Chapter 135 The Decisive Battle of the Eight Gates Begins
"Report! The Qiang tribe has dispatched troops and is arrayed in Shangjun."
Bai Ming glanced at the scout, nodded readily, then grabbed the cloak from the table and stepped out of the tent.
A wide cloak billowed in the wind, and his silver armor gleamed in the sunlight. Bai Ming, with one hand tied with a rope at his chest, stepped forward to greet Zhang Ping outside the tent.
"General Bai," Zhang Ping clasped his hands in greeting, "the three armies are already in full formation, ready to be deployed at any time."
Bai Ming nodded, clenching the warm command token in his hand. "Are the sulfur and gunpowder all prepared?"
"Don't worry, General, I'm an expert at burning grain."
Bai Ming smiled and patted Zhang Ping on the shoulder. Then he stepped onto the reviewing stand, looked at the soldiers who were ready for battle and eager to fight, and suddenly raised the White Tiger Token left by Yang Xiao.
The white tiger pattern moved in the sunlight, flashing with golden light.
"In this battle, we fight in the name of Yang Xiao!" He gripped the command token in his hand even tighter, and raised the long spear sharply. "Sweep away Sizhou and unify Chang'an!"
"Conquer Sili Province and unify Chang'an!"
"Conquer Sili Province and unify Chang'an!"
The shouts of the soldiers below the command platform poured out like a flood. Bai Ming, clad in armor, leaped onto his horse, pointed his silver spear toward the west of the city, and shouted, "Brothers! Follow me into battle!"
The war drums suddenly thundered, and warhorses galloped towards Chang'an as if released from their reins. Their iron hooves kicked up clouds of yellow sand, and banners were torn apart by the wind, fluttering wildly. A deafening roar of battle swept across Bingzhou in an instant. Before long, a rocket pierced the sky, and the granaries in the east suddenly burst into flames, billowing black smoke. In a flash, the Northern Qiang, the troops of Jizhou, and the Lingyue Pavilion, like a roaring sandstorm, pressed down on Chang'an from three sides.
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Before dawn, the clanging of chains echoed through the prison. Yang Xiao looked up and saw the jailer frantically unlocking the chains on the door. Her shackles had already been removed by Qi Lu, and she was now fully prepared, waiting for the prison doors to open.
Yang Xiao sighed deeply, crossed her arms, looked at the anxious jailer, and asked, "Why are you in such a hurry?"
The jailer didn't even look up, the chains in his hands becoming increasingly tangled as he untied them. "Attacked from three sides simultaneously, Chang'an is on the verge of falling. General Xiao wants you to go and plead for them..."
"Please plead for mercy." Yang Xiao sneered, and seeing the iron chains immediately untie, she kicked the iron gate hard.
The iron gate suddenly sprang open with a "bang," and the iron chains flew outwards under the force. Such great force knocked the jailer to the ground. Without thinking twice, Yang Xiao snatched the ring-pommel sword from the jailer and rushed straight towards the gate.
The prison was full of greedy, money-grubbing bastards. Seeing Yang Xiao's imposing manner, they dared not step forward to stop her. Instead, they shouted and ran around, making a huge commotion in the prison.
“General,” Fan Kun kicked open the cell door and handed the silver spear to Yang Xiao, who rushed out, “General Yang Song has gone to prepare the formation and specially sent me here to pick you up.”
"Thank you for your thoughtfulness," Yang Xiao said, taking the silver spear and rushing forward. "Quickly take people to the designated spot; we must not let Xiao Yun gain the upper hand."
"Yes, sir." Fan Kun clasped his hands in a fist salute to Yang Xiao, then frowned and said, "There are no horses here. Please come with me and leave this place first, and I will send someone to fetch a horse."
“There’s no need for that. Bringing horses would be inconvenient,” Yang Xiao shook his head, not stopping at all. “This place is not far from the formation’s core. Bringing horses would delay the opportunity. Besides, the middle road has already been occupied, and the small path is rugged and inconvenient for horses to travel.”
"Yes," Fan Kun nodded, then waved to the soldiers behind him, "Brothers, follow me!"
The Chang'an Formation was already in operation. The so-called "straight road" was concealed within the formation, and the vast city of Chang'an suddenly seemed to come alive, shrouded in mist and clouds, its magnificent aura as if the essence of heaven and earth had gathered here. The sunlight shimmered down, circulating along with the formation, endlessly pressing towards the approaching army.
"I sent someone to invite you, but you didn't appreciate it and instead came here on your own." Xiao Yun stood alone in the center of the formation, holding a large sword in his hand. He turned to look at Yang Xiao, who had rushed over, and raised his hand with a rather arrogant air. "See this Chang'an Formation? Such a magnificent formation is not something you can break just by talking about it. Right now, this formation is full of my men. Guess how long that father and son from Chixiao Mansion can hold out before the great enemy arrives?"
Yang Xiao frowned, raised her hand to stop Fan Kun behind her, and whispered, "I can handle this place. You quickly take your men and join up with your brother. Xiao Yun has many men and is powerful, while my father and brother have few soldiers. I'm afraid we won't have the upper hand. Use the formation to change things up and stir up the waters completely. Go now."
"This..." Fan Kun hesitated for a moment after seeing Xiao Yun's tense demeanor. Then, seeing Yang Xiao's unyielding attitude, he could only clasp his hands in a fist and say, "Yes, sir, I'll go right away."
The troops behind Yang Xiao immediately withdrew. She glanced up at Xiao Yun and walked forward calmly. "I can come by myself, why bother you to invite me?" She scoffed. "The situation is already settled. What useless effort do you want to make here?"
"Useless effort," Xiao Yun sneered. "Didn't you always call me treacherous before? Do you dare to fight me fair and square today?"
"Upright and honorable?" Yang Xiao looked at Xiao Yun, who was walking aggressively towards her, and couldn't help but laugh. "Alright, let's see how you do it!" With that, she stepped forward, took her stance, and thrust her spear at Xiao Yun's face.
Xiao Yun gritted his teeth, suddenly raised his broadsword, and the weapons clashed with a loud crash. The beating war drums in the formation cheered on the two, seemingly unaware to the onlookers that this battle would not only determine victory or defeat, but also life or death.
Yang Xiao's attacks were as agile and free as ever. With each move, she transformed Xiao Yun's brute force into skillful technique, avoiding all of his sharpness.
She had been learning martial arts from Qi Lu since childhood, and over the years she had traveled all over the country, absorbing the strengths of many schools and developing her own unique spear technique. Xiao Yun, on the other hand, had been mingling in the streets since childhood, and had earned a place in the chaotic court with his martial arts skills, but in terms of combat skills, he was always a step behind Yang Xiao.
The silver spear seemed to come alive in Yang Xiao's hands, like a swimming dragon constantly entangled with Xiao Yun. It could attack the enemy or defend itself, while Xiao Yun had already lost her composure but could not find any weakness in Yang Xiao.
Before long, Xiao Yun was defeated. He jumped out of the circle, gritting his teeth and staring at Yang Xiao.
"What, you can't even beat a prisoner?"
Yang Xiao twirled the gun in her hand, then walked towards Xiao Yun. "So, are you convinced or not?"
"Submit?" Xiao Yun's eyes were filled with ruthlessness. "Then ask them if they submit or not!"
In the blink of an eye, more than a dozen burly men suddenly sprang out from behind the house and surrounded Yang Xiao.
Yang Xiao's heart tightened, and she quickly drew her gun to fight. But to her surprise, the weapons those people were carrying were all kinds of strange ones, looking rather like a collection of weapons assembled together.
As she parried the knives and spears while also blocking the long whip's attacks, several men surrounded her in a chaotic melee. Just as they were locked in combat, Yang Xiao suddenly felt a burning pain in her calf. Before she could look closely, she had barely regained her footing when something suddenly hooked her right leg. The men surrounding her quickly dropped their miscellaneous weapons and joined forces to pin her to the ground.
"What a righteous and upright thing to do." Yang Xiao raised her head and stared at Xiao Yun, ignoring the bleeding from her calf. The next second, she was dragged and tied to an iron frame by several people. The iron chains handcuffed her hands to the horizontal bar. She shook her arms, but only heard the clanging of the chains. She couldn't break free at all.
Yang Xiao looked at her dangling hands and sighed slightly. This range of motion was enough.
“As the saying goes, all's fair in war,” Xiao Yun said, taking a few steps toward her and looking up at Yang Xiao, who was tied to the rack. “You will just watch from here as your loved ones die here because of you.”
It seemed that Xiao Yun intended to hold out against her here. She breathed a sigh of relief; as long as she could keep Xiao Yun trapped at this vital point, the Chang'an Formation would surely be broken.
"Xiao Yun!" Before he could finish speaking, the sound of horses' hooves came from not far away. Everyone looked closely and saw Xiao Yan and Lu Qi galloping out of the side hall. "Someone, put Yang Xiao down!"
Seeing Xiao Yan's angry expression, Xiao Yun couldn't help but laugh, his laughter growing more and more arrogant until he finally managed to stop.
He smiled and pointed at Xiao Yan, "Xiao Yan, you don't still think you're the all-powerful empress, do you? Now, you're nothing more than a traitor who betrayed the country." He took two steps toward Xiao Yan, "You're right, Yang Xiao can indeed turn the tide, but now she's in my hands! Those reinforcements who came because of her will ultimately die because of her!"
Xiao Yan frowned as she looked at Xiao Yun, then sighed deeply, her patience finally exhausted. "Xiao Yun, you've never known where you went wrong. Now that the situation is settled, why gamble with people's hearts and make a futile struggle?"
"Guards!" Before Xiao Yan could finish speaking, Xiao Yun looked down at her and pointed at Yang Xiao, "Beat them!"
The soldier beside him nodded, and in an instant, the two-zhang-long soft whip lashed straight at Yang Xiao, leaving bloodstains on his battle robe.
“Xiao Yun, you…” Xiao Yan looked at Yang Xiao, who was enduring the pain without making a sound, and pointed at Xiao Yun in a fit of anger. After a moment, she put her hand down in frustration. “Fine,” she sighed and turned to look at the battle formation. “Let this battle tell you what righteousness and responsibility are.”
Suddenly, a cacophony of battle cries erupted outside the formation, the sound of drums and horns deafening everyone. In an instant, the hawks of the grasslands cried out and circled above the gate of the formation, while the white flag fluttered in the air. The leading general cut through the thorns and brambles, heading straight for the gate of life.
The troops lost their coordination, and millions of soldiers were trapped in the Chang'an formation, unable to advance or retreat.
A bugle call pierced the sky, and an old general carrying a flag bearing the character "Yang" stood tall with his sword drawn, like a tiger descending from the mountain, leading the Imperial Guards to break through the obstacles and drive Xiao Yun's remaining forces to their doom.
Yang Xiao lowered her shoulders and eyes, letting the iron chains suspend her on the high platform. A gentle breeze blew by, seemingly carrying the sound of galloping hooves. As if sensing something in the darkness, she looked ahead with a death-defying resolve and saw a man in silver helmet, silver armor, and a silver spear, riding a white horse, charging straight towards the garrison.
The general seemed to have also noticed Yang Xiao on the rack and was taken aback.
"Ah Xiao!" Bai Ming's heart tightened, and he quickly changed his attack, spurring his horse forward with his spear in hand. The four hooves of the horse seemed to have the wind, carrying him like a flying arrow across the enemy ranks, heading straight for the high execution rack.
"Bai Ming!" Yang Xiao looked at his selfless figure, her eyes filled with tears. But the next second, a steel knife was suddenly placed against her neck. She frowned and gasped sharply.
In an instant, Zhang Ping and Qin Yi led their troops to the scene and engaged in battle with Xiao Yun's men. Upon seeing Yang Xiao, who had been kidnapped, they were forced to remain in place.
Bai Ming's breath hitched when he saw this. Without thinking, he nocked an arrow and pointed it at the man. The next second, he felt a chill on his neck. He turned his head and saw Xiao Yun holding his sword against his neck.
"This is not a place for your romantic entanglements." Xiao Yun, holding Bai Ming hostage, looked up at Yang Xiao with a confident air, and unconsciously tightened his grip on Bai Ming's sword.
"Xiao Yun! You shameless!" Yang Xiao's mind went blank for a moment, and her hand gripping the chain on her wrist went numb with cold. Looking at Bai Ming's posture of being ready to strike but unable to move, she broke out in a cold sweat.
A circling falcon screeched as it swooped down and landed steadily on the Qiang king's shoulder. The Qiang king spurred his horse forward, and seeing the scene before him, he was filled with rage.
He pointed the knife at Xiao Yun and shouted, "Put the child down!"
The chaotic crowd immediately quieted down, and Xiao Yun's henchmen, seeing the Qiang king's terrified aura, had no choice but to curb their arrogance.
Xiao Yun tightened the knife around Bai Ming's neck, causing Bai Ming to pull harder on the bow and arrow, making the wooden bow creak.
"Qiang King, watch closely," Xiao Yun said with a sinister grin, "You killed seven of my envoys, so it's not unreasonable for me to kill two of your juniors, is it? Don't come any closer!" He glared at the Qiang King, who had taken two steps forward, "If you take another step, neither of them will survive!"
"Bah! You despicable thing!" the girl following behind the Qiang king cursed angrily. "What kind of skill is it to kidnap people like this? If you're so capable, why don't you fight a fair and square battle!"
The Qiang King raised his hand, signaling his granddaughter to be quiet. He looked up at Yang Xiao and Bai Ming's resolute expressions and stances, and couldn't help but smile. "Xiao Yun, you don't really think you can trap them with just two swords, do you?"
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