Chapter 860- Don't swallow bait from the enemy
I activated the [Icy Wings] effect and charged at the front. After killing a dozen NPCs, I noticed many red hot Dragon Crystal Cannons which were all in perfect condition. I shouted towards Han Yuan, "Han Yuan, Xiao Lie, bring your men to take these Dragon Crystal Cannons and Flame Dragon Cannons. Order the transport unit to send these cannons along with the main force and they will definitely be of some use. Also, take a look to see if there is anything wrong with them."
Xiao Lie slashed off the head of a captain with a sword, fresh blood splashing all over his face as he laughed, "Don't worry General, leave this to me!"
The Royal Army charged at the front and in the end these hundred heavy cannons became the spoils of war for them. The Fire Axe Army and Chang Feng Army didn't say anything. Xu Wei held his spear, his face was ugly and said toward Pearl, "Your Highness, the warriors all battle together so these cannons should be split equally, they all shouldn't be given to the Royal Army!"
Pearl pressed on the sword handle, giving off might without showing any rage, "There is no need for General Xu Wei to say more. If you win this battle as Marshal you will obviously get first credit. So why bother about these few cannons?"
Xu Wei gritted his teeth but joy flashed across his face. He understood the deep meaning in Pearl's words. She had already treated him as her own. Originally, the Fire Dragon Army was under Theodore and everyone knew how Theodore and Owen were on opposite sides. Xu Wei as the Fire Dragon General had a position that even I couldn't compare to. At this time, for Princess Pearl to say these recruiting words made him delighted, pretty much saving his life.
He cupped his fists as he said solemnly, "I will be loyal to Your Highness till death, never to betray you!"
Pearl pursed her lips, her eyes looking at the battlefield and saying calmly, "There is no need to be loyal to me, but Owen is the emperor. I led the troops because I hoped that the world will be unified soon and the people's lives won't be impacted too much."
Xu Wei didn't seem to understand, "Your Highness, this..."
I held my sword and walked forward, smiling, "To bring peace to the world and unifying the seven countries won't be so simple. There will be a lot of bloodshed and death."
Pearl looked at me and smiled, "However, it is battle than years of battles, losses in tax, and hardship on lives. Some sacrifices are unavoidable and one day each of us will have to sacrifice something. As long as the world can enjoy a hundred years of peace, won't our deaths be worth it?"
I placed the Dragon Reservoir Sword back into its sheath and said, "The Princess truly has the magnanimity of a great ruler."
Pearl shushed me and said, "Li Xiao Yao, don't spout nonsense. If someone else hears this we will be in trouble again."
Pearl seemed to have felt that after Owen took the throne he wasn't the same Owen anymore. He treated the throne as something that was more important than anything else, and anyone who threatened him could be killed. Even if Pearl was his sister, if she threatened him he would risk nothing and get rid of her, even I suspect... This trip to wasn't that simple as it looked...
Thinking about that, I couldn't help but shake my head to try to chase out these random thoughts. The NPCs in the game weren't so simple anymore. How could someone deep within the plot get out so easily? Actually, the truth could be exactly the same as I thought.
...
A few minutes later, [Punisher Army] collapsed. The millions of players around were wiped out by Tian Ling City and half of them fled to the south. Lin Wan Er held her dagger and floated over, a striking red cape blew in the wind. She smiled and looked at me, "Piggy, I think they've lost the will to defend.”
I nodded my head, "Looks like it."
Li Mu rode his horse over, "Shall we chase?"
I thought about it, "There is no need to rush. Let's just maintain the cavalry formation. There is no need to be anxious about country war points to go all out and chase..."
Pearl smiled, "General Li Xiao Yao also thinks we shouldn't chase?"
I nodded, "Yes, [Punisher Army] has at least fifty thousand main forces that can fight. Moreover, they have many perfect cannons that can help them defend. Even if they aren't on our level, they can defend for a few more hours. When the Flaming Cloud City reinforcements arrive, we won't have any advantage to speak of. However, they decided to give up their defense to just flee. This only tells us one thing - they are the bait!"
Marquis Louis was shocked, "What is bait?"
Xu Wei laughed coldly, "The Marquis is indeed ignorant, you don't even know about the basic bait troops. They are just troops made to draw the enemy into a trap."
Louis' face turned red, embarrassment turned into rage, "Marshal, how can you insult me like that?"
Xu Wei smiled, "However, I don't think so. If they are the bait, then why did they throw down the hundred cannons? To me, Xing Lu is just a small character. Even if they set up a trap, how would our five hundred thousand strong army be afraid of their small trap?"
I cupped my fist and smiled, "Xu Wei, you are the Marshal so you have to be careful. If there is really an ambush, then will you take the responsibility?"
Xu Wei gritted his teeth, "General Li Xiao Yao, if the army suffers losses because of my plan I will definitely take the blame. You don't need to worry about me!"
"What should be said has already been said."
I jumped onto the back of the God Dragon Horse and said, "I don't recommend chasing Xing Lu's army but if you want to chase then the Royal Army declines to fight. I can't let my men die for nothing!"
Xu Wei scoffed coldly; his voice was really soft, "Coward!"
Han Yuan was furious, holding his blade as he hollered, "Xu Wei, what did you grandson say?!”
Li Mu also laughed coldly, "This NPC Marshal is asking for it, what a piece of trash. He actually dares to mock and insult people here. What's the point of serving such a person? Xiao Yao, let's go, [Zhan Long] can fight alone too, don't risk your life for such a person!"
I held onto the reins and calmly smiled, "Brothers don't be angry, don't put Princess Pearl in a tough spot."
Pearl looked deeply at me. Actually, she was really helpless. After all, Xu Wei was the Marshal and she was at most a supervisor who had the power to control him. Since he gave such an order, she could only follow it.
Looking towards Xu Wei, Pearl said softly, "Then... Marshal Xu Wei, who should we send?"
Xu Wei waved the spear in his hand and his eyes glowed coldly, "Since we have decided to chase, then my Fire Dragon will be the one. I will personally lead so the generals can just follow by my side."
"Great!"
...
One couldn't see that although Xu Wei was mocked for not having any strategic know-hows, as a general, he was truly a brave one. He led the 140 thousand Fire Dragon Army troops out, with the cavalry at the front and the infantry at the back. Xu Wei even rode his horse to charge among the cavalry, acting as a major.
A tragic scream rang out across the plains as the Fire Dragon Army and players charged together, resulting in a huge loss for [Punisher Army]. I led the Royal Army and [Zhan Long] to follow along, and the bodies of the [Punisher Army] troops were strewn everywhere. We chased for twenty miles, and the Fire Dragon Army was spread wide out. This made me even more uneasy. The India Region players and NPCs weren't so simple. Who knows? They might have already come to an agreement.
I rode my horse to the center, Pearl personally led the Chang Feng Army as the center troops. When I found Princess Pearl, she smiled and asked, "Li Xiao Yao, what is up?"
I frowned, "Xu Wei's army is being dragged out too long. We also can't follow up with his cavalry. This is already a huge mistake. Your Highness, the 140 thousand of them are our elites and we can't let them suffer huge losses. I suggest the troops increase their speed to try to catch up."
Pearl nodded, "Yes, I will immediately give the orders!"
...
When I returned to [Zhan Long] and the Royal Army group, Li Mu and Wang Jian had already pulled out their blades. Their faces were ashen white. I instantly felt that something was up, "What happened?"
Li Mu said, "Our War Eagle Scouts have sent back news, roughly ten miles out, Xu Wei, [Judgment], [Wrath of the Heroes] and [The Knights Templar] have been cut off. There is a river ten miles out and three of the bridges have been blown up by Flaming Cloud City. Fire Dragon Army has at least fifty thousand trapped on the south shore and also a few hundred thousand players. All the India Region players are there - it is bad."
"How wide is the river? Can we swim across?"
"It is two hundred meters wide and can't be compared to the War God River. But the deepwater region has beasts, including sharks and hippos. The War Eagle Scout only knows this information and as for the rest, we have to find out when we get there."
"Go! We can't let Ye Lai and Liu Ying die here!"
"Great!"
I raised my Dragon Reservoir Sword. With the order, [Zhan Long] and the Royal Army all rushed out towards the south. When they saw [Zhan Long] suddenly advance, Q-Sword, Yan Zhao Warrior and Soaring Dragon all roughly knew that something had happened. They immediately ordered their guilds to go full speed ahead. The huge China Region force crossed the plains and forests toward the south.
...
Not long later, we could hear the heavy cannon shots in the distance. Some flames rose up at the horizon. Xu Wei probably gave the order to burn it down. Based on empire war rules, the villages and towns along the way had to be wiped out. The sound of the river spread over while the mountains and ground consisted of green patches, but there were smoke clouds above the river. There were signs of an exploded bridge. On the opposite side, there was a dense group of people fighting together in a crowd. The fifty thousand frontline forces and hundreds of thousands of China players were trapped there. I couldn't help but smack my thigh. I was so furious that I gritted my teeth. These three bridges were such a simple strategy and Xu Wei actually fell for it. Such a clumsy fellow as the Marshal was the misfortune of the three armies.