Nan Ruohuai suddenly stood up, a cold flash in his hand as a short sword was already pressed against the old eunuch’s neck. He roared, “Who sent you to harm me?”
The old eunuch trembled with fear, his skin scraping against the sharp edge of the short sword, blood oozing from the wound. He stammered, “Your humble servant is loyal to His Majesty. I just couldn’t bear to see that person’s arrogant and overbearing attitude, it made me feel so unfair for you!”
Nan Ruohuai pondered for a moment, slowly retracting the short sword, and said, “If you had seen that person kill the state preceptor like slaughtering a dog, you wouldn’t think this way. Can the so-called ancestral secret medicine really take his life? What if it doesn’t kill him?”
The old eunuch’s brows furrowed, a murderous aura rising, and he declared, “I’ll fight to the death with him! You have a great army at your command, what do you have to fear? Though his warship is massive, we are united and will eventually bring it down. Without the warship, what else does he have?”
Nan Ruohuai gave a bitter smile and shook his head, saying, “You don’t know, he has an even larger warship that hasn’t even arrived yet; it’s just parked in the void. All these warships combined are merely a fraction of that giant vessel.”
The old eunuch stared in disbelief, his face filled with skepticism, “How could there be such a colossal warship in this world?”
Nan Ruohuai shook his head and sat back in his chair. Indeed, how could there be such a colossal warship? And just how vast is the outside world?
Qian Ye brought only a small number of mercenaries into the capital, fewer than the crew on the warships. Therefore, they only controlled the floating airship landing field outside the city and the area around the southern gate. A few ground structures that could pose a threat to the warships were also occupied.
This put the capital in a delicate state of de facto partitioned governance.
Qian Ye returned to the battle cruiser and summoned the mercenary generals and Song Hui to the war room. Beside the large map of Yonglu, a high-resolution map of the Zheng Kingdom was hung.
Qian Ye picked up the pointer and marked several cities on the Zheng Kingdom map, saying, “These, these, and this area—these five cities are the ones we need to take. Xudong Island has rich mineral resources, and Liao City can be transformed into a military-industrial base. These cities have both resources and manpower, allowing us to build a passage to the dark races’ territory in the west, ensuring a steady stream of mercenaries to penetrate the heartland of Yonglu. Do you have any objections?”
The mercenary generals were not strategists, and the few from the Song family looked surprised, speechless.
“Then it’s settled,” Qian Ye decisively concluded.
Song Lun said, “Sir, this would cut off one-third of the Zheng Kingdom, and most of it is the best part. Won’t the Zheng Kingdom oppose this?”
Song Hui smiled lightly, saying, “Indeed, our new King of Zheng has 80,000 royal guards!”
Their meaning was clear: they were reminding Qian Ye that Nan Ruohuai was no longer the powerless figure he once was. Now, he at least nominally controlled the royal guards, and to some extent, the entire Zheng Kingdom would resist Qian Ye as an outsider. Before, when Nan Ruohuai had nothing, it was fine for Qian Ye to take Xudong Floating Island and Liao City under his name. But now, should they not consider the new King of Zheng’s reaction?
Qian Ye replied, “We’ve already wasted too much time in the Zheng Kingdom. It doesn’t matter what he thinks, and we don’t need to care. This is decided, and we will execute it. Any obstacles, regardless of who, will be eliminated. My command is to advance! Is that clear?”
The mercenary generals, who were eager for chaos, let out a chorus of loud shouts. Some said in strange voices, “What if the royal guards come to snatch our territory?”
“They have a lot of people! I’m so scared!”
“Yeah, 80,000! Forty against one, Old Lin, you’re going to get beaten up!”
“I’m so scared, haha!”
Rough language poured out, making Song Hui’s face slightly red. She, the female ruffian, could tease Qian Ye, but compared to these true low-born mercenaries, her face was still thin.
“Alright, quiet down,” Qian Ye said after everyone settled. He then assigned tasks to the generals and sent someone to notify Nan Ruohuai, ordering him to requisition all floating warships of the Zheng Kingdom and hand them over to Dark Flame for unified command.
After the meeting, the mercenary generals rushed off, each mobilizing their troops, fearing that their colleagues might snatch the glory. In reality, there were only about 2,000 elite mercenaries, and each general would only have a hundred or so. They might be able to capture a city, but holding it was out of the question.
Generals assigned to the same city gathered to discuss the division of tasks for the assault. Those responsible for fleet deployment were surrounded by others, all hoping to secure more aerial support for their troops, even if it was just an armed gunboat.
Song Hui didn’t leave, standing beside Qian Ye, scrutinizing him from every angle. Her gaze made him feel uneasy, and he asked warily, “What do you want?”
Song Hui asked, “Did you really come up with this plan?”
“Of course,” Qian Ye replied, somewhat bewildered.
“I thought you were just good at fighting.”
“Well, is there something wrong with this plan?” Qian Ye humbly inquired.
“It’s because there’s nothing wrong with it that I find it strange. You don’t have experience commanding major campaigns or working in the staff department.”
“Maybe it’s because when I face a difficult problem, I think, ‘What would Zining do?'”
Song Hui shook her head, “That’s not Seventh Brother’s style.”
Qian Ye sighed, “I think this is pretty good. We’ll open the passage, occupy key strongholds, and ensure the safety of the rear and the passage. What else? If anyone obstructs us, we’ll eliminate them.”
Song Hui gave a thumbs up, praising, “Brilliant!”
Qian Ye rolled his eyes, saying, “A small kingdom like Zheng, why spend so much thought on it?”
Song Hui asked, “So what should I do?”
“Shouldn’t you stay here and coordinate the overall strategy?”
“I want to fight. Give me some troops.”
Qian Ye didn’t expect this request. This girl was a cousin that Zining liked, and Qian Ye didn’t want anything to go wrong. Besides, Song Hui, as her name suggested, was not skilled in combat.
Song Hui pestered Qian Ye relentlessly, and he finally gave in, assigning her fifty mercenaries to guard the floating airship base in the capital.
In the palace, Nan Ruohuai stood in the study, his face dark as he threw a few documents to the civil and military officials standing by, saying, “Take a look.”
A general took one glance and shouted, “Hand over all the floating warships?! How can this be done?”
Regardless of what the Zheng Kingdom’s old and new nobles thought, Qian Ye’s war machine was set in motion again. The elite mercenaries split into two groups, leaving the capital and heading towards the two small cities surrounding Liao City.
Each of these cities had only a few ten thousand people, with local troops numbering a thousand. Attacking them one-on-one would be easy.
At the southern gate area and the floating airship landing field, Qian Ye showed no intention of relinquishing control, sending the arriving royal guard generals away in defeat. Fortunately, they remembered how Liu Zhongyuan died, and the enormous battle cruiser on the nearby floating airship landing field served as a constant reminder that the skies of Zheng now belonged to Qian Ye, preventing them from doing anything foolish.
Upon hearing that Qian Ye had begun advancing west, the royal guards were not to be outdone. They almost mobilized all their forces, dividing into several routes to seize strategic points within the kingdom. Their actions were as if they were competing with Qian Ye to grab territory. One contingent of the royal guards, numbering 30,000, far exceeded the others, heading west and aiming to capture several key cities in the west before Qian Ye could.
The western contingent of the royal guards launched a frenzied offensive, capturing cities and fortresses, displaying incredible valor. The western region, which originally belonged to the second prince, had its main forces in Liao City, already weakened by Qian Ye. Without the mobile main force and the extraordinarily powerful generals, the defenses of the western cities became weak.
However, Qian Ye held air superiority and had numerous transport ships. The elite units were mostly transported by air, how could the royal guards, relying on land-based machinery, keep up?
The most important stronghold in the west, Tacheng, was taken by Dark Flame mercenaries with the support of floating warships. This was the final and most crucial target in Qian Ye’s corridor plan.
Tacheng, with a population of over 150,000, controlled a vast area spanning hundreds of kilometers, guarding the western gate of the Zheng Kingdom. To invade the Zheng Kingdom, the Evernight forces must first conquer Tacheng. Otherwise, with such a significant threat in the rear, the consequences would be unimaginable.
The Zheng Kingdom was located at the tip of Maple Leaf, surrounded by rugged mountains to the north and south, making it difficult for large armies to pass. The mountains converged in the western region, leaving a narrow strip less than 100 kilometers wide. Tacheng was built at the exit of this pass and provided support to more than a dozen small castles and fortresses.
Originally, Tacheng was very important, with a standing garrison of 10,000. However, due to the internal strife in the Zheng Kingdom, with princes vying for power and the old king’s whereabouts unknown, the situation had deteriorated to the brink of civil war. When Nan Ruohuai emerged, he ignited the flames of a full-scale civil war.
In such a chaotic situation, the border city of Tacheng became less significant. The princes coveted the city’s garrison, and to strengthen their own forces, they repeatedly came to “borrow” troops. The current commander, not a direct subordinate of any prince, did not want to make a bet or be hated, and had no choice but to give a few soldiers to each prince.
With the large number of princes, each receiving a few hundred soldiers, thousands of troops were gradually siphoned off. By the time Dark Flame arrived, Tacheng had only 6,000 defenders left.
Facing the unprecedentedly large fleet of Dark Flame, the commander knew there was no hope of victory, especially since Qian Ye was using Nan Ruohuai’s banner. Now that Nan Ruohuai had seized the capital and had a legitimate claim, the unification seemed imminent. Caught between a rock and a hard place, the commander proposed a contest between the strongest warriors to decide the outcome.
The mercenaries readily agreed, and the warriors from both sides stepped forward. A dozen mercenary generals swarmed the commander, overwhelming him instantly. Poor commander, even though he was a Level 16 powerhouse and could easily beat any mercenary one-on-one, he was no match for the sheer numbers. In a blink, he was knocked down and beaten black and blue.
Helpless, the commander had to admit defeat.
With the outcome decided, he was pulled to his feet, his face swollen and bruised, his clothes and armor tattered. The duel between the strong was like a street brawl.
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