Chinese Generals Summoning System

Chapter 48: Yanwang Ridge Sends Troops

After Fan Chong was escorted out of Yanwang Ridge’s Hall of Brotherhood, Cui Song, the Fourth Leader of Yanwang Ridge, immediately asked the Seventh Leader, Cao Yong, “Seventh Brother, did Fan Chong really bring 5,000 taels of gold with him to Yanwang Ridge this time?” Cao Yong nodded and said, “Fan Chong and his men must have been carrying quite a bit of gold and silver on their backs, but as for whether there was exactly 5,000 taels of gold, I’m not sure.” Third-in-Command Hu Hai then said, “Since Fan Chong promised to provide 5,000 taels of gold to hire Yanwangling’s troops, he and his men must have at least that much on them. We certainly don’t need to worry that Fan Chong won’t be able to come up with the gold.” Eighth Leader Mu Bin said viciously, “Why not just rob the Weihu Fortress gang ourselves? That way, we’ll get more than 5,000 taels of gold, and we won’t have to provoke that government troops unit. That unit nearly wiped out the entire thousand-strong Weihu Fortress gang—if we at Yanwang Ridge send troops this time, we might end up suffering significant losses ourselves.” Second-in-Command Zhang Shili shook his head and said, “Out of the question! The Elder Brother has long sought to incorporate the various mountain strongholds in the region bordering Yongzhou and Qianzhou. If word gets out that we’ve robbed Weihu Fort this time, Yanwang Ridge’s reputation will be ruined, and it will become even more difficult to bring other strongholds under our control.” After Second-in-Command Zhang Shili finished speaking, the other fort leaders nodded in agreement. After all, it wasn’t just the aristocratic clans and powerful families who could see that the Great Jin Dynasty was in its twilight years—many common folk had also clearly recognized this, and some forward-thinking individuals had already begun making preparations. Feng Kun, the leader of Yanwang Ridge, was precisely one such forward-thinking individual. To date, Yanwang Ridge had already brought more than a dozen bandit strongholds—both large and small—under its control, either openly or covertly. However, in this mountainous region straddling the border between Yongzhou and Qianzhou, there were over 200 bandit strongholds alone. Subduing the defiant bandit leaders within these strongholds was by no means a simple task. Feng Kun pondered for a moment before saying, “The matter with Weihu Fort presents an opportunity to demonstrate the strength of Yanwangling to the other strongholds. After capturing Weihu Fort, we at Yanwangling will certainly not hesitate to claim the 5,000 taels of gold as a reward for our efforts. As for the rest of Weihu Fort’s possessions, no one is to set their sights on them!” Second-in-Command Zhang Shili immediately asked, “Big Brother, that group of government troops is no pushover. Who are we sending this time?” Feng Kun looked around at the other nine chieftains gathered in the Hall of Brotherhood, then finally said to Third-in-Command Hu Hai, “Third Brother, these government troops are a tough bunch. You’ll have to lead the mission yourself! Also, take the Ninth and Tenth Leaders with you. In addition to the elite troops under your command, I’ll assign you 20 cavalrymen and 300 infantrymen from my own forces. You must capture Weihu Fort, eliminate that government force, and show the other mountain forts what Yanwangling is capable of!” Each of the ten chieftains of Yanwang Ridge commanded a number of bandit leaders and foot soldiers, but the one with the largest force was the Grand Chief, Feng Kun. Even if the bandit leaders and foot soldiers under the other nine chieftains were combined, they still didn’t match Feng Kun’s numbers. Hu Hai stood up, clasped his fists toward Feng Kun, and said, “Since you’ve made your decision, Big Brother, I’ll take Ninth Brother and Tenth Brother on this mission. Rest assured, Big Brother—with this iron halberd in my hand, I’ll definitely take down Weihu Fort, and not a single member of that government army will leave these mountains alive!” Upon learning that Yanwang Ridge was willing to send troops, Fan Chong promptly handed over 5,000 taels of gold directly to Feng Kun, the leader of Yanwang Ridge. Fan Chong also pounded his chest and guaranteed that once Weihu Fort was recaptured and the imperial troops annihilated, he, Fan Chong, would present a token of his gratitude, and Weihu Fort would henceforth look to Yanwang Ridge for guidance. Soon, Yanwangling’s Third Leader, Songdi Yanwang Hu Hai; Ninth Leader, Dushi Yanwang Zhang Shuo; and Tenth Leader, Wudao Yanwang Yang Hongtao, set out with their respective commanders and foot soldiers, along with 20 cavalrymen and 300 infantrymen allocated by the Grand Leader Feng Kun,for a total of over a thousand troops, set off in a massive procession toward Weihu Fortress. Additionally, Fan Chong, the leader of Weihu Fortress, led the remaining seventy-odd members of Weihu Fortress to join them. It had been only two days since Liu Ji and his men had captured Weihu Fortress. The 420 combatants selected from among the captured bandits had not even completed their drill training yet,when Liu Ji received an urgent report from the guards at Weihu Fort’s first checkpoint: a force of over a thousand had arrived at the foot of the mountain. According to bandits who had been incorporated into the auxiliary troops, this sudden arrival included Fan Chong, the leader of Weihu Fort. Upon hearing this, Liu Ji immediately led several military commanders and three squads of soldiers to the first checkpoint of Weihu Fortress. Among these commanders were two new faces. After Liu Ji ordered the execution of 216 bandits—including Zhang Xiong, the third-in-command of Weihu Fortress, and Li Qing, the fourth-in-command—he naturally did not waste the opportunity to absorb their soul points. As a result, Liu Ji’s soul points quickly increased by 216, reaching a total of 511. After giving it some thought, Liu Ji decided to spend 500 Soul Points to summon five third-rate generals. Although 500 Soul Points were enough to summon one second-rate general, Liu Ji was currently short on capable subordinates. If the summoning of a second-rate general failed, 400 Soul Points would be wasted. Liu Ji was reluctant to take that risk, so he used all his Soul Points on summoning third-tier generals, which had a success rate of one in sixteen. To his surprise, two of the five summoning attempts succeeded at once, bringing forth the third-tier generals Dong Xian and Lei Bo. Dong Xian: Martial Arts 67, Intelligence 51, Command 66. A general under Yue Fei during the early Southern Song Dynasty, he served as commander of the vanguard and accompanied Yue Fei on his northern campaigns, earning numerous military merits. Lei Bo, with a Martial Value of 65, Intelligence of 43, and Command Value of 54, was a subordinate general under Yuan Shu during the late Eastern Han Dynasty. He left Yuan Shu—who had proclaimed himself emperor and become a昏庸奢侈 ruler—to occupy Mount Song and become a bandit leader. Later, he even attacked the defeated Yuan Shu and plundered his treasures. After just five attempts, he had summoned Dong Xian and Lei Bo. Liu Ji initially thought his luck had suddenly improved, but a system notification soon made him realize the truth: it turned out that at Level 0, he had a luck bonus when summoning third-rate generals—a hidden perk the system had granted him. The luck bonus essentially increased the success rate, though the exact extent of that increase depended on Liu Ji’s luck. In any case, his success rate for summoning third-rate generals was now definitely higher than one in sixteen. Upon hearing the system’s prompt, Liu Ji couldn’t help but grumble about why it hadn’t mentioned this sooner. The system then explained that this was a hidden perk, and it had no obligation to inform him—it had only offered the friendly reminder because it couldn’t stand Liu Ji’s self-importance, causing Liu Ji to roll his eyes in exasperation. As for the origins of Dong Xian and Lei Bo, the system still offered that flimsy excuse. After witnessing Dong Xian and Lei Bo’s martial arts, Cheng Yi couldn’t help but ask Liu Ji in astonishment, “My Lord, just how many highly skilled warriors have you saved in the past?” Liu Ji shrugged and said mysteriously to Cheng Yi, “Although my Lord’s own martial arts aren’t anything to write home about, his eye for talent is second to none. The reason so many formidable warriors have been saved by my Lord is entirely because he’s done it on purpose! As for how many formidable warriors my Lord has saved or recruited in the past? Hehe, even my Lord himself can’t keep track anymore! By the way, don’t let this secret get out—our Lord is only telling you this because he trusts you!” Cheng Yi couldn’t help but shudder; it seemed to him as if two demonic horns had sprouted from his lord’s head.