After being demoted, my 300,000-strong army trampled the imperial city!

"By the way, it's said that Jia Pingchuan also has a special force called the Poison Armor Legion. Their armor is made from poisonous creatures unique to the Southern Frontier, and their weapons are also poisonous, capable of killing on contact with blood," Yan Sheng added seriously.

"Haha, that's interesting!"

A cold glint flashed in Chen Futu's eyes, and then he silently made his choice, "I choose three."

[Rewards distributed successfully]

As the system activated, Chen Futu felt his power surge.

If a second-ranked individual could fight a fifth-ranked individual before, then now, with the combined strength of two tigers, a third-ranked individual can contend with a seventh-ranked individual.

This shows that this is a low-level martial arts world; otherwise, normally, obtaining the power of two tigers would make one invincible.

Chen Futu began issuing orders, with Yan Sheng returning to Kaiyang Pass first to take over the defense. Then Qin Liangyu, Guan Yu, Cao Zhen, and Gao Shun were to prepare their respective troops, and Zhang Liang was to personally go to Longguan Pass to recall 60,000 troops back to Longcheng.

As orders were issued one by one, a chilling atmosphere filled Longcheng.

The common people sensed the impending storm and were inevitably a little nervous, but the vast majority were still overjoyed by the prince's series of victories.

Some merchants quietly gathered together to discuss the outcome of the Daqian invasion.

“The Crown Prince has inherited his father’s talent. In my opinion, the Great Qian Dynasty will most likely suffer a crushing defeat.”

"Not necessarily. I've heard that the commander of this Great Qian expedition is Marquis Annan, Jia Pingchuan. He is extremely capable and is one of the few commanders who can be compared to the Prince of Zhenbei. Moreover, he has deployed 200,000 troops!"

"The Shi Kingdom and the Longman army are pressing in from the west. If we can't hold them off, won't our investment be ruined?"

Ultimately, Chen Futu's reputation was insufficient.

Only by defeating Jia Pingchuan can we establish enough prestige, and then businessmen will have no more scruples when investing.

Two days later, Chen Futu's order reached Tianyun City.

Zhang Shouren summoned his elite troops to discuss countermeasures.

"That young child has no taboos, but now that he can't take care of both ends, he's thought of us!"

"In my opinion, General, you should not help him. He can't beat the Marquis of Annam anyway."

"Yes, it's better to preserve our strength and wait for the situation to change."

The soldiers chattered amongst themselves, filled with resentment towards Chen Futu.

Zhang Shouren smiled and said, "You underestimate our heir. He is absolutely confident in defeating the Marquis of Annam."

"Just him?"

"Don't underestimate the Crown Prince."

Zhang Shouren then analyzed the situation, and the generals finally understood.

So, there's no way the fighting will break out in the west; the important thing is the battlefield in the east.

"If that kid loses, can we use that as an opportunity to make trouble?"

“That’s right, the Crown Prince is not good enough, but our General is.”

"Go and prepare. Tomorrow the army will set off to intercept the two kingdoms of the Western Regions."

After Zhang Shouren gave the order, a group of generals began to have their own thoughts.

Above Dragon Pass, the guard was an old general with white hair. He was not one of the Ten Great Generals, but a trusted confidant of the King of Zhenbei. His name was Xu Mao, a Xiantian expert. In the entire Northern Frontier, only he and Zhang Shouren were qualified to guard Dragon Pass.

Xu Mao looked Zhang Liang up and down, and asked in surprise, "You're the one who defeated Yan Sheng's 100,000 Kaiyang troops?"

Zhang Liang immediately paid his respects and addressed the old general with utmost courtesy.

Xu Mao said with a half-smile, "The Great Qian is coming on strong, please forgive my old bones for not being able to go on a long expedition."

"Before leaving, the Crown Prince asked me to give his regards to the General. If you are tired, you may retreat to Longcheng at any time."

"What? Was it not enough that he seized Zhang Shouren's military power in Longcheng? Now he wants to seize mine too?"

Xu Mao's eyes widened, and Zhang Liang suddenly felt immense pressure. "General, you've misunderstood. The young master is only interested in achieving great things and has no other intentions."

"Your Highness is quite confident. Back when he was in Dragon City, he wasn't this arrogant."

It is clear that Xu Mao harbors deep resentment towards Chen Futu.

Zhang Shouren was not the biological son of the Prince of Zhenbei, but he was close to the generals in the army and earned his reputation through fighting on the battlefield. In contrast, what about Chen Futu?

These past years he's been a good-for-nothing who just lies around waiting to die. Surprisingly, this good-for-nothing is quite deep in hiding, but that's all. In Xu Mao's mind, Chen Futu is no match for his nephew Zhang Shouren.

Zhang Liang, being quick-witted, saw through Xu Mao's thoughts at a glance and said, "The young master is going to personally lead the eastern battlefield to fight the Marquis of Annam. If the old general has any objections, it is better to wait until the outcome of this battle before making any comments."

Their eyes met, and Xu Mao's demeanor suddenly became solemn.

Zhang Liang maintained his smile and calm expression.

"Hmph, then I'll see how Your Highness performs!"

After Xu Mao finished speaking, he turned and left the city gate. "In this battle, Longguan does not have 60,000 troops, only 20,000."

"can."

A shadow crossed Zhang Liang's face, but it quickly disappeared.

These fierce generals look down on the prince's achievements; they must crush Jia Pingchuan in this battle!

Half a day later, Zhang Liang led 20,000 Longguan troops back to Longcheng.

In the Longcheng camp, all the generals were ready.

Chen Futu left Zhou Ziyi and Zhao Xianming to guard Longcheng, while he personally took command, with Zhang Liang as his strategist and Qin Liangyu as the vanguard, leading 5,000 White-Spear Soldiers and 20,000 soldiers to set off first.

"Your Highness, why not let me be the vanguard?"

Guan Yu was indignant. How could a woman outdo several men? What kind of logic was that?

Chen Futu was both amused and exasperated. "General Guan, don't worry, there are still tough battles waiting for you."

"Alright, then I'll wait and see."

Guan Yu was very much looking forward to it. This was his first major battle since arriving in this world, and it involved hundreds of thousands of people.

Little did they know, he was the only one capable of dealing with Marquis Jia Pingchuan of Annan in this battle.

Five days later, the army set off.

Countless residents of Longcheng saw them off from afar, their hearts filled with trepidation.

As soon as His Highness arrived in Dragon City, he implemented sweeping reforms. Everyone was allocated land, and even refugees had food to eat and could find work in the development zone, giving them hope for the future.

"Such a benevolent ruler, Heaven must surely bless him."

"The Crown Prince will surely defeat the Great Qian and bring us a peaceful and prosperous era."

The people's expectations indirectly demonstrate the foundation that Chen Futu has laid among the people of the northern frontier. As long as he wins this battle, he will gain prestige in the army.

"Your Highness, the enemy's vanguard of 30,000 troops has arrived at Shanhaiyi."

The military report reached Chen Futu.

Zhang Liang said, "The enemy is coming faster than we expected."

Of the 200,000 men in the Great Qian Dynasty, 150,000 were drawn from important towns such as Donghai Pass, and the remaining 50,000 came from the Jingda Camp.

Jia Pingchuan hasn't arrived yet; the vanguard general is Xue Lei, a renowned Bohai general of the ninth rank.

It is said that this man wielded a machete, possessed immense strength, was skilled in riding and archery, and once single-handedly stormed into the bandits' lair, slaughtering them seven times in and out. He was truly a fierce general.

"How is General Qin?"

Chen Futu was somewhat worried about Qin Liangyu. Although she was strong, women were at a disadvantage in terms of strength.

The messenger said, "General Qin and Xue Lei fought for a while, and neither side could gain the upper hand."

"It's okay."

Chen Futu felt a weight lifted from his heart and then urged the army to speed up their march.