Mythical Three Kingdoms

Compared to Pang Tong, who was preparing to stew all the Yizhou scholars and warriors in one pot, Yan Yan was also relatively satisfied. Although he felt somewhat disgraced by his defeat at the hands of Sun Ce, he at least managed with his years of experience to gauge the strength of Sun Ce's army.

After Yan Yan returned to his forces, his face clouded with dismay, he suddenly realized that what Zheng Du had said made a lot of sense: the enemy reinforcements were indeed much stronger than the previous garrison soldiers, and probing their strength had indeed been necessary.

"How did it go, General Yan?" Zheng Du asked with a smile.

"Exactly as Zizhong said, Sun Ce's army is stronger overall than the previous garrison soldiers, perhaps only marginally weaker than our own forces. Moreover, Sun Ce himself isn't weaker than me," Yan Yan said with a wry smile.

"My soldiers, since leaving Yizhou, have fought and won numerous battles, their morale is high. Moreover, after equipping them with my trusted aides' weapons and armor, they could only maintain their ground because of my Legion Talent—otherwise, they might have been completely crushed by the enemy's trusted aides," Yan Yan added thoughtfully, seeing Zheng Du lost in thought.

"Is that really so?" Zheng Du's face lit up with joy.

"It is indeed so. Even if our troops have a numerical advantage, achieving a complete victory over the enemy remains exceedingly difficult," Yan Yan said helplessly.

"If that is the case, then it couldn't be better," Zheng Du said with a smile, "I invite Assistant Officer Zhang and Liu Congshi to come and discuss this matter. With a good plan, our army may well break through the enemy forces in the near future."

Yan Yan felt a thrill in his heart upon hearing these words. Every general loves to win battles, and Yan Yan was no exception. Upon learning that Zheng Du had a good strategy, he immediately beat the drum to summon a council.

Soon, Zhang Song and Liu Ba once again appeared in Yan Yan's tent. After analyzing what Yan Yan had observed, they all expressed satisfaction with Zheng Du's planning but were somewhat concerned about the potential for heavy losses.

"Isn't this too great a loss of soldiers?" Liu Ba frowned, "After all, General Yan also said that the enemy's trusted aides are stronger than our ordinary soldiers. Even if the enemy's soldiers are weaker, it's by a small margin, and their morale is not low as they are new reinforcements."

"That is why we should strike with full force while our morale is high and crush the enemy in one blow," said Zheng Du with a serious expression, "The plan is difficult at first but easier later. As long as the first step is successful, the momentum of our forces will be even stronger. Then, riding on the momentum of a great victory and chasing them, we should be able to win five battles in a row without surprise and take down Shangyong as well."

Liu Ba's brows twisted into a tight knot. He had to admit that Zheng Du made a lot of sense. This strategy could indeed lead to a domino effect of victories—even so much that if the first battle is won, the subsequent ones may not even require heavy fighting to secure the win.

"What if our army can't defeat the enemy in the first battle, or if the enemy is resilient and we can defeat them but not rout them?" Zhang Song also spoke up; he acknowledged that Zheng Du's strategy was correct but could not help considering some unexpected variables.

"Old Master Yan, if I am not mistaken, your Legion Talent doesn't show significant effects when you are winning, but it has special effects in certain situations, right?" Zheng Du turned his head to ask Yan Yan.

"My Legion Talent doesn't display notable effects when our army has the advantage, but it has a special effect when our troops are weary, disintegrating, or on the verge of collapse. It can make the soldiers more resilient," Yan Yan sighed as the three men looked at him, and shared the nature of his Legion Talent, which he considered almost useless.

Zhang Song's eyes lit up suddenly, grasping the implication of Zheng Du's words, and then he asked, "Old Master Yan, how many people can your Legion Talent cover?"

"Twenty to thirty thousand men should suffice. This useless Legion Talent is of no benefit no matter how many it covers," Yan Yan said with a smirk. If this Legion Talent could improve combat power by even one percent, covering so many would be mighty indeed. Unfortunately, it could only increase the army's resilience when the situation was dire.

"Let's do this," Zhang Song said without hesitation.

"What else is there to say? Since we're already in an invincible position, why be afraid? Let's just do it!" Liu Ba also understood what this Legion Talent was for. It was essentially designed to prevent a crushing defeat!

As long as a major rout was avoided, with their presence, it would be only a matter of time before they could turn the tide. So what was there to worry about? They were free to use any risky strategies as they pleased; after all, with Yan Yan there, the army would not break. That meant that even in defeat, they wouldn't suffer too terribly.

As for the possibility of Yan Yan being killed and the Legion Talent being nullified—since the advent of Inner Qi Manifestation beings, such an eventuality had never occurred. To date, no one had heard of any unfortunate soul who, while trying to escape, was killed.

"Old Master, if you had such a handy Legion Talent, you should have mentioned it earlier," Zhang Song said, patting Yan Yan on the shoulder.

"..." Yan Yan was somewhat dumbfounded. What use was a Legion Talent that had absolutely nothing to do with combat power, let alone a handy one?

"Since the Old Master has such a talent, why don't we split our forces into four and take them all down in one go? Even if we run into an unexpected setback, we won't be routed. At worst, we'll retreat to Badong," Zhang Song's ugly face twisted into a grin.

Now that they knew a defeat wouldn't lead to a rout, what was there to fear? They were emboldened to use even the riskiest of strategies. Zhang Song immediately pointed to four locations on the map, ready to try his luck in one fell swoop.

"In that case, let's take a gamble on which direction the enemy will try to break through and then ambush them, swallowing the entire region west of Yiling in one gulp!" Liu Ba said fiercely.

Since there was no risk of a catastrophic defeat, what was there to be afraid of? No matter how perilous a strategy was, if it promised great rewards, they were willing to take the chance. As long as they could avoid the twin disasters of water and fire and prevent total annihilation, any trouble would be manageable. Moreover, more dangerous plans tended to be the ones people least expected.

"Let's launch an all-out attack and completely block the enemy's escape route, relentlessly!" Zheng Du said, his eyes coldly gleaming, "Since the general's Legion Talent increases the resilience of the troops, this time we'll maximize that to the fullest."

Zhang Song and Liu Ba quickly fleshed out Zheng Du's plan, and in the end, an extremely ruthless and dangerous strategy emerged. Even Yan Yan, upon seeing this plan, felt that they would be doomed with the slightest misstep.

"Don't worry, General. As long as your Legion Talent works as you described, everything will be fine. Rest assured, your Legion Talent is perfect for implementing such hazardous strategies without fear of mishaps," Zhang Song and the others reassured Yan Yan, who was visibly stressed by their perilous plan.

"But if anything goes wrong with this plan, we'll be routed!" Yan Yan said, looking puzzled.

"Isn't your Legion Talent precisely suited to handle such a situation? Look, as long as it succeeds, everything west of Yiling will be ours. Besides, don't you trust the soldiers under your command?" Zhang Song quickly urged him on. Such a plan could only be executed under Yan Yan's lead, and without his consent, they were all powerless. (To be continued. If you like this work, welcome to to vote for recommendation and monthly tickets. Your support is my greatest motivation. Mobile users please visit m.qidian.com to read.)