Chapter 615: Clash of Steel and Blood
Translator: EndlessFantasy Translation Editor: EndlessFantasy Translation
They were really scared sh*tless!
The might of Yan Liqiang’s lance that was able to instantly kill the Shatu general from five hundred meters away immediately scared the sh*t out of those Shatu cavalrymen who were charging toward them. The rhinodrake steeds that were running close to the Shatu general seemed to be startled by force of the iron lance being thrown in their direction. They suddenly reared up, causing many riders to fall off behind them, creating quite a huge chaos.
A distance of five hundred meters!
A two-meter long lance was thrown at them!
Just like that, it killed their general!
Was a human capable of such an act?!
How could they possibly stand a chance against an opponent like that?
In that split second, such thoughts flashed across the minds of many Shatu men. They were all so terrified that their legs gave way. All that morale they came with was instantly shattered by Yan Liqiang’s flying lance before the battle even began.
However, both parties were still rapidly approaching each other on their rhinodrake steeds. They were about to collide, so the Shatu cavalry couldn’t afford to think much despite the fear they had in their heart. They could only bite the bullet as they charged at their opponents.
On the contrary, the people in Yan Liqiang’s party seemed as though they were on steroids after witnessing the impact of Yan Liqiang’s terrifying lance throw over such a distance. They suddenly found courage and seemed to be filled with energy as they charged against the Shatu cavalry with angry bellows.
“Brothers! Let us f*ck those Shatu dogs up!” w.a.n.g Naiwu shrieked as he spurred his steed on and gradually rushed to the front.
In just the blink of an eye, both parties were only less than two hundred meters apart. The archers in both parties had started shooting at each other. There were about seventy or eighty archers in the Shatu cavalry. Likewise, there were also about seventy or eighty archers from Tie Yunshan’s party. However, the ratio of archers to ordinary soldiers was relatively higher in Tie Yunshan’s party.
The archers from both parties were using the same combat strategy — engage enemies at long range with bows, then switch to swords for close combat when they had closed in on each other.
Yan Liqiang unsheathed the sword he carried with him to deflect two arrows that were flying toward him. Both parties suffered casualties, but the Shatu suffered heavier losses because Tie Yunshan’s men carried small s.h.i.+elds on them. When they saw the enemies raining arrows on them, most of them put their s.h.i.+elds up to protect their head, chest, and other vital body parts. Hence, they sustained relatively small damage compared to the s.h.i.+eldless Shatu cavalry.
After the first wave of sporadic shooting between the archers from both parties, whoos.h.i.+ng sounds were heard as another torrent of arrows came raining down on the Shatu cavalry before they could even react. They streaked across the sky like a dense swarm of flying locusts and landed on the Shatu cavalry that was rus.h.i.+ng toward Yan Liqiang’s party.
The five hundred guards Yan Liqiang brought with him had performed their first coordinated attack, launching about five hundred arrows at the same time. The Shatu cavalry’s frontline was instantly reduced into a complete mess as cries were heard. Dust flew as more than two hundred of them were knocked off their steeds. Not only that, but when one of the rhinodrake steeds fell, the others behind tripped over it and stumbled too.
For a troop that was riding at a high speed, the consequences of the two hundred mounted soldiers suddenly falling at the front was disastrous to those at the back. As soon as their men got shot off their steeds, the ones riding at the back immediately collided into the rhinodrake steeds in front of them. This instantly disrupted their momentum.
In this era, there were no organized structure or well-established tactics for cavalry archers. No one from the Shatu cavalry expected there would be so many archers in Yan Liqiang’s party. For the White Stone Pa.s.s cavalry, those who carried bows would just attack their enemies independently as soon as they were in the attack range. This was the same tactic that the archers from Shatu cavalry employed. However, Yan Liqiang’s guards performed attacks in unison rhythmically. Therefore, even with the same number of people, the destructive power of the coordinated attack was very different compared to the scattered attack. Of course, this didn’t take accuracy into account.
The Shatu cavalry was immediately stunned. Before they could even react, the second wave rained down on them. Another big group of men fell from the Shatu side once again. By the time both parties engaged each other in close combat, Yan Liqiang’s guards had already performed three coordinated attacks. The size of the Shatu cavalry was reduced by four to five hundred men before they officially engaged the White Stone Pa.s.s cavalry in a battle with the remaining three-quarters of the 1,700 men.
The five hundred cavalry archers maneuvered their steeds with both legs as they avoided colliding head-on with the Shatu cavalry. They rode past them instead, making beautiful arcs on the plains as they started to circle around their prey like a pack of stray wolves, looking for openings.
“CHARGE…!” Yan Liqiang roared. The sword in his hand gleamed, then transformed into a deadly rainbow that sent the head of a Shatu soldier in front of him flying and his body off his rhinodrake steed.
With another swing, his sword broke the spear that another Shatu soldier thrusted at him along with both of his wrists. The Shatu soldier let out a blood-curdling scream as blood spurted out of his hands like fountains. He fell off his rhinodrake steed and was kicked in the chest by Snowstorm Cloud’s hooves. Amidst the sounds of breaking bones, the soldier was sent flying ten meters while spewing blood.
Yan Liqiang’s sword gleamed again as he split the body of a Shatu soldier in front of him into two, causing his internal organs to slide out with a sickening noise, splattering on the back of his rhinodrake steed.
Yan Liqiang and his sword were unstoppable. With every sword gleam, one Shatu soldier would fall off his steed. In just the blink of an eye, Yan Liqiang rushed into his enemy’s troop and cut down more than twenty Shatu soldiers in succession.
Tie Yunshan and w.a.n.g Naiwu followed Yan Liqiang closely and flanked him. Both of them also took down more than ten Shatu soldiers each.
Watching Yan Liqiang’s bold and powerful moves instantly boosted the morale of the White Stone Pa.s.s cavalry. They also raised their spears and swords against the Shatu soldiers. Both parties intersected and Shatu people were cut down from their steeds continuously…