girl let me check

Chapter 462: Hundred-foot Ice

On July 13, the foreign invaders failed in their fierce attack on Hefei and decided to retreat back to the north of the Huai River.

But if they wanted to retreat, it was not enough for the whole army to change the marching formation and flee northward. That behavior was more like a rout, and Tuoba Liang did not think that he had lost to the Great Zhou at the gate of Hefei.

The Chanyu ordered that the 100,000-man army be divided into four groups of 3,000 troops, and that they explore the four directions of Chengde, Xiquyang, Yinling, and Dongcheng in the north, report the road conditions and enemy situation along the way, and select one of them as the main retreat route. The rest of the troops stayed behind in the main camp in Hefei, with one group continuing to feint and attack Hefei, and the other group packing up the baggage, dismantling the artillery, and preparing to evacuate.

The plan was well thought out and the measures were reasonable. But there are some things that you can't turn back just because you want to. The alien army undoubtedly didn't realize this, and Xie Lingwan was determined to teach them a lesson.

Between July 19th and 24th, reports came in sporadically from the foreign armies.

The main camp of the alien race also received shocking news: the four directions of retreat were all blocked by the Zhou army.

In the direction of Chengde, Lujiang Yamen General Fu Xingzhi's 16,000 troops built a dike along Shaohu Lake to store flood water, making the road difficult to travel.

In the direction of Xiquyang, guerrilla general Qiu Tingbai reorganized the remnants of his troops and led 10,000 people to defend the Fei River and repelled the advance troops that had been sent out.

In the direction of Yinling, Guangling guerrilla Ban Guangxian led 12,000 Guangling new troops to capture Yinling County.

In the direction of Dongcheng, General Yan Fucheng of the Guangling Fujun Army arrived yesterday with the main force of 30,000 Guangling New Army. They are building defenses and are ready for battle.

Chengde, Xiquyang, Yinling, Dongcheng, plus the Anfeng Legion stationed in Hefei, more than 100,000 troops surrounded the main force of the alien race, like a huge pocket.

"Damn Xie Lingwan!" Tuoba Liang was extremely angry, "Does she want to swallow up my 100,000-man army in one gulp?!"

"Where did the Zhou army get so many people! Their total number is only about 180,000. Where are our East and West Route Armies?! What are they doing?"

Murong Wei replied in a low voice: "The right wing was held up by a part of Guangling's new army in Quanjiao and could not return to defend. The left wing had already reached Wanxian, but the Wanshui Bridge on the way back was suddenly attacked and burned by Xuanzhong Guards, and there were no boats on both sides of the river, so they are now trapped in Wanxian and cannot move."

Tuoba Liang took a deep breath and soon calmed down. He began to think calmly about how to break the current situation.

"The Zhou army's numbers are at most equal to ours. Baggage and food supplies are a problem, but as long as we win quickly enough, these problems won't be a problem."

Tuoba Liang said gloomily.

"Pass on my order. The cavalry will go first, and the entire army will break out in the direction of Yinling immediately."

As for why he chose Yinling, it was obvious that Tuoba Liang had given it some thought.

In Chengde and Xiquyang, the Zhou army had built dams to store floodwaters. It was the rainy season these days, so if they opened the gates to release water, their army would be greatly affected. And the main force of the Guangling New Army was stationed in Dongcheng, which was an especially tough nut to crack.

After comprehensive comparison, Yinling City is the best choice.

"Yes!"

Murong Wei took the order and ordered all the troops to set out immediately.

On July 30th, the Battle of Yinling broke out.

Yinling was just a small county, with low walls made entirely of rammed earth, which could not withstand the bombardment of foreign artillery. One hundred thousand foreign troops were divided into shifts to fight, and in such a dangerous situation, the twelve thousand new Guangling troops still relied on their strong fighting will to hold on for three days and three nights, and finally withdrew from the battlefield as a last resort, buying enough time for the rest of the troops to encircle them.

At the turn of July and August, the Jianghuai region was rainy. The roads were extremely muddy, and the horses' hooves would sink into the mud. Xie Lingwan also ordered the local people to grow more rice, so that the Jianghuai region was full of paddy fields, and the cavalry could not be deployed at all, which greatly slowed down the march of the foreign army.

Tuoba Liang urged them several times, but in the end he was helpless. Even the seventh-level holy blessing and warriors could not affect the bad weather.

On August 5, 30 miles south of Dangtu City, the Guangling New Army caught up with the rear of the foreign army. Tuoba Liang and Murong Wei, two seventh-level masters, personally covered the rear and fought a fierce battle with Xiao Fuwei and Xiao Yangwang who came to pursue them. After paying the price of thousands of people, they were able to escape in embarrassment.

August 7th, ten miles outside Dangtu City.

The Zhou army troops are gathering here, with thousands of people rushing in from the rear every day, forming an unprecedentedly large army.

"The foreign army has begun to cross the river." Xiao Jin walked quickly into the tent, picked up the teacup in front of Xie Lingwan and drank it all, then let out a long sigh.

"Ah."

Xie Lingwan didn't even look at her, but was concentrating on writing a piece of calligraphy.

Xiao Jin came over curiously and asked, "Why are you so free today? Instead of reading the battle report, you're secretly practicing calligraphy here?"

Miss Xie's calligraphy is naturally very beautiful, her running script is dignified and elegant, yet it does not lose the bearing of a great man. When Shi Dangliu opened a private school, she was praised by Master Shi, who was known as the "Four Seas Literary Master", who called her "cold bamboo and cedar, proud but not arrogant", and she was highly sought after by the world.

As her classmate, Xiao Jin naturally knew this, but she obviously didn't want to praise her against her conscience.

Humph, it's not because my handwriting is not as good as hers.

"You can read the battle report at any time, but if you don't write this today, you will never have the chance again."

Xie Lingwan rolled up her sleeves, put down her writing brush, took off the hairpin from her temples, and gently pressed it down to act as a weight. The whole set of movements was extremely pleasing to the eye, and even the maids in the palace would not be able to find any fault with it.

"cut."

Xiao Jin felt inexplicably jealous. She didn't know if it was because she felt disgusted by her young lady-like behavior or what, but she just felt very unhappy.

"Even though I don't know much about military tactics, I know that we should attack when the enemy is halfway across the river. Now the enemy is crossing the river, why don't we launch an attack?"

"There are many reasons. Do you need me to list them for you?" Xie Lingwan glanced at her and sighed slightly. "I didn't understand the art of war before, but I can learn it. Can't you learn it?"

"Hey, Xie Lingwan, that's enough. Stop showing that pitying smile of yours, okay?" Xiao Jin was so angry that he wanted to hit her.

"The Huai River is flooding, and the Yangtze River Navy cannot provide timely support. Our army has not yet assembled, and the current number is barely 50,000, and there is no cavalry charging. The enemy crossed the river in an orderly manner, and the flags on the Dangtu city wall were flying, which clearly showed that they were well prepared. The left and right armies of the foreign race are eyeing us from all sides, and a rash attack may lead to disaster..."

"Alright, alright, shut up." Xiao Jinsheng waved his hands helplessly, "I'll just listen to you."

"Then why did you gather so many troops here?" she asked doubtfully. "By the time everyone is here, the foreign army will have already crossed the river, right?"

"When are you most relaxed?" Xie Lingwan asked her.

"Hmm...you've got me stumped by this." Xiao Jin bit her finger and thought for a while. Not knowing what she thought of, she started to giggle and two abnormal blushes gradually appeared on her face.

"stop."

Xie Lingwan looked at Xiao Jin with disdain, afraid that she would say something shocking, so she interrupted her quickly.

The girl stood up, her flowing green sleeves brushed across the table, bringing with them a faint scent of orchids.

“I feel most relaxed when I am sure I have survived the disaster.”

"Wait until tomorrow night and you'll know."

A piece of calligraphy was left on the table. Xiao Jin looked at it intently and saw ten words written on it:
"Don't rely on it not coming, rely on what I have waiting for."

The corner of Xiao Jin's mouth twitched slightly.

I'm somewhat convinced, Xiao Xie.

Xiao Jin thought about it for a long time, but still couldn't figure out how Xie Lingwan was going to win, so he simply gave up thinking about it.

"So mysterious... Why would Brother Fang like such a scheming bitch?" she muttered to herself.

……

The next evening, on the south bank of the Huai River.

The Great Zhou army lined up along the river, with the cavalry in the front and the infantry in the back, with flags standing like a forest, and the air was filled with a solemn and murderous atmosphere. The Huai River roared at night, and the rolling torrents turned into white waves, and the fishy wind blew in the face.

Xie Lingwan stood at the front of the army, her sleeves blown by the strong wind. Her thin figure was like an orchid in a valley, blooming majestically.

"Since the beacon fire was lit at Yuguan Pass, I have slept for less than ten days in the past five months. In the past half month, I have not slept for a single day. I stared at the map all the time and mistook the candlelight for darkness."

Xie Lingwan said softly.

"I often ask myself: Why do I do all this? Of course, this question is easy to answer - it's for my husband. But is it just for my husband?"

"Although I don't have the ridiculous responsibility of trapping myself like that emperor, I will never lose the lowest bottom line of being a Zhou citizen like the Uehara royal family."

"The ruler of this world can be Fang Zun or Fang Tang. He can have the surname Fang or not. Although it would be best if he is my husband, he can be anyone in the Central Plains. But... he cannot be a foreigner."

The girl closed her eyes, and a huge amount of water elemental power surged out. A cold wind blew in the ice-blue area, swirling towards the river surface at a high speed, like the collapse of a thousand glaciers.

The sleepless nights and days consumed the girl's energy while also beating her soul, making her spirit stronger every day. Unconsciously, Xie Lingwan finally crossed the threshold of the sixth turn and officially entered the seventh turn of the five elements.

At this time, even the Imperial Master Shi Dangliu had not yet broken through the seventh level. In many ways, Xie Lingwan was already the number one person on the Five Elements Path.

The Seventh Transformation of the Five Elements is called "Reconstruction", which means to reconstruct the power of the main five elements, allowing different forms of the elements to be converted into each other.

For example, melting water into ice.

Even if the Seventh Turn Five Elements has the ability to condense water into ice, the elemental power reserves of an ordinary Seventh Turn cultivator are simply not enough to freeze a large area of ​​a river during the flood season.

But, she is Xie Lingwan.

She secretly blocked all news, prepared dozens of expensive elemental power amplification stones, and adjusted her own state to the peak, just for this moment today.

"Today is the day to settle the account for injuring my husband." Xie Lingwan murmured in a low voice.

"Kacha kacha kacha..."

The rushing Huai River was interrupted by a small amount of water. The girl took a step forward, and a hundred feet of ice suddenly condensed in front of her. The scope of the ice continued to expand, and the icy wind blew to every corner of the river. The roaring sound of the water gradually faded away, and was replaced by the miracle of freezing.

The Huai River was covered with thick ice that was hundreds of meters long.

"Launch the attack." Xie Lingwan said to Xiao Fuwei who was already stunned beside her.

"Yes!" Xiao Fuwei reacted and responded quickly.

The sound of war drums pierced the sky, and the river bank was illuminated by flames that shot up into the sky, continuing all night long.

……

……

The ice phoenix flapped its wings in the clouds, its wings covered with snow, and its speed was as fast as thunder.

The light and shadow of the stars flew back to the palm of his hand. Wen Zhexue felt the echo of the magic and frowned.

The distance from Jingnan to Tianshan is too far, and the Bright Moon Ritual cannot be activated continuously in a short period of time. She can use the Bright Moon Ritual to teleport to Xie Lingwan's side, but she can only rely on the Phoenix for the return trip.

It takes more than two days to get from Linjiang to Tianshan, and Linyuan Yuchen, who was worried about the situation of the sect, sent an inquiry to his master using the Secret Ritual of the Stars when he was in Linjiang, but received no reply.

On the way, she activated the Starry Ritual three more times, but there was no response each time.

The ominous premonition in his heart became stronger and stronger. Wen Zhexue was worried and anxious, and hurriedly urged Yumo to fly faster.

Before she went south this time, she had asked for permission from her master, Master Taixu. However, her master did not try to keep her. Instead, he told her to build good relationships with people like Xie Lingwan who were blessed with great fortune, and not to be affected by what happened that year.

It can be seen that Zhenren Taixu also strongly supported her going south.

As for the invasion of demonic energy, before Wen Zhexue returned, Linyuan Pavilion launched an all-out counterattack at all costs and finally locked the army of demonized bodies firmly in the Western Wilderness, and set up an eight-turn Flying Star Locking Dome Array to block it, which basically temporarily eliminated the turmoil in the Demonic Abyss.

With support from within the sect and things outside the sect slowing down, plus the situation on Xiao Jin's side was also very urgent, Wen Zhexue used the Bright Moon Secret Ritual and teleported to Xie Lingwan a thousand miles away in an instant.

But what is going on now? Why doesn't the master accept my message? Is there something wrong with the sect?

Wen Zhexue originally wanted to activate the Secret Ritual of the Stars again to contact the other elders of Linyuan, but then she recalled what Fang Weihan had told her about the possibility of a traitor from Chilechuan in Linyuan Pavilion, so she gave up the idea.

The outline of the majestic Tianshan Mountains was already in front of them. Wen Zhexue concentrated his mind and used star power to control Yu Mo, making it fly faster.

Tianshan was still grey, unchanged from before she left. The demonic energy had not invaded, and the sect protection formation was still functioning normally. It seemed that the master did not respond to her because the sect was attacked by foreign enemies.

The phoenix landed in front of the Wentian Peak Square and turned into an ice flame that appeared on the girl's shoulder. Star power flowed under her feet, and her figure rushed towards the main hall rapidly.

Wen Zhexue pushed open the door of the main hall, only to see the heads of the eight Linyuan Pavilions, except for Master Taixu, sitting solemnly, as if they were discussing important matters of the sect.

The people present were somewhat surprised by Wen Zhexue's arrival, but not too shocked.

"Your honor."

The pavilion masters bowed and saluted.

Wen Zhexue and Yu Mo were both stunned.

Your Excellency is the name given by Linyuan’s disciples to the Master of Linyuan Pavilion.

"Are these old guys crazy?" Dark Face said in disbelief in his sea of ​​consciousness, "Master is not even dead yet, and they are already trying to seize power and usurp the throne and establish a new king?"

A myriad of chaotic thoughts flooded Wen Zhexue's brain, making it difficult for her to react for a moment.

Wen Zhexue calmed down the surging emotions in her heart.

"Where is my master?" she asked, taking a deep breath.

However, little did they know that this question made many of the leaders present look at each other in bewilderment.

"Your Majesty, your master, Lingfu Zhenren... could it be that he passed away five hundred years ago?" asked Master Xuanquan Zhenjun of Yulu Pavilion bluntly.

True Lord Lingfu, the previous master of Linyuan Pavilion, was the master of True Lord Taixu.

Wen Zhexue staggered back two steps, and her already snow-white face lost even more color.

She thought of an extremely absurd possibility.

Everything in front of her was blurry and clear. She looked past the crowd and saw the wind outside the window.

"Xuan Quan." She said tremblingly, imitating the tone of her master in her memory.

Xuanquan Zhenjun bowed solemnly and said, "Xuanquan obeys your orders."

"who I am?"

"Master Taixu, Master of Linyuan Pavilion."

There was a howling wind at the top of Wentian Peak, and snow was flying like catkins, burying the tall tower.

(End of this chapter)