Chapter 341: The Horse Flies Like Lu, the Bow Cracks Like Thunder

The voice faded, and in a daze, Wang Shunchen seemed to see the past unfold.

Too familiar, too longed for.

He could not stop his daze, as if seeing that younger self, clad in heavy armor and battle robe, wearing a dark gold faceplate, the great general smiling as he handed him this bow—then and now, he could no longer tell them apart.

Cheleji's heart stalled; he felt as if the void's qi twisted slightly, as if a slumbering tiger were stirring, and he roared: "Qin Wu Hou, what brings you here?!"

"Faking it!"

Riding forward, his sixth-layer Heaven peak cultivation, combined with instantly condensed lethal qi, struck hard—Li Guanyi flicked his wrist, and the bow flew upward, the Pingtai Army's identity token spinning in midair.

Wang Shunchen's gaze fell upon the bow.

Cheleji lunged with a thrust; Li Guanyi used his body technique to evade the sharp edge.

His wrist moved, and the Tiger Roars Heaven Battle Spear trembled violently—the metallic roar surged instantly higher, then his wrist flicked again, like a tiger advancing, striking toward Cheleji. Cheleji's expression remained calm, his spiritual intent flashing like lightning.

At this moment, under accumulated lethal qi, he could crush so-called Jianghu Sect masters.

But in military formations, all energy is channeled into offense, leaving defense weak.

Rumors said Qin Wu Hou Li Guanyi's Wu Gong was no weakling—he began at second-layer Heaven, and last year in Zhongzhou, he was said to be around fifth-layer Heaven. This boldness made Cheleji instinctively feel that if he took even one strike from this spear, he would be wounded.

Cheleji instinctively redirected the formation's lethal qi, gathering it onto himself.

It formed into armor; at the same time, he did not dodge the fierce thrust, his hair and beard bristling as he roared: "Come!!!"

He exchanged one spear strike for one battle-spear strike.

Boom!!!

Qi waves surged; the two weapons clashed in midair, illusions of Fire Qilin and Azure Wolf appeared, churning the void's primordial qi into a sandstorm.

Cheleji's eyes widened—his spear thrust was caught beneath Li Guanyi's arm, and at the same time, the opponent's battle-spear delivered a fierce strike that showed clear signs of piercing through his lethal qi armor.

This was not fifth-layer Heaven as reported!

Who among fifth-layer Heaven cultivators could briefly stand against an army led by a sixth-layer Heaven general?

Cheleji's pupils contracted; the opponent lifted his gaze, and beneath the dark gold mask, his eyes blazed fiercely. Cheleji tried to withdraw his weapon, but the other's physique, like that of a legendary overlord, was utterly unmatched—he could not pull free.

Li Guanyi raised his battle-spear, then slammed it down with crushing force.

Once, twice!

As if determined to shatter the formation's protection with this divine weapon, to crush Cheleji into pulp with relentless, steady, brutal strikes—his attack was like a great mountain pressing down upon Cheleji's heart.

With every strike from Li Guanyi, Cheleji felt his chest grow heavier, the pressure mounting.

He unleashed a technique, bellowed loudly, and exploded with full power—internal qi surged; qi waves churned around them, and the two strange beasts slammed into each other. Li Guanyi loosened his grip, and Cheleji pulled his weapon free.

He exchanged another strike with Li Guanyi in an even more brutal, decisive manner.

Clang!

Cheleji's hands went numb; the armor forged from the lethal qi of his 4,700-man formation nearly shattered. His warhorse neighed in agony, his chest churned with blood and qi, nearly vomiting blood—he hastily retracted his qi, calming his turbulent energy.

Yet in that instant, Li Guanyi's hand moved—his brutal battle-spear now revealed an astonishing lightness, striking again!

As if, on this battlefield, after brutal, direct clashes, no recovery was needed.

The weapon spun and thrust out.

Cheleji's pupils contracted.

What kind of physique is this?!

He was barely holding on, clashing with Li Guanyi on this battlefield where hooves thundered like rolling lightning, striking over a dozen times—each strike at full power, each one pushing his physique to its absolute limit!

He felt no pain from the vibrations in his wrists, no churning of blood and qi.

Not even the brief fatigue in muscles and bones after exerting full strength.

Sustained, continuous, at peak condition!

Cheleji, one of the Qiang's three great generals, was shaken—he relied on the formation's boost, trading blows with Li Guanyi in rapid succession, yet now revealed the greatest flaw of military arts!

Concentrating the entire army's might into one body, even if it elevated all abilities to their limit, the physical body itself could not surge instantly.

It would be recoiled, muscles would ache, blood and qi would churn.

Cheleji's mind went blank, his vision darkened, the edges of his sight fading into blackness—yet the opponent's figure grew ever more towering, his aura like a mountain, seated upon his warhorse, majestic as a peak, gazing down like a god or demon.

A thought flashed through Cheleji's empty mind.

Eight hundred years ago, that overlord who walked the battlefield as if empty, slaying generals and seizing banners, making even famed commanders and their steeds tremble and scatter for miles—was he not at this age and this level of cultivation?

Did those famed generals slain by that overlord feel exactly as I do now?

Boom!

Li Guanyi's grip slid from the middle of the spear to its end.

He thrust violently—Cheleji, being among the top eighty generals in the realm, reacted instantly, blocking with his weapon.

The Tiger Roars Heaven Battle Spear clashed with his divine weapon.

A storm of force exploded.

Cheleji was violently shoved backward, thrown from his mount, landing on the ground, retreating several steps, his weapon plunged deep into the earth, carving a jagged furrow over a zhang long before he stopped, gasping heavily, sweat drenching his brow.

He looked up.

His opponent sat calmly upon his warhorse, expression serene, as majestic as a mountain.

What kind of physique is this!

A shadow formed in Cheleji's heart, but he instantly understood why this forty-seventh-ranked general had chosen to engage him in a single, reckless clash—behind him, the Qiang Qixie cavalry began to stir.

The reason for the wavering morale was the furious thunder of approaching hooves.

Khan Qibili charged with his army.

With the formation of golden curved-sword cavalry enveloping the entire archer cavalry, the entire force surged into the battlefield like a blade. Cheleji remounted his warhorse, reorganized his troops, and avoided the sharp edge.

On the Great Flag Fortress, the old chieftain saw far off the vast, battlefield-like spectacle—fifteen thousand elite warhorses thundering across the land, hooves crashing down like thunder.

The archer cavalry's battle spirits converged, and under Khan Qibili's command, they surged into the battlefield.

Cheleji led the Qixue Army to evade the frontal charge like flowing water, regathering as one; the clash between seasoned generals and the charge of fierce troops resembled two gray wolves testing each other—seen from above, seen from afar, it carried a grandeur that stirred the heart and sent shivers down the spine.

Hooves struck the ground, churning up clouds of yellow dust.

In that instant, the old chieftain gained an intuitive understanding of why battlefields were deserts of sand, and why when ten thousand men moved, they covered the sky and earth.

Wang Shunchen had already extended his hand and gripped the warbow.

Just as he had taken the warbow from Tai Ping Gong all those years ago.

His vision sharpened once more; he smelled the battlefield's scent again, and a faint flame rose in his heart—the fierce longing to fight upon the battlefield.

At the same moment Li Guanyi drove back Cheleji with his battle halberd.

The Divine Archer General gripped the warbow tightly, then reached out and seized Cheleji's steed, leaping into the air and landing firmly upon the beast's back—a steed with sharp horns on its forehead and faint flames beneath its hooves.

This horse was fierce and brutal, feeding on flesh and blood, capable of trampling wolves and breaking through wolf packs; its speed, endurance, and ferocity far surpassed those of any ordinary wild mount.

But Wang Shunchen merely raised his hand and patted the horse's head.

A strange, indescribable aura of killing intent and bloodlust surged inward; the fierce steed stiffened, as if carrying upon its back an even more terrifying beast, and dared not move again—Wang Shunchen had tamed this Qiang steed, now holding the warbow.

The bowstring hummed continuously.

Wang Shunchen's palm brushed the bloodstains scattered across the bow's surface.

"Cold Mountain Moonshadow, old friend—we'll fight side by side again…"

He caressed the waist token, then carefully hung it at his waist, gripping the warbow; his temples were streaked with gray, yet a boundless heroic spirit surged from his chest—he laughed loudly: "You say I'm old?!"

"Hahahaha!"

"Old? Yes, I am indeed growing old!"

He gripped the bow and suddenly drew and released three shots in succession—arrows clustered together, piercing the foreheads of three Captains, their faces blooming as they toppled backward; the Divine Archer General's gaze sharpened like wine spilled upon a blade, roaring:

"My arms still hold ten-thousand-jin strength; I can still subdue this so-called fierce steed; I can still draw this Xuanbing Warbow and slaughter countless enemies upon the battlefield!"

"Even if I am old, my weapons are not."

"Even after another sixty years, my arrows will still be as they were."

Li Guanyi looked at the general and said: "Then…"

He tugged the reins and rode to take position behind Wang Shunchen, willingly yielding the central command point of the formation—the position of the 【General】—to Wang Shunchen. Wang Shunchen blinked in surprise as he saw the youth in the dark-gold mask fall back and said:

"I entrust you with command of these ten thousand mounted archers."

"I will serve as your deputy."

Wang Shunchen widened his eyes.

The warrior in the dark-gold mask spoke to him thus:

"How? Shall we still fight side by side?"

In an instant, Wang Shunchen's heart was pierced—but immediately followed by a surge of heroic emotion that stung his eyes; he laughed aloud, tears streaming, shouting: "Yes!"

"You hold spear and halberd—I hold bow and arrow!"

"What fear have we of ten thousand enemies?!"

These were the words Li Wanli once spoke to him.

Now he spoke them to Li Wanli's son—time passed like this, as if all were but a fleeting dream.

In a brief moment, Qi Bi Li and others had clashed with Cheleji's forces; Li Guanyi's duel with Cheleji, though he alone could not defeat five thousand cavalry, used his ferocious physique to pin Cheleji down.

This was because Li Guanyi's physical prowess was not widely known.

This was because Cheleji had never fought Li Guanyi before.

If there were another encounter, he would notice Li Guanyi's peerless, lordlike physique, and choose other battle formations, tactics, to wear him down gradually, avoiding direct single combat.

But—

That assumes there will be another chance.

Hooves thundered like rolling drums.

Qi Bi Li had arrived with the mounted archers and expertly shifted the aura of the military formation; the core now centered on Wang Shunchen—the forgotten general once again felt the formation's pulse, its energy flowing to guide every mounted archer.

Without coordination, the formation could not reach its full potential.

But even seven-tenths of Wang Shunchen's ability was still the Divine Archer General.

A shadow of dread settled over Cheleji's heart—he watched the Divine Archer General mobilize the troops: ten thousand mounted archers did not fire in volleys, but began charging their power from extreme distance; Cheleji's face turned pale.

At first, Li Guanyi had pinned him down with his lordlike physique.

The Golden Crescent Blade cavalry circled around from behind.

To avoid being pierced and split by the Golden Crescent Blade cavalry from behind, he had to retreat and re-form his lines—but the enemy's charge speed was faster than his; Wang Shunchen, long out of command, could initiate the formation in an instant.

This distance…

Cheleji roared: "Raise shields!"

"Shield formation!"

Elite Qixue soldiers dropped their specially crafted heavy shields, raising them with one arm, layer upon layer, forming a blooming lotus array; powerful inner energy combined—just as the Qixue soldiers formed their formation, Wang Shunchen drew his bow.

The formation's aura spread, passing to the deputy, Captains, squad leaders, and others; they subtly stirred, instinctively drawing their bows—each arrow's angle differing.

Wang Shunchen's gaze sharpened like a blade, his heart pounding wildly; the old banners rose again. He watched the terrified Qiang Qixue soldiers scrambling to form their array, closed his eyes, and emptied his mind.

He looked to his side.

There stood the warrior in armor, holding a battle halberd, wearing the dark-gold mask.

It felt like a dream—let it be a dream!

He released the bowstring—and under the guidance of the qi and formation, ten thousand mounted archers fired as one—

Wang Shunchen's arrow spun like a storm, guiding the entire formation.

Ten thousand arrows launched!

The hum echoed like a hundred thousand birds taking flight; Cheleji looked up and saw the blue sky above suddenly darken—as ten thousand arrows, empowered by the formation, fell with brutal fury.

The formation was broken.

The heavy iron shield was bristling with arrows.

Cheleji felt his heart pounding wildly; before him stood a single arrow.

The archer god's first arrow.

Cheleji's mind went blank, but at that moment, he saw the enemy archer cavalry, under their commander's command, drawing their bows in perfect unison once more.

The General of Divine Shots' battle formation had no special traits.

Only the most basic enhancements.

Increased shooting range.

Increased penetration.

Increased accuracy.

On the high mountain, the silver-haired girl sat quietly, hooded, her hands shaped like a formation, her gaze clear and tranquil; the Fire Qilin stood still beside Yao Guang, guarding her. With the unparalleled mastery of the current generation of the Star Observation Line, she lowered the wind speed in this area for a brief time.

Li Guanyi had ordered Yao Guang to stay away from the battlefield and had arranged for the girl to assist secretly, to prevent mishaps.

The girl's gaze remained calm and clear, undisturbed.

A commander must anticipate every possible scenario.

But the General of Divine Shots needed no such aid at this moment.

When the second volley came, Cheleji knew that merely defending would be fatal; gritting his teeth, he overcame his fear and led his men in a charge against the archer cavalry.

On his face burned the ferocity of a valiant general: "Rather than wait here to die, or be pierced in the back or chest while fleeing, let us charge! A charge might still offer a sliver of life—even if we die, we die swiftly!"

The Qixie troops charged with their shields raised.

Wang Shunchen drew his bow calmly; behind him, the archer cavalry, after three coordinated maneuvers, had fully merged into his battle formation. This was the fourth arrow. Wang Shunchen's gaze was like a hawk's.

The air behind him twisted, faintly taking the shape of an eagle soaring through the sky!

The arrow shot forth.

A rain of arrows blotted out the sky; Cheleji's eyes bulged with rage as he raised his shield—but at this moment, Wang Shunchen's arrow exploded at its core, and in the void, as if an eagle screamed and struck the heavens.

The army's soul killing technique.

A skill only top-tier generals possess.

Even with only the archer cavalry of Anxi City's caliber, after three coordinated maneuvers, Wang Shunchen had fully grasped the situation—and still unleashed such power.

The flying eagle descended.

The Qixie troops' heavy shields shattered; men and horses tumbled.

Next, the people of Dafengzhai fell silent, holding their breath, witnessing a battle so precise it could be recorded into the military academy's battle manuals: the archer cavalry activated their unique high-speed mobility.

They split into multiple units, some harassing, others pinning down the Qixie troops.

Wang Shunchen had fused the Golden Crescent Blade cavalry's tactics into his own style.

First, a portion of his forces would fire arrows from a hundred paces away, distracting the enemy; at that instant, the Golden Crescent Blade formation would charge, tearing through the enemy lines, and in the moment the enemy formation fractured, the archer cavalry would fire a second volley.

Without a general of equal caliber, the enemy was led by the nose.

They could not fully integrate; they could not form a proper array.

And at the same time,

The archer cavalry swiftly charged with spears, created distance, and fired arrows to harass.

The Crescent Blade cavalry and spear cavalry pressed forward from behind.

They assembled, charged, and clashed back and forth.

Until their arrows were spent, they transformed into spear cavalry.

The Qixie cavalry themselves did not realize their fate—only from afar, outside the battlefield, could one see how the once-formidable Qixie cavalry was cut apart, shattered, pinned down, visibly vanishing, falling.

In the end, with minimal losses, the Qixie cavalry was utterly consumed.

Cheleji roared, trying to break free from the formation—but without the formation's enhancement, his personal Wu Gong was only Sixth Heaven; even as he fought desperately, exhausted, suddenly the iron cavalry before him parted like waves, layer upon layer, opening a path.

A chill surged through Cheleji's heart, yet he roared fiercely and charged forward with his spear.

A single arrow spun in a cluster.

Like one shot twenty years ago from a border town, piercing through rock, piercing through his comrade's head, now arriving here—Cheleji thrust his spear with ferocity, shattering the arrow, swinging his lance like a dragon, relentlessly forcing back the enemy, his aura surging like a rainbow, forming a divine manifestation.

But after Wang Shunchen's arrow came another.

Cheleji did not know how he was struck.

Only a searing pain in his brow—his fierce, defiant posture froze. He had raised his spear like a heavy axe, ready to kill the Golden Crescent Blade cavalry's deputy commander he had just defeated—but his strength drained away like flowing water.

His eyes widened; in his daze, he saw himself as he had been twenty years ago.

That arrow, which once haunted him, kept him awake all night, had finally pierced his brow. Cheleji clutched his spear, trying to speak, but his Yuan Shen began to scatter; only blood remained in his mouth—whether in awe or regret, he whispered:

"General of Divine Shots… your heart has not died…"

"I knew it."

"That's why I came to kill you!"

"Too bad…"

Cheleji's spear touched the ground; he held himself upright, refusing to fall—but the fierce western archer cavalry around him had drawn their spears and thrust them together, piercing through his armor, his chest and abdomen. Cheleji's vision blurred, tears streaming down his face:

"... My Lord, I am leaving. What will you do now?"

"Your humble general is powerless."

Rank 84 on the Divine General List, one of the Three Great Generals of the Western Qiang, Cheleji.

Died in battle.

He never employed a flawed strategy.

He simply fought to his utmost against an army led by two generals ranked in the top fifty, whose scale and caliber far surpassed his own—and died upon the battlefield.

The many spears piercing his body were withdrawn.

Che Li Ji held his battle spear against the ground, tilted his head, and sat quietly atop his horse.

Blood continuously dripped from his body, falling onto the battlefield.

The warhorse neighed in sorrow, tears streaming down, then suddenly went mad, shaking off the riders ahead, galloping straight to a cliff face, and smashing its head against it—terribly gruesome.

In times of chaos.

Heroes have always killed heroes.

Five thousand Qixie cavalry of the Qiang tribe were annihilated; their corpses lay strewn across this battlefield, the air thick with blood. Wang Shunchen sat atop his warhorse, exhaled deeply, and felt only exhilaration—the stifled chest that had been constricted for over a decade finally opened wide.

He saw a small foal approaching from over there, carrying a girl wearing a hood.

The girl held in her arms a familiar creature.

It was the Fire Qilin.

Wang Shunchen burst into laughter; his doubts about Li Guanyi's identity vanished completely. He dismounted, wanting to say something, but the young general had already leapt down, removed his mask, revealing a face with bold, soaring brows and a tear mole at the corner of his eye.

After this great victory, before the entire army, Li Guanyi stepped forward several paces and bowed with clasped hands.

"Li Guanyi, pays respects to General Wang."

Wang Shunchen said: "No, no, this cannot be!"

Li Guanyi performed a formal bow and said: "I must thank you for saving my life back then."

Wang Shunchen froze, stunned. Li Guanyi spoke softly: "After you learned the news, you seized your battle bow and rushed to the palace to save my parents. When you entered the palace, Auntie was just carrying me out through another imperial corridor."

Wang Shunchen stood there, dazed, the voice echoing again in his ears.

'……■■■■■■!!!'

Only now did he gradually hear clearly the words he had refused to listen to for years—

'……The Commander and his wife are in danger!!!'

'General, General, hurry and save them!'

The man who spoke was a civil official, with no Wu Gong.

He had not attended the banquet; his heart was filled with anxiety.

He had seized his battle bow and rushed into the palace. The familiar places were now engulfed in roaring flames; his eyes burned with rage. He held off nearly half the so-called imperial experts alone, racing frantically across the grounds, when a girl barely ten years old, clutching a child, fled away from another direction.

They had nearly passed each other.

Wang Shunchen's sudden intrusion allowed Li Guanyi and Murong Qiushui to escape more safely.

Wang Shunchen seemed to age in an instant; his lips trembled.

The passage of time suddenly became tangible.

That child has now grown. That child can ride a warhorse, wield a battle halberd, wear his father's mask, roam the world, and command with mastery. That child spoke softly:

"That day, you truly saved me. You saved Auntie."

Wang Shunchen opened his mouth, and at last he could no longer hold back. He knelt on one knee, gripping the Tai Ping Army's token—not toward Li Guanyi, but toward the past, toward the Commander, toward all those fallen comrades.

Toward the twenty years that would not let him go.

"Ah… that's good…"

"I did save someone that day, Commander. I'm sorry."

Wang Shunchen's eyes turned red; he could not hold back his sobs.

In a daze, he seemed to hear familiar voices, see familiar scenes.

"Hey, I asked Your Majesty for this thing—take a look, does it suit your hand?"

"Called 'Cold Mountain Moon Shadow.'"

"So literary."

"You hold the bow and arrows, I hold the spear and halberd—who fears ten thousand armies!"

Wang Shunchen wiped his eyes fiercely.

He lifted his head.

On this battlefield where the Qixie cavalry had been annihilated, amid the thick scent of blood in the open heavens and earth.

All those decades of bold courage, that unyielding valor that never retreated a step, that day when he shot thousands of arrows until his palms split and blood flowed to his elbows, that courage which burned everything for this world—now took form in his words:

"Archery cavalryman under Tai Ping Gong of the Tai Ping Army."

"Wang Shunchen."

"Request to rejoin the ranks."

"Re-enter the world!"

A sharp, falcon-like cry soared into the sky, solidifying into a frozen divine form—the legendary archer general had returned. The drunken warlord, the resentful son, had reclaimed his bow, reclaimed his heart today.

The Archery General re-entered the Seventh Heaven.

"Fight for Tai Ping!!!"

?? My sleep schedule has been thrown off again; hope I can get it back soon

? Everyone should rest early and try to write a chapter by three a. m.

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