Liangzhou, a month ago.
With reinforcements arriving from all sides, the frontline collapse of the demons led to the swift recapture of most cities that had been quickly occupied by the demons.
Around Liangzhou, battle flags soared. To prevent the demons lingering in some cities from harming the people excessively, Li Tian Gang discussed with Li Xuanli about withdrawing a Light Cavalry Unit from the main army. Replacing the unit with the Haotian battle flags, they would head to various cities first to deter the demons and scout the situation.
If the situation looked grim, they would wait for the main army, but if the battle flags could intimidate the demons in those cities, they could rescue the trapped citizens ahead of time.
After all, even a single day’s delay could result in tens of thousands of citizens falling victim to the demons.
Hence, when it came to reclaiming territory and rescuing the people, speed was of the essence.
After the clarion call of this grand counterattack was sounded, the many small- and medium-sized demon forces that had followed the three great demon powers into battle, trying to fish in troubled waters, were in a state of panic, not expecting such a swift collapse at the frontlines.
Originally, upon hearing the numerous favorable battle reports from Tianji Palace, they believed the demons’ occupation of Liangzhou to be a done deal, almost certain. Yet, the situation had reversed.
Memories of fear, branded in the ancient dynasty within their veins, resurfaced.
Many forces with elder demons within their ranks chose to withdraw, taking advantage of the chaos in Liangzhou that made it difficult to be tracked.
If they were put on the wanted list, it would be tough to find a place to live outside their own territories; they’d have to constantly hide and dodge.
“Why, why was there such a swift defeat?” Discover stories at M V L
“Wasn’t it said that the Great Elder of Longmen would lead us to breach Liangzhou?”
Amongst the demons, many Great Demons roared in anger, questioning the Bird Demon from Tianji Palace.
The Bird Demon from Tianji Palace felt bitter inside. Being demons themselves, they naturally sided with the three great powers, and what’s more, they had not yet revealed that the master of the Great Void Realm had personally come to the battlefield.
This was secret information about the war, not to be leaked to prevent these informed demons from being captured by the Human Race and the information becoming known to them.
“According to frontline intelligence, Longmen has been defeated. For the specific reason, you will need to pay with blood jade.”
The same phrase was given by the bird demon from Tianji Palace in response to the demon forces.
Regardless of the outcome of the war, the money Tianji Palace earned would not be any less.
This was also why Tianji Palace, while seemingly lacking in combat power, could still rank among the top demon forces, on par with powers like Longmen.
Some demons chose to simply flee for their lives, not bothering to inquire further, knowing that in time such information would naturally become public, and they could learn it for free later on.
Yet some of the wealthier and more irritable demons, though annoyed, still chose to purchase the intelligence immediately, and soon learned the detailed reasons from the mouth of the Tianji Palace bird demon.
Master of the Great Void Realm personally led the command, but a young general of the Human Race emerged, joining the battlefield, slaying seven Demon Kings, and was chased by the master of the Great Void Realm and the Great Elder of Longmen, fleeing outside the territory of Liangzhou.
This news spread swiftly among the demons. The demons that normally resided outside Heavenly Gate Pass and had moved elsewhere were surprised but not overly shocked upon hearing this information, for they had long known of the might of the young general guarding Heavenly Gate Pass.
The other demons scattered around the exteriors of Liangzhou, however, were truly astounded that an extraordinary talent had been born within the Human Race!
An elder demon lamented, recalling the incident in Cangzhou from over a decade ago.
It was a young general who had emerged out of nowhere, leading only a thousand Iron Cavalry, single-handedly pacified an entire province and guarded it.
Now, fifteen years later, another young general had emerged, seemingly a cyclic destiny. This also seemed to indicate that the fate of the Human Race had not declined and still hung like a three-edged sword over the heads of the demons.
The demons collapsed upon hearing the name Haotian, scattering in a frantic escape.
This reclaiming operation did not consume much military strength, and with the Dayu Royal Family’s army arriving to reinforce, surrounding Liangzhou, they annihilated many fleeing demons.
The original five hundred thousand royal troops that came as reinforcements now only had to deal with the cleanup work. Consequently, the fleeing demons faced the sweeping tide of the vast army, suffering heavy casualties. A smaller number of demons who managed to escape did so with their races exterminated and forces destroyed, leaving only a handful of minor demons to get away with memories filled with fear and agony.
“Report, Your Highness!”
The scout returned, bearing the Emperor Yu’s banner, with the flying characters for Xuan in Emperor Yu’s distinctive black color.
“Thirty li ahead, the demons in that city have abandoned it and fled. Now a military force is taking over there, rallying the remaining guards and citizens in the city to treat the wounded.”
The scout dismounted swiftly and reported in detail.
In front of him was a dragon, its body covered in red scales and over a dozen zhang long, with a young man standing on its back wearing golden divine armor, his cape billowing in the wind.
Being called ‘Your Highness’ suggested his extraordinary status.
The ‘Yan’ character on his divine armor’s chest made his identity clear and was familiar to the court and noble families. He was one of the few extraordinarily famous princes among the dozens, the thirteenth Prince, Jiang Yan.
At such a young age, he had already established incredible accomplishments and was known for his bravery; had he not been born into the royal family, he could have easily been ennobled as a Marquis.
At the moment, Jiang Yan slightly furrowed his brows upon hearing the scout’s words and said, “It is said there was a Great Demon presiding there. How many troops did they use to repel it so quietly?”
“Reportedly, not a single soldier or piece of weaponry was harmed.”
The scout replied respectfully, lowering his head and explaining the situation in detail.
After listening, Jiang Yan’s eyes, beneath his arched brows, showed surprise, which then turned to a cold sternness:
“Humph, the Haotian battle flag? It’s laughable that a mere flag could deter a Great Demon!”
“Is the ancestral banner of the Dayu Royal Family not more intimidating than that Haotian battle flag? It seems that father has been too merciful towards these demons in recent years!”