pertwk Chapter 1898: War Brings Home
Chapter 1898: War Brings Home
Chapter 1898: War Brings Home
Luodian State, Suyuan.
More than a hundred years ago, the area was named after its abundance of corn. Later, geological changes and soil degradation turned the land of fish and rice into a barren wasteland where nothing could grow well. Fortunately, the frequent occurrence of imperial sloughs in the past two years has benefited this area, and corn can be grown again.
If the spiritual energy was more abundant and the climate more humid, the people of Luodian might not need to go out to plunder, and could support themselves solely by relying on the output of the land.
How great would that be?
Qu Ruhai passed by the corn fields when he went southwards and had such a feeling. It was spring, and he led his army to the Yao Kingdom, intending to take advantage of the chaos in the Yao Kingdom to grab a piece of the pie.
It was indeed distributed.
The Yao King was killed, the Yao Kingdom was destroyed, and the various forces were fighting among themselves, with no time to take care of the border. Qu Ruhai led the Luodian soldiers and openly ate up a large area of land in the northern border of the Yao Kingdom, and was intercepted by General Chongwu on the way.
However, Chongwu himself had a hard time due to his status and lack of support, so he soon left Yao State and retreated westwards to Bisha.
The Luodian army continued to move southward and participated in the civil strife in Yaodi.
Qu Ruhai was fighting with Bai Tan, both of them suffered losses, when suddenly three urgent orders came from the rear:
Beiguan Baishuiling was attacked!
The Kasha and Longye tribes invaded!
The Black Armor Army has captured Taojing, return quickly!
Baishuiling is the northwest border of Luodian, bordering the territory of the Longye tribe;
Taojing is already in the central part of Luodian, less than seventy miles away from the capital!
Qu Ruhai was stunned when he received these three urgent orders, because Luodian's relations with its neighbors had been stable for many years. Although Longye and Kasha were also warlike tribes, they had been conquered by Luodian twenty years ago and believed in the god Miaozhan just like Luodian.
Why did these two tribes suddenly invade southward? Was it because Miao Zhantian suddenly fell?
As for the Black Armor Army's "conquest" of Taojing, it is even more unreasonable.
Qu Ruhai certainly knew that the Black Armored Army was the so-called Nine Nether Emperor's followers, but they seemed to only kill people and not take up space, right? Why did the urgent order use the word "conquer"?
The most terrifying thing is that these three urgent orders were issued within six days. In other words, so many things happened in Luodian within six days!
The enemy's pace is too fast.
Qu Ruhai did not dare to continue to seek merit on the battlefield of Yaodi, and reluctantly withdrew his troops and returned north.
The hateful Bai Tan seized the opportunity and sent troops to pursue them relentlessly!
Temporary retreat on the battlefield was inherently dangerous, and one could easily end up in a rout. Qu Ruhai finally retreated to the north of Yaodi, but after counting his troops, he found that he had lost more than 700 men during the retreat, which made him feel depressed.
On the way back, he once again passed by a millet field that was about to be harvested, with waves of millet undulating in the evening breeze. But he was traveling under the stars and moon, and he was in no mood to sigh.
If he withdrew his troops in a hurry this time, the results of his previous hard work would probably be accepted by Bai Tan.
Kasha, Longye, and the Black Armor Army, they all deserve to die!
But before he could vent his anger, another urgent order arrived.
The content was quite detailed. When Qu Ruhai read it, he felt a chill down his spine.
Longye and Kasha were driven by the Black Armor Army and divided their troops into two groups to capture large areas of land in the east and west of Luodian.
Emperor Jiuyou personally led the Black Armor Army to attack the central part of Luodian, first taking Taojing, and now they are approaching the capital!
In addition, the gods have proven that the true identity of the Jiuyou Emperor is He Xiao, the owner of Yangshan Island!
The letter was so long, but Qu Ruhai only saw the two words "He Xiao".
In Tianshui City, the old Yao capital, he had dealt with He Xiao before, and more than once. That man was smart, eloquent, and well-mannered. He really looked like a big businessman, and he could even persuade King Yao to give him a big project like Tianshui New City to build.
This is a rare genius.
But Emperor Jiuyou?
Could He Xiao be the Nine Nether Emperor? Qu Ruhai pressed his forehead and read the words over and over again, feeling a sense of unreality and absurdity.
If he had suddenly had an idea at that time and killed He Xiao with one blow, would there have been no disaster like the Emperor Jiuyou later?
No, that's not right. That guy was able to kill the leader of the Qingwei under the Qingyang Regent on the spot. Now it seems that he must have hidden his strength at that time.
Qu Ruhai was extremely anxious and urged the army to return north as soon as possible.
He was the left patriarch of Luodian State, and the king was his elder brother. If the capital was captured, where would he and his brother stand in the future?
As for why the Black Armor Army is progressing so quickly, Qu Ruhei has his own explanation.
He did not deny that the Black Armor Army was powerful. After all, the legend that they were invincible could not be completely groundless, right?
The more important reason may be because... Luodian is weak in domestic strength?
As the surrounding areas were stable and Luodian had long coveted the Yao land, Qu Ruhai received strong support from the monarch when he led his troops south. Not only were supplies prepared in a timely manner, but the southern expeditionary army was also composed of elite troops drawn from various parts of Luodian, in order to ensure a smooth journey southwards and to show high level and effectiveness.
Secondly, the god Miaozhan went to the Upside-Down Sea and took away nearly a thousand people from Luodian.
What the Lord God of Luodian specifically wanted must be the elite among the elite. Not only are there experienced Luodian warriors, but also many practitioners, shamans, and monsters. The lineup is stronger and more balanced than the army that Qu Ruhai brought to Yaodi to fight.
As water was pumped heavily by two large pipes, the reserve in the Luodian pond naturally dropped sharply.
Generals like Qu Ruhai who lead troops in battle know best that no matter how many miscellaneous soldiers there are, they are just extras, and only the elite and vanguard troops play a decisive role.
Luodian was not a big country to begin with, and with so many elite troops gone all of a sudden, its strength was bound to decline.
This was only a temporary phenomenon, but Emperor Jiuyou keenly seized the opportunity and took advantage of it!
But even after figuring this out, Qu Ruhai still felt heavy in his heart.
How did Emperor Jiuyou conquer the two major tribes of Kasha and Longye without making any noise?
What else did he do in the North?
Qu Ruhai admitted that Luodian was not big and its domestic governance had always been rather extensive, but the fact that Emperor Jiuyou was able to fight all the way from the northern border to the capital in just a few days was still an incredible speed.
No matter how weak Luodian's garrison troops are, they are no match for the miscellaneous soldiers and guerrillas on the Golden Plains.
The moonlight was dim that night.
He was thinking as he hurried on his way, and they were almost reaching the Chiling Mountains.
This is a country of red soil, with high mountains and low valleys, and the road is not easy to walk on. But once you pass it, the road to the capital is smooth.
At this moment, the spy in front suddenly blew an urgent whistle.
Three short beeps in succession, a pause, then three more beeps, repeated three times.
There are enemies ahead, come closer quickly!
Qu Ruhai was shocked and ordered the entire army to be on high alert. He was also a little puzzled:
Is the commander a fool?
Ahead was the Chiling Mountains, where the mountain roads were narrow and the terrain was cramped. As long as both ends were blocked, it would be a perfect pocket. Why didn't the enemy ambush him there, but chose a large plain with only a few low hills?
In war, terrain and topography are very important.