heading east and one heading west. They would slowly proceed toward Tianjing City. As they head forward, they were to siege the cities and remove all threats. No one was to escape.

Members of the Administration Department would send officials to accept and take over the occupied cities.

As for attacking Tianjing City, there was no rush.

The last sentence was something that Baiqi and Han Xin could not understand.

Based on logic, they had just destroyed the Taiping Country south army, and the enemy west army was still in Kunming Prefecture, a long distance away. This was the best time to rush and take down Tianjing in one fell swoop.

Wasn't the Lord's intentions to attack and occupy Tianjing City?

The reason behind everything really confused them.

However, because it was the Lord's orders, they could not go against it; they had no choice.

After a simple discussion, Baiqi would lead the Dragon Legion from the east up north, while Han Xin would lead the Leopard Legion west up north.

The two legions would meet up again outside Tianjing City.

Based on the battle report from Liao Kai, the 1st division would walk out of the one hundred thousand mountains in a few days. Hence, the date they moved out would be in the 11th month, 4th day, five days later.

Why would Ouyang Shuo make such a plan?

For the reason, one had to start from when Ouyang Shuo received the battle report yesterday.

After learning that the two legions had met up and destroyed the south army, Ouyang Shuo was naturally happy. This result meant that the situation in the southwest was basically solved.

As for why he did not want to directly attack Tianjing, that had to do with the cannon.

In history, Hong Xiuquan had died in battle because he insisted on defending Tianjing City and did not want to retreat. In this life, Ouyang Shuo did not believe that he would remain as stubborn.

Hence, if a huge army advanced, Hong Xiuquan could just escape and desert his city. With that, the firearms technical manual would naturally disappear along with him.

This was something that Ouyang Shuo could not accept no matter what.

Hence, the only way was to ensure that Hong Xiuquan stayed there.

The two legions would rest up and slowly push into Tianjing, giving Hong Xiuquan some hope. Then, he would order Shi Dakai to lead the west troops back to defend.

Hence, the thought of deserting and leaving the city would not occur.

Just like that, he could also solve the problem of Consonance City.

Apart from that, Yang Xiuqing was also another factor.

Although Ouyang Shuo had already buried chess pieces around Yang Xiuqing, to use them, they needed to wait till he rushed back to the city at the very least.

Hence, no matter what, the two legions could not proceed forward easily.

After all, Baiqi and Han Xin were generals, so they were not clear about such schemes. As a result, they would find Ouyang Shuo's orders weird.

For the cannon, Ouyang Shuo was putting in so much effort.

He only hoped that the two large intelligence organizations would not disappoint him.

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Chapter 517- Carrot on a Stick

Translator: ryangohsf

Editor: Nora

10th month, 30th day, Chiyou City.

After numerous days of travelling by foot, Fan Zhongyan and his men finally arrived at Chiyou City under the protection of a military force.

When Ouyang Shuo received the news, he personally welcomed them at the city gate.

Only Fan Zhongyan could receive such special treatment.

The officials and minor officials that followed along numbered around three hundred, a huge lineup. Amongst which, there were some officials from the Nanjiang Governor-General House and also officials that the various Houses and counties recommended.

Other than that, there would be the fifty students from Xinan University who graduated early.

Three hundred people, their greatest similarity and strength was their young age.

Based on the information from the Administration Department, the average age of the officials in Shanhai City was less than thirty. Meanwhile, those that followed Fan Zhongyan here were even younger, with an average age of twenty-seven.

Leading such a young team to run an entire prefecture, Fan Zhongyan had heavy responsibility and foresight.

At noon, Ouyang Shuo held a feast in the Lord's Manor to welcome the group.

The officials that came along felt incredibly emotional and touched when they saw how much importance the Lord placed on them. In fact, they even teared up. Obviously, they would give it their all to help Fan Zhongyan run Wuzhou Prefecture well.

In the afternoon, Ouyang Shuo met Fan Zhongyan in the reading room alone.

After spending a week in Chiyou City, Ouyang Shuo had obviously been doing things; he had not slacked. He currently had a rough understanding of the situation in Wuzhou Prefecture.

Hence, before Fan Zhongyan took over, Ouyang Shuo was going to personally introduce and explain the matters to Fan Zhongyan.

Wuzhou Prefecture had a lot of land but very little people. As a result, they would only create four Houses here. As for the specific personnel arrangements, Fan Zhongyan and the newly appointed administration director Xiao He would discuss it.

As the territory continued to expand, the job of prefect appointment was slowly shifted under the jurisdiction of the Administration Department.

Unless it was some special talent that needed Ouyang Shuo to personally arrange them, he would not interfere.

Fan Zhongyan suggested that to reduce and remove the influence of Chiyou in the prefecture, they should change the name of Chiyou City.

Ouyang Shuo thought about it but decided to reject the proposal.

After they buried Chiyou in Devil's Slope, they had also buried all past grievances. Chiyou City held a special place in the hearts of the mountain barbarians.

As the Barbarian King, Ouyang Shuo had to care about their feelings and thoughts.

He needed to possess such magnanimity.

Since Ouyang Shuo did not mind, Fan Zhongyan naturally would not say anything more.

Rushing over, Ouyang Shuo had gained a rough gauge of the situation in Wuzhou Prefecture. Although things were much worse than he had expected, he had confidence in developing the prefecture.

This Lord and minister spent an entire afternoon in the reading room.

During their conversation, they settled future development structure of Wuzhou.

As they talked, Ouyang Shuo realized that choosing Fan Zhongyan as governor was truly a smart choice. The many development plans that Fan Zhongyan had thought of for Wuzhou Prefecture made his eyes brighten.

For example, to break the ice between the Han people and the mountain barbarians, Fan Zhongyan suggested they moved some of the mountain barbarians to Zhaoqing Prefecture.

Similarly, he would move some of the people from Zhaoqing Prefecture over.

With that, not only did they largely improve the population structure of Wuzhou Prefecture, the new Han race people could help remove the divide between the two races, killing two birds with one stone.

Ouyang Shuo was highly supportive of this suggestion.

After sending Fan Zhongyan away, he let out a long and comfortable sigh.

The next morning, Fan Zhongyan would officially be appointed. Him and his three hundred odd officials would be sent to the various Houses and counties to become the backbone of Wuzhou Prefecture.

His arrival had finally freed Ouyang Shuo from the heavy administrative workload.

Next, Ouyang Shuo would have to consider the problem of building the Wuzhou Prefecture Garrison Division.

Be it the Guards Division or the four mountain barbarian independent divisions, they could not stay here for long. They urgently needed to create the Garrison Division to maintain the peace in Wuzhou.

Within a week, Lin Yi had led the Guards Division to sweep up the entire Wuzhou Prefecture, removing all the other local powers.

The entire Wuzhou Prefecture was finally unified under one power.

Taking the chance, he captured another batch of mountain barbarian warriors.

Being inspired by Fan Zhongyan's idea, Ouyang Shuo decided that the Wuzhou Garrison Division would also be formed from a mix of both races, allowing them to keep each other in check.

Almost immediately, Ouyang Shuo wrote letters to both the Military Affairs Department and the Lingnan War Zone.

Based on Ouyang Shuo's plans, they would take two regiments from the Zhaoqing Garrison Division and put them into the Wuzhou Garrison Division. The prisons of the Taping Country in the Mulan Stronghold would fill in the lack of manpower.

Apart from that, he would form another regiment from the Taiping Country army prisoners and place it into the Wuzhou Garrison Division. The remaining two regiments would be formed from the mountain barbarian prisoners.

With that, the Wuzhou Prefecture Garrison Division would have three sides that constantly monitored and competed with one another. Be it the Han people or the mountain barbarians, they could not abuse their power.

For major general of the Garrison Division, Ouyang Shuo ordered Er'Lai to choose from the mountain barbarian infantry regiment. The deputy major general would be one of the colonels from the Zhaoqing Garrison Division.

With that, they had a firm grasp on the Wuzhou Prefecture Garrison Division.

When they completed the division, Ouyang Shuo could lead his troops east into Xunzhou and take out Taiping Country once and for all.

Based on his estimations, these moves would not have any conflicts with the plans he made for the Dragon and Leopard Legions.

10th month, 1st day, Fan Zhongyan was officially in office.

The huge administrative machine had started working at high speeds.

This was when the people of Wuzhou clearly realized that Wuzhou was changing.

The mountain barbarians that had controlled the important departments were mercilessly swept out. Only those who were recognized and approved by the two intelligence organizations could obtain a job in the system.

Seeing Shanhai City officials move into Chiyou City and fill up all the important roles, the various mountain barbarian tribes panicked.

In just one morning, they had come several times to the Lord's Manor to seek an audience with Ouyang Shuo.

Seeing that the time was right, Ouyang Shuo agreed to meet them in the hall.

In truth, Ouyang Shuo would not fully suppress the various mountain barbarian tribes.

Shanhai City's policy toward other races also applied to Wuzhou. As such, Ouyang Shuo needed to remove the special privileges that the mountain barbarian tribe had enjoyed.

From today onward, any race would be treated equally.

Those mountain barbarians that were removed from their roles could apply once more. As long as they passed the test of the Wuzhou Prefecture Administration Department, they could be appointed.

Of course, the Han people in the prefecture could do the same.

Wuzhou Prefecture was incredibly big. If they just relied on the three hundred officials that Fan Zhongyan had brought, they would not even manage to keep Chiyou City running.

Hence, to rebuild the administrative system using a set structure, they needed a large number of officials.

Regretfully, the Han people living here were all normal people; there were no scholars around.

Such a situation surprised Ouyang Shuo, and he found it really weird. Unfortunately, there was nothing he could do about it.

Seeing that the Lord was not planning to wipe them out, the various tribe leaders felt a slight sense of relief amidst their feelings of loss.

"Greetings, my king!"

Within the hall, the various tribe leaders knelt down and officially recognized his position as Barbarian King.

Seeing all of them behave in such a manner, Ouyang Shuo did not know what to feel. He had used a series of plans and acts to finally make them yield and completely submit.

Within the territory, only Ouyang Shuo could have special rights.

The other people needed to obey his rule before they could survive within the territory.

This was the bottom line that Ouyang Shuo had drawn, and it could not be crossed.

From today onward, the special treatment of the mountain barbarians in Wuzhou would truly disappear. Of course, due to the existence of Chiyou City, Wuzhou Prefecture would still be the place where most of the mountain barbarians would gather.

In truth, the mountain barbarians in the China region were not solely limited to Chuannan Province and Lingnan Province. Other regions had mountain barbarians too.

At the very least, the Shu Area had a large number of them.

Who knows whether in the future his title of Barbarian King would work on those unknown mountain barbarian tribes.

They were simply born warriors.

No matter which tribe, Ouyang Shuo yearned for more of them.

"Please rise!"

Ouyang Shuo stood at the helm. His voice contained a threatening and mighty air without him even doing anything.

"Thank you, my king!"

The various tribe leaders got up one by one, and the way that they looked at him was now totally different.

Amidst the respect, there was a slight closeness.

Their gazes were highly similar to how the mountain barbarian soldiers looked at him.

No matter what, the mountain barbarian race had a new leader, so they would not really collapse.

"Within the Wuzhou Prefecture, why isn't there a single Han official? Do you know the reason?"

Looking down at these mountain barbarians, Ouyang Shuo suddenly recalled this problem.

Before Chiyou lost, these tribe leaders were his high level personnel. As such, they should have a rough idea of the situation.

As expected, Ouyang Shuo had asked the right people.

The various tribe leaders looked at one another, communicating through their expressions. In the end, the tribe leader with the highest standing stepped out and said respectively, "My king, I know the reason."

"Speak!"

"Because Chiyou doesn't like Han people, all the officials were kept within a secret prison."

"What?" When Ouyang Shuo heard this, he did not know what expression he was suppose to have, so he smacked his desk and asked, "Are these officials still alive?"

"Yes." The old tribe leader thought about it and decided to tell the truth, "However, their situation isn't good. Based on what I heard, some of them have died because they couldn't hold on anymore."The actions of Chiyou truly left Ouyang Shuo speechless.

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Chapter 518- Pei Ju from Wenxi

Translator: ryangohsf

Editor: Nora

On the west of Chiyou City, within a secret prison, Ouyang Shuo met the officials that Chiyou had locked up.

The gloomy and dark prison had humid floors. Cockroaches and rats were everywhere. In a small cell, there were hundreds of officials, all of them thin to the bone.

Currently, they were deep into autumn, but the officials were all wearing thin prison clothes, causing them to shiver.

When Ouyang Shuo saw this scene, his heart felt pained.

This batch of officials were the elite and essence of the territory, yet Chiyou actually treated them in this way.

Seeing the Lord's face like that, the head of the prison had beads of sweat form on his forehead. He was afraid of being scolded, so he rushed up and opened the cell doors.

Instantly, the sunlight shot into the dark cells, causing these 'inmates' to be unable to immediately react.

"All of you have had it rough!"

Ouyang Shuo did not care about the dirty water on the ground. He walked into the cell and bowed.After being locked up for such a long time, their thinking had grown numb, and they could not react. The mountain barbarian tribe leaders standing behind Ouyang Shuo all had weird expressions.

"Fellows, this is the Lianzhou Lord, Nanjiang Governor-General. Wuzhou is now under his rule, and you are all saved." Royal Guards Captain Chen Dameng stood out and introduced Ouyang Shuo.

Instantly, the quiet cell broke into a series of low discussions.

Although they were unsure of Ouyang Shuo's identity, that last sentence was as clear as day. Their suffering had finally come to an end.

Some of the civil servants instantly cried.

Only an old man in the corner had a light glimmer in his eyes.

When Ouyang Shuo saw the situation, he knew that this was not the right place to talk. He immediately ordered men to bring this batch of civil servants to the Lord's Manor to wash up.

Then, they were to prepare good food for them and have the physicians check their health.

After being locked up for a long period of time in such a bad environment, for civil servants whose bodies were originally weak, such a torture would definitely leave behind some illnesses.

Based on the reactions of the mountain barbarian tribes leaders, there were tens of people who could not hold on and passed on.

Walking out of the prison, Ouyang Shuo's brows were locked tightly. According to his observations, after being locked up for so long, be it physically or mentally, they had all suffered huge pain and trauma.

In a short time, they probably could not be appointed.

The next morning, Ouyang Shuo welcomed all the saved civil servants in the main hall.

After nourishing their bodies and having a good rest, the colors of their faces had improved tremendously. Last night, they had heard of the changes in Wuzhou from the mouths of the servants.

Chiyou dying, Wuzhou changing Lords, Shanhai City moving in, and the mountain barbarians no longer having special privileges.

This series of changes left their mouth agape.

Now, they had a clear understanding of Ouyang Shuo's identity.

"Greetings Lord, thank you for saving us!"

The hundreds of civil servants all kneeled down and bowed; it created a truly solemn scene. They were all willing to pledged their loyalties to him. After all, meeting such a Lord was a huge blessing to them.

"Please rise."

Ouyang Shuo raised his head and looked at the old man at the front of the row, deep in thought.

Last night, Ouyang Shuo had already instructed Fan Zhongyan to perform some preliminary research on the civil servants. He found that they were all real talents.

Twenty of them could become county magistrates, and three could even become prefects. Amongst which, there was even a big fish—the old man in front of him.

This old man was not some random nobody. Rather, he was a famous minister during the Sui Tang Era—Pei Ju.

Name: Pei Ju(Emperor Rank)

Title: Wenxi County Lord

Dynasty: Sui Tang

Identity: Shanhai City civil servant

Occupation: civil servant

Loyalty: 70

Command: 65

Force: 35

Intelligence: 75

Politics: 88

Specialty: wide knowledge and versatile talent (15% increase in administrative efficiency of territory, 25% increase in territory prestige, 20% increase in purity and honesty of territory, 10% increase in feel of territory)

Evaluation: Pei Ju, a politician, diplomat, strategist, and geographer during the Sui Tang era. His theory involves history and many other elements. He was loyal in his work and was always putting in all his effort, working late into the night for his Lord. He has a vast experience and spent many years working in administrative matters. Although it was a chaotic time, he did his work carefully and performed well.

On the topic of Pei Ju, some people might not know but in the written by master Huang Yi, Pei Ju was the name given to King Ya Shi Zixian in the imperial court.

Although this was only fiction, one could see the influence that Pei Mo had during that time.

Pei ju, his real name was Shi Ju. Born in Hedong Wenxi, he was the grandson of provincial governor Pei Tuo, son of Beiqi prince Pei Na. It could be said that he was born in a famous family.

Pei Ju who was born in Hedong, and he worked for North Qi, North Zhou, Sui Dynasty, and participated in the Sui destruction of Chen. During that time, he led three thousand soldiers to settle Lingnan and calm down the people. He was the vice minister of the public ministry, vice minister of the internal officials, vice minister of the minor official department, and more, before he was eventually given the title of Wenxi County Lord.

During the Daye years, Pei Ju was utilized a lot, along with Su Wei, Yu Wenshu, Pei Xi, and the like, they controlled the politics and administration. He helped the Sui emperor run the west region and helped split apart the Turks. After the jiangdu uprising, Pei Ju worked for Yuwen Huaji and was respected.

In the 4th year of Wude, Pei Ju surrendered to the Tang rule, taking up the role of attendant censor in the hall, Shuzi of the prince, vice supervisor of the household of the prince, and similar roles, and he was given the title of Anyi County Lord. He was highly recommended by Tang Gaozu and Tang Taichong. On the first year of Zhenguan, he passed away because of an illness at eighty years of age. His name was forever remembered in history and worshipped.

His entire life was magnificent, flying high and far.

On this topic, Pei Ju and Shi Wanshui were both ministers of the same hall, and they had a level of relationship.

During the 19th year of Kaihuang, Dulan Kehan and Datou Kehan worked together to defeat Qiming Kehan.

Qiming Kehan fled south to the Sui Dynasty and the emperor appointed Taiping Lord Shi Wanshui as the manager of the troops and Pei Ju as the elder of the army. Their mission was to strike out and attack the Turks.

Similarly, in the 12th month, Dulan Kehan was killed by his own subordinates and Datou Kehan took control.

20th year of Kaihuang, Shi Wanshui had broken through and succeeded in his attack on Datou Kehan. However, Sui Wendi wrongly killed him. Pei Ju's war records were not recorded because of that, and he was later asked to serve Qiming Kehan and promoted to government minister.

If it was other Lords, they might only pay attention to Pei Ju himself. Ouyang Shuo was different, as the part he cared about was where Pei Ju was born.

The Wei and Jin Dynasties, all the way till the Sui Dynasty, were times when the aristocratic families were the strongest. The most famous one was naturally the Guanlong Group that ruled the land.

The Guanlong Group originated from Wei Dynasty and grew big during the Sui and Tang Dynasties.

Sui Wendi was born of the Guanlong Group, and even the Tang Dynasty Li Ming who replaced the Sui Dynasty were all part of the Guanlong Group. This organization controlled all the strong martial artists and intelligent people in Guanlong Huhan, and everyone in the group would either become ministers or generals.

As Sui Yangdi wanted to destroy and remove this group, in the end, it cost him his name and reputation.

Apart from the Guanlong Group, Hebei Pei Family was also a huge aristocratic family.

Spanning thousands of years in China, they were a unique aristocratic family and was one of the longest lasting and most famous ones.

Based on what was recorded in the , the Pei Family had 59 prime ministers, 59 great generals, three empresses, and four concubines. Moreover, there were three thousand people ranked above grade 7 official, six hundred summoned by the king.

Just in the Tang Dynasty, they had seventeen prime ministers.

Flipping through just two scrolls of the Pei Family Genealogy, from Han to Qing, of the two hundred people, each one had made a contribution to China's history. To finish writing all their contributions would probably take a humongous book. The Pei Family had numerous stars.

Such a huge and powerful family, Ouyang Shuo obviously paid attention to it.

Gaia was nearing the end of the 3rd year.

Based on the game progression after the first information piece, the 2nd one would be released soon. Moreover, this information piece would have a close relationship with the aristocratic families.

What kind of effect would the appearance of Pei Ju have on the territory?

Ouyang Shuo was temporarily unable to make his comment.

Ouyang Shuo judged Pei Ju and Pei Ju judged him in turn.

Any historical person in the wilderness would have definitely heard of Ouyang Shuo—this mighty Lord.

Pei Ju was summoned into the wilderness through a player Lord. He was also really confident and wanted to succeed in the wilderness.

Unfortunately, he was born in the wrong time. Before he could do anything, things changed.

After the Battle of Zhuolu ended, Chiyou moved into Wuzhou Prefecture. No one within the prefecture could stop him, and they were all removed one by one. It was also at that time when Pei Ju was captured and locked into the secret prison.

Being locked up by Chiyou, Pei Mo felt a sense of despair.

He did not expect a little more than half a year later, he would be saved.

The death of Chiyou, Qiyue Wuyi moving in.

Compared to his previous Lord, the man in front of him was many times better. However, the experience of being locked up made him downhearted, and he could not find any motivation or drive.

Both of them were smart people, and they did not have a deep conversation in the main hall, just showing themselves.

Last night, Ouyang Shuo had already thought of how to deal with these people in front of him. He decided to send them to rest up in Shanhai City. After he destroyed Taiping Country, he would arrange for them to take up jobs.

Of course, even if they recovered, Ouyang Shuo would not send them to Wuzhou Prefecture. No one could ensure that these people would not take revenge on the mountain barbarians for what Chiyou did to them.

Hence, the best choice was to move them away from Wuzhou Prefecture. Of course, their families would be moved together with them to Shanhai City.

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Chapter 519- Mystery in Tianjing

Translator: ryangohsf

Editor: Nora

11th month, 2nd day, Xunzhou Prefecture, Tianjing City.

The towering Tianjing City was like a massive dragon coiled up in the middle of Chuannan, showing off the ambition of Hong Xiuquan.

After a year of hard work, the population of Tianjing had crossed five hundred thousand and was enough to compete with the grade 1 prefectures of players.

Just when Ouyang Shuo welcomed and met the civil servants, Yang Xiuqing led the remains of his troops and arrived outside of Tianjing City.

Long before his return, the news that the South Army had fallen at Mulan Stronghold had spread out in Tianjing City. The huge city was in a solemn mood.

The civil servants and generals of the country could not imagine how two hundred thousand elite troops fell in one night. This great blow caused the entire imperial court to be unable to breathe.

The fate of the entire country seemed to become precipitous all of a sudden.

On the day he received the news, Hong Xiuquan smashed his tea cup during the imperial court meeting. Following which, he folded his sleeves and left, leaving all of the ministers standing there and looking utterly awkward.

The same day, within the palace, a concubine carelessly mentioned Mulan Stronghold and was dragged out and executed.

Such a scene sent shivers down their spines.

The entire Tianjing City was covered in a terrifying and horrible atmosphere.

The usually bustling city instantly turned cold and quiet.

On the city walls, squads of soldiers patrolled, their eyes sharp and their expressions serious. Everyone knew that the loss of the South Army meant that the entire Xunzhou Prefecture was exposed in front of the enemy.

The rising wind forebodes a storm.

Hence, when Yang Xiuqing and his troops arrived at the city gate, they saw many different expressions on the guarding soldiers and the people around them.

Shock, despise, anger, curiosity.

When Yang Xiuqing saw their faces, he felt truly bitter and sad.

As for the three thousand soldiers he brought back, they felt a massive sense of guilt under the weight of such stares.

Members of a defeated army, what courage and honor could they speak of?

A feeling of regret and shame rose up from within them.

Every soldier wanted to use their helmets to cover their faces, as they had no face to meet the people in the city.

However, the soldiers in charge of guarding the city did not dare to block them. Only one guard instantly ran when he saw them. He ran toward the King Palace in the city.

Yang Xiuqing was expressionless, as he led the three thousand men. He calmly passed through the city gates and headed toward the barracks in the city. If one did not know, they would think that the battle had never occured.

The spy that the Black Snake Guards had planted by Yang Xiuqing's side could not help but nod his head at Yang Xiuqing's performance.

Yang Xiuqing was really special.

On the matter of his calm demeanour alone, there were not many that were his match.

Everyone knew that in suffering this huge defeat, as the main commander and general, his responsibility was the greatest.

The fury of the king was also incredibly merciless and violent.

Pretty much everyday, there would be people scolded or punished by the king. It would be the ministers who spoke, his concubines, or soldiers that did not perform their duty well.

The fall of the South Army had caused the negative side that Hong Xiuquan had tried to hide to explode out. He suddenly became an impulsive and irritable person, annoyed at nearly anything.

A massive sense of failure pressed onto his head and turned him crazy.

The moment he thought about the empire he had built up crashing down because of this battle, Hong Xiuquan wanted to just skin Yang Xiuqing alive.

As they say, when one fails to meet their goals, one would definitely grow crazy in anger. Hong Xiuquan was now at the verge of total insanity.

Under such circumstances, the fate of Yang Xiuqing was fairly obvious. His best possible outcome would probably be a complete corpse.

Not only Yang Xiuqing, his family would probably be massacred.

The events of history would replay once more.

However, Yang Xiuqing did not choose to surrender to Shanhai City or flee into the woods. Instead, he would rather return to the city resolutely.

All of this was something that other people could not understand.

In truth, two days ago, Hong Xiuqing had obtained the location of Yang Xiuqing through his mysterious intel network.

Hence, Hong Xiuquan could not understand the other man's plans.

Weirdly enough, on this day, be it Yang Xiuqing or Hong Xiuquan, neither took any extra actions. Yang Xiuqing entered the army camp and Hong Xiuquan did not ask to meet him.

Everything seemed calm.

Anyone with a brain would know that this was merely the eve of the storm.

In the cold city, the dark currents and hidden powers started to act.

When Yang Xiuqing arrived at the camp, he sent a soldier he trusted to the palace to pass a letter to Hong Xiuquan.

It was this letter that temporarily preserved his life.

Apart from the people involved, no one knew what words the letter contained. It could actually calm down the killing intent of Hong Xiuquan.

As a result, the dark currents within the city started moving quicker and more vigorously.

Especially under the provocation of the two intelligence organizations, the entire city became a mess.

Various powers were probing one another.

Anyone with power was trying to see the direction of the country's progress through this thick fog.

Unfortunately, all of these actions were destined to be useless.

Because Shanhai City, who had been preparing for a long time, finally bared their fangs.

11th month, 2nd day afternoon, Chiyou City.

The hundreds of civil servants that were previously locked up in the secret prison brought their families and started to move to Shanhai City.

Out of all of them, only one stayed—Pei Ju. Based on Ouyang Shuo's plan, Pei Ju would follow him and enter Xunzhou Prefecture.

Pei Ju was good at both martial arts and administrative work. Moreover, he was a great minister.

Hence, after this peaceful noon, Ouyang Shuo asked to see Pei Ju alone in his reading room. It was the first time the two of them got to meet alone, so they poured their hearts out and talked about almost anything.

Ouyang Shuo knew that he needed to use his lofty goals and ambitions to reignite the fire in Pei Ju's heart.

As such, not only did Ouyang Shuo tell him about the plan to destroy Taiping Country, he even told him about the plans for the next year.

After listening to Ouyang Shuo's grand blueprint, Pei Ju was jolted awake. If his plan succeeded, his empire would not merely be the size of the Tang empire at its prime.

In just an hour, Ouyang Shuo had managed to convince Pei Ju and gain his recognition.

Pei Ju could only laugh awkwardly at this.

This trip was to give Pei Ju a close look at the Shanhai City Army.

11th month, 3rd day, Ouyang Shuo led the troops and left Chiyou City. Following them included the three thousand Divine Martial Guards, the Guards Division, and the threee independent mountain barbarian divisions.

Only the 4th independent division, which would become the the iron armored beast division, stayed. They were in charge of the area defence before the Garrison Division was built up.

For this trip, Ouyang Shuo would lead his men west to the intersection between Guilin Prefecture and Xunzhou, blocking off the north escape route of Hong Xiuquan.

The next day, the Dragon and Leopard Legions would split into two and invade Xunzhou Prefecture.

The battle to destroy Taiping Country had officially started.

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Chapter 520- Upping the Stakes

Translator: ryangohsf

Editor: Nora

11th month, 4th day, the situation on the southwest battlefield suddenly changed.

Shanhai City's three roads of troops divided and conquered, sweeping Xunzhou Prefecture.

East.

Baiqi's Dragon Legion left a trail of slaughter along the way. Anyone that stubbornly blocked their path were killed without hesitation. One city who did not want to surrender, so when the Dragon Legion broke in, they killed all the people and commoners.

Bones fell, smoke rose.

The city was lit up in flames that burned on for three days and three nights before a sudden rain stopped the fires. Probably even the heavens did not want to see such a cruel and terrible scene.

The moment the news escaped, the world was sent into an uproar.

The name of Asura reverberated through the wilderness once more.

Such a bloody army trained in hell caused every city on the east of Xunzhou to cower in fear. After this battle, basically before Baiqi's army arrived, the defending army would just directly run away from the city.

The commoners left did not dare to act slow, and they would fearfully open the gates to surrender.

Baiqi and his Dragon Legion did not do anything to those that surrendered.

The moment this news spread out, the number of people who surrendered rose.

With that, the journey of the Dragon Legion turned peaceful and smooth.

When Hong Xiuquan received the news, he was furious and chopped off the heads of three generals that deserted their cities, displaying their bodies outside the city. Only then did the situation become slightly better.

Even so, Baiqi and his Dragon Legion progressed quickly on the east side.

West.

The Leopard Legion led by Han Xin took a more flexible and canny approach. Strictly speaking, this was the first time that Han Xin took charge of sieging.

The two battles before this either focused on defence or sneak attacks.

The ability of Han Xin was shown mostly during sieges.

Probably because of Baiqi's stimulation, Han Xin also gave it his all. He employed numerous strategies; he would bait the enemy out or launch sneak attacks, or he would surround the enemy or forcefully attack. He would act based on the situation, and he was flexible in his execution.

Sweeping across, nothing could stop him either.

As he proceeded west, there was a feeling reminiscent of how he led his sole army to sweep four countries in one swoop. No matter the situation, he would be able to think of a plan.

That was why he was called the war immortal.

The east and west were like a pair of handsome siblings, shining brightly in the sky. The entire south of Xunzhou let out painful cries under the hooves of this army.

On the north, Ouyang Shuo led his troops and played a very safe and passive approach.

Lin Yi's Guards Division had broken away from the main squad to lead the way, taking control of the passageway between Xunzhou Prefecture and Guilin Prefecture.

After many bloody battles, the two most important passes fell into the hands of the Guards Division.

The strength of the Guards Division had toppled the enemy once again.

Ouyang Shuo, on the other hand, led the three mountain barbarian divisions to pick up their spoils of war.

Compared to the east and west armies, Ouyang Shuo's actions were more dull and less eye catching. Luckily, he had Pei Ju coming up with plans and tactics besides him, so he was not that far off from the other two armies.

Even so, the north of Xunzhou Prefecture fell quickly.

After all, Ouyang Shuo was leading four divisions, all of them wild cards. Needless to say, there was also the supreme presence of the Divine Martial Guards as their vanguard.

Under the pincer of the three armies, Xunzhou Prefecture was in more and more danger. In less than a week, they had lost half the territory, and they would basically lose one city a day.

At a glance, the three armies were getting closer and closer to Tianjing City in the middle.

All of a sudden, Tianjing City fell into a state of panic.

Fear and terror grew and spread within the city.

Some of the commoners in the city started to pack their bags, and they were ready to leave at any moment. Influenced by the war, the prices of goods in the city rose to sky high numbers.

Just rice tripled in price in just one day.

The rise in prices further increased the demand and fighting for goods.

As time went on, this vicious cycle caused the prices to grow more and more out of hand.

The rulers of the country did not have much experience, so they could only use the army to suppress and kill the merchants who were amassing goods.

Within a day, the officials closed down two Chambers of Commerce

With that, although they stabilized the prices temporarily, their actions increased the fears in the people's hearts. Some merchants even started to smuggle goods out in fear for their lives.

Before Hong Xiuquan could notice, the resources in the city disappeared at a visible rate and were all sold through the Super Trading Platform.

Apart from the fear of the people, in the imperial court, there was also chaos.

Bad new after bad news spread forth, making the generals and officials painicky.

Debates and fights filled the imperial court of the Taiping Country.

On the question of whether to leave or stay and defend, everyone could not agree. Undeniably, the civil servants suggested leaving, while the generals insisted on fighting till the end.

Both sides were unable to convince each other, so they could only leave the matter to Hong Xiuquan.

The crux of the problem was that as the imperial city of the Taiping Country, Tianjing City could not be forsaken. If they left it, it would be the same as announcing the end of the country.

Even Hong Xiuquan was not willing to make such a decision.

In the end, after two days of debate, Hong Xiuquan decided to recall the west troops to prepare for a life or death battle at Tianjing City.

At the same time, he also arranged for men to rush to Guilin Prefecture up north to prepare their escape.

As they say, a witty hare has three burrows.

Since he had another chance at living, Hong Xiuquan was not the same stubborn person, and he knew to leave himself a way out.

Apart from recalling the west army, he also ordered all the city protection squads to return to Tianjing City. Anyone who did not follow his orders would be beheaded.

All of a sudden, the city protection squads of three prefectures gathered up in Tianjing City.

With that, one could see that Hong Xiuquan was supportive of defending the city.

After all, it was his life's work, and he was not going to give it up so easily.

Apart from the army, Hong Xiuquan had also decided on what to do to Yang Xiuqing.

After the imperial court meeting, Yang Xiuqing was given an imperial decree to move out of the barracks and back into his manor. Without orders, he was not to take a step out.

It was the same as saying that Yang Xiuqing was under house arrest.

Such an ending was merciful.

Probably to Hong Xiuquan, since the country was facing a crisis, he did not want to kill a general for nothing and cause chaos in the military.

No matter what, his loyalty toward the country was undeniable.

The entire Tianjing City, under the smoke of the flames of war, was also covered in a dark current. As Shanhai City grew closer, this current became stronger and stronger.

All of this was seemingly covered up by the war.

Only when it exploded would one truly realize its strength.

11th month, 7th day, Consonance City.

Above the city wall, Bai Hua finally let out a sigh of relief, as she watched the Taiping army retreating like a flood.

Successive battles had seen the west army under the leadership of Shi Dakai push forward stubbornly, as they slowly but resolutely attacked territories. Only two days ago, they had gotten closer and closer to the Consonance City main camp.

Seeing Consonance City surrounded by the Taiping Country Army, Bai Hua frowned.

Just when everyone thought that a bloodbath would ensue on the walls of Consonance City, the Taiping Country unexpectedly decided to leave.

The root of this change naturally laid in Hong Xiuquan's orders.

After calming herself down, Bai Hua looked toward the generals around her, cupping her fists, "Thank you, generals, for your help. I, Bai Hua, represent Consonance City to express our immense gratitude to all of you."

The generals included Zhang Liao and Cao Can, Luo Shixin from Shanhai City, Xunlong Dianxue, and Qinqiong from Xunlong City. The last group would be the adventure gamemode players gathered by her brother.

Even such a lineup was broken apart by Shi Dakai.

The best general of the Taiping Country Army truly deserved his name. Of course, his followers Xiao Chaogui, Feng Yun Shan, and Li Kaifang were also strong.

"Lord Bai Hua is too courteous. We are all just following orders."

Luo Shixin represented Shanhai City and said.

"That's right. The Shanhai Alliance is one family, so there's no need for such words."

Xunlong Dianxue spoke up at the appropriate time.

After the changes that happened during this period of time, be it Gong Chengshi or Xunlong Dianxue, their positions in the alliance were slowly changing.

Before this, both of them even had the confidence to reach the same level as Ouyang Shuo.

Now, they were not doing anything, while Shanhai City was growing bigger and bigger. The two of them even felt a slight sense of worship toward Ouyang Shuo.

Which was why when Ouyang Shuo asked him to assist Consonance City, he did not even think and just agreed.

In the current alliance, probably only Feng Qiuhuang and Bai Hua had the ability to be on the same level. However, after this huge battle, Bai Hua's attitude would probably experience a change.

Ouyang Shuo's position in the Shanhai Alliance was getting more and more stable.

"Guys, do not stand just here. Let's return to the manor to talk!"

The one who spoke was Cao Can.

Ever since he joined Consonance City, after the Battle of Julu, the role of Cao Can was like that of a prime minister. He handled administrative matters and had gained the trust of Bai Hua.

That night, Bai Hua held a feast to thank the various generals. The ally troops who came to help were rewarded gold and wine. A happy and joyous atmosphere permeated the entire Consonance City.

Since Shi Dakai's troops had left, why not follow them? Even if they could not destroy them, they could delay their route back and buy time for Shanhai City.

They had their reasons for not doing so.

Firstly, Shi Dakai was an experienced general. Even though he had led his troops to hurriedly retreat, he would have planned his escape. He would not give the enemy a chance to strike.

Secondly, it had to do with Ouyang Shuo's plan.

Compared to attacking the west army, Ouyang Shuo suggested the army in Consonance City play a bigger hand.

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Chapter 521- Change in Game Style

Translator: ryangohsf

Editor: Nora

Consonance City, Lord's Manor Main Hall.

After the feast, the various generals did not leave. Instead, they gathered together for a meeting.

Toward the discussions that would take place tonight, the various people had a rough idea. Hence, although the feast was rowdy, everyone controlled how much they drank to maintain a clear head.

As the host, Bai Hua naturally sat at the main seat.

Left of her was naturally the representatives of Consonance City. Apart from Cao Can and Zhang Liao, these two generals, Zi Luolan, Hong Ying, and Tsing Yi were all present.

On the right were the representatives of the allies. There were only three of them, Xunlong Dianxue, Luo Shixin, and Qinqiong. The only exception was her brother, who was not in the main hall.

The truth was that the moment the feast had ended, the adventure gamemode players had all teleported back to Dali City. As for the following military operations of Consonance City, they would not participate.

After this battle, Qingfeng Pavilion had suffered heavy loses. Amongst the elite unit, five fell and six were heavily injured. Although they had received huge rewards in compensation fees, they would have to rest up for a long time to regain their strength.

One must know that in Dali, there were many guilds that were eyeing their position. Seeing Qingfeng Pavillion face such a setback, one could not say with uncertainty that these guilds would not try something ambitious.

Luckily, Moon Shines over the River was not as open as he looked, and his actions were decisive and accurate. Bai Hua and her brother were the pinnacle of professional players.

Qingfeng Pavillion joining in the battle had caused a small wave in the China region. Adventure gamemode players could become mercenaries and join Lords in battles for pay. The actions of Qingfeng Pavillion basically formed a new way of playing the game.

Although the risk was great, the rewards were astonishing. Apart from the most common gold rewards, some Lords even gave equipment, secret manuals, and items that adventure gamemode players dreamt of.

As one said, under the temptations of hefty rewards, people would become courageous.

Now, in the China region, even mercenary guilds appeared. Some guilds even changed their names to XX mercenary group.

It was not only a change in name, as even the entire structure changed.

Members of the mercenary guilds were basically combat members. To aid in field battle, their occupation combinations would change and be totally different from when they were trying to level up.

Leveling groups basically had every occupation and focused on balance.

Mercenary groups were different, as they focused on surviving. They did not face small scale skirmishes but large scale wars.

Hence, the occupations of the mercenaries were really important.

On the battlefield, adventure gamemode players would treat themselves like normal soldiers. Like that, only then would they follow orders and would not become a bunch of scattered sand.

Some guilds that were struggling to survive, under such a change, started to rise from the ashes. These guilds were all fighting style guilds that were not good at management.

The role of mercenary fitted them perfectly.

With that, player Lords and mercenary groups could help one another out in the areas they were lacking. The Lords provided good logistical support, while the mercenary group gave them combat strength, resulting in an equal value trade.

A strong mercenary group was a movable fighting division.

The various guilds, especially the top 10 guilds, had noticed this problem. Based on Lin Jing's words, War-Snow Rose had started to build a specific mercenary group under them.

For this, she also wanted to apply for a batch of equipment from the alliance.

One could say that the actions of Qingfeng Pavillion was slowly changing the player structure of the China region. The divide between adventure gamemode and Lord gamemode players was slowing being filled up and broken.

As a reincarnated person, Ouyang Shuo understood that the situation forced this change. In the west, where mercenary guilds were the most progressive, this model had already matured.

In his last life, it would take one more year for this style to rise up in the China region. Ouyang Shuo, this butterfly, was continuously changing history.

Of course, territories like Shanhai City were not going to hire mercenary groups.

In his eyes, rather than spending money to feed a bunch of greedy wolves, training a loyal army was better.

However, in the eyes of the Lords of smaller territories, mercenary groups held a huge attraction. Compared to territory army divisions, they had two advantages.

Firstly, they did not need to be developed.

As long as a Lord had money, they could summon a huge army and start a war. Be it attack or defence, it would work out.

Moreover, to develop an army for the territory would take at least three months.

Hence, the more urgent the situation, the bigger the market for mercenary groups.

Secondly, the cost of hiring mercenary groups was relatively low.

From a long term standpoint, developing an army was more worth it. But in the short term, spending on a mercenary group actually cost less than building an army.

After all, building an army, apart from occupation change fees, one needed to give equipment, and salary, which would result in huge expenditure.

Just with these two points alone, the market for mercenary groups would only grow bigger and bigger.

One could even say that even some prominent Lords like Di Chen might hire mercenary groups during emergencies.

It was the same as saying that the appearance of mercenary groups was granting big powers like Di Chen a trump card. After all, the material goods in their territories were plentiful.

More importantly, through the mercenary group model, adventure gamemode players would participate more and more in the game. The rise in their use and status would also be forced and rushed under such a situation.

And this was also what Gaia wanted to see.

Earth Online, apart from being used to choose leaders, must include everyone. As the highest level of AI, it was neutral, and it was not biased to any side.

Within the main hall, Cao Can, as the representative, reported the battle situation.

During this battle, facing the two hundred thousand Taiping Country west army, the various divisions had suffered relatively large loses. The ones who suffered the most were naturally the Consonance City Legion, and they had directly lost fifty thousand people.

Apart from that, Luo Shixin's division lost 1600 men, while Xunlong Dianxue's division lost two thousand men.

After the battle, the various divisions were all badly hurt.

However, based on Ouyang Shuo's plan, they did not have the time to rest.

The reason Consonance City faced such a tough situation during the Taiping Army west conquest was mainly because the other Lords of Yunnan Province just watched, although Ouyang Shuo letting it happen was also a factor.

Especially those in Kunming Prefecture, not only did they not help, they even arranged troops at the border and stared right at Consonance City.

Hence, Ouyang Shuo suggested that taking the chance while the Taiping Country army left, before the other Lords got the news, they could secretly turn around and destroy the other Lords in Kunming Prefecture.

One had to say, Ouyang Shuo's idea was really too bold. Even Bai Hua was shocked when she heard it. However, after thinking about it, it did make sense.

Firstly, although Consonance City had lost troops and men, if one counted Luo Shixin and Xunlong Dianxue's divisions, their strength had increased.

Both of them led top class divisions.

To assist Consonance City, Xunlong Dianxue had expended a lot of effort, and he had even sent the heavy armored cavalry division trained by Qinqiong.

The equipment of this division was comparable to the Guards Division of Shanhai City. Xunlong Dianxue had nearly spent all his money before he managed to purchase the equipment for them all.

Mingguang Armor, Horse Lance, Tang Knife, Strong Crossbow, and more; they were all well-equipped.

In addition to the leadership of Qinqiong, this division was comparable to Luo Shixin's division.

Moreover, the strength of the Consonance City Legion, after the trial by fire of this battle, had undergone an explosive growth. Their personal strength had increased. Most importantly, they had gained more battle experience.

Not all territory armies could be like the armies of Shanhai City, being bathed and improved through battles on the main map. Normal armies would only have such a chance during the battle maps.

During normal times, they could only fight raiders.

Shanhai City was different, as they expanded their territory, their troops participated in many battles.

Which was why the Shanhai City Army would get stronger and stronger, and the gap between them and the other territory armies would grow bigger and bigger. One could say that only after being bathed in battle could one truly become an army.

Consonance City had undoubtedly gone through such a trial. In addition to the leadership of General Zhang Liao, in the China region, Consonance City could be considered a strong army.

The sum of the two was a reason why they had confidence for this conquest.

The second reason was pretty obvious.

The Lords of Kunming Prefecture were busy looking on at the action. Never in their wildest dreams would they think that Consonance City would swing their swords at them at this moment.

As it was unexpected, be it the Lords of Kunming Prefecture or Yunnan Province, they would not have the chance to ally up and form an alliance army.

Hence, as long as they planned the matter well, they would win with just one battle.

As long as they took over Kunming Prefecture, Consonance City would truly gain a footing in the Yunnan Province. The other territories, including alliances, would not be able to challenge Bai Hua's position.

After all, Kunming Prefecture took up a third of the entire Yunnan Province.

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Chapter 522- Sweeping Kunming Prefecture

Translator: ryangohsf

Editor: Nora

The military meeting in Consonance City only ended in the dead of night.

In the sky, a shooting sky flashed across the horizon and disappeared into the west.

In the meeting, everyone came to the agreement that Zhang Liao would lead the Consonance City Army legion as the middle army, while Luo Shixin's division would act as the left army, and Qinqiong as the right army.

For both the left and right armies, Consonance City had arranged a guide to point them in the right direction.

Early next morning, the three armies would set off at the same time. Without a sign, they would strike out at the ten plus territories in the west of Kunming Prefecture. Their goal was to conquer the entire prefecture in four days.

Cao Can was appointed as the logistics officer of the army, and he was in charge of taking care of grain transport, officials to take over occupied territories, and the like.

After handing control of the army over to Qinqiong, Xunlong Dianxue would return to Xunlong City.

As the Lord, he could not leave his territory for a long time, especially when his city lacked many capable administrative personnel.

At the same time, he also left Consonance City to avoid arousing suspicions.

In contrast to the previous defence battle, this time, they were striking out at other territories. This matter definitely would involve the division of rewards. Xunlong Dianxue leaving early obviously indicated that he was stepping out of this, and he was not asking for anything in return.

To the Shanhai Alliance, this round of reinforcements by Shanhai City and Xunlong City was the first time the alliance assisted one another. There were a few cooperation elements that had not been perfected yet.

In the future, they definitely needed to strengthen this aspect.

After all, one or two times was okay, but if this happened often, they really could not help their allies for free. Otherwise, it would cause problems within the alliance.

Thanks to the current situation, Ouyang Shuo could only turn a blind eye to that aspect.

11th month, 8th day, Kunming Prefecture.

To Kunming Prefecture, this was a memorable day.

The situation in the wilderness had never ceased to change. Within a day, it was turned on its head. When the sun rose up to the horizon, the three armies had already appeared at the west border.

The various armies of the territories were all camped at the border, causally bathing in the sun. They had no idea that a shocking change was on the verge of occurring.

The three armies mainly consisted of cavalry. As they rushed forward, the rumbling horse hooves caused the entire wilderness to tremble in its wake.

Before the troops could even react, the army had already crossed the border and launched their assault.

Everything happened so suddenly. Even before the beacon tower was lit, the various troops had fallen.

Three armies, all led by strong generals, all with pent up emotions and a desire for revenge.

How could normal troops be the opponents of this overpowered army? Moreover, they lacked a city to defend from, which made matters worse. Facing the elite cavalry in the wilderness, they were destined to be trampled.

With just one collective charge, they scattered the hurriedly assembled enemy formation.

The neighs of the horse sounded out, as the soldiers charged by.

They held their spears and blades upright, as a cold glow spread through the wilderness.

Anywhere that the army passed, corpses dropped and blood flowed.

The red clouds over Kunming Prefecture became thicker, as the killing aura charged toward the clouds.

And at the backlines, Cao Can led the city protection squads. They acted like a road sweeper, as he picked up the armor and equipment and cleaned out the battlefield. He accepted the cities and put out notifications; he took care of everything in a really orderly manner.

Zi Luolan and Tsing Yi were sent to Cao Can's side as assistants. As for Hong Ying, she had accepted a role as a colonel, and she was thrown right into battle.

After destroying the enemy troops, the army did not stop and directly pierced deep. They were like a bunch of wolves that had awakened from winter hibernation, chasing the fastest and meatiest prey.

As they needed to be quick, the army could not stop at any affiliate territories, so they just went around these areas. They aimed straight for the main city. Destroying the stone steele was their main goal.

The city protection squads of the affiliate territories were unable to pose much of a threat to the army. If they really dared to try anything, Cao Can's troops at the back would take them all down.

Hence, the role of Cao Can was to clean up all the problems and worries of the main army.

The role of the three armies was singular: attack, attack, and attack. Attacking cities and occupying them was their only goal; sweeping past Kunming Prefecture was their destiny.

A cavalry force without backline worries, how ferocious could they be? Some territories only reacted when the enemies had arrived right under their city wall. Unfortunately, it was too late.

As the army passed, even the grass could not live.

The bloody glow spread over the skies of Kunming Prefecture.

In the current wilderness, the main goal was to take down the three uprising armies.

However, at this time, Consonance City had suddenly started a war between territories.

This war was more gruesome and cruel.

In the wilderness, only the strong could survive. The weak were only fit to live in the imperial cities. In the battles between Lords, there was only victory and defeat; no middle ground existed.

Even surrendering became a pipe dream.

"The wolves are here!"

Only in the afternoon did the entire Kunming Prefecture let loose such terrified shouts.

Unfortunately, it was all too late.

How could a bunch of late reacting sheeps block the assault of a pack of hungry wolves? The flames of war spread from east to west.

The fear of the Lords, the cries of the people, the numerous soldiers that fell in this bloodbath...

The western region that was still so peaceful in the morning had warped into hell. Smoke rose, and the flames of war broke out.

None of them knew what had happened exactly.

These Lords were paying a heavy price for their laughable ambitions.

"The prestige and status of the Shanhai Alliance cannot be challenged by anyone."

Ouyang Shuo used his actions to emphasis these words.

Only at this point, when the Lords revived in the imperial city, did they start to regret and remember a fact: without the power, do not go and try to provoke the Shanhai Alliance.

If you do, you must be prepared to die. Their mistake was that they did not understand this theory and provoked the tiger.

The reason why Ouyang Shuo wanted to sweep Kunming Prefecture was to reestablish the prestige and might of the Shanhai Alliance.

In the wilderness, blood and fire were always the strongest weapons.Only on the second day did those territories that fortunately survived have a moment to think about setting up alliances.

Unfortunately it was all too late.

The speed of the cavalry was simply too quick, so quick that it would make one feel despaired.

In just one day, four territories fell.

There were only nine territories remaining in Kunming Prefecture.

The three armies were already at their doors, so how could those Lords keep calm and measure the pros and cons?

They only wished to receive reinforcements to help them in this tough situation.

Unfortunately, too many people had such thoughts.

Who to save? Who not to save?

Everything was undecided.

The Lords who rushed to meet one another could not come to a common consensus in such a short time. Furthermore, Kunming Prefecture did not have a famous and strong leader, causing the meeting to be a total mess.

The hall was noisy and everyone chimed in.

After an entire morning of discussions, all their eardrums had basically turned deaf from the noise. Despite this, they still had no plan. Meanwhile, the sharp blades of Consonance City had never stopped for even a second.

The people of their territories were squealing and crying under the iron hooves of the enemy.

After noon, some of the Lords finally gave up hope and turned and left.

In the end, this alliance could only end in unhappiness, leaving everything up to fate. The only hope of the Kunming Lords had ended. Their fates and what was going to happen to them was fairly predictable.

The advance of the Consonance City troops proceeded unusually smooth.

The successive victories had raised their morale, and they swept away the dark clouds that hung over them due to the battle against the Taiping Country Army. The army was pumped up and filled with killing intent.

At the later stages of the battles, some territories just surrendered and opened their gates.

Such might caused all the Lords of the other four prefectures in Yunnan Province to cower in fear.

"The wolves are here!"

The entire Yunnan Province exclaimed.

The Lords were unable to confirm whether this operation targeted only Kunming Prefecture or the entire Yunnan Province.

Shanhai Alliance's support for Consonance City, how far did it reach?

After all, from the news on the battlefield, troops from Shanhai City and Xunlong City had appeared. At the later stages, who could say with certainty that the other members would not send help?

Especially when the news of Shanhai City sweeping Xunzhou Prefecture spread out; the entire China Region trembled.

Out of the four uprising armies, Taiping Country can be said to be ranked second. Such a strong existence was actually going to be soloed by Shanhai City.

The strength of Shanhai City had once again shocked the world.

In comparison, the situation in Zhongyuan was laughable.

Be it Chun Shenjun or Piao Linghuan, they had no progress. They had lost the luster and shine they had before. Because of that, unhappiness had risen up in the alliance armies and calls for a retreat had started to sound out.

The victory of Shanhai City placed a huge pressure on both of them.

Based on the information from the Black Snake Guards, Chun Shenjun and Piao Linghuan had seemingly placed down their animosity to work together and fight. The alliance army led by Di Chen had also reached the border up north.

One could say that whether or not they could take down the Zhangchu regime was a huge test to the Yanhuang Alliance.

The situation in the wilderness had started to slowly change. The alliance army led by Gong Chengshi, with the might and prestige of Shanhai Alliance, had started to act.

Which was why the Lords of Yunnan Province would feel so terrified. Immediately, the voices calling for the establishment of the Yunnan City-State grew louder and louder.

Moreover, they had already decided to leave Kunming Prefecture to their own fates.

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Chapter 523- Collapse of the West Army

Translator: ryangohsf

Editor: Nora

Kunming Prefecture, Consonance City.

11th month, 10th day, the huge battle ended. In just three days, one day faster than they had estimated, they united Kunming Prefecture. From this battle, the prestige and might of Shanhai City exploded, and they were now unchallenged.

After the battle, the armies returned to the city.

The Xunlong City Division led by Qinqiong immediately teleported back to Xunlong City after they returned. Bai Hua paid for their teleportation costs. Although Consonance City was tight on finances, Bai Hua truly acted in a magnanimous and generous manner.

Luo Shixin's division, after a short rest, entered Chunnan Province Zhen An Prefecture and tailed the west army of the Taiping Country.

Following which, there was a battle that Luo Shixin did not want to miss out on.

To repay the help of Shanhai City, Bai Hua arranged Zhang Liao to lead an elite cavalry division to follow them and enter Zhen An Prefecture.

Although the other Lords of the four prefectures in Yunnan Province were preparing to build the Yunnan City-State, Bai Hua was not too worried about that matter.

Firstly, it was not an easy matter to establish a city-state. Without a great leader leading the way, it was normal for the whole situation to drag on for half a month.

After the city-state was established, the organization of an alliance army would also take a long time.

Hence, Consonance City had enough time to digest the territory that it had just occupied.

After three days of monumental battles, Consonance City had captured sixty thousand prisoners, making up for the losses in the battle with Taiping Country all at once. They even gained some additional numbers.

Based on Bai Hua's plans, Consonance City would borrow the organization of Shanhai City Army, building a city protection division, a wild fighting legion, and a Kunming Prefecture Garrison Division.

The city protection division would be led by Hong Ying, and it would be in charge of defending Consonance City. The fighting legion would have five divisions like Shanhai City for a total of seventy thousand men. Zhang Liao would be their general.

As for the Kunming Prefecture Garrison Division, it was naturally used to defend Kunming Prefecture.

Bai Hua would use this huge army to go against the Yunnan City-State.

The only negative element would be that they were connected to the other prefectures, and the borders were long, making it a burden to defend.

Moreover, even if the Yunnan City-State reached completion, with the current might of the Shanhai Alliance, they would not dare to attack.

In some ways, Yunnan City-State was only a strategic defense alliance.

It might seem like along with the establishment of Yunnan City-State, many city states were being built up in China. In actuality, there was only one proper one, the Lingnan City-State.

Even the Xiangnan City-State still had unsettled problems.

Every Lord had their ambitions.

Entering a city-state agreement strengthened the safety of the territory, preventing other Lords from invading. However, at the same time, it reduced the chances for the Lords to further expand.

Within a province, all the Lords would live peacefully.

Such a model did not seem to fit into the style and way of life of the wilderness.

The weak being able to save themselves, they naturally liked it. However, the restraint made the strong feel a little uncomfortable. The moment the outside threat lessened, internally conflicts might rise.

Unless there was a truly strong person that could integrate all the resources of the city-state and join up all their interests, the city-state would not last for long.

In the last life, there were only three true city-states in the entire China Region.

Ten days had passed since Shanhai City sent troops to Xunzhou Prefecture.

In a short ten days, half of Xunzhou Prefecture had already fallen. The three armies had resolutely pushed up toward Tianjing, and the largest battle on the southwest region was about to explode.

At the same time, the west army led by Shi Dakai was only a day away from the city. Behind them, the two cavalry divisions tailed closely behind like ghosts.

Zhen An Prefecture was still the territory of Taiping Country.

Hence, their two divisions had not escaped Shi Dakai's eyes. However, because Hong Xiuquan's orders were growing more urgent day by day, Shi Dakai did not have a chance to deal with them.

Toward his 'tail', Shi Dakai could only turn a blind eye to it. He could only add some additional defenses on the back lines. The wariness and care in his use of troops could be called average.

On the north of Xunzhou Prefecture, Ouyang Shuo led the mountain barbarian independent divisions. They had already taken over the defense of the two passes. The Guards Division that had taken down the passes had suddenly disappeared from the eyes of Taiping Country.

On the south, the armies led by Baiqi and Han Xin were still pushing forward quickly. Considering their situation, Hong Xiuquan recalled all the city protection squads in the south back to Tianjing.

Which was why the South of Xunzhou Prefecture was like a hunting ground for Shanhai City, completely falling apart.

With that, one could see that Hong Xiuquan was determined to use the cannons and city walls of Tianjing City to defend. Based on information they received, Hong Xiuquan had set up twenty-four cannons on the city walls.

When Ouyang Shuo heard this news, he felt a shiver run down his spine.

When Shi Dakai led the 150 thousand troops back, along with the fifty thousand housed inside, and the city protections squads, Tianjing City would reach a safer situation. Who knows, Taiping Country could even destroy the Shanhai City Army.

One had to say that Hong Xiuquan's plans were basically flawless. The only flaw was that he had underestimated them; he had underestimated the strong intelligence forces and the strength of their army.

This flaw was going to drag them down to hell.

That very night, the west troops that Hong Xiuquan was waiting and yearning for would never arrive.

When he had heard of the cannon defence set up in Tianjing, Ouyang Shuo gave up on sieging it.

Facing such a strong city, he could only use an intelligent method against it.

Hence, when the west army retreated earlier, a huge plot started to develop. And when they were about to reach Tianjing City, the plan was in place.

That night.

Forty kilometers from Tianjing City spanned a several kilometer long mountain slope. Shi Dakai led the west army to rest there. After tonight, they would be able to reach Tianjing City tomorrow.

At this step, he should have heaved a sigh of relief.

But for some reason, he had a feeling of unease that would not disperse from his heart.

In the night sky, the stars scattered across the skies. The rarely hung up galaxy glowed in the sky. The moon covered the entire camp in a mystifying white light, creating an illusionary feeling.

After patrolling the camp one last time and seeing that everything was normal, Shi Dakai placed down the worry in his heart and returned to his tent to sleep. Tomorrow, a huge battle awaited them.

At this moment, he needed to be well rested.

In truth, the house arrest of Yang Xiuqing had added a layer of unease to his unhappy heart.

The country might seem peaceful, but the internal struggles were getting more and more intense. The brotherhood that they showed when they first appeared had started to change after the victories.

During his western conquest, Shi Dakai had actually come into contact with numerous players.

He had even accepted some player Lords into his army. From their mouths, he understood the history of Taiping Country. After he learned of the entire matter, he had mixed feelings.

Would the tragedy of history repeat itself?

Shi Dakai shook his head, trying his best to toss out all these complicated thoughts, as he prepared to sleep.

Just as he was falling into slumber, thunderous horse hooves rang out in the night. It was deafening and built up fear and unrest in one's heart.

Following which, killing shouts and roars erupted.

Shi Dakai was alarmed, and he quickly got up and exited the tent. Because he was feeling so uneasy, he did not even take off his armor when he went to sleep.

"What happened?"

Shi Dakai grabbed a guard and asked nervously.

"General, general look!"

The guard outside the tent was also alarmed; he was lost for words, so he just pointed outside of the camp. His eyes were filled with astonishment and fear.

When Shi Dakai heard these words, he felt his heart sink.

He raised his head and looked out and saw a closely packed army outside their camp. There was both cavalry and infantry. Before the army arrived, a rain of arrows had rained down first.

Apart from that, a flurry of fire arrows had also rained down on the camp.

The entire camp started to blaze, and the night sky became brighter and brighter.

With his experience, he knew that there were no less than ten thousand troops. Moreover, a cluster of shadows had entered the camp behind the cavalry.

It was obvious that this was planned out.

With how careful he was, he could not have imagined that the real sneak attack would not come from behind but would come from the front where everything looked calm and nothing could possibly happen.

After all, based on the intel from the king, the area before the troops should be totally peaceful. Based on logic, the three armies of Shanhai City were a distance away.

In truth, when the south city protection squads moved long ago, the two armies of Shanhai City on the east and west were left as empty shells.

The real main forces had sneakily backed off, away from the eyes and ears of Taiping Country. Then, they gathered in a secret location and subsequently moved west and laid in wait at a route where the west army had to pass by.

At the same time, the Guards Division that disappeared reappeared once more.

The two legions, plus the Guards Division, added up to a total of 140 thousand men for this attack.

Ouyang Shuo's plan was to sink Shi Dakai's troops outside of Tianjing City. With that, it would truly be sending them to the end of their path. Taiping Country would be guarding an empty city, and they could only surrender peacefully.

"At the most impossible timing, give the enemy the most lethal blow."

Such an act was always the way that Shanhai City liked to do things.

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Chapter 524- End of Taiping Country

Translator: ryangohsf

Editor: Nora

Night, cold like water.

As the autumn breeze blew, it brought along a chilly air.

In stark contrast, the current Taiping Country west army base was up in flames, bright as day.

The glow from the fires rose up into the sky and lit up the entire night sky. This light seemed to have awakened the boundless and silent wilderness.

When the Shanhai City Army attacked, a portion of the soldiers had already fallen into deep slumber due to rushing on the road for the entire day. Apart from the soldiers on patrol, it was basically a camp with no defences up.

In all of this, even the heavens were helping Shanhai City. The bright moonlight and the glittering stars worked together to light up the entire camp like it was day, clear for everyone to see.

This was probably luck and prosperity showing its worth, affecting the way the moon and the stars turned and worked. Ever since he defeated Chiyou, Ouyang Shuo's luck had truly formed up in the southwest region and no one could come close to him.

As they say, a son with luck and prosperity would definitely be protected by the heavens.

Taking advantage of the bright night sky, the Shanhai City Army were like wolves and tigers as they engaged in slaughter.

At the same time, the two Cavalry Divisions tailing at the back had finally completed their fake bait mission, so they burst out and charged into the camp.

Facing the pincer of the two armies, the total defeat of the west army was just a matter of time.

Shi Dakai looked at the chaotic camp, as a feeling of desperation rose up in his heart for the first time.

The heavens had forsaken Taiping Country!

This steely man gave out a long sigh; he did not want to give up and tried his best to gather up the troops and break out. As long as he successfully broke out toward the direction of Tianjing City, he would have a chance to live.

Unfortunately, that was not to happen.

The Shanhai City Army had both Baiqi and Han Xin in charge. Once they launched an attack, how would they leave any chance for the Taiping Country Army to breathe? Any way out was tightly sealed.

The various armies worked together, advancing and retreating as one, as they launched a relentless assault, efficiently killing off the entirety of the Taiping Country Army.

In every direction and every corner, they were troops placed around.

The west army camp was like a jail cell, surrounded by the Shanhai City Army with no way out.

The killing shouts reverberated through the wilderness, and the echoes did not fade for a long while.

When Luo Shixin's and Zhang Liao's divisions rushed over, the situation was basically settled. The two elite Cavalry Divisions used the light from the flames to sweep around, killing anyone that tried to put up a fight.

Zhang Liao's forces felt their emotions rise, as they killed the enemies.

The army in front of them had been causing them to be unable to breathe over the past few days.

Who knew that in such a short amount of time, the roles of the two would be completely swapped. Now, the Taiping Country Army was the one getting massacred.

Such a huge difference truly made it hard for one to believe the situation.

In Zhang Liao's heart, he also felt incredibly emotional.

In comparison, the Shanhai City army was really something special.

The soldiers of the Taiping Country Army did consider using the cover of the night to escape into the wilderness.

Unfortunately, how would Han Xin allow that to happen?

Outside the camp, the two legions arranged tens of thousands of archers on alert. If they spotted anyone escaping, they would turn them into living targets.

Facing such an arrow rain, no matter how courageous you were, you would hesitate.

The only way out was to surrender.

Among the spreading flames, there were finally soldiers that gave up and chose to surrender.

They were very clear that they were the last hope of their country.

Now, their hopes were destroyed, and their lives were at risk. Even if they were lucky and escaped, they would not be able to hide from the chasing troops.

Taiping Country was now a broken ship that was about to sink. Rather than sinking along with them, why not board a new ship?

It was with such a mentality that nearing the end, more and more of them surrendered. They were like dominos, surrendering group by group.

At the later stages, if the generals tried to stop them, their soldiers would instantly chop them down. Seeing such a scene, no more generals tried to act as the good guy.

Only till the dead of night did this unassuming slope start to calm down.

All the surrendered soldiers were locked up together, and their weapons and equipment were all taken. The big camp had instantly turned into a temporary jail.

In just one night, everything had changed.

The night sky became darker and darker.

Even the shine from the stars became dimmer and dimmer.

The noisy wilderness regained its previous silence.

Of course, after this period of darkness, the morning quickly arrived.

For the entire night, no one in the camp had any rest.

The Shanhai City soldiers were busy gathering up prisoners, and they did not dare to sleep. Moreover, the Taiping Country soldiers had just become prisoners, so they were feeling really emotional and could not fall asleep.

Two hundred thousand odd soldiers spent four of the hardest hours of their lives together in the darkness.

At 6 AM, the sun finally rose up from the east horizon.

Along with the red sun, the darkness faded away.

The night sky was like a tide, disappearing at a visible rate.

Dawn had once again arrived.

Only at this point did Baiqi and Han Xin have the time to do post battle calculations.

To possess such a high efficiency, one had to thank the professional advisors and talents in the legions.

In the end, the results shocked even Baiqi.

In this battle, out of the 150 thousand forces of the Taiping Country west army, forty thousand died, ninety thousand were captured, and less than twenty thousand escaped.

Out of the four important generals, Shi Dakai was escorted to safety by his personal guards, Li Kaifang was killed, while Xiao Chaogui and Feng Yunshan were captured.

As it was a night battle, the Shanhai City Army had suffered some casualties, but it was a relatively small count.

When the sky turned bright, Zhao Liao and his troops rested for a while before leaving. Since the west army was destroyed, the destruction of Taiping Country was imminent, so they did not need the extra help.

After all, Kunming Prefecture had just become peaceful, and the army needed reorganization. As the legion general, the earlier he returned, the better it was.

Luckily, they were all soldiers, and the military lacked complicated courtesy.

After some simple greetings and goodbyes, they left.

After this period of help, the relationship between Shanhai City and Consonance City had become closer. Not only between the generals but also between the soldiers.

The Cavalry Division led by Luo Shixin naturally returned to their unit. Considering that they had been continuously fighting and were tired, Baiqi decided to let Luo Sixin send the ninety thousand prisoners back to Mulan Stronghold. As they were within the Taiping Country border, he asked the 5th division to follow them to prevent accidents.

When Luo Shixin received the order, he was obviously not happy. He actually wanted to have a look at Tianjing City. Now, it seemed like he would not have the chance.

But as it was a military order, he could only nod his head and agree.

The remaining three divisions of the Dragon Legion and the Leopard Legion would now charge for Tianjing City.

At this point, this battle that had lasted for over a month was finally coming to its end.

11th month, 16th day afternoon, Tianjing City.

Shi Dakai led his remaining troops and fled back to Tianjing City, and their state caused imaginable shock. The news of the west troops being crushed was like a tsunami, shaking the entire Tianjing City.

Despair started to permeate.

The panicky mood was like a virus, spreading as quickly as lightning.

A pessimistic atmosphere instantly enveloped the air of Tianjing City.

News spread that when Shi Dakai went into the palace to meet the king, he wanted to kill himself. If it was not for the guards being a step faster, he would have probably died on the spot.

Seeing that, how could Hong Xiuquan bear to scold this loyal general?

Especially along with the west army falling, the Taiping Country Army, which previously seemed as bright as the stars, now looked a lot dimmer. If they let Shi Dakai die, they really would have no generals to lead them.

And Hong Xiuquan knew that the defeat of the west army was his responsibility.

He arrogantly said that the country was in his control, but he did not expect that Shanhai City had hid everything from him right under his nose.

The humiliation he felt was not something an outsider could understand.

The two of them talked for two hours. As for what they said, outsiders would never know.

They only knew that when Shi Dakai left the palace, he did not even return home. Instead, he went straight for the barracks to organize the troops, packing some clothes and grain.

Those who were sharp would know that the king was getting ready to flee.

That's right, facing such a massive defeat, Hong Xiuquan did not have the confidence to hold and defend the city. Rather than die trying, why not just escape early?

As for the direction of escape, it would naturally be Guilin Prefecture up north.

Taiping Country covered three prefectures. Needless to say, half of Xunzhou had been lost. Zhen An Prefecture was close to Kunming Prefecture, so it was not safe either.

Hence, the only choice was to flee to Guilin Prefecture.

Although Ouyang Shuo had taken down the two passes, Hong Xiuquan had run Xunzhou for close to a year after all. As such, he had a way to break out of this lock.

Furthermore, including the twenty thousand troops of Shi Dakai, Hong Xiuquan had one hundred thousand men at his disposal.

Even if they forcefully attacked the pass, they would still have a chance of winning.

The unusual actions of Shi Dakai caused an uproar in the city. All of a sudden, rumors started flying and the city was about to get out of control.

Helplessly, Hong Xiuquan could only forcefully administer lock down and use the military to calm the situation.

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Chapter 525- Tianjing Coup

Translator: ryangohsf

Editor: Nora

11th month, 16th day, night, Tianjing City.

As the large number of troops walked the streets, the boisterous Tianjing City instantly quietened down. Although the city seemed quiet and peaceful, the fear in the hearts of the people grew.

During chaotic times, the weak were often the most helpless, always stuck in an easily controlled position.

East of the city, Yang Xiuqing's residence.

Among the chaos and the storm, Yang Xiuqing, who was still under house arrest, seemed to be left out of the matter, as if he had nothing to do with everything.

There were two huge storms in Tianjing City.

Tang Xiuqing was the eye of one of them. He was under home arrest, but numerous people in the city had placed their stakes on him.

Amongst which, apart from those that supported him because of his huge influence, the Military Intelligence Division and the Black Snake Guards also played an important role.

After developing for close to a year in Taiping Country and receiving sufficient financial help, be it Military Intelligence Secretary Cobra or Black Snake Guards Commander Black Snake, they both had channelled a part of their energy into this place.

There were numerous civil servants and generals in the city that kept in contact with them. Of course, be it the Military Intelligence Division or the Black Snake Guards, they used the identities of mechants when coming into contact with these people.

Now, it was time to reap their rewards. The Dragon Legion and the Leopard Legion being able to avoid Hong Xiuquan's eyes and ears was their credit. However, that could only be considered a small test.

This 'huge show' in Tianjing City was the true test of these two intelligence organizations.

"General, we just received the top secret news that the king will get rid of you before he leaves Tianjing." The one who spoke was naturally the spy that the Military Intelligence Division had planted by Yang Xiuqing's side.

Yang Xiuqing was sitting opposite him expressionlessly. Only a bright light flashed across his eyes.

In his heart, waves broke out. First, he was shocked by Hong Xiuqing's ruthlessness, not wanting to give him a way out. Secondly, he was surprised about the great intel gathering skills of the Military Intelligence Division.

To be able to gain information talked about in the palace, just that was enough to make Yang Xiuqing look at him differently.

One must know that the wariness and caution Hong Xiuquan had toward the people in the palace was really strict. Even a general like Yang Xiuqing did not know anything going on in the palace.

If the maidservants, eunuchs, or the others were found to be communicating with the outside, they would be beheaded. Even so, these measures failed to stop the infiltration of Shanhai City.

"General, it's time to end it."

When he saw Yang Xiuqing still acting slightly hesitant, the soldier had no choice but to increase the intensity of his words.

The moment Hong Xiuquan left Tianjing City, they would have no choice but to talk to the Lord. Hence, no matter what, they had to act today to prevent the fleeing tomorrow.

Silence, dead silence.

At that moment, it was as if the air in the room had frozen.

Only Yang Xiuqing knew how much bloodshed 'ending it' would cause.

The moment he took that step, there would be no turning back.

After a long while, he nodded and calmly said, "Since he's not benevolent, he should not blame me for not remembering our brotherhood." As he spoke these words, he tossed out all the doubts and hesitation.

Yang Xiuqing knew that ever since he accepted the conditions of the person in front of him, the relationship between him and Taiping Country had grown further and further apart, and there was no way back.

In such an administration that focused on religion, betrayal was not a simple matter.

If he betrayed them, what he betrayed was not just Hong Xiuquan but the entire faith. The feeling of faith collapsing was more painful than knives and blades cutting the body.

"That's right; let's allow all this pain to end tonight!"

Yang Xiuqing slowly closed his eyes and did not say a word.

When the soldier saw this, he did not say anything more and left. It was their turn next.

Middle of the city, the king's palace.

The huge palace spread out numerous kilometers from the center of Tianjing City. The number of pavilions and buildings counted in the thousands. There were tens of thousands of halls, filled with endless richest, emanating with the aura of royalty.

Compared to the Nanjiang Governor-General Manor that Ouyang Shuo had expanded, it was a level better.

On normal days, when it reached nighttime, the palace would be completely silent and peaceful. None of the thousands of maids, eunuchs or guards would dare to make a loud sound.

Tonight, it was totally different.

Based on the king's instructions, the palace today was really busy and boisterous. The court ladies and eunuchs were busy packing up all the precious goods in the palace and placing them onto carriages.

Just the private items of the king filled up ten carriages.

Apart from that, they had to move the personal items of his wife and concubines, including the pictures, jewels, china, and silk.

Hundreds of chariots were filled up one by one.

As the darkness enveloped the king's palace, there was an air of indescribable irony.

A crestfallen-looking Hong Xiuquan dragged his tired body and slowly walked into his sleeping quarters.

The ambition and confidence was sucked from his body, making him feel empty.

His dream of becoming a king of a generation had ended.

Within a night, it seemed like Hong Xiuquan had aged tens of years. Lines and lines of wrinkles appeared on his forehead, and even his hair had started to turn white.

When one's heart died, this was the result.

Hong Xiuquan was extremely clear that even if he retreated to Guilin Prefecture, he would not be able to have peace.

In the huge wilderness, there was no place or stage for him anymore. To Hong Xiuquan, who was living for a second time, this blow was simply too great, and it was something he could not handle.

As they say, the bigger one's hope, the bigger their disappointment.

His current mood was like falling from the skies.

As a result, he hated Yang Xiuqing to the core. Even if he was to leave, he would not let Yang Xiuqing live peacefully. Hong Xiuquan would rather just kill him.

In Hong Xiuquan's mind, the failure of the South Army caused this chain reaction. He did not think that if he had listened to Yang Xiuqing's suggestion to retreat, the current landscape would be totally different.

At the very least, he would not have fallen to this current state.

In the end, since the start, Hong Xiuquan had a knot in his heart.

The betrayal in his last life was still bugging him in this life, and he was not able to find peace.

Occasionally, Hong Xiuquan would awaken from his sleep with the worry that Yang Xiuqing would lead one hundred thousand soldiers to suddenly turn around to attack him.

In truth, it was only by curbing the devils in his heart did he manage to let Yang Xiuqing lead the troops.

With such a heart, how could he lead a regime to stay afloat in the wilderness? With such a king, the defeat of the Taiping Country was all a matter of time.

When Hong Xiuquan walked into his sleeping quarters, he found that it was not Concubine Xiao present but Concubine Chen, making him frown as anger appeared on his face.

Since he appeared in the wilderness, he had married ten concubines. He specially made a timetable and planned a fixed concubine every day to sleep with him.

Hence, he knew who was suppose to come every night.

"Why is it you? Where is Concubine Xiao?"

Hong Xiuquan sent her a deathly state; his eyes did not contain a single thread of warmth and was ice cold. In his eyes, the use of girls was just to breed and to relieve sexual pleasures.

Even if they were his concubines, he did not see them as people. Their positions and statuses were not much different from palace maids.

Hong Xiuquan, as an olden educated person, had even established the society of god worshippers based on western religion. In his bones, he had inherited a certain stubbornness and evil.

Concubine Chen did not dare to show any disrespect and carefully said, "My king, Concubine Xiao is sick, so the empress sent me here instead."

"Is that true?"

When Hong Xiuquan heard these words, he relaxed a little.

Even so, he still sent people to Concubine Xiao's place to confirm.

He was not worried about others; he just could not stand the concubines using acts and methods to earn his love.

In truth, he did not need to do so.

If you asked around, every concubine was scared and fearful when it was their turn. How would they even think about plotting to win his love?

Hong Xiuquan, this person was really interesting.

Even after having a second chance at life, he still thought he was the center of everyone's world. He was the god of the people, the heavens of the concubines, and he controlled everyone's life.

"Sleep!"

The situation today obviously meant that he was not in the mood, so he asked Concubine Chen to change before sleeping.

"Yes, my king!"

Concubine Chen's nervous heart was finally able to relax.

After a short while, the candle was put out and the sleeping palace was covered in darkness.

Seeing that, the entire surroundings of the palace fell into total silence. Even the palace maids and eunuchs who were handling the items took a different route.

However, Concubine Chen, who laid next to Hong Xiuquan, did not fall asleep. A chilly glow flashed in her eyes.

This girl, apart from her identity as Concubine Chen, she also had a mysterious identity. She was a high-level agent planted by the king's side by the Black Snake Guards.

She was a pinnacle existence amongst the Black Snake Guards.

Among the Snake Guards, there was a special spy know as a Death Guard. Each Death Guard would only be in charge of one mission during their life. As it would be a very dangerous mission, even if they completed it, they would basically die. If they fortunately survived, the Black Snake Guards would help plan a comfortable life for them.

To let Concubine Chen be accepted smoothly into the palace, the Black Snake Guards had expended a lot of effort. This chess piece was a core existence in Tianjing City.

They had changed numerous Snake Guards before succeeding with Concubine Chen. This was also the reason why the Black Snake Guards had the confidence to start up waves in Tianjing City.

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Chapter 526- Hong Xiuquan Perishes

Translator: ryangohsf

Editor: Nora

Of course, Concubine Chen was naturally not the only one that the Black Snake Guards had planted in the palace.

This was because no one could confirm how long they needed to wait to use this trump card.

The only way was to ensure that when the time was right, no matter it whose turn it was to sleep with the king at night, they could turn that person into Concubine Chen; that was their goal.

The manipulation involved was enough to make one dazzled.

Unknowingly, it was the seas of night.

However, Concubine Chen's eyes only grew brighter and brighter. In the brightness, there was a sliver of death.

She lightly reached into her mouth and pulled out a pearly white tooth. Upon closer inspection, this tooth was actually a fake tooth that contained a small wax pill.

This wax pill was the size of a green bean and completely whole with a slight crack on it.

To avoid the strict checks of the palace, the Black Snake Guards had really expended a lot of effort.

Concubine Chen carefully took out the pill and pressed it, causing it to burst open. Instantly, a small green smoke wafted out.

Hong Xiuquan, who slept next to her, instantly sucked in the green smoke.

This green smoke was a unique poison that the mountain barbarians had presented to Ouyang Shuo. It was called the Yanluo Miasma, a highly rare item. One could only find it in the deep mountains and forests where the miasma was thick. It could be found near some old ponds or trees.

Using a secret technique, one could seal the poison into a pill.

When using this poison, no medium was needed. The pill only needed to break open, and when a normal person took it in, in less than an hour, they would definitely die.

Hence, even the mountain barbarians needed to pay a hefty price to obtain a little of it. Basically those who went to try and hunt for the poison would most probably not survive.

However, such a poison, the moment it was produced, if it was not collected within ten minutes, it would merge into the pool of water and disappear.

Hence, to collect this Yanluo Miasma, both luck and sacrifices were required, neither could be lacking.

Such strict requirements were just the cycle of the heavens.

If not, someone could harvest large amounts of Yanluo Miasma and a huge loss of life would occur.

After all, the strength of the Yanluo Miasma was in it being a formless and silent killer, unlike other poisons that needed to be injected through blood or water to be effective.

In olden times, they did not have gas masks. Hence, if the person who released the poison was not careful, they would also die. However, Concubine Chen had never expected to be able to walk out of the palace alive.

As the Yanluo Miasma wafted over, the both of them immediately got poisoned.

As for Hong Xiuquan, he was sleeping soundly and did not notice a thing.

Such a way of dying was probably the best and most fortunate way for him.

The one that had it tough was Concubine Chen.

After taking in the Yanluo Miasma, Concubine Chen could only close her eyes and wait for her death, slowly welcoming its arrival. The most beautiful flowers often withered at their best time.The next morning.

When the palace maids entered the king's sleeping quarters in preparation to serve the king and Concubine Chen, they only found two corpses.

Yanluo Miasma, the name was beautiful, and the effects were too.

If one was poisoned, there would be no weird signs on their bodies. It was just like they had fallen into a deep sleep.

All of a sudden, the news that the king had died spread through the entire Tianjing City.

All of a sudden, the entire city was shocked.

The numerous officials and generals, who had gotten ready and packed everything overnight, all stood still on the spot. They did not know how to react.

An unexpected storm had swept up the entire Tianjing City.

The fate of Taiping Country, how would it proceed on, no one knew.

9 AM, king's palace, main hall.

No matter what, since the matter had already occured, the officials and generals obviously needed to discuss a solution.

This was because the empress was basically a stick figure and was absolutely useless.

Hence, the ones that truly held power were the officials and generals in the hall. They would decide the fate of Taiping Country.

Of the group of generals, Shi Dakai was naturally their leader.

As for the civil servants, it was also another historical talent, Su Zhe.

Su Zhe was a North Song writer, poet, official, and deputy prime minister, a member of one of the eight big families of the Tang and Song Dynasty. Moreover, along with his father, Su Huang, and his brother, Su Shi, they were known as the Three Su.

When Hong Xiuquan appeared in the wilderness, apart from Yang Xiuqing, he had no other decent administrative personnel. However, how could he actually let Yang Xiuqing have a hand in administrative and government matters? As such, the only way was to use outsiders.

Su Zhe was a talent that he had recruited when he destroyed the territories of some players.

Apart from him, there were two other historical officials, but as they were not really famous, there was no point in mentioning them.

In theory, after the death of the king, the most important matter would be to decide a successor.

However, Hong Xiuquan had appeared in the wilderness for less than a year, and he had not left any children. Furthermore, Taiping Country was in chaos. Even if he had a young child, they would not be able to take up responsibility.

Hence, the officials felt that they should choose a person that spawned by the king's side in the wilderness to take over for him.

The most important matter right now was obviously leading everyone out of this danger.

The first person to be suggested was expectedly Shi Dakai.

Shi Dakai was a Taiping Country elder, and he was also a general that held power in the military. During such a chaotic time, he was naturally the most capable. Last night, the king had also met him alone, so one could see how well he was being treated.

Logically, there was no one that could compete with Shi Dakai.

As for he himself, due to the defeat yesterday, he still wavered and did not speak a word. His silence was naturally understood by the others as having quietly accepted the role.

At this very moment, a lanky official stepped out and said loudly, "General Shi naturally is suitable, but I feel that there's one other person that is more suitable."

"What a joke, is there anyone in our country that's more suitable than General Shi?"

The supporters of Shi Dakai instantly stepped out to disagree, their expressions arrogant.

"There obviously is." The official said at a decent speed, "General Yang Xiuqing, be it in experience or ability, he's better than General Shi."

Needless to say, this official was a strong supporter of Yang Xiuqing's camp.

Last night, after Yang Xiuqing sent away the soldier from the Military Intelligence Division, he started to contact the various officials to discuss a coup. Originally, these people were highly doubtful.

After all, the king had high prestige and to openly challenge it was not something anyone had the ability to do.

But just this morning, the news that the king had died started to spread. When these allies got the news, they let out a breath of cold air.

If one said that between the two there was no correlation, you could beat them to death and they still would not believe it.

At that moment, they had all made their decisions.

At this time, they naturally needed to help Yang Xiuqing garner support.

"Haha, what a joke!" The one that retorted was the official from just now, "A losing general and one that was locked up by the king, how can he succeed the previous king?"

"That's right, so? If I did not remember wrongly, General Shi is also a losing general. And his defeat buried the fate of our country."The entire hall fell into total silence.

The expression on Shi Dakai's face turned into one of remorse and embarrassment. If it was not for the people beside him pulling him down, he would have just turned around and left.

"This, how is this the same?"

The supporters of Shi Dakai were speechless. Even they themselves were not confident in their own words.

The lanky official chased for the winning shot and loudly said, "General Yang was ordered to attack Mulan Stronghold. He even requested to retreat but was rejected. What about General Shi? Leading 150 thousand troops and being sneak attacked on our own front door, is that not more amusing?"

The moment his words sounded out, more officials looked at Shi Dakai with doubt.

"Hey, no matter what, Yang Xiuqing was locked up and General Shi was not. Is that not enough to say something? Aren't their positions in the king's heart obvious?"

"What locked up? It was just to protect him from words and discussions."

"Bullsh*t!"

"Shameless!"Such speech techniques caused numerous officials to be dragged into the debate.

Within the hall, a flurry of debates began.

The supporters of Yang Xiuqing and Shi Dakai quarreled and neither side was able to convince the other.

In this debate, Su Zhe and the other civil servants were complete bystanders. He was clear that as outsiders, they had no right to decide the fate of Taiping Country.

At this moment, only the other generals and the officials had the ability to decide.

When Shi Dakai saw this scene, he could not take it, so he stood up to leave.

Just at this moment, outside the main hall, a casual voice sounded out, "Brother Shi!"

When Shi Dakai heard this call, he immediately stopped and looked out.

Only to see the one who came was Yang Xiuqing that had been locked up.

His appearance caused an uproar in the hall. His supporters were delighted, while the supporters of Shi Dakai were all furious.

"Yang Xiuqing, how bold are you? The king gave orders that you are not to leave your manor. Now that he's dead, you actually immediately disobey him."

The one who scolded out was Ji Xianfeng from Shi Dakai's camp.

When Yang Xiuqing heard these words, a cold glimmer appeared in his eyes, but a wide smile remained on his face, "After the king's death, as a minister, isn't coming into the palace to pray expected?"

"You!"

When Yang Xiuqing heard this response, he shook his head and turned to Shi Dakai, "Brother Shi, can we have a word?"

Shi Dakai looked at Yang Xiuqing in surprise before nodding his head in the end.

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Chapter 527- The Knot in Shi Dakai's Heart

Translator: ryangohsf

Editor: Nora

In a side courtyard on the west of the king palace, Yang Xiuqing and Shi Dakai sat facing one another.

This side courtyard was usually the office of the various ministers of Taiping Country. However, it was really quiet now. Apart from the two of them, there was no one else in sight.

The death of the king had caused a sort of terrifying and chaotic atmosphere to rise in the palace. The palace guards and eunuchs looked on at the items they had packed without knowing how to react.

If it was not for these two taking charge, the entire Tianjing City would have fallen into total chaos.

After learning that the king had died, Shi Dakai had directly arranged for the troops to patrol the streets. He would administer force over the city to prevent any disturbances.

Logically, Shi Dakai, who had power over the military, could just snatch the position of king.

Unfortunately, with his character, this was something that he would not do. In truth, he had completely no intentions of inheriting the job.

The future of Taiping Country was just a dream in his eyes.

Now, it was like waking up from a dream, and he himself was lost. It was like his life, which he had been rushing at high speeds, suddenly lost a goal and direction.

"Brother Shi, I am sure you know about what happened in history?"

Yang Xiuqing picked up his tea cup, taking a sip as he asked emotionlessly.

"That's right!"

"Then, in your eyes, do you think that the dream of Taiping Country can succeed in the wilderness?"Shi Dakai did not know how to reply. Probably even Hong Xiuquan did not think that way.

"This is a chaotic age, so only a mighty Lord with a sharp sword in his hand can conquer the four directions and open up a new age of peace." As he spoke these words, Yang Xiuquan started to grow emotional.

"Mighty Lord?" When Shi Dakai heard these words, his eyes froze, as this was the first time he had a change in expression, "Is that you?"

"No." Yang Xiuqing shook his head and laughed, "I definitely do not have the ability."

"Then who?"

Shi Dakai did not understand, as he had thought that the reason Yang Xiuqing had called him over was to ask him to give up the race for power.

"Let me ask you, in the southwest region, who else is more suitable than that fellow?" Yang Xiuqing smiled slightly, as he slowly revealed his cards.

"It's him?"

Shi Dakai was astonished, and he nearly got up from his seat.

"That's right, it's him!"

Yang Xiuqing stared right into Shi Dakai's eyes and stated resolutely.

"I did not expect that, truly did not expect."

When Yang Xiuqing heard this response, he also had mixed feelings. He was clear about the meaning in Shi Dakai's words.

"So, you had a change of heart long ago?"

Shi Dakai kept his emotions, as his eyes suddenly became sharp. Instantly, a killing intent emanated from his body, an aura that made one focus.

This was a fierce tiger. Usually, he was calm, and he would only bare his fangs when he faced danger. Even Yang Xiuqing, who had been through hundreds of wars, felt shocked.

Shi Dakai, a tiger general of a general, as expected from him.

Yang Xiuqing was clear that if he did not reply carefully, he would die here. Luckily, he was also an exceptional person. The teacup in his hand remained motionless, and the tea did not even waver.

"No!" Yang Xiuqing shook his head, "When I lost, the enemy did come into contact with me. However, I had not decided back then. I only made my choice after the king decided to remove me."

The words of Yang Xiuqing were half real and half fake, so Shi Dakai could not notice any lies from it. Thinking about the conversation yesterday with the king, Shi Dakai led out a long sigh.

At this stage, it was hard to tell who was loyal and who was not.

"So the death of the king has something to do with you?"

The killing aura of Shi Dakai was not kept, as he asked this crucial question.

When they found out that the king had died, the doctor had rushed over and performed an autopsy. They only found that the king and Concubine Chen had both died of an unknown poison. As for others, they did not find anything else.

In the last moments of her life, Concubine Chen had placed the pieces of the pill back into her fake tooth. The only clue had disappeared.

Hence, the only conclusion was that the king was assassinated.

But based on what the palace guards had described, no one suspicious had entered.

This entire case became a mystery.

Of course, some suspected that the guards had purposely spoke as such to avoid punishment.

No matter what, one would not be able to find out the truth in a short time. Moreover, with their current situation, who in the country would pay attention to the truth behind this mystery?

In truth, Yang Xiuqing also did not expect the king to die.

This operation was completely orchestrated by the Black Snake Guards.

"It was not me."

Yang Xiuqing did not know what to say, so he just spoke out those four words.

"Heh!"

Shi Dakai was deep in thought, unable to calm down.

Although Shi Dakai did not have much feelings and emotions toward the king, the magnanimity and trust the king had placed in him had touched him.

Hence, Shi Dakai naturally wanted to take revenge for the king.

Unfortunately, the current him did not have the power. This was because a huge shadow loomed over the skies of Tianjing City, making it hard for one to breathe.

Yang Xiuqing understood Shi Dakai's weakness and said, "Brother Shi, for the people of the country, please do not do anything stupid."

When Shi Dakai heard these words, his expression became more and more complicated.

"To take revenge for the king and drag so many people to die with you, is it worth it?"

Shi Dakai had to face a choice.

Silence, dead silence once more.

The last two pillars of Taiping Country sat opposite one another, filled with emotion.

Compared to Shi Dakai, Yang Xiuqing was calmer. He believed that he would not misjudge someone. When one saw through the character of their opponent, they would never lose.

As expected, Shi Dakai gave out a sigh. He slowly took out the soldier token at his waist and placed it on the table, "Please give them a way out."

The 'them' that Shi Dakai referred to were naturally the people that supported him.

Seeing that, Yang Xiuqing was astonished, "Brother Shi, you do not need to do this. As long as we come to a consensus, it does not matter who controls the military."

"No." Shi Dakai shook his head, "I've lost all ambition and have no intentions to lead."

"Brother Shi is still young; this is the best chance to create a future, why be like this?"

When Yang Xiuqing heard Shi Dakai's response, he frowned. His words contained a hint of fury that Shi Dakai was not fighting. The reason why he felt this was that apart from feeling pained that Shi Dakai was giving up on himself, was because he had a mission.

The Lord behind all this had made it clear that he wanted to keep Shi Dakai.

"So that's it!"

Shi Dakai had no intentions of defending himself, so he stood up to leave.

"Wait!"

Yang Xiuqing followed, "Can I ask, where will you go?"

"The wilderness is vast; I can go anywhere."

Shi Dakai did not turn around; his voice filled with exhaustion. He was really tired, and it was time for him to have a good rest.

"Since Brother Shi has no place to go, why not go to the Army Military Academy in Shanhai City?" Yang Xiuqing said sincerely, "The principal is the War Saint Sun Wu. If you go, you will definitely learn a lot. You can get away from all the conflict and also gain knowledge, so why not? It's better than strolling around aimlessly in the wilderness, right?"

When Shi Dakai heard these words, he stopped in his tracks, but he did not saying anything and just left.

Looking at the back of Shi Dakai, Yang Xiuqing let out a sigh.

He had done what he could.

Even if the Lord scolded him, there was nothing much he could have done better.

The chaos in Tianjing City had quickly come to an end after these two giants arrived at an agreement.

Yang Xiuqing held the soldier token in his hand. Under the support of his close allies, he smoothly took control of the troops in the city. No matter what, his prestige and power in the military was still really high.

Along with all the strategizing by the Military Intelligence Division, everything naturally came into place.

In the hall, seeing that Yang Xiuqing had taken control, the officials that had originally supported Shi Dakai were all terrified. Luckily for them, Yang Xiuqing promised not to kill them and only placed them under house arrest.

As for Shi Dakai, he had disappeared.

After taking control, Yang Xiuqing did not ascend the throne as everyone had expected. His first order was to announce that Taiping Country had ended, and they were now under the rule of Shanhai City.

The moment the news got out, the city was thrown into a state of an uproar.

The loyal believers were unhappy, so they went on the streets to protest.

However, Yang Xiuqing's attitude was really resolute, and he used blood to suppress them. He was very clear that since he had decided to submit to Shanhai City, he could not leave anything up to chance.

To help the Lord clear out all the obstacles in Tianjing City was his most important mission.Hong Xiuquan dying, Yang Xiuqing taking control, Taiping Country surrendering, all of these events were like a whirlwind that swept through the Chuannan Province and through the entire wilderness.

All of a sudden, the world was shocked.

The players knew that Shanhai City taking out Taiping Country was just a matter of time. What shocked them was that it ended so quickly in such a genius manner.

They were in awe, just how many more trump cards does the Lianzhou Lord hold?

At the same time, along with the surrender of Taiping Country, a shocking fact was placed in front of all the players in China.

Shanhai City Lord, Lianzhou Lord Qiyue Wuyi, had officially taken control of a province.

When 90% and above of Lords had not even upgraded to prefecture, the wide expansion of Shanhai Territory caused one to look on in despair.

Only a king could show such dominance.

The world was shocked; this mighty Lord of a generation was baring his fangs.

In a short time, no one in China could face off against the Lianzhou Lord.

With this influence, Shanhai Alliance had once again gotten in front. The prestige that the Yanhuang Alliance tried so hard to establish had collapsed.

The entire southwest region seemed to be covered in Qiyue Wuyi's shadow.

The Nanjiang Governor-General title seemed to make more and more sense now.

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Chapter 528- Three Governors

Translator: ryangohsf

Editor: Nora

South of Guilin Prefecture, a cluster of mountains stood tall, spanning thousands of miles.

In the mountains and forests, trees flourished and fierce beasts roamed around. Bandits were uncommon and people even more so. There were only a few paths that one could use to cross the two prefectures.

Two large passes and ten small passes connected Guilin Prefecture to Xunzhou Prefecture.

Of the two large passes, one was Guiping Pass and the other was Xuanwu Pass.

Amongst which, Guiping Pass was the most magnificent and majestic, connecting the two traffic choke points of the two prefectures.

The current Ouyang Shuo was leading troops to camp in Guiping Pass.

Yang Xiuqing taking control of Tianjing City was news that the Black Snake Guards had written to Ouyang Shuo immediately.

The success in Tianjing City caused Ouyang Shuo's heart to jump, filled with happiness toward the Military Intelligence Division and the Black Snake Guards. The systems that he had spent so much money on was finally bearing fruit.

During this battle, for Shanhai City to be able to take down the strong Tianjing City without using a single soldier, it was all down to these two intelligence organizations.

They would naturally be rewarded for their contributions.

Regretfully, the Black Snake Guards were an organization that could not see the light, so Ouyang Shuo was not able to give them any overt rewards. As for the Military Intelligence Division, Ouyang Shuo ordered the Military Affairs Department to grant them a grade 4 reward.

As for individual rewards, it would be up to the evaluation of the Military Affairs Department.

The part that made Ouyang Shuo even happier was that the Black Snake Guards had even managed to obtain the Ming Dynasty Firearm Making Technical Manual from Hong Xiuquan's sleeping quarters. This was something that he had dreamt of.

Originally, Ouyang Shuo thought that Hong Xiuquan had only obtained the cannon making technical manual, he did not expect it would be the firearm technical manual.

With such a killer weapon, the technological standards of Shanhai City would be able to reach another level.

After Yang Xiuqing took control of Tianjing City, he immediately locked up the palace. All the riches were sealed together and would wait for the Lord to handle.

As a result, the Black Snake Guards were able to enter the palace freely. They were clear on the item the Lord wanted to obtain.

He immediately sent a letter to the Black Snake Guards, asking them to send the technical manual back to the No.7 Research Institute.

At the same time, they would bury the person who had contributed the most - Concubine Chen, codename Cauliflower Snake.

Apart from rewarding the Black Snake Guards and the Military Intelligence Division, Ouyang Shuo also sent out several orders regarding the administrative matters for the post war.

These matters had actually already formed up in his head around a month ago.

Only after they had truly succeeded was it easy for him to put the plan into place.

He ordered Huwei General Lin Yi to lead the Guards Division into Tianjing City to take over defence work.

Although the Tianjing City Army was under Yang Xiuqing's control, Ouyang Shuo was worried that as time went on, a level of internal chaos might occur.

After all, out of the one hundred thousand men, there were only thirty thousand that were the close and trusted subordinates of Yang Xiuqing. The remaining seventy thousand were handed over by Shi Dakai.

Along with the threat and might of Shanhai City, only then did Tianjing City calm down.

Hence, only the Guards Division could represent the territory to move in and ensure that everything was peaceful. Luckily, they were nearby, and in less than a morning, they arrived at their destination.

Lin Yi's abilities were enough to shock everyone present.

He ordered Commander-in-Chief Baiqi to lead the Dragon Legion's three divisions to turn around toward Zhen An Prefecture and sweep out the other forces.

Although the city protection squads of Taiping Country were basically all moved over to Tianjing City, there were still some remaining forces and even local militants in the other counties.

Toward a territory where a religious group had set up a country, Ouyang Shuo did not dare to take it easy. If he did not arrange the army to sweep through the land, how could he arrange for his officials to take over?

Ouyang Shuo did not wish for the officials that Shanhai City sent out to be assassinated, chased out, or rejected at the door.

If that happened, it would cause a huge loss of face to Shanhai City.

At the same time, as Zhen An Prefecture was basically a bystander in this battle, the local powers would not be affected. Naturally, they would not agree to Shanhai City taking over control.

Hence, no matter what, Ouyang Shuo had reasons to send his troops over.

Of course, Ouyang Shuo believed that Baiqi would see through his reasoning and would not engage in a senseless slaughter there.

Asura Baiqi would only kill those people he think should be killed, and he would be too lazy to kill even an extra one.

At the same time, he also ordered the two divisions of the Dragon Legion, who were sending the prisoners too, to go west and meet up with the legion after handing over the prisoners.

He would use this chance to shift the Dragon Legion camp west. At the southwest border of Zhen An Prefecture, they would build the new legion headquarters, looking right at Kunming Prefecture and Mengding Prefecture.

It was not that Ouyang Shuo was wary of Consonance City. Rather, it was him using the chance to change and reorganize the war zones and also the future war regions.

The future Dragon Legion would be in charge of the safety of the west of the territory.

At the same time, the Dragon Legion would work with the Kunming Prefecture to attack the other four prefectures in the Yunnan Province. The first to get hit was naturally the connected Mengding Prefecture.

Of course, even if they wanted to start another war, it would have to wait till the next year.

The territory had just taken down the three prefectures of Taiping Country, so they still needed time to digest it.

However, the early intelligence work could be started beforehand. After all, after this huge battle, no general would ever dare to look down on the power of intel.

At the same time, Ouyang Shuo ordered Han Xin to lead the Leopard Legion up north through Guiping Pass to clean out Guilin Prefecture.

Similarly, Ouyang Shuo wanted to put the camp of the Leopard Legion at the north of Guilin Prefecture. The future Leopard Legion would be in charge of the north region of the territory.

This meant that they would be in conflict with Chuanbei Province and Wannan Province.

Guilin Prefecture was connected to a total of two thousands of miles of borders. Hence, be it Han Xin or the Leopard Legion, guarding the north would be a huge and important task.

Of course, Ouyang Shuo had the utmost faith in Han Xin.

After the three battles, all the generals recognized his ability to lead troops.

The title of war immortal was not easily earned.

With that, the three legions of the territory each guarded one side. The Dragon Legion on the west, the Leopard Legion in the north, and the Tiger Legion to the east.

As for the south, it was the ocean, so naturally the navy would take charge of that.

After dealing with the military matters, Ouyang Shuo sent letters to the Nanjiang Governor-General House to plan administrative work.

He ordered Administration Director Xiao He to arrange officials into the three prefectures to take over.

Most importantly, they needed to appoint the three governors. Only by appointing the most crucial roles would Ouyang Shuo be able to relax regarding the future development of the prefecture.

After consideration, Ouyang Shuo decided to let Pei Ju become the governor of Guilin Prefecture.

Although Pei Ju was good at military work, he was best at governing. Along with the civil servant group being slightly weaker, he could only temporarily appoint him to such a lowly position.

As for this arrangement, he was actually quite delighted.

Guilin Prefecture was located at the north of Chuannan Province, and it was connected to both the Chuanbei and Wannan provinces. Furthermore, it was the retreat route that Hong Xiuquan had planned. Naturally, the resistance there would be stronger.

Hence, to run it well would not be an easy matter.

At the current moment, only a famous minister like Pei Ju could take up this responsibility.

For the Xunzhou governor, Ouyang Shuo settled on the current Leizhou Governor Bao Shuya. As for Yang Xiuqing, he would be shifted to be the Leizhou Governor position.

Of course, before Bao Shuya rushed over to Tianjing City, Yang Xiuqing would temporarily handle the administrative work.

No matter how much he trusted Yang Xiuqing, Ouyang Shuo still would not arrange for him to be the governors of one of the three prefectures under Taiping Country.

That was too dangerous, and it would not be a good thing for Yang Xiuqing either.

It was still those same words. If you did not want to be betrayed, do not give someone the chance to betray you.

Hence, the only way was to move him away.

Only after he moved to Leizhou Prefecture could Yang Xiuqing put down his huge burden and show his talent.

Who knows, a minister of a generation could be born.

Xunzhou Prefecture was the center of Chuannan Province and the root of Taiping Country. During the war, the Shanhai City Army had swept the land, and the local powers were largely destroyed.

Hence, out of all the prefectures, being governor of this one was the easier task.

Ouyang Shuo chose Bao Shuya as a form of recognition of his work at Leizhou Prefecture. His duty would be to calm the people and quickly build up the economy of Xunzhou Prefecture.

The potential of Xunzhou's economy was the strongest out of the three.

As for Zhen An Prefecture, Ouyang Shuo chose Mulan Yue. As the first Lord that pledged allegiance to him, it was time to reward her.

Mulan Yue was also the only person out of the three governors that was promoted.

Moreover, the Dragon Legion that Mu Guiying was a part of was also housed in Zhen An Prefecture. This layer of relationship would make military and administrative decision making easier.

After settling on the legion fighting zones, the daily supplies would naturally be taken charge by the local counties. The Combat Logistics Department did not have the ability to ship grain and supplies over tens of thousands of miles.

It was not practical, and it was not logical.

Hence, in the future, the legions would have a lot of contact with the local Houses. As such, this was an aspect that the Shen Buhai led Shanhai Guards had to keep a close watch on.

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Chapter 529- Grabbing Food from the Tiger's Mouth

Translator: ryangohsf

Editor: Nora

Ever since the territory was built, Ouyang Shuo had strictly enforced the separation system of military and administrative entities.

Hence, he would not allow the generals and local officials to have any unneeded relationships and have any interest convections with one another.

Only Mulan Yue was different. This brat worshipped Ouyang Shuo and was truly dedicated to her work. As such, Ouyang Shuo trusted her and was not worried.

Raising her position was in truth to help pave a path for her future when the game ends.

Of course, her personal ability was something that Ouyang Shuo recognized. If not, he would not take a prefecture and hand it over to her to develop her and give her experience.

Compared to famous ministers like Pei Ju, Mulan Yue was naturally lacking. Hence, Ouyang Shuo specially mentioned in the letter that the officials and minor officials they sent to Zhen An Prefecture should be those with vast experiences.

Ouyang Shuo really spent a lot of effort on Mulan Yue.

The only problem was that when she accepted her role in Zhen An Prefecture, she would not be able to use the teleportation formation to find Ouyang Shuo.

However, there was nothing much he could do about this.

Besides, if one did not face a storm, how could one grow strong?

When the eagle grows old, it definitely needed to fly solo in the skies.

As his territory expanded and grew bigger and bigger, Ouyang Shuo's mentality also became older and more experienced. Just like how Song Jia put it, he was a kid in his twenties, but he acted like a middle-aged uncle.

Toward Mulan Yue, Ouyang Shuo had the feelings of being an elder.

However, the two of them were only several years apart.

One had to say that Ouyang Shuo had really gotten 'old'.

Furthermore, in this past year, Ouyang Shuo had not spent a lot of time in Shanhai City. He had been running around outside, really a tough life.

Apart from that, Ouyang Shuo also moved Cui Shousi, who he had high hopes for, to Zhen An Prefecture to be the administration director and help Mulan Yue.

Of course, based on the administration system of Shanhai City, the director in a prefecture was half a grade higher than that of a prefect.

If one talked about Cui Shousi, one had to mention the Cui Family.

Based on the letter from Song Jia, the Cui Family had moved over a month ago. As for the Bai Trading Company, they still had not given Song Jia a definite reply.

Who knew what Bai Gui was trying to do.

The operation of the Black Snake Guards in looking for Fan Li had some small leads. From their letter, in about a month, they would be able to pinpoint his location.

Ouyang Shuo guessed that perhaps Bai Gui was waiting for Fan Li?

All these merchants kept beating around the bush and were not direct people.

Although Ouyang Shuo had secured the three governors, to Administration Director Xiao He, the troubles had just begun.

The governor was chosen but to assign the various officials also posed a huge problem.

Since the commencement of the Battle of Zhaoqing, in less than four months, Shanhai City had taken over five prefectures.

Compared to before, their land area had expanded by close to two times.

In such a short amount of time, such an expansion was really too much and would bring with it numerous negative points. It would shake the foundations and weaken the core of the territory.

The core problem would be the lack of talents.

Lianzhou Prefecture was the prefecture in the territory with the strongest foundation. The next best was Qiongzhou Prefecture. Although it had started off bad, under the buff of Yashan City territorial specialty, it grew stronger by the day.

The Leizhou Prefecture they recently occupied was also decent as Lord players ruled it.

Even including Zhaoqing Prefecture, it had a certain foundation. After their occupation, under the territory specialty buffs, they could quickly catch up to Lianzhou Prefecture.

However, for the four prefectures that he had just occupied, Ouyang Shuo was not as optimistic.

One did not need to mention Wuzhou, which was left in a total mess under the brutal rule of Chiyou. Ouyang Shuo had no choice but to send out his important minister, Fan Zhongyan, to take control of the situation.

Xunzhou Prefecture, Zhen An Prefecture, and Guilin Prefecture, under Hong Xiuquan's rule, only focused on expanding, so its internal affairs were in chaos too.

If it was not for Su Zhe and the others helping, it would be even worse.

Taiping Country had messed up these three prefectures of land for close to a year, destroying any foundation they had. The essence of the three prefectures was probably gathered by Hong Xiuquan and used to develop Tianjing City.

Hence, to run these three prefectures, it was a long and hard journey.

If these three prefectures followed the system of Shanhai City and built various Houses and counties, the number of officials needed would reach quite a shocking number.

Furthermore, during this period of time, the Administration Department had followed Ouyang Shuo's instructions and performed a full-scale evaluation of all local officials, removing a large number of them.

Hence, even if he used such a strong talent producing machine like Xinan University, he still could not keep up with this expansion speed. Based on the numbers that Xiao He had churned out, the territory had a shortfall of 1500 officials.

As he had no other choice, Xiao He personally visited the various imperial cities and used the title of Land of Philosophers to recruit scholars.

Of course, Xiao He did not dare to go to Xianyang City. Even if he did, it would be useless.

Despite his efforts, he could only recruit the basic level officials. As for the real talents, they were doing well in the imperial city and would not bite the bait.

The huge lack of people was something that worried Xiao He, and the matter made it hard for him to eat and sleep.

As they had no choice, Xiao He could only discuss with Jiang Shang to graduate the winter season students of Xinan University early. Those who passed the exams would get jobs.

At the same time, Xiao He also asked economics dean Meng Zi to use the influence of the Confucianism school of thought to hire Confucians to work for Shanhai City.

Xiao He also implored the other philosophers.

With such numbers, they were barely able to gather one thousand men. As for the lacking numbers, one could only use the current local officials.

Xiao He joked that he was just making up the numbers with noobs.

After all, a shortfall of 1500 officials was the number Xiao He reached after including the officials from the three prefectures that could be used.

Hence, temporarily, those who were appointed included useless people.

All of a sudden, the standards of the officials in the territory had dropped by a grade.

Toward this matter, be it Xiao He or Ouyang Shuo, they were both helpless.

If it was not for Taiping Country getting stronger and stronger, Ouyang Shuo would not want to push it too quickly. Unfortunately, the situation had forced his hand.

Of course, there were pros and cons to everything.

The moment Shanhai City managed to digest these territories, a brand new huge territory would ascend in the southwest region.

At that time, the territory would rise from the ashes.

At that time, a dynasty would slowly take shape.

That's right a dynasty.

If one considered the current land area, it was similar in terms of land size with olden dynasties apart from the foundation and power.

Of course, as the foundation and power difference were too far away, one could only say that a foundation was forming.

After dealing with the post war military and administrative matters, Ouyang Shuo was ready to pack up and leave for Tianjing City. Although Taiping Country had surrendered, only by taking charge of Tianjing City could he really calm everything down.

Furthermore, the current Tianjing City had many things that needed him to personally decide on. Like how to deal with the one hundred thousand troops, the officials, the generals of the country, and the riches.

There were many things to deal with. As Yang Xiuqing was very careful and safe, he would want Ouyang Shuo to make those decisions.

11th month, 18th day, Ouyang Shuo led his troops out of Guiping Pass.

As he was officially appointed by Ouyang Shuo as the governor, Pei Ju naturally stayed when Ouyang Shuo left.

Pei Ju would meet up with Han Xin's Leopard Legion and move into Guilin Prefecture.

At the same time, Only two mountain barbarian independent divisions would follow Ouyang Shuo into Tianjing City. The remaining division would be settled at the Guiping and Xuanwu passes.

Five thousand men would guard Xuanwu Pass, while the rest would guard Guiping Pass.

Only after Han Xin led his forces there and accepted the two passes would this independent division go down south and meet up with Ouyang Shuo.

The huge army left for the pass and disappeared into the horizon.

Far away, there stood a huge city, this was Tianjing City.

Ouyang Shuo would spend a period of time at this city to plan and draw up his magnificent blueprint.

One could say that the surrender of Taiping Country was a huge milestone.

He had officially stepped onto the path to be a real king, solidifying his position in the wilderness. At this stage, normal failures would not be able to shake his rule.

This was foundation.

However, just as Ouyang Shuo was planning the blueprint of his territory, a sudden change forced him to alter his plans and dealt him a hefty blow.

Gaia 2nd year, 11th month, 19th day, north border of Guilin Prefecture.

The bright morning light shone on the vast and empty wilderness, warm and peaceful.

Just at this moment, a huge army suddenly appeared in the wilderness. Looking out at them, one would see flags carried upright, with spears and knives forming a huge and endless black wave.

The endless army was like a ghost, suddenly slaughtering their way into Guilin Prefecture.

The next day, when Ouyang Shuo led his troops to leave Guiping Pass, the ten odd Lords in Chuannan Province, together with the Wannan City-State's one hundred thousand alliance troops, suddenly invaded.

Two armies, a total of two hundred thousand troops, forcefully invaded Guilin Prefecture at a breakneck speed.

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Chapter 530- A Massive Blunder

Translator: ryangohsf

Editor: Nora

Suddenly, the two hundred thousand alliance army troops engaged in endless slaughter in the Guilin Prefecture.

Strictly speaking, the defence troops in Guilin Prefecture were not moved to Tianjing City by Hong Xiuquan. After all, Guilin Prefecture was the escape route that he had planned. Naturally, he would not cut off his own escape routes.

Apart from the various protection squads, there was even a twenty thousand strong unit housed there.

Along with Yang Xiuqing taking control of Taiping Country, Guilin Prefecture had fallen into chaos. After all, the troops housed in Guilin Prefecture were the most trusted troops of Hong Xiuquan.

Seeing their king die and the successor to the throne actually instantly surrendering to Shanhai City, the army felt furious.

However, they were not bold enough to try and kill their way to Tianjing City.

The troops had no place to let out their frustrations, so they could only vent it out on the people.

As for the various protection squads in Guilin Prefecture, their attitudes were much warmer. Their loyalty toward the king had not reached the level where they would risk it all for revenge.

Furthermore, most of these soldiers were born in Guilin Prefecture, so they had a duty to protect their own land. Naturally, they would not allow the other soldiers to fool around and do whatever they wished.

As a result, both sides had ended up facing off.

This was also the reason why Ouyang Shuo had arranged for the independent mountain barbarian division at the two passes. It was to prevent this chaos from spreading to Wuzhou Prefecture.

Originally, Ouyang Shuo could have led his troops into Guilin Prefecture to stop this chaos.

Regretfully, the situation in Tianjing City was not stable yet and urgently needed Ouyang Shuo over there. After weighing the pros and cons, Ouyang Shuo still decided to put down Guilin Prefecture first.

When Han Xin led his troops there, all the problems would be solved easily.

Apart from that, Ouyang Shuo also had another nefarious intention. He wanted to use the chaos in Guilin Prefecture to let the army there that had lost their rationality destroy the reputation and people sentiment that Taiping Country had built up in the location.

Ouyang Shuo did not wish for the people under his rule to still have any good thoughts and emotions for the old Taiping Country.

Wouldn't this chaos help dig the grave?

As for the casualties and damages that this choice would cause, it was not within the considerations of Ouyang Shuo.

As a Lord, how could he be so soft hearted in dealing with every single matter?

Needless to say, Ouyang Shuo also felt really gleeful about his plan.

He did not expect that his neglect would also give the enemy a chance to strike.

How would the chaotic Guilin Prefecture be the opponents of two hundred thousand tigers and wolves?

Furthermore, among the enemy army, there was seemingly a great commander and many generals. Naturally, they could not be locked, and they won all their battles.

In just three days, half of Guilin Prefecture had fallen.

At this time, the alliance army commander unexpectedly split the army into three.

Sixty thousand would remain in Guilin Prefecture to complete the unfinished business. Eighty thousand would continue south and head straight for Guiping Pass.

The remaining sixty thousand would attack the other pass - Xuanwu Pass.

It was this splitting up of forces that completely nailed the victory of the alliance army.

Naturally, the alliance army lacked the ability to cross the pass, head into Xunzhou, and fight a life and death battle with the Shanhai City Army.

However, it was necessary for them to occupy the two passes and block the way up north of Shanhai City. If not, Guilin Prefecture would be under the threat of takeover at any moment.

Just thinking about that made one feel uncomfortable.

Hence, their only path to success was conquering the pass.

They had to complete everything quickly.

The alliance army needed to occupy the two passes before the Shanhai City Army sent reinforcements.

If not, their whole plan would fail.

Hence, be it the alliance army or the Shanhai City Army, both were racing against time.

Turning back time to two days ago, 11th month, 20th day, Guiping Pass.

Within the pass, there were eight thousand elite mountain barbarian soldiers. In charge of them was the young general Shihu that Ouyang Shuo had high hopes for.

Moreover, on the 2nd day that the alliance army had attacked Guilin Prefecture, the intel from the Military Intelligence Division had already reached Guiping Pass.

Be it the Military Intelligence Division or the Black Snake Guards, their infiltration of Taiping Country was mainly focused on Xunzhou with Tianjing City.

As they had limited manpower and energy, their infiltration of the Guilin and Zhen An Prefectures was lacking. Even so, they were able to gain the actual intel on just the second day.

When he received the news, Shihu was stunned.

Two hundred thousand troops suddenly attacking without any prior signs.

Such a sudden pressure pressed onto him, making it hard for him to breathe.

This was also the first time that Shihu was leading troops alone, yet he had to face such a test. To such a young general, it was really too cruel.

If one did not go through it yourself, you would not be able to understand such pressure.

Some of the generals in the army even instantly collapsed and broke down under that pressure. Their were thousands of lives on their shoulders. One slight mistake would cause many people to die.

Luckily, within Guiping Pass, there was another talent, Pei Ju.

At the crucial time, he stepped out and took the role of advisor. During the period of time when Ouyang Shuo was attacking Xunzhou, he had brought Pei Ju along and often sought help from him.

Hence, Shihu trusted Pei Ju a lot.

Thanks to the advice and comfort of Pei Ju, Shihu managed to calm down and think of a plan.

Compared to the young Shihu, Pei Ju's vision was incredibly sharp. He instantly guessed that the enemy attacking Guilin Prefecture should not be simple, and as long as they were not dumb, they would definitely attack Guiping Pass.

Hence, he immediately assigned numerous messenger soldiers to ride the fastest horses to inform the Lord that was on the road. At the same time, he started to order them to complete the defence facilities of the pass.

Guiping Pass and Zhennan Pass were similar, there were both stronghold type structures in the wilderness.

The basic defensive facilities in the pass could be said to be complete. After Hong Xiuquan took control of Xunzhou, he arranged smiths and artisans to modify and improve the pass.

It also contained a sufficient amount of items and resources.

The only regret was that Hong Xiuquan's precious baby, the cannon, was not fixed in the pass.

Hence, the so-called completing of defence facilities was just repairing the damage caused when the mountain barbarian army attacked. At the same time, they needed to move defence resources up onto the city wall.

11th month, 21st day, noon.

The blistering sunlight shone through the red clouds and scorched the earth.

On the horizon, a cavalry soldier wearing light armor suddenly appeared. Alongside him was a bunch of war horses galloping away, causing the dust on the ground to be swept up in the air.

Just at this moment, joy appeared in the cavalry's eyes.

He finally saw the army of many tens of thousands of men before him.

"Lord, emergency!"

He charged forward, continuously swinging the flag by his back and shouting.

"Lord, emergency!"On this usual afternoon, Pei Ju sent a messenger soldier. In just a day and a half, he caught up to the troops led by Ouyang Shuo. Because of this, three elite war horses were tired to death.

Even the messenger soldier instantly fainted after completing his mission.

When he was travelling, Ouyang Shuo was unable to receive letters.

Hence, he only obtained news about the alliance army's attack a full two and a half days later. The current Ouyang Shuo was less than two days away.

Based on calculations, Han Xin's Leopard Legion was three days away from Guiping Pass. As they were still on route, he could not contact them, so they could not be depended on for this battle.

After getting the news, Ouyang Shuo was shocked, and a sense of anger slowly arose.

"Those stupid thieves actually dare to step on my land!"

Ouyang Shuo really did not expect the Lords of Chuannan Province to link up with the Xiangnan City-State. The worst part was that they actually challenged Shanhai City together.

Thinking about it another way, Ouyang Shuo could only laugh bitterly.

One had to say, the enemy truly chose a perfect moment to attack.

The current Shanhai City looked like it was at the peak of its rule. However, it was actually at its weakest point, as it had so much empty land without a suitable amount of troops to defend it.

Only after completing the reorganization of the one hundred thousand Taiping Country troops would Shanhai City become truly strong.

However, the enemy had grasped this opportunity to attack.

It seemed like the enemy had predicted that Shanhai City would not dare to start a large-scale war at such a time.

In all likelihood, the enemy has someone amazing commanding them.

Ouyang Shuo slowly calmed down, as his mind fell into deep thought.

What he did not know was that just as the alliance army entered Guilin Prefecture, the one hundred thousand Lingnan City-State soldiers also started to cause chaos at the border.

Without a doubt, this was a carefully planned scheme.

After Shanhai City took down Taiping Country, the wariness and fear of the players around Shanhai City had reached its peak.

This time, a total of three provinces worked together to curb the rise of Shanhai City.

Ouyang Shuo tossed aside his thoughts and immediately ordered the troops to turn around and head back to Guiping Pass.

Since the alliance army knew of the importance of the pass, how could Ouyang Shuo not know? Hence, he directly led his troops back without hesitation.

Hope, he could only hope that Guiping Pass could hold on.

The part that left him feeling helpless was that the two mountain barbarian divisions that he led were all infantry. Even if they rushed back, it would take two days.

At that time, it would be too late.

Luckily, Ouyang Shuo had cavalry on hand, the three thousand Divine Martial Guards.

Ouyang Shuo immediately decided to lead the Divine Martial Guards to head out first. As for the mountain barbarian independent divisions, they would follow behind and rush back at their quickest speed.

Everything was a race against time.

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Chapter 531- Fierce Battle at Guiping Pass

Translator: ryangohsf

Editor: Nora

11th month, 22nd day, morning, Guiping Pass.

Under the morning sun, eighty thousand alliance army troops marched uphill and proceeded forward confidently.

In front of Guiping Pass was a long and narrow path, twisting and turning numerous times. Eighty thousand troops formed up into squadrons, stretching numerous kilometers. If one looked on, they would not be able to see the end, and the black wave would pressure their heart.

The army that pushed on confidently was like a black dragon, coiling around the mountains and rivers.

Looking over, one had a feeling of awe.

These were a bunch of lions and wolves, a collection of stone cold killers.

At the front of the army was a full sword-shield soldier formation. They would act as the main force in attacking the pass. Behind them was line after line of bowmen and crossbowmen.

As the mountain paths were narrow, the alliance army could not bring any large scale siege weapons; they could only bring scaling ladders. Apart from those, there would be a few heavy battering rams.

Lastly, the ten thousand elite cavalry.

In the middle of the cavalry formation, there was a middle-aged general that looked extremely eye catching. He looked resolute and confident; he wore a red robe, silver armor, and a golden helmet. Moreover, he rode a special war horse.

This middle-aged men was the commander of the alliance army tasked to attack Guiping Pass, the overall commander of the entire alliance army - Warring States famed general Li Mu.

Li Mu, a famous General of the Zhao Country during the Warring States Period. Along with Baiqi, Lianpo, and Wang Jian, they were the four famous generals of the Warring States. During the Battle of Changping, Li Mu was just one of the good generals at the north border of the Zhao Country.

He only displayed his skills near the end of the Warring States Period.

Li Mu was first at the north of Zhao Country, fighting against the Xiongnu people. After which, because he went against the Qin Country, he earned the title of Wu An Lord after damaging them heavily at Yi An. During 229 B.C., the Qin Country drove a wedge in the relationship between the Zhao King and Li Mu, causing the king to take back his power over the army and killing him not long after.

The one who sowed the discord was Wang Jian.

Undeniably, Li Mu was a famous general that could not be underestimated.

Along with Li Mu's appearance, the four famous generals of the Warring States Period had all appeared in the wilderness. Baiqi was loyal to Shanhai City, Wang Jian worked for the Qin King, Lianpo was under Di Chen, as for Li Mu, his Lord was a mystery.

One only knew that it was one of the Lords of the alliance army.

With such a great general in the alliance army, it was no wonder that they could take over half of Guilin Prefecture in a short three days. They basically did not face any obstacles.

One must know that if one wanted to travel the entire Guilin Prefecture, they would need three to four days to do so. This was because Guilin Prefecture was narrow from north to south and long from east to west.

Li Mu looked on at the stronghold in the distance, deep in thought.

The scene in front of him seemed to have been more than he had expected.

Firstly, Li Mu did not think that a large number of troops would actually be housed inside the pass. Logically speaking, since Taiping Country had surrendered, be it Shanhai City or Taiping Country, neither troops would have reason to remain in the pass.

If there were so many of them, why didn't they enter Guilin Prefecture?

All of this was a mystery.

After all, Ouyang Shuo's plan and thinking was not something that other people could know.

Secondly, Li Mu did not expect that the enemy had already learned of their existence.

The intel system of Shanhai City was really eye opening.

With that, Li Mu linked it to another point. Since the enemy in the stronghold knew of them, the Shanhai City Army in Xunzhou would also know.

Who knows, maybe reinforcements were on their way too.

With this conjecture, attacking Guilin Prefecture was not the right idea. The moment reinforcements arrived, Li Mu really did not have the confidence to take them down all at once.

"My plan seems to need to have some changes."

Li Mu muttered, but his expression became more resolute instead. No matter what change occurred, it could not stop their strategic goal—they must take down Guiping Pass!

Although Li Mu was best at cavalry battle, he still knew some things about sieging.

When two met on a narrow path, only the strong would survive.Within the stronghold, on the city walls.

When the menacing-looking alliance army appeared on the mountain roads before Guiping Pass, they faced a bunch of guards lined up solemnly. These people had sworn to defend this place to their deaths.

At this moment, the blood in the mountain barbarians started to boil.

During this battle, they would fight for their new barbarian king, proving their loyalty and courage.

All the losses and humiliation would be washed off with the blood of the enemy.

Battle contributions were always the greatest glory for warriors.

Old minister Pei Ju stood on the middle of the city wall, looking on at the huge army far away. He had a really solemn expression. The numbers of enemies had far exceeded his expectations.

The enemy was ten times their number, so how long could they defend for?

Apart from Guiping Pass, Pei Ju was more worried about another pass—Xuanwu Pass.

However, for Xuanwu Pass, there was nothing he could do.

In truth, the two passes were not together and were separated by hundreds of miles.

Hence, Pei Ju could only try his best to defend and ensure that Guiping Pass remained standing. Toward Xuanwu Pass, Pei Ju did not give it up and did not move the five thousand mountain barbarians over from Xuanwu Pass.

After all, if Xuanwu Pass did not have a single force defending it, the enemy would be able to take down the pass without breaking a sweat. They could even go around Xunzhou Prefecture and attack Guiping Pass.

Hence, be it Guiping Pass or Xuanwu Pass, neither could be lost. These two passes were the most important doorways for Shanhai City to the north.

The moment these two doors were opened, they would suffer a huge defeat.

"Wuuu!"

Along with the low horn sounds, the war started without any signs.

Both sides did not provoke one another; they did not scold each other.

The two armies had both entered their most intense state of battle from the start.

The reason why Pei Ju had a little confidence in defending the pass was because of the strength of the mountain barbarian soldiers and because the pass was narrow and unsuitable for a large-scale assault.

Hence, even if the alliance army had a huge force, they could only send in a limited number of soldiers at a time.

As they say, if a pass only allowed one man through at a time, even if you had ten thousand men, it would be useless.

For one to call it a magnificent pass and an amazing choke point was not false.

Now, what they needed to test was the mental and combat strength of the eight thousand mountain barbarians. They had to survive the relentless attacks of the enemy without any rest.

The moment they were tired, weaknesses would appear in their defences, which the enemy would exploit.

The low and bellowing killing shouts reverberated through the valley.

Every moment, every second, there would be people dying.

Batch after batch of alliance army troops were thrown up and batch after batch fell.

The strength of the mountain barbarian soldiers shocked the alliance army.

The defence line formed up by the eight thousand of them braved the arrow rain of the alliance army. They were like a group of asuras, slaughtering the enemy in a highly efficient manner.

The soldiers were cold, but their eyes were filled with passion.

The commander of the mountain barbarians, Shihu, led the soldiers, killing the enemy courageously.

These mountain barbarians were born for battle, and no enemy could cause them to back off a single step.

In the entire morning, the alliance army sent out five waves, but they all lost. A meter-high mountain of corpses started to pile up under the city walls.

Similarly, under the washing of the arrow rain, the mountain barbarians on the city wall also suffered heavy losses.

The mountain barbarians were strong, but they were too courageous and not flexible. When they fought, they did not know how to defend themselves from the arrow rain, so they were killed off one by one.

A thousand mountain barbarian soldiers were forever laid to rest at Guiping Pass.

Seeing that it was already noon, Li Mu did not even want to give the mountain barbarians any chance to rest.

A fully energized bunch of soldiers switched out for the exhausted ones, as they launch assault after assault.

The switching speed was so fast that it made one look on in awe.

The mountain barbarians on the city wall only had time to grab some water and swallow some ice cold mantous before the closely packed enemy soldiers used the scaling ladders to swarm up the city walls once more.

"Brothers, kill!"

Shihu swallowed the last mantou, raising his Tang Blade and chopping off the head of one of the alliance army soldiers.

The fresh blood splattered onto the mantous of the mountain barbarians. However, they did not care; they did not even wipe off the blood and just directly swallowed the mantous.

They had gotten used to blood and gore during Chiyou's reign.

Seeing the scene in front of them, the alliance army felt a shiver run down their spines.

The enemy in front of them were not like humans, they were like a bunch of devils from hell.

Before the battle, they were already scared.

However, the attack horns unceasingly sounded.

The alliance army could only grit their teeth and engage these devils.

This massacre caused the heavens and earth to change colors.

The red clouds on top of the battle turned into a huge whirlpool, slowly turning. The endless killing aurae and blood energy were absorbed into the spiral.

This battle was a race against time and also a battle of the mental strength of both sides.

Facing an endless assault, the mountain barbarian soldiers were like invincible asuras. Their bodies were filled with a fountain of energy, and they did not feel tired at all.

Seeing the night sky slowly rising from afar, Li Mu's expression grew more and more solemn.

The enemy was much stronger than he had anticipated.

At this point, Li Mu even thought of his old opponent, the strong Qin Army.

The Qin Army from before was as strong as this.

"I really did not expect that there would be such an iron-blood army in the wilderness."

Li Mu sighed and ordered his troops to retreat and prepare for the battle on the next day.

After a day, although the alliance army had suffered heavy casualties, losing 25 thousand men, based on his estimations, the troops inside the stronghold had lost half their members.

How would the remaining four thousand troops face the attacks tomorrow?

If everything went well, they would be able to take down Guiping Pass in the afternoon.

Li Mu's determination had never been so resolute.

Shanhai City was a huge dragon that was about to take flight. They had to deal a fatal blow before it could spread its wings.

If not, no other territory would be able to survive in the southwest region.

"Even if you are a dragon, you will kneel!"

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Chapter 532- Willing to Die

Translator: ryangohsf

Editor: Nora

When the morning sunlight shone down once again over the city walls of Guiping Pass, the battle once again played out.

The two armies that had rested for the night threw themselves without hesitation into this life or death battle.

It was obvious that the progress of the alliance army was smoother today.

The four thousand mountain barbarian soldiers looked on at the seemingly endless army; it was the first time they had doubt in their eyes. Just based on them, they could not even occupy all the space on the city wall of Guiping Pass, so they could only leave some empty spots.

Occasionally, there would be some alliance army soldiers who fearlessly climbed the walls through these empty spaces.

Shihu had no choice but to lead a firefighting squad to go along the city wall and extinguish all the dangers. Even so, there were many close calls, and they took heavy casualties.

Looking at the situation, it would be hard for them to hold on.

The numerical difference was simply enormous, and the balance of the battle started to tilt toward the alliance army.

Even the strong mountain barbarians, who employed all of their skills, could not properly face such a strong army.

Furthermore, thanks to the commands of Li Mu, the alliance army knew when to attack and retreat, coordinating well with one another. The sword-shield soldiers and archers had a tacit understanding, and the cover fire seamlessly mixed with the close combat fighting.

Although their enemies had suffered heavy casualties, Li Mu did not grow overconfident. This was the difference between a great general and a normal general.

All of a sudden, Guiping Pass teetered on the verge of collapse.

Pei Ju stood on the city wall, his expression extremely serious. Suddenly, a look of pain appeared on his face, as he stood up and arrived at Shihu's side, "General Shi, get ready to retreat!"

"What?"

The young general was covered in blood, but even the blood could not mask his shocked expression.

"I said, retreat!"

Pei Ju understood the feelings of generals like Shihu at the current moment, but he had no choice but to make the most rational decision, "Guiping Pass cannot be defended; let's not make unneeded sacrifices. Let's leave some foundation for the 1st independent division of the mountain barbarians; let's not let them disappear."Shihu was speechless; he turned around and looked at the men who were trying so hard, as a pained expression appeared in his eyes. After this battle, the elite legion that the Lord hoped for would probably not exist.

"No." Unexpectedly, Shihu shook his head once more, as a rare smile appeared on his bloodied face, "Mister Pei, you are an important minister to the Lord. You are different from us brutes and should not fall here. I'll arrange a guards squad to escort you out."

"What about you?"

Pei Ju looked at Shihu, as his heart grew more and more uneasy.

When he heard these words, the young general actually smirked. Under the sunlight, this smile looked incredibly pure, filled with a kind of beauty that one could not turn their eyes away from.

At that moment, Shihu's heart seemed to have been cleansed.

"Mister, we are different."

Shihu turned around and looked at the horizon. Under the blood red skies was a mysterious power, directing this young mountain barbarian general, allowing him to gain an unknown comfort.

"We are warriors, mountain barbarian warriors, the most loyal soldiers of the Barbarian King." Shihu's voice was low and calm; it was like the burden in his heart was placed down and only acceptance was left.

"Mountain barbarians can only die in battle; we do not retreat!"

Shihu tightly grabbed the blade in his hand, smiling once more, "This is our destiny."

When Pei Ju heard these words, he grew emotional. At this moment, his impression of the mountain barbarians completely changed. Before this, in his eyes, especially after what Chiyou did to him, the mountain barbarians were the definition of brutish and arrogant.

But at this moment, he truly felt the elite qualities of this race.

Tenacious, courageous, resilient, not good with words, willing to self-sacrifice….

They all had good qualities in them.

This was a race that was able to earn one's respect, and they would not hang 'loyalty and kindness' around their mouths every day. Instead, they would show such virtues during the crucial moment.

As one said, it was easy to know but hard to execute.

To be able to do that, how elite and amazing were the mountain barbarian race?

Thinking about it, for the Lord to recruit the mountain barbarian race was definitely not a split second decision. He had probably seen through their qualities and planned the matter long ago.

Thinking about this point, Pei Ju sighed.

He did not expect himself to grow so old, to the point where bias would appear in his eyes.

Pei Ju took a glance at Shihu, as he decisively and warmly said, "Since that's the case, this old bag of bones will stay here with you all!"

"Sir, you cannot!"

Shihu, who had looked calm and composed, suddenly became panicky and anxious.

"Why not?"

Pei Ju had already made up his mind.

"Sir, you are a civil servant, ruling the land is your strength. How can you stay with us and sacrifice yourself for nothing?"

"No." Pei Ju shook his head and smiled, "General, you are wrong. My current identity is the advisor of the Guiping Pass troops. I am an actual military personnel, not some civil servant."

"But…."

Pei Ju waved his hand, "There are no buts, this is decided! General, go back to your post. Even if we die, we must make the enemy pay a heavy price. The glory of Shanhai City must be upheld."

Shihu took a close look at Pei Ju, as his eyes gave out an emotional and touched expression.

At this moment, it seemed the barrier between them had suddenly fallen, allowing them to understand each other's thoughts.

In the end, the young general did not say anything, bowing solemnly to Pei Ju before leaving. Pei Ju, on the other hand, stood on the same spot, looking out at the army outside of the city, deep in thought.

Pei Ju had not expected there to be a day when his blood would boil once more. Everything that happened in history replayed in his mind, filling him with emotions.

Remembering the past, cherishing the moments.

The nicely dressed kid, giving out young and adventurous vibes.

The air of a scholar, challenging anything he did not like.

Conquering the Turks, running the western region, gaining the title of Lord.

Sending troops to Liaodong, setting up the north Fan Town.

Remembering the waters of the river hitting the raft, the waves crashing.

Working for the Tang Dynasty, greeting the king.

Everything in the past, all of it ends in gossip and laughter.Along with the motivating words of Pei Ju, the remaining mountain barbarians launched their strongest attack.

"Kill, kill kill!"

The tempo of the battlefield quickened, as the killing intent covered the heavens and spread across the wilderness.

A bunch of mountain barbarians started to sing their race's war song. Even when facing an enemy ten times their number, they feared nothing. One by one, they threw themselves into the embrace of the death god.

They used their actions to prove their promise to the Barbarian King. The mountain barbarian soldiers would not disappoint him; they would not humiliate the glory of the legion.

Life appeared so frail at this moment.

Every moment, there would be a mountain barbarian soldier falling.

The pained Shihu had totally become a blood colored tiger, sweeping around the battlefield.

Each brother that fell made the blood red color in his eyes thicken. At the end, he showed his might, letting loose a thunderous roar.

"Ah!"

Shihu's shout made him go berserk, and his body expanded and became filled with energy.

All of a sudden, he was invincible on the battlefield; no one could stop him.

Probably because of his influence and the atmosphere, the remaining mountain barbarian soldiers also let out roars and one by one went berserk.

In a moment, their killing aurae gathered.

The attacks of the alliance army were blocked, and the entire attack route was forced to a standstill.

Such might was really alluring.

Every time the mountain barbarian went berserk, it would surprise the enemy.

Only Li Mu, who was behind the troops, let out a smile. He had heard of the berserk state of the mountain barbarians. He knew that although they became strong, it was just a last ditch effort.

If the alliance army was able to hold off this wave, victory would be in their sights.

Li Mu raised his head at the sun overhead.

It was about two hours away from noon.

Which meant that he could take down Guiping Pass earlier than expected.

On the battlefield, what mattered was the size of an army. A small number of elite soldiers could last for a moment, but they could not last for long.

This was war, not some warriors competition of martial arts.The sad song at Guiping Pass still played on.

It was like even the heavens were not willing to let this army perish.

A change was about to occur.

Just as Shihu's troops entered their last leg and started to embark on their final path, on the north mountain roads of the pass, smoke bellowed and horse hooves thundered out.

"It's the Lord, the Lord is here to save us!"

The spotter at Guiping Pass saw the army that appeared outside the pass.

When Pei Ju heard these words, he felt a jolt in his heart, as he quickly turned around and looked out. The golden dragon flag was like a lighthouse, saving the boat of the mountain barbarians from getting lost.

"It really is the Lord!"

When they got the news, the mountain barbarians on the city wall cheered out. Their cheers grew louder and louder, astonishing Li Mu.

A bad premonition rose up.

"Has the variable finally appeared?"

Li Mu muttered.Ouyang Shuo raised his head and looked at Guiping Pass as it grew bigger and bigger in his sight. When he saw the Shanhai City Lord Flag that waved high up on the pass, he let out a comfortable sigh.

He had led the Divine Martial Guards to rush day and night. Apart from taking care of the war horses' rest, they even ate their meals on the horses. Finally, at the last moment, they managed to reach Guiping Pass.

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Chapter 533- Li Mu's Decisiveness

Translator: ryangohsf

Editor: Nora

The arrival of Ouyang Shuo was like a strengthening agent injection for the Shanhai troops at Guiping Pass.

Although the Divine Martial Guards that he brought along only numbered three thousand, they were a truly invincible group. They had been through numerous battles, and they had never lost.

Be it the strong Jiangdong Warriors or the cruel Chiyou Blood Guards, neither could take them down.

Each member of the Divine Martial Guards had already upgraded to grade 12 war elite soldier, which was the max grade for any soldier. In terms of personal combat strength, they were able to compete with basic generals and even intermediate generals.

Ouyang Shuo was confident that solely relying on the Divine Martial Guards, they could defend the pass for a day.

Moreover, at the back of Guiping Pass, there were still two more mountain barbarian divisions on the way. Apart from that, the Leopard Legion led by Han Xin was only two days away from Guiping Pass.

The hopes of the alliance army taking down Guiping Pass was probably going to end up in smoke.When Ouyang Shuo led his men into the pass and saw the scene on the city wall, his eyes could not help but tense up. Numerous mountain barbarian soldiers laid prone in the bloody pools.

Many arrows stuck out from their bodies.

Even before the four mountain barbarian divisions that Ouyang Shuo had organized received its name, one pillar had already been broken. Even the alliance army probably did not know how much harm their operation had caused to Shanhai City.

It was obvious that the mountain barbarians were facing their toughest time.

Hence, without any greetings, the Divine Martial Guards immediately struck out. They blocked up the spots of the dead mountain barbarians and slaughtered the alliance army.

Even Ouyang Shuo did not say anything, simply taking out the Chixiao Sword in his hand and directly charging forward. Even though he did not say anything, his actions alone raised their morale and motivated them to fight.

"Lord!"

"King!"

Along with the appearance of Ouyang Shuo, cheers broke out on the city wall. The soldiers shouted out the name of their Lord and slaughtered the enemy.

Moreover, the moment Ouyang Shuo arrived at Guiping Pass, the blood colored whirlpool on top of the pass stopped. A colossal blood dragon suddenly appeared and suppressed the whirlpool.

The blood colored whirlpool instantly stopped spinning.

Instantly, an invisible power of luck and fate enveloped the Shanhai soldiers.

If one looked on carefully, they would notice that of the tens of thousands of arrows that the alliance army fired, more than half had changed their trajectory and missed.

All of a sudden, the number of casualties were reduced.

And this was the appearance of luck and fate.

The Battle of Guiping had changed because of the timely appearance of the Divine Martial Guards. Although the alliance army had the upper hand, Li Mu did not have the confidence to take down the pass before noon.

Moreover, the number of casualties that the alliance army suffered made him shiver.

The main force attacking the pass was made up of fifty thousand sword-shield soldiers and twenty thousand archers. As for the ten thousand cavalry, they acted as a backup.

In the battle yesterday, they had lost half of the sword-shield soldiers. Including today, they had less than twenty thousand sword-shield soldiers left.

And on Guiping Pass, apart from the 2,300 Divine Martial Guards Ouyang Shuo brought, there were still the two thousand odd mountain barbarian soldiers, making up a total of five thousand men.

With twenty thousand sword-shield soldiers, Li Mu did not have the confidence to take down the five thousand trump card soldiers of Shanhai City.

Not to mention that this was their best of the best, even just a normal elite force of the enemy would be difficult in a four versus one siege situation.

Moreover, they were attacking a narrow and dangerous pass.

"This cannot go on!"

Li Mu shook his head, looking at the cavalry on his right and left and gave a gory order. He commanded the ten thousand cavalry to dismount and act as infantry to siege.

One must know that all these cavalry were elite soldiers that Li Mu had trained up, and they were best at wilderness cavalry battles. Now, he needed them to give up their war horses and climb scaling ladders.

Li Mu felt really pained in his heart.

Unfortunately, the change in the situation forced his hand.

Li Mu was clear that only by maintaining a huge numerical advantage could they stand a chance.

If not, they would have no hope.

One had to say that Li Mu was really a great general.

At the crucial moment, he could decisively make such a cruel decision without hesitation.

The cavalry forces were the personal guards army of Li Mu. Naturally, none of them were weaklings. When they received the orders from their general, they all dismounted without hesitation, pulling out the crescent knives by their waists and proceeding forward in a formation.

Ten thousand elite cavalry soldiers were suddenly thrown onto the front lines.

The pressure on the Divine Martial Guards grew.

The worst part was that the berserk state of the mountain barbarians had ended, and they had started to suffer from the side effects. All of a sudden, the entire defence line seemed to be on the verge of collapse.

Even without mentioning the mountain barbarians, even the Divine Martial Guards were exhausted after traveling continuously for a day and a half. The current battle was squeezing dry all the energy in their bodies.

One had to say, this battle was really full of changes.

Both sides could tilt the scales at any moment with just one decision.

Ouyang Shuo was incredibly sharp, and he immediately realized what had happened, causing him to frown.

The decisiveness of the enemy commander had exceeded his expectations.

Currently, they needed a brand new force to swap out for the mountain barbarians. If not, making the exhausted mountain barbarians hang on would only cause more damage.

If all of them died, no matter how strong the Divine Martial Guards were, they would not be able to hold on.

It was obvious that Ouyang Shuo was too optimistic previously.

The commander of the alliance army was a tough opponent.

The problem was where to find a new force now?

Ouyang Shuo frowned, as he tried his best to not let go of any potential points.

Suddenly, a unit appeared in his mind.

Thinking about that, he hollered, "Pei Ju!"

"Present!"

Pei Ju had never left the city wall. Upon hearing the Lord's shout, he rushed over.

"Bring up the Taiping Country soldiers that are locked here and give them weapons."

When the Guards Division attacked Taiping Pass, around three thousand of the Taiping Army soldiers surrendered; they were currently locked up.

Now, these surrendered soldiers had become his only hope.

"Lord, this..."

When Pei Ju heard this command, he hesitated.

The surrendered soldiers of Taiping Country were different from other surrendered soldiers. Even if they surrendered, amongst them, there would probably be some who were still loyal to Hong Xiuquan.

Hence, these soldiers presented a huge unstable factor.

Only after the Military Intelligence Division screened them could they be organized and used.

Now was obviously not a good time to use them.

If the matter went wrong, the opposite effect might happen and cause a tragedy.

Hence, before the Lord led his troops over, even in the most desperate times, Pei Ju had not even thought about using the three thousand surrendered soldiers.

Of course, this was partially because his prestige was lacking.

Ouyang Shuo understood his worries and waved him off, "We cannot think too much; let's just settle the situation in front of us. I'll send a squadron of Divine Martial Guards to aid you."

As he spoke, Ouyang Shuo gave Pei Ju a deep look filled with a lot of meaning and thought.

It was obvious that Ouyang Shuo had doubts too, but he had no choice. The best way was to arrange one hundred Divine Martial Guards to monitor and command them.

"Understood!"

Pei Ju knew that it was an emergency, so he did not say anything else. The Lord chose him to deal with the surrendered soldiers because no one else could. Moreover, he had placed his hopes on Pei Ju's diplomacy skills.

Whether they could calm down the hearts of the Taiping Army surrendered soldiers would completely depend on Pei Ju.Ouyang Shuo had no time to think anymore. He turned around and jumped right into the action.

This battle was the toughest battle that Ouyang Shuo had participated in.

Even the battle against the Chiyou Army did not push him to such a degree.

One had to say that this hand from the alliance army was simply a masterstroke.

Another half an hour passed.

The weakness in the bodies of the mountain barbarians grew stronger and stronger, and even holding up their weapons tired them. Moreover, at this moment, the reinforcements that Ouyang Shuo had hoped for still had not arrived.

"Did a change occur when Pei Ju went to convince them?"

Ouyang Shuo felt his heart sink, as a sense of failure filled him.

At this time, asking the mountain barbarians to forcefully hold on was useless.

He had no choice but to order them to back off.

The Divine Martial Guards took over the entire defence.

All of a sudden, the pressure mounted.

Even Ouyang Shuo could not relax; he had no time to think about anything else.

Every moment, numerous alliance army soldiers would charge at him.

The Chixiao Sword in his hand emanated a bloody glow.

This was also the first time that the Chixiao Sword was shown to the world.

Unfortunately, there was no one to admire it.

Ouyang Shuo used the sword techniques of the Killing Sword to perfection.

Probably at this moment, Ouyang Shuo truly understood the meaning and essence behind the technique.

The killing sword was the sword of the battlefield.

The battlefield was its destiny.

A divine sword technique that was lost in history had reappeared one more, bringing along slaughter and death.

Probably influenced by the killing sword, Ouyang Shuo's mind was actually exceedingly calm, without any thoughts. He did not care about anything around him or about why Pei Ju had not returned yet.

All that remained in his heart was the sword intent behind the killing sword.

Any enemy in front of him would be enveloped by his sword intent.

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Chapter 534- It Ends

Translator: ryangohsf

Editor: Nora

The red sun hung high up in the air, and the killing in Guiping Pass still showed no signs of stopping.

At the middle portion of the city wall that had Ouyang Shuo as its core, something magical happened.

On this chaotic battlefield, Ouyang Shuo had actually entered a contemplation realm known as 'forgetting oneself'.

This so-called realm was not literally forgetting that one existed.

It meant to put down all the thoughts in one's heart and focus on one's true heart.

Ouyang Shuo's true heart was the Killing Sword Sword Technique.

Hence, in his heart, apart from the killing sword, there was nothing else.

It was such a pure realm that made his heart, soul, mind, and body all combine into one, as he was thrown into the comprehensions of the killing sword.

A moment in this realm was like a day in normal life, even numerous days.

Most importantly, some hard to grasp concepts could be easily explained and understood in this realm.

This was called enlightenment.

Hence, anyone who walked the path of cultivation would yearn for and wish to enter this realm.

In this realm, although Ouyang Shuo did not focus on the outside world, his Chixiao Sword continued to move, displaying the Killing Sword Sword Technique.

The emanated sword intent could capture any killing intent from the enemy. The sword intent would automatically lock in anyone who wanted to kill Ouyang Shuo.

Hence, be it soldier or general, Ouyang Shuo's killing intent would cover anyone who stood before him.

Under the killing sword, no one could live.

With the Chixiao Sword in hand, Ouyang Shuo did not look like an emperor but an asura. He turned and charged on the city wall. Each time he slashed out, he would be able to take the life of one or even several alliance army soldiers.

Under the cover of his sword intent, any action or intention of the enemy would become as clear as day before him.

As time moved on, Ouyang Shuo grew more familiar and attuned with the Killing Sword Sword Technique. Moreover, along with endless killing, a blood aura had started to manifest around the sword.

Chixiao Sword, the sword of an emperor.

The sword itself was not like the Tianmo Spear, which knew how to absorb the blood essence of the enemy.

Hence, the blood aura could only congeal on the sword, becoming thicker and thicker. This scene was also similar to the nameless general that appeared when Ouyang Shuo had just started practicing the Killing Sword Sword Manual.

This also meant that Ouyang Shuo had truly started to grasp the essence of the killing sword.

Such terrifying might and majestic strength was something only a general of a generation possessed. No one expected such an aura to appear on a Lord, whose body and identity were so precious.

On the battlefield, be it the Divine Martial Guards or the mountain barbarian warriors that were resting at the side, both could feel their blood boil.

To be able to fight for such a Lord, they would even be willing to die for him.

The morale of the entire army swelled.

"Kill him!"

The alliance army sword-shield soldier commander was a brute with a moustache. His large eyes and fierce face sent shivers down one's spine. As he had a huge moustache, he was called General Huzi.

Seeing the scene, General Huzi personally led his troops to surround and kill Ouyang Shuo. In an instant, hundreds of soldiers, including General Huzi, swarmed toward Ouyang Shuo.

"My Lord!"

The Divine Martial Guards were alarmed. They wanted to assist Ouyang Shuo, but the alliance army soldiers blocked them.

"Lord, be careful!"

The mountain barbarians wanted to pick up their weapons, but they found that they did not even have the strength to stand. The side effects of the berserk state had entered its most crucial phase, where one would feel sore and be unable to use their strength.

It seemed like Ouyang Shuo would perish in the chaos.

General Huzi let out a cruel smile upon hearing the shouts from the Divine Martial Guards. He grinned, as he knew that he had captured a big fish.

As long as they killed this fellow, they would win.

General Huzi was even thinking about the scene where he would receive a reward from his Lord.

Apart from that, the sword in Ouyang Shuo's hands made Huzi drool.

Such a god sword obviously looked special at a glance.

If he could snatch it away and give it to his Lord, how good would that be?

Thinking about this point, General Huzi grew more and more vicious, slashing out with his large blade.

The current Ouyang Shuo was still engrossed in comprehending the killing sword, knowing nothing about the surrounding events. He could only wave his sword instinctively.

"Kill!"

In a moment, hundreds of swords slashed at Ouyang Shuo from all directions.

"Lord!"

Be it the Divine Martial Guards or the mountain barbarian warriors, their eyes turned blood red.

Just at this moment, Ouyang Shuo grinned, and like happiness, like comprehension, he slowly spat out the words, "Kill all life!"

Suddenly, he spun 360 degrees on the spot, sweeping out with his Chixiao Sword.

Instantly, the blood aura that covered the sword broke out and transformed into sharp red blades that shot out at the soldiers around him.

Numerous soldiers fell, and even General Huzi was hurt.

The enemy encirclement was broken.

"Great!"

The Divine Martial Guards cheered out.

Such might; one might ask who on this earth could challenge their Lord.

Now, the worship and respect the soldiers felt toward Ouyang Shuo had reached the highest level.

The mountain barbarians at the side even started to shed tears from all the emotions.

They all recognized their Barbarian King.

The new Barbarian King possessed strong martial arts skills, and he was both intelligent and morally upright.

It was truly a blessing for the mountain barbarian race to have such a great Lord.

The warriors were so happy that they continuously shed tears.

What about Ouyang Shuo? His killing had not stopped.

The Chixiao Sword in his hand shone brightly, as it reaped soul after soul, life after life.

"4th, killing general!"

Ouyang Shuo's eyes focused, as the Chixiao Blade in his hand thrusted out like the horn of a goat, suddenly appearing in front of General Huzi.

A general fell just like that.

"General!"

The soldiers all around him cried out in alarm. Their general dying had caused their morale to fall.

On the contrary, the morale of the Divine Martial Guards was sky high.

Just like that, relying on Ouyang Shuo's courage, the army miraculously held on once more.

At this very moment, rushed footsteps sounded out from below the city wall.

Pei Ju led the three thousand surrendered soldiers and finally appeared. If one looked on carefully, they would notice that less than three thousand soldiers had actually appeared.

Moreover, flecks of blood covered even Pei Ju's body.

It was obvious that convincing the surrendered soldiers did not go smoothly. Some hiccups must have occured.

Luckily, the end result was an acceptable one.

With the addition of the new blood, the defence of Guiping Pass slowly calmed down.

This batch of Taiping Army soldiers were the original defenders of the pass, so they were really familiar with it. They were able to smoothly enter their role, and they did not need any time to adapt.

When Ouyang Shuo saw that, he heaved a sigh of relief.

The toughest moment had finally passed.

With the Divine Martial Guards as the core, and the Taiping Army soldiers as a support, the entire defence line was as stable as Mount Tai.

This battle could be said to have had three peaks.

This intense battle lasted from morning till night.

Both sides went all out, not leaving any stones unturned, as they showed all their trump cards.

When the two thousand mountain barbarians recovered and reappeared on the city wall, the battle was settled.

The alliance army had lost their chance to take down Guiping Pass.Under the cover of the sunset, Li Mu's expression was exceptional ugly. A battle that he was so confident in had ended up with his troops suffering heavy casualties, forcing him to retreat in failure.

Attacking Guilin Prefecture was his most important military operation since he appeared in the wilderness. Before attacking Guiping Pass, everything had gone so perfectly.

But the pass in front of him had caused him and his army to suffer heavy losses.

"Back off!"

As expected from a general of his generation. Although his heart was filled with regret, he did not lose his rationality. He was clear that with the remaining soldiers on hand, taking down Guiping Pass was a total pipe dream.

Since that was the case, why not back off to Guilin Prefecture to discuss future plans?

Li Mu believed that with the strength and ability of the advisor, he would be able to think of a way.

As the sun set, less than forty thousand troops backed off from the front lines. After some slight adjustments, they followed the uneven mountain path back into the valley.

This soul shocking battle of the pass ended beautifully at this point.

Guiping Pass, city wall.

Looking at the alliance army that slowly backed away, Ouyang Shuo fell into deep thought.

"Who is the general?"

"Based on what the Military Intelligence Division reported, he's the famous Warring States general, Li Mu. Not only is he the main commander for the troops attacking Guiping Pass, he's the commander of the overall alliance army."

The one replying to Ouyang Shuo was Pei Ju.

"Li Mu, huh? No wonder."

Ouyang Shuo raised his head and looked at the vast night sky, not saying a word. As he stood straight under the cover of the setting sun, he appeared incredibly majestic.

Pei Ju looked at the back view of the Lord, feeling guilty in his heart. He had learned of the battle situation. If it was not for the Lord going all out, the outcome would be detrimental to them.

Since the reinforcements had come too late, the Lord had nearly died.

Be it any territory, this could be considered an offence worthy of death.

However, when the Lord saw Pei Ju, he calmly said, "You are here!"

Following which, he continued to throw himself into the battle.

There was not a word of blame nor a word of question.

As a result, Pei Ju felt really uncomfortable. His Lord trusted him, but he had nearly messed up. Hence, he was filled with guilt.

Remembering what had happened in the prison, Pei Ju would always feel regretful and afraid.

Thinking back to an hour and a half ago.

Pei Ju had led a hundred Divine Martial Guards to the prison. This was called a prison, but in truth, it was more like a small-sized barrack.

The three thousand Taiping Army soldiers were locked up here.

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Chapter 535- Bearing This Anger

Translator: ryangohsf

Editor: Nora

Guiping Pass, jail.

When Pei Ju stepped into the jail, pairs of doubtful eyes looked toward him.

Although the surrendered soldiers were all locked up, they were not totally cut off from the world. They were clear that the current Guiping Pass was under attack, and the situation was bad.

In such a situation, for the Shanhai City minister to come here, his purpose was quite obvious.

"Guys." Pei Ju looked around, his voice suddenly filled with a lot of charm, "There's no need to hide anything. I'm sure all of you know that Guiping Pass is under attack."

The moment his words sounded, chatter broke out.

Listening about it was one thing, but learning the truth from the minister was another. A weird glow appeared in some of their eyes.

"The situation is dangerous now, and we may fall any moment." Pei Ju raised both his hands to calm them down and continued, "If it falls, Shanhai City will suffer heavy losses. Your lives might also be lost. Guiping Prefecture has already been occupied, and the Taiping Army there has already been cleared out. Hence, I ask all of you to not have any false hopes of the enemy treating you nicely."

Pei Ju's words were the same as extinguishing the hopes in some of their hearts.

Unfortunately, some of them did not fear death, or they were loyal to their king till death. After hearing that Guilin Prefecture had fallen, they were not angry. Instead, they were a little happy.

The enemy of the enemy is a friend.

It was obvious that to those loyal people, Shanhai City was their enemy.

Pei Ju had incredibly sharp eyes, so he immediately noticed their weird expressions. However, they did not come out to sow chaos, so it was hard for him to deal with them. As such, he could only look on.

"Guys, it's time to prove your loyalty to Shanhai City. Don the armor, take the weapons, and fight along with the Lord's personal army - the Divine Martial Guards!"

"For Shanhai City and also for yourselves!"

Pei Ju knew that time was of the essence, and he did not expect a long speech would convince them. He could only link the battle with their lives and hope to ignite their spirits.

As he spoke, the Divine Martial Guards that followed him opened up the arsenal and passed some armor and weapons to each fallen soldier.

After receiving the weapons, the aurae of the surrendered soldiers changed. The originally soft squad instantly turned bloodthirsty, becoming a force that had been through many wars.

"Hen, you just want us to risk our lives for your Lord!" Suddenly, resentment spread out amongst the crowd, the voice filled with contempt and anger.

A wave would cause thousands of waves.

"That's right! You cannot hold on anymore, so you thought about us. Isn't that too late?" With weapons in their hands, they had the strength to speak, so their attitudes became arrogant.

"That's right, you locked us up like prisoners. When did you even see us as humans? Now, with problems cropping up, you suddenly think of us as your own people; what a joke!"

"Hen!"

All of a sudden, the voices of doubt toward Pei Ju and Shanhai City rose up. The Divine Martial Guards unsheathed the Tang Blades around their waists and solemnly waited.

"Why, you want to kill us to make us keep quiet? Bring it on!"

With weapons in their hands, some of the soldiers even became fearless. Amongst them, it was obvious that someone was fanning the flames to cause problems.

"Brothers, look, they need us now, so they treat us so politely. Once the battle ends, we will be forsaken and deserted once more."

"That's right. Rather than fighting for them, why not kill our way out?"

"That's right, kill our way out. They cannot even save themselves, so why will they stop us?"

Under the words of some people, the group started to fidget.

Some of the surrendered soldiers started to look at Pei Ju with nefarious intentions.

When Pei Ju saw that, he felt a shiver run down his spine.

If the three thousand of them really wanted to cause problems, the one hundred Divine Martial Guards would fail to suppress them.

The key was that Pei Ju was worried about the safety of their Lord.

The longer this lasted for, the more dangerous the situation would grow.

Thinking about that, his expression became sharp, and he hollered, "Why, you want to rebel?" Instantly, a forceful aura broke out, stunning everyone.

The surrendered soldiers were terrified.

They did not expect this polite looking old man to emit such an aura when he was angry.

"I want to rebel; what can you do about it?!" There were still a few men who were not scared, and they directly charged out with their blades.

When Pei Ju saw that, he was calm and unafraid.

"So bold!"

The Divine Martial Guard standing behind him raged, moving past Pei Ju and beheading the man with one stroke.

Fresh blood splashed onto Pei Ju's robes.

Instantly, the entire place fell totally silent.

Everyone was shocked by the strength of the Divine Martial Guard. They did not even see clearly when he had slashed out, and the head had already landed on the ground.

Such blade skills were truly next level.

"They killed someone. Brothers, let's kill them!"

After the silence, an even louder uproar broke out, as the group grew emotional.

The fresh blood on the ground did not scare them. Instead, it ignited their killing intent.

When Pei Ju saw that, his eyes instantly turned ice cold. He knew that he could not drag on for any longer, so he signaled to the Divine Martial Guards.

They quickly took out their bows and shot at the group of surrendered soldiers.

Cries broke out.

Upon closer inspection, those in the crowd that had sowed the most chaos were shot and fell to the ground.

Such archery shocked all the surrendered soldiers.

The one hundred Divine Martial Guards actually suppressed the three thousand surrendered soldiers.

When Pei Ju saw that, he knew it was time for him to speak, "Guys, think about it, what should you do to benefit your family? I do not wish for all of you to risk your lives because other people are fanning the flames."

After a short pause, he continued, "In this battle, anyone who contributes will be able to get rid of their identity as a fallen soldier. The Lord will be magnanimous in your rewards."

"One path was a dead end to hell; the other was the path to riches. What choice should you make, is it not really clear?"

Along with the blood scattered all around, Pei Ju's words were highly convincing.

The remaining surrendered soldiers fell into deep thought.

Without other people fanning the flames, a large portion of them turned rational. Especially those who were born in Xunzhou Prefecture. Thinking about how their family members were in Shanhai City's hands, they calmed down.

"Mister, say what we should do. We will just follow your words."

Finally, someone stepped out and expressed his willingness to follow the commands of Shanhai City.

When Pei Ju saw that, he let out a sigh of relief and pointed to the Divine Martial Guards, "You've seen it just now. They are the personal guards of the Lord, the strongest warriors in Shanhai City."

"Now, they will lead you into battle."

The surrendered soldiers had a direct impression of the Divine Martial Guards. Naturally, they accepted their lead.

As time was of the essence, after hurriedly forming up, Pei Ju brought them up the city walls. Hence, only then did they see the scene before Ouyang Shuo's eyes.

On the city wall, just as Pei Ju started to think about the past, a hurried shout alerted him.

"Lord, emergency military intel!"

He looked over and saw a messenger hurry over.

When Ouyang Shuo heard that, he turned around and accepted the letter.

Flecks of eye-piercing blood covered the letter from Xuanwu Pass. In his heart, a bad feeling started to grow.

Just now, he had looked out on the city walls, worried about the situation in Xuanwu Pass. Without reinforcements, could the five thousand soldiers there hold on?

In truth, Ouyang Shuo had no confidence at all.

But between the two, Ouyang Shuo had to make a choice.

The wilderness was just so cruel.

After opening the letter, he found more blood red. The entire letter was actually written in fresh blood.

'To General Shihu:

Xuanwu Pass was suddenly attacked. The soldiers and I will defend it to the end. However, there are too many enemies, and they are about to overrun us. As for the hopes and well wishes of the Lord, I can only thank him in death.

General, there's no need to reinforce Xuanwu Pass, as I'm the last survivor. After sending out this letter, I'll die together with my brothers.

I hope in the next life that we will still be brothers.

Help me greet the Lord on my behalf and thank the king! -nameless mountain barbarian soldier.'

Looking at the letter, Ouyang Shuo grew furious, as tears started to form up in his eyes.

The valiant and fearless soldiers had sacrificed their lives to show their loyalty.

And as the person they were loyal to, Ouyang Shuo did not have the ability to save them. He could only watch them fight to the death and die one by one.

This was the first time that Ouyang Shuo hated this game, hated it for being so real.

"Pass this letter to Shihu."

Ouyang Shuo's voice was sore, filled with an unspeakable exhaustion. After passing the letter to Pei Ju, he turned around and looked toward the horizon.

The sunset at this moment looked exceptionally bright.

The back view of Ouyang Shuo seemed lonely and crestfallen. He even wanted to bring the Shanhai City Army into the Guilin Prefecture and start an all out war with the enemy to take revenge.

Unfortunately, his current situation did not allow him to do so.

The current Shanhai City did not have the strength to support another huge war.

Ouyang Shuo could only bear it, temporarily bearing this pain and suffering.

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Chapter 536- Strategy Saint Zhang Liang

Translator: ryangohsf

Editor: Nora

Guilin Prefecture, Bushan City.

Bushan City was located in the central region of Guilin Prefecture, and it was the largest city inside the prefecture. Outside of the city flowed the famous Lijiang River in a downward stream. The sights and scenery of Guilin were completely beautiful.

The command center of the alliance army was set in Bushan City.

Along with the sweeping operation of Guilin Prefecture coming to an end, the various Lords shifted their troops over to the city.

During the Battle of Zhaoqing, members of the South Alliance traveled along with their troops. In the end, they all had to commit suicide to return to their territories. Since that incident, Lords were really careful about following their troops to battle.

Among the Lords of the Xiangnan City-State, only Caiyun Zinan and another Lord called Gu Henxiao followed the troops.

Gu Henxiao was the Lord of Li Mu.

As for the Chuanbei Province, as they temporarily had not formed a city-state, the ten Lords had to follow their troops out. Their representative figure was a person known as West Gate Big Official.

The reason he named himself that was because he was a famous playboy in reality. When he entered the game, he relied on his family's support to grow powerful.

In the Chuanbei Province, West Gate Big Official could be considered the number one figure.

The Lords had gathered at Bushan City to command the troops, but most importantly, they were here to discuss how to split the spoils of war. The huge Guilin Prefecture was a piece of fatty meat no matter how one looked at it.

After taking it down, they needed plenty of discussion to decide on how to divide this cake.

Apart from that, how to arrange the troops to defend the prefecture was another topic. Since they took it down, no matter who it was, they would want to keep it.

Moreover, to run Guilin Prefecture, one naturally needed to house a large number of troops.

Although the alliance army had caught Shanhai City off guard, their worry and fear of them did not decrease in the slightest. Instead, they became even more wary of this tiger.

Based on their sources, the Chuanbei Province had already started to build a city-state to effectively counter Shanhai City.

As such, the alliance army wanted to immediately take down both passes.

As long as one defended both of these passes, they would not lose Guilin Prefecture. On the contrary, if they lost the passes, defending Guilin Prefecture would be a task of the highest difficulty.

24th day, morning, the battle reports for the two passes were passed on to the command center.

Xuanwu Pass was smoothly taken down. However, Shanhai City successfully defended Guiping Pass.

When the various Lord received this news, their breath got stuck in their throats. It could not go up or down, making them feel extremely uncomfortable.

The loss at Guiping Pass terrified all of them. They were worried that when they woke up, the huge Shanhai City Army would bear down on them in an all out confrontation.

The only person that remained calm and composed was the Lord of Caiyun City - Caiyun Zinan.

Lord's Manor, West Cross Courtyard.

This courtyard was the place where Caiyun Zinan stayed. Both the inside and the outside of this courtyard were heavily guarded.

Caiyun Zinan sat in the middle of the main hall.

Below him sat a middle-aged scribe, his face white without a beard, and his features exceedingly distinct. This scribe was the advisor that Li Mu had mentioned, and he was similarly another amazing person.

He was none other than the person who was given the title of Strategy Saint, Zhang Liang.

Zhang Liang, also known as Zi Fang. He was an exceptional military advisor that appeared at the end of Qin. Along with Han Xin and Xiao He, they were termed as the three greats of Han. He was born in an aristocratic family, and his grandfather, father, and previous generations were all ministers of the Han King.

As the Han Country was destroyed by the Qin Country, Zhang Liang decided to go against the Qin.

He convinced Liu Bang to act humble during the Hongmen Feast and not show off his power. He also worked together with Xiang Yu's father, Xiang Bo, to ensure that Liu Bang was able to escape. After which, he came up with a plan to help Liu Bang obtain the world during the Chu Han War. He helped Liu Yi become the prince and was given a title of Lord.

Zhang Liang was an olden thinking type of person, and he did not care about power. In his later years, he followed Chi Songzi out to travel.

Liu Bang once evaluated him with these words, "Zhang Liang's plans in the tent helps to decide battles thousands of miles away."

Descendants respected his strategies and plans, terming him as the Strategy Saint.

As a result of this title, his evaluation grade was higher than Baiqi, Han Xin, and Xiao He. He was an actual Saint rank historical person.

To be able to gain the support of Zhang Liang, this alone showed that Caiyun Zinan was special.

One must know that although many Saint rank figures like Jiang Shang, Sun Wu, and Meng Zi lived in Shanhai City, they did not truly work for Shanhai City, different from Zhang Liang and Caiyun Zinan.

Caiyun Zinan was probably the first Lord to have a saint grade figure work for him.

One had to say, this person had great ability, and he had kept the matter really close to the chest. No wonder he could shine during the Battle of Julu and become the brightest dark horse.

In truth, during the Battle of Julu, Caiyun Zinan had activated the recruitment quest of Zhang Liang. After the Battle of Julu ended, Caiyun Zinan went through a tough and arduous test in the wilderness before finally gaining his trust and allegiance.

This arduous journey was not something that Lords like Ouyang Shuo, who recruited historical talents so easily, could understand. After all, be it on the battle map or in the wilderness, Ouyang Shuo had smoothly recruited people without much difficulty.

The only exception was probably Jiang Shang.

That old man only agreed to become the principal of Xinan University after Ouyang Shuo tried so much.

Apart from that would be Fan Li.

Who knows whether the Black Snake Guards had managed to find him yet."Zi Fang, this time, Guiping Pass was not taken down. What plans do you have to salvage the situation?" As it was hard for him to recruit Zhang Liang, Caiyun Zinan had the utmost faith and trust in him.

When Zhang Liang heard that, he smiled, "Lord does not need to worry, even though it was much of a surprise that we did not take it down. But after all, our opponent is not a simple person."

"Since that's the case, Zi Fang, do you have a plan?" Caiyun Zinan asked.

"That's right. We did not take down Guiping Pass, but that is not much of a problem. We just need to build a large-sized pass at the entrance to Guilin Prefecture. With that, we can similarly defend against the enemy."

"Brilliant plan!" Caiyun Zinan was delighted.

"Lord must take the matter of defending the Xuanwu Pass seriously." Zhang Liang changed the topic, "The Xuanwu Pass is not considered a dangerously steep area, so we were able to take it down easily. This also means that they could naturally take it back easily. Hence, the important matter would be to fortify the pass with more troops."

"That makes sense; I'll make arrangements." Caiyun Zinan nodded, "The troops in charge of sweeping Guilin Prefecture have finished their mission, so they can move into Xuanwu Pass."

"Adding troops only solves the problem on the surface. To solve the core issue, we need to build a stronghold," Zhang Liang added.

"Building two strongholds at once will use up a lot of resources."

When Caiyun Zinan heard that, he knew that he was in a tough situation, and his expression showed it.

Zhang Liang was intelligent, and he could guess the situation from that slight change in expression, "What thoughts do the other Lords have on the post war plans of Guilin Prefecture?"

Based on the plan that Zhang Liang had made before the war, the cooperation to take down Guilin Prefecture was not to occupy the land. Rather, it was to create a buffer zone between them and Shanhai City.

After all, to the Lords of the two provinces, apart from Caiyun City, the rest were still at the county grade. They did not need to worry about a lack of land.

Just the land within the prefecture itself was enough to give them a headache.

Hence, if it was solely to occupy the land, there was no need for them to do so much.

At its roots, attacking Guilin Prefecture was a strategic plan. After all, if Shanhai City took it down, the territory would be connected to the two provinces.

With an enemy sleeping beside you, how could you be able to fall asleep?

As such, they started the war.

Taking down Guilin Prefecture meant that the situation had changed.

If Shanhai City wanted to go up north to attack the two provinces, they had to go past Guilin Prefecture. With that, the two provinces would have time to react and adapt.

Apart from that, fighting in Guilin Prefecture would allow them to accomplish their goal of defending their own territory, not allowing the flames of war to spread to their own province.

This act was killing two birds with one stone.

Hence, before the battle, the alliance army had a clear internal plan for Guilin Prefecture. They would turn it into a military region that was under shared control. All the income from the prefecture would be poured into the alliance army troops housed there.

With that, they would be able to maintain a huge alliance army, and it would not cause a burden on their territory's finances. It was the same as spending others money to develop your own army.

Be it the plan before the war or the arrangements post war, the entire plan was closely linked, and it had a high developmental potential.

And the person who came up with this plan was the Strategy Saint Zhang Liang.

It was this plan that attracted the Lords of the Wannan City-State and the Lords of Chuanbei Province, with West Gate Big Official as their representative.

However, Zhang Liang did not expect that once they succeeded, under the huge temptations of the rewards, some of the Lords could not sit still.

Which was to say that on this matter, some of the Lords had started to become selfish.

Actually, before Caiyun Zinan came to meet Zhang Liang, he had met up with the other Lords. Their intentions were to directly split up the rewards before having further discussions.

As such, when he heard Zhang Liang's suggestion to build two passes at once, he was placed in a tough spot.

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