The battle to the west of Longxi Pass ended as quickly as it started, because both Mi Xiu and Hussein had been prepared, and the battlefield was quickly cleared. The people in Longxi Pass had no idea that they were not far away.
An important battle took place.
At this time, Longxingguan's main attention is still on the east. Usually, the team usually moves from west to east, transporting supplies from the central plain to the defense line, replenishing ordnance and soldiers, but it is different these days.
In addition to the team coming from the Central Plains within the pass, there are also many people returning from the east of Longxing Pass one after another.
At this time, the city gate of Longxiguan was halfway open, and soldiers passed through the city gate and entered one after another.
Although they were all human soldiers, the defenders at the city gate still had to conduct basic interrogations when facing these defeated soldiers who came back sporadically.
"Which army are you from?"
"We are members of the 7th Flag Regiment of the 19th Legion. We were scattered by the orcs when we retreated two days ago."
"After entering the city, observe military discipline and do not make trouble, otherwise you will know the consequences."
"Um"
The leading young officer nodded. Although the Eastern Expedition army was defeated, there were still many troops left behind at Longxing Pass. Thanks to the separation of Thor and the Guards, Duke Ross still led the main force and part of the Western Army.
The Eastern Expedition army returned to Longxing Pass. The order in the city was stable and there was no room for the defeated army to act recklessly.
"Open the door and let them in."
"yes!"
Soon, these scattered groups of defeated soldiers returned to the city through the closed gate. At least more than 500,000 people have returned to the city in the past few days. Although the soldiers still maintained basic order, it can be seen from their expressions that they
The morale of the army was very low. It was obvious that the army had returned from a defeat, which also caused some uneasiness among the troops left behind.
"Boss, there are fewer people coming back today. I'm afraid the orcs are chasing us."
"I heard that Master Thor has died in the battle. Can we really hold the Dragon's Breath Pass?"
The soldier who spoke had a look of fear on his face. He had been guarding the city gate these days and learned a lot from the defeated soldiers on the front line. The army was defeated miserably, Lord Thor died in battle, and hundreds of orcs appeared.
The giant dragon is assisting in the battle. Those who would be frightened by any one of them are numb. Now that several things are put together, it is no wonder that this soldier has no confidence.
"Shut up, you have to defend it if you can, and you have to defend it if you can't. Not to mention that there are millions of troops at Longxi Pass. Even if I am alone, as long as I am still alive, I will never let the orcs
Cross the Dragon's Breath Pass."
After the soldier finished speaking, he was immediately scolded by the officer on the side. As a knight-level officer, he has wider knowledge and sees the badness of the situation more clearly than this soldier. He also understands the consequences of the orcs breaking the Dragon's Breath Pass.
What's more, he must defend the Dragon's Breath Pass to the death not only for the civilians inside the pass, but also for his family relatives on the central plains.
"However, we really need to be more vigilant. Orcs may come at any time."
"Cheer up, everyone, and close the city gate immediately if you find something is wrong!"
"Yes, sir!"
…
In the inner fortress of Guancheng, the atmosphere was equally heavy. A group of senior generals were sitting on both sides with solemn expressions. The Duke of Ross was sitting in the seat in front of Saul, presiding over the new day's military meeting.
"Today, several thousand people have returned to the pass. Although this group of people lost their armor, they still maintained their organization with weapons. They should not have been pursued by the orcs, but just broke away from the group in the chaos."
"Well, let's settle them down, re-equip and train them, and restore their combat effectiveness as soon as possible."
"Yes, Lord Ross!"
"Sir! I learned from a flag commander who returned to the city today that when he retreated to the west, he saw the sky above Raging Flame Castle full of white dragons. The orcs attacked desperately with the cooperation of the white dragons. Our giant dragons
We had already lost everything at that time, and I am afraid that the Raging Flame Castle had fallen two days ago, so we need to prepare early."
After the officer said this, there was silence in the conference hall. They had not received a piece of good news since the Duke of Ross withdrew.
After the break, the Imperial Guards were completely wiped out. Thor died in public. Richard lost contact after retreating to Raging Flame Castle. Now it is basically confirmed that Raging Flame Castle has fallen. Soon after the orcs are ready, Dragon Breath Pass
It was about to be directly attacked, and the senior officers, including the Duke of Ross, were not very sure whether they could hold it or not.
But everyone knows that they have no way out, and this Dragon Breathing Pass must be defended.
"Continue to send scouts to investigate the situation. If you find any traces of Sir Richard and Sir Saul, report them immediately."
"Also, once again issue a summons to the nobles of the Central Plains, asking them to bring people to Longxing Pass to participate in the battle. This time, let the messengers go farther away."
"Lord Ross, this is somewhat against the rules. We have no right to issue a war call order."
"Send it first and then talk about it. The royal capital will agree. I will be responsible for any consequences."
"Yes, sir."
"How's the layout of the giant crossbow going?"
"In the past few days, more than a hundred new bed crossbows have been installed in the main city of Longxiguan, and the surrounding castles have also been equipped with more bed crossbows."
"It's not enough. Dragon's Breath Pass requires at least one thousand more giant crossbows."
"Let the craftsmen hurry up and make the bed crossbows. Don't consider the service life of the bed crossbows. Just try to ensure the power. We must make more bed crossbows in a short time."
"Yes, sir!"
It's no wonder that Ross is impatient. In the past, the orcs had no dragons to help them, and their air power was almost zero except for some Bat Riders. Naturally, the humans did not make special arrangements for the dragons like the orcs did.
The orcs have been terrorized by the golden dragon for hundreds of years and have already developed some countermeasures. Technology such as the dragon-hunting crossbow was forcibly introduced under the pressure of the golden dragon. However, humans do not have such pressure, and now they have to deal with it suddenly.
White Dragon can only make some preparations in a hurry. Try to build as many crossbows as possible, at least there is a possibility of hurting White Dragon.
Of course, it is impossible to rely on these bed crossbows to resist the white dragons. If the orcs are attacking the city, and a large number of white dragons appear again to help, it will most likely have to be carried by human soldiers with their flesh and blood.
"We are here today. Please remember that Longxing Pass is the last barrier for our human race. If we cannot hold it, the crisis of national subjugation and species annihilation awaits us. We cannot slack off at all."
"yes!"
The officers present responded in unison. At this moment, their thoughts were still very unified, that is, they would do everything possible to defend Longxi Pass.
…
Jinlongdu
royal palace
After receiving the news that the Eastern Expeditionary Army was defeated and that Thor's life and death were unknown, Ren almost fainted without taking a breath.
Fortunately, Ren was still a determined monarch, so he held on and began to digest the information in the letter.
The main factors for the defeat were: first, insufficient intelligence at the beginning, and they did not know that White Dragon and the Orc Alliance had joined the battle. Second, the orc reinforcements arrived faster than expected, so Thor did not complete the strategic goal in time. Third, Thor
He was defeated by a strong orc in front of everyone, which led to a collapse in morale and finally led to a great rout.
Now Longxingguan will face an attack by an army of as many as two million orcs. As time goes on, more orcs will be mobilized to join the war. Judging from the population of the orcs, the final number of orcs participating in the war exceeds 10 million.
Not surprising.
The situation in the air has also reversed. The orcs have a large number of white dragons to help them fight, while the human dragon knights are almost gone now. What is even more frightening is that the human side is not as prepared as the orcs to deal with the giant dragons. They are unprepared.
Humans have to face the superior ground troops of orcs and the attack of giant dragons. Even with the advantage of Dragon Breathing Pass defense...
Dragon Breath Pass cannot be defended.
After analysis, Renn quickly came to the conclusion that although Duke Ross stated his determination in the letter, Renn is a very rational person and naturally knows that some things cannot be achieved with determination. The only thing to consider now is
How to keep Longxi Pass as long as possible and gain some time.
After taking a deep breath, Renn ordered the guard outside the door:
"Go and ask the left and right ministers to come see me."
"Yes, Your Majesty!"
The dignitaries in Jinlong City usually live not far from the palace. Soon after Ren summoned them, the two of them were guided by the guards to the side hall where Ren was.
"His Majesty."
"sit down."
"This is the battle report of Longxing Pass. You should also take a look."
The intelligence work of the Golden Dragon Kingdom is good. Although it is not as sophisticated as Richard's Yusidu, the Black Prison has existed for such a long time and has its own set of rules and procedures.
The battle report of Longxingguan was sent out by wind bird relay. After arriving in Jinlongdu, it was sent to Ren with almost no delay. He was definitely the fastest person in Jinlongdu to learn about the defeat on the front line. Others, even the two
The two ministers, who have high status, are still unaware of this matter.
"How could things develop like this? Even the Dragon Knight is trapped in the battle?"
After the letter was circulated, Liang Xiang's face became extremely ugly. To sit in a high position under a king like Ren, who can be called a wise king, naturally he cannot be a mediocre person. After reading the entire information,
The two prime ministers also understood the seriousness of the matter. If they were not careful, it would be a crisis of national destruction and genocide.
They usually have selfish motives, but no one wants the kingdom to perish, especially if it is destroyed by the orcs. If the orcs take over the Central Plains, they may still maintain their status as one person below ten thousand people.
.
"Uncle Thor is still alive and dead, so don't spread the news of his death."
"Yes, Your Majesty."
"The important thing is to ensure the defense of Longxing Pass, and how we should respond if Longxing Pass is breached."
"Your Majesty, the fleet on the Jinlong River has been gathering since half a year ago. After expansion, the fleet has more than 3,000 ships of various types and can transport more than 400,000 people at a time. We can withdraw to the west of the Jinlong River at any time."
It was the Right Prime Minister who made such a cowardly suggestion. Ren glanced at the other party and saw that the other party had a serious face without any shame. He sighed inwardly and continued:
"The fleet naturally needs to be prepared, but the matter is not yet at this stage. Now we should continue to mobilize the army to support Longxing Pass."
"Your Majesty, we have already raised taxes and deployed garrison corps from various places. Now, except for some big cities, we have almost no regular corps stationed there. It is difficult to mobilize enough force."
"nobody?"
"The number of private soldiers maintained by each noble family in the castle is probably no less than one million. If they are willing, it shouldn't be a problem to expand their troops to another two million."
The nobles of the Golden Dragon Kingdom basically maintain some private soldiers. In addition to the territory directly under the kingdom, some nobles have to collect taxes. The sword handles in their hands are not strong, and it is not easy to collect taxes, especially in some border areas.
"Your Majesty, this is against the laws of the kingdom. The nobles have already contributed before, and the kingdom does not allow them to have so many troops."
The right prime minister still habitually stands up to fight for the interests of the nobles. Of course, in a sense, the right prime minister is also fighting for the kingdom as a whole. After all, respecting the interests of the nobles is still beneficial to the stability of the kingdom, but at this moment
Obviously something is out of place.
"The code of the kingdom? If there is no action, the kingdom will be lost. I will not let them send troops in vain. I will give the nobles above the earl of the kingdom the right to freely expand the army, allowing them to mobilize viscounts and barons around the territory. The number of troops exceeds 5,000. Knights
If there are more than ten people, they can be allowed to withhold part of the tax revenue as military expenses..."
"Your Majesty, this..."
Both prime ministers instinctively felt that something was wrong. The power that Ren had released was too great. This was equivalent to lifting the restrictions on the arms of the big nobles, decentralizing their financial power, and even allowing them to annex some small nobles in a sense. This was
If this kind of order is issued, I am afraid that several nobles at the level of military leaders will be raised.
In the past, the two military leaders, one in the west and one in the north, had already made the central ministers and nobles a little afraid. But now, if Ren's wishes are followed, the kingdom will probably have military strongmen everywhere.
"There is nothing wrong. You two have to ask your families to step up the recruitment of troops. I allow you to freely collect taxes in the territory, as long as you ensure the quality and quantity of the army."
"Yes, Your Majesty."
The two sides talked about it, but in the end they just bowed their heads and said yes. With their wisdom, of course they could figure out Ren's intentions. The effect of mobilizing through the kingdom's taxation would not be too great. After all, things that harm the interests of the nobles,
They will not be particularly cooperative. Now, Renne wants to continue to squeeze the kingdom's war potential as much as possible by mobilizing the enthusiasm of the nobles.
Of course, this is a poison similar to a stimulant, and everyone can imagine what the consequences will be in the end, but in the face of this big crisis, no matter what the consequences are, we must first forget about it and survive first.
"Also, during the court meeting later, according to Uncle Saul's suggestion, the title of Duke Richard Hunter was promoted to a prince, with a status equivalent to that of the royal family. The territory of the country is Northland and River Valley, and the title of Duke of Ross is also
As the King of the West, Uncle King Thor was also promoted to the title of King."
Although Ren accepted Saul's suggestion, he did not have any ideas of his own. When he promoted Richard's title to a king, he also promoted the other two dukes to a king at the same time. This seemed to make Richard the king.
Wang Jue's value has been greatly reduced. Of course, Richard doesn't care about this either.
"Yes, Your Majesty!"
Originally, the matter of being crowned king would definitely shock them greatly. It was impossible for them both to object and persuade Renn to think twice. However, after the news of the defeat of the Eastern Expedition and the first order issued by Renn, at the same time
Conferring three royal titles became a trivial matter.
"Okay, let's go and prepare first. We will announce the news and orders in the main hall later."
The two Xiangs resigned and left quickly. The reason why Ren communicated with them in advance was very simple. There must not be any blind people in the hall who stood up to object. They had to go and order their own people first.