Chapter 1994: Waiting for Reinforcements

The crowd stepped back a few paces, someone's foot slipped on loose gravel, and they were about to slide down the slope with a rustling sound.

Wan Houliang was the last to rise, his eyes sharp and hands quick—he grabbed the gravel, turned, and slapped the culprit hard on the back of the head, saying in a low voice: "Be careful!"

The man shrank his neck: "Brother Liang, I was wrong."

They were all Bai Long people, and at this moment they whispered: "Guo Bai Yu is bullying our people, and he's doing it with gusto. Why don't we just take care of them?"

Wan Houliang's army had just arrived nearby, but they only conducted reconnaissance and did not engage.

The people first came to gather intelligence on the two armies facing off, saw the Guo family's troops displaying martial might, saw Mian City suffering heavy casualties, and all held a bellyful of resentment.

Wan Qiliang kept a cold face: "The Emperor said, the time has not come."

In the past, he would have already waved his hand and shouted for the brothers to charge.

"When should we wait until?"

"When the time comes, you will naturally know." Wan Qiliang curled the corner of his mouth, "Holding position without moving—this is the Emperor's personal military order! Now, no one is allowed to disturb Guo Bai Yu; violators will be beheaded!"

This is a secret, never mentioned in ordinary times.

"You." He pointed at his subordinates, "You need to have composure!"

Dong Rui glanced at him. This kid used to be the most hot-tempered, a firecracker king who could explode without being lit. But after coming out of the Overturned Sea, he had become much steadier, and this time he was released by He Lingchuan to act independently.

Indeed, war is the best way to temper a person.

"Then what should we do now?"

"Wait." Wan Qiliang said seriously, "Keep a close watch on Guo Bai Yu, monitor any abnormal signs, find out what strange and extraordinary people he has under him, and which forces have come to rely on him."

Not long after, Wan Qiliang himself came over to Dong Rui's side and whispered: "Mr. Dong."

"Hmm?"

"Six teams nearby have come to join Guo Bai Yu; now he has over twenty thousand under him, but they are not unified and each harbors their own thoughts. From our observations, his elite forces are no more than three thousand." Wan Qiliang paused, "I have four thousand troops here, and you, this great power. Look, if we factor in the internal and external cooperation of Mian City's garrison, can we try him once?"

"Guo Bai Yu is different from the enemies we defeated on Songbopo. His army already has three great demons appearing on the battlefield,

my sixty-sixth also sensed the aura of demonic puppets in his army, the number unknown." Dong Rui said softly, "I ask you, with Guo Bai Yu's strength, is there any problem in taking Mian City?"

"There are many unexpected factors in siege warfare. Sometimes, a small city can unexpectedly resist to the end, dragging on for two or three months." Fang Houliang thought seriously, "But judging by his efficiency in swallowing nearby towns and countryside, Guo Bai Yu is very skilled at siege warfare. It's just that intelligence is lacking, and we still can't figure out how he does it."

Dong Rui thought, if He Lingchuan were here, he would probably be pleased with Wan Qiliang's growth.

"Then why is he delaying his attack on Mian City?"

"Mian City has installed the beast-proof creature made by Songyang Prefecture, but as you said, it probably can't stop him."

Dong Rui rubbed his hands: "These dozens of strongmen rising to attack the Dragon God's territory, all followed one after another, almost simultaneously, leaving us exhausted and overwhelmed. Calculating, Guo Bai Yu's campaign of conquest has already lasted over two months, his momentum growing larger and his strength stronger. He must know he will draw the Dragon God's attention, yet he shows no restraint, nor does he rush to take Mian City."

"He burns Mian City's grain, kills Mian City's people—just to provoke us." Wan Qiliang let out a long breath, "Could this not be the trap the Emperor worries most about? No wonder the Emperor forbids us from fighting alone."

"Wait a bit longer, Zhu Xiuer should also be arriving soon."

The Dragon God's army is conducting major drills, the territory's defenses are inevitably vacant, and the high-end combat power and Black Armor Army under the Nine Abysses Great Emperor can only be broken up and dispersed to various places.

Compared to such a vast territory, the Black Armor Army's numbers are too few, so they can only dispatch small teams to key defense zones, drilling local militia and assisting public order, with the focus on organizing local military and civilians to resist invasion and defend their homes.

If the enemy is too strong, such as Guo Bai Yu, then the local towns and villages and Black Armor squads must resist with all their might, waiting for reinforcements to arrive.

Wan Qiliang and Dong Rui had just finished the battle at Songbopo, and without stopping, they rushed here.

However, Dong Rui has actually only coordinated with him once before; he himself came over after breaking away from Tao Ran's army. According to the Nine Abysses Great Emperor's deployment, high-end combat power like Dong Rui and Zhu Xiuer is not allowed to stay with the army for too long—after two battles, they must switch units.

Although Dong Rui found the journey arduous, he had no complaints, knowing He Lingchuan meant well, and fearing they would be targeted and singled out.

Under He Lingchuan, such top-tier fighters are few in number when said to be few, and not many when said to be many—just a few fingers can count them. He uses them with extreme caution.

In the Battle of the Overturned Sea, although both immortals and demons had armies/sects, the true deciders of victory and defeat were still those dozen or so great powers. Before Miao Zhantian and Qian Huan truly faced off, whichever side had more great powers alive would tip the scales of victory to that side.

Why does He Lingchuan look down on the stubborn strength of Shan Jin? Because here, the good cards have basically been played out by Miao Zhantian, leaving few top-tier experts.

But he has never forgotten that his ultimate opponent is not these grassroots of Shan Jin.

The Dragon God's army has just entered the training phase, and these dozens of resistance forces almost simultaneously rose up at the same time; if one says there is no one behind the scenes directing them, he would not believe it.

One knows with a knee-jerk thought who it is.

He Lingchuan absolutely dare not look down on the Heavenly Gods, a broken ship still has three pounds of nails—who knows what hidden cards the other side still has?

As for Guo Bai Yu, who keeps growing stronger, seemingly oblivious to death, He Lingchuan strictly forbids Dong Rui and others from attacking alone.

Such a loss cannot be borne; suffering it once would result in heavy losses.

The sky grew dark, the air carried a drifting strange fragrance, and not long after, spirit rain began to fall.

Wan Qiliang then said: "Alright, let's go back."

Tonight there is again Emperor's Flowing Essence; Guo Bai Yu's army will mostly have to rest, and the possibility of attacking the city is very small.

It's a pity—if Zhu Xiuer had already arrived, they could have launched a wave against Guo Bai Yu.

Just then, a few drops of spirit rain fell, among them a small clump of spirit ointment the size of a thumb. Dong Rui originally wanted to open his mouth to catch it, but was beaten to it by the ghost ape.

Dead monkey, he glared straight ahead with angry eyes.

Such spirit ointment of this size, five years ago everyone would have scrambled desperately for it, but recently the Emperor's Flowing Essence has come too frequently and with high quality, so everyone has become relatively composed.

Miao Zhantian and over a dozen who fell from divine seclusion in the Overturned Sea—these are all famous deities with names, surnames, and divine positions, not attached gods, nor ordinary divine commoners. According to the latest intelligence He Lingchuan obtained, the transformed Emperor's Flowing Essence is overly abundant,

to the extent that the timing of the rainfall cannot be accurately judged, possibly randomly split into two to four major outbursts, with several minor outbursts in between.

On the return journey, Fang Qiliang suddenly came over again: "Mr. Dong, I have an idea."