Zhu Que City, the human race's southern gate, was built against the endless mountains. The high city walls were hundreds of feet high.
Looking from afar, it was as if a giant dragon was lying on top of the endless mountain range.
The demon army first broke through the surrounding city walls and besieged Zhu Que City. Only then did the Demon Crown Prince lead the million-strong army to invade Tiannan.
The remaining four million soldiers besieged Zhu Que City. All the reinforcements from all over the southern border were blocked hundreds of miles away.
In less than a few months after Zhu Que's arrival, two experts who had surpassed the Immortal Realm attacked Zhu Que City. However, they could not change the situation of the war.
When they arrived at Zhu Que City, the million-strong Rosefinch Army was reduced to less than five hundred thousand soldiers. The resources in the city were almost exhausted.
There were also countless cultivators who were seriously injured and had no elixirs to treat them.
After nearly four months of fighting, even though the return of the Vermilion Bird had greatly boosted the morale of the entire army, the demons outside were still pouring in like an avalanche, and they were slowly being eaten away by the demons.
The military supplies could not be transported to the battlefield in time. The million-strong demon army blocked the reinforcements from Jubao Hall and the major forces in the southern border.
The terrifying Immortal Artifact Vitality Cylinders could blast any flying shuttle that flew past the demon army and entered Zhu Que City into smithereens!
No matter how strong one's willpower was, it was impossible to hold on. This was because a war could not be won with willpower alone. There had to be enough military supplies.
The stronger the cultivator, the more spiritual energy they consumed. In the past, they could rely on the spiritual beasts on the mountain range to satisfy their hunger. However, they were now surrounded.
Everything that could be eaten in the city had already been eaten. Even the corpses of the Demon Clan had been secretly brought into the city to be used as food for the soldiers.
The cruelty of war destroyed all manners and civilization. If not for Zhu Que, Dugu Tianyu, and the other two experts who had surpassed the Immortal Realm, suppressing the demons, they would have been killed.
Perhaps there was already a situation of people eating each other. Standing on top of the city walls, Zhu Que looked at the piles of corpses that emitted a foul stench. Her eyes were filled with confusion.
Ever since she returned to the Rosefinch Army, she had been taking revenge on the people from the various major powers. To her, saving her own army was the most important thing.
If they lost the Rosefinch Army, the door to the Southern Land would be wide open, and the demonic beasts would be able to enter the hinterland of the Southern Land to plunder at any time.
When there was Zhu Que City, no one thought that the Southern Heaven Region was important. In their eyes, it was just a piece of barren land.
However, after losing Zhu Que City, the Heavenly South had become an extremely important strategic location. Even if the Human Race obtained it, they would still be at a disadvantage.
After fighting for so long, Zhu Que no longer had the will to fight. There were less than 200,000 people left in the city, and all of them were injured.
The only thing that Zhu Que felt gratified was that none of the soldiers had told her to retreat and abandon the Rosefinch Army.
Even if their stomachs were growling from hunger, even if their spiritual power had long been exhausted, their eyes were still filled with fighting spirit. They did not want to be sinners for all eternity, and they did not want to lose Zhu Que City in their hands.
Because of this, Zhu Que felt guilty. As the commander of an army, she knew that it was futile to persist.
"Men!" The Vermilion Bird shouted.
"Your Excellency, what are your orders?" Qi Shengyu walked up. He was covered in blood, and his armor was already in tatters.
There were countless scars on his body, all of which had already healed. However, because his movements were too big, some parts of his body were torn and bleeding again.
However, there was no trace of pain on his resolute face. His eyes were still filled with fighting spirit!
"Pass down my order. All troops gather at the Xuanwu Gate. Prepare to break out!" Zhu Que said.
Qi Shengyu was stunned. The generals beside him thought that they had misheard. Because Lady Zhu Que never admitted defeat, let alone breaking out and retreating.
Where should they break out? Towards the south, or towards the reinforcements that were blocked outside? Or should they simply leave the city, fight to the death with the Yao, and die on the battlefield?
"Didn't you hear?" Zhu Que said coldly. "Pass down my order. All troops gather at the Xuanwu Gate. Prepare to break out!"
The generals' faces immediately turned ashen. The burning fighting spirit in their eyes was extinguished in an instant.
"Plop!"
Qi Shengyu knelt on the ground. Following closely, all the generals immediately knelt down. They looked at Zhu Que and said, "Your Excellency, we … can still fight … we … we won't be the generals who abandon the city. We … won't be deserters!"
Zhu Que felt sour in her heart. There was an old saying that said, "Nothing is more sorrowful than a dead heart."
However, Zhu Que felt that a dead heart was nothing. Her sorrow was that she had given the order to retreat, but the generals and soldiers under her command had to fight to the death.
Looking at those ordinary faces, the Vermilion Bird didn't know what to say. But she knew that this was why she had come to the Vermilion Bird Corps without any complaints and had almost died at the hands of her own people, even though she had suffered such injustice and almost died at the hands of her own people.
This was because there were generals and soldiers who were like her own hands and feet.
After a long silence, Zhu Que helped Qi Shengyu up and said, "They have persevered. They have persevered. We have bled. Now … we have to retreat. This is not being a deserter. This is … to preserve some hope for the Rosefinch Army. Fighting to the death is futile!"
Their eyes became empty and lifeless. The beliefs they had persevered in their hearts had collapsed at this moment!
Qi Shengyu turned his head without a word and said, "Pass down the order. All troops gather at the Xuanwu Gate … We … will break out!"
As a veteran general, he knew the importance of the commander-in-chief's orders. He could raise objections, but he had to obey.
This was also the reason why the Rosefinch Army could go out of Zhu Que's city and conquer some strongholds in the war against the Demon Clan.
They obeyed orders, especially Zhu Que's orders.
Looking at their backs, Zhu Que felt sorrowful. She knew that even if she asked these soldiers to die, they wouldn't frown.
However, to ask them to break out and retreat was worse than killing them.
However, as the commander-in-chief, she had to make her own decisions. She couldn't let this army be swallowed up by the Demon Clan. She had to preserve some hope. This was the last human race in the Southern Land who was willing to fight against the Demon Clan.
If it weren't for the fact that she had to go far away and that young man's promise, if it weren't for the fact that they would share the same fate, she would definitely be willing to stay and fight to the death.
Dugu Tianyu and Tang Yuan rushed over immediately. They were stationed on three sides to defend against the Demon Master's possible attack.
They didn't question Zhu Que's orders. As the strongest in the city, they knew what they had to pay.
"Breaking out isn't that easy …" Dugu Tianyu said. "That old Demon Master has probably already set a trap for us and is waiting for us to fall into it!"
"I don't think that the Demon Master thinks that I will break out of the encirclement. On the contrary, he thinks that I will defend to the death. Therefore, we have to take them by surprise. With the woodcutter team as the vanguard, Senior Tang Yuan and Senior Dugu will lead the army straight into the main camp of the Demon Race."
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