Chapter 144: Monstrous merit! Zhu Di: This child, either he is himself

But for Zhu Di.

At this moment, his heart was complex and difficult to understand.

Zhu Di stared fixedly at the city gate in the distance where the fierce battle was raging, before the city.

His gaze seemed to be able to pierce through layers of troops, fixing on that peerlessly brave figure in the city.

Zhu Di's face carried a hint of solemnity, and he muttered in his heart: "Zhu Ying, he is no ordinary man!"

"With such bravery, even compared to the Overlord of Western Chu of the past, who could lift mountains and whose might covered the world, I fear he is not inferior, and perhaps even more fierce."

"That city gate is sturdy, the city wall thick; it is simply impossible to break without human power!"

"Yet it was broken by him with ease."

"Is he truly a mortal?"

Thinking this way, Zhu Di's brows furrowed involuntarily, and the unease in his heart also grew crazily.

He subconsciously clenched his fists, and a picture could not help but emerge in his mind: on a future battlefield, he and Zhu Ying would meet in battle, Zhu Ying's figure like a demon god galloping, while his own soldiers could not block his edge, falling one after another.

……

Thinking of this, Zhu Di felt a chill shoot from the soles of his feet up his spine, making his heart feel cold.

For him, Zhu Di clearly knew that Zhu Ying's performance on the battlefield at present could be called stunning, with extraordinary combat power; he was absolutely a true peerless general.

For the Great Ming Empire, possessing a fierce general as powerful as Zhu Ying was undoubtedly an indestructible barrier, enough to make foreign enemies tremble with fear and become a powerful deterrent capable of shaking all directions.

If Zhu Di did not have that hidden and unspeakable intention in his heart, perhaps he would only express pure admiration for Zhu Ying's bravery like an ordinary general, and would not think about anything else at all.

But the reality was!

For many years, Yao Guangxiao's provocative words, like demon sounds, had long ago planted the seeds of ambition in Zhu Di's heart.

As time passed, these seeds took root and sprouted, growing sturdily, causing Zhu Di to harbor intentions that should not have existed, coveting the supreme throne.

And precisely because of this, when he thought that Zhu Ying would very likely become an obstacle on his path to the top in the future, a lingering fear that was difficult to suppress surged in his heart.

He knew deeply that Zhu Ying's bravery was not something that could be dealt with easily.

"No matter what,"

A hint of ruthlessness flashed in Zhu Di's eyes, and he thought secretly in his heart: "If this Zhu Ying cannot be used by me, then he must absolutely not be allowed to reach the position of a high official."

"Otherwise, in the long run, he will surely be my most powerful enemy, enough to destroy everything I have painstakingly managed."

"Even if it means destroying him, he cannot be allowed to continue."

Thinking this way, the original ruthlessness in the depths of his eyes turned into murderous intent that was difficult to detect.

……

At this moment, the situation on the battlefield was becoming increasingly tense.

The biting cold wind, mixed with endless shouts of killing, raged between heaven and earth, rolling up the sand, stones, and dust on the ground, adding a few more points of murderous aura to this cruel war.

The Daning border army's offensive was continuing in an orderly manner.

Under Zhang Wu's leadership, the thirty thousand Daning infantry army was like a black torrent, rolling toward Zhenxiacheng.

They wore heavy armor, advancing step by step.

Soon.

The ten thousand archers were like a tide, approaching the city pass.

On the city wall.

Inside the city.

They had already entered the range of the Daning archers.

"Brothers!"

Zhuang Wei, the commander of the archer army, used all his strength to shout: "Fire arrows! Shoot these damn Tatars to death!"

"Kill, kill, kill!"

The ten thousand archers roared in unison, their voices gathering together to form a powerful sound wave, rushing straight into the clouds.

They saw them drawing bows and arrows one after another, their movements skilled and swift, the bowstrings pulled to a full moon, the arrowheads shimmering with cold light under the sun.

Following this, they released their hands in unison, the sharp arrows like a group of flying birds leaving the cage, covering the sky and the sun, firing indiscriminately toward the city tower and inside the city.

For a time, the air was filled with the "swoosh, swoosh" sound of sharp arrows shuttling, as if a continuous rain of arrows was falling.

Of course.

Under the chaotic arrows firing in unison.

The archer army soldiers naturally also cleverly avoided the location of the city gate.

After all.

At this moment, cavalry had already killed their way into the city and were engaged in fierce fighting with the Yuan army. They knew deeply that they must not cause accidental injury to their own comrades due to a moment of negligence.

The offensive had only just begun, and even if cavalry had successfully charged into the city, they were still fighting with all their might and could not penetrate deep into the enemy's belly.

These archers had followed Zhu Ying for a long time, and in countless battles, they had long been familiar with Zhu Ying's tactics, grasping precisely when to fire arrows and when not to.

Ten thousand arrows fired in unison outside the city, and under the dense chaotic arrows, the aura of death permeated, and the murderous intent was fully revealed.

Many Yuan soldiers on the city tower had not yet reacted before they were ruthlessly pierced through by sharp arrows.

"Ah... ah..."

"The Ming army archers are here."

"Quick... quick fire arrows..."

Countless Yuan soldiers emitted bursts of screams, some falling directly from the towering city tower, like kites with broken strings.

And many Yuan soldiers in the city were also caught off guard, their bodies pierced by chaotic arrows falling like raindrops from the sky.

Many Yuan soldiers widened their eyes, their eyes filled with terror and unwillingness, and before they could make any resistance, they fell into the cold pool of blood, the blood spreading rapidly on the ground, dyeing the ground a shocking red.

With the addition of the Daning archers, and cooperating with the Daning cavalry that had already killed their way into the city, the Ming army's offensive was even more like a tiger with wings, unstoppable, falling into a crazy slaughter.

"Kill, kill!"

"Kill all the Tatars."

"Restore the mountains and rivers."

"Kill..." The Daning cavalry rode their warhorses, charging crazily in the city, the long swords in their hands waving, cold light shimmering, and where they passed, the Yuan soldiers fell one after another, emitting bursts of screams.

The shouts of killing and the sounds of weapons colliding of the Daning soldiers intertwined, resounding through the entire battlefield, like a passionate and tragic war song.

And the appearance of the Daning archer army, firing arrows crazily, also successfully suppressed the Yuan archers who originally occupied the advantage on the city tower.

Both sides shot at each other continuously.

Although the Daning archers outside the city did not possess the natural advantage of being high up, facing the rain of arrows fired by the Yuan soldiers on the city tower, casualties increased continuously, but they did not have the slightest fear.

They drew bows and fired arrows crazily, every time they fired, they used all their strength, as if wanting to pour all their hatred for the Yuan army into those sharp arrows, swearing to shoot the Yuan army to death.

And the two thousand infantry vanguard, carrying heavy scaling ladders, were like a torrent, charging crazily toward the city tower.

Since ancient times, most city-attacking battles were infantry first, cavalry in the rear.

However.

Here in the Daning border army commanded by Zhu Ying, all rules seemed to have been broken, and the tactics were completely reversed.

"Climb the city."

"Kill!"

As one scaling ladder after another was steadily placed on the city tower, many Great Ming soldiers held battle swords in their mouths, their faces carrying determination and fearlessness, and under the full cover of the archers, they climbed toward the city tower with difficulty but firmly.

They used both hands and feet, climbing at an extremely fast speed, swearing to fight the Yuan army to the death.

Inside the city.

The most tragic close-quarters combat was still proceeding cruelly.

Following the brave killing of Zhu Ying's personal guard army, the location of the city gate instantly turned into a purgatory on earth.

The corpses of the Yuan soldiers fell one by one, piling up like a mountain, blood flowing, gathering into streams of blood, emitting a nauseating fishy smell.

And Zhu Ying, who was charging at the very front, was at this moment like a god of slaughter from hell, his whole body emitting a chilling aura.

The battle sword in Zhu Ying's hand swung crazily, every swing carrying the force of a thousand jun, and amidst the shimmering cold light, it inevitably took the vitality of several Yuan soldiers.

In this chaotic army, ordinary tactics had long lost their meaning, and Zhu Ying, relying solely on his strength that was shocking to hear, swung and slashed crazily, and where he passed, no one could block the power of his sharp blade.

"Killed Northern Yuan soldier, gained 1 point of strength, gained 10 days of lifespan."

"Killed Northern Yuan soldier, gained 1 point of internal qi, gained 10 days of lifespan."

"Killed Northern Yuan soldier, gained 1 point of speed..."

"Congratulations to the host for reaching a total of 6000 enemies killed, rewarded with one 【First Rank Treasure Chest】."

The panel in Zhu Ying's mind appeared with prompts continuously.

"The total number of enemies killed has actually exceeded six thousand."

Zhu Ying thought secretly in his heart, a cold sneer appearing on his face: "Very good!"

"In this battle today, I must break through at least seven thousand people."

"The Yuan soldiers in the city, today, I, Zhu Ying, will slaughter endlessly!"

Thinking this way, Zhu Ying shook the battle sword stained with endless blood fiercely, blood rain falling one after another, and swung it again.

"Brothers!"

Zhu Ying roared, internal qi added, his voice like thunder, shaking the surrounding air until it trembled, revealing endless murderous intent.

"Kill all the Tatars! Leave none alive, kill!"

The battle sword swept and slashed crazily, every movement filled with strength and murderous intent.

Wufeng seemed to be of one mind with Zhu Ying, charging forward on its own without Zhu Ying's driving.

Where Zhu Ying's figure passed, it was as if swept by the scythe of the god of death, instantly becoming a tragic scene like a mountain of corpses and a sea of blood.

He completely transformed into a slaughter machine, slaughtering the Yuan army crazily.

Any Yuan soldier who approached within a zhang of Zhu Ying, without exception, only had a dead end.

In front of Zhu Ying's powerful strength, they were like fragile ants, unable to withstand a single blow.

"Monster!"

"He is a monster!"

"He is invulnerable to swords and spears, we simply cannot hurt him!"

"He is not a human..."

The surrounding Yuan soldiers were forced by the supervisory army holding sharp blades to charge forward, attempting to block the Ming army from entering the city.

But looking at Zhu Ying, who was like an Asura demon god, they all showed expressions of terror, their eyes filled with deep fear.

However.

Even if they knew deeply that approaching Zhu Ying was stepping onto the road to the Yellow Springs, under the pressure of the supervisory army, they had no choice. Because they knew clearly that if they did not step forward to fight, what awaited them was the same dead end, and they would die even more miserably.

"The whole army charges!"

The Yuan general guarding under the city, at this moment, was full of ferocity, shouting loudly, his voice almost hoarse: "Absolutely must not let the Ming army break the defensive line! One person dies, ten people fill in!"

"Ten people die, one hundred people fill in!"

"Once the city is broken, everyone will die! All of you, go!"

The Yuan general shouted while waving the long sword stained with blood in his hand, supervising the battle crazily at the rear of the team.

Although he shouted until he was hoarse, his own footsteps seemed to be nailed to the ground, always retreating involuntarily, always letting the soldiers charge at the front to block the Ming army's edge for him.

"Kill."

"Engage the Ming army."

"Kill..."

Under his deterrence, one Yuan soldier after another, despite being full of fear, could only bite the bullet and charge up, killing toward Zhu Ying and the personal guard army behind him.

They emitted desperate and shrill shouts, waving their weapons in chaos, attempting to find a glimmer of life in this inevitable situation.

The bloody battle continued, becoming increasingly intense.

Zhu Ying seemed not to know fatigue, slashing crazily regardless of anything, killing enemies crazily, maintaining a terrifying speed of slaughter.

With Zhu Ying's single-handed power of slaughter, compared to the slaughter of his personal guards, it was not inferior in the slightest, and even stronger.

Every slash down was blood-seeing, every slash life-taking, precisely.

Zhu Ying, relying on his own strength, killed the seemingly endless Yuan army in front until they retreated steadily.

And the personal guards were well-trained, following their General closely, taking Zhu Ying as the center, continuously expanding the range of slaughter.

They cooperated tacitly, like a tightly connected fighting whole, every movement, every attack, just right, fully displaying their well-trained state.

At the location of the city gate, the first street, the second street were being gradually cleared by the Ming army.

The ground was covered with the corpses of the Yuan army, blood pools spreading on the ground, like a red ocean.

Whether it was the living Yuan army or the corpses of the Yuan army on the ground, all this could not stop the momentum of the Great Ming army's advance.

And at the city gate, more and more Daning cavalry swarmed in like a tide.

Their warhorses neighed, horse hooves kicking up clouds of dust, injecting new vitality into this battle; they were the fresh troops on the battlefield.

On the city tower.

Similarly, more Daning infantry successfully climbed the city tower, directly engaging in close-quarters life-and-death struggle with the Yuan soldiers on the city tower.

They wrestled together, using swords to slash, fists to hit, teeth to bite, regardless of everything, just to kill the enemy.

The scene was tragic to the extreme, making people unable to bear looking directly at it.

"Cannot retreat!"

The Yuan general looked at the army that had almost been killed into pieces and was about to collapse, anxious, shouting hoarsely again, attempting to maintain the order of the army.

"Fight to the death! Absolutely cannot retreat!"

"Supervisory army, go!"

"Those who retreat, execute immediately!"

The Yuan general's voice had already become extremely hoarse, almost inaudible, but he was still shouting desperately, full of anxiety and despair, as if this could save the defeat.

"You are the one shouting the loudest."

Zhu Ying's gaze condensed, instantly locking onto the Yuan general who was shouting crazily.

He sat on the warhorse, looking very far, without the slightest hesitation, Zhu Ying's left hand raised fiercely, a long spear instantly appearing in his hand, clearly summoned from his storage space.

In Zhu Ying's panel storage space, various materials were hoarded, not only a large amount of food and wine, enough to support the consumption of his tens of thousands of troops for a period of time, but even weapons were hoarded quite a bit. Even if his army was unfortunately trapped, Zhu Ying had the confidence to let them survive for half a month, striving for time for reinforcements to arrive.

"Die for me!"

Zhu Ying's left hand used force fiercely, internal qi added, and he threw this long spear fiercely toward that Yuan general.

A wave of tyrannical force.

With a swoosh!

The long spear tore through the air, emitting a sharp piercing sound, like a thunderbolt, instantly erupting, carrying the momentum to destroy everything.

"Ah... ah..."

Puchi.

Puchi.

The long spear, added with Zhu Ying's thick internal qi, carried an even more powerful force that could not be blocked, instantly piercing through the bodies of several Yuan soldiers.

Even though these Yuan soldiers wore sturdy battle armor, they were like paper, simply unable to block the sharpness of the long spear.

Almost in the blink of an eye, the Yuan general who was still roaring crazily did not have any chance to react.

Bang!

He was directly pierced through by the long spear, the huge force of the long spear blasting him backward, along with several Yuan soldiers behind him who were also pierced through, several people like sugar-coated haws strung on a bamboo stick, the scene extremely tragic.

"How... how could this be?"

The Yuan general looked down at the long spear piercing his body, and the severe pain instantly swept through his whole body, causing his face to twist and deform.

But with the rapid loss of vitality, the feeling of pain soon became numb. His eyes were filled with terror and disbelief, as if even in death he could not believe that he had been so easily killed by Zhu Ying.

Along with his personal guards, they fell into the endless abyss of hell.

"Killed Northern Yuan soldier, gained 1 point of physique, gained 10 days of lifespan."

"Killed Northern Yuan soldier, gained 1 point of strength, gained 15 days of lifespan."

"Killed Northern Yuan soldier..."

"Killed Northern Yuan ten-thousand-man commander, gained 50 points of all attributes, gained 100 days of lifespan, rewarded with one First Rank Treasure Chest." The panel prompt sound rang continuously.

But the slaughtering action in Zhu Ying's hand did not have the slightest pause, still continuously swinging the battle sword, crazily slashing toward the surrounding Yuan soldiers, as if wanting to kill all the enemies.

And without that Yuan general's powerful supervision, the Yuan army under his command was completely in a state of collapse.

They fled in all directions, throwing away their armor and weapons, weapons scattered all over the ground, their eyes filled with fear and despair, like frightened birds.

"Do not be chaotic!"

The two military officers equivalent to garrison commanders under that Yuan general, at this moment, were full of anxiety, shouting loudly, attempting to maintain the order of the army.

"Continue to fill in! Block the Ming army to death!"

"The Second Imperial Prince has an order, reinforcements are already on the way! Cannot retreat!"

It was just that their shouting on this chaotic battlefield appeared so weak and powerless.

Facing Zhu Ying's crazy and unstoppable attack, more and more Daning cavalry who had killed their way into the city, and Daning infantry who had climbed the city pass on the city tower, the Yuan army's defensive line had completely collapsed, retreating step by step. And this trend of retreat was like a bursting dam, unstoppable, and could not be stopped at all.

"Brothers!"

Zhu Ying, while swinging his sword to kill the enemy, roared and shouted, filled with strength: "Kill! Kill all the Tatars!"

For the Daning border army soldiers, Zhu Ying was their military soul, the invincible god of war in their hearts.

Listening to Zhu Ying's voice was enough to make their blood boil and be exhilarated.

As long as they knew their General was still fighting bravely on the battlefield and was still alive, their morale would never drop, never extinguish.

"Follow the General, kill all these Tatars!"

"Kill!"

"Leave none alive!"

"Charge... kill..."

The Daning soldiers who had killed their way into the city roared crazily, fanatic light flickering in their eyes, like a group of fearless warriors, launching the most violent attack toward the Yuan army.

Their shouts of killing intertwined, forming a powerful force, as if wanting to collapse the entire city.

The location of the Zhenxiacheng city gate had already been completely killed through by the Ming army.

The first street had been successfully captured by the Daning soldiers, who stepped on the endless corpses of the Yuan army, advancing all the way forward.

Following this, the second, the third street were also captured by the Ming army one after another.

The Yuan army was killed until they retreated steadily, without the power to fight back.

More and more Daning soldiers were like a surging tide, continuously killing their way into the city, charging crazily, killing the enemy crazily.

Expanding the victory step by step.

Outside the city!

Mu Sheng's gaze was always locked on Zhenxiacheng.

At this moment, he was full of anxiety, waiting for the moment when the Daning border army completely killed their way into the city.

Mu Sheng knew deeply that only when the Daning border army successfully broke through the defensive line in the city would his Huizhou Guard have the opportunity to follow closely and join this battle.

The establishment of the Huizhou Guard was completely different from the Daning border army. The Daning border army possessed twenty thousand cavalry, charging and fighting on the battlefield, unstoppable, while the Huizhou Guard was composed entirely of infantry. These infantry were mostly reorganized from Liaodong surrendered soldiers. Limited by their status as surrendered soldiers, they could not have the right to form cavalry like the Daning border army.

This first battle of the Huizhou Guard must achieve victory.

"General."

The deputy general was full of excitement: "When is it our turn to go up?"

The deputy general gripped the long sword in his hand tightly, ready to rush to the battlefield and kill to his heart's content at any time.

Mu Sheng turned his head slightly, his gaze sweeping over the deputy general's face full of anticipation, took a deep breath, and said steadily: "Wait until the Daning border army has all killed their way into the city, then we can press up."

"Wait for the military order."

Although Mu Sheng was equally anxious in his heart, wishing he could immediately lead the army into the city, now that the Daning border army had not yet all killed their way into the city, clearly it was not their turn to perform.

At this moment, he appeared calm on the surface, only the slightly clenched fist revealed the urgency deep in his heart.

"General Zhu Ying is truly a god-like man."

Mu Sheng withdrew his gaze, looking again at the city shrouded in war, thinking secretly in his heart: "Cavalry breaking a city, so fierce."

"The Yuan court spent countless manpower and material resources to set up these majestic passes and cities on the border, attempting to block our Great Ming iron cavalry, but this sturdy city painstakingly managed by the Northern Yuan was easily broken by General Zhu."

"With such bravery, such ability to command an army, I, Mu Sheng, am convinced."

Mu Sheng's eyes were filled with admiration and exclamation. Being able to witness Zhu Ying's heroic performance in this great battle was truly a rare harvest for him.

And at the center army location!

Zhu Di and Li Jinglong stood side by side, through the protection of the shield army, the two closely watched every move on the battlefield.

On the battlefield, more and more Daning cavalry swarmed into the city like a tide, their figures appearing and disappearing in the smoke.

At the same time, the Daning infantry also climbed the city pass one after another along the scaling ladders, engaging in a life-and-death struggle with the Yuan army.

Seeing this scene.

Zhu Di and Li Jinglong both stared, expressing excitement and agitation on the surface!

This... is military merit!

On the first day of attacking the city, they could successfully break the city guarded by the Yuan army's heavy troops; this was undoubtedly a victory of extraordinary significance.

Especially Li Jinglong, his tense nerves instantly relaxed, revealing a relieved smile, thinking secretly in his heart: "Fortunately, I put the Daning border army under my command, otherwise, wanting to take this city, how easy would it be."

"In this great battle, it seems I can also reap some military merit."

"In this way, the Emperor will also value my Li family even more."

"Zhu Ying, after this battle, I must write more words of praise in the memorial to properly request merit for him; this can be considered our mutual achievement."

Thinking of this, Li Jinglong could not hide the excitement in his heart, and the excitement on his face became even more obvious.

As if he had already seen the scene of returning to Yingtian triumphantly and being highly praised in the imperial court because of this military merit.

"Zhu Ying's combat power is extraordinary."

Zhu Di narrowed his eyes slightly, staring fixedly at the city, his heart complex: "The Daning border army under his command is also extraordinarily brave under his command."

"Every soldier does not fear life or death, their physical strength is thick, and their morale is even more powerful."

"Although my Beiping army was also extraordinarily brave among the border armies in the past, once being the best of the border armies."

"But now it seems that the combat power of the Daning border army has already surpassed my Beiping army."

"He, how on earth does he train the army? Is it just as simple as letting the soldiers train together?"

"No, it is absolutely impossible to be so easy."

A glint of worry and dread flashed in Zhu Di's eyes, and the unease in his heart became increasingly intense.

If it were only Zhu Ying who was fierce, only the bravery of a common man, it would not be enough to fear.

But now that the overall strength of the Daning border army he commanded was so powerful, how could this not make Zhu Di dread, and his heart was filled with mixed feelings.

"Prince of Yan."

Li Jinglong was full of smiles, turning his head to look at Zhu Di, his words filled with exclamation: "This Daning border army is truly incomparably brave!"

"I have been in Yingtian for many years, and I have seen the Forbidden Army and the Jinwu Guard, all of which are elites carefully selected from various armies of the Great Ming."

"But seeing it today, the combat power of the Forbidden Army and the Jinwu Guard might not be as good as the Daning border army."

"General Zhu Ying is truly powerful, not only is he invincible in bravery, worthy of being the Overlord reborn, but even the soldiers under his command are so brave."

"No."

Li Jinglong shook his head slightly, continuing: "These Daning border army soldiers are not just brave, they do not fear death, viewing death as a return home."

"This seems to have a great relationship with General Zhu Ying's encouragement of taking the lead."

"With General Zhu setting an example and charging at the front, all the generals of the entire Daning border army have followed suit. The commander commands ten thousand troops, charging at the front of the ten thousand troops, the garrison commander commands five thousand troops, charging at the front of the five thousand troops."

"In this way, although it is full of danger, the combat power of the entire army has been raised too much."

"This time, I must write a detailed military report to present to the Emperor, letting the Emperor know the brave combat power of the Daning border army."

Li Jinglong said while nodding continuously, his face overflowing with excitement.

And hearing these.

Zhu Di, although his thoughts were thousands, complex and difficult to understand, immediately revealed a deep-seated smile on his face, nodding slightly, echoing: "You are right, the Daning border army is so brave, General Zhu Ying is so god-like, it should indeed be properly written in a military report to the Emperor, letting the Emperor know our army's heroic performance."

Zhu Di said this with his mouth.

But in the depths of his eyes, a hint of haze that was difficult to detect flashed, as if calculating something.

……

(End of chapter) ===== CHAPTER 145 =====