Half a day later, Tongbei Pass was declared lost.
Yun Fei stood atop the city wall, his gaze sweeping over the mountains of corpses piled within the city, his expression unperturbed.
It was noteworthy that this crucial border town had not a single Martial Forest expert defending it.
The strongest was merely a second-rate Martial Artist like the Vice Commander (deputy general), who was ultimately hacked to death by Yun Fei's loyalists.
Liu Ming hurried forward and reported in a low voice:
"My Lord, in this battle, we lost three thousand loyalists, but we captured fifty thousand piculs of grain, enough to sustain the army for half a month."
Yun Fei nodded slightly: "Very good. As per the original plan, the next target is Duanyuan Pass."
Liu Ming hesitated for a moment, then spoke:
"My Lord, we just took Tongbei Pass. I'm afraid Duanyuan Pass's commander, Zhou Gan, has already received the news and is intensifying his defenses. I fear..."
"Fear what?" Yun Fei asked calmly.
Liu Ming took a deep breath: "I fear they will request reinforcements from the imperial court."
Yun Fei chuckled lightly at this:
"Are you afraid?"
Liu Ming shook his head, then pulled out a map and pointed to three locations on it:
"Ever since I understood my Lord's troop deployment, I no longer fear."
"In fact, I could say my courage is greater than ever before."
"The original plan can actually be adjusted for a more efficient and faster approach."
"The imperial court's reinforcements are highly likely to come only from these three routes."
"Whether we intercept the reinforcements or continue to assault Duanyuan Pass, it will only waste time."
Yun Fei listened, then looked at the map and nodded, signaling him to continue.
Liu Ming then said:
"Therefore, we can directly abandon the attack on Duanyuan Pass and instead head straight for Chang'an."
He drew a new route on the map with cinnabar:
"Although this route is longer and the terrain is not ideal, the advantage is that by bypassing Duanyuan Pass, we can directly attack Jubei City."
Then, he divided the cinnabar line into two branches, pointing in two directions:
"In five days, our main forces should be in position."
"I suggest entrusting this route to Grand Marshal Grand Marshal Zhang Lieming, assigning him one hundred thousand troops, and having him focus on Jubei City."
"And we, leading the rest of the troops, will attack Judong City."
"By the time these two cities are captured, it will be approximately ten days later, and then we can march directly on Chang'an."
"By then, my Lord, you should have completed your assembly, and your forces could reach eight hundred thousand."
"In my judgment, because we are attacking these two cities, coupled with the fall of Tongbei Pass, the imperial court will certainly dispatch reinforcements to respond."
"Even as we continue to attack the other two cities, the imperial court may send more troops to those two locations."
"This way, Chang'an's defensive strength will inevitably be greatly weakened."
"At that time, we will no longer be entangled with the other two cities, but will instead concentrate our forces to take Chang'an directly."
"Even if my judgment is slightly off, taking a weakened capital city with an army of eight hundred thousand should be no problem."
After hearing Liu Ming's analysis, Yun Fei showed a satisfied expression and slowly nodded.
He patted the young strategist's shoulder, his tone filled with approval:
"Excellent plan! Proceed as you've planned."
...Three days later, at dawn.
Three hundred thousand loyalists split into two routes.
Grand Marshal Zhang Lieming led one hundred thousand elite troops north, their target directly Jubei City;
While Yun Fei and Liu Ming personally led the remaining forces eastward.
This silent army marched with heavy steps, the ground seeming to tremble slightly with their movement...Five days later, Yun Fei and his entourage were still on the march.
The number of troops had continuously expanded during this period, and they also carried a large amount of grain and supplies.
Because of this, their marching speed was significantly slowed.
They were still two days away from Judong City.
But this did not affect the plan, as Yun Fei had no intention of rushing the advance.
What he needed was to wait until the eight hundred thousand-strong army was fully prepared before marching directly on Chang'an.
As for Judong City, it was merely a mid-way supply point in this grand scheme...Outside Jubei City, dark clouds hung low.
Grand Marshal Zhang Lieming stood on a high slope, gazing at the distant, towering city walls, his throat tight.
This city was more than three times larger than Tongbei Pass. Banners fluttered on the grey city walls, and the defenders were arrayed in full readiness.
Most alarming were the dense defensive works outside the city—three moats, each over a zhang deep, chevaux de frise bristling with spikes, and countless horse traps.
Although they weren't on horseback, even so, these massive moats posed a huge obstacle to their advance.
"Grand Marshal, the scout reports that there are approximately twenty thousand defenders inside the city."
A loyalist knelt on one knee and reported.
Grand Marshal Zhang Lieming nodded, his rough fingers unconsciously picking up the bow he had used earlier.
He looked at the dense defenses of the city before him, which far exceeded his expectations.
More importantly, to speed up the march, they had only brought seven days' worth of rations.
Now their rations could only last two days; they had to win quickly.
"Issue the order,"
Grand Marshal Zhang Lieming took a deep breath,
"The first echelon is to advance with boulders, filling the moats;"
"The second echelon is to prepare ladders; the third echelon is to stand by."
The loyalists moved silently, with no pre-battle encouragement, no grand pronouncements, only the uniform sound of their footsteps making the ground tremble slightly.
On the walls of Jubei City, Commander Han Wei narrowed his eyes, watching the black legion surge from afar like a tide.
"Is that the monster army from the rumors?"
He asked the deputy general beside him.
The deputy general swallowed:
"General, the scouts say they don't fear pain or death. Tongbei Pass was torn open by them."
Han Wei sneered and patted the city wall:
"Let them come!"
"I want to see if these monsters can fly over these three moats!"
He turned and respectfully saluted an old man in a grey robe behind him:
"I ask Daoist Xuanming to lend his aid."
The old man slowly opened his eyes, a sharp glint flickering within them:
"General Han, rest assured. This old Daoist will reveal the true forms of these demons today."
Han Wei felt relieved upon hearing this. This was an Innate expert he had hired at great expense.
At this moment—
The first wave of loyalists had already reached the first moat. They were carrying huge stones, quickly filling the trench in front of them.
Just then, arrows suddenly rained down from the city wall.
"Fire!"
Han Wei roared.
Arrows whistled through the air. Most were blocked by the heavy wooden shields held by the loyalists, but many still pierced through gaps, deeply embedding themselves in the loyalists' bodies.
However, the loyalists who were hit only staggered slightly before continuing to advance, as if feeling no pain.
"Truly sinister!"
Han Wei gritted his teeth.
Grand Marshal Zhang Lieming watched clearly from the high slope, his fists involuntarily clenching.
Although these loyalists defied death, they were still flesh and blood.
At this rate, filling three moats would cost at least a thousand men per moat.
"Second echelon, advance!" he ordered in a deep voice.