257: Chapter 257 The Victory or Defeat is Over

In the White Kings Army's formation, a rather young-looking general's face changed drastically when he saw the spear-wielding giant attacking!

His name was Liu Tianhai. He was originally a minor fifth-rank garrison general, but after several officers like General Xu Hong died mysteriously, he had unexpectedly become the commander of the remaining forty thousand troops!

"It's Jiang Wanli! Fire arrows! Fire arrows quickly!!"

Liu Tianhai was anxious. The Silver Armor Army was attacking Xunyang City to the south; no one here could stop Jiang Wanli!

For the Qing Kings Army to play such a gambit was equivalent to moving Xunyang City's strongest combat power away.

If they could stall Jiang Wanli, the Qing Kings Army would suffer a total defeat.

But if the Qing Kings Army devoured these forty thousand troops, the White Kings Army would be attacked from both front and back!

Realizing the severity, Liu Tianhai hurriedly ordered the lighting of signal fire to request reinforcements.

Meanwhile, thousands of sharp arrows pierced through the night, falling densely toward Jiang Wanli!

"Good timing!!"

The Dragon Raising Its Head in Jiang Wanli's hand spun rapidly, his single hand creating an impenetrable screen of spear shadows!

Violent true qi surged wildly, radiating outward for dozens of feet!

All the arrows attempting to approach the Azure Dragon Guard were shattered and scattered, posing no threat!

In the blink of an eye, Jiang Wanli led five hundred Azure Dragon Guard elites to the sharp chevaux-de-frise formation.

"Rise for me!!"

With a single sweep of his spear, he created a violent hurricane that rose from the ground!

These heavy chevaux-de-frise were directly tossed aside by the power of this single spear strike!

Relying on Jiang Wanli's bravery, the Azure Dragon Guard acted like a sharp blade, stabbing into the White Kings Army's camp and immediately engaging the enemy in combat!

At the same time, the twenty thousand garrison troops in the rear, both cavalry and infantry, launched a full-speed charge.

Seeing Jiang Wanli's spear strike, Lin Xiao couldn't help but nod inwardly.

Although they were all spear masters, Zhao Yunting and Mu Wanying were more than a little inferior compared to this fellow.

The Qing Kings Army was using their superior horse to deal with the White Kings Army's inferior horse this time.

Though risky, it was remarkably effective!

On the ridge, General Cao Wang saw that the White Kings Army's attention was focused on the front and immediately issued the surprise attack order!

"Brothers! Kill them!!—"

Five thousand veterans rushed down the slope at top speed without hesitation!

Some died halfway after slipping and tumbling into rocks.

But those behind didn't stop at all, wanting only to catch the White Kings Army off guard at maximum speed!

But to their complete surprise, as soon as the five thousand men launched their raid, screams began to ring out.

General Cao Wang and the others looked closely and found that more and more soldiers seemed to have stepped on something, tumbling right off the mountain!

"There are traps! Traps!!"

"It's iron spikes! And animal traps!!"

Cries of alarm rang out, but it was too late.

The White Kings Army had actually placed a large number of sharp objects on the slope long ago.

If the soldiers' leather boots were even slightly careless, they would be pierced, and their feet would bleed continuously!

Lin Xiao was also startled. The mantis stalks the cicada, unaware of the oriole behind?

Lu Sanchuan was known as the number one general of Great Gan after General Mu Tiexin; he truly wasn't someone to be trifled with, having anticipated a possible ambush from the mountain!?

That meant they weren't unaware of the path on the ridge, but had left it open intentionally!

As the five thousand men were rapidly depleted, this surprise attack turned into a joke.

Lin Xiao didn't hesitate, turning into a shadow and slipping into the camp with the wind.

He swapped the unfamiliar spear for his Black Blade...

The blood-colored blade light immediately began a frantic harvest!

Since Prince Bai was spreading plague everywhere, he couldn't afford to waste time; he had to speed up and take the entire Northern Territory.

This was a race against the plague and against time!

Although the surprise attack failed, Jiang Wanli, leading five hundred Azure Dragon Guards, was still slaughtering everyone in the White Kings Army's formation!

Lin Xiao estimated that once the twenty thousand reinforcements arrived, the Qing Kings Army should win this battle decisively.

Once Lu Sanchuan's main force was flanked, everything should be settled...

But for some reason, Lin Xiao felt something was wrong.

If even the path on the ridge was a trap intentionally left by Lu Sanchuan...

Then had he not considered the possibility of Jiang Wanli forcing a breakthrough in the Jingtian County camp through sheer, overbearing personal strength?

As far as he knew, in the White Kings Army, even Lu Sanchuan himself was no match for Jiang Wanli...

*Swoosh!—*

It happened in the blink of an eye!

A heavy arrow, masked by the night like a ghost of death, was shot from high up toward Jiang Wanli's body!

Jiang Wanli seemed boorish, but in battle, he was as meticulous as a hair.

Sensing something was wrong, he immediately dodged to the side!

But the speed of that black arrow far exceeded ordinary arrows, and it actually managed to graze Jiang Wanli's arm!

Feeling a sting, Jiang Wanli looked back and glared at a flagpole several hundred meters away.

A man stood on the pole, wearing a black hooded cloak. Only half his face was visible, with a cold sneer on his lips, holding a massive black iron bow.

"Black Iron Heavy Arrow? Lou Suifeng!?"

Jiang Wanli felt a numbness at the wound and immediately realized the arrow was poisoned!

He hurriedly circulated his power to force out some blood, but it was impossible to be completely unaffected.

Realizing that no one else present could stop Lou Suifeng's assassination, Jiang Wanli gritted his teeth and spurred his horse to pursue Lou Suifeng!

Seeing Jiang Wanli approach, Lou Suifeng naturally wouldn't fight him head-on.

He fired two ordinary Black-feathered Arrows in succession, then used his light-body technique to flee toward the open area in the rear.

Jiang Wanli knew this guy wanted to lure him away, but he had no choice.

He hadn't known beforehand that another Martial Arts Grandmaster was participating, especially a rare archery master!

If he left him alone, within the time it takes to drink a cup of tea, Lou Suifeng could slaughter the officers and the Azure Dragon Guard!

When Lin Xiao noticed Lou Suifeng, he also broke into a cold sweat for Jiang Wanli.

Good grief, this was Prince Bai's trump card!

No wonder the main officers here were all dead and Lu Sanchuan hadn't sent any tough characters to guard the place; the strongest person was already in the formation?!

With Lou Suifeng's appearance, an army of assassins wearing black masks and using various weapons also joined the battlefield.

The twins Wubing and Wuzai, leading over a hundred Yanyu Pavilion elites, launched a surprise attack directly on the Azure Dragon Guard!

Normally, a regular army wouldn't fear such a ragtag group.

But caught in a chaotic melee on the battlefield, and in the middle of the night, the assassins were like fish in water!

The dark night became the best camouflage. These assassins wove through the Qing Kings Army, and in moments, the five hundred Azure Dragon Guards were reduced by half!

The subsequent twenty thousand Qing Kings Army troops hadn't even broken through the chevaux-de-frise when they found their Commander Jiang missing and the Azure Dragon Guard nearly wiped out!

The White Kings Army was reorganized by Liu Tianhai, unleashing a rain of arrows on the Qing reinforcements.

The Qing Kings Army side immediately suffered heavy casualties; rather than a surprise attack, it was more like they had come to die!

Jiang Wanli drove Lou Suifeng half a mile away, but when he looked back, his heart sank!

*Whoosh!—*

A sharp arrow nearly hit his neck again, but Jiang Wanli barely avoided it.

Lou Suifeng stood on a rock ahead, chuckling leisurely:

"Jiang Wanli, you are a genius of the spear, but when it comes to leading troops, you aren't even worth one of Lu Sanchuan's fingers."

Like an infuriated lion, Jiang Wanli roared:

"Cut the crap! Once I kill you, I will take Lu Sanchuan's head myself!!"

...

Outside Xunyang City in Qin Province, the White Kings Army's command camp.

Lu Sanchuan hadn't rested, silently staring at Jingtian County's position on the sand table.

"Commander, the signal fire is up! Jingtian County was indeed attacked tonight!"

The adjutant beside him was incredibly excited; everything was within Lu Sanchuan's expectations!

"Jiang Wanli has finally gone there... If he hadn't gone to Jingtian County, I would have had to launch a direct assault on Xunyang."

"Although we would win, a direct confrontation between the Silver Armor Army and the Azure Dragon Guard would surely result in heavy casualties."

Lu Sanchuan breathed a sigh of relief.

"The Commander intentionally didn't reinforce Jingtian County to make Jiang Wanli think he could launch a surprise attack. This 'luring the tiger from the mountain' tactic leaves Xunyang without any resistance. Once day breaks, we can easily take it!"

The adjutant said admiringly, "The Commander's strategic planning is truly like a reincarnation of the God of War!"

"It's not that miraculous. If Lou Suifeng hadn't brought his people to join us, this battle wouldn't have been so easy."

"Not so. The Commander's victory lies in controlling the entire situation and predicting Jiang Wanli's thoughts. Even without Lou Suifeng, there would have been other clever plans."

Lu Sanchuan listened to the flattery but wasn't excited at all.

"For this battle, the Prince did not hesitate to push the Northern Territory into a desperate situation. It is only natural that I defeat Jiang Wanli."

"I only hope that after this battle, the people of the Northern Territory can have a peaceful New Year..."

The adjutant nearby smiled. "Commander, you are the one the Prince trusts most. Now that Chen Yanqiu is dead and the outcome of the battle is decided, you can rest easy."

Lu Sanchuan nodded and flicked his finger.

On the Qin Province section of the sand table, the "Qing" flag fell over.