As the whole city of Lingyan went on high alert, the three armies dispatched by the Shu Yun Kingdom marched toward Lingyan City from three different directions, as if both Luo Ruofeng, Luo Haitian, and Luo Muyan understood that to capture Blazing Flame City, Lingyan City must fall first...

Unlike Luo Ruofeng's relatively unimpeded journey, Luo Haitian and Luo Muyan’s advance was met with attacks from several enemy forces, resulting in heavy losses. However, both the somber Luo Haitian and the seemingly dull-witted Luo Muyan had inherited their father king's masterful acting skills, managing to persuade the leaders of several rebel armies they encountered along the way to join their forces with their silver tongues...

As a result, the numbers of their marching armies soared past one hundred thousand, but the warriors brought from the Shu Yun Kingdom accounted for less than fifty thousand...

The remaining more than fifty thousand were comprised of over a dozen insurgent groups, ranging from a few hundred men to over ten thousand, and they were nothing more than a disorganized mob, possessing nothing but fervent passion and little else...

Furthermore, their leaders did not fully trust Luo Haitian or Luo Muyan. Often, whenever Luo Haitian or Luo Muyan intended to execute a military maneuver, they had to summon these leaders for a contentious debate first...

Their combat effectiveness was extremely low. If it weren't for the sheer number of uprisings in Yunzhou, which prevented the Tianyuan Empire from deploying major forces to suppress them immediately, they wouldn't have been able to advance so brazenly toward Lingyan City...

Of course, the troops led by Luo Ruofeng were the last to enter the Tianyuan Empire. But because they had been marching rapidly and had avoided major engagements with Tianyuan Empire forces or entanglement with those rebel armies, their pace was extremely swift. Barring any unforeseen incidents, they were slated to be the first to reach Lingyan City...

Yet, when they were still fifty li from Lingyan City, Luo Ruofeng’s army halted. The reason was simple: the few thousand vanguard troops led by Ye Jingyu were all encamped atop a hill, showing no intention of advancing further...

When Luo Ruofeng attempted to summon Ye Jingyu to inquire why he wasn't pressing forward, he was informed that General Ye was missing, having only instructed the army to wait there...

Watching the four hundred Horned Rhinos, who had rendered great service, grazing at the foot of the hill; observing the eight hundred elite Southern Wilderness warriors; seeing the few thousand cavalrymen drilling with perfect discipline; looking at Chen Qi’s utterly bewildered expression; noticing Chi Yixiu’s vacant stare; and observing Hu Yanzhi’s air of ignorance—Luo Ruofeng genuinely didn't know what to say...

In the midst of a military campaign, for the army commander Ye Jingyu to halt his troops here while he himself vanished—how could this be excused?

No matter how much faith he had in Ye Jingyu, in a battle crucial to capturing Lingyan City, he couldn't suppress his dissatisfaction. Just as he was about to order the entire army forward, Zhuge Yi Shi, who had been constantly by his side, suddenly spoke up...

“Young Master, I suspect General Ye has gone ahead to gather intelligence. Perhaps we should wait a little longer...”

“Gathering intelligence? Does gathering intelligence require the commanding general to go himself?” Luo Ruofeng felt a flash of anger. It wasn't anger at Ye Jingyu acting unilaterally, nor was he truly upset that Ye Jingyu had left the troops here and disappeared. He trusted that Ye Jingyu had his reasons. What angered him was why Ye Jingyu hadn't sent someone to inform him before taking action?

“This is not the Shu Yun Kingdom; this is the Tianyuan Empire. Our informants here are severely lacking. The intelligence provided by the Cloud Guard is already outdated. We don't even know the current locations of the Eldest and Second Young Masters’ armies, nor how many troops defend Lingyan City. If we rush toward Lingyan City rashly, disaster is certain... General Ye’s mount is gone, and Shadow Xiaoxiao, the most agile among us, is also absent. It seems he went to scout Lingyan City personally, prioritizing the safety of his soldiers and increasing the odds of this upcoming confrontation,” Zhuge Yi Shi stated calmly, though inwardly he also sighed. Ye Jingyu’s methods were too peculiar; even he couldn't quite fathom his intentions. Was he perhaps planning to take Lingyan City without a single drop of blood being spilled?

“Prioritizing the soldiers’ safety? Doesn't he care about his own safety?” Hearing that Ye Jingyu might have gone scouting alone made Luo Ruofeng even angrier, though this anger stemmed from worry for Ye Jingyu’s well-being...

“Young Master, Ah Yu said that with Ni Bo’s unparalleled speed, unless it’s a Martial Saint, no one can stop him if he intends to leave,” at this moment, Chi Yixiu’s usually dull face showed a slight movement...

Luo Ruofeng took a deep breath, glancing at Chi Yixiu’s imposing figure. Knowing the relationship between Chi Yixiu and Ye Jingyu, he suppressed his anxiety. Nevertheless, he ordered Nangong Shang to lead a contingent of five thousand men out in all directions to investigate and gather intelligence...

And he, in turn, commanded the main army to set up camp below the hill...

When Zhuge Yi Shi surveyed the surroundings and noted that the hill was not very high, with a small river flowing below—a perfect strategic location that allowed for both defense and offense—his amazement at Ye Jingyu grew deeper. However, he couldn't know that Ye Jingyu had chosen this specific terrain mainly because of a plum blossom grove across the river...

Of course, Young Master Ye was not in the plum grove at this moment. Just as Zhuge Yi Shi surmised, he had already arrived inside Lingyan City...

Indeed, the city walls, towering over ten zhang high—even taller than those of Yun Jing—were a massive obstacle for an army. But for a Spirit Manifestation Soul Master like Ye Jingyu, they were child's play...

And as for Shadow Xiaoxiao, she had successfully broken through to the Grandmaster realm in recent days. Her Soul Chasing and Spirit Seizing techniques were nearly perfected, and her Qinggong movement skill was countless times superior to before, naturally posing no barrier to him either...

As for Liang Xiaoke, well, it was better not to mention him. While Ye Jingyu and Shadow Xiaoxiao were calculating how to scale the walls while avoiding the guards above, he had already bent over and burrowed into the earth, vanishing without a trace...

What choice did they have, given he was a Zombie capable of Earth Evasion?

In the end, it took Ye Jingyu immense effort to pull him out of a pleasure house...

As for Ni Bo, it remained stationed in a forest outside Lingyan City, ready to provide backup for Ye Jingyu and the others at any moment. The protuberance on its head was slowly growing a small horn, which could not be seen by others, lest it cause an unexpected sensation...