Chapter 218: Battle Merits Achieved, Stop While Ahead

By early December, the illusion formations on Anping Road and Nanxiang Road had become useless, no longer hindering supply efficiency to Tonghuo City.

Several leaders at Jihun Pass decided to completely abandon defenses outside the pass. Many armies hidden in the wilderness were recalled, and small settlements were also evacuated.

Only a few armies remained, concealed in underground cities or hidden valley bases. These strongholds typically housed a few hundred combat personnel each, amounting to perhaps twenty or thirty thousand scattered individuals in total.

The Six-Army Alliance largely ignored these minor forces, deeming it not worth their time to hunt them down.

As they couldn't gather in large numbers and lacked heavy siege equipment or even strong warships, they posed no significant threat.

On this type of battlefield, the bravery of small units was inconsequential.

Even if tens of thousands of people gathered, if they didn't possess a single five-tier warship, three to five hundred soldiers from the Great Zhou could chase them away.

On mid-to-low-tier battlefields, large divine weapons, siege engines, and flying warships played a decisive role.

For instance, when Long Xiao and Zhao Xing first encountered the Underflame warship, they would have been helpless if its barrier hadn't been deactivated.

Similarly, to kill Qian Shougong, they only had an opportunity because he voluntarily left the warship, his aerial fortress. Otherwise, they would have just watched his men fly back to the Black Dragon Army's base.

The vast wilderness outside the pass spanned a large area. Once Jihun Pass was captured, large armies could be deployed to slowly scour it for battle merits.

Jihun Pass was defended by sixteen armies from different factions, including some from the Fire Demon Tribe, others from the Holy Spirit Royal Court, and some from other tribes under the Golden Feather Royal Court.

The supreme leader chosen by the sixteen armies was named 'Minghun,' while Moric was merely a lesser leader ranked relatively low.

Minghun also had a 'strategist' from the Xuan Tian Sect under his command, known as 'Daoist Longyang.'

It was Daoist Longyang who ordered the forces to consolidate and defend with full strength.

Two months prior, Minghun could still engage the Great Zhou's Six-Army Alliance in back-and-forth battles.

Even a minor leader like Moric was able to harass Tonghuo City in the rear.

Two months later, Minghun had completely shifted to defense, sending no warships and releasing no spirits, focusing purely on holding the city.

A grey-black barrier stretched like a line across the horizon.

From his vantage point on the multi-deck ship, Zhao Xing gazed into the distance, noting that the sky ahead had completely darkened.

Upon closer inspection, he could discern numerous wailing spirits within the barrier.

"Jihun Pass, stretching for hundreds of miles, is permeated with Yin energy due to the overwhelming number of Yin souls in that area."

Jihun Pass lacked the high defensive capabilities of Huolong Pass, but it required specific tools and professions to breach effectively.

Its barrier was rooted in the Yin Realm, having torn open a rift that continuously released Yin energy.

Standard siege equipment had reduced effectiveness against it, and other professions entering the area for combat would also find their abilities weakened.

This created a domain primarily suited for "underworld" professions like priests and soul-controlling sorcerers.

"If only the Divine Might Army, Black Armored Army, and Town Sea Army had formed the alliance, this battle would have been difficult."

"However, with the addition of the Phantom Gloom Army, Zhaoyuan Army, and Yuanhua Army, the situation is different," Zhao Xing mused.

Both the Zhaoyuan and Yuanhua Armies had pure combat-oriented priest battalions, while the Phantom Gloom Army was primarily composed of priests.

In contrast, the Divine Might and Town Sea Armies had few combat-oriented priests; a battalion of around a thousand men would only have ten to twenty priests. High-level priests were also scarce, mostly ninth-rank, with fewer eighth- and seventh-rank individuals, making it impossible for them to form separate battalions.

The Black Armored Army did have a priest battalion configuration, but Xia Jing hadn't anticipated encountering forces from the Holy Spirit Royal Court when selecting personnel.

"Now, it's different."

While Zhao Xing awaited the unloading of supplies, the allied forces began their assault on the pass.

The primary weapon for breaching the pass was called the 'Primordial Barrier-Breaker Chariot.'

While its name sounded formidable, it was essentially a 'Five Elements Trebuchet' mounted on a warship.

The warships equipped with these were also known as Primordial Warships or Five Elements Warships.

They were positioned thirty miles outside Jihun Pass, launching their attacks from the air.

Each entire warship was dedicated to serving this single pass-breaching weapon.

Many of the materials Zhao Xing cultivated in Tonghuo City were consumables required for the Primordial Barrier-Breaking Warships.

"Boom! Boom! Boom!"

A brilliant blue light erupted from the Primordial Warship's left deck. Behind each trebuchet stood twenty machinists.

As they fired, the surroundings of the warship camp were bathed in blue, and the power of Water became incredibly dense.

The first volley consisted entirely of Gold-Rock Trebuchets.

Eight-meter diameter, spherical polyhedral boulders whistled through the air, hurtling towards the fortifications of Jihun Pass.

Trailing earthen-yellow plumes, they crashed onto the black barrier.

A ten-mile radius of the black barrier was immediately corroded and stained earthen-yellow.

Jihun Pass's barrier was called the 'Xuantian Yin Five Elements Grand Formation.' The largest sect in the Holy Spirit Dynasty was the Xuantian Sect.

This formation was custom-built for the Holy Spirit Royal Court, capable of drawing on the power of the Yin Realm for defense.

Between spear and shield, offense and defense, the spear was generally stronger, but it also depended on the circumstances.

Jihun Pass had a vast area to defend, while the Six-Army Alliance concentrated its attack on a single section.

Currently, a large patch of earthen-yellow appeared on the black barrier, as if it had been splattered with mud.

As the first batch of Primordial Warships fired, the second batch followed without pause, launching their own 'boulders.'

The second volley came from Fire-Separating Trebuchets.

The fifth-tier materials Zhao Xing cultivated in the volcanic region south of Tonghuo City included 'Crown-Splitting Wood,' 'Phoenix Perch Wood,' and 'Blazing Fire Bamboo.' All were fire-element materials, used as consumables for crafting 'Fire-Separating Stones.'

Fiery-red boulders descended right after the earthen-yellow ones.

The earthen-yellow patch on the black barrier was immediately enveloped by flames.

The blackness, which had been slowly reclaiming ground, now significantly slowed its recovery.

The purpose of the dual fire and earth bombardments was not to break through the black barrier's defense, but to solidify and disrupt the Yin Five Elements barrier's self-repair capabilities.

This was followed by the third batch of boulders — from Heavy Water Trebuchets.

Luminous, dazzling azure water masses spread over the freshly extinguished flames.

"Hum!"

The entire barrier suddenly became transparent.

The solidified earthen-yellow barrier over Jihun Pass instantly became brittle.

Much of the dark ink-like color faded, and the barrier began to wobble, as if that single blow had consumed immense energy.

The fourth batch — Geng Metal Trebuchets.

"Boom! Boom! Boom!"

The Geng Metal projectiles possessed much greater power, striking the light blue ice crystals and instantly tearing large holes in the barrier.

However, the black barrier repaired itself quickly, erasing all the colors.

Meanwhile, the Great Zhou's warships began a new round of alternating earth, fire, water, and metal bombardments.

"This kind of battle is purely a war of attrition, focused on logistics," Zhao Xing shook his head. "On lower-tier battlefields, the Primordial Warship is a stripped-down version, missing the crucial Wood element."

Wood element projectiles involved scattering large quantities of seventh-tier seeds and saplings.

All were carefully selected 'variant species.'

They could feed on the barrier itself, rooting themselves into the defensive formation!

This would quickly drain the barrier's energy supply, making recovery far from simple.

"Full versions of the Primordial Warship are garrisoned by fifth and fourth-rank military agronomists, and the preceding four-element launches also have corresponding sorcerer battalions."

"When it comes to the Wood element, if conditions permit, the military agronomist's Pure Origin Projection can also overlay the barrier, doubling the power."

However, full-level Primordial Warships, equipped with so many experts, typically appeared on high-tier battlefields, such as attacking royal cities.

As for now?

For now, they could only engage in a war of attrition with Jihun Pass.

This method of bombardment by the Primordial Warships placed immense pressure on logistics, and Jihun Pass's formation also incurred massive consumption.

Now, it was a test of who could endure longer.

Even if only a single breach remained unrecoverable, the main army could exploit that point, break through the pass, and begin their assault.

On December 15th, Zhao Xing returned to Jihun Pass with eight warships, transporting materials for breaking the formation.

By then, Jihun Pass had been under continuous attack for seven days.

Yet, the Xuantian Yin Five Elements Grand Formation remained resilient, quickly patching up any breaches.

On December 22nd, Zhao Xing again arrived at Jihun Pass to deliver supplies.

Tonghuo City's cultivation focus had been entirely reoriented to primarily grow consumable materials for siege warfare.

At this point, the Jihun Pass barrier had held for fourteen days since Minghun fully committed to its defense.

Its recovery rate was noticeably slowing.

However, Zhao Xing was also exhausted. Although Tonghuo City had 100,000 residents, the army's consumption rate was astonishingly high.

He not only had to transport supplies but also manage the logistics for 100,000 people and personally cultivate the land.

On December 28th, Zhao Xing delivered the final batch of supplies to the front lines.

"This is the last batch. Tonghuo City and the hundred-mile radius around it have been completely cultivated into barren land by me."

"The 100,000 people will need to find new places, build cities, establish formations, regulate leylines, and cultivate new saplings, which will take a month."

"If you still can't take it, there's nothing more I can do."

A hint of exhaustion laced Zhao Xing's voice.

"You've worked hard, Brother Zhao," Qi Yuanjun said, looking at Zhao Xing with admiration in his eyes.

"It's enough, more than enough," Nangong Ye declared. "One more day, and Jihun Pass will surely fall!"

Yi Yue also had nothing to say.

He had previously harbored some dissatisfaction with Zhao Xing, but now he couldn't find a single fault.

Zhao Xing's ability to manage the logistics for the Divine Might Army, Town Sea Army, and Black Armored Army—groups with such makeshift support—to this extent left him truly speechless.

In Yi Yue's eyes, these were logistical teams for weaker armies, yet Zhao Xing had somehow managed to meet their demands.

Originally, Yi Yue, Qi Yuanjun, and Nangong Ye had all prepared for this battle to last until the spring of the 18th year of the Jingxin calendar.

Now, however, it was concluding much earlier than anticipated.

December 29th.

"Boom!"

"Bang!"

Boulders suddenly tore through the black barrier.

Soldiers patrolling and garrisoning the city walls were instantly crushed to pulp by any falling stones.

Each impact devastated large areas, and the powerful kinetic energy of the rolling boulders caused additional damage.

This time, the black barrier had a ten-mile diameter breach that could not be repaired at all.

A dense swarm of warships swiftly advanced through the breach from outside the pass.

"Enemy attack!"

"Enemy attack!"

"Quick, get into the city's headquarter fortresses!"

"Run!"

The minor leaders defending the city shrieked miserably, but there was no time to mount any effective resistance in the haste.

"Rumble, rumble, rumble, rumble!"

A violent noise emanated from the city walls.

The deafening, heavy sounds caused the defending soldiers' ears to bleed and their heads to buzz.

It felt as though an earthquake had struck the city walls.

The garrison on the city walls immediately fell into a panic.

"Don't panic! Everyone, get into the city's headquarter fortresses and reinforce the barrier!"

"No fleeing!"

A commander with a terrifying saber scar on his face roared, his voice cutting through the din.

He ordered the leaders on the city wall to enter the fortresses, while he himself flew along the wall, suppressing the panic.

However, just as he turned.

"Thwack!"

An arm-thick crossbow bolt pierced through him, pinning him entirely into the city wall.

"Ah—"

"Fire, fire, fire!"

"My leg! Help me!"

The top of the city wall was a scene of utter devastation.

In a military hall, Minghun suddenly awoke with a start.

"What's that noise?"

"Report, General! The enemy has breached the southern section of Jihun Pass! The barrier is broken, and many parts of the city wall have collapsed!" a soldier reported frantically.

"What?!" Although he had anticipated it, Minghun still couldn't believe it when the moment arrived.

"Immediately engage the enemy!"

"Quick, fetch Elder Longyang." Minghun swiftly exited his room and appeared on the warship's deck.

As the supreme leader, his warship had always hovered within the black clouds.

"Leader," Daoist Longyang appeared on the deck shortly after.

"Elder, the southern section of the city has been breached. Can we still hold it?" Minghun asked.

"We cannot hold it," Daoist Longyang shook his head. "We must retreat while fighting, and swiftly, taking advantage of the formation's lingering effects. As per the original plan, we will fall back to Spirit Turtle City. If they pursue too deeply, we might still have a chance to counterattack."

On December 29th, the southern section of Jihun Pass's barrier, which had held for over half a month, was breached and could not be fully repaired.

The Six-Army Alliance swiftly mobilized, crossing the pass defenses.

Faced with the Great Zhou's elite forces, Minghun directly abandoned resistance and ordered a retreat.

Hearing this news, Zhao Xing let out a long sigh of relief.

"We finally broke through this pass."

He was utterly exhausted at this point; had his Fate Soul not reached the sixth rank, he couldn't have sustained himself for so long.

Nevertheless, he didn't sleep. Instead, he quickly sent messages to Chen Shijie, Long Xiao, and Xia Jing, advising them not to pursue too deeply.

Only after repeated warnings and receiving replies from them did he finally lie down on his bed.

"A wise person knows when to stop, which brings great fortune."

"I hope old Chen and the others will heed my advice."

Zhao Xing rubbed his temples and drifted into a deep sleep.

"Zhao Xing, Zhao Xing, wake up."

After an unknown period of sleep, Zhao Xing suddenly felt someone calling him.

"Hmm?"

Zhao Xing opened his eyes to see Chen Shijie's face.

"Old Chen, are you back in Tonghuo City?"

"Yes," Chen Shijie nodded.

"How long have I been asleep?" Zhao Xing asked.

"Five days," Chen Shijie replied. "Han Bing said you slept for about five days."

"That long? What's the situation at Jihun Pass?" Zhao Xing inquired.

Chen Shijie poured Zhao Xing a glass of water. "There's good news and bad news."

"Tell me the bad news first," Zhao Xing said.

Chen Shijie explained, "Our army's cooperation with the Phantom Gloom Army, Zhaoyuan Army, and Yuanhua Army has ended, and there was some unpleasantness."

"Oh? Why is that?" Zhao Xing asked.

"After entering the pass, the Six-Army Alliance relentlessly pursued Minghun, Moric, and the other sixteen foreign armies."

"Initially, it went very smoothly. Nangong Ye's Phantom Gloom Army was largely composed of priests; he himself was a sixth-rank priest, though his official rank was seventh-rank."

"We advanced behind the Phantom Gloom Army, chasing them for over eight hundred miles."

"Qi Yuanjun, Nangong Ye, and Yi Yue still wanted to continue the pursuit, planning to use the momentum to attack the eastern line of the Qinggang mining area."

"Hmm?" Zhao Xing was surprised. "Where did they get such confidence? We only have about 120,000 to 130,000 troops combined."

"The Fire Demon Tribe's Western String Pass defense line was broken by the main forces of the Black Dragon Army, Zhaoyuan Army, Danxia Army, Phantom Gloom Army, and Yuanhua Army. They received orders from the main forces on the northern front."

"Their orders were to break through Spirit Turtle City and rendezvous with several main forces from the northern front in the Fire Turtle Territory."

"They wanted to draw the attention of the Golden Feather Royal Court from the eastern front."

"After all, our consecutive breakthroughs at Huolong Pass and Jihun Pass were enough to gain the Golden Feather Royal Court's serious attention."

"A feint?" Zhao Xing immediately understood. They intended to make a grand show.

Twelve to thirteen thousand troops, publicly claimed as a million-strong army—if the Six-Army Alliance reached Spirit Turtle Territory and appeared to be linking up with the northern main forces, it would be very convincing.

"So, negotiations broke down?" Zhao Xing asked.

"Yes," Chen Shijie confirmed. "Our army disagreed with continuing the pursuit. Without our logistical support, they couldn't have pursued so quickly. As a result, Yi Yue had a huge argument with Liao Rulong, accusing us of delaying the opportune moment."

"Now, those three armies have separated from our forces and are moving towards the northeast line, awaiting their own logistical units."

"What about the Black Armored Army?" Zhao Xing asked. He cared most about Xia Jing; as for the other three armies, he was indifferent, but the Black Armored Army was also in the northern theater.

"Xia Jing also received orders. Although he hasn't said anything yet, I estimate he thinks the same way," Chen Shijie replied.

Xia Jing's relationship with the Divine Might Army was, after all, closer.

"I'll try to persuade him later. What's the good news?" Zhao Xing asked.

"The good news is that I, Long Xiao, and Xia Jing have all surpassed a million battle merits," Chen Shijie said with a slight smile.

"Oh? The battle merit task has been settled?" Zhao Xing inquired.

"Yes, you should be able to see the message in your Earth Mirror now too."

Zhao Xing immediately pulled out his Earth Mirror to check.

A smile then appeared on his face.

Divine Might Army Zhao Xing, you have completed the 'Maintain Jihun Pass Supplies' battle merit task in the Military Realm.Given your overall performance and the achievements in this eastern theater of war, you have been awarded a total of 525,400 battle merits!

"How many did you get?" Chen Shijie asked.

"Not much, just five hundred and twenty thousand," Zhao Xing said casually.

Chen Shijie waved his hand. "Guards! Take this fellow down and torture him severely!"

Long Xiao walked in, surprised. "What crime has he committed?"

Chen Shijie snorted, "Boasting about his achievements in front of his superior!"

Long Xiao said with a hint of a smile, "What did he say?"

"I asked him how many battle merits he got, and he actually said 'not much, just five hundred and twenty thousand.' Does that sound like something a person would say? Shouldn't he be punished?"

"Hahaha, he certainly deserves it."

"This subordinate knows his mistake. Lord Chen, please appease your anger," Zhao Xing said with a smile, playing along with old Chen.

Jokes aside, Zhao Xing receiving so many battle merits was not surprising to Chen Shijie.

Zhao Xing had managed the 100,000 logistical troops in Tonghuo City meticulously, without a single hitch.

Zhao Xing's contributions to dismantling the illusion formation and breaching Jihun Pass's barrier were invaluable. Had Chen Shijie tried to do it himself, he certainly wouldn't have succeeded.

Firstly, he wouldn't have been able to pass through the illusion formation. This formation had been deployed after Huolong Pass was breached, kept dormant until a critical moment.

At a crucial moment, it would have separated the front-line troops from logistical support, which would have been a disaster. Awarding Zhao Xing 400,000 battle merits personally was definitely not excessive.

Breaking Jihun Pass's barrier afterward was entirely a contest of logistics. For the military supplies required by the Six Armies, it's doubtful anyone else could have met the demand in such a short time.

Zhao Xing mastered advanced volcanic magic and Primordial Instant, crucial spells for cultivating fifth-tier plants. These greatly reduced the time needed. With him as the breakthrough point, all other low-rank agricultural officers could be utilized, something ordinary military agronomists simply couldn't achieve.

For breaching the pass and managing supplies, his overall contributions earned him 520,000 battle merits.

"What are your thoughts on the next step?" Chen Shijie asked. "You advised us not to advance rashly. Do you have a basis for that?"

Zhao Xing had advised Chen Shijie, Long Xiao, and Xia Jing not to advance rashly. Chen Shijie and Long Xiao then conveyed this to Liao Rulong, who listened, as did Xia Jing, because Qi Yuanjun and their subsequent plans did not align with their original strategy.

Now, they wanted to know Zhao Xing's opinion on the next course of action.

"Rest and observe the situation," Zhao Xing said. "Let's see how things develop."

This vague answer was somewhat disappointing.

However, Zhao Xing couldn't tell Chen Shijie and the others that Emperor Jing intended to call for a truce soon.

How could a seventh-rank official predict such a thing so accurately? Was it by fortune-telling?

So he could only offer some common reasoning: "The Golden Feather Royal Court is determined to defend the Fire Demon Tribe's territory, but now they are retreating on three fronts."

"Imagine how much face they've lost. They'll definitely seek a victory on one front, otherwise morale will plummet, and their prestige will greatly diminish."

This wasn't a baseless guess; in his previous life, the Golden Feather Royal Court had indeed done this, but they chose to target the Divine Thunder Army.

As a result, Prince Yanda encountered Lu Yuanwei, the Son of Destiny, and not only suffered a crushing defeat but almost followed in his cousin's footsteps.

After this incident, the Golden Feather Royal Court abandoned the Fire Demon Tribe's territory, which fully solidified Lu Yuanwei's rise to prominence.

"You're saying the Golden Feather Royal Court will strike on the eastern front?"

"Hmm, I think it's possible," Zhao Xing nodded. In reality, he intended to wait until February of the 18th year of the Jingxin calendar.

In early February, Emperor Jing would declare a truce, and rewards would be distributed in March.

This was Emperor Jing's first intention to initiate mid-to-high-rank warfare.

Afterwards, he would waver due to the Creation Plate and other factors, continuing troop training. However, it was also from this point that earning battle merits became much harder.

The deeper they fought, the harsher the environment became, and the battle lines stretched further. Military agronomists weren't omnipotent; some items couldn't be supplied on-site. For instance, certain mineral materials still needed to be transported from Great Zhou.

During the February truce, a small number of high-rank experts would enter the field. Rushing in too quickly at that time risked being mercilessly killed by an opponent's high-rank expert who disregarded martial ethics.

Even if they didn't encounter high-rank experts, Emperor Jing would eventually order a retreat to create a buffer zone, so rushing in now would be pointless.

"In any case, I suggest resting for now," Zhao Xing said. "Didn't you and Long Xiao both achieve a million battle merits? Find Lu Tingzhi from the Transfer Bureau, ask him to come here, and first secure a slot for a Yin God before anything else."