From a country cook to a master chef

Because Lin Jue had notified all the cities and fortresses in advance to prepare for defense, they were able to wait in ambush and successfully caught Zhanbo's troops off guard.

In no time, good news kept pouring in from all over Dawu.

However, the Zhanbo people came with great force and quickly organized an army of 100,000 to fight against the main force of Dawu's 40,000 troops at Xuanlu Mountain.

The tragedy and bloodshed of this battle shocked the world and were recorded by later generations; it is known in history as the Battle of Xuanlushan.

On that day, at the foot of Mount Xuanlu, war drums thundered, banners fluttered, arrows blotted out the sky, and shouts of battle tore through the heavens.

Both sides' troops were fearless and charged at each other repeatedly.

The Zhanbo Kingdom's army primarily used cavalry charges, with nearly three thousand Futu Iron Cavalry rampaging through the ten-thousand-strong Dawu formation as if it were empty.

Fortunately, General Dawu Goulian intervened, personally leading several thousand Iron Hook Battalions to decisively defeat the Zhanbo Iron Pagoda, turning the tide and averting disaster.

Although the Battle of Jampo ended in retreat, seemingly a victory for Great Wu, the cost was unprecedentedly high.

The 40,000 elite troops ultimately suffered more than 36,000 casualties, with more than 200 Divine Power Realm warriors dying in battle, 11 Divine Illumination Realm experts falling, and three Divine Union Realm experts sacrificing their lives heroically.

Among them was Hu Meng, an elder of the Tianwu Mountain Inner Court and the then commander of the three armies of Xuanlu Mountain.

The culprit behind this tragic battle was the deputy general Xing Kui, who defected at the beginning of the battle. Although he had retreated with Zhanbo's troops, he was personally ordered by the Emperor to be hunted down. Anyone who killed Xing Kui would be rewarded with 10,000 taels of gold and granted a fiefdom of 10,000 households.

When Lin Jue learned that Elder Hu of the Inner Court had died during the rebellion, his heart was filled with complex emotions. He wondered how many more people would defect to Zhanbo Kingdom in the future, and he didn't know if Dawu Kingdom could expel the Tartars and restore its land.

Lin Jue has gradually come to understand the current situation from the various battle reports that keep coming in.

Since the invasion of Zhanbo, in just two years, Dawu has successively lost three prefectures and sixteen counties, including Wenren Prefecture and Xiaoyao Prefecture.

Hu Meng was not the highest-ranking general to die in the Great Wu Army. Among all the generals who died in battle, Wenren Yong, the governor of three prefectures and the provincial governor, was the highest-ranking.

He was a man of unwavering loyalty to his country. Surrounded by enemies on all sides, he refused to surrender and personally led eight thousand White Spear soldiers to fight fiercely on all sides. He died on the battlefield, his body wrapped in a horse's hide, sacrificing himself for his country.

Emperor Wu posthumously granted him the title of Duke of Anguo, General Protector of the Nation, and the posthumous name of Wujie.

Although Wenren Yong died, his daughter Wenren Yu succeeded him, leading tens of thousands of elite troops from the Wenren family to retreat to Feiniu Pass in Shenjian Prefecture. She repeatedly repelled the Zhanbo army and was awarded the title of General Baigan Zhonglie.

In light of the repeated defections of rebels to the enemy in various regions, Emperor Wu personally appointed several princes as military supervisors to lead the elite Tianwu troops to reinforce the front lines.

The Zhanbo Kingdom invaded Dawu with great force, and with ample supplies in the rear, it was prepared for a long-term, full-scale war with Dawu.

As for the cultivators of the six alliances of the Great Wu Kingdom, they are currently resisting the attack of the Wushan Wizards on the Golden Valley Plain.

The Zhanbo witchcraft has been passed down for thousands of years. It is completely different from the Qi refining methods in the Great Martial Immortal Cultivation World. Its power is astonishing and unpredictable.

In their first encounter, the Six Sect Alliance suffered heavy losses. Fortunately, they made up for the difference in strength with their overwhelming numerical advantage. Under the leadership of the Core Formation stage elders of each sect, they seized opportunities and dealt heavy blows to the evil cultivators of Wushan on several occasions, even killing three Wulings who were comparable to Core Formation stage cultivators.

After this battle, even though the evil cultivators of Wushan were furious, they had no choice but to retreat several miles and no longer launch large-scale attacks easily. They only sent out small groups of elites to harass the Six Factions Alliance.

The Six Factions Alliance naturally wouldn't tolerate this, and quickly formed the Six Factions Witch Hunting Team to search for the evil cultivators of Wushan who were trying to sow discord among the martial artists of Dawu.

On this day, just as Lin Jue was about to take some powerful pills in an attempt to break through to the Divine Illumination Realm again, a loud and clear sound of a bull horn suddenly came from outside, followed by the beating of war drums and the rising and falling of sharp whistles.

"Enemy situation! Enemy situation!"

"It's terrible! The Zhanbo army is attacking! Go and report to the General immediately!"

"Calm down, everyone calm down, don't panic, follow me to the city walls to meet the enemy."

Hearing the shouts outside, Lin Jue felt a chill and then walked out of the military tent with a solemn expression.

At this moment, the inspectors and captains in charge of the city gate defense were already systematically arranging for the soldiers to prepare for defense.

From the direction of the barracks, many captains who had received the signal were leading their troops at breakneck speed.

Not far away, Xi Ning rode his horse at full speed toward Lin Jue, shouting urgently, "My lord, the main force of the Zhanbo army is concentrating its attack on the south gate. The general has ordered you to take over this gate and make sure to hold off the Zhanbo flank forces."

Upon hearing this, the several patrol officers standing behind Lin Jue finally calmed down considerably.

Firstly, this place was not the main target of the Jambo Kingdom's attack.

Secondly, with someone directing the operation here, even if problems arise, someone will naturally take the blame, making things much easier for them.

Lin Jue took the military order brought by Xi Ning, took a deep breath, and immediately instructed the generals to prepare to defend against the enemy in a professional manner.

But when he stood on the city gate tower and looked into the distance, his heart sank.

Outside the Salt Beach Pass, the Zhanbo army was densely packed, with smoke billowing everywhere, like dark clouds pressing down on the city, making it almost impossible for everyone to breathe.

"It seems that the Zhanbo army intends to take the Salt Beach Pass with all its might this time. Even if it is not Zhanbo's main force here, it is not much different."

Lin Jue's heart sank. He knew very well that no matter which gate it was, they would probably face an extremely difficult defensive battle.

This battle will likely be difficult.

Thinking of this, Lin Jue ordered in a deep voice: "Xi Ning, you should lead the Langjue tribe to make preparations. When the battle begins and the enemy's attack on the city weakens, you should come out of the city with me to kill the enemy."

Simply defending will not be enough to hold the gate; if we're going to fight, we must fight with momentum.

As for command here, Xu Liao, you will temporarily take over. Guan Huai will lead five hundred mobile troops, ready to support us at any time.

Under Lin Jue's command, everyone obeyed their orders and retreated. Before long, Zhanbo's army began to attack the city.

"Release the arrows!"

Lin Jue shouted loudly, and just as the first wave of Zhanbo siege soldiers were setting up ladders and preparing to climb the city wall, he immediately ordered his men to throw out logs, boulders and other projectiles, and then poured oil on them.

Not far away, the catapults of the Zhanbo army were activated, and huge boulders the size of millstones roared down and crashed into the salt flats, creating blood pits and sending severed limbs flying into the air.

Amidst a hail of arrows, soldiers from both sides fell one after another into pools of blood, and the sounds of clashing swords and spears filled the air.

At this moment, enemy soldiers had already climbed the city wall and were fighting with the guards of Yantan Pass.

Lin Jue was shocked. The battle had only been going on for a short while, yet the enemy had managed to scale the city walls. The battle was incredibly fierce.

But soon, after exchanging blows, Lin Jue realized the problem.

The soldiers of Zhanbo were almost all martial artists, each with extraordinary skills. Coupled with their high morale, they were naturally unstoppable.

On the other hand, the soldiers guarding Yantan Pass, not to mention the others, were all recruited from the four major families he had gathered. They were originally just a group of commoners, and even after months of training, their combat effectiveness was no match for these well-trained Zhanbo soldiers.

After annihilating all the enemy troops who had scaled the city walls, Lin Jue took advantage of the fatigue of the Zhanbo army and launched a decisive attack, leading his two thousand carefully trained cavalrymen out of the city and charging into the Zhanbo camp with their flags raised.

These two thousand Wolf Rising troops were the brainchild of Lin Jue. Although they were not as heavily armored as the Zhanbo Iron Cavalry, they were still well-equipped iron cavalry.

Led by Lin Jue, the cavalrymen were like a raging fire, burning the Zhanbo army into complete disarray, as if they had entered an empty land.

Just when Lin Jue thought the battle was over, dozens of strangely dressed people suddenly rushed out from the depths of the Zhanbo Kingdom's army camp.

These people were all dressed in black and white robes, covered in long strips of silk, and each had a mysterious green mark like a leaf between their eyebrows.

"The Wizard of Champo!"

"Oh no, retreat quickly!"

Lin Jue was startled and immediately led the Wolf Jue tribe to break through and fight their way back to Yantan Pass.

However, these Wushan wizards wouldn't let them come and go as they pleased.

The group of Wushan evil cultivators, dressed in black and white robes, quickly gathered in a circle and sat down, forming a strange formation.

Following the instructions of one of them, they each took out a poisonous scorpion and placed it in front of them, chanting incantations.

In an instant, the poisonous scorpion in front of the evil cultivator of Wushan exploded and turned into poisonous mist, which floated into the air and vaguely condensed into a huge poisonous scorpion with a body size of several feet.

"this……"

Lin Jue stared wide-eyed at the strange poisonous scorpion that had materialized above the wizard's head. He was filled with fear and ordered everyone to retreat to Yantan Pass with all their might.