As expected, Zhao Yulong couldn't hold back.

The alliance army set out in full force, and naturally, they fell into the trap!

With three million miscellaneous troops at the forefront and ten million Sacred Army launching a fierce counterattack, Zhao Yulong's sub-saints and powerful forces gave their all. Despite nine million troops fighting to the death, they couldn't turn the tide of battle. Not only did they lose over three hundred thousand troops, but the Shunkang City, which they had held for over a month, was also breached.

Claiming over three hundred thousand might seem insignificant compared to the total of over twenty million combined forces, but only those who have fought know that this is already a tremendous achievement.

With millions of troops, even if they stood still, it would be endless and boundless across the hills and plains. To have such a large-scale battle fully engage would take at least a month or two.

They wanted to split their forces; the problem is that once divided, their ability to suppress the enemy's vitality weakens, which is fatal for the martial art masters in their respective camps, so dividing isn't an option.

Even if it takes one or two months, it can't be helped.

And they have only been fighting for five days.

In reality, only the two to three million at the front have truly engaged in battle. Thus, claiming over three hundred thousand is no small feat.

The alliance's ten million troops lost over a hundred thousand in the battle at Ping Yuan City. With this loss, Zhao Yulong's remaining forces number only nine and a half million. Comparatively, his twelve million strong army suffered barely tens of thousands in losses, with the most casualties among the three hundred thousand miscellaneous troops cobbled together from Gyeonggi, Lin Cang, and Shuofeng.

With such ebb and flow, the alliance's defeat is not far off.

The so-called eastern expedition's primary goal is, of course, the conquest of Jizhou, but weakening the alliance's strength is crucial before that. Everything they're doing now is precisely for this purpose.

Clearing his mind of distractions, Wanyan Cheng thought of this great victory and suddenly felt a bit of respect for Li Su. Among Zhuge Yuan's three disciples, Sima Yan left the deepest impression. Originally, Wanyan Cheng wanted Sima Yan to accompany the army on this expedition, but the State Preceptor overturned his decision and sent the second disciple Li Su. Wanyan Cheng initially had some objections in his heart.

Now, those objections have naturally dissipated.

"Adviser..."

Wanyan Cheng was about to praise Li Su but turned around to find Li Su sitting in a chair, frowning at the map of the north behind him, which stunned him momentarily.

"Adviser, is something on your mind?"

Once he spoke, the generals in the hall immediately fell silent.

Everyone turned to look at Li Su, only to realize that his expression clashed with the celebratory atmosphere in the hall, prompting curious looks from everyone.

Yuzhao King Helian Ting followed Li Su's gaze to the map and speculated, "Is the adviser worried about Hexi?"

"The Retired Emperor Youye has already engaged Jing Tianyu. In two months, they've pushed from Jianye to Xingnan Prefecture. Jing Tianyu's seven million troops are retreating step by step, and being driven out of Hexi is already a sure thing. Do we really need to worry about that?" Lingyun King Tuoba Xiong quickly interjected.

Only Xikang King Helian Chang, seeing Li Su's gaze, understood somewhat and gently asked, "Adviser Li, are you worried about Pingcheng King Wanyan Jun?"

...…

Pingcheng King, Wanyan Jun?

Seeing Li Su turn his head, the generals inside the hall immediately knew that Helian Chang's guess was correct. Wanyan Cheng frowned slightly, glanced at the map, and said in a deep voice, "Didn't Wanyan Jun already send back word that Hou Yuxiao, brazen as he is, led two hundred thousand Red Flame Army attempting to attack Hulao, and he himself led all experts ahead to Hulao. He also ordered Yucheng King to lead five million troops from the three paths of eight clans, rushing over there. Those two hundred thousand Red Flame Army are already trapped, so what's there to worry about?"

"Indeed, although Hou Yuxiao has some quick wit, he is ultimately hindered by his humble origins and limited insight. Thinking a mere two hundred thousand Red Flame Army could break the world's mightiest pass, Hulao Pass, is simply delusional. Wanyan Jun actually worries that it poses a real threat to Hulao Pass, bringing a large group of experts over there, is truly laughable. How solid is Hulao Pass, with Zuoqiuyuan guarding it with a million troops, even with three, four, or even five times the force, it's hard to breach. How could a mere Hou Yuxiao manage that!"

"If Wanyan Jun were a bit smarter, he should notify Zuoqiuyuan to lead his troops out of Hulao, east and west pincer movement with Yucheng King's five million troops, and annihilate the Hou Clan's two hundred thousand Red Flame Army at Cangyuan Mountain."

"Hou Yuxiao indeed has some schemes, but unfortunately chose to attack Hulao, a nonsensical move. Even if he commanded his troops to stay put in Junyang Prefecture City for a while, it could significantly aid the alliance. Yet he ambitiously targeted Hulao, tsk tsk, it's a doomed end...…"

"Lu Kangping is fine; I reckon it's Chu Kuangren and Hou Yuxiao, both are haughty individuals. Getting involved together, they likely overestimate themselves, forgetting their place. The Hou Clan's two hundred thousand troops are negligible to Great Jin; after all, with such humble origins, they've seen too little of the world, thinking they're invincible. A bit of pettiness is understandable, huh!"

"Hahahahahahahaha...…"

...…

The generals' laughter in the hall was hearty now, but in reality, when the news came that the three allied forces did not enter Jiuhua Dao but instead diverted to capture Junyang Prefecture City, their hearts were more frightened and shocked than anyone else's.