Chapter 179: 159: The Bet
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Atop the Iron Giant City's towers, bastions loomed.
In the sky, flying Beast Tamers rose and fell, patrolling the surrounding heavens.
From afar, a team emerged from within the city, inspecting their logistic support and supply convoy.
Each vehicle was thoroughly checked before being given clearance to proceed.
The scrutiny was extremely strict, as they had now entered a state of full wartime alert.
To be honest, this was Chen Xing's first personal experience with such a unique environment.
Figures with stern expressions dashed about him.
Occasionally, the figures of Beast Tamers were interspersed among them.
Everyone was wound tight like a screw.
Fully mobilizing the war machine of Great Xia, driven to its utmost!
Though it had only been a little over six hundred years ago, being in this time, Chen Xing's emotions were nonetheless somewhat affected.
Following the main force into Heroic City, Chen Xing was dragged by Dong Fang to report for duty.
Dong Fang said, "Since you've chosen to stay, every master is precious now. It would be too wasteful to send someone of your strength below."
Dong Fang led Chen Xing through corridor after corridor, their footsteps echoing in the vast spaces.
The walls around them were adorned with strategic maps and tactical plans.
"Is it alright for me to be here?" Chen Xing whispered.
"You aren't assigned a rank; you're specially dispatched from Jiuzhou University. If you want to stay, it'll depend on the arrangements from above."
Finally, they arrived at a heavy door.
Dong Fang took a deep breath, pushed open the door, and a solemn and heavy atmosphere hit them head-on.
This was a hall,
Within the hall, many resolute figures busied themselves, heads bowed.
The sounds of telephones and the issuing of commands resonated throughout the hall.
Dong Fang led Chen Xing past several desks to the innermost part.
Chen Xing faintly heard intense debate coming from inside.
Dong Fang directly pushed open the door and led Chen Xing inside.
Taking a deep breath, Chen Xing internally exclaimed, "Holy shit."
Am I even supposed to be in a place like this?
Brother Dong, aren't you being a bit too bold?
Upon entering, Chen Xing discovered that this was a conference room.
More than a dozen people were seated inside.
The main dispute involved the several generals at the front.
"The first line of defense has already fallen, and the second front, held by Guan Shanyue, is also in grave danger. In my view, we might consider abandoning the second line of defense and focus all our efforts on fortifying the third one," one general, dressed in a green uniform and appearing the oldest, declared.
A somewhat younger general in a blue uniform raised doubts, "If we are pushed back with nowhere to retreat and the third line of defense ultimately falls, what then?
If our comrades behind the fourth line choose to abandon us as well, how would you feel?"
The general in green furrowed his brows. "It's the logical choice. We must prioritize the greater good over individual sacrifices!"
The general in blue sneered, "You, Gu Yuzhi, may not fear death, and neither do I, Zhang Tianlin! If push comes to shove, we can risk our lives.
But there's another issue. The outskirts of the city are teeming with Exotic Region Beast Tamers. It's nearly impossible for the civilians outside the third line of defense to make it through the hazards and safely retreat into the city."
"These cunning dogs from the Exotic Regions are driving a horde of people to our doors. What are you going to do about that? Are these people also just 'individual sacrifices' to be abandoned?"
Gu Yuzhi stated flatly, "If we let all of them inside the city, who can guarantee that Exotic Region spies haven't infiltrated among them?"
Zhang Tianlin retorted without mincing words, "But if you don't let them in, it will also be a serious blow to our troops' morale."
"Some Beast Tamers have the ability to use Illusion Techniques. They can create illusions and, if they lurk within a certain range, they could suddenly surge forth to delay our closing of the gates, allowing a large number of Exotic Region Beast Tamers to pour in. How then would we resolve that?" Gu Yuzhi analyzed calmly.
"Currently, we don't have enough manpower to verify each person individually. The defenses in the rear are still being set up; we've just received orders from above, demanding that we hold out for at least half a month!"
Both men fell silent, their eyes contemplative.
The last general, who had been silent, chuckled and spoke up, "Does anyone else here have any suggestions? Two heads are better than one, after all. If you have any thoughts, feel free to speak up."
Chen Xing's expression shifted slightly as he thought of a way to deal with a similar situation from another battle.
However, he did not speak rashly, instead observing those present.
Several people suggested various methods, but each had its problems.
"Kid, stop just looking around. If you have an idea, speak up," Gu Yuzhi said, noticing this youth who had followed Dong Fang into the room. He had been looking left and right for a while now.
Several times, he had stolen glances at him and then hesitated, clearly harboring thoughts but too embarrassed to speak.
Seeing that everyone's attention was turning to him, Chen Xing coughed and said, "I have a method: Sing the national anthem! Those people from the Exotic Regions definitely wouldn't be able to learn it in a hurry.
People from Great Xia would surely know how to sing it, right? Whoever can sing it passes.
But we can't have them crowding at the city gates. We could set up a few temporary shelters first, then review the civilians in batches. Those who pass can be gathered and allowed to enter through a side gate. Once inside, they must not linger in the city but leave immediately through the back gate."
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"To prevent those Beast Tamers from the Exotic Region from taking the opportunity to cause trouble, we can also dispatch a small number of elite troops to harass the Exotic Region Beast Tamers, at least to distract a portion of their energy."
Once Chen Xing had finished speaking, the meeting room fell into brief silence.
"The method is a bit crude, but... singing the national anthem is a good way," Gu Yuzhi narrowed her eyes.
Chen Xing of course knew it was a good method, in fact, it had been used in a battle in a later era.
He was merely borrowing the wisdom of predecessors.
"It's doable, but dispatching elite troops to harass the Exotic Region Beast Tamers... you sure have some bold ideas," Gu Yuzhi said with a nuanced expression. "Which unit are you from?"
"General Gu, Chen Xing is from the special support group of Jiuzhou University, and he assisted me in repelling an attack on the way here. His beast... is somewhat special," Dong Fang roughly explained the situation at the time.
After hearing Dong Fang's narration, many were curious about Chen Xing's beast.
A gigantic tamed beast over a hundred meters long?
"Jiuzhou University has sent someone useful," Gu Yuzhi commented indifferently.
The university had just been established in this era.
Having taken quite a few resources from the military district, it was natural for the military to have some complaints about Jiuzhou University.
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After all, overall, the quality of Beast Tamers of Great Xia did not match that of the Beast Tamers from the Exotic Region's Fentian Giant City.
The cultivation of beasts involved many aspects after all.
The notion of overtaking the Exotic Region's civilization, with its many years of inheritance, in a mere twenty years, was a bit unrealistic for Great Xia.
Gu Yuzhi said, "Our focus right now is on defense, and there are several Super Rank individuals on the Exotic Region side as well. It's too risky to leave the city directly."
"However... we indeed need to give them something to do."
Chen Xing pondered and thought of his plan, then he spoke up, "General, I have an idea."
"Speak."
"Forty li above Iron Rock Pass, there's a Qingniao Great Reservoir. I want to blow up the reservoir. We are conducting a large-scale screening of civilians entering the city, and the Exotic Region will certainly not miss this opportunity. Their main force will also gather up, so I want to use this opportunity to hit them hard."
"On one hand, most of the Fentian Giant City's Beast Tamers have the Fire Attribute, and a watery environment weakens their strength. On the other hand, my beast can exert 300% of its combat power in the water. I can't speak for the Advanced Beast Tamers, but below that rank, I can slaughter them."
Time was of the essence in the current situation, and since this was the Illusion Realm, Chen Xing directly voiced his plan.
Several staff officers in the room raised their eyebrows.
This young man has quite the nerve!
Among those present, there were only two Advanced Beast Tamers—the two generals, Gu and Zhang, on the platform.
Apart from them, the others were considered below the Super Rank.
Did this young man just sweep all of them under the rug with his boast?
Some officers displayed an amused smile on their faces; showing off isn't done like this.
"Hahaha, quite the arrogant young man," Gu Yuzhi looked Chen Xing over from head to toe.
His face revealed no pleasure or anger.
He did not agree, nor did he reject the proposal.
He just said, "Since you're from the special operations team, I'm giving you a task now. There's an Exotic Region Beast Tamer outpost within ten li of Iron Rock Pass. If you can take care of it before lunch, then come and talk to me about the plan you just mentioned."
Chen Xing glanced at the clock hanging on the wall.
10:02.
"Yes!" Chen Xing agreed without hesitation.
"Wang Tao, take him there," Gu Yuzhi ordered.
Chen Xing followed the staff officer sitting fourth from the left below and left the meeting room.
Once out of the building, Wang Tao looked back at Chen Xing, "Are you sure? Do you really want to go? We've known about that outpost for two days, and the reason we haven't removed it is that this outpost is quite tough, with probably more than one Energy Level 100 beast."
"Are there any Super Rank ones?"
"Super Rank isn't cabbage," Wang Tao said exasperatedly.
"Then Brother Wang, let's head straight there."
Wang Tao shook his head and said no more.
He was also prepared; to remove that outpost, naturally, he needed to be fully prepared.
He believed that Chen Xing's Beast Taming strength was certainly not weak.
But facing several Energy Level 100 beasts would definitely lead to a significant setback.
The Energy Level 100 beasts sent by the Fentian Giant City were no trivial matter.
Transporting Super Rank Beast Tamers required a hefty price, but the cost was negligible for those below that rank.
Therefore, the Energy Level 100 Beast Tamers sent by the Fentian Giant City were their elites.
Their combat power at the same level was strong and not something ordinary Beast Tamers could provoke.
Wang Tao assembled ten teams, each with twenty Beast Tamers.
Once the two hundred people gathered, they moved toward their destination.
After leaving the city, Chen Xing reflected on the fact that in the original history, the Qingniao Great Reservoir had indeed been blown up.
But that was on the tenth day of the war, to delay the enemy and slow down their attack pace.
He was just advancing this timeframe.
But... he had confidence in Taotie!