in2ebook Chapter 2286 Fighting!
Chapter 2286 Fighting!
"My lads!"
Helian Hui suddenly drew his scimitar, the blade slicing a piercing arc in the morning light.
He mustered all his strength and let out a deafening roar that drowned out the panting of his warhorse and its restless commotion.
"Warriors protected by the Eternal Heaven! There are Chu dogs blocking our way! But they are cowards led by a timid woman who is only good at scheming!"
"Our Scorpion Clan's iron hooves have trampled countless grasslands; how could they be stopped by a flock of sheep from the Central Plains?!"
His bloodshot eyes swept over the slightly flustered faces caused by the news, and he urged:
"The horses of the pursuers behind us are exhausted! Charge! Tear the enemy in front of us to shreds!"
"The grassland is right before us! The smoke from our hometown's cooking fires is just ahead! Follow closely behind the Khan's wolf-head banner! Charge them down! Fight your way through!"
"Let these Chu people know that the talons of the steppe eagle cannot be broken by them!"
"Charge! Kill!!"
Driven by Helian Hui's frantic encouragement and their survival instincts, the Scorpion Clan cavalry, who had been somewhat demoralized by the blocked road ahead, once again erupted in howls like trapped beasts.
They regrouped, no longer concerned about Zhao Yu's troops closing in behind them, transforming all their fear into a fierce charge.
Following Helian Hui's ferocious wolf-head banner, they charged towards Eagle's Beak Bend like a black mudslide bursting its banks, making a desperate, all-or-nothing charge!
Almost at the same moment, Zhao Yu, who was hot on his heels, also saw a turning point.
An imperial guard, relying on his extraordinary perseverance and familiarity with the terrain, rode alone, almost to the point of exhaustion.
Finally, a crucial secret letter was delivered to Zhao Yu—not by carrier pigeon, but by a more reliable person.
Zhao Yu hurriedly unfolded the sweat-stained note, which contained the unique secret markings and concise writing of the Embroidered Uniform Guard:
"Empress Feng has personally led her elite troops to ambush the enemy at Eagle's Beak Bend and prevent them from fleeing north."
"General Zhao, please pursue them swiftly, attack from both sides, and strive to annihilate Helian Hui's entire force, leaving no one behind."
These few words were like a lighthouse in an endless dark swamp for Zhao Yu.
A surge of ecstasy mixed with intense exhilaration instantly dispelled all fatigue and anxiety!
Lady Feng! She actually anticipated the enemy's move and appeared at the most crucial position!
"Heaven is on our side! His Majesty is wise! The Empress is divinely inspired!"
Zhao Yu couldn't help but let out a low roar, his eyes once again burning with fierce battle intent.
He clenched the note tightly, raised his silver spear high, and with all his might, issued a loud, murderous command towards the battlefield where the vanguard and the scorpion clan's defenders were already sporadically engaging:
"All troops, listen to my command! Consort Feng has already intercepted Helian Hui at the front! The enemy is trapped like a turtle in a jar! His Majesty has decreed that the barbarians be annihilated today!"
He took a deep breath, his voice piercing the heavens: "My lads on white horses! The time for revenge has come!"
"Let those barbarians of the grasslands see what a truly powerful army is!"
"Discard all worries, the horses are exhausted, let's charge on foot! Target—Helian Hui's wolf-head banner! Kill!!"
"Kill! Kill! Kill!!"
The morale, which had been somewhat dampened by the long stalemate, exploded with this earth-shattering good news and the commander's impassioned call to action!
All fatigue seemed to be temporarily forgotten, and a strong fighting spirit and desire to make a name for themselves burned in the hearts of every White Horse cavalryman.
They no longer spared no effort in their pursuit, and no longer maintained a strict chasing formation.
Instead, they launched a full-scale attack with the wildest and most resolute attitude against the Scorpion Clan cavalry, who were charging at Feng Mulan's defenses with their flanks and rear completely exposed!
Under the morning light, a meticulously planned encirclement and annihilation battle finally entered its final and most brutal climax.
Ahead lay Feng Mulan's well-prepared and impregnable steel defense line.
Behind them, Zhao Yu's white-horse cavalry launched a desperate, all-out attack.
Helian Hui and his Scorpion Clan cavalry were like walking into a carefully woven death trap, caught between a rock and a hard place, their lives hanging by a thread.
Helian Hui's desperate charge carried the wildness and indomitable spirit unique to steppe cavalry.
The black torrent of Scorpion Clan cavalry let out a terrifying howl, their wolf-headed banners shooting straight towards the not-so-high hill at Eagle's Beak Bend like arrows pointing to death.
In Helian Hui's mind, Feng Mulan's troops had hastily set up an ambush, and their formation was mainly composed of infantry.
Faced with the full-force charge of his exhausted but still spirited cavalry, their formation was bound to fall into disarray, allowing him to easily tear open a gap and pass through them.
However, when his vanguard cavalry actually approached the relatively flat open area in front of the low hill, the expected chaos and hasty confrontation by the Chu army did not occur.
Instead, what comes into view is a solemn and orderly defensive scene, as if it had been waiting there for a long time.
What greeted them first was not a rain of arrows, but the ground!
Beneath the seemingly flat grass, countless taut ropes suddenly sprang up—these were oil-soaked, extremely tough tripwires!
The dozens of riders at the forefront were caught off guard, and their warhorses neighed and rolled forward, falling to the ground.
The rider was thrown violently by the immense inertia, his tendons and bones broken, and he and his horse fell over in an instant, the sharpness of the charge momentarily halted.
"Watch out for the ground! There's a tripwire!"
The angry roar had barely begun when the second wave of attacks followed.
At the foot of the low hill, behind what appeared to be a scattered pile of dead wood and stones, rows of Chu army crossbowmen suddenly stood up.
They knelt on the ground, holding not bows and arrows, but crossbows with a cold, hard metallic luster in their hands!
This type of crossbow has a long range and strong penetrating power, making it particularly effective against heavy armor.
"put!"
At the cold, curt command, a series of teeth-grinding mechanical creaks rang out!
"Om-!"
Hundreds of specially made armor-piercing crossbow bolts were released, forming a low, almost inescapable storm of deadly metal that slammed into the Scorpion Clan cavalry ranks, which were slowed and disorganized by the tripwires.
In an instant, blood splattered everywhere, and the heavy crossbow bolts easily tore through the leather armor, even piercing through the knight and his warhorse!
Screams and the dying neighs of warhorses mingled together, dealing a second, even heavier blow to the momentum of the charge.
Helian Hui watched helplessly as the striker was torn apart like he had crashed into an invisible iron wall, his heart sinking to the bottom.
He was then horrified to discover that the "eagle beak bend" terrain that Feng Mulan had chosen was extremely tricky.
Although the hill is not high, it is positioned precisely at the narrow passage of this field, with scree slopes on both sides that gradually become rugged and not conducive to the rapid passage of cavalry.
The Chu army did not simply line up in front of the hill, but made full use of the slope of the low hill to build a layered defense system.
Behind the tripwire area were simple trenches dug along the hillside and antler obstacles made of sharpened wooden stakes and abandoned vehicles. Chu infantrymen, armed with long halberds and large shields, guarded the area closely.
Further down the gentle slope, there stood the Chu cavalry and even more archers, ready for battle.