Chapter 154: Yin-Yang Roaming Kill Array
The saying goes: "Once ten thousand men gather, their ranks seem boundless and infinite."
Five thousand soldiers arrayed in formation already filled the visual space, their sheer numbers an overwhelming pressure.
Shi Jing led the troops, and the banners he used were those of Rizhao Commandery, drawn directly from the commandery's treasury.
The main banner bore the character "Song," while the secondary one bore the character "Shi." His sycophancy could not have been more thorough.
It was practically the household banner of Song Guang himself.
Of course, this was because the Carp-Pattern Red Banner representing Jia City was now in Jiang Wang's hands.
Past fifty, he had clawed his way to the position of city lord only by clinging to a powerful patron.
But once power was in hand, orders were issued accordingly.
Now commanding a great army with troops at the gates, Shi Jing could not help but feel a touch of smug satisfaction.
"You brat surnamed Jiang!" he bellowed from afar, his voice carrying across the distance. "A greenhorn who still smells of his mother's milk, and you dare tear up official city documents? Today the King's army descends upon the west—do you have any idea what that means for you?"
"Surrender immediately, hand over all money, grain, and treasures, and this city lord may yet spare your life!"
Sometimes mistakes in judgment are not due to the opponent being clever, but because there are people whose actions simply cannot be predicted by any normal logic!
Take Shi Jing, for example.
By all normal reasoning, he should either be organizing disaster relief against the sudden plague outbreak, or rallying his troops to fight for the country—or die trying.
Coming here to loot?
Truly beyond anyone's expectations.
Jiang Wang had prepared in advance, fortifying Qingyang Town primarily against the possibility of marauding soldiers and desperate civilians when the nation collapsed.
The great war between Yang and Qi had not yet begun, and no one could have predicted that Shi Jing would charge at Qingyang Town so recklessly.
The old saying goes: "Wild punches can knock out even an old master." It doesn't mean the old master has grown too old to fight. It means the veteran has seen every trick in the book and knows every move in advance—but when faced with a newcomer who throws punches with no pattern whatsoever, he can easily be caught off guard.
Though Jiang Wang held the man in contempt, he could not afford to disregard the military formation arrayed outside the town.
The Xi family had governed Jia City for centuries, and many people had some ties to them.
Among these five thousand soldiers, the proportion of transcendent cultivators was not high, since the Xi family had pulled out entirely.
However, the art of battle formations in military strategy was all about gathering momentum and concentrating power.
A well-trained army, even without significant transcendent force, could absolutely not be underestimated in combat power.
Meanwhile, the martial artists of the entire Qingyang Town hall only numbered three hundred, with no military formation to assist them—an utterly negligible force in this battle.
Though cautious in his heart, Jiang Wang's outward demeanor showed nothing but arrogance.
He unfurled the Carp-Pattern Red Banner, its blood-red fabric billowing in the wind, and with one hand drove the flagpole into the ground right before the town gate!
The blow to the morale of the Jia City garrison was devastating. The Carp-Pattern Red Banner was not merely an artifact; it did not merely amplify battle formations—it was the embodiment of their fighting spirit and will.
And this banner was now in the hands of the enemy.
By contrast, the three hundred warriors of Qingyang Town felt their spirits soar. Their morale, their physical resilience—all received a boost.
Zhang Hai, Xiang Qian, Zhu Biqiong, plus the four transcendent cultivators of the Four Seas Merchant Alliance and ten ordinary martial artists, were all incorporated into the formation.
It was a pity that Jiang Wang had not mastered the art of military formations—had he been able to use the seven transcendent cultivators as nodes, he could have linked all three hundred fighters into a single cohesive force.
When Shi Jing saw Jiang Wang plant the banner in defiance, he was consumed with rage and wasted no more breath.
"Activate the formation!"
As the commanding general of this battle, his order sent the garrison soldiers rapidly forming up.
Warring malice surged skyward.
Earlier, Jiang Wang had asked Zhu Biqiong to set up many illusion arrays outside Qingyang Town, worried that in the chaos of battle, defenses would be too thin to cover every angle.
But now, the charge of warring malice shattered these simple illusion arrays without effort.
Outside Qingyang Town, the warring aura coalesced. Two enormous fish—one black, one white—began to swim through the air.
At times they soared into the sky, scattering the drifting clouds. At times their massive tails slammed into the ground with thunderous crashes.
These were the yin-yang fish, and this military formation was called the Yin-Yang Roaming Kill Array.
Amid this fearsome display of power, Shi Jing shouted: "Everyone in Qingyang Town, listen well! If you turn against that brat surnamed Jiang right now, all crimes will be forgiven! But if you remain stubborn, when the town falls, there will be no mercy!"
This threat had no effect on Qingyang Town's warriors. They knew full well why Shi Jing had come. If the supplies in the warehouses were taken, they themselves—their families, their friends—what would they eat? How would they survive?
They knew exactly who they were fighting for. So though unease lingered, not a single one wavered.
As for the Four Seas Merchant Alliance people, they had been scattered throughout the ranks. Influenced by the surrounding resolve, even if they wanted to retreat, there was no possibility of doing so.
The only person who could speak on their behalf, Steward Qian, was being held by Jiang Wang's side.
The military formation advanced. The colossal yin-yang fish glided through the air above.
"You dare not attack the Qi army, yet you dare to slaughter your own people. Is this what a soldier of the Yang Kingdom looks like?" Jiang Wang channeled Dao essence into his voice and roared the question.
The words struck at the very core of their conscience.
No professional soldier starts without being taught the creed of defending home and country.
Yet here was the Qi army massed at their border, and they had not dared to fight. That deep-seated shame and cowardice had never been scrubbed away, not for a single moment.
Shi Jing had led them here promising mountains of silver and gold, and they had steeled their hearts and charged with weapons in hand. But to be confronted like this—to be asked why they dared not point their swords at the Qi army but only at their own countrymen—how could that leave anyone unmoved?
A perceptible lag rippled through the operation of the Yin-Yang Roaming Kill Array.
It was precisely at this moment that Jiang Wang, empowered by the Carp-Pattern Red Banner, conjured the Blood Sea.
Blood energy clashed with warring malice.
Using Jia City's own banner to suppress Jia City's own army—nothing could be more fitting.
From midair, Jiang Wang spread the Sea of Flame Blossoms.
The illusion flowers were shattered by the warring malice, the real blossoms that formed the flower sea and released hallucinogenic toxins were torn apart, and the Flame Blossoms interspersed among them detonated in rapid succession.
Even with the suppressing power of the Carp-Pattern Red Banner, the Sea of Flame Blossoms—designed to set the battlefield and handle encirclement—crumbled almost on contact.
And at that moment, Eternal Longing unsheathed with a piercing ring!
Sun, moon, and stars. Mountains and rivers. A sea of humanity stretching to the horizon.
Jiang Wang struck one sword after another in relentless succession, crashing again and again into the white giant fish, nearly shredding the warring malice to pieces.
Severed limbs tumbled in all directions, blood sprayed through the air. Those were the soldiers who had fallen under those swords.
But the black giant fish swooped in instantly, its tail whipping sideways!
Jiang Wang drew his sword before him, but the combined force of sword and man was sent flying by the strike.
What was truly terrifying went beyond that. After sending Jiang Wang hurtling backward, the black giant fish suddenly opened its mouth and spat out a small white fish that swelled visibly before their very eyes.
The entire Yin-Yang Roaming Kill Array was restored to its full form in an instant.
This was the fearsome power of the killing formation!
In single combat, Jiang Wang was confident he could cut down Shi Jing within three strikes.
But the reality was that Shi Jing, commanding a great army, had sent him flying in their very first exchange.
Midair, he spat a mouthful of blood.
Jiang Wang twisted his body and landed before the town gate, grabbing Steward Qian by the shoulder: "If you do nothing, when the town falls, you will be the first to pay the price! Steward Qian, will you still not follow me into battle?"
Keeping Steward Qian by his side had been a precaution against him slacking off in the town hall ranks, but also for this very moment.
After all, the man was a cultivator of the Soaring Dragon realm—his power would have to count for something.
Though the words were hurried, the stakes were made perfectly clear.
Steward Qian gritted his teeth: "So be it!"
Then he felt his body go light as Jiang Wang seized him and flung him outward—hurled like a javelin straight into the enemy formation beyond the town gate!
"You...!"
A torrent of curses caught in Steward Qian's throat as he was forced to face the charging black giant fish head-on.
Dao essence erupted at full power—there was no room for him to hold back now.
Before him in midair, he manifested an enormous golden ingot, shining brilliantly.
"Wealth can move the heavens! I request passage!"
The golden ingot crashed into the black giant fish and melted into its form. Remarkably, the black fish ignored the will of the formation master, swinging its tail aside to let Steward Qian pass.
At the same moment, having briefly caught his breath, Jiang Wang launched himself skyward once more, sword pointed straight at the white giant fish condensed from warring malice!