A sense of unease pervaded Chang'an. The common people, though unaware of what was happening, clearly sensed something was amiss. Daily reports arrived by fast horse, and ministers were leaving the capital with their entourages. This was clearly the atmosphere before a major battle. Grain prices, unnoticed, had also risen by ten percent.
The empire's power was immense; the suddenly appearing mountain ranges were surrounded by the army, and martial arts forces and scattered experts immediately went into the mountains to search for them.
Strange and ferocious beasts were hunted down, and although there were casualties, the overall strength was gradually increasing.
"This is news from beyond the Great Wall and the Northeast. Take a look, everyone." The Imperial Garden has recently become a barbecue stall. The meat of wild beasts sent back from various places has become a means of reward for Li Shimin. He summons some ministers to dine together almost every day, and at the same time, they discuss the latest news and how to deal with it.
"A strange kind of person has appeared on the grassland. They are unusually tall and have three heads!" Fang Xuanling exclaimed as he read a note.
"What? There are guys like that?" Yuchi Jingde asked, sticking his head out.
"I thought Qin Huaidao's situation was strange enough, but I didn't expect there to be something even stranger on the grasslands. Wouldn't it take three cuts to behead someone?" Cheng Zhijie swallowed the meat in his mouth and wiped his mouth as he spoke.
"Hmph, that's because you need three cuts; one cut is enough," Yuchi Jingde said dismissively.
"Bah! I was just saying. One swing of my axe and I'll split you in two!"
“Here you go, stop arguing. There’s something even stranger here. In the Northeast, there’s a creature with a human head and an animal body, all black, that can breathe fire,” Li Jing said, holding up another slip of paper.
“What are these things? The Northeast is already chaotic enough, and now this strange guy has appeared that can breathe fire? How are we supposed to fight this?” Cheng Zhijie muttered.
“Breathing fire is indeed a difficult problem,” Li Jing said, frowning.
"Your Majesty, have the scouts found out how the newly emerged tribes are getting along with the original local tribes?" Fang Xuanling asked.
"It won't be too good. There have been some minor skirmishes, and it's hard to say what will happen next," Li Shimin said, shaking his head slightly.
The others also understood that there was too little time to gather more information.
,,,,,,,
Yazhou, Wucheng!
The worst-case scenario has occurred. For over a month, the Pierced-Chest Clan had been behaving themselves, but unexpectedly, they joined forces with their mortal enemy, the Feathered People, to attack Wu City. Moreover, their numbers were significantly greater: 40,000 Pierced-Chest Clan members and 30,000 Feathered People.
"Don't these guys even know the basics of encircling three sides and seizing one?" Li Ke clicked his tongue and sighed. This guy took advantage of the fact that most people in Lingnan didn't know him and secretly ran over.
“They are confident and want to take Wucheng in one fell swoop,” Cheng Huailiang said, his eyes half-closed.
"What will they use to take it down?" Li Ke asked curiously, carefully observing the siege-breaking tribe outside the city who were preparing for battle. Aside from siege ladders, he saw no other siege equipment.
“Those bird-men, with their wings, probably aren’t good-looking,” Cheng Huailiang speculated.
"That makes sense. Quickly notify the others," Li Ke said anxiously.
"No need to rush, we were prepared for this," Cheng Huailiang said, reaching out to stop Li Ke.
"Oh, oh!" Li Ke nodded.
"Go and command the archers. They are absolutely not allowed to come up without my order," Cheng Huailiang said sternly.
"Okay, don't worry, I won't cause you any trouble," Li Ke nodded solemnly.
While they were talking, the Pierced Chest Clan launched an attack, and the first wave consisted of almost their entire army.
The Pierced-Chest Clan led the way, followed by the Feathered Clan. Judging from their attack, it was clear that they were well-prepared, with everyone carrying shields, likely to defend against the Tang Dynasty's crossbow bolts. Several enormous bronze shields shielded the clansmen behind them.
"Attack!" Cheng Huailiang raised his hand and waved.
"Bang bang bang!" The ballistae and catapults began to unleash their power.
However, the Piercing Chest Clan was strong and advanced quickly. Even after withstanding two waves of attacks, the vanguard had already reached the city walls.
Although Yazhou has a city, there are no powerful enemies on the island, so the last time the preparations were insufficient. This time, it's not just ballistae and catapults, but also rolling logs and thunderstones, which are being hurled down from the city walls.
The pierced-chest tribesmen held up their shields to defend against the attacks from the city walls. People kept falling, and others rushed up the ladders, but were quickly cut down.
"Whoosh!" A gust of wind blew, and as expected, those winged creatures flapped their wings as they ran, and then they took flight.
"Fire arrows! Fire arrows!" Cheng Huailiang shouted sternly.
"Whoosh! Whoosh! Whoosh!" A large number of arrows rose into the air from inside the city and were launched towards the outside.
"Bang! Bang! Bang!" Many winged people fell from the sky. However, most rushed towards the city wall, because they also had shields to protect their vital parts.
Cheng Huailiang did not expect that the enemy would enter the city so soon after the start of the battle. Those winged people landed directly inside the city and started killing the archers, which of course affected the morale of the army.
"Boiled oil!" Cheng Huailiang roared in fury, slashing down a man who had climbed onto the city wall.
Jars of scalding hot oil, along with the jars, were lifted by the soldiers and thrown off the city wall.
"Ahhh!" Many members of the pierced-chest tribe were doused with boiling oil, clutching their wounds and running around screaming in agony.
"Boom!" The torch was dropped, and a huge flame suddenly rose up below the city.
The flames halted the attack of the Piercing Chest Clan. Cheng Huailiang glanced at them, picked up his sword, and jumped into the city.
Archers in the Tang Dynasty rarely used only bows and arrows, and the discipline of the Tang soldiers was also the best. Even when suddenly attacked, they did not panic. Some drew their swords to meet the enemy, while others turned their bows and arrows and shot at the fallen enemy.
Cheng Huailiang descended from the city wall and rushed towards the nearest winged man, slashing him with his sword.
This scene wasn't limited to the city wall guarded by Cheng Huailiang; it occurred at all four city gates. While this move caught everyone off guard, it was still within acceptable limits. The most troublesome situation involved the experts from the two tribes. With so many experts entering the city, a large number of people were needed to surround and kill them.
The oil barrier bought them time, and the winged people who entered the city were all killed. However, at this moment, the chest-piercing tribe rushed up the city wall.
"Open the city gates! Charge out!" Seeing that his men had suffered heavy casualties, Qin Mu's eyes blazed with rage as he roared, then waved his hand to buff his cavalry.
"Bang!" The suspension bridge crashed heavily to the ground.
"Kill!" Bu Mang shouted, wielding his axe. He slapped the triangular ox and charged out.
The pierced-chest tribe had not expected cavalry to attack from the city, and were thrown into a panic by the attack.
"Beat the drums! Advance! Today I will fight the enemy to the death!" Taking a deep breath and suppressing the discomfort from the depletion of his righteous energy, Qin Mu roared the order.
"Boom boom boom! Boom boom boom!" The drums of the entire army sounded, signaling the start of the attack.
"Kill!" The soldiers, who had not heard Qin Mu's order, were roused by the sound of the drums and charged toward the enemy.
"Kill! Kill! Kill!" A huge battle cry rang out, accompanied by the sound of drums.
The soldiers of the Tang Dynasty were all seasoned veterans, and their confidence in victory was deeply ingrained in their hearts. Hearing the war drums signaling the general offensive, they felt their blood boil.
Offense and defense are completely different. Defense involves each person guarding their own post, while offense involves a large number of people attacking from a single point to break through the enemy's defenses. Therefore, offense is more destructive than defense. The advantage of defense is that it can use siege equipment and city walls to kill the enemy. The soldiers inside the city followed the cavalry out of the city, while the archers charged towards the city walls.
The ballistae kept firing, the catapults didn't stop, and arrows were being fired fiercely towards the outside of the city.
Two hundred triangular oxen led the way, followed by two thousand cavalry, charging towards the Pierced Chest Tribe. They advanced with unstoppable momentum, and even the most skilled warriors had to temporarily retreat before the iron cavalry. Moreover, many skilled warriors were among the cavalry, serving as spearheads, and with Qin Mu's support, many stubborn Pierced Chest Tribe warriors were caught off guard and killed on the spot.
The pierced-chest tribe also felt wronged. They never expected the enemy to have so many tricks up their sleeves. Even with chariots, they could easily evade them before. What was with this dense swarm of cavalry? They couldn't afford to play this game!
Every top expert can take on a hundred men on the battlefield, but that depends on the situation. Even a top expert wouldn't dare to take on a triangular bull weighing several tons! The most unlucky one was a top expert who was doused with oil, burned half to death, injured by rolling logs, and finally died under the bull's hooves on the way back.
The war drums sounded, signaling the start of the full-scale attack. All four city gates swung open simultaneously, and a full 100,000 troops poured out. Individually, Tang soldiers were no match for the pierced-chest tribe, but on the battlefield, fighting in coordination, 10,000 soldiers were not far behind their opponents. Therefore, given their numerical advantage, the Tang soldiers were undoubtedly stronger.
Moreover, the Pierced Chest Clan suffered heavy losses during the siege, their formation was scattered, and the Feathered People Clan, in particular, lost more than half of their forces. This enraged Qin Mu, who resolved to fight the enemy to the death.
While it's possible for a siege to suddenly appear, it's rare for a full force to come out unless there are reinforcements attacking from both sides. This caught the Piercing Chest Clan off guard once again.
The enemy, lacking a large formation, was completely overwhelmed and hunted down by the highly motivated Tang soldiers. Even though they were stronger, they were unable to cope with attacks coming from several directions.
The Mo Dao (陌刀) and the Repeating Crossbow (复弩) appeared one after another, their large-scale appearance causing the Piercing Chest Clan to suffer heavy losses.
"Kill! Leave no one alive!" Qin Mu chased after them, beheaded them with a single sword stroke, and shouted fiercely.
"Kill!" The nearby soldiers shouted in unison.
"Woo! Woo woo! Woo!" The bugle call for pursuit sounded, and the command flag waved.
The Tang soldiers, who had already won, became even more excited and continued their pursuit.
The Tang Dynasty's military order was to hunt down and kill every single one of them! That meant a pursuit that would last for a hundred miles! The people around Wu City spread outwards like ripples on water. Before long, the battlefield, which had been filled with the sounds of battle, became deserted. Apart from the archers still stationed on the city walls, the auxiliary troops had begun to clear the battlefield.
Qin Mu led the rhinoceros across the battlefield, searching for his wounded brothers. He was not a martial artist, so he withdrew when his spiritual energy was almost depleted.
This great battle lasted only two hours, but in terms of ferocity, it was unlike anything I had ever witnessed, far more brutal than the defense of the grasslands. That time, the enemy was kept at bay outside the pass, and the situation was almost under control; although there were casualties, they were within acceptable limits. This time was completely different. Although we anticipated that the winged people could fly, we didn't expect them to launch a full-scale attack, not just storming the city walls, but landing directly inside to attack the archers.
Although the oil provided some protection, it still caused some disruptions, which greatly increased the losses. The key issue was that Qin Mu fought valiantly against the enemy, but there were many times when he couldn't provide timely assistance and could only watch helplessly as some of his brothers died not far from him.
Qin Mu was glad that he habitually made thorough preparations and mobilized more troops, because he was thinking of counterattacking. After all, passively waiting to be beaten was not in his nature.
With ample manpower and sufficient weaponry, he won the victory, though it appeared brutal, the number of casualties was far fewer than that of the enemy.
Injuries are not terrible. Qin Mu will arrange easy jobs for them, perhaps with not-so-pretty monkey women.
As darkness fell, the soldiers of the Tang Dynasty began to return one after another. Upon seeing the welcoming torches, they cheered excitedly. Each of them had, to varying degrees, enemy ears hanging from their bodies.
"Reporting to the Commander, we have captured a top-tier expert from the Piercing Chest Clan." Xi Junmai dropped one person, jumped off the back of the triangular bull, and said excitedly.
"Okay! Take them away for interrogation. I need to know all their information!" Qin Mu nodded happily.
Although many prisoners were captured on the battlefield, ordinary soldiers, like the common people of the Tang Dynasty, only knew about events near their homes; they were unaware of anything further afield. This is understandable; they were busy making a living, and national affairs seemed too distant. Or rather, ordinary people generally didn't care about research and inventions.
The higher up one goes, the more things one knows—that's inevitable. So, capturing a top expert alive is good news.
"Hold a banquet! Celebrate our victory!"
"Oh oh oh!"
"Victory! Victory!" Just those four words immediately set the city ablaze with excitement, and even those who were injured and lying down showed smiles.
"hey-hey!"
"Old Wang is not bad! He can still laugh!" A soldier struggled to sit up and said when he saw the people around him laughing.
"I won't die! It's just a stab to the stomach! With Doctor Han here, what's there to be afraid of!" Old Wang said with a forced smile despite the pain.
"You're doing well! You can still go to the battlefield in the future," the soldier said, looking at his severed leg.
"Old Yang, I envy you! This time, with the rewards for meritorious service, the governor might reward you with another woman. I heard that those who are missing an arm or a leg are given two women," Old Wang said with a smile.
"It's true. The governor said it would be convenient to take care of the disabled, so he allocated two! We can have more children in the future!" Old Yang smiled and nodded.
"Hehe! Are you sure you're up to the task? If not, just let us know and we'll be happy to help!"
"Get lost!"
70
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