In order to save himself, the prince summoned 100,000 dragon riders at the start.

"The Northern Army?"

Lu Yuan raised an eyebrow.

He had no recollection of this army.

but.

When he looked at the introduction provided by the system, a hint of joy appeared on his brow.

[Northern Army: Commander at the peak of Martial Grandmaster level, Deputy Commander at the ordinary Martial Grandmaster level, Centurion at the Martial Emperor level, Hundred-man at the Martial King level, Squad Leader at the Martial Master level, Sergeant at the Martial Master level!]

Elite!

Such an elite army can even hold its own against soldiers with Saint-level rewards!

This configuration would probably be among the top prizes in a super lottery!

"This humble general, Xie Xuan, pays his respects to Your Majesty!"

As the system reward was successfully distributed, a burly man knelt on one knee and paid his respects to Lu Yuan.

"General Xie, there's no need for such formalities!"

Lu Yuan smiled slightly.

"General Xie, I'm entrusting the defense of Yumen Pass to you!"

"There are still 20,000 surrendered troops inside the pass, and I entrust them entirely to you!"

"Only one thing! I guarantee that those who remain will all be loyal!"

"I will definitely fulfill your mission!"

Xie Xuan readily accepted the order!

"By the way, General Xie."

At this moment, Lu Yuan suddenly looked at Xie Xuan with a puzzled expression.

"Don't you have an older sister named... Xie Daoyun?"

"Yes!"

Xie Xuan clasped his hands and nodded.

Although he had no memory of his past, he would never forget his own sister.

"really!"

Lu Yuan suddenly realized.

The line "Not as beautiful as willow catkins rising in the wind" has stirred the dreams of countless literati throughout the ages.

It's just a pity.

It's a pity I can't catch a glimpse of this extraordinary woman.

She could only look at her younger brother, that rough-looking man.

if....

Lu Yuan shook his head.

What am I thinking?

There are still many important things to do!

.....

The capture of Yumen Pass was just a minor incident.

After handing over Yumen Pass to Xie Xuan, Lu Yuan ordered the army to set off again!

After all, speed is of the essence in war.

Once the Empress realizes what's happening and mobilizes troops from all sides to protect her in the capital, things will get quite troublesome!

"Let's go! Continue south!"

Entering the Central Plains is like entering the sea!

Lu Yuan finally stepped onto the vast, flat Central Plains!

.....

Liangzhou, Beiyang City.

Liangzhou was the northernmost of the prefectures and counties directly under the Great Zhou Dynasty.

It borders the northern region directly.

Beiyang City, on the other hand, was the county seat of Liangzhou.

This city is only a little over a thousand miles away from Yumen Pass.

at this time.

Outside Beiyang City.

Two hundred thousand men marched in a grand procession.

The leading general was a handsome young man with bright eyes and white teeth.

He was dressed in a flashy white armor and exuded a terrifying aura of a half-saint!

Unrestrained and arrogant, as if they don't care about anything!

That's right.

This young general is none other than Zhao Kuanying, the heir apparent of the Duke of Wu of the Great Zhou Dynasty!

Zhao Kuanying had 200,000 troops behind him.

It was the Empress who dispatched reinforcements to support Yumen Pass!

at this time.

Zhao Kuanying had just led his troops to Beiyang City.

Suddenly, an urgent military report was delivered to him.

"Hmm? There's an urgent military report?"

Zhao Kuanying frowned and took it.

After opening the envelope, Zhao Kuanying glanced at the contents of the military report without giving it much thought.

however.

After reading the contents of the letter, Zhao Kuanying jumped up!

"What! Yumen Pass has fallen!"

"Commander Li Shun has been killed!"

"Prince Lu Yuan of Zhenbei crossed the Jade Gate Pass and led his army straight in!"

"Oh!"

Enraged, Zhao Kuanying slammed the golden whip in his hand onto the ground, creating a deep crater!

"Hmph! Li Shun, that good-for-nothing! He couldn't even last a day!"

"That was Yumen Pass! And it was lost just like that!"

Zhao Kuanying was furious, her eyes were so red they looked like she could devour a person!

No wonder Zhao Kuanying was so furious!

As a fortress defending against the northern barbarians, Yumen Pass was truly easy to defend and difficult to attack!

however.

Such a dangerous place.

If it were someone with cerebral palsy, they could at least last a few days!

Li Shun couldn't even hold out for a single day before the city fell!

It sounds like it's fake!

"Hmph! This is infuriating!"

however.

Things have happened.

Even the garrison commander, Li Shun, has been killed!

Even though Zhao Kuanying was full of resentment, he had nowhere to vent it!

At this time.

The deputy general accompanying the army came to report more bad news:

"General, the soldiers are all complaining that the march is too fast and they are suffering terribly!"

"Traveling ten thousand miles a day has reached its limit!"

"Furthermore, we've run out of speed-traveling talismans, and our marching speed has slowed down. You see..."

The Swiftness Talisman is a military talisman commonly used by the army.

It was made by a talisman master.

Talisman masters and cultivators are the same, just two different cultivation systems.

The Swiftness Talisman, as its name suggests, increases the marching speed of the army!

If it weren't for the Swiftness Talisman...

The distance between Chang'an and Yumen Pass is tens of thousands of miles. Even if every soldier had cultivation, it would be impossible to cross such a distance in a single day!

It was clear that we wouldn't be able to reach Yumen Pass.

Looking at his troops, exhausted from the forced march.

Zhao Kuanying's eyes flickered, and he had no choice but to make a stopgap measure:

"Alright, issue the order to the entire army to abandon Yumen Pass!"

"Let's temporarily enter Beiyang City to replenish our supplies!"

In order to make the march quick, Zhao Kuanying's army was lightly equipped.

I brought nothing but weapons!

I originally planned to add more information after reaching Yumen Pass.

Now Yumen Pass has been breached.

He had no choice but to seek supplies from Beiyang City, the nearest major city!

......

Beiyang City was the capital of Liangzhou Prefecture and also the most prosperous city in the entire Liangzhou.

The original plan was that Zhao Kuanying would only be passing through and would not lead his troops into the city.

therefore.

Beiyang City was completely unprepared for this.

But now the plan has suddenly changed.

Naturally, it caused quite a commotion!

The bustling streets are lined with stalls set up by ordinary small vendors.

The army marched into the city in a grand procession.

Some seasoned veterans took advantage of the lull in the troops' march to raid the street vendors!

"Haha! Give it to me!"

The old soldier's eyes gleamed with a secret desire to make money.

Forcibly robbing people in the city has become their routine!

Whether they are from the enemy or our own side, we treat them all equally!

The officers, too, turned a blind eye.

These soldiers are all risking their lives to make a living.

Only by satisfying their greed.

Only then can we get them to fight desperately on the battlefield!

and.

Those who were robbed were all lowly commoners.

It doesn't matter anymore!

roadside.

A ragged, gray-haired old man was wailing and pleading with a soldier.

The soldier was clutching some rare mountain herbs in his hand.

"No! Soldier, if you take these things away, I'll lose three months' worth of hard-earned money!"

"Sir! I beg you!"

These herbs were collected by the old man over three months, risking his life to gather them from deep in the mountains and forests!

Sold for money.

It is also the hope for his whole family's life for the next three months!

"Get out of my way, you old geezer!"

"If you delay any longer, don't blame me for being impolite!"

The veteran cursed viciously.

Seeing that the old man refused to let go, he impatiently kicked the old man!

All that could be seen was the sound of wind whistling as his legs moved.

The old man was hunched over, thin and bony, like a candle flickering in the wind!

If that heavy kick had landed properly, this old man in his sixties would have lost half his life!