Xuan City was the Commandery City closest to the junction of the Three Great Territories. It belonged to none of the Seven Kingdoms individually, but to all of them jointly. After all, this was the very forefront of the front lines, so the seven monarchs were more than happy with this arrangement. The city was, in a sense, a symbol of their power. Throughout nearly a century of warfare, this Commandery City had remained intact, never truly slipping from their grasp.
Much like Sand City, Xuan City was a fortified city built entirely of stone, but its defenses were even sturdier. Its walls were constructed from granite and white stone, then coated on the outside with nine-meter mud, making them tightly sealed, waterproof, and resistant to the sun.
Whenever the sun rose at dawn and purplish-red light streamed in from the eastern horizon, the stone surfaces shimmered as though flecked with rainbow light. All of Xuan City resembled the reflection of colorful clouds in water, a stark contrast to the desolation surrounding it.
Xuan City covered nearly a hundred mu. Its walls stood three zhang high and two zhang thick, with closely spaced watchposts alternating between open and solid sections. The watchtowers were filled with archers who could hit a leaf at a hundred paces. Though Xuan City had no moat, all four sides of its walls were covered in needle-sharp brambles, packed as densely as climbing ivy, barring anything from scaling them.
Qin Zihui's original plan had been to take Sand City in one decisive push, then build on that advantage and use it as a spearhead to continue attacking westward. That would have put the initiative in their hands.
Unfortunately, they had failed to take Sand City. Instead, they had lost soldiers and officers and suffered a devastating