Chapter 693.

Yang Gong picked up his tealight, took a sip of the piping hot tea, and slowly said:

“It’s not hard to take care of the Flying Beast Army, let Zhang Shen work with the army’s experts to break them down one by one.”

Ordinary pawns and low-grade martial artists could not do anything to take the flying beast army, but fourth-grade experts who could fly on the wind were not difficult to deal with the flying beast army.

Li Mu Bai gave his best friend a sideways glance and warned:

“There are also experts in the Flying Beast Army, besides, if we can think of such a simple response, will the rebels not think of it? It might be another trick to invite the king into the jar.”

It was too dangerous for a Fourth Grade expert to break away from his home base and kill the enemy alone in the air, and it was impossible to say that he would never return.

“If only we had an army of flying beasts.”

A staffer lamented.

“Perhaps we can ask the Demon Barbarians for help, and ask the Feather Spider of the Golden Wood Division to come south to help us.”

The speaker had no intention of listening, and one of the staffers on the left had a thought in his mind, but the idea was quickly dismissed:

“What’s the difference between your idea and requesting the court to requisition the Red-tailed Flaming Eagle. Moreover, the Northern Realm is 100,000 miles away from Qingzhou, so how will you get here.”

“How about letting Sun Xuanji help, he’s a Third Grade Magician, if he can be in charge of ‘carrying’, it might not be unfeasible.”

“If Sun Xuanji is gone, who will hold that Ji Xuan back? Alas, I didn’t realize that there was a young Third Grade Martial Artist among the Yunzhou rebels.”

“But the policy of asking for help from the demon barbarians is indeed feasible, just according to the process, it has to be written to the court first, and then the court sends an emissary northward, even if the demon barbarians painfully agree, and so on the flying beasts army of the Golden Wood Department to go south to participate in the war, but also after the beginning of the spring.”

“You can’t quench your thirst from afar.”

“The princes are too short-sighted, when the Flying Beast Army was demobilized that was because of the peace and prosperity, there was no use for it. But after the Battle of Jingshan City, the princes should be wary.”

“If Duke Wei was still around, he would have long ago set about cultivating the Flying Beast Army.”

“If only we had an army of flying beasts.”

Li Mubai knocked on the desktop, interrupting this inescapable topic and said in a deep voice:

“Dongling has been broken, the defending army, led by Sun Xuanji, has turned to field battle with the rebels, facing each other north and south. Wanxian County is besieged, the rebels intend to utilize the reconnaissance power of the Flying Beasts Army to encircle the point, this is a war of attrition, there will be no change in the short term.

“But if we ignore it for a long time, sooner or later Wanxian will run out of ammunition and food.”

He paused for a moment, looking around at his frowning staff, and said:

“If we can’t find a way to unravel the plight of Wanxian County, then we must find a way to preserve Songshan County.”

The staff member beside him first froze, then reacted and looked sideways at Yang Gong:

“Master Dong, if I remember correctly, so far, neither a report of victory has come from Songshan County, much less a message asking for help.”

Yang Gong nodded:

“Compared to Dongling and Wan County, Songshan County is second in importance. The Yunzhou rebels will definitely attack the first two places first.”

Li Mu Bai let out a “hmm”:

“Songshan County occupies the terrain, has sufficient food and grass, and has Zhujun and Erlang sitting in the town, so I think it can be defended. However, according to the current situation, Dongling has been broken and Wanxian County is under siege.

“The next step for the Yunzhou rebels is Songshan County.”

As he was speaking, a mandarin came in hurriedly, holding a secret letter in his hand, and said in a loud voice:

“Mr. Buzhengzhi, an urgent report has come from Songshan County.”

Yang Gong hurriedly said, “Present it.”

The clerk handed over the secret letter.

Yang Gong unfolded it and his face instantly sank.

When Li Mu Bai and the others saw this, their hearts fluttered, “What does the letter say?”

Yang Gong said word for word:

“The Flying Beasts Army has made a surprise attack on Pine Mountain County, and Jiro is asking for help.”

After a pause, his face suddenly hardened:

“This is a letter from three days ago.”

From Songshan County to Qingzhou City, it would take three days on a fast horse.

……….

Pine Mountain County.

The sun was high in the sky, but it did not bring the slightest bit of heat, and Xu Erlang stood at the top of the city, grabbing a handful of gravel mixed with the blood and smoke of the defenders.

He looked around with little expression, the city’s head was littered with craters, soaked in wreckage and patina that hardly any of it was intact.

The soldiers, wrapped in burlap and fine cloth, were scattered in twos and threes, and there was not an intact man to be seen.

The ones who remained at the top of the city were the least wounded among the defenders of Pine Mountain County.

Of the original two thousand defenders of Pine Mountain County, only five hundred remain today, and the others died in the brutal battle of attack and defense.

Three days have passed since the surprise attack by the Flying Beast Army.

The attack of the flying beast army is very simple, it is to drop artillery shells and kerosene canisters to the city head, and how the defenders treat the attacking enemy army, the flying beast army will deal with the defenders.

Simple as it is, it’s deadly.

The defenders sacrificed nearly 1,000 men directly on the first day, the city’s head was pierced by a thousand holes from shells, and the masonry was burned and scorched all over.

At dusk, the enemy retreated.

After such a desperate day, the defenders were demoralized and thought that the city would surely be broken tomorrow, and their hearts were in turmoil.

Xu Erlang sent his men from house to house in the city overnight to collect copper mirrors, and called on craftsmen to improve the bed crossbows, remodeling a bed crossbow that fired into the air.

By the second day, the flying beast army attacked again, and the bronze mirrors placed all over the city refracted the sunlight and nearly blinded the cavalry and flying beasts.

The defenders took the opportunity to fire crossbows and arrows, shooting down twelve flying beasts and repelling the army of flying beasts, the results of the battle were gratifying, and the defenders’ morale was greatly boosted as a result.

But Xu Erlang knew that this move could only take the other party by surprise, and after dusk, the bronze mirror would no longer be able to function.

So, after the enemy withdrew, he let the defenders in the city abused Zhuo Haoran, specializing in insulting the other side of the family’s female family members, screaming and cursing for an hour, provoking Zhuo Haoran to lead the troops to attack the city, and the two sides once again spelled out a lose-lose situation.

Zhuo Haoran returned in defeat, and after dusk, because of the heavy losses of the enemy foot soldiers, the Flying Beasts Army withdrew after a cursory bombardment.

After nightfall, Xu Erlang forcibly recruited the militia and gathered more than 1,000 men, and ordered Zhu Jun and Miao You Fang to lead a charge on the camp, and in the end, only 300 men escaped back.

By this point, the elite of both sides had been nearly depleted.

“I’ve already sent people to Qingzhou City to ask for help, and next, it’s up to whoever’s reinforcements arrive first.”

Jiro Xu whispered.

Miao Youfang at his side has not laughed for three days, carrying a bow, a low “hmm”, and then felt wrong, frowned:

“Although Zhuo Haoran’s army has been broken down and only a few hundred people are left, the flying beast army is intact, so if we attack every night, we will still only be able to take a beating. I’m afraid we won’t be able to hold out until reinforcements arrive ………”

His eyes suddenly widened as if he had figured something out.

Erlang Xu laughed, “If our reinforcements come first, then even if Zhuo Haoran captures Songshan County, he will be forced to withdraw due to lack of manpower. Songshan County will still be ours.”

But the defenders here and the people in the city have become abandoned ………. Miao Youfang’s lips moved, “When it really comes to that, I will take you to retreat first.”

Jiro Xu said softly:

“How humiliating that would be, big brother alone guarding the Yu Yang Pass. Yet I can only run away with my tail between my legs.”

Miao Youfang frowned and said This is not up to you, when you do not leave, I will knock you out.

Then he heard Erlang Xu laugh bitterly:

“I’m just feeling a little bit of emotion, I won’t commit axle, victory and defeat is a common thing in the military, Emperor Gaozu started the war back then, there were also times when he lost many battles.

“If I had committed a crime, I wouldn’t be Da Bong now. A man can bend but can not bend.

“But I can also understand the great heroes in the history books who preferred to die rather than retreat; the generals who followed me in the fight stayed here, so what face do I have to live on.”

As he was talking, a large flock of birds appeared in the distant sky.

The flock of birds approached at a rapid pace, followed by a subdued roar, cacophonous and loud.

Miao Youfang and Xu Erlang’s faces changed drastically, and the wounded and sick sitting at the city’s head to rest also noticed the movement in the sky and rose up in alarm.

One by one, they looked out at the dark and pressurized group of flying beasts, their eyes desperate and their faces pale.

“Here we go again, here we go again ……..”

“There are so many of them, how, how are we supposed to defend them?”

Despair spread among the defenders.

“Lord Xu, another batch of Flying Beast Army is coming, Songshan County can’t hold on anymore, let’s withdraw.”

A centurion came running in a hurry.

As he said these words, his gaze was fixed dead center on Erlang Xu, the emotions in his eyes complex, with pleading, despair, and a hope for survival.

Xu Erlang’s eyes went black for a moment, and his head ached.

Yeah, when it comes to reinforcements, what kind of troops can travel at a speed comparable to that of a flying beast army?

Thanks to him, he was thinking of comparing his speed with the Yunzhou Army, how can he do that?

“Bang!”

Xu Erlang pounded his fist hard on the wall and gritted his teeth:

“If we don’t get rid of the Flying Beast Army, Qingzhou won’t be able to defend itself.”

He realized that these swift-as-thunder flying beast armies were one of the key factors affecting the victory or defeat of the Qingzhou battle.

Miao Youfang took off the bow on his back, bent the bow and pulled the string in a single motion, aiming at the Flying Beast Army as he did so:

“Take Lord Xu and go first, I’ll shoot down a few beasts first and earn enough money.”

At that exact moment, the flying beast army had entered his range.

Miao Youfang’s pupils contracted as his eyes zoomed to the extreme, aiming at the flying beast in the lead.

He whirled around and froze, because this group of flying beast army was different from the one that attacked before.

The flying beasts of the Yunzhou rebels were huge red-colored birds with their bodies covered in clumps of brilliant fire feathers.

And the monsters sitting on this army of flying beasts had bodies covered with black scales, long necks and slender bodies, resembling lizards, and flapped membranous wings instead of feathered wings.

In addition, the riders riding the flying beasts were not soldiers in armor, but a group of people in strange costumes, even wearing animal skin clothing.

On the back of the flying beast at the head of the group sat a man in green and blue attire, with a dark complexion and naturally curly hair, who was waving his arms towards the crowd at the top of the city with a smile on his face, as if greeting them enthusiastically.

Miao Youfang “eeped” and loosened the bowstring.

“Why.”

Xu Erlang’s eyesight was not as good as Wu Fu’s, and when he saw this, he frowned and inquired.

Miao Youfang replied with confusion:

“There’s something strange about this group.”