Chapter 246 A Crushing Victory

What surprised Gao Yuan wasn't just that an event had been triggered, but that two events had been triggered at once.

Having just finished reading the first system notification, Gao Yuan discovered another one below it. Upon opening it, he was left speechless.

"ss-rank life segment overlords little notebook Exclusive Event: Powerful Enemy Triggered;

As the first S-rank powerful enemy the Host encountered after arriving in this world, Bayinnaung has escaped from the Host's hands several times. This has become a stain on the Host's career; the Host must wash away this disgrace personally;

Event Objective: The Host must personally slay Bayinnaung;

Event Reward: One random-grade Legion Summoning Card;

Failure Penalty: Deletion of the ss-rank life segment overlords little notebook."

At this moment, Gao Yuan really wanted to call Bayinnaung out for a heart-to-heart talk.

"Brother, my dear brother, why don't you just stop struggling? Let me give you one clean chop. I give you my word of honor that I'll take good care of your wife and daughter, and I'll make sure to visit your grave every year."

Bayinnaung: Thanks a lot, you're actually such a 'nice' guy.

He had originally thought about destroying Toungoo and capturing Bayinnaung to show off to The Emperor in exchange for some benefits, but now it seemed he had no choice but to chop him down.

However, personally chopping him down would be exceptionally difficult. After all, this was a wild S-rank, an existence a whole major tier higher than himself.

Even if Bayinnaung was an all-rounder commander type, his Strength, Agility, and Martial Arts were still far superior to Gao Yuan's.

"Sigh... It looks like I'll have to use that Trial Card!"

Gao Yuan had wanted to use this card several times but managed to hold back. It was simply too precious; it was a card that could turn the tide of an entire battle.

However, trading one Trial Card for so many good things was worth it!

Commanding a large-scale campaign like this was really not something a scrub like Gao Yuan, with only A-rank command ability, could handle. He had the self-awareness to hand over the command authority.

Among his subordinates, Gao Yao's expertise lay in strategic design and planning rather than frontline command. Xia Luqi, Zhao Meng, and the others were only good at charging into battle; they weren't command-type talents either.

Thus, after much deliberation, Gao Yuan decided to give the command authority to Liu Rengui, who had come with him, with Xue Linfeng and Gao Yang acting as his deputies.

With over forty thousand troops, almost all the elite of the Southern Yue army were gathered: over twenty-two thousand from the Central Corps' Beiwei Army, eighteen hundred from the Xiaoguo Army, eleven hundred and fifty from the Baier Soldiers, plus the elites of the Xuanjia Army.

Adding in famous ministers and fierce generals like Gao Yao, Liu Rengui, and Xia Luqi, Gao Yuan had brought out all his finest assets for this war of national extinction.

On the opposite side, Bayinnaung also went all out. Not only did he personally take command, but he also abandoned Chittagong, mobilized over fifty thousand troops from across the country, and finally forcibly conscripted all males between the ages of sixteen and fifty.

In terms of numbers alone, Toungoo had gathered over seventy thousand troops for this battle, but in terms of quality, they were far inferior to the Southern Yue army.

Setting aside training, the gap in equipment alone was massive. Nearly thirty thousand troops on the Southern Yue side wore full iron armor, while the rest had at least leather armor for protection.

Looking at the Toungoo army, the Iron-Armored Army numbered less than two thousand. Less than a third of the remaining soldiers wore leather armor, and many only had a single layer of cloth clothing.

Seeing this disparity, Bayinnaung knew he didn't have much chance of winning, but he had no way to retreat.

If they lost this decisive battle, Toungoo would be finished!

What was the result of this disparity in strength?

It was a change in the way of fighting. There was no need to slowly look for opportunities by matching formations like they did against the Jiannan Army; from the very beginning, Liu Rengui issued the order to attack.

The defensive power of leather armor was reflected in damage reduction; it couldn't provide total defense like iron armor. Against triangular armor-piercing arrows that could penetrate even iron armor, it was essentially the same as being defenseless.

Swoosh! Swoosh! Swoosh!

Puchi...

A massive volley of armor-piercing arrows whistled through the air and rained down upon the Toungoo army's ranks, followed by the sound of flesh being torn open.

The pikemen behind the Sword and Shield Soldiers fell one after another. In less than fifteen minutes, the Toungoo army suffered over a thousand casualties.

Seeing this scene, Bayinnaung's eyes nearly split with rage. He pulled out a command flag.

"Pindalipha, lead the Iron-Armored Army and the Personal Guards forward. You must break through the Han people's great shield formation!"

There was no longer any need to hide his strength. With his first move, Bayinnaung deployed his strongest combat forces.

He knew very well that if the front line couldn't hold, there was no point in keeping this trump card.

After the battle had raged for over an hour, the Southern Yue army's formation had advanced over a hundred paces, and the Toungoo army's defensive line was nearing collapse.

At this point, the exhausted great shield soldiers stepped aside. From the gaps, Xia Luqi, Zhao Meng, Chen Dao, and others led the Beiwei Army and the Baier Soldiers as they charged out. Carrying a broadsword in one hand and a Golden Gourd Mace in the other, they each looked like a god of slaughter.

Bayinnaung felt like he was about to spit blood. He hadn't expected the Iron-Armored Army to be so vulnerable under these circumstances. Although they were also equipped with blunt weapons like Golden Gourd Maces, the disparity in numbers was too great, and they were hammered down before they could even use them.

As the top general under Bayinnaung, Pindalipha attempted to use the tactic of 'shooting the horse to get the rider' or 'capturing the leader to catch the bandits,' trying to turn the tide by slaying the Southern Yue generals.

Unfortunately, after scanning the field, he ended up picking the toughest steel plate to kick.

Seeing someone with such a thick skull actively seeking him out, Xia Luqi grinned so hard he couldn't close his mouth. A muffled laugh echoed from beneath his iron face mask.

"Hahaha! You barbarian, you actually dare to come and challenge me to a duel? Take this spear!"

Xia Luqi didn't waste words and thrust his spear forward directly.

With just one exchange, Pindalipha knew he had made a mistake. The power, speed, and momentum of this spear strike were not something he could withstand.

But now that they had engaged, he had no way to retreat. If he retreated, the entire army's morale would likely evaporate, leading to a total rout.

Helpless, Pindalipha could only grit his teeth and force himself to fight Xia Luqi.

The gap between the two quickly became apparent. Pindalipha only had the strength to parry and no chance to counterattack, while Xia Luqi even found the time to knock over nearby Toungoo soldiers.

By the eleventh round, the massive advantage finally turned into victory. Xia Luqi caught an opening and knocked the weapon out of Pindalipha's hand before swiftly thrusting his spear forward.

"Ugh..."

Pindalipha looked at the iron spear embedded in his chest, then struggled to turn his head toward Bayinnaung. Finally, he collapsed unwillingly, his eyes refusing to close even in death.

The death of a top general in a duel was a devastating blow to the army's morale. Before Bayinnaung on the high platform could even issue orders to save the situation, the rout on the front lines began.

Seeing this situation, Gao Yao immediately turned and bowed to Gao Yuan.

"The toungoo people are defeated. My Lord should lead the Cavalry in a pursuit to delay the enemy's escape."

Gao Yuan had already stood up and cupped his hands toward Gao Yao.

"I understand. Please remain here to oversee things, Sir. I shall return shortly."

The Xiaoguo Army, which had been watching the show for a long time, could finally take the field. Seeing others fighting and earning merit, these proud iron riders had long been itching for action.

Accompanied by the thunderous sound of hooves, the Cavalry charged out from the Southern Yue formation. Who else could the general in the white robe and black armor with an iron face mask be but Gao Yuan?

They bypassed the battlefield where the fighting was still occurring and headed straight for the rear of the Toungoo army, toward the direction of the Toungoo camp and their line of retreat.