Nine golden drums were placed on either side of the platform where Liu Hong was located.
Dian Wei led several imperial guards to the drum and began to beat it vigorously.
The drumbeats were steady and powerful, each sound stirring the blood of the soldiers.
Lu Bu, Huang Zhong, and Gongsun Zan led their respective cavalry out of the battle formation and formed a triangular formation, looking solemnly at the Xianbei army formation opposite them.
In the Xianbei army, Tan Shihuai also ordered the sounding of horns. He directly dispatched Mi Jia, leading 15,000 elite Gaoliu troops on the right wing, to fight against Lü Bu and his men.
Moreover, during the deployment, Tan Shihuai ordered the cavalry to be dispersed and arranged in a loose formation with one horse every five steps.
This formation not only maximizes the bravery of Gaoliu's elite troops, but also depletes the Han army's arrows.
A short while later, Mika led 15,000 elite Takayanagi troops into formation and began to charge towards Lu Bu and his men on the opposite side.
"Brother Bogui, you lead the White Horse Battalion to outflank the enemy's right flank and engage them in close combat; Brother Hansheng, the two of us will join forces to break through the enemy's lines, and then the three battalions will work together to encircle and kill the enemy on the right flank!"
Seeing the Xianbei cavalry charging towards them, Lü Bu immediately made tactical arrangements. Gongsun Zan and Huang Zhong both agreed and returned to the front of their respective battle formations.
Once everything was ready, Lü Bu immediately raised his halberd.
"The Han army is mighty! Charge!!"
With a loud roar, Lu Bu's Red Hare shot off like an arrow.
"Kill!!"
The wolf riders behind them followed closely, followed by Huang Zhong and Gongsun Zan.
As they galloped, Lu Bu and Gongsun Zan's soldiers drew their bows and crossbows, aiming them at the Xianbei cavalry. Huang Zhong's soldiers drew their standard longswords and gradually reduced their horse speed.
When Mika saw the crossbows that the Han army had taken out, his expression changed slightly.
Having previously ambushed the Southern Xiongnu, he was no stranger to the Han army's powerful crossbows. He knew that the Han army's crossbows and arrows were dense and could shoot two hundred paces away, while their horse bows could only shoot a maximum of one hundred paces. Moreover, to penetrate the armor of the Han army, they would have to get within one hundred paces, or even closer. From this point of view, they would undoubtedly suffer a great loss.
However, Mika believed that the situation would be reversed as long as he led his troops into the Han army's ranks.
Like Tan Shihuai, Mika was full of confidence in the fighting strength of Takayanagi's elite troops.
Fifteen thousand elite Gaoliu soldiers, divided into five horizontal lines, accelerated their charge when the two sides were eight hundred paces apart.
In a head-on collision, eight hundred paces would be nothing more than a matter of a few breaths.
Therefore, Mika also planned to withstand a volley of arrows from the Han army before engaging in hand-to-hand combat.
At the front of the army formation, watching the Xianbei cavalry getting closer and closer, Lü Bu raised his halberd and turned it slightly, giving an order.
Gongsun Zan and Huang Zhong, who were keeping a close eye on Lü Bu's movements, immediately took action.
"Disperse!!"
Gongsun Zan roared and pulled on the reins, moving to the left. His soldiers followed closely behind, breaking away from their tight triangular formation.
"Gather!"
Huang Zhong also roared, slowed down his horse, and led his men to move towards the rear of the wolf riders.
"How...is this possible?"
Seeing the Han army's sudden change in formation, Mika's expression changed, and he exclaimed in surprise.
It is not impossible to change formation during a charge, but that requires excellent coordination between soldiers and warhorses, coupled with superb horsemanship.
Even on the grasslands, few people can do these two things.
After all, whether it's cavalry combat or not, the wear and tear on warhorses is very high. It's common for horses' hooves to be damaged after a battle or a raid, and cavalrymen need to replace their warhorses frequently.
As a result, it becomes difficult for soldiers and warhorses to develop the kind of tacit understanding that allows them to command each other perfectly.
Then there's horsemanship. Mika doesn't think that the horsemanship of the Han people can compare to that of the grassland people who grew up on horseback.
It's one thing for some Han generals to be exceptional, but it's quite unusual for even ordinary soldiers to be such skilled horsemen.
"Wait, what are those cushions on their horses and what are they stepping on?"
Shocked, Mika also noticed the saddles under the buttocks of the Han cavalrymen and the stirrups under their feet!
He had a vague feeling that the two things were definitely related to the fact that enabled the Han soldiers to ride so steadily on their horses.
Although Mika noticed something was wrong, it was too late.
At this point, the soldiers in the front ranks of both sides had rushed to within four hundred paces, and Mika was no longer able to make any response.
Meanwhile, the White Horse Camp soldiers led by Gongsun Zan also broke away from the main battlefield and circled around to the right side of the Xianbei army formation. Their formation was also dispersed, and the crossbows in the soldiers' hands were pointed diagonally at the Xianbei cavalry opposite.
Soon, the Xianbei cavalry charged into the range of the Han army's crossbows.
"Release the arrows!!"
Lu Bu in the center and Gongsun Zan on the right roared almost simultaneously, and the soldiers pulled the triggers of their crossbows.
From within the ranks of the Bingzhou Wolf Cavalry and the White Horse Camp, a hail of arrows, like a swarm of black locusts, fiercely pounced on the charging Xianbei cavalry from the center and right flanks.
On the high platform, Liu Hong sat on the dragon throne, watching the rain of arrows rushing towards the Xianbei cavalry, toying with an arrow in his hand.
The arrow in his hand was the standard-issue arrow used by the Bingzhou Wolf Cavalry and the White Horse Camp soldiers.
The arrowhead of this type of arrow is triangular and made of refined iron.
These arrows are extremely lethal; anyone hit by one will instantly be cut open by the sharp blade, creating an unhealable wound, and will only be able to bleed to death.
The arrowheads are made of fine iron, and within their effective range, even ordinary armor would find them difficult to withstand.
Looking at the elite Gaoliu troops dressed in tattered armor and leather armor, Liu Hong's eyes showed no pity whatsoever.
The Xianbei cavalry at the front of the line were shocked when they saw the dense rain of arrows coming. They only knew that the crossbows of the Han infantry were terrifying, but they never thought that the small hand crossbow could be so powerful.
Just as they were in shock, arrows, accompanied by the sound of something cutting through the air, came whistling through the air.
The sharp arrows pierced through the arrows on the Xianbei cavalrymen in an instant, tearing their skin and causing blood to gush out.
Despite the Xianbei cavalry's loose formation of one rider every five steps, more than two thousand Xianbei soldiers still fell to the ground along with their horses under the dense rain of arrows.
For a moment, a vacuum appeared in front of the Xianbei army formation, and the formation on the right flank also became somewhat chaotic.
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