Chapter 14: Chapter Thirteen: Single Rider Breaks the Formation!

With a guide, the rest of the journey became much easier.

Deng Ken’s group spent three days crossing the war zone to reach Upper Germania, a region roughly along the middle Rhine, western Switzerland, and parts of France. This area had long been a contested zone; though the Empire had not abandoned Lower Germania, it could not fully control it, and was frequently raided by barbarian tribes from Greater Germania.

(In 410 AD, the Roman Empire withdrew its last legion from Britain, after which the province of Britain was abandoned. By then, the defense system of Lower Germania was already stretched thin.)

Greater Germania lay east of the Rhine, encompassing modern-day Germany, Poland, Czechia, Slovakia, Austria, and Hungary.

After conquering Lower Germania, the Romans divided it into two provinces—Upper Germania and Lower Germania—and stationed troops along the border to defend against northern barbarian incursions.

Severus himself was of barbarian origin and a druid, with personal connections across Gaul and Germania. With him as a guide, Deng Ken and the witch avoided many unnecessary troubles, even slipping through a hidden route across the war-torn region of Raetia.

The entire map of Europe had become a chaotic mess, overrun by barbarians, rebels, bandits, Hun raiders, Gothic mercenaries, and Frankish soldiers.

The situation rivaled the chaotic era of the Five Barbarians’ Rebellion in ancient China.

“This is truly an age where human lives are worth less than grass!”

Deng Ken stood atop the hill, gazing at the distant plain, where two armies clashed in the open field—small in scale, perhaps one or two thousand soldiers total, a localized conflict likely aimed at reclaiming part of the Rhine region.

“My external aid is powerful, but against an army, I’m utterly powerless.”

“If Europe weren’t in total chaos, I could’ve leveled up earlier by hunting bandits, rebels, and Hun raiders.”

Since his Chuanyue , Deng Ken had rarely encountered isolated enemies.

He’d only faced three stragglers at the start; since then, every enemy group numbered in double digits. With his current strength, taking on ten at once was extremely risky, and any injury would leave him in a dire position.

If he fought, he had to do it without a single scratch—any wound meant ruin.

During his talks with the druid, he’d heard rumors of “trolls”—though he wasn’t sure if he’d encounter one. According to Severus, these trolls were man-eating monsters from Norse mythology, possessing immense vitality and the ability to “regenerate.”

This ability held immense strategic significance for Deng Ken!

Amid the dense forest, Severus appeared, his expression grim: “We just received word—Lower Pannonia has fallen.”

“Shortly after you left, the Huns’ vanguard captured it.”

“Attila, the Scourge of God, leads five hundred thousand troops westward!”

Five hundred thousand?

Deng Ken knew ancient armies always exaggerated their numbers, but even after heavy reduction, there would still be ten to twenty thousand combat troops. On a battlefield this massive, even encountering a single scouting unit could put him in grave danger. The safest course was to avoid the core conflict zones until he had fully grown stronger.

The witch—Tris—remained silent. She seemed unsurprised by the Hunnic invasion.

Deng Ken stared at the distant battlefield and said grimly: “Should we wait until they finish fighting before moving on?”

Severus said sternly: “The borders are sealed. The Empire is implementing a scorched-earth policy. We’ll have to cross through uninhabited lands.”

Deng Ken paused, then said: “Wait for me nearby. I’ll find us some good horses.”

This was an extremely risky move.

The Crow Queen—Tris—immediately stood up, her eyes fixed on the man before her: “No, this is too dangerous!”

Severus also frowned, staring at the distant battlefield in shock: “You plan to steal their horses?”

Deng Ken replied calmly: “Don’t worry—I’ve got this.”

“If there’s no opportunity, I’ll retreat immediately.”

The Crow Queen looked deeply concerned, and Severus’s expression was grave—but Deng Ken’s demeanor suggested a man of supreme confidence.

In the end, neither could stop Deng Ken from pressing ahead.

The witch stepped before Deng Ken and handed him a rune stone shaped like the moon. “Be careful,” she whispered.

——Mark of Diana【Artifact】【Unknown】!

Huh?

From the God’s-eye view, Deng Ken examined the rune stone curiously—it was the first item he’d seen labeled “Artifact.”

——Mark of Diana【Artifact】: The emblem of Diana, the Roman goddess of the moon and oak trees, blessed by priestesses, granting her unseen favor. Additional ability: “Hero’s Luck.”【Note: Heroes of the Mythic Age were always protected by divine will.】

An artifact that boosts luck?

Deng Ken didn’t hesitate—he tucked it snugly against his body.

He waved to the witch behind him and walked into the dense forest without looking back.

Damn this chaotic age.

Deng Ken and the witch had only spent two days in the mountains seeking a reclusive druid—and their mounts had been seized by the Empire’s army.

The soldiers gave the stable owner five denarii as token payment, then took away all the cattle and sheep near the village where they’d stayed.

The Empire’s treasury was nearly bankrupt.

Of course, large estates and landowners had begun appearing across the Empire, owning vast tracts of land and serfs, evolving into medieval feudal lords—but imperial tax collectors dared not demand payment from them, so they squeezed the common people even harder.

The common folk here were treated equally: Roman free citizens grew fewer, while barbarian peasants rose in rebellion under oppression.

The Empire’s unsustainable, indiscriminate exploitation of all lowborns—squeezing them dry, crushing their bones—was reaching its end.

“Expand the battlefield map!”

Traveling alone, Deng Ken didn’t need to overthink—he’d fight if he could win, flee if he couldn’t, and look for chances to snipe a few cavalrymen or find horses left dead on the battlefield’s edge.

The Empire had taken his mounts—he’d make them pay.

The forces clashing on the plain were highly mixed; through the God’s-eye view, Deng Ken saw soldiers from many different factions.

——Imperial Field Army (1 Star).

——Imperial Border Garrison.

——Frankish Mercenaries (1 Star).

——Visigothic Cavalry.

——Germanic Mercenaries.

These were the Imperial forces—likely reorganized after being scattered. The Visigothic Kingdom had allied with the Empire to fight the Hunnic Empire; on the battlefield, roughly a hundred cavalrymen were engaged.

The enemy forces were equally diverse.

——Alanic Auxiliaries.

——Ostrogothic Cavalry Auxiliaries.

——Frankish Mercenaries (1 Star).

——Hun Elite Cavalry (1 Star).

——Germanic Barbarian Auxiliaries.

The Hunnic forces on the field were few; most were other barbarian tribes subjugated by the Huns. The fiercest among them were the Frankish mercenaries—they were similarly armed and fought with equal ferocity.

After invading the Empire, the Huns accepted the surrender of the Ripuarian Franks, but the Scourge of God—Attila—longed to devour the pro-Roman Franks whole.

“There aren’t many Romans left on this battlefield.”

The Franks were barbarians; the Visigothic Kingdom was a barbarian state; the Germanic mercenary units were all barbarians fighting for the Empire; the border garrisons were mostly composed of frontier barbarians; even the elite Imperial Field Army was over fifty percent barbarian by origin.

The Imperial Field Army was infamous for its high costs—paying two to three times the salary of the border garrison—but it had dissolved due to imperial bankruptcy, only recently being partially re-recruited.

Yet the battlefield situation was grim.

The best-equipped Imperial Field Army—clad in scale armor, carrying shields, short swords, and javelins, fully armored as standard heavy infantry—was being crushed by a horde of barbarian auxiliaries on the front line. The right flank was already showing signs of collapse.

“Their morale is this bad?”

Through the God’s-eye view, Deng Ken noticed each unit carried extra labels. The Imperial Field Army bore a glaring “Low Morale” tag.

In contrast, the Frankish mercenaries had “High Morale”; the Germanic mercenaries had average morale but believed they could win; the Visigothic Kingdom had always been fierce—their king had died charging into battle—and their morale remained solid.

Only the Imperial Field Army and Border Garrison clearly suffered from low morale.

“Looks like the God’s-eye view has strategic functions.”

Deng Ken focused his attention on the units. Instantly, additional prompts appeared: the Imperial Field Army carried a “Unpaid Wages” tag; the Border Garrison had “Disorganized Reorganization”; the Frankish mercenaries had the positive status “Fighting to Protect Their Homeland.”

This region was part of what would become France in later centuries; the Franks had established their own kingdom in the Empire’s final years.

“Their morale doesn’t even match the youth legions of ancient Rome!”

Deng Ken circled around the right rear of the battlefield. The best-equipped Imperial Field Army hesitated, unwilling to advance; the front line was held entirely by the Frankish mercenaries. The Visigothic cavalry clashed with the Huns, suffering heavy losses immediately—the Hun elite cavalry was simply too fierce.

“Back then, Han China also bled badly fighting the Xiongnu.”

Ancient nomads learned to ride before they learned to walk; in direct cavalry combat, the Huns held clear superiority in both mounted archery and melee.

Of course, there were exceptions.

For instance, one unit marked “Visigothic Noble Knight”—a one-star silver-gray emblem—charged forward and unhorsed a Hun cavalryman with a single thrust.

These were former barbarian chieftain bodyguards, now transformed into the new nobility of the Visigothic Kingdom.

Deng Ken placed his thumb and forefinger in his mouth.

A sharp whistle!

At the edge of the battlefield, a horse without a rider, wandering near the fringes, lifted its head. It trotted toward Deng Ken, who leapt up, mounted it in one fluid motion—agile as a Hun elite cavalryman.

——Call Warhorse【Riding Branch】: You may whistle to summon nearby unclaimed warhorses. There is a chance they will approach you; the higher your Riding skill, the greater the success rate.【Druidic abilities can further enhance this skill.】

This was the ability of the Hun Arrow-Sniper, now stolen by Deng Ken.

Deng Ken immediately mounted the horse and rode toward the right flank, where cavalry were locked in brutal combat—if that flank fell, the entire Imperial force would collapse.

He’d come this far.

He wouldn’t leave without killing a few!

Deng Ken nocked an arrow, aimed at a Gothic auxiliary cavalryman, and loosed it—the arrow pierced the air, the enemy fell from his horse, and was trampled to death by charging hooves.

First kill!

The battlefield was chaos; few noticed Deng Ken. The Imperial mixed forces assumed he was an ally.

Perfect—he could blend in and strike unseen.

Second kill!

Another arrow flew—striking an Alanic auxiliary cavalryman, wounding him severely; he was immediately speared to death by a Visigothic rider.

Deng Ken moved on horseback, firing arrows while constantly watching the Hun archer units on the map—he shot one arrow, bringing down a fleeing armored Imperial cavalryman.

Triple Kill!

This was half an accidental kill—the man’s head happened to slip right into the crosshair’s center, and Deng Ken instinctively blew it off.

What did he expect, fleeing with his morale shattered?

The battlefield was chaos; no one knew where the stray arrows came from.

Deng Ken’s primary targets remained the Huns and barbarian troops; occasionally, he accidentally killed one or two imperial cavalrymen—pure accidents.

But his appearance undeniably shifted the right flank of the imperial line; over a dozen Hun cavalrymen spurred after him, and Deng Ken didn’t hesitate—he bolted straight out of their arrow range.

“The Eagle Shooter has improved me so dramatically!”

Deng Ken’s horsemanship was now equal to that of elite Hun riders; he calculated the distance.

—Parthian Shot!

At a forty-five-degree arc, the arrow struck the Hun rider’s chest at an impossible angle; the enemy immediately tumbled from his horse and died on impact.

“Eagle Shooter?!” (in Hun language)

This term described a divine archer; among the Hun Empire, Eagle Shooters held high status.

Quad Kill!

Deng Ken moved calmly, controlling his steed with his mind as if it were an extension of his arm, and fired another arrow—the Parthian Shot locked perfectly onto the crosshair, instantly blowing the head off a Hun elite cavalryman.

Now the Huns grew fearful and sent a small squad of Gothic vassal cavalry to chase him.

“Isn’t this just delivering me heads?” Deng Ken rejoiced.

The East Gothic vassal cavalry carried shields and lances, rarely bows; their horsemanship couldn’t match his. Under God’s-eye view, Deng Ken could never lose his bearings on the battlefield—other riders might charge blindly, but every enemy head near him was counted with perfect clarity.

One arrow blew the horse’s head off; the second arrow killed the fallen Gothic rider outright.

Pentakill Rampage!

Deng Ken grew more skilled with each kill, but taking down shielded Gothic vassal cavalry required extra arrows; occasionally, fallen riders were trampled by their own men.

Hexakill Godlike!

Heptakill Intimidation!

Octakill Horror!

Nonakill Rout!

This Gothic vassal cavalry unit went from high morale to utter collapse—by the time Deng Ken reached his seventh kill, they were already intimidated; when another rider fell, they became horrified; by the ninth kill, their morale shattered entirely. Despite still having over a dozen riders, they fled in panic on the spot.

This was terrifying!

Not just the Gothic vassals—even Hun elite cavalry now bore the “Horrified” marker.

Decakill Rout!

Roughly one head every thirty seconds.

In just minutes, Deng Ken achieved the astonishing feat of ten kills; the West Gothic riders cried out in awe, shouting “Warrior of the Lord!”—their morale surged instantly.

Some of the migrating Goths had converted to Catholicism; many barbarians in Germania were also church believers.

“That’s enough!”

Deng Ken had no urgency to crush these Huns and vassals—he reached back and realized his arrows were nearly gone.

He carried only two quivers—never expected to exhaust them so fast. (Leather quiver: 12 arrows, convenient to carry and quick to draw, no hindrance. Large quiver: 24 arrows; largest: 36 arrows—but they impede movement; only foot archers typically carried over 60 arrows.)

“Franks!”

“Barbarian elite warriors.”

Deng Ken needed several critical heads: one from Frankish elite infantry, who wielded Frankish throwing axes; the other from barbarian elite warriors, who might possess unique abilities.

He began circling the battlefield’s edge, avoiding enemy archer units as much as possible.

Opportunity!

Deng Ken quickly marked several Frankish elite warriors conquered by the Huns on his map; he yanked the reins hard, his steed reared and neighed, hooves lifting nearly vertically—he gained a superior vantage and locked onto his target.

—Parthian Shot!

The arrow pierced the battlefield.

Time seemed to freeze in that instant.

Thwip!

One arrow, one head blown apart.

The Frankish elite axeman, conquered by the Huns, dropped dead instantly.

Eleven Kill!

Deng Ken kept riding, noticing enemies on both flanks circling back—without God’s-eye view, he’d never have sensed the full battlefield; he might’ve been surrounded.

“Time to test my skill!”

Deng Ken took a deep breath, yanked the reins sharply, and his horse leapt into the air; mid-flight, he locked onto a marked target.

—Barbarian Chieftain Warrior (1 Star).

—Parthian Shot.

On the battlefield, the barbarian chieftain warrior had just roared, swinging his twin battle-axes to cleave open an imperial field soldier’s skull—then, in the next instant, the arrow tore through the air and pierced his throat.

Twelve Kill!

Deng Ken’s quiver was empty.

His figure suddenly dropped to the horse’s side, clinging to it in an instant, snatching up a fallen knight’s lance from the ground—this was a Hun specialty in horsemanship; most European knights lacked such skill.

Lance underarm.

Deng Ken took a deep breath, stared at his nearly depleted stamina bar, and charged straight into the East Gothic cavalry attempting to flank him.

—Lance Charge!

Thwip.

In that instant, sparks flew as their paths crossed—Deng Ken’s lance pierced the enemy’s body; he released the lance instantly, and with his superior horsemanship, he even had enough control to yank the enemy’s longsword from his saddle as they passed.

Thirteen Kill!

Flee!

Deng Ken didn’t hesitate—he rode from the right flank all the way to the left, then vanished into the distance without looking back.

His stamina bar was nearly drained.

Even in the dimensional space, he felt his controlled body’s arms trembling faintly.

Seventh day of crossing.

Heads: 37.

After retrieving the stray horses around the battlefield, he’d write them down in his little notebook later.

On the peak outside the battlefield.

The Crow Queen—Triss stood stunned, nearly frozen; Severus couldn’t see the battlefield, but she could use a certain witchcraft to see everything clearly through birds’ eyes.

She had witnessed every moment of Deng Ken’s slaughter across the battlefield, and his final departure.

The sight made her slender frame tremble slightly!

Amidst thousands of troops, Deng Ken cut down over ten men, then shot dead the barbarian chieftain warrior and rode away unchallenged.

………………