Chapter 345: Terror

In Cao Cao's central army, harrowing screams were deafening. The ground was littered with dead and wounded roving bandits. Luo Rucai, wearing a gray arrow coat and drenched in sweat, stood twenty paces from the giant Cao Cao red banner, sheltering behind a group of servants.

You Lihua came running over in a fluster, his face covered in sweat. Just as he was about to speak, a volley of cannon fire erupted from the opposite side. Several shells struck nearby, thudding heavily against the ground. You Lihua was so frightened he crouched down on the spot. Only after it was over did he rush before Cao Cao. "The old camps of the Eight Great Kings, Sweeping King, and One-Legged Tiger have all reached the rear of the right wing. They're waiting for your order to break the government troops' formation together."

Cao Cao nodded and cursed, "Screw that Old Eight. He said to hold, hold my damn donkey ball."

You Lihua looked around and said, "That dog bastard is hiding in the middle, but we're the ones under the cannon fire. If these cannons keep pounding, we'll collapse any moment now."

"Who knew these two or three thousand government troops would be so hard to crack!" Cao Cao wiped his forehead, then looked at his palm and saw red. He quickly wiped again to check, and only after confirming it was someone else's blood did he curse again, "What the hell kind of cannons are these, firing without a moment's pause."

You Lihua's face was crumpled in misery. "Exactly. I'm afraid that before Old Huihui even takes Erlang Town, we'll all be blown to bits by the cannons."

"As long as he understands he can't hold and comes, I won't hold it against him for now." Luo Rucai glanced toward the left wing, where a mass of red-clad figures stood. "Are you certain that's their fake old camp over there?"

"The ones in red are all the fake old camp. Old Eight says to let the fake old camp come to our left wing, while the real old camp goes west and strikes between the two government troop units. Big Brother, give the order. There's nowhere to run here anyway. Let's fight it out with that dog bastard Anqing Battalion."

Luo Rucai waved his hand dismissively and narrowed his eyes at the opposite side. "Tell Old Eight and the others to wait a bit longer. Those government troops are turning their cannons. Once they start hitting that fake old camp, both our wings charge together."

"Why wait for them to fire?"

"Do you see those cannons? After firing ten-some or twenty times, they have to stop and swab with water. These cannons must be overheating from firing so long. Once they swab with water, they can't shoot. They've already fired ten rounds this time. By the time they realize they're hitting a fake old camp, they won't be able to fire anymore."

"Big Brother is brilliant!" You Lihua said with genuine admiration after a stunned pause. "No wonder they call Big Brother Cao Cao. You knew early on this Anqing Battalion would be tough to handle, so you had the old camp change clothes. This time we'll definitely catch them off guard."

Luo Rucai forced a faint smile. In truth, he was still badly shaken. When the government troops first dragged out these small cannons, he hadn't taken them seriously at all. He had seen government cannons with muzzles as wide as bowls before, and they were practically useless. These small cannons were even less worth mentioning. Who could have known things would turn out like this?

Although the old camp wasn't in the central army, the elite infantry he had gathered over the past half year were all there, and these few small cannons had inflicted devastating casualties on them. As for the survivors, forget about fighting — those who hadn't run could already be counted as true men.

"Leave the banners here. All five of our old camps attack together. I refuse to believe we can't wipe out a single unit of Jiangnan troops."

The cannon formation opposite had by now finished adjusting its aim, the muzzles pointing toward that group of red-clad fake old camp soldiers. Luo Rucai couldn't help but breathe a sigh of relief. Those artillerymen had already stripped off their clothes, bare-chested, and were once again working the long ramrods to reload.

……

The right wing of the Western Camp's battle line was in chaos. Xiao Wazi tilted his head to look at the disorderly red-clad crowd twenty paces away. These people were clearly servants; their clothes didn't even fit properly, though at least they were holding government-issue weapons.

Second Locust returned from the rear formation and called over Xiao Wazi and several other team leaders. "Liu Zhang Family's orders: when the horn sounds, follow his banner and attack together with Cao Cao's left wing!"

Xiao Wazi pointed at those Red Jacket Bandits. "What are these servants doing?"

"Decoying the government troops. The old camp's people have all come out. They've changed into the servants' clothes and are going to attack the government troops' left wing together." Second Locust said nervously, "Liu Zhang Family says the cannons on the other side are fierce. Holding is impossible. The only way is to charge over. We absolutely must capture those cannon-firing bandit spawn and bury them up to their heads."

Xiao Wazi raised his head to look toward the middle of the battlefield. Corpses were strewn everywhere. The commoners driven forward earlier had been nearly wiped out by both sides. Cao Cao's infantry formations were in disarray, while the government troops' array was tight and orderly. Those who charged to the front of the formation were almost instantly killed by long spears. The government troops' casualties were mainly caused by the team leaders' bows and arrows. The battlefield was still very chaotic. If Cao Cao threw this many more men in now, they probably still couldn't break through the enemy's defensive line, and casualties would instead skyrocket. These servants were already badly frightened by the government troops' small cannons. They'd collapse after just a few more rounds.

The enemy general officer's red banner was at the central army position. Xiao Wazi said fiercely, "Today I will avenge my brother and slaughter this Anqing Battalion to the last man."

Second Locust stared at him for a few moments, then sent the other team leaders off to keep the servants in line. Seeing Xiao Wazi turn to leave, he hesitated, then pulled him aside, looked around, and lowered his voice. "Don't just think about killing government troops. Eight Master is also with the old camp. If this assault fails, today is a defeat. I heard from a High Shine I know that there's a small path behind the formation leading to the Mountain Pass. Eight Master and Sweeping Earth King Master both brought their old camps over here, probably thinking of having a way out too."

Xiao Wazi asked doubtfully, "Then what do we do?"

"They say that path is narrow. Horses are useless today. You can only run west. Once you reach the Mountain Pass, you can save your life. If you really can't escape... you need to find a servant who can swim to get you across this river. Otherwise, you'll only die in this river."

After Second Locust finished speaking, a horn sounded behind them. Second Locust said no more. Xiao Wazi walked back to the infantry under his command and stared at the government troops over there for a moment longer, then turned his head back toward the servants behind him. That Wang Dashan was looking around in terror. Seeing Long Family looking his way, he immediately dropped to his knees.

Xiao Wazi crouched down. "Wang Dashan, this unit of government troops is the same bunch from Erlang Town. You saw just now, they kill people from Susong all the same. If they catch you, your death will be a miserable one. Only by following me, your master, will you have a way to live."

Wang Dashan knelt and bowed his head. "Th-this humble one obeys Master."

"In your heart you must be doubting, thinking that because your accent is from Anqing, you'll surely keep your life." Xiao Wazi sneered. "But you're a bandit now. Your head is silver. Even your woman's head is silver. If you fall into the government troops' hands, a single stroke of the blade would be getting off lightly. Listen to your master tell you: do you know how these government troops killed the servants in Chuzhou?"

Wang Dashan raised his head and stared blankly at Xiao Wazi, his whole body trembling uncontrollably, slowly shaking his head.

"A woman carrying a child — they would slice open her belly alive, take out your child, first gouge out its eyes to use as a medicine primer, and call the rest 'meat dish,' stir-fried and fed to the official masters for longevity. Your woman's belly they'd use to raise horses, called a 'blood trough.' Their horses become extremely fierce. How to make a blood trough? Gut everything — intestines, liver, stomach, all hollowed out clean, leaving just an empty belly. Some with tough lives, even with their bellies hollowed out they still haven't died, opening their mouths to beg the soldiers for death..."

With a retching sound, Wang Dashan threw himself to the ground and vomited violently. But there was no food in his stomach, only acidic fluid. Some rushed into his nasal passages, stinging him until tears and snot streamed down his face.

Xiao Wazi stood up with satisfaction. Because of the rout at Erlang Town, he now actually had only this one servant, who happened to be a local from Jiangbei, able to both swim and know the roads. As long as he frightened him into relying on himself, his chances of crossing the river and escaping would be much greater. However, this man was a newly acquired servant. Once battle was joined, given the chaos of the battlefield, if he was determined to flee, Xiao Wazi simply couldn't watch and control him. He had to make Wang Dashan willingly follow him. For now, it seemed he had basically been frightened into submission.

Just as he straightened up, a volley of cannon fire came from the opposite side. They had been listening to cannon fire all day, with the government troops constantly bombarding Cao Cao. Everyone had grown somewhat numb to it and paid it no mind.

Suddenly, a muffled thud sounded right beside him. Several objects flew out from the crowd, and a spray of liquid slammed heavily into Xiao Wazi's chest, staggering him so badly he nearly fell to the ground.

Piercing screams shot up to the sky. The surrounding infantry fled in all directions with terrified shouts. Though badly shaken, Xiao Wazi was a veteran of many battlefields. At a moment like this, he absolutely could not be trampled. He quickly pushed off the ground with one hand, scrambled up, and dashed away a few steps. Once the crowd thinned a little, he clutched his chest and gasped for breath. Only after confirming he had no other wounds did he come back to his senses. Looking up, he saw a severed hand on the ground. That was what had hit him.

Four or five people lay where the cannon had struck. Every one of them was missing limbs, struggling and wailing in pools of blood. Fleeing infantry were everywhere. Team leaders and Post Commander were shouting and cursing loudly. Wang Dashan, separated from him by a few people, was still kneeling in place, covered in fresh blood. A length of intestine hung draped over his head, its lower end swinging ceaselessly before his eyes.

Xiao Wazi shoved aside a servant blocking his path. As he walked toward Wang Dashan, a horn sounded.

Second Locust's voice rang out from the front. "No running wild! Go west! Kill the dog officials and soldiers!"

Xiao Wazi froze for a moment, then drew his waist saber to threaten the nearby servants. Just as he reached Wang Dashan's side, another series of explosive booms rang out. Xiao Wazi instinctively crouched low, shielding his head with his hands.

The interval between the cannon's roar and the shell's impact was very short, but to Xiao Wazi at this moment, it felt agonizingly long. This thing was invisible and left no trace — impossible to dodge, impossible to block. Who lived or died was entirely up to heaven. Xiao Wazi's scalp tingled as he waited, until several more terrifying, muffled sounds erupted among the crowd.

A black sphere bounced out through a gap in the crowd, bounced once, and then came to a stop two paces from Xiao Wazi. Xiao Wazi stared at the thing in horror. This cannonball that brought boundless terror was unremarkable in appearance, actually only the size of a child's fist, with tiny bits of flesh stuck to it, still emitting faint wisps of white vapor.

The crowd that had just regrouped scattered and collapsed with a roar. Hysterical shrieks were everywhere. Xiao Wazi knew he had survived another round. He looked at the cannonball again, took a breath, then turned and grabbed Wang Dashan by the back of his collar. That Wang Dashan seemed to have lost his mind, completely unable to muster any strength. Xiao Wazi lifted him up a little, but he just slumped back down.

The horn sounded again. The other team leaders around began using blades and spears to drive the infantry forward. The chaotic crowd slowly began moving west.

"Get up and move!" Xiao Wazi bellowed. "Move, or I'll trample you to death!"

Wang Dashan still had that dazed look. Xiao Wazi hauled him up with sudden force and slapped him across the face. A flicker of reaction finally appeared in Wang Dashan's eyes. When he recognized Xiao Wazi, an expression of terror emerged.

Nearby, Second Locust swung his blade and cut down an infantryman. The surrounding servants, seeing this, hurriedly shuffled forward a few steps. Xiao Wazi raised his waist saber, threatening the nearby infantry, and dragged Wang Dashan along beside him as he moved. Wang Dashan was like a puppet, stumbling and staggering along. That half-length of intestine still hung from his head, swaying ceaselessly with his movements. Wang Dashan retched a couple more times from time to time, but could bring up almost nothing, barely even any liquid.

They had just walked a dozen or so paces when the front halted again. Wailing cries were everywhere. The dense mass of heads blocked the view; there was no seeing what was happening ahead. The servant right in front of him was particularly tall. Xiao Wazi reached out to grab that infantryman by the back of the collar, intending to yank him aside. Suddenly, with a crisp crack, a cannonball flashed past. The head in front of him vanished as if into thin air, severed cleanly at the neck by the cannonball. The headless body was wrenched sideways and flipped over by the shell's violent force, blood spraying everywhere.

Xiao Wazi was so shocked he stumbled backward several steps. The surrounding servants scattered in a panic. Wang Dashan's eyes bulged wide, and a pig-slaughtering shriek erupted from his mouth.

A long, drawn-out horn blast sounded. From all across Cao Cao's array came an unbroken chain of horn calls. Second Locust's voice, distorted in pitch, shouted, "Those who fall behind die!"

The team leaders each swung their blades, cutting down the servants at the very rear. Fear of the team leaders momentarily surpassed the fear of the shelling. Xiao Wazi gripped his saber in one hand and dragged the nearly crazed Wang Dashan with the other, stumbling and staggering along within the chaotic crowd, heading toward the center of the battlefield where the fighting was underway.