Lin Feng put away his Wildfire Spear and turned to walk out of the Council Hall.

On the open ground outside the door, more than three thousand figures appeared out of thin air: soldiers carrying weapons, women leading children, old people pushing carts, and piles of supplies.

One thousand people gripped their weapons, wearing tattered leather armor, looking around in confusion.

Two thousand were family members. The supplies were piled into small mountains—Gray Crystal, Copper Ingot, Tin Ingot, Iron Ingot, and grain—on a scale similar to the county captured previously.

Zhao Hu arrived with his men from outside the city gate. Seeing the three thousand soldiers °• N 𝑜 v 𝑒 l i g h t •° and civilians on the open ground, his mouth twitched, but he immediately straightened his face and waved his hand to start the tally.

Jiang Zhaoyue walked to Lin Feng's side, looking at the people and supplies being counted, her tone carrying a trace of complexity.

"It seems the orcs abandoned Fengzao County for some reason. The west gate is wide open, and judging by the tracks, they withdrew through the west gate, likely heading towards Osaka Castle."

Lin Feng was immersed in the joy of the increased recruitment quota for five hundred Great Qin Elite Soldiers.

Hearing Jiang Zhaoyue's words, he sighed inwardly: "I hope the remaining three counties of the orcs have no garrison troops. For other human territories, one thousand County Soldiers and two thousand military dependents do not count as a very powerful force, but for him, it is different."

With the special effect of the Great Qin Elite Camp, "Sweep the Six Harmonies," every additional county-level subordinate territory allowed for the recruitment of five hundred more Great Qin Elite Soldiers. Three counties meant one thousand five hundred. Adding the newly surrendered County Soldiers and supplies, this deal was profitable no matter how he calculated it.

The corners of his mouth slowly curled into an arc—not large, but the light in his eyes could not be hidden.

Why did the orcs withdraw? He didn't care. As long as the county was in hand and the quota was obtained, everything else was irrelevant.

He waved his hand, his tone flat yet unquestionable: "Regardless of why the orcs abandoned Fengzao County, our goal is simple: capture as many orc counties as possible."

"Ye Lan, leave a few Beacon Guards Centurions to settle the military dependents later. Incorporate the newly added one thousand County Soldiers directly into the main army. In half an hour, we depart for Shenle County, one hundred and fifty miles west of Fengzao County; it is the essential passage to Osaka Castle."

Jiang Yelan pressed her right fist to her chest and bowed slightly: "Understood."

Tie Dun stood up from beside the pile of supplies, patted the dust off his knees, and grinned: "Shenle County? Sounds like a place where they perform shaman dances in Sakura Country. I'd like to see if the orcs there have run away."

Zhao Hu glared at him: "Less nonsense, go assemble the troops."

Tie Dun chuckled twice and ran toward the Beacon Guards' formation while carrying his shield.

Lin Feng stood on the steps of the Council Hall, looking toward the west.

One hundred and fifty miles away lay Shenle County, the throat passage leading to Osaka Castle.

If the orcs had already withdrawn completely, he would gladly accept it. If there were not many garrison troops, he wouldn't mind fighting another battle.

...

Half an hour later, at the west gate of Fengzao County.

Two thousand Beacon Guards and three thousand County Soldiers filed out. Black armor mixed with motley leather armor, resembling a gray-black river under the morning light.

Dozens of Great-Horned Deer carts pulling scaling ladders followed at the back, the wheels making dull sounds as they ground over the gravel.

The Great-Horned Deer occasionally snorted, but after being patted on the head by a nearby soldier, they quieted down.

Lin Feng rode at the very front, his Wildfire Spear strapped to his back, his dark purple leather armor gleaming coldly in the sunlight.

Jiang Yelan followed to his left, her shadow moon blade swaying gently at her waist.

Zhao Hu led the main force of the Beacon Guards in the middle of the formation, with Tie Dun following behind him carrying his shield; the shield was polished so bright it could be used as a mirror.

The scenery along the way was desolate as ever.

Collapsed villages, charred wooden beams, and scattered bones sped past on both sides of the road.

Occasionally, a vulture would fly up from a withered tree, circle in the sky, and land back in its original spot.

There were no people, no living creatures—only sand, wind, and gravel.

About two hours later, on the horizon ahead, a gray-black silhouette slowly rose.

The walls of Shenle County were twenty meters high.

But as the troops approached, the dense figures on the city walls became clear. They were not scattered patrol teams, but rows and columns of orc soldiers, a dark mass that stretched as far as the eye could see.

The black war flag of the Cangshi Clan fluttered on the city walls, the wolf-head emblem gleaming coldly in the sun.

Lin Feng raised his right fist, and the troops stopped.

Tie Dun stood on his tiptoes to look into the distance, muttering: "Good grief, how many orcs are in this city? The walls are packed full, like ants!"

Wang Wu narrowed his eyes and counted the figures on the city wall, frowning slightly: "At least three or four thousand. Adding the reserves inside the city, it could be more. It's more than twice the garrison of Chidori County."

Su Yurou's tone carried a hint of worry: "Lord, a direct assault will result in heavy casualties."

Jiang Zhaoyue looked at the flags and troop deployment on the city wall and said slowly.

"The orcs must have transferred the garrison troops from Fengzao County and Jingchuan County. They know that Shenle County is the throat passage to Osaka Castle and fear that we and the Osaka Castle garrison will attack from both front and rear, so they are concentrating their forces to defend it to the death."

"Even if we bypass Shenle County, they can tail us, and then it will be us who are caught in a pincer attack."

Jiang Yelan glanced at Lin Feng, waiting for his decision.

Lin Feng didn't respond. He tapped his foot, and his body shot up, ascending—fifty meters, one hundred meters, two hundred meters, three hundred meters, four hundred meters.

This height was far beyond the range of the Troll Archer, and the wind whistled past his ears, causing his clothes to snap loudly.

He looked down at the orc defenses below. The orcs on the city wall were dense, not only filling the battlements but also crowding the walkways on the inner side of the wall with reserves.

He roughly estimated that there were no fewer than four thousand garrison troops, and quite a few elites above level 20. Just on the city wall, he could see the figures of several elite Rare Bosses.

His mind stirred, and the light of the Eye of Probability swept across the city wall.

The feedback made him frown slightly: three level 35 Rare Bosses, Orc Overseers, riding on giant Wolfmounts, their battle-axes glinting with a dull bloody light in the sun.

The number of remaining Centurions and Troll Archers was also not small.

Lin Feng hovered in mid-air, calculating quickly. A direct assault could take the city, but the casualties would be at least two thousand. Losing two thousand Elite Soldiers for one county was not worth it.

It seems the orcs really did transfer the garrison troops from Fengzao County and Jingchuan County, just as Jiang Zhaoyue said. They are afraid that I and the Osaka Castle garrison will attack from both sides.

"However... I don't actually intend to rescue Osaka Castle; I just want to take advantage of the situation."

"I just want to take a few more counties to increase the recruitment quota for Great Qin Elite Soldiers." Thinking of this, he couldn't help but laugh to himself.