Chapter 1569: Not Seen is Magnificent

Yu Liyang could not even afford a detailed look at the final charge of Marquis Jing’an,for he had to escape before being locked down.Chongxuan Chuliang, however, deliberately paused, narrowing his eyes,and intently observed the meteorite shower raining down across the sky for a moment.Flames stretched for ten thousand li, stones fell for ten thousand zhang.Grand and magnificent, truly a spectacle.This was the last glow of this Sword Peak Mountain, of this five-stage Formation of Great Virtue Carrying All Things...After quietly observing this gaze, he finally raised his saber,that saber which seemed to cleave the heavens and sever life spans.With a gentle sweep in the air, as ephemeral as smoke and clouds—it was already withdrawn.And everything in the air, within people's sight, had completely vanished.Including the clouds, including the fire, including the seemingly endless meteorite shower...as if they had never existed.One slash, a clear sky for ten thousand li!Commanding a hundred thousand Autumn Kill troops, mobilizing the power of the military formation,the killing power Chongxuan Chuliang could unleash was absolutely at the True Monarch level.However, the very act of commanding a hundred thousand troops was a powerful restraint in itself,limiting the commander from being as free as a strong cultivator whose power is centered on themselves.Historically, when military formations were used to grind down Dao Integration cultivators,it was necessary to first trap them within the formation, lock them down with soldier's malevolence,and then repeatedly assault them to achieve it...This is why Cao Jie had Yan Ping lock onto Yu Liyang.The sky was empty.After withdrawing his saber, Chongxuan Chuliang led his army to retreat.The Autumn Kill Army would receive their due merits. The subsequent matters were temporarily irrelevant to him.A hundred thousand soldiers flowed like water spilling across the vast earth,moving freely—a truly comforting scene for the observer, possessing an indescribable natural ease and swiftness.The art of military strategy was none other than this.In the tableau of this assault on Sword Peak Mountain, no one noticed Hua Hongzhao, the Marquis Jing’an of Xia.For he, along with the last glow of the Sword Peak Mountain's protective formation,had been wiped away by the Saber of the Fierce Butcher.His final charge, unexpectedly, left not even a trace of light or shadow.No grandeur to be seen.What remained on Sword Peak Mountain were scattered, leaderless forces,and damaged formations, seven parts ruined, eight parts incomplete..."Fengjie is already within Qi territory!"On the Battlewagon of Assault, Cao Jie thus declared.At this moment, Yu Liyang had left, and the final attack of the five-stage Formation of Great Virtue Carrying All Things had been erased.The entire Sword Peak Mountain was now defenseless.The entire Fengjie Prefecture, twenty-three cities, were under the hooves of the Qi army, before their blades!This commander of the campaign against Xia, who had just forced back the King of Min from Great Xia,and broken Sword Peak Mountain in less than a day, issued three more military orders.The order stated: "Order Chen Fu's unit to receive Sword Peak Mountain, avoid unnecessary casualties!"Another order stated: "Relay the order to Li Zhengyan, instructing him to lead his unit,while preserving their strength, to attack and seize cities and strongholds.Within three days, I want the entire Fengjie Prefecture to change flags!Three days later, I want the Chasing Wind Army to assemble on the west bank of the Lian River.At that time, I will use the Chasing Wind Army as the vanguard to attack Xiangyou Prefecture!"Another order stated: "Relay the order to Chen Zeqing,to skillfully operate the intelligence network.'King of Min Yu Liyang personally defended Sword Peak Mountain,possessing a powerful army within the formation, but failed to hold it for even a day.'I want this news to spread throughout the entire city of Guiyi in the shortest possible time,so that even women and children know of it!"After issuing three consecutive orders, he turned and walked into the Battlewagon of Assault,no longer looking at the battlefield. Although banners fluttered and crowds surged,although blood and fire had not yet completely died down, this stage of the battle had ended...No need to look anymore.The flag officers guarding the surroundings of the Battlewagon of Assault quickly galloped away,relaying Cao Jie's orders to all sides.Ruan Si, however, remained standing with his hands behind his back by the steel rampart,gazing at the clouds scattering and gathering on the horizon.Although he was not skilled in military strategy, he could understand these orders from Cao Jie.Furthermore, from these few orders, he saw Cao Jie's unparalleled confidence in this war!Taking over Sword Peak Mountain at this moment was no difficulty at all.Any army could do it.But Privy Councilor Chen Fu was a person who highly valued propriety and rules.The郡兵(jun bing - county troops) he commanded would certainly have better discipline than the coalition forces of the Eastern Domain states.They would be able to excellently fulfill the order of "avoiding unnecessary casualties."And the will embodied by this order was consistent with Cao Jie's second order.Sending the more elite Chasing Wind Army to capture the entire Fengjie Prefecture,instead of letting the three hundred thousand郡兵(jun bing) or the coalition forces of the Eastern Domain states do it...was also because a formidable army like the Chasing Wind Army had strict discipline.Beyond the war itself, they would not engage in looting, burning, or killing.As for the requirement to "attack quickly while preserving strength,"it was entirely tailored for Marquis of City Demolition, Li Zhengyan, who was skilled in swift assaults.This could appease the feelings of the coalition forces of the Eastern Domain states, preventing them from feeling deprived of merit.After all, who could match Li Zhengyan's rapid deployment of troops?But in reality... Since Sword Peak Mountain couldn't be held for even a day,and Yu Liyang had escaped, who else in the entire Fengjie Prefecture could hold out?Changing flags in three days sounded difficult, but in fact, even the coalition forces of the Eastern Domain states could achieve it.Coordinating the overall situation and considering all parties, that is the role of the commander of the three armies.The reason why Cao Jie issued such orders was simply because—This was a war of national灭亡 (mie wang - extinction) and territorial annexation, not a war of plunder.In Cao Jie's strategic thinking, the captured Xia territory was already considered Qi territory.The captured Xia people were considered future Qi people.Therefore, he paid extra attention to losses outside of the war.The areas within Xia territory that were ravaged would all require Qi to expend resources to rebuild after the war ended.And how did such a thought not reflect Cao Jie's confidence?As for the third order...Chen Zeqing had been in charge of Qi's intelligence work for a long time and was very skilled in this area.Being responsible for the intelligence related to this great war was also a matter of course.The message Cao Jie wanted to convey was very interesting.Every word spoken could be considered a fact. No subjective opinion was added,and thus it could not be attacked by the Xia people as a rumor.But in reality, if reality is only a partial excerpt,it is already completely different from the true face of reality.It completely erased the price the Qi army paid for this,and also concealed Yu Liyang's weighing of options and sacrifices.Having achieved victory in the first battle, and a great victory at that,forcing back Yu Liyang and breaking Sword Peak Mountain within a day,Cao Jie naturally wanted to maximize its public opinion influence.Most people would not care how much strength the Qi army used in the war,nor would they bother to think about the extent of the losses incurred by the Autumn Kill Army directly attacking with the power of the military formation...People would only notice that even the King of Min of Great Xia could not defend Sword Peak Mountain,could not defend it for even a day!How deep a psychological shadow would this cast on the Xia people,how much fear would it instill?If measured purely by the gains and losses of the battle, it is difficult to say whether today's battle at Sword Peak Mountain was advantageous.It is difficult to say which was the heavier price: the half-month's time,the massive amount of Yuan stones consumed by the hundred Thorny Boats,or the Autumn Kill Army entering a temporary period of rest.But for Cao Jie, the losses suffered by Xia in this battle were yet to be seen!Cao Jie had decisively placed a heavy bet. Was the target of this battle merely the present?Yu Liyang, of course, also saw this point. But compared to the blow to the morale of the Xia military,the loss of a True Monarch was something Xia could even less afford.Cao Jie seemed to have changed his style today and was taking a risk,appearing to be going all out, but he was actually playing a winning move!The moment he saw Yu Liyang, he calculated the outcome of the war,and thus bet without hesitation! Bet! Bet!The moment the hundred Thorny Boats were launched simultaneously,and the defenses of Sword Peak Mountain were riddled with holes,Yu Liyang was destined to suffer a loss.The only suspense was how he would choose between the two evils...Even this was not suspense.Because everyone knew, one must "choose the lesser of two evils!""Those who surrender shall be spared!"Teams of 郡兵(jun bing) flew up Sword Peak Mountain under the leadership of their officers.The accompanying flag officers raised their banners and shouted loudly.Along the winding mountain roads of Sword Peak Mountain, team after team of Xia soldiers surrendered and knelt down,discarding their weapons and armor.This mountain was indeed险峻 (xian jun - precipitous).This army was indeed formidable.But at this moment, there were not many Xia troops stubbornly resisting.After all, their legend from the era of Great Xia's divine might,the representative figure of the nation's resurgence, the dignified Dao Integration cultivator, King of Min Yu Liyang!had fled without a word...Who could be stronger, more courageous than the King of Min?The mountain outside the body still stood, but the mountain in the heart had already collapsed.Thus, a massacre was avoided!There was a person named Zhang Tai in the army, a native of Fengxian County in Qi.He had no relation to the once prominent "Zhang" family.Perhaps there was some blood relation centuries ago?Who knows!In any case, the Fengxian Zhang family no longer existed.After the incident at the Crying Ancestral Hall, the Ministry of Rites had officially declared Marquis of Nine Returns to be without heirs.A generation of renowned families, who had established martial merits for the restoration of the country with the Martial Emperorand shared the glory of Great Qi, thus vanished into thin air.Only a stroke in the historical records remained for later generations to mourn.Besides the lineage of the Marquis of Nine Returns, there were no other prominent aristocratic families in Fengxian County.Zhang Tai's own family background was very ordinary.He could eat three meals a day and wouldn't starve to death—in Qi, as long as one was not lazy and had healthy limbs, they would have food to eat.He joined the army at sixteen. Because he was hardworking and dared to fight,although his physique was not entirely up to par, he slowly became a qualified soldier.As a 郡兵 (jun bing) of Fengxian County, he guarded his hometown.In the military selection five years ago, he failed to be chosen for the Nine Legions,but due to his desperate performance on the field,he was promoted to team leader after returning.He managed about a hundred men, and his life was quite comfortable.Last year, because his team repeatedly achieved good results in the joint military exercises of various counties,he accumulated enough merit to receive a Vein Opening Pill!And at the end of last year, he successfully opened his veins,leaping to become an extraordinary cultivator!Life was different from then on!The doors to the Nine Legions of Great Qi were open to him.Fengxian County 郡兵 (jun bing) also offered him the position of Deputy Commander.Originally, he would not have hesitated.After all, the Nine Legions was the place he yearned for day and night,a stage that every Qi soldier aspired to.It was a new starting point, and it represented an infinite future...But so many years had passed, his father and mother were old and frail,and he was no longer the eighteen or nineteen-year-old he used to be.After much thought, he stayed in the 郡兵 (jun bing) unit.Promoted to Deputy Commander, he could take care of his elderly parents nearby.He also married a beautiful wife before the New Year, and life was very pleasant.His old Zhang family, without any noble bloodline,was considered to have a certain standing in the local area and lived a decent life.In this campaign by the Son of Heaven against Xia, the entire country mobilized troops.He was the tenth person to sign up in the Fengxian County military.Damn it, after getting the news, he rushed to sign up overnight, thinking he would be the first.Those nine bastards ahead of him actually brought their bedding and waited outside the door!What did war mean to an ordinary Qi soldier?It meant merit, it meant official position, it meant opportunity.The opportunity to reach the heavens in one step.Not to mention the distant past, just the previous battle that destroyed Yang, how many people achieved extraordinary status through accumulated merit?How many people leaped over the dragon gate?He, Zhang Tai, Deputy Commander Zhang, also wanted to obtain resources,to have his Dao veins soar like a dragon, and to experience the feeling of flying and escaping like an immortal!How long would he have to accumulate merit through military exercises in peacetime?What's more, his beloved wife was already pregnant, and the child would be born after this battle.Did he not want to earn a Vein Opening Pill for his unborn child?He had struggled and shed blood, and it was so hard to become extraordinary.He had spent so many years of his youth in the 郡兵 (jun bing) unit,to the point where he felt timid when he saw the young faces in the Nine Legions units.Couldn't his future son or daughter take a step ahead?Since the accession of the current Son of Heaven, Qi had won all the key wars,fought countless great battles, and extinguished numerous countries,only then establishing the foundation of a hegemon in the Eastern Domain.Why should the Qi people fear war?Why shouldn't he be enthusiastic?Those ordinary civilians who were not in the military could not even enlist if they wanted to!To be honest, he did not experience the great battle thirty-two years ago.Furthermore, Qi was the final victor and achieved dominance.He did not have much feeling about the so-called blood debts and national仇恨 (chou hen - hatred) between Qi and Xia.The reason he was happy to hear about the war was twofold:Firstly, war could bring him genuine opportunities and tangible benefits.Even if he died in battle now, his family would not lack a Vein Opening Pill.A military officer like him, if he died heroically,the郡守 (jun shou - county governor) would personally visit to comfort his family.He benefited from fighting and had no worries about dying.Secondly, as a Qi person, there was an innate sense of honor.The former Yang was already dust in history, and the towering tree of Strong Jing had long begun to age.As the youngest hegemonic nation in the world,it had risen under the pressure of other hegemonic nations.Just like at the Meeting of the Yellow River, generations of Qi people fought desperately,and finally won the championship.The Qi people should subdue the world through battle and bow their heads to no one!"Those who surrender shall be spared!"Zhang Tai shouted thus, leading his unit up the mountain.He skillfully collected weapons and drove the surrendered soldiers to one place,concentrating them under guard.Stepping among the rugged rocks, his eyes suddenly lit up.Ahead, a young Xia military officer lay on his back,his body fallen on the rocks.Judging from the literary aura still emanating from his body,he should have been a Confucian cultivator.He probably died under the bombardment of the Autumn Kill military formation,as there were no penetrating wounds caused by Thorny Spears on his body—Recalling the prestige of the Autumn Kill military formation, Zhang Tai couldn't help but feel a touch of envy.But he immediately turned his gaze back to the corpse before him.In the cracked armor of this Xia military officer, a blood-soaked paper poked out.A cultivation method from the Xia army? A secret Confucian technique?Regardless, it was definitely a good thing. Even if it was not suitable, it could be sold for a good price.Zhang Tai rejoiced in his heart.Spoils of war were certainly to be handed over uniformly,and finally distributed based on merit by the generals above.He dared not keep it for himself. But as the person who personally found it, he could also get a share.A benefit gained for free!He stepped forward, rushed to the side of the dead Xia military officer,and carefully pulled out the paper.He unfolded it with anticipation, but his face immediately fell.This was not some secret technique or method, but a family letter.The letter was short, but the creases were deep,suggesting it had been read many times—"To my son, Zhengwen.Your old father can still eat a few bowls, do not worry about me, kill the enemy!"There were only two lines of characters, each word piercing through the paper.Zhang Tai had no other feelings. He casually threw away the letter paper,and then reached into the dead Xia military officer's embrace and fumbled around for a while, but found nothing.He withdrew his hand with some disappointment and got up to leave.But after walking a few steps, for some reason, he thought about it,turned back, and picked up the letter paper.Of course, it was not that he had any psychological burden.A soldier's justice is to kill the enemy, and nothing else matters.In a war between two countries, it was even less appropriate for a grassroots military officer like him to talk about compassion.Everyone had a wife, children, and a warm kang (heated bed),everyone had their own insignificant ideals and pursuits.Once on the battlefield, life and death were decided by knives and spears.No one needed to sympathize with anyone else.He simply saw another life in this letter.Humans as individuals are usually insignificant. On the battlefield,they are often just numbers.But in every specific life, love and hate are so real...My life, his life."Put down your weapons, surrender and be spared!"Zhang Tai shouted again as he walked and yelled.