Chapter 211: Crushing

Cheshi.

It is a major state among the Thirty-six Kingdoms of the Western Regions, belonging to the Protectorate. Its location is roughly northwest of the Turpan of later generations, connecting to Dunhuang in the southeast and Loulan in the south. To the west, it connects to Yanqi, which is the historical site of the Western Regions Protectorate. To the northwest, it connects to Wusun, and to the northeast, it connects to the Xiongnu.

It is a strategic fortress on the Silk Road in Huaxia history.

Yet in this world, Cheshi broke away from the Protectorate long ago to develop on its own.

Especially thirty-one years ago, after being ruled by Xie Xuan, Xie Xuan worked diligently to govern, carried out extensive reforms, emulated the Longyan Dynasty, rested the people, and prioritized agriculture while suppressing commerce.

The population of Cheshi surged, and today it is a "major state" of six hundred thousand!

As everyone knows, sixty years is a major cycle for population development. Therefore, although Cheshi has six hundred thousand people, in reality, there are not many young adults.

The total military strength of Cheshi is roughly around fifty thousand.

The King of Cheshi is named Jiao Zhe; no one can clearly state his lineage because he is a mixed-race individual himself. He possesses the bloodlines of both the Cheshi and the Han people of the Longyang Dynasty, so he is tall and sturdy, yet he has a head of straight black hair and is exceptionally clever.

He was previously called Batur, but after Cheshi was unified by Xie Xuan, he was enfeoffed as the Governor of Cheshi and granted a royal title, after which he changed his name to Jiao Zhe to signify his submission.

At this moment.

Jiao Zhe sat on his golden Horse Carriage, inspecting his city while drinking heavily and eating meat, laughing loudly: "Everyone, do you feel it?"

"Our spring is about to arrive!"

"His Majesty is wise and martial; he will strike back into Longyan!"

"The vast Longyan, are you not tempted?"

The crowd nearby responded with a roar.

"Long live His Majesty!"

"The Great King is mighty!"

These Barbarians, at the mere thought of that wealthy Zhongyuan land, had eyes turning red.

The Northern Western Regions had already been ruled by Xie Xuan for thirty-one years.

Originally, at the beginning, the people of the Western Regions were resistant to Xie Xuan, but as time passed, they discovered that this Longyan Han person might truly be sent by Heaven to lead them. Although he prioritized agriculture and suppressed commerce, and commerce was not developed, it greatly promoted the agricultural development of the Northern Western Regions, making them self-sufficient without needing to rely on the Zhongyuan land—which was quite an achievement for the people of the Western Regions.

Have you not seen the Xiongnu, who starve every year, precisely because they have no food to eat and must go to plunder Zhongyuan?

Being able to eat one's fill is the thing everyone in this era most wants to satisfy.

Xie Xuan achieved this.

Therefore, in the eyes of the people of the Western Regions, he now seemed like a deity.

Jiao Zhe was one of Xie Xuan's most loyal fans; his eyes burned as he looked at his increasingly prosperous city, laughing loudly: "With fifty thousand from Cheshi, we will swallow five hundred thousand from Longyan. If His Majesty is not the one destined by Heaven, then who is?"

The crowd echoed him one after another.

This Ghost City was precisely Xie Xuan's masterpiece.

A tiny "Ghost City" had blocked the Longyan Dynasty for thirty-one years! It had swallowed five hundred thousand troops of the Longyan Dynasty!

It was astonishing!

Who had ever seen this before? Using weather, climate, terrain, and Geography, Xie Xuan had staged a world-shaking miracle for these Barbarians. Using that Mirage to make the Longyan Army slaughter each other, who else could do that?

If this is not the Son of Heaven, what is?

If this is not a celestial being, what is?

"Invincible Cheshi!"

"Invincible Ghost Army!"

Jiao Zhe gave a cold laugh: "A mere one hundred and fifty thousand, and they dare to come to my Cheshi? Hahaha, they are specifically here to deliver weapons and equipment to us!"

"Go, get it done early, and then go clean up the battlefield..."

He waved his large hand.

Just at this moment.

Suddenly, a Scout ran over in a panic, tumbling and crawling: "Great King, Great King, it's over, it's over!"

"What is going on?"

Jiao Zhe felt a shock in his heart.

"The Ghost Army has been scattered!"

"That Longyan Army has already charged out of the Ghost City!"

Jiao Zhe's expression changed drastically: "What?"

The crowd also looked at each other in dismay.

The Ghost Army, scattered?

This was an invincible existence; this was the "Heaven-sent divine troop" that had once eaten up five hundred thousand Longyan troops!

Jiao Zhe raged: "Impossible! How could those Longyan people see through my Ghost Army? Impossible!"

The Yinzhou Army.

Upon seeing this "minotaur" look-alike being beaten until his head was broken and bleeding by Qin Zhangfeng, they all stared in a daze.

"Damn it, it turns out to be a person!"

"Playing the ghost and acting the demon!"

"It's all fake! Brothers, don't be afraid, come and fight them!"

So they weren't ghosts!

So you are humans!

Good heavens.

The final shred of fear in the hearts of the fifteen thousand Yinzhou soldiers vanished all at once.

Liu Zheng saw that the morale was usable and shouted loudly: "Brothers, form the Mandarin Duck Formation in groups of five thousand, and march forward!"

"Yes!"

The orders for the 150,000-strong army were delivered in sequence.

A 5,000-man Mandarin Duck Formation—this was an extremely aggressive variation within the Mandarin Duck Formation.

This order meant that we would no longer endure; we were going to charge, we were going to attack!

The Yinzhou army's morale soared instantly.

Although the sandstorm and fog still had a certain impact on their vision, a single person might get lost, but this was a Square Formation!

Square Formation after Square Formation, moving forward, though slowly, could guarantee the direction of travel.

The Ghost Army clearly still did not believe their ruse had been exposed. This was the trick they relied on for their fame; throughout the Western Regions, whoever heard of the Ghost Army would be struck with fear—why were you not afraid!

"Kill!"

"Continue!"

The Ghost Army continued to build momentum, continuing to create an atmosphere of terror.

However, at this moment, for the Yinzhou army, it was no longer effective.

"Advance steadily!"

"Do not let your minds be affected!"

"Yes, General!"

Qin Zhangfeng and Jiang Xuan led their teams, and the army's morale was greatly stabilized; when the Ghost Army charged again, more and more people were dragged off their horses. Once dragged down, what awaited these "minotaurs" were the Yinzhou army's Long Spears and Mo Dao blades.

Screams followed one after another.

The scent of blood permeated the air.

When the Ghost Army was no longer terrifying, they were just paper tigers. The armor and Helmet that looked like demons from Hell had now become a complete burden.

Once they were surrounded by the Yinzhou army's shifting Mandarin Duck Formation, they could not even run, and could only let the Yinzhou army slaughter them.

"Run!"

"Retreat!"

"Run quickly!"

Soon, these Ghost Army soldiers ambushed in the sandstorm and fog discovered that, after a few hours, this Yinzhou army was actually about to charge out of the "Ghost City" they had set up.

Once out of the Ghost City, the Mirage that confused people's minds would be gone, the sandstorm would be gone, the fog would be gone, and everything would become clear; these guys who were playing at being gods and ghosts would be completely exposed to the Yinzhou army.

"Pursue!"

"All troops, attack!"

Seeing the bright sunlight ahead and the dawn right before his eyes, Qin Zhangfeng shouted loudly.

The 150,000 Yinzhou troops no longer cared about the sandstorm and fog, and charged forward in Square Formations of 5,000 men each.

The Ghost Army, numbering no more than 30,000, no longer had any strength to put up a fight.

The 150,000-strong army began a ruthless crushing.

The Ghost Army threw away their armor and abandoned their weapons.

Finally.

Another half an hour later, the remains of the Ghost Army on the ground were countless.

The Yinzhou army finally parted the clouds and mist, seeing the dawn.

"Look!"

"Over there!"

At a glance, on the edge of this desert, there was indeed a paper-made city, exactly the same as the one in the Mirage!

Only...

The "Ghost City" in the Mirage was gloomy and terrifying, but this "Ghost City" at this moment was built of wood and patched with paper, painted with different colors to create an atmosphere that made people feel terrified.

It was precarious and looked pathetic, without any feeling of sturdiness at all, as if it were a mud city played with by children.

At this time, it was even more so because the Ghost Army responsible for operating this Ghost City had been slaughtered to the last man and had fled one after another.

This unguarded Ghost City had already been knocked down by the sandstorm...

It was a complete mess.

Many people exclaimed one after another.

"Just this?"

"Hahahaha, is this the Ghost City that made the people of the Western Regions tremble with fear?

After all that, it's just a fake city?

The soldiers recalled Liu Zheng's previous description of this Mirage, and instantly, pair after pair of eyes looked toward Liu Zheng.

"The Young Master has great talent!"

"The Young Master is mighty!"

The whole army cheered, overwhelming like a mountain and sea.

Qingyang Shuo also looked at Liu Zheng in disbelief.

He had to admit that this Ghost Army, combined with this "Ghost City," plus the half-day trek through the desert, was enough to swallow up the Longyan Dynasty's 500,000-strong army...

However...

Such an exquisite design was easily broken by Liu Zheng here.

Thirty-one years...

Xie Tianyao's thirty-one-year nightmare was resolved so easily.

"The Young Master has grand strategies; Shuo is inferior!"

Qingyang Shuo also cupped his hands and smiled.

Liu Zheng looked rather embarrassed and said, "Sir, there is no time to lose. We must launch a surprise attack on Cheshi. Cheshi is only fifty miles away. If news of the Ghost Army's crushing defeat reaches the Dayuan Kingdom, I fear they will send reinforcements."

Qingyang Shuo laughed loudly, "That is exactly what we should do!"

The Yinzhou Army, having just emerged from the wind and sand desert, rested on the spot and tallied their losses; the Ghost Army had still managed to take down five thousand soldiers of the Yinzhou Army. But compared to the losses of the Ghost Army, five thousand was merely a fraction.

Although Liu Zheng felt pained, he knew that this was war. He personally buried these five thousand men in the desert and collected their identification tags one by one—this was Liu Zheng's rule: every soldier of the Yinzhou Army had an identification tag, and for those who died in battle, their wives and children would receive a pension upon their return that would ensure they lived without worry for the rest of their lives.

In this era, this was all Liu Zheng could do.

Seeing that Liu Zheng, as the commander-in-chief of the army, could still be so considerate of his soldiers.

The morale of the Yinzhou Army increased once more.

In half an hour, they had finished resting.

"Young Master, let's slaughter our way over!"

"Trample the Western Regions!"

"Our Yinzhou Army is invincible under heaven!"

Many soldiers volunteered for the mission.

Liu Zheng laughed loudly, "Good!"

In his eyes, Cheshi had actually already been taken. Because the place called Turpan had no natural defenses to hold, being almost completely flat; once this Ghost Army that played at being gods and ghosts collapsed, Cheshi would be finished.

"Set out!"