The bugle blared, and the war drums thundered.
Ten thousand infantrymen pushed ladders and battering rams, surging towards the gate like a tide.
Archers provided cover from behind, and arrows rained down on the walls like locusts.
"Raise your shields!" Xu Yunlong shouted.
The defenders raised their large shields, and the arrows struck the shields with a "thud." Occasionally, an arrow would strike through a gap and cause someone to fall, who would then be dragged down and replaced by the reserves.
"Archers, return fire!"
On the wall, three thousand archers drew their bows and nocked their arrows.
They used composite bows produced on the assembly line at Xijing Workshop, which had a range, accuracy, and power far exceeding that of ordinary bows and arrows.
Arrows rained down, and Li Hujun's army outside the pass was thrown into chaos.
But there are just too many Li Hujuns.
The rain of arrows could only be delayed, not stopped.
The siege ladders were still able to reach the city wall, and the battering rams began to ram the city gate.
"Pour the oil!"
Boiling oil was poured down from the top of the wall, and the climbing soldiers screamed as they fell.
Then the torches were thrown down, and a sea of fire instantly erupted below the city.
A burnt smell filled the air.
Li Hu watched the battle from the sidelines, his face grim.
The first wave of attack lasted only fifteen minutes, yet nearly a thousand people had already been killed or wounded, and they hadn't even touched the city walls.
“Zhao Muyun’s troops are indeed quite skilled.” He gritted his teeth. “Order: Send another 10,000 men for the second wave, attacking from three sides. Bring up the ballistae to suppress the archers on the city walls.”
"yes!"
A larger offensive was launched.
With the addition of 20,000 new recruits, the pressure to close the wall has increased dramatically.
To make matters worse, Li Hujun's ballista began firing—it was an old-style ballista captured from the Yin Dynasty, which, although not as powerful as Zhao Muyun's new model, was still quite formidable.
A crossbow bolt over ten feet long could be fired at the wall and pin a person to it.
Seeing this, Lin Feng knew he could no longer hide his abilities.
"Divine Machine Cannon, fire!"
The ten cannons on the wall had already been loaded.
The gunner lit the fuse.
Boom boom boom boom—!
Ten solid iron balls whistled out and landed in Li Hujun's formation.
Wherever the shells passed, blood and flesh flew everywhere, and soldiers in a straight line were either killed or maimed.
The most terrifying thing is the visual impact—people can be smashed in two, and tanks can be blasted to pieces.
Li Hujun's offensive stalled.
Many soldiers stared in horror at the smoking cannon muzzles; such weapons of mass destruction were beyond their comprehension.
"Don't panic!" Li Hu personally rode forward. "Those are Zhao Muyun's cannons. There aren't many, and they reload slowly! Continue the attack!"
His words reassured the troops.
Indeed, after all ten cannons fired simultaneously, time was needed for cleaning and reloading.
Li Hujun seized the opportunity and surged forward again.
But this delay was exactly what Lin Feng wanted.
"Archers, five volleys, fire!"
The crossbowmen on the wall began firing in tiers.
This was not only a training tactic for the crossbow battalion, but also a new shooting tactic for crossbowmen stationed in various regions.
After the first team finished firing, they retreated to reload, and the second team stepped forward to fire. This cycle continued, and the rain of arrows was almost uninterrupted.
Li Hujun charged forward amidst a hail of arrows, paying a heavy price for every step he took.
The corpses piled up under the wall, and the blood seeped into the soil, turning the ground dark red.
The battle lasted from dawn until noon. Li Hujun launched five waves of attacks, suffering more than 5,000 casualties, but failed to capture even a section of the city wall.
The defending troops also suffered heavy casualties on the wall, with about two thousand killed or seriously wounded.
But the wall remained sturdy.
"General, Li Hu has withdrawn his troops," He Yunsheng said excitedly.
Lin Feng looked over and saw that Li Hujun had begun to retreat and re-established camp three miles outside the pass.
But there was no joy on his face.
"Order: Treat the wounded and replenish arrows and logs. Li Hu will not give up; there will be an even fiercer attack this afternoon."
He paused for a moment, then added, “Also, send a message to Xijing: The first battle at Longmen Pass was a victory, but Li Hu’s forces are formidable, and our army has suffered considerable casualties. We need to be prepared for a long-term standoff.”
"yes!"
......
Meanwhile, Wuguan Road.
Niu Desheng was ordered to lead Zhang Tao and Gao Min's troops to launch an attack on Xijing from Wuguan Pass, in coordination with Li Hu's operation at Longmen Pass.
Upon arriving at Zhang Tao's camp, he ordered Gao Min to lead 10,000 troops as the vanguard to head straight for the exit of Wuguan Road and attack Lantian Pass, the southeastern fortress of Xijing!
Then, he and Zhang Tao set off with 20,000 troops.
They moved slowly, covering only thirty li a day. Wherever they went, they made a great show of it, deliberately setting up many flags when setting up camp to create the illusion of an army of tens of thousands.
"Report! There are about 5,000 Yin troops leaving the city from the direction of Lantian Pass. They have already set up camp 50 miles away and seem to be trying to block our northward advance," a scout reported.
Before they even left Wuguan Pass, the scouts rushed to report to Gao Min.
"Who is leading the troops?" Gao Min asked the deputy general.
“The flag is the ‘Xiao’.”
“Xiao Cheyun,” Gao Min pondered, “He is a general under the old Prince Jin of the Yin Dynasty. He is steady but lacks vigor. He is here to delay us; he won’t take the initiative to fight. Hmph, if he won’t take the initiative, then we will!”
"General, why don't we wait for General Niu and Military Governor Zhang to arrive before we talk about it?"
Upon hearing that Gao Min intended to attack, the deputy general quickly tried to dissuade him.
"Last time we suffered in silence, this time we must get our revenge."
Gao Min remained unmoved. "Make the arrangements and prepare for the attack!"
"..." The deputy general hesitated, as if he wanted to say something but then stopped.
"What are you still standing there for? Believe me or not, I'll cut you down first!" Gao Min drew her sword halfway out.
"Yes...yes!"
......
Xijing City, Prince Jin's Mansion.
When Yinji received Lin Feng's urgent report, he was meeting with Pang Qing, an envoy from Jiannan Road.
Unexpectedly, just after Zhao Muyun finished inspecting Longmen Pass and headed to Hedong to inspect Han Zhong and Tian Qing's defense zones, Li Jingang brought a large army to the scene.
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