World-Ending Demon Emperor
Chapter 299 - 174: Crazy Suo Lun, first battle victorious!_3

Chapter 299: 174: Crazy Suo Lun, first battle victorious!_3

Tu An said, "City Lord Suo Lun, so what do you plan to do?"

"Completely lose our minds," Suo Lun said with a frenzied look in his eyes. "Turn the entire Tianshui City into a deep abyss of mad demons."

...

At Tianlang Pass, nearly forty thousand soldiers from both sides were at a standoff.

And five days earlier, Suo Lun had disguised himself and secretly infiltrated Chaos Stone Island.

Now, he was leading twenty ships southward from Chaos Stone Island. On board there were over a thousand Samurai, and also... countless Gold Coins.

Tianshui City and Linhai City, all along the coast, with just a few hundred miles between Chaos Stone Island and the coastline of Tianshui City.

The crazed Suo Lun was merely leading a little over a thousand men, landing on the Tianshui City Territory from the sea.

"In another fifteen miles ahead of us lie the villages and towns of Tianshui City Territory," Suo Lun declared loudly. "What we need to do now is become bandits, pillaging every village and town, seizing every grain of food, and driving all the people to one place—Heavenly Water Main City."

"Every place has its scoundrels who are tempted by money," Suo Lun continued. "And now, these people are our allies. We have brought a sky-high number of Gold Coins, and we will welcome these scoundrels with open arms, giving one Gold Coin to each who comes to us. In short, our goal is to plunder every village, every town, every manor in Tianshui City. Drive hundreds of thousands of people all into Heavenly Water Main City, plunging the Tianshui City Territory into complete chaos."

Hearing Suo Lun’s command, the Samurai of the Suo family were shocked. This was downright madness.

They knew that this was Suo Lun’s own territory and foundation. If it were before, Suo Mu definitely would have refused to comply, but now they had complete and blind trust in Suo Lun.

"Yes!" everyone shouted in unison.

"Let’s move!" Suo Lun commanded, then pulled on his mask.

Suddenly, the thousand-plus Samurai turned into a thousand-plus pirates, storming into the peaceful Tianshui City Territory.

Then, one village after another was looted, one town after another pillaged.

All the food was piled up and set ablaze.

This terrifying band of pirates only took money, avoiding any heavy baggage.

Instantly, countless civilians became refugees, hurrying towards Heavenly Water Main City, where it was the only place they would be safe and have a way to live.

Even though there were a good ten thousand soldiers stationed in various high-ranking Samurai territories, there were merely five hundred people per territory on average, and they were second-line troops, not a match for Suo Lun’s elite band of thieves.

Moreover, Suo Lun opened box after box of Gold Coins, spilling them onto the ground. Anyone who donned a mask and joined his plundering force could walk away with a Gold Coin.

Those low-ranking soldiers, as well as the scoundrels from the countryside, had never seen a Gold Coin in their lives, unable to save even one after several years.

Now, by joining Suo Lun, they could get a Gold Coin.

The result of this barrage of Gold Coin assaults was utter madness.

Countless scoundrels and even second-line troops and militia from the countryside, covered their faces with a piece of black cloth and joined Suo Lun’s plundering force.

In just a few days, the band of robbers following Suo Lun had grown to over ten thousand people.

This ragtag army wasn’t cut out for a tough fight, but looting countryside towns was definitely within their capabilities.

Instantly, the entire Tianshui City Territory was engulfed in wails and howls; fires and looting were everywhere, descending into absolute chaos.

Tens of thousands, even hundreds of thousands of civilians, with no other options, were dragging their families toward Heavenly Water Main City.

Inside Heavenly Water Main City, a solid ten thousand troops were stationed, but without orders, not a single soldier dared to be deployed.

Faced with the influx of refugees, the city guards did not dare to stop them, letting them into the city one after another. But as the numbers grew from tens of thousands to hundreds of thousands,

the city guards hurriedly closed the city gates to prevent more refugees from entering, waiting for orders from Tianlang Pass, four hundred miles away.

...

At Tianlang Pass, the two armies had been at a standoff for more than three days.

Yan Yan’s army of over ten thousand had yet to attack the pass but instead kept building defensive works.

Inside the Tianlang Pass castle, the five-person command center was puzzled—what was Suo Lun up to? The enemy was at the gates, but instead of attacking, he had started building fortifications.

Didn’t he realize that his food supply wouldn’t last much longer? Continuing like this was tantamount to waiting for death.

Just then, a messenger rushed into Tianlang Pass and knelt before Zhi Ning, saying, "Commandery Princess, Suo Lun is leading an army of more than ten thousand towards Heavenly Water Main City. It’s extremely urgent."

This statement completely stunned everyone present.

Wasn’t Suo Lun’s army of more than ten thousand outside Tianlang Pass? Where... where did he get another army of more than ten thousand?

In fact, news of a large number of thieves plundering the Tianshui City Territory had arrived at Tianlang Pass via flying pigeon a day and a half earlier, but those present hadn’t taken it too seriously.

Because, as they saw it, the deaths of mere civilians were not a significant loss as long as Heavenly Water Main City remained unharmed.

Now, out of the blue, more than ten thousand troops under Suo Lun were approaching to attack Tianshui City?

Suo Hanyi’s face turned pale and she said, "I’m going back to Heavenly Water Main City immediately."

Zhi Ning nodded, "Are you going to bring troops with you?"

"No, not a single soldier is necessary, relying on the defense forces of Heavenly Water Main City will suffice," Suo Hanyi replied. "Commandery Princess, heed my words, Suo Lun is extremely cunning. Take advantage of the fact that the enemy outside Tianlang Pass has not yet secured their camp and strike immediately, otherwise it will be too late."

"I have my own plan," Zhi Ning said.

Moments later, Suo Hanyi led a team of guards out of Tianlang Pass and rushed back to Heavenly Water Main City at top speed.

...

By this time, Heavenly Water Main City was already in complete disarray, with countless refugees amassed outside of the outer city, indistinguishable from the thieves.

And Suo Lun’s army of more than ten thousand thieves, gathered by gold coins, continued to spread harm everywhere, their numbers growing.

For countless scoundrels rushed to join them voluntarily.

Now, this unruly mob, in great numbers, were heading toward Heavenly Water Main City.

Yet a few days earlier, Suo Lun had already blended in among the refugees and entered Heavenly Water Main City.

At this moment, he was outside the City Lord’s mansion. He had only one goal—to rescue Suo Hanyi’s wife, Yang Hongyi.

...

Note: The second batch of 5,000 words is delivered. Today’s nearly 10,000-word update, asking for support.