On Heidu Mountain, the flames were still burning, but the intensity was gradually weakening.
The ravine was charred black, with twisted and curled corpses and scattered weapons everywhere, and the air was filled with suffocating burnt stench and smoke.
Pei Lun and Guo Xiaoti stood on the hillside, overlooking the purgatory they had created with their own hands, but there was no joy of victory on their faces, only fatigue and deep solemnity of surviving the disaster.
This fire killed more than 2,000 elite soldiers of the Northern Di, and also burned away their last hope.
After this severe blow, Wumuchi would never dare to attack the mountain again in the short term.
However, their own predicament has not been truly resolved.
"Brother Pei, the fire attack plan was a great success!"
Guo Xiaoti's voice was a little hoarse, filled with admiration and fear, "If you hadn't recognized this thing, I'm afraid we would have died here today."
Pei Lun shook his head, his face devoid of joy. "It was just luck. Old Guo, although the Tartars have suffered heavy losses, they still have strength. Especially with the thousands of soldiers still at the foot of the mountain. And we..."
He paused, his voice lowered, "Our water is really running out."
After the excitement of victory, the feeling of thirst came back mercilessly.
The soldiers licked their cracked lips and looked at the ravine that was still charred and smoking, their eyes filled with desire for water.
Guo Xiaoti's expression darkened. "Yes, water... Although we won this battle, it won't quench our thirst. We must descend the mountain as quickly as possible."
Pei Lun nodded, his gaze turned towards the direction of the Beidi camp at the foot of the mountain, and then turned to the faintly visible flags of Shi Yong's troops further north.
"Wumuchi has just been defeated and his courage has been shattered. General Shi Yong is holding us back at the foot of the mountain. Now is the perfect time for us to break out!"
Pei Lun said firmly, "We can't wait any longer!"
He immediately summoned the generals under his command who were still able to move.
After a series of hard battles and the fire attack and ambush just now, there were less than 800 soldiers still able to fight on the mountain, and most of them were exhausted and seriously short of water.
“Brothers!”
Pei Lun stood on a large rock. His voice, though hoarse, was filled with determination. "We burned away the Tartars' courage with one fire! But we have also reached our limit! I'm afraid we can't hold Heidu Mountain any longer! We will die of thirst before the Tartars attack again."
The soldiers were silent, looking at their commander.
"If we want to stay alive, if we want to drink water, if we want to see our relatives back home again, we must rush out!"
Pei Lun waved his hand and pointed down the mountain. "Down there, General Shi Yong is there to support us! As long as we rush down and reunite with General Shi, we'll have a chance of survival!"
He looked around at everyone, his eyes sharp. "I know everyone is tired and thirsty. But this is the last step! Muster up your courage, follow General Guo and I, and fight your way out!"
"I am willing to follow the general to break through!"
The remaining Shuozhou veterans shouted with their last bit of strength.
The desire to survive supported their tired bodies.
Pei Lun and Guo Xiaoti quickly discussed a breakout plan.
They decided not to go in the direction of the fire, but to choose another relatively steep but potentially less well-defended path to break out at night.
"Distribute all remaining food so everyone can have one last meal. Gather all available arrows and inspect the weapons."
Pei Lun ordered, "Take the seriously injured with you if possible. For those who are truly unable to move, leave weapons and water behind... Let them fend for themselves."
At the end, Pei Lun's voice became a little hoarse.
It was the cruelest decision, but that's what war is.
As night fell, Heidu Mountain was shrouded in darkness, with only a hint of dark red sparks occasionally flashing in the scorched ravine.
The Beidi camp at the foot of the mountain was brightly lit, and the number of patrols had obviously increased a lot.
But the atmosphere seemed a bit depressing and tense. It was obvious that the disastrous defeat during the day had dealt a huge blow to their morale.
At midnight, the moon is bright and the stars are sparse.
Pei Lun and Guo Xiaoti, with nearly 800 soldiers gathered, quietly left the position they had held for many days, and moved down the mountain like ghosts along the selected steep path.
They tried to remain as quiet as possible, using the shadows of rocks and bushes to hide their whereabouts.
Everyone's nerves were tense and their dry throats seemed to be smoking, but the instinct for survival drove them forward step by step.
Occasionally, we would encounter patrols from the Northern Di people. If we could avoid them, we would do so. If we couldn't, we would eliminate them swiftly to prevent them from raising the alarm.
The process went unexpectedly smoothly.
Wumuchi was obviously frightened and withdrew his main forces back to the vicinity of the camp, and relaxed the defense of these steep paths.
When Pei Lun and his team finally arrived at the foot of the mountain safely and saw the preset pick-up signal from Shi Yong's troops from afar, everyone was almost exhausted, but also filled with indescribable excitement.
"Quick! Send a signal! We're here!" Pei Lun whispered to a personal soldier beside him.
Three short and one long flashes of fire lit up in the darkness.
Soon, the other side also responded to the agreed signal.
Immediately afterwards, a team of cavalry approached quickly like a sharp blade in the dark night. The general in the lead was the deputy general sent by Shi Yong.
"But Lord Pei and General Guo Xiaoti?" the deputy general asked in a low voice.
"That's right!" Pei Lun took a step forward.
"I'm here on orders from Captain Shi to meet you! Please follow me. Captain Shi is already there to meet you!"
Under the cover of the support troops, Pei Lun, Guo Xiaoti and the remnants behind them who had experienced blood and fire, hunger and despair, finally staggered out of the death zone and successfully joined the 3,000 Hedong reinforcements led by Shi Yong.
When Shi Yong saw his comrades in tattered clothes, pale faces, chapped lips but with stubborn eyes, even this tough guy couldn't help but be moved.
He stepped forward quickly and shook Pei Lun and Guo Xiaoti's hands tightly:
"Master Pei! General Guo! You've all worked so hard! I, Shi, am incompetent and failed to break the enemy and rescue you quickly, leaving you trapped for so many days!"
"General Shi, you are too kind!"
Pei Lun's voice was hoarse, but with a hint of relief. "If it weren't for the general holding back outside, attracting some of Wumuchi's troops, and finally launching an attack to support them, we wouldn't have been able to break out so smoothly! You saved us!"
The soldiers finally got clean drinking water.
They sipped the water greedily, feeling the long-lost sweet rain moistening their throats. Many people couldn't help but shed tears as they drank.
Pei Lun took a big gulp of water and let out a long sigh, as if he had spit out all the depression and thirst in his chest.
He also learned from Shi Yong about Zhao Muyun's strategic intention to save Liangzhou first.
Pei Lun felt relieved when Zhao Muyun made the decision based on the entire Longyou battle situation.
If it were him, he would do the same!
Pei Lun looked towards the south towards Liangzhou and thought to himself:
"Zhao Muyun... not only did we not hold you back, we even broke out and found the location of the flaming oil! I'll show you that experience is always the best, hehe!"
At this moment, a hint of paleness had appeared in the distant sky.
A new day is coming.
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