Are the enemy stupid? They're all soldiers, quick as lightning, can't they run or hide?
As they charged closer, the Southern Chen soldiers initially didn't take it seriously and secretly mocked them. But just as they were about to cross the treacherous Firestone Road, the Ye Kingdom shield soldiers stopped abruptly and, in unison, erected a thick and dense wall of shields in front of them.
Five hundred men were divided into two groups of two hundred and fifty men lined up in a row, while another two hundred and fifty men stacked their shields on a second layer and stepped on the soldiers on top of each other to form a high and long defensive line.
At this moment, Nan Chenbing and his men finally realized that something terrible was about to happen.
They couldn't stop in time, and crashed head-on into the hard, cold iron shields. The reaction force made them stagger, but their feet were on flint. If they were blocked by those damned Ye soldiers and remained stationary, wouldn't they be burned alive?
It would be very difficult to break through the shield array by manpower, because these shields are specially made in a snap-fit shape, one piece connected to another, like a jigsaw puzzle. Once they are connected in a row, they will form a whole, rising and falling, waxing and waning. The force cannot be broken through with an acute angle, but with a sudden obtuse angle.
For example, battering rams.
The Ye army's manpower was insufficient to form a significant force, especially now that their footing was unstable and their strength could not be fully utilized, making it even more impossible for them to break through.
The deputy general of the Southern Chen Kingdom instantly understood the Ye army's treacherous intentions and immediately turned to ask Mu Jin, "General, the Ye Kingdom has sent out a team of shield soldiers, and it will be difficult for our soldiers to break through the defense line."
He was sweating profusely with anxiety, and saw their soldiers jumping around on the ground like they were doing a torch dance, just to relieve the excruciating pain in their feet.
Mu Jin's face was ashen as he said, "Let the axemen go forward and break through the shieldmen's iron gate formation. The rest of you should go around to the sides and behind to spread out the shieldmen and put pressure on them."
Seeing that the general immediately had a countermeasure, the adjutant hurriedly wiped his sweat and went to deliver the order: "Understood, sir."
The axes wielded by axemen were not like the relatively lightweight short axes of modern times; they were long axes specifically designed for use on the battlefield, also known as yue. They were two-handed weapons with extremely high lethality, and their strikes and cuts also had a relatively heavy impact force.
With the battle distance constantly compressed to over 100 meters, the main event arranged by Zheng Quchi finally arrived.
Three hundred javelin throwers appeared, each carrying a cloth bag on their back containing a dozen or so slender javelins, weighing several dozen kilograms in total.
They drew their spears from behind and held them in their hands. These specially made spears were made of iron, but their slender shape only added to their gravitational balance and lethality, without hindering the spear throwers.
They stood still, and when they saw the Southern Chen army running out from both sides of the shield, they began a run-up and, following the standard movements they had practiced over the past two days, threw the projectile with all their might.
After one batch of shots was fired, a hundred more would step in to cover them, and then the next batch would begin shooting. Three hundred men were divided into three groups, taking turns to fire.
Suddenly, a hundred or so javelins flew out, and the Southern Chen soldiers who had just emerged were shot and screamed in agony.
This spear is quite long, and the tip has barbs, so it cannot be pulled out by force unless one is not afraid of bleeding to death or being tortured to death.
Mu Jin was startled: "What is that?"
The adjutant from the Southern Chen Kingdom asked in surprise and doubt, "Is...is it a spear?"
"How can there be such a long and thin spear? As long as the rescue is done properly and it doesn't hit a vital spot, it can't kill immediately." Mu Jin didn't quite understand the other party's purpose in designing such a long spear.
The slender gun barrel was thicker than an arrow, but it lacked the power of a spear or halberd. What surprised him was that they could hit targets from a distance using only manpower, and their accuracy was quite astonishing.
Mu Jin's initial lack of understanding became the key factor in his eventual defeat.
After being shot, the Southern Chen soldiers tried to pull the gun out, but eventually gave up. The gun was wrapped around the blood vessels and hooked into the flesh. Pulling it out would cause blood to gush out. If they were to actually pull it out, they would either die from blood drying up or be tortured to death. How could this be considered not very lethal?
Of course, one can choose not to remove it for the time being, but its presence greatly hinders movement. With its long stem, every movement will bump into other people, and collisions will occur while trying to avoid it. For a while, people feel restricted in their movements, regardless of whether they have been shot or not.
At first, people started to pop up, but they were all hit by javelins and screamed in pain, staggering and falling, afraid that someone would touch the javelin on their body.
Gradually, the Southern Chen soldiers behind them dared not go any further. The clever ones tore off their armor and put it under their feet to temporarily relieve the stinging pain. Some of the tough ones did not take off their armor, protecting their entire bodies and enduring the burning pain in their feet by switching feet and jumping around in place, but they dared not go out.
They preferred to remain behind the shield-bearers of the Ye army rather than risk being impaled and impaled like human branches.
"A bunch of idiots!"
Watching the battle from the rear, Mu Jin cursed angrily. He ordered his adjutant, "The enemy is just creating pressure by exploiting gaps. How can a hundred men with spears withstand an attack from thousands? Now that they've got us in the bag, charge immediately!"
The adjutant snapped out of his daze. He had been completely bewildered by the Ye army's relentless offensive, but now, thanks to General Mu's reminder, he finally understood the flaws in the enemy's tactics.
"Launch the final offensive—"
Upon receiving this order, the remaining bewildered Southern Chen army, numbering in the thousands, immediately ceased their retreat. Together with the axemen, they rammed into the Ye Kingdom's shieldmen. When they finally broke through an opening, before the enemy could recover, they pressed their advantage and charged out like ants leaving their nest, closing in on the javelin throwers.
Sure enough, their fearless attitude threw the Ye army into disarray, and they turned and fled in panic.
Seeing this, the Southern Chen army was filled with such hatred that they went berserk. Apart from the hundreds or thousands who were seriously wounded and lay on the ground groaning, the others picked up their weapons and chased after them without waiting for the general to give any more orders.
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