"The situation is about to become troublesome," General Walshi tugged at the edge of his white beard, furrowing his brow. "Since they managed to escape the dragon's judgment, there's no guarantee they won't use that method a second time."

Lock Agis's emotions became even more agitated:

"Use it a second time?

We still don't know what method they used, but judging from the time, that group didn't spend much time dealing with the city's soldiers.

I can't even imagine what kind of despair our soldiers went through in that brief period.

The survivors have almost all fallen into the hands of the Beastmen. They're surely being tormented by the Beastmen, kept in a half-dead status...

The Beastmen just want to exchange the living for our captives on this side!

Damn Beastmen, damn Colorful-haired Masked Man, do they have no humanity at all?

Surely, they are a group of savages!"

This general, who had been dealing with demons in the North, didn't hold back in venting his emotions upon returning to the conference, even with the Emperor of the Luo Ze Empire present.

Seated at the head of the table, the Emperor of the Luo Ze Empire said nothing, surveying everyone's expressions.

The gravity of the situation was self-evident.

General Volshi lightly coughed a few times to remind:

"General Lock Agis, please mind your behavior, the Emperor is present. Besides, discussing so-called humanity in war seems utterly pointless to me. It's time to contact other units and make them prepare in advance."

Intelligence Minister Liu Qi raised his hands helplessly and said, "That's all well and good, but based on existing intelligence, the personnel attacking Benliang City were just the Colorful-haired Masked Man and a few mages. The specific method is unclear, so it's tough to prepare in advance."

The meeting fell into silence.

If the opponent were regular elite Beastmen, the Luo Ze Empire could still dispatch elite units to spread out...

But the difficulty lies in that, starting at an unknown time, the power of the Colorful-haired Masked Man has surpassed their imagination. A mere number of elite troops can't stop him.

To eliminate the threat of the Colorful-haired Masked Man, the Luo Ze Empire put great effort into forming a special assassination team to separate him from his unit and eliminate him when he appeared.

Yet, before the special team could take action, such a major incident occurred.

If Yang Yu and his group can indeed determine the fate of a city in a short time, unless they're ambushed on their only path, the assassination team will be worn out chasing shadows.

How to respond to this incident, and how to account for it to the public?

The generals present each expressed their opinions on how to handle this sudden event. However, for several days in a row, the meeting made no substantial progress.

The Beastmen wouldn't foolishly wait for the Luo Ze Empire to finalize a countermeasure.

The Memory Crystals documenting those brutal scenes, under Ajiket's instruction, had been sent to cities guarded by the Luo Ze Empire.

Beastman Mages, holding the Magic Memory Crystals, were carried by Silver Wolves, advancing swiftly against the bitter wind.

For their own and the crystals' safety, the Beastman Mages would surrender to the Luo Ze Empire's guards midway through the Memory Crystal's playback, leaving the Luo Ze Empire's officers helpless to prevent the slow unfolding of the crystal's scenes.

It wasn't long before news of the incident at Benliang City became widely known.

The horrific scenes assailed the most vulnerable defenses in the hearts of every Luo Ze soldier.

Some wavering Luo Ze officers didn't immediately make the right decision; instead, they attempted to contact the two generals guarding Benliang City...

The outcome was predictable.

Unable to contact the generals of Benliang City, most Luo Ze soldiers became more panicked and fearful, gradually losing the will to fight.

Soon, the matter of the Memory Crystals also reached the higher-ups of the Luo Ze Empire.

Already overwhelmed with troubles, the higher-ups of the Luo Ze Empire were thrown into further chaos.

Not long after, some even worse intel came back.

"The Colorful-haired Masked Man has acted again."

Terror-inducing clouds began to appear over the cities guarded by the Luo Ze Empire. The soldiers raised their heads to the oppressive clouds, recalling the scenes from a few days ago, each like a frightened bird.

The stance of the Colorful-haired Masked Man was exceedingly clear.

Surrender, or die.

If the Luo Ze Empire dared to resist within the allotted time, or if less than two-thirds surrendered, the Colorful-haired Masked Man would mercilessly recreate the events of that day.

Some stubborn officers tried to resist, claiming Yang Yu was just a paper tiger, only there to intimidate them. They were all Luo Ze Empire soldiers and would rather die bravely than submit. As long as they united, they could surely expose the true face of the Colorful-haired Masked Man.

But the Luo Ze soldiers were not inspired by the officers' rhetoric.

They could fight, but if there was no hope of victory, they'd be fools to sacrifice themselves in vain.

They longed for battle, yet did not want to die in such a way.

The stubborn officers insisted on resistance. The soldiers merely paid lip service, saying, "We will never surrender, we swear to resist the Colorful-haired Masked Man to the end."

But when they really saw black rain falling from the sky, they immediately disobeyed the officers' orders, knelt down, and surrendered, pleading for Yang Yu to stop his divine power.

They didn't know how Yang Yu created such a super large magic effect.

But to this point, the giant dragons hadn't sanctioned the man, speaking volumes. If the other side really acted, they might end up with nothing left.

The towns the Luo Ze Empire had captured through spring and summer offensives were lost at the onset of winter in this manner, and the Wansheng Country captured large numbers of soldiers according to the rules of the giant dragons...

This was something the Luo Ze Empire could never accept, but...what could refusal achieve?

In just three days, the defense on the Sailuomen Plain fell into disarray, with many gaps, and the front line began to crumble.

The high command of the Luo Ze Empire came up with numerous countermeasures, yet none could address the root of the problem.

Some officers suggested abandoning the cities and using cavalry for mobile warfare, but the area affected by Bai Jin's weather magic was too vast, and the clouds in the sky could move with the direction of Bai Jin's Wand.

Gathering the troops instead provided Yang Yu with great convenience, as he exploited the fear rooted in the hearts of the Luo Ze soldiers to further erode their mental defenses.

In battle after battle, the Luo Ze Empire gradually realized that to dismantle the surge led by Yang Yu, akin to the arrival of the Death God enslaving thousands, eliminating the mage following him might be the key.

If the mage couldn't be dealt with, even if they captured the Sailuomen Plain in the coming year, they might lose it rapidly in winter.

So, what meaning would previous efforts hold?

The defeat for this year was a foregone conclusion.

To avoid more soldiers surrendering without a fight or being consumed by the Wansheng Country's soldiers due to low morale, the Luo Ze Empire began to reluctantly order a retreat.

However, they planned to attempt one final try.

A high-stakes gamble not to return empty-handed.

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