Once the Three Grandmasters displayed their might south of Gaoyang City, Luo Xin felt as though heaven had collapsed and the earth had caved in. Gritting his teeth, he immediately ordered the entire army to leave through three sides of the city and flee north, as planned.
Yet no sooner had the troops on either flank escaped than word came back that organized formations of Exorcising the Dragon bandits were closing in from the east and west. The sun had risen now, and their red clothing and armor looked like seas of fire burning toward them from both sides... worse still, the central banners on both sides bore the name Xu!
Luo Xin gaped, but dared not waste even the time it would take to climb the walls and look. He simply urged everyone to move faster, abandon their pots and jars, and get as far north as possible. Otherwise, they really would be bottled up in the city and wiped out in one pot.
But that was not all. Soon another report arrived: a cavalry force had appeared on the official road north of the city. Exceptionally fierce, they had inflicted countless casualties, killed both officers who had ridden out, and scattered numerous organized formations.
Luo Xin immediately understood the Exorcising the Dragon Army's design: block three sides and leave one open, then use elite troops up ahead to shatter their formations. With all organization lost, the Youzhou Army would be driven like ducks across the Great Pingyuan to the next stronghold... and since Gaoyang was the center of the Youzhou Army's current deployment, if the enemy scattered them here, roughly half their strength would be lost. Gathering them again would no longer be a question of anyone's ability.
The moment of life or death had arrived!
Luo Xin