Chapter 416: The Purple Copper Tiger Tally

At dawn, Shizi Ridge was shrouded in morning mist.

The brutal slaughter had already begun.

"Kill!"

"Charge!"

The Beijiang Army had already engaged in fierce combat with the Imperial Army; on the battlefield, the sounds of killing shook the heavens, and blood flowed like a river.

Boom! Boom!

Several cannonballs landed among the crowd.

Instantly, a group of people were blown away!

The Beijiang Army charged forward, but immediately a crisp volley of gunfire rang out, and the soldiers in the front fell in rows.

"Fire arrows!" Han Guiying, her eyes bloodshot from the killing, loudly ordered the female soldiers, "Shoot down the Imperial Army's Firearm Squad!"

The female soldiers were completely fearless, drawing their bows and releasing arrows.

The reloading of the firearms required time, which gave them a moment to catch their breath.

Even if female soldiers were wounded, they ignored it and used all their strength to fire arrows.

On the battlefield, it was littered with corpses.

Xiao Moting swung his blade with force, hacking at the enemy troops in front, blood splattering.

"Prince!" Qin Zhan, covered in blood, rushed urgently to his side and said while gasping for air, "The Imperial Army has too many men, our casualties are heavy, and the soldiers of the two vanguard battalions... have already, already been wiped out!"

Xiao Moting's eyes were blood-red, and he was just about to grit his teeth and issue an order.

Suddenly, a slip of paper fell into his hand.

He froze, looked down at it, and suddenly his whole body tensed up.

"Is that a note from Shennü Daren? What does it say?" Qin Zhan asked nervously.

Xiao Moting slowly raised his head; in his usually cold and calm eyes, excitement surged.

"Bai Wei says she has obtained the equipment!"

"That's great!" Qin Zhan shouted excitedly, "We are saved! Shennü Daren has manifested her divinity once again!"

Xiao Moting suppressed his excitement, wanting to order a retreat.

He had to withdraw temporarily to have time to catch his breath and distribute the equipment to everyone.

However, at this moment, he discovered that the Beijiang Army had no time to catch their breath at all.

The Imperial Court's forces were too numerous and their momentum was fierce.

The remaining Beijiang soldiers had to fight with all their might and could not spare any time to rest.

"There is no time to regroup." Xiao Moting's sword-like brows were tightly knitted, his eyes filled with red bloodshot veins, "Bai Wei's equipment cannot be distributed to everyone."

If it were to be teleported over now, it would only cause chaos on this battlefield where the two sides were locked in combat.

It might even be snatched away by the Imperial Army in the confusion.

At this moment, an Imperial soldier raised a firearm and slashed over.

Qin Zhan hacked him to death with one strike, feeling immensely anxious.

"What should we do? Bai told us to stall for time, but the Imperial Army won't wait; they just want to wipe us out."

Xiao Moting also locked his brows; he, who was always calm, could not think of a solution at this moment.

The equipment was there, and the conditions for survival were also there.

But they had no opportunity.

Just then, chaos suddenly appeared on the battlefield.

Many of the Yuan Family Army actually dropped the weapons in their hands one after another and looked far off in one direction.

"What's going on?" Qin Zhan was stunned, "Why did the Yuan Family Army stop fighting?"

Xiao Moting looked up into the distance, and suddenly his eyes narrowed.

In the thin mist far away, a human figure vaguely appeared on a makeshift wooden watchtower.

In the hazy mist, his figure was slender and graceful, holding a long sword in his hand.

His plain white robes fluttered in the morning breeze, looking like a celestial being.

"That is..." Qin Zhan also recognized him and immediately shouted in shock, "Oh no, Zhou actually came at this time! The Imperial family has a blood feud with him; he must be here to avenge his clan amidst the chaos!"

"It's over, it's over! Zhou Yanli is too powerful and knows how to use poison; with him joining the battle, we have absolutely no chance of winning."

Xiao Moting did not speak, narrowing his eyes as he looked at Zhou Yanli's figure from afar.

The other party had previously been his mortal enemy.

Now, with Bai Wei not here, was Zhou Yanli taking the opportunity to take his life and avenge his clan?

Xiao Qiyu rode a tall horse and stood side-by-side with Yang Tianhu to watch the battle.

With over four hundred thousand troops, he did not need to fight in the blood and gore like Xiao Moting; he only needed to stand easily to the side and watch the Beijiang Army fall one after another.

At this time, Xiao Qiyu also discovered the figure on the watchtower.

He knitted his brows.

"Hmm? Zhou Yanli? What is he doing here?"

Yang Tianhu laughed loudly, "He must be here to kill Xiao Moting. Xiao Moting and he have a grudge; the two have fought several times and even shed blood."

Xiao Qiyu smiled faintly, "It seems my Imperial brother is truly unpopular..."

Before he finished speaking, his expression suddenly changed.

"What is going on? Why is the Yuan Family Army retreating?"

Yang Tianhu's expression changed drastically, "What happened?"

The Yuan Family Army, which had been fighting and charging on the battlefield, was now retreating one after another like a receding tide.

With the withdrawal of the Yuan Family Army, the situation on the battlefield began to turn.

Originally, the Imperial Army had already achieved an overwhelming victory and would have been able to wipe out the Beijiang Army in a short while.

But now, with the Yuan Family Army retreating, their combat power was reduced by more than half.

"Why have my troops all retreated?" Xiao Qiyu's face turned green, and he immediately ordered loudly, "Yuan Family Army, hear my command: you are not permitted to leave the battlefield without authorization; those who violate this will be executed immediately."

However, the entire Yuan Family Army did not listen at all, and they flocked toward the watchtower where Zhou Yanli was standing.

Yang Tianhu gritted his teeth, his face twisted.

He grabbed a Telescope and looked up.

At this sight, he was instantly stunned.

"What... is that the Tiger Tally in Zhou Yanli's hand?"

In the lens, Zhou Yanli's figure was clearly reflected.

The man stood proudly, his white robes fluttering, and in his hand, he was holding up a purple-copper Tiger Tally!

Yang Tianhu was so shocked he nearly fell off his horse.

"Yuan Canghai's Tiger Tally? Isn't this in Yuan Canghai's hands? How did it get taken by Zhou Yanli?"

Zhou Yanli stood high upon the watchtower, his appearance still incomparably handsome, his gaze indifferent as ice.

He raised the Tiger Tally and shouted coldly.

"Yuan Family Army, hear my command: retreat, everyone!"

Xiao Qiyu grew anxious and immediately yelled.

"Don't listen to him! I am the Fifth Prince; Yuan Canghai let me lead the army."

"You are not allowed to retreat, none of you are allowed to leave! Listen to my orders; as long as you wipe out Xiao Moting, I will certainly grant you rewards of gold and land, and bestow titles upon you..."

However, not a single person listened to him.

The Yuan Family Army all ran toward Zhou Yanli, their eyes filled with fanaticism as they surged toward him.

"Lord National Preceptor, we are willing to follow your orders!"

"The National Preceptor has come!"

"Everyone, we don't have to go onto the battlefield to die as cannon fodder anymore; the National Preceptor has saved us again."

The fanatical Yuan Family Army ran in a mighty force to the foot of the watchtower and knelt down one after another, their expressions all devout.

Some were even so moved that they knelt on the ground, kowtowing to Zhou Yanli while crying out.

Yang Tianhu was dumbfounded, "What is going on... Zhou Yanli's prestige in Yannan is actually this high, with everyone responding to his call? Just by holding a Tiger Tally, the Yuan Family Army listens to him? Did he use some kind of sorcery?"

Xiao Qiyu gritted his teeth, his face looking terrible to the extreme.

"This bunch of Yuan Family Army soldiers have all gone mad; Zhou Yanli hasn't been the National Preceptor for a long time, yet these people still listen to him."

Panic finally flashed in Yang Tianhu's eyes.

Of the more than four hundred thousand Imperial Army troops, Yang Tianhu had kept some for himself and only brought over one hundred thousand soldiers, many of whom were able-bodied men grabbed through temporary conscription.

The Yuan Family Army accounted for over two hundred thousand and were the main force on the battlefield.

Originally, Yang Tianhu had planned to let the Yuan Family Army go to their deaths while he sat back and reaped the benefits, allowing him to win the battle while also weakening Yuan Canghai's strength.

But he hadn't expected Zhou Yanli to suddenly appear, holding the Tiger Tally and causing the Yuan Family Army to retreat.

On the battlefield, at least one hundred thousand of the Yuan Family Army had retreated, and only a small portion of the troops were still fighting.

"Zhou! Yan! Li!" Xiao Qiyu gritted his teeth in hatred, wishing he could kill the other man immediately.

But for now, he could not afford to be distracted.

On the battlefield, there were still the Red Barbarian Cannon and the Firearm Squad; these were his trump cards for victory.