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Ying Feiyu's idea was certainly beautiful, but reality was cruel.

The weakness of North Country's offensive, and the decreasing frequency of cannon fire, were mainly because the vanguard led by Mu Changtian advanced too swiftly, and the artillery camp had not caught up.

The artillery camp had many ordinary soldiers who found it rather difficult to transport the heavy cannons.

The vanguard led by Mu Changtian only had a few heavy cannons with limited ammunition; the rest were small mortars which didn't have much advantage when attacking a city. Your next journey awaits at m v|l-e'-novelbuddy.net

So Mu Changtian was waiting, planning to continue once the artillery camp arrived at night.

Anyway, within the day, they would surely take down Lingyun City and then hasten to sever the logistical support of the Great Wu main forces that had entered Great Jue, leaving the Great Wu army there without support.

By afternoon, the counterattack of the North Country army had ceased. The vast North Country forces set up camp at a distance from Lingyun City, as if they were preparing for a long-term siege.

At this moment, Ying Feiyu stood on the city ramparts, looking at the distant North Country army's camp, and once more solidified his guess that they had ceased their attack due to the lack of that weapon.

Thus, he thought holding out until the imperial reinforcements arrived would not be a problem, and Lingyun City had ample supplies of food, which could easily last a few months.

As dusk approached, the fiery red sun hung in the west, and the red afterglow cast upon the people turned their skin color to a bronze hue.

The North Country's artillery units were mostly in place, just waiting for Mu Changtian's order to attack, and Mu Changtian had no intention of wasting time, as he immediately had the call to attack sounded.

Meanwhile, Ying Feiyu was still completely oblivious to the severity of the situation and had returned to the mansion prepared for him by the county magistrate, ready to rest.

Just then, an explosive roaring shattered Ying Feiyu's illusion, followed by a soldier who rushed into the courtyard in a flurry, "General, it's terrible! The North Country soldiers have launched another attack!"

Ying Feiyu frowned—what was happening? Could the North Country army still have that terrifying weapon?

Hadn't they already used so much of it? How could there still be more?

Without much thought, Ying Feiyu promptly picked up his sword again and rode swiftly towards the city rampart.

No sooner had Ying Feiyu arrived at the ramparts than he saw the city walls riddled with craters; some had even collapsed considerably. If the bombardment continued, the walls would fall apart in a large breach before even the gates were breached.

Ying Feiyu's expression darkened.

Seeing the relentless cannonballs flying towards the city wall, Ying Feiyu realized that North Country likely had no shortage of this mysterious weapon at all. Their previous halt was probably due to some incident or plan.

This could not go on.

Just then, a deputy general suddenly said to Ying Feiyu, "General, look! Those cannonballs are all coming out of those tubes!"

Hearing this, Ying Feiyu immediately followed the direction the deputy general was pointing and indeed, he saw an iron ball flying out of a tube.

Ying Feiyu thought, if those tubes could be destroyed, could the iron balls than be prevented from being launched?

With this thought, Ying Feiyu immediately said to the deputy general at his side, "Deputy General Xue, continue leading the soldiers here to hold off the North Country attack. I will lead the cavalry to destroy those egg-throwing cars."

"Yes, General!"

Ying Feiyu then descended from the city wall and immediately led five thousand cavalrymen from North City, planning to strike from the flank and rush to the side of the North Country artillery camp at the fastest speed to destroy all of what they took to be "egg-throwing cars."

Ying Feiyu resorted to this out of desperation, as Lingyun City must not be lost under any circumstances. If it fell, he certainly would not meet a good fate. He would do everything possible to hold the fort until the imperial reinforcements arrived.

If Youping County were lost and Great Wu's main forces' logistics were cut off, it essentially meant that the operation to extinguish North Country had failed. Worse still, it was possible that Great Wu's main forces could be annihilated by the North Country.

Should Great Wu's main forces retreat, they would have to fight against the North Country soldiers who had occupied Youping County. With such a terrifying weapon in North Country's possession, even Great Wu's main forces would have difficulty securing victory.

While Mu Changtian was commanding the North Country soldiers in the siege, he suddenly saw a contingent of light cavalry emerging from the flank, heading straight for the artillery camp. A slight smile crept up on his lips—he had been waiting for Ying Feiyu and his men to emerge, and Ying Feiyu indeed did.

It wouldn't be easy to take down North Country's artillery camp.

Mu Changtian immediately ordered, "Artillery Second Battalion, aim at those cavalrymen, blast them mercilessly!"

The drumbeat sounded urgently, and with the transmission of the order, the soldiers of the Artillery Second Battalion immediately turned their cannon barrels, taking aim at Ying Feiyu's cavalry. In the next moment, countless cannonballs rained down, exploding amidst the cavalry.

In an instant, both horses and men were torn apart, and their limbs mingled in the air while the soil was churned up wave after wave.

However, Ying Feiyu did not retreat, because he knew this was his last chance. If he retreated now, they would still be bombarded by those iron balls, and the devices launching them must be destroyed.

Ying Feiyu and his men dodged the iron balls raining from the sky while continuing to charge toward the artillery camp. Despite the artillery's extensive attack range, Ying Feiyu and his troops managed to get close to the position where the artillery was stationed.

But in the next moment, suddenly some infantrymen aimed their sticks—a distance away—at the approaching cavalry. Before Ying Feiyu and his men could react, a barrage of bullets flew toward them.

With cannon fire and bullets, the artillery camp's flanks had essentially formed a wall of fire, making it impossible for Ying Feiyu's cavalry to break through no matter how they charged.

Seeing soldiers falling beside him, Ying Feiyu realized the tide had turned against them. He immediately turned his horse around and shouted, "Retreat!"

Ying Feiyu then dodged the artillery while swiftly retreating from the battlefield amidst a storm of gunfire. At this time, the siege had not ended, and Wenren Lie and his forces did not pursue Ying Feiyu's cavalry.

Their foremost task for the front-line troops was to capture Lingyun City and then take control of the entire Youping County. As for the remnants of Ying Feiyu's defeated soldiers, it didn't matter if they ran away.

After leading the few hundred remaining cavalry out of the battle at the flanks, Ying Feiyu did not immediately return to the city to continue directing the soldiers in defense; instead, he led these few hundred cavalry straight away to escape to the next city in Youping County.

Ying Feiyu had come to realize the terrifying might of the North Country; their soldiers simply couldn't match the North Country's army. The North's weapons were far too advanced—they made even their Ninth Grade Martial Artists as ordinary as any commoner. This battle was undoubtedly unwinnable for them.

In his mind, Ying Feiyu considered how to shift the blame. With the war inevitably lost, he had to report the North Country's weapons as a matter of utmost importance to the imperial court and make them understand that the defeat in this battle was not his fault, but rather that of Princess Junwan.

That woman had not informed them in time of the North Country's horrifying weapons, and that had led to the defeat and the fall of Lingyun City.

The deputy general of Lingyun City was waiting for Ying Feiyu to return and lead their defense, but he never appeared. At that moment, the city gates were blasted open.

The defending soldiers of Lingyun City immediately went to the gates to hold their ground, not allowing the North Country soldiers to get close. However, the North troops didn't even approach the gates.

The soldiers from the North Country simply pushed several cannons forward and bombarded the gates wildly. The soldiers defending the gates were quickly blown to pieces.

Once the gates were cleared, the musketeers and Black Cavalry entered the city and swiftly cleared out the Great Wu soldiers.

Seeing the hopelessness of the situation, the deputy general ultimately chose to surrender.

The battle of Yongan County—Lingyun City came to an end, with the North Country devastating Great Wu's three hundred thousand-strong army, killing nearly two hundred thousand Great Wu soldiers and capturing close to one hundred thousand. They successfully took control of a key city in Youping County.

Now, using Lingyun City as a springboard, the North Country only needed to swiftly capture the other cities in Youping County and then cut off the logistical support for the main forces of Great Wu entering Great Jue.

The results of this battle quickly spread to the Great Wu imperial court and across several other dynasties, with nearly all powers being intimidated by the combat effectiveness of the North Country's army.

...

Great Wu Dynasty.

Li Zheng Palace.

At this time, the ministers in the court were still unaware of the events at Lingyun City, laughing and talking among themselves. freeweɓnøvel.com

Sitting on the Dragon Throne, the Martial Emperor was also oblivious to what had happened. He asked, "After conquering the North Country, whom do my ministers think would be most suitable to manage its lands?"

Hearing this, one minister said, "Your Majesty, this servant believes it would be most appropriate to entrust this task to Prince Wu Ming. His diligence, perseverance, and outstanding talents assure me that he could quickly make the commoners of the North Country pledge loyalty to Great Wu."

As one person spoke up, ministers from the Imperial Prince Faction immediately echoed in agreement, "This servant also believes Prince Wu Ming is most suitable..."

It was clear to everyone that controlling the North Country would provide access to the fine items the North Prince had managed to procure in the North Country—a temptation too great for any prince to resist.

Those items were all valuable goods that could bring incalculable benefits in the future, so every prince wanted them.

Soon, ministers from other prince factions also started speaking out in support of the princes they served.

As the ministers bickered for a while, the Sum Emperor suddenly turned to Chai Jiliang with a smile and said, "Chai, what is your opinion on whom we should entrust with the management of the North Country?"

Chai Jiliang bluntly poured cold water on the conversation, "Your Majesty, the war has not yet ended. It's premature to discuss this matter now."

Hearing this, the Martial Emperor's face darkened instantly, and he asked, "What do you mean, does Chai doubt that my six hundred thousand troops cannot exterminate a mere feudal state?"

Just as Chai Jiliang was about to respond, a voice from outside the hall suddenly resonated. It was from a Messenger Soldier.

"Urgent news from Youping County!!!"

...