After Chen Huai'an led the Longcheng Iron Pagoda, he completely broke through and destroyed the Pingrong Wanquan Formation set up by the Yunhui Army infantry.
Both men and horses were heavily armored. After three rounds of high-speed charges on the battlefield, the Dragon City Iron Cavalry had exhausted their strength and could no longer maintain high combat efficiency.
Left with no other option, Chen Huai'an had to order the Longcheng Iron Cavalry to withdraw from the battlefield, rest for a while, and then fight again.
Seeing this, the Yunhui Army infantry, who had been overwhelmed by the oppressive force of the Longcheng Iron Pagoda's charge and were in despair and fear, were finally able to catch their breath for a moment and, under the organization of the supervising team, regrouped.
Liang Erhu, the commander of the Yunzhou cavalry, who had fought Fan Wuji for three hundred rounds on horseback with no clear victor, finally seized an opportunity to leave the battlefield. He spurred his horse toward the central army banner, shouting as he rode:
"The enemy's Iron Pagoda has retreated. All troops, quickly regroup and fight your way out!"
"The enemy's Ironclad Cavalry has retreated—"
"The enemy's Ironclad Cavalry has retreated—"
Liang Erhu's personal guards also shouted back and forth on horseback to boost their morale.
This tactic was indeed effective. The Yunhui army, which was engaged in fierce fighting, saw the Dragon City Iron Pagoda, which was feared by all, withdraw from the battlefield due to exhaustion. Seeing this glimmer of hope, the soldiers were immediately aroused with a strong will to survive and began to fight even more bravely.
In several local battles, there were scenes of Yunzhou cavalry charging back against the besieging Xuanjia cavalry with inferior numbers.
For a time, facing the desperate, all-or-nothing fighting style of the Yunzhou cavalry, the Xuanjia cavalry found themselves on the defensive.
Just as the Yunzhou cavalry were about to gain momentum and were about to join forces with the Yunhui infantry while fighting and retreating, Chen Qingzhi led 10,000 Xuanjia soldiers with Mo Dao (a type of long-handled sword) to finally charge into the battlefield.
Fan Wuji hurriedly ordered the Xuanjia light cavalry to flank and encircle the enemy, cutting off their retreat and creating enough space for the Mo Dao team to execute their "wall-like advance" tactic.
As Fan Wuji led the Xuanjia light cavalry away from the main battlefield, the 10,000 Xuanjia archers on the second attack line behind the Mo Dao team unleashed a volley of arrows, a rain of arrows crashing down on the Yunhui army formation.
Whoosh!
Whoosh!
Whoosh!
A sudden barrage of arrows, like a whirlwind, forced the Yunhui Army, already thrown into disarray by the Dragon City Iron Cavalry, to hastily engage in battle. Countless soldiers were riddled with arrows, turning them into pincushions.
In a short time, a large number of soldiers in Yunhui's army were killed or wounded.
With the cover of archers, Chen Qingzhi's Mo Dao team caught up with the routed Yunzhou cavalry. The Mo Dao team used a "wall-like advance" tactic with close coordination, and the Mo Dao soldiers swung their Mo Dao swords, which were more than ten feet long, in unison to form a sword and shield.
Wherever the sword and shield passed, the Yunzhou cavalrymen and their horses were cut in two with a single blow. The dying cavalrymen and their warhorses could only watch helplessly as their heads were separated from their bodies.
Desperate and painful wails and hisses echoed through the mountains and fields, sending chills down the spines of all who heard them. The stench of blood that filled the air lingered for miles.
Originally, after the Ironclad Cavalry of Longcheng withdrew from the battlefield, the Yunzhou Cavalry, whose offensive had just begun to gain momentum, was quickly suppressed by the Xuanjia Army's Mo Dao team on the battlefield.
Faced with the overwhelming force of the Mo Dao team's swords and shields, Liang Erhu, the commander of the Yunzhou Cavalry, was completely helpless. He could only curse in his heart, wondering where that damned Chen Huai'an had gotten such an elite force.
The Iron Pagoda was already terrifying enough, but now a longsword squad has appeared. The sharpness of the longswords they use far surpasses that of all the longswords used by soldiers in the Great Xin Dynasty's army. They can easily cut through the soldiers' armor and bodies, and their power is truly terrifying.
Such a long sword, capable of cutting through iron like mud, is extremely rare, even among the military commanders of the Great Xin Dynasty.
But on the side of the scoundrel Chen Huai'an, every ordinary soldier was able to be equipped with one. How much silver must have been spent to arm such a longsword squad!
"General, order a retreat!"
Liang Erhu finally rode up to the vicinity of the central army banner and saw Wu Qingyun, the commander of the Yunhui Army, who had been blasted several meters away by Chen Huai'an with a single halberd strike. He once again pleaded with Wu Qingyun to order a retreat:
"General, the treacherous Chen Huai'an's rebellion is a long-planned scheme, and he has made ample preparations. His rebel army is strong and well-equipped."
Our army is already at a disadvantage due to being outnumbered, and the weapons in the hands of our soldiers are not even as sharp as those of the enemy. This battle is truly unwinnable!
"I implore the General to order a retreat!"
"We implore the General to order a retreat!"
The other generals of the Yunhui Army also surrounded Wu Qingyun and pleaded with him to order a withdrawal.
By this point in the fierce battle, the Yunhui Army had suffered more than half its casualties. If it weren't for the extremely strict military orders, any other army would probably have already collapsed and scattered after suffering more than half its casualties.
However, given the current state of the battle, the Yunhui Army's defeat is imminent.
Cough cough!
Despite the advice of his generals, Wu Qingyun, who had been seriously injured and fell to the ground but was rescued by the personal guards of the Yuhou Army, coughed twice, enduring the excruciating pain of his internal organs shifting.
The once arrogant and domineering fierce light in those copper bell-shaped eyes that gazed at the battlefield had been replaced by endless resentment and unwillingness.
Wu Qingyun closed his eyes and finally uttered the words "retreat."
"retreat!"
"The General has ordered the three armies to retreat in an orderly manner!"
The former commander, Liang Erhu, breathed a sigh of relief and immediately relayed Wu Qingyun's order to retreat.
Immediately afterwards, Liang Erhu gathered the remaining Yunzhou cavalry and formed a wedge formation. He then ordered the remaining two hundred or so Iron Falcon personal guards to protect Wu Qingyun in the middle of the wedge formation.
Then, he ordered the archers to clear a path with arrows, covering the Yunzhou cavalry's breakout from the weak point of the Xuanjia light cavalry on the left flank of the battlefield.
"Your Highness, the rebel commander Wu Qingyun is trying to escape!"
The actions of the Yunzhou cavalry were immediately noticed by a cavalry general of the Longcheng Iron Pagoda, who promptly reported them to Prince Chen Huai'an of Jin.
In fact, without him saying anything, Chen Huai'an had already noticed that Wu Qingyun was about to run away, but he didn't seem to be in a hurry at all, and just nodded to indicate that he knew.
Then, he raised his halberd again with one arm and ordered the Iron Cavalry warriors behind him to pursue: "Dragon City Iron Cavalry, listen to my command! Target: the enemy's banner! Kill!"
"kill!"
"kill!"
"kill!"
After a brief rest and some recovery, the Longcheng Ironclad Cavalry once again charged the enemy, with Prince Chen Huai'an of Jin leading the cavalry charge as the lone spearhead.
On the other side, Fan Wuji, the deputy general of the vanguard who was riding on horseback and directing the Xuanjia light cavalry to outflank and cut off the retreat of the Yun army, also discovered that Wu Qingyun and Liang Erhu wanted to escape. He immediately led three hundred personal guards to rush to the left flank of the battlefield to block the escape route of the Yunzhou cavalry.
He wouldn't let that chicken Liang Erhu slip away right under his nose. Today, it had to be a fight to the death!
"Hey!"
"You dog Liang Erhu, don't run away! Fight me for another three hundred rounds!"
In the center of the battlefield, Chen Qingzhi, the commander of the Xuanjia Army who was leading the Mo Dao team to slaughter the enemy with overwhelming force, also discovered that the enemy commander wanted to escape. How could he let him succeed so easily?
Although the Mo Dao troops under his command could not outrun the enemy cavalry's horses on two legs, they had the advantage of being closer to the enemy cavalry's breakout route on the left flank of the battlefield, allowing them to move faster.
Chen Qingzhi immediately ordered the Mo Dao team to change direction, with the rear team becoming the front team, using their swords as shields to intercept the enemy cavalry.
"Mo Dao Team, all troops, launch an attack!"
At a command, the rear guard of the Mo Dao team became the front guard, continuing to advance in a "wall-like" tactic, relentlessly slashing and hacking at the cavalrymen of the Yunzhou cavalry who were fleeing to the left flank.
Every strike is deadly; there is no mercy.
Infantry chasing and hacking at cavalry is probably a great spectacle of the era of cold weapons, and it is also the first time since the founding of the Great Xin Dynasty!
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