CHAPTER 650: CHAPTER 390: SPREADING LIKE WILDFIRE

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"Hmm, this is not what we need to focus on right now. You’ll see, during the siege, the people living inside the city might be lucky enough to have sufficient supplies for a short period, but eventually, they will run out. When that happens, the price of food will soar astronomically, and the poor will begin to die. What will they do with their bodies? They can’t bury them in the town center, and if they lie around for too long, they’ll start to rot. Once they rot, it’s highly likely that plagues will spread like wildfire. Fighting an army stricken with disease and decay will give us an even greater chance at victory."

"I thought you wanted us to win this war as quickly as possible," Wan Qiao retorted. Xu Yue seemed hurried during the day because he had beasts clearing the battlefield, but this comment only made Yan Xiaobao smirk. "Indeed, I want us to win this war swiftly," he agreed, "but I also know it might not be as easy as it seems. The Crusaders are inside the capital, their powerful Saints are inside the capital, not to mention their Kings and Emperor. Our battles ahead will be even more challenging, which is why I want to accelerate their process of falling ill. In a few days, these corpses should be thoroughly decomposed. The maggots will feast on them, and then they’ll be ready to send back to their Lords."

Wan Qiao said no more as she listened to Yan Xiaobao’s plan once again. Throughout the discussion, Yan Xiaobao’s expression remained unchanged. He seemed neither remorseful about using the enemy’s bodies to their fullest potential nor showed any signs of disgust or guilt. For this young man, the crucial thing was defeating the opponents standing before him and bringing down the Siban Empire.

"Well then, do excuse me," Yan Xiaobao said with a smile on his face, "I need to check on our troops." With those words, Yan Xiaobao disappeared. The white-haired youth was true to his word and strode straight toward the medical tents to observe the work being done by the beasts.

As he entered the tent, many experts were bustling around. Every specialist with close ties to Wood was inside, helping the injured. Some of these specialists were trained therapists, while others were not, but their energy was amplified by the trained therapists. Thus, their work resembled energy-enhancing wood batteries.

"As long as even one beast hasn’t died, we have the ability to save them," Yan Xiaobao murmured in satisfaction, watching bones being instantly healed, wounds closing, and lost limbs being reattached. Therapists had spent an entire day and continued their efforts throughout the night, and now everyone was fully healed. The therapists were sitting on many hospital beds and the ground. They were now wholly focused on recovering the energy they had just exhausted. Reflecting on this, Yan Xiaobao sat amongst all the specialists, in a moment when the blue cloud rolled outwards. It made the essence of the heavens and earth much denser, and they greedily refined the energy. They could feel the essence was far thicker than usual, allowing them to absorb much more energy than normal.

The night was quiet, and as the sun broke over the horizon, Yan Xiaobao rose to his feet. All the experts around him followed suit. None of them spoke, but everyone was deeply amazed; they understood the blue cloud that allowed them to recover their inner energy was controlled by their Great Marshall. Taking this into account, many specialists were reminded of the blue lines and webs they had previously used in battles within the Divine Domain to defeat their opponents.

As they stood, everyone remained silent. Their minds couldn’t fully grasp what had transpired, but they were all grateful for the mysterious young man standing with them. Someone harboring so many secrets could only be beneficial to their cause.

Morning arrived quickly, and everyone left the tent as Yan Xiaobao summoned the Wild Bulls pulling numerous weapons. "It’s time," he said gently to the many beasts. As the Wild Bulls charged toward the war machines and began dragging them to the city gates, their faces grew excited and impatient. Yan Xiaobao followed behind, swiftly falling into formation with the army. They marched forward like a proper military force, their footsteps shaking the ground with every step they took. The closer they got to the gates, the more the soldiers on the walls could feel the vibrations.

"What is that?!" someone shouted from the top of the walls as they saw numerous tall towers, catapults, crossbow cannons, springs, and artillery. They had never seen so many new weapons before; while they had anticipated some innovations, the sight of the weapons being dragged forward drenched them all in cold sweat. At the very moment the towers came into view, everyone atop the walls began shifting uneasily from one foot to the other. The sheer height of these towers made it easy for them to reach the top of the walls. As they advanced, worry grew over what their purpose might be.

"Stay away from the walls!" Yan Xiaobao shouted as the Wild Bulls halted in their tracks. All their weapons were positioned about a hundred meters away from the walls. The beasts stared at the humans and fellow beasts on the walls with burning battle intent in their eyes. However, humans displayed pale faces and discomfort stemming from an invisible impatience.

"We’ll return their soldiers to them first!" Yan Xiaobao bellowed loudly, signaling for all the catapults and attackers to ready themselves. These weapons were quickly armed, not with the stones people would usually expect, but with corpses taken from two mountain-like piles of the dead.