Chapter 2377: Chapter 2377 Wandering Around
The opposing commander was caught off guard when the feral beasts, having slowed their advance, abruptly turned around and started killing their flanks.
Pei Yong and Ye Liuyun’s elite troops, meanwhile, charged headfirst into the enemy forces’ core.
Even though these troops were already well trained in formation tactics, they became experts in Ye Liuyun’s battle plan under Pei Yong’s tutelage. They now moved in nimble trios, slaying enemies with pinpoint accuracy.
As they fanned out, enemy soldiers collapsed in waves and dropped to the ground like flies.
The enemy leader, sensing the defeat, desperately yelled out commands to rally his forces to repel the attack.
In an instant, three Vespera Demons struck simultaneously. The commander and one of his subordinates were killed swiftly, their throats slashed before they could respond. A third officer, more observant, barely avoided a lethal hit from Xenocide.
He instantly retaliated with a palm strike that clanged harmlessly against Xenocide’s armoured shell. Xenocide lashed out again, its claws raking across his neck.
The three beasts swiftly collected the three commanders’ corpses before turning on the remaining bodyguards.
As Phantom Hands and his friends manoeuvred their way through the guards, chaos ensued. Even when struck, their tortoise shell armour absorbed the blows with ease, leaving the scared guards swinging indiscriminately, occasionally hurting their own allies.
The opposing army’s cooperation failed due to a lack of united leadership. The elite forces pressed their advantage, unstoppable like a tidal wave. The rear lines quickly began to flee, trying to get away from the bloodbath.
The retreat, however, quickly gained momentum once it began. Disbanding in groups, the soldiers dashed in all directions, with each man desperately trying to outpace the others.
"Cut them off!" Ye Liuyun commanded, directing his beast hordes to encircle the fleeing troops.
"Surrender! We surrender!"
Mass surrenders followed as entire swaths of the enemy army tossed down their weapons.
Pei Yong left a few hundred men behind to seal the surrendered troops’ genuine energy, while the remainder of his forces pursued, unleashing their entire might.
The feral beasts advanced with horrifying speed, quickly surrounding and cutting off the enemy’s rear guard, trapping them in a tightening net.
Ye Liuyun caught up with the rear guard commander in an instant, struck him with a Divine soul attack and imprinted him with a slaving seal.
The commander commanded his troops to lay down their weapons and surrender without hesitation. He immediately turned his troops around to bring the fleeing soldiers back into the fold.
One after another, more soldiers surrendered. Ye Liuyun finally ended up with a sweeping victory.
By the conclusion of the conflict, Ye Liuyun had gained nearly forty thousand surrendered soldiers. Among them, over eight thousand were of Omnipotent Level experts, twenty thousand of the ninth level, and the remaining ten thousand at the eighth level.
It was clear that the forces dispatched by the Golden Spire this time were much stronger than before.
Ye Liuyun ordered Pei Yong to reorganise the soldiers and then continued training as they were ready to march again.
"We can’t stay here any longer," he told Pei Yong. "Next, they’ll send an entire army after us."
Their current strength was still no match for a force like the Galeocerdo Legion.
Ye Liuyun ordered, "We march in five days. All soldiers below late-stage Ninth Level should be left behind to repel Marquis Golden Spear’s army. Only concentrate your training on those in the Omnipotent Level and late-stage Ninth Level.
"Yes, sir!" After acknowledging, Pei Yong hurried out and reorganised his soldiers.
Before anything else, he had the newly surrendered troops pledge their loyalty before he tasked them to defend the city.
The little over 10,000 men who remained were immediately put through rigorous drills.
After seeing the advantages of combat training, the veterans stopped opposing the idea. Some even assisted in acclimating the newly recruited to the routine.
After five days, Ye Liuyun led the 10,000-Empyrean Legion out of the city and onto uncharted territory.
By the time Jin Qianghou’s hundred-thousand-strong army arrived, the soldiers left behind by Ye Liuyun had desperately held their ground for two full hours before being annihilated.
However, fighting from the defensive advantage of the city walls, these soldiers managed to inflict significant casualties on the Jin Qianghou’s forces.
The invading army stopped to rest and fix the Conveyor Formation after seizing the small town. However, Ye Liuyun and his Empyrean Legion had already seized another city before they could finish repairing it.
Following the same strategy, they stormed into the city, destroyed its Conveyor Formation, and then pillaged City Lord Manor, merchant guilds, and the magistrate’s office.
Ye Liuyun had no concerns about its condition. He took full advantage of expanding his army and plundering everything in sight since this wasn’t his territory. Having dispatched lower-ranking troops to guard the city, he moved on again.
From then on, Ye Liuyun led the Empyrean Legion in wreaking havoc throughout Jin Qianghou’s domain, while Jin Qianghou’s massive army chased fruitlessly from behind.
After several failed pursuits, Jin Qianghou’s forces abandoned direct pursuit altogether. Instead, they tried using Conveyor Formation in nearby cities to intercept Ye Liuyun ahead of his movements.
Ye Liuyun, however, gathered his whole Empyrean Legion into his Spatial World, moved to a new area, and began employing his guerrilla tactics again.
He and his warriors roamed around erratically for two or three months in a row, hiding from the Jin Qianghou’s main force and infiltrating cities at intervals.
Jin Qianghou was driven to utter frustration. His displeasure was so intense that he replaced the army’s commander.
Wan Weihou turned down the Jin Qianghou’s appeal for assistance, citing a lack of a suitable commander candidate, after all other avenues had been exhausted.
Left with no choice, Jin Qianghou appealed to Lord Zhenxing for support, requesting to borrow two hundred thousand troops from other regions to reinforce his defences.
At this point, Ye Liuyun’s Empyrean Legion had grown to encompass more than 50,000 troops, all of whom were experts at the Omnipotent Level.
Wan Weihou was overjoyed. He provided Ye Liuyun with vast resources and crucial intelligence.
"Lord Zhenxing has transferred a hundred thousand troops from two other marquises to reinforce him."
After assessing the situation, Ye Liuyun rallied his soldiers and proceeded to seize resources and recruit martial practitioners in the areas where the army had withdrawn to reinforce Jin Qianghou.
The Empyrean Legion continued to expand rapidly, reaching a staggering one hundred thousand troops before Ye Liuyun finally called a halt to regroup.
These events left Lord Zhenxing fuming in frustration. He knew someone was deliberately stirring chaos, yet he couldn’t identify who it was.
Despite his suspicions about Wan Weihou, particularly in the case of Mu Yuantang’s murder.
However, he had no solid evidence. Nor could he uncover who was aiding the Wan Weihou behind the scenes. All he could do was order heightened vigilance across his territories.
Then, without a trace, Ye Liuyun’s Empyrean Legion vanished just as fast as they had emerged.
"D*rn! There are a hundred thousand of them. Where on earth did they disappear to?"
Lord Zhenxing was livid. He summoned all ten of his marquises and their commanders before he unleashed his frustration upon them.
Yet none of them had any answers.
"Wan Weihou, your garrison still lacks a commander, doesn’t it?" he pressed, turning to him.
"Yes, my lord. I humbly request that you appoint one soon. Without proper leadership, I fear for the security of Valorcrest. Not long ago, I even survived an assassination attempt!"
Wan Weihou had deliberately left the position vacant, knowing full well Lord Zhenxing would insist on installing his own man rather than allowing him to choose.
After Mu Yuantang’s death, the Lord Zhenxing had been preoccupied with selecting a replacement until Ye Liuyun’s relentless raids diverted his focus away.
He had to act fast to secure control of Wan Weihou’s army after realising he couldn’t influence all of the commanders.
