17: Changing the Situation

Zhou Yun was indeed quite surprised by this, after all, Gu Chang's martial arts were personally taught by him.

Originally, he thought Gu Chang would need at least one or two more months to Breakthrough, but he didn't expect him to Breakthrough now.

The strength at the Copper Skin level was considered good even within the Xuanjia Army.

"Thank you for your praise, sir!"

Facing Zhou Yun's words, Gu Chang couldn't help but respond with a bitter smile. The 'fierce general' the other party mentioned naturally didn't refer to a true army general, but rather a fierce warrior of the battlefield, a death-sworn, a war-crazed individual who dared to charge into battle alone.

Of course, Gu Chang wouldn't say these words aloud. The happier the other party was, the more benefits he would receive.

"Mm, if you make another great contribution, you can become a Platoon Leader in the Xuanjia Army!"

Zhou Yun was quite satisfied with Gu Chang's attitude, so he immediately drew such a grand picture for Gu Chang on the spot!

"Yes! Thank you for your recognition, sir!"

However, this grand picture ultimately had weight. Although both were Platoon Leaders, the status of a Xuanjia Army Platoon Leader and an Auxiliary Army Platoon Leader were worlds apart.

If Gu Chang could become a Platoon Leader of the Xuanjia Army, then he would be considered a direct subordinate of Prince Mu.

Zhou Yun came and went quickly. Ultimately, this was merely an improvement in Gu Chang's strength and didn't require much of his attention.

Having successfully achieved the Copper Skin level, Gu Chang also began preparing for the upcoming bloody battle.

This time, the enemy's strength was indeed formidable. Even elite soldiers and strong generals like the Xuanjia Army would find it difficult to escape if surrounded by the enemy.

Even if Gu Chang managed to survive last time, the final losses for the entire Xuanjia Army would likely be quite severe.

To avoid this situation, improving one's own strength was only one aspect. More crucially, it was necessary to prepare the command-level personnel like Zhou Yun.

But how to do this was a difficult problem.

If Gu Chang stood up and said he knew the enemy's intelligence, he might be dragged out and executed as a spy.

Because even if they listened to his intelligence, how to explain the source of his intelligence was also a problem.

"It seems I can only improvise on the battlefield."

After much thought, Gu Chang had no good ideas, so he could only patiently prepare.

Three days passed quickly, and the Xuanjia Army and Auxiliary Army received orders to begin their advance.

Soon, the ruined city where the enemy was located was visible in the distance. Zhou Yun immediately ordered the Auxiliary Army to conduct a preliminary probe.

A moment later, the two armies clashed, and the Auxiliary Army's scouts were directly repelled.

"Scout again! The rest of the Auxiliary Army follow suit!"

Zhou Yun was naturally unmoved by such a result, and with a cold face, he continued to issue orders to the Auxiliary Army.

"Sir! How about I go and check the situation?"

Upon seeing this, Gu Chang immediately stepped forward. Relying on the Auxiliary Army to gather any intelligence was simply a joke; it was nothing more than filling a pit with human lives.

It just so happened that he also needed a reasonable way to warn the other party, so he proactively stepped forward.

"You? Alright!"

Zhou Yun took a deep look at Gu Chang. He thought Gu Chang was eager to make a meritorious contribution, so after a brief consideration, he readily agreed.

"Yes, sir!"

Soon, the Auxiliary Army's scouts set out again, and Gu Chang also blended in with them, advancing towards the ruined city.

Soon they ran into the enemy's ambush. The two forces quickly began to fight. Gu Chang, relying on his own strength, directly broke out and, after leaving the other scouts' line of sight, circled a large area before returning to the Xuanjia Army's formation.

"Report! Your subordinate discovered two ambushes within the enemy's sphere of influence!"

"The outskirts of the city are full of Yellow Heaven Army soldiers. Their numbers are large, and their strength is a bit stronger than the Auxiliary Army, but behind them are two elite forces, roughly several thousand strong. Your subordinate only took a distant glance and was almost discovered!"

Gu Chang immediately gave a rough report of the intelligence he knew to Zhou Yun.

"Hmm, it seems they also have elite troops in ambush, which is not surprising."

"Tell me, what do those elite troops look like?"

Zhou Yun nodded slightly, motioning for Gu Chang to continue.

"They wear red headscarves, and the leader is bare-chested. The other elite soldiers are also robust and surely skilled in martial arts."

Gu Chang dared not be too detailed, only picking out some obvious characteristics to describe.

"..."

Zhou Yun fell silent upon hearing this intelligence. As a veteran of the battlefield, he naturally knew some information that Gu Chang did not.

"Very good, I will record a great merit for you this time!"

Finally, Zhou Yun took a deep breath before responding to Gu Chang.

"Yes, thank you, sir!"

"Auxiliary Army, listen up!"

"Archers, string your bows!"

"Light bonfires, make fire arrows, and shoot in three rotating shifts!"

"Order the trebuchets from the rear to be brought up! Everyone else, prepare yourselves!"

"Xuanjia Army, listen up, maintain defensive formation, kill all who approach without mercy!"

"..."

Immediately, Zhou Yun rapidly issued a series of commands, and the battle strategy instantly shifted from close-quarters combat to long-range attrition.

Soon, burning arrows were shot out, and some of the civilian houses where the enemy was hiding immediately caught fire.

At first, these enemy soldiers didn't care, even shooting arrows back in return to counter and wear down.

But very quickly, as some siege equipment was mobilized by Zhou Yun, large boulders and fireballs were also launched into the enemy formation, making it impossible for the enemy's ambush to continue.

Next, they either had to retreat directly, abandoning this ruined city area, or launch a proactive assault and charge.

It was clear that these enemy soldiers, who already feared no death, chose the latter. Large numbers of troops were directly dispatched, launching a charge towards Gu Chang and his men.

"Swish swish swish!"

"Ah!"

Many soldiers were directly hit by arrows and fell to the ground, but even more soldiers, holding shields, charged towards Gu Chang's side. Soon, the two armies became entangled in a fierce struggle.

However, this time Gu Chang and his men were well-rested and had already set up their formation and established defenses, so they held a greater advantage in the fighting.

The enemy's cannon fodder troops were quickly reduced by more than half. Even with their strong morale, they could no longer bear it and began to disperse.

However, at this moment, the elite local troops who had been ambushing them also appeared.

After slaughtering a group of cannon fodder troops attempting to flee, they immediately charged towards the Xuanjia Army engaged in the bloody battle.

Immediately, the pressure on the Xuanjia Army soldiers at the very front increased significantly. Fortunately, they still held the advantage, and the struggle between the two sides quickly became extremely fierce.

The enemy fought without fear of death, but they were ultimately flesh and blood, capable of being killed and eliminated.

Zhou Yun once again made his move, directly engaging the enemy leader in a fierce battle. The clash between two Refining Bone level experts was incredibly terrifying; either one could easily kill other soldiers.

Gu Chang was also fighting on the front lines. Fortunately, his trusted aides were all with him this time. He only needed to continuously strike down enemies, and Li Ergou, Qian Dazhi, and others would naturally help him with defense.

The battle continued for an unknown duration. The corpses at Gu Chang's feet were already nearly half a person tall.

"Woo~~~"

Suddenly, a horn sounded, and the enemy quickly disengaged, leaving only a small portion behind to cover their retreat.

"Hoo~ Hoo~"

Watching the gradually receding enemy, Gu Chang gasped for breath while observing the condition of others around him.

Tragic! Extremely tragic!

Only six soldiers remained under his command, and many of the familiar Xuanjia elite soldiers had died. The surviving soldiers were all wounded.

If they hadn't made preparations beforehand, the losses now would likely be even more terrifying, possibly even leading to complete annihilation!