Chapter 21

A bonus chapter of five thousand words. A salute to our alliance leader, the little rich girl Luo Li Zeppelin!

"Move!"

Deng Ken spurred his horse into a wild gallop; though the others did not know the reason, they followed one after another.

A thick, pungent smell of blood rushed toward them.

By the time Deng Ken and his party arrived, there were already nearly a hundred corpses on the battlefield. The exiles could not break through the wagon formation, yet were unwilling to leave, so they could only surround the enemy in the middle of the road.

The private mercenaries inside the wagon formation were completely fearless.

A man who appeared to be their leader even had the mood to let his soldiers prepare wine and meat. They had been trapped here for several hours, and the soldiers needed to eat to replenish their strength after the fierce fighting. Moreover, with the convoy trapped here, the nearby towns and manors would surely react, and reinforcements would arrive before long. With just twenty or thirty cavalry reinforcements, they could easily charge and crush these remnants of the rebel army.

Two or three hundred exile rebels watched helplessly as those private mercenaries ate meat in large mouthfuls!

The gaunt and sallow exiles nearby could not help but swallow their saliva; some even quietly crept over, wanting to reach the edge of the wagon formation, where the piles of corpses were, to pick up the food scattered on the ground and eat it.

Swish!

A barbarian mercenary soldier drew his heavy bow, aimed at the exile, and loosed an arrow. It pierced straight through the man's chest, blood foam spilled from his mouth, and the exile fell to the ground, unable to rise, already breathing his last.

"Hahaha!"

"Look at these rebellious wretches!"

The barbarian soldiers inside the wagon formation laughed loudly, their morale appearing very high.

In contrast, on the side of the exile rebels, many showed expressions of unbearable pity, their morale extremely low; if they hadn't truly run out of options, they would have already been routed.

Their only advantage was their numbers.

But the last time they launched a fierce attack on the wagon formation, the barbarian mercenary leader actually dared to lead a dozen men to charge out beside the wagons, hacking more than thirty of them to death in one go, before calmly retreating back into the wagon formation under the cover of archers.

That fierce and brutal demeanor showed they didn't take them seriously at all.

The exile rebels had three leaders; one was killed by an elite forest archer, another was hacked to death by random blades while climbing the wagon formation, and now only one middle-aged man in his thirties remained. His face was sallow and haggard, and his attire made him look like a down-and-out military household, possessing the racial characteristics of a Gao Lu.

He wanted to retreat now, but if they retreated, many people here would starve to death, and the vast majority would not survive until winter.

Even if they were lucky enough to survive until winter, without food or supplies, they would die all the same.

"Gather those with armor and come with me!"

Ke Weituo gritted his teeth and said to his fellow countrymen beside him: "One more fierce charge! Otherwise, there will be no chance once the enemy reinforcements arrive."

He was planning to risk his life.

If they couldn't break the wagon formation, they would all die sooner or later; hiding in the deep mountains and old forests wouldn't save them.

Two of the three leaders were dead, and now his blood was up; he just wanted to fight for his life!

Everything was just to survive.

Just then.

A burst of hoofbeats came from not far away. Ke Weituo's face changed, his expression filled with terror, thinking the enemy's cavalry reinforcements had arrived. These exile rebels were all tenant farmers and slaves, lacking any decent weapons or equipment; even if they encountered a single light cavalry unit, they would be crushed like chickens and dogs.

Inside the wagon formation, those barbarian mercenaries also showed surprise; as long as cavalry arrived, they could charge out of the wagon formation, behead the leader, and the rebels would be finished immediately.

Five riders appeared at the intersection not far away.

The barbarian mercenaries looked disappointed; these were clearly not reinforcements, but a group of passing travelers.

Five people, five horses.

Two men and three women. One man carried a bow and held a sword, his aura fierce; another had a rugged appearance, like a Gaulish savage. Of the three women, two were of extraordinary beauty; just a glance from afar was enough to tell they were beauties.

Exile rebels all around were restless, but the others were all riders, and they couldn't catch them.

Ke Weituo immediately ordered his men to restrain themselves, then sent someone to shout at the five riders, telling them to bypass from elsewhere.

For some reason, one of them made him feel vaguely uneasy; even the old gladiator who taught him to fight years ago had never made him feel so afraid. Gladiatorial combat had long been disallowed within the Empire, but some great nobles still privately kept gladiators to fight for amusement. Gladiators were mostly wretches and slaves, occasionally used for betting and gambling.

Gladiators in the Empire were rare nowadays; the only ones left were those secretly kept by nobles, who would pick some slaves, train them for a period, and use them to fight for fun.

"You stay here!"

Deng Ken nodded slightly toward the Raven Queen, Te Lisi, and rode out alone on his horse, approaching the direction of the battlefield.

His face was cold, as if he were a ruthless warrior, his aura truly imposing, scaring the exile rebels so much that they dared not move forward, instead scattering to the left and right.

These people were just a group of tenant farmers and slaves who couldn't survive; where could they have any combat effectiveness?

If the Spartacus uprising hadn't had gladiators join, it would have been suppressed and slaughtered by the Imperial legions in minutes.

Nock an arrow and draw the bow!

A forty-five-degree angle parabolic shot.

Deng Ken did not get too close to the exile rebels. He loosed an arrow, and a muffled groan came from above the wagon formation; immediately, a barbarian mercenary clutched his throat and fell.

The hundreds of people present were filled with shock!

The barbarian mercenary leader was terrified, instantly picking up a shield to protect himself. In contrast, the surrounding exile rebels were in an uproar. Deng Ken's action was undoubtedly that of a friend, not a foe. Even Ke Weituo couldn't help but show surprise, watching in disbelief as the lone rider nocked another arrow.

—Parthian Shot!

Another person inside the wagon formation was shot in the head.

After all, it was just a wagon formation, not a city wall; there were gaps between the wagons, and it was only a defensive terrain. A barbarian mercenary archer quietly poked his head out, but before he could nock an arrow, a sharp arrow whistled through the air and blew his head apart.

"A sharpshooter?!"

The barbarian mercenaries changed directly from 'High Morale' to 'Shaken Morale'.

Two arrows, two heads.

Even the barbarians' most elite forest archers couldn't do this; perhaps only the legendary eagle-shooting archers of the Huns had such astonishing archery. (A Hun tribe only had one or two eagle-shooters.)

The exile rebels were in an uproar, some restless, but people on both sides scattered, not daring to interfere with Deng Ken riding and shooting on the battlefield.

Under the God's-eye view.

All the exile rebels were first marked as yellow neutral, then changed to blue marked units.

—Parthian Shot!

The barbarian mercenaries inside the wagon formation seemed to have some who wouldn't give up, looking out from the gaps in the wagon frames. As soon as they poked their heads out, they were killed instantly; a sharp arrow pierced through his leather helmet at an extremely tricky angle.

Truly a sharpshooter!

Now no one dared to question it; the barbarian mercenaries didn't dare to show their heads at all, and the morale of the surrounding exile rebels soared.

The enemy wouldn't show their heads.

If they didn't show their heads, Deng Ken had a way.

He rode his horse to a fifteen or sixteen-year-old boy. The boy's attire was ragged, like a slave, with a brand on his arm. His tattered clothes couldn't hide his back, which was covered in whip marks. The boy held a crude short spear, trembling as he looked at Deng Ken, who had stopped his horse in front of him.

"Give it to me." Deng Ken's tone was unquestionable.

The blue-marked slave boy didn't dare to resist at all, handing the short spear directly to Deng Ken.

Deng Ken weighed it and shouted forward: "Move aside!"

He accelerated his horse, startling the surrounding exile rebels into retreating in all directions. Then Deng Ken took a deep breath and fiercely threw the short spear in his hand like a javelin.

Ah!

A scream came from inside the wagon formation.

The javelin Deng Ken threw pierced through the enemy, killing a barbarian mercenary huddled inside.

Quadra-kill!

The exile rebels had besieged the wagon formation several times without killing many, but Deng Ken killed four in a row just by riding around. This combat power scared the barbarian mercenaries into shaken morale, and the nearby exile rebels looked up in fear, not daring to meet his gaze.

"Left and right, listen to my command!"

Deng Ken's shout was like a thunderclap on flat ground, scaring even Ke Weituo, who was not far away, into a shiver.

He had no doubt that on this battlefield, that sharpshooter with astonishing martial power could kill whoever he wanted. The other's presence made him think of the human heroes in myths and legends, or the god-favored warriors in barbarian stories.

A single shout!

Nearly a third of the exile rebels turned into green-marked units, and the slave boy before Deng Ken even subconsciously followed him.

—Exile Rebels (Undisciplined) (Low Morale) (Poorly Equipped) 【Peasant Mixed Unit】!

Who on earth is this?!

Ke Weituo's mind was in chaos. That lone rider entered the battlefield and started helping them, with astonishing martial power and unparalleled bravery, turning the situation around in an instant, restoring the low morale of the exile rebels, and making those barbarian mercenaries anxious and uneasy.

Hoofbeats echoed.

The exile rebels scattered to the left and right. Deng Ken rode through the crowd, approaching Ke Weituo directly, making his companions nervous.

"Are you their leader?"

A deep male voice filled with pressure rang out, making Ke Weituo feel that breathing was a bit difficult.

Who exactly is this person?

Ke Weituo gritted his teeth and looked up at the other's face. The moment their eyes met, he seemed to see heads rolling and a sea of blood spreading from the ground.

How many people has this man killed?

Ke Weituo only held on for a moment before being forced back by the man's sharp and ruthless gaze, subconsciously lowering his head: "Yes. My lord."

Deng Ken said in a low voice: "Listen to my command!"

"You lead your men to launch a fierce attack on the wagon formation from the right, and the others divide into two teams to besiege the front and back."

"Do you understand?!"

A violent shout!

Ke Weituo trembled all over, subconsciously responding: "Yes! Commander!"

In an instant.

Under the God's-eye view, all the exile rebels turned into green units. Seeing him obey orders, Ke Weituo's subordinates immediately took up their weapons and shields.

Not far away.

Four people, four horses.

Sai Weilu watched, dumbfounded, while the witch A Niya widened her beautiful eyes, her delicate body trembling slightly, not knowing what she was thinking, just staring fixedly at Deng Ken, who was alone on his horse in the distance. Although the Raven Queen, Te Lisi, had already seen Deng Ken's miraculous nature, she was also stunned in place, only her beautiful eyes filled with brilliant light.

In just a few minutes, those exile rebels seemed to have become Deng Ken's subordinates, following his orders to attack the wagon formation from three sides.

Surround three sides, leave one open!

Although they didn't know why Deng Ken gave such an order, this group of unorganized and undisciplined exile rebels followed it. They began to regroup in a messy way, launching a fierce attack on the wagon formation from three directions, but only one direction was left unattacked.

The wagon formation almost immediately fell into chaos.

Ke Weituo didn't know what had happened either; he just dizzily led his men up to launch a fierce attack on the wagon formation as before, but for some reason, the enemy's resistance this time wasn't as fierce, and they didn't even dare to face them head-on.

Soon, some people had already climbed over the wagon formation and were fighting hand-to-hand with those inside.

No.

Who exactly is that man?

Where am I? Why should I obey his orders?

Ke Weituo hacked a barbarian mercenary to the ground, still feeling dazed in his mind.

But soon, cheers from the exile rebels rang out.

Ke Weituo looked up and saw a sharp arrow pierce the air, killing a barbarian soldier wearing an iron helmet not far away. That was the enemy leader. The next second, these enemies began to rout, and several fierce barbarian mercenaries scrambled for horses, wanting to break out and escape from the direction where there were no enemies.

Once they fled, the entire barbarian mercenary group fell into chaos.

The wagon formation was breached on three sides.

The remaining enemies were all retreating toward the gap, and in the blink of an eye, several were hacked to the ground by random blades.

"We're winning just like this?" Ke Weituo felt his brain was even more muddled.

These barbarian mercenaries were well-equipped, their weapons and armor approaching those of the Imperial field army. In the previous fierce attacks, facing several times their number, they had hacked the exile rebels until they cried for their parents, causing no real threat to the enemy other than leaving behind a pile of their companions' corpses.

But this time, nearly half of the enemies were hacked down, the morale of the rest collapsed, and they formed a defensive line to save themselves. Some wanted to push the wagons aside to break out and flee, and those who had initially grabbed horses to escape had already run hundreds of meters away.

That man didn't order a pursuit either.

They couldn't catch up anyway; the exile rebels didn't have a single rider.

He continued to shoot arrows unhurriedly outside the battlefield, one arrow for one enemy. Every time he nocked an arrow, it drew cheers and shouts, and the morale of the exile rebels grew higher and higher.

At some point.

Deng Ken already had a long spear in his hand. He spurred his horse to leap, charging into the enemy formation.

—Cavalry Lance Charge!

Lightning and sparks, a lone rider breaking the formation!

The long spear in Deng Ken's hand thrust out, piercing straight through an enemy's body!

Then, this barbarian soldier, weighing nearly one hundred and fifty jin, was lifted up by him with one hand. With the spear handle tucked under his arm and the veins on his arm bulging, he let out a violent shout like a thunderclap, lifting the corpse above the height of the horse's head!

The warhorse neighed!

The entire battlefield was silent.

The long spear tucked under Deng Ken's arm made a cracking sound of being unable to bear the weight. When he threw the corpse he had lifted above the horse's head to the ground, the spear handle was already bent, the hardwood cracked; this spear was almost unusable.

In an instant, mountain-collapsing and sea-draining cheers and shouts rang out!

The exile rebels of barbarian origin roared to the sky, some even frantically beating their own chests, roaring as they pounced to hack down those enemies who were filled with terror and had no desire to fight.

The barbarian rebels on the left and right guarded Deng Ken's sides, like the chieftain's guard of the ancient Roman era. He drew his Oathkeeper and hacked open an enemy shield with one strike.

Blood sprayed!

The enemy's formation, which they were trying to use to save themselves, was instantly broken.

By the time Ke Weituo had chased for a long time and stopped to catch his breath and check the battlefield, exiles were already moving food and starting fires to cook.

"No."

"Where am I? Who am I?"

Ke Weituo's head was buzzing. When he had just hacked down a barbarian mercenary, he was hit on the head by the enemy's shield, and although he had blocked much of the attack, he was still a bit dizzy.

In the crowd.

Deng Ken ordered the exiles to clean up the battlefield with a blank expression, then had people start fires to cook, letting this group of starving rebel refugees have a full meal first.

It had only been about ten minutes.

The Raven Queen, Te Lisi, and her party watched as Deng Ken broke the army alone, intimidated the rebel leaders, commanded the left and right, surrounded three sides and left one open, and crushed the barbarian private mercenary group in one fierce attack. Then the entire battle was over.

Sai Weilu's eyes were as wide as copper bells, and the witch A Niya's face was flushed, her legs trembling slightly as she sat on her horse.

The Raven Queen, Te Lisi, also had her delicate body trembling slightly, staring at Deng Ken not far away, speechless for a long time.

"Have I been usurped?"

Ke Weituo's head finally cleared up a bit. The exile rebels around him looked at that man with full awe and reverence, and even his own subordinates couldn't help but follow that man, as if they were the personal guard protecting a general.

It must have been usurped.

Ke Weituo cut off the enemy's head, a habit from before, and then he realized there was no need for it.

The crowd gradually parted.

Surrounded by the exile rebels, that man rode over and stopped in front of Ke Weituo.

Their gazes met.

Subconsciously, Ke Weituo immediately stood at attention, looking like he was accepting an inspection by a commander.

The man nodded slightly and said in a deep voice: "Go eat."

"After eating, take people to transport the supplies back."

Ke Weituo said with full vigor: "Yes."

Not until the man rode away did he let out a long sigh of relief. He didn't know why, but he didn't have a single thought of resistance.

Nor did he dare to have one.

Who on earth is this?

In ten minutes, he had seized his military power and commanded the exile rebels to crush the enemy. The way those exiles looked at that man was as if they were looking up to a 'god-man'.

Yet he himself was also a bit afraid.

It was too terrifying!

There were more than three hundred exile rebels, but they only killed a dozen people; all the other enemies were slaughtered by that man.

At the fork in the road.

Deng Ken, not even out of breath, rode over calmly, nodded slightly toward the Raven Queen, Te Lisi, and said softly: "The town isn't safe either."

"We won't enter the city on this journey; we'll go to Britain from elsewhere."

After speaking, he glanced at those exiles and said: "These people know the surrounding environment; they can help us contact a fleet."

The Raven Queen, Te Lisi, was so intelligent that she understood Deng Ken's meaning immediately.

She scanned the exiles and said softly: "You make the decisions."

Deng Ken wanted to win them over.

Sai Weilu looked thoughtful, while the witch A Niya's beautiful eyes stared fixedly at him. Unfortunately, Deng Ken didn't even look at her twice; apart from his gaze initially falling on the Raven Queen, Te Lisi, he soon began to command the exiles to transport supplies.

The Raven Queen, Te Lisi, glanced at A Niya inadvertently, her expression calm, but her eyes narrowed slightly.

In the crowd.

Although they didn't know who that man was, he was now the leader of these exiles!

This is a chaotic world.

The strong are respected!

………………