The fierce siege continued, with Marcus Aurelius sending eight legions to launch a series of fierce attacks on Xilin Pass, resulting in heavy losses for both sides.

By dusk, the Roman army had suffered over 5,000 dead and more than 20,000 wounded.

Meanwhile, the Parthian army suffered at least 4,000 deaths and more than half of its soldiers were wounded.

"This hurdle will likely be difficult to overcome today!"

Marcus Aurelius, who was in charge of the central army, looked at the battle at this critical moment with a solemn expression, and finally sighed.

Li Boming stepped forward and advised, "Your Majesty, as the saying goes, 'Don't pursue a desperate enemy.' The Parthian garrison is now at its wit's end."

The reason they have held out until now is because our army's continuous attacks have made them feel that they have nowhere to retreat, which is why they have fought back so bravely.

In my opinion, we should slow down a bit and give them some time to think things through!

"That makes sense!"

Marcus Aurelius then ordered the messenger beside him, "Have the warriors withdraw!"

"yes!"

The messenger acknowledged the order and then rode away.

Before long, the sound of retreat horns rang out from the army, and the Roman soldiers who were fighting on the city walls also retreated.

After watching all the wounded soldiers being carried to the rear, Marcus Aurelius finally ordered the army to return to camp.

At this critical moment, seeing the retreating Roman army, the commander of Xilin Pass collapsed to the ground, panting heavily.

He had originally thought that with the reinforcements left behind by Kemorin, he could hold out for at least a few days. However, after today's battle, he realized that he had been too optimistic.

The Roman army's attack was too fierce; if this continued, Xilin Pass would surely fall tomorrow.

Thinking of this, the garrison commander of Xilin Pass disregarded his fatigue and got up to walk towards the pass.

Before long, the garrison commander of Xilin Pass arrived at the government office and sent people to summon all the officers under his command, along with the reinforcements.

"Gentlemen, as you have seen in today's battle, the Romans' attack is truly formidable. Even if we fight to the last man, we cannot hold them off for more than a few days."

If we continue to hold out, we will ultimately end up with the gates collapsing and everyone dying!

Upon hearing the commander's words, the officers' expressions became extremely solemn.

After glancing at the crowd, the guard of Xilin Pass continued, "Previously, I had discussed with Commander Kemorin that the original plan was to resist the Romans while evacuating in batches and implementing a scorched-earth policy."

But it seems that this plan is unlikely to work now.

A young officer stood up and said, "General, just tell us what to do next. We'll follow your instructions!"

Seeing someone take the lead, the others also chimed in.

The garrison commander of Xilin Pass said solemnly, "According to Commander Kemolin, if we lose the pass, we can take it back, but if we lose our people, then there is no hope at all!"

Therefore, I have decided to leave this pass tonight to avoid the Romans' advance!

"We are willing to obey the general's orders!"

Upon hearing the commander's plan, all the officers present echoed in agreement.

"General, what should we do with those wounded soldiers?" an officer couldn't help but ask.

"Take all the lightly wounded who are able to move with you, but leave the seriously injured here."

After all, even if we brought those seriously wounded soldiers along, they would hardly survive, and they would only slow down our army's advance..."

In the end, the garrison commander of Xilin Pass shook his head helplessly and did not continue speaking.

The officers present couldn't help but sigh in unison.

In a short while, the garrison commander of Xilin Pass adjusted his mindset and said in a deep voice, "Alright, time is of the essence, everyone hurry up and go and prepare!"

"Yes, General!"

The officers agreed and then quickly dispersed to make their own arrangements.

Soon, the soldiers who could fight and some lightly wounded inside Xilin Pass were gathered together.

"Open the door and get out!"

Seeing the group of officers who came to report, the garrison commander of Xilin Pass gritted his teeth and gave the order to retreat.

Nearly 15,000 seriously wounded soldiers and wounded soldiers who could not hold out for long were left inside the pass.

"These damned bastards, we fought so hard to defend the city, and they just abandoned us like this?"

"A bunch of beasts! They're leaving us here to die!"

"If I have a chance to live, I will never let them go!"

Upon learning that they had been abandoned, the wounded soldiers who remained inside the pass were filled with resentment and cursed incessantly.

Unfortunately, these people were either too injured to move or had mobility issues, so they could do nothing but curse a few words.

A wounded soldier lying on the ground stared desperately at the roof beams and murmured, "If anyone can save my life, I'll give my life for them!"

"Ha, then we can only hope the Romans will have mercy!" Another wounded soldier gave a bitter laugh and shook his head.

The Romans were already being incredibly merciful by not sending the wounded soldiers, abandoned by their own people, to finish them off. Expecting them to come to their aid was highly improbable.

While the wounded Parthian soldiers were sinking into despair, things were also quite turbulent in the Roman camp.

Inside the wounded soldiers' camp, looking at the dozens of officers who had suddenly died on their sickbeds, Marcus Aurelius's face was also terribly gloomy.

"Master Zhang, what exactly happened? They were perfectly fine before, how did they suddenly die?"

Upon hearing Marcus Aurelius's question, Zhang Bao sighed: "Your Majesty, according to the diagnosis, these people all died from poisoning!"

My dear reader, there's more to this chapter! Please click the next page to continue reading—even more exciting content awaits!