Even so, he forced himself to a secluded area and pulled a piece of cloth from the lining of his shirt. After biting his finger, he began to write the secret letter.
The Hai Dongqing also perched on his shoulder.
Ready to send out the message at the fastest speed.
"Whooshââ"
It was then.
An arrow flew in, piercing straight through the just taken-off Hai Dongqing, causing it to fall from the midair.
"General Sha."
Chen Sansi, holding the Big Bow, silently appeared, "What are you writing? Why donât you go back inside the pass and use paper, had to use blood, so urgent?"
"You, you..."
Sha Wenlong instantly panicked and soon put on an act of shock, "How dare you, do you not know how precious these Exotic Beast Flying Eagles are?"
Chen Sansi paid him no attention but instead picked up the Hai Dongqing, unfolding the cloth attached, "General Sha, you and I have been through life and death together, I canât believe you would frame me like this, charging me with the murder of an Imperial Official, concealing Immortal Law, even accusing me of plotting rebellion, what a vicious heart."
The truth was out.
Sha Wenlong stopped pretending, "Chen Sansi! Was it you who killed Young Master Yin, yes or no?!"
There was no response.
He just saw a purple little sword slowly condensing above Chen Sansiâs fingertips.
"What, what are you going to do?!"
Sha Wenlongâs eyes widened in his one good eye.
His guess was indeed correct.
This Chen had learned Immortal Law!
But he couldnât care less about his shock at this moment, his greater feeling was fear, "You dare to kill me? How will you explain it?"
"General Sha Wenlong, wounded while pursuing the remaining Nan Xu Cavalry, unfortunately ambushed and killed by a swarm of blades, how does this explanation sound, General Sha?"
Chen Sansiâs tone was terrifyingly calm.
"Bang!"
Sha Wenlong realized escape was hopeless, and tried to run.
A flash of purple light.
He fell to the ground, rigid, quickly losing breath.
Chen Sansi went over to deal with the body.
This man.
Also got what he deserved.
At least before dying, he exhausted that little bit of value he had left.
And moreover.
In such a grand victory.
For a General of the Profound Image Realm to die.
Is truly...
Too common.
If a General didnât die, the battle report would seem somewhat unreal.
Chen Sansi could tell the man was seriously injured, thatâs why he chose to make his move here.
The main reason he used the Sword Qi Skill was for the sake of efficiency.
Practicing the Sword Qi Skill consumes a great deal of incense, but replenishing it after a single use was not very much, only took a little time.
This battle at Hulaoguan.
Is considered, completely over!
According to Chen Sansiâs judgment, by the time they rushed back to Lai State, they would be able to take down Yong Yue Prefecture soon, and the Qing Countryâs army outside Green Ridge Mountain would quickly retreat, recapturing the three states was nearly a done deal, without any surprises.
But there was one thing yet to be concluded.
The Crown Princeâs rebellion!
The pacification of the three states meant gaining Ziwei Mountain.
The place that the Crown Prince and the Incense Fire Divine Sect were preparing to strike.
The Emperor will soon grace Ziwei Mountain with his presence to conduct the consecration ceremony, and by then, civil and military officials alike will gradually arrive in Lingzhou. In this way, will Lingzhou not truly become the Capital City?
Chen Sansi and the other meritorious servants will likewise remain to await their rewards, and even some from the battle in Ming State may come over.
Itâs bound to be extraordinarily lively when the time comes.
Itâs just unknown how this grand drama will play out.
In fact, what Chen Sansi cared about even more was what kind of benefits Lai Zi could fish out from it all.
Enough.
Letâs first deal with the matter at hand.
Having arranged the troops at Hulaoguan, at daybreak the following day, he led a great army back to Lai State, heading straight for Yong Yue Prefecture.
...
Yong Yue Prefecture.
Meng Quji had gone several days without sleep.
"Whatâs the situation at Hulaoguan!"
Day and night he was filled with anxiety, "Is the retreat all arranged?"
"Itâs arranged."
Zhan Taoming took off his helmet to catch his breath, "If anything unexpected happens at Hulaoguan, weâll immediately abandon the attack on Yong Yue Prefecture and fall back two hundred miles, using Zhao Tong Prefecture as the demarcation, to stand off against Qing Country and the Nanxu Liao Army. The supply of grain, fodder, and other logistics are also arranged properly, there definitely wonât be too much chaos. Itâs just that within a year, Iâm afraid it would be impossible to decide a victor."
"I still donât understand why we had to fight this battle, we should have retreated long ago."
Meng Quji sighed and said, "But strangely enough, even the Crown Prince, who is always cautious and has always minimised expenditures with each military campaign, advocates for continuing the fight, truly baffling."
"For honorâs sake."
Zhan Taoming said, "Commander, the disgrace of Ming Xuan back then truly was an unprecedented humiliation for our Great Sheng Dynasty. I can understand why the Emperor and the Crown Prince both want to retake the three states."
"Yeah, if we could take back the three states, Sheng truly would continue to prosper,"
Meng Quji said regretfully, "Itâs just a pity about Chen Sansi and the others at Hulaoguan. They shouldnât have been risked to defend the pass; a war for territorial control should have been fought from the start. Now, not only might they not hold the pass, but they also have to take the initiative to strike out, with a high chance of their entire force being wiped out.
"Three thousand men, not many in number, but the generals among them are all precious treasures of Sheng!
"General Fang, and Deng Feng, a defector from Qing Country, go without saying, but how old is General Chen? To die at Hulaoguan like this is truly a waste of natural gifts, his future achievements had the chance to compare with Sun Xiangzong.
"But now... they vanish like a fleeting bloom!"
"Calculate the time."
Zhan Taoming said, "The battle report from Hulaoguan should be arriving soon."
"Reportâ"
In the midst of their conversation.
The battle report from Hulaoguan arrived as expected.
"That was fast..."
Meng Quji couldnât bear to look at the bad news, "Old Zhan, you read it. If itâs as we feared, thereâs no need to say it, it would just depress everyone who hears."
"Okay."
Zhan Taoming, holding the battle report, trembled, then his entire body began to shake.
"How is it?!"
Meng Quji ultimately couldnât resist asking, "Did anyone make it back alive?"
"Gone, all gone!"
Zhan Taomingâs eyes brimmed with tears, his emotions running high.
"Ha, I knew it."
Meng Quji shook his head and stood up to go arrange the retreat.
"No, Commander, you misunderstand!"
Zhan Taoming held up the letter, his voice raised, almost incoherent, "No, itâs not General Chen and his men who are gone! Itâs Nan Xu, Nan Xuâs gone!"
"A hundred thousand troops gone!"
"Outside Hulaoguan, General Chenâs three thousand broke through a hundred thousand!"
"Killed twenty thousand of the enemy!"
"Captured forty thousand!"
"..."