Chapter 140: When the Star Loses Its Light (1)
Liu Guangshi, gripping his horse’s reins, scanned his surroundings.
Leading his army of fifty thousand, he rode at the center of the formation.
Their destination was Xiangyang Fortress, where Han Shizhong was waging a defensive battle. Currently, they were passing through Munhyang Village.
“We will establish our camp in this village and rest for a day before moving on.”
Lieutenant Wang Rang rode up and said cautiously:
“General, there are still villagers residing in this village.”
It was a village too cramped to accommodate even fifty thousand soldiers. Establishing a camp while keeping the residents was out of the question.
Yet, Liu Guangshi issued his command without a moment’s hesitation.
“Drive them all out.”
“Pardon…?”
“We came here, risking our lives, to protect them. Surely they can spare a single night? They should count it an honor and be grateful.”
Wang Rang did not have the courage to defy his words. There were more than a few lieutenants who had been flogged after provoking the General’s fiery temper. It was actually surprising that he hadn’t ordered them to plunder the villagers.
“Understood.”
Under Wang Rang’s direction, the soldiers began to drive the villagers out. Hit by this bolt from the blue, the villagers had no choice but to leave, venting their frustration.
By the time they completed establishing the camp using the civilian houses, the sun had already set.
Liu Guangshi resided in a magnificent field barracks set up at the center of the village.
Sitting inside the barracks, he gripped his teacup. An incomprehensible excitement was written on his face. He looked as if he possessed the entire world.
“The emperor… If the Regional Commissioner of Anxi throws his weight behind me, there is nothing I cannot do.”
It was just when he was deep in self-absorption. Suddenly, the outside of the barracks grew noisy, and horns began to blow from various directions.
“Enemy attack!”
“The enemy has invaded!”
“Everyone, prepare for battle!”
Rushing out of the barracks, Liu Guangshi surveyed the surroundings.
Beyond the village, dozens of Jin Dynasty flags were fluttering above the grass. Yet, battle had not erupted anywhere.
“Do not make a fuss!”
At Liu Guangshi’s roar, Lieutenant Nam Cheon, who was nearby, approached.
“General, it is a sneak attack by the enemy!”
At that moment, Liu Guangshi’s face contorted. His right hand vanished, and in the next instant, it whipped against Nam Cheon’s helmet.
Clang!
“Urgh!”
As Nam Cheon stumbled, clutching his helmet, the roar continued.
“A lieutenant cannot even recognize such a simple deception?!”
Composing himself, Nam Cheon focused on the Jin Dynasty flags. They were merely fluttering in place, without any movement.
“I-I am sorry…”
“Ignore that direction and reinforce the defenses elsewhere!”
“Yes, General!”
Once Nam Cheon disappeared, Liu Guangshi headed back into his barracks.
‘It is not a feint to strike the west either. Was it merely a warning sent to us? Insane bastards.’
To plant flags near the enemy camp and vanish. He could not grasp the enemy’s exact intention.
It was just when the night had fully set and the soldiers were falling asleep. Another disturbance arose.
Boom! Boom! Boom!
It was the sound of drums announcing a march. This time, sensing something was wrong, Liu Guangshi grabbed his spear and rushed out.
The soldiers had already awoken and were in battle formation.
“Everyone, form the lines!”
Everyone gripped their weapons, forming a defensive array. The soldiers’ sleep had completely vanished.
Yet, something was unnatural. No matter how long they waited, only the sound of drums echoed, and the enemy was nowhere to be seen.
Wang Rang, who was nearby, said cautiously:
“It is strange. There is no reason for them to beat drums and announce their sneak attack, is there?”
This was something Liu Guangshi had already noticed.
His eyes, reflecting his Transformation Realm mastery, glowed as they stared into the distance. No matter how closely he examined, no large enemy force was visible. They had been toyed with by a deception tactic once again.
Liu Guangshi’s blazing gaze turned to Sima Zhe, the commander of the Yongmu Regiment.
“Sweep those damn bastards away.”
Nodding once, Sima Zhe dashed forward. True to his reputation as the army’s most valiant general, his movement was like lightning.
After he vanished, Liu Guangshi pointed at another lieutenant. It was Lieutenant Han Sang, who led the scouts.
“Get over here.”
It was not difficult to guess what he intended to do.
His face pale with fear, Han Sang approached the General hesitantly. Immediately, Liu Guangshi’s foot struck his chest.
Thud!
“Urgh!”
Han Sang rolled once before rising unsteadily.
Although he had been humiliated before his subordinates, no one looked at him strangely, as it was a common occurrence.
“What kind of bastard are you?! You can’t even prevent those fellows from infiltrating this far?”
“I-I am sorry, General.”
The huffing Liu Guangshi scolded him for a long time.
Before long, Sima Zhe, who had gone to attack, returned. In his grip was an enemy soldier, gasping for breath. The soldier’s body was covered in mud, and he was camouflaged with grass and branches.
“They fled in all directions, so I could only capture this one.”
A look of surprise appeared on Liu Guangshi’s face. He could not believe Sima Zhe had only captured one.
“Was their lightfoot technique that fast?”
“Every one of them was above the first-class level. They are superior to the soldiers of our Yongmu Regiment.”
He was speaking lowly of the elite unit he led. Though frustrated, he had to acknowledge the enemy’s caliber.
“They must be a Jin Dynasty special unit. Interrogate him and make him reveal everything.”
“Understood.”
Sima Zhe disappeared somewhere, dragging the unconscious enemy soldier.
Liu Guangshi also turned and went back to his barracks.
The commotion gradually died down. However, the soldiers, whose sleep had been completely ruined, had to spend the night wide awake.
The next morning.
The army resumed its march.
No matter how wide the road was, an army of fifty thousand could not move while maintaining a battle array. The soldiers, stretched out like a long snake, walked without rest.
Although they reinforced their scouting, monitoring the entire flank was no easy feat.
Just as the column entered a canyon bordered by a mountain slope on the right, Liu Guangshi, who was at the center, whipped his head up. His sharp senses detected something unnatural.
“Send scouts up there.”
“Yes, General.”
It was just as Han Sang was issuing commands to the scouts. However, the ambushing Jin Dynasty soldiers were a step faster.
A command echoed from atop the slope.
“Fire!”
Whoosh! Whoosh!
Arrows shot directly, beginning to pierce the marching soldiers mercilessly.
Thud! Thud!
“Urgh!”
“Argh!”
As about a hundred soldiers fell in an instant, Lieutenant Wang Rang rode around, shouting:
“Do not panic! Return fire!”
The archers drew their bows, but since the enemy was hidden behind trees, aiming was not easy.
Enraged, Liu Guangshi snatched a spear from a nearby soldier.
“These rats dare!”
Leaving his grip, the spear soared into the sky. Spinning and tearing through the wind, it was imbued with a significant amount of internal energy.
Whoosh!
The spear tip pierced through a tree, skewering an enemy soldier.
Thump!
“Sweep them all away!”
Sima Zhe began to climb the slope, leading his soldiers. However, by the time they moved, the enemy was already fleeing in all directions.
Watching this, Liu Guangshi’s hands trembled in rage.
Since the enemy’s numbers were few, the casualties were not major. The problem was that the soldiers’ morale was dropping continuously.
Sima Zhe, who had returned, said with frustration:
“There were only about a hundred of them.”
To think an army of fifty thousand was being toyed with by a hundred men. It was enough to drive one mad.
“Send the Yongmu Regiment and capture them all! Chase them to the end!”
“The moment we pursue, they scatter and flee, so it is not easy. If we pursue rashly, our Yongmu Regiment might be picked off one by one.”
Yet, the commander of the Yongmu Regiment could not wander around alone either. It was a risk for the army’s most valiant general to stray far from the main force.
“Whew. This is driving me insane.”
“Unless we have a special unit stronger than theirs, there is no way to catch them.”
Liu Guangshi placed his hand on his forehead and sighed, his head throbbing. Although the enemy’s attacks were like a light drizzle, their persistence made it incredibly annoying.
“Strengthen the guard and clear this area quickly.”
“Yes, General.”
The army resumed its march. And the Jin Dynasty’s sneak attacks continued without fail. Whenever a gap appeared, they would show up, launch arrows, and flee.
It was still tolerable during the day. Once night fell, they would blow horns or set fires before running away, driving the entire army mad with their constant deception.
At this point, the fatigue of the soldiers was reaching its limit. There was not a single soldier whose eyes were not hollow.
Unable to watch any longer, Lieutenant Nam Cheon visited the General’s barracks.
“General, the soldiers haven’t slept a wink for two days. At this rate, the entire army will collapse.”
How could Liu Guangshi not know this? The problem was that no matter how hard he thought, he could not find a solution.
Currently, Liu Guangshi was extremely irritable. His suppressed frustration finally exploded.
“Then go find a solution!”
Grabbing the tactical map on the table, he threw it at Nam Cheon. It was an attack imbued with internal energy in his fit of rage.
Nam Cheon reflexively twisted his upper body.
Boom!
“You dodge?!”
Feeling wronged, Nam Cheon’s hands trembled. Since he, too, was irritable, he lost control of his emotions.
“Why must I be struck? I haven’t slept at all and am doing my best.”
A hollow laugh escaped Liu Guangshi’s lips in disbelief.
In his entire life in the military, the number of people who had dared to defy him could be counted on one hand. And not a single one of them was still alive today.
“What did you just say?”
At that moment, Nam Cheon recalled being struck in front of his subordinates last night. His head spun, and he could no longer see straight. Even if he were to be beaten to death, he was going all in.
“Then will it be enough if I find a solution?”
One corner of Liu Guangshi’s mouth curved up.
Beating a lieutenant to death without a proper reason risked lowering the army’s morale. Since Nam Cheon had kindly provided an excuse himself, it was welcome. After all, he had been in need of someone to vent his anger on.
“Fine. I will give you two hours.”
His smiling face looked chilling.
There was no way Nam Cheon did not recognize the killing intent behind that smile. Bowing his head once, he left the General’s barracks in silence.
Although he felt relieved, regret washed over him once he regained his senses.
‘What have I done?’
The sword was drawn, and there was no turning back. He had spoken boldly, but what solution could he possibly find?
His shoulders slumped, he wandered aimlessly through the camp with weak steps, thinking of his fate of being beaten to death by Liu Guangshi in two hours.
“Whew…”
Just as he let out a sigh, a familiar figure came into his view. With his hands behind his back, he was following a junior officer toward the General’s barracks.
‘Is that…?’
Without a second thought, Nam Cheon ran over. Then, he asked the officer:
“Where are you going?”
“This officer has brought troops from Chang’an. He asked to be guided to the General…”
Nam Cheon quickly patted the officer’s shoulder and said:
“I will guide him from here. You look tired, go back and rest.”
“Thank you, Lieutenant.”
It was So-mu, who had just arrived. He was on his way to meet Liu Guangshi to discuss strategy.
A look of curiosity appeared on So-mu’s face.
“We are acquaintances.”
Nam Cheon’s rank was two levels lower than So-mu’s. Bowing his head slightly, he replied:
“Yes. We met when I came to Hanzhong as a messenger.”
“But your complexion doesn’t look good. Did something happen?”
“Actually…”
Nam Cheon explained everything that had occurred, from the Jin Dynasty’s deception tactics to what had just happened. Since the man before him was his last hope, there was no reason to hide anything.
So-mu wore a faint, understanding smile.
“So that is what happened. In such a situation, even I wouldn’t have held back.”
“Whew. I have no shame, but could you help me?”
Without needing to think, So-mu nodded immediately.
“I will do so. I also have a favor to ask of you.”
“Since I have come this far, there is nothing I cannot do. Just say the word.”
So-mu whispered something to him. Hearing it, Nam Cheon’s expression shifted continuously.
After a few minutes, Nam Cheon’s face brightened significantly.
“It is a favor I should actually be grateful for. I will definitely do so.”
“Then the deal is struck. Now, will you guide me to the General’s barracks?”
“But if you go there right now…?”
So-mu looked up at the sky. Estimating the time, he said quietly:
“By now, my subordinates must have begun to move. I will tell the General that I stepped in to help at your request.”
“If they are your subordinates… does that mean the Wolf Fang Squad has already moved?”
So-mu nodded once.
“We were also aware of the Jin Dynasty’s deception tactics. How could we just stand by and watch?”
Nam Cheon had also heard rumors of Shaanxi’s special unit, the Wolf Fang Squad. He heard they were directly dealing with the Jin Dynasty’s special unit.
Hope had arisen, but he could not rest easy.
“Thank you. But is it alright if you do not help them? They are no ordinary foes.”
“Haha. Our Wolf Fang Squad fellows are no ordinary group either.”
Sensing confidence in So-mu’s words, the anxiety on Nam Cheon’s face gradually faded.
“Then I will trust you and bet everything I have.”
A meaningful smile appeared on Nam Cheon’s face for a brief moment before vanishing.