Nine out of ten gamblers lose; I've run into a jerk!

Chapter 113 Carving the Array

The commander-in-chief of the An and Di allied forces, this was An's home ground, and the commander-in-chief, Ji Yun, was naturally from An. He stood motionless in front of the sand table, planning the next strategic deployment after capturing Yucheng and Yiyang Pass.

A skilled chess player naturally thinks ten steps ahead for every one move he makes. Ji Yun stroked his short beard, feeling that he was no less capable than Zhuge Xuan of the Di Kingdom.

"Report—"

The messenger proceeded unimpeded to the commander-in-chief's camp.

"What's the matter?"

Season didn't even lift an eyelid; the outcome of the Battle of Yucheng was already decided.

"Reporting to the Marshal, the enemy commander, Lu Zhen, has personally opened the city gates to meet the enemy!"

"Oh~" A ripple finally appeared in Ji Yun's eyes. Was he preparing to bravely sacrifice himself?

Tsk~ Why bother? We've been neighbors for so many years. If you surrender, we definitely won't kill you. Why die for Xuan Kingdom?

"Pass down the order: whoever captures Lu Zhen alive will be rewarded with five hundred gold coins, and whoever beheads him will be rewarded with one hundred gold coins."

The messenger hesitated, as if he wanted to speak but then stopped.

"Speak quickly if you have something to say."

"Reporting to the Marshal, that scoundrel Lu Zhen has personally come to the battlefield, greatly boosting the enemy's morale. He's also carrying some kind of device that amplifies his voice and carries it far, and he's shouting and cursing on the front lines, the insults are absolutely unbearable..."

"Hmph~ A clumsy attempt to provoke me, just to lure me out. The enemy must be hiding some trump card that we don't know about."

Ji Yun sneered. It was just a desperate struggle, but he couldn't help but be curious. Lu Zhen was a military commander, after all. How could he lower himself to the status of a ruffian and shout curses in front of the army?

It'll probably still be the same old, tired phrases like "You son of a bitch," or "You scoundrel, come out and die!"

"He said...that Anguo has forgotten his ancestors, colluded with foreign races to harm his fellow Chinese, and that having you is like poisonous smoke rising from your ancestral graves. If your ancestors knew this in the afterlife, they would probably be turning in their graves, and wouldn't they have nightmares and feel ashamed before their spirits..."

"Snap—" The order startled the soldier so much that he shrank back.

Another set of tableware has tragically perished. This is truly a scathing insult, utterly vicious!

"That old scoundrel Lu Zhen, I'm going to have a go at him!"

In the Xuanguo army formation, Lu Zhen held a makeshift megaphone that Shen Qing had temporarily made. Although it wasn't as effective as in later generations, it was still much better than just relying on one's voice.

As Lu Zhen continued to curse according to the script Shen Qing had written, he became more and more engrossed in his rant, even developing a rhythm to it. He thought to himself, "Shen Sanlang is truly a unique individual of our time."

Just as I was marveling at this, I saw the enemy commander's flag move. Wow, they really came out!

So why did Ji Yunming still come out even though he knew it was a provocation? Back then, the Northern Barbarians were the last straw that broke the back of the Great Qian Dynasty's fortunes. After that, the country was shattered, and foreign tribes harmed the Chinese. In the darkest era, they were imprisoned like sheep, and a large number of people migrated south. Heroes rose up in various places and wars lasted for decades. It can be said that the Northern enemy was the common enemy of all Chinese.

Now that Anguo and Diguo have joined forces to attack Xuanguo, which is also a Han Chinese regime, they have truly forgotten their ancestors.

Many generals in the Anguo army had already opposed cooperating with Anguo to attack Xuanguo, but were suppressed by military orders and had been enduring it. Now, Lu Zhen had exposed their true intentions on the battlefield and cursed them so viciously that even the ordinary soldiers whose ancestors had suffered and migrated south were beginning to waver in their morale.

He's capable of many things but can't speak of them. Now that things have come to this point, if Ji Yun doesn't come out, he'll truly be a coward who dares to do things but not to admit them.

But Ji Yun was, after all, the commander-in-chief of the army. Even if he was in a good mood, he could not charge ahead in a situation where victory was certain. He came out only to stabilize the morale of the troops and remained under the protection of the army formation.

But the opportunity Shen Qing had been waiting for had arrived; he wanted Ji Yun to die in front of everyone!

Because of Marshal Lu Zhen's status, Ji Yun still wanted to capture him alive if conditions allowed, so he didn't concentrate his fire on Lu Zhen with powerful weapons like catapults and ballistae.

This gave Lu Zhen the opportunity to continue promoting traditional Chinese culture in Zu'an. Shen Qing gave his wingmen a hand signal.

Start the killing!

Shen Qing led the way, followed closely by a hundred-man squad of archers, shield bearers, and infantry, which carved a gap in the enemy's formation.

This team is like a splinter piercing the skin and flesh, swimming along the major artery towards the heart.

Shen Qing charged ahead, bearing most of the pressure, while the team behind him maintained a V-formation to protect him from attacks from other directions.

With their backs to the wall and their boats burned, both sides knew that today was the decisive battle, which would bring the siege of Yucheng to a close.

Amidst the flashing blades and deafening battle cries, anyone caught in the midst of it is affected by the murderous aura, their adrenaline surging and unleashing limitless potential. In the heat of the moment, they are unaware of the pain even when stabbed multiple times, and can still take down a wave of enemies even with their intestines ripped out.

Shen Qing was also infected by the brutality of the killing field, releasing his violent factors. The Vermilion Bird Mad Blade truly revealed the meat grinder side of the scene.

Three hundred meters...

Two hundred meters...

One hundred meters...

Shen Qing locked onto the target and advanced step by step. The movement in this direction was so significant that it would be difficult for Ji Yun not to notice it.

"What a pity," Ji Yun thought to himself, while simultaneously ordering, "Kill this fiend with all your might!"

A dense rain of arrows whistled through the air. Shen Qing stepped back, and twenty shield bearers stood beside him, their shields quickly forming a tight protective barrier. The arrows clattered and clanged as they struck the shields.

Taking advantage of the opportunity, the enemy attacked, and the infantrymen, who were also hiding in the shields, thrust their blades out from the gaps in the shields.

Having weathered this attack, Shen Qing knew that the next one would only be more ferocious.

"preparation!"

Shen Qing shouted, which was the code they had agreed on earlier.

Several shield bearers quickly bent down and pieced their shields together into a board. Shen Qing jumped onto it, and with the help of the infantry, they used the momentum to launch Shen Qing away.

"Shoot him down!"

Several iron hooks with chains were flung into the air. People are least protected when they are in mid-air, and Shen Qing was unfortunately caught by one of the hooks and pulled down.

"Snapped--"

Shen Qing fell to the ground from mid-air, and before she could get up, a group of gunmen pointed at her.

When Ji Yun saw Shen Qing captured, he smiled smugly. His personal bravery was nothing in the face of a vast army, but he had to admit that he was already very impressive.

This kind of person is worth talking about. Ji Yun stepped forward, keeping a hundred paces away from Shen Qing, just in case he suddenly attacked and killed someone.

"Are you willing to surrender to Anguo?"

"You big idiot!"

Young people are passionate and fearless of death. Ji Yun respected this kind of spirit, so he decided to grant his wish. He raised his hand and said calmly, "Kill."

Several spears were raised and thrust towards Shen Qing. Ji Yun was prepared to see the boy turn into a hedgehog, but the spearheads all missed their mark.

What about people?

Not only was Ji Yun puzzled, but the soldiers who had taken action were also bewildered. Looking at the empty space pointed at by the spear, they were horrified. It was like seeing a ghost!

Looking around but not seeing Shen Qing, Ji Yun's heart suddenly skipped a beat. He looked up sharply and saw Shen Qing appear in mid-air, raising one arm with a cold expression, aiming a crossbow at him.

Ji Yun opened his mouth, but before he could make a sound, a sharp arrow pierced his throat.

The soldiers who witnessed this bizarre scene were all in an uproar.