Side Story Chapter 24: The Son of Heaven’s Sword!
In the rear of the Tang army, Li Taiyi nodded in satisfaction.
Though the soldiers had not been trained in the operation of the ballistae for long, given that the Tibetans also lacked experience, the effect had been enough to leave them disconcerted.
Swoosh!
In the rear of the Tibetan army, Huoshu Songren suddenly raised his right hand, his expression aloof.
Buzz!
This simple action caused the disordered ranks of the Tibetan cavalry at the front to immediately reorient themselves. This was a clear sign of the weight this man held in the Tibetan army.
The vanguard general, Ormu, received Huoshu Songren’s instructions and swung his saber at the Tang army as he loudly ordered, “Second cavalry group, charge!”
Boom!
A moment later, forty thousand cavalry rode out, their bodies exuding the aura of a massive mountain fortress.
As they rode out, these forty thousand cavalry also reformed into the Echelon Formation and charged at the Tang ranks with a thunderous momentum.
The Echelon Formation of the three thousand cavalry of the vanguard was terrifying enough. Now that forty thousand horsemen were charging, it was even more frightening and intimidating, the atmosphere practically suffocating.
“Take up defensive formation!
“Plant your shields in the ground and lean them toward your center of gravity!
“Archers, prepare to loose!
“Cavalry, stand by for my order!”
Guo Dingguo’s face turned extremely grave as he issued a string of orders.
Bowstrings were pulled back as large steel shields were thrust into the ground.
As Ormu saw this, a cold and disdainful smile appeared on his lips.
If the Tang army thought that they were just sending in more men, then it was gravely mistaken.
Boom!
As the forty thousand Tibetan horsemen reached maximum speed, a new power erupted from their bodies.
Their auras became extremely heavy, so heavy that the earth seemed to sink a little.
Around them, a giant domed fortress appeared, as vague and indistinct as the mist.
At this moment, the pressure these forty thousand soldiers exerted on the Tang soldiers increased by ten times.
“Halo of Fortress!”
Boom!
Like a meteor, the first echelon of ten-some Tibetan cavalry lunged forward, the front hooves of their horses slamming against the giant tower shields of the Tang infantry.
Kaboom! The metallic banging was like a clap of thunder, the sound traveling as far as one hundred li!
Sparks erupted from where the hooves collided against tower shields.
Buzz!
The tower shields shuddered, and the soldiers holding them felt their hands go numb.
The fierce impact and savage energy made the Tang soldiers farther back somewhat uneasy, and their hands began to sweat. But if one looked carefully, besides tension, one could also see… excitement.
“What’s going on here?”
The Tibetan cavalry were astonished to see that the shield soldiers were completely unmoved.
Normally, this sort of frenzied attack would pulverize steel and stone, let alone a human body. But the soldiers behind these tower shields didn’t even groan; their expressions were determined and their bodies moved not even half an inch.
These tower shield soldiers had gone through some devilish training under Li Taiyi. Every day, they constantly had to endure the charges of the Tang cavalry, and while the process had been arduous, it had clearly been effective.
“Second echelon, go! Don’t stop!”
New orders were quickly issued, and the Tibetan cavalry continued their charge. The second wave, third wave, fourth wave, and fifth wave swiftly arrived.
Boomboomboom!
One Tibetan horseman after another, charging at full power, slammed into the tower shield soldiers.
The collisions came one after another with no break!
Boomboomboom!
The thunderous impacts shook the soul, and behind the tower shields, the soldiers paled, and their bodies began to tremble. The skin on some of the soldiers’ hands even began to break, spilling out blood.
After taking the first charge, these shield soldiers immediately had to take the second, then the third, then the fourth, and then the fifth. There was simply no time to take a break. Their knees began to bend, their shields trembled, their hands ruptured, their veins burst open, their halos flickered… The pressure increased again and again, and the injuries continued to build. In just a few short moments, the burden on their bodies reached a shocking level.
A cavalry charge far surpassed the might of infantry. Nothing could change this.
Li Taiyi stood in the rear, silently observing the battle.
He had already done his utmost in this battle.
The rest was beyond his power.
In the end, he had brought only three thousand soldiers. The true battle would be between the Longxi army and the Tibetan army under Huoshu Songren.
……
“Kiiill!”
As war cries resounded across the heavens, under a sky that had been dyed red by blood, the ground was covered in broken banners and corpses.
At this time, the Tibetan cavalry were at their tenth wave, and the light in their eyes was getting brighter and brighter.
With each impact, the Tibetan cavalry could see the tower shield soldiers giving in to the pressure and stepping back, and with charge after charge, the distance they were pushed back became greater and greater.
“Keep charging! Break their defense line!”
The red-bearded Ormu gripped a saber in each hand and savagely cut in half a Tang soldier who had come to fill in a gap in the defense line.
Even if the Great Tang sent heavily-armored soldiers to fill in the shield defense line, even if it tried to encircle Ormu, no one was able to get close to him.
Creakcreak!
As Ormu was killing his way forward and pushing the Tang defense line back more and more, the rumbling of gears could be heard.
Ormu heard this and instantly looked over with a frown.
“It’s the ballistae!
“Dodge them!”
All of the Tibetan cavalry became frightened, and they immediately adjusted their formation.
They had never encountered weapons like this on the battlefield, and it had left a deep shadow over their hearts.
Creakcreak!
But no matter how swiftly they adjusted, the ballistae still fired faster.
As the ballistae fired, the Tibetan cavalry who were still adjusting their formation panicked. Their charging path was instantly thrown into disarray, and so was their Echelon Formation.
Yet…
“Where are the bolts?”
The expected development did not occur, and there were no bolts to be seen. There weren’t even any screams from being struck by a bolt. For a moment, the Tibetan cavalry were stupefied.
Even Ormu at the very front was baffled.
But when he saw the relieved expressions on the faces of the shield soldiers, he immediately realized what was going on, and the veins on his forehead bulged in anger.
“Bastard! It was an empty shot!”
Ormu raged as he glanced at the Tang rear.
He had never imagined that the Tang would exploit the trauma the ballistae had inflicted on them.
“Hmph, a trick? Kill!!”
Ormu put aside his rage, coldly laughing as he issued his order.
It was clear that the Great Tang had been pushed to the limit. Otherwise, they would have never used a trick like this. Though the Tang shield soldiers had won a momentary respite, it had now been revealed that the Tang had no more ballista bolts.
Those terrifying ballista bolts would no longer be able to threaten them!
Rumble!
As Ormu gave the order, the Tibetan army began to charge again.
……
“Wang Haibin, join me in my assault.” In the rear of the Tang army, Li Taiyi suddenly spoke, his eyes flashing.
When Ormu gave the order to attack, he had failed to notice that a flaw that Li Taiyi had been waiting on for some time had finally appeared.
There was one thing that Ormu was mistaken about.
That empty volley was not to relieve the pressure on the shield soldiers. Rather, it was to cause more chaos in the Tibetan ranks.
“Yes!” Wang Haibin sternly said.
Gallop!
Li Taiyi swiftly led a force of five thousand men in a charge against the Tibetan army.
Bang!
As Li Taiyi joined the fray, the mood on the battlefield suddenly changed.
The Great Tang side seemed to rally, the tower shield soldiers becoming more unmovable while the archers in the back became more accurate.
The Tibetans also became more hot-blooded. Killing a Prince would give them a massive boost in prestige.
“Kill!”
Ormu saw Li Taiyi on the battlefield, and his eyes gleamed with cruelty. He immediately led a squad of horsemen and charged at Li Taiyi.
But at this moment, as the Tibetan cavalry charged at Li Taiyi, a golden light erupted from the Tang army, a giant golden sword that cleaved its way across the Tibetan army.
At that moment, the Tibetan army instantly lost one thousand men.
All the Tibetans who saw this had their jaws drop in shock.
No one knew what this was, but everyone knew that it was that Tang Prince who had unleashed it. That golden light had emerged from Li Taiyi’s hands.
That tremendously powerful golden light was none other than the Son of Heaven’s Sword.