Before long, the two surviving soldiers were carried in.

Two soldiers were seen, one with a broken left leg and the other with a broken right leg.

Although the wound had been bandaged by the military doctor, blood was seeping through the white bandage, making it a shocking sight...

The two lay on the stretcher, weakly saying, "Greetings, Your Highness the Crown Prince."

Seeing his men so badly injured, Xi Yuelei felt distressed and guilty.

If he hadn't insisted on his own way, it wouldn't have been his Western Moon Army that was bombed.

But he is the crown prince of Xiyue Kingdom, and he cannot admit that it was his fault. "You have suffered for the sake of Xiyue's great cause. After returning to the country, I, the crown prince, will definitely reward you."

The soldier with the broken left leg was moved to tears. “Thank you, Your Highness. For the sake of our great cause in Xiyue, our suffering is nothing.”

Xi Yuelei nodded in satisfaction. "You were at the forefront of the army at the time. Tell me quickly, what exactly happened? Were you really struck by lightning?"

The two soldiers shook their heads, their gratitude replaced by fear. "No, it's not lightning. It erupts from the ground. If we step on it, a huge explosion will occur, spewing forth flames. The power is astonishing, like the earth itself is roaring. It's absolutely terrifying..."

After hearing the two soldiers' accounts, everyone fell silent.

Nangong Jin frowned, feeling a sense of despair. "It's not heavenly lightning, but the wrath of the earth. Are we really going to return empty-handed this time?"

Bargut clenched his fists so tightly they cracked. "What 'Heavenly Thunder and Earthly Wrath'? If you ask me, it must be a new hidden weapon invented by the Great Ning Dynasty. Otherwise, there's no way that thing would be everywhere."

Xi Yuelei nodded in agreement, "Yes, I was stunned at the time too. Later, the explosions stopped. If Goryeo's army had rushed forward in time, they might have already broken through those hidden weapons."

"Since it's neither heavenly lightning nor earthly wrath, we must find a way to break through Anyang no matter what," Bargu shouted.

Xi Yuelei rolled his eyes and snorted disdainfully, "Brother Ba is indeed a hero among men. In that case, you shall be the vanguard and see if you can get through."

"No, no, no, I never said I wanted to be a vanguard," Bargut waved his hands repeatedly.

Seeing that the group was terrified by the so-called 'heavenly thunder and earthly wrath,' Goryeo sneered inwardly.

These idiots are absolutely stupid; they actually believe in the existence of heavenly lightning.

Should we explain it to them?

No, making the same mistake once is ignorance, but making it twice is stupidity.

Just as I came up with a plan to defeat the enemy, several people vied to be the vanguard.

Fortunately, there was that unlucky guy Xi Yuelei, otherwise it would have been the Gao Luo Kingdom's army that suffered casualties.

If they knew that this heavenly lightning was the legendary "Star-Splitting Sandstorm" of the Five Poisons Sect, and that whoever possessed it would rule the world, they would definitely fight over it.

But if they don't tell the truth, they'll become hesitant and timid.

We must find a way to get them to keep charging forward. Once they break through the Heavenly Thunder Formation, the other three kingdoms' forces will probably be mostly wiped out.

The mantis stalks the cicada, unaware of the oriole behind.

At that time, he was the first to breach the city, and their Gao Luo Kingdom transformed from the weakest of the small nations into the ruler of the entire continent...

Gao Lizhu felt increasingly pleased with herself and almost burst out laughing. She quickly composed herself and said...

"Brother Xiyue, you were chosen as the commander-in-chief by the four-nation alliance for this expedition to Daming."

Anyang is now within reach; we cannot give up easily just because we've suffered a setback.

True champions often grow stronger and more resilient with each setback.

I believe Brother Xiyue will lead us forward bravely, and the capture of Anyang will be just around the corner.

Xi Yuelei rolled his eyes at these words. "Alright, Gao Lizhu, stop talking nonsense. Anyone can talk big. You saw what happened just now. Wherever you go, nothing grows. How can you expect me to get stronger after setbacks? I bet if you set me down a couple more times, my Xi Yue army will be wiped out."

“Brother Xiyue, you’re right. But even if that thing is powerful, we can’t just slink back home and go back to our mothers without even fighting a single battle!”

Undeterred, Gao Lizhu launched into another long and detailed explanation.

"This is the first time our four countries have united to fight against Da Ning. We can't just run away without even fighting, can we?"

If they were truly terrified and slunk back with their tails between their legs, it would be incredibly shameful, and they wouldn't be able to explain themselves to the king.

I'd like to ask you how you deliver the imperial edict?

Does it mean that a sudden, violent lightning strike left nothing but desolation in its wake...?

Even a fool wouldn't believe that.

Brother Xiyue, you are His Highness the Crown Prince of Xiyue Kingdom. I'm not exaggerating.

If you return empty-handed, even if your father doesn't hold it against you, how could your brothers let go of this once-in-a-lifetime opportunity?

As the saying goes, "It's not that good things are bad, it's that good people are bad." They can easily pin a crime on you, and your position as crown prince could be in jeopardy.

These words struck a chord with Xi Yuelei. His younger brothers were indeed all scheming and plotting, secretly vying for the position of crown prince for a long time.

This expedition to Daning is to demonstrate that he is a pillar of the state with both courage and wisdom.

If he returns empty-handed, he will face merciless ridicule and may even be deposed by the emperor.

Now it seems that even if there are mountains of knives and seas of fire ahead, we must not back down...

Gao Lizhu paused for a moment, then looked at Balhu and Nangong Jin, continuing to fan the flames.

"My two brothers should also carefully consider the consequences of returning empty-handed. Withdrawing at this time would be entirely detrimental to us."

Even if we look on the bright side, we won't be punished at all, but will Da Ning let us off the hook? Chu Jiuqing will definitely conquer each of our countries one by one.

There's no turning back now. We must conquer Anyang no matter what, obtain Princess Anyang who will govern the country and bring prosperity, and then wreak havoc and plunder wealth across the territory of Daning.

Only in this way can we severely weaken Chu Jiuqing and prevent him from retaliating against our four kingdoms.

Barhu nodded vigorously at these words, "Brother Gao is absolutely right. Our four-nation alliance must not give up here. We must take Anyang as soon as possible, and then march straight in, burning, killing and looting along the way, until we reach the capital of Daning."

“Yes, yes, Gao Lizhu is right.” Nangong Jin agreed, “No matter how powerful the heavenly lightning is, as long as it doesn’t kill us, we’ll charge forward. I don’t believe that with our 500,000 troops from the four kingdoms, we can’t take over a small Anyang.”

Xi Yuelei's mind went blank for a moment, and he didn't know what to say...