In an instant, hundreds of Quzhao soldiers were killed or wounded.
Wu Yihan swung his blade to deflect an incoming arrow and roared, "Enemy attack! Find cover, return fire, kill them!"
"A bounty of ten gold coins for every enemy killed!" he shouted loudly to boost their morale.
The saying that heavy rewards bring forth brave men couldn't be more true.
The eyes of the Quzhao soldiers turned red with burning excitement. Fueled by pure adrenaline, they found cover and fired back toward the arrows coming from the mountain.
However, they soon realized that the distance was too great; their arrows couldn't reach the enemy at all.
Yet, the moment they poked their heads out, they were shot dead.
Screams of agony echoed intermittently, rising and falling.
Looking at the arrows embedded in his soldiers nearby, Wu Yihan felt a wave of shock and uncertainty. He couldn't shake the feeling that these arrows looked familiar.
He squinted for a closer look and realized they were indeed the crossbow bolts of the Gefeng Jinyang Army!
These arrows were completely different from their own, making them easily recognizable.
But how was that possible? How could the Jinyang Army be here?
He shook his head, feeling that his speculation was utterly absurd.
Just as he was deep in thought, he saw his soldiers using the trees for cover as they relentlessly charged toward the archers. Although many were shot down, the distance between the two sides was rapidly closing.
If they kept up this pace, it wouldn't be long before the enemy fell within their own archery range, allowing them to counterattack.
His eyes lit up, and he waved his hand.
The nearby Quzhao soldiers immediately covered each other, using the terrain for cover as they seized every opportunity to advance.
Watching the fearless Quzhao soldiers, Jiang Jin sighed inwardly. It was true that birds die for food and men die for wealth; under the promise of heavy gold, everyone becomes a hero.
After a few more volleys, the Quzhao soldiers were getting closer and closer.
Jiang Jin made a hand signal.
The Dragon Shadow Guards moved swiftly, executing a rapid retreat.
Jiang Jin followed closely behind.
Seeing the shadows shifting among the trees, a ruthless glint flashed in Wu Yihan's eyes. "They're retreating! After them!"
With that, he led the pursuit. The Quzhao army had lost at least a thousand men in this initial clash—all fine sons of Quzhao.
More importantly, he needed to find out if these people were truly the Jinyang Army. This information was crucial to them.
Besides, judging from the rustling in the woods, the enemy's numbers weren't large. As long as they caught up, they could take them down.
However, the enemy's retreat was incredibly fast. In the blink of an eye, the gap between them widened significantly again.
Wu Yihan let out a massive roar, "Hurry up, everyone! Don't let them escape! Ten gold coins for a kill, a hundred for capturing one alive!"
The Quzhao soldiers sped up, howling and charging forward with reckless abandon.
A high-speed chase of pursuit and evasion unfolded deep within the dense mountain forest.
Sensing the fierce aura of a large number of humans, the wild beasts were too terrified to venture out for food, especially since they had eaten quite well recently.
Jiang Jin glanced at Xia Chanyi, who was running beside her.
Xia Chanyi nodded.
Soon, their group split into two, running in completely different directions.
Shortly after, Wu Yihan led the Quzhao army to the spot where Jiang Jin's forces had split. He halted, looking at the clear tracks branching off to both sides.
He pointed to the left and quickly ordered, "Ding Tan, lead your men this way. It's best if you can capture them alive, but if not, kill them all."
"Understood," replied a tall, robust man. It was Ding Tan.
About fifteen minutes later, just as Wu Yihan was running out of breath, a cave entrance slightly taller than a man appeared ahead.
And the targets they had been chasing all this way had vanished here without a trace.
The Quzhao soldiers following him were equally bewildered, looking around. "The tracks are gone. Could they have gone into this cave?"
Wu Yihan cautiously led his men toward the cave. He noticed plenty of trampled weeds around the entrance. It was obvious that the enemy had gone inside.
He recalled the terrain. Although it felt like they had run a long way during the pursuit, his instincts told him they shouldn't be too far from Gefeng City.
However, this place was extremely well-hidden. If they hadn't chased those people here, they would never have found it.
"General, do we go in?" a Quzhao soldier asked, looking at Wu Yihan.
Wu Yihan narrowed his eyes. After a moment, he finally made up his mind. "We go in! Leave three hundred men here as backup."
With that said, he took the lead and walked inside.
The cave appeared to be naturally formed, a mix of rock and soil overhead, with weeds growing in several spots.
What he didn't know was that precisely because of this natural cave and its suitable geography, Jiang Jin had chosen to set the entrance to the Gesi Mountain tunnel here.
Despite running in circles for a long time, the straight-line distance from here to Gefeng City wasn't actually that far.
The cave itself wasn't large, though it was over a hundred meters long. Jiang Jin had simply made some modifications and put it to use.
The deeper they went, the darker it became. Soon, it was pitch black. Wu Yihan slowly adapted to the darkness, able to make out faint silhouettes.
"Who brought a fire starter?"
"General, I did." Several voices responded.
Shortly after, several flames flickered to life, finally illuminating the passage.
It was slightly different in here compared to the outside. The tunnel inside the cave showed signs of excavation and carried the scent of fresh soil.
Wu Yihan continued to lead the way forward, and the Quzhao soldiers quickly followed.
Before long, they reached a stone wall at the end of the cave.
Wu Yihan thought to himself, did I guess wrong? Did they not enter the cave?
Just as the thought crossed his mind, a soldier exclaimed, "There's an opening here!"
"There's one here too!" another soldier shouted.
Under the dim light of the fire starters, Wu Yihan saw three pitch-black tunnel entrances on the left side of the cave.
"General, there are footprints here." Sure enough, the loose soil on the floor of the middle passage bore a mess of footprints.
Wu Yihan quickly realized that it wasn't just this passage—the other two had footprints as well.
The wall of the right passage even had loose gravel knocked off it, indicating that the enemy had been panicking during their escape.
His eyes flickered, and he ordered, "Split into three groups. Pursue them!"
Meanwhile, Ding Tan led his men, tracking the footprints all the way until they unwittingly walked into a valley.
He looked up at the somewhat steep slopes, a sense of foreboding rising in his heart.
Suddenly, his pupils contracted as he spotted an arrowhead hidden on the hillside. "Not good, it's an ambush! Retreat!"
But it was too late.
Yao Ji released the arrow from his hand.
The arrow flew like lightning, shooting toward Ding Tan with an unstoppable momentum.
Thwack.
The arrow pierced right through his neck.
Swish, swish, swish...
At the same time, countless arrows rained down, and screams echoed throughout the entire valley.
Yao Ji, lying in ambush here, had brought two full battalions of archers. Occupying the high ground for an ambush, a few hundred men taking on over a thousand was not a difficult task at all.
Up on the city walls of Gefeng.
Yun Ci looked toward the Quzhao encampment, her face laced with worry.
It must be known that Gefeng was currently an empty city. Perhaps empty wasn't entirely accurate, as around five hundred Jinyang soldiers had been left behind.
However, the majority of those remaining in the city were new recruits enlisted just before the new year, possessing very little combat experience.
The divine weapons, the Dragon Feather Crossbows, had all been taken by the Dragon Shadow Guards. Now, the city's defenses relied solely on ballistas, catapults, and standard bows and arrows.
The Dragon Shadow Guards and all the elite troops had been deployed, entirely stationed at Gesi Mountain.
Aside from the elites currently fighting at Gesi Mountain, troops were constantly garrisoned at the iron mine, the coal mine, and the brick kiln. Furthermore, many scouts had been dispatched around Gefeng to gather intelligence.
It should be known that Gefeng's total military strength was less than three thousand men, which meant that the elite troops Jiang Jin had brought to Mount Gesi actually numbered only around a thousand.
