Only three seconds? He's already the Lord of All Realms, so it doesn't matter.

Zong Tiao led his troops in a surprise attack from the flank of the Xiongnu, a position they had never anticipated.

The army of over 100,000 men, mostly elite infantry and cavalry equipped with light chariots, fought head-on with the Xiongnu on the vast Mubei Plain.

This was a new national army specifically designed to counter the Xiongnu in terms of tactics. As soon as it entered the battlefield, it turned the tide of the war.

Liu Xiu surveyed the overall situation from the city wall. He was extremely cautious on this trip, so how could he be completely unaware of the Xiongnu breaking through the city?

The Xiongnu leader who thought he was sandwiched between two sides under the city wall was just someone he had planned to lure into a trap.

Thus, the new Nationalist army in the rear quickly extricated itself from the melee, turned its attention to annihilating the Xiongnu who had infiltrated the Hexi Corridor.

"Chanyu, what should we do?"

A Xiongnu soldier broke through the encirclement and fought his way to the side of the Xiongnu Chanyu, Cheng Li Gu Tu, a hint of panic already in his eyes.

They only had about 50,000 men on this mission. If they were to face Liu Xiu's previous force of 100,000 men, they could rely on the Xiongnu's bravery and skill in battle, as well as their roundabout tactics, to wear them down.

But now the situation has changed. With 200,000 troops fighting against 50,000, the advantage is no longer with our army.

The leader of the entire Xiongnu also realized that the situation was hopeless. He was already wary of the Heavenly Dao Immortal Venerable who had just displayed great power in the Qiang region, so this time he brought 50,000 people just to test the waters.

If the fighting continues, it will only result in the enemy suffering a thousand casualties while both sides suffer eight hundred.

He waved the sleeves of his animal-skin robe and shouted to the disciples around him:

"withdraw!"

Upon hearing the order to retreat, the Xiongnu, who were engaged in fierce fighting on the battlefield, gradually slowed their offensive and prepared to withdraw from the encirclement of the new national army.

As for the Xiongnu who invaded the Hexi Corridor, they could only accept their fate...

Looking at this desolate battlefield in the northern desert now, the fireflies begin to disappear into the distance, and the chaotic shouts of battle gradually subside.

Liu Xiu strictly forbade anyone from pursuing the matter further, knowing full well that the strength of the Xiongnu tonight was merely the tip of the iceberg.

Although they won this battle, it did not shake their fundamental strength in the slightest. The further they went into the northern desert, the more it became the domain of the Xiongnu.

"Sound the retreat! Withdraw!"

The two armies joined forces, and nearly 200,000 mighty soldiers of Xingguo once again took up their positions beneath the majestic Great Wall.

Liu Xiu gazed at the pitch-black night and decided to rest for the night, and discuss tomorrow's matters again tomorrow.

"Generals, lead your troops..."

Liu Xiu's voice stopped in mid-air, and a clear voice suddenly appeared in everyone's ears.

"Wait a minute."

At this moment, Ye Xuan said to Liu Xiu, the commander-in-chief of the three armies:

"What are your next plans?"

Faced with the sudden voice of the immortal, Liu Xiu dared not be careless and revealed all his thoughts in detail:

"I believe that the Xiongnu are powerful in the northern desert, and our new army of 200,000 men is not enough to contend with them."

"but."

An unconscious surge of spiritual energy from heaven and earth acted on Liu Xiu's throat, preventing him from continuing to speak.

Ye Xuan revealed: "Your backup plan is the Qiang army in Qiangzhong."

Liu Xiu nodded repeatedly. Before setting off on this military expedition, he made sure not to tell the Immortal Venerable about it.

Firstly, he was given full authority over the three armies during the Spring Festival, so even if the strategy was not reported, he would not be guilty.

Secondly, he communicated with the leaders of various ethnic groups in Qiangzhong, intending to get the Qiang army living in the northwest region to join the battle to eliminate the Xiongnu at a critical moment.

Their operational strategies in the north were far superior to those of the new Nationalist army that came from the Central Plains.

The reason for not reporting it was to give the Immortal Venerable a surprise. However, Liu Xiu did not expect this at the moment. Could it be that the Immortal Venerable was angry about this?

He was about to confess when he heard Ye Xuan's assessment of him—

"This plan is sound. If we want to take down the Xiongnu, we must coordinate with the Qiang people. You are truly worthy of being the current ruler."

He was delighted that Liu Xiu had finally matured completely, and that his talent and wisdom were absolutely no less than Wang Mang's.

However, Ye Xuan's sudden telepathic transmission was definitely not just to praise Liu Xiu. He asked:

"According to your calculations, how many days would it take for your army to annihilate the Xiongnu and conquer the entire northern desert?"

Liu Xiu answered truthfully, "Only three months!"

Three months... This answer was roughly what Ye Xuan had estimated beforehand, but he could only sigh:

"Three months is too long; we must seize every minute."

It took the army about a month to march to the Hexi Corridor. After that, they mobilized the Qiang people, went deep into the northern desert, and then turned back.

If all of this takes three months, it's going to be too long!

After taking control of the entire Northwest and the northern desert, the next step for the new Nationalist army was to march south, a plan that would take several months just to cover the journey.

Ye Xuan fears Wang Mang cannot afford to wait...

However, Liu Xiu had a different view on the three-month timeframe.

He believed that the encirclement and suppression of the Xiongnu could be completed before the Chinese New Year this year, and the army might even be able to return to the capital and have a New Year's celebration banquet.

Moreover, when facing the Xiongnu, if we do not proceed cautiously and steadily, defeat could be a matter of a moment's hesitation.

Seeing Liu Xiu remain silent, Ye Xuan said to him:

"I have observed the strength of the Xiongnu. If we follow your plan, we will surely return from the northern desert in three months."

But three months is too long; the army will need to march south later, so…

Before the words were finished, a deafening explosion erupted from the direction of the New National Army's rear camp.

The sound was like mountains collapsing and towering waves crashing down... Instantly, birds and beasts in the forest scattered, and like rolling thunder, it quickly reached the ears of the Xiongnu people who had fled not far away.

"What's that noise?"

Tens of thousands of Xiongnu people stopped in their tracks, standing still and looking back.

From the direction of the newly formed Nationalist Army, where sparks were flying, a towering golden beam of light suddenly appeared in the silent night sky. The golden light was dazzling, and its aura was even more eye-catching than the full moon in the sky!

"In this battle, I will personally lead the three armies into battle."

After Ye Xuan finished speaking, his figure appeared in the soaring golden pillar of light.

Just like when he first arrived in Chang'an, he stood in mid-air, proud and aloof between heaven and earth!

His gilded armor, compared to before, now had a faint white mist over it, in addition to the dazzling golden light, like a rare gem hidden within.

This is the breakthrough he sought in other directions after his true form descended into this historical world and reached a bottleneck in his spiritual power cultivation.

Ye Xuan suddenly realized that this armor was formed from the purest spiritual energy in the world when he first descended.

With just a little development, he could utilize the vast spiritual power contained within the armor. While this power wouldn't allow him to make a significant leap in his cultivation, it was equivalent to giving him an unlimited energy source.

He stands high in the sky, and with a wave of his hand, he can summon thunder and clouds across the world.

In an instant, thick dark clouds appeared over the fleeing Xiongnu people. Just the sight of them piled up, with the rolling thunder that could erupt at any moment, made it hard for them to breathe.

Driven by the lightning-summoning finger, dozens of bolts of lightning descended, shattering the rocks on the ground but harming the Xiongnu.

He simply spread his words throughout the entire northern desert: "Who wouldn't surrender?"