I am surrounded by beauties in the Gods and Demons Game Center

Chapter 197: The Last Elegy of the Desert Scimitar

While Wang Xuance was firmly guarding Thunburg, Ban Chao could boldly join forces with Zhang He and continue the siege of Laupa Town.

During the siege, Ban Chao held high the banner of Wang Xuance and put pressure on the defenders of Laopa Town, threatening them that if they did not surrender, Wang Xuance would personally command the siege.

Perhaps because of the reputation of the "Devil King", or perhaps because Laopa Town knew it could not hold on, they finally decided to send envoys to negotiate with Ban Chao.

Laupa Town put forward seven conditions, and after some discussion, Ban Chao agreed to five of them.

Three days later, the town of Laupa opened its gates and surrendered as promised. However, at this moment, the extremists in the city chose to escape from the east gate and headed straight for Crescent Castle.

Faced with this situation, Ban Chao did not go back on his word. Not only did he not order a roundup of the fugitives, but he let all of the more than 400 people go.

Ban Chao was not worried about the possibility of strengthening the enemy's strength. On the contrary, he knew very well that these 400 people would bring a devastating blow to the already fragile logistics supply of Crescent Fort.

As Ban Chao expected, after two days of desperate running, the 400 men were exhausted when they finally arrived at the Crescent Fort. However, facing this group of defeated soldiers, an uproar broke out in the Crescent Fort.

The opposition was well aware that Crescent Fortress was extremely short of supplies - if the Western Legion of the Empire had not coveted this fortress and continuously supplied blood to support it, they would have been unable to maintain this military fortress without the protection of the goddess.

However, the Western Army was not stupid, so how could it send military supplies to Crescent Castle endlessly? Especially when Zhang Wei cleverly used the Southern and Eastern Armies of the Empire to put pressure on the Imperial Court, the situation took a sharp turn for the worse.

Because of Zhang Wei's operation of using the opponent's strength to defeat the opponent, the Western Army had to cut the supply of materials to Crescent Fort, causing it to fall into the dilemma of limited rationing. If these 400 people were rashly allowed to enter the city at this time, there would be no need to wait for Ban Chao to attack, and Crescent Fort would collapse on its own within a few days.

Those who supported letting the people in knew very well that Crescent Fort was now under unprecedented pressure and difficulties, but they still said frankly that Crescent Fort had become the last place for these extremists to stay. If they ignored the 400 people outside the city and left them to their fate, it would severely hit the morale of the soldiers and civilians in the city, and would make everyone lose the faith and determination to continue the tenacious resistance.

Among those who supported the proposal to let the people into the city, someone even asked directly at the meeting: "Among all of you, is there anyone who can be sure that he will be pardoned by Zhang Wei after the defeat? Even if we abandon Crescent Castle and seek refuge in the Empire, with the complicated network of relations between Zhang Wei and the Empire, it is only a matter of time before he sends assassins to take our lives!"

"If these 400 people are not allowed to enter the city today, perhaps 4,000 people will resolutely leave this place tomorrow!" The sonorous and powerful words of the supporters echoed in the conference room like a loud bell, and the sound was deafening, as if every word was striking hard on the hearts of every participant present.

After intense debate and discussion, the participants finally made a seemingly compromising but helpless decision - a compromise solution. They allowed the 400 people to enter the city, but at the same time, they also threw three difficult choices to everyone in the city:

First, the Restoration Army participating in the Western Expedition fought a desperate battle with the armies led by Ban Chao, Zhang He and Wang Xuance. Even if they died on the battlefield, their souls could return to their hometown and rest in this familiar land.

Second, they can choose to swallow their anger or live in humiliation for the time being and go to the east to surrender to the powerful Western Legion of the Empire. With their unwavering faith and extraordinary combat effectiveness, they may have a chance to be accommodated and protected by the Western Legion of the Empire.

The third is to stick to Crescent Fort and live and die with it! No matter how rough the road ahead is, we must stick to Crescent Fort and move forward and backward together.

Time flies, and just four days later, the Restoration Army composed of 2,000 extremists resolutely set out on the journey. Carrying the last rations and with the determination to die, they were ready to fight to the death with powerful enemies such as Ban Chao.

But the rest of the people did something heartbreaking: they brutally killed nearly a thousand compatriots who chose to stay in Crescent Castle, and handed over this once indestructible fortress to the Western Legion of the Empire, hoping to gain a glimmer of hope in exchange, and craving for mercy and protection from the Western Legion of the Empire.

The 2,000 soldiers of the Restoration Army knew that they could not compete with Ban Chao and his army. When they encountered the army led by Ban Chao and Zhang He heading east, they did not choose to escape or retreat, but decisively decided to set up camp.

In the camp, the members of the Restoration Army had a hearty meal, which they regarded as the last meal of their lives. After eating, they were fully armed, holding their weapons tightly, and launched a final charge against the army of Ban Chao and Zhang He without hesitation.

The battle was extremely fierce and brutal, and both sides paid a huge price. However, no matter how fierce the battle was, the outcome could not be changed by this suicidal attack like a moth to a flame.

Ban Chao keenly perceived the emotional changes among his Sharen officers and soldiers: some expressed regret for the Restoration Army; some felt deeply sorry; others were impressed by the other side's bravery and fearlessness, and expressed their worries that they would be abandoned after their time was up.

In order to appease the complex emotions of these Sharen officers and soldiers, Ban Chao ordered a grand funeral for the Restoration Army and delivered an impassioned speech. He pointed out that despite their different ideologies and loyalties, he still respected these warriors who were willing to sacrifice their lives to uphold their ideals and beliefs.

Ban Chao's words alleviated the negative emotions of the Sharen officers and soldiers to a certain extent, allowing them to devote themselves to subsequent tasks with a more positive attitude.

At the same time, the Western Legion of the Empire kept its previous promise and cleverly separated the surrendered Sand People and settled them in villages in various corners of the empire.

When the sand people learned that they were about to go to a place controlled by the Southern Legion or the Eastern Legion of the Empire, deep fear and sadness appeared on their faces.

The reason was simple: they were worried that Zhang Wei would use his close ties with the southern and eastern legions to kill them.

However, the reality is extremely cruel, and the weapons in their hands have long been confiscated.

And those compatriots who were assigned to other places have already embarked on a new journey.

These Sand People who were left until the end knew very well that the reason why the fully armed and battle-ready imperial soldiers in front of them deliberately left them until the last moment was simply because they were afraid that they would incite other companions to join the resistance.

There are only two options before you at this moment: either die immediately or wait for an unknown death in the future.

After all, in order to survive in the world, these sand people did not hesitate to brutally massacre all their compatriots who chose to stay in Crescent Castle.

Now that things have come to this, faced with the choice between life and death, how can they have the courage to be so brave and fearless and resolutely rush to the underworld?

With no other choice, they had to tightly grasp the pass that symbolized their identity, and with endless sadness and fear, they slowly walked towards their "new home" under the escort of heavy imperial troops.