Chapter 42

"Firearms?" Bai Lang was also in a dilemma; he had never considered charging head-on into a firearms unit's formation. The key was that at close range, firearms might actually pierce his defense—though he hadn't tried it, Bai Lang didn't want to test it. However, there was a problem: distance. According to his own estimate, within seventy paces he might not be able to block lead bullets; beyond fifty paces he definitely couldn't; but if it were a hundred paces, there should be no problem—though at that distance he'd hardly hit anything either.

But Bai Lang's steps didn't stop, for he was already within seventy paces; the enemy indeed couldn't wait to open fire—never mind the usual tactic of luring Ming firearms to fire from beyond a hundred paces, then discarding their guns in chaos before being swept away by Qing troops; even the Qing's own firearms troops were much the same, only slightly better. Firing at seventy paces, those hundred-plus firearms soldiers didn't hit a thing—fortunate Bai Lang was still half-crouched, shielding himself with his Purple Gold Halberd.

Then Bai Lang was overjoyed, striding forward in large steps toward the firearms troops—by now the firearms troops had fallen into disarray and started to flee; even the charging Niu Lu brandishing knives posed no threat, since they themselves wanted to run. Before him was the humanoid killing machine from storybooks, impervious to blades and spears—who would dare block it out of a love of life? Thus the cavalry went into action; this was the Gebu Xianchaha, elite Eight Banner cavalry in heavy armor mounted on warhorses, the combined weight of man and horse exceeding a thousand catties, shaking the earth as they charged at Bai Lang.

These troops were also clever, attacking in waves of three riders each, launching several waves of assault. Bai Lang likewise advanced to meet the cavalry charge, and the distance between them quickly closed.

At that moment, Ming soldiers on the city walls watched the battle; Bai Lang's charge scattered the Qing troops below the city, and those Ming soldiers quickly restored their line, while the General, standing on the watchtower, witnessed Bai Lang's valor. Everyone was speechless—such bravery simply shouldn't exist among mortals, though it appears more often in storybooks. "Quick! Quick! Quickly reinforce the other gates! The other gates are about to fall!" At that moment, the other gates also began sending urgent pleas for help.

Though Bai Lang possessed the courage of a tiger and a wolf, how could one man hold a city? Even with his divine strength and the Golden Bell Shield rendering blades useless, he would eventually be wounded—this power wasn't exaggerated beyond reason; if dozens of men armed with grappling hooks and flying claws managed to entangle him, Bai Lang would likely be in trouble. Yet as the cavalry charged, he swept his left Purple Gold Halberd aside, instantly deflecting the spear of the Gebu Xianchaha soldier; before the man could draw his saber, Bai Lang's right Purple Gold Halberd came crashing down upon his head.

Man and horse both shattered.

The cavalry, weighing over a thousand catties, was forcibly halted with both rider and horse; moreover, the horse's head and the rider's torso behind it were nearly smashed to pieces. Bai Lang stepped aside, thrusting his left Purple Gold Halberd forward, immediately impaling the rider to the right of the fallen cavalryman upon the halberd. The halberd tip resembled an armor-piercing cone, its four facets forming a slightly pointed tip; ordinarily it wouldn't prick the hand, but under his divine power it easily pierced the Gebu Xianchaha's double armor.

The cavalryman gushing blood was flung to the ground, basically dying in agony; the other cavalryman, having hit nothing and certainly not struck by Bai Lang, simply charged past. Before Bai Lang lay a fallen horse and a rider torn to pieces; the cavalry's charge trampling here would likely have to detour. Thus the second wave of cavalry was also knocked from their mounts, resulting in another two killed. The third wave halted its charge and instead fired heavy arrows from horseback—of course two arrows flew wide, and the remaining one was knocked down by Bai Lang's swing of his Purple Gold Halberd.

Bai Lang pressed forward, directly aiming at the several Qing commanders on horseback; the guard troops couldn't stop him, and whoever stood before him merely offered up their heads.

But it seemed someone had still come up with a plan; dozens rushed forward wielding grappling hooks, flying claws, and fishing nets, hoping to ensnare Bai Lang. Seeing this, Bai Lang turned and walked away—no one dared pursue. Some cavalry came at him with flying claws to hook; the moment they flew in, Bai Lang grabbed them, then dragged— not only were the men pulled from their saddles, but their horses toppled as well; meeting them head-on with a halberd strike, the men were mangled and Bai Lang was left with an extra horse.

"What a pity about the heads, and if I were to make a solo charge on horseback... well, I'll just make a rush." This fellow controlled the horse with his legs—having cultivated his martial arts to this level, he was simply that adept, his bodily control effortless; on horseback he could sense the sway of the saddle and adjust his posture accordingly. Wielding his double halberds, Bai Lang began to charge the formation; this thrust directly disrupted the Qing battle line. Bai Lang was highly skilled in martial arts, his vision and reflexes extraordinary; he directly lowered his body, crossing his halberds to block arrows aimed at the horse's body, then urged his warhorse straight into the enemy ranks.

Where the Purple Gold Halberd blocked, the spears aimed at the horse's body snapped and flew upward; then followed the reaping of lives—this man Bai Lang swatted away like a weed. "Retreat!" With that command, a long horn sounded, and the Qing troops began to swiftly withdraw from Yanzhou; facing Bai Lang, not a single soul dared come forward to retrieve the dead.

After the Qing troops before him retreated, Bai Lang rode his horse toward several other city gates, inflicting heavy casualties on the Qing there, leaving them with losses and hardly any gain. Later, some Ming troops also sortied from the city to pursue, but achieved little of note.

Aside from Yanzhou's main gate, all the other gates were breached; the Qing inside the city also set fire to many places, and had it not been for the retreat signal, the city might truly have fallen. Even so, over a thousand civilians perished within the city, Ming losses exceeded a thousand, and the commanders of several gates died in battle. However, the Prince Lu's mansion remained unharmed, and Prefect Deng did not fall in battle. Bai Lang likely slew over a hundred Qing soldiers—a lone rider on a single horse, a true hundred-man slayer.

He captured three abandoned Qing cannons, dozens of sets of armor, several warhorses and about a dozen packhorses, plus various supplies left behind by the Qing; most importantly, on the battlefield he severed seventy-three recognizable heads, many of which were genuine barbarians and of the Bayala tribe. When Bai Lang re-entered the city, the soldiers and civilians gazed upon him as if he were a deity—such a warrior is truly rare in the world.

Dismounting, Bai Lang bowed to the General and said, "I have not failed my mission; I have slain dozens of the Jianlu, thanks to everyone's planning and hard work, this Yanzhou city has been preserved." In his words, Bai Lang directly shifted the task of writing the battle report to the General and the Prefect elder. Who would overlook his achievements? A man of such caliber—how many like him appear in the histories? Perhaps one would have to look as far back as the Han, Tang, Southern and Northern Dynasties.

At this time, the Ming army awarded high merit for Jianlu heads; Bai Lang, though not entirely clear on the details, realized he might well obtain an official post. "He might even become a Qianhu? Perhaps even a Youji Canjiang."