All eyes turned to Xiao Xun, their hope now resting solely on him.
Xiao Xun pointed to the sand table, "The undead army's rear has two legions of the Spear of Vengeance, though their numbers are not great."
He then gestured to another point, "The Orcish army numbers over a hundred thousand, on the other side of the Tianshui River. Next..."
He glanced at everyone around him, the high command of the Phoenix Army. "I have three plans."
"First, we establish a defense here and await Duke Sangqiu's Spear of Vengeance army and Vincent's Fearless Vanguard Corps to counter-encircle us. Second, we flank the weaker undead army and rendezvous with those two Spear of Vengeance legions. Third, we head directly north to confront the hundred thousand Orcish army."
The others deliberated, eventually agreeing to seek out the Orcish army.
This aligned with Xiao Xun's own thoughts; he also felt it was best to head north.
Xiao Xun recalled what Sai Lepeisi had told him: only the Scourge Legion was the direct subordinate of the King of Arrogance, obeying him completely. The remaining forces had their own leaders, rife with factions and internal strife. If he could exploit this, their chances of victory would be significant.
With this in mind, Xiao Xun began his operational deployment. He ordered Bai Yang to notify the Orcish army south of the Tianshui River to march south, forcing the Red Leaf Kingdom's army north. The Second and Sixth Legions were to operate east of the Red Leaf Kingdom, prompting the Red Leaf army to move east.
The remaining Phoenix Army forces were to capture Nuoshui City, then cross the Tianshui River at Bingyi Crossing, a place with gentler currents and a bridge.
Xiao Xun had a contingency: if crossing the river proved difficult, they would detour to a place called Hengsha, skirting the northern border of the Red Leaf Kingdom, a mountainous region ideal for concealment.
After hearing Xiao Xun's arrangements, Dukar asked, "Why don't we cross the river at Kele Town to the north?"
Before Xiao Xun could explain, his teacher spoke, "Didn't you just hear him? The currents there are treacherous, and two major Scourge Legion contingents are guarding it. How would we cross?"
Dukar, realizing he was in the wrong, stuck out his tongue and said no more.
Xiao Xun's orders were issued, and everyone sprang into action.
The First Legion of the Phoenix Army successfully captured Tucheng and then advanced in two directions towards Nuoshui City.
The Fifth Legion arrived at Tucheng, while the Ninth Legion occupied Washi and advanced along Wanshi Valley, preparing to assist the First Legion in capturing Nuoshui City.
The Third Legion departed on the left flank. The Shattered Rock Army, which had been in a stalemate with the Third Legion, occupied Machino and surrounding towns.
The First Legion's advance encountered difficulties, and the Ninth Legion was met by the main force of the Red Leaf Army, forcing them to fight and retreat towards the First Legion.
The enemy recaptured Washi, and the Red Leaf Army pressed forward.
Xiao Xun studied the map and began redeploying his plan, concentrating the forces of the Third and Fifth Legions around Qingshigang to ambush this wave of the Red Leaf Army.
Unexpectedly, the enemy did not take the valley floor but headed directly for the commanding heights of the mountain. The ambush thus turned into a protracted struggle for control of the high ground. Furthermore, enemy reinforcements were rushing from behind this contingent of the Red Leaf Army and were about to reach Tucheng.
Xiao Xun and his group were in Tucheng. There was no choice. Xiao Xun ordered Delvana to stay and hold the city, while he personally led his troops to the front lines.
Delvana grasped Xiao Xun's hand, "You should remain here to oversee the overall situation! My mind isn't as sharp as yours. Leave the front-line matters to me!"
As the Valkyrie of the proud Sun God race, under Delvana's command, not only repelled the vanguard of the Red Leaf Army but also received support from the remaining magical soldiers of the First Legion.
Xiao Xun looked at the map, leaning over it and marking it with a quill, drawing one small circle after another. Then, he suddenly stood up and slapped the map, "We can't continue fighting like this. The plan to capture the northern part of Nuoshui and cross the Tianshui River has become impossible."
He then said to Jinniu, "Relay my order: activate the backup plan. The entire army will cross Nuoshui and force our way across Hengsha."
As Jinniu was about to leave, Xiao Xun stopped him, "No, we've fought to this point in Tucheng. We're in no condition to fight further. Relay my order: at all costs, capture Gele."
With great effort, they captured Gele. The enemy surrounded them again, forming a new encirclement.
By this point, some people began to doubt Xiao Xun's command ability. However, the Phoenix Army was his personal force. The forces from Zhiyue Kingdom and the Human-Horse Tribe were merely auxiliaries and had no decision-making power.
The Red Leaf Army shifted westward, occupying the Tianshui River. The Shangyun Kingdom's army blocked Hengsha. From the south and southeast, the undead army and the Ka Siqi troops were closing in. The Shattered Rock Army held Nuoshui.
Xiao Xun took a deep breath and instructed Jinniu to relay the order, "The Fifth and Ninth Legions will feign an attack on two key towns of the Shangyun Kingdom to draw their army to their aid. Then, our main force will exploit the breakthrough in their defenses to achieve our objective of forcing our way across Hengsha."
After Jinniu left, the feigned attack began, but the commander of the Shangyun Kingdom did not take the bait.
At this moment, the King of Arrogance issued a new attack order: the Red Leaf Army would advance from north to south, the Shangyun Kingdom would continue its defense, and the three legions of Ka Siqi would advance from the southeast. The Shattered Rock Army would hold Tucheng and Nuoshui.
The encirclement tightened. Xiao Xun wiped the sweat from his brow. Everyone present felt suffocated, holding their breath as they looked at Xiao Xun.
Xiao Xun began his analysis. The Red Leaf Army to the north was a dense blockade. The Shangyun Kingdom remained entrenched and unmoving. The south and southeast were heavily guarded by enemy forces, none of which were conducive to an attack.
"Good! We advance east, then to Nuoshui."
"Attack Nuoshui again?"
Everyone exchanged glances, finally turning their gaze to Xiao Xun.
Xiao Xun stated resolutely, "Yes, to Nuoshui again, and then recapture Machino."
Dukar dared not ask, but Kent couldn't help but inquire, "Why?"
Xiao Xun smiled and replied, "Because the Shattered Rock Army defending Tucheng has been severely weakened by us and their combat effectiveness is not strong. Furthermore, Klie's forces in Machino are dispersed. Klie would never have imagined we would execute a 'return horse spear' maneuver."
Dukar instinctively asked, "What is a 'return horse spear'? Why are we going to 'spear' him with something called a 'return horse spear'?"
Xiao Xun glared at him, "I'll explain it to you later."
The Ninth Legion disguised itself as the main force and operated extensively in Gele. The Third Legion's main force crossed the river at Tral Crossing. The First Legion and the main army crossed at Zhongshan. The Fifth Legion moved on the right flank. The Ninth Legion completed its mission and urgently followed.
With this attack, the Shattered Rock Army guarding Nuoshui was indeed caught off guard and routed at the first contact. The Phoenix Army captured Tucheng and successfully crossed Nuoshui.
The King of Arrogance's staff analyzed that the Phoenix Army must be heading for those two Spear of Vengeance legions and made corresponding deployments.
The main force of the Red Leaf Army was moved east to defend the vital passage into the Red Leaf Kingdom, and three legions were dispatched to attack the Phoenix Army.
Simultaneously, the Shangyun Kingdom was ordered to send three legions from the west to advance eastward. Unexpectedly, the Shangyun Kingdom only sent one legion, and it was the weakest one.
The three legions of Ka Siqi advanced along Nuoshui in a search pattern. Two major contingents of the Scourge Legion moved south from Changguan. Klie's Shattered Rock Army advanced towards the Machino border. Two legions of Ka Siqi crossed the Blackwater River and moved north to Machino to support Klie.
After the Phoenix Army under Xiao Xun crossed the river, the First and Third Legions advanced rapidly towards the border and dispatched a contingent of troops northward to confuse the enemy.
The border checkpoints were indeed lightly defended and were easily captured.
The Fifth and Ninth Legions stayed behind the main army to intercept the pursuing Red Leaf Army, while the First Legion defended the northern flank.
There was a very important pass, Tiansheng Pass, which was difficult to attack but essential to capture. If it could not be taken, the enemy's encirclement would be complete, and the Phoenix Army would be at their mercy.
Tiansheng Pass was primarily tasked to the Third Legion. Its difficulty in attack was akin to Kache in Midoya, facing a "line of sky" across from it.
Despite the immense difficulties, the Third Legion, through coordinated assaults, reached the city walls. As they were on the verge of capturing Tiansheng Pass, enemy reinforcements arrived, and the battle instantly devolved into a seesaw struggle.