Chapter 286: – Tiger Obsession

With a single breath he killed through an entire battle formation; before Bai Lang were bowmen frozen in terror and bowmen not frightened but fleeing wildly. He spurred his horse forward, swinging his iron halberd in a slash, cutting several bowmen into pieces; the fleeing ones even charged a second formation. Bai Lang laughed heartily, feeling proud, then reined his horse, trotted a few steps to let the horse catch its breath, and again trotted into the fray.

The horse was a massive warhorse hand‑picked by Bai Lang from the Flying Horse Ranch; it wasn't the fleet, spirit‑filled thousand‑li horse, but it could bear weight and wasn't slow. It weighed about nine hundred jin, and with Bai Lang's armor and halberd adding another two hundred fifty to sixty jin, the over‑thousand‑jin mass could charge at forty‑to‑fifty li per hour—ordinary troops could hardly form a formation to block it.

Moreover, Bai Lang thrust his long halberd forward from the horse's body, and the twin halberds, powered by his divine strength, were unstoppable; even a barbed deer‑stock fort was sliced open. His arm strength could hold, but the horse's stamina gave out. The warhorse snorted repeatedly; Bai Lang felt its legs weaken. "Hahaha, what a story for future tall‑pole cart‑pulling!" he thought, not intending to kill his own horse, and he flipped off the mount.

At that moment the cavalry that had followed Bai Lang into the formation charged in, brandishing weapons yet unable to kill a single man; infantry a little farther away were about to arrive. Bai Lang signaled the cavalry to take his warhorse, then leapt up, lunging into the spear formation. He shouted his own name, swung his long halberd to sweep aside the spears, then discarded the halberd and drew the iron hammer from his waist, smashing wildly.

The fight now required no set patterns; Bai Lang's dual‑hammer technique was unnecessary—enemies surrounded him on all sides, so he only needed to strike. The iron hammer in his hand was as thick as a duck egg, a four‑edged, conical hammer weighing about twenty jin; once swung it sent blood and bone fragments everywhere, any contact was fatal, even full armor could not stop it. Bai Lang hammered and thrust, and in the blink of an eye opened a bloody alley.

The fallen enemies around him were mutilated blood‑filled husks, most showing bizarre postures—some flattened, some twisted grotesquely; everywhere spilled entrails and bones, and Bai Lang's iron hammer was coated with blood, flesh, hair, even bone shards. His own body bore specks of blood and bits of torn skin clinging to his armor.

Bai Lang did not summon Internal Force qi to lift his body three inches to avoid the spray; he simply enjoyed the slaughter. This carnage shocked both sides: the soldiers of Wagang Stronghold's legs trembled as if wanting to flee, yet under the pressure of their commanders they temporarily held the formation. Pei Renji's side stared in disbelief—such a solo breach was unbelievably fierce. Have ancient warlords ever had such a monster? The troops' morale surged, but fear rose as well.

The soldiers behind Bai Lang caught up, so he raised his iron hammer with one hand and swung; the soldiers brandishing long spears charged with him—Bai Lang still led at the front, while the troops formed a line as best they could behind him.

Bai Lang, clad in Bright Light Armor, ran like the wind; ahead lay a knife‑and‑shield formation, interspersed with heavy bowmen. The bowmen fired at him, using powerful heavy arrows nearly a half‑person long, steel‑tipped like a spear, meant to pierce armor. The heavy bowmen seemed elite; they only released arrows when Bai Lang was within twenty steps, and the arrows swarmed like locusts, even forcing Bai Lang to pause briefly.

Some of the arrows carried Internal Force, allowing them to pierce armor. Bai Lang's qi surged, but it clung to his skin rather than projecting outward; his armor, though finely crafted, still could not stop all the armor‑piercing arrows. The arrows rang as they struck, penetrating the plates on his body; even with his iron hammer swinging, he could not avoid them—some were shot by divine archers, aimed directly at his hands.

The plates were pierced, but beneath them Bai Lang wore clothing, which after being pierced could not affect his flesh—Bai Lang had cultivated a Golden Bell Shield, essentially as protective as his armor. His skin was tough; even armor‑piercing arrows could not embed, only pressing in a few centimeters before bouncing out. Only the Internal Force‑imbued strong arrows could breach his protective qi, and even then they penetrated less than three centimeters of flesh; sometimes the wound was expelled by his muscles, sealing the bleeding.

Nevertheless it looked truly gruesome: Bai Lang's front was studded with arrows like a porcupine; he did not swing his iron hammer to block them, but crossed the two hammers to shield his face, even his back plates were pierced by a few arrows. Then, with a loud twang, a massive jet‑black iron arrow whistled through a gap and struck his Phoenix Wing Helm.

At that height, it likely pierced Bai Lang's skull…

Almost the entire forces on both sides let out an "oh"—not many actually saw, but it was a herd mentality. From Wagang Stronghold came ecstatic shouts; from Pei Renji's side, especially Bai Lang's county troops, came terrified cries. Bai Lang did not fall; he slowly lowered his hand, and the arena fell silent. He grabbed the iron arrow and, with a "clack", pulled it out of his helmet.

Bai Lang shook his head; no blood ran down his face. He clenched the iron arrow, snapped it cleanly with a thumb press. He tossed the broken arrow to the ground, flung the pierced Phoenix Wing Helm behind him, revealing his disheveled black hair. He let out a furious roar and charged again at the knife‑and‑shield formation. His shout prompted the county troops behind him to roar, and together with their county commander they surged toward the rebel formation.

The Wagang Stronghold rebels' morale plummeted, while Bai Lang kept roaring, "Who shot the old man? I'll find and behead you today! Come out! Get out!" He, covered in arrows, charged. The iron hammer had been planted in the ground when he drew an arrow, and Bai Lang didn't pull it out, fighting bare‑handed. As he surged, he found his arrow‑laden armor cumbersome, so he tore off the straps, letting the armor fall to the ground.

Bai Lang was half‑naked, his well‑developed muscles on display, and he charged forward like that…