Yan Jun was shocked and said with a smile, "Liang Xiao also knows magic, but I believe the King of Brocade Robes has heard that his 'Heavenly Thunder' is used less and less. It appeared most frequently during the defense of Luzhou, and in attacking the city stronghold of 300,000 barbarians, less than a third was used!"
"The Pope means that the Heavenly Thunder must also need some sort of catalyst. As the catalyst becomes scarcer, we need not fear the Heavenly Thunder and can advance into Xichuan with confidence!" said the blue-eyed man in white behind Yan Jun.
The King of Brocade Robes looked at the masked, blue-eyed man in white with suspicion. Seeing that the man was tall and burly, he asked curiously, "Who are you?"
"He is the God of War bestowed upon our faith by the heavens, Achilles, who can slay the heavenly generals of Da Qian!" Yan Jun replied.
The King of Brocade Robes and the Young Master of Brocade Robes were startled and disbelieving.
"The martial prowess of the Heavenly General is indeed unmatched. This arm of mine was severed by him," the Young Master of Brocade Robes said, shaking his empty sleeve, his eyes filled with hatred.
"I can do the same, and even kill you in the midst of your army," Achilles said without hesitation.
"You!!" The Young Master of Brocade Robes was both shocked and enraged.
At that moment, the roar of warhorses like thunder echoed from afar, startling everyone to look in that direction.
A giant white horse galloped from the distance and stopped behind Achilles, not even panting.
Everyone stared at the warhorse, their hearts filled with trepidation. "It truly is a divine steed. How is it so similar to the one ridden by the Heavenly General..."
Achilles snorted, "That is because the Martial Saint of Da Zhou stole my ancestor's warhorse, 'White Dragon Shadow', from my ancestor back then. This 'Sacred Dragon Shadow' and that horse share the same lineage, and are both passed down solely in one line! The Heavenly General's horse is definitely a descendant of White Dragon Shadow, and I will reclaim White Dragon Shadow as well!"
Everyone's hearts tightened, and they couldn't help but look at Achilles with renewed respect.
"With your assistance, I will surely be able to capture Xichuan and advance into the Central Plains!" the King of Brocade Robes said ecstatically.
Achilles merely waved his hand impatiently, "You all can continue your petty squabbles. When the Heavenly General appears, I will take care of him!"
As soon as he finished speaking, Achilles, riding the Sacred Dragon Shadow, disappeared into the distance.
The King of Brocade Robes looked at Yan Jun with confusion.
"He is the God of War sent by the heavens to descend into the mortal world, and his status is even above our Pope..." Yan Jun sighed.
The King of Brocade Robes was filled with doubt, but thinking of Achilles' strong physique, he felt reassured and nodded, "Understood! The Heavenly General will be handled by your Huichun Sect, and I will be responsible for taking Hanzhong!"
Outside the city of Bajun, the Tianshan swordsmen who had infiltrated the city disguised as commoners discovered that about a thousand civilians had disappeared without a trace.
"Could it be that Huichun Sect has taken them as sacrifices again?" Ren Changfeng gritted his teeth.
"Third Senior Brother, this is the territory of Huichun Sect and the Helian family. We cannot act rashly..." the junior disciples reminded him.
Ren Changfeng merely nodded sadly, "I was once a target for Huichun Sect's 'blood sacrifice' and was rescued by Master at great risk. Now, I am powerless to help..."
"Third Senior Brother, by secretly assisting the Ye family and the cousin of the Marquis of Anguo to escape Xichuan, we have already lived up to Master's expectations..." the junior disciples comforted him again.
Ren Changfeng asked, "Are you returning to Tianshan?"
"We will listen to Third Senior Brother. We are prepared to die!" the crowd replied.
"Good! We will go to Jincheng, observe the situation, assassinate Helian Heng, and await the imperial army's arrival in Xichuan!"
The common people of Bajun were all silent and fearful, yet everyone eagerly looked forward to the Da Qian soldiers descending like divine intervention to pacify Xichuan and drive out Huichun Sect and the Helian family.
In Yanzhou, after defeating the barbarians, a total of sixty thousand new recruits were assembled from various regions and were being trained under Liang Zhan and Liu Fan.
"In this batch of new recruits, over ten thousand have reached the physical standards of Da Qian's Iron Guards. Everyone, please train diligently. You will expand the territory for Da Qian in the future, and the Marquis of Anguo will personally lead the troops!"
Liang Zhan, not becoming arrogant due to his rewards, was as strict as ever, adhering strictly to Liang Xiao's military training methods.
The ten thousand new recruits, filled with hope, practiced alongside the three thousand Qingtian Guards of Yanzhou.
The workshops in Yanzhou were operating at full capacity, producing a large amount of steel and rushing the production of weapons.
Liang Xiao, stationed at the central command, did not relax his military efforts in the slightest; instead, he intensified them, continuing production even at the expense of some civilian ironware...
The people of Yanzhou had no complaints. Upon hearing that the "Anguo Workshops" were short on iron, they even sent their own unused iron implements to the workshops.
Nan Jiyun's army finally arrived safely in Hanzhong.
Yang Hong, the Prefect of Hanzhong, was overjoyed and ordered his men to reward the army. He also handed over military command of Hanzhong to Nan Jiyun.
Nan Jiyun immediately inquired about the situation in Xichuan.
Yang Hong replied, "The Prefect of Jincheng has been secretly driven out by Helian Heng. These people are likely members of Huichun Sect in disguise. Jiange is now also under Helian Heng's control and difficult to capture. However, with the General who Conquers the West here, Hanzhong is safe!"
Nan Jiyun looked at the map of Xichuan in his hand, his brow furrowed. "Such narrow passages are indeed not conducive to cavalry maneuvers. The Marshal is preparing troops in the western border. Once the western and western regions are secured, troops can be dispatched to support our army. The new recruits from Yanzhou are also on their way!"
"Can the Marquis of Anguo personally lead the troops?" Yang Hong and the Hanzhong generals asked urgently.
Nan Jiyun replied without hesitation, "Why use a butcher's knife to kill a chicken..."
Everyone understood: "Indeed! With the General who Conquers the West and the fierce tiger-wolf army of Da Qian, there is no need for the Marquis of Anguo to personally intervene..."
Nan Jiyun merely smiled and said nothing, not revealing the truth to everyone.
Now that Helian Heng was virtually in rebellion, and Huichun Sect and the Sun Moon Army might appear in Xichuan, caution was necessary.
If the people of Xichuan were in dire straits, he would personally go out!
However, having tasted the sweetness of the battle at Helan Mountain, Liang Xiao had become accustomed to operating covertly. His sudden appearance to lead troops would not only boost morale but also catch the enemy off guard.
"The General who Conquers the West has ordered: Siege weapons are still being transported from the rear. All soldiers are to train rigorously and prepare to pacify Xichuan!"
In the West Palace Villa, Xiao Qing held a copy of the Da Heng National History printed by Anguo Bookstore and another copy of the Da Zhou History, marveling.
"I never imagined that Bai Ye Fei Ying would have such a legendary origin..."
In the past, the Hexi Corridor was still the territory of the Wu Dynasty and the Da Zhou Dynasty.
On a grassland in the Hexi Corridor, a divine steed appeared, which the grassland people called "White Dragon Shadow." It was sturdy, weighing nearly a thousand kilograms, and ran like the wind.
After the Emperor of the Wu Dynasty subdued the White Dragon Shadow, he ordered the use of the best mares in the country to breed with it. However, the White Dragon Shadow was not interested, and it reluctantly produced offspring only in a single line.
After the fall of the Wu Dynasty, the White Dragon Shadow fell into the hands of the Martial Saint of Da Zhou, Liang Xiao. Unusually, it mated twice with a pure white mare, producing two new White Dragon Shadows.
However, one of them was stolen by a Western foreign merchant and only reappeared on the battlefield.
Achilles, the God of War of the Tianri Kingdom, was slain by the Martial Saint of Da Zhou. The people of Tianri Kingdom swarmed forward, reclaiming Achilles' corpse and his mount, the second White Dragon Shadow.
Centuries later, the Da Zhou Dynasty was replaced by the Da Heng Kingdom, and the White Dragon Shadow fell into the hands of the King of Donghai.
A merchant, who had traveled thousands of miles from the West to trade in Da Heng Kingdom, set his sights on the White Dragon Shadow and almost succeeded in stealing it...