As soon as Bai Qingyan finished speaking, Xiao Ruohai threw the Weng Mountain map from his chest to Shen Liangyu. Shen Liangyu caught the map and shook it open with one hand. Upon seeing an incredibly detailed map of Weng Mountain, his eyes immediately blazed with heat, feeling that with this map and Little Commander Bai present, victory was surely within their grasp. Without daring to hesitate, he called out loudly: “This general receives the order!”
After receiving his orders, Shen Liangyu led the Huying Battalion away from the main force, preparing to climb the mountain first from the side to provide cover for the one thousand troops Bai Qingyan was leading.
“Xiao Ruohai!”
Hearing his name called, Xiao Ruohai accelerated forward: “This subordinate is here!”
“I command you to take a squad of twenty-five men and carry the Bai family army battle flag at the fastest speed to charge up the eastern valley. Display the Bai family army flag on the eastern valley to intimidate the Western Liang army within the valley!”
Xiao Ruohai gritted his teeth and nodded: “This subordinate receives the order!”
“Bai Jinzhi!”
Hearing her elder sister call her name, Bai Jinzhi’s blood immediately boiled, and she spurred her horse forward to receive orders: “Bai Jinzhi is here!”
“In this battle, you are not to leave my side by more than two steps! Violate this and face military law!”
Bai Jinzhi was slightly stunned, then asked: “Elder Sister! How is it that they all received military orders, but I have to follow Elder Sister?! Elder Sister looks down on me!”
This was truly Xiao Si’s first time on a battlefield, and at this moment, she also understood her father’s worry for her. No matter how brave she was, Father always wanted to keep her protected by his side, just as she now felt toward Bai Jinzhi.
“Time is urgent, and I’ve only reacquired the Sun-Shooting Bow. With you by your elder sister’s side, you can protect me in close combat!”
Besides wanting to keep Bai Jinzhi tightly bound to her side for protection, these words were also true…
Time was urgent, and she had only picked up the Sun-Shooting Bow again. Though she held the red-tasseled silver spear, she couldn’t charge forward invincibly with just that silver spear as she once had. But she had to carry this red-tasseled silver spear—it was merely a symbol. Fine horse, silver spear, Sun-Shooting Bow—only when the Bai family army saw these would they know she had come!
Just like the Bai family army battle flag, as long as it stood there, it could boost the courage and morale of all Bai family army soldiers.
Hearing Bai Qingyan say this, Bai Jinzhi became spirited again: “Yes! Bai Jinzhi receives the order!”
After speaking, Bai Jinzhi touched the military flag she had secretly tucked in her chest, unexpectedly feeling the military tally there. She quickly took out the military tally and returned it to Bai Qingyan: “Elder Sister! The military tally!”
Bai Qingyan already knew that map by heart. She led her troops on a shortcut, marching rapidly, determined to reach Weng Mountain valley at a speed the Western Liang army couldn’t imagine.
·
Above Weng Mountain valley, the hawk that Yun Poxing always brought on campaigns circled and shrieked.
Within the valley, sounds of slaughter shook the heavens, blood flowed like rivers, mud splattered everywhere, broken spears, shattered shields, and countless accumulated corpses with severed limbs were everywhere!
The soldiers stepped on the bodies of enemies or comrades, wielding broadswords and long spears, all with eyes red from killing.
On the western side of the valley, Zhang Duanrui led crossbow troops aiming at the Western Liang army in the valley bottom, while one thousand close-combat soldiers formed defensive positions behind the crossbow troops to prevent Western Liang elite soldiers from climbing up the western side for a sneak attack.
On the eastern side of the valley, Western Liang elite generals led archers, aiming arrows at the Jin army in the valley bottom. Unfortunately, all the fire oil, stones, and wood transported to the eastern side of the valley were on the Western Liang army’s end. With fewer Jin soldiers and more Western Liang soldiers on this side, they were constrained and didn’t dare throw down stones, wood, or fire oil.
At the exit between Weng Mountain valley and Nine Bend Peak, Zhen Zeping and Shi Panshan had paid a tremendous price alongside Zhang Duanrui to slaughter part of the Western Liang army. Following the original plan, they had sealed the exit. Zhen Zeping then led troops charging back into the valley for close combat with the Western Liang army.
The twelve thousand elite soldiers ambushing at the Wudan River valley entrance of Weng Mountain, together with General Cheng Yuanzhi’s ten thousand Bai family army troops, had sealed off the Western Liang army’s retreat route toward Wudan River, creating a scene of carnage.
General Cheng Yuanzhi, wearing mourning cloth on his head, had just severed the head of a Western Liang elite general when a Western Liang arrow whistled from the eastern side of the valley above, piercing straight through Cheng Yuanzhi’s shoulder with such force that it sent him tumbling backward from the pile of corpses into the bloody water.
Blood mixed with mud splattered on his face, obscuring Cheng Yuanzhi’s vision. After a moment of chaos, he was helped up by soldiers shouting, “General!”
He used his broadsword to support himself, wiped the blood from his face, his eyes crimson as he gritted his teeth and snapped off the arrow’s tail. Looking toward the Western Liang elite general on the eastern valley who was nocking another arrow to aim at him, he roared: “Don’t mind me! Bai family army, listen to orders! In this battle… fight to the death! We must sever Yun Poxing’s head! Revenge for all the Bai family generals and brothers!”
“Revenge!”
“Revenge!”
Each member of the Bai family army in the bloody battle felt their blood surge, adopting a fight-to-the-death mentality, killing with red eyes, forcing the Western Liang army to retreat continuously.
Yun Poxing, protected by various Western Liang generals under shields in the center, heard Cheng Yuanzhi’s words about taking his head and burst into laughter: “Even Bai Weiting couldn’t defeat this commander! Cheng Yuanzhi is merely a minor general at the end of the Bai family army ranks, yet dares to speak such wild words about severing this commander’s head! My Western Liang has mobilized the entire nation’s strength to field seven hundred thousand troops! Though we are surrounded in this valley, my Western Liang army is brave, and our forces are many times stronger than your Jin nation! As long as this commander can hold out until nightfall, the Western Liang army will surely come to our aid. Then we could trample… trample you defeated remnants to death! Cheng Yuanzhi… if I were you, I’d flee quickly to save my life!”
As soon as Yun Poxing finished speaking, suddenly, killing cries shook the heavens from the eastern side of the valley above. The Western Liang troops who had been holding bows to shoot Jin soldiers in the valley turned around in shock to shoot arrows behind them, but before the Western Liang archers could nock arrows and draw their bows, suddenly from the mountain top at the exit between Nine Bend Peak and Weng Mountain, arrows came in succession…
The Huying Battalion’s crossbow bolts all fired at once, causing screams from the Western Liang army below. Western Liang soldiers struck by arrows kept falling from the valley above. This sudden turn of events immediately disrupted the Western Liang army’s composure within the valley.
The Western Liang archers aimed at the mountain top where Nine Bend Peak and Weng Mountain met, but shooting from below couldn’t affect the Huying Battalion positioned above.
Shen Liangyu was seen gritting his teeth, using ropes to sprint wildly up to the mountain top. He took the Bai family army battle flag from his back, gripped the flagpole with both hands, and roared as he used all his strength to plant the military flag on the mountain peak!
At the summit… in a position visible to everyone, the black sail, white python flag unfurled in the wind with a fierce rustling sound!
“It’s the black sail, white python flag! It’s the Bai family army!”
“It’s the Bai family army! It must be the Huying Battalion brothers who’ve come!”
The Bai family army soldiers in the valley were overjoyed, and after their cheers, their fighting spirit soared as if they’d been injected with adrenaline. They raised their swords with renewed vigor to kill enemies: “We are the Bai family army elite! Where our sword points, invincible and unstoppable! Charge!”
Even Zhang Duanrui, who led troops occupying the western highland of the valley, felt his blood surge as he roared: “Release arrows!”
Following the map, Bai Qingyan took a shortcut and emerged from the middle section of the eastern side of Weng Mountain valley. The eastern side of Weng Mountain valley had a very gentle slope due to the overall high terrain.
Speed was of the essence. To quickly reach the summit and catch the Western Liang army off guard, Bai Qingyan ordered her soldiers to charge up on horseback.
By the time the Western Liang army discovered this force of one thousand Jin soldiers, the Huying Battalion was already providing crossbow cover as the Jin army rapidly charged up Weng Mountain on horseback, engaging the Western Liang army in close combat.