r18novel Page 411
Page 411
"As for the fortune of the Taoist sect, the fortune of Wudang Mountain has already been completely transferred to Li Chang'an, but... the fortune of Longhu Mountain still remains!"
"If the three religions cannot be united, even if one achieves the status of a terrestrial celestial being, one may not necessarily be a match for Li Chang'an."
Those outside the world don't care about the relationship between Longhu Mountain and the Liyang Dynasty; they only know that Longhu Mountain also carries the fortune of the Taoist sect.
After Tantai finished speaking, Luoyang couldn't help but chuckle, "Little girl, you're being delusional. These kinds of fortunes aren't so easy to come by."
"When Gao Shulu was sealed, he was already a terrestrial celestial being. The two masters from the Two Zen Temples are both Buddhist Vajra. Zhang Fuyao is the same age as me and has long since become a celestial being."
Longhu Mountain even has two living, land-based sword immortals. Do you expect this kid to trade his life for their fortune?
Xu Fengnian turned his head and said, "Isn't there you? You help me seize the Qi Luck, and I'll recover my memories faster. Then you can take your revenge, right?"
Luo Yang said awkwardly, "Together, Tantai Pingjing and I can barely handle the two bald monks from Liangchan Temple. We really can't do anything about the others."
Xu Fengnian said without any politeness, "In that case, after this battle is over, I will accompany you two to Liangchan Temple to seize the Buddhist fortune first!"
Without any hesitation, Tantai Ping replied, "Yes, sir!"
Luo Yang vanished into the darkness in a flash, leaving behind only a sarcastic remark.
"This kid was born into a very lucky family. He's the reincarnation of Zhenwu, the Qin Emperor, and the nameless Taoist priest... He really hit the jackpot."
Three days later, at Yanjia Lake.
Sweet potatoes have returned from Dunhuang City, and Li Chang'an has just arrived at Yanjia Lake.
This time, Dong Zhuo and Xu Xiao wanted to take the opportunity to eliminate Li Chang'an, but Li Chang'an also wanted to use himself as bait to eliminate both of these formidable enemies.
Inside Li Chang'an's tent were only two women, Hongshu and Xue Songguan.
"Sweet potato, why don't I see you wearing a dragon robe?"
The two women had collected a stack of urgent military reports and were waiting for Li Chang'an to arrive, but Li Chang'an didn't seem to be in a hurry at all, and started asking unrelated questions.
Sweet Potato was a little nervous. She reached out and brushed a strand of hair that had fallen across her forehead behind her ear. "Your Highness is joking. From now on, there will be no more Empress of Dunhuang."
Li Chang'an chuckled, "The Empress is gone, but the dragon robe is still wearable."
Sweet Potato smiled slightly. The reason she had been the most favored person over the years was not because she deliberately tried to win favor. She simply did her job well and never questioned anything Li Chang'an said.
"Then so be it, Your Highness. After this battle, I will show you the sweet potato."
Sweet Potato's red lips twitched slightly. Although she didn't dare to interrupt Li Chang'an, the anxiety in her eyes was already impossible to hide.
"Then it's a deal. Let's talk about the military situation."
Sweet Potato breathed a long sigh of relief, fearing that if he kept these military reports in his hands for even a moment longer, it would delay important matters.
"Your Highness, Li Cunxiao fought the Rouran cavalry for a day and a night, and finally annihilated 100,000 Rouran cavalry, completely destroying the Tibingshan clan!"
"The Xuanjia Army annihilated 30,000 enemy soldiers, but lost more than 30,000 of its 70,000 cavalry. The remaining 30,000 combat-ready soldiers are rushing back and are expected to arrive tomorrow."
Li Chang'an was not surprised. The Rouran cavalry was equivalent to the Northern Mang's Iron Pagoda. This time, the Tang army's 30,000 troops were exchanged for 100,000, which was already a great victory.
"What were the losses of the Xuanjia Army?"
Sweet Potato replied, "The Xuanjia Army suffered fewer than a thousand casualties."
Upon hearing about the situation of the Xuanjia Army, Li Chang'an was completely relieved. These five thousand Xuanjia soldiers alone could scatter one hundred thousand ordinary cavalry. With the Xuanjia Army present, the victory in this battle was already half won.
Sweet Potato continued, "Huo Qubing and the White-Robed Guanyin still have more than a day's journey to go, and they should arrive at Yanjia Lake by tomorrow night."
"Xu Xiaobing has marched out of Shangfang Valley. If all goes well, his 60,000 elite cavalry will reach Yanjia Lake in two days."
Hongshu and Xue Songguan's concerns were not unfounded. Li Cunxiao and Huo Qubing combined had only 100,000 troops, while Dong Zhuo and Xu Xiao combined had a full 260,000 troops.
Dong Zhuo did not wait for the 300,000 troops to be assembled, but instead led the 200,000 troops he had already assembled directly to Yanjia Lake.
"The troops of Dong Zhuo, the Southern King of Northern Mang, will arrive in a day or two."
Li Chang'an said calmly, "Don't worry, Xu Xiao's 60,000 elite cavalry won't reach Yanjia Lake."
"The strategist will send more than 30,000 reinforcements. With 130,000 against Dong Zhuo's 200,000, we should be able to hold our own."
Sweet Potato asked in surprise, "The strategist wants to ambush Xu Xiao along the way, but... is there enough time?"
Li Chang'an said, "Ever since the five armies of Liyang Dynasty attacked, the strategist has calculated Xu Xiao's every move clearly."
"His confrontation with Xu Xiao on the Liangzhou border with Gu Dazu was just for show; in reality, he only had 30,000 troops under his command."
"The real main force of more than 70,000 troops has long been waiting at the border and is now in ambush at Shangfang Valley."
Upon hearing this news, both Hongshu and Xue Songguan were shocked; the strategist was far too audacious.
"Your Highness, the strategist has deployed 30,000 troops to confront Xu Xiao's army of over 100,000!"
"What if Xu Xiao attacks Liangzhou...?"
Li Chang'an said indifferently, "What else can we do? If he dares to launch a strong attack, we'll just hand him over. What I want is to annihilate the remaining forces of Liyang."
Li Chang'an spoke lightly, but others did not. No one would support Zhuge Liang's Empty City Stratagem.
However, Li Chang'an agreed to Zhuge Liang's approach without hesitation, including using Yanjiahu as bait, which was all discussed and agreed upon by Li Chang'an and Zhuge Liang.
Li Chang'an had to use his 200,000 troops to defeat the allied forces of nearly 800,000, and it was impossible to do so without taking some risks.
Soldiers who, deception also.
If any other strategist had proposed such a strategy, Li Chang'an might not have dared to agree so readily.
However, this was Zhuge Liang's strategy. You should know that this civil official was enfeoffed as the Marquis of Wu, a figure who was enshrined in both the civil and military temples in the previous history.
If Xu Xiao believes that Zhuge Liang is ignorant of military strategy and has no outstanding achievements, then he is doomed.
Li Chang'an had always used Zhuge Liang as a civil official, preventing his military talents from becoming widely known, all for this very day.
Shangfang Valley.
Xu Xiao, who had not been on the battlefield for many years, felt very good after three days of marching.
He took Xu Yanbing with him for protection, leaving none for Xu Fengnian, because Xu Yanbing had noticed that Xu Fengnian had a powerful figure by his side.
Xu Xiao didn't care about Xu Fengnian's concealment; in his view, it was a sign that Xu Fengnian had grown up.
Shangfang Valley is shaped like a long, narrow gourd, but it is the only way to Yanjia Lake. It was late autumn, and the area was covered with yellowing weeds.
Xu Xiao galloped on his horse, and just one glance at the narrow strip of sky stirred a sense of unease within him.
Having fought battles his entire life, Xu Xiao knew this was a risky move. Scouts had already scouted the area and found no ambushes on the mountain, so it should be safe.
No war is ever 100% certain; sometimes you have to take a gamble, and Xu Xiao is a gambler who often wins.
"Speed up the march and get out of Shangfang Valley as soon as possible!"
Despite his confidence, Xu Xiao still gave the order, driven by a general's intuition: this place should not be lingered in.
Regardless of the outcome of this battle, it will completely draw Northern Mang into the game. With Northern Mang to deal with Li Chang'an, Northern Liang's space for survival will be much larger.
As the horse galloped away, Xu Xiao thought of his old brother Zhao Li, the former emperor of the Li Yang Dynasty.
"Brother, you can't blame me for making such a mess of Liyang Dynasty."
“Your son has messed things up and torn the world apart. You lost the deer in Liyang, and everyone wants to grab it. My son wants to grab it too, so of course I have to help him.”
"If you want to blame someone, blame your son for not being as good as my son, haha!"
Just as Xu Xiao was feeling smug, a sudden, deafening roar came from the sky!
He looked up and saw that many holes had suddenly appeared in the cliff face, from which soldiers covered in dirt emerged, and huge rocks were pushed down from them!
No wonder the scouts didn't see the enemy; they were hiding in the cliffs!
In a world where warriors exist, it wouldn't be difficult for Zhuge Liang to have his White Feather Soldiers hang on walls and carve out holes in them to carry out such an ambush!
"Don't linger, get through quickly!"
Xu Xiao issued another order: the valley was full of weeds, and if the ambush troops suddenly set it on fire, the consequences would be unimaginable!
Upon hearing the order, the Northern Liang cavalry immediately began a desperate charge, but the falling boulders and logs still killed many of them.
Just then, the advancing cavalry suddenly slowed down, and the commander at the front sent someone to report.
"Your Highness, the valley entrance is blocked by the Mo Dao soldiers, and we cannot break through!"
In such a narrow terrain, a thousand veteran soldiers with long swords could block the entrance to the valley several times over!
Xu Xiao's heart tightened, and he immediately roared, "Order the vanguard to charge out, even if it means burying the Mo Dao soldiers with their corpses!"
The order had just been given when the rear guard reported that Mo Dao soldiers had also appeared in the direction of the valley entrance.
Zhuge Liang divided the two thousand veteran soldiers with long swords into two groups, each paired with ten thousand elite infantry, and they blocked both ends of the valley entrance.
The terrain was narrow, and the veteran soldiers with the Mo Dao were all third-rank warriors, making it impossible for the Northern Liang cavalry to escape!
Just then, gushing oil was poured down the cliff face, with oil flowing down every ten feet or so along the hundred-foot-long cliff.
Seeing his soldiers, with nowhere to hide, being doused in oil, and his warhorses neighing in panic because they couldn't move forward, Xu Xiao panicked.
Although he had Xu Yanbing by his side, preventing oil and boulders from falling on him, there was only one Xu Yanbing in Beiliang.
"Xu Xiao, the King of Beiliang, has met his end here!"
In an instant, the shouts of the Shazhou soldiers echoed through the valley from the cliff!
Rockets rained down from the sky, striking the oil-soaked grass and instantly igniting the fire!
Throughout the entire Upper Valley, raging fire dragons were everywhere, and the Northern Liang cavalrymen were torn apart and their flesh burned in the flames.