To achieve immortality, I cultivate using Qi Luck

Chapter 997: Chapter 412 Half of the Country Falls_2 Chapter 997: Chapter 412 Half of the Country Falls_2 Not only the East Sea but also Xingyang County next to it fell to the fierce attacks from the four routes of Chu soldiers.

The county city was lost, and more than half was occupied.

The reason why only more than half was occupied, rather than the entire territory falling into enemy hands,

was mainly because Xingyang County was on the frontier, bordered by the Wei State to the west.

Apart from the latter, Liang had stationed a hundred thousand border troops here and three Inborn Grandmasters to bear witness.

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Overall, the military strength of the county was quite impressive.

Faced with the invasion, emergency conscription of civilian workers helped cobble together an army.

Mustering two hundred thousand soldiers and horses was not impossible.

Therefore, although the Chu soldiers initially made swift progress here, by the time they captured the county seat, the hundred thousand border troops stationed in the eastern part of the county had already completed mobilization and assembly.

With the addition of conscripted civilian workers, a total of one hundred and fifty thousand troops were gathered, which joined forces with the Liang army from Jiangxia County in the east to resist Chu State.

Confronted with this resolute resistance from the Liang troops, the Chu soldiers within Xingyang County’s territory only numbered four hundred thousand from four routes.

In the face of the Liang’s determined defense, it was difficult to overcome the enemy hastily.

After probing the defenses and realizing the opponent was tough to beat, not easy to engage,

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Instead, they left two routes behind to defend the territory they held.

The remaining two routes continued north, killing their way into Jiying County.

However, in Jiying at this time, the Liang army had just completed its mobilization, and the second wave of troops preparing to head south had already fully assembled.

So one marched northward, and the other southward, and the two sides collided.

It was no surprise.

Facing the Chu soldiers, who numbered twice as many and arrived suddenly, the unprepared Liang army was caught off guard and instantly defeated.

In the short span of one day from initial contact to combat, the one hundred thousand newly-formed Liang troops were utterly routed.

The survivors fled back to the county, and the Chu soldiers pursued them aggressively.

In just a few days, they swept through the southern prefectures of Jiying County, showing signs of replicating the events of Xingyang County.

And at this time,

back in the great city of Liang, they finally realized the extent of the seriousness of the situation.

East Sea is in urgent need, Xingyang is in urgent need, Jiying is in urgent need, Chengyang is in urgent need…

Even Liang County, where the capital was located, received urgent petitions from the southern prefectures and counties.

In an instant, the whole western, southern, and central parts of Liang seemed to be engulfed by the flames of war.

The east was not peaceful either.

The only place that seemed peacefully was, incredibly, only the northern territories.

After receiving these numerous reports, the entire court was overwhelmed, feeling like the sky was falling.

“How can there be so many Chu soldiers, where did they get so many people from?”

“It’s all fake, all of it.”

“What’s the Southern Line army doing?

What are they doing?

How can they allow the Chu soldiers to invade unimpeded, killing their way into the country’s heartland, approaching the capital Liang City?”

This was the reaction and fear of the monarch and ministers in the court after receiving the news.

If the Chu army’s Northern Expedition had just crossed the river, still on the Southern Line,

then the many monarchs and ministers in Liang City could still pontificate from on high.

But as the Chu army approached Xingyang, East Sea, and then Jiying, Liang County, and Chengyang, bringing the battle to Liang City,

the court officials started to shake and fear as if chickens being strangled by the neck.

Rally to the king!

Immediately, without delay, summon the leaders of the world’s prefectures and counties to rally to the king!

This was the unanimous reaction and decision of the entire court after the Chu cavalry’s detached army first arrived at Liang City, causing panic throughout the city.

In Dongping County to the north, those two hundred thousand border troops had to be called back immediately.

The troops from the central counties like Shanyang, Jiaoxi, Donglai, Rencheng, and Yingling also had to assemble immediately towards Liang City.

The one million-strong army in Jiaodong County could remain for the time being.

After all, the one million Chu soldiers in Yangxia County were still a constant threat.

If they were transferred, and the Chu soldiers advanced opportunistically, the consequences would be even more serious.

Liang might truly be finished.

But the five hundred thousand reinforcements that had just been sent out had to be called back immediately.

And from Qingping County in the northeast, where there were one hundred thousand border troops, half had to be called back as well.

The monarch and ministers inside Liang City began to search desperately for any local troops that could be mobilized from within the country.

Chu State was coming ferociously.

From their ability to quickly conquer the East Sea and Xingyang counties to their simultaneous offensive against Jiying, Liang, and Chengyang counties, it was evident.

The opponent’s Northern Expedition this time certainly didn’t comprise the mere one million as initially anticipated.

Two million, or even three million might be possible.

Only such a significant difference in strength could quickly overwhelm the five hundred thousand defenders on the Guangling-Jiangxia line.

Before they could even react, the Chu forces broke through the defenses and penetrated deep into Liang territory, while leaving behind sufficient strength to contain forces elsewhere.

Indeed.

After careful deliberation, although panicked, the monarch and ministers in Liang City unanimously believed that the troops on the Southern Line had not been defeated; they were merely constrained within the cities by the Chu army for the time being.

The key cities on the Jiangxia and Guangling line should still be in the hands of Liang.

The Chu troops suddenly entering the heartland of Liang must be just the vanguard of the detached army from the Northern Expedition, not the entire main force of the Chu army.

However, even with this realization, the monarch and ministers of Liang still felt a wave of despair.

From the reports coming in from the counties within the territory, it seemed that the Chu army that had penetrated the heartland numbered up to a million soldiers.

If just the vanguard of the detached army amounted to a million,

then what was the total military strength of the Chu army’s Northern Expedition?

Two million was conservative, three million was normal, and four million was not out of the question.

But where did the Chu army get so many people from?

Keep in mind, they had already deployed a million-strong army each in Yangxia and Helong!