"… If everything goes as expected, the news from the front lines will fall on these people.
Wang Chong looked at the Tang dynasty infantry. The southwest was already in chaos. Traveling south from the capital day and night, this was the first time he had encountered an army of the Tang dynasty.
"You're Li Zhengyi's army?"
Wang Chong rode forward and asked. Although it was a question, his tone had already confirmed their identity.
"Milord, may I know who you are?"
At the summit of the hill, the infantry soldiers who had just escaped death looked in bewilderment at the approaching Wang Chong. This youth was far too young. The Tang dynasty did not have such a young general.
But the aura exuding from his body, the tone of his voice, and the majesty exuded from his every movement clearly indicated that he was no ordinary person.
They still could not understand where the Imperial Court had come from such a young general. Moreover, the standard armor of this army also looked a little strange.
They had served in the army for so long, but they had never seen such strange armor. It looked very similar, but also very different.
Wang Chong's face was expressionless. Without a word, his right hand pulled off the token that The King of Song had given him. With a ribbon dangling from his finger, he showed it to the crowd.
"Buzz!"
Everyone on the hill was shocked when they saw the dragon-shaped pattern on the golden token. Although they were inexperienced and did not understand much about the matters of the Imperial Court, they still knew that those who could have a dragon engraved on their token were either rich or noble. If they weren't members of the royal family, then they were!
Regardless of their status, they were not people that people of their level could easily guess at or come into contact with.
"Paying respects to Your Highness!"
A sliver of fear appeared on the faces of the crowd as they knelt. For a moment, they felt that this youth before them was unfathomable, their hearts filled with reverence.
"Rise!"
Wang Chong waved his hand, not correcting their mistake. This was not the time for modesty. The southwest was in upheaval and a storm was brewing. Only the King of Song's identity as a member of the imperial family could calm the hearts of the people.
"Many thanks, Your Highness."
Everyone stood up, but their expressions were still filled with fear and reverence.
"Let me ask you, what's the situation at the frontline now?"
Wang Chong said.
"Frontline?"
Everyone looked at each other in confusion.
Wang Chong was startled. He immediately realized that he had said something that they didn't understand.
"I mean, what's the situation now? Didn't Li Zhengyi lead you to support the Annam Protectorate? What was going on now? What about the others? How many are still alive? "
Wang Chong changed his words and said seriously.
The situation in the southwest was what he was most concerned about. Only by understanding what lay ahead could he know what to do next. "Know yourself and know your enemy, and you will never be defeated." This was the basic element of the art of war.
Furthermore, Wang Chong was more concerned about how many of Li Zhengyi's 60,000 men had survived. Although Wang Chong had not been present in that battle and didn't know the specifics, his profound grasp of the art of war allowed Wang Chong to deduce one basic fact.
Li Zhengyi had not been ambushed in a place like the Erhai plains. This meant that the Ouzan army could not have completely wiped them out, and Li Zhengyi's 60,000 reinforcements would not have ended up like the 180,000 elites of the Tang dynasty in his last life, completely wiped out on the Erhai plains without the protection of Lion City!
"We also don't know the specifics. We only know the general situation …"
Upon hearing Wang Chong's question, everyone immediately gave a detailed account of what they knew.
It turned out that before the Imperial Court had issued the order, Li Zhengyi had actually set out even earlier than they had expected. 'Speed is of the essence in war'. Li Zhengyi had spent so much time in Anxi and Beiting that he deeply understood this principle.
Thus, when the Imperial Court came to a conclusion and issued the official order, they were greeted by an empty camp. Although there were banners everywhere, there were actually only a few veterans present.
Thus, Li Zhengyi's marching speed was actually much faster than many people knew.
But not even Li Zhengyi had expected the front lines to be routed so quickly. When he had set out, he had only received news that Xianyu Zhongtong and the 180,000 elites of the Annan Protectorate had suffered a minor defeat, and by the time he reached the southwest of the Tang dynasty, Xianyu Zhongtong had already suffered a major defeat.
And what welcomed them was not Gelofeng and his three hundred thousand Mengshe Zhao soldiers, but the Ouzan cavalry and Ouzan Great General Huoshu Huizang, marching from the distant Ouzan Plateau to the east.
Everyone believed that they were fighting against Mengshe Zhao, so one could easily imagine the chaos that ensued when the 60,000 reinforcements saw the charging Ouzan soldiers.
Although Li Zhengyi was a famous general and hailed by the Great Tang as an outstanding leader of the younger generation, he was still a level below Ouzan Great General Huoshu Huizang.
This gap determined the outcome of this battle.
But Huoshu Huizang had clearly underestimated Li Zhengyi. Even though he was inferior to Huoshu Huizang in terms of numbers, strength, and strength, and had ultimately been routed by Huoshu Huizang, Li Zhengyi had used his outstanding ability to command to make the Ouzan pay the price!
In this battle, Li Zhengyi had ultimately been ambushed and beheaded by Huoshu Huizang!
But not even Huoshu Huizang could control the situation.
The terrain of the southwest was complex, and although Huoshu Huizang had defeated Li Zhengyi and his 60,000 reinforcements, when Li Zhengyi had used himself as bait to delay them while ordering his men to scatter and flee, not even Huoshu Huizang had been able to do anything.
If the 60,000 reinforcements had gathered together and fled, they would never have been able to escape the Ouzan cavalry. But when tens of thousands of people scattered into countless groups, it was a completely different story.
Even if the Ouzan had Gelofeng's Mengshe Zhao's spies, it still wouldn't be enough!
Therefore, although Li Zhengyi's army had been routed, a considerable portion of his men had still managed to escape.
"… The Ouzan had too many men, and they were too strong. Moreover, they were cavalry, so we had to scatter and flee. When I escaped, I only had two or three brothers with me. The others were people I met on my way back to the north. Although I don't know the situation of the others, I'm sure that there are many other brothers around here. "
"Now, most of the Ouzan's army has already returned. They should be going to encircle and annihilate the Annam Protectorate. The rest are just encircling us. There shouldn't be more than six to seven thousand of them! If we can gather the other scattered brothers, together with Lord Li's army, we might be able to defeat them. "
"But it's a pity that Lord Li is so young …"
…
When these people spoke of the young General Li Zhengyi, their expressions were extremely gloomy. At the foot of the hill, Wang Chong couldn't help but sigh.
In his last life, the entire world knew of Li Zhengyi's defeat, and they only knew that Li Zhengyi had failed to live up to the trust of the Imperial Court, losing sixty thousand men and countless supplies.
Everyone's attention had been focused on victory and defeat in the southwest.
This was also the first time Wang Chong had learned of such a twist.
Although Li Zhengyi had been defeated, he was still a famous general of the Tang Dynasty. His decisiveness and sacrifice while he was in prison moved everyone. Alas, he was far too young and had encountered a foreign Great General like Huoshu Huicang, who was a level higher than him.
If he had been lucky enough to survive, given time, he would have encountered Huoshu Huizang and would not have met his end today.
Alas, his words carried little weight. Whether in the past or now, Li Zhengyi would never listen to his side of the story. It was impossible for anyone to listen.
"That's right, I heard that Commandant Xu hasn't returned to the north. He seems to be gathering his troops in the southeast and regrouping. I heard that he's already gathered one thousand men, and he probably has even more by now. In addition, he has a large number of supplies. "
A muscular, dark-faced, bearded man suddenly said.
"That's right. Commandant Xu is powerful and skilled in the art of war. If Your Highness can obtain his help, you will be like a tiger that has grown wings. You might even be able to save your other brothers! "
The eyes of the other True Martial realm Great Tang soldier lit up when he heard 'Commandant Xu'. It was as if the 'Commandant Xu' mentioned by the black-faced, bearded man was some omnipotent savior.
"Right! Right! Right! Commandant Xu!! "
… …
The others began to echo his sentiments, their expressions no longer dejected. They seemed to have great faith in this Commandant Xu.
Wang Chong slightly creased his brow, a hint of doubt in his eyes.
He truly didn't know anything about this' Commandant Xu 'these ten-some Tang soldiers spoke of, nor did he understand why they had so much faith in him.
"It's normal for Milord not to know, but although he's not famous in the army, he has a lot of prestige. He's an old general, and everyone has great faith in him. Before this battle, Commandant Xu was the only one who had noticed that something was wrong from the surrounding clues and had even warned General Li. Alas, General Li is still too young … "
The dark-faced, bearded man paused midway.
Wang Chong nodded, understanding his meaning. Every person had their own strengths and weaknesses. Li Zhengyi might not be an outstanding general, but he was at least a qualified one.
"The Eagle, come here for a moment!"
Wang Chong turned his head and waved his hand.
"Send out the giant eagle and have it scout the southeast."
"Yes, Young Master."
The Eagle whistled. Without even asking any questions, he sent the giant eagle on his shoulder flying once more. The giant eagle was very fast. With a flap of its steel-like black wings, it immediately stirred up a gust of Qi and soared into the sky like an arrow.
The battle was over. Having obtained the information he wanted, Wang Chong immediately began to gather his soldiers.
"Now, it's time to temper my own strength!"
Wang Chong blinked as he gazed at the distant dark clouds, a ruthless light flashing through his eyes. Blood-red light began to gather in his body, flowing like lava. This was the Stellar Energy of the Little Yinyang Art.
The path of martial arts required one to take one step at a time. Under normal circumstances, someone of his age, no matter how talented they were, would not be able to reach the level of a supreme expert in a single day.
But although it was difficult, it was not impossible.
The Little Yinyang Art was that 'opportunity' that could not be judged by common sense. This was the reason why Wang Chong had diligently sought the Little Yinyang Art after his rebirth.
But it was a pity that all this time, Wang Chong had lacked an opportunity. This opportunity was war!
Only a large-scale war, only an endless stream of opponents, could provide Wang Chong with a chance to advance by leaps and bounds in a short period of time, to reach an extremely high level of cultivation.
And only with great, unparalleled strength could he participate in this war that would decide the fate of the divine continent.
And now, this opportunity had arrived!
Weng!
A bloody light flashed in Wang Chong's eyes, as if shooting out a small, blood-red sun. With a flick of his reins, he galloped south like an arrow.
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