Chapter 25: Chapter Twenty-Four: Single Rider Breaks the Enemy! Sword Cuts the Arrow!

Valkyrie?

Valkyrie? A member of the Norse pantheon?

This discovery made Deng Ken’s face turn pale—more shocking than the last time he saw an ice dragon in the causal inference.

Ordinary humans seemed unable to see this Valkyrie.

She paid no attention to anyone else on the battlefield, ignoring the corpses of common soldiers and even those who had died believing in monotheism. Her gaze fell only on elite units among the Germanic barbarians—at least a one-star combat unit—to barely catch the attention of this winged, silver-helmed Valkyrie.

Not those killed while fleeing.

Must be Germanic barbarian warriors who fought bravely head-on, fearless of terror, and worshipped the polytheistic Norse pantheon.

Even if they died because they charged too recklessly and were surrounded, it didn’t matter.

As long as they were strong enough and brave enough, the Valkyrie would awaken them from the battlefield and carry them away in invisible soul form, vanishing into the air.

“Valhalla?”

Deng Ken instantly connected this to many things, including his own initial form in the causal inference—the Monster Hunter—Deng Ken [Lower Eidolon].

He suddenly realized: if in 394 AD, the sacred fire of Olympus went out and the doors of the Pantheon closed, marking the official demise of the ancient Greek and Roman pantheons, then in this era, there remained one polytheistic faction that the Church had not yet destroyed.

—The Norse pantheon.

They took root among the Germanic barbarians and began large-scale invasions of the Roman Empire around 400 AD, inflicting irreversible damage on an empire already “fully Christianized.”

This timing seems significant.

Shortly after the fall of the ancient Greek and Roman pantheons, Germanic barbarians from Scandinavia began their invasions, one wave after another crashing against Roman borders.

The Huns’ western campaign was not the sole cause.

“And then came the Viking invasions...”

“Scandinavia’s most brutal Norse tribes began attacking and raiding Europe—they shouted Odin’s name and plundered coastal regions aboard dragon-headed longships.”

Does this mean the war of faith between monotheism and polytheism is not yet over?

The Roman Empire is about to fall.

The Church destroyed the ancient Greek and Roman pantheons, but the Norse pantheon still has strength to fight?

Barbarian invasions?

Does this represent a Norse counteroffensive?

In this late mythic age, where supernatural power is severely restricted, even gods must use other means to influence ordinary mortals and determine the final victory of faith?

Deng Ken did not know whether the ancient Greek and Roman gods were dead; the Crow Queen—Tris only said they abandoned their priests.

It was like the mythological games he played in his past life: a pantheon’s faction was destroyed in the real world, its worship and sacrifices severed, leaving it with almost no influence in reality.

The apostate—Julian could be seen as the emperor supporting the “restoration of the ancient Greek and Roman pantheons,” but after the emperor’s sudden death, the coffin lid was slammed shut again.

The Church’s purge of heretics and remnants was meant to nail that lid shut and press a cross upon it.

This was the second supernatural unit Deng Ken had seen marked as “three-star gold”—the Norse Valkyrie, the female warrior. The previous three-star gold unit was the Demon Hunter—George, a figure from Church mythology, whose tale “Saint George Slaying the Dragon” had endured into the twenty-first century.

“It seems mythological figures aren’t overwhelmingly powerful.”

Three-star gold.

Can fight, can break defense, but I’ll likely die instantly.

Deng Ken still couldn’t fully grasp this world’s supernatural system, but based on current clues, the supernatural power of the medieval era was roughly at the level of Middle-earth’s Lord of the Rings.

The Crow Queen—Tris’s usual strength might not even match that of a Maia’s mortal incarnation.

As for the Dark Lord—Sauron, the Elven Queen—Galadriel, the Elven Lord—Elrond, Deng Ken had yet to encounter any beings this powerful.

The Crow Queen—Tris would lose a close combat match against Gandalf; she’d likely be crushed by him. But her spellcasting might be slightly stronger.

After all, when she went berserk during a divine descent, the supernatural power she displayed approached the instant-killing might of the Elven Queen—Galadriel against orc champions.

At that time, the Crow Queen—Tris had tapped into a sliver of divine power; the ancient altar stone granted her temporary access to part of her mythic-era strength.

Whether Beowulf or King Arthur, legendary figures likely weren’t stronger than the Fellowship of the Ring. (Using the Elven Prince as a benchmark. So far, the strongest enemy he’d faced was roughly 0.5 Elven Prince.)

After all, Beowulf died after slaying the dragon.

The most terrifying supernatural force Deng Ken had witnessed so far was the Crow Queen—Tris’s berserk outburst.

“Did Severus suddenly gain strength?”

“Did entering the Celtic mythic territory restore his spellcasting ability? Did he regain the power to speak with animals?”

“Maybe he can shapeshift too?”

Deng Ken had many questions, but he felt the fog shrouding the world was slowly lifting—he was seeing more clearly the hidden truths of this world.

“The Holy Grail exists.”

“Then other holy relics—like the Spear of Longinus—must also be real.”

“Better to stay low and develop quietly; the Empire’s waters run far too deep.”

Deng Ken now wanted to know whether mythological beings could descend into the mortal realm. He knew the Church had saints named with “Saint.”

Among the Norse pantheon, besides Beowulf, he hadn’t heard of any other powerful legendary figures.

“Britain will be my foothold in this world.”

“There’s no better place.”

Since his Chuanyue , Deng Ken had crossed half of Europe and finally glimpsed a sliver of the world’s truth.

On the battlefield.

The situation matched Deng Ken’s prediction: Duke Tintagel’s army quickly collapsed.

His auxiliary troops were too numerous, too varied, and too weak.

The Canti, still clinging to tribal traditions, had low organization. The Saxon war cries alone shattered their morale. He lacked the Mongols’ skill in managing vassal armies, and his own vassals ended up trampling his formation into chaos.

“His only chance was to order his central forces to cut down the fleeing troops the moment the Canti broke.”

Battlefield conditions changed in an instant.

The center must not break!

Whoever it was—even a friend—if they broke into the central line, kill them all.

He could have had a slim chance if he’d acted decisively then, but he tried to regroup the remnants.

Now, there was no chance left.

The center was in chaos.

Both flanks collapsed under the charge of Saxon elite axe-men, who drove the fleeing troops into the main line, throwing the Britons’ command into total disarray.

“Follow me!”

A roar split the battlefield—the Saxon chieftain’s guard charged, followed by dozens of noble barbarian cavalry. Don’t be fooled by stories of armies numbering in the thousands; in reality, a charge of a hundred cavalry was terrifying enough.

The most spectacular moment in the Battle of the Pelennor Fields in Lord of the Rings involved only six thousand Rohan cavalry.

Anyone who’s played realistic battlefield games knows: four hundred cavalry charging creates a terrifying spectacle. Imagine a cavalry force of a thousand—riders cover the entire battlefield.

That’s why ancient history is full of mighty generals who routed tenfold enemies with just a few hundred cavalry.

At this moment, the Roman proverb applied: “The die is cast.”

Whether the Hun Empire or the Mongol Empire, when the final heavy cavalry entered the field, the fate of the battle was sealed.

The Germanic barbarians were ferocious.

The Goths were one branch of the Eastern Germanic tribes; several of their chieftains and kings died on the battlefield during charges.

Among current Germanic barbarians, the Franks and Saxons were also in the top tier.

A single charge!

Like a storm tearing through dry grass!

The Saxon chieftain’s guard smashed straight through the Britons’ right flank in a wedge formation—a triangular spearhead like a knife, the final straw that broke the camel’s back.

A thunder of hooves.

In the center of the battlefield, men pressed shoulder to shoulder, visibility nonexistent. The Britons could only hear the thunder of cavalry—the charge of over a hundred heavy riders felt like a boiling cauldron overturned.

Only Duke Tintagel’s personal guard and the Briton legion modeled after the imperial field army could barely resist.

Aside from elite heavy infantry, no other foot troops could stand against them!

Spearmen could somewhat counter cavalry, but in truth, they couldn’t stop them. Without mobility, only heavy infantry could hold a charge. Whether they were spearmen or not mattered little—the initial damage was just greater.

If spearmen truly countered cavalry, the Central Plains dynasties could field a hundred thousand spearmen as easily as playing a game. (Only the top-tier heavy infantry—like Han’s Shock Troops, Tang’s Modaobing , Song’s Beiwei Army—could fight cavalry.)

Once heavy cavalry charged, they became runaway mud trucks.

—Saxon Chieftain’s Guard (Heavy Cavalry) (High Morale) (Decisive Moment)!

At this moment.

Duke Tintagel hesitated. He didn’t immediately lead his bodyguard to charge. By the time he reacted, the entire battlefield had turned into a one-sided rout.

Heavy cavalry charged directly into battle only under one condition.

Both sides had fought for a long time.

The infantry’s stamina and energy were greatly depleted (exhausted).

The enemy’s line showed clear weaknesses. Heavy cavalry, leveraging their high mobility, seized the fleeting moment and delivered the final blow!

That hammer blow shattered the entire battlefield.

Since ancient times.

Heavy cavalry had always been the final decisive weapon on a local battlefield. Their exorbitant cost forced every general to use them with extreme caution.

Losing thousands of heavy cavalry in one battle could bring a regional superpower to the brink of collapse.

During the Mongol Empire’s western conquests across Eurasia, when Mongol heavy cavalry appeared, it was almost always the final move to decide victory or defeat.

The die is cast!

The Saxon chieftain’s guard pierced straight through the flank, with over a dozen cavalrymen guarding their leader, ready to die for him at any moment.

The chieftain’s elite guard of the barbarians—those were truly men who would die for their lord!

Not just these men—even during the battle of the exiled rebels, the barbarian rebel forces inspired by Deng Ken had fiercely shielded him on both sides with their own bodies.

A roar of celebration rose like mountain collapsing and sea surging!

In the instant Dingtajir’s personal guard made contact, several riders fell from their mounts; chaos erupted as a dozen knightly guards fought desperately to break the encirclement and protect him, abandoning the British legion on the battlefield and retreating toward the forest’s rear.

With the general’s personal guard shattered, the battlefield instantly became a one-sided massacre.

The British legion collapsed in disarray, dying in droves as they were hunted down!

“Something’s happening.”

The Crow Queen—Tris suddenly said: “The Britons seem to be losing!”

The Saxon chieftain’s guard clung tightly to their heels, seemingly intent on slaying Dingtajir outright.

“Is he going to die here?”

“If so, has King Uther, with Merlin’s help, already taken his form and slept with his wife?”

Deng Ken’s expression shifted; he said directly: “Stay here and wait for me.”

But this time, the situation was different.

Severus shook his head slightly: “I’m coming with you.”

Deng Ken realized he had regained his combat capability and gave a slight nod.

The Crow Queen—Tris fixed her gaze on Deng Ken and said firmly: “I’ve recovered considerably during this time—I can lend you a hand!”

This was the island of Britain.

Here, many supernatural beings still existed; she did not doubt Deng Ken’s personal strength, but feared encountering other supernatural entities.

Could they establish themselves in this world?

Could they change history?

Deng Ken wanted to know if he could save this “fated man doomed to die.”

Dingtajir fled in disarray under the protection of his personal guard; only the barbarian chieftain’s guard pursued him, and their numbers were few—Deng Ken was confident he could win this fight.

He had never fully trusted King Uther, who had slaughtered wizards.

The Crow Queen—Tris had little confidence in seeking Merlin’s aid, but he was one of the greatest seers of the age.

That ice island was left as an escape route for the Norse pantheon; she was essentially plucking teeth from a tiger’s mouth. (As a forward base, it could be used to develop Greenland.)

“Let’s go!”

“Enter the great event of history!”

“As long as Dingtajir lives, his power struggle with Uther isn’t over. As an outsider, if I want to take root in Britain, I must find opportunity amid the chaos.”

“If Uther seizes complete power, it will be far harder for me to rise!”

From my own interests.

Deng Ken didn’t want a king who unified Britain—he wanted fractured warlords. Uther must never hold absolute power.

Kill!

Deng Ken’s figure gradually neared the battlefield’s edge; Dingtajir’s personal guard, fleeing in panic, were drawing ever closer.

Arrows pierced the air.

Deng Ken fired a forty-five-degree arc shot, knocking a Saxon rider from his mount as he charged into the woods; the forest hindered shooting, but his archery was skilled enough, and his touch was excellent.

Master-level combat skill was the beginning of transformation.

—Call mount.

A whistle rang out; a riderless warhorse galloped toward him.

One kill!

Severus moved swiftly, uttering an ancient whisper; the enemy’s warhorses suddenly grew unresponsive, bolting toward him, then rearing violently, neighing in panic as the Saxon rider nearly tumbled off.

The warhorses were out of control.

The druid’s supernatural power had affected them.

Severus leapt forward, smashing his hammer to knock the rider down, then crushed his skull with a second blow, swiftly mounting the horse.

Spending time with Deng Ken, he’d grown fond of headshots.

He’d truly become an elite unit!

Severus had used some peculiar supernatural ability to influence the enemy’s warhorses and seize and tame them.

Druids were still druids.

Arrows flew from the Crow Queen—Tris’s hands; the witch—Anya caused the horses to panic; the two witches working together threw a small cavalry unit into disarray.

—Parthian shot!

Two kills!

Deng Ken loosed an arrow, felling a chieftain’s guard; the Crow Queen—Tris mounted her horse, still had enough strength to take the female slave behind her; the slave rarely spoke, born with a stutter, had little presence on the journey, merely serving the two witches.

Only then did the Saxon riders react in panic; Deng Ken turned, drew his bow, and fired two rapid shots, killing another enemy.

Three kills!

“Watch out!”

“It’s a master archer!” The Saxon riders were thrown into chaos.

At that moment, the witch—Anya murmured softly, as if summoning; riderless warhorses came to her side. She rode well and mounted swiftly to follow.

Five in total.

After Severus regained his strength, they finally looked like a true elite squad.

Deng Ken led the charge!

He burst from the woods, intercepting the chieftain’s guard pursuing Dingtajir; these men were strong, all one-star units, two of them marked as two-star—labeled Saxon elite noble cavalry.

“Reinforcements?”

Someone in Dingtajir’s guard noticed, but they saw only one man; their expressions hesitated, and they kept fleeing.

Deng Ken rode alone into the fray!

The other four seized horses and retreated along the forest edge; the witches sought opportunities to cast ranged spells in support.

Their close combat ability was poor; their riding skills were inadequate.

—Parthian shot!

Deng Ken drew his bow from horseback, spun 180 degrees, and fired a backshot, felling another—but the enemy wore heavy armor; the arrow didn’t pierce, only wounded him and knocked him from his mount.

Heavy cavalry equipment was too good.

The northern warbow lacked sufficient power; his strength kept growing—he urgently needed a legendary-tier warbow.

The others gradually caught up.

The Crow Queen—Tris whispered and chanted from over a hundred meters away; a commotion among the warhorses disrupted the enemy formation, but their riding skill was high—no one fell.

Her spells seemed to require distance; otherwise their power weakened.

The incantation stirred a wind of magic.

On the battlefield.

The Valkyrie, who had just claimed two warrior souls, turned swiftly, gazing directly toward the Crow Queen—Tris.

But she took no action, remaining neutral.

Her presence was invisible to the naked eye, seemingly not belonging to the material plane—like a ghost trailing behind everyone, even pausing to take the soul of a chieftain’s guard Deng Ken had slain.

For a moment.

It seemed she had formed some unspoken understanding with Deng Ken.

He slaughtered ahead; she collected souls behind—acting with perfect diligence.

“Do Valkyries truly exist—or not?”

Only Deng Ken’s god’s-eye view could perceive the Valkyrie; even the Crow Queen—Tris sensed nothing.

Even with the god’s-eye view, she appeared as a semi-transparent spirit.

—Parthian shot!

Four kills!

The Saxon chieftain’s guard finally sensed something was wrong.

Several drew their warbows and fired toward Deng Ken; the Saxon forest hunters were formidable archers, among the strongest in the land, and noble cavalry also practiced mounted archery.

Another small group of enemies circled the hill to flank and intercept the fleeing Dingtajir guards.

Clang!

An unbelievable scene unfolded on the battlefield.

Deng Ken instantly drew his sword; the Oathkeeper became a blur, cleaving the incoming arrows in half!

Single rider breaks the enemy line—sword cuts arrows!

This stunned the Saxon noble cavalry into halting, unwilling to advance.

Was this even human?

Unlike the Crow Queen—Tris’s magic, which subtly deflected arrows as if they’d gone astray, Deng Ken had purely relied on physical prowess and supreme combat skill to slash the arrows from the air.

This was even more terrifying!

This sight.

Even startled the Valkyrie, hovering like a spirit in midair; beneath her bird-winged silver helm, her eyes turned toward Deng Ken, her expression slightly astonished.

Clearly.

The shock Deng Ken now inflicted upon the barbarian noble cavalry rivaled the immense pressure the Hermitage’s Sanctum once imposed on him. This extraordinary ability depended entirely on comprehensive combat skill—and Deng Ken’s overall combat skill far surpassed that of the Hermitage’s Sanctum.

Too strong!

Deng Ken alone forced back more than ten cavalrymen, terrifying them into halting their pursuit.

On the other side, Duke Dingtajir’s Personal Guard clashed with the Saxon noble cavalry taking a shortcut; after a brief close-quarters charge, several more fell from their mounts.

“You stay and hold the rear.”

Several Personal Guard cavalrymen grim-faced, without hesitation turned their horses to face death.

——Bloodaxe-Nidlong (Two-Star Silver-Grey) (Elite Chief’s Guard) 【Thor’s Warrior】.

A ferocious, massive barbarian warrior, reeking of alcohol, broke through the lines.

He beheaded the front-line Personal Guard cavalryman with one axe swing; unlike others, he wielded a two-handed battle-axe while mounted, his strength astonishing. After slaying two more, he was stabbed in the back, roared in fury, drove back his attackers, then charged back into the fray to rejoin the other barbarian riders.

This guy’s physical resilience is incredible—he acts like he’s not even wounded!

He cut through the enemy ranks and back again.

Deng Ken had now caught up; his bow drawn taut, arrows pierced the air, three shots fired in rapid succession, killing another barbarian noble cavalryman outright.

Five kills!

He might want to consider learning from Mongol horsemen—one quiver of light arrows for ranged, one of heavy arrows to pierce armor.

——Barbarian Chief’s Guard (Morale Shaken) (Light Casualties) (Facing Strong Opponent)!

At this moment, movement came from behind.

The two detached cavalry units merged, but did not press forward.

The distance had already widened.

Only light cavalry could pursue, but light cavalry chasing Deng Ken was pure suicide.

Sound the gong—recall the troops.

The pursuing barbarian cavalrymen were reluctant, but still withdrew, preparing to continue slaughtering the fleeing remnants.

They were the barbarians’ true core—losing even one pained them deeply.

Had Deng Ken not held back that group of over ten cavalrymen, the flanking maneuvers and frontal assault would have slain Duke Dingtajir as he fled in panic.

There were too many enemies.

Deng Ken could only fight and retreat slowly, wearing them down with a kite-fighting tactic; his horsemanship was superb—he feared no pursuit.

Heavy cavalry could not catch him; light cavalry chasing him would die.

Deng Ken’s greatest fear right now was supernatural power—but fortunately, he was accompanied by a Druid and two witches.

The Valkyrie’s figure halted.

Beneath her bird-winged silver helm, her eyes glanced far at Deng Ken, then vanished with the soul of the barbarian warrior she had just slain.

In this battle, nearly half the souls she claimed were killed by Deng Ken’s arrows.

Today’s Hall of Heroes’ tally rests entirely on Deng Ken’s bloody slaughter.

At the battlefield’s edge.

Duke Dingtajir did not pause to thank anyone; he kept galloping under his Personal Guard’s escort, fleeing over ten miles before finally slowing and sending men to invite those who had saved his life to come forward and express their gratitude.

Duke Dingtajir had lost his helmet, revealing a middle-aged face, thirty to forty years old, strikingly martial—but marked only as a One-Star Blank Unit.

His Personal Guard cavalry had been decimated; only about ten escaped alive.

Total defeat!

This battle was a crushing defeat—Duke Dingtajir had nearly wiped out his entire personal force.

Deng Ken stared at Duke Dingtajir, now visibly shaken and anxious from the defeat, and suddenly a thought surfaced in his mind.

That was: become a mercenary.

Find a way to bring the exiled rebel forces from Gaul over, and establish roots on the Isle of Britannia under the banner of mercenaries.

No one needed a powerful mercenary force more than the defeated Duke Dingtajir!

………………