xymnovel Chapter 22 Combat Mission: The Eastern Barbarian Army
Chapter 22 Combat Mission: The Eastern Barbarian Army
"This humble general swears to protect Your Majesty with his life!" Xuan Yuan Tian Shang suddenly raised his head, his eyes burning with a resolute determination like flames. Before his words had even finished, a vast and boundless, mountain-like pressure erupted from his body!
It wasn't intended to target anyone specifically, yet it caused the air within a radius of several dozen feet to suddenly freeze.
The dust on the ground moved on its own without any wind, slowly suspending itself. Several of his personal guards who were close to him gasped for breath and involuntarily took a half step back.
Huangfu Gong's pupils constricted sharply, and he blurted out, "Holy Martial God!"
As a fierce general in the Southern Army, he was well aware of the different levels of martial arts.
The Holy Martial God is an unparalleled powerhouse capable of taking the head of a general amidst a vast army; there are only a handful of such individuals in the entire world.
He never expected that this usually taciturn black-armored general, who always stood behind Tian Heng, would be such a person!
Shocked, the worry for the prince's safety dissipated considerably, and a profound awe for Tian Heng's unfathomable abilities arose within them.
Although the soldiers of Zhaowu Guard around them did not know the specific realm, they felt a sense of awe and pressure from their life instincts, and their gazes toward Xuanyuan Tianshang were filled with shock and trust.
Seeing this, Ji Dan knew that further persuasion was useless, so he sighed and cupped his hands, saying:
"Since Your Highness has made up your mind, and with the divine power of General Tianshang protecting you, I... can only wish Your Highness a resounding victory. However, the battlefield is ever-changing. If the situation becomes perilous, I earnestly hope that Your Highness will prioritize the well-being of the nation and temporarily evade the conflict, awaiting another day!"
"I know what I'm doing, sir, please rest assured." Tian Heng nodded solemnly, then turned his sharp gaze to the queue.
"Battle Dragon Emperor, Tiger Demon Heaven!"
"Your subordinate is here!" Two generals responded and stepped forward. Zhanlonghuang was burly with a face like a red date, holding a large iron spear, while Hushatian was short and wielded a sharp blade with eyes like lightning, and had two swords at his waist.
The two were naturally the Three War Kings summoned by the system.
"I hereby order you two to each lead a thousand elite cavalry, equipped with plenty of bows and crossbows, oil, and tripwires. You shall immediately take the western mountain path to bypass the enemy camp and, before 3:45 AM, sneak to the rear of the enemy camp's supply area and key retreat route to ambush them."
"Using the initial attack from our front as a signal, we will simultaneously launch an attack from the rear, burning their supplies and cutting off their retreat, creating a situation where our main force can encircle them! We must not reveal this prematurely, nor miss the opportunity!"
"Yes!" the two replied in unison, their voices as strong as metal.
He turned around and went to select his men and horses. A moment later, two light cavalry units disappeared into the deep night and mountain shadows like ghosts. The sound of their hooves was almost inaudible because it was covered by thick cloth.
"Sir," Tian Heng looked at Ji Dan again, "the matter of feigning an attack is of great importance to the overall situation."
I will assign you two hundred of your most alert Zhaowu Guards, and also allocate all spare flags, gongs, drums, and horns.
"Make sure to set up many campfires behind the slope, with people moving around and horses roaming, to create the impression that a large army is arriving and being mobilized. The Eastern Yi scouts will surely be watching from afar. Whether you can terrify them depends on your skills, sir."
"Mad Splitter, you're in charge of protecting Mr. Hime closely!"
"promise!"
Ji Dan bowed solemnly: "Your Highness, rest assured, this is a petty trick to deceive the enemy. I will make sure it is convincing and will confuse the enemy commander!"
After saying that, he immediately led his men to make arrangements. In an instant, torches gradually increased on the hillside behind them, and figures appeared everywhere. Indistinct shouts and the sounds of drums and gongs could be heard, drifting away in the night wind.
With the deployment complete, the entire army entered its final rest period. Tian Heng did not stay in place, but instead walked slowly among the soldiers with two personal guards.
He saw a young soldier clumsily wrapping a saddle-chafed wound on his arm with a strip of cloth, so he stopped, squatted down, took the wound medicine handed to him by his guard, and applied it to the wound himself.
"Your Highness! How can this be!" The soldier was so frightened that he tried to get up, but Tian Heng gently pressed his shoulder down.
"Bear with it, the medicine is quite strong." Tian Heng skillfully bandaged the wound, then looked up at the boy's still-youthful face. "How old are you? Where are you from?"
"Your Highness, I am seventeen, from Zhuojun, Youzhou..." The soldier's voice trembled slightly, whether from pain or excitement, it was hard to tell.
"People from Youzhou..." Tian Heng patted his shoulder armor.
"That's fighting for your own parents and fellow villagers. If you survive this battle, based on what you've done today, you'll be in at least one squad. Do a good job and bring honor back to your parents."
The young soldier's eyes instantly reddened, and he nodded heavily, unable to speak.
Tian Heng stood up, glanced around at the growing number of eyes watching him, raised his voice, but did not sound deliberately agitated:
"Soldiers! We've all seen it, the walls are still burning, which means our comrades are still holding out! Why have they been able to hold out until now? Because their homes and parents are behind them, and they have nowhere to retreat!"
Now, here we are! We're not here to guard for them, we're here to join them in driving out these robbers who have broken into our homes! Kill them all!
His voice carried clearly through the cold night: "This battle is for nothing else but so that after it's over, the people of Youzhou can sleep peacefully, and the children can go out without worry! It's to be worthy of the Great Xia battle robes we wear! Tell me, do you have confidence?!"
"Yes! Yes! Yes!"
"We swear to follow Your Highness! To slaughter all the Eastern Barbarians! To defend our homeland!"
A deep roar erupted from the soldiers' chests, the fatigue from days of marching was burned away by a burning fighting spirit, and countless eyes shone brightly in the firelight.
Meanwhile, in the Eastern Yi camp, in the central command tent.
Nurhaci sat on a low couch covered with bearskin, his expression shifting between light and shadow in the flickering candlelight.
He held a scimitar inlaid with rubies in his hand, unconsciously scratching the patterns on the scabbard with his thumb.
The tent reeked of blood and leather. During the siege today, he had personally witnessed two hundred-man squads perish beneath the city walls, never even touching the crenellations.
"Father Khan," his son Chu Ying said, lifting the curtain to enter. His leather armor was covered in dust and scratches, and his face showed deep weariness.
"The losses of all units have been tallied today. More than a thousand were killed in battle, and many more were wounded. Seventy percent of the siege ladders were destroyed, and two battering rams were also damaged."
Your Majesty, I have inspected the camp and find the soldiers utterly exhausted. Many have collapsed into bed and are unresponsive. Should we... postpone tomorrow's offensive and allow the men to catch their breath?"
Nurhaci didn't even lift his eyelids; his voice was deep yet carried an undeniable ruthlessness:
"Wait? What do you mean by wait? Commander Helan only gave us ten days! Today is the fifth day! Aren't the garrison inside the pass tired? They have fewer men than us, so they'll only be more exhausted! The Great Xia reinforcements might be on their way. We don't have much time left!"
Tomorrow, we must break through the pass! Order Baturu, Seshehei, Aqina, and Aobai to each guard their respective camps and strengthen night patrols, especially on the west and south flanks, to guard against the Xia army raiding the camp or other reinforcements causing trouble!
He paused, a hint of annoyance flashing in his eyes: "Keep a close eye on those opportunistic tribal soldiers, lest they take advantage of the chaos to hatch other schemes!"
Chu Ying hesitated for a moment, but finally accepted the order: "Yes, Your Majesty, I will go and deliver the order immediately."
He left the royal tent and looked around the camp. Most of the camp was silent, with only a few torches and a few patrols trying to stay alert.
In the distance, he could faintly hear groans coming from the wounded soldiers' camp. The chill seeped into his bones, but the unease in his heart spread like vines.
Will Xia Jun really just sit idly by and watch Beique Pass be trapped and die?
On the west side of the camp, Baturu was patrolling with his personal guards. He was enormous; his footsteps trembled slightly, and his voice boomed like a bell. He kicked awake several soldiers dozing against the fence, cursing and swearing.
"Idiots! Do you want to die? Open your eyes wide! Xia Gou is best at night raids!" Not far away, Aqina leaned against a damaged battering ram, silently wiping his signature longbow, his quiver full of arrows at his feet.
Seth was relatively cautious. He arranged for double guards and sent several scouts to explore further. However, due to the cold night, the scouts were not very thorough and did not go very far.