Tian Yuan Xian Ji

Chapter 1659 Battle Situation

He had just made his attitude clear, but Han Siyuan still wanted him to lead his troops to attack Jinan County. In addition to justice, there was of course selfish motives involved.

As far as war is concerned, generally speaking, the commander-in-chief of the army will never be selected from those who hold opposing opinions, because it is very contradictory to let others risk their lives to attack the city if they are opposed to it.

If one insists on having his own way and lets someone who opposes the war become the commander-in-chief and lead the army into battle, it will most likely lead to defeat. The commander-in-chief will have no desire to fight and will naturally retreat when encountering danger, which will inevitably lead to the defeat of the army.

Of course, Han Siyuan had sufficient reasons to appoint him this time, because his cultivation level was the highest in the coalition, his strength was the strongest in the coalition, and his prestige was the greatest in the coalition. To recapture Jinan County, he was of course the best candidate for the main general.

Although the reasons are sufficient, it does not mean that there is no selfish motive.

This matter can be discussed privately after the meeting is over, so whether he refuses or not will not affect anything.

However, Han Siyuan insisted on choosing him, his opponent, as the main general in the meeting hall in front of everyone, in order to weaken his influence within the coalition.

In recent years, Tang Ning's prestige has grown, completely overshadowing Han Siyuan. He has more and more supporters and his voice is getting bigger and bigger.

Han Siyuan's move was intended to make him offend the spiritual families and sects in Jinan County. Given his status, his refusal to lead troops to retake Jinan County would inevitably make the local forces in Jinan County dissatisfied with him.

Back then, when he was about to recapture the three counties of Qingzhou, he was full of ambition and confidence. He even said on the spot that he would take the head of the Peacock King when facing opponents with different opinions.

Now that his cultivation has reached a higher level, he is unwilling to contribute to the recovery of Jinan County. The local forces in Jinan County will certainly bear a grudge against him, and he will certainly not get their support within the coalition in the future.

Tang Ning was well aware of Han Siyuan's intentions, but he would not put himself in danger just to win the favor of the monks in Jinan County.

He knew the inside story, but he couldn't say it out loud. No matter how many troops the coalition forces mobilized, the final result would definitely be a crushing defeat.

Before this, he had actually expressed his attitude of sticking to Linzi County many times in public and private. Now he made his public statement again in the meeting hall, which showed that he had done his best.

There was nothing he could do if Han Siyuan and other members of the coalition forces insisted on having their own way.

As expected, when he politely declined, several high-ranking officials of the coalition forces in Jinan County showed expressions of displeasure and dissatisfaction.

"If Fellow Daoist Han does not give up, I am willing to lead my troops to recapture Jinan County." Lu Zhiyuan said coldly.

"Okay. Daoist Lu has great ambitions. Since you have volunteered, I will appoint Daoist Lu as the main general to capture Jinan County this time." Han Siyuan smiled and praised: "Is there any other Daoist who is willing to lead his troops to recapture Jinan County?"

At that moment, two or three more people volunteered, but nothing could be accomplished with just these few people. When no one responded, Han Siyuan began to call out names of men. Most of them were those who had just expressed their support for the recovery of Jinan County. Some remained neutral and did not speak.

In this way, half of the senior members of the coalition forces were gathered, and they began to discuss the attack strategy and arrange the deployment of follow-up support and material supplies.

.........

Time passed quickly, and several months passed in the blink of an eye. When the decision to attack Jinan County was made, the entire coalition army began to operate at full speed like a machine. Various legions were transferred from all over the place, and warships transporting supplies were endless.

The coalition forces attacked Jinan County in two routes, one from Jiangyue County and the other from Ning'an County.

At the beginning, the two units progressed smoothly, with frequent good news, and they captured several cities in a row.

But the further they advanced, the more fiercely the demons resisted, and considerable casualties began to occur.

At this time, it had been more than a year since the Allied Forces entered Jinan County, and warships carrying the wounded continued to arrive. The Allied Forces continued to advance step by step.

It was not until the coalition forces that set out from Jiangyue County and attacked Huazhang City in Xuyang County, Jinan County, that they suffered heavy casualties for the first time.

A fierce battle broke out between the coalition's vanguard and the defenders in Huazhang City. Both sides suffered heavy casualties. More importantly, Deng Qilin, who led the vanguard, was killed by the demon Mahayana in Zigui City.

The coalition forces had not yet captured Xuyang County, but they had already lost a Mahayana monk, which was a huge blow to the morale of the entire coalition forces.

Despite this, the commander Lu Zhiyuan did not stop for a moment to adjust his forces. Instead, he added more troops to attack Zigui City. After taking it, the coalition forces headed towards Xuyang County. At this time, it had been nearly three years since the coalition forces entered the jurisdiction of Jinan County.

In such a large-scale war, if one could capture a county within a few years, it would be considered good progress. But just as the coalition forces surrounded Xuyang County, a large number of elite demons rushed out from inside, led by the late Mahayana demon who had captured Yuantian County. Xuyang County immediately dispatched more than a dozen Mahayana demons to counterattack.

The result was no surprise, the coalition forces were defeated and even their leader Lu Zhiyuan was killed by the late Mahayana demon.

Not only that, the other six Mahayana monks who followed the army were also killed or injured. In the end, only three of them successfully broke through and escaped.

As for the coalition forces below, they suffered countless casualties. The other coalition force that first learned of the letter also hurriedly withdrew from Jinan County. This coalition force was led by Yao Yuanqing, the leader of a noble family who came to support.

He remained silent during the original meeting and did not explicitly support or oppose the attack on Jinan County, so he was a neutral party.

So Han Siyuan called his name and asked him if he was willing to lead his troops to recapture Jinan County, and he agreed.

While discussing the strategy of advancing, the coalition forces decided to attack Jinan County in two routes. Lu Zhiyuan led one route, and Yao Yuanqing was the main general of the other route, because of his high level of cultivation and the fact that he was the leader of the coalition forces of the aristocratic families.

The troops led by Yao Yuanqing set out from Anning County and advanced towards Hongxing County, Jinan County.

Unlike Lu Zhiyuan, after Yao Yuanqing's troops entered the territory of Jinan County, they advanced steadily and cautiously, and did not rush for quick success. They were very cautious every time they attacked the enemy camp.

He would first send out scouts to explore the way, then send out small teams to attack, and only after he had fully understood the details of the enemy camp would he send out the majority of the vanguard to attack, while he himself would stay in the rear of the coalition forces.

Therefore, when Lu Zhiyuan's troops had arrived at the city of Xuyang County, Yao Yuanqing had just captured the three outermost cities bordering Hongxing County.

When he heard that Lu Zhiyuan was defeated and killed, Yao Yuanqing made a decision immediately and led his troops to withdraw from Jinan County, so the troops he commanded did not suffer many casualties.

.........

Linzi County, Weiping County, in a dim room, Tang Ning held the innate treasure gourd in his hand, and the green spiritual power in his body continuously flowed into it to condense ice crystals.

At this moment, there was a knock on the door. He immediately put away his magic gourd and sat down. As the stone door opened, Gao Yuan came in and bowed, saying, "Uncle Master, Senior Yao has arrived at our headquarters and is waiting in the meeting hall. He wants to see you."

Tang Ning nodded, then stood up and left the cave. Although he did not participate in the battle to capture Jinan County, he was also responsible for ensuring logistics and defense. Weiping County is located behind Ning'an County and is the second line of defense for Linzi County. He is currently stationed here with Kong Rui, Zhu Zhiqing and Feng Jingyuan.

Yao Yuanqing was already seated in the majestic and vast hall. He strode in and bowed his head in greeting: "Daoyou Yao, why are you here?"

"Our headquarters has withdrawn from Jinan County. I returned to Linzi County to report the battle situation to Fellow Daoist Han. I passed by here, so I came to pay you a visit." Yao Yuanqing stood up and returned the greeting: "Fellow Daoist Tang must have known about Fellow Daoist Lu's matter!"

"I heard about it, but I didn't expect the casualties to be so heavy. Fellow Daoist Lu was too impatient. He is the head of the Jinan County sect and wanted to repel the demons and recapture Jinan County. Therefore, he was too eager for quick success and was ambushed by the demons, resulting in such a great defeat. It's such a pity." Tang Ning had expected this. A look of pity appeared on his face and he sighed slightly.

"Brother Daoist Tang is indeed far-sighted. If Brother Daoist Lu had listened to you, this wouldn't have happened."

"How many casualties did Daoyou Yao's troops suffer?"

"My troops are fine. I kept in mind Brother Tang's advice and marched into the camp step by step and advanced slowly. The casualties were relatively small. When the news of Brother Lu's defeat and death came, our troops had just captured three cities outside Hongxing County."

"We were able to retreat to Linzi County without any casualties and preserve the strength of the coalition forces. Daoist Brother Yao can be considered to have done a great deed."

"What kind of merit is this?" Yao Yuanqing waved his hand and said, "To be honest, I don't support the war against Jinan County in my heart. It's just that we are outsiders and have just arrived in your place. It's not easy to express our views on such a war and defense plan. And Fellow Daoist Han called my name on the spot. We are here to help your tribe resist the demons. If we refuse to move forward, we will inevitably be pointed at and even attacked. Therefore, I have no choice but to go."

"I understand that Brother Yao has done his best to escape unscathed. Those coalition monks who returned safely will be grateful to you for this."

Yao Yuanqing sighed, "It's a pity that I had too many concerns at the time. Even though I opposed it in my heart, I didn't have a clear attitude, which led to the failure of this attack on Jinan County. Speaking of it, I am also responsible. If this happens again next time, I will definitely support Brother Tang with all my strength."

Tang Ning knew that this was the real purpose of his visit today. The meaning of his words was very clear. The hidden meaning was that he was dissatisfied with Han Siyuan's decision to attack Jinan County this time, and he would no longer obey Han Siyuan's orders. And he undoubtedly represented the attitude of the noble family allies. As a reinforcement team coming to help Qingzhou resist the demons, they had a certain degree of autonomy and did not have to obey Han Siyuan's arrangements.

This time Han Siyuan insisted on letting them attack Jinan County. They had just arrived and it was difficult for them to refuse, but they were dissatisfied. Especially since the war was not going well and they returned empty-handed, they felt that Han Siyuan was incompetent. However, they could not leave Qingzhou, so they decided to join forces with Tang Ning.