Grinding to Martial Emperor from the Border Army

Chapter 153: Chapter 130: Ignored

Meanwhile, inside the Northern Patrol Camp, Lu Yuan’s army had already assembled.

They were a force of Iron Armor Warriors, every single one at the Entry Level of cultivation. Though they certainly couldn’t compare to the Imperial Guard,

compared to the regular Border Army and the Outer Fortress Soldiers, they were countless times more elite.

The one hundred Centurions were all at the Tendon Refining stage.

This was the most complete and powerful army Lu Yuan had ever commanded since he’d started his military career.

After sweeping his gaze over the army from his warhorse,

a Captain immediately stepped forward. "Sir, everyone has gathered."

"March out!"

Lu Yuan ordered coolly.

Then, the army began to advance.

With two horses per man, they moved at extreme speed, kicking up a vast cloud of dust from the ground.

At that same moment, the Captain of Withered Leaf Pass received a report from his subordinate: "Sir, the Northern Patrol Camp is on the move. They’re heading toward the camp of Prince Lie’s Mansion’s Village Soldiers."

After receiving the news, a grim look appeared on the Captain’s face. "I understand. You’re dismissed."

Then, he took out a Sound Transmission Stone and began sending a message to Prince Lie’s Mansion.

This was a noble from the Imperial City he had worked so hard to connect with.

The link between them was this unit of Village Soldiers and Prince Lie’s territory.

Now that the territory was gone, if this unit of Village Soldiers was also wiped out, he would be of no use to Prince Lie’s Mansion.

Therefore, he had to inform the Prince’s Mansion of this matter.

It had to be said, now that the nobles from the court were extending their reach one by one into the Northern Border, the equipment of the Border Army had also improved. After all, even the factions from Beyond the Passes were equipped with Sound Transmission Stones.

If the Border Army wasn’t equipped with them, how could they possibly defend the cities?

On the battlefield, information was the key to victory over the enemy.

Therefore, the Imperial Guard’s Government Office had sent out a batch two days ago, but because Lu Yuan was not at his post, the Sound Transmission Stone had not yet been delivered to him.

Just as the Captain of Withered Leaf Pass put down the Sound Transmission Stone,

an order from the Imperial Guard’s Government Office arrived: "Immediately clean up the intruding Village Soldiers. There must be no mistakes."

Looking at the message, the Captain of Withered Leaf Pass’s brow furrowed into a knot.

On one side was Prince Lie; on the other, Xiao Heng.

He couldn’t afford to offend either of them.

The latter, in particular, had supervisory authority over the Border Army.

But in the end, he still chose Prince Lie.

Not only because the Prince was a member of the imperial family, but more importantly, he had gone through great trouble to place himself under the Prince’s Mansion’s banner.

He had finally made the Prince’s Mansion aware of his existence.

As for Xiao Heng, even if he obeyed the order, the man might not even know who he was.

Besides, Prince Lie’s Mansion had promised to protect him as long as he followed their orders.

Therefore, after seeing this message, he had no intention of dispatching his troops.

Instead, he tossed the Sound Transmission Stone aside and ignored it.

A similar scene unfolded in several other nearby pass cities.

Although Xiao Heng was famous in the imperial court,

compared to Prince Lie, his status and everything else were clearly lacking.

Most importantly, Prince Lie’s Mansion had been operating in this area for a year.

In the pass cities near the Withered Leaf Plain, anyone worth recruiting had already been recruited.

The power of Prince Lie’s Mansion, coupled with the monthly deliveries of silver coins, had bound these people completely to the Prince’s Mansion’s war chariot.

Thus, upon seeing Xiao Heng’s order, their first thought was to delay.

The armies in the passes were moving, but very slowly.

At this rate, it would take them several days just to assemble.

As for arriving at the destination, who knew when that would be.

Meanwhile, Lu Yuan, leading his army on a swift march, had already arrived outside the camp of the Outer Fortress Soldiers.

At this moment, Lu Yuan saw that they were frantically striking camp, clearly having received news in advance and preparing to flee.

"This Northern Border has really been turned into a sieve by the nobility. No wonder the imperial court sent Xiao Heng to oversee things," Lu Yuan murmured to himself.

His eyes narrowed unconsciously.

Then, a bad feeling crept over him. ’The court is using Xiao Heng to cut off the limbs of these nobles. And I’ve become the tip of Xiao Heng’s blade. One day, when the buffer zone is stabilized, Xiao Heng might be protected by the Yong Emperor because of his deep connections. But someone has to bear the brunt of the nobles’ fury; otherwise, it would be detrimental to the court. Who will that person be?’

HISS!

As he suddenly figured this out, Lu Yuan couldn’t help but suck in a sharp breath.

’I’m still too young.’

’Without realizing it, I’ve been pushed to the very front, and I wasn’t even aware.’

’If not for this sudden realization, I probably wouldn’t even know how I’d die in the future.’

HUFF!

Then, he let out a long breath.

His expression became resolute. ’Since the court wants to use me, then I can just as well use the court to strengthen myself. At the very least, I’m safe until the nobles’ limbs are completely cut off. Here in the Northern Lands, as the General of the Northern Patrol, I can openly suppress any Village Soldiers who dare to cross the border, cutting off the last lifeline for those noble manors in the Northern Border and preventing them from entering the game. And in doing so, the Celestial King Stronghold can snowball and grow rapidly.’

Thinking of this, the killing intent in his eyes surged, and he roared to the army behind him, "Kill!"

With a wave of his hand,

the army surged toward the Village Soldiers of Prince Lie’s Mansion in an instant, like a black cloud.

Those Village Soldiers, hastily preparing to flee, were immediately at a disadvantage the moment they encountered the Northern Patrol Army.

Lu Yuan hefted his Cyan Dragon Crescent Saber, his gaze locking onto the Innate Expert on the battlefield.

The man had no intention of fighting a protracted battle; instead, he was preparing to flee.

Lu Yuan naturally wouldn’t let him get his wish. ’When you cut the weeds, you must pull out the roots. Only by uprooting Prince Lie’s Mansion’s influence within the Northern Border would they lose the qualification to enter the buffer zone again in the future.’

After all, things had been developing for over a year now, and the territories were already divided.

Once the Celestial King Stronghold took the Withered Leaf Plain and operated there for a time, their position would be completely stabilized.

It would be exceedingly difficult for outsiders to interfere then.

Right now, what he had to do was annihilate the army before him.

He couldn’t give Prince Lie’s Mansion a chance to make a comeback in the Northern Border.

But just as he was about to make his move,

CLIP-CLOP!

The sound of hooves echoed from the distance, and then several riders were seen galloping over.

The leader was a man in green robes. After approaching Lu Yuan’s troops, he held up a token and shouted, "Wu Heng, Third-Class Guard of Prince Lie’s Mansion, requests an audience!"

Lu Yuan glanced over, then nodded, signaling his Personal Guard to let him through.

Wu Heng casually approached Lu Yuan, raised the token, and said, "General, my Prince hopes you will give these Village Soldiers a chance to live."

Lu Yuan glanced at Wu Heng, his face expressionless, and said, "My mission is to annihilate the Village Soldiers who have crossed into the pass, not to obey the Prince’s orders. If you have something to say, have the Imperial Guard’s Government Office issue the command!"

After speaking, an icy glint appeared in Lu Yuan’s eyes.

He spurred his warhorse straight toward the Innate Expert in the camp ahead who was preparing to flee.

The speed of the Red Scale Warhorse needs no further description.

A single charge was enough to kick up a suffocating gale.

The Innate Expert didn’t even have time to react.

SHING!

A head was sent flying as Lu Yuan cleaved it clean off, and a thick mist of blood erupted into the air.

The Village Soldiers on the battlefield completely broke.

But unnoticed, the Northern Patrol Army’s encirclement had already formed. They showed no mercy, spearing to death every Village Soldier they encountered.

Having gone through life-and-death battles with the Xirong, their combat prowess was simply incomparable to an army of hastily assembled ruffians like the Outer Fortress Soldiers.

A thick mist of blood drifted across the battlefield.

By the time Lu Yuan returned to the edge of the battlefield carrying the head,

the Guard from Prince Lie’s Mansion, his face a mask of fury and disbelief, pointed at Lu Yuan and stammered, "You... Do you realize what you’ve done? This means making an enemy of the Prince’s Mansion!"

"If you dare to slander the Prince by accusing him of colluding with bandits from Beyond the Passes again, I won’t hesitate to cut you down right now," Lu Yuan said coolly.

Wu Heng’s heart tightened. Not daring to say another word, he wheeled his warhorse around and galloped off into the distance.

After riding some distance, he looked back and shot Lu Yuan a vicious glare.

「At that same moment, within the Imperial Guard’s Government Office.」

The crisp footsteps of a messenger echoed as he entered the main hall, knelt on one knee, and reported, "Marshal Xiao, a message has come from the forward patrol scouts. Near the Withered Leaf Plain, the armies in the pass cities are gathering extremely slowly. They have not been seen leaving the cities.

It is suspected they are intentionally delaying."

When Xiao Heng heard this, fury rose from his heart.

Killing intent flickered across his face.

For a general, there was nothing more infuriating than such a thing happening among his subordinates.

Just as he was about to order the Marquis of Mucheng to lead troops to the area,

the messenger quickly added, "However, the scouts saw that the Northern Patrol Army rushed to the battlefield at the earliest possible moment."