Speaking of which, the Yang ancestral temple had enjoyed sacrifices for dozens of generations, and had even once established a Great National Protection Formation.
A formation capable of covering an entire nation's territory consumed resources beyond measure. If not a powerful nation, at least one whose ancestors had once been wealthy.
However, the Yang Kingdom's Great National Protection Formation had been broken several times during the turbulent days of the Eastern Region.
This also demonstrated the resilience of the Yang regime—whenever the formation was broken, it was repaired to its original state time and again.
But after the State of Qi established its current borders, and the Yang Kingdom's position became that of a neighbor right at its doorstep, the Yang family's situation grew increasingly awkward.
Especially after the Yang Kingdom became a vassal state of Qi, with new rulers requiring investiture from the Qi Emperor to be considered legitimate.
What was this so-called "Great National Protection Formation" meant to guard against? And would the State of Qi truly allow such a threat to lurk right under its nose?
All these matters greatly troubled the Yang Kingdom from top to bottom.
This matter was later resolved.
A "very insightful" minister of the Yang court suggested that since Qi and Yang were originally one, why not connect the Yang Kingdom's Great National Protection Formation with Qi's as well?
Wouldn't sharing weal and woe, sharing blessings and power together, be the way to ensure lasting peace and stability?
The exact process is unknown, but this resolution was later smoothly passed.
This is also why Chongxuan Chuliang could now so easily contain the Yang Kingdom, without even needing to break the "Great National Protection Formation," and could directly march his army to Chiwei Commandery.
No matter how weak the Yang Kingdom had become, it would never allow Qi to completely control its Great National Protection Formation. But once the two formations were connected, Qi could easily pause the Yang Kingdom's formation at will.
In other words, the Great National Protection Formation that had consumed such vast resources of the Yang Kingdom had long since become meaningless to the State of Qi.
It's worth mentioning that the minister who had suggested connecting the Yang Kingdom's Great National Protection Formation with Qi's, sharing blessings and power together, had now moved his entire family to Qi's territory and secured a good position there.
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"Chiwei Commandery's terrain is long and narrow; its name actually derives from 'the tail of the scarlet flame.'"
"And now that the Yang regime will meet its end here, isn't this the will of Heaven?"
The Autumn Execution Army's warhorses all had traces of demon beast bloodlines, so despite Chongxuan Sheng's astonishing weight, the horse beneath him still moved lightly.
After the slaughter and breakthrough in Rizhao Commandery, Chongxuan Chuliang directly mobilized the great army, and Jiang Wang and Chongxuan Sheng came to the army together.
Xiang Qian returned alone to Qingyang Town.
For him, the merits and honors of the State of Qi held no interest; rather, he felt a sense of guardianship toward Qingyang Town.
Accompanying Jiang Wang to storm the Rizhao Commandery residence was both out of support for Jiang Wang and from disgust toward Song Guang's rebellion. And though Qingyang Town now had a system in place, it still needed such a strong figure to suppress unexpected incidents.
The army valued military merit above all.
Chongxuan Sheng personally entered Rizhao Commandery for negotiations, and during the banquet, beheaded Rizhao's administrator Song Guang. He then marched directly into the military camp and dispersed Rizhao Commandery's seventy thousand soldiers on the spot.
This kind of merit instantly gave him significant speaking weight within the Autumn Execution Army.
Arranging for Jiang Wang to enter the camp and follow the army in an advisory capacity, no one dared to gossip.
At this moment he was in high spirits, and many of the surrounding generals echoed his sentiments.
Chongxuan Chuliang also rode his warhorse, advancing with the vast, stretching army.
Upon hearing this, he merely said: "Do not underestimate Yang Jiande. The outcome is not yet decided. If your unit suffers defeat due to carelessness, do not blame this commander for showing no mercy under military law!"
Chongxuan Sheng immediately shed his arrogant demeanor and bowed respectfully on horseback: "Yes!"
Yang Jiande commanded an army of two hundred and ten thousand, moving from west to east. Chongxuan Chuliang personally led one hundred thousand Autumn Execution troops, moving from east to west. The Qi army also had many auxiliary soldiers, coordinating with formations to contain the entire Yang Kingdom through interconnected nodes, but they would not participate in the final battle.
The situation across the Yang Kingdom resembled a giant cage with Qi's army trapping it, while the Autumn Execution Army served as the cage's iron lock.
Yang Jiande's command of the army was precisely to break this lock head-on.
Breaking out from any side of the cage was not difficult, but it held no meaning.
And Chongxuan Chuliang's advance was like a hand reaching into the cage from outside, intending to seize the prey within.
The two sides would decide it here—either Chongxuan Chuliang would capture his prey and return laden with spoils, or Yang Jiande would break this hand and shatter the cage.
Chiwei Commandery was the battlefield chosen by both sides.
Yet what was the same was that both sides advanced with great caution.
On the surface, each had their own reasons.
The Yang Kingdom's military preparations had long grown lax, and Yang Jiande had relinquished power for many years. Now, through a series of actions including the execution of the Crown Prince, he had regained control of military and administrative power. Regardless of administrative matters, he needed to slowly advance in order to re-familiarize himself with and command the army.
Whether called excessive caution or sharpening one's blade at the last moment, the Yang Kingdom could not afford delay. That was why Yang Jiande had deployed troops from Hengyang Commandery. But even in such a pressing moment, just before the decisive battle, he still forced a delay—this particularly revealed his military strategy.
Chongxuan Sheng would not fail to understand this point, and Chongxuan Chuliang was not as lacking in confidence as his words suggested. Their conversation was merely to suppress the arrogance within the army.
The Autumn Execution Army had always been one of Qi's Nine Armies, enjoying long-standing prestige, and could never regard the Yang Army as an equal opponent. Especially since Chongxuan Sheng had dispersed the seventy thousand soldiers stationed in Rizhao Commandery without bringing a single soldier, which made the Autumn Execution Army even more dismissive of the Yang forces.
Only constrained by Chongxuan Chuliang's strict discipline, they dared not show too much contempt outwardly.
In the entire army, only Chongxuan Sheng, with his great merit, could display a bit of arrogance—which provided Chongxuan Chuliang the perfect opportunity to check him, thereby rectifying the army's attitude.
The Autumn Execution Army advanced slowly because Chongxuan Chuliang had greatly changed his usual style of warfare this time.
The entire army practically tore down cities and forts along the way, sweeping away all resistance, gathering surrendered soldiers, inspecting for plague, and grinding forward inch by inch.
Proceeding step by step, completely unlike the battles that had brought him fame.
And intentionally or unintentionally, in the gradually compressed space between the two great armies... a certain transformation was occurring.
The Holy Sovereign of the Bone Path, who had come from the State of Zhuang, was still frantically absorbing plague energy.
In the forest clearing, He floated entirely in mid-air.
From all directions, formless yet tangible power surged ceaselessly toward this place.
The ashen white smoke was nearly solidified, making this place resemble some desolate, miasma-ridden danger zone.
Occasionally, when the smoke fluctuated violently, one could catch a glimpse of the Bone Holy Sovereign's appearance.
His entire body was unclothed. What could have been called a slender frame now seemed to have something swimming beneath the skin—clumps of flesh bulging outward, then flattening, in constant repetition.
Sometimes one could see bones twisting grotesquely, and even white bone piercing through the flesh, only to quickly retract and be covered again.
His body... seemed to be undergoing some form of mutation, reorganization.
Only His face remained unchanged, perpetually expressionless, which made Him appear all the more grotesque and terrifying by contrast.
And heaven and earth are like a furnace, plague energy like fire, and oneself the elixir within.
And amidst the ashen white smoke, there was always a song drifting, seeming to exist yet not, appearing to cease yet continuing.
Listen closely, and that song was singing—
"Heaven and earth show no mercy, royal grace cannot be found, familial love does not exist, and teacher's grace becomes enmity."
"The Five Bonds are impermanent, the Seven Passions enter extinction! Tread my Gate of Life and Death, don my black and white scarf."
"Kill my former self, deliver the person I once was!"
The survivors of Maple City would perhaps never forget.
It was indeed... the Bone Path's Song of No-Life.
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