Chapter 45 A resounding victory in the gas cylinder bomb ambush! Time to get farming and animal husbandry going!

"Your Majesty, why have they stopped? Have they noticed something amiss?"

Li Yao asked Xiao Qidi in a low voice.

The two hid in a slightly higher position, crawling among a pile of rocks.

From this vantage point, one can see the outline of the 30,000-strong army in the distance.

The afterglow of the setting sun was reflected in Xiao Qidi's deep eyes. "Wait patiently."

Valley entrance—

General Luo, sitting in the rear chariot, woke up from his nap and frowned, asking, "Why did we stop?"

"Reporting to the General!"

A lieutenant stepped forward and said, "My men are discussing whether we should pass through here."

General Luo glanced at the sky and asked again, "How far are we from Xitun Pass?"

The lieutenant replied, "About thirty li away."

General Luo angrily said, "Why is it still so far? Didn't I say we should arrive before dark?"

The sun is about to set completely, and it will be dark soon.

The lieutenant said, "General, please calm down. It's just that the closer we get to Xitun Pass, the more rugged the terrain becomes..."

"Then let's get going!" General Luo urged. "What else is there to discuss?"

The lieutenant patiently explained to him, "Ahead lies a valley. According to the border map, the valley floor is flat and suitable for passage, but we believe that if there are ambushes on both sides, we will be trapped."

"So we plan to send someone in to investigate first. If anything seems amiss, we'll take a detour..."

Upon hearing these words, General Luo suddenly laughed.

The lieutenant was completely bewildered. "General, why are you laughing?"

General Luo said, "In the past, your considerations would have been perfectly correct, but now they are wrong."

The lieutenant asked, puzzled, "Why is it wrong?"

General Luo's face was full of confidence. "The premise for the enemy to set up an ambush is that they know we are coming. However, we only took five days to rush from the capital to the border. How could they know that we were coming? If they didn't know, why would they have set up an ambush in advance?"

“General, you may not know this,” the lieutenant said, still slightly worried. “Our people at the border say that one of the carrier pigeons that sent the military orders from the capital is missing… I’m worried that news of our army’s rapid march here may have been leaked.”

General Luo was getting impatient. "So what if one carrier pigeon is missing? Carrier pigeons can get lost all the time. Otherwise, why would we need to release so many at once?"

The lieutenant added, "What if it really was leaked..."

"Enough!" General Luo could no longer contain himself. "Even if intelligence about our army's rapid march has been leaked, the people at Xitun Pass in Xuan Kingdom would never expect that I would lead my troops to attack without stopping! Unless they have divine eyes! If you delay my advance any further, I will chop you down!"

"Pass down my order: no need to scout the valley, no need to detour! Continue marching!"

Seeing that the general had spoken so frankly, the deputy general dared not say anything more.

On second thought, although he still felt uneasy, General Luo's words made sense, so he turned and left to deliver the order.

General Luo looked up at the fading sunset and felt a growing anxiety. These subordinates really didn't know how to think or be flexible; they only knew how to follow the established procedures and waste time.

High in the sky, a drone is circling.

In dim light and at great distance, it's practically just a tiny black dot.

Although General Luo saw it, he only thought it was an eagle soaring in the sky and did not take it seriously.

Soon, these 30,000 elite troops from the Yu Kingdom entered the valley.

Night fell at this moment.

The 30,000-strong army used torches for illumination, and the formation resembled a fiery dragon.

When they reached the middle of the valley, General Luo looked smug and said to his generals following the chariot, "See? Wasn't I right?"

The deputy general who had explained the situation to him earlier clasped his hands in a fist salute, saying, "General, your judgment was accurate. We subordinates were overthinking it."

General Luo laughed heartily, "That's why I'm the general and you're the deputy generals! You guys still have a lot to learn!"

"General, you are wise!" several officers shouted in unison.

Just then—

The Xuanjia soldiers, who were lying in ambush on both sides of the valley, received the order.

They all used tinderboxes to light the fuses hidden in the crevices of the rocks.

More than a dozen tiny streaks of light snaked downwards, heading straight for the bottom of the valley.

boom!

The ground at the bottom of the valley suddenly burst open!

Flames and thick smoke shot into the sky!

Before more than a dozen elite soldiers from the Yu Kingdom could react, they were blown away by the immense force!

"What's wrong!" General Luo exclaimed in shock.

Boom! Boom!

A series of loud noises occurred, and the earth shook violently!

The 30,000-strong army was thrown into chaos instantly; the terrifying tremors and sounds were simply unprecedented!

"Quickly! Turn around!" The general next to the chariot shouted the order without even taking a closer look.

However, immediately afterward, another loud bang rang out beside them.

Boom!!!

The chariot shattered into pieces, and General Luo was thrown two zhang away. His body, clad in iron armor, was riddled with holes by sharp metal fragments in that instant, and he died before even hitting the ground!

He couldn't understand how he died until the very end!

Even the well-trained elite troops of the Yu Kingdom had never seen such a scene of cataclysmic upheaval, and they all ran around like headless flies.

Some were killed instantly by the explosion.

Some narrowly escaped the explosion, only to be trampled underfoot by the others who were fleeing in panic.

By the time the loud noise and tremors subsided, nearly half of the 30,000-strong army had been killed or wounded!

Most of the survivors ran back for their lives, only to hear shouts of killing coming from all directions!

One hour later...

The valley finally fell silent.

"Your Majesty, we've blown up a batch, killed another batch, and captured nearly a thousand more!" Li Yao reported to Xiao Qidi.

Then, with a regretful expression, he said, "Unfortunately, we don't have enough manpower, and about two or three thousand of them escaped."

Xiao Qidi nodded slightly, "Indeed, this is a great victory."

Nearly a thousand were captured, and two or three thousand escaped, which means that 26,000 to 27,000 of the 30,000 enemy troops were killed!

That ambush was brilliantly executed!

"Your Majesty, what should be done with the prisoners?" Li Yao asked.

Xiao Qidi's eyes were icy cold as he uttered three words: "Kill them all."

He had no intention of taking these prisoners back and wasting the rations of his soldiers and civilians.

If Linxian Pass had sufficient supplies, it might be worth considering using the prisoners as laborers, but the current situation does not allow for that.

"Yes!" Li Yao accepted the order and withdrew.

——

Midnight, the Yu Kingdom army camp.

Several thousand deserters, their armor and weapons discarded and their courage shattered, rushed in.

It took tens of thousands of people in the camp to bring these deserters, who had lost their minds, under control. Then, a few of them who were still relatively conscious were taken to the Crown Prince's camp.

The crown prince awoke with a start. After hearing the gist of the situation, he threw off the covers and roared, "Thirty thousand elite troops! Gone just like that? Where is General Luo?!"

The deserter kneeling on the ground trembled, "General Luo... is dead... and several of his generals... also... did not survive."

The crown prince, incredulous, grabbed a deserter by the collar and demanded, "Speak! What exactly happened?!"

The deserter recounted the events incoherently.

The earth shook, flames soared into the sky, and there were so loud noises that they could knock people unconscious.

"Was it an earthquake?" The Crown Prince frowned. "As darkness fell, I seemed to hear a faint rumbling sound coming from afar."

The deserters shook their heads repeatedly, saying it was even more terrifying than an earthquake.

He couldn't explain what had happened at all; it was beyond his comprehension.

The crown prince threw the deserter to the ground and coldly glanced at the others, "You tell me what happened!"

The others were panicked and hesitated for a while before one of them said, "Your Highness... I suspect this is... an omen of impending calamity..."

Upon hearing this, the other deserters echoed his sentiments.

After all, there is really no other reason besides this explanation.

If it wasn't an earthquake, and it was something beyond human capability, then it could only be some kind of natural disaster that they had never seen or heard of before.

Upon hearing this, the Crown Prince's expression changed slightly.

One of the deserters had a sudden realization and exclaimed, "Could it be that General Bayong and his 50,000 troops also encountered this strange phenomenon, which led to their complete annihilation!"

Immediately, another deserter blurted out, "No wonder there are rumors that ghosts and gods help Xitun Pass, it's really true! Such a strange phenomenon... only ghosts and gods could do it!"

"Ah! Could it be that even ghosts and gods are helping him because King Xiao Qidi of Xuan Kingdom is here?"

"..."

The deserters in the tent were preoccupied with these speculations and didn't notice that the Crown Prince's expression was growing increasingly grim.

At this moment, someone came in to report to the Crown Prince.

The more than two thousand defeated soldiers who had fled back outside were also saying that Xitun Pass received divine assistance because Xiao Qidi was stationed there.

The crown prince was both shocked and furious upon hearing this.

The world's people have always revered and believed in ghosts and gods, but they have only heard of them and never seen them.

This time, it seems to confirm the existence of ghosts and gods.

However, the crown prince refused to believe it and was extremely unwilling to accept it!

How could Xiao Qidi, a monarch who doesn't even take the Xuan Kingdom's court seriously, possibly receive divine assistance?

The prince grew angrier the more he thought about it, and drew his sword to kill the deserter who had just claimed that there were ghosts and gods helping him at Xitun Pass.

Blood splattered all over his face, making his expression even more distorted.

"Pass on my order," he said through gritted teeth, his voice chilling, "Kill all those who escaped back! I have no place for deserters!"

"Your Highness! Spare us!" Several deserters cried and kowtowed.

Some generals standing nearby also pleaded for them.

It's understandable that they said they encountered something unusual.

The crown prince's temples throbbed with veins. "Anyone who pleads for mercy will be killed without hesitation!"

The general could only shut up, sighed silently, called someone in to give a few instructions, and then the deserters were dragged out of the tent.

The wailing and crying stopped abruptly.

The Crown Prince wiped the blood from his face, sat back down on the couch, grabbed a pot of wine and drank it all in one gulp. He coldly said to the general, "Keep a close eye on them. After killing these people, if anyone in the army talks about the ghosts and gods helping Xiao Qidi, they are disrupting morale and will be killed on the spot!"

"Yes..." the general clasped his hands in a fist salute.

In the face of such a bizarre situation, all the generals and military advisors should have been summoned to discuss the matter together.

Perhaps we can find a solution or unravel the mystery.

But this time, it was the Crown Prince who was leading the troops.

Once he speaks, no one dares to disobey.

Now that's bad, we can't even mention it anymore.

“Xitun Pass…Xiao Qidi…” The Crown Prince’s face twitched, and he suddenly stood up, about to put on his armor.

The general immediately tried to stop him, "Your Highness! What are you trying to do?"

The Crown Prince declared, "I will now lead the remaining 170,000 elite troops to raze Xitun Pass to the ground!"

"No! Your Highness, please calm down!" The general knelt down and hugged his leg. "If something happens to you, how will we explain it to His Majesty? You should wait for those 100,000 barbarian soldiers to arrive before making any plans... If anything really goes wrong, it's not too late to send them in first!"

The Crown Prince thought for a moment with a dark face, "Fine, I'll do as you say. Just don't say later that I'm afraid of Xitun Pass or Xiao Qidi!"

The general secretly breathed a sigh of relief and immediately flattered, "The Crown Prince led the troops in person, which is witnessed by everyone in the Yu Kingdom. How could anyone talk such nonsense?"

"Hmm, you may leave now. This prince needs to rest."

"It is...the Crown Prince."

——

The next day, it was time for Ning Jinli to deliver food as usual.

This time, she not only sent the same compressed biscuits, canned meat, fruits and vegetables as before, but also added rice, flour, cooking oil, some fresh meat, as well as a lot of crop seeds and fertilizer.

She had previously provided enough basic kitchen utensils, such as pots and pans, for 60,000 to 70,000 people.

Moreover, with the availability of groundwater and oil as fuel, Linxian Village now has the conditions to improve the daily diet of its soldiers and civilians and to begin planting crops.

The oil in Linxian Village is of excellent quality and, like the groundwater gushing out on the other side, is inexhaustible, indicating that its reserves are enormous.

However, due to limited conditions, Ning Jinli cannot mine or utilize it. Currently, it can be used to provide firewood for cooking or nighttime lighting for local soldiers and civilians, so it is not a waste.

After transmitting those things, Ning Jinli said into the walkie-talkie, "Pay attention, there's something new coming. First, cordon off the open area outside the cave to prevent it from escaping."

At the Immortal Cave, all the soldiers were quite puzzled.

Can something new really run away?

Did they grow legs...?

Despite their confusion, they dared not delay the fairy's instructions.

After clearing the site, they built a fence around it with nearby stones and assigned people to guard it.

Once everything was ready, he used a walkie-talkie to inform Ning Jinli.

Immediately afterwards, a wind suddenly rose from the open space, and from the swirling yellow sand, piglets suddenly darted out!

Now everyone finally understands why the fairy made that arrangement; it turns out it really did have legs!

In the blink of an eye, hundreds of piglets scattered and ran around in front of them.

That wasn't all; hundreds more chirping chicks arrived!

They delivered piglets and chicks, and finally a huge pile of feed.

Xiao Qidi stood at the cave entrance, watching the soldiers who were both surprised and delighted, and a smile appeared on his lips.

Crop cultivation and livestock breeding are both important aspects of people's livelihoods.

Although the war is not over and the Yu Kingdom's army is still eyeing the area outside Xitun Pass, the situation inside the pass has improved considerably, and it's time to consider these matters.

Otherwise, relying on Ning Jinli to provide food would never truly put the people at ease.

He was previously worried about how to restore the livelihood of the people in Linxian Village, which had lost everything.

Unexpectedly, Ning Jinli had already arranged everything for him step by step.

This is great! We can fight wars, guard the passes, farm, and raise livestock without any problems!

"Hmm? Wait a minute..." Xiao Qidi looked at the lively piglets and chicks, suddenly remembered something, immediately turned around and ran into the cave, passed through the time-space passage, and went straight to Ning Jinli's side.

His eyes gleamed with anticipation, and a wide grin spread across his face. "Miss Ning! Since living creatures can be sent over, then..."

"Is it that big black horse?" Ning Jinli asked, holding a cup of milk tea and sipping from the straw. "I tried to teleport, but it didn't work. Maybe the spacetime tunnel has a size limit for living things."

Xiao Qidi's brief, cheerful smile froze instantly.

It's like a big boy suddenly finding out he's going to lose his favorite toy.

"Oh, it's alright, little brother," Ning Jinli stretched out her arm and patted his head. "If I'm not mistaken, the space-time tunnel can be upgraded. Maybe it can be sent to you in the future? Would you like to try some milk tea? I bought you a cup too."

Xiao Qidi asked in surprise, "The time-space channel can be upgraded?"

As Ning Jinli inserted a straw into another cup of milk tea and handed it to him, she said, "It should be, because the time-space channel was upgraded once when you were injured and hospitalized."

She briefly described how the light screen appeared and covered a certain area, and how she discovered that she could teleport things within the area of ​​the light screen.

Xiao Qidi immediately asked the crucial question: "So, what prompted it to upgrade?"