Astral Apostle

535 Strategy To Deal With The Criminal (1)

Year 14 of Xinghe, Autumn.

The 400,000-strong army of the Imperial Court stepped into Huyang in separate legions. Among them, the Puzhou Defense Envoy, Ma Zhen, who was the Commander of one of the three Imperial Armies, led the main force. The other troops were all led by elite generals transferred by the Imperial Court. They were either Guardian Envoys or generals. All of them held important positions and cooperated with Ma Zhen.

As soon as they entered Huyang, the various troops of the Imperial Court occupied the state and county and guarded the key passes. They formed a triangular formation and pulled the battle line, forming a broad blockade. They confronted the various passes of the Dragon King Stronghold, but did not attack immediately.

In order to avoid a complete lockdown, it was not good for the Dragon King Stronghold to defend their stronghold, so they naturally split up and guarded various places. Seeing this, both sides temporarily did not move and did not take the initiative to attack.

Only Zhou Jing, who had shuttled to Chen Feng, led a group of troops by the water. Before the other party could stabilize their footing, he went straight to one of the fortresses of the main army, planning to call for a battle to see the situation.

The water route was quite fast, and there were only a small number of enemy troops blocking the way. Zhou Jing easily passed through them and successfully arrived at his destination. He met the main force of the Imperial Court at a fortress by the lake.

On the water around the fortress, the Imperial Court’s navy warships formed a continuous lines. There were all kinds of warships, forming formations to guard the waterway around the fortress.

Although the Dragon King Stronghold also had elite sailors, in terms of craftsmanship, the Imperial Court’s warships were of a higher quality and had a larger number.

It could be seen that the Imperial Court had indeed put in a lot of effort to suppress the bandits this time. Their support could not be compared to Lu Longchuan’s last time.

Because there were many enemy ships around the fortress, Zhou Jing did not order his troops to attack. Instead, he faced them across the water and looked at the fortress tower from afar.

On the city tower of the fortress, the military flag embroidered with the word “Ma” fluttered.

Soon, he saw a group of generals in helmets and armor appear on the city tower. The leader was Ma Zhen, who was also observing Chen Feng from afar.

As for Bill, who was currently in a placement state, he followed Ma Zhen.

“This scene seems familiar…”

Zhou Jing muttered to himself.

A few months ago, when Lu Longchuan attacked, they had also challenged him across the lake. Although they were not at the same pass as before. the scene was quite similar. He was on the water, and the other party was on the city tower.

The difference was that he had changed his projection target.

Zhou Jing composed himself and circulated his inner strength. He loudly laughed,

“The last time your Imperial Court came to attack, you suffered a huge defeat and were completely wiped out. Lu Longchuan was like a stray dog that was chased all over the ground by us. Only such a short period of time has passed, and the Imperial Court sent you fools to die again. Could it be that you don’t think we defeated him fast enough?!”

As soon as he finished speaking, many of the boys in the Dragon King Stronghold laughed, their morale high.

Ma Zhen had a serious expression as he shouted righteously,

“You traitor, don’t be arrogant! Chen Feng, the country has its laws. You openly rebelled, and your crimes are unforgivable. Today, the Imperial Court has sent the Heavenly Soldiers to sweep through the bandits. You will definitely be reduced to ashes.”

Zhou Jing looked at him and asked despite knowing the answer, “You’re the commander sent by the Imperial Court this time? State your name!”

“I’m the commander-in-chief of the three armies appointed by His Majesty. I’m the descendant of the Duke of Yi, Ma Zhen.”

“So you’re a son of the founding general Duke’s family… Heh, just nice, I’ll take your head as a sacrifice for us.”

Zhou Jing shouted.

Ma Zhen was unmoved as he said in a deep voice, “There’s no point in talking to a thief like you. If you have the ability, come. If you can defeat me, it’s your ability.”

After exchanging a few words, Zhou Jing stopped talking. He took a spear from the soldier beside him and threw it at the bow of the ship.

Swoosh!

The spear tore through the air and headed straight for the city tower, emitting a shrill cry.

Ma Zhen’s expression did not change as he calmly took a few steps to the side. This spear passed through his original position and nailed deeply into the entrance tower, trembling non-stop.

“As expected of an expert who can shake the world with his martial arts. His arm strength is indeed extraordinary.”

Ma Zhen did not even blink as he casually commented without any fear.

Zhou Jing narrowed his eyes as he nodded to himself.

This person was stronger than Lu Longchuan. He was definitely a powerful character.

After all, the Imperial Court was of the orthodox lineage and had a rich foundation. It had won the loyalty of all the talents in the world. There were always talented people under it, and their standards were far higher than ordinary Green Forest powerhouses.

Because there was Ling Fengzi beside Ma Zhen, Zhou Jing did not continue to throw the spear. He looked over and raised his eyebrows.

“Ling Fengzi! Some time ago, we fought more than ten times and were very happy. Unfortunately, you left without fighting in the end. I heard from the people of the Heavenly King Stronghold that you were poisoned by the Imperial Court and had no choice but to retreat. Why? Are you still working for the Imperial Court now?”

Ling Fengzi smiled and did not argue.

On the other hand, Ma Zhen spoke on his behalf, “Bandit Chen, Immortal is dedicated to sharing His Majesty’s worries. How can you ridicule him so?”

Zhou Jing ignored him and continued loudly, “We haven’t decided a victor yet. Do you want to try again today?”

When Ling Fengzi heard this, he was about to fly down the city wall.

At this moment, Ma Zhen pressed down on Ling Fengzi and said solemnly,

“Perfected One, there’s no need to care about this guy. If he charges into the formation, it won’t be too late to deal with him. If he retreats just like that, don’t worry about him, lest he shakes the morale of the army.”

Ling Fengzi stopped in his tracks, nodded, and retreated to the side.

In his placement mode, Zhou Jing specially set up a plan to let Ling Fengzi keep a low profile in public. If it was not something important, there was no need to disobey Ma Zhen’s orders. He only needed to silently gather the contents of the military meeting and secretly send it out.

Seeing this, Zhou Jing did not insist on calling Ling Fengzi out to fight. After shouting for a while, he retreated with the troops.