With a command from the brocade-robed youth, the army set off at top speed towards Luzhou!
The detachment from Jinling, still en route, found their path suddenly blocked.
"Report, General! A force of ten thousand rebels blocks our way, seemingly prepared!"
The white-haired youth on horseback frowned, spat out a blade of grass, and his face darkened. "It seems they intended to intercept us, indicating the enemy has long planned to capture Luzhou!"
"What shall we do, then?" the副将 asked, grave.
"What shall we do?"
The white-haired youth spurred his horse forward, shouting, "This terrain is flat, send out the cavalry. Beware of traps. The rear guard will follow closely. With an irresistible force, let them know who we are!"
Ten thousand cavalry poured forth, shaking the ground as they swiftly closed in on the enemy ranks.
This enemy force was well-equipped, clearly a regular army. Upon learning of the white-haired youth's thundering cavalry, they immediately readied themselves.
From within the enemy ranks, a vanguard in black robes, Chi Hu'er, rode forward and bellowed, "I am Chi Hu'er, vanguard of the Sun-Moon Army's Eastern Force. Identify yourselves! This general does not slay the nameless!"
The white-haired youth let out a cold, sharp laugh, his long saber sweeping through the air.
Chi Hu'er roared in anger, raising his long saber to meet the challenge, intending to cleave his opponent in two.
As they passed each other, in a single exchange, Chi Hu'er was beheaded by the white-haired youth, shocking the troops behind him!
"He, he is Shi Liuyun, the white-haired man with the black saber! The enemy is Duke Dingguo's Jiangnan Iron Cavalry!"
The enemy soldiers recognized his appearance and, realizing who he was, met the charge with terror.
Over ten thousand cavalry surged forward, their immense power crashing into the enemy formations and gradually breaking them!
An hour later, the Jiangnan Iron Cavalry had achieved a great victory. Only a few leaders managed to escape.
Shi Liuyun wiped the sweat and blood from his brow, surveyed the battlefield, and said gravely, "The enemy must be focusing their main assault on Luzhou. Luzhou only has ten thousand men. Even if they hold, casualties will be heavy. Rest briefly, cavalry, take dry rations, and proceed to Luzhou at full speed to provide support!"
On the battlefield of Luzhou, under a barrage of explosions, the rebel forces suffered heavy losses and were forced to retreat.
Another great victory!
The orderlies approached, their expressions a mixture of excitement and regret. "Marquis Anguo, the 'wooden barrels' are almost gone..."
Liang Xiao nodded. "Good. Let's keep a few for deterrence!"
He hadn't impulsively used all the gunpowder barrels. The enemy's next attack would likely involve dispersed formations, where the barrels would achieve even more devastating results than they had tonight. It was better to save some for future use, rather than blow up thousands of enemies now.
The defending deputy general approached, overjoyed. "With the help of a divine being like Marquis Anguo, the enemy is no match for us!"
The soldiers all echoed his sentiment.
In two defensive battles, they, the garrison, had only suffered over a hundred casualties thanks to the city walls! Without gunpowder, their losses would have been several, even more than ten times as high!
Liang Xiao said sternly, "Do not let your guard down. We are few. Eventually, some will be exhausted, and our arrows and stones will run out. The enemy is likely reinforcing, possibly bringing more trebuchets. Before the reinforcements arrive, we must not slacken!"
The men responded meekly, rallying their spirits and clearing enemy arrows from the city walls.
The enemy did have trebuchets, but their effectiveness in launching stones from the ground towards the city walls was far less than launching from the walls towards the ground. Most of the stones thrown from the ground were blocked by the city walls, let alone Liang Xiao, who, from a distance, used his Setting Sun Bow to specifically target the trebuchet crews and siege ram soldiers!
Even so, war was built on lives. Liang Xiao knew the truth that a general's success came at the cost of countless lives, and he dared not show any complacency or slackness. For every moment of relaxation, more soldiers might die!
This night had passed without major incident.
Inside the city, Zuo Wushang and the others received the frontline reports, their faces turning pale with shock!
"What is 'Heavenly Thunder'?" Zuo Wushang stammered.
Hong Qu shook his head. "I don't know! I only heard that those wooden barrels were thrown by trebuchets and exploded upon impact, killing everyone nearby. It's sorcery, isn't it..."
Only Hong Jie remained silent.
Zuo Wushang gently stroked Hong Jie's back and sighed, "It's fortunate that Hong Jie had foresight. With Liang Xiao guarding this city, it's impossible to fall. If our countrymen had spread rumors according to the original plan, they would likely have been captured by Liang Xiao's men already!"
Hong Qu heartily agreed, nodding repeatedly.
Hong Jie then gave a wry smile. "I also didn't expect this outcome. I thought it would be a fierce siege, perhaps even street fighting. I didn't expect..."
"I didn't expect the Huichun Sect to be a bunch of imbeciles!" Hong Qu said disdainfully.
Hong Jie shook his head. "It's the defenders of Luzhou who are too formidable, making it impossible to find an opportunity..."
Zuo Wushang and Hong Qu fell silent.
They were incredibly embarrassed right now. Liang Xiao had arranged heavy protection for Yue Lian. With Luzhou refusing to fall and the city sealed, they couldn't escape. The only thing they could be thankful for was not becoming scapegoats for the Huichun Sect...
Thinking of Yue Lian, and of Liang Xiao protecting her, the three felt their scalps tingle, a deep despair enveloping them!
In the military tent, Yan Jun and Duan Hong tallied the battle losses, their faces growing grim. In this battle, they had lost fifteen thousand men, the majority of whom were killed by explosions! Another seven thousand were injured to varying degrees!
Duan Hong sighed. "Sect Leader, we now have only thirty-eight thousand troops remaining for the assault. If the enemy possesses more sorcery, not only will we fail to take Luzhou, but we might be counterattacked and annihilated!"
Yan Jun's delicate brows were furrowed. This time, she did not fly into a rage. Duan Hong was right. The Luzhou defenders were holding the city, and their "sorcery" had crushed the rebels' morale. Now, it was uncertain whether they could even launch another attack! With so many losses, they could no longer organize a siege, nor could they intercept any reinforcements the Luzhou defenders might seek!
Yan Jun pondered for a moment, then said coldly, "The Sect Master has ordered that Luzhou be captured at all costs, or all our previous preparations will be in vain! Once Luzhou is taken, burn all books of 'Rejection of Huichun Sect,' and cultivate new followers. The lives of these cultists are worth less than a piece of firewood. The lives of you core disciples are the only ones that matter."
The others nodded solemnly and went to make arrangements.
The citizens of Luzhou were overjoyed upon hearing of the defensive victory, and their hearts grew more settled. For thoroughness, the Luzhou garrison did not sally forth to counterattack, but instead maintained their defense within the city, awaiting reinforcements, aiming for a decisive victory against the rebels.
A full day passed without the rebels launching another assault. They instead made camp to the southwest of Luzhou.
"Sect Leader! The Young Master's reinforcements have arrived!"
Upon receiving the scout's report, Yan Jun's expression changed. "How could they be so fast? This is troublesome!"
The young master, wearing a black mask and a brocade robe, met with Yan Jun, his trusted aides flanking him. He spoke with anger. "I heard you lost twenty thousand men in two assaults? With the elite cooperation of our Sun-Moon Army, how could you be so incompetent?"
Duan Hong, helpless, explained the situation truthfully.
"Sorcery killed over ten thousand of our men?" The young master's brow furrowed, and he looked at the other Sun-Moon Army generals in the tent. They all nodded. "The situation is true!"
The young master sat down quietly, looking at the city wall map provided by an informant from within Luzhou, completely at a loss.
Just then, the ground shook violently. The area southwest of Luzhou trembled as if an earthquake had struck!
"What happened? An earthquake?"
The people of Luzhou, both military and civilian, and the rebel army outside the city were struck with utter terror.
Liang Xiao immediately led the people in the courtyard to an open space, his heart pounding.
"Marquis Anguo! A century-rare earthquake has just occurred in the southwest of Luzhou. We are assessing casualties!"
Liang Xiao's expression changed, and he immediately rushed towards the southwest city wall.
The southwest city wall, due to shoddy construction in the past, had been reduced to ruins by the earthquake's impact. The ground cracked open, and even the moat water flowed outwards!