Chapter 701 507 Enticed In_2

The piercing cold light made it impossible for him to open his eyes. Zhong Dui, covered in blood and dared not to move, could faintly feel the chill of the long halberd. He listened as a deep voice boomed:

"Thinking it was Xian Du in person, this king came to welcome personally, but it turned out to be a mere junior officer."

Li Zhouwei silently looked at him. All around were wails of agony, and the ground was drenched red with blood, yet the youth seemed not to care and even smiled as he gently pulled out the long halberd stuck in the ground and flipped it over.

The long halberd, tilted toward the ground, the crimson blood dripping down, traced a long red-black line on the ground. He nudged his horse forward and thought to himself:

"Turns out to be somewhat useful; pretending to be reinforcement troops and deceiving open Moonlight Valley shouldn't be a problem."

Zhong Dui struggled to stand up and surveyed his surroundings. Apart from the silently standing Dahe armored warriors, only fallen bodies remained. He knelt and said:

"I am willing to serve the great king."

Dahe Mingfang seemed even more amused, his voice bright as he laughed:

"Look at me."

Zhong Dui had no choice but to look up, only to see the youth beneath those long eyebrows, his dark brown pupils slightly contracting with glints of gold flashing, which terrified him. The alarming youth lifted his chin and uttered words that sent chills down Zhong Dui's spine:

"You are a loyal one, no wonder Xian Du sent you. But your cultivation level is too low; you cannot deceive this king."

Zhong Dui's facial expression turned ferocious in an instant, but not nearly as swiftly as the strike of the long halberd. As the cold light flickered, his head soared into the air, and his body collapsed, blood spurting out and turning the only clean patch of ground a deep red.

Li Zhouwei merely lowered his gaze modestly, reined in his horse, and proceeded a few steps forward; only then did the head plop down into the forest.

Moonlight Valley cultivator troops were numerous and had penetrated deep into Northern Shanyue territory. Atop the mountain, there were cultivators who had given birth to Spiritual Sense at the Fetal Breathing Fifth Layer, capable of probing cultivation levels. Thus, Li Zhouwei did not let Li Wushao join the fray but instead made preliminary strikes to test the waters.

The opposing force dispatched two units of troops, which were both utterly routed. They quickly resorted to a strict defense, leading to a tedious stalemate. Li Zhouwei, unwilling to waste time there, took his cultivators and, while both sides were locked in a stand-off, silently took a detour through the mountains to reach beyond the pass.

This, of course, would be impossible without the guidance of the Dili Clan. He ordered Chen Yan and Dili Youjie to keep Moonlight Valley engaged, took his troops out, and laid an ambush for two days on the road. The timing was nearly perfect as he swallowed a Talisman Pill and broke through to the Fetal Breathing Sixth Layer.

"Shanyue's reinforcements are truly pathetic."

The mountain paths were difficult to navigate, so he brought only five hundred elite soldiers, allowing several days for the wait to stabilize his cultivation level. Unexpectedly, after a full five days, a disorganized mass of troops gradually approached without any semblance of order.

This junior officer was not too bad. Li Zhouwei's forces indeed lacked a capable member of the Royal Court from Shanyue, but it was a pity he could not be recruited.

After pondering for a few breaths, his subordinates had already extracted the news. Dili Youjie knelt and said:

"Great king, Xian Du is currently within Chongwu Town."

Li Zhouwei urged his horse forward, gradually picking up speed. Dili Youjie joyfully said:

"Great king! Why not advance immediately and first capture this ruler of Northern Shanyue?"

The five hundred troops slowly gathered, but Li Zhouwei did not head directly for Chongwu Town in the north. Instead, he unfolded a map in his hands and spoke softly:

"Xian Du must expect me to break through and advance northward with an army. If he flees in panic to the east or west..."

He estimated Xian Du's soldiers; perhaps the six towns had a force of five thousand. Yet the main force was not yet present. He could also defend the six towns. He couldn't help but smile and turned to ask Dili Youjie at his side:

"Will he defend or flee?"

Dili Youjie was immediately troubled, unsure of how to respond. Li Zhouwei stood holding his halberd, turned his horse about, and muttered lowly:

"If he abandons the six towns, the heart of Northern Shanyue will be hollowed out. With no news from Witch Mountain, it would be no different from suicide! Xian Du is no fool, he will naturally defend!"

"We don't genuinely have five thousand troops breaking through. If he flees, we can certainly try to defeat the enemy in passing. But how can we capture the six towns if we're entrenched in defense? We will take Moonlight Valley first, then proceed with our plans."

"Fetch Zhong Dui's flag and clean it with the Cleansing Technique. Head south."

He gradually picked up speed. Moonlight Valley was already in sight. The long halberd was put away in the Storage Bag. He paused below the pass, where the five hundred soldiers took a brief rest and stealthily climbed toward the mountains.

Fierce fighting ensued at the pass, but the Guardian General had not slackened his vigilance. The rear was equally tight; the troops had covered only a short distance before someone quickly came questioning:

"Could it be reinforcements? Which troops are they!"

Dili Youjie hurried forward, answering in the Shanyue accent:

"Zhong Dui, we are here by royal decree to assist!"

The person simply said:

"I do not recognize you, sir. General Sishui has made it a rule that he must be requested personally, so please wait a moment."

Dili Youjie could only look towards Li Zhouwei, and seeing him nod, he immediately drew his sword and struck, killing the man with one blow, and unfurled Dahe Mingfang's flag. A troop of horses whinnied forward, storming towards the various arrow towers.

Li Zhouwei drew out his Long Halberd, which was bathed in a red glow. With one strike, he shattered the stockade door, and sweeping his Long Halberd, a swath of Shanyue fell like mowed grass. Like a tiger entering a flock of sheep, he charged towards the south in one breath.

Moonlight Valley, while still managing to hold off the southern troops with ease, had been under siege for several days; the soldiers were drained and the horses tired. Now, without waiting for reinforcements, enemy troops had suddenly emerged from behind, putting them in immediate jeopardy.

Chen Yan seized the opportune moment and launched a fierce attack, triggering a chain reaction. Although the Guardian General was exceptional in ability, his troops were really unable to withstand it, struggling to maintain their defensive position.

...

At Xian Du, troops were being assembled headlong. Six towns were urgently put in order, and surrounded with layers of walls. Taking a deep breath, he asked several times, but there was still no news from the south.

The scouts he had sent out came back with nothing, not one was able to return. Like a blind man in the dark, Xian Du could only wait, until the elite troops of his own forces arrived. It was then that he finally realized:

"We've been tricked by Dahe Mingfang! He must have sneaked in through the mountain paths!"

Xian Du was filled with regret. It wasn't that he was lacking in intelligence; the mountain paths were difficult, and in one day's time, at most a couple hundred soldiers... how many Cultivators could a small tribe have? He had not expected them to be capable of a major victory over Zhong Dui!

As his mind raced, a smile of excitement appeared on his face:

"The problem is the total lack of news! Dahe Mingfang has gone to great lengths to intercept my scouts, none returning. Something must be happening in Moonlight Valley, perhaps they have not yet conquered it!"

Clutching his teeth, Xian Du immediately ordered:

"The whole army, advance! Take advantage of their unstable footing and their weary soldiers to attack Moonlight Valley!"

He made a decisive call, gripping his Spear and mounting his tiger-like beast, he charged out like the wind. The army slowly emerged from the town, Xian Du impatiently leading them with urgency.

Along the way, they encountered a few of Dahe Clan's troops, likely those intercepting the scouts. The man leading them had a high Cultivation Level, hence the scouts did not return. Upon seeing the large army, they fled like a gust of wind.

The doubts in Xian Du's heart were slightly relieved, and soon he could see Moonlight Valley in the distance. Looking out, he saw flames rising in the valley; about two hundred men were attacking the fort, clearly elite strongmen, but appearing somewhat powerless, obviously exhausted from the battle.

"Hahahaha! Just as I thought! No wonder such effort went into avoiding the scouts!"

The situation inside was equally precarious, reaching the end of their strength, and on the brink of collapse. Xian Du's arrival was just in time, bringing joy to his heart.

"Good! I knew it! This is the strongest stronghold in the nation, guarded by General Sishui at the Fetal Breathing Peak, how could it be lost so easily!"

Xian Du was overjoyed and led his own forces to the rescue. The army pushed forward with a shout:

"The reinforcements have arrived!"

"The reinforcements have arrived!"

His troops also shouted excitedly, the calls echoing in the sky. Xian Du stormed towards the city. With attacks coming from both front and back, the hundred or so men had to fight back, and cheers were heard from the fort.

Xian Du fought for a moment, when suddenly from behind him came a thunderous roar of killing shouts, and from both sides, thousands of troops emerged, cutting his army into two. Figures flooded the walls of the fort, firing arrows and bearing the blinding insignia:

"Shanghe Mingfang!"

For a moment, Xian Du felt as if he had fallen into an ice cave. He pulled on the reins, looking back to see troops emerging from the woods. On the opposite hill stood a black steed, a young man in armor shimmering with cold light, standing with a halberd, looking at him from afar, seemingly revealing a vague smile.

He felt as though he was being watched by wolves and tigers, his hairs standing on end with sweat streaming down as he stood there stunned, muttering to himself:

"Shanghe Mingfang!"