Chapter 543: Art of War: Xun Yu's Concealment

Tang San soothed Dai Mubai for quite a while before calming his rage, then ordered, "Pass down the order: the great army is to rest for the night. Tomorrow, we shall head to Gengxin City to fight the Spirit Hall to the death."

"Xiao San, why rest for the night? Why not treat them as they treat others? Since they didn't rest and launched a surprise attack, let's return the favor!" Dai Mubai had suffered a crushing defeat at the hands of Hu Liena and was filled with resentment; how could he possibly sleep now?

"Mubai, you must stay calm!" Tang San urged quickly, "The situation between us and the Spirit Hall is vastly different."

"Hu Liena dared to do this for two reasons: first, because we are the attacking side and lack the protection of a city, allowing her to raid our camp. Second, she gambled that we would subconsciously assume she would choose to rest on the first night, leaving us unguarded. But since she has already used such a strategy, how could she not be guarding against us using the same one? A rash surprise attack would only lead to us being caught like turtles in a jar, resulting in another defeat."

"Third, she not only occupies the geographical advantage but also possesses the right timing and the support of the people. Her reinforcements arrived before ours, and with ten times our troop strength, she dared to ignore the fatigue of a long-distance raid. But now that the enemy's main force has assembled and is protected by a fortress like Gengxin City, a direct assault is unfavorable."

Under Tang San's reasoned persuasion, Dai Mubai gradually calmed down.

That was true; a forced march for a direct assault had always been a military taboo. If Hu Liena hadn't just occupied the advantages of timing, geography, and human support, she would never have dared to attempt such a risky strategy.

"Fine, I'll let them live one more day. Tomorrow, I will ensure the Spirit Hall's army is completely wiped out." Dai Mubai punched the ground, his tone filled with deep confidence.

Tang San's army didn't just have numbers far exceeding the Spirit Hall's; they also had many high-level Spirit Masters from the Clear Sky Sect.

This included Title Douluo like the Elders of the Clear Sky Sect, and the Sect Master Tang Xiao, a Super Douluo. Furthermore, unlike the anger and sorrow on the Star Luo side, the Spirit Empire's first battle was a complete victory; that kid Yan had brought back a pile of heads to claim credit.

"Haha, Nana, as expected of you. Your plan was so successful; the Star Luo vanguard army was wiped out completely before they could even put up a fight."

As Hu Liena's number one sycophant, Yan felt not only adoration for the goddess in his heart but also a few more points of worship.

"That's right, the Saintess uses military strategy like a god. If it weren't for that Bloodthirsty Douluo and Tang Lie fighting to the death to block me, I could have even captured Dai Mubai alive!" Tuoba Xi said with lingering resentment. If he had captured Dai Mubai, they wouldn't just have won half the war, but at least thirty percent.

"Yan, Holy Dragon Elder, do not be careless. We only achieved a small victory today." Hu Liena was actually very happy in her heart; this was the first battle she had commanded since becoming the Saintess of the Spirit Empire, and she had already achieved such a great merit.

But she could not show any pride, because arrogant soldiers are bound to lose.

"The Saintess is right. Don't forget, the Star Luo Empire's army is the strongest on the entire continent. Thirty thousand casualties might make them feel a sting, but it is definitely not enough to hurt their foundation," Ghost Leopard Douluo analyzed calmly.

Of the two great empires on the continent, Star Luo was clearly stronger than Heaven Dou in terms of national strength.

Heaven Dou claimed a million-strong army, while Star Luo possessed at least 1.3 million, and they had at least 100,000 more Heavy Armored Iron Cavalry capable of charging through Spirit Master Legions. If the Spirit Hall hadn't intervened back then, Star Luo would likely have unified the continent long ago.

Within the Gu Lei Kingdom, Nan Feihuang continued to lead everyone in cultivation.

Xun Yu opened his eyes and said, "My Lord, according to my estimates, the Spirit Empire should have already engaged the Star Luo Empire in battle by now." "Probably," Nan Feihuang said. "Bibi Dong cannot watch a new Asura God descend upon the Douluo Continent, especially when that person is Tang San of the Tang Family. The hatred between the Tang Family and the Spirit Hall is only stronger than that between us and the Gu Lei Kingdom. Qian Daoliu understands this too. Unlike when they deal with us, this time, the Offering Hall will surely assist Bibi Dong with all their might."

Xun Yu nodded, "My Lord's deduction is the same as mine. After all, it is rare for the Offering Hall and the Pope Palace to have no conflict of interest and share the same direction this time. With the Spirit Empire at full strength, Star Luo will definitely not get the better of them."

"But, Junior Brother, didn't you say that Star Luo also obtained the power of the Clear Sky Sect? Especially the intelligence that the Slaughter King is Tang Chen—the Spirit Empire doesn't know this. With the prepared against the unprepared, the Spirit Empire might also be tricked," Shui Bing'er also opened her eyes to analyze.

"Senior Sister's analysis makes sense, but Senior Sister has overlooked one point: that Tang Chen is just a glass cannon. He won't truly make a move; it is highly probable that it is just a deterrent. If I am not mistaken, he will only find a way to force the Spirit Empire to retreat, not kill them all. Before long, the continent will enter a period of tripartite confrontation." Nan Feihuang stroked his chin. "Wenruo, is there something you are hiding from me? After such a long time, I don't believe you would be this content."

"My Lord is overthinking. What other means could I have? I can only help my Lord complete the God Trial as quickly as possible. As long as my Lord successfully becomes a god, this continent will be ours for the taking," Xun Yu smiled.

"Is that so?" Nan Feihuang was somewhat skeptical, but he couldn't find any flaws.

The most critical matter now was indeed to complete the God Trial as quickly as possible.

He had to first raise himself to Level 95, then take everyone to the Extreme North to seek the three great kings of the Extreme North. Because of his cultivation of the Dunjia Heavenly Book, the quality of his soul power was unusually high; after Level 95, even a Ten-Thousand-Year Spirit Ring seemed somewhat insufficient to improve his soul power.

Only such Ferocious Beast spirit rings could provide some assistance.

Feihuang speculated that in his future God Trials, there would inevitably be a requirement for him to raise his soul power to Limit Douluo. If he reached it ahead of time, he might be able to pass several trials in a row, or even gain more God Position affinity due to completing them early.

Feihuang also knew the importance of affinity. He hoped to inherit the God Position with as high an affinity as possible, rather than just barely reaching one hundred percent. After all, he feared his future opponents would not just be Bibi Dong and Tang San.

His God Position was so special that it was a question whether the God Realm would even recognize it. If they didn't, Nan Feihuang would have no choice but to fight until they recognized it, or kill them all and recognize himself.

Thinking of this, Feihuang stopped worrying about what plans Xun Yu might have in store and closed his eyes to cultivate hard once again.

The next day, the armies of the Spirit Empire and the Star Luo Empire had both recovered to a certain state after resting.

Outside Gengxin City, the two armies stood in confrontation, the thick killing intent burying the heavens and the earth. Star Luo had dispatched at least 600,000 troops this time, twice that of the Spirit Empire.

But the Spirit Empire had tens of thousands of Spirit Master Legions, which was enough to offset this two-fold difference.

(End of chapter)