Chapter 641: with translation of chapter title

The Luotian Grand Sacrifice procedure is extremely cumbersome, requiring many things.

Just the setup took up most of the day, and only by evening were all things in place.

In front of this small hill, the skull mound made of thousands of skulls had already risen; Chen Wuji's Great Banner flag stood just behind the skull mound, all facing the Qiang Ren Da Ying, the provocative intent completely undisguised.

But strangely, the lawless Qiang People suddenly fell silent.

In the span of an afternoon, Chen Wuji several times saw the Qiang People's Bīngmǎ coming and going, but they did not launch an attack; instead they busily chopped timber and fortified the Yíngzhù.

Only occasional scout horses approached to observe, then hurriedly returned.

"Sir, how did this bunch of Qiang People suddenly change their nature?" Chen Wuji stood at the side of the Great Banner flag, hands tucked in his sleeves, looking at the opposite Qiang Ren Da Ying with a puzzled expression.

He had practically shoved his face in their face, yet the previously lawless Qiang People, at this moment, chose to spit and let it dry—this is damned weird.

Xu Zengyi remained calm, "Lord, in the initial clash, the Qiang People lost thousands of troops. Although they have a hundred-thousand-strong army, such casualties still hurt; they ought to first reflect and observe."

"With a hundred-thousand-strong army, reflecting now is pointless; shouldn't they muster all forces and go berserk for revenge?" Chen Wuji asked, "They're so rich and powerful, yet they'd reflect over this? They're not the type to do that!"

In Chen Wuji's usual impression, the Qiang People are synonymous with recklessness and brutishness.

If they can win, they go on a bloody rampage; if they can't, they flee—there's simply no other tactic.

Xu Zengyi nodded, "Indeed somewhat abnormal, but Lord, haven't you forgotten that the Qiang People's army now has Dayu People in high positions? The Qiang People won't weigh things carefully, but these people will."

The more arrogant our army is, the heavier their suspicions will be.

Chen Wuji clicked his tongue, "Funny, I'd forgotten about this pack of lackeys."

"Then give them a chance, let them watch for now, striving to finish a Zhai Jiao Ritual."

The Luotian Grand Sacrifice breaks down into several types; Chen Wuji chose the shortest, seven days.

On the battlefield, the situation shifted like clouds and wind.

Although Chen Wuji had chosen seven days, he still demanded that Zhi Xu Daozhang compress the procedure, finishing it within three days if possible; once fighting broke out, the Ritual would certainly have to be interrupted.

"We'll also reinforce the Yíngzhù; from now on we'll set up camp here!" Chen Wuji said.

Xu Zengyi shook his head with a wry smile, "Lord, this game of chess you're playing is truly steady."

"What game am I playing?"

"Move the Daying forward, personally enter the battlefield."

"I'm just shifting the Daying forward a bit; this isn't to provoke the Qiang People and use myself as bait, is it? Don't complicate things for me—I have no other motive; as soon as the Qiang People bite the bait, I'll withdraw immediately."

Xu Zengyi shook his head, "Lord, if I wanted to stop you, I'd have already done so; this isn't hard to guess."

Chen Wuji laughed heartily, "Is that so? If you've figured it out, then it's fine—let's raid a camp tonight!"

Xu Zengyi stared back, "Lord, you just said you'd hold out until the Zhai Jiao Ritual ends?"

"I hit him, but he might not dare hit me back."

"……"

"How about tomorrow night? I'm mainly worried that the Qiang People will attack tomorrow, affecting the Zhai Jiao Ritual's progress. Given the Qiang People's dogged temperament, after today's fortification of the Yíngzhù, they might tentatively attack tomorrow, Sir—my calculation isn't bad, right?"

"Not bad!"

"We now have plenty of Shocking Heaven Thunder; tonight we'll blast that broken camp to smithereens—you say he'll still attack tomorrow? If the Shocking Heaven Thunder sounds all night, even if the Qiang People want to retaliate, their Warhorses won't be keen; tomorrow they'll surely be weak-legged and irritable, definitely unable to run."

Xu Zengyi's mouth corner twitched slightly.

"What's that expression? Am I being unreasonable?" Chen Wuji asked.

"……Reasonable, I just didn't think of it."

Chen Wuji chuckled, "You haven't used Shocking Heaven Thunder in ages, forgot about it?"

"No, I just didn't consider that the enemy army's Warhorses would be affected." Xu Zengyi said helplessly; he wasn't speaking offhand—this point, he indeed hadn't thought of it just now.

Chen Wuji smiled faintly, "No worries, the Wise One must have a slip among a thousand thoughts—so, can we fight this battle?"

"We can!" Xu Zengyi nodded, "Use as much Shocking Heaven Thunder as we have; the Qiang People may have defenses tonight, but we don't need troops to charge the camp—just use all the Shocking Heaven Thunder."

"Although plentiful, using it all at once might be improper; Shocking Heaven Thunder works wonders against Cavalry, or should we keep some in reserve, lest our army fall into peril?" Chen Wuji said.

In Infantry vs Cavalry, if tactics aren't meticulously calculated beforehand, you'll get beaten everywhere.

Shocking Heaven Thunder can startle Warhorses, making them uncontrollable by Knights, and can save lives at critical moments.

"Keeping a portion back is fine; Lord, since you're raiding the camp, you should smash the enemy army's morale in one go, not just scare them—it's of no use." Xu Zengyi said.

"Alright, let's do that!" Chen Wuji curled his lips into a sinister smile, "Tonight I'll personally go meet them, to see just how capable this bunch of curs are at building nests, and whether they can withstand the Black Lump in my hand."

Xu Zengyi looked at Chen Wuji with a look of utter hopelessness, "Lord, I can't stop you from doing this, but we have tens of thousands of Bīngmǎ around; you could send anyone, except that you yourself cannot go."

"I'm just going to toss some Shocking Heaven Thunder, not take part in the slaughter!" Chen Wuji shouted.

Xu Zengyi still shook his head, "Lord, if you insist, I'm afraid I can only kneel and beg you."

Chen Wuji: ……

He lost!

He lost to Xu Zengyi's single sentence.

"You win, I'm not going; let Chen Wuyi lead the troops." Chen Wuji said glumly.

After all that preparation, I thought I'd get a taste of it, but I ended up being blocked back.

Xu Zengyi's knees are too heavy, making him kneel and beg; Chen Wuji really is a bit cowardly.

Xu Zengyi earnestly advised, "Lord, you now command a force of several hundred thousand, you are the Southern Command Governor of Nan Jun; the safety of all the people rests on your shoulders—you must not again plunge into danger."

"The officers and men are loyal, brave, and skilled in battle; Lord, you should entrust these matters to them."

"Fine, fine, fine, listen to you, stop nagging—let's go eat." Chen Wuji said.

Recently, these words have annoyed him so much his head feels like it's about to explode.

Xu Zengyi gave a light smile, "Lord, if you don't want to hear it, I'll stay silent, but this matter still needs to be kept in mind by you—it's no child's play."

"Got it, got it, let's go!" Chen Wuji urged.

Dinner was roasted horse meat, plus a chicken-leg mushroom soup.

All this horse meat came from the battlefield.

In the previous battle, the Qiang People lost countless warhorses to death and injury, and the whole army was forced to add horse meat to their meals.