Xiao Miao felt her entire body was filled with strength. Her husband was watching her from the city head. Even during the fiercest fighting, the commander of the entire army hadn’t forgotten her existence. Xiao Miao was very certain that Sister Na Rimu saying her husband was sometimes moody like a child must have been Sister Na Rimu teasing her. Husband was forever so dignified and wise.

Which part of this damned Abbasid’s body should this spear thrust penetrate? If it were before, Xiao Miao would have unhesitatingly chosen to thrust the sharp spear tip into the enemy’s eyes. Only this way could she make other enemies feel terror. Master had taught her this way before—when terror reached its limit, the enemy would collapse. But now Husband was watching from above. Women shouldn’t be too cruel. To leave a good impression on her husband, Xiao Miao chose to drag the spear tip across the enemy’s neck, just cutting his throat would do.

So wherever she passed, countless fountains of blood would spray high up. This contradicted her wishes—countless blood fountains spraying in the sunlight were even more terrifying than stabbing people to death.

Five thousand cavalry circled the Camel City, continuously cleaning up those fish that slipped through the net, ensuring there wasn’t a single standing enemy on the Camel City’s advancing path. This was originally part of their job.

Xiao Miao worked very hard. She felt she was simply invincible today, even having the mood to look back at the city head. Husband wasn’t there, which made her a bit sad. But Sister Na Rimu, with the Ellis sisters, was waving from the corner tower, cheering her on, which still made her feel infinite strength.

Crossbow bolts whooshed past over her head. She very much wanted to kill her way to the very front, but was held back firmly by Moas, who grabbed her horse’s reins and dragged her back. Their group was cleaning up fish that slipped through the net, not responsible for attacking. Military orders could not be violated.

Wu She stomped his feet, pointing at Xiao Miao who was valiantly killing enemies, and said to Liu Fang, “You old dog, look at the idea you came up with! This is clearly a majestic and imposing female general who could be commemorated in history. With your nonsensical ramblings, she became someone’s concubine, and she herself doesn’t even know it. Instead, she’s willing and content. Xiao Miao’s skills qualify her to be either a wandering warrior or a general. You people have ruined her.”

Liu Fang picked up his teacup, took a sip, and said, “We’re all people buried up to our necks in yellow earth. Why can’t you think it through? How does one live a lifetime most happily? Isn’t it when everything accords with one’s own wishes? If Yun Ye didn’t have a wife, do you think Xiao Miao could marry Yun Ye as the principal wife?”

Wu She shook his head and said, “No, Xiao Miao can’t be the principal wife! In household management, she’s far inferior to Xinyue.”

“Isn’t that the end of it? She’s not suitable to be the principal wife. If not a concubine, what else? Look at the Yun family—do the concubines look like concubines? The Yun family’s concubines probably live more comfortably than principal wives in other families. You admit this, right?”

Wu She nodded sadly. In verbal sparring, even if he lived another eighty years, he couldn’t compare with Liu Fang.

Du Ruhui looked at the Abbasid cavalry hesitating in the distance and suddenly spoke, “Marquis Yun, now is the time to bombard with gunpowder crossbow bolts. This old man asserts that these Abbasids’ fighting spirit has been worn down almost completely. Just one round of fierce bombardment can seize their souls and destroy their courage. This battle can be won in one drum beat.”

“Fang’s strategizing and Du’s decisiveness” weren’t boasted empty claims—they had been tested through long practical experience in reality. Naturally, Yun Ye would follow good advice. He waved the red flag in his hand toward Liu Zhengwu in the distance. The busy Liu Zhengwu immediately tensed up and roared hoarsely, “All switch to gunpowder crossbows! Elevation three, fuse length one cun two fen, three rounds, rapid fire!”

The crossbowmen on the Camel City immediately became spirited. Having grown accustomed to shooting gunpowder crossbow bolts or fire oil crossbow bolts, after shooting ordinary crossbow bolts for quite a while, they had long found it extremely boring. Now it was finally time for fierce attack. Each one vigorously adjusted the elevation angle of the eight-ox crossbows to maximum. After securing the crossbow bed, they carefully took out gunpowder crossbows from boxes beside them and placed them on the crossbow bed. The fire match in hand moved close to the fuse. Seeing the general wave the small flag, they quickly lit the fuse, then hammered down the trigger mechanism with one strike.

Without even looking at the crossbow bolt that had already flown away, they quickly added another gunpowder crossbow to the crossbow bed. After repeating this action three times, they looked up at the crossbow bolts they had shot out.

The latter two rounds were still flying in the air. The first round had already landed, exploding black-red flames in the crowd. The entire explosion point was immediately blocked tightly by thick smoke and dust. Black smoke mixed with dust rose spiraling upward. The dense explosion sounds finally merged into three continuous blasts. With the help of echoes in the valley, they were even louder than thunder from the ninth heaven.

The first to be unable to endure were the Abbasids’ warhorses. If at the beginning these well-trained warhorses could barely fight after their ears were plugged, now it wouldn’t work. The shock waves produced by gunpowder bomb explosions not only acted on the heart but also on the warhorses’ most sensitive nerve.

The Arabian fine horses not affected by the gunpowder bombs jumped and leaped, turned their heads, and frantically ran back the way they came. No matter how the riders on horseback tried to control them, they couldn’t make them quiet down.

Chaos arose from this. The Abbasid cavalry surging forward were swept along by the crazed horses running backward, also continuously retreating. Terror spread among the warhorses. When the camel troops riding camels were also carried backward by crazed camels, the vanguard commander decisively turned and ran. No one could control camels that had already gone mad.

The Camel City advanced neither hurriedly nor slowly. The cavalry led by Xiao Miao guarded the auxiliary soldiers who had already equipped armor, cleaning up the battlefield. The enemy army had already collapsed. Now the Camel City only needed to finish walking the final five li.

Cheng Chumo was also attacking, also compressing inward. He clearly felt the Abbasids’ fighting will had collapsed. He began methodically organizing cavalry to start orderly charges. He and Chen Shu each led five thousand cavalry, alternately advancing. The caltrops formed by barbed wire also slowly advanced. On the left mountain slope, raging fires burned. The half-person-high withered grass was purposely ignited by Tang army fire oil crossbows. This cut off their final possibility of escape.

When Cheng Chumo was preparing to change the hand crossbow in his hand, he suddenly looked up and saw the Camel City’s tall form slowly emerging from the dust.

“Stop advancing! Form battle lines! Set up obstacles!” With Cheng Chumo’s roaring voice, colonels everywhere also began gathering their subordinates. The auxiliary troops behind densely piled row after row of caltrops wrapped with iron spikes at the valley’s front face. When the final row of barbed wire was completely erected, Cheng Chumo finally breathed a sigh of relief. The overall situation was decided!

“Wind! Great wind! Wind! Great wind!” The soldiers beside Cheng Chumo roared ecstatically. This was a means to force the enemy’s final surrender. At this moment, there was no need for interpreters—the Abbasids also knew what choice they would face.

Almost at the same time, the crossbow bolts on the Camel City and the crossbow bolts in Cheng Chumo’s military formation stopped at nearly the same moment. The Abbasid troops also fell silent. Those crazed warhorses and war camels also gradually quieted down. Only the great fire on the mountain slope burned whooshing. Black ashes were carried up by air currents and fell in this canyon.

“Chen Shu, take your original troops to help Guo Ping. We don’t need so many troops here anymore.” Cheng Chumo spat out the grass ash that had drifted into his mouth, smiling as he issued his order to Chen Shu.

Chen Shu chuckled, turned his horse’s head, beckoned to his subordinates, and whooshed away. A group of completely defeated enemies indeed didn’t need his concern anymore.

“Why haven’t they surrendered yet? What are they standing there stupidly for?” Wu She asked Liu Fang irritably.

“They’re all soldiers. At this moment, they’re still somewhat unwilling in their hearts, considering whether to struggle a bit more.” Liu Fang had too much war experience. He casually explained to Wu She the reason these people weren’t surrendering.

“Then what do we do? This standoff isn’t getting anywhere. Look, the rear army is still fighting with people.” Wu She pointed at the distant dust and smoke. The sounds of slaughter there could even faintly drift over with the wind.

“They’ll surrender, definitely will!” Liu Fang grinned wickedly, pointing at the crossbow bolts already prepared to fire on the Camel City, explaining to Wu She.

Sure enough, Liu Fang’s words had just fallen when over ten crossbow bolts fired once again. This time the distance was very close. The crossbow bolts’ powerful force plowed out small blank patches in the dense crowd. Each crossbow bolt had impaled more than one Abbasid.

“Wind, great wind! Great wind!” The Tang army formation once again issued mountain-collapsing, sea-overturning shouts!

An Abbasid nobleman helplessly closed his eyes, dropped the scimitar in his hand that had been gripped with sweat. With a clanging sound, the Abbasids finally began laying down their weapons. Row by row, they walked out, disarmed themselves, then walked to the other side and sat dully on the ground. Prisoners of war never had good fates—they knew this very clearly.

In Abbasid lands, prisoners of war could only become slaves!

The war here had just ended when Guo Ping’s war also rapidly ended. Fan Hongyi’s cavalry brigade attacked the Abbasids’ rear army from the side, completely dispelling the Abbasids’ idea of wanting to rescue their vanguard. After paying a terrible price, they rapidly withdrew from the battlefield along the mountain foot. This was an organized retreat. Guo Ping saw the triangular flag representing Yusuf’s identity. The sun and moon on it still appeared supremely noble.

Cleaning up the battlefield was Fan Hongyi and Tian Yuanyi’s work. At this time, Yun Ye, accompanied by Xiao Miao and Liu Jinbao, was kneeling on the vast Gobi, carefully roasting a fat sheep. The surroundings were quiet. The Camel City was far away, ten li distant. Beside them were piled seven or eight wine jars. The numbers on them were uniform—all fifty.

He was waiting for his friends. Ever since becoming a great general, and after his friends had also become regional overlords, trust had become a luxury item that needed careful cultivation to take root and sprout.

Two riders came from afar—one from the south, one from the north. As they walked, they looked around in all directions, as cautious as two frightened birds.

Xi Tong touched his bald head, wanting to speak. Yun Ye spoke first, “Shut your mouth! Other than brotherhood, if you dare say half a word, I’ll immediately order people to wipe out your bandit nest. You don’t think I can’t find your lair, do you?”

Compared to Xi Tong’s caution, Han Zhe seemed very relaxed. He walked over to the pile of wine jars himself. After carefully checking the numbers on them, he nodded and said to Yun Ye who was roasting sheep, “Rare indeed! Rare that you don’t cheat when drinking or scheme against people.”