Nine dragons fight for the throne, I don't want to sit on this throne

Zhang Shijie channeled all his strength into an even more ferocious torrent, launching a relentless and fierce attack on the core position of the Youzhou Army's "Iron Wall Battalion"!

Zhang Shijie himself took the lead, discarding his nicked sword and taking a heavier, long-handled armor-piercing hammer from his guard, roaring as he charged to the front.

He was like a ferocious beast, swinging his armor-piercing hammer with a dull whistling sound, specifically targeting the shields and helmets of the Youzhou army's heavy infantry. Often, with a single blow, the shield would shatter and the armor would crack, leaving the soldiers behind either dead or wounded.

With their commander so fierce and brave, the Chu army's naval soldiers were all willing to risk their lives and followed their commander in fierce attacks.

The battle has reached an intense, even fiercest stage.

The Chu navy, with a death wish, launched wave after wave of attacks.

The Youzhou army's "Iron Wall Battalion" was indeed elite. Under the command of their commander, they fought to the death and refused to retreat. The two sides repeatedly clashed in a narrow area, and corpses piled up rapidly.

Every ridge and every depression became the focus of contention between the two sides, and blood soaked the land.

Time slipped away amidst the fierce fighting, and an hour felt like an eternity.

Zhang Shijie didn't know how many times he swung the hammer or how many new wounds he had. He only remembered to move forward, ever forward, and to break through the enemy!

And the battle situation, under this extreme exhaustion and pressure, is quietly undergoing subtle yet fatal changes.

The soldiers of Youzhou are also human beings; they also experience fatigue, fear, and questions.

When they found themselves fighting to the death here, enduring the ferocious attacks of the Chu navy like mad tigers, their comrades fell every moment.

The commander's orders were merely "hold the line" and "defend to the death," and their gazes would involuntarily drift to another direction on the battlefield.

There, illuminated by the firelight, stood their nominal ally—General Gongsun Yi of the Scorpion Clan.

At this moment, he is personally leading the most elite "Blood Wolf Guard" and other Scorpion Clan cavalry in launching wave after wave of fierce attacks against Feng Mulan's troops and Jianghuai City.

The shouts of battle, the sound of horses' hooves, and the faint, triumphant howls unique to the Scorpion Clan constantly assaulted their eardrums.

A sense of imbalance, like poisonous weeds, began to grow in the hearts of some soldiers in Youzhou:

"Why?"

"Why should the men of Youzhou have to stand here and take the blows for the Scorpion Clan, enduring their fiercest attacks?"

"What are Gongsun Yi and his Scorpion Clan cavalry doing? They're besieging the city! They're vying for credit! They're hoping to be the first to storm into Jianghuai City and plunder its wealth and women!"

"We fought tooth and nail here to hold off the Chu navy, and in the end, all the benefits went to the Scorpion Clan?"

"If Your Highness wants to contend for the world, are we, the Youzhou Army, just stepping stones to pave the way for the Scorpion Clan?"

"Even if we manage to stop Zhang Shijie and protect our rear, how much of the glory of conquering Jianghuai City and the spoils from the city will we get? What will our fallen brothers get?"

These thoughts initially appeared sporadically, but under the continuous high casualties and intense pressure, and in the despair of witnessing comrades dying one after another and the battle seemingly hopeless, they quickly spread.

Especially when some mid- to lower-ranking officers also began to have similar doubts, their command became less resolute.

When they even express the intention to avoid war and preserve their strength, the morale of the army wavers as easily as a plague.

On the other hand, the Chu navy, under the leadership of Zhang Shijie, suffered heavy casualties, but their objective was clear—to defeat the enemy in front of them!

Their offensive, fueled by the urgency of time and Feng Mulan's trust, became increasingly ferocious and reckless.

With this shift in power, the defensive line of the Youzhou army's "Iron Wall Battalion" began to crack from within.

The resistance was no longer as tenacious and unified as before, and some units, under immense pressure, began to instinctively retreat, attempting to shift the pressure to neighboring units.

Faced with the Chu army's reckless assault, some soldiers' eyes began to flicker, and their steps faltered.

Finally, Zhang Shijie once again personally led his troops, sacrificing the lives of dozens of fierce soldiers, and finally cut down an important general's flag on the front line of the Youzhou army.

After smashing the officer who looked like a commander's head with a hammer until his brains splattered, the Youzhou army's taut nerves reached their limit!

"I can't hold on any longer!"

"The general is dead!"

"The Scorpion Clan are using us as a shield!"

"Run! If we don't run, we'll all die here!"

No one knows who shouted the first word, but the dike broke instantly!

Fear, discontent, and the will to survive mingled together, shattering the last vestiges of discipline.

The once relatively orderly Youzhou army formation began to collapse like an avalanche!

The soldiers dropped their weapons, turned and fled, and the officers' shouts and even attempts to kill them could not stop them.

The rout spread like dominoes, quickly affecting the entire Youzhou army fighting against Zhang Shijie's forces.

Covered in blood, Zhang Shijie leaned on his armor-piercing hammer, watching the enemy army suddenly crumble before him. He gasped for breath, his eyes gleaming with ecstasy and relief.

He succeeded!

He really did manage to defeat this tenacious Youzhou army after more than an hour of relentless and desperate attacks!

"Don't stop! Pursue the fleeing soldiers and drive them to disrupt Gongsun Yi's main force!"

Zhang Shijie, his voice hoarse, ordered: "All troops, turn! Target—the flank and rear of the Scorpion Clan cavalry! Coordinate with the Imperial Concubine to launch a pincer attack on Gongsun Yi!"

At this moment, the defeated soldiers of Youzhou were filled with resentment towards the Scorpion Clan and despair about their own fate.

In their panic, many fled directly to the rear of Gongsun Yi's main battle formation, failing to regroup and instead bringing their panic and chaos to the Scorpion Clan cavalry.

Feng Mulan's risky yet precise signal arrow tactic finally yielded results thanks to Zhang Shijie's resolute execution and the outbreak of internal conflicts within the Youzhou army.

The strongest link in the allied forces' battle formation was shattered, and the balance of the entire battlefield began to tilt sharply in favor of the Chu army!

With the defeat of the Youzhou army, the Scorpion Clan cavalry became the targets of a pincer attack.

"General, something terrible has happened!"

The Scorpion Clan cavalry rushed to report: "The Youzhou army has been defeated, and Zhang Shijie's navy is attacking our flank!"

"We...we're being attacked from both sides!"

Upon hearing this, Gongsun Yi's expression changed drastically. He turned around and looked in the direction of the Youzhou army. Sure enough, the Youzhou army was in chaos in the darkness, constantly retreating from the battlefield.

This scene enraged Gongsun Yi. He swung his sword twice into the air, and in the cold light, roared:

"These idiots, to be defeated at this time, they are beyond saving, beyond saving!"

The captain beside him said bitterly, "General, the Youzhou army has been defeated, and we are being attacked from both sides. Let's think about how to deal with the current situation."

Pointing ahead, he said helplessly, "Now, Feng Mulan's troops have already attacked."