In order to become a Heroic Spirit, I had no choice but to cause trouble in history.

The resistance Xiang An's two divisions encountered in Zhan County was surprisingly weak. He led his troops straight to the county government office, and once inside, they killed everyone they saw. Before most of the people of Zhan County were even asleep, the city had already changed hands.

"Jiang Chun! You take one hundred men to take over Zhan County. Don't panic! The rest of you! Follow me and continue north!"

After capturing Zhan County, Xiang An did not delay. With a wave of his halberd, he led his army across Zhan County and continued northward.

The vast area from Pengcheng to Zhixian is an alluvial plain left by the rivers and the Huai River, with occasional hilly areas.

The county town of Jiaxian, north of Zhanxian, is flanked by two not-so-high hills on its east and west sides, namely Ximaoshan and Lingshan.

The two hills are a kilometer apart, facing each other across Jia County. The fastest route from Pengcheng to aid Zhan County is through Jia County.

"Before dawn—take Jia County! Everyone, keep up!" Xiang An glanced one last time at the north wall of Jia County, his eyes gleaming in the darkness, and led his two divisions on a frantic march toward Jia County.

On the battlefield outside Zhan County, Qin Jia ultimately withstood Xiang Yu's first wave of attacks.

"Counterattack! Cavalry, push forward!" Qin Jia, riding his horse in the center of the formation, finally felt a sense of relief.

Fortunately, he had taken precautions and left many barricades outside the camp, which blocked the charge of Xiang Yu's cavalry and forced Xiang Yu's army to slow down their formation.

Even so, his army suffered a considerable number of casualties in the chaos, though the exact number is unknown, but it was certainly over a thousand.

That bastard Xiang Yu stretched the battle lines too far, and after the cavalry charge failed, he immediately changed formation, moving the cavalry to the sides to try and find an opportunity from the flanks. Instead, the chariots advanced under the cover of the infantry, and the archers on the chariots were shooting wildly into the camp like madmen.

By the time the entire army had fully reacted, Xiang Yu's army had already used this formation to kill thousands of soldiers.

But now, things have finally gotten back on track.

Although the cavalry couldn't directly storm the camp due to the south-facing barricades, it would be quite easy for them to flank and enter from the side. To avoid the possibility of such a cavalry flanking attack, Qin Jia reacted swiftly—

We must break through!

Regardless of whether the cavalry are coming from the flank to attack the camp, or whether they are coordinating with chariots and infantry to encircle the camp, Qin Jia must change the status quo!

Moreover, due to the surprise attack, although the army has recovered in order to save their lives, morale remains quite low!

"Qin Jia—die!"

"!" A deafening roar came from the front of the army formation, almost making Qin Jia, who was still somewhat flustered, grit his teeth in hatred.

Xiang Yu!

"!" he roared angrily, pointing his spear, "Break through in that direction! All infantry, push forward!"

"Their general Xiang Yu is there! Whoever can kill him will be richly rewarded!"

Official titles and noble ranks are all available; kill them all!

!

"

"Come on!" Xiang Yu's eyes widened as the heavy and massive Heavenly Dragon City-Breaking Halberd spun in his hand, shattering the stones on the ground with unparalleled power.

"My head is right here! You, Qin Jia—come and take it!" A slight smile played on his lips.

"kill--!

! ”

The army pressed forward and engaged Xiang Yu's forces in direct combat.

Although Qin Jia's army had lost many men in the recent engagement and many others were unable to move, the number of soldiers committed to the battle still reached tens of thousands.

On Xiang Yu's side, because Xiang An took away two whole divisions, Xiang Yu only had a little over seven thousand men left.

Even so, after the formal engagement, Xiang Yu's side, despite being outnumbered, still gained the upper hand.

Xiang Yu took his hands off the reins, relying only on his legs to drive his steed, the Black Steed, and with both hands he took the Heavenly Dragon City-Breaking Halberd, which would injure an ordinary person with a mere graze and kill with a single touch, and swung it at a general who wanted to kill him.

Ping Pong —

The moment the fake Chu general's long spear touched the Heavenly Dragon City-Breaking Halberd, it let out a mournful cry of unbearable strain and snapped in the next instant. The upper part was knocked away and impaled on the head of some unlucky soldier, leaving only the shaft still in the general's hand, which he held in a daze.

After disarming his opponent, Xiang Yu gave him no chance to react. With a mighty halberd, he brought it down, splitting the general and his horse in two, blood splattering all over the black horse.

Ouch!

!

With an excited neigh, the black horse trampled through the barricades and carried Xiang Yu toward Qin Jia.

The two armies had already begun fighting in the dead of night. By the moonlight, Qin Jia could barely make out Xiang Yu charging towards him. Gritting his teeth, he also charged forward.

The spear and the halberd clashed together.

Qin Jia was quite skilled in martial arts, having served under Chen Sheng for a considerable time. He considered himself exceptionally capable. However, in the instant their weapons clashed, a thought arose in Qin Jia's mind—

We can't win.

Qin Jia held the spear in both hands, his veins bulging, his face flushed red, but the majestic Heavenly Dragon City-Breaking Halberd remained completely still.

This bastard's strength—how can he be so strong!?

"Old dog Qin—is this all you've got?!"

Xiang Yu's voice sounded faintly excited.

Ping—smack!

The weapons separated and clashed again, but Qin Jia's steed involuntarily took a step back.

From an angle out of Xiang Yu's sight, the black steed, its mane bristling and its eyes bloodshot, suddenly stretched out its head and charged at Qin Jia's horse.

Peng—!

!

"Neigh—" Qin Jia's horse let out a miserable cry and involuntarily retreated. Qin Jia, panting heavily, glared at Xiang Yu but dared not go forward.

"Alright! Big brother has the advantage, follow me and charge!"

"!" Zijuan, who was leading her cavalry on the flank, saw that Xiang Yu had gained the upper hand in the battle with Qin Jia in less than five rounds. Her spirits soared, and she spun her spear around a few times and shouted loudly.

"Cadres, follow me! We can't let them get past!" He Zhu noticed the restless Xiang Yu cavalry, flicked his long spear, and pulled on the reins.

The weapon he used was the same as Xiang An's, a spear, but his spear, in terms of both length and weight, was far inferior to Xiang An's three-section spear.

Even so, the large halberd still made a whooshing sound when it was swung.

"Using the same weapon as Second Brother?" Zijuan showed no fear, merely smiling faintly as she pointed her spear, and the cavalry beside her began their charge.

"Let me—have a go at you!"

With a flick of her spear, Zijuan charged toward Hezhu, who was wielding a large halberd.

Meanwhile, on the north side, in Jia County, Xiang An also began his second attack on the city that night.

"Charge!" he urged, urging the battering rams on. "Break down the city gates! Kill!"

------------

Chapter 879 Surrender and You Will Not Be Killed!

Thirty miles outside Pengcheng, an army was rushing towards Zhanxian to provide support.

"Even if we're traveling at night, keep your spirits up!" The leading general frowned and kept cracking his whip.

He gritted his teeth, feeling extremely anxious.

His name was Cheng Yili, and his identity was naturally that of a general under Qin Jia. His military rank was general, and he commanded an army of about 10,000 men.

But now he is followed by a full 20,000 people.

"General Qin, you must—you absolutely must hold on until we arrive!"

He muttered to himself as he led his army rapidly northward.

......

Jia County was captured by Xiang An again in less than half an hour.

“Brother and his men can fight until dawn, we’ll hold out here until noon!” Xiang An looked at Han Xin and Liao Ye, standing on the city wall of Jia County, looking at the vast farmland north of the county, his eyes narrowed slightly. “I’m not surprised how long they fight over there, after all, it’s nighttime fighting, and elder brother’s army is smaller than Qin Jia’s, but elder brother will definitely win!”

Scattered around the three of them were several corpses of fake Chu soldiers, their blood still congealed.

"Are all the facilities in the city under control?"

Xiang An's gaze lingered on Han Xin.

"It's all under control." Han Xin cupped his hands slightly, a smile appearing on his lips.

"Zhu Jishi, Wei Hao, and Liang Ning, have they all hidden themselves with their men?" Xiang An looked at Liao Ye and asked again, his expression unchanged.

Like Zhu Jishi and Wei Hao, Liang Ning was also a brigade commander in Xiang An's army. He had made many meritorious contributions in previous wars and had gradually risen from the position of infantryman to his current position as brigade commander.

"Reporting to the general, everything is hidden." Liao Ye looked excited and eager to try.

Xiang An rested his hand on the city wall, looked at Ximao Mountain to the west, then at Ling Mountain to the east, and sighed.

Wei Hao is currently hiding in Ximao Mountain with two thousand men, while Zhu Jishi is currently hiding in Ling Mountain with another two thousand men.

As for Liang Ning, he is currently leading less than a thousand men and has blended into the populace of Jia County.

Xiang An also sent some people to guide the original residents of Jia County to the south of the county. The north of the county would soon become a battlefield.

"General, I still don't understand. Why specifically assign a few hundred men to evacuate the civilians?" Han Xin asked, looking puzzled. He moved closer to Xiang An. "A few hundred men may seem insignificant, but they might be able to influence the course of a battle. Is it really worth wasting them?"

Xiang An turned his head and glanced at Han Xin, then sighed.

"Old Han, what do you think... is the reason we're fighting?"

He patted the city wall and glanced eastward twice.

Although the sun had not yet risen, the sky had already brightened slightly.

"To win," Han Xin replied without hesitation.

"And then what?" Xiang An pressed on.

"This..." Han Xin looked troubled and hesitated slightly.

“Winning is not the goal of war.” Xiang An’s eyes sharpened slightly as he looked north. “Winning is just a process we are destined to go through.”

"What to do after winning is something we have to consider."

Xiang An turned his head and looked towards the town of Jiaxian.