Chapter 840: Siege

Li Tong was a decisive leader and fully understood the concept of "burning one's boats." Although their current situation didn’t require such drastic measures, creating a sense of finality for the soldiers would significantly boost morale. "Good, relay the order to set up camp, prepare three days' worth of rations, and after lunch, we will break camp and prepare for the battle at Xiapi!" Li Tong immediately commanded.

Upon reaching the agreed-upon location several dozen li south of Xiapi, Zhang Fei began setting up the military formation under Chen Deng's direction. While Chen Deng's knowledge of formations was somewhat limited, Li Yan's understanding wasn’t much better. Soon, they managed to construct a "Xuanxiang Formation" based on a basic wedge formation. Of course, for experts like Ju Shou or Li You, such a formation would be full of flaws, and even an army with one-third of the soldiers could easily break it. But complex formations were dangerous to use without adequate expertise, and failure was inevitable.

When Li Yan arrived with his eight thousand troops, he saw the enemy’s army moving with precision and began to have uneasy thoughts. While this formation resembled the Xuanxiang Formation, it was not one he had ever seen before.

"I’ve heard that Chen Yuanlong is regarded as a renowned minister of our times. I had my doubts before, but after seeing this today, it seems his reputation is well deserved," Li Yan remarked, his expression growing serious as he sat on his horse.

"General, this formation appears to be a variation of the wedge formation, yet it’s chaotic and hard to make sense of. After analyzing it from different angles, I still can’t find a clear weakness," Liang Xi, after closely observing the enemy formation, was left confused and disoriented, unable to discern its true nature.

"Breaking this formation will be difficult, but our goal is merely to stall them. As long as we can defend ourselves, the situation will eventually turn in our favor," Li Yan said, still not completely confident but able to discern enough to avoid being too careless.

"Yuanlong, do you think Li Yan can break this formation of yours?" Zhang Fei asked, feeling somewhat uneasy. From their previous encounter, it was clear that Li Yan was well-versed in military formations.

"I’m not entirely certain he can’t break it, but I know his primary goal is to delay us. However, rest assured, General. This Xuanxiang Formation was taught to me by my father and has never been revealed to others. It’s a new formation," Chen Deng replied, starting with caution but ending with evident confidence.

"Good, then everything depends on Fa Zheng and Gan Ning now," Zhang Fei said in a serious tone. Although there was a degree of risk involved, at this point, his priority was to focus on his part of the plan.

"Li Yan, you challenged me to a formation battle two days ago. Today, I’ve set up my formation. Do you dare to break it?" Zhang Fei charged out on his horse, thrusting his spear forward as he bellowed, his voice echoing across the battlefield. His soldiers immediately roared in response.

"Hah, what’s there to fear about your Xuanxiang Formation? Watch how I break it!" Li Yan laughed boldly, selecting what he thought was a weakness in the formation and charging in. Both armies clashed immediately, throwing themselves into a fierce battle.

Meanwhile, after Zhang Fei departed, Li Tong led his troops to completely surround Xiapi City. Siege weapons were unleashed with relentless force, assaulting the city from all sides. However, the Liu Bei troops within Xiapi had long since prepared for this and had used massive stones to block the city gates as soon as Zhang Fei left, rendering any direct assault on the gates futile.

Without Zhang Fei leading the defense, but with the Liu Bei army well-prepared, the battle between the defending soldiers and the attacking Yu Province army, which had little understanding of the true situation, became a brutal struggle for survival.

After three waves of reckless probing attacks, the portion of the city moat that had been previously filled during earlier assaults was covered once again. With this, the Yu Province army commenced their full-scale siege.

"Pour it!" an old veteran commanded the fresh recruits, as they poured boiling oil down from the walls. Soldiers attempting to scale the ladders let out blood-curdling screams as they tumbled to their deaths. Before anyone else could climb the ladders, the veterans used long poles to push the ladders off the walls, causing more Yu Province soldiers to fall and die.

"It seems they were well-prepared," Lai Min remarked to Li Tong.

"That’s expected. After all, Chen Deng is a cautious man," Li Tong nodded. If the enemy had shown no preparation at all, he would have been more suspicious. "Bring up the soldiers; we don’t have much time."

Without hesitation, Huo Jun grabbed a short blade, slung a large shield on his back, and armed himself with a broadsword. Leading his personal guards, he charged toward the walls. Typically, such assaults, where a general personally leads his troops in a siege, would take place later in the attack, once the defenders were worn down. But with time pressing, Huo Jun led the charge immediately after the probing attacks, and the Yu Province soldiers’ morale soared.

Huo Jun leaped onto the ladders and, using his large round shield to block the burning oil being poured from above, swiftly ascended. Reaching the top, he threw the flaming shield aside, drew his broadsword, and severed several spears thrusting toward him. He then vaulted onto the wall.

Thwack! Thwack! Thwack! Arrows rained down, forcing Huo Jun to roll to the ground. Grabbing a nearby soldier to use as a human shield, he hacked his way through several more enemies, securing a foothold on the wall. However, a group of well-organized veterans quickly surrounded him, spears bristling from all sides, while a dozen archers stood ready. After a fierce exchange, Huo Jun had no choice but to leap from the wall and retreat under the cover of his personal guards.

"The defenses aren’t impenetrable. Full-scale assault! Surround the city on three sides. Have the generals lead their personal guards to attack with everything they’ve got," Li Tong, initially pleased when Huo Jun made it onto the wall, was disappointed when he was forced to retreat. Nonetheless, he quickly adjusted his plan and issued new orders.

Under Li Tong’s command, all officers were promised great rewards. With the generals leading from the front, and the army attacking from the east, west, and south, any soldier who refused to advance would be executed on the spot. With such harsh orders, the troops attacked the city with fierce determination, their lives on the line. Soon, Xiapi City appeared to be on the verge of collapse.

However, Liu Bei was deeply loved by the people, and soon, civilians could be seen delivering food to the soldiers defending the city. Even some young men who had undergone basic training joined the defenders on the walls. With this reinforcement, the city walls, though trembling under the relentless assault, held firm.

"Damn it, we were so close!" Li Tong cursed as nightfall approached, growing increasingly anxious. The battlefield was strewn with the bodies of both Yu Province and Liu Bei soldiers. As the battle raged on, the casualty ratio began to narrow, and from his years of experience, Li Tong knew that they were just one step away from breaking through.

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