Chapter 452: First Volume, Chapter 452: Great Destruction of the Enemy Camp

First Volume, Chapter 452: Great Destruction of the Enemy Camp

The Gate General's left shoulder was struck; though protected by armor plates, the arrow pierced straight through, blood gushing like a stream.

The Gate General snapped the arrow shaft in half, gripped his long-handled axe, and glared at Ning Hu as he roared: "Enemy commander, dare you face me in single combat?!"

Ning Hu ignored him entirely.

The Gate General was merely desperate to fight to the death; even though Ning Hu was highly confident in his own martial skill, he granted the defending forces' Gate General not the slightest opening—this battle must end swiftly, with no hesitation or delay, or else the cavalry's return or the defending forces' stabilization would leave the Tianji Camp Guards in dire straits!

Moreover…

The Gate General wielded a long-handled axe—his strength must be extraordinary; Ning Hu's armor, vulnerable to the axe's devastating armor-piercing power, would leave him dead or half-dead with a single hit.

On the battlefield, there is no room for games!

Seeing Ning Hu refuse to fight, the Gate General shouted insults: "You Liang Kingdom soldiers are all cowards!"

No sooner had he finished than another volley of ArrowRain struck—he was shot dead on the spot.

With the Gate General dead, the surrounding defending forces fell into chaos; only a handful dared to confront the Tianji Camp Guards, while the vast majority hid in the rear or fled outright—even if the camp fell, the sky wouldn't crush these lowly soldiers.

At that moment, the Tianji Camp Guards from the rear of the camp also surged forward.

Though only three hundred in number, the chaos of the situation and the double assault left the defending forces utterly confused about the enemy's true strength.

Someone shouted: "The enemy is overwhelming, we can't win!"

That cry became the final straw—the rumor spread like wildfire, and within moments, the defending forces of the camp scattered like birds and beasts.

Ning Hu led the Tianji Camp Guards straight through, setting fire to the granary.

The grain stored in just this one camp was enough to feed fifty thousand troops on the Front Line for ten days.

Besides grain and forage, the camp held vast quantities of supply train.

The blazing firelight was visible across the entire battlefront.

"Withdraw!"

Confirming the fire had taken firm hold, Ning Hu made an immediate decision, leading the Tianji Camp Guards to swiftly retreat from battle and vanish into the dark distance.

Chen Si, stationed at the Frontline Camp, stared at the glow behind him, his expression grim: "The rear has finally caught fire! Only the Tianji Camp Guards could have penetrated through the layered blockades of the Frontline Army and Night Owl Scouts."

His deputy general, having witnessed the Tianji Camp Guards' ferocity multiple times, quickly urged: "General, we must dispatch troops immediately to crush them!"

Chen Si waved his hand, his demeanor weary: "No need. Transmit my order: alert all camps to hold their positions tightly and prevent further sneak attacks by the Tianji Camp Guards. Also, investigate how much supply train was lost—prepare contingency plans."

The deputy general departed, but Chen Si sighed inwardly.

The Tianji Camp Guards were a nightmare.

Though numbering only three hundred, their tactical advantage was extraordinary—the peak of infantry, capable of being countered only by cavalry; yet sending small cavalry units risked being ambushed and annihilated, while mobilizing large cavalry forces was impractical. With the Front Line already strained, where could they spare the strength to hunt down the Tianji Camp Guards?

For the army now, grain and forage were paramount—any loss would severely impact the Front Line campaign.

Chen Si had to respond to the Tianji Camp Guards' stealth attacks.

He immediately left several trusted deputies to guard the Border, preventing any Beixi County Garrison surprise assaults, while he himself rushed to the Vanguard Camp.

Before dawn, Chen Si had already arrived at the Vanguard battlefield.

Altogether, over seventy thousand troops had been committed to the siege, with over ten thousand casualties; the entire Vanguard Camp was filled with wounded, yet the Bian Jun Zhong Zhen still stood unshaken. Since entering the camp, Chen Si had repeatedly heard whispers among the troops that capturing the Bian Jun Zhong Zhen was no longer feasible.

For those undermining military morale, he showed no mercy—he nearly slaughtered his way into the Shuaizhang.

Chen Si had once been the old commander's subordinate, yet now held a GovernmentPosition higher than the Vanguard Commander; still, upon meeting his former master, Chen Si remained deeply reverent. Unable to clasp his fists due to his one arm, he pressed his palm to his chest and bowed to the Vanguard Commander.

"Old General, Chen Si has arrived."

The Vanguard Commander disregarded Chen Si's rank, immediately steadying his body and sighed: "Chen Si, you were once my right hand and left arm. Now the Emperor has appointed you Supervisory Special Envoy—truly putting talent to its best use. We're old master and servant—no need for formalities. Speak plainly—what is your plan?"

With that, Chen Si had no hesitation—he immediately asked about the siege progress.

From the Vanguard Commander, he learned that though the Bian Jun Zhong Zhen had yet to fall, progress had been made: yesterday's assault nearly breached the city walls, and both the City Wall and City Gate had been shattered—but the enemy's heavy troop concentration inside forced the besieging army back.

"It seems the Liang Kingdom Border Army is at its last gasp. As long as we continue blocking Piaoqi General's reinforcements and guard against cavalry and Beixi County surprise attacks, capturing the Bian Jun Zhong Zhen is inevitable. But the rear camp attack has cost us significant grain—we must launch a full-scale assault on the Border Army."

"Taking the Bian Jun Da Ying would be a decisive victory; even if we fail, we can exhaust the Border Army's remaining reserves."

The Vanguard Commander fell into thought.

After a moment, he asked gravely: "Our troops' morale has plummeted. A full assault now will bring heavy losses. As the attackers, facing such brutal Siege Warfare, we must pay several times the casualties of the enemy. At that point, our own military morale may collapse."

Chen Si understood the Commander's concern—the current siege was already horrific; intensifying the assault would test not only the Liang Kingdom Border Army, but the Di soldiers as well.

Yet Chen Si had no other choice.

"Our grain can only last until month's end—twenty days at most! If we cannot break through and swiftly enter Liang's grain-producing lands, the consequences will be catastrophic!"

Seeing Chen Si's resolve, the Vanguard Commander hesitated, then finally agreed to his proposal.

After all, in military mastery, the Vanguard Commander knew clearly—Chen Si surpassed him by many times over.

Since the war began, Chen Si, with only small forces, had repelled multiple Beixi County Garrison assaults, securing the Eastern Front and allowing the main army to focus on attacking the Liang Kingdom Border Army.

On this alone, no one could match Chen Si.

If Chen Si wanted to accelerate the war, the situation must already be dire.

Following the Vanguard Commander's orders, the army regrouped and launched another fierce assault on the Bian Jun Zhong Zhen at noon the next day.

…

In Beixi County, crowds surged.

Since Li Zhang's three defeats, the defending forces had taken no action; even with Qin Family members calming morale, spirits remained abysmally low.

But today, every soul was brimming with determination!

Because the true master of Beixi County—Qin Feng—was about to arrive.