Whale Falls and Becomes a God

Chapter 164: Stormy Red Terrace
"elder brother!"

Shen Manxuan, whose thoughts were in turmoil because of Wen Renyun's death, blurted out anxiously and worriedly.

What everyone wants to know is naturally known to the Shen brothers and sisters, who are dragons among men. Shen Lun volunteered and will indirectly become a member of the "Suicide Squad", which is a life-or-death situation!

"Don't worry! I have confidence!" Shen Lun tilted his head and smiled to comfort him, which was also a statement.

Shen Manxuan's pretty face changed color and she seemed to want to say something but stopped herself.

What Shen Lun didn't say explicitly was that he was already a high-ranking general in the Shangliang Army, and his combat prowess was considerable. After merging with the planetary spirit of Long Tianxing, Shangliang's number one general, his combat power skyrocketed, his speed increased several times, and his ability to survive increased significantly.

In addition, the "Suicide Squad" requires the presence of King Jingwu in person to command and take charge. Without the "divine magic given by heaven", the "Suicide Squad" will lose its meaning and become a waste of effort!
Since Prince Jingwu will take action personally, what else does Shen Lun have to fear?
Following the lord into battle is a subject's duty. If you volunteer, you can earn yourself credit and recognition. Why not?!

"Okay! Let's give it a try..."

Seeing that everyone basically agreed, Xiao Ying thought for a moment and nodded in response, then ordered:

"In this battle, I will personally lead the Jingwu Guards, the Jingwu Army, and the armies of the East, West, and Center, as well as the Front Army! The Left, Right, and Back Armies, along with 200,000 young and strong recruits, will remain in Hailing to continue training!"

"Yes!"

Wang Caixuan, Dugu Feng and some others opened their mouths but still agreed.

After a while, all the generals left, some preparing to go to battle, some taking over their posts, some continuing to train the troops, and so on.

"Young Master... We have sent out all our best troops in this battle. If we are defeated..."

Xiao Ying led the crowd down the city. Qian Feng, the one in charge of military affairs among the four maids, reminded them hesitantly with some worry.

The Jianghuai Army was originally the most powerful and largest anti-king force in Jiangnan. This time, they were said to have a million-strong army. Even if the exact number was not as huge as one million, it was estimated to be 700,000 to 800,000. Moreover, they were not the Liang army on the southern route that used the people to make up the numbers like the King of Liang did.

Quantitative change will lead to qualitative change!
Even if the Sui army were composed entirely of elite troops, totaling approximately 223,000 strong, and could crush the Jianghuai army, it would still be difficult to defeat them. Once their fighting spirit was lost, the Sui army would be the losers under the human wave tactics, and they might even be completely annihilated!
Qian Feng has just enjoyed the pleasure of commanding an army, and he is more devoted to the Jingwu Guard than Xiao Ying, so he is reluctant to see them suffer any casualties!

Xiao Ying waved his hand and said resolutely, "There's no such thing as a one-sided situation! At most, both sides will suffer losses. Given the current situation, we might be able to scare off or force the Jianghuai Army to retreat. Only the Fengming Army will be left, so we won't have to worry about it!"

"Yeah!" Qian Feng thought about it and agreed, so he stopped persuading her.

……

Tianmu Ancient City, City Lord’s Mansion!

Ever since Fengming King Li Zitong was assassinated, more than half of the Fengming army that had left the city turned back, and Li Zitong hid in the city lord's mansion and did not appear.

Recently, rumors have been circulating in Tianmu Ancient City that King Fengming has been assassinated, causing unrest among the Fengming army. Many generals and ministers are becoming increasingly concerned and have their own ideas.

However, Li Zitong still did not show up to refute the rumors, and he even stayed at home. He even rarely saw the middle and low-level generals and other personnel, which made the rumors more and more intense and made people unstable.

"Your Highness! Great news! Great news! Prince Jingwu has actually taken the initiative to lead his troops out of the city to fight against the Jianghuai Army!"

When Li Zitong was lying on his bed meditating, a loud shout was heard. The person arrived before him, but the voice had already arrived!

At this moment, Li Zitong didn't even look injured, let alone seriously injured to death.

However, Li Zitong was indeed severely injured by Yin Wan'er's palm at that time, but he suffered internal injuries, which was why he looked so embarrassed and couldn't even stand up, but it was not fatal!
Instead of refuting the rumors, they are just going with the flow, or taking advantage of the situation!

Li Zitong's eyes lit up, and he sat up excitedly, but pretended to be calm and scolded him, "Calm down! Be steady! You're already a general, why are you still so impulsive?"

Liao Changxiong grinned nonchalantly and said, "Your Highness! The Sui army and the Jianghuai army are really going to fight! Your Highness is indeed as good as a god, haha..."

As he was speaking, Le Botong and other generals and military advisors of the Fengming Army also came over on their own initiative.

It has to be admitted that among the three rebel kings in Jiangnan, Fengming Army does have the least famous generals and celebrities. Basically, there is only Wu Yunzhao, Marquis of Nanyang, who is holding up the stage. However, the fact that he is a peerless general who looks down on the world and has such high reputation and prestige that he can be called the "second best in the world" makes up for the shortcomings of Fengming Army to a certain extent.

Next is Li Zitong, the King of Fengming, and then Le Botong and Liao Changxiong, two third-rate generals. The others are basically not in the mainstream, let alone famous generals, celebrities, or teachers!

This is also one of the main reasons why people all over the world and various forces looked down on the Fengming Army and even treated King Fengming as a soft persimmon after the Battle of Eagle's Beak Gorge!

"Isn't this to be expected? Unless the Jianghuai Army gives up their plans for Hailing City, or even plans to give up Jiangnan, it's only a matter of time before they confront the Sui Army. This is an overt conspiracy!"

Li Zitong spoke calmly and pretended to be profound, as if he had a complete understanding and had planned everything out.

Li Zitong's cousin and military advisor, Li Ziyun, solemnly warned, "Your Highness! This is certainly a good idea, but it ultimately violates the alliance. If the Jianghuai Army loses..."

Another military advisor, Huo Tai, echoed, "Yes, Your Highness! Whether it's our army or the Jianghuai army, facing the Sui army alone, the outcome is truly unpredictable! Furthermore, now that most of the Shangliang army has surrendered to Prince Jingwu, the Sui army's chances of winning are even higher!"

"Don't worry! I am not such a short-sighted person! I am definitely not someone who would betray my friends!!!"

Li Zitong looked towards the southwest with a gleam in his eyes, waved his hand to appease people righteously, and then said in a deep voice with a ferocious expression:
"I originally only intended to use them as surprise troops during a siege, but I never thought Prince Jingwu would actually lead his army out of the city to fight. It seems he's been so successful lately that he's become arrogant! Arrogant troops will always be defeated..."

After saying this, Li Zitong's face showed resentment again and he murmured:

"Prince Jingwu! Demon Sect... your death is coming!"

"Oh?"

Li Ziyun and Huo Tai exchanged a look of surprise. Huo Tai's eyes lit up and he blurted out, "Could it be that the prince has already arranged for someone to sneak into Hailing City? The Marquis of Nanyang?"

After he finished speaking, Huo Tai continued, "Could it be that the Purple-faced Heavenly King and the Taihang Mountain Bandit also went there secretly? And what about Hun Tian Wudi?"

"After the Nanyang Iron Cavalry was annihilated, it's not surprising that Purple-Faced Heavenly King and Hun Tian Wu Di assisted in their revenge..."

Li Zitong smiled but said nothing, but Li Ziyun followed up with his analysis and then asked with anticipation and curiosity, "Are they going to kill King Jingwu or seize Hailing City?"

Everyone has great confidence in Yun Xihai and the other two!

Marquis Nanyang alone is almost invincible, not to mention the Purple-faced Heavenly King, Hun Tian Wudi, and his personal troops who are comparable to Marquis Nanyang. This is not as simple as one plus one plus one equals three!

Putting aside other things, if it comes to a battle of generals, it's impossible for Prince Jingwu to win, right? Even with the unparalleled Phoenix, it's difficult. The Sui army's traditional tactic of "winning with top-tier combat power" is ineffective. Without top-tier combat power, the Fengming Army and the Jianghuai Army naturally have more soldiers and generals. It's obvious!
"This is indeed a problem..."

Li Zitong did not give a clear answer, but he frowned and muttered to himself solemnly, thinking deeply. Then he looked at Liao Changxiong and Le Botong and instructed:

"Regardless of the situation, we have an alliance. Our army cannot remain idle and sit back and watch the tigers fight. Otherwise, we will lose our credibility and the people's support! Each of you will lead an elite army (100,000 strong) and rush to Hailing City at full speed. I will lead the main army and follow soon!"

"Yes!"

The two generals did not get to the bottom of the matter, but responded quickly and excitedly!
The others looked at each other, and were also very excited and eager to try, as if victory was already within reach!

……

Piling City.

The Daliang army occupied Piliang City for many days, but did not rush to take over the territory of the Shangliang army, nor did they go north to disrupt the situation, but instead remained inactive.

The Nanyue army on the edge of Piling County also remained inactive. The situation was quite strange, causing the people of Piling County to worry and become chaotic, and indeed caused a lot of unrest!
"Your Majesty! Our army can no longer sit idly by. If the Sui army leaves the city to fight, the battle may end quickly. If the situation changes drastically, our army may not arrive in time... There will not be enough time to clean up the mess!"

Intelligence from the Sui army quickly reached Piling City. Seeing that the King of Daliang still showed no signs of taking action, the generals of Daliang gathered together anxiously, and Dong Jingzhen repeatedly gave advice.

According to their original analysis and speculation, the Sui army, Fengming army and Jianghuai army would fight in Hailing City for ten days to half a month. The most likely scenario was that both sides would suffer losses, and the Daliang army would benefit.

After all, Hailing City was a fortified city, and unless the Sui army made a major mistake, it would certainly not be easy to capture. Furthermore, the Sui army was no pushover, otherwise they would not have been able to quickly pacify and persuade the Shangliang army to surrender.

With these three tigers fighting each other, it is almost foreseeable that all three will suffer losses or only two will suffer losses!

Nowadays, plans cannot keep up with changes...

"It's indeed a bit far..."

Xiao Xin was quite receptive to advice. He nodded thoughtfully, then looked at the gathered generals and said:

"So... Zhang Xiu, Lei Shimeng, Zheng Wenxiu, and Xu Xuanche, lead your respective divisions and ten thousand elite soldiers to disperse and sneak towards Hailing... and the surrounding area, ready to act at any time!"

"Yes!" Zhang Xiu and other generals responded.

Perhaps because of Xiao Xin's identity as a member of the Western Liang Xiao family, the Daliang army gathered many famous generals and celebrities.

In addition to the four generals, there were also famous people who were the first to support Xiao Xing's uprising, such as Dong Jingzhen, Shen Liusheng, Guo Hua, Wan Zan, and Xu Deji. They were all heroes who were famous in history and had their names and legendary stories recorded in history books.

Historical celebrities are different from celebrities in the martial arts world. They have been verified by time and history and basically do not have undeserved reputation. Even a treacherous minister has his own talents, abilities and advantages that are unmatched by the world!

Originally, Hong Lingtian would have been the number one general under Xiao Xin, but was snatched away by Xiao Ying in advance. There are still many famous generals who have not yet emerged or become famous. Otherwise, there would be more of them. It can be said that there are so many geniuses and it is destiny!
"Remember! Don't move rashly! Wait for the king's order!"

……

Hailing County.

The Sui army is now in a state of chaos where all parties move at the same time, and the whole world is in turmoil. It is truly a case of "a single move affects the whole body"!
Even the forces that were too far away to reach out did not forget to pay attention to the world-renowned Hailing battlefield. After all, it was the only orthodox battlefield in the world... the remnants of the Sui Dynasty!
Xiao Ying led 223,000 elite troops into battle, but he did not make a big fanfare. He also asked the military advisors, priests and other spiritual practitioners in the army to use their magic to help conceal their tracks and movements and speed up the march. He wanted to keep it secret for as long as possible, and it would be best if he could launch a surprise attack on the Jianghuai Army.

However, under the watchful eyes of the public, such a large-scale military operation cannot be concealed from anyone who is paying attention, and it is not difficult to infer it based on clues alone!
It can be said that once more than 200,000 elite troops left the city, no matter how hidden they were, the news quickly spread to all directions, and even the target of the attack... the Jianghuai Army, quickly found out!

The next evening!
It took the Sui army only two days and one night to reach a point a hundred miles ahead of the Jianghuai army.

It wasn't that the Sui army was marching at a rapid pace; rather, they were intentionally slowing down to maintain their momentum. It was simply that the Jianghuai army was already heading towards Hailing City, and with both sides heading in opposite directions, theoretically the Sui army only needed to cover half the distance!
South of Gaoyou Lake, east of Shenju Mountain Range, and Chitai Mountain.

The world in this world is even wider and more vast. Gaoyou Lake covers an area of ​​more than 10,000 square kilometers (more than ten times the actual area), and the Shenju Mountains stretch for thousands of miles from east to west, which can be regarded as a natural barrier.

Due to the geographical location and distance, the Sui army stopped at Chitai Mountain, which covers an area of ​​dozens of miles and has an altitude of more than 100 meters, and directly stationed troops at Chitai Mountain.

Chitai Mountain is not a famous mountain or a giant vein. It is only famous because it is a remnant of Shenju Mountain. However, it is also quite peculiar. The top of the mountain is a huge platform, as if it was cut in half by gods, and it is famous for its red color.

It is worth mentioning that Chitai Mountain is located northwest of Hailing and northeast of Jiangdu. It is directly north of the two cities and is about the same distance from the two cities.

This was not something Xiao Ying did on purpose, but the Jianghuai Army was coming from this direction, and Xiao Ying was just leading his troops to fight!

However, Xiao Ying's move caused countless forces to speculate, especially the Jianghuai Army.

Upon hearing that Prince Jingwu was leading his army to fight, the Jianghuai Army did not stop its march. It continued to march according to the plan and route, but the marching speed was almost halved, which was quite cautious.

The mighty Jianghuai Army stretched for dozens of miles, like a blue dragon on the earth.

"Prince Jingwu stayed at Chitai Mountain and didn't move, even setting up camp on the mountain?"

Upon hearing the intelligence, Du Fuwei, who was accompanying the army, quickly summoned all the generals to question it, and then raised the question:
"Could it be that Prince Jingwu wants the Sui army in Jiangdu to come in from hiding and attack our army from both sides?"

Wang Xiongdan responded in surprise, "That's impossible. Although Chitai Mountain is about the same distance from Hailing and Jiangdu, there are many water veins between them and Jiangdu, which would be difficult for marching and easy to ambush. How could Empress Xiao and Prince Jingwu be so unwise?"

King Chu Fu Gongyou and others also nodded, but Fu Gongyou suggested cautiously:
"Since Fu Wei has such concerns, we can dispatch two small armies (10,000 men) south to be on guard. It won't affect the overall situation, so it's better to be prepared!"

"Can!"

Du Fuwei looked at Fu Gongyou deeply and nodded in response. He quickly asked the question:
"Prince Jingwu is famous for his surprise attacks and powerful assaults, but now he's standing still. What do you think he's up to? Is he planning a head-on battle with our army?"

Everyone was silent. This question was really hard to answer.

Fu Gongyou frowned and replied, "It's possible! Prince Jingwu's actions are no secret now, so how can we launch a surprise attack? There are no dangerous places nearby, so what else can we do except a head-on battle?"

"Alright! Then let's keep marching. The decisive battle at Chitai Mountain!"

Du Fuwei thought about it and felt that there was nothing wrong, so he nodded in response and instructed: "Expand the scouting range three times, and the vanguard troops should be vigilant!"

"Yes!"

(End of this chapter)