[{"data":1,"prerenderedAt":-1},["ShallowReactive",2],{"origin-simulated-to-reality-i-once-looked-down-upon-ten":3,"chapter-simulated-to-reality-i-once-looked-down-upon-ten-simulated-to-reality-i-once-looked-down-upon-ten-chapter-25":6},{"origin":4,"title":5},"chinese","Simulated to Reality: I Once Looked Down Upon Ten Thousand Ages?",{"chapter":7,"nextChapterSlug":19,"prevChapterSlug":20,"totalChapters":21,"novelImage":22},{"id":8,"novel_id":9,"title":10,"slug":11,"index":12,"content":13,"wordcount":14,"created_at":15,"updated_at":15,"volume":16,"translator":17,"content_hash":18},2347040,4587,"Chapter 25: The Siege Begins: Eight Thousand Lu Army Troops","simulated-to-reality-i-once-looked-down-upon-ten-chapter-25",25,"\u003Cp>The next day, news of Zhao Pu’s death spread throughout Hulao Pass.\u003C\u002Fp>\n\u003Cp>Unexpectedly, it did not spark the expected uproar or mutiny; Wang Yang personally stepped in to quell the unrest among Zhao’s troops.\u003C\u002Fp>\n\u003Cp>Aside from a few initial rebel bands allied with the Zhao family voicing condemnation, all eventually fell silent.\u003C\u002Fp>\n\u003Cp>As power struggles erupted within Zhao’s camp, no one cared about the killer behind the scenes.\u003C\u002Fp>\n\u003Cp>Several martial masters in Hulao Pass examined Zhao Pu’s corpse and fell silent, shaking their heads.\u003C\u002Fp>\n\u003Cp>They knew who was responsible, but chose not to speak it aloud.\u003C\u002Fp>\n\u003Cp>Eventually, Zhao’s encampment and portions of its military supplies were quietly absorbed by other factions.\u003C\u002Fp>\n\u003Cp>You and Lu Yu had long planned this; leveraging the current prestige of the Lu Army, you absorbed over two thousand men.\u003C\u002Fp>\n\u003Cp>Your father, upon learning of Zhao Pu’s death, knew it was your doing, yet could do nothing—he secretly covered your tracks.\u003C\u002Fp>\n\u003Cp>You comforted him, saying, “To accomplish great things, one must not be bound by petty concerns.”\u003C\u002Fp>\n\u003Cp>Your father looked at you, watching as you methodically organized the Zhao troops you had recruited, while behind the scenes, you wielded ruthless measures without hesitation.\u003C\u002Fp>\n\u003Cp>A single suspicion was enough to warrant total annihilation.\u003C\u002Fp>\n\u003Cp>He silently thought: perhaps entrusting the Lu family to you was a wise choice.\u003C\u002Fp>\n\u003Cp>At this moment, the heavy burden on your heart finally lightened—the Lu Army had grown to eight thousand strong.\u003C\u002Fp>\n\u003Cp>You cheerfully pulled your father and brother aside for a few drinks.\u003C\u002Fp>\n\u003Cp>Lu Yu was puzzled—he had never seen you so excited before. Eight thousand men? After all, the northern Xuan Kingdom boasted a fully equipped army of one hundred thousand.\u003C\u002Fp>\n\u003Cp>You laughed, “Eight thousand against one hundred thousand—the advantage is ours.”\u003C\u002Fp>\n\u003Cp>Your father chuckled, “Only in Shenzhou could one possess such audacity. That northern wind’s Sixth Prince, Tuoba Shuyi, only dared proclaim his intent to sweep the four seas after amassing one hundred thousand elite troops.”\u003C\u002Fp>\n\u003Cp>You smiled, “Troops value quality, not quantity.”\u003C\u002Fp>\n\u003Cp>Time passed quietly.\u003C\u002Fp>\n\u003Cp>The atmosphere within the city grew increasingly tense, thick with a killing aura.\u003C\u002Fp>\n\u003Cp>You also saw several martial masters of the city: the Spear King “Yuan Chenghao,” the Yangtze Wave Sword “Li Li,” and the Ground Dragon “Cheng Baxian.”\u003C\u002Fp>\n\u003Cp>The most formidable among them was the General’s Sword “Ouyang Jingyu,” Wang Yang’s personal bodyguard.\u003C\u002Fp>\n\u003Cp>Each possessed an extraordinary aura—you would be no match for any one of them in combat.\u003C\u002Fp>\n\u003Cp>You asked Lu Yu about the true strength of these martial masters.\u003C\u002Fp>\n\u003Cp>Lu Yu replied casually, “If they joined forces, I might have to exert some effort to defeat them.”\u003C\u002Fp>\n\u003Cp>This only deepened your astonishment—just how high had Lu Yu’s cultivation reached?\u003C\u002Fp>\n\u003Cp>Your father trained the Lu Army day and night in formations to counter the Tie Futu.\u003C\u002Fp>\n\u003Cp>Finally, the day of the northern wind’s assault arrived; the Lu Army’s morale was high.\u003C\u002Fp>\n\u003Cp>Wang Yang hosted a grand banquet to reward the troops, signaling the true battle was about to begin.\u003C\u002Fp>\n\u003Cp>On that day, the northern wind’s iron cavalry surged forward like a tidal wave—the siege had truly begun.\u003C\u002Fp>\n\u003Cp>Firearms roared, siege engines rolled forward, death squads charged… the brutality of war chilled the soul.\u003C\u002Fp>\n\u003Cp>Corpses piled up in dense heaps, horrific beyond words.\u003C\u002Fp>\n\u003Cp>After four or five days of fierce fighting, half the defending forces were dead or wounded, morale plummeted, and the situation grew dire.\u003C\u002Fp>\n\u003Cp>Yet most defenders had resolved to die rather than surrender; even as food and medicine ran critically low, they held their ground.\u003C\u002Fp>\n\u003Cp>As the city’s fall seemed imminent, the western gate guarded by the Lu Army was not the northern wind’s main target—only sporadic feints occurred there.\u003C\u002Fp>\n\u003Cp>The southern gate became the focal point of battle; Wang Yang had already deployed twenty thousand elite troops there.\u003C\u002Fp>\n\u003Cp>Yet several rebel bands within Hulao Pass harbored desertionist intentions, offering only token resistance while preserving their strength—defense rested almost entirely on the regular troops.\u003C\u002Fp>\n\u003Cp>Lu Jiaxuan saw through it all and summoned you and Lu Yu to discuss a strategy.\u003C\u002Fp>\n\u003Cp>The disloyalty of the rebel bands had long been noticed by shrewd observers; now, with rumors spreading and talk of abandoning the city growing louder, the situation grew even more critical.\u003C\u002Fp>\n\u003Cp>It would not hold for many more days.\u003C\u002Fp>\n\u003Cp>Your father, watching the southern gate’s dire state, had made his decision—he planned to reinforce the southern gate. If the city fell, he would let you two brothers escape on your own, preserving a bloodline for the Lu family, and send you south to find your mother.\u003C\u002Fp>\n\u003Cp>For the Lu family, his own death was enough—he owed nothing to Daqing.\u003C\u002Fp>\n\u003Cp>Lu Yu immediately said, “Father, I can escort you and Brother out of the encirclement.”\u003C\u002Fp>\n\u003Cp>But your father firmly shook his head.\u003C\u002Fp>\n\u003Cp>Lu Yu fell silent—he knew his father’s resolve was unshakable.\u003C\u002Fp>\n\u003Cp>Lu Yu understood: though his strength could match a hundred men, before tens of thousands in formation, he would only collapse from exhaustion.\u003C\u002Fp>\n\u003Cp>Faced with this, you made your decision…\u003C\u002Fp>\n\u003Cp>1. Leave with Lu Yu; as long as the green hills remain, firewood will never be lacking.\u003C\u002Fp>\n\u003Cp>2. Follow Father and fight the northern wind together.\u003C\u002Fp>\n\u003Cp>3. Personally participate (1\u002F3)\u003C\u002Fp>\n\u003Cp>Yu Ke naturally chose 2. Follow Father and fight the northern wind together.\u003C\u002Fp>\n\u003Cp>He descended the mountain to change the fate of the world—and earn the reward.\u003C\u002Fp>\n\u003Cp>To flee now would be to waste all this time for nothing.\u003C\u002Fp>\n\u003Cp>Better to stay in the mountains and cultivate.\u003C\u002Fp>\n\u003Cp>He would gamble everything—he trusted the historical record, the strategy of the legendary martial sage.\u003C\u002Fp>\n\u003Cp>Without hesitation, you gripped your father’s and Lu Yu’s hands tightly and declared, “If Father stays, then we three shall live and die together.”\u003C\u002Fp>\n\u003Cp>Lu Yu immediately affirmed, “Where Father goes, we go.”\u003C\u002Fp>\n\u003Cp>Your father wept—this old general, who had fought for years to reclaim the mountains and rivers, wept like a child; the words “family” and “country” burned in his heart.\u003C\u002Fp>\n\u003Cp>Your father laughed heartily, “Good! Father and sons on the battlefield together!”\u003C\u002Fp>\n\u003Cp>At this moment, you believed reinforcing the southern gate was the wrong decision.\u003C\u002Fp>\n\u003Cp>The city should open its gates and meet the enemy head-on. The reason Hulao Pass had always defended passively was twofold: first, the disparity in numbers—Tuoba Shuyi had one hundred thousand iron cavalry, with another two hundred thousand reinforcements marching behind him.\u003C\u002Fp>\n\u003Cp>How many defenders did Hulao Pass have? And among them were weak rebel bands.\u003C\u002Fp>\n\u003Cp>The northern wind’s troops were elite warriors—each capable of matching several men.\u003C\u002Fp>\n\u003Cp>Second, the northern wind’s invincible Tie Futu had already terrified Daqing into trembling, like a meat grinder on the battlefield.\u003C\u002Fp>\n\u003Cp>Then, we must act in reverse.\u003C\u002Fp>\n\u003Cp>As you laid out your plan, your father and Lu Yu were stunned.\u003C\u002Fp>\n\u003Cp>You decided to send the eight thousand Lu Army to directly confront the thirty thousand Tie Futu—with righteous, open formation, face to face.\u003C\u002Fp>\n\u003Cp>At these words, your father and Lu Yu were both shaken.\u003C\u002Fp>\n\u003Cp>After all, in past battles, thirty thousand Daqing troops had been slaughtered by just three thousand Tie Futu.\u003C\u002Fp>\n\u003Cp>Your strategy of cutting horse legs and breaking formations had never been tested in battle; its risks and uncertainties were unknown to all.\u003C\u002Fp>\n\u003Cp>Yet Lu Yu trusted you.\u003C\u002Fp>\n\u003Cp>Your father, after deep deliberation, ultimately chose to believe your judgment.\u003C\u002Fp>\n\u003Cp>He understood this was a high-stakes gamble.\u003C\u002Fp>\n\u003Cp>If his son was willing to die beside him, how could a father not trust his own son?\u003C\u002Fp>\n\u003Cp>You smiled, “Eight thousand against one hundred thousand—why not? The advantage is ours.”\u003C\u002Fp>\n\u003Cp>Lu Yu’s heart surged with excitement.\u003C\u002Fp>\n\u003Cp>Yu Ke saw this moment.\u003C\u002Fp>\n\u003Cp>He recalled his own participation, witnessing the Lu Army’s discipline and fearlessness.\u003C\u002Fp>\n\u003Cp>This was an iron army that feared no death.\u003C\u002Fp>\n\u003Cp>Most had suffered persecution by the northern wind Xuan Kingdom, bearing irreconcilable grudges.\u003C\u002Fp>\n\u003Cp>Their families slain, their homes seized.\u003C\u002Fp>\n\u003Cp>Even if thousands among the eight thousand were new recruits, as long as the original four thousand served as vanguard, victory was still possible.\u003C\u002Fp>\n\u003Cp>(End of Chapter)\u003C\u002Fp>",1323,"2026-06-21T01:32:57.622Z",1,"Qwen3-Next 80B","19b1a027cf78de654f72fcaba874ad189ab08600d35ad02d7c55d9cc76b6555a","simulated-to-reality-i-once-looked-down-upon-ten-chapter-26","simulated-to-reality-i-once-looked-down-upon-ten-chapter-24",728,"https:\u002F\u002Fnovelzhen.com\u002Fimages\u002Fcovers\u002Fsimulated-to-reality-i-once-looked-down-upon-ten-cover.jpg"]