The figures in the sky fell silent for a moment. After a short while, the woman in palace attire said, "Even if he wanted us to intervene, a single strand of karmic luck is ample price. This child is quite good."
The middle-aged man of the Xu family also said, "In a life-or-death battle, he holds supreme treasures yet hoards nothing for himself, not forgetting to look after his colleagues and subordinates. He bears the demeanor of a great commander."
As they offered a few words of praise, they suddenly noticed another plain-looking middle-aged man appearing beside them.
The elder surnamed Cui asked, "Brother Li, what wind blew you here?"
The middle-aged man pointed a finger. In everyone's eyes, two figures on the chaotic battlefield below lit up. These were two of the Sixteen Scions of the Prominent Clans, a young man and a young woman.
"These two children weren't prominent back in the clan, but recently they suddenly earned heavenly merits, and their merit points have advanced by leaps and bounds. The clan was curious, so I came over to see what was going on."
On the battlefield, the two Li family youths were fighting bathed in blood. Both wielded longspears with refined technique, completely devoid of superfluous movements, drawing subtle nods of approval from those watching in the sky.
The elder surnamed Wang suddenly uttered a soft exclamation and said, "The spirit and essence of these children's spear techniques share a seventy-to-eighty-percent resemblance. Could it be that they only learned it after arriving here?"
The middle-aged man of the Xu family said, "That should be the case. Yi'er studies the sword dao and has never touched spearmanship. Originally, she had no interest in spears either."
A spear was a battlefield weapon of slaughter—massive in size, and difficult to expand or contract at will even when crafted into a magic artifact. Moreover, spearmanship demanded blood with every thrust and subduing the enemy in a single blow, so almost none of the young ladies from the prominent clans ever learned the spear.
A glint flashed in the eyes of the woman in palace attire as she remarked, "If they truly only learned it after coming here, to train their spearmanship to such a level in just a single month is genuinely no easy feat."
To earn even a comment of "no easy feat" from her meant it was truly rare under heaven.
The two elders stopped playing chess as well and began observing the battlefield intently.
To the northeast, an iron torrent of a vast army surged rapidly forward. Multiple dark teal banners were raised among the ranks, embroidered with the character for "Speed" in gold thread. The banners bound the army's martial qi into a unified whole. The soldiers marched with synchronized strides, covering a zhang with every step, capable of traveling a hundred li in half a shichen.
At the center of the army were row upon row of grand carriages. These carriages were also magic artifacts, billows of cloud mist pouring out from beneath them. Despite their colossal bodies, the wheels left only faint ruts on the road.
A bird flew straight into a tower-carriage at the center. Upon touching the ground, it transformed into a soldier and reported, "Commander-in-Chief, the Shamans' movements have been scouted! Their center army of eighty thousand is three hundred li from us. Their rear army of fifty thousand is three hundred and eighty li from us. The center army marches at a speed of one hundred li per shichen, while the rear army marches at eighty li."
Inside the tower-carriage stood over a dozen generals. Half of them still wore Northern Border military uniforms; every one of them brimmed with murderous intent, their aura visibly a cut above the rest.
Yue Jinshan studied the map, silently calculating the bearings, then suddenly said in a heavy voice, "It is a trap!"
Several generals were somewhat baffled and looked at Yue Jinshan.
Yue Jinshan asked the soldier, "Did you see the reality of their center army with your own eyes?"
The soldier dared not lie and answered, "I did not approach closely. This lowly one feared detection by the Great Shamans, so I observed their martial qi from afar and calculated based on formation size and the count of perimeter soldiers."
This was standard military practice, as certain Great Shamans possessed limited abilities to survey heaven and earth. These scout soldiers were merely at the Dao Foundation; drawing too close would get them exposed.
Yue Jinshan said, "Scout again! Send more men. Regardless of the cost, I want the truth of the Shaman center army!"
A resolute expression appeared on the soldier's face, and he took his orders and departed. Once this order came down, there was no telling how many lives would be fed to the Shamans.
Yue Jinshan furrowed his brows tightly and said slowly, "If my calculations are correct, the Shamans' main force is not in the center army, but stationed in the rear, waiting for us to approach. When we move to swallow their rear army in one bite, we will discover we've run straight into their main force. This Shaman army... their objective is not the domain, but us!"
Many among the generals were Yue Jinshan's veteran subordinates from the Northern Border, naturally convinced of their commander's abilities. Someone said, "Then let's just march over and fight them head-on!"
Another general said, "Or we can increase our speed and pounce straight at their center army. If the Shamans are truly bluffing, the nearly hundred li separating their front and rear forces gives us ample time to shatter their center army first."
Both of these were fierce generals who had come from the Northern Border. However, another general transferred from within Western Jin said, "Why not hold our ground and wait for the Shaman army to come to us? Then we can await the weary at our ease and secure a guaranteed victory."
The Northern Border general retorted, "That won't do! What if the Shaman army wipes out the domain first, then turns around to fight a decisive battle against us?"
"The domain's destruction has nothing to do with us."
The Northern Border general replied in displeasure, "Dividing forces and being picked off piecemeal is a cardinal taboo in the art of war. Even if we use the domain as a stepping stone, we must launch a surprise attack while the Shaman army is assaulting it; only then can we inflict maximum casualties. How much strength can a mere domain have? The Shamans won't expend much to swallow them, and then we will still have to face an undiminished Shaman army—one that has no worries about their rear."
The domestic general refused to yield: "The domain is filled with rabble; if they all die, it just saves us trouble. Even if they can't deplete much, they can still take down a few thousand Shaman troops. Why not wait until the fighting over there nears its end before setting out? We'll arrive just as the Shamans are clearing the battlefield, and fulfill the King's wishes as well. Wouldn't that be killing two birds with one stone?"
The Northern Border general glared furiously and barked, "Allied forces in peril, yet you sit as motionless as a mountain? If a piece of trash like you were on the Northern Border, I'd be the first to chop you down!"
"Enough," Yue Jinshan said faintly, silencing the assembled generals.
He stared at the map. After a moment, he said, "Continue forward and strike straight for their rear army! We have all fought the Liao barbarians on the Northern Border. If the Shamans want to fight, we might as well test their mettle."
The domestic general's expression shifted slightly. He said, "My Lord, the Shaman army comes prepared; is there any need for us to clash head-on? Wouldn't it be better to strike their center army first?"
Yue Jinshan said indifferently, "After finishing off their center army, we would still have to fight their rear army. As long as we defeat the Shamans' main force, their center and vanguard will already be in the bag."
The Northern Border general grew even more disgruntled and cursed, "What kind of thing are you, you little bastard, to have so many damn questions! Does the Commander need you wagging your tongue about how to wage war? If you don't want to fight, get the hell out and leave your troops behind!"
The general dared not speak further, only shooting the Northern Border general a venomous glare laden with malice.
With an order from Yue Jinshan, the vast army slightly shifted direction, picked up speed, and surged toward the Shaman rear army.
Yet the army had advanced only several dozen li when a cyan falcon suddenly swooped in like lightning and transformed into human form before Yue Jinshan. This person wore cyan official robes with a jade belt around his waist—the attire of a court official. The moment he appeared, he declared, "The King decrees: you are ordered to halt your march immediately and refrain from engaging the Shaman army!"
An uproar erupted among the Northern Border generals, while the domestic generals remained silent, quietly exchanging glances.
Yue Jinshan pondered for a moment, then took the royal decree and placed it on the desk. He said, "A general in the field may decline even sovereign commands. As commander of this army facing a formidable enemy, I may act as circumstances dictate. Pass the order: the army continues forward!"
Chapter 194