Chapter 210: Breaking the Ghost Army

The desert after dusk.

Visibility seemed to have dropped even lower.

The army of 150,000 finally marched in a grand, sweeping formation into the Ghost City, a place that struck terror into the hearts of all under heaven.

Remaiti had been dragged in by Qin Zhangfeng by the scruff of his neck; he was already so terrified he had wet his pants.

Sure enough.

There was a reason this Ghost City had such a fearsome reputation.

Having just walked past a few sand dunes and startled a few crows, the compass in Liu Zheng's hand began to spin—spinning, spinning, spinning, rotating rapidly.

Finally.

Everyone's compasses had spun until they were broken.

Liu Zheng frowned slightly.

Liu Dahao was also trembling with fear: "Son, don't be reckless! If it really comes to it, can't we come back tomorrow? Come back tomorrow?"

Liu Zheng glared at him, and he hid inside the Horse Carriage, not daring to speak.

Qin Zhangfeng gave the order for the entire army to be on high alert.

In reality, he didn't need to give the order; the soldiers of the 150,000-strong army also felt that this place was different. As soon as they stepped inside, there were gusts of eerie wind, and this wind was extremely strange, blowing toward this side one moment and toward that side the next.

The 150,000-strong army did not dare to separate in the slightest.

Because this sandstorm—which looked like a storm but wasn't actually a storm—had completely blocked their field of vision.

Qingyang Shuo could not help but frown and say: "Young Master, in such an environment, it is difficult to fight."

How could Liu Zhe not know this?

Without vision, how could they fight a war?

This Xie Xuan was truly a peerless genius to have chosen such a place. This place was truly a natural hazard.

"Pass the order down: advance slowly, do not panic, and no matter what you see, do not lose your composure."

Liu Zheng said.

Who would have thought that as soon as he finished speaking.

Remaiti shouted: "It's coming, it's coming! The Ghost City, it's in the sky, it's in the sky!"

He wet himself again.

Everyone looked up, and sure enough, the appearance of some city walls had suddenly appeared in the sky. Those city walls were different from the cities and architecture of this world; they were baring fangs and brandishing claws, truly looking a bit like a Ghost City, like the gates of Hell.

However.

The Yinzhou army had already learned on the road that this was a Mirage, and although they were shocked, under Liu Zheng's orders, they did not panic in their hearts.

"No, you aren't afraid? Why is no one afraid..."

Remaiti was dumbfounded.

Wasn't this terrifying enough?

Liu Zheng, however, said: "Everyone, walk straight toward the direction of the Mirage, do not lose your way!"

Perfect!

This Mirage served as a guide for the Yinzhou army. When Remaiti heard this, he was stunned. How big is your heart! That is the Ghost City, that is the Ghost City! Soon, the Ghost Army will jump out from the city and slaughter your 150,000-strong army to the last man! Slaughter them all!

Liu Zheng kept his focus.

He knew that although he knew it was a Mirage, he could not let his guard down. One had to know that the 500,000-strong army of the Longyan Dynasty had met their doom here, and it was absolutely not something that could be accomplished by a single Mirage alone.

Just as the army had been moving sluggishly for half an hour.

Suddenly.

A heart-trembling wail sounded in the wind.

Remaiti was so scared his face turned deathly pale: "The Ghost Army, the Ghost Army!"

He looked on in horror.

Following his line of sight, a large group of troops wearing black armor had indeed appeared in the sky. At a glance, they truly looked fierce and wicked, especially in this environment, where the effect was explosive. The leading general wore a bull-horned Helmet that covered his entire face, looking like an evil ghost returned from Hell, waving a Giant Axe in his hand, his expression agitated as if he were cursing something.

Remaiti had already begun to pray.

He believed that this was because the Yinzhou army had blasphemed the gods, and the gods had sent the Ghost Army to deal with them.

"Keep moving!"

Liu Zheng, however, was unafraid and said calmly.

At this moment, the 150,000-strong army still couldn't help but feel terrified. Because this atmosphere was truly well-executed. A funny thought suddenly popped into Liu Zheng's mind: could it be that this Xie Xuan was also a transmigrator, and his major was film special effects?

"Your Majesty, the Ghost Army, the Ghost Army!"

The Ghost City, the Ghost Army.

The entire 500,000-strong army of Longyan was plunged into extreme panic.

Xie Tianyao, dressed in full military regalia, had never believed in ghosts or gods before entering this place, because he was the one destined by heaven, the Son of Heaven of this world!

With a divine halo, no evil spirits could approach!

Who would he fear?

However.

Now, he was truly afraid.

Who was that bull-headed man?

How could he be in the sky?

He panicked.

The Grand General was also panicked, his expression grave: "Emperor, we must retreat immediately and return the way we came!"

Xie Tianyao said angrily, "I am the true Son of Heaven; how could there be any reason to retreat? Kill! If it is a god, kill the god; if it is a ghost, kill the ghost!"

However...

You are the one to whom Heaven's mandate belongs.

What about us soldiers? Without a hundred-thousand-strong army, hearts are filled with panic. If it were a normal battle, numbers would be an advantage, but in this current situation, fifty thousand—even ten thousand—would become a burden, because human negative emotions are contagious. Furthermore, they can even stack!

"Ah!"

Suddenly, a miserable scream rang out amidst the fog and sandstorms.

Following closely, someone shouted, "The Ghost Army is here!"

Countless cavalrymen wearing black armor and bull-headed Helmets suddenly appeared, as if they had truly jumped down from the sky. As soon as they appeared, they began a ruthless slaughter of the Longyan soldiers.

Blood began to permeate the air!

Xie Tianyao panicked: "Counterattack! Counterattack for me, no one is allowed to retreat!"

However.

Next, those Ghost Army soldiers did not give them any chance to counterattack at all, and they vanished back into the wind, sand, and fog.

"Regroup the army!"

Xie Tianyao said angrily.

However.

Next.

They appeared again, and this time, they appeared in the sky once more! That bull-headed man looked coldly at Xie Tianyao again, opening his mouth as if threatening something.

"The Ghost Army..."

"It's him!"

"It really is him!"

"Wail, wail, wail, what kind of hellish place is this? I want to go home!"

"Go home!"

"Run!"

At this moment, the real Ghost Army came out again, another round of reaping, another ruthless ravaging! The morale of the fifty-thousand-strong Longyan army was completely shattered.

"No retreating! Anyone who dares to retreat will be executed without mercy!"

Xie Tianyao roared.

But in this situation, who cares if you execute them or not? What Xie Tianyao did not expect was that the ones who fell into chaos first were actually the generals leading the troops!

They were the first to start ignoring Xie Tianyao's commands.

Because the scene before their eyes was simply too terrifying. No one could guarantee that they could get out alive. Since that was the case, who still cared if you were the Emperor?

Saving one's own life was what mattered!

It was even possible that you, the Emperor, might not be able to escape!

At this.

Xie Tianyao was enraged.

The dignity of the Son of Heaven, yet they dared to offend it?

The command of the Son of Heaven, yet they dared to defy it?

He gave the order.

Kill!

He probably never imagined, when he set out to conquer the Western Regions, that more than half of the fifty-thousand-strong Longyan army would actually die in mutual slaughter.

Yes.

He did not imagine it.

The soldiers did not imagine it either.

"Tyrant!"

"A tyrant who kills his father and slaughters his brothers, disregarding human life!"

"Kill him!"

"Welcome the Second Prince back to his rightful place!"

The fifty-thousand-strong army, under the infiltration of the Ghost Army, truly began to slaughter one another.

Xie Tianyao watched all of this with a pale face.

So, in the presence of ghosts and gods, can one truly see the human heart?

When he ascended the throne, these people were all loyal and devoted, yet at this moment...

His heart was in complete turmoil.

At the same time, his heart was as hard as steel.

"Kill!"

"Kill them all!"

That day, Ghost City became a testing ground for the human heart.

When Xie Tianyao was escorted out by several guards along the same path he had come, standing before those sand dunes, he could seemingly hear the shouting and screaming inside, and could smell the blood and the stench of human hearts permeating the entire desert—it was so foul...

"Emperor, Emperor, it is time to take your medicine..."

The effeminate voice of Grand Eunuch Zhou interrupted Xie Tianyao's train of thought.

Xie Tianyao smiled faintly: "Lao Zhou, has the outside world already turned upside down?"

Grand Eunuch Zhou gave a wry smile: "Emperor, I hear that Prefect Liu has already arrived at Ghost City; who knows, perhaps one day you will be able to lead the imperial expedition to the Western Regions yourself!"

"Is that so?"

Xie Tianyao laughed heartily, laughing continuously.

……

"The Ghost Army is here!"

"Bang!"

At this moment.

The Yinzhou army inside the Ghost City encountered the same situation. That suddenly appearing, indistinguishable-from-real black armor, the Ghost Army, suddenly appeared behind the main force and launched an attack on the supply troops. Immediately, the Yinzhou army suffered heavy losses.

The morale of the army was on the verge of chaos.

"Do not panic!"

Liu Zheng said coldly: "Everyone, form into five-hundred-man Mandarin Duck Formations. Remember, the Mirage is in the sky, the real people are on the ground!"

"They don't have many men; they are just putting on a show!"

Upon hearing this, the crowd's thoughts gradually steadied.

The Yinzhou army, following orders and prohibitions, immediately began to form up.

"Everyone listen clearly, distinguishing real people from a Mirage is actually very simple: look at the wind, sand, and fog to see if they are affected, and look for horse hooves. If there are horse hooves, they are real people, just kill them!"

"If they are fake, ethereal and indistinct, then they are fake!"

"I, Liu Zheng, swear to be with my brothers. Regardless of whether they are gods or ghosts, encountering my Yinzhou army is their misfortune!"

The crowd's morale was greatly boosted, and they roared their agreement.

If they hadn't known the principle of this Mirage, they would naturally have thought this was truly a Ghost Army from the gates of hell, but Liu Zheng had already popularized it for them, and Heaven had also helped by providing a Mirage on the spot for them to see. The fear in their hearts naturally lessened a great deal.

The Ghost Army.

Sure enough, in the time that followed, they were elusive, carrying out sneak attacks from all directions.

One moment here, one moment there.

However, at the beginning, they were still able to take some advantage.

By the end, the Yinzhou army seemed to have figured out their attack patterns. Damn it, aren't they just a bunch of Cavalry? Relying on this wind, sand, and fog to play god and act like ghosts here?

Qin Zhangfeng shouted angrily: "Spearmen!"

"Here!"

"Mandarin Duck Formation, strike the perimeter!"

"Yes!"

This change in formation immediately left that group of Ghost soldiers stunned.

For the first time.

This Ghost army attacked, but not only did they fail, one of them was even captured by the Yinzhou army.

Qin Zhangfeng leaped forward, dragged the armored bull-headed man off his horse, and then brought a fist down with a boom, cursing: "Come on, god or ghost, let your master have a look!"

The man let out a cry of pain, and his bull-head Helmet was snatched off by Qin Zhangfeng.

A Western Regions man with thick eyebrows and large eyes looked at Qin Zhangfeng in terror.

Qin Zhangfeng sneered: "Good, so it turns out to be a person!"

"You, you, you, you all..."

The man was incredulous.

Are you not afraid of ghosts?

I am a ghost!

Slap!

Qin Zhangfeng landed a slap on his face.

The "ghost" was instantly dazed, with blood at his mouth, nose, and eye sockets...

Remaiti was stunned watching this.

Seeing this situation, the Yinzhou army's morale was instantly boosted.

"You guys playing god and acting like ghosts!"

"Kill!"

"Charge!"

【Author's Note】

Sigh, today is also the last chapter of this month. With such explosive updates, the brothers' tips are still not very strong. Thank you to the few brothers who tipped, I am truly grateful. Starting tomorrow, normal updates will resume.