CHAPTER 982: CHAPTER 678: THIS IS OUR BEST OPPORTUNITY FOR EXPANSION_2

If such a situation happens again, no one can bear such a loss.

"Hmph! Anyway, the leader this time is the Youzhou City Lord. If a problem arises, we’ll just make him take the fall."

The Tianyang City Lord sneered coldly.

The three all agreed that if any trouble arises, they will hassle the Youzhou City Lord to absorb more of the losses.

The Youzhou City Lord stood before the multitude of troops, looking at the spirit mine in the distance, while the demon chief bandits within the mine also seemed somewhat tense.

A Little Demon asked Xiu Huang, "Sir, what should we do?"

Xiu Huang looked indifferently at the distant troops, "No worries, just execute according to His Majesty’s plan."

According to Wang Yang’s plan, it would be best to weaken the forces of the other three cities, to fight and retreat, so it looks genuine.

But even if the performance isn’t entirely believable, it doesn’t matter because they have already seized control.

"Attack!"

The Youzhou City Lord shouted, and all troops charged into the spirit mine.

His troops were meant to feint an attack, while the other two forces were to execute the real assault.

Under his lead, they engaged in a chaotic battle with the demon chief bandits, and the scene became utterly chaotic.

The other two forces seized the opportunity to advance.

Amid the chaos, Xiu Huang coldly sneered and said to his subordinates, "Remember, don’t expend too much effort on the Youzhou City Lord’s side. Once others come over, try your best to massacre them."

"Yes!"

In the chaos, the Youzhou City side also lost quite a few troops. Seeing this, the other three city lords chuckled, "This is a good chance to weaken their strength."

"The Youzhou City Lord thinks he can control everything, but he’s still under our plan..."

However, their expressions changed suddenly as other demons unexpectedly attacked their armies, slaughtering them and making their troops lose helmets and armor.

"What’s going on, do these demons not understand military tactics? Clearly, the main attack is supposed to be on the Youzhou City side, yet they are attacking our armies!"

Their faces looked grim; these demons were quite formidable and being on the defensive, they couldn’t easily win.

The chaotic battle lasted for more than an Hour. During the Hour, they collectively lost over three thousand troops.

Though not too much in total numbers, it was still heart-wrenching for them.

Looking at the Youzhou City side, they lost only a few hundred, a ratio hard for them to accept.

"Brothers, find a way to retreat!"

An unknown demon chief shouted, and surprisingly, they began to flee.

The Youzhou City Lord did not continue to pursue, but the other three city lords evidently went ahead.

"Youzhou City Lord, why stop?"

Stopping at this point certainly sparked suspicion among the three.

The Youzhou City Lord slowly said, "You must know not to chase cornered enemies. If we pursue recklessly, we will suffer even greater losses, and gain no more advantage."

The Tianyang City Lord coldly retorted, "Looks like you’re in league with these bandits, otherwise why did they rout just by your presence, while we faced deadly resistance?"

The Youzhou City Lord fumed, "What do you mean? Didn’t my side suffer losses too?"

"Who lost more, you or us? If you wanted to act, there would be a cost, I see this is all your plan!"

Seeing the quarrel escalate, the other two pulled them apart.

"Enough, stop arguing. We all suffered losses. The question now is whether to continue pursuing. If we let them go, they will surely return, causing us greater losses."

The Youzhou City Lord stood firm, "I’ve made it clear, don’t pursue cornered enemies. If we provoke them too much, losses will only increase."

"Youzhou City Lord, that’s your thoughts, not ours. If you’re a coward, just admit it."

The Tianyang City Lord gave the Youzhou City Lord a heated glare, before personally leading troops to chase the demon chief bandits.

The other two city lords didn’t go themselves, but sent soldiers to follow.

"The Youzhou City Lord is certainly a coward, good at defending but poor at attacking; no wonder he can only be a small-time city lord here."

During Tianyang City Lord’s assault, he shouted to his troops, "Chase, capture them all!"

Already having won a victory, with morale boosted, they all rushed ahead.

Meanwhile, in the distance, Xiu Huang stood atop a mountain, frowning slightly.

"The people from Tianyang City are too arrogant, to dare chase us."

Xiu Huang was somewhat displeased, if not for Wang Yang’s plan, he would have fought the Tianyang City Lord himself.

Thus, the chase continued, lasting over two Hours.

Seeing they had gone far from their territory, Xiu Huang was furious, "This is too much, we have fled far, and they dare pursue, they must pay!"

The demon chiefs were equally angered, knowing they could fight, they just planned to retreat.

Yes, let them know our power!

The demons stopped fleeing and awaited the Tianyang City Lord’s arrival.

The Tianyang City Lord felt puzzled, "What’s going on, why did they stop halfway, is it a trap?"

A subordinate suggested, "City Lord, they must know they have nowhere to go, so they plan to fight desperately."

The Tianyang City Lord nodded, thinking that made sense.

With a wave, he led the troops forward.

Xiu Huang led the charge, fighting like a war god into the army.

Yet another enormous chaotic battle erupted.

Atop the Spirit Ore Mountain, the Youzhou City Lord shook his head, feeling some confusion.

Odd, the Tianyang City Lord was reckless, but why fight stubbornly?

According to Wang Yang’s plan, they shouldn’t turn back to fight but should flee far away.

Seems not just the Tianyang City Lord but the demons too are unwilling to relent.

But everything was within Wang Yang’s vision.

Though there was a slight deviation from his plan, it was acceptable.

In this battle scenario, though the bandits suffered losses, the Tianyang City couldn’t gain much.

In the skirmish, the bandits lost over two thousand, and Tianyang City sacrificed more than five thousand.

The numbers pained the Tianyang City Lord, but he was already enraged.

"Retreat."

A shout echoed through the battlefield, causing the enraged bandits and Xiu Huang to pause and then calm down.

They no longer lingered and fled.

The Tianyang City Lord did not continue, feeling his battle was sufficient.

Returning with his troops to the Spirit Mine vicinity.

Xiu Huang and others were somewhat dejected, losing over two thousand was no small number.

As they were grieving, Wang Yang arrived slowly.

"Everyone, you’ve done well, met the intended goals."

Despite Wang Yang’s encouragement, spirits weren’t lifted.

"Battle sacrifices are unavoidable, today we didn’t fail. On the contrary, we won greatly; four cities are now under our control after this battle!"

Wang Yang’s words indeed raised new hope among the bandits.

A demon chief queried, "Sir, is it true?"

"Of course, if not, why would I pay such a high price? After this, the mining rights will be in our hands, the other three cities have suffered Severe Vital Energy Damage, now is the best time for our expansion!"