The setting sun was like blood.
Thousands of rays of light pierced through the magnificent city walls and buildings, illuminating the vast battlefield outside Dragon City.
Three thousand Dragon City Iron Cavalry and four thousand Cloud Banner Army cavalry were arrayed more than a thousand paces apart, both in the wedge formation commonly used in cavalry battles between the two armies.
Chen Huai'an, the commander of the Longcheng Iron Cavalry, wielding a halberd, and Chang Chenghu, the commander of the Yunhui Army Cavalry, wielding a horse spear, rode forward on their horses and stood proudly at the head of the wedge formation, becoming the single arrowhead of the cavalry charge.
With the great battle imminent, many warhorses seemed to sense the deathly atmosphere in the air and began to rear up and neigh mournfully.
The cavalrymen on horseback were clearly used to such battle scenes. They showed no fear or retreat, but stared coldly at each other, silently gripping their swords and spears.
The distance of over a thousand paces that both sides had deliberately left was enough for their warhorses to accelerate and sprint.
Just waiting for the commander's order, they can ride forth with whips and spears, like dragons on horseback, establishing immortal achievements.
Once again, a deep and powerful drumbeat resounded from the city gate tower.
Thump!
Thump!
Thump!
As the bugle call signaled the start of the campaign, the two heavy gates of Yongding Gate in Longcheng slowly closed once again, and the drawbridge spanning the moat was once again lifted by the winch and suspended high above the moat.
At the same time, Chen Huai'an raised his halberd with one arm and pointed it directly at the enemy army, roaring: "All generals of the Po Lu Army, listen to my command! We will not return until we have defeated the enemy!"
"We will not return until we have defeated the enemy!"
"We will not return until we have defeated the enemy!"
"We will not return until we have defeated the enemy!"
Three thousand iron cavalrymen of Dragon City roared in unison, their spirit overwhelming the mountains and rivers.
Not to be outdone, Chang Chenghu, the commander of the Yunhui Army, pointed his spear and shouted, "All generals of the Yunhui Army, listen to my command! Follow me to kill the enemy chieftain and quell the rebellion!"
"kill!"
"kill!"
"kill!"
The four thousand Yunhui cavalrymen, who had come from afar, were in low spirits and lacked momentum.
The next moment, the two generals simultaneously spurred their horses and raised their whips, their sharpness aimed directly at the other side.
Thump thump thump!
Thump thump thump!
Thump thump thump!
In an instant, the sound of iron hooves shook the heavens.
The two cavalry forces swept in like two moving torrents of steel, carrying immense power like a whirlwind.
Battle flags fluttered in the wind, the cold glint of lacquered spears and longswords flashed alternately in the setting sun, and the neighing of warhorses and the roars of soldiers intertwined to create a magnificent and intense war symphony.
In the blink of an eye, the two violent, moving torrents collided as expected, and the hoarse shouts of battle and the metallic clang of swords and spears clashing together resounded in one place.
As the two commanders-in-chief, Chen Huai'an and Chang Chenghu, who were leading the cavalry charge, met on the battlefield without any suspense.
Chen Huai'an, wielding a halberd, rode a golden-armored yellow horse at breakneck speed. A flash of cold light appeared, and then his spear lashed out like a dragon, sweeping away Chang Chenghu with the force of autumn wind.
Faced with the thunderous attack from Chen Huai'an, the useless heir in the eyes of the world, Chang Chenghu on horseback was shocked, but he had no choice but to grit his teeth and raise his spear to defend himself.
Clang!
A sharp, resounding crack shook the heavens and earth.
That was the sound of metal clashing violently when Chen Huai'an's halberd and Chang Chenghu's lance collided.
With that one blow, Chang Chenghu felt as if a thousand pounds of force had descended from the sky, causing his tiger's mouth to split open and excruciating pain to gnaw at his heart. His hands could no longer grip the slender spear shaft.
The lance that had accompanied him in battle for more than ten years, which had brought down no fewer than a hundred enemy generals from horseback, also flew off and disappeared without a trace.
Before Chang Chenghu could even catch his breath and sigh, Chen Huai'an, now transformed into a war god, once again swung his halberd and thrust it straight at Chang Chenghu.
This strike seemed to gather all the power of heaven and earth.
Upon seeing this, Chang Chenghu's heart skipped a beat, but he didn't have time to draw his ring-pommel sword to defend himself. He could only helplessly think that he was probably going to be defeated by Chen Huai'an today, and then closed his eyes as if resigned to his fate.
The last image reflected in his pupils was the sharp halberd blade, as cold as autumn frost, piercing towards him.
However, the cold, stinging sensation that Chang Chenghu had imagined—the halberd piercing through his armor and embedding itself in his body—did not occur.
Instead, it was as if he had been punched hard by something, sending him flying.
boom!
The next moment, Chang Chenghu fell off his horse and crashed to the ground.
The violent tremors in his chest and the pain of his broken ribs clearly told him that he had really been punched hard by something.
Chang Chenghu forced open his eyes despite the excruciating pain and saw Chen Huai'an, riding on a yellow horse, holding a halberd in one arm and smiling meaningfully at him.
Then, with a domineering gesture, he declared, "Take the enemy's banner!"
"I will obey Your Majesty's command!"
The eighteen riders of Longcheng, clad in silver armor and wielding longswords to protect Chen Huai'an, immediately obeyed the order, spurred their horses, and charged toward the banner symbolizing the location of the Yunhui Army's commander.
At this time, more than two hundred Yunhui cavalrymen were still protecting the banner in the melee.
But these guards had just witnessed their commander, Chang Chenghu, being easily defeated by Chen Huai'an.
If the latter hadn't deliberately shown mercy, their commander Chang Chenghu would likely have already perished under the blade.
With their commander-in-chief defeated, how could the soldiers possibly have any morale left?
Faced with the flag-seizing act of the eighteen silver-armored warriors of Longcheng, the demoralized Yunhui cavalry had long lost the courage to resist and could only blindly and desperately flee with their banners.
Seeing this, the Eighteen Riders of Longcheng immediately changed their formation to an inverted triangle attack formation.
He extended his longsword backward, blade outward and spine inward, like a wolf among sheep, and relentlessly pursued the enemy soldiers who were fleeing in disarray, guarding the Yunhui Army's banner.
They caught up with a group, the blade flashed, and both men and horses were shattered. They continued to ride forward.
Another group was caught up, and the blade swept across once more, leaving another group of men and horses shattered.
Chang Chenghu, the commander of the vanguard of the Yunhui Army who fell off his horse, was heartbroken and helpless as he watched the eighteen riders of Longcheng unilaterally annihilate his personal guards.
Until finally, the last guard carrying the banner was cleaved in two by a silver-armored warrior, horse and all.
Another silver-armored warrior arrived shortly after and with a single slash, severed the banner symbolizing the commander of the Yunhui Army. Chang Chenghu, who was lying on the ground, could no longer hold back and spat out a mouthful of blood.
With their commander-in-chief fallen and their banner seized, the already exhausted Yunhui Army scattered like birds and beasts in an instant.
On the vast battlefield, only ownerless warhorses and severely wounded soldiers remained, howling and wailing to the heavens.
Chen Huai'an rode his yellow horse to the dying Chang Chenghu, raised the tip of his halberd to lift the defeated general's chin, and looked down at him.
"Chen Huai'an, the victor is king and the loser is villain. Today I, Chang Chenghu, am defeated and have fallen into your hands. Do with me as you please!"
Chang Chenghu, surprisingly tough, forced himself to his feet and stood before Chen Huai'an, looking up at this man considered a good-for-nothing by the world, and said, word by word:
"But I disagree. If it weren't for my carelessness and underestimation of the enemy, and if my Yunhui Army hadn't launched such a long and arduous attack, the outcome would have been uncertain!"
Ha ha!
Chen Huai'an burst into laughter, scoffing, "Chang Chenghu, oh Chang Chenghu, I've discovered that your Yunhui Army is truly a bunch of scoundrels, from top to bottom you're all just stubborn mules. Wu Fengxian is like that, and so are you!"
"You couldn't even last a single round against me, yet you dare to spout such nonsense?"
After a pause, Chen Huai'an continued with an air of domineering arrogance, "Very well, I'll spare your life for now. Go back and give your master, Wu Qingyun, a message—"
"Tell him that twenty years ago, my father beat him with a hundred lashes in front of the three armies, leaving him bedridden for a month."
Twenty years later, I will seize his command flag from the front lines with the same ease as taking candy from a bag. His 100,000 Cloud Banner Army will be nothing more than a bunch of chickens and dogs in my eyes!
With that, Chen Huai'an waved his hand and ordered, "Men, bring Wu Fengxian's dog head to General Chang!"
Boom!
The next moment, a cavalryman from the Polu Army threw a head wrapped in a white cloth in front of Chang Chenghu.
Chen Huai'an laughed and said, "Chang Chenghu, didn't you just ask me where I put Wu Fengxian? Now I'll return your young general to you!"
After saying that, Chen Huai'an rode away without looking back, not to return to the city, but to lead the Longcheng Iron Cavalry straight to the north of the city.
Chang Chenghu stared blankly at the Polu Army cavalry disappearing on the battlefield, then frantically picked up the head wrapped in a blood-stained white cloth from the ground and carefully removed the cloth.
"ah--"
"Young General!"
Chang Chenghu screamed in agony as he pulled back the white cloth, revealing the head of Wu Fengxian, the young general of the Yunhui Army, who died with his eyes wide open in disbelief.
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