Chapter 009: Obstacles Arise

“Although the Frozen Alliance has six duchies bordering us, those closest to our north are only the Leopard Duchy and the Bear Duchy. The Frozen Alliance is closest to my Gavin Empire, especially in its eastern region. That’s why I’ve decided to attack both the Leopard Duchy and the Bear Duchy at the same time! Does anyone have any objections or suggestions?” Duke Green said, pointing at the two countries on the map.
Most of the eighteen duchies in the Frozen Alliance are named after fierce beasts, and these beasts serving as duchy names also serve as their totems! In those countries, the totem animals are given special protection—no one is allowed to harm them casually!
“No problem. The Leopard Duchy and the Bear Duchy each only have 100,000 troops. Even if other duchies send reinforcements, with the combat strength of our Northern Legion, hum, even if each of those countries sends another 100,000 troops, it’s nothing to me!” Allen said loudly.
“Don’t worry. The Leopard Duchy and the Bear Duchy each only have 100,000 troops. Though the Frozen Alliance knows that our Gavin Empire intends to attack them, in the eyes of their rulers, our main attacking force must be the Eastern Legion! That’s why the Frozen Alliance has concentrated its troops in the east,” Duke Green said with a smile.
“Hahaha!” Hearing this news, many of the generals present laughed.
This strategy was devised by Du Fan and Duke Green back then, and unexpectedly, it proved highly effective.
“Our Northern Legion has already assembled 230,000 troops. George, you and Allen will each lead 50,000 troops. Carol, you’ll also lead 50,000 troops. I’ll personally command the remaining troops to coordinate attacks from all directions!” Duke Green said loudly.
“Yes!” “Yes!” “Yes!” Hearing Duke Green’s arrangements, the three replied in unison.
“George, attack the Leopard Duchy. Allen, strike at the Bear Duchy. Carol, lead your troops to capture Red Lake City! Block reinforcements from all sides to deal with the Leopard Duchy and the Bear Duchy!” Duke Green ordered immediately.
“Yes!” “Yes!” “Yes!” Hearing Duke Green’s further instructions, the three responded firmly once again.

As the Leopard Duchy and Bear Duchy among the eighteen duchies, both had populations of only a few hundred thousand. In each duchy, aside from the royal capital, there were only two or three small to medium-sized cities. With an army of one hundred thousand spread across these cities, such a dispersed force was easily conquered by a formidable army like the Northern Legion. For the Northern Legion, numbering fifty thousand, capturing such a country was practically a piece of cake.

Chihu City was a city established at the border of the Leopard Duchy, Bear Duchy, and Turtle Duchy. Its location was extremely strategic—anyone entering the Leopard Duchy or Bear Duchy from the north or east had to pass through Chihu City’s territory! Otherwise, they would have to climb over towering snow-capped mountains or cross the wide Ugmalong River. If ambushed while crossing these obstacles, they could easily suffer total defeat. In that case, it would be better to directly attack Chihu City!

Chihu City was easy to defend but difficult to attack. Once seized, it could block any reinforcements sent to the Leopard Duchy and Bear Duchy.

“Good, you can set out with your troops tonight,” said Duke Green with a smile. With that, he waved his hand, allowing the three of them to leave first.

“Well, now that those three have gone to lead the troops into battle, it’s time for us to get back to our tasks,” said Duke Green smiling. “With our current strength, we can continue recruiting former soldiers from the Northern Legion. My plan is to recruit another seventy thousand soldiers, bringing the total army strength to three hundred thousand!” he said seriously.

“Once three hundred thousand soldiers are gathered, keep sixty thousand behind to guard the country, and the rest shall follow me to wage war against the Frozen Alliance!” Duke Green declared firmly.

Under Duke Green’s plans, the Battle of the Frozen Lands began early the next morning. The Frozen Alliance’s forces were focused on defending against the Eastern Legion, leaving them unprepared for the sudden attack by the Northern Legion!

The Northern Legion, numbering one hundred thousand, under the leadership of George and Allen, advanced with unstoppable momentum, reaching the royal capitals of the two duchies! However, beneath the royal cities, their siege efforts encountered difficulties. The small and medium-sized cities along the way had weak defenses, limited troops, and inadequate preparations, so they were quickly taken by George and Allen. As their forces continued to advance, they soon reached the royal capitals of the Leopard and Bear Duchies.

The royal cities of the two kingdoms were roughly the same size, each housing over three hundred thousand people. As George and Allen’s armies advanced, the troops from the Leopard Kingdom and Bear Kingdom also set out toward their royal cities. Moreover, as the two kingdoms continued to retreat, their kings issued orders to conscript soldiers, and soon, hundreds of thousands of troops gathered in their respective royal cities!

The Icebound Alliance had a fierce culture that valued strength. Once civilians were conscripted into the army, they could quickly become competent soldiers after minimal training.

Fortunately, Carol had captured Red Lake City earlier, blocking twenty thousand reinforcements from various kingdoms outside the city!

……

Five days had passed since George and Allen set out. On this day, their armies were halted at the foot of the royal city, and it was already the second day. Throughout the day, the royal cities of the Leopard Kingdom and Bear Kingdom suffered three attacks! All three attacks were repelled by the brave soldiers defending the cities!

Moreover, the enemy suffered significant casualties.

……

On Allen’s side, sitting in his tent and looking at the tall and sturdy royal city of the Bear Kingdom ahead, Allen felt growing anger!

After three consecutive attacks, more than two thousand of Allen’s fifty thousand elite northern soldiers had died! Over two thousand were seriously injured, and more than five thousand suffered minor injuries! The casualty rate reached one in five!

This was an unforgivable figure!

“Second General, let me lead troops in another attack!” A general covered in blood strode into Allen’s tent and spoke loudly.

“General John, take a rest! You’ve already led the troops in an attack—rest first!” Allen said to John, who was covered in wounds.

“Second General, I’m still able to fight!” John declared firmly.

The death of over two thousand soldiers ignited a fierce fighting spirit among all the northern army soldiers!

“General John! This is an order! I’ll personally lead the next assault!” Allen stood up abruptly and said firmly.

“Second General, you’re the commander-in-chief! You can’t risk your life so easily!” John exclaimed loudly upon hearing Allen’s words.

For the northern army, it was one of their combat rules for commanders to lead by example. This rule ensured that the soldiers would stay united and highly focused on the battlefield.

“General John, according to the rules of our Northern Legion, a commander must lead by example and take the lead! I, Allen, am determined not to break such rules!” Allen said, then stood up and walked outside. As Allen adjusted his armor, John also grabbed his sword and quickly followed behind him. “General John, you must rest—it’s an order from me!” Allen said, staring at John. “Second General! A commander must lead by example! I am also a commander, and I must lead them into battle!” John said firmly. “Only three of the Five Great Regiments were used. As the commander of the third regiment, your duty is complete. Now, it’s my fourth regiment that will begin the siege. So, General John, you must rest! You can fight again when it’s your turn to attack with the third regiment. This is also an order!” Allen said sternly. “Second General! I refuse to accept this! My third regiment was almost at the city walls during the attack! I can’t give up!” John suddenly shouted. “General John, yes, you were almost at the city walls! But your third regiment suffered the most casualties! And even if a dozen of your soldiers made it to the walls, what good would that do? You must understand—this is war! War!” Allen shouted fiercely. He stretched out his hand and suddenly slapped John on the forehead without warning, knocking him unconscious. Allen, who already possessed power beyond the Saint level, attacked John, who was only at level seven, leaving him no chance to resist and knocking him down instantly. “You two, take General John back and make sure he gets some rest,” Allen said loudly to the guards beside him. “Yes, Second General!” the two guards replied promptly. Outside the tent, Allen looked at the wounded soldiers scattered everywhere, gathered his combat energy, and shouted, “Fourth Regiment, assemble quickly!” Soon, in less than three minutes, a force of ten thousand soldiers assembled neatly in front of Allen. “Soldiers! Our task now is to capture Bear City of the Bear Kingdom that stands in our way! The warriors of our Northern Legion are the finest troops on the continent! Can a mere small city like Bear City stop us? No! Soldiers, follow me in the attack! Capture Bear City to prove that you truly are the finest troops on the continent!” Allen shouted loudly.

“I swear to follow General Er until death! Take down Bear City, take down Bear City!” The soldiers of the Fourth Division all shouted loudly along with Allen. Although Allen’s words were very brief, with honor as his motivating factor in this army that valued honor above everything, the soldiers’ enthusiasm was instantly ignited! Since it was a siege, cavalry was of little use. Thousands of infantry rushed forward rapidly, closing in on the city walls. On top of the walls, numerous archers appeared and fired countless arrows at the approaching northern army. But these infantrymen were equipped with fine armor and carried shields! The thousands of infantry acted in unison, and soon their shields formed a solid wall, effectively blocking the rain of arrows from the archers on Bear King City. With such coordinated use of shields, the archers on top of the city became useless. Aside from a few who were accidentally hit at first, no further casualties occurred among the soldiers of the northern army.