Chapter 345

The garrison commander's heart tightened. Looking at the retreating soldiers below again, although they were in a sorry state, their armor was standard, and they seemed to have no abnormalities.

He gritted his teeth: "Open the gate! Let them in! Quickly! Once inside, gather in the open space behind the pass immediately, no running around! Archers, get ready! If there is any suspicious movement, kill them without mercy!"

He figured the Ming Army had been attacking the first pass all night and should be resting and clearing the battlefield now; the possibility of them continuing to attack the second pass was not high.

"Creak—!"

The heavy gate of the pass finally slowly opened a crack.

The retreating soldiers surged toward the gap like water from a broken dam.

In the crowd, Luo Feng kept his head down, his face half-covered by a rag, surrounded by several veteran soldiers of the City-Chiseling Battalion in similar attire, squeezing inward with the flow of people.

His heart beat faster, but on the surface, he still feigned panic while scanning the situation inside the gate tunnel.

About twenty or thirty garrison soldiers stood inside the gate with spears, trying to maintain order, but with little effect.

On the gate towers on both sides, archers pointed their weapons downward vigilantly.

Just as Luo Feng was about to step over the threshold, the short blade that had been curled in his sleeve slid into his palm, and he immediately erupted, charging at a garrison spearman who was maintaining order nearby.

"Do it! Seize the gate!"

"Kill!"

The elite of the City-Chiseling Battalion mixed in with the retreating soldiers struck at the same time!

They drew their short blades and lunged at the gate guards within arm's reach!

The event was sudden and the distance was close; the gate guards had no time to react and several were hacked down in an instant!

"There are spies! Close the gate! Close the gate quickly!" The garrison commander on the gate tower was terrified and roared hoarsely.

However, the inside of the gate tunnel was already in a state of chaos.

The real retreating soldiers were stunned by this sudden slaughter and screamed as they fled in all directions, instead colliding with other garrison soldiers who were trying to step forward to close the gate.

Luo Feng and the soldiers of the City-Chiseling Battalion immediately stood in the center of the gate tunnel, blocking the gate leaves that were closing inward!

"Fire arrows! Shoot them to death!" The garrison commander's eyes were red with anxiety.

Arrows whistled down, but the crowd in the gate tunnel was mixed, and many arrows accidentally wounded the retreating soldiers, triggering even greater chaos.

Luo Feng brandished the spear he had snatched; even though the enemy was numerous, he did not retreat a single step.

"Bai Ting! Now!" Luo Feng roared loudly toward the outside of the pass.

"All troops, charge!" Bai Ting, who had been poised and ready hundreds of paces away, saw the chaos erupting at the gate and the signal from Luo Feng, and without hesitation, he took the lead!

"Kill!"

The main force of the Ming Army let out a roar and launched a full-speed charge toward the gate where the fierce battle was taking place!

The garrison at the gate was already barely holding on; seeing the main force of the Ming Army charging with murderous intent, their last bit of fighting spirit instantly disintegrated.

"Can't hold them! Run!"

"The main force of the Ming Army is here!"

The garrison commander was shocked and attempted to turn the situation around: "Don't panic, block them out, close the city gate."

But at this moment, the city gate was not so easily closed, and the Ming Army's cavalry was extremely fast, giving them no time at all.

"It's over..." The garrison commander's face was ashen, knowing the situation was lost.

If they could rely on the towering city walls, they might be able to fight the Ming Army, but once the Ming Army entered the city, there was truly no thought of resistance left; the two sides already had a disparity in numbers, and the Ming Army was so valiant.

"General! Let's go!" His personal guards pulled at the garrison commander desperately, clearly also knowing that they were finished.

There were still tens of thousands of garrison troops inside the pass, but they could not organize an effective counterattack and were forced to retreat toward the third pass.

Bai Ting's murderous intent did not diminish, and he led the cavalry to chase down the retreating soldiers.

If they didn't kill them now, once they reached the third pass, the retreating soldiers would turn into combat power for the defense.

The more they killed now, the easier it would be to break through the third pass later, and the fewer casualties the Ming Army soldiers would suffer.

Everyone clearly understood this logic; even if their bodies were exhausted, they still fought hard. As long as they killed one more garrison soldier, they could reduce their own casualties by several men during the subsequent siege.

Only when the retreating soldiers fled to the third pass did Bai Ting stop his pursuit!

The blood of the garrison soldiers spread from the second pass to the third; at least five or six thousand people died under Bai Ting's pursuit.

The garrison soldiers only cared about fleeing and could not organize effective resistance; after all, even the garrison commander was fleeing in a sorry state, so how could one expect the soldiers to hold their ground?

Bai Ting led the Ming Army back to the second pass. It was already dawn, but it was not time to rest because the chaotic battlefield still needed to be cleared.

Luo Feng, covered in blood, stood on the city wall, constantly directing the soldiers.

"Bai Ting, take half the men to the first pass to clear the battlefield! Zhang Honghong, lead a team to clear the battlefield of the second pass!"

"Yes!"

"Received!"

"Someone! Go notify the main army in the rear to break camp and station here, and let the brothers have a rest!

Send this battle report back to the rear so the Lord can receive this good news!"

Luo Feng had not expected this battle to go so smoothly; he could only say that the blitzkrieg had indeed caught the enemy off guard!

Moreover, they thought there would be no enemies on the side of the mountain, which allowed Luo Feng's bold strategy to be implemented; otherwise, if even a small number of troops had been deployed on the cliff, even just a few dozen, it would have been very difficult for Luo Feng and the others to break through!

As for the second strategy, that was a complete gamble!

If the enemy garrison commander had truly not opened the city gate, then Luo Feng's plan would have had to be abandoned!

It was just unexpected that the enemy garrison commander was completely unprepared and ordered the gate opened after only a moment of hesitation, which led to the result of breaking two passes in one night!

In fact, Luo Feng was already very satisfied with this result. Taking two passes at Guansongling meant that Beijiang would no longer be so passive.

Of course, if they could also take the third pass, that would naturally be the best.

When Jiang Jinshi saw the battle report, he was also unexpectedly surprised.

Originally, Jiang Jinshi had already made up his mind that if they really had to fight hard, they would have to take at least one pass; otherwise, if they couldn't even take a pass guarded by ten thousand men, once the Imperial Court's army came to garrison it, Beijiang would truly be trapped here.

Yet he had not expected Luo Feng to be so bold, taking two passes with lightning speed, and with minimal casualties on their side.

The casualties of the attacking side did not even reach thirty percent of the defending side; this was a complete and total great victory!

Only at this moment did Jiang Jinshi realize that these brothers under his command, after merging with the souls of martial generals, were even more formidable than he had imagined!

Wang Hou happened to report: "Lord! About eighty percent of the spies or secret agents within Beijiang have been cleared out; the remaining twenty percent will likely take quite some time!"

Jiang Jinshi frowned: "Why?"

Given the current situation in Beijiang and the Ming Army's control over Beijiang, he would have thought this matter shouldn't be difficult!

Wang Hou immediately explained: "Those newly arrived spies are not difficult to clear out; after all, our Beijiang is now of one mind, and the common people will spontaneously assist!

Even if someone asks too many questions, they will be suspicious, so clearing them out is not difficult!

It's just...

If it's those spies who have been lurking for a long time, then it will take quite some time! They are usually no different from the common people and only reveal some flaws when transmitting information!"