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Chapter 1164: Chapter 468 The Northern Expedition Ends Chapter 1164: Chapter 468 The Northern Expedition Ends “`

With Bei Gu City’s fall, Central State was now unified.

For Lu Yuan, the excitement and elation over this groundbreaking achievement lasted only a few days.

Soon after, he was overwhelmed by a slew of tedious affairs, such as receiving the surrender of a million troops from Xu State and taking charge of the ten prefectures of Yuzhou, which diluted his passion.

There were simply too many things to deal with.

The Northern Expedition had been won too quickly, with such abundant spoils that even Chu State found it hard to digest.

What was even more troublesome was that in addition to handling these matters, Lu Yuan also had to prepare for a new campaign.

Despite the surrender of the million-strong Xu Army at Bei Gu City, their core generals and Inborn Grandmasters had escaped back to Xu State with Emperor Xu.

Though Xu State had lost three prefectures in Yuzhou and suffered a significant loss of territory and population, it was severely weakened.

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But back in their homeland of Liang State, they still had some resources left.

According to the Imperial Council, Xu State, like other states in recent years, had relocated a substantial portion of its population and assets to Central State.

However, they likely still had a population of six to seven million remaining in Liang State.

With this as a foundation, they might be able to gather a military force of a million strong with some effort.

Source: NovelFull.com, updated on Ɲονǥᴑ.ƈο

Moreover, with the bulk of the Xu military officers and Inborn Grandmasters who had fled back with Emperor Xu, Xu State’s strength remained formidable.

If left unchecked, it would certainly cause more trouble in the future.

With the mindset that being busy now would save effort later, it was better to wrap up everything at once rather than having to work harder in the future.

After briefly organizing the surrendered troops from Bei Gu City and the affairs of Yuzhou,

just ten days passed, and as soon as the situation in Yuzhou began to stabilize and the region saw initial peace, Lu Yuan immediately led his reorganized elite army of three hundred thousand, along with over a hundred Inborn Grandmasters.

He continued on the northern campaign, following the trail left by the fleeing Emperor Xu and his men, heading towards Xu State in Liang State.

Swift action is valuable in war, and deploying troops early rather than late is advisable.

Otherwise, by the time Emperor Xu and his men could regroup and prepare their defense, summoning a large army,

Even though they would still be no match for Lu Yuan, the tragic deaths and injuries suffered by the Xu Army in a drawn-out battle would be inevitable.

Now that Central State was settled and the Nine Provinces’ submission was merely a matter of time,

Lu Yuan already saw himself as the sovereign of the world, viewing the people of the Nine Provinces as his own subjects and all the people of the world as his personal property.

As he worked towards unification, saving even one life meant that Chu State’s foundation would be that much richer in the future.

Therefore, in the conquest of Xu State, the fewer people that died, the better.

Breaking Xu must be fast!

Embracing this concept, Lu Yuan’s expedition was once again made up primarily of elites.

The army rode swift horses, rotating among five steeds, covering five hundred miles in a single day, and arrived at the banks of the great river in just three days.

Then, gathering civilian boats, he immediately led his troops across the river.

Even because of the scarcity of boats, Lu Yuan left the three hundred thousand-strong army behind, leaving only a few avatars to supervise them as they followed slowly.

He himself led three thousand cavalrymen and more than ninety Inborn Grandmasters who had crossed the river first, striking swiftly towards Xu State.

The target was Xu State’s Imperial Capital, Five Goat City.

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As it turned out, Lu Yuan’s haste was highly effective.

As he led the army forward, they bypassed numerous prefectures and counties of Xu State, sweeping through amidst panic like the wind.

Even as local officials dispatched messengers to urgently inform those further back,

The messengers, despite their haste, were slower than the advancing Chu Army.

Trailing behind, choking on dust and witnessing the disarray left in their wake, they could only heave sighs of exasperation.

By the time the message was delivered, the Chu Army had already passed through the counties behind them, prompting yet another set of messengers and a new cycle of pursuit.

In this game of catch-up, the Chu Army, like heavenly soldiers, arrived suddenly at Five Goat City before Xu State could even react.

At this time,

The return of the Xu State monarch and ministers to Five Goat City had been a mere three days earlier.

Compared to Lu Yuan’s relentless chase, these fleeing monarchs and ministers of Xu State had indeed traveled swiftly when escaping Yuzhou, fearing a pursuit by the Chu Army.

However, once they reached Hebei in Liang State and no longer felt threatened by pursuers, they took some time to rest by the river.

During this pause, they focused on assembling local troops, ordering the prefectures and counties along the river to increase their soldiers and strengthen river defenses.

Only when the defensive line was somewhat fortified did Emperor Xu lead his high officials and generals back to Five Goat City.

Without the threat of the Chu Army on the way back and fatigued from the journey, there was no need for them to rush.

They rested well along the way, travelling leisurely in carriages and carts towards their country.

This lackadaisical attitude resulted in Lu Yuan’s force, even though they set off more than ten days later,

They still caught up to the Xu State monarch and ministers at Five Goat City without much delay.

The incredible pace had extraordinary effects.

Because at that time, Emperor Xu and his court, who had just returned to Xu State, had barely recovered from their weariness and had come up with a plan to levy a large army within the country to confront the Chu Army.

The plan had barely been drawn up, and the people of Xu State never anticipated that the Chu Army would pursue them with such urgency, leaving them no time to respond.

Therefore, they were completely unprepared for the arrival of the Chu Army.

At this point in Five Goat City, there were only the original one hundred thousand defenders and a mere eight Inborn Grandmasters assigned to the summer quarters.

This level of strength obviously could not resist Lu Yuan’s thirty thousand elite troops and nearly a hundred Inborn Grandmasters.