novelraw Chapter 92 : Boundless Opportunities Across Anxi
Chapter 92 : Boundless Opportunities Across Anxi
Chapter 92: Boundless Opportunities Across Anxi
After the emissary from the Kingdom of Jingjue departed with only a verbal promise of a “peaceful marriage alliance,” Jiang Zhaoming no longer hesitated.
With a sweeping motion of his arm, his command fell like a collapsing mountain. “Advance west of the Prefecture!”
In an instant, the earth trembled.
The Bandit-Subduing Army, Queshe Army, Black-Armored Army, and Guan Ning Iron Cavalry — four legions of iron and blood — surged forward like floodwaters breaching their banks, roaring toward the western territories of the Prefecture.
A million-strong army marched forth, an awe-inspiring sight to behold.
In the skies, Gryphon Riders guided their ferocious beasts, their vast wings veiling the sun.
On the ground, armored war elephants trampled forward with thunderous steps, each one shaking the desert beneath them.
The days in Anxi Prefecture had truly taken a turn for the better — even the Gryphon Riders and elephant cavalry were sights never seen before.
Though the Anxi soldiers were already formidable, they couldn’t help but marvel at such might.
As the Anxi Army advanced, Jiang Zhaoming still received no word from the Kingdom of Yutian. Their stance, therefore, was self-evident.
In that case — they would all be annihilated.
The grand army swept westward.
After more than ten days, the Anxi forces finally crossed the life-devouring Sea of Death, setting foot upon the coarse, arid soil west of the Prefecture.
The endless yellow sands gradually gave way to desolate Gobi plains, where tenacious shrubs struggled to sprout from cracks in the rock.
On the horizon, the ruins of a fortress built upon the perilous terrain of the Gobi emerged faintly.
It had once been the stronghold of the rebels in Qiemo County. Now, only broken walls, charred stakes, and the echoes of panic remained, whispered through the drifting sands.
Jiang Zhaoming rose into the air, hovering above the ruins, his cold gaze sweeping across the land below.
Collapsed gates, shattered weapons and bone armor strewn across the ground, tattered tents fluttering and wailing in the wind —
The chaotic wagon tracks and footprints scattered across the earth all bore witness to the rebels’ panicked flight.
Once it was confirmed that no traps or ambushes lay within the ruins, Jiang Zhaoming gave the order for the army to occupy the area and rest in readiness.
Inside the shattered command tent, a small space was cleared out with difficulty.
Jiang Zhaoming personally unfurled a detailed map of the western prefecture, pointing with his fingertip to their current position —
The northeastern corner.
The western territories of the Prefecture were far vaster than those to the east.
To the south lay the lands of the Kingdom of Yutian, stretching all the way to the cloud-piercing Tianwu Plateau.
To the west lay the Kingdom of Jingjue, bordering what was known as the largest inland body of water in the known world — Lake Haoyue.
Lake Haoyue stretched one hundred thousand li from east to west, and spanned one hundred and sixty thousand li from north to south — the mother lake that nourished countless nations around it.
However, its vastness also served as a natural barrier between the eastern and western realms.
Rich in resources, the lake was also home to innumerable ferocious aquatic beasts — nightmares to any vessel that dared cross it.
Even more fearsome were the savage water bandits that haunted its waves, preying on passing merchants.
And worse still — some travelers might find themselves caught between warring fleets of rival kingdoms.
Thus, this grand mother lake of inland nations was also a nightmare to them all.
It was precisely because of this that the Great Zhou rarely engaged with western nations.
Jiang Zhaoming’s gaze paused over the position of the Kingdom of Jingjue on the map.
When the Prince of Anxi two generations prior first conquered Jingjue, he too had harbored grand ambitions — seeking to open the road between East and West.
Unfortunately, the Anxi Navy was too weak at the time, and the plan was abandoned.
Had that prince succeeded and lived until this day, his Imperial Destiny Value would have long surpassed twenty thousand — for the Anxi Prefecture was just such a land of both fortune and peril.
That former Prince of Anxi, who once expanded the Great Zhou’s western borders, had indeed soared far ahead of his peers — breaking past ten thousand points in destiny value when other princes within the heartlands rarely exceeded five thousand, struggling slowly upward instead.
After all, in the heartland territories, one had to wage wars against mighty nations like Great Jin to earn Imperial Destiny Value through conquest.
Though the Emperor did not interfere in the internal affairs of fiefdoms — including declarations of war —
if any prince dared to wage war against Great Jin and lost, his downfall would soon follow.
Princes of the heartlands faced opponents like Great Jin — but that Prince of Anxi’s foes had been the weak and fractured kingdoms of the Western Regions.
Hence, he had soared far beyond all competition.
Unfortunately, he had not been cautious enough. Somehow, he died, and his mighty armies perished with him.
Otherwise, such a rich and promising land as Anxi Prefecture would never have fallen into Jiang Zhaoming’s hands.
“This king must be cautious enough. As long as I cultivate this fief well, I’ll have every chance to surpass them all in Imperial Destiny Value.”
Suppressing his thoughts, Jiang Zhaoming summoned his generals to the command tent to discuss their next campaign.
He decided to strike first at Qiemo City.
The lands of Qiemo County were barren and desolate, much like those of Ronglu County — vast Gobi plains with only a few scattered oases.
Naturally, the rebels were entrenched within those oases.
For such a weak kingdom, Jiang Zhaoming couldn’t be bothered to devise complex tactics — he simply ordered Yue Fei to lead the Gryphon Cavalry for a swift and decisive strike.
With the strategy set, Jiang Zhaoming wasted no time.
His gaze swept across the assembled generals as he said in a deep voice, “Yue Fei, hear my command!”
“Your subordinate awaits!”
Yue Fei stepped forward, his armor plates clinking.
“I order you to lead the Bandit-Subduing Army’s Gryphon Air Cavalry Corps. Depart immediately, and strike straight at the rebel king’s oasis citadel in Qiemo.
This battle must be swift — crush their resistance with thunderous force, and capture the ringleader alive!”
“By your command!”
Yue Fei clasped his fists, a sharp gleam flashing in his eyes. Swift and decisive — just as he preferred.
“The rest of the forces — the Black-Armored Army will move to Qiemo’s southern borders to threaten Shule; the Guan Ning Iron Cavalry will guard the western lines against the direction of Jinpu; the remaining Bandit-Subduing troops will advance into Qiemo’s interior.”
“As the King commands!”
The generals responded in unison, their voices resounding with killing intent.
With orders given, the grand machine of war roared into motion.
The Black-Armored Army, the Guan Ning Iron Cavalry, and the Queshe Army — three steel dragons surged forth, stirring up rolling clouds of dust as they sped toward their designated fronts.
But none were as awe-inspiring as the Bandit-Subduing Army’s Gryphon Air Cavalry under Yue Fei’s command.
Outside the encampment, thousands of mighty gryphons stood ready on the open field.
These beasts were enormous, their wingspans vast, their bodies clad in specially forged lightweight scale armor that gleamed with cold metallic light.
They pawed restlessly at the ground with their horned talons, throats rumbling with deep growls.
Their sharp, predatory eyes swept their surroundings — fierce and untamed, yet disciplined from rigorous training.
The air cavalrymen, clad in light leather armor and bearing a variety of weapons, swiftly mounted their saddles, securing reins and gear with practiced hands.
As Yue Fei let out a long, piercing cry, thousands of gryphons spread their wings at once, beating the air with thunderous power and raising clouds of swirling sand.
Amid the roaring wind, the vast gryphon formation surged upward like a dark storm cloud, blotting out the sun above the Gobi.
With the deafening sound of their wings, they tore through the skies toward the rebel king’s stronghold in Qiemo to the northwest.
The gryphons flew far faster than any ground force.
Below them, the barren Gobi landscape flashed by —
bare brown rocks, sparse drought-resistant shrubs, and parched, cracked riverbeds.
The fierce winds of the high altitude lashed against the riders’ faces, carrying the dry and coarse scent of the wasteland.
In less than two and a half days, their target came clearly into view.