We bear people have power

"What exactly does your Great Zhou want?" When Yuchi Jingde said this, he felt that he had already lost the battle in terms of momentum.

Although the young man surnamed Xie in front of him seemed unreliable, he exuded a strange aura that Yuchi Jingde couldn't understand, which made him treat him with caution.

Xie Rulin gently shook off the guards on his body, took a few steps forward and said, "I told you long ago that I hope you, General, can value peace and withdraw your troops. Otherwise, if we go to war, I'm afraid there will be rivers of blood."

“Since you fear bloodshed, you should submit a letter of surrender as soon as possible, cede territory and pay reparations to appease the wrath of the Tang Dynasty,” said Yuchi Jingde.

Xie Rulin clasped his hands together and chanted a Buddhist prayer: "Amitabha, when I said the blood would flow like a river, I was not referring to the Great Zhou, but to the soldiers of the Great Tang under your command. If you insist on going your own way, I'm afraid there will be an additional 100,000 innocent souls beneath Sickle Hammer City."

Upon hearing this, Yuchi Jingde finally understood that this was not a surrender, but a provocation. No wonder the two were talking nonsense and couldn't agree on anything.

"My Great Tang has 100,000 elite troops, a massive army pressing on our borders, ready to attack the city at any moment. How many troops does your Great Zhou have?" Yuchi Jingde said disdainfully.

Xie Rulin was honest and replied, "Originally there were 15,000 Jinwu Guards, but 10,000 were sent out not long ago. Now, after deducting the guards of each city, there are probably less than 1,000 left in Sickle Hammer City."

Yuchi Jingde was stunned for a moment, never expecting Xie Rulin to say that.

With a thousand against a hundred thousand, the forces are at an absolute disadvantage. How could such intelligence be easily leaked? Could it be a trap?

But upon reflection, what's the point of such a lie? Once the siege begins, the number of defenders will soon be revealed. Besides, if you're going to deceive people, you should exaggerate the numbers to scare them, not expose your own weakness.

"You dare to say that a mere thousand men will cause our 100,000-strong army to bleed like rivers?" Yuchi Jingde said disdainfully.

"Defending a city is never about the number of people. To paraphrase our Panda Immortal Venerable, science and technology are the primary productive forces. In the primitive times, we only had stones and wooden spears, but now we have steel swords and iron spears. Our Great Zhou has never had the habit of fighting on our own doorstep. If the general insists on going his own way, I'm afraid he will die on the battlefield before he even sees the city walls." Xie Rulin said with utmost sincerity.

"Hehe, I'd really like to know how you're going to make me die before I even see the city walls. Are you going to send me as an assassin?" Yuchi Jingde laughed.

Yuchi Jingde, a seasoned warrior, had encountered assassins before. Although this young man was exceptionally skilled, he was no weak scholar. For someone who was already prepared to assassinate him was simply absurd.

As for the so-called Panda Immortal, Yuchi Jingde didn't believe in that nonsense. Previously, Emperor Li Shimin had suffered from insomnia and only managed to sleep peacefully thanks to Yuchi Jingde guarding the gate. If there were truly any demons or monsters, they would have come looking for him back then.

"Since the general doesn't believe me, then let me demonstrate."

"What do you want to demonstrate?" Yuchi Jingde asked cautiously.

"Let me demonstrate the standard weapons of our Great Zhou." Xie Rulin took out a ruby-like bead from his robe, which shone brightly in the candlelight inside the tent.

"Oh, so you're trying to bribe me with these gems? Hahaha, maybe I'll seriously consider it if you give me a few hundred more boxes," Yuchi Jingde laughed.

"Please move aside, General, let's try somewhere open," Xie Rulin said, and left the tent without waiting for Yuchi Jingde's consent.

This movement immediately drew swords at him, and the guards finally found an excuse to draw their knives. However, no matter how sharp the blades were, they only produced a trail of sparks when they landed on Xie Rulin, without even cutting his clothes.

Xie Rulin walked steadily towards the outside of the tent, his pace undiminished, and none of the hundreds of guards could stop him.

Yuchi Jingde's eyelids twitched as he watched. If someone with such skill were to actually attempt an assassination, he feared he wouldn't be able to withstand it.

Watching Xie Rulin drive away triumphantly, Yuchi Jingde's eyelids twitched, but he could only order, "Follow him!"

He had already received enough frights today, and he needed to find out exactly what the Great Zhou Kingdom was relying on.

Not far from the main tent was a training ground, which looked fairly flat. Xie Rulin walked casually onto the training ground, attracting the attention of many soldiers.

However, none of them arrested Xie Rulin as a spy, because they had never seen such an openly blatant spy before. Moreover, the commander-in-chief was right behind them with his troops.

At Yuchi Jingde's command, the entire drill ground was cleared out.

Xie Rulin stood at the edge of the drill ground and said to Yuchi Jingde, "General, there might be some noise later, so..."

"Stop talking so much nonsense!" Yuchi Jingde said irritably.

Xie Rulin readily agreed and tossed the red bead in his hand toward the center of the training ground.

Under the sunlight, a beautiful red arc streaked across the sky, ending in a blazing fire.

A loud bang was heard, and Yuchi Jingde felt the ground shake and a strong wind hit his face, almost making him lose his balance.

The guards behind Yuchi Jingde fell to the ground in disarray, and even those who could still stand were so frightened by the scene before them that their legs went weak.

Xie Rulin waved his hand, creating a gust of wind that extinguished the flames and swept countless plumes of smoke into the sky, revealing the huge crater in the center of the training ground.

The pit was about three zhang in diameter and half a zhang deep. If anyone had been standing nearby, they would probably have been blown to bits.

Xie Rulin was very satisfied with Yuchi Jingde's expression, and then took out a dozen or so red jade-like beads and said, "This is the strength of my Great Zhou. We can produce hundreds or thousands of these beads in a single day. General, you can calculate how many beads it would take to annihilate an army of 100,000."

Xie Rulin placed the dozen or so beads on the ground and turned to leave. In his view, the purpose of this mission had been achieved. As long as Yuchi Jingde wasn't truly a fool, he would surely back down when faced with difficulties.

This time, no one dared to stop them, fearing that Xie Rulin would take out another red jade bead and throw it into the crowd.

Yuchi Jingde's expression shifted between light and shadow. Not long ago, he was brimming with confidence, envisioning a triumphant return to the capital. But now, Xie Rulin's jewel-like bead had shattered his plans.

If what Xie Rulin said is true, they could produce tens of thousands of these red jade beads. They could simply find some people to stand on the city wall and throw them down.

No matter how large an army is, it will all turn to ashes under such terrible weapons.

Whispers arose, and Yuchi Jingde didn't need to listen to them to know that the Tang soldiers were already filled with apprehension.

Taking a deep breath, Yuchi Jingde walked to the pile of red jade beads in full view of everyone and picked one up.

Throughout the entire process, he held his breath, cautiously daring not to make any sudden movements. Only when he held the bead in his hand and felt its warm touch did Yuchi Jingde feel his heart begin to beat again.

The soldiers around him, seeing that Yuchi Jingde dared to pick up such a terrifying weapon, calmed down a little.

Yuchi Jingde understood that this was all he could do. If this fear were allowed to continue, his 100,000-strong army would fall into disarray without any further attack.

"Issue the order to send out all the spies. I need to know everything about the Great Zhou Kingdom. Write a letter to the Emperor to report this matter and let the court make a decision."

Yuchi Jingde had one more thing left unsaid: "To hell with Du Ruhui! Didn't you say the story of the immortals guarding the Great Zhou Kingdom was false? Then what's the deal with this magic weapon?!"