Chapter 373: Entering the Northern Battlefield

Chapter 373: Chapter 373: Entering the Northern Battlefield

"Men really are all the same, nothing but a bunch of philanderers!" Hao Meili said disdainfully.

"And who are you to say that? What does it matter to you what my granduncle does?" Ying Lan retorted immediately upon hearing Hao Meili's remark about Zhong Shan.

"Ying Lan, mind your manners. This is Hao Meili!" Zhong Shan interjected quickly.

"Huh?" Everyone paused for a moment, giving Hao Meili peculiar looks before falling silent.

"Oh!" Ying Lan gave Hao Meili a quick glance and responded.

Seeing the expressions on their faces, Hao Meili asked curiously, "Zhong Shan, what's going on? How do they know me? And what did she mean by saying you were in the main hall just now?"

Noticing Hao Meili's overbearing attitude, everyone raised their eyebrows but chose to remain silent.

"I mentioned you to them before. As for me being in the main hall, it's, uh, just that she missed me so much. She saw my portrait in the hall and had a slight hallucination. Isn't that right?" Zhong Shan, with a hint of cold sweat on his forehead, gave Ying Lan a meaningful look.

"Yes, that's right!" Ying Lan immediately chimed in.

Hao Meili eyed Zhong Shan skeptically, clearly not believing him. She then said, "You came back with me at the same time. How do you know she saw your portrait? Does she have one? Ask her to show it to me."

Hao Meili's words were domineering, as if she were determined to expose Zhong Shan's lie.

This put Zhong Shan in a bit of a bind. A portrait? How could Ying Lan possibly have a portrait of him? She saw him every day; what would she need a portrait for?

Ying Lan bit her lip, glanced at Zhong Shan, her face flushing slightly, and with a wave of her hand, she actually produced a scroll.

"Huh?" Zhong Shan was taken aback, and everyone else was also surprised. Did she really have one?

Gently unrolling it, the scroll revealed a meticulous ink painting. Every detail was finely rendered, and the figure depicted was unmistakably Zhong Shan!

Zhong Shan's brow furrowed slightly, and Wei Taizhong, standing beside him, also frowned and let out a small sigh.

"See? There you go," Ying Lan said, blushing as she quickly rolled up the scroll and shot a furtive glance at Zhong Shan.

How did Ying Lan have a portrait of Zhong Shan? And from the look of it, judging by the intricate details and style, it was clear that Ying Lan herself had painted it.

"Alright, it's just a lousy painting. What's there to be embarrassed about?" Hao Meili shook her head dismissively.

At this moment, the huge golden dragon beside them shrank rapidly, in an instant transforming into a creature no longer than a foot, and crawled onto Hao Meili's shoulder.

"True Dragon Bloodline?" Yi Yan raised an eyebrow in surprise.

"Ha, the old guy has some keen eyes!" Hao Meili said unabashedly.

Upon hearing Hao Meili's remark, Yi Yan could only shake his head with a wry smile.

"Hao Meili, I haven't seen them for a long time and have much to discuss. How about Taizhong takes you around nearby?" Zhong Shan suggested.

"Alright, I have no interest in your nonsense," Hao Meili nodded.

"Taizhong!" Zhong Shan called out.

"Yes!" Wei Taizhong responded immediately.

Subsequently, Wei Taizhong led Hao Meili away. Seeing her leave, everyone breathed a collective sigh of relief.

"Yes, Your Majesty. We've just received word that all the sects on Heavenly Wolf Island have been cleared by the Great Zhen Dynasty. Moreover, all our spies in the Great Zhen Dynasty have been assassinated overnight," the minister reported.

"Cleared out? All assassinated?" Du Xiu frowned.

"Indeed. What do you think this signifies?" Six Paths looked at Du Xiu.

"It signifies that the Great Zhen Dynasty is about to enter our battlefield. As for the assassination of all our spies, it must be the work of the Great Zhen Dynasty's 'Shadow Guards'," Du Xiu speculated after a moment's consideration.

"Correct. In just over twenty years, the Great Zhen Dynasty, which was once a mere mortal realm, has developed at an astonishing rate, almost unnaturally fast. Their military cultivation levels are now nearing ours. In just over twenty years? How is that possible? Unless they used an endless supply of spirit stones to create an area of boundless spiritual energy, it wouldn't be feasible," Six Paths said with a frown.

"How could that be possible? If it's truly as Your Majesty says, then how many spirit stones would they need? How could they possibly have that many? Even if they signed a contract with Emperor Xuan Sha, there's no way he would use his own reserves to elevate these mortals," a minister questioned with a frown.

"But our people have indeed discovered areas overflowing with spirit stones," Six Paths expressed his concern.

"Your Majesty, this Great Zhen Dynasty will surely become a formidable enemy for our empire in the future. We must act quickly. With each passing day, they grow stronger," Du Xiu advised.

"Precisely. We need to act swiftly. Inform everyone to accelerate the conquest. We must seize control of the northern battlefield as quickly as possible," Six Paths commanded.

"Understood!" Du Xiu responded immediately.

The Northern Battlefield

The tide of battle suddenly shifted. The Yin Moon Empire became unexpectedly aggressive, pushing back the three allied dynasties at every turn. Initially, the three dynasties should have united against the common enemy, the Yin Moon Empire.

However, in a shocking turn of events, the Ming Dynasty abruptly changed its strategy. Instead of resisting the Yin Moon Empire, they started attacking a neighboring ally, turning their forces against another dynasty.

What was happening? Had the Ming Dynasty lost its mind? How could they betray their allies? Didn't they understand the principle of mutual destruction? Had the Ming Dynasty surrendered to the Yin Moon Empire?

The battlefield became extraordinarily chaotic. The once unremarkable Ming Dynasty suddenly displayed precise and strategic warfare, achieving victory after victory. In the past month, ever since their betrayal, they hadn't lost a single battle.

The battlefield now belonged to the Yin Moon Empire and the Ming Dynasty. These two empires rampaged across the land, conquering and subduing the other two dynasties with relentless force.

In a large camp of the Ming Dynasty, Yi Yan sat at the command table, surrounded by numerous generals, both those he had brought and those originally from the Ming Dynasty. They looked at Yi Yan with utter respect, admiring this suddenly emerging commander who was proving to be extraordinarily capable.

"Tie Xue!" Yi Yan called out.

"Here!" Tie Xue responded immediately.

"Up ahead is the imperial city of the Great Yan Dynasty. The city is defenseless now. Take 400,000 troops and capture it," Yi Yan commanded.

"Commander, what about the enemy forces on our eastern and western flanks?" Tie Xue asked, his face filled with concern.

"Don't worry. Lin Xiao and Ying Lan should already be in position," Yi Yan replied confidently.

"Understood, sir!" Tie Xue responded and left to carry out the order.

Simultaneously, just as Yi Yan predicted, in the southeastern and southwestern forests near Yi Yan's army, two elite forces emerged. Each bore a large commanding flag with a single golden character embroidered on it.

The first flag read "Lin," representing Lin Xiao, the commander of the Great Zhen Dynasty's First Corps.

The second flag read "Wei," representing Ying Lan, the commander of the Great Zhen Dynasty's Second Corps.

The grand battle was officially underway!

(To be continued)