Death Scripture

Dugu Xian was much more cautious when he talked before the Dragon King. He thought for a long while before saying, “I can’t give a definite conclusion. The war between the Central Plains and the Norland has lasted for more than a thousand years, and the two have seen many changes in their dynasties, with ups and downs on both sides. It’s very hard to predict the outcome of a final war. I don’t know what makes the old lady so sure that the Central Plains will win. At the very least, I don’t see how any side could guarantee their victory.”

“Tell me about the advantages and disadvantages for both the Norland and the Central Plains. Maybe I can pick out some clues from them.” Gu Shenwei trusted the one-armed general’s judgment very much so he had immediately gone to him for advice after his conversation with Tu Pianpian.

Dugu Xian had briefly introduced the characteristics of the various armies to the Dragon King before, but he still pondered for a moment before he added, “I think that there are three advantages that the Norland Cavalry has. The first is their flexibility. They are extremely mobile and can disperse and gather quickly. I especially value their ability to retreat. You never know when the fleeing Norland Cavalry will turn around and fight back. A defeated army rarely scatters in disorder.”

“The second is their archery. Although all countries have their own marksmen, and some people in the Central Plains are even more famous than Norland archers, no country can compare to the Norland when it comes to the average soldier’s archery abilities. For most prairie men, shooting and riding are like eating and drinking water to them. It’s an innate ability. One has to master these two skills right after learning to walk.”

“The third is their military tactics. The Norland Cavalry fights like how they hunt. It may seem chaotic, but everyone focuses on doing their own job. They seem very valiant and like they’re always dashing ahead, disregarding their own safety. But actually, they value defense a lot and seldom fight that desperately. Of course, this is an advantage that is only present when they can withdraw flexibly. Does the Dragon King know that although the Central Plains has besieged the main force of the Norland Cavalry many times and even won many a great victories, rarely have they ever captured or killed the Khan himself?

Gu Shenwei already knew this. In the battle that had just ended, he had not even seen Luoluo once, from beginning to end. “Experienced hunters may miss their prey, but they won’t be bitten by their prey.”

“Exactly.” Dugu Xian waved his remaining arm and continued, saying, “Now, let’s talk about the disadvantages. They are actually the same as the advantages I’ve just mentioned.”

“Oh?” Gu Shenwei was a bit confused.

“First, being too flexible means that they’re also undisciplined. The Norland people are good at riding and shooting, so they are naturally afraid of close combat. Once they are raided, as the Dragon King did to them, the first idea that crosses their mind is to distance themselves from the enemy. If the enemy presses forward continuously, then the retreat will devolve into a full-on run.”

“Second, the Norland soldiers rely too much on archery and are very reluctant to learn other weapons like the saber and the spear. They may be invincible in the boundless grasslands, but will be restrained in all other terrains. To be honest, it’s hard for me to imagine how the Shule Kingdom could have been conquered so easily. Alas…”

“Third, the Norland Cavalrymen are simple hunters. Usually, the prey will become panicked upon meeting them. But if the prey remains calm, then their tricks will be useless.”

“Conversely, the opposite of those disadvantages and advantages are the advantages and disadvantages of the Central Plains Army, respectively.” With this, Gu Shenwei finally had a clearer picture of the two countries’ armies in his mind.

“Mmm. But the Dragon King should not keep the Central Plains Army that is stationed in the Western Regions all year round in mind. They are just third-rate troops, and not the real main force of the Central Plains Army.”

“I am from the Central Plains and I went to the Western Regions when I was a teenager.”

“Yes, I forgot.” Dugu Xian casually said, his mind obviously no longer on this topic. After a long pause, he continued speaking. “Military discipline. It’s the greatest advantage of the Central Plains Army, a virtue far better than those of the Norland Cavalry. To tell you the truth, all of the troops in the Western Regions, including the Dragon Army, are mere rabble compared to the Central Plains Army.”

Dugu Xian unhesitatingly belittled the army built by him and the Dragon King as if it were worthless. But Gu Shenwei did not get angry. He thought back to his childhood memories, but found little of note. Although Gu Lun had the title of General, he was actually a palace guard and had little connection to the army. There was only one thing that he had a vague impression of.

“I’ve heard of a story before. A young general was found guilty and was almost beheaded for advancing too fast on the battlefield, and the charge to arrest him was…”

“Rushing into action without thinking things through. This is the case with the Central Plains Army. Everything has to be in order and done step by step. Being too brave and too timid will result in almost the same penalty, which is inconceivable to the people of the Norland.”

“So General Dugu seems to be more optimistic about the Central Plains Army’s chances.”

“A well-trained Central Plains Army.” Dugu Xian stuck out a finger to emphasize those words. “Only a well-trained Central Plains Army can be considered a real army. It’s the dream army for all commanders because only they can carry out complex tactics and change according to various situations.”

Dugu Xian seemed to have forgotten about the main topic and was immersed in his longing for a ‘real army.’ He then started talking about something irrelevant to the current situation. “I’ve read some history books about the Central Plains and found some very interesting things. Whenever the country was in turmoil, the service and arms of the Central Plains Army would diminish. They either focused on building armies full of just horsemen, archers, or spearsmen and weren’t able to integrate them into one singular whole. On the contrary, when the country was in times of prosperity, there would be various services and arms in an army like the one we met today. Although they only numbered two or three thousand strong, they were armed with bows, spears, sabers, and shields. If we had really fought today…”

Dugu Xian felt a chill run down his back which brought him back to the present. He smiled sheepishly and said, “Of course, there are the disadvantages to the Central Plains Army as well. A disciplined army needs an experienced Commander-in-chief who’s good at commanding all kinds of soldiers. The capability of the Commander-in-chief is crucial to the army’s success, which can almost decide the victory or defeat of the war by itself.”

This was also why Dugu Xian admired the Central Plains Army so much. He was an excellent general, but there was not that much room for him to display his skill in the Western Regions.

Gu Shenwei thought for a moment and then said, “If the Norland Army and the Central Plains Army have the same number of people and the environment is fair to both sides, then the one who can decide the victory or defeat of the battle should be… the Commander-in-chief of the Central Plains, right?”

“Sorry, I may have exaggerated the Central Plains’ Commander-in-chief’s influence on the troops a bit. The better trained the army, the less of an effect mediocre commanders will have on it.” Dugu Xian still refused to make a simple deduction.

“But the Commander-in-chief is still very important.”

“Hmm…” Dugu Xian thought for a long while before saying, “If we can gauge the Commander-in-chief of the Central Plains Army’s ability, then maybe… we can predict the outcome of the war to a certain extent.”

“Then send some more men to inquire about the Commander-in-chief of the Central Plains Army’s identity. The more details, the better.”

“Yes, but no matter who the Commander-in-chief is, we still have to take down Thousand Horsemen Pass tomorrow. We must not allow the Central Plains Army to gain a foothold south of Heavenly Mountain because that will cause serious trouble for both the Norland Cavalry and the Dragon Army.”

“Of course.”

Gu Shenwei had had a long talk with Dugu Xian. It was already late at night when he came out. Tu Pianpian was still waiting outside his tent. As soon as she saw him, she asked, “Has the Dragon King made a decision yet?”

“Yes.”

“So the Norland Cavalry will withdraw and stop attacking Thousand Horsemen Pass?” Tu Pianpian’s face beamed with delight.

“Tomorrow, I’ll take down Thousand Horsemen Pass first before deciding whether to retreat or not.”

Gu Shenwei entered the tent, and Tu Pianpian followed inside uninvited while continuously poking the ground with her cane, making a hole in the blanket after several pokes. “Why doesn’t the Dragon King understand? If the Norland horsemen take down Thousand Horsemen Pass, the Central Plains Army will have no choice but to start a war, and by that time, the Dragon King will also be implicated…”

Gu Shenwei waved his hand to stop her from speaking any more. “You believe that the Central Plains Army is invincible, but I don’t think so.”

“The Central Plains Army is invincible; isn’t that something that everybody knows?” Tu Pianpian asked puzzledly as if the Dragon King’s words had violated common sense. “Prince Xiao thanked for the Dragon King for saving his life, so he sent me to remind you about this.”

Gu Shenwei had no intention of arguing with the old woman so he continued speaking. “And this so-called Lord of Jade City, you did not speak about it much in detail. How can I believe you?”

“The Dragon King doesn’t have to believe me. Just believe in Prince Xiao. If he says that you can become the Lord of Jade City, then you will be the Lord of Jade City for sure.”

“I don’t know who Prince Xiao is,” Gu Shenwei replied coldly. He didn’t remember ever hearing about a so-called ‘Prince Xiao’ from his father, brothers, or any other relative.

Tu Pianpian stared at him with an incredulous look in her eyes. “Well, it seems that I’ve failed in my task. I promised to Prince Xiao that I would convince the Dragon King.”

“Sorry.” There was not a hint of repentance in Gu Shenwei’s voice at all. “I have no intention of going to war with the Central Plains Army, so you can go back and tell the Central Plains Army’s vanguard that the Norland Army will attack Thousand Horsemen Pass tomorrow. The Dragon King hopes that the Central Plains people will just watch from the sidelines and do nothing. If they really want to intervene, then that’s up to them.”

Tu Pianpian silently stared at the Dragon King for a while before suddenly turning and leaving without saying another word.

Gu Shenwei was sitting in the tent alone, sleepless. So when the sound of rapid footsteps rang out from outside, he was immediately on guard.

“Is the Dragon King still awake?”

“Yes.”

Red Bat lifted the flap and walked inside with a puzzled look on her face. “The instructor said that she was leaving and would never come back.”

“I know.”

“The Dragon King knows?” Red Bat’s confusion turned to consternation. “But… everything was going so well, and the Dragon King has…”

Gu Shenwei and Shangguan Ru had managed to hide their affair from the soldiers, but they couldn’t hide it from Red Bat’s eyes. She did not need to eavesdrop like Han Fen, but she could still guess at the general truth.

“Why didn’t you go with Instructor Shangguan?” Gu Shenwei stopped Red Bat from talking any more.

“I wanted to follow her, but the instructor wouldn’t allow me to. She said that I should stay and… take care of someone who needs me more.”

“Instructor Shangguan is right. If Long Fanyun needs you more, then so be it.”

“The Dragon King really doesn’t care?” Red Bat still found it hard to believe this.

Gu Shenwei did not answer. Red Bat blushed and withdrew.

Shangguan Ru had left quietly with the soldiers of the Land of Fragrance. Not many people knew about it, but not long after Red Bat left, Shulitu came to talk about it in person.

Shulitu, who had made himself the Khan, should not have been wandering around late at night with only a few men with him. He had probably noticed that the light in the Dragon King’s tent was still on, so he directly raised the tent flap and entered. “Liman left with the people of the Land of Fragrance. Did the Dragon King know about that?”

Gu Shenwei was really surprised this time. “Liman?”

“Mmm, Liman just said goodbye to me. He said that he had no face to stay in the army anymore and that since he used to be the horsekeeper for the Flame Foal, he would now go wherever the Flame Foal goes from now on. And so he asked me to let the Dragon King know about his decision.”

Gu Shenwei kept silent for a while before saying, “Let it be then. He who can’t stay never will.”

“What a pity.” Shulitu carefully avoided mentioning Shangguan Ru. “Liman is a talented man. I was planning to put him in a very important position.”

“Maybe he’ll come back one day.”

“I hope so. We are going to attack Thousand Horsemen Pass tomorrow, so I’ll leave the Dragon King alone.” Shulitu took his leave, disappointed with the outcome. Since the Dragon King had no intention of calling the people of the Land of Fragrance back, he could only give up on Liman.

The second battle between Gu Shenwei and Golden Roc Castle was about to begin. Compared to the first battle at Xiaoyao Lake, he was in an overwhelming position now. However, he felt no joy at the prospect of winning and stayed awake the whole night.