Chapter 245: The Falling Vulture

A quarter of an hour after the dragon banner was raised, the entire unit under Jiao Wentong, commanded by Wang Yan of the Imperial Guard Central Army, collapsed, and the commanding officer Jiao Wentong's fate was unknown.

Now, this unit had been rotated down from Dongpo Plateau by the Song army. As the fierce fighting on the plateau dragged on, both sides grew weary, and with the battle line stabilized, the fighting on the plateau had already become somewhat tacitly understood, ever since the large-scale melee on the southern flank of the battlefield before Wanyan Loushi had even formed his ranks.

Correspondingly, Wang Yan had long since given up supervising the battle, instead attempting to have the forward units take turns withdrawing from the plateau to rest and reorganize.

Jiao Wentong's unit had been pulled back before the dragon banner was raised. Originally, because Bolisu on the plateau had suddenly intensified his attack again, they were preparing to go back up to relieve Li Qiong's unit, which had suffered the heaviest casualties. But after the Jin army formed ranks on the southern side of the plateau, and then the dragon banner rose from the central army, the entire Song army was greatly invigorated. After consulting with Wang Yan, Jiao Wentong chose to stay put and turned his entire force to face Wanyan Loushi's Five-Colored Sun-Embracing Banner... His original intention was to press in from the flank while Loushi was engaged with the heavily manned Qinfeng Circuit troops, thereby achieving a spectacular feat.

But Wanyan Loushi was not about to give him that chance. What was the point of the cavalry's tactical mobility advantage on a localized battlefield?

Consequently, Jiao Wentong's unit immediately encountered the Jin army's strongest cavalry, possibly the most powerful heavy cavalry in all of East Asia at that time, and was crushed by it.

Of the two Hezha Meng'an units, elite formations established since the Aguda era, only one participated in the attack on Jiao Wentong's unit. Pucha Huzhan led a full-strength force of a thousand riders, who had spent a long time donning their armor at the foot of Mount Jinsu earlier, both men and horses armored, like a thousand iron pagodas. Sticking close to the base of the plateau, they literally "shoveled" this Song force, several thousand strong, off the plateau!

Apart from a very few divine-arm crossbows and heavy-axe infantry, the Song army had no weapons, and could not possibly have any, that could inflict the slightest damage on this unit.

However, not to mention that, like other units, Jiao Wentong had already handed over most of his unit's scarce divine-arm crossbows and heavy-axe infantry to His Majesty, even if some remained, they proved utterly ineffective at this moment, causing no casualties. Because at the same time Pucha Huzhan launched his attack, Loushi's beloved general, Wanyan Poushu, using Loushi and that Five-Colored Sun-Embracing Banner as the axis, led a large contingent of cavalry in a textbook Jurchen cavalry assault directly against the Song army.

First came circling shots, dense circling shots. Thousands of Jurchen cavalry, shielded by the two iron pagoda units on left and right, executed a rotating advance around Loushi... The dense volleys of heavy Jurchen arrows inflicted massive casualties on the Song army. Jiao Wentong's unit was on the verge of collapse at that point. Following this trend, the Jin army wouldn't have needed to engage in close combat.

But clearly, Loushi drove this wave extremely rapidly and fiercely. He and his banner advanced like the wind, and the Jurchen cavalry rotating around him as the axis quickly crashed directly into the Song army's formation. The Jurchen cavalry, unflustered, lowered their bows, switched to lances, and swept through the Song army in layers, unit by unit, like scraping fish scales, each pass churning up countless gore and flesh.

This formation, in rustic terms, is called the "wheel tactic"; scientifically, it's "circular volley fire with close-range flank charges"; and if you want to be vulgar, you could call it something like a "whirlwind cavalry formation"... It was a standard tactic for small Jin army units, often launching such advancing attacks at the mouke level.

But without a doubt, when this cliché tactic was executed by the era's greatest cavalry commander, combined with the era's most powerful cavalry force, on a scale of seven thousand riders—a number not to be underestimated on any battlefield in the world—it could only be described as a typhoon formation.

In the Guanzhong region, rain had not fallen for many days, yet suddenly, out of nowhere, a typhoon of iron-clad cavalry, forged from weapons and warhorses, arose on the flat ground.

And Jiao Wentong's unit was the first sacrifice under this cavalry typhoon. The entire force was scattered in all directions, fleeing in disarray, the fate of its commander unknown... The morale of the surrounding Song army, which had just soared because of the dragon banner, was instantly extinguished! The Qinfeng Circuit army facing them was momentarily terrified, the troops on the plateau were even more panicked and bewildered, and even Wu Jie, who was still marching out of camp, and Zhao Jiu, far away in the central army camp, were each horrified.

It wasn't that no one expected sacrifices. In fact, as the saying goes, "a person's reputation is like a tree's shadow," the Song army from top to bottom, upon seeing Loushi form ranks and those two units of nearly barded cavalry, had all resigned themselves to paying a heavy price in casualties. But why so fast? Why so clean and decisive?

And most crucially, where was the Song army's counterattack?

It wasn't that the Jin army had no casualties; they had visible casualties. But the vast majority came from the natural attrition of large-scale heavy cavalry against the terrain... From the plateau and the high ground of the camp, everyone could see clearly. On the undulating terrain below the plateau, many Jin riders would stumble, fall from their horses, and then silently become the inevitable consumables of war.

However, this kind of attrition was a mathematical probability given the sheer number of Jin cavalry, not man-made attrition. No one saw any effective damage inflicted on the Jin army by any Song counterattack, because Jiao Wentong's unit collapsed almost simultaneously with Wanyan Loushi's advance... This instilled a genuine sense of terror in the Song troops present.

And after the terror came a heartfelt admiration... yes, admiration!

Admiration that cavalry could be used like this?!

Admiration that heavily armored, heavy-bowed cavalry could be this powerful?!

However, this admiration quickly vanished, replaced by various choices from the depths and shallows of men's hearts.

The first to react was, of course, Wang Yan, who was closest to Loushi. He had witnessed the entire event from the closest distance and the best vantage point, and felt the power of this typhoon most directly.

And don't forget, the side that collapsed in the battle was his own core subordinate.

Therefore, when the Jin army rolled over the base of the plateau, this commander of the Eight-Character Army's mind went almost completely blank. And after the blankness, forced by the situation due to his proximity, Wang Zicai quickly and stiffly made a decision:

As a Military Governor, with His Majesty just a few li away in the main camp, and his Eight-Character Army being Hebei troops with a bone-deep hatred for the Jin army, surrender or flight were unthinkable. Life and death at this point didn't matter. But the key was that, as a subject, he must fulfill his duty and not let the overall situation collapse from his position. Even if it came to that, he would have to die first to repay the imperial grace.

"Pass the orders!" With this thought, Wang Yan felt no more fear. He turned his head and gave the commands. "Have Wang De take overall command of the plateau battle, not a single step back... Our main force will turn and form ranks to stop the routed troops from reaching the plateau... Move the banner, follow me to the very front!"

The three orders were quickly relayed. Then, under the gaze of all, Wang Yan personally moved his banner to the westernmost end of Dongpo Plateau, directly facing the Jin army and countless routed troops below.

This was an extremely morale-boosting move, and also a very timely one.

In response, Loushi merely cast a faint glance at Wang Yan's banner, then waved his arm, pointing towards the dragon banner in the northwest... To be fair, for a split second, this Jin commander-in-chief had indeed entertained the thought of letting his troops take advantage of the momentum to charge up onto the plateau, which would have been one way to end the battle.

But it was only for a split second. With Wang Yan's timely turn and banner planting, this Jin commander-in-chief immediately abandoned this fleeting thought in his mind.

The reason for this was not only tactical considerations—based on terrain, time, and reinforcements—but crucially, this battle was his, Wanyan Loushi's, final battle. He was determined to achieve total victory! And with this goal now set against the dragon banner raised opposite him, he shouldn't be thinking about anything else.

"Steady!"

As the main Jin force started moving again, heading straight towards him, Zhao Zhe, the Grand Coordinator of Qinfeng Circuit, who had just snapped out of the suddenly erupted battle, suppressed his unease, rode down from the small hill into his own formation, and shouted with all his might within the ranks. "His Majesty is watching us from behind! The rewards for marching out have already been distributed! There's no reason for us not to risk our lives for His Majesty!"

"As General Wu instructed, long spears to the front, plant them directly into the ground at the very front!"

"Divine-arm crossbows, crossbowmen, archers, arrange by range!"

"Cavalry on the flanks..."

Zhao Zhe galloped left and right within the formation, shouting continuously. The Qinfeng Circuit troops soon had their morale revived... This wasn't because the Qinfeng Circuit troops were particularly well-trained, but rather because most of them were infantry. When the Jin army swept away Jiao Wentong's unit, they had already marched out of camp and formed ranks. The vast majority of soldiers only vaguely knew that the front had been defeated; they couldn't see the specific scene a few li away.

And don't forget, they were numerous, and their flank was covered by the Xining Circuit troops, who had instead gained the upper hand. The sheer size and massive formation gave the ordinary soldiers ample confidence.

However, after Zhao Zhe issued his orders and boosted morale, mentioning the cavalry on the flanks, he suddenly fell into a panic. He clearly realized that, given the formidable power just demonstrated by the Jin cavalry, his own flanks, especially the left flank, were virtually undefended!

The right flank still had the Xining Circuit troops! But the Lizhou Circuit troops, who were supposed to be on the left flank, were stuck far away in the mud!

"Plant more long spears on the left flank, on the north and east sides..." With this thought, Zhao Zhe quickly ordered, trying to remedy the situation.

But before he could finish speaking, the ground rumbled again. Seven thousand riders, or more precisely, over six thousand Jurchen cavalry, escorting Wanyan Loushi's Five-Colored Sun-Embracing Banner, were charging directly towards the Qinfeng Circuit army!

And Zhao Zhe, looking at the dust cloud rolling towards him and the majestic figures of the cavalry barely hidden within it, was instantly parched, unable to speak another word.

A mere two or three li was a distance cavalry could cover in an instant. But it must be said, the performance of the Qinfeng Circuit troops somewhat restored the Song army's confidence... When the Jin cavalry surged to the front of the formation, facing the established infantry position, they did not display that previous astonishing, overwhelming momentum.

This made many people breathe a sigh of relief. The seven thousand Jin cavalry under Loushi were indeed unmatched in ferocity, but clearly, the annihilation of Jiao Wentong's unit had too much to do with their being caught off guard, having fought a hard battle all afternoon, and the numerical disadvantage leading to a formation disadvantage.

And although the Qinfeng Circuit troops were widely acknowledged as the weakest, their numbers were there, the thickness of their formation was there, forcing the Jin army to adopt appropriate countermeasures... This time, they didn't directly sweep into the formation. Loushi's banner stopped at the right moment, and his direct troops, facing the dense spear formation, merely maintained the Jurchens' customary circular mounted archery in front.

It was conceivable that before the spear formation in front of the Qinfeng Circuit was shot to pieces, Loushi's central force could not recklessly advance.

At the same time, effective counterattacks finally began to emerge from within the Song army's formation. The long-range projectiles, arranged by range, began to inflict effective casualties. Loushi's central force was also composed of heavy mounted archers, but they were not barded cavalry; they weren't extravagant enough to armor the horses for all seven thousand men. And in this kind of battle, once a Jin cavalryman lost his horse, he essentially lost his combat effectiveness.

However, things were not that simple. While Loushi was conducting long-range strikes in the front, the two Hezha Meng'an units on the left and right flanks, nearly two thousand iron pagodas, simultaneously executed a pincer movement towards both sides of the Qinfeng Circuit... The two armies were positioned southeast and northwest relative to each other. Pucha Huzhan's Hezha Meng'an circled around from the northeast, while Jiagu Wulibu's Hezha Meng'an plunged straight into the junction between the Xining Circuit and Qinfeng Circuit troops.

It was foreseeable that these two thousand iron pagodas would soon plunge deep into the flank of the Qinfeng Circuit, which lacked cavalry protection, and tear this entire force apart.

"The time has come!"

At the foot of the mountain on the southernmost edge of the battlefield, where Han Chang had earlier thrown out his own eyeball, the Song army had already advanced and occupied the position. At this moment, a Song general, reining in his horse at this spot, saw the two Hezha Meng'an units making their move. Instead of being alarmed, he was delighted. He turned his head and spoke rapidly to a middle-aged officer of forty or fifty beside him. "General Li, the key to Loushi's formation is the two Hezha Meng'an units on the flanks supporting his central force. Now that the two Hezha Meng'an units on the flanks have advanced, his central force is exposed... If we charge straight at his command banner from his flank and rear, even if we can't take his head, as long as we disrupt his rear formation, this battle will be our greatest merit!"

"What the Grand Coordinator Qu says is correct!" The so-called General Li, the tribal general Li Yongqi, also saw it clearly and immediately nodded. "No wonder General Qu didn't let me go to rescue the troops below the plateau earlier, nor let me get bogged down fighting that Wanyan Wushu to the death... I'll take advantage of the moment when the two Hezha Meng'an units have just thrust out and can't be recalled to strike at his rear!"

Having said this, Li Yongqi again gestured with his chin towards a young general behind him, around twenty years old but with a robust build. "Dalang! We'll split into two, father and son, and attack together from left and right! Let His Majesty know our loyalty and valor!"

The young general brandished his spear and excitedly acknowledged, precisely Li Yongqi's eldest son, Li Master.

However, just as Li Yongqi was about to lead his son to rein in their horses and ride down the slope, he couldn't help but turn back and ask one more question: "Grand Coordinator Qu, is His Majesty really under that dragon banner?"

"If not, why would I have come here with such difficulty?" The Grand Coordinator Qu, Qu Duan, who had lost his Iron Elephant, sneered coldly upon hearing this. "To come and rescue that Wu Da who usurped my command?! You go ahead, I'll be your rear support!"

Li Yongqi was a native Dangxiang chieftain from the Yanfu Circuit. How could he not know Qu Duan's character? Upon hearing this, he burst into loud laughter, let out a whoop, and galloped down the slope with his son Li Master. Behind them, their recently reassembled force of about three thousand Dangxiang tribal cavalry also split in two, following the Li father and son as they raced towards Loushi's flank and rear!

Clearly, this father and son intended to establish a great merit right before the eyes of His Majesty Zhao.

It must be said that these three thousand cavalry were completely different from those two units of Hezha Meng'an. The Hezha Meng'an were armored cavalry, the so-called Iron Pagoda ultra-heavy cavalry, slow to move but unstoppable once they charged. However, these three thousand Fan cavalry had no horse armor, few of the soldiers wore armor themselves, they started extremely fast, and once they galloped out, their speed was astonishing, raising clouds of dust, instantly drawing the attention of all discerning eyes on the battlefield.

Lorsa turned his head and saw this scene, sighed faintly, said nothing more, and made no extra gesture. Judging by his expression, he seemed to have anticipated this attack long ago, but was somewhat impatient, as if unwilling to adjust his formation for the enemy.

This was understandable, because at this moment, the central army cavalry around Lorsa was in a circular formation, like a stabilized typhoon. In theory, there was no front or rear, so there was indeed no need for adjustment; he could simultaneously deal with the Song armies on both sides.

However, moments later, as the Dangxiang Fan cavalry came galloping in with astonishing speed, and it seemed they were about to engage in mounted archery with the Jin army, Wanyan Lorsa, who had remained motionless, not even looking in that direction, only listening intently, suddenly reined in his horse and sped directly toward the attacking light cavalry coming from the side and rear!

As the commander moved, the standard-bearer beside him did not hesitate. As soon as the Five-Colored Sun-Embracing Banner moved, the entire Jin cavalry formation abandoned the Qinfeng Route infantry before them without hesitation and charged back toward the attacking force... The entire circular cavalry formation, without any need for adjustment, directly turned and pounced. The typhoon once again swirled across the battlefield.

The attacking Dangxiang cavalry could not stop in time and were caught off guard. The vanguard of the three thousand cavalry, split into two groups, collided head-on with the entire Jin cavalry formation, and then became entangled together.

What was expected to be a prolonged exchange of mounted archery instantly turned into a brief melee. The Dangxiang light cavalry, exhausted from a whole day's fighting, were no match for the storm-like Jin heavy cavalry. In an instant, they were shattered by the typhoon. Countless Fan cavalry, merely hired temporarily by Li Yongqi, exploded and fled toward the southeast and south.

Meanwhile, the troops already entangled within the Jin formation had no way to escape.

Among them, Li Yongqi, leading several dozen family warriors, was horrified, with no path of escape. In the chaos, this Dangxiang chieftain glanced at the two banners in the northwest... one was the distant Dragon Standard, the other was the Five-Colored Sun-Embracing Banner that had suddenly approached and was still approaching. He gritted his teeth and actively headed toward the nearby Five-Colored Sun-Embracing Banner.

He recognized Lorsa!

But it was meaningless. The moment he saw Lorsa himself, the several dozen cavalry of his clan's personal guards beside him had already vanished. He raised his bow to shoot, but the Jin army's random arrows struck him, shooting both him and his horse down to the ground.

In a brief moment, over three thousand Dangxiang Fan cavalry collapsed. The main general, Li Yongqi, covered in blood and grime, was captured alive and brought before Lorsa. The two faced each other, panting, with no words spoken.

"Lorsa..." After panting for a moment, Li Yongqi steadied himself, raised his head, and opened his mouth to curse.

Unexpectedly, Wanyan Lorsa, who had been expressionless all along, suddenly twisted his face in fury. He took a short hammer from behind his waist and smashed it down directly on Li Yongqi's face. Li Yongqi's head split open, brains spattered out, and he fell silent.

At this moment, Lorsa's anger did not subside. He shouted at the corpse: "One after another, Han and Fan, time and again—do you even deserve this?!"

Having said this, he threw down the iron hammer, turned, and walked away.

Following the defeat of Jiao Wentong's unit, Li Yongqi's unit was also routed in one blow, with the main general dying on the spot.

Now, after killing Li Yongqi, Lorsa paid no attention to the fleeing Dangxiang light cavalry. Instead, he directly turned and urged his troops to wheel around. The iron cavalry typhoon rolled back, once again pressing down on the Qinfeng Route formation. And this time, Pucha Huzhan had already succeeded in thrusting deep into the belly of the Qinfeng Route formation.

Beneath the Dragon Standard, Zhao Jiu, holding the helmet he had just put on, looked down from a height at the battle situation below. He remained motionless, almost without reaction, watching Lorsa display his might, easily crushing Jiao Wentong and this Fan cavalry unit that should have been led by that Li Yongqi into pieces.

It wasn't that he didn't want to react, nor that his heart was completely calm.

Having invested all his manpower and resources, painstakingly building the elite Imperial Guard Central Army, and the loyal border officials who spared no effort to travel through Western Xia to return to the country and aid in the battle—how could he not be moved as they disappeared on the battlefield like one wave after another?

But moved as he was, he didn't know how to react, nor what kind of reaction he could make... Wu Jie was still at the foot of the mountain. Unless even this Grand Commandant Wu was routed, it wasn't his turn as the Son of Heaven to personally command.

At this moment, from a rational standpoint, the most appropriate thing for him, the Son of Heaven, to do was to sit like a wooden puppet beneath this Dragon Standard, continuing to provide everyone with the reason and courage to fight.

This is what the Art of War calls: Immovable as a mountain! But nothing more.

However, Lorsa's central army, which had easily routed two Song armies, was now approaching the Qinfeng Route troops. And at this moment, the Qinfeng Route troops were already in great danger.

Zhao Jiu, looking down from the mountain, could see more clearly than anyone. Just as Li Yongqi was routed in one blow, the two units of Jurchen Iron Pagoda had also succeeded simultaneously... one inserted itself between the Xihé Route and Qinfeng Route, while the other launched a successful heart-and-lung-tearing surprise attack on the weak belly of the Qinfeng Route.

In fact, if Wu Jie hadn't successfully formed a formation in the rear, using his own troops as a supervisory force, the Qinfeng Route would have likely collapsed directly.

"Marshal! Our Grand Coordinator requests support for the flank!" Qiao Ze, who had been defeated for the second time, came before Wu Jie to request reinforcements.

"Why are you the one requesting support?" Wu Jie, who had barely managed to establish a formation with his back to the camp, was also parched, but he forced himself to remain calm.

"The Military Supervisor Murong Wei died in the recent surprise attack. As soon as my unit went forward to support, they were also scattered. Grand Coordinator Zhao grabbed whoever he could..." Not asking was fine, but upon asking, Qiao Ze's voice was almost tearful. "Lorsa is back. Please, Marshal, send support quickly!"

"I understand." Wu Jie continued to force calmness. "Go back and tell Zhao Zhe: if the Jin army comes from your left, following that Iron Pagoda that broke into the central army, I will immediately personally dispatch my entire central army to support you from your left... without hesitation! But I must wait until Lorsa decides his direction of attack! Do you understand? Tell him to hold on!"

Qiao Ze, relieved, didn't reply. He directly mounted his horse and, leading only a few riders, quickly returned to the front formation.

Lorsa turned back to the front of the Qinfeng Route formation and indeed changed his tactics. He abandoned the frontal encircling archery and directly followed the successful Hezha Meng'an as they broke into the Song army formation... However, he did not enter from the northeast gap torn open in the Qinfeng Route army, as Wu Jie had imagined. Instead, he followed the gap between the Qinfeng Route and Xihé Route, charging fiercely in alongside another Hezha Meng'an unit led by Jiagu Wulibu!

Charging in recklessly!

Wu Jie watched this scene from his warhorse. Far from being alarmed, he was momentarily overjoyed... because he almost instantly realized the problem. Lorsa thought that only the Qinfeng Route and Xihé Route armies remained before the camp, and didn't take his own unit seriously. He wanted to end the entire battle in one go!

However, the two Beiwei Army units hidden behind these two route armies were the truly strong forces and the mainstay!

This was an opportunity!

"Lorsa wants to end the battle in one go!" Qu Duan squinted into the distance and sneered. "He wants to rescue Wanyan Wushu! And he wants to rout both the Qinfeng Route and Xihé Route armies in one blow! What an appetite?!"

"Grand Coordinator, look!" A general beside Qu Duan, named Zhang Zhongyan, calmly pointed to the southeast of the plateau. There, dust and smoke rolled, and at least two units of several thousand troops were surging in. One was slightly faster but in the rear, the other slightly slower but in the front. "This direction should undoubtedly be Grand Commandant Han's troops. Lorsa must be forced into a corner... Although Li Yongqi was defeated very quickly, it also wasted too much of Lorsa's time and energy. He is afraid that Grand Commandant Han's troops will surge in and trap him between them and the army before the camp, and he is also afraid that Grand Commandant Han's subordinates will directly ascend the plateau to settle the battle up here..."

"Bullshit plateau battle!" Qu Duan cursed loudly. He had set out from Luoyang early to gather troops in northern Shaanxi and also didn't know about the existence of the two Beiwei Army units. "What use is the battle situation on the plateau now? If a decisive outcome can't be reached in time, and Lorsa breaks through the useless Qinfeng Route and Xihé Route troops here, driving the defeated soldiers to attack the main camp, then everything will be lost! His Majesty is up there!"

"Then..."

"You go!" Qu Duan pointed with his hand and gave the military order without hesitation. "Go and remind that reckless Han Wu that His Majesty is here, and Lorsa is here! He must not ascend the plateau! When he arrives, have him seek out my banner for support!"

Zhang Zhongyan said nothing, lowered his head, and went.

After Zhang Zhongyan left, his elder brother Zhang Zhongfu stepped forward to ask: "Grand Coordinator... what about us? The Fan soldiers said they saw Li Yongqi die with their own eyes, but Li Master is still here, crying over there. He wants to take people to the battlefield just now to find his father's corpse... Should we help him gather the routed soldiers first?"

"What use is a child who cries and whines just because his father died? And Li Yongqi was also useless!" Qu Duan replied angrily, but then suddenly composed himself. "But Li Yongqi didn't die in vain. Lorsa's troops are indeed formidable, but they can't afford to delay..."

Zhang Zhongfu stared at his old superior, momentarily confused: "And then?"

"Raise my banner, gather the remaining troops, as many as we can gather... and follow me to strike at Lorsa's rear!" Qu Duan replied calmly.

Zhang Zhongfu was stunned for a moment: "Grand Coordinator, our southward support this time was rushed. We could only gather cavalry. Apart from Li Yongqi's four thousand Fan cavalry, the rest are just over a thousand riders scraped together from two routes... Just now, over three thousand Fan cavalry were useless. Now we have less than a thousand riders. Will that be of any use?"

"I'm not going to save those useless pieces of trash like Liu Xi and Zhao Zhe!" Qu Duan glanced at the sun, which was already mostly hidden by Yaoshan, sighed faintly, and directly took down the bow and arrows hanging from his horse. "But His Majesty has shown me the grace of not killing me, so I have to go. You must remember this matter. Even if I die, you must tell others, because I really don't want to bear the reputation of desperately saving those two useless routes."

Zhang Zhongfu was still stunned, but Qu Duan simply waved his hand and led the few remaining troops he had brought south to head toward Lorsa's rear.

Zhang Zhongfu was silent for a moment, but in the end, he picked up his spear and followed.

However, as soon as the banner with the character "Qu" moved, due to the chaos of the battlefield, most of his subordinates failed to gather in time. Only a few hundred riders directly headed toward Lorsa's side and rear.

But, as the saying goes, a man's reputation is like a tree's shadow. After all, he was the de facto number one general of Guanzhong after the Jingkang Incident. When he moved now, even Lorsa turned back in surprise, then grew furious, then suppressed his anger with great effort, and continued to urge his main army to follow Jiagu Wulibu's Hezha Meng'an, expanding the gap that had already been torn between the two armies!

A few hundred riders might not even be able to get close to him, Lorsa. It was almost like suicide. At this time, it was better to focus on the front.

However, Lorsa's first achievement was not to completely tear apart the two route armies, but to first rescue Wanyan Wushu, who was almost at a dead end! Of course, "rescue" was not quite accurate. Lorsa had only opened a passage to the originally surrounded Wushu battle group. And this Fourth Prince was unwilling to leave his own troops.

"Why must the Fourth Prince suffer like this?" In the southernmost Jin army formation, which had suddenly relaxed because the passage was opened, Han Chang had already bandaged his eyes, but he couldn't help covering them to relieve the pain. "The encirclement is now broken. As the Fourth Prince, you might as well go to Lorsa's side. When necessary, act as his reserve and take command of his troops. Why waste yourself here among these exhausted soldiers?"

"I brought my men here and they ended up in this state. How can I abandon them and leave?" Wanyan Wushu, though not blind, had bloodshot eyes, clearly from staying up all night and exhaustion.

Han Chang wanted to persuade him further, but unexpectedly, Wushu suddenly asked back:

"Tell me, how was that unit created?"

Even with one eye missing, Han Chang knew perfectly well what Wushu meant, and immediately sneered from horseback: "How could it have been done otherwise? This force is so elite, so well-equipped, yet it only excels at small-scale skirmishes, unable to form a large formation to meet Loushi head-on. Their leader, Liu Yan, is the Deputy Commander of the Zhao Song Emperor's Personal Guard. Anyone could figure it out—the Zhao Song Emperor must have gathered the elite troops from every unit together... This is the reckless move of a man who doesn't understand war, but by sheer luck and mischance, it caught us exhausted and unable to form a proper formation, and that's how we took such a beating!"

"I know that, of course." Wushu shook his head endlessly, but spoke weakly, staring at the dragon banner on the mountainside. "What I don't understand is how this Zhao Song Emperor got so many military commanders to willingly contribute their elite troops. On the Huai River, he still had to kill Liu Guangshi to stabilize the army. At Nanyang, he still had to sneak across the Baihe River and personally seize military power at Yanling to force a decisive battle. But today, he can sit there calmly and deploy elite troops from every unit for his own use..."

"It must be the Imperial Guard's Central Army coordinating..." Han Chang said calmly, looking at Loushi's advancing banner. "That's his directly subordinate force!"

Wushu nodded and said no more, instead fixing his gaze on Loushi's banner just like Han Chang. They could see clearly that just moments ago, Wanyan Loushi, who had succeeded repeatedly, had succeeded again—this Jin commander personally pressed forward, completely smashing a cavalry unit that the Xihe Circuit had desperately organized, creating a huge gap.

It was easy to imagine that next, once Loushi took advantage and pushed in, the two great armies of the Xihe Circuit and the Qinfeng Circuit would be completely split apart!

If that happened, the Xihe Circuit army would be crushed against the foot of the mountain, perhaps still able to fight like cornered beasts, but the Qinfeng Circuit, already gutted, would very likely scatter toward the northeast and the main camp... At this moment, although the troops on the plateau were still fighting, although behind Wushu, that bizarre 'trump card' force led by Liu Yan was still struggling to circle around Wushu's unit, trying to attack Loushi's flank, although Liu Qi held the upper hand at the northernmost end of the battlefield, none of this could stop the Song army's center from collapsing, leaving the main gate wide open!

In fact, not just Wanyan Wushu and Han Chang, even Qu Duan was so anxious that he charged to the front himself, trying to press forward as much as possible, but his troops were too few to effectively push into the Jin main formation.

But soon, the next moment, as Loushi pushed the Jiagu Wulibu ahead of him to completely split the two armies as imagined, something happened that none of these Jin commanders or Qu Duan had anticipated—Wu Jie's command banner moved forward, and a force of thousands of heavily armored long-axe soldiers, appearing from nowhere, launched a counter-charge against the Jin Iron Pagoda cavalry that had appeared before them!

This Hezha Meng'an unit under Jiagu Wulibu had already given its all. Fighting until now, setting aside exhaustion, they had pushed to the very front and lost the room to maneuver left and right—they had expected disordered, defeated, weak troops ahead, but instead met their natural enemy, and this enemy managed to break into their formation, forcing the Iron Pagodas into hand-to-hand combat!

Three thousand long-axe heavy infantry, rested for an entire day, charged head-on, cutting down cavalry above and horse legs below. The less than one thousand, battle-worn Hezha Meng'an, caught off guard, fell completely into the disadvantage!

Not only that, at the same time, in the northeast of the battlefield, just before the Qinfeng Circuit army was about to collapse completely, a force of no fewer than three thousand heavy cavalry—heavy cavalry belonging to the Song army—suddenly emerged from the outer flank of the Qinfeng Circuit. They stopped the Qinfeng Circuit's formation from total collapse and also trapped another Hezha Meng'an unit entirely.

These two forces, one in front and one on the flank, struck simultaneously, clamping the battlefield like a pair of iron pincers.

Amid the chaos, Wanyan Wushu was utterly stunned, unable to speak for a long time. It was Han Chang who suddenly laughed scornfully: "I was wrong... Fourth Prince, let me say it for you—if we lose today, we lose without complaint... Troops like these must be the personal guards of commanders at the level of Han Shizhong, Yue Fei, or Zhang Jun—the kind that takes a force of forty or fifty thousand to support three thousand—and yet they were willingly sent into the hands of this Zhao Song Emperor... Tell me, if the State Lord's Hezha Meng'an and the Great Prince's Hezha Meng'an had both been sent here today, six thousand Hezha Meng'an, wouldn't we have won on the plateau long ago?"

Wushu said nothing, only shifting his gaze from the long axes that were no longer gleaming, and staring fixedly at the dragon banner that seemed to have merged with the mountainside.

At Bagong Mountain, at Xiacai City, at Nanyang City... time and again, he had failed to shake this dragon banner. Would it be the same today?

But things shouldn't be this way. Time and again, Wanyan Wushu told himself inwardly that he should have been the one chasing this dragon banner endlessly!

Why had he never once shaken it?

At the same time, Loushi was also looking at that dragon banner, but he didn't look for long before silently turning his gaze to the two surprise forces that had suddenly appeared before his formation... and then quickly focusing on the banner bearing the character 'Wu' behind the Qinfeng Circuit troops directly ahead.

He knew he still had one chance.

"Where is Han Shizhong?" Loushi asked, without turning his head, directly addressing the officers and aides beside him.

"He has already reached the rear of the plateau!"

"And Qu Duan?"

"Suffering heavy casualties, barely advancing, but a well-equipped force bearing the banner 'Liu' is rapidly approaching him."

"Order Jiagu Wulibu to hold his position and endure a little longer."

"Yes!"

"Tell Pucha Huzhan to watch my banner. The moment my banner moves, he is to break out from the belly of the Qinfeng Circuit immediately and launch a counter-charge against that Song cavalry on the outer flank!"

"Yes!"

"Tell the Fourth Prince and Han Chang to move again, and at all costs, block the Xihe Circuit's troops for me!"

"Yes!"

"Poushu!" Loushi suddenly looked at his trusted general.

"Your subordinate is here." Wanyan Poushu, his face and body covered in a mix of blood and yellow mud, clasped his hands in salute.

"How many troops remain in the central army for a charge?"

"Four thousand!"

"Split the force in half. Take two thousand and go behind me. Do you know what to do?" Loushi's expression did not change as he asked calmly.

"To block Qu Duan and that force bearing the banner 'Liu' for the Commander..."

"No!" Loushi replied calmly. "Let them follow if they want. It doesn't matter. Don't get distracted."

"It's to block Han Shizhong!" Wanyan Poushu corrected himself immediately.

"Correct!" Loushi said frankly. "At this point, both sides are spent—arrows are exhausted, blades are dulled. Han Shizhong's troops, though they have marched in haste, are a fresh force! What you need to do is to hold off his organized elite cavalry behind me for as long as you can!"

"Understood!"

"You don't understand!" Loushi lowered his head slightly, then rolled his eyes up and said in a deep voice. "You hold them off for me as best you can in the rear. I will take two thousand riders for one last charge... If it succeeds, it succeeds. If not, don't concern yourself with my life or death. Lead your troops directly north, join forces with Pucha Huzhan, break out together, circle around that plateau slope, and cover Bolisu's retreat!"

"..."

"Do you understand?"

"...Understood!"

With that, Loushi said no more. After a short wait, Wushu, Han Chang, Jiagu Wulibu, and the others clearly received their orders and each exerted their strength. At that moment, Wanyan Poushu did not hesitate, turned, and led two thousand cavalry to shift slightly to the rear.

As the gap opened, Qu Duan and Liu Yan, though unaware of the reason, were overjoyed and hurriedly advanced toward Loushi's command banner. But just then, Loushi's command banner moved again.

Two thousand cavalry, with no tricks left, their arrows nearly exhausted, each holding a lance, followed Loushi as he turned and drew his weapon. Before the Qinfeng Circuit troops, they formed several arrowhead formations, then followed their commander Loushi's banner as they charged forward with all their might at the Qinfeng Circuit troops, already scattered and broken beyond recognition!

The Jin army's most extreme tactic—the brute-force piercing charge—had begun once more!

Now, speaking of the Battle of Huanglongfu, the newly established Wanyan Aguda attacked Huanglongfu and took the opportunity to besiege the city and ambush reinforcements. The Liao army came in force to relieve the siege. Loushi arrived from afar, his horses drenched in sweat. Aguda bestowed three hundred warhorses upon him, and Loushi changed mounts and charged. In a single day, together with Yinshu Ke, he launched nine assaults against one flank of the Liao army, and in the end, forcibly pierced through the Liao army, which outnumbered them several times over.

From then on, Jin Taizu Wanyan Aguda recognized Loushi's military talent, making him the first Meng'an commander of the Jin army and the Wanhu of Huanglongfu! Later, he rose all the way to become the de facto commander of the Western Route Army!

So, with a man like this, who could deny his military talent?

As a comrade, who could reject his military proposals and orders? As an enemy, who could fail to treat him as a grave threat and fight with all their might?

And when he personally led a desperate charge, who could withstand it?

After all, everything this man had achieved came from those miraculous yet ordinary cavalry charges.

The Qinfeng Circuit's ten thousand-plus troops, after receiving reinforcements from Qiao Ze and Fu Qing's units, may have numbered even more, but by now they were beyond counting. This massive army had been roughly split in two by Pucha Huzhan's Hezha Meng'an, forming a front and rear section. When Wanyan Loushi launched his desperate charge, the front force, whose morale was already teetering, collapsed immediately. At the same time, Pucha Huzhan, who had been maintaining the split in the Qinfeng Circuit's formation from within its belly, suddenly made an unexpected move—he abandoned the Qinfeng Circuit troops and lunged outward, engaging Zhang Xian's Beiwei Army head-on!

This move worked wonders!

Not only did it help push back the Song troops on both flanks together with Jiagu Wulibu and Wanyan Wushu, but more importantly, the emptied belly of the Qinfeng Circuit formation instantly left a fatal, massive gap.

Sometimes, pulling out the knife is deadlier than stabbing it in! And pulling out the knife while stabbing again is even deadlier!

Loushi personally led two thousand central troops in a desperate advance. The front of the Qinfeng Circuit formation collapsed first, and then the rear force, caught off guard, was also struck, and the entire army nearly disintegrated on the spot!

Just moments ago, both Beiwei Army units had emerged, turning the tide, but in the blink of an eye, with Loushi's desperate charge, the situation was reversed.

Zhao Zhe, the Grand Coordinator of the Qinfeng Circuit, stood dumbfounded in the midst of the rear force, utterly at a loss for how to respond.

Qiao Ze, who was temporarily acting as the Military Supervisor of the troops, charged forward desperately, trying to salvage the situation, but was spotted by the tiger-like Lou Shi, who personally galloped up to him, pierced him through with a spear, and sent him falling dead from his horse! The small force Qiao Ze had just gathered was instantly crushed by the Jin Jun cavalry.

Then, Lou Shi turned and charged straight for Zhao Zhe's banner. Zhao Zhe's limbs went cold, and in his panic, his mind went blank—he actually turned and fled.

The entire Qin-Feng Circuit army collapsed!

184] Even the Xihe Circuit troops beside them showed signs of losing control across the line!

Even the Xihe Route troops on the flank were showing signs of total loss of control!

Qu Duan and Liu Yan, who had just started pursuing from behind, never expected such a turn of events and could only chase desperately. Behind the routed Qin-Feng troops, Wu Jie was also stunned... The Qin-Feng and Xihe Circuits had held out so long solely because of their heavy numbers. Now that these two heavy forces had lost control and were being driven forward by the Jin Jun, how could he withstand them? How could the camp behind him, with only laborers and auxiliary troops, hold? How could the Zhao official, with only a thousand or so Imperial Personal Guards beside him, endure?

Lou Shi continued to personally lead the charge at the front, with two thousand Jin Jun cavalry pressing on relentlessly, driving the routed Qin-Feng troops forward.

Watching this, on the southern side, Wanyan Wushu's breathing grew rapid. In an instant, he understood why Lou Shi was the first Meng'an personally chosen by his father, Wanyan Aguda, as the foremost of the Great Jin, the Wanhu of Huanglong Prefecture. Han Chang, with his single eye, was also stunned speechless, almost lost in thought—this was what it meant to be a famed general. Balisu, unable to see the situation through the Song troops but hearing the roaring, ocean-like clamor from afar, could not distinguish its content. He silently reined in his horse, gazing motionless toward Mount Yao.

At the foot of Mount Yao, Zhao Jiu glanced at the approaching Han Shizhong's force, then at the scattered Dangxiang Fan cavalry on the plateau below, and then at the suddenly collapsing situation at the mountain's base. His Adam's apple moved, but in the end, he said nothing... He knew he had to do something.

Wu Jie was silent for a moment as well, then did two things:

First, he sent a messenger to tell the official behind him to abandon the dragon banner and flee into the mountains from the rear of the military camp to avoid the spearhead.

Second, he personally took his commander's banner and moved forward... As a Military Governor and the commander-in-chief, he could not lose control and flee like Zhao Zhe.

On the contrary, Wu Jie, with his commander's banner moving forward, collided head-on with Zhao Zhe. Without hesitation, he rode up and stabbed the man to death with a single spear thrust!

With Zhao Zhe dead, part of the situation immediately stabilized. Tian Shizhong, understanding from the movement of the banners, led the long-axe heavy infantry he could control to converge on Wu Jie.

On the mountain, Zhao Jiu's emotions eased slightly.

But the next moment, Lou Shi had already led his troops through the scattered Qin-Feng troops and charged before Wu Jie.

Wu Jie let out a bitter laugh, spurred his horse forward, raised his spear, and faced him: "Lou Shi, you owe your grandfather a duel! Remember?"

Lou Shi said nothing, directly galloping up to Wu Jie. The two commanders-in-chief, having exhausted all their troops and maneuvers, were somehow forced to continue this war, which concerned the fate of both nations, in this manner.

However, both had sallow faces and were commanders, but that did not mean their personal horsemanship was equal... In fact, the moment they clashed, Wu Jie was secretly alarmed. After a few exchanges, the brave and resourceful Wu Da's arms were already numb.

After twenty exchanges, Wu Da knew that if he continued fighting, he would surely die—this Jurchen general, or rather, veteran general, was so ferociously strong!

At this time, Qu Duan and Liu Yan's combined forces had not yet broken through the cavalry behind Lou Shi, and Tian Shizhong's long-axe infantry could not quickly weave through the chaotic troops to reach him. Instead, Lou Shi's troops had already surged forward in large numbers, about to surround him and his banner.

So, Wu Jie knew full well that if he died here in full view of everyone, it would cause the entire situation to collapse completely, with no hope left. If he fled, there was still a slim chance to protect the official or organize a counterattack.

Thus, before the eyes of all, Wu Jie bit his lip and spurred his horse away.

The battlefield before the Song camp, already in chaos, erupted with a roar. The Qin-Feng troops, which had barely been held together, completely scattered, and then the Xihe Circuit troops also lost all control.

The situation seemed utterly hopeless.

But just the next moment, Wu Jie turned back, and the entire battlefield suddenly lost control across the board... Although the battlefield before the camp at the mountain's base was still a mess, the surrounding Song troops that still had formation all converged toward the main camp, while the several Jin forces at the mountain's base were also thrown into disarray.

Because at the instant of Wu Jie's retreat, that dragon banner pressed down directly from the mountain slope.

The battle had already approached not far from the camp. Those above could see below clearly, and those below could see above clearly... Not only was the dragon banner pressing down, but an exceptionally elite armored infantry unit was pressing down fiercely, almost ahead of the dragon banner.

This was the same tactic Wu Jie had used earlier—when out of options, trying to use one's prestige and banner to gather troops as much as possible, stop the rout, and hold off Lou Shi's advance. But without a doubt, some people used it to greater effect.

In fact, this was a very successful tactic. When the dragon banner pressed down following Wu Jie's retreat, most rational people on the battlefield already realized that in this battle at the foot of Mount Yao, the Jin Jun could not achieve a complete victory, and the Song troops could not lose any further.

Han Chang was one such rational person.

But Wanyan Wushu beside him had completely lost his rationality. The Fourth Prince of the Great Jin was dizzy, yet he stared fixedly at the dragon banner without stopping. An indescribable sense of shame and frustration, mixed with panic and fear, left his mind in a fog.

For a moment, the Fourth Prince had only one thought—the mountain was moving!

He felt as if Mount Tai was pressing down on him!

It truly was pressing down. As the dragon banner exited the camp, Liu Qi, who had been blind to the situation on this side, abandoned his prey in the mire and, disregarding everything, led whatever troops he could out of the swamp with great difficulty. On the plateau, Wang Yan's force, seeing this, also descended directly. But seeing Han Shizhong's three thousand bronze-masked cavalry cross the plateau first, they chose to turn back and charge straight at Balisu. The Xihe Circuit troops, with their backs to the mountain's foot, regrouped under Liu Xi's frantic efforts to resist. The routed Song troops on the periphery of the battlefield all converged here. Even Li Master gave up searching for his father's corpse and led the remaining thousand or so Dangxiang light cavalry toward the spot.

Soon, the routed Qin-Feng and Xihe troops, sensing something, also noticed the dragon banner charging down from the mountain. Although these two armies were still largely disorganized, facing that dragon banner, they abandoned the idea of turning to charge the camp... Strange, but very real. These tens of thousands of troops immediately fell into a bizarre state of chaos, not daring to go forward or backward, blocked on both sides.

Regardless, the Jin Jun's greatest killer—driving routed troops to charge the camp—immediately failed.

However, Lou Shi, acutely aware that his strategy had failed, stared silently at the approaching dragon banner, then suddenly let out a soft laugh... He knew that now he had only two choices. One was to turn north directly, join Wanyan Poushu and Pucha Huzhan, circle around that plateau slope to cover Balisu's retreat, and then die in bed during the coming endless autumn rains... So, he would not choose this, because if he wanted this, he would not have fought this battle in the first place.

Then there was only the other path—to charge forward again, and whether he succeeded or not, be killed by the Song troops pressing in from all sides beneath this dragon banner.

This was a path to death!

But a path to death was not a path to defeat. Militarily, he could lose this battle, but for the Great Jin and for him, Lou Shi, it might not be a loss!

Hearing the sound of bowstrings behind him, knowing that the battlefield had fallen into chaos and Qu Duan and Liu Yan were drawing closer, Lou Shi suddenly turned and, raising his spear, charged directly at the nearest group of Song troops! His subordinates, after a moment of hesitation, quickly followed their commander.

Both Song and Jin sides fought like madmen on the battlefield not far from the camp gate, but Lou Shi was like an arrow from a bow, unstoppable. Wielding his great spear, he rode through the chaotic troops, and whenever he saw Song troops trying to gather, he led his ever-dwindling force in a direct assault.

Rampaging freely, he felt as if he had returned to the Battle of Huanglong Prefecture, exhilarating, with no regrets even in death.

Wu Jie, of course, knew what he was doing and tried to stop him, but the chaotic battlefield not only deprived Wanyan Lou Shi of the ability to drive routed troops but also stripped the Song troops of the ability to gather and block him.

A quarter of an hour later, the dragon banner exited the camp. Before the dragon banner was Yang Yizhong, who had charged out first. Beneath the dragon banner was the fully armored Zhao official, with Wang Yuan and Lin Jingmo also armored and following. After receiving Wu Jie's message to evacuate, this official had instead made a firm decision and come directly here... This was understandable. By now, it was undoubtedly a successful choice.

But the problem was that Wanyan Lou Shi had not withdrawn; he was still here.

And Lou Shi was waiting for this opportunity. Seeing a rider in the center beneath the dragon banner, flanked by obvious old generals and civil officials, he immediately abandoned suppressing the Song troops, turned, and led all his remaining strength in a direct charge at the dragon banner!

Behind him, all the Song forces counterattacked—Liu Yan's unit, Qu Duan's unit, Wu Jie, Tian Shizhong, including Zhang Xian on the periphery, and some remnants of the Xihe and Qin-Feng Circuits that had come to their senses—all advanced toward the dragon banner. But clearly, Wanyan Lou Shi was faster.

Yang Yizhong, just out of the camp gate, was caught off guard by this assault. For a moment, he allowed some Jurchen cavalry to charge directly to within a hundred paces of the dragon banner before he could command the dense Imperial Personal Guards to engage them fiercely.

As for Zhao Jiu, he knew from the start what was happening—he was the target of a decapitation strike! This was something he had anticipated before coming down.

Having been on the battlefield several times, he was not overly flustered. After setting up the dragon banner on the battlefield before the camp gate, Yang Yizhong organized resistance at the front, while Wang Yuan calmly directed some Imperial Personal Guards to gather densely beneath the dragon banner, forming an almost impenetrable defensive circle.

But soon, the Jin Jun cavalry showed Commander Wang that no defense was absolute, especially against cavalry—the Jin cavalry began using their horses' momentum to hurl their entire bodies and their warhorses' bodies into the still somewhat dazed and confused ranks of the Imperial Personal Guards!

The defensive circle was instantly torn open, and Wanyan Lou Shi, along with his five-colored sun-holding banner, already full of arrow holes, soon appeared in Zhao Jiu's field of vision.

Zhao Jiu did not know how the other had managed to charge all the way here through such a dense military formation, and that was no longer important. The problem was that the other was still unstoppable. Whoever stepped forward to block him seemed no match for him and his personal guard in a single exchange. This famed Jin general, who had crushed countless Song troops, was maintaining his short-range charge with the help of his warhorse... Even more terrifying, behind him was a Jin cavalry force numbering, or rather reduced to, only a few hundred.

This was fatal.

Yang Yizhong charged over recklessly, but after just two or three exchanges, this Commander of the Imperial Personal Guards was stabbed in the shoulder, fell from his horse, and was dragged away by his subordinates in a sorry state.

Then, something even more terrifying happened. When they were about a hundred paces apart, Wanyan Lou Shi did not continue his charge. Instead, his several hundred subordinates suddenly scattered in all directions... Then, this famed Jurgen general took a large Jurchen bow from the rump of his horse, nocked a heavy Jurchen arrow, and drew the bow, aiming at Zhao Jiu, who was a hundred or so paces away.

Zhao Jiu's hair stood on end, but amid the shouts of several close ministers, he did not dodge. Instead, he also drew his bow and nocked an arrow!

Holding his breath, concentrating, calculating the distance, he raised the arrow slightly as if hunting, then quickly aimed at the other... The Zhao official, very familiar with bows, knew that his type of bow could be drawn faster and was easier to aim.

Lou Shi grinned at Zhao Jiu's bow, adjusted calmly, but the Zhao official, whose archery was widely acknowledged as superb, panicked slightly at the other's grin and shot his arrow first.

The arrow suddenly flew out, but it went wide by a large margin, while the bow and arrow in Loushi's hands were completely unaffected.

For a moment, this His Majesty felt as if he had fallen into an ice cave.

But it was at this very moment that an arrow, shot from a bow Zhao Jiu was extremely familiar with, struck Loushi square in the arm from behind!

Loushi immediately staggered, and the heavy arrow in his hand veered off course.

The crowd's spirits were roused.

Yet in the next instant, Loushi publicly snapped off the arrow lodged in his left arm, merely glanced at Qu Da behind him to one side, then threw down his bow and arrow, switched to a large spear, and charged forward with all his might.

The remaining few dozen of his personal guards repeated the same tactic, sacrificing their lives and their mounts to smash open a path for their commander.

Not only that, but the scene just now had stunned many of the Imperial Guard, allowing Loushi to take advantage of the moment to break deeper into the Imperial Guard formation, now only a few dozen paces from Zhao Jiu.

His Majesty Zhao Jiu tried to draw his bow again, but his hands were already trembling.

It must be understood that the battlefield at this moment was a chaotic mess; Jin Jun cavalry and Song Jun infantry were all fighting in scattered groups, and within arm's reach, a single man could be worth a kingdom!

"Don't panic! Which one is Loushi? Point him out to me!"

Qu Duan drew his bow again, trying several times to shoot, but since Loushi had switched to a spear and was galloping, he simply couldn't aim, and was also panicked and unable to control himself. But just then, a rider came galloping from behind, with a bronze mask and iron helmet, holding a powerful bow. Qu Da knew who it was just from the sound, and hastily abandoned his bow to point at Loushi.

The newcomer was none other than Han Shizhong, the very backbone of the official, who had abandoned his own troops fighting fiercely in the rear to leap onto his horse and come to the rescue. Han Liangchen had noticed something amiss from afar, and had come with his bow in both hands. Now, seeing Qu Duan's direction, he simply squeezed his legs together, and his warhorse let out a neigh, suddenly stopped, and reared up, lifting half its body.

And Han Shizhong, turning his waist on the halted horse, strained to draw his bow and let fly an arrow—an arrow worth a thousand gold, capable of facing ten thousand troops—and it struck Loushi's horse square in the head!

Loushi's warhorse collapsed with a crash before it could even neigh, throwing Loushi completely over! Han Shizhong was always Han Shizhong! For Zhao Jiu, you could always trust him!

The Imperial Guards on both sides, the Jurchen cavalry behind, and the scattered Song Jun troops from other units fighting all around surged toward this spot.

Zhao Jiu saw clearly that while the Imperial Guards were locked in chaotic battle with Loushi's personal troops around him, Loushi had barely managed to stand up, only to have a young junior officer gallop out from behind Qu Duan and shoot an arrow straight into Loushi's armpit, causing Loushi to fall back down.

Seeing this, the standard-bearer who had been about to help Loushi dropped the five-colored sun-holding banner, turned to fight the approaching officer to block him. At that moment, another Song Jun Company Commander wielding a large axe took the opportunity to stride directly up to Loushi, who could no longer easily get up, and raised his axe for a chop. Loushi reached for something at his waist, but grasped only empty air, and then the great axe fell, striking Loushi's arm.

Wanyan Loushi lost an arm on the spot.

A wild roar erupted all around, impossible to tell if it was cheers or shouts of alarm.

That Song Jun Company Commander's axe didn't stop; he swung it back to smash a Jin soldier, then turned and delivered another chop, directly severing Loushi's head.

Having taken Loushi's life, the Company Commander threw down his great axe, picked up Loushi's head, raised it high, and shouted a name at Zhao Jiu that made the His Majesty's mind go blank: "Zhang Yongzhen! Your Majesty! I, today..."

Before he could finish, amidst the deafening battlefield, a Jin cavalryman who had somehow already drawn near—it was the very standard-bearer who had just abandoned the flag—ignored the pursuers behind him, jumped off his horse, crawled over, picked up the great axe from the ground, and with all his might, swung it horizontally from behind the neck of that Song Jun Company Commander, who was still focused on shouting something at Zhao Jiu!

After that axe blow, Loushi's head fell. Zhao Jiu didn't look again, but the Song Jun Company Commander's head separated from his helmet in mid-air, revealing a face with only one ear, bearing a joyful expression.

But Zhao Jiu couldn't remember who this man with such distinctive features was.

Loushi's standard-bearer was quickly killed by the Imperial Guards, and Loushi's head was snatched by the young junior officer who had pursued him, then hoisted high on a spear. However, the Jin Jun central army cavalry in front of the camp did not scatter; instead, their killing intent surged instantly. Thousands of Jurchen cavalry fought desperately, regardless of life or death, and some even tried again to attack the dragon banner and recapture the head.

But soon, as another cavalry unit on the eastern side, which had been locked in combat with Han Shizhong's reinforcements, took the initiative to move north and join that Hezha Meng'an, breaking through Zhang Xian's Beiwei Army and leaving the battlefield, another Hezha Meng'an also panicked and fled eastward, drawing Han Shizhong's attention and interception... In short, the Jin Jun in front of the camp gradually fell into retreat and a certain degree of rout.

This battle was, in the end, a victory.

"Your Majesty!"

The young Academician Lin suddenly spoke.

"What?"

Zhao Jiu, trying to find something ahead, answered blankly.

"This was just a breakthrough battle. It was fierce, but the Jurchens have many horses. Once they flee, we can't catch them!" Academician Lin reminded him, shivering. "And Wanyan Huonu is definitely waiting to receive them to the north!"

"I know." Zhao Jiu's tone was vacant. "I know all that."

"But there is one unit we can try to surround and kill!" Academician Lin continued to remind him, still shivering. "Tell Grand Commandant Han not to chase those fleeing cavalry, not to mind the troops on the plateau. Tell him and Zhang Xian's cavalry to head east, to encircle Mount Wulong, encircle the North Luo River, encircle Mount Liang, and leave Wanyan Wushu and Han Chang, and that Chizhan someone behind! A full ten thousand riders!"

Zhao Jiu suddenly snapped back to reality and immediately looked at Wang Yuan.

Wang Yuan understood and immediately relayed the order on his behalf!

An hour later, at dusk, the sun was setting in the west, and the rain still hadn't fallen... The Jin Jun had mostly scattered in flight. Wanyan Wushu and Han Chang, along with their troops, had scattered and fled eastward. But the Song Jun cavalry had long since followed their orders, continuously moving east to block the gaps between Mount Wulong, the North Luo River, and Mount Liang, preventing them from fleeing north.

After Han Shizhong pursued and killed Chizhan Hexi and confirmed that Wushu's Jin troops were completely routed, he handed over his own Beiwei Army to Cheng Min for pursuit and blocking, and chose to turn back directly to see His Majesty Zhao Jiu. The other unit commanders and cavalry officers all followed suit, and the generals gathered for a time beneath the dragon banner in front of the camp gate, which was strewn with corpses and wounded.

At this time, Zhao Jiu still reined in his horse and stood motionless beneath the dragon banner for a long time, his face expressionless.

Wu Jie, Qu Duan, Liu Xi, Liu Qi, Wang De, and Wang Yan each gathered around. Below these men were countless military officers and close ministers, but not one dared to step forward.

"Your Majesty!" Han Shizhong, after all, had some courage, and was the foremost of the military commanders. So after a moment, he cautiously stepped forward to inquire. "The Jin troops have been defeated. Your servants have sent all available cavalry to try and cut off Wushu's troops' path north. The battlefield is also being cleared. Is there any further command?"

Zhao Jiu snapped out of it, looked at the corpses strewn all around, listened to the endless wailing from the camp behind him, stared at the generals before him for a long time, and then, in the last rays of the setting sun, suddenly spoke: "There is!"

From Han Shizhong on down, the generals all stirred, each stepping forward and cupping their fists.

"Shoot it down for me!" Zhao Jiu's expression did not change, nor did he look up, but simply pointed at the sky with his finger.

Everyone followed his gaze and saw that the clouds in the sky were gradually thickening, and among them, a sea eagle, perhaps having lost its master, was circling uncertainly over the battlefield.

In the next instant, from Han Shizhong and Wu Jie on down, countless military officers, and even the attending soldiers nearby, all stirred, and then almost everyone drew their bows together, each shooting an arrow at that sea eagle.

The arrows were dense, and several of them clearly came from skilled archers, piercing that sea eagle like a hedgehog, directly pulling it down from the sky. The remaining arrows, moments later, like rain and thunder, embedded themselves in the ground.

And just as those arrows struck the ground, against the last trace of the sunset, the thick clouds overhead rumbled with thunder, and then raindrops as big as beans finally fell.

Zhao Jiu never looked at that sea eagle the entire time, and now he simply reined his horse and turned into the camp.

PS: I'm about to die.