Chapter 911

Thirty-some people followed Qifugu and charged out from the breach in the north of the camp.

This time there was no torrent of four thousand cavalry, no formation of vanguard, main force, and flanks, only thirty-some thin horses and pack horses found in the camp that hadn't been led away. The people on the horses were covered in blood, most of them even having their armor scattered. The curved sabers in their hands were either notched, broken, or simply broken sabers picked up from the ground.

Qifugu rode at the very front. That horse was untied from the horse post behind the royal tent; it was not a warhorse but a mule horse for pulling heavy loads, and its gait when running was uneven, but the force with which he kicked the horse's belly was as if he wanted to kick the beast's ribs to pieces.

On the northern wilderness, firelight was still burning in the direction of Yun Geti's connected camps. Those remnants of the Qifu tribe who were being divided and surrounded were still fighting everywhere, and the armored soldiers' square formations were crushing the last resistance forces between the tents.

Qifugu did not charge from the front.

He led these thirty-some riders to the western periphery of the connected camps. That was a transport channel between the supply camp and the forward camp, about a dozen steps wide, with alleys formed by tents and caltrops on both sides. It was usually the road for grain carts, but at this time, the defending troop strength had all been drawn to the front to surround and kill those large groups of the Qifu tribe that had charged in.

There were only sporadic patrols in the channel.

When Qifugu's mule horse charged into the channel, the first patrol hadn't even had time to raise his curved saber before he was hacked down to the ground by him. The horse's hooves trampled over that fallen body, emitting the crisp sound of bones breaking.

Thirty-some riders formed a short, swift iron flow in the channel, pouring fiercely toward the direction of the golden eagle banner deep in the connected camps.

The obstruction encountered in the channel was so thin it could be ignored. Three or five patrols were scattered, not even having a chance to fight back before being knocked over by the horses into the gaps between the tents on both sides of the channel.

The golden eagle banner was getting closer and closer.

The copper eagle head at the top of the flagpole gleamed with a dark yellow luster in the light of the few bonfires in the center of the connected camps. Beneath the banner was the silhouette of Yun Geti's main army tent. The main force of the three iron shield walls around the tent was currently surrounding and killing the batch of people Qifugu had previously charged in with, leaving only one side of the guard team facing the direction of the western channel.

One hundred men.

There were only one hundred men here.

When Qifugu's curved saber reached out from the channel, those one hundred guarding personal guards were currently changing formations, their formation scattering for half a beat in the process of changing from a column to a horizontal row.

The impact of the thirty-some riders was fully released in this half-beat gap.

The horses crashed into the horizontal row that hadn't yet closed. Qifugu's curved saber drew an arc in mid-air and hacked onto the shoulder of the first personal guard. A dent was hacked into the shoulder piece of the iron armor by his full-force blow, but it didn't crack. The curved saber bounced back from the shoulder armor, and the wound on his web of his thumb, which had been torn, surged with another burst of blood.

The second saber changed its angle and swept from bottom to top toward the armpit of that personal guard. The blade drilled into the gap between the armpit armor and the chest armor. When the personal guard's body tilted to the side, the blood foam sprayed from his mouth drifted onto Qifugu's face.

The people behind him followed him inward, thirty-some curved sabers hacking and slashing wildly within that horizontal row of one hundred men. Some hacked through, some didn't and were counter-killed. For every step they advanced, two or three people fell.

Yun Geti was just fifty steps away.

Qifugu saw him.

Yun Geti was riding on that black warhorse, with only a dozen personal guards by his side; the rest of the main force of personal guards had all been drawn to the front to clean up the remnants in the pocket formation.

Fifty steps.

Qifugu kicked the belly of that mule horse and charged out forward.

Yun Geti also saw him.

Those blood-red eyes locked onto Qifugu's blood-covered figure through the gaps in the chaotic battle. He turned his curved saber half a circle in his hand, and a confused curse issued from his throat.

"This mad dog isn't dead yet——stop him!"

A dozen personal guards met Qifugu's direction, and iron shields closed from both sides, wanting to block him outside of fifty steps.

When Qifugu's mule horse crashed into the iron shields, it finally couldn't hold on. The mule horse's sternum broke, its front legs snapped, and the whole horse fell forward. Qifugu's body flew out from the horse's back once again.

This time, the direction he flew out was directly facing Yun Geti.

His body smashed into the gap between two guards. The collision sound of iron armor squeezing against iron armor was like someone hammering an anvil. When he landed, his knees and elbow joints all knocked against the hard soil, the pain making his entire leg go numb, but he didn't let go of his curved saber.

He used the last bit of strength he could mobilize in his whole body to climb up from the ground. As he rose, he swept his curved saber horizontally toward the knee of the guard in front of him. The blade cut from the lower edge of the iron armor skirt into the tendon behind the knee that was not covered by armor. When the guard's body knelt forward, the gap in front of Yun Geti became two points larger.

Thirty steps.

Qifugu's left hand groped from the ground and found a short dagger that someone had dropped. With a curved saber in his right hand and a dagger in his left, he squeezed into that gap.

Twenty steps.

"Shoot him!" Yun Geti's voice came down from the horse with a clear sense of urgency.

The sound of bowstrings rang out from both sides—not one bow, but five or six bows pulled open and shot simultaneously.

The first arrow flew over from the right and shot into the armor seam on Qifugu's right shoulder, the tail feathers of the arrow shaft still buzzing and vibrating. The second arrow followed closely and pierced into the outer side of his left thigh, penetrating the leather armor and muscle, with half the arrowhead showing on the other side. The third arrow shot onto the front of the iron armor on his chest and was deflected, leaving only a white mark.

He did not stop.

Fifteen steps.

The fourth arrow shot over from the front and pierced into his abdomen, the arrowhead penetrating two fingers below the navel. The angle of the arrow shaft's entry was slanted, meaning the arrowhead had pierced something inside his stomach. A warm liquid surged from the arrow wound; it wasn't the color of blood, but something darker and more turbid.

He still did not stop.

Ten steps.

The curved saber slipped out of his right hand—not because he let go, but because the wound on his palm and the blood had soaked the handle until it was too slippery to hold. The saber turned a circle in the air and flew out toward Yun Geti's direction.

That curved saber didn't fly onto Yun Geti; it was blocked by a guard with an iron shield, deflecting its direction. The blade brushed past the side of Yun Geti's face.

As it brushed past, it cut a shallow gash on Yun Geti's right cheek. Beads of blood emerged from that shallow gash and flowed down his jaw, dripping two drops.

Yun Geti's complexion changed the moment he was cut, turning from anger into a kind of near-uncontrollable fury. When his hand touched his cheek and felt that line of blood beads, his whole body was trembling.

"Kill him, smash his corpse into ten thousand pieces!"

Yun Geti covered his cheek, blood still seeping from between his fingers. He roared at the guards surrounding him: "What are you still stunned for? Hack him, bring his head to this Khan!"

"Protect the Khan!"

"Don't let this mad dog get close!"

The guards surrounded him from all sides, iron shields pressing over one after another. Qifugu had four arrows stuck in his body, his left hand still gripping the dagger. He dragged his arrow-pierced leg and charged out two more steps.

"Yun Geti, what are you hiding for!"

"Stop him, stop him!"

The nearest guard raised his shield to protect his face. Qifugu passed the dagger into the inner side of the shield edge. The tip of the blade brushed past the man's cheekbone, leaving only a white mark, and was immediately slapped away by a shield from the side.

"His saber is gone!"

"Pin him down!"

"Who dares to touch me!"

Qifugu still wanted to squeeze forward, but Batu had already circled behind him. The curved saber slashed diagonally down from the back of his neck, splitting the broken iron armor fragments, cutting all the way to the position of the left shoulder blade.

The blade hit the spine. Qifugu fell forward, his limbs no longer able to exert any strength, smashing face-down into the mud, his mouth still squeezing out a few confused words.

"Yun Geti…… you won't live long either……"

Batu stepped forward, the second saber blow landing on his lower back, the third saber blow landing on the back of his head. The guard beside him raised his saber to follow up with a hack, but was stopped by Batu's shout.

"All retreat; the Khan wants his head."

Qifugu twitched a few times in the mud, the four arrow shafts tilting in different directions. The arrow in his abdomen was snapped in half by his body, and black liquid surged from the break.

A guard asked: "General, is he still alive?"

"The spine is broken; he can't live."

"Then chop him to pieces and send him before the Khan's tent."

"The Khan said he wants to see the head first."

Batu bent down and grabbed the hair on the back of Qifugu's head, lifting that head covered in mud and blood slightly, and hacked three times in succession along the wound on the back of the neck with his curved saber.

The muscles and tendons snapped, the head separated from the neck, still carrying a piece of broken bone. The break surged with blood twice, then quickly slowed down.

Batu lifted the head and stood up, saying to Yun Geti: "Khan, Qifugu is dead."

Yun Geti was riding on the black horse, his palm still covering his cheek. That shallow gash made his breathing thick and hurried. He stared at that head and asked: "Did you see clearly?"

"This subordinate cut it off with my own hands; there will be no mistake."

"Raise it higher, let all those rebels see."

Batu raised the head to his shoulder. Yun Geti raised his hand to point at the great banner behind him, his voice already hoarse from shouting.

"Hang this dog head on the flagpole, let everyone see clearly the end of rebelling against this Khan!"

"Bring a great spear, tie the head securely!"

"General, is it okay to tie it under the spear tip?"

"Tie it tighter, raise it once in all four directions. Whoever is still holding a weapon, kill them immediately."

Several guards used leather ropes to tie Qifugu's head onto the spear shaft. One person raised the spear shaft, and the other two raised their voices to shout toward the places still in battle.

"Qifugu is already dead!"

"Your leader has been beheaded by the Khan. Those who put down their weapons kneel to be bound; those who continue to resist will not be spared!"

"Raise it higher, call for the people in the west to see too!"

"See clearly, this is Qifugu's head!"

The sporadic resistance on the battlefield quickly dispersed. Some threw their sabers and knelt down, some turned and ran south, and some were caught up by armored soldiers after running only a few steps, hacked down into the mud from behind.

"Don't kill me, I put down my saber!"

"Kneel down, hold your head with both hands!"

"Someone ran south, should we chase?"

"Deal with these in front first, don't scatter the formation!"

Yun Geti dismounted, and a personal guard brought a copper mirror to his side, saying carefully: "Khan, the wound is not deep; after washing it clean, apply medicine."

"Bring the mirror closer."

"Khan, it only sliced a layer of skin and flesh, not damaging the bone."

"This Khan told you to bring it closer, can't you hear?"

The personal guard moved the copper mirror forward. The mirror surface reflected the thin, long gash on Yun Geti's right cheek. The crooked bloodstain remained on his face, the trace of the saber tip's path clearly visible.

"This is also called not deep?"

"This subordinate spoke wrongly, please punish me, Khan."

"Qifugu could still hurt this Khan from ten steps away, and you dozen people couldn't stop one dying man. You still dare to say it's just a skin wound?"

"Khan, calm your anger, this subordinate and others were ineffective in protection."

Yun Geti threw the copper mirror into the mud, the copper piece bouncing twice. The surrounding personal guards all lowered their heads, no one daring to look at his face again.

Batu stood to the side, the blood on his curved saber dripping down along the tip. He waited for Yun Geti to finish scolding before opening his mouth to report.

"Khan, Qifugu's personal guards made a final charge at the western guarding personal guards; there were over sixty casualties there."

"Over sixty people, couldn't hold off thirty-some mule horses?"

"They were changing from a column to a horizontal row, the formation hadn't closed, and Qifugu led people to crash into the gap."

"Continue, this Khan doesn't want to hear only about these sixty people."

"Including the consumption in the pocket formation at the front, the personal guard camp has suffered over three hundred losses; the detailed numbers still need to wait for each team to report."

"Three hundred personal guards in exchange for one dog head of Qifugu."

Batu did not reply, only letting his curved saber hang to his side.

Yun Geti turned to look at him, his palm stained with another layer of blood flowing from his cheek.

"Why, do you think it's not worth it?"

"This subordinate is only responsible for reporting the numbers."

"You certainly know how to speak."

"If the Khan asks this subordinate, Qifugu had to die. If he lived, the Qifu tribe would not scatter. But the personal guard camp losing three hundred is also a real number."

Yun Geti raised his foot to kick away the copper mirror fragments in the mud, turned, and walked toward the main tent, walking five steps before turning back to instruct.

"Count them. Before dawn, report all battle damage numbers; not a single one is allowed to be missed."

"This subordinate obeys."

"Count the captives clearly too. Those who dare to hide weapons are to be killed on the spot; those who threw away their weapons are to be concentrated and guarded."

"How to dispose of the corpses?"

"First identify the people of each tribe, talk about it after dawn. Tonight, first clean the camp clean."

Batu turned and walked toward the battlefield. A messenger covered in gray ran toward him, reporting urgently as soon as he reached him.

"General, there is an urgent report from the southern perimeter outpost."

"Speak clearly, where did something happen?"

"The people in the Qifu tribe camp are all running south. There are old, weak, women, and children, and also remnants who have lost their weapons. The number exceeds ten thousand, and the direction is the Great Zhou border."

"How far have they run?"

"The people at the very front can't be seen, and the ones behind are still ten-some miles outside the camp. The line is dragged too long, and the outpost didn't dare to intercept without authorization."

"How many weapons do they still have in their hands?"

"There might be people hiding sabers among the remnants, but most are empty-handed. The herdsmen are only driving livestock, and the old and children are also mixed in."

Batu asked toward the direction of the main tent: "Khan, chase or not?"

Yun Geti hadn't walked far. Hearing the report, he stopped his footsteps and replied through the personal guards.

"Don't chase, let them run."

The messenger didn't understand, asking again: "Khan, not even chasing those remnants?"

"Is what this Khan said not clear enough?"

"This subordinate doesn't dare, but the number exceeds ten thousand. If they gather again after reaching the border……"

"What will they gather with? With old people and children, or with empty stomachs?"

Yun Geti put down the hand covering his face. The bloodstain had already dragged from his cheekbone to his jaw.

"Let them run to Great Zhou, to be a burden for Great Zhou, to eat Great Zhou's grain. This Khan's saber only hacks those who hold sabers."

Batu received the order and waved at the messenger.

"Order all units, not allowed to pursue the southward-fleeing herdsmen. If you discover remnants hiding sabers, don't leave your formation without authorization. Concentrate on cleaning up the remaining resistance in the camp."

"What if someone turns back to charge the camp?"

"If they turn back with sabers, kill them. If they only care about fleeing south, let them go. Outposts along the way are not allowed to rob livestock, not allowed to disturb the main group."

"This subordinate will go to pass the order now."

"Also tell the outposts in the south to record the numbers and destinations, and report them to me together at dawn."

After the messenger ran away, a deputy general brought two squad leaders over to report the numbers.

"General, the east side has been cleared, captured over four hundred people."

"There are still two places on the west side where people are resisting, the number is less than one hundred."

"Don't fill in personal guards anymore, mobilize iron shield soldiers to surround them, first call for surrender."

"What if they don't surrender?"

"Resolve it before dawn, don't let a single one out."

Near dawn, the last shouting and killing stopped. The military clerk responsible for counting held a blood-stained register and came before Batu.

"General, the camp has been cleared, can report the numbers."

"Report the Qifu tribe first."

"Four thousand dare-to-die troops plus those in the camp who didn't manage to flee south, the dead exceed three thousand. The remaining one thousand-plus people are mostly wounded and have already been disarmed and locked in the empty space on the north side."

"Is the guard enough?"

"Iron shield soldiers have surrounded a circle, archers are guarding the four corners, the captives don't dare to move recklessly."

"Report our army."

"The total losses of all units are close to two thousand, the personal guard camp has over three hundred dead and wounded, the western guarding personal guards suffered the heaviest losses."

Batu received the register and looked at it for a moment, raising his hand to point at one of the columns.

"Why is this empty?"

"The people chasing and killing remnants in the south haven't returned yet."

"The Khan has already ordered not to chase, send someone to call them back, and fill in the missing numbers."

When the daylight turned white, there was still a black stream of people on the southern horizon, dragging nearly ten miles from front to back. The front end could no longer be seen, and the people behind were still stumbling along ten-some miles south of the camp.

The outpost returned to report: "General, there are tens of thousands of southward-fleeing people, dragging their families along. Those who can drive livestock drive livestock, and those who have nothing walk south on foot."

"Is the direction confirmed?"

"Confirmed, they are going to the Xia Prefecture border. The crying and shouting can be heard from miles away, and there is no sign of the group turning back."

"Three days later, on the horizon north of Xia Prefecture City, someone will see this black line."

Batu closed the battle damage register and took one last look toward the south.

"By then, whose grain these people eat will no longer be our concern."