Chapter 123 - 106: Purgatory Battlefield and Choice

Chapter 123: Chapter 106: Purgatory Battlefield and Choice

Even Lu Yuan couldn’t help but frown at the scene.

"Kill!"

When a squad of Wolf Soldiers broke through the phalanx ahead and drew near, Lu Yuan roared.

The three thousand soldiers behind him swiftly changed formation.

Row after row of shields rose, enclosing them on all sides. As their energies linked, it was as if they had erected several Copper Gates.

Even the space overhead was shielded.

From the gaps between these shields, long spears jutted out. The moment anyone approached, countless spear tips would thrust out from the solid shield wall.

At the top of the shield array, only Lu Yuan’s figure was visible.

He wielded a greatbow, continuously firing arrows at the enemy.

He pushed his Torrential Rain Arrow Skill to its limits, and charging Wolf Soldiers could be seen falling from time to time.

This troop of three thousand men was like a reef in the ocean, withstanding the repeated charges of the Xirong army.

Around Lu Yuan and his phalanx, the other Captains were also using Arrays to block the Wolf Soldiers.

However, they weren’t very effective. Most were just First-Grade Arrays; the more powerful ones were merely Second-grade Arrays.

The Wolf Soldiers on the opposing side were also forming arrays to counter them.

The result was predictable.

Lu Yuan continuously drew his bow and shot down enemies. As the battle raged on, he lost count of how many he had killed.

An unknown amount of time passed.

The ground grew muddy, and rivers of blood flowed across the low-lying parts of the plain.

At the same time, the system’s voice echoed unceasingly in his mind.

[Host has killed an enemy. Torrential Rain Arrow Skill Level +10]

...

[Host has killed an enemy. Spring and Autumn Sword Skill Level +10]

...

[Host has used an array to kill enemies. Shaking Mountain Copper Gate Formation Skill Level +10]

...

The notifications rang out one after another, and Lu Yuan could clearly feel his power steadily increasing.

However, the impact of the battle on him was immense. It was a good thing his Blood Refining Golden Bell Shield had achieved Entering the Stance, making his Defense Power incredibly strong. Otherwise...

He feared he wouldn’t have been able to hold on. Many of the plates on his armor had already been smashed off.

Although he was killing enemies from a distance, the Xirong Wolf Soldiers were no pushovers.

The javelins they hurled at him were just as deadly.

At the rear of the battlefield, Xiao Heng stared at the great clash between the two armies, his face devoid of expression.

At some unknown point, a contingent of Imperial Guard archers had been assembled on the outskirts of the battlefield. They were a battle-supervision unit, tasked with shooting down any Border Army soldiers who dared to flee.

A Vice General at his side spoke softly, "Marshal Xiao, four hours have passed. Do we continue?"

"Continue," Xiao Heng said coldly. "If we let these Wolf Soldiers retreat now, wouldn’t all those Border Army Warriors have died in vain?" His voice was devoid of any emotion.

At this, the Seventh Prince couldn’t help but ask, "Marshal Xiao, in a battle involving hundreds of thousands, if they remain entangled like this, I fear it won’t end for several days. Can the Warriors endure such a prolonged and grueling fight?"

"Of course they can’t. But neither can these Wolf Soldiers. Haven’t you noticed? They’ve deployed their entire main force. Their rear Central Army numbers no more than ten or twenty thousand."

"As long as the Border Army can wear down the Wolf Soldiers on the battlefield, it will be a great meritorious deed."

Hearing this, even the Seventh Prince was shocked, but his shock was quickly followed by a surge of respect.

’As expected of Xiao Heng.’

’He means to decide the outcome in a single, decisive battle.’

’A battle like this may seem to incur heavy losses, but if it were to drag on, the total casualties might be far greater than what we’re facing now.’

Then, Xiao Heng once again ordered coldly, "Wave the command flags. Order the entire Border Army that they must hold back the Wolf Soldiers for three days. If the enemy collapses after three days, it will be a great service to our Dayong."

"If they fail to hold on for three days, all officers at the rank of Captain and above will be subject to military justice."

He continued, "Order the supervising Imperial Guard to advance. They are not to relax their bowstrings without a direct command. Any Border Army soldier who retreats is to be killed without mercy."

He intended to turn the battlefield into a giant crucible, a trial by fire to wear the Wolf Soldiers down to nothing.

Down below, Lu Yuan gazed out at the battlefield. As far as he could see, there was a black tide of Wolf Soldiers. The Dayong Border Army’s formations were continuously being shattered, only to be painstakingly reformed.

Then they would be shattered again, and finally, they would vanish completely.

After all, there was still a considerable gap in strength between the Border Army and the Wolf Soldiers.

By the second day, their army’s numbers had been reduced by nearly fifty thousand men.

The Xirong Wolf Soldiers seemed to have figured out Dayong’s strategy, as the gongs signaling a retreat rang out repeatedly.

But on the Dayong side, war drums thundered, ordering the army to press forward. Both sides were fighting on foot, and by this point, they were hopelessly mired in the conflict, like men trapped in quicksand.

It wasn’t a situation one could simply walk away from.

The two armies could only continue their grueling war of attrition.

By the afternoon of the second day, some of Dayong’s Warriors finally broke. But just as they turned to retreat, a volley of arrows rained down and cut them down where they stood.

The Imperial Guard at the rear was like a wall of steel.

Someone at the front line shouted, "Die on the battlefield, and your families will receive a pension from the imperial court! You will be remembered as heroes of Dayong! But if you die at the hands of our own men, your families will be implicated and exiled!"

"Why would you choose that fate? Just hold on for three days, and you will be heroes of Dayong! Marshal Xiao has decreed that all officers at the rank of Centurion and above will be awarded a third-class merit!"

Such cries rang out from all directions.

At that moment, even those who had entertained thoughts of escape could only grit their teeth and endure.

The Seventh Prince now felt he had witnessed a true battlefield. He looked at Xiao Heng and said, "Venerable Sir, after this battle is over, I suspect these Border Army soldiers will be forged into battle-hardened elites."

"Those who can survive a battlefield like this will naturally be the capable ones. The commanding Captains, in particular, will likely experience a transformation. It’s not out of the question for them to be promoted into the Imperial Guard."