Watching the Fire from the Opposite Shore

It was late at night, and Zhang Xingfeng was on his way to Qingzhou Prefecture. His guards, numbering several thousand, were taking the time to rest, as they would be setting off early the next morning.

Zhang Xingfeng sat quietly on the soft bed with his eyes slightly closed. His current realm was the Nascent Soul Late Stage Demon Subduing Vajra Art," the most important aspect of the " Six Revolutions Profound Body Art, " the " Fire Tempered Body," had reached a point where he had to cultivate it. If he did not cultivate the " Six Revolutions Profound Body Art " soon, his realm would likely be unable to improve due to his physical condition.

At this moment, Zhang Xingfeng's mind was completely immersed in the Purple Gold Yuan Venerable, controlling the Chaos Power within his body to rotate thread by thread. It rotated and solidified at his Dantian according to a wondrous trajectory.

A smile suddenly appeared on Zhang Xingfeng's face, because he had now established the Five Elements Foundation Building Array within his body, which was essentially gathering Samadhi True Fire cultivate his physical body from within. If Zhang Xingfeng relied solely on his mind to control the Samadhi True Fire, Zhang Xingfeng wouldn't be able to provide that much of it. Therefore, he had to use the Five Elements Foundation Building Array to collect the Samadhi True Fire first, and then use it to temper his body. With the Five Elements Foundation Building Array, there was almost no unnecessary loss of the Samadhi True Fire, and Zhang Xingfeng no longer needed to pay special attention to the Samadhi True Fire when tempering his body.

The fire that Fire Tempered Body is the Samadhi True Fire. Only when the physical body can unleash the Samadhi True Fire can the Fire Tempered Body be fully Great Accomplishment. In other words, the Samadhi True Fire merges with him; the Samadhi True Fire is him, and he is the Samadhi True Fire.

As the Samadhi True Fire entered the Five Elements Foundation Formation, Zhang Xingfeng felt his muscles begin to tremble slightly. Upon careful observation, he could see that the subtle details of his muscles were constantly cracking and fading away, with wisps of Samadhi True Fire immediately merging into them and then regrowing. The newly grown muscle had a faint white hue, the color of the Samadhi True Fire.

A sliver of light suddenly appeared outside the tent; it was already dawn.

A faint flame emanated from Zhang Xingfeng's body, but miraculously, the flame did not damage Zhang Xingfeng clothes in the slightest. Bathed in the flame, Zhang Xingfeng appeared so sacred. Suddenly, the flame quickly subsided and returned to Zhang Xingfeng's body.

Zhang Xingfeng suddenly opened his eyes, a hint of a smile in them.

"I never expected the Six Revolutions Profound Body Art to be so powerful. I only practiced it for one night, and my physical body has already made significant progress. It seems that I need to train my body more often in the future. Only after I have Great Accomplishment the Fire Tempered Body can I reach the early stage of the Soul Separation realm."

Zhang Xingfeng stood up with a wicked smile on his lips, because he had already remembered the 300,000 masters in the Taihang Mountain.

"I'm here! Mountain Bandits of the Taihang Mountain!" Zhang Xingfeng muttered to himself.

"Eat quickly, and we'll set off immediately after!" A soldier's voice suddenly rang out from outside; the soldier's voice was indeed very loud. All the guards immediately sped up their eating. If they ate slowly and didn't get enough to eat, they would have to leave immediately when the time came, and they would only have to go hungry.

Zhang Xingfeng is currently in Tieyang City in Qingzhou Prefecture. Tieyang City is the closest pass to the Liao Kingdom. Similarly, if the Liao Kingdom wants to enter the heartland of the Ming Dynasty, it must break through Tieyang City.

Of course, the route wasn't limited to Tieyang City. There was another option: the Taihang Mountain. Once the Taihang Mountain were crossed, the heartland of the Ming Dynasty would be laid bare before the Liao Kingdom's war chariots. However, it was absolutely impossible for a million-strong army to cross the Taihang Mountain without the permission of the Taihang Mountain bandits.

"What? The armies from Bingzhou Prefecture and Yuzhou have not arrived yet!" Hong Zhu's irritable voice suddenly rang out from outside.

Zhang Xingfeng frowned. "The troops from both prefectures haven't arrived yet? This is troublesome. Facing the Liao Kingdom army of 1.2 million, our current 400,000 troops are simply not enough! Things are difficult. It seems we have no choice but to have the army hold out to the death."

"Squeak--"

The door was pushed open, and a sullen Hong Zhu walked in. Upon seeing Zhang Xingfeng, he immediately complained, "Earl Zhang, what do we do now? With only 400,000 troops, resisting the Liao Kingdom's million-strong army is just too difficult. Most importantly, Tieyang City isn't as fortified as Wind and Rain City. It's only a slightly better, ordinary strategic city. Defending it is very difficult now!"

Upon hearing this, Zhang Xingfeng suddenly had a thought and couldn't help but smile slightly. He said to General Hong Zhu, "General Hong Zhu, don't be anxious. If you were the commander-in-chief of the Liao Kingdom army, would you do this? Would you attack this city?"

Hong Zhu thought for a moment and said, "Judging from past battles, the Liao Kingdom has only breached Tieyang City twice. The first time, they used a surprise attack and a human wave tactic, resulting in over 500,000 deaths before finally breaking Tieyang City. I doubt they'll do that this time, since too many deaths are also a bad thing."

The second method involved a stratagem. Back then, Liao Kingdom spies secretly slipped a "softening powder" into our water supply. This powder was just an ordinary herb with no harmful effects, and the army doctors didn't notice it. However, the Liao Kingdom discovered that when mixed with jasmine fragrance, it became a powerful sedative, which is why they were able to so easily breach Tieyang City. Now, the army doctors are aware of the "softening powder"! But in my opinion, the Liao Kingdom n't actually launch a direct assault. Taking down a city defended by 400,000 troops would be nearly impossible without 800,000 or 900,000. Therefore, I suspect they'll have to resort to a stratagem!

Zhang Xingfeng's lips curled slightly, revealing a hint of praise, and he said, "That's right. After all, no country in a war wants too many regular troops to die, so they have to deploy their reserves. If it really comes to the point of deploying reserves, the Liao Kingdom will probably be in chaos!"

The reserve army is deployed only when a country faces its most critical battle. Reserve troops are mostly retired regular soldiers, and the ratio of a country's regular army to its reserve army is typically 1:3. A superpower like the Ming Dynasty, with a population of billions, had over ten million reserves. However, deploying the reserve army would have a tremendous impact on the entire country, causing significant upheaval in public morale.

Hong Zhu nodded after hearing Zhang Xingfeng's words, and he wholeheartedly agreed.

"But this time, the fact that the troops from the two counties are arriving late is a great opportunity!" Zhang Xingfeng suddenly laughed.

Hong Zhu was bewildered and asked in confusion, "Earl Zhang, what do you mean by this?"

Zhang Xingfeng said mysteriously, "Take a look at the map. If the Liao Kingdom is unwilling to launch a full-scale attack, what will they do?"

Hong Zhu turned to look at the map. After a while, a bright smile suddenly appeared on his face. He turned to look at Zhang Xingfeng Hong Zhu, Zhang Xingfeng actually winked at him, leaving Hong Zhu momentarily stunned. Little did he know how happy Zhang Xingfeng was at that moment.

Inside the main tent of the Liao Kingdom army.

Yelü Hongjin looked at the sand table on the table, his brows furrowed.

He was troubled about how to attack the Ming Dynasty. Yelü Hongjin was also very clear about the interior of Tieyang City. He knew that the army of Bingzhou Prefecture in the north was far away from Qingzhou Prefecture. Most importantly, the army of Bingzhou Prefecture had just experienced the Battle of Wind and Rain Pass. Now, 300,000 troops were rushing towards Tieyang City in Bingzhou Prefecture. It was estimated that they would arrive in three more days.

The other army, the Yuzhou army, was much larger and therefore moved more slowly; it was estimated that they would arrive in just two days.

In other words, in the next two days, he will have to face the 400,000-strong army in Tieyang City.

However, Tieyang City, defended by 400,000 troops, was not so easy to breach. Yelü Hongjin had initially thought that the Yuan Mongolia Ming Dynasty, allowing him to take advantage of the situation. But to his surprise, the Yuan Mongolia suffered a bizarre and devastating defeat, with even the armies of the three northern prefectures remaining unscathed. This greatly angered Yelü Hongjin.

"Brother, are you troubled by those 400,000 garrison troops? I have two ideas! Hehe!" Suddenly, a lean man walked into the tent.

"You, what's your plan?" Yelü Hongjin really didn't have much faith in his younger brother. This brother was always idle and only wanted to gain some military merits for future advancement. But Yelü Hongjin was genuinely looking forward to seeing his brother show some strength.

"Brother, you said that 400,000 troops are neither a lot nor a little. If we launch a full-scale attack, even with 1.2 million troops attacking relentlessly, we could probably take it down even if 600,000 of them died. Although this is not a good move, it is still a strategy. What do you think, brother?" Yelü Hongye said with a smile.

Yelü Hongjin smiled bitterly, "Do you think I don't know? But with so many deaths, how can we attack in the future? The 600,000 Ming reinforcements that are coming are not to be underestimated. And most importantly, if we don't have enough troops, what will we do if Zhu Li gets angry and sends the 400,000-strong central army from the capital? How can we run rampant in the Ming territory without a million troops?"

Yelü Hongye suddenly laughed and said, "Brother, have you forgotten a plan that was proposed a long time ago?"

Yelü Hongjin was taken aback. "A long time ago..." Suddenly his eyes lit up, and after looking at the map again, he exclaimed with delight, "You mean it? That's right! How could I forget? Now we can definitely carry out this plan!"

"That's right, brother! These 400,000 troops, while not a large number, are no match for our forces. We can simply send 400,000 troops outside Tieyang City to hold off the 400,000 defenders, while the remaining 800,000 troops immediately sweep across the Taihang Mountain, seizing Taihang Mountain as our base. Then, once we cross the Taihang Mountain, the entire Ming Dynasty will be before us. Moreover, with the Taihang Mountain as our stronghold, we can attack anywhere. Even if the Ming army attacks, we can rely on the Taihang Mountain to defend ourselves. Haha, then we can do whatever we want within the Ming Dynasty! Haha..." Overjoyed, Yelü Hongye burst into wild laughter.

This plan was proposed years ago, but it failed during its execution. The main reason was that the Ming Dynasty saw through the scheme and launched a million-strong army to attack the Liao Kingdom army from the rear. Before the Liao Kingdom army even reached the Taihang Mountain, they were thrown into chaos by the Ming army's rear attack and routed. Now, with only 400,000 defenders, even if they try to stop them, it will be of little use.

Yelü Hongjin, realizing he could attack the Ming Dynasty at any time and plunder Ming Dynasty vast wealth, couldn't help but burst into excited laughter.

"Men, summon all six generals! I have something to announce!" Yelü Hongjin's face flushed red. He was so excited. The rich Ming Dynasty would be like a prostitute in front of him, at his mercy.

Yelü Hongjin never imagined that the Mountain Bandits of Taihang Mountain could defeat him. In his eyes, 100,000 Mountain Bandits would be easily defeated by 800,000 regular troops, and victory was a matter of course without any doubt.

"Really?" Zhang Xingfeng asked in surprise.

"Yes, General, the Liao Kingdom army is currently divided into two routes. One route, with a total of about 800,000 men, is heading towards the Taihang Mountain. The other route, with a total of 400,000 men, is almost outside my Tieyang City," a lieutenant general said to Zhang Xingfeng.

Zhang Xingfeng waved his hand and said, "You can go down now!"

"Yes!" The lieutenant immediately obeyed and left the main tent.

"Earl Zhang, hahaha... hahahaha... everything is going very smoothly. They really did attack Taihang Mountain when they saw we were outnumbered." Hong Zhu laughed as he spoke to Zhang Xingfeng. Suddenly, Hong Zhu frowned and said, "But Earl Zhang, are you sure that the Mountain Bandits of Taihang Mountain can severely damage an army of 800,000?" Hong Zhu still found it hard to imagine that 100,000 Mountain Bandits could severely damage the Liao Kingdom's standing army of 800,000.

Zhang Xingfeng adopted a mysterious air and smiled, "You don't need to worry about that. Moreover, the Mountain Bandits of Taihang Mountain not only suffered heavy losses, but completely routed the 800,000- Liao Kingdom army!" Zhang Xingfeng sighed inwardly, "I estimate that those 50,000 Innate Master alone could completely rout an army of 800,000!"

Ignoring Hong Zhu's shocked, incredulous, and confused expression, Zhang Xingfeng turned to look at the Taihang Mountain on the map.

He sneered inwardly, "Li Tianxiang, aren't you very powerful? Fine, I'll give you eighty thousand Liao Kingdom standing troops to play with first, but don't let these Liao Kingdom play you. Although they are all ordinary people, there are still quite a few of them, aren't there?"

Zhang Xingfeng chuckled; he could already imagine Li Tianxiang 'Taihang Mountain expression at that moment.

What was Li Tianxiang doing at this moment?

He is training those 50,000 Innate Master and the 103 most powerful masters who have broken through to the First-grade realm.

"You have all fully mastered the cultivation method of the Heavenly Demon Strategy. Now everything depends on yourselves." Li Tianxiang coldly looked down at the 103 experts who had reached the Heavenly Realm from the high platform.

"Yes!" the young master replied respectfully. All the experts had the utmost respect for their young master, and now that he had passed on the extremely powerful Heavenly Demon Strategy to them, they were even more loyal to Li Tianxiang.

At this moment, Li Tianxiang was overjoyed. "After these hundred-plus top experts cultivated the most basic Heavenly Demon Strategy of the Demon Realm, their power will probably increase by a level. Nine of them, especially the Divine Realm experts, might even reach the Nascent Soul Realm. At that time, as long as... hahaha... hahahaha..." Thinking of his triumph, Li Tianxiang couldn't help but laugh wildly inside. Back in Temujin's treasure trove, even ordinary Innate Master turned into Demon Puppet were terrifying. If Nascent Soul Realm experts were turned into Demon Puppet, then...

"Reporting to the young master, the Liao Kingdom has an army of 800,000 advancing towards our Taihang Mountain!" Suddenly, a burly man knelt down on one knee and said respectfully.

Li Tianxiang was stunned, then suddenly said coldly, "What? The Liao Kingdom army is actually heading towards my Taihang Mountain? What's going on?" Li Tianxiang was in a terrible mood. How could the Liao Kingdom army appear? Although the Liao Kingdom army's combat strength was generally slightly lower than that of the Mountain Bandits in Taihang Mountain, their numbers were several times greater. Unless he used his 50,000 Xiantian troops, he really had no chance of winning.

"Reporting to the young master, the Liao Kingdom did this once before, but they were defeated by the Ming army from the rear. They have come again this time, and I believe they must be trying to seize Taihang Mountain and use Taihang Mountain as a base to attack the Ming Dynasty!" A man in black beside Li Tianxiang said respectfully.

Li Tianxiang nodded to the man in black, who was the very man Li Tianxiang had brought from his home. This man was a strategist specially trained by the Aristocratic Clan.

"The existence of 50,000 Innate Master must not be known to other countries, otherwise they will definitely join forces to eliminate this terrifying force!" Li Tianxiang said with a frown. This was certain. If the countries knew that there was such a large army that could overthrow the court, it was estimated that several countries would even join forces to eliminate this army of 50,000 innate masters.

Li Tianxiang suddenly pondered and said, "The 100,000 troops on the outer perimeter can resist an army of 150,000. The 150,000 stronger ordinary experts can each fight five against one. I believe they are enough to withstand an army of 800,000!"

"Alright, I hereby declare that all 250,000 warriors are ready, and 5,000 Innate Master will immediately enter as the spearhead. Aren't they just 800,000 ordinary Liao Kingdom troops?" Li Tianxiang said with a hint of disdain.

"Yes!" The surrounding leaders immediately knelt down and replied. There was also a hint of disdain in their eyes, disdain for the Liao Kingdom army. These Mountain Bandits who trained every day had never respected a regular national army.

"Hehe, this is the perfect time for the Taihang Mountain to establish their authority!" The Mountain Bandits were filled with murderous intent, like a pack of wolves waiting for a pitiful lamb.

Unfortunately, at this moment, the lamb was still thinking about how to eliminate the Mountain Bandits without suffering any casualties.

Meanwhile, Zhang Xingfeng, who was in Tieyang City, sat on the sidelines and watched the fire burn. No matter who won, the real beneficiary would always be Zhang Xingfeng himself.

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