The Prince of Beirong, Beilu Qi, watched as nearly half of his army was decimated and was momentarily stunned.

This time, he didn’t even need Shi Kun to persuade him—he immediately gave the order to retreat.

This battle could hardly be said to have a clear victor.

Both sides suffered heavy losses: the Zhenbei Army lost nearly half of their 30,000 troops, while Beirong’s force of 300,000 lost nearly 100,000.

The Zhenbei Army had fought a battle of the few against the many—though it was a brutal and bloody fight, it was ultimately worthwhile.

At the very least, they had held onto Yanzhou City.

However, it was doubtful the city could withstand another attack like this—especially since they had now completely exhausted their Thunder Bombs.

Beirong’s army withdrew, and the Zhenbei Army did not pursue.

Beichen Yuan watched the enemy retreat in defeat.

The body he had been holding together through sheer will suddenly collapsed. He tried to move closer to Gu Qingwan, who was right in front of him, but his limbs felt unbearably heavy.

“Beichen Yuan!”

Gu Qingwan saw him staggering and about to fall. Without a second thought, she rushed forward and caught him.

His tall body leaned completely against her. If she hadn’t been strong enough, she wouldn’t have been able to hold him up.

“Qingqing…”

His head rested on her shoulder as he murmured softly. His voice was low and indistinct, but to Gu Qingwan, it sounded especially gentle and pleasant.

At that moment, she felt her heart stir.

“Beichen—” Murong Wushuang had just arrived after finishing her own fight and immediately saw Beichen Yuan collapse onto Gu Qingwan.

His face was pale as paper, his arm sticky with dried blood from deep wounds.

Murong Wushuang and Xuan Tian quickly helped support Beichen Yuan and had him carried back into the city to be treated by the divine physician, Chu Fengchun.

Beichen Yuan had overexerted himself and lost a great deal of blood. Once the battle was over and his nerves relaxed, his body finally gave out.

Chu Fengchun had long grown used to Beichen Yuan pushing himself like this and knew just how tenacious his life force was.

Anyone else would’ve died eight hundred times over in his condition, but this guy could still hold on, even fight for 300 rounds without collapsing.

His wounds were so deep they exposed bone, and yet he had ripped them open twice again.

The pain was beyond anything most people could bear—but he endured it without even changing expression.

Sometimes, Chu Fengchun didn’t even know what to say anymore. He’d advised Beichen Yuan countless times, but had he ever listened?

This time, he really was hanging by a thread.

While Beichen Yuan lay unconscious, Murong Wushuang had the battlefield outside the city cleaned up. The corpses had to be cleared to prevent the outbreak of disease, and the fallen soldiers of the Zhenbei Army needed proper burials.

Meanwhile, in Northern Rong’s camp, when Beilu Qi heard the casualty reports, he flew into a rage.

Shi Kun, whose shoulder had been stabbed by Gu Qingwan, was pale and silent, though inwardly filled with resentment.

The massive loss of troops had stemmed entirely from Beilu Qi’s poor judgment.

Those soldiers had been personally trained by him.

Seeing their mangled, unrecognizable corpses tore at his heart.

After a lifetime of leading troops, he had never seen casualties this severe.

“Find out what weapons Beichen Yuan used today. What are they, and where did they come from? If Daxia truly had such powerful weapons all along, they would have conquered the land already. Why reveal them only now? Something’s not right here.”

This joint invasion of Daxia by Northern Rong and Xiyue was a critical operation.

If their combined strength couldn’t take Daxia, they would have an even harder time attempting it in the future.

“Your Highness,” Vice General Wang said, “when those things exploded, I smelled saltpeter. And the blast—it reminded me of oversized firecrackers. I think the weapons are somehow related to fireworks. If we can figure out how to make them, taking Daxia would be child’s play.”

His excitement grew the more he spoke.

If Xiyue could replicate such powerful weapons, unifying the land would no longer be a fantasy.

Beilu Qi’s eyes lit up.

He suddenly remembered where he’d smelled that scent before—it had indeed been saltpeter.

If they could really manufacture such a powerful weapon, how could they not succeed?

“Wang Meng, I’m putting you in charge of this. Find craftsmen who know how to make fireworks. Study the process carefully. If you can reproduce those weapons, you’ll be handsomely rewarded.”

Wang Meng saluted at once. “Yes, Your Highness. I will complete the mission.”

Though Shi Kun didn’t believe Wang Meng would succeed, he didn’t try to stop him either.

If they couldn’t figure out how those weapons worked, this war would only get harder.

And with over 200,000 troops stationed here, daily provisions were a growing concern.

“Your Highness, we’re running low on food. Daxia may now have divine weapons, and we may not be able to take Yanzhou in a short time. But we won’t last until reinforcements arrive with supplies.”

Shi Kun raised the issue with a frown.

But Beilu Qi wasn’t concerned.

“So what if we’re out of food? We’ll take it! We may not win a battle, but can’t we at least win a robbery? The nearby cities may be inaccessible, but there are still plenty of villages in Daxia. Send small teams to raid for supplies. We’ll see who runs out of food first—them or us.”

Beilu Qi was furious.

This war was his chance to win glory before his father.

If he lost now, he might lose the throne for good.

Back in Yanzhou City—

In the King of War’s manor, Beichen Yuan remained unconscious for three full days and nights.

Gu Qingwan stayed by his side the entire time.

Xuan Tian deliberately cleared the room of everyone else, giving her the chance to care for him alone.

With no one to rotate shifts, Gu Qingwan could only rest on a small daybed outside. After days of poor sleep, her body ached all over.

And yet, the guy still hadn’t woken up.

Though Chu Fengchun had said he was no longer in mortal danger, he just wouldn’t wake.

Seeing him still asleep, Gu Qingwan lay down to nap herself.

The warm sunlight made her drowsy.

She had only just drifted off when she sensed someone approaching.

Her instincts kicked in, and she opened her eyes to find Beichen Yuan leaning over, about to carry her. Startled, she jumped to her feet.

“Beichen Yuan!”

He hadn’t expected such a reaction and quickly explained, “You looked uncomfortable. I just wanted to carry you to bed so you could rest better.”

“Did you forget you’re injured? And you still want to carry me?” Gu Qingwan had been delighted to see him awake, but the moment she saw him overexerting himself, she was furious.

If his wounds reopened, Chu Fengchun would probably explode.

Beichen Yuan said nothing but stared at her in silence.

The restrained joy in his eyes made her anger fade.

His gaze was soft, filled with warmth.