At 100 years old, he joined the army in place of his granddaughter, and became a national war god.

The setting sun, like blood, poured down upon the vast and boundless wilderness of southern Xinjiang.

The vast twilight, accompanied by a bleak wind, swept across the mottled and heavy bluestone walls of Duanyun Pass, stirring up the fine yellow sand at the base of the walls, making a whistling sound, like a low war song echoing between heaven and earth.

On the top of the Duanyun Pass wall, dozens of Daqian soldiers, fully armed and wielding weapons, stood tall and straight like pine trees, quietly behind the battlements.

Everyone was clad in heavy black iron armor, holding sharp long spears. The cold armor reflected the last rays of the setting sun. Their expressions were solemn, and their eyes were as sharp as eagles, fixed on the boundless wilderness beyond the pass.

The border situation has been tense in recent days, with the entire army on high alert day and night, and no one daring to relax their vigilance in the slightest.

"Keep your mind focused, keep a close watch on the outside of the pass, and do not let your guard down!" The garrison captain on duty at the city wall whispered his instructions, his eyes still fixed on the front.

Upon hearing this, all the soldiers nodded in unison, their breathing steady, gripping their weapons tightly, their bodies tense, maintaining a state of maximum alert.

Just then!

At the distant horizon where the sky meets the earth, billowing dust suddenly rose from the once clear, hazy sky.

The dust was not the scattered dust of ordinary wind and sand, but rather a vast, continuous expanse, like a giant, earth-yellow dragon rapidly rolling and sweeping in from the distant wilderness, blotting out the sun and instantly shattering the deathly silence of the border at dusk.

Something's not right!

The captain guarding the city's pupils suddenly contracted, alarm bells rang in his mind, and the hairs on his body instantly tensed.

In ordinary open fields, sandstorms are scattered and disorderly, with gentle movements. But the sandstorm before us is thick, concentrated, and advancing rapidly, carrying the magnificent momentum of a thousand horses galloping, a movement unique to a large army on the march!

The twenty-odd soldiers on the wall instantly changed their expressions. Their previously steady breathing suddenly became rapid, and everyone subconsciously leaned forward, their eyes fixed on the rolling sandstorm, filled with vigilance and solemnity.

Soon, the sandstorm drew ever closer, and a faint rumbling sound could be heard as it approached from afar, causing the ground to tremble slightly.

Amidst the sandstorm, countless black figures gradually came into focus, densely packed and layered, like a tide covering the entire wasteland.

Sharp spears stood like a forest, gleaming with a chilling light under the setting sun, while rows of neatly arranged black armor created an oppressive atmosphere that made it hard to breathe.

At the forefront, several huge black battle flags fluttered wildly in the wind, with the blood-red swallow characters embroidered on them, ferocious and eye-catching, stretching out with the wind, exuding a murderous aura!

It's the Yan army!

For many days, the two countries had been locked in a standoff. Yan had remained inactive, pretending to observe. No one expected that the other side would suddenly launch a full-scale attack at dusk!

"Enemy attack! The Yan army is attacking!"

The garrison commander roared fiercely, his voice booming and piercing the twilight above Duanyun Pass.

"Quickly! Sound the alarm! Report to His Highness the Third Prince immediately!"

"All troops, prepare to engage the enemy!"

Before the words were even finished, all the soldiers on the wall sprang into action instantly, their movements swift, orderly, and without a trace of panic.

"Thump!"

"Thump!"

"Thump!"

The deep, resonant sound of the bell suddenly rang out, piercing through the howling wind and echoing throughout the entire Duanyun Pass, reverberating in every corner of the military camp, urgent and heavy, carrying the oppressive feeling of a life-or-death battle.

This is the highest level of enemy attack alarm at Duanyun Pass. Since the stationed troops began guarding the border, it has rarely sounded so urgently and frequently.

In an instant, the once orderly border camp tensed up, and a chilling atmosphere enveloped the surrounding area.

On the training ground of the Vanguard Battalion near the pass, thousands of soldiers were practicing their formations in the twilight, with the sounds of clashing swords and shouts echoing throughout the air.

The moment the urgent, heavy alarm bell rang, all the sounds of drills abruptly ceased.

All the soldiers in the vanguard battalion paused, their bodies tensing instantly. The enthusiasm for training vanished from their eyes, replaced by a soldier's ingrained vigilance and awe.

Having guarded the border year after year, they have long since internalized the sound of this alarm bell...

The bell tolls urgently, for a formidable enemy is approaching!

The expressions of the generals commanding the vanguard instantly turned grim. Without needing to say a word, they reacted swiftly and shouted sharply, "All troops, form ranks! Don your armor and take up your weapons! Assemble and await orders! The enemy is attacking; prepare to fight!"

Orders must be obeyed without question; military orders are as firm as mountains.

Thousands of vanguard soldiers moved in perfect unison, quickly returning to their ranks. The sounds of armor being donned and weapons being put away filled the air. The densely packed soldiers rapidly assembled into orderly formations, exuding an imposing aura and standing ready to be dispatched to the battlefield at any moment.

The alarm bells rang incessantly, penetrating through layers of tents and reaching the central tent deep within the military camp.

Inside the spacious military tent, candlelight shone brightly, illuminating the entire interior.

On the table was a complete border map, with mountains, passes, the deployment points of the two armies, and key and impenetrable routes along the border clearly marked.

Xiao Yunche, dressed in casual clothes, stood tall and imposing before the map, his fingertips lightly pointing at several key cities within the Yan Kingdom, his brows deep and his expression cold.

Beside him, Wang Yang, dressed in a scholar's robe, looked serious and was quietly sorting through the various intelligence reports recently sent back by his spies.

On the other side, Shen Luoyan, dressed in a tight-fitting outfit, moved nimbly with a calm expression, holding a secret report in her hand, carefully reviewing each word.

Since their arrival at Duanyun Pass, the three have worked tirelessly day and night, keeping a close eye on border developments and never letting their guard down for a single day.

Recently, they intercepted a crucial piece of top-secret intelligence: Emperor Xiao Jinghuan of the Great Qian Dynasty was taken to Yan territory by a mysterious person half a month ago. His whereabouts are unknown, and no one knows his exact location.

This matter is of great importance and has implications for the overall situation.

With the emperor in the heart of an enemy country, it was like a sharp blade hanging over the heads of the soldiers on the border of the Great Qian Dynasty.

Because the situation was so dangerous and unpredictable, the three of them gathered in the main tent every day to repeatedly analyze the situation and devise countermeasures, not daring to be negligent in the slightest.

Just as the three were deep in thought, their brows furrowed, a sudden, heavy alarm bell rang out from outside the tent, causing the candlelight inside to flicker violently and the light and shadows to dance wildly.

Shen Luoyan paused slightly, then abruptly raised her head, her delicate brows furrowed, a hint of wariness flashing in her eyes, and asked:

"The bell is ringing unusually urgently; it's the strongest warning of an enemy attack. What's happening outside?"

Wang Yang also suddenly looked up, his composure vanished, replaced by a solemn expression. His fingers clenched unconsciously, and a bad premonition arose in his heart.

Of all the people in the tent, Xiao Yunche remained the most composed. He slowly withdrew his fingertips from the map, and his dark eyes instantly lost all their warmth, leaving only unfathomable coldness and sharpness.

He parted his thin lips slightly, his voice low and cold, carrying an undeniable judgment: "The Yan army has arrived."

……

No sooner had he finished speaking than the tent flap was suddenly flung open!

A scout, fully armored, drenched in sweat, and breathing heavily, stumbled into the main tent. He knelt with his hands clasped in front of him, his voice urgent and anxious, revealing his barely concealed panic:

"Your Highness, Third Prince! The Yan Kingdom's army of 100,000 men has been mobilized and is rushing towards Duan Yun Pass at full speed. Their marching speed is extremely fast, and they will be completely at the city's gates and besieging the pass in less than half an hour!"

These words were like a thunderclap that exploded in the tent!

Wang Yang's expression changed drastically. He abruptly stood up straight, his eyes filled with disbelief, and whispered in disbelief, "They came so fast! The Yan army had been holding back, feigning a retreat, showing no signs of advancing, yet they suddenly launched a massive attack, completely disrupting our plans!"

Although they had long anticipated that the Yan Kingdom would eventually launch an attack, they never expected the enemy to act so swiftly. After lying in wait for many days, they launched a thunderous attack without any probing or preparation, heading straight for Duan Yun Pass!

Shen Luoyan's jade-like face also turned somewhat solemn, her eyes deep: "It seems that the Yan Kingdom has been planning this for a long time, deliberately concealing their military movements, just to catch us off guard."

Xiao Yunche stood still, his posture as upright as a pine tree, his face still cold and composed, showing no sign of panic, only a cold light gleaming deep in his eyes, surging with a heavy killing intent.

In a brief moment of silence, he instantly grasped the entirety of Yan's scheme.

He spoke slowly, his voice cold and resolute, each word forceful: "This was not a hasty attack; the time they've been waiting for has arrived."

"The fact that the emperor is in the heart of an enemy country has long been known to the Yan court."

"They deliberately held back, waiting for this perfect opportunity!"

"Firstly, with His Majesty out of contact at the border, the morale of the army was already wavering."

"Secondly, they were certain that I would hesitate to launch a full-scale attack, fearing I might harm them, and thus dared to launch a full-scale assault on my Duanyun Pass!"

It hits the nail on the head!

The emperor's capture in the enemy camp is Yan's greatest bargaining chip, but also the biggest weakness of Daqian's border at this moment!

After a moment of silence, Xiao Yunche's eyes suddenly flashed with a sharp light. Without the slightest hesitation, he immediately gave a command in a deep voice that shook the tent: "Pass on my military order!"

"All three branches of the armed forces shall immediately don their armor, prepare for battle, and enter full combat readiness!"

"Defend Duanyun Pass to the death, not yielding an inch of land!"

"No matter how large the Yan army's forces are, or how fierce their offensive, we will never allow a single soldier to set foot on the southern border of our Great Qian!"