Saint Emperor Devourer of Heaven

Besides the council hall, down the long steps, the wide plaza was filled with a dense, dark mass of troops.

These were all garrison soldiers of the City Lord's Mansion, tensely guarding the mansion while holding war spears.

Jun Wushang stood on the steps, his gaze sweeping across the entire field, his voice like a tiger's roar: "Qin Shan has betrayed the country by colluding with Xilin, plotting to lead the Xilin army through the pass, disregarding the people of the border region. He has now been executed by me!"

Boom!

As his words fell, the tens of thousands of troops arrayed here, holding war spears, abruptly took a step forward, their momentum soaring to the sky.

"Are you determined to follow Qin Shan in his treasonous rebellion?" Jun Wushang stepped down the stairs, golden blood energy surging, evolving into true dragons and fierce tigers on both sides of his body, each step causing the entire plaza to tremble.

"Now, I give you two choices! First, lay down your weapons and swear allegiance to Marshal Ji; second, raise the spears in your hands and attack me, ultimately all dying here, leaving behind a notorious reputation, scorned by the world! And your families will have nowhere to live because of your actions!"

As he spoke, his steps did not stop, step by step walking towards the plaza below the steps, his gait like a dragon, his walk like a tiger, the true dragon chanting, the fierce tiger roaring, constantly impacting the nerves of these soldiers.

The weapons in the soldiers' hands trembled involuntarily.

Fear arose in their hearts.

They were not so afraid of death, but to be reviled after death, to become sinners who betrayed the country and the nation, this was unacceptable.

What was even more unacceptable was that their relatives would be implicated as a result!

Clang!

Someone was the first to drop the war spear in their hand.

Immediately, like a butterfly effect, clanging and clanging, the sound of weapons falling to the ground resounded throughout the entire plaza.

Tens of thousands of soldiers all dropped their weapons and knelt down in unison with a loud thud.

"We know our mistake, please have mercy, Marshal!"

"This marshal can forgive the past!" Ji Yinlan came to Jun Wushang's side and said: "Soldiers, have you ever thought deeply about why you joined the military, put on armor, and held war spears?"

"To defend our homes and country?" Ji Yinlan's voice resounded here: "Defending our homes and country has never been an abstract concept, nor just an empty slogan! Only when the country is stable can your small families live peacefully in a prosperous age. If the country is shattered, the enemy's iron hooves will trample every inch of our land. When the nest is overturned, no egg remains intact. How can your families survive?"

"Put on your armor, pick up your war spears, and guard the borders of Great Zhou, that is to guard your homes! Remember, what lies before you is war, is a bloody battlefield, is billowing smoke, is rivers of blood, is mountains of corpses. But as long as you stand firm, behind you is a prosperous and peaceful age, is the happy smiling faces of your wives, children, and elders!"

"Marshal, we know our mistake!"

The soldiers' eyes were all red, from the previous low morale to the boiling blood at this moment, everyone's eyes were burning with flames.

"It's just that, General... Is he really colluding with Xilin?"

The soldiers still did not want to believe it, how could the General collude with Xilin?

"If Qin Shan had no problems, why would we kill him at this time?"

Jun Wushang immediately took out the rune memory stone and played the recorded scene on the spot.

Immediately, Qin Shan's complacent face, his rebellious words, and his cold words and deeds shocked the soldiers!

"Now, the entire border situation is critical, I won't say much more, you immediately go to the West District and set up a defensive formation there! The people of Shunyi City will be temporarily transferred to the East City for refuge. This marshal wants you to hold the West City Gate for two days no matter what! Before that, the Xilin army must not be allowed to break through!"

"We swear to complete the mission!"

The soldiers' eyes were very firm.

They were originally the elite of the border army, living on the border for generations. Many of them had their homes in Shunyi or the villages outside the main city of Shunyi.

Once this city is completely breached, their wives, children, and elders will be slaughtered!

"Soldiers, follow me!"

The generals led the army to quickly evacuate and head to the western city area.

At this time, a Xuanjia Army general came in a hurry.

"Commander Zhou, what is the battle situation at Shunyi Border City?"

Ji Yinlan asked.

Commander Zhou shook his head and said: "The border city has been breached. The Xilin army is coming fiercely. The troops attacking Shunyi City are estimated to be over a million!"

"What about the people of the border city?"

"They are all hiding in the cellars." Commander Zhou said: "After the Xilin army entered the city, they came directly to pursue us, leaving behind a small school captain's camp of more than two thousand people, ready to slaughter the city. However, we expected this to happen and ambushed three thousand Xuanjia in the city in advance!"

"Marshal, the Xilin army attacking Shunyi City has 200,000 heavy cavalry, 150,000 light cavalry, 50,000 archers, and over 600,000 infantry, including over 200,000 heavy infantry!"

Commander Zhou's expression was solemn: "The three-three system combat method formulated by the Marshal and Young Master Jun, my Xuanjia Army has no time to practice, and can only perform on the spot. It is somewhat unfamiliar. I am afraid it will not be easy to deal with so many Xilin cavalry!"

"You have no confidence?"

"Yes!" Commander Zhou's words were sonorous: "No matter how many people there are in the Xilin army, if they want to break through Shunyi and attack the capital from here, it is absolutely impossible unless my Xuanjia Army is completely wiped out!"

Ji Yinlan nodded and said: "Has everything been arranged according to the prior arrangement?"

"Reporting to the Marshal, everything has been arranged. On the Iron Plains Ridge between the border city and Shunyi Main City, 500,000 Xuanjia soldiers and 600,000 border troops have already been lurking. Near the main city, at Sanli Plain, 100,000 border troops have also been properly deployed!"

"What is the battle situation in the other cities and passes on the border?"

"This is what I was about to report to the Marshal! Jinhu City, the situation there is very critical. It is the second main attack target of the Xilin army. They have mobilized 300,000 troops there, including 80,000 heavy cavalry! And the border troops we have deployed there are less than 30,000. Even with the 8,000 Xuanjia soldiers who rushed there yesterday, there are only over 30,000 troops!"

Ji Yinlan immediately took out the map, looked at it, and said: "Near Jinhu City, are there any armies with surplus troops? Let them send some troops to support!"

Commander Zhou shook his head.

Ji Yinlan was slightly silent, and then said in a deep voice: "Even if we can't hold it, we have to hold it! You order them to hold on for two days no matter what! We will try to annihilate the Xilin cavalry in Shunyi within two days!"

"Yes!"

Commander Zhou immediately opened the dedicated military communication jade talisman and conveyed Ji Yinlan's order to Jinhu City.

At this time, Jinhu City was completely covered in ice and snow, with temperatures hundreds of degrees below zero, extremely cold.

There is a canyon here, the entrance is very long and narrow, and the ground is uneven.

Each time, it can only accommodate dozens of cavalry side by side to charge.

In the canyon, there are many war horses lying upside down, soldiers wrapped in iron armor, and corpses of the Xuanjia Army.

These corpses were all frozen into ice sculptures.

The only parts of the Xilin cavalry that were not covered by iron armor were their necks and eyes.

Their necks were either pierced by crossbow arrows, or the throats were bitten to death by the Xuanjia soldiers, and they became ice sculptures together in the ice and snow.

Inside the canyon, there are only simple walls, made of ice blocks, not built in the past, but temporarily built.

There is no city here, and no city walls to defend.

The only way to stop the Xilin cavalry is to eliminate them at this narrow valley entrance!

At this time, a team of Xilin heavy cavalry rushed into the canyon. Looking at the ice sculpture corpses all over the ground, their eyes flashed with cold light, and they could not help but slow down and carefully observe the surrounding situation.

From a distance, they could see the ice walls temporarily built by the Great Zhou army, but they could not see their soldiers.

"Are these Great Zhou soldiers all frozen stiff?"

The leading cavalry captain said in the Xilin language while observing the surroundings.

"It's better to be careful. I'm afraid they will have an ambush. Why can't I see a single person?"

Said the vice-captain with a face full of stubble.

"Hmph, how can they ambush in such cold weather? Do you think there is a place to hide people here? If they can't move in ambush, people in the Xiantian realm can't bear it at all!"

Just then, on the slopes on both sides of the canyon, the thick snow suddenly moved slightly, and pairs of eyes with ice on their eyelashes were revealed, followed by faces with cracked skin.

That was the Xuanjia Army. Everyone was biting chili peppers produced in Great Zhou, known as Nightmare Spicy, to keep out the cold and stay conscious at all times, so as not to faint in the extreme cold.

The wind and snow howled, making a harsh sound in the canyon.

The Xilin cavalry captain showed a disdainful look and said: "Great Zhou is just a low-level nation, a group of weak sick men. How can they stop my Xilin tiger and wolf division? Even with the help of natural dangers, they will only resist for half a day at most."

"Hahaha!"

The other cavalrymen laughed along when they heard this.

Just then, hundreds of figures suddenly rushed out of the snow on the slopes on both sides.

In groups of three, they rushed towards the Xilin heavy cavalry.

Each locked onto their own target.

Two people attacked from the left and right, and one person released a crossbow arrow, aiming at the target's neck.

"Be careful, there is an ambush!"

The Xilin cavalry captain roared, but he was very calm and did not panic.

Until...

Puff!

Crossbow arrows pierced the necks of the cavalry who had no time to dodge, and he completely lost his composure.

"Quick! Crossbow counterattack!"

The Xilin heavy cavalry were also equipped with crossbows.

However, before they could take out their crossbows, the Xuanjia Army had already rushed to the front.

In order to avoid being hit by war horses, they all attacked in the air, and everyone went straight to the enemy's vitals.

At the same time, the third person in the team of three constantly shot and killed with rapid-firing crossbow arrows from behind!

For a time, the Xilin cavalry was in chaos.

This battle lasted only half an hour.

More than two hundred Xilin cavalrymen all fell within the canyon.

On the Xuangjia Army's side, a dozen or so were injured. Those with slightly deeper wounds directly lost their combat effectiveness.

In such a frigid place, once flesh is pierced, the flesh and blood tissues and organs inside will instantly freeze under the extreme cold, losing all function.

"You, carry them to the tents behind the ice wall to rest. The rest of you immediately clear the battlefield. See if the Xilin cavalrymen have any medicinal pills on them. Don't waste a single one. In this kind of weather, we are consuming too many resources. If this goes on for too long, I'm afraid supplies will become very scarce!"

A chiliarch of the Xuangjia Army commanded in an orderly manner.

… …

At the same time, Shunyi City.

Jun Wuxie and Ji Yinlan arrived at the first line of defense, Tieyuan Ridge.

After the Xilin army broke through the border city, they drove straight in.

At this moment, the endless army had already entered the Tieyuan Ridge territory, entering the ambush.