Chapter 309: Tiandou Sends Troops
In the three cities of Fullerton Province, the two cities closest to the Tiandou Empire had already withdrawn all their guarding troops, leaving only about ten thousand stationed in the city closest to Xing Luo.
It seemed that Dai Tianyu wanted to see if the Tiandou Empire would take advantage of the chaos and attack Xing Luo. If Qian Renxue didn't send people, then these ten thousand troops would continue to take over the defense of the three border cities after Xing Luo City was relieved. If the Tiandou army did indeed invade, these troops could retreat without delay.
Ning Bei understood the details and sneered inwardly. Even at a time like this, Dai Tianyu was still scheming. He wanted to see how the enemy would handle the beast tide.
After watching the hundreds of thousands of border troops from Xing Luo retreat, Ning Bei then flew towards the Fasno Province of the Tiandou Empire, the location where he had previously arranged to meet with Qian Renxue's troops.
With his current speed, the hundreds of kilometers took him only a few dozen minutes to cover. Looking at the hundreds of thousands of Tiandou army stationed outside Nodding City, Ning Bei nodded to himself.
In the past, the overall quality of Tiandou's soldiers had been poor, largely due to the deterrence of the Spirit Hall. The lack of conflict between Xing Luo and Tiandou over the years had contributed to this, but Qian Renxue had clearly spent considerable effort improving this over the past two years.
At the very least, Ning Bei could not see any signs of weakness in the army in front of him. Instead, the soldiers were filled with a murderous aura, clearly having undergone intense training.
Using his spiritual power, Ning Bei scanned the situation inside the main tent and raised an eyebrow upon seeing a number of familiar faces.
"This works, no need to waste time proving my identity."
With that, Ning Bei quickly dashed into the main tent, startling the few people inside who were discussing military matters.
"Who?"
The voice shouting out was from Meng Shenji, the head of the three teaching committees of the Tiandou Royal Academy, and a Soul Douluo at the 86th rank with a Black Demon martial soul. His background was from the Spirit Hall, so it seemed that Qian Renxue had drawn him in after securing the throne. Now, he was the general commanding the Tiandou army.
Behind Meng Shenji stood another familiar face to Ning Bei—the Serpent Spear Douluo, one of the "Hmph-Ha Duo" and also known as the "Title Guard." He was likely stationed here by Qian Renxue as a precaution.
"It's me, no need to be nervous."
Upon recognizing Ning Bei's face, the commanders inside the tent all relaxed, and Serpent Spear Douluo even showed a smile. He was the one who knew the most about the details of this operation, and Ning Bei's arrival meant that everything was in place, and they could proceed with the next steps.
In fact, Ning Bei had never directly interacted with Meng Shenji, only briefly meeting him during the coronation ceremony. But considering that Meng Shenji was now the main commander of the operation, it seemed that Qian Renxue had informed him of many internal matters.
"Meng Shenji greets Young Master Ning."
Meng Shenji, his white hair already showing, respectfully clasped his hands in greeting, while the surrounding commanders, though unfamiliar with Ning Bei, understood he was a person of great importance and followed his lead.
Ning Bei waved his hand, signaling them to forgo such formalities.
"I don't hold any official rank or title in Tiandou, so no need for all this. I assume you all are already aware of the purpose of my visit."
"Indeed, His Majesty has ordered us to wait here for Young Master Ning's arrival, and all subsequent commands will be at your discretion."
Ning Bei nodded. That made things much easier, and there was no need for further explanations.
"Alright, I don't have anything to command you on. I'm not particularly knowledgeable about military matters."
"I'm here to deliver two pieces of information: First, Xing Luo City is currently surrounded by tens of thousands of soul beasts. They will not be able to support the border conflict."
"Second, all the troops stationed at the three cities near Tiandou have already retreated to Xing Luo City, leaving only about ten thousand troops near Xing Luo to handle any emergencies."
"I'm sure after receiving the information, you should be able to handle the rest, right?"
With that, Ning Bei locked eyes with Meng Shenji, waiting for his response.
Meng Shenji had no doubt about Ning Bei's information. After all, their Emperor had already ordered everyone to follow Ning Bei's commands.
"Young Master Ning, I understand. I will organize the army to begin an assault on the three border cities and make arrangements after taking them."
"Good, you handle it."
Ning Bei then exchanged a glance with Serpent Spear Douluo before disappearing from the tent.
A few minutes later, deep in the forest near Nodding City, Serpent Spear Douluo slowly approached Ning Bei.
"Young Master Ning!"
"Did Xue'er only send this army? While these forces are enough to take the three border cities, they clearly aren't enough to expand their gains, even though Dai Tianyu is currently too busy to divide his attention."
Serpent Spear wasn't surprised by Ning Bei's question, as if he had already anticipated it.
"Young Master Ning, this is already the maximum military force that the Young Master can mobilize. The other major kingdoms and duchies won't send reinforcements unless they see some results. They won't commit more troops to help the Young Master take Xing Luo."
"After all..."
Serpent Spear trailed off, knowing that in the eyes of the older officials, Xue Qinghe was still a young, inexperienced emperor. Even though he had been somewhat competent these past two years, they wouldn't bet everything on him.
Ning Bei understood what Serpent Spear hadn't finished saying. He sneered and replied:
"Hmph, if they don't trust Xue'er now, then they'd better not try to get their hands on the spoils after the war. Otherwise, I won't hesitate to abolish this feudal system."
As Ning Bei spoke, the temperature in the surrounding area dropped, making Serpent Spear feel a chill down his spine. He unconsciously swallowed.
The young man, who had once seemed easily manageable ten years ago, had now grown into someone he had to look up to.
"Young Master Ning, the Young Master has already reached agreements with the royal families of several major kingdoms and duchies. If we can quickly take the border cities, they will continue to send reinforcements to support the Young Master in attacking the interior of Xing Luo."
"That's more like it."
With the temperature returning to normal, Serpent Spear relaxed slightly and muttered inwardly:
"Why are you taking your frustration out on me, your scout?"
"Alright, once the main army sets out, you can follow along. Once we're in the interior of Xing Luo, you can take action if we encounter strong enemies."
"Yes, Young Master Ning."
In the past, Serpent Spear had been respectful to Ning Bei because of Qian Renxue's presence, but now it was because of Ning Bei's own powerful strength. Serpent Spear had no objections to Ning Bei's orders.
After spending some time on troop mobilization and pre-battle preparations, it was now noon, and the army that had been waiting for Ning Bei's orders was ready to depart.
With Meng Shenji's order, the hundreds of thousands of troops began marching toward the three border cities.
At the same time, Xing Luo's scouts quickly relayed the information back to the border commanders.
The Xing Luo commander, upon receiving the news that Tiandou had sent troops, sighed and turned to his subordinates.
"Retreat. The Tiandou army is mobilizing hundreds of thousands of troops, heading straight for the three cities."
The commanders had no objections. They had received orders not to resist the Tiandou army. If they came, they would retreat.
They would then join forces with the defending troops from Panshi City to defend the border.
(END CHAPTER)
Thank you for the support, friends. If you want to read more chapters in advance, go to my Patreon.
Read 30 Chapters In Advance: patreon.com/Johanssen10