[{"data":1,"prerenderedAt":-1},["ShallowReactive",2],{"origin-warlord-starting-with-daily-intelligence":3,"chapter-warlord-starting-with-daily-intelligence-warlord-starting-with-daily-intelligence-chapter-417":6},{"origin":4,"title":5},"chinese","Warlord: Starting with Daily Intelligence",{"chapter":7,"nextChapterSlug":19,"prevChapterSlug":20,"totalChapters":21,"novelImage":22},{"id":8,"novel_id":9,"title":10,"slug":11,"index":12,"content":13,"wordcount":14,"created_at":15,"updated_at":15,"volume":16,"translator":17,"content_hash":18},2338880,4572,"Chapter 417: Lindongcheng!","warlord-starting-with-daily-intelligence-chapter-417",417,"\u003Cp>Whoa!\u003C\u002Fp>\n\u003Cp>Seven hundred and sixty heads?\u003C\u002Fp>\n\u003Cp>Upon hearing Gervas’s answer, the knight guards accompanying the Commander-in-Chief and the two Dukes all erupted in shock.\u003C\u002Fp>\n\u003Cp>If this were a ten-thousand-man army, or even a five- or six-thousand-man noble force, such a tally might be acceptable.\u003C\u002Fp>\n\u003Cp>But Gervas’s forces—everyone had just seen their numbers—had killed nearly twice as many beasts as their own strength.\u003C\u002Fp>\n\u003Cp>That would mean each of his men had killed an average of two enemies.\u003C\u002Fp>\n\u003Cp>In past times, only the beast tribes ever fought humans with fewer numbers; never had humans defeated beasts with such odds.\u003C\u002Fp>\n\u003Cp>“Gervas, did I hear you right? Are you certain it’s seven hundred and sixty beast heads?”\u003C\u002Fp>\n\u003Cp>The Commander-in-Chief’s eyes shone with brilliance, yet he forcibly suppressed his excitement and confirmed again.\u003C\u002Fp>\n\u003Cp>If Gervas truly achieved this feat, perhaps I could petition the capital to bring his accomplishments directly before His Majesty the King.\u003C\u002Fp>\n\u003Cp>After all, such a talent is undoubtedly a blessing to the kingdom.\u003C\u002Fp>\n\u003Cp>Upon hearing this, Gervas waved his hand toward a nearby spot, and two knights carried forward two large sacks.\u003C\u002Fp>\n\u003Cp>When the sacks were opened, they revealed pair after pair of green bear-man ears.\u003C\u002Fp>\n\u003Cp>Looking at the two bulging sacks,\u003C\u002Fp>\n\u003Cp>the Commander-in-Chief no longer doubted; his gaze burned hotly toward Gervas. “Gervas, don’t think me overly cautious—I’ve already decided to send this news, alongside the victory report from Bokacheng, straight to the King’s desk!”\u003C\u002Fp>\n\u003Cp>“Also, Gervas, I will announce your valor to the entire army so that every noble here knows your name.”\u003C\u002Fp>\n\u003Cp>“Let them all learn from you, Lord Gervas!”\u003C\u002Fp>\n\u003Cp>“Uh!” Gervas’s smile froze instantly. “Commander-in-Chief, please don’t!”\u003C\u002Fp>\n\u003Cp>The Commander-in-Chief frowned in confusion. “Gervas, I already said—with me here, no one will steal your glory! So don’t worry!”\u003C\u002Fp>\n\u003Cp>Gervas knew well that the Commander-in-Chief’s promise held weight.\u003C\u002Fp>\n\u003Cp>But his real fear was that if word of his deeds reached the capital, it might draw the Second Prince’s attention.\u003C\u002Fp>\n\u003Cp>Imagine: the Second Prince didn’t know Gervas was in the Northern Frontier, didn’t know he was achieving great feats.\u003C\u002Fp>\n\u003Cp>But if he found out—what would his reaction be?\u003C\u002Fp>\n\u003Cp>Let Gervas grow stronger, let him earn the chance to become a Marquis?\u003C\u002Fp>\n\u003Cp>Gervas didn’t need to think hard—he knew the Second Prince would likely send assassins to kill him outright.\u003C\u002Fp>\n\u003Cp>Right now, only Willard and Solit were threats; Gervas could handle them.\u003C\u002Fp>\n\u003Cp>But if the Second Prince himself intervened, things would be far from easy.\u003C\u002Fp>\n\u003Cp>So to gain momentary glory and draw the Second Prince’s notice? Absolutely not worth it.\u003C\u002Fp>\n\u003Cp>“Your Excellency, I’m not worried about my glory being stolen—I fully trust your promise!”\u003C\u002Fp>\n\u003Cp>“My real concern is drawing the beasts’ attention. The incident at Graystone Bridge happened just like this—if we hadn’t luckily received aid from the House of Austin, we’d have been doomed!”\u003C\u002Fp>\n\u003Cp>“So I beg you, Your Excellency, to keep my deeds quiet for now, and don’t inform the capital.”\u003C\u002Fp>\n\u003Cp>“Of course, once the war ends, if you still wish to commend me then, I’ll be deeply grateful—I’ll host a grand feast with fine wine and food, just for you!”\u003C\u002Fp>\n\u003Cp>The Commander-in-Chief glanced at Duke Hernade, and they exchanged puzzled looks.\u003C\u002Fp>\n\u003Cp>“Gervas, how do I even respond to you? You’ve been slaughtering beasts without mercy since the start.”\u003C\u002Fp>\n\u003Cp>“Your personal tally of beast heads already exceeds those of all the great noble armies combined!”\u003C\u002Fp>\n\u003Cp>“Yet you claim you fear the beasts learning of your existence… Hmm, fine. Who are you if not a hero? I’ll oblige you.”\u003C\u002Fp>\n\u003Cp>“Once the war ends and the beasts are fully driven from the kingdom, I’ll write the letter to His Majesty myself!”\u003C\u002Fp>\n\u003Cp>“Thank you, Your Excellency!”\u003C\u002Fp>\n\u003Cp>…\u003C\u002Fp>\n\u003Cp>Thus, after registering the heads, the day’s battle came to a close.\u003C\u002Fp>\n\u003Cp>At Gervas’s request, the Commander-in-Chief abandoned his plan to publicly commend him to the entire army.\u003C\u002Fp>\n\u003Cp>Afterwards, Gervas and his men were assigned quarters in the southern district of the city.\u003C\u002Fp>\n\u003Cp>After a night’s rest, the army set out again the next noon, continuing northward.\u003C\u002Fp>\n\u003Cp>The reason they didn’t rest longer was this:\u003C\u002Fp>\n\u003Cp>Having just defeated the beasts repeatedly, the army was riding a surge of momentum—the Commander-in-Chief refused to waste this opportunity.\u003C\u002Fp>\n\u003Cp>He intended to press the advantage and drive the beasts out of the Northern Frontier in one decisive push.\u003C\u002Fp>\n\u003Cp>For the next three days, they marched continuously.\u003C\u002Fp>\n\u003Cp>Along the way, every town they passed lay in ruins, all scorched and looted by the beasts.\u003C\u002Fp>\n\u003Cp>No living souls were to be seen—only the gnawed bones and corpses of the dead.\u003C\u002Fp>\n\u003Cp>“These damned beasts—I wish the day would come when our people exterminate them utterly, sparing the Northern Frontier from the annual slaughter of tens of thousands of serfs and peasants!”\u003C\u002Fp>\n\u003Cp>Even nobles, who normally viewed serfs as mere property, felt no pity.\u003C\u002Fp>\n\u003Cp>Yet as they saw the scattered body parts amid the rubble, even they burned with rage.\u003C\u002Fp>\n\u003Cp>The beasts were utterly inhumane—no gender, no age, no mercy: every human they found met the same fate.\u003C\u002Fp>\n\u003Cp>Of course, those who somehow survived the ruins were surely captured and taken back to the Northern Wastes.\u003C\u002Fp>\n\u003Cp>Their fate would be little better than being killed on the spot.\u003C\u002Fp>\n\u003Cp>After two more days of travel, a city finally appeared ahead.\u003C\u002Fp>\n\u003Cp>This city was called Lindongcheng, once home to a hundred thousand civilians.\u003C\u002Fp>\n\u003Cp>It was also one of the most prosperous cities along the Northern Frontier.\u003C\u002Fp>\n\u003Cp>Reaching here meant half the land seized by the beasts had been reclaimed.\u003C\u002Fp>\n\u003Cp>Originally, the nobles expected a brutal battle to retake this key border stronghold.\u003C\u002Fp>\n\u003Cp>But to everyone’s surprise,\u003C\u002Fp>\n\u003Cp>when the army was still ten miles from Lindongcheng, a scout galloped back with news that stunned them all:\u003C\u002Fp>\n\u003Cp>The beasts inside Lindongcheng had fled!\u003C\u002Fp>\n\u003Cp>“You’re certain?” The Commander-in-Chief could hardly believe it.\u003C\u002Fp>\n\u003Cp>“Your Excellency, I’m certain! When we arrived, the beasts in Lindongcheng had just escaped—same as the ones we crushed earlier!”\u003C\u002Fp>\n\u003Cp>“The city gates were wide open. We checked inside first.”\u003C\u002Fp>\n\u003Cp>“Finding no beasts within, we immediately shut the gates and raced back to report!” The scout’s face glowed red with excitement.\u003C\u002Fp>\n\u003Cp>“Dukes, what do you think?” The Commander-in-Chief no longer doubted; he turned directly to the two Dukes.\u003C\u002Fp>\n\u003Cp>Duke Hernade frowned slightly, but after a moment’s thought, said: “This is incredible—but if Lindongcheng truly holds no enemies, we have no reason not to enter.”\u003C\u002Fp>\n\u003Cp>“I agree,” said Duke Lishi. “Perhaps the beasts, terrified by our victories, realized they couldn’t hold the city and fled early.”\u003C\u002Fp>\n\u003Cp>The Commander-in-Chief nodded. “Then, Dukes, I’ll order the army to advance at full speed!”\u003C\u002Fp>",1083,"2026-06-20T22:44:02.688Z",1,"Qwen3-Next 80B","8ccc048bdd09e2be27835756ccba69b88de0b3a5d743e68ca19969572b40bc81","warlord-starting-with-daily-intelligence-chapter-418","warlord-starting-with-daily-intelligence-chapter-416",521,"https:\u002F\u002Fnovelzhen.com\u002Fimages\u002Fcovers\u002Fwarlord-starting-with-daily-intelligence-cover.jpg"]