Marcus Aurelius, as the commander-in-chief, also personally came to the center of the army.
After observing carefully for a long time, Marcus Aurelius breathed a slight sigh of relief upon seeing that the guards at the gate were not as tight as he had imagined.
At the same time, the 10,000 soldiers of the First Legion, responsible for the siege, also carried 400 long ladders and 50 crossbows out of the ranks, followed by 3,000 archers wielding large bows.
Compared to the legions under the Senate, Marcus Aurelius was undoubtedly better prepared for this siege.
Not only were they equipped with twice as many weapons as before, but they also gathered all the best archers in the army together to provide cover for the soldiers attacking the city.
Of course, five hundred rescue teams followed behind the attacking forces.
"Your Majesty, the warriors are ready and can attack the city at any time!"
Upon hearing his subordinate's report, Marcus Aurelius nodded and then drew his long sword from his waist.
"attack!!"
At Marcus Aurelius's shout, the messenger beside him immediately spurred his horse and galloped towards the front.
"attack!"
Upon receiving the order to attack, the commander of the First Army Corps immediately roared and was the first to charge toward Xilin Pass.
"Kill!!"
Seeing their commander charging ahead, the ten thousand gladiators shouted and followed closely behind.
"Quickly, archers, move forward! Carry the logs and stones over there!"
The garrison commander of Xilin Pass kept shouting and directing the soldiers to make various preparations for defending the city.
The difference is that, apart from a few original Xilin Pass garrison soldiers, most of the soldiers guarding the pass were reinforcements left behind by Kemolin.
While the defending soldiers were busy, the Roman soldiers had successfully crossed the trench and lined up fifty ballistae.
As the stones rained down, the defenders on the pass quickly took cover, creating a defensive vacuum of nearly two hundred meters.
The Roman soldiers of the First Legion followed behind their commander, carrying long ladders as they charged toward the cover.
Soon, the Roman soldiers rushed to the walls, and long ladders were placed against them.
"Charge with me!!"
Officers at all levels in the army also took the lead, climbing the long ladders and heading towards the pass.
"Fire arrows! Fire arrows now!"
The commander of Xilin Pass also shouted loudly, directing his soldiers to shoot at the Romans who were climbing the long ladder.
In an instant, many of those who were crawling in front were also wounded by arrows, and even the commander of the First Legion had two arrows stuck in his shoulder.
"Follow me, keep charging!!"
Despite the excruciating pain, remembering Marcus Aurelius's orders from the previous night, the commander gritted his teeth, broke the arrow shaft, and continued to climb upwards, enduring the agony.
In his view, the arrow wound he had suffered was negligible to the physicians of the Taiping Cult and would not cost him his life.
But if retreating affects morale, then certain death is inevitable.
Moreover, even if he couldn't break through the city by leading the charge, he could still gain the merit of being the first to scale the walls. He could tell which was more important.
"Charge!"
Seeing that their general was wounded but did not retreat, the soldiers behind him were immediately in high spirits. With a roar, they quickly climbed up.
"They've gone mad, they've all gone mad!"
Seeing the Roman army climbing uphill, braving arrows and rolling stones, the commander guarding the pass turned pale.
He simply couldn't understand what had happened to these Roman soldiers, why they had all become so fierce and valiant, like a pack of beasts without a sense of pain.
Meanwhile, three thousand Roman archers providing cover from the rear also drew their bows and fired at the defenders at the pass.
Many Parthian soldiers who were firing arrows and throwing stones cried out in pain as they were struck by arrows and fell to the ground.
Under the cover of their own arrows, the Roman commander successfully climbed to the crenellations and then leaped up, becoming the first to jump onto the city wall.
"good!!"
Marcus Aurelius, who was watching the battle from the rear, couldn't help but shout "Bravo!"
On the first attack, someone successfully scaled the city wall, which was undoubtedly a great morale booster for the attacking side.
Immediately afterwards, more and more soldiers followed the officers and jumped onto the city wall, beginning a fierce close-quarters battle with the Parthian soldiers on the wall.
Faced with the Roman soldiers' fearless charge, the Parthian defenders were forced to retreat repeatedly.
Within half an hour, nearly a thousand Roman soldiers had stormed the city walls and firmly occupied a small area.
Although the Roman army had an absolute advantage in morale, it was still outnumbered. Faced with attacks from all sides by the Parthian defenders, many Roman soldiers were wounded.
Even the commander who led the charge had several wounds on his body, with blood gushing out continuously.
Seeing the stalemate on the city walls, Marcus Aurelius immediately ordered the messenger beside him, "Tell them to withdraw!"
He also knew that expecting to break through the barrier on the first attack was obviously unrealistic.
If the fighting continues, those wounded soldiers may never be able to be saved.
"Waaaaah~!"
Soon, a series of urgent horn calls rang out from the Roman army.
"withdraw!"
Hearing the bugle call from behind, the commander who was fighting at the pass breathed a sigh of relief and then led his men to retreat towards the pass.
Seeing the Roman army retreat, the Parthian soldiers also breathed a sigh of relief and did not try to stop them.
"Rescue team, move out!!"
Upon seeing the retreating Roman soldiers, the rescue team waiting in the rear also carried over with makeshift stretchers.
Several men dressed in Taoist robes also came to the commander of the First Legion.
"General, you are badly injured. Please don't move anymore and lie down quickly!"
"good!"
The commander nodded gratefully to the Taoist priests, then lay down on the stretcher as instructed.
As they retreated, a psychiatrist from the Church of the Peace stepped forward and gave the commander first aid.
While no one was paying attention, the doctor took out a pill and put it to the commander's lips.
"General, you have lost too much blood. Please take this hemostatic pill first!"
"Thank you, sir!"
The commander nodded gratefully, then opened his mouth and swallowed the pill.
After bandaging the commander, the doctor went to another officer's stretcher and, while bandaging him, secretly gave him a pill when no one was looking.
Seeing the doctors moving among the wounded soldiers, the Roman soldiers in the rear were even more in high spirits.
Before long, the first wave of Roman soldiers who had attacked the city all withdrew.
After ordering the wounded soldiers to be sent to the rear for resettlement, Marcus Aurelius immediately ordered the Second Legion to advance and continue the attack on Xilin Pass.
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