Chapter 321: Quarrel

"Come in; this isn't a place for chatting!"

Mu Yi looked at Lin Yi's appearance and knew Lin Yi had run into serious trouble.

But outside the city walls wasn't a good place for chatting, so he invited him into his temporary residence.

He extended a hand to signal Lin Yi to sit, and sat down himself, his expression slightly solemn.

"Long time no see; how have you become so gaunt?"

Mu Yi watched Lin Yi, who had tidied himself up yet still couldn't hide his gaunt look, and wondered what had happened to make him like this.

Lin Yi glanced at Mu Yi, then at Autumn Frost City, sighed, and said, "After that day's meeting, a few of us were not assigned any mission…"

Lin Yi recounted the matter slowly; it was simple: the disciples of the Military Strategist all envied Mu Yi's treatment and wanted to earn merit to prove themselves.

A few of them jointly took on the Coldleaf City mission; Wei Qing gave them five thousand troops, and they also brought their own legion.

At first, Wei Qing thought their chance of success was only fifty percent and did not approve their taking the mission, so they made a bold decision.

"Me, Yang Tiancheng and the other Military Strategist disciples—five of us in total—have issued a military order before General Wei Qing!"

When he said that, Mu Yi had already guessed what was happening and couldn't help sighing.

"The deadline for the military order is already halfway, and we truly have no confidence of success!" Lin Yi said, his face darkening.

Originally they had a chance to capture the city, but after two consecutive failures, the elite troops Wei Qing had assigned them refused to obey their commands.

After all, the first failure could be called an accident, but the second was purely due to poor coordination among the five of them, being outmaneuvered by the enemy, resulting in a crushing defeat and heavy casualties.

The soldiers Wei Qing sent made it clear to them: they aren't afraid of death, but they refuse to die without purpose, and won't die under the command of incompetent leaders.

Unless they can see a chance of success, they will absolutely not continue to obey Yang Tiancheng and the others.

The military order has been issued, and military law shows no mercy; they've spent these days trying various methods, but none have yielded good results.

Within Autumn Frost City there is a Legend, 7,000 beastmen warriors, and over 20,000 young and strong beastmen; the larger and more important Coldleaf City will have even more defensive forces.

At first their numbers were roughly double the opponent's, but after two defeats, the soldiers Wei Qing assigned stopped obeying orders, leaving them with fewer troops to command than the enemy.

Defending a city already gives an advantage; once they fell behind in numbers, they were at a loss.

"I…" Lin Yi said after finishing his explanation, fell silent for a moment, opened his mouth but said nothing.

"No need for that, Brother Lin Yi, just say what you want directly. We've only met once; there's no reason for such formality!" Mu Yi said bluntly.

"Please, Brother Mu, rescue us, lend us a contingent of troops, and help us capture Coldleaf City!" Lin Yi gritted his teeth, rose, bowed, and pleaded to Mu Yi.

"How many troops do you need!"

"Five thousand... no, three thousand!" Lin Yi said excitedly.

"Brother Lin Yi... you really have given me a dilemma!"

Mu Yi tapped the armrest of his seat, paused briefly, then looked into Lin Yi's eyes.

"Can five thousand men really let you take Coldleaf City? As far as I know, it's a border fortress even more fortified than Autumn Frost City."

"At this point, we can only do our best and leave the rest to fate; it's nothing but a fight to the death!"

Lin Yi dared not meet Mu Yi's gaze; they truly had no confidence, but at this moment they could only take a gamble.

When the deadline passed, the few of them still could not escape death.

Mu Yi pondered briefly and, to be frank, was not optimistic about Lin Yi and his group.

They weren't taking a gamble; they were gamblers who had lost their sight.

It's the kind of gambler who, having lost his sight, stakes everything in a desperate, mad attempt to turn the tide.

Mu Yi was willing to lend troops to Lin Yi and the others; after all, his mission was only to capture Autumn Frost City, and until the next order was issued, he remained free.

But he could not watch Lin Yi plunge into the abyss; war is fought on confidence.

And now Lin Yi's gambler mindset is frightening.

Sometimes a gamble is indeed necessary, but it cannot be based on a foundation where one has already lost sight and judgment.

A gamble must be decided by one's own will, not a choice born of desperation.

It's like Han Xin's battle with his back to the river and Xiang Yu's burning of the boats; they weren't without options, but this method could win faster.

The long silence left Lin Yi slumped in his chair.

"I can lend you troops!" Mu Yi said slowly.

"And I can lend you twenty thousand!"

Lin Yi suddenly lifted his head, looking at Mu Yi in disbelief.

"Two conditions!" Mu Yi held up two fingers.

"Speak!" Lin Yi, breathing a little rapidly, said impatiently.

"First condition: Autumn Frost City must not fall; you must stay in Autumn Frost City to help me defend it!"

"Fine!" Lin Yi answered decisively!

Exchanging one person for twenty thousand troops is a profitable deal for them; in the hands of Military Strategist, twenty thousand soldiers are far more useful than a single Legend.

"Second condition: I will act as commander, and everyone will obey my orders!" Mu Yi stared at Lin Yi.

He could not entrust the war's outcome to Lin Yi and the others.

"This..." Lin Yi fell into silence.

They had issued the military order to prove themselves, but now they were asking Mu Yi to clean up the mess, which completely deviated from their original intent.

But now Lin Yi also understood clearly that without Mu Yi's help, they could not only fail the order but might jeopardize the whole campaign, something these Military Strategist disciples, raised from childhood in that tradition, could not accept.

They could accept personal failure, but could not accept a war's defeat caused by themselves; that would be the greatest trampling of their dignity.

"I will pass the news to them!" Lin Yi inhaled deeply, knowing this was not something he could decide.

Honestly, if he could truly give them some authority, they wouldn't have come to this point.

They are like a microcosm of the Military Strategist; before anyone can subdue the others, they cannot exert collective strength.

The gap between cooperation and unity remains too large.

"I'll go contact them right now!" Lin Yi took a deep breath and turned to leave.

"What a hassle!"

Mu Yi watched Lin Yi leave, his hand continuously drumming on the table.

He wondered whether this was also part of Wei Qing's calculations, since Autumn Frost City is actually far from Cold Leaf City, and only Legend‑level individuals can travel between them within a day.

And initially placing Autumn Frost City and Cold Leaf City together was meant to let him intervene.

It would be best if Yang Tiancheng and his group succeeded; if they failed, this special presence of his personal army could promptly plug the gaps, interlocking perfectly, truly watertight.

Moreover, this matter might itself be paving the way for him, intended to let him establish his authority.

Regarding these bigwigs' scheming, Mu Yi has always contemplated it in the deepest way.

Because he has already endured too many schemes, he knows that when facing these bigwigs, any level of caution is never excessive.

……

In the end, Lin Yi and his group still agreed to Mu Yi's terms, since for them it was already a dead end.

They truly had no other options; otherwise, why would they turn to Mu Yi?

Lin Yi took the slave contract Mu Yi gave him, stationing half of the beastmen to guard the city, which Mu Yi arranged to prevent accidents.

Generally, having a Legend stationed can solve ninety percent of the problems.

Cold Leaf City is built along the mountain range; to the north lies an endless forest, and they guard not only humans but also swarms of magical beasts from the woods, so the beastmen stationed here far outnumber those in Autumn Frost City.

When Mu Yi arrived, gray gloom shrouded the sky, and a massive fortress methodically patrolled with squads of soldiers.

Outside the fortress lay a huge military camp, with several flags planted among the encampment, fluttering in the wind.

"Has the situation already gotten this bad?"

Mu Yi's expression grew grave, worse than he had imagined; the camp's morale was not unified, but rather felt like everyone fighting on their own.

"Who are they!"

While Mu Yi was observing the camp from midair, a sudden shout rang out and a spear shot straight toward him.

"Have they completely lost their senses?"

Mu Yi's complexion worsened, like a powder keg; without even confirming his own identity, he launched an attack.

"Clang!"

The spear, infused with Inner Qi, was shattered by Mu Yi's fist, then fell from the sky outside the camp.

Cloud Energy now rose from within the camp, and the next attack would be far harder to fend off.

"Mu Yi?"

As Mu Yi landed outside the camp, Yang Tiancheng's voice sounded.

Immediately after, Yang Tiancheng emerged from the camp with a figure, approaching Mu Yi.

"General Mu, why did you come alone without an army? Did something happen?" the figure behind Yang Tiancheng asked nervously.

Mu Yi glanced quickly, as if having seen the person before in the main tent.

"This is not a place for talking!"

Yang Tiancheng gave a wry smile, halted the figure's further questions, and led Mu Yi into the main tent.

Inside the central army's main tent were few people, barely five, and on one of them Mu Yi sensed a strong aura of the Ten Talents, likely the Legion Commander dispatched by Wei Qing.

Yet with so few people, they were now arguing loudly, and even Mu Yi's arrival didn't quiet them.

Some even began slamming the table; in the main tent, a scholar in blue robes rose from behind the table, angrily pounding it.

"This won't do, that won't do, do you even want to fight!"

The Legion Commander appointed by Wei Qing lifted his eyes and scolded him: "There are at least thirty thousand beastmen inside the city; splitting into two assault routes is no different from a suicide."

"What if one route attacks head‑on while the other feints?"

"Our current forces are already at a disadvantage; dividing them further means even if the enemy halves their numbers, we still can't break in!"

"Then concentrate all forces and launch a fierce assault in one direction!"

"Your brain got kicked by a donkey; this kind of siege is still a death sentence. The enemy has set a trap inside the city, waiting for us to jump in—that's an even dead end!"

"So we just waste time here? Stay here and wait to die?" another officer rose, slamming the table and roaring.

"You were the ones who issued the military order; I didn't!" the Legion Commander appointed by Wei Qing sneered.

"When the follow‑up reinforcements arrive, we'll naturally capture this city!"

"As for you, pay the price for your stupidity! If you lack the ability, don't flaunt it!"

The smell of gunpowder from both sides filled the entire camp.

"Everyone, the reinforcements have arrived!" Yang Tiancheng cleared his throat lightly, interrupting the dispute.

"Reinforcements?" Even the Legion Commander appointed by Wei Qing looked at Mu Yi in surprise.

"Who are you? How many reinforcements did you bring?" Seeing the astonished faces, Mu Yi couldn't help but turn to Yang Tiancheng.

"I thought you would still need some time to arrive; I hadn't told them yet, planning to persuade them one by one in private!"

A wry smile lingered on Yang Tiancheng's face.

It started out amicable, but after two failures the conflict escalated to the extreme, which is exactly the scene Mu Yi now sees.

Mu Yi nodded knowingly, realizing only Yang Tiancheng and Lin Yi knew the cause—no wonder these guys are arguing like this.

"Military Strategist Mu Yi, pleased to meet you all!" Mu Yi greeted the few, then naturally took his seat at the main position.

Watching Mu Yi's actions, everyone except Yang Tiancheng couldn't help but frown.

The reason they sat on the sides was mainly that no one could decide who should take the leading position.

"I was originally worried about your condition, rushing here day and night, but seeing you all still so vigorous puts my mind at ease!" Mu Yi, seated at the main seat, surveyed the surrounding circle and said with a hint of emotion.

Hearing Mu Yi's words, several people's expressions improved, after all, Mu Yi was reinforcements regardless.

Unfortunately, the next sentence made everyone turn grim.

"But it seems all you have left is the art of flapping your lips; fortunately I didn't lend you my troops to command, otherwise with your lively, vigorous eloquence you'd probably have to sacrifice all my soldiers."

"\"Are you provoking us? \" The officer who stood up flashed a cold glint in his eyes; the fact that he didn't draw his sword was already his restraint out of regard for Mu Yi's status as reinforcements. He glared at Mu Yi with a fierce expression."

"\"I'm merely stating a fact: if you can capture Han Ye City, I wouldn't be here. \" Mu Yi's words turned the officer's face a steely blue, as if he were a stick of dynamite ready to explode with anger."

Even Yang Tiancheng's complexion turned sour; Mu Yi's remark was aimed at all of them.

"Moreover, who exactly does your 'we' refer to?"

"Do you mean these few who were about to draw swords against each other?"