Chapter 1411: Seizing the Bridge, Blowing Up the Waterway (Part Two) [Seeking Monthly Tickets]
"What do you mean I'm recklessly using my ultimate skill?"
Kang Shi's eyes widened when he heard the warning.
This is slander! He must report this to the Lord and accuse Chu Jie of slander!
“That’s right. Military Advisor Kang has followed the Lord for many years. If he really had the ability to kill her, his great power at Yonggu Pass back then would have worked.” Su Shiyilu chimed in from the side, secretly regretting that Kang was useless. Why didn’t he kill Shen Youli in one fell swoop back then? If he didn’t kill her with the plague, what kind of plague god was he? In his simple view, failing to kill the Lord was like a couple in a storybook who divorced in the first volume but had three children in the last volume, a charade of open and covert feigned conflict.
Try and see if you can kill Shen Youli!
If you can't kill me, what are you babbling about?
Kang Shi initially thought Su Shiyi was supporting him, but after hearing what he said, he quickly stopped the latter from saying anything more treasonous. Because of his own scholarly principles, Kang Shi was quite wary of prophecies, fearing that one day his words might come true and he would regret it too late.
Chu Jie looked at Kang Shi and Su Shiyilu, who were stirring things up, and wished he could give each of them a [Silence] spell. If Chu Yao were here, he would definitely agree with him: "You two should save your breath; you'll have plenty of opportunities to show off your power later."
There was absolutely no understanding or chemistry between the three of them.
Of the troops that were split off, 30% were from Wuzhou, and the rest were elite soldiers personally trained and cultivated by Chu Jie and his subordinates.
Su Shiyilu was determined to win, and Chu Jie's subordinates were even more so. The two sides openly and covertly competed, primarily comparing their marching speed and efficiency. "You can travel for two hours straight without stopping? Fine, I'll travel for three hours straight!"
What happened to you in three hours?
I can do it for four hours!
If there's a mountain path, take it; if there isn't, just climb.
Neither side was willing to lag behind in their arduous journey, both sides gritting their teeth and displaying an unyielding spirit, as if they would rather suffer than lose a single breath than have blisters on their feet. Poor civilian staff accompanying the army suffered greatly.
As is well known, warhorses are divided into live horses and martial horses. Ordinary soldiers make up the majority of the army, and martial horses cannot cover all soldiers. The missing number naturally needs to be supplemented by live horses.
Kang Shi rode a live horse. When the road conditions were good, he could bear it, but when the road conditions were bad, he had to dismount and lead it. The key problem was that the horse was so bumpy that it made his thighs tremble.
Even wrapping softer, more skin-friendly protective gear around your legs doesn't help.
The road conditions became even worse and more bumpy, and the warhorse could no longer mount. Kang Shi had no choice but to temporarily abandon the horse, which not only caused pain on the inside of his thighs but also made his feet suffer even more. If he hadn't been a scholar with a literary mind, he really wouldn't have had enough stamina to keep up with the speed.
Only when the full moon hung high in the night sky, and the risks of marching at night in unfamiliar territory increased significantly, did the army stop to rest and recover their strength. Su Shiyilu watched Kang Shi's various leg swings and weight shifts and said, "The strategist should have said so earlier if he wasn't feeling well."
It won't hurt a soldier to carry it.
Kang Shi sat on a rock and tapped his thigh to relieve his fatigue.
He glanced at Su Shiyi with a resentful look. If these two hadn't been openly and secretly sulking like wild horses that couldn't be pulled back, he wouldn't have gritted his teeth and persevered to catch up. Now he was blaming him? Kang Shi waved his hand weakly.
"We'll arrive in six more hours. We don't know how many troops the enemy has deployed there. Let's focus on recovering our strength first."
What was originally a three-day journey was compressed into one day, and everyone was still full of energy, which really opened Kang Shi's eyes.
Is the desire to compare oneself to others really that powerful?
Su Shiyilu said that he was absolutely right.
The Wuzhou army could not afford to lose to Chu Jie's troops, and the same applied to Chu Jie's side; they absolutely could not allow the Wuzhou army to steal the limelight on their home turf. People, even if they can't make a living, should at least fight for their pride!
After Chu Jie returned from his inspection tour, he counted the men and made sure no large numbers had fallen behind. The Yu Di Mountains had been artificially altered, and recently at that, so the mountains were not very stable and landslides occurred frequently. Soldiers could easily fall off cliffs and die if they were not careful.
Fortunately, the current losses are negligible.
Chu Jie said, "We'll take turns on guard duty tonight to prevent a sneak attack."
Kang Shi disagreed. He believed that a night attack was highly unlikely. Firstly, there wasn't enough space nearby to ambush them, and secondly, traversing mountains would be a burden not only for them but also for the enemy. If he were the enemy, he would choose to wait for the enemy to tire themselves out.
However, these speculations were not voiced.
He is very self-aware of his own tendency to jinx things.
Once you open your mouth, even a very small probability can become a 100% certainty.
During the first half of the night, Su Shiyilu was on duty. Chu Jie sat down and meditated, his broadsword placed beside his legs. He focused all his mind on the Martial Hall and soon entered a profound and mysterious state.
As the line of sight ascends into the air, everything within a radius of several miles is within perception.
As a martial artist, Su Shiyilu could naturally sense something.
He muttered a soft "tsk": "Pretentious!"
Because of his inner turmoil, the gap between him and Chu Jie had widened over the years. At first, he thought he could catch up if he gritted his teeth, but later he found it impossible to even look up to him, and Chu Jie had long since disappeared from his sight. If the two were to fight again, he would undoubtedly lose.
However, there is one thing that Chu Jie cannot match.
Thinking of this, a smile appeared on his lips.
As a martial artist, Chu Jie could not ignore his aggressive gaze, and even in his meditation, he felt uneasy: "What are you laughing at?"
Su Shiyi Lu propped himself up on his elbows, seemingly unconcerned about the dirt, and half-reclined, gazing at the night sky. An uninformed person might have thought the two of them had a very good relationship: "A month ago, my sister was found to be pregnant again."
"Your sister..."
Chu Jie fell silent as he spoke.
Su Shiyilu said without any hesitation, "With the regular care of medical professionals, I should be able to have a safe delivery. It's just that I'm older now, so it's much more strenuous than when I was younger. I hope it will be a boy."
Chu Jie: "...Are you crazy?"
Su Shiyilu didn't care: "I come from the old clan of the Ten Crows. The clan itself doesn't care much about human ethics and morality. Those things are only for you to care about. Without this child, there are some hurdles that we just can't get over. It's good to have one."
How many years has my brother-in-law been dead?
"The dead should not block the way of the living."
Chu Jie: "..."
Su Shiyilu pulled out a handful of beans from somewhere, tossed them out, and caught them with his mouth: "So many years have passed, and you haven't looked for anyone else? You're not really planning to hang out with a bunch of old men like Chu Wuhui and live out your days in peace?"
Chu Jie rolled his eyes so hard they almost popped out of his head.
Is this old man, Su Shiyilu, trying to have a heart-to-heart talk with him?
"Having seen the vast ocean, other waters seem insignificant; having beheld the clouds of Wushan, other clouds are not worth seeing." The valiant warrior's memory was exceptional; he could still recall the smiling faces and voices of his wife and children even with his eyes closed. "...You can say whatever you want, but don't curse Wu Hui. He's young and promising, how come no one wants him?"
Chu Jie was hoping that Chu Yao would adopt a child for him.
Yes, he hasn't given up on it yet.
He secretly made many efforts in this regard, including but not limited to improving the feng shui of his residence by moving trees and stones at the entrance. If that didn't work, he would have to find someone to recalculate the feng shui of his ancestral graves.
Su Shiyilu: "...Young and promising?"
Is someone around the same age as Chu Jie considered young?
Chu Jie: "..."
After a while, Su Shiyilu heard his mortal enemy whisper beside him, "Don't force me to beat you up under such a beautiful night sky!"
Su Shiyilu made another "tsk" sound.
If the occasion weren't so inappropriate, he would have loved to slap his face and say something provocative—if you're so tough, don't just talk tough, come at me with your fists!
Kang Shi: "..."
After listening for a while, he doubted the rumors circulating about the two. At least in his hometown, no sworn enemies would be seen admiring the moon and arguing together.
"General Chiwu is going to be an uncle?"
Chiwu was the title of Su Shiyilu. Although he was only a general, given his actual position in the Wuzhou army and the various special treatments he received, it was not considered disrespectful. Another reason why Kang Shi specifically addressed him as General Chiwu was that Su Shiyilu's surname was too long.
I can't use the normal form of address.
Chu Jie sneered upon hearing this, while Su Shiyilu laughed and said, "When this child turns one month and one year old, the strategist must come to bestow blessings."
Kang Shi: "..."
I always felt that these two sworn enemies were hiding something from me.
He said, "Don't speak too much about prophecies, it wouldn't be good if they came true."
The Lord said that prophetic words are a sign of bad luck, especially for those who have spent their lives on the battlefield, who should be especially wary of them, lest they die on the battlefield.
Su Shiyi Lu flicked the dust off his trousers and armor.
"Don't worry, I'm very tough."
Chu Jie said calmly, "You really must live."
The night was calm and uneventful. Perhaps the enemy hadn't yet discovered their presence, or perhaps they were lying in wait, unwilling to risk a night raid. As dawn broke, the rested troops set off again. This time, several elite soldiers were assigned to carry Kang Shi in shifts, sparing his legs from further torment. To shorten the journey, and because some sections were too difficult to traverse without detours, the army used their spiritual power to create chains between the two mountains. These chains, formed from martial energy, were as thick as a thigh, connecting the two areas. The troops crossed in batches, still without incident.
The more this was the case, the more vigilant Chu Jie became.
His years of experience allowed him to sense that a storm was brewing.
Su Shiyi couldn't help but lean closer to his old rival and whisper, "Something's not right. Could this be a ploy to lure us away from our prey?"
The enemy didn't actually control the water source; they just tampered with it to lure them into splitting their forces? If that's the case, Su Shiyilu thought of the stone fortress and long bridge that the main force was going to attack, and a hint of schadenfreude arose in his heart, only to be glared at by Chu Jie.
"It shouldn't be."
Chu Jie could not possibly order a return trip.
His task was to seize control of the water source.
The scouts ahead have located the waterway, which matches the previously drawn map. They've also discovered some traces of enemy garrisoning nearby. However, most of these traces have been deliberately destroyed, making it appear as if the enemy had recently retreated…
Kang Shi, mounted on his warhorse, was looking down and calculating something with his fingers.
"Send someone to fetch a pot of water!"
Su Shiyi Lu: "Why are you fetching water?"
Chu Jie had already given his subordinates a signal, and within a few breaths they brought several heavy water bags. Kang Shi opened the stoppers of the water bags, poured out one of them, and then squeezed the other two, his brows furrowing even deeper than before.
Clearly, something's happened.
After a while, Kang Shi closed his eyes and whispered, "Form ranks!"
The elite soldiers reacted extremely quickly, mobilizing them all within a few breaths to form the Xuanwu Formation, the most defensive formation available.
Kang Shi looked up at the sky and shouted: "Get out here!"
It's a mirage!
All around was quiet, with only the wind whistling through.
Seeing this, Kang Shi merely chuckled, tossed the water jug into the air, and, with a backhand grip, shot an arrow. The arrow whistled as it left the bowstring, striking the water bag squarely. The literary energy transformed into a source of fire that exploded in mid-air, like fleeting bursts of fiery blossoms. Su Shiyilu saw with the naked eye a barely perceptible ripple in the sky. In the blink of an eye, the illusion swayed and twisted, gradually becoming tinged with ink-like spots.
The "curtain" that covered the sky was torn apart.
A black wind blinded them, and the air was filled with the stench of sulfur.
Kang Shi raised his sleeve to shield himself from the wind, his lips slightly downturned, his face expressionless, but inwardly he thought that his lord would have to endure a few more years of hardship.
Su Shiyilu immediately realized that he had stepped into an enemy trap.
He mocked Chu Jie, saying, "You call yourself the top military general?"
The Grand Marshal has dragged his own people into a ditch.
The bright sunshine of just moments ago turned into night in an instant, and the dark twilight could not conceal the dense, ant-like figures standing on the distant cliffs.
Looking around, the terrain resembled a valley surrounded by mountains on three sides. The greatest threat came from the sky above, where several generals in full armor were lined up, waiting to ambush them: "...Look at this terrain, this situation, it would be a shame not to set it on fire and roast the army."
Not long ago, I was relieved that the enemy didn't launch a night attack.
That's when they were proven wrong.
Chu Jie didn't argue, but simply looked up to meet the gaze of the sky.
Su Shiyi clicked his tongue. He couldn't discern the strength of the three figures high in the sky, so he could only leave it to Chu Jie to fight one-on-one.
Some felt a sense of schadenfreude, while others were angry at their lack of ambition.
How come you didn't notice?
Kang Shi said, "Because we just stepped in."
"How could this be..."
Su Shiyilu instinctively wanted to refute.
Words of power that confuse the perception of time do exist, but the time span is very small. Su Shiyilu couldn't imagine anyone being able to do something as large-scale as this, affecting thousands of people and spanning nearly half a day—even someone like Chu Yao would have his literary energy drained.
Chu Jie said, "This is now the [Mirage]."
Kang Shi: "No, it should be called a 'sand table battlefield'."
The simulated terrain was completely advantageous to the enemy, and the previously fictitious troops were replaced with living people. After a few words, the voice finally descended from above: "Your reaction wasn't too slow. I was wondering when you would notice anything amiss."
Su Shiyilu: "Shouldn't I praise you guys?"
Su Shiyi was surprised that they didn't seize the opportunity to launch a preemptive strike. Could it be that the enemy really was a group of tiny, nascent human-like wall lamps? Even in war, they were constantly mindful of humility and courtesy, no longer acting like subservient grandchildren?
Kang Shi: "They can't launch a surprise attack."
The rule of the sandbox battlefield is that both sides must be fully prepared before making a move, and the "Way of the Scholar," which is derived from this, must also be followed.
If given the chance, we should capture the literary scholar on the other side alive.
It would be a shame not to back up such an interesting book as "The Way of the Scholar".
High in the air, several enemy generals overheard every word of Kang Shi's conversation with his companions. The latter's reaction was completely different from the expected panic and confusion: "As expected of the pillar of Kang Kingdom, what courage."
Even on the verge of death, he didn't forget to find amusement for himself.
The leader, with the most unfathomable aura, twirled a gleaming ring-pommel sword in one hand. His sidelong glance, looking down upon the masses as if they were ants about to be roasted: "Su Shiyilu, can you truly tolerate the murder of your son? Why not choose to abandon the darkness and embrace the light? They will die here today, leaving not even a corpse behind, eliminating any worries you may have!"
Kang Shi suddenly turned his head to look.
Su Shiyilu said calmly, "That's my nephew."
And he is about to have a new nephew.
Su Shiyilu's face was frosty: "Chu Jie, you twist this man's head off for me, and our old grudges will be wiped clean."
(=￣ω￣=)
Hot pot is great! You can eat without having to cut off your own leg meat.
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