Three Kingdoms Mythology World.

Lin Mu felt both excited and somewhat puzzled.

However, sensing the terrifying fluctuations in the sky, Lin Mu still ordered everyone to retreat and stay away from the battlefield.

Even though the soldiers attacking the city had gained the upper hand, they still sounded the retreat.

As the retreat signal sounded, Huang Zhong, Taishi Ci, and others escorted the soldiers in a swift retreat. The soldiers, despite their advantage and achievements, did not question the orders and orderly and quickly withdrew from the city walls.

And so, the first siege battle came to an end!
The results of the battle were quickly reported to Lin Mu.

In this siege, 1,300 soldiers were sacrificed, while 80,000 enemy soldiers were killed, resulting in a great victory.

However, there are some problems: Han Fu's elite troops have not appeared, and the whereabouts of the special forces are unknown...

Were they lying in ambush somewhere in the city, waiting for him to enter?!

Ignoring Han Fu for the time being, everyone turned their gaze to the sky.

High in the sky, two figures locked in fierce combat roared through the air, each clash of their weapons unleashing terrifying energy fluctuations and whipping up massive storms around them. The air trembled, and the sounds of clashing metal were incessant.

Huang Zhong and Taishi Ci, who had retreated, were also looking at the sky with confusion. They could sense that Dian Wei's aura had not yet completed its transformation and was still at the peak of the Nine Yuan Divine General level.

But his combat strength, and the power of rules he uses, seem to be different!
Even though they were only at the peak of the ninth level of the Divine General realm, they could sense that the gap between them and Dian Wei had widened!
"It seems that Yuan Shao's stuff is too low-grade, while Gong Tu's foundation is too deep!" Lin Mu thought to himself, thinking of Dian Wei's difference.

He had a premonition that Dian Wei was unable to truly break through because the opportunities he received were slightly inferior.

"I wonder if the [Divine Realm Token] should be used on Gong Tu or Han Shengziyi?" Lin Mu pondered to himself.

The ownership of the [Divine Realm Token] is still undetermined, but Lin Mu prefers that the generals break through first, while Guo Jia and the others can do it a little later.

Dian Wei's situation seems to be somewhat special now. If the [Divine Realm Token] can enable Dian Wei to break through completely, then the Great Wilderness Territory will have a Heavenly General in charge, and there will be no need to worry about Lu Bu.

As for Lü Bu, Lin Mu was actually more afraid that he would harass other vassal territories like he had done with the Great Wilderness Territory. Lü Bu's ambush actually put Lin Mu at ease.

While Dian Wei was fighting Lü Bu, Han Fu and a group of strategists and generals were also watching the battle from the Quliang city wall.

"I never expected Lin Mu to launch a frontal assault instead of a sneak attack. What was he thinking? His thinking is so unpredictable and hard to fathom!" Han Fu exclaimed.

He had already set up a trap at the teleportation point, with two special forces units and two fully-equipped elite legions lying in ambush, waiting for Lin Mu to slip in... but Lin Mu did not come in!
"Uncle Mu, the Yangzhou battlefield is currently unable to break through the gates, causing many allied forces to be tied up in the south. How about we contact them and pay a price to have them teleport directly here to besiege Lin Mu's army?" Ju Shou suggested again.

"Call for reinforcements? Would they be willing? Coming here from the south would cost a lot of money, and there would be problems with supplies as well..." Han Fu hesitated.

Hearing Han Fu's hesitant words, Ju Shou sighed inwardly.

He had a premonition that even if he acknowledged Han Fu as his lord, Han Fu would not heed his advice, strategies, and suggestions. If Han Fu were a brilliant lord with great wisdom and vision, it would be fine; they could learn from each other and improve together… But if Han Fu remained stubborn and headstrong, then things would truly be terrible.

Currently, Han Fu is quite stubborn and refuses to listen to advice...

This put him in a somewhat awkward position...

"My lord, there is no need to worry. This general will surely achieve great feats and utterly defeat the Wei general whose skills are said to be miraculous!" A general of medium build, not particularly handsome, with dark skin, a slight upturn at the corners of his mouth, and dressed in a rough Qiang leather armor stepped forward and said.

This man is Qu Yi, one of Han Fu's generals and the leader of the Vanguard Death Squad, a special unit!
"I believe the plan devised by strategist Ju Shou is feasible, and there is no need to spend a great deal of money to ask for reinforcements. If our lord uses those funds on the vanguard of the suicide squad, their morale will be greatly boosted, and they will surely achieve great merit!" Qu Yi said confidently, tilting his head slightly.

Upon hearing this, Ju Shou frowned slightly.

He devised many plans, but those only guaranteed him to remain undefeated, not to win.

If we can get reinforcements, we will definitely have a chance to win!
Ju Shou gave the two men a deep look, feeling quite emotional. These two guys could be quite reliable at times, but at other times they seemed a bit presumptuous…

“Gongyu, there’s no need for an allied force. Don’t rush things.” At this moment, a handsome but thin man with a ruddy complexion came to Ju Shou’s side and whispered a reminder.

Upon hearing this, Ju Shou turned to look at the newcomer and nodded: "Yuan Hao, I was too hasty. The battle has only just begun. Although Lin Muzhi's extraordinary methods have initially shown their power, as the battle intensifies, we will find his weakness. We cannot rush..."

Yuan Hao, courtesy name of Tian Feng!

This person was none other than the famous remonstrating official Tian Feng!
"I've never seen you so eager to win before. Why are you so unsettled now that you're facing Lin Mu?" Tian Feng said quietly.

He had actually noticed Ju Shou's unusual behavior... In the past, he was not usually so eager to win. No matter how much hardship and difficulty he faced, he always insisted on fighting on his own territory and never called for reinforcements... This time, he called for reinforcements before the battle had even lasted long, which showed that something was wrong with him.

Ju Shou looked at Tian Feng and nodded meaningfully.

Tian Feng looked at Ju Shou and nodded, as if he had thought of something, and sighed softly without saying anything.

Just as they were watching the battle, a messenger hurried over.

"My lord, military news from Youzhou." A messenger arrived before Han Fu to report.

"Read it!" Han Fu said directly.

"Yuan Shao, the governor of Bohai Commandery, has mobilized 800,000 troops to march south and attack Zhongshan!" the messenger announced loudly.

"Good! Good! Good!!" Han Fu was overjoyed upon hearing this.

Compared to conquering and expanding Youzhou, he preferred to secure the basic territory of Jizhou, which was his true foundation!
However, Yuan Shao's actions caused Ju Shou and Tian Feng to frown.

Yuan Shao's army heading north totaled one million. If we were to directly withdraw eight hundred thousand, wouldn't that be tantamount to abandoning the plan to quickly capture Youzhou?
After conquering the cities of Zhongshan, Changshan, and Julu, Lin Mu did not manage them for the time being. Most of them relied on the existing government system to operate. In other words, it seems that Lin Mu did not intend to permanently manage the territories he conquered.

What's the point of Yuan Shao attacking empty cities? It's just like launching a northern expedition against Youzhou... He might as well continue the northern expedition.

“They all can’t see the situation clearly…” Ju Shou said to Tian Feng in a low voice.

"Lin Mu can stall, but can we?" Tian Feng sighed softly.

The daily losses of the allied forces of the feudal lords were enormous. Although Lin Mu's losses were also considerable, it always felt like delaying was Lin Mu's real strategy.

Lin Mu wasn't afraid of delays at all; what he lacked was time!

His retreat from Youzhou and Qingzhou was to buy time!

"Uncle Mu, Yuan Shao's actions may be driven by ulterior motives." Tian Feng spoke his concerns directly without any reservations.

Yuan Shao had already harbored ill intentions towards Han Fu, and Han Fu sensed the danger at that time, so he immediately withdrew and avoided disaster.

However, after returning to his base in Jizhou, Han Fu's sense of crisis somehow disappeared.

When Yuan Shao asked to pass through on his way to launch a northern expedition against Youzhou, Han Fu was not only very happy to do so, but also extremely cooperative, sending over supplies with a smile.

Fortunately, Yuan Shao, who was only passing through, didn't cause any trouble. But what if he had? What would have happened then?
The struggle among the feudal lords has begun with the appearance of the Heaven and Earth Feudal Lords List. Han Fu's naive attitude is already somewhat dangerous!
“Last time he borrowed the road, you said he had ulterior motives. Now that he’s harassing Lin Mu’s rear, you say he has ulterior motives again… Hmph!” Han Fu looked at Tian Feng and snorted coldly.

Upon hearing this, Tian Feng was momentarily speechless. His previous advice had indeed lacked evidence and had not occurred as he had predicted, hence his lack of confidence.

“Yuan Hao, Yuan Shao’s disloyalty will not be revealed for the time being.”

“Now that Lin Mu, this fierce tiger, is in Youzhou, all sides are under pressure and won’t act recklessly,” Ju Shou said, pulling on Tian Feng’s sleeve.

When Tian Feng heard his friend speak, he pursed his lips and said nothing more.

In fact, Yuan Shao's withdrawal to Ji Province was also a form of pressure on Lin Mu. Given the opportunity, they could have simply crushed Lin Mu's army in Ji Province!
As for the Northern Expedition to Youzhou, there are also Liu Yu and Li Dian, whose troops number as many as two million!
The problem is that if they go too deep, logistics won't be able to keep up... and the strategy of using war to sustain war is not feasible. Lin Mu's army's retreat was not a chaotic one; it was a planned retreat. They took all their supplies and provisions with them. Even though they captured city after city, the gains couldn't make up for the losses.

This dragging on is really scary!
The fierce battle high in the sky intensified. Dian Wei wielded his twin halberds like a storm, each strike accompanied by a sharp whistling sound that tore through the air. Crimson divine energy intertwined around him, forming a unique energy barrier.

Lu Bu's halberd was like a dragon emerging from the sea, sometimes fierce and unparalleled, sometimes cunning and unpredictable. Purple lightning danced on the tip of the halberd, and every collision caused subtle ripples in the space.

The two fought from high in the sky into the depths of the clouds, and then fell from the clouds to a height of only a few feet above the ground. The terrifying shockwave forced the soldiers who had just retreated below to move back again, and even the sturdy city walls seemed to tremble slightly.

Even if Dian Wei hadn't broken through to the next level, he was truly evenly matched with Lü Bu. That already counts as a breakthrough; he hadn't failed!
Seeing that Lü Bu was being held back, Han Fu and the others looked rather grim.

Now, among Lin Mu's fierce generals, there is one who can resist Lü Bu, and the situation is becoming increasingly unfavorable for the allied forces of the warlords.

"It's a pity that Lü Bu wouldn't listen to me, otherwise I wouldn't have used him like this!!!" Ju Shou sighed inwardly as he looked at Lü Bu, whose purple light surged forth. (End of Chapter)