Chapter 423: Chapter 220: The Might of Wu An Soldiers_2
Translator: 549690339
Fortunately, Lu Yuan had never expected both nations to help in this regard.
What he truly valued were the two Inborn Grandmasters, Yan Wangqiu and Su Xuange.
If these two were there, coupled with himself and Lan Cai’er, their united army would form an absolute advantage in ultimate combat strength against Zhou people, outnumbering them with four Inborn Grandmasters.
Four Inborn Grandmasters, that is certainly not a small force.
Based on the idea that a single Inborn Grandmaster can easily defeat ten thousand soldiers, four Inborn Grandmasters gathered together could match forty thousand elite troops in a narrow battlefield.
These are just basic numerical conversions.
Reality is, on the actual battlefield, in a restricted range, the effectiveness of these four grandmasters would be far superior to that of forty thousand soldiers.
Take the simplest example.
A fortified city can only station thirty to fifty thousand soldiers at most. Stationed at a specific section of the city wall or gate, the number is reduced to just hundreds or thousands.
In the face of these hundreds or thousands of soldiers, don’t even mention four Inborn Grandmasters working together. Even if only one goes into action, he can overcome these defenders in just a dozen breaths.
Thus, as long as one Inborn Grandmaster leads the charge, he can swiftly clear the defenders within a section of the city wall, resulting in the fall of the entire city.
Four of them working together, without the interference of an equal powerhouse, what city in the world could withstand their assault?
This is the power of intimidation that belongs to the Inborn Grandmaster.
It’s precisely because of this power that even though the Nanhai Sect and the Nine River Sword Sect didn’t have elite troops originally, the court still made concessions in the face of their threats.
The court knew that if these sects’ demands were ignored, even if they could only muster a ragtag army, they would indeed be able to conquer and sweep all opposition with the cooperation of the Inborn Grandmasters.
And now, with people like Lu Yuan being enlisted and bought over by the court, this pressure shifted from the court to the kingdom of Zhou.
The only question is, would Zhou be tough enough this time, would they be able to resist?
On the 27th day of the eleventh month in the seventh year of Hongdao, the army of Ninghai Country rested in a large camp outside the city for one day, then joined forces with the army of Nanhai Country. The combined forces of the two countries continued to march northward.
On the third day of December, the joint force of 200,000 from the two countries arrived at Baling City. After resting for two days, they crossed the river north under the escort of the Yue country’s navy.
On the seventh day of the month, the army arrived at Dangyang battlefield in Zhou’s Jingmen prefecture.
Upon hearing the news, Marquis of Wuan Bai Mengyang personally led the military officers out of camp gate to meet them.
At this point, Lu Yuan finally met this prestigious Marquis.
“Greetings to the King of Changsha, the King of Nanhai, and the King of Ninghai.”
Although they were all Inborn Grandmasters, and even Bai Mengyang was more powerful, there was a clear distinction between the monarch and his subjects.
Therefore, before Lu Yuan and the others, Bai Mengyang still adhered to the customs of a diplomat.
“Marquis Wang.”
Lu Yuan had great respect for this highly accomplished senior. After receiving the courtesy of a subject, he immediately returned a bow.
On the other hand, Yan Wangqiu and Su Xuange’s performance was much worse.
In response to Bai Mengyang’s salute, they did not dare to receive it, avoiding it instead. They treated him as an equal, demonstrating no royal demeanor at all.
Compared to Lu Yuan, these two seemed to fear and dread the Marquis far more.
Witnessing this, Lu Yuan could not help but be surprised.
He did not understand why his two allies would take such a stance and lose their spirits needlessly.
From the looks of their allies, Su Xuange and Yan Wangqiu both felt bitter.
They would have wanted to be tough with the Marquis, but deep down, they found it impossible to do so.
The reason was simple. During the previous Taiping Dao riots in Jian’an Prefecture, it was indeed this Marquis of Wuan who led the troops in suppressing the riots.
And the Nine River Sword Sect, being a local power in Jian’an Prefecture then, naturally had quite a few encounters with the Marquis of Wuan.
During their interactions, Su Xuange saw firsthand just how formidable this “War God” Marquis was.
The memory of those days, even think about it now, would still make one feel slight trepidation.
The same goes for the Jinghai Country’s rebellion that gradually expanded into Lingnan due to its great momentum.
In the end, it was also the Wuan Marquis who personally quelled the chaos; he even directly annihilated Jinghai Country and designated this land as the Jiuzhen Prefecture under the court’s authority.
The Yulin and South Sea prefectures suffered severely under the calamity brought by Jinghai Country.
As the local bullies, the Nanhai Sect suffered many casualties among its disciples during this unrest.
I still remember that time when, enraged by the killing of disciples and the calamity befalling his hometown,
Yan Wangqiu even discarded his usual timid image, took the initiative to confront an Inborn Grandmaster of the Nanhai Country, and fought him.
However, the result was…
It became clear from the subsequent developments.
Yan Wangqiu was no match for his opponent and was beaten so badly that he had to flee in disgrace, never daring to get involved in these matters again.
Therefore, it can be said that the King of Nanhai knows very well the power of Jinghai Country.
It was a force to be reckoned with – armed to the teeth and filled with formidable warriors.
However, this mighty enemy was driven out of the South Sea Prefecture in a short span of time after the arrival of the Wuan Marquis, leading an army of one hundred thousand. The once almighty Jinghai Country who used to cause havoc in two prefectures,
was driven out and defeated in several major battles by Bai Mengyang, suffering tens of thousands of casualties.
Within just over a year, they were driven out of Yue country territory.
Later, Bai Mengyang marched right into Jinghai Country, leading his troops in an invasion. After another year, he defeated this ruler of the southern barbarians, besieging their capital.
Later, he even personally killed the Inborn Grandmaster of Jinghai Country amidst a massive army.
This was a genuine battlefield execution of a Grandmaster!
Especially considering that the one who was executed was not a novice who had only recently reached the Inborn level, but a renown, formidable veteran Grandmaster.
Can you imagine the shock it caused in the hearts of other Inborn Grandmasters when the news spread?
Especially for people like Yan Wangqiu, who had once been defeated by the Grandmaster of Jinghai Country.
Because he knew very well.
That if the Wuan Marquis, standing before him, was able to execute the Grandmaster of Jinghai Country among a vast army, then he could certainly do the same to him in the midst of a large army.
The mere presence of such a figure was a strong deterrent in itself.
At this moment, these two newly appointed rulers of Lingnan were deeply deterred.
As a Grandmaster, Bai Mengyang naturally noticed the changes in their expressions.
With a laugh, he didn’t specifically target these two “old acquaintances” and warmly said: “Your Majesties, your arrival with the troops has truly relieved me of a pressing concern. A feast has been prepared in the camp, please come inside.”
As he spoke, Bai Mengyang gave Lu Yuan a meaningful look, his eyes flashing with a hint of surprise.
This King of Changsha, who has been making a name for himself in recent years, truly stands out from the crowd.
He, the Wuan Marquis, felt it wasn’t his place to comment on other aspects of Lu Yuan, but when it came to courage and composure, Lu outshone the other two by a distance.
At least, he didn’t lose his composure in front of a war god like him.
Ever since he became famous, how many people in the world could honestly say they were not afraid of facing the Wuan Marquis?
At least, in Bai Mengyang’s memory, there weren’t more than ten people who could remain calm and composed in his presence.
Whether Lu Yuan was just being young and reckless, or trying hard to conceal something, the fact that he could put forward this kind of disposition indicated his extraordinary nature.
‘This young man is indeed a threat to the court; he should be eliminated as soon as possible.’ Bai Mengyang thought to himself.
Of course, Lu Yuan was unaware of the Wuan Marquis’ thoughts, but even if he were, he would most likely laugh it off.
To want to eliminate him, Bai Mengyang would probably never see the day – even on his deathbed.
When the Wuan Marquis dies, the court’s strength will decline further, making it even more difficult, if not nearly impossible, to eliminate him.
This is exactly why Lu Yuan had no qualms. Upon hearing Bai Mengyang’s invitation, he laughed and said, “The military prowess of the Wuan Marquis is renowned the world over, and I have long admired it. It is indeed a fortunate occasion to meet today!
As I have been familiar with military affairs for a long time and have some insights, I would look forward to receiving guidance in our future campaigns.”
His words were confident and composed, and he even proposed to learn military affairs from the Wuan Marquis.
This was Lu Yuan trying to save the situation as he saw his allies’ morale waning.