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After another day of arduous travel, Dai Chengfeng and Zhu Fan finally returned to Wu'an City.
At this time, layers of lead-gray clouds hung densely over the city, casting an oppressive atmosphere across the entire area.
Boom!
A deep, thunderous roar, like the growl of a colossal beast, split the sky.
Everything was a harbinger—rain was imminent.
"This is truly… such perfect weather!"
Dai Chengfeng sat in the carriage, gazing at the gloomy sky, his eyes profound. "My chances of success have just increased further."
Soon, their carriage arrived back at the residence of the Lord of Wu'an City.
As soon as they stepped down—
"Your Highness, you've finally returned."
"You're several hours later than expected. Did something unexpected happen?"
At this moment, Zhu Yan, the Lord of Wu'an City, seemed to have been waiting for some time.
Beside him lay a set of silver-white armor and a brand-new spear.
Dai Chengfeng looked at the armor and spear and nodded. "There were indeed some unexpected developments, but they were positive. You'll learn about them soon."
Before he left, he had planned that if everything went smoothly, he should have returned to the city around midnight last night.
However, absorbing the 1500-year-old Imperial Blood Tiger soul ring had caused some delay.
But now, returning at this moment didn't affect anything.
In fact, it was precisely the right time.
Dai Chengfeng turned to Zhu Yan. "Everything I instructed you to arrange before I left—is it all ready?"
Zhu Yan nodded. "Reporting to Your Highness, I've already completed all your arrangements in advance."
"Good!"
Dai Chengfeng took a deep breath and turned to his uncle, Zhu Fan, his expression grave. "Zhu Fan, Commander of the Star Luo Empire's Imperial Guard, receive my order!"
"Your subordinate is here!"
Zhu Fan immediately knelt on one knee, pounding his chest with his left hand, his demeanor serious.
"I'm giving you two hundred men!"
"You must hold the northern gate of Wu Ping City for half an hour—under no circumstances can you allow the gates to close."
"Can you do it?!"
"This…"
Zhu Fan looked at Dai Chengfeng in confusion. "Your Highness, if I personally lead two hundred men out of the city, Wu Ping City will surely receive intelligence ahead of time and close the gates. How can I…"
Before Zhu Fan could finish, Dai Chengfeng chuckled lightly. "But what if no one knows you've left?"
"And what if you and those two hundred men could appear directly 800 meters outside the northern gate of Wu Ping City?"
Hearing Dai Chengfeng's question, Zhu Fan nodded. "If that's the case, I'm confident I can hold the position."
"Not only for half an hour—even an entire hour wouldn't be a problem."
"But how can I ensure no one discovers us while appearing directly 800 meters outside the northern gate?"
Dai Chengfeng glanced at Zhu Yan.
Zhu Yan nodded and hesitantly explained to Zhu Fan, "Apologies, Commander Zhu Fan."
"In truth, after one month of road repairs, I received a private military order from His Highness."
"He instructed me to use the road repairs as a cover to dig an underground tunnel leading directly outside Wu Ping City."
"His Highness explicitly said not to reveal this to anyone, so I kept it secret."
"Even the workers who dug the tunnel were brought in from other cities, and every time they entered the tunnel, their eyes were blindfolded, led solely by me…"
At this point, Dai Chengfeng added, "Due to the tight schedule and the need for absolute secrecy,"
"The tunnel I ordered Zhu Yan to dig isn't very wide."
"In the short term, it can accommodate no more than 200 people passing through."
"The main army of Wu'an City cannot use the tunnel to reach Wu Ping City…"
"But with the newly repaired road above ground, a journey that originally took an hour and a half can now be completed in half an hour."
"This is why I must ask you, Uncle, to hold the northern gate of Wu Ping City for half an hour."
Upon hearing Zhu Yan and Dai Chengfeng's explanation, Zhu Fan wasn't angry.
He fully understood—the fewer people who knew about secrets, the better.
Thus, he simply gave Dai Chengfeng another solemn military salute. "In that case!"
"Your Highness, rest assured. With my strength as a Soul Douluo, 800 meters is nothing."
"I'm absolutely confident I can enter the city gates before they close and hold them for half an hour, waiting for the main army to arrive."
Dai Chengfeng nodded. "Uncle, go."
"The men are in the training grounds, and the entrance to the tunnel is in Lord Zhu Yan's room."
"Yes!"
Zhu Fan acknowledged and promptly turned to leave.
Watching Zhu Fan's retreating figure, Dai Chengfeng called out, "Uncle, stay safe!"
Zhu Fan waved his hand. "Chengfeng, don't worry—I'm a Soul Douluo!"
"While I'm gone, take care of yourself. Remember not to wander too far from Zhu Yan."
"Mm!"
Once Zhu Fan's figure disappeared completely, Dai Chengfeng turned to Zhu Yan again. "Lord of Wu'an City, Zhu Yan, receive my order!"
"Your subordinate is here!"
Zhu Yan also knelt on one knee, his expression solemn, tinged with a sense of vindication as their revenge drew near.
After all, compared to Dai Chengfeng and Zhu Fan, Zhu Yan was the one closest to the soldiers of Wu'an City.
For instance, Xu Feng was someone he had personally promoted and valued greatly.
Previously, they had fought side by side on the battlefield.
But…
Thinking of this, Zhu Yan's eyes reddened slightly, brimming with murderous intent.
"I order you to assemble all the troops of Wu'an City at the Memorial Stele."
"At the same time, send men to seal off all exits of Wu'an City. Not even a fly can escape."
"If anyone disobeys or attempts to flee the city—no need to report, execute them on the spot!"
Zhu Yan clenched his fist. "I understand, Your Highness!"
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Because the soldiers of Wu'an City were required to gather daily for road repairs—and Dai Chengfeng had specifically mandated…
Even during road repairs, the soldiers of Wu'an City were required to keep their armor on at all times.
Thus, in less than half an incense stick's time, all the soldiers of Wu'an City, except those responsible for guarding the city, had already gathered at the Memorial Stele.
However, they were all puzzled…
After all, during previous road repairs, they always assembled at the city gates. Why were they suddenly gathering at the Memorial Stele today?
As they stood there murmuring in confusion,
Tap, tap, tap…
The crisp sound of hooves approached. Dressed in silver-white armor and wielding a spear, Dai Chengfeng rode his warhorse to the front of the crowd.
The Dai family was naturally tall. For instance, Dai Chengfeng's father, Dai An, stood at an impressive 2.2 meters.
Coupled with Dai Chengfeng's constant tempering of his body using Innate Origin Metal Qi, which unlocked his physical potential early, he now exuded the aura of a young general in full battle regalia.
When he reached the front of all the soldiers—
Dai Chengfeng raised his spear, pointing at the Memorial Stele he had specially built for the soldiers who died in the battle against Qian Renxue eight months ago.
"Fellow soldiers!"
"Do you know what this is?"
Upon hearing this, one soldier tentatively spoke up. "The Memorial Stele?"
"Not entirely correct!"
Dai Chengfeng shook his head and shouted loudly, "This is not just a Memorial Stele—it is vengeance! It represents our blood feud with the Tian Dou Empire!"
"On this stele, there are 2,862 names…"
"These are the names of the soldiers who fearlessly sacrificed their lives to defend Wu'an City in the bloody battle of Wu'an eight months ago!"
"And today!"
"I, Dai Chengfeng, the Fourth Prince of the Star Luo Empire, will lead you…"
"To avenge them!!!"
At the mention of revenge, the eyes of all the soldiers of Wu'an City instantly reddened. A surge of killing intent, mingled with uncontrollable fury-induced soul power, swept toward the sky.
The clouds swirled into a vortex, and thunder exploded within.
To Dai Chengfeng…
The outcome of that battle had left him feeling mostly frustrated.
But to the soldiers of Wu'an City, it was a deeply personal wound, a blood-soaked grudge!
After all, among those 2,862 names were brothers they had fought alongside, fathers who had raised them, sons who carried their bloodlines… these names represented entire lifetimes.
"Revenge!"
"Revenge!!"
"…"
Everyone roared in unison!
Boom—!
A bolt of lightning split the sky, briefly illuminating the names on the Memorial Stele.
The wind whipped the banners, and the long-suppressed torrential rain finally began to fall.
Dai Chengfeng allowed the rain to soak his armor, his spear pointed northwest toward Wu Ping City. "Who says we have no clothes? We share the same armor. The king raises an army, sharpens our spears, and shares our enmity!"
"This march will crush Wu Ping City underfoot! Charge!"
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