Chapter 830: A Do-or-Die Battle [Seeking Monthly Tickets]
The enemy's siege did not stop because of Yun Ce and his companions. Compared to the size of the enemy troops below the city walls, the heavy shield warriors they killed were like a drop of water in a vast ocean. As time went on, two or three more enemies climbed up the city walls.
Although they were slaughtered before they could even gain a foothold, and their corpses were used as rolling logs, the situation was subtly changing as the number of wounded defenders increased. The defenders on the city walls, having exhausted their manpower, physical strength, and energy, were naturally no match for them.
The only thing to be thankful for is—
They did not send any generals to fight on the walls.
If a large number of highly skilled and courageous warriors were to lead the charge, Huang Lie's army would have an even greater advantage, and the heavy shield warriors would be even more unstoppable. Unless absolutely necessary, few would do this, as fighting on the walls would incur even greater pressure from the perceived threat of national intimidation.
What does this equate to?
This is equivalent to fighting a deep, isolated operation under a weakening debuff, surrounded by enemies and completely cut off from support. The chances of being killed or wounded are several times higher than in normal combat. Generally, most factions would rather use their troops to wear down the enemy's fresh forces than risk their mid- to high-ranking generals. A general's life is far more valuable than many other resources.
Is someone like Shen Tang who just grabs a weapon and charges in recklessly?
Haha, extremely rare.
The generals under Huang Lie valued their lives, which to some extent prolonged the siege and gave Chu Yao and his men valuable time. Their initial reluctance to attack wasn't due to unwillingness or cowardice, but rather a strategic move to trap and defeat their prey!
This battle, in terms of scale, was not particularly large on the entire continent.
It wouldn't even rank in the context of centuries of war and turmoil.
However, it is destined to create a record that will go down in history—[the number of literati appearing in a single battle!]
The way of the scholar is very rare.
It's so rare that if both sides in a battle could even muster one hand, that would be considered extremely difficult. Yet, in the founding war of the Kang Kingdom, at least two hands were mobilized! On the city wall, Kang Jishou raised his arm and waved his sleeve; beneath the sky, a faint but majestic voice rang out!
The voice was neither male nor female.
The voice said, "Heaven and earth are the game, and all living beings are the gamblers!"
The last time Kang Shi fully displayed his scholarly skills was during the battle against Shi Wu at Yonggu Pass. At that time, his literary palace was not yet completed. However, after two or three years of accumulation, and with the nourishment of the national fortune that his lord had worked so hard to earn, the literary palace was about to be completed.
Things are different now, and its power is greater than before.
Above the towering, illusory city walls, thirty-two gigantic ivory tablets flew out one by one, arranged in the order of the stars. Compared to the last time, these tablets were more solid and substantial, exuding an air of decadent luxury. Kang Shi hovered high in the air, three dice floating up and down in his palm. Beneath his feet, a continuous stream of morale gathered towards him from below...
In the blink of an eye, the ivory shield grew several feet larger, radiating a terrifying aura. One of Huang Lie's generals sensed the threat and immediately commanded the heavy shield warriors closest to Kang Shi to gather their morale and transform into a single ballista!
Three arrows, gleaming with a cold metallic sheen, were aimed at Kang Shi. With a hum, the arrows flew straight toward their target!
Kang Shi seemed oblivious to this scene.
Roll the dice, flip the cards.
As his dominoes flipped heavily, the dominoes above the enemy also flipped. Unsurprisingly, Kang Shi won.
He said in a deep voice, "Select soldiers and appoint generals!"
Three arrows flew towards him, but Qian Yong, who had been lying in wait, shot them down one by one. He could easily deflect the first two arrows, but the third arrow cracked his tiger's mouth and nearly made his arms go numb. The armor on his wrists shattered under the weight of the close-range impact.
If it weren't for the scale armor protecting Qian Yong's hands, he would probably have been blown to pieces. Before Qian Yong could even grimace and complain, the light that generals love most fell upon him. In an instant, his armor healed itself, his hands no longer hurt, and his back no longer ached.
The Five Virtues of a General!
Qian Yong said in a low voice, "Military Advisor Kang, you don't need to be distracted. Leave everything else to me and focus on meeting the enemy."
I was speechless with astonishment.
This is the "Five Virtues of a General" – all five virtues combined!
Just as rumored, the increase was strong!
The instant the scholarly aura enveloped him, the refreshing feeling was like drinking a large basin of ice water on a sweltering summer day, or personally dismembering an enemy into eight pieces. It also reminded Qian Yong of his naive youth! Thinking of this, Qian Yong's expression became uneasy for a moment. You see, he and Kang Shi had a feud; the two were at odds. He never imagined that they would one day fight side by side, and that the other party would even bestow five virtues upon him.
Ah, she's actually a pretty nice person.
I used to judge people by my own petty standards, and I was worried that these black-hearted scholars would make things difficult for me.
Now it seems he can finally rest easy.
Kang Shi, unaware of Qian Yong's complex inner thoughts, casually remarked with concern, "General Qian, please be careful and take care of yourself."
With a formidable enemy at hand, all personal grudges can be set aside.
With the boost from the [Five Virtues of a General], Qian Yong was like a man possessed, once again blocking all the attacks aimed at Kang Shi, so meticulously that not even a spark flew. As he successfully blocked the second wave, the ivory plaques were fully prepared.
It transformed into sixteen streams of light and fell.
The bodies of sixteen heavily armored warriors were subsequently buried.
The next instant, the lifeless corpse suddenly burst forth with dazzling light, its bones crackling and popping, its exposed skin turning metallic, and its muscles writhing, swelling, and bulging as if alive! As the corpse let out a painful roar, the surrounding blood energy surged towards it. In the blink of an eye, the corpse had grown into a giant three zhang tall!
One by one, the giants rose from the spot.
Its momentum surged dramatically, like someone holding a rocket.
Blood energy clung to his muscles, instantly transforming into armor resembling martial attire. He brandished a weapon, surveying his surroundings with a fierce glint in his eyes. With a beastly roar, he spread his arms, grabbing the nearest ladder and tearing it apart with tremendous force!
These siege ladders, naturally imbued with the spirit of their soldiers, were as sturdy as cast iron, but in the hands of the giant, they were like paper, easily torn apart. One enemy soldier on a particular ladder was unlucky; as he climbed, he was grabbed by the giant's left hand, his flesh violently ripped in two, blood and entrails exploding from the gap.
The siege ladders, along with the soldiers on them, were picked up by hand and flung away like flying saucers, colliding head-on with the swarming enemies. The heavy shield warriors also spotted these giants, and their massive shields slammed down on their faces.
The heavy shield warriors were tall and imposing, but before the sixteen giants, they were like children. Their heavy shields pounded against their bodies and armor with resounding thuds, yet they couldn't harm any vital organs. Instead, the giants, enraged by the heavy shield warriors, used both hands to grab and tear apart each one. Kang Shi frowned and gave the order.
The giant below shook its head.
One of the giants, vaguely resembling a woman, made a wheezing sound, as if boasting, as it grasped a broad-backed cleaver formed from blood energy. Gripping the hilt with both hands, it slashed down, sending the heads of the nearest heavy shield-bearers flying in disarray, their neat rows resembling a rapeseed field ravaged by mischievous children. The other giants reacted quickly, following suit.
Others might not find it as shocking, but Qian Yong was different; from his perspective, he could clearly see the lethality of the sixteen giants. A cold sweat broke out on his forehead.
In hindsight, I realized—
The man surnamed Kang showed mercy back then.
Kangshi responded: "No."
If it weren't for the inappropriate occasion, Qian Yong would have wanted to slap his own mouth. He really could blurt out whatever was on his mind. Was his mouth not careful? Kang Shi seemed quite satisfied with his work and laughed, "Back then, there wasn't so much literary flair."
This is a battle we can only win, not lose.
Chu Yao made a bold decision.
He drew upon all the nation's fortune, distributing it entirely to his civil and military officials. Kang Shi, as one of the main forces, naturally received a significant amount of national fortune, giving him ample resources to support his extravagant spending in this battle. If he still lost after all this, he was willing to perish alongside Chao Li Pass!
Qian Yong said worriedly, "But that's not enough."
Although the sixteen giants possessed an imposing presence, vaguely comparable to an eleventh-rank Right Grand Master, they were ultimately lifeless and mindless puppets, essentially deluxe versions of heavy shield warriors. Their primary task was to destroy enemy siege equipment, damage ladders, and block enemy soldiers closest to the city walls. However, their numbers were too few; even ants can kill an elephant in numbers… these giants were not even as far from the heavy shield warriors as elephants and ants!
Kang Shi sneered: "This is only the first round of cards played."
Of the thirty-two ivory tiles, four representing Heaven, Earth, Man, and Harmony could not be used because Wen Gong was not yet fully accomplished. Of the remaining twenty-eight tiles, he received fourteen.
Seven cards face up, seven cards face down.
Flip the hidden card, then play the revealed card.
Two offensive cards, two defensive cards, and three support cards.
Looking at the horrific battlefield below, Kang Shi's mind became even calmer, and a cold smile appeared on his lips: "We've only revealed one support card so far, and there are still six to be revealed. What's the rush?"
He was not a gambler in the conventional sense.
Because he knows when he will win and when he will lose.
The outcome of this gamble was entirely predictable.
He's the real dealer!
With Kang Shi making such a commotion, how could the enemy not notice? They immediately dispatched generals to kill Kang Shi. Qian Yong weighed the martial energy, looking at the only two amplifications around the opponent, and chuckled: "Just two amplifications to offer up your head?"
"Get out of my way!"
The newcomer was much stronger than Qian Yong.
But Qian Yong had the backing of Kangxi.
With the patronage of the scholar-gentleman, the martial artist's confidence soared, daring to challenge opponents of higher ranks without the slightest fear. Kang Shi, focused on the gambling table, occasionally spared a glance for Qian Yong. His composure was such that even when the general's blade was almost at his neck, he didn't flinch, making Qian Yong's heart nearly give out. He couldn't help but yell, "Kang Jishou, at least dodge a bit—"
If he had held a grudge even a little, or had been even slightly negligent, or had been a step slower in returning to the rescue, Kang Jishou would have lost his head this time! They trusted him so much, entrusting their lives to him…
Qian Yong felt that this trust was burning hot.
Kang Shi didn't even lift his eyelids.
He spun the dice on his own and revealed the second card.
Beneath the sky, the battlefield's malevolent energy surged towards its center, transforming into a muscular, powerful female warrior, bow drawn and arrow pulled. A chilling wind swept through, carrying screams and shouts of battle, all converging at her fingertips.
A volley of arrows!
A calm, explosive shout came from the female martial artist's mouth.
A barrage of crimson arrows hurtled towards the largest legion of heavy shield warriors, the arrows creating dazzling sparks as they flew through the air, resembling a meteor shower at first glance. The heavy shield warriors, locked onto as their targets, immediately assumed a defensive stance, channeling their morale into a shield.
Rather than a "shield," it was more like a semi-circular barrier that enveloped five or six thousand people, and it was two zhang thick!
Boom boom boom boom boom—
A series of explosions erupted above the barrier, one after another. Orange flames dispelled the darkness, illuminating Chaoli Pass as if it were daytime. Yet the barrier remained completely still; after the explosions ceased, it was smooth and intact as before, as if nothing had happened.
but--
Did nothing really happen?
The female martial artist raised her hand and waved it.
She drew the bowstring to its fullest extent once more, but this time, what gathered at her fingertips was the light emanating from the barrier below.
Turn enemies into friends!
The third card is a support card.
In just a few dozen breaths, Kang Shi played three cards. Using their own spear against their own shield—excellent!
Meanwhile, others also left the field one after another.
Don't underestimate Chu Yao's scholarly ways just because they're useless on the battlefield; his incantations can be a nightmare for countless generals! As vast amounts of literary energy surged from his dantian and meridians, gathering in his palm, he chanted the incantation: "Submerging in water and fire—"
"They're courting their own destruction!"
As the words were spoken, literary energy burst forth from his hand, instantly transforming into a gray-white dragon fifty or sixty feet long.
This dragon was more solid than ever before, its scales lifelike, and a ferocious dragon breath flickered within its breath. It was so lifelike that it was difficult to discern with the naked eye whether it was formed from literary energy or a truly existing creature! It hovered above Chaoli Pass. Upon closer inspection, one would notice that its gaze was perfectly synchronized with Chu Yao's.
It is searching for its prey!
finally--
His gaze locked onto a battlefield.
With a high-pitched dragon roar, it swooped down and charged!
Chu Yao stood on the city wall, casting the Word of Power [Three Hearts, Two Minds], a fleeting hint of reluctance flashing in the eyes of one of his avatars. For no one knew better than him what was about to happen.
In the past, Chu Yao's incantation was used to interfere with the enemy's emotions and evoke their deepest fears. Whether the target was self-harm or harming others was entirely random.
But this time, Chu Yao gave the order.
[Fratricide]!
He murmured softly, "Let things get chaotic!"
With no way out, showing even the slightest mercy to the enemy is the greatest cruelty to oneself! Huang Lie has 20,000 heavy shield warriors under his command, a considerable number, whose combat power is so strong that they can crush everything in their path. But the vast majority of them are ordinary people!
Once these ordinary people completely lose control...
Huang Xiguang, how do you intend to respond? Even if you're not the loser in this battle, don't even think about becoming the winner! Chu Yao's true form was in turmoil, while an avatar's pupils constricted: "Your Excellency!"
Despite the chaos of the battlefield, Lin Feng's unique literary aura remained conspicuous. His literary aura avatar, concerned, went to investigate and found yet another corpse at Lin Feng's feet. The vines, nourished by the wounded flesh, grew wildly, quickly draining the body dry.
Chu, the embodiment of literary talent, Yao: "..."
Lin Feng did not notice the teacher's gaze.
He coldly directed his soldiers to gather the vines from the corpses, cut them into sections, wrap them around arrows, and shoot them out. One section happened to hit a wounded heavy shield-bearer, plunging into fresh flesh and blood, greedily absorbing its nutrients.
|ω`)
The mushroom dish is a combination of two ingredients, not a separate post.
(End of this chapter)
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