Chapter 18

Translator: Nyoi-Bo Studio Editor: Nyoi-Bo Studio

On top of Xiayang City.

When the city guard battle general saw the Great Snow Dragon Cavalry outside the city, he quickly went to report to the county governor. Soon, two figures appeared in the city. They were Liu Mang, Xiayang County Governor, and Xue Wanqing, the Battle General.

“My Lord, are these the reinforcements sent by His Majesty? With only 3,000 soldiers, how can they stop the 150,000-strong Northern Barbarian army? The 100,000 tiger leopard cavalry and the 50,000 elephant armored army are light and heavy cavalry respectively. They are unstoppable. How can the 3,000 reinforcements stop them?”

Liu Mang looked at Xue Wanqing and said in a deep voice, “General Xue, how many soldiers do you have? Do you have the confidence to stop the enemy?”

“My Lord, aren’t you asking the obvious?” Xue Wanqing asked.

“Since General Xue can’t defeat the enemy,” Liu Mang said, “and his Majesty has sent 3,000 reinforcements, we’ll hand over the defense of the city to them. Even if we lose, it’s not our responsibility.”

“My Lord, it is you, who is far-sighted,” Xue Wanqing said with a smile. “Someone come and check the documents, and then let them enter the city.”

Lu Bu had been ordered by the Crown Prince to kill the Northern Barbarian army, so he did not have any military documents. However, he had the Crown Prince’s token. Although this token was not as useful as the Great Xia emperor’s token, Liu Mang and the other man still opened the city gate to let Lu Bu in.

At the city gate.

Liu Mang came in front of Lu Bu. “General, may I know your name? His Majesty has sent you to stop the enemy. There is hope for Xiayang City.”

“I’m Lu Bu,” Lu Bu replied. “I’m here on the Crown Prince’s orders to defeat the Northern Barbarian army.”

Liu Mang was stunned and looked puzzled. “The Crown Prince you mentioned is…”

In his memory, there was only Crown Prince Xuan in Xia, but he had been imprisoned in the cold palace three years ago. Could it be that the Emperor had sent Crown Prince Xuan back to the Eastern Palace after the other princes were killed on the battlefield?

Lu Bu’s face darkened. “My Lord, you don’t even know who the Crown Prince is. You don’t need to keep your position as the county governor.”

As he said this, his gaze fell on Xue Wanqing. “You are the general in charge of Xiayang City?”

Xue Wanqing clenched his fist and replied, “General Lu, I am Xue Wanqing. I am the general in charge of the defense of Xiayang City.”

Lu Bu nodded his head. “Tell me about the situation of the defending army and the enemy army.”

Xue Wanqing quickly replied, “General Lu, there are only 10,000 people defending the city. The tiger leopard cavalries are light cavalry, and there are 100,000 of them. The elephant armored army is heavy cavalry, and there are 50,000 of them. According to the news from the scouts, the enemy will arrive at Xiayang City in 10 days.”

Lu Bu’s eyes swept across the city, and he knew that Xue Wanqing had already built some fortifications. However, Xiayang City did not have a natural moat barrier, and these fortifications alone would not be able to stop the attack of 150,000 troops.

“Lord Liu, prepare food for the armies and let my soldiers eat their fill. Two days later, I will leave the city to kill the enemy.”

Liu Mang’s expression changed. “General, you can’t. How can 3,000 soldiers fight against 150,000?”

“Are you telling me what to do?” Lu Bu asked.

Liu Mang could feel the strong killing intent from Lu Bu, and he was terrified. His voice trembled as he said, “I will go and make arrangements for the food.”

Lu Bu’s gaze fell on Xue Wanqing. “Send me a map.”

Xue Wanqing bowed and left.

Lu Bu climbed up the city wall alone and looked in the distance at the vast wilderness. He was not a reckless person, and with such a huge difference in strength between the two armies, he naturally could not defeat the enemy in a head-on battle.

He had to catch them off guard and deal them a fatal blow at the speed of the ringing of the bell.

He had to make full use of the advantage of the Great Snow Dragon Cavalry. He had to be like an unsheathed sword and stab into the heart of the Northern Barbarian enemy.

…

The Eastern Palace.

Ye Xuan was listening to Xiao Rui’s report on the recruitment of new recruits. He had only recruited five thousand soldiers in two months, which was a bit unsatisfactory. He listened to Xiao Rui’s sophistry, no, it should be an explanation.

So the problem of not being able to recruit soldiers, as Xiao Rui said, was it really the problem of the people of the empire?

Ye Xuan didn’t think so. The people had never wanted the empire to fall, to be homeless, buried in the wilderness, or to be whipped by the enemy’s cavalry.

The real problem was that the people had lost confidence in the empire’s army. Right now, the Great Xia Empire was in urgent need of a victory to restore the people’s confidence in the empire’s army.

“Lord Xiao, you’ve done a good job. I’ll leave the new recruit training to you.”

Xiao Rui was startled and a little surprised. He had thought that Ye Xuan would punish him. “Your Highness, I really can’t do the training for new recruits.”

Ye Xuan glanced at Xiao Rui. He was already in his 60s and had ordinary martial arts. “Lord Xiao, do you have any suitable people to recommend?”

Xiao Rui answered, “Your Highness, the former general of the left Dragon Guard, Wei Tianhao, is a good choice. You can find him and bring him back.”

The general of the Left Dragon Guard, Wei Tianhao?

Ye Xuan remembered this person. He was once a famous battle general in Great Xia. “Why did General Wei leave the court? Where is he now?” he asked.

Xiao Rui replied, “Your Highness, the former General Wei’s illness has relapsed. He resigned and returned to the manor. These years, he has not cared about the secular world. He has been immersed in martial arts.”

Ye Xuan nodded. “I understand.”

Xiao Rui bowed and turned to leave. At this moment, Gao Ying hurriedly entered the hall. After Xiao Rui left, he said, “Your Highness, the poison in His Majesty’s body has relapsed, and the situation is very critical.”

Only then did Ye Xuan remember that two months had passed. “Let’s go to Yangxin Hall.”

The two of them left the Eastern Palace and quickly arrived at Yangxin Hall. Ye Xuan said in a deep voice, “I’ll go in and take a look!”

Pushing open the door and entering the main hall, the rich smell of herbs hit him in the face. These ordinary herbs had no effect on the devil-brand poison pattern. Ye Xuan came to the dragon couch and saw that the poison gas of Emperor Xia had already seeped out.

In these two months, Emperor Xia’s cultivation had plummeted under the torture of the poison, and he had become much thinner.

Ye Xuan slowly raised his arm, and the Taicang Emperor’s Flame appeared in his palm, enveloping Emperor Xia’s body. This divine flame was too overbearing. In addition, he was only a tier-three alchemist now, so he was still unable to completely expel the poison in Emperor Xia’s body.

He could only use Taicang Emperor’s Flame to refine a portion of the poison to alleviate Emperor Xia’s pain and extend his life.

After two hours, Emperor Xia slowly opened his eyes and looked at Ye Xuan, who was sweating. “Xuan’er, are you expelling the poison for me?”

Ye Xuan replied, “Father, a third of the poison in your body has been expelled. Your life won’t be in danger for a while.”

Then, a Bloodline Pill appeared in his palm, and he continued, “Father, taking this pill will greatly benefit your body. I will think of a way to expel the poison from your body.”

Emperor Xia took the Bloodline Pill and put it into his mouth without any hesitation. He didn’t care even if it was poisonous because he trusted Ye Xuan. “Xuan’er, what pill is this?”

“The Bloodline Pill!” Ye Xuan said lightly. “Father, I have a question.”

“Go ahead,” Emperor Xia said.

“Father, do you know about Xuantian Sect?” Ye Xuan asked.

Emperor Xia squinted his eyes and seemed to be deep in thought. “I know!”

He propped himself up and leaned on the dragon bed, indicating for Ye Xuan to sit in front of him. “There are two sects in the Northern Barbarian Empire. Xuantian Sect is one of them. Five years ago, Xuantian Sect and the poison sect took control of the Northern Barbarian Empire.”

“I see.” Ye Xuan nodded. “Do you know about the Nine States Alliance?”

Emperor Xia’s expression suddenly changed. “The number one alliance in the nine states? Xuan’er, how do you know about them?”

Ye Xuan had no intention of hiding it. “Father, I suspect that the Empress Dowager is a member of the Nine States Alliance.”

Emperor Xia was speechless.

He had only been poisoned for two months. Why did he feel that the outside world had changed completely?