Chapter 351: The Greatest in a Thousand Ages!

Li Guanyi rode a dragon-horse into the battlefield.

Charging recklessly into battle is extremely dangerous—but now, the enemy had begun retreating, their front and rear troops had not yet fully swapped positions, like a man exhausted—this was a rare, perfect opportunity on the battlefield!

Opportunity lost is lost forever!

The Black Armor Army surged forward first.

Xia Hou Duan also had resolve and immediately ordered the city gates opened, but Li Zhao Wen blocked him, commanding the rear troops to halt, allowing only the Black Armor Army to sortie; Xia Hou Duan said: "Young Master, are you going to watch them walk to their deaths?"

Li Zhao Wen said: "General Xia Hou, military momentum is like flowing water—not a gambling table where you just slam all your chips down!"

She watched Li Guanyi and the others charge out, then raised her hand and shouted:

"All troops, raise spears, ready!"

Xia Hou Duan looked toward the old Duke.

At this moment, the Duke of Li had no intention of acting as ruler or father, giving orders from afar.

He understood his role perfectly.

He said without hesitation: "Listen to Second Son!"

Thus, these tens of thousands of troops all prepared according to Li Zhao Wen's command; Li Zhao Wen rode one of the Six Divine Steeds, raised her spear, and fixed her gaze on the charging vanguard, slowly attempting to command this vast army—even she, a prodigy born with a Heavenly Manifestation, rare once in a hundred years.

Commanding requires practice.

At her age, she did not possess the capacity to command tens of thousands.

But commanding ten thousand was as easy as breathing.

It followed the army's standard pattern: using this ten thousand to stir the momentum of the rest—imperfect, yet usable.

Helian Jieshan assumed another charge like before.

Large armies cannot easily halt mid-turn.

Initially, only the rear troops were to handle it.

Once the main army opened its formation, it would naturally withdraw; these few hundred could not pursue.

Frequent repositioning of the rear troops would confuse soldiers under conflicting orders—if chaos erupted, it would be no small matter.

This was the command of a steady commander—normally, it would pose no problem.

Helian Jieshan was in a foul mood; his elder brother, Helian Bo, was king of the Shatuo tribe.

Holding the city of Yi Tong Wan, he called himself "One Who Unifies Ten Thousand"—ruthless and tyrannical.

Leading this great army out, he had been confident, eager to leave Li Shude behind—but returned in disgrace, uncertain how his brother would rage; under this storm of emotions, his mind grew agitated, and his strategic acumen, perception, insight, and command over the battlefield all slightly declined.

Yet he himself only felt his blood boiling, desperate to kill several people.

And at this moment—

Li Guanyi had charged ahead; his dragon-horse was one of the few divine steeds even the Duke's mansion possessed—essentially a dragon-beast draped in horsehide, its body sheathed in purple lightning, breathing forth violet thunder; ordinary second-tier officers would be burned beyond recognition by a single blast.

When it went wild, ten men couldn't hold it back—but it obeyed Li Guanyi utterly.

The Fire Qilin lay still.

The dragon-horse sensed the terrifying divine beast on its back—how could it not obey?

Yu Chi Xiong's eyes lit up; his left hand gripped a water-polished bamboo-joint iron whip, his right hand controlled his spear, and with a squeeze of his legs, his lion-horse also galloped after them.

He roared: "I'll guard the General!"

The western rear troops formed ranks to respond.

Li Guanyi had already charged into the formation with his dragon-horse.

Sa Lu Zi spat one blast of thunder—several men fell, screaming—but arrows rained down; Li Guanyi thrust his heavy spear violently, internal Qi erupting into swirling vortices that collided and twisted.

Xue Shen's Spear Art: Rolling Waves!

This Wu Gong finally revealed its true power on the battlefield.

It was both offensive and defensive.

It deflected arrows outright!

Avoided the most unfortunate death of a warrior: stray arrows.

But only because the commander of these three thousand western rear troops wasn't a fearsome archer like Wang Shunchen—even if some arrows fortunately slipped through Rolling Waves, they were melted by a single breath of Fire Qilin's flame.

Li Guanyi's dark weapon swept horizontally; the Xuan Bird Manifestation unfolded.

Sa Lu Zi, startled by the Fire Qilin's aura, surged forward in acceleration.

It crashed directly into the enemy ranks.

Li Guanyi gripped his battle spear with both hands, summoned all his strength, and spun violently, sweeping sideways.

【Sweeping Thousand Armies】!

Boom!!!

Dozens of armored soldiers nearby were flung into the air; Li Guanyi exhaled deeply—his exhaustion lasted only a tenth of a breath; his Immortal Body, forged from the Elixir of Eternal Life, instantly restored his strength.

His spear slashed vertically downward, cleaving a man and his horse cleanly in two!

Arrows couldn't penetrate; his strength was boundless.

Li Guanyi roared: "Who dares fight me?!"

The Fire Qilin released its aura; though the warhorses, immersed in battlefield miasma, were spared the crushing pressure of divine beasts, they still grew restless and agitated—visible in the panic of men and steeds alike; Li Guanyi spurred his mount forward.

Yu Chi Xiong speared one man dead, then smashed his left iron whip down.

He crushed a foreign general's head and helmet into a pulpy melon.

Seeing Li Guanyi's ferocity, this troublemaker—who had risen and fallen repeatedly in the border army—his eyes blazed; he shouted: "Thrilling, thrilling!" Ignoring his armor slashed multiple times, he roared, squeezed his thighs against his horse's flanks.

This iron-tower of a man, after spearing one man, impaled two more; with one arm, he lifted all three armored western giants and hurled them down—blood and flesh flew everywhere.

Thus, these two led several hundred Black Armor troops in a charge.

The three thousand rear troops could not stop them!

Without hesitation, Helian Jieshan abandoned the rear army as a sacrifice when one hundred thousand troops turned their battle formation.

This was the true nature of war in this era.

Just as the three hundred or so men nearly pierced through a section of the Western Regions' rear army, Li Zhao Wen's eyes flashed with brilliance: "Open the city gates! Charge the formation!!!"

The city gates swung wide open!

The phoenix's spiritual form soared into the sky.

At the very moment Li Guanyi's forces shattered the enemy's rear formation and surged with momentum, Li Zhao Wen led the entire army out—primarily the still-cohesive, morale-high troops of Xiyicheng, with auxiliary soldiers and rallied fugitives following behind, all charging forth together.

What Li Guanyi did was like breaking armor.

Li Zhao Wen's move was what could truly cripple the enemy.

Xia Hou Duan instantly realized something, his expression changing as he said to Lord Li:

"My Lord, the Second Young Master is not leading us to break out—she is going to attack the enemy's main camp!"

This was a completely different strategy from what had been agreed upon.

One was breaking out—which, under current conditions, had nearly a ninety-nine percent chance of success.

The other was charging the formation—which carried far greater risk.

Lord Li merely glanced ahead, then declared without hesitation:

"The momentum of battle rests entirely in my son's hands!"

"Even if I die before you now, none of you shall harbor the slightest thought of resistance—otherwise, you will disrupt the army's morale, and that is a capital offense!"

He removed his sword from his waist and threw it directly to Xia Hou Duan.

"When the time comes, if anyone dares to sow discord and lead men away—"

"Xia Hou, you shall kill them for me yourself!"

Upon hearing this, the imperial clansmen, noble families, and senior generals all felt a chill run through them.

Xia Hou Duan was loyal and brave; when Li Shude gave the order, he would kill with greater speed and directness than Li Guanyi killing Li Xuanye, without the slightest hesitation—he bowed deeply: "Yes!"

The army charged the formation, following the breakthrough of the Xuanjia Army, directly piercing into the Western Alliance's rear!

Helian Jieshan immediately sensed something was wrong.

He had assumed it was another charge like the Xuanjia Army—but he never expected the entire city's forces to surge out. Even if many were auxiliary troops and fugitives, those elite soldiers from Xiyicheng who had remained loyal to Lord Li after multiple devastating defeats were true elite troops.

Lord Li was nothing but a rotting corpse, an old, foolish relic!

How could he possess such a piercing battle intent?!

How could he devise such a ruthless strategy?!

Helian Jieshan's expression darkened.

His judgment of the battlefield had failed.

One misstep, and the entire army was doomed!

The rear army was now in chaos; Helian Jieshan could not retreat—he immediately reorganized his forces. His unit, the Shatuo Army, successfully restored order—but this exposed the weakness of the Seven Tribes Alliance—

The other tribal generals lacked his command ability.

Some units turned to re-form, others fell into disorder.

Even the Dayuan Tribe suffered losses, charging forward in silence and breaking away from the main formation.

Then, for some unknown reason, their horses' legs weakened, their speed clearly declining.

The army's formation was in chaos!

The Nine Tripods rang out in a howl; Li Guanyi saw with his own eyes the flow of battlefield grim energy.

He hurled his long spear with all his might.

The enemy's shield wall blocked it.

But the enemy captain's realm was vastly inferior to Li Guanyi's.

The shield wall formed by dozens of overlapping shields shattered outright—Li Guanyi's steed, Saluzi, reared up on its hind legs, its two front hooves, each the size of a human head, shimmering with cyan-purple lightning.

Dressed in black mountain-patterned armor and a brocade battle robe, Li Guanyi atop his dragon steed appeared before the Western Alliance like a divine being, radiating overwhelming might.

Saluzi slammed its hooves down violently.

Lightning exploded!

The dozens of heavy shield-bearers whose formation Li Guanyi had shattered were flung sideways—he gripped his spear, driving it deep into the ground. Wei Chi Xiong, clad in blood-splattered black armor, held a steel whip in one hand and a spiked club of unknown origin in the other, a demon-like figure guarding Li Guanyi's flank.

The moment had come!

Li Guanyi took up his bow, nocked an arrow, and the arrowhead glowed with radiant light; then, aiming straight at the heavens, he loosed it.

This arrow carried the divine power of the Break-Cloud Thunderbow.

It would strike true!

Master-level power, commanding a divine weapon.

Xue's old patriarch could charge an arrow for fifty li; Li Guanyi was even stronger—this arrow pierced the sky with tremendous force. At a distance not far for cavalry, Khan Qibili and Fan Qing saw an arrow spinning toward them.

Then, in midair, it exploded, subtly taking the shape of a Fire Qilin raising its head and roaring.

Khan Qibili said: "It is the Lord's Break-Cloud Thunderbow."

"General Fan Qing."

He looked up—Fan Qing slowly opened his eyes amid the heavy cavalry.

Khan Qibili felt an indescribable solemn stillness.

Fan Qing nodded, spurred his mount, and his four thousand men moved in unison.

Then Khan Qibili's six thousand Tiele troops also advanced.

Fan Qing commanded troops of Central Plains origin, specialized in heavy armor, heavy shields, and crossbow fire; Khan Qibili's were the elite of the Tiele Nine Tribes, among the Thirty-Six Western Regions Tribes of this era.

On this land steeped in legend and blood.

Central Plains people and Western Regions people charged under the same banner.

It was absurd, like something out of a tale.

In days past, no hero had ever gathered them together.

Khan Qibili charged in silence, yet even he now felt an indescribable tension, his heart pounding violently—

A battlefield of over a hundred thousand souls on either side.

The intensity of this scale was bound to be recorded in the annals.

Khan Qibili thought: future generations would one day turn the yellowed pages of history, read of their lives, and find this battle written there—and now, he himself stood within that destined line of history, fulfilling this great war.

Merely thinking this brought a grand sense of past, future, and present intertwining.

It felt as if he were no longer himself, but a galloping character in the annals.

He said: "Tell me, General Fan, could we ever enter the List of Great Generals of the Realm?"

Fan Qing answered calmly: "General Khan Qibili, you stand at the peak of the Fifth Heaven Realm. There have been precedents, like General Ling Pingyang, who reached the mid-tier of the Fifth Heaven. With your valor, you will surely make your name resound across a region."

"I am merely a minor general of the Fourth Heaven, my cultivation ordinary. To lead four thousand men and fight across the land under our Lord's command—this alone fulfills me. I have no other desires."

"In chaotic times, only the sword and spear till peace."

"I only hope that when peace finally comes to the realm, I may lay down my armor and return to my fields."

Khan Qibili gripped his curved blade and said nothing.

Only Khan Qibili could sense that although Fan Qing commanded only four thousand, his men moved as one, utterly unified.

Like the pivot of the formation, Fan Qing controlled the momentum of his four thousand, then used them to coordinate with others.

Whether defending, flanking, or attacking.

Fan Qing's four thousand could perfectly synchronize with all others.

These ten thousand men subtly moved as a single entity.

This general, the most ordinary in origin among all commanders, the most diligent and solemn, possessed no martial talent, no family insight like Yuwen Hua, no heritage like Khan Qibili, no techniques like Lei Lengmeng.

He could only constantly learn from everyone else, then repeat what he learned a thousand times, ten thousand times, a hundred thousand times—Khan Qibili had seen how this plain, quiet general trained his formations.

His diligence surpassed his own by tenfold.

"Yet I do not think so, General Fan Qing…"

"You yourself are far stronger than you imagine."

Khan Qibili thought: "Today is the day we make our names known."

"The glory of my ancestors—I shall reclaim it with my own curved blade!"

"Anxi City shall step onto this world."

Ten thousand men arrived on the battlefield, and at this moment, due to Li Guanyi and Li Zhao Wen's coordination, the Western Regions' hundred-thousand-strong army fell into passivity; born of seven different tribes, they could not coordinate seamlessly, resulting in 【Disordered Army】.

Once an army grew disordered, it slid toward defeat.

When morale broke, even grass and trees became enemies!

Helian Jieshan, a famed general, still held the situation together, preventing the disordered army from collapsing into a routed force, let alone turning into fleeing soldiers. With bloodshot eyes, he reversed the direction of his troops, his momentum grand, forcibly controlling the seven tribal forces.

Li Zhao Wen personally intervened.

The two formations crashed into each other with thunderous force!!!

The battle aura of the formations tore apart; dark clouds gathered overhead, and the roar of thunder—was it thunder, hoofbeats, or the clashing of over a hundred thousand swords and spears?

Disordered army met routed army.

For a moment, no clear advantage emerged.

And at that moment, another army arrived on the battlefield.

Fan Qing gazed at the distant battlefield, his firm male face alight with a fierce flame. He raised his spear and spoke, sparing no words:

"Charge."

Ten thousand men charged.

They were ready in an instant.

Khan Qibili's light cavalry overtook Fan Qing—the Golden Curved Blade Cavalry, the finest light cavalry in the realm—appeared on this battlefield of over a hundred thousand, their thundering hooves slicing like a blade straight into the flank of the Western Alliance!

Target position—

【Da Wan Tribe】.

The Da Wan Tribe had more troops than the Golden Curved Blade Cavalry, but not by much; one side was weary, the other had been poised for long. Moreover, the Da Wan Dragon Horses, famed for galloping across the Western Regions, inexplicably lacked strength, running slow.

In an instant, the Da Wan Tribe was cut apart by the Golden Curved Blade Cavalry!

The howl of the Gray Wolf rose to the heavens.

Then—

Fan Qing's heavy cavalry entered the battlefield.

Three thousand fully armored cavalry, one thousand heavy shield-nosebow cavalry.

The Golden Curved Blade Cavalry cut and shattered the enemy's formation; the armored cavalry charged with gathered momentum, piercing through; the heavy shield-nosebow cavalry followed behind, suppressing and finishing off, repeating the cycle.

Precise, efficient, stable.

It was the style of the Great General Yuwen Tianxian, the Unmoving Vajra Lord.

And he had added his own touch.

The son of a peasant, the man who had suffered imprisonment, now revealed his fangs on this battlefield—so long as no general fully overwhelmed him, he was the most terrifying, most efficient killing machine.

The Da Wan Tribe broke from the battlefield!

Helian Jieshan roared: "Who?!!"

Khan Qibili slew a general, his aura surging, the Gray Wolf howling, shouting:

"Anxi City, under the command of Tian Ge'er of the Iron Tribe, Khan Qibili!"

"Lead the Golden Crescent Blade Cavalry to reinforce!!!"

Helian Jieshan wondered what the Golden Crescent Blade Cavalry was, his forehead throbbing—as if something he had ignored was rising—and then, in his ancestral records, the memory surfaced: that cavalry, whose blades seemed like divine slashes from the heavens.

Light cavalry, armored lightly, striking suddenly.

The fastest blade, the most dangerous cavalry.

Like a divine punishment bestowed by the Golden God of the heavens.

Because of such renown, they were targeted and wiped out—this once-dominant cavalry of the Western Regions, now extinct for centuries. Helian Jieshan's face turned pale: "Golden Crescent Blade Cavalry? Weren't they already destroyed? Was it true, what the legends said—that this unit had reappeared?"

"How could they appear now?"

"How could they be on the enemy's side?"

He saw the Dawa tribe's banners suddenly sway, then crash down sideways. Fan Qing's battle formation cut through, paused, then answered:

"Anxi Protectorate."

"Sent to reinforce."

This solemn warlord raised his internal Qi and spoke the next line.

Brief, precise, grim and concise.

"The Dawa tribe has been shattered by us!"

Helian Jieshan's expression changed slightly: "Who is this?!" Fan Qing had been active in the Southern pacification campaigns, but in that war—the peak of which involved over a hundred thousand troops—he was merely a minor general commanding three thousand.

He was one of the Fire Qilin Mansion's earliest generals, but his name never spread beyond the borders.

Helian Jieshan's face darkened—he knew the tide had turned. The enemy's strategy had predicted every move of his. His hundred thousand troops were in chaos; what remained under his control, still disciplined and not yet broken into fleeing mobs, was only several tens of thousands.

The tide had turned…

This was no longer a retreat!

It was nearly a counter-stroke—reduced to a stalemate.

Helian Jieshan's heart burned with fury, while Li Duke and others rejoiced; even Xia Hou Duan's face carried a faint smile. On the battlefield, every face told a different story—Qibili and Fan Qing both exhaled slightly in relief.

They knew their strategic objective had been achieved.

At that moment, Li Guanyi let out a long roar and yanked the reins.

Salu Zi neighed like a dragon.

As both sides' commanders began gathering their forces, accepting the battle's outcome, the lone fierce general charged straight into the enemy's main army—as if walking to his death.

Fan Qing's eyes widened: "My Lord!!!"

Qibili spurred his horse; Li Duke and Xia Hou Duan froze.

Even the imperial clan and aristocratic generals stared in shock. Li Guanyi's battle spear screamed wildly in his grip, his eyes locked on the horizon—before any general, a hundred-thousand-strong army was an endless sea of men.

To be alone within it was to be drowned by overwhelming force, losing all sense of direction.

But Li Guanyi was different—he possessed the body of a warlord, forged through endless combat, and could see the tangible form of battle formations, like a master of Yin-Yang.

Li Guanyi's heart pounded wildly; his long spear swung like a dragon, smashing and hurling enemy after enemy. No one knew what he intended—except Li Zhaowen.

Li Zhaowen forcibly controlled the momentum of the battle formation; the Phoenix surged skyward.

Li Zhaowen drove his formation to collide with Helian Jieshan's.

The deadly aura array surged and scattered; both armies' momentum, deadly aura, and formations froze momentarily—before reassembling. In that instant, Li Guanyi rode alone into the ten-thousand-strong host, left hand gripping a sword, right hand gripping his spear's tip, charging like a dragon.

Arrows rained down—burned to ash by the Fire Qilin's flames.

Suddenly, a thought arose in the hearts of every general witnessing this—yet they instinctively rejected it: No, impossible. This was absurd.

Impossible—he couldn't possibly intend to do this…

Impossible…

Yet the mere thought of that act sent every general's blood boiling. Xia Hou Duan gritted his teeth, eyes red, roaring: "Cover him! Cover him!!!!"

"Everyone—raise your spear tips!"

"F*** it—everyone, charge!"

The Western Alliance generals bellowed: "Shoot! Shoot!!"

"Stop him!"

Both armies surged wildly—one side blocking, the other covering. That streak of lightning tore through the hundred-thousand-man battlefield with impossible precision, charging straight toward the Western Alliance's central command camp.

Two fierce generals blocked his path!

Li Guanyi gripped his weapons.

Spear thrust, sword slash.

Both generals were shattered outright.

One's chest pierced, one's neck severed. Li Guanyi's body felt crushing pressure and exhaustion; the Longevity Imperishable Body's strain was too great—his wounds could not heal quickly.

Helian Jieshan's gaze locked. He saw this Central Plains warlord, clad in mountain-pattern armor, charging through ten thousand men into the central camp—like a god or demon. Surrounding captains rushed to intercept, but Li Guanyi's chest swelled with unyielding courage—he pressed forward, refusing to yield.

To utterly shatter the Western Alliance's morale, to make them see him as a celestial deity.

Charging straight through the onslaught of these generals.

Helian Jieshan drew his weapon, staring at Li Guanyi, dazed.

On a hundred-thousand-man battlefield—alone, charging the formation, slaying a general.

In this age ruled by battle formations and deadly aura, such a thing had never been done. He gripped his weapon, roaring: "Stop him!!!"

TING!

His weapon was severed—Li Guanyi's black-steel battle spear was cut. But his five fingers clenched tightly; the roar of a tiger exploded. The divine weapon, the Tiger Roaring Heaven Halberd, appeared. Above, the seven stars of the Western Bai Hu blazed brightly.

I have sworn to give these townsfolk a chance to live.

On this battlefield, it is the only way.

Li Guanyi shattered the blockade of five generals!

Helian Jieshan thrust forward with a spear; Li Guanyi swept his battle-axe horizontally. Helian Jieshan's tiger eyes blazed with fury. Li Guanyi's left hand gripped—red-gold light flared violently, coalescing into a sword. Li Guanyi stared fixedly at Helian Jieshan.

Smash you all!

【I will make you fear me as you fear heaven!!!】

Li Guanyi's sword qi surged violently. With the bold courage of a lone man charging an army, with this roaring, mighty wind, he slammed into the commander of the hundred-thousand Western Regions allied forces.

The long sword slashed down; Helian Jieshan blocked it with his saber.

The saber's edge shattered.

The low, grim roar of Bai Hu was swallowed by the terror of the ten thousand troops.

Li Guanyi's sword shattered the saber and carved into Helian Jieshan's neck; armor sparked as it broke. Li Guanyi glared with rage. Helian Jieshan's unwillingness to yield, the bloody battlefield, the civilians in the city, the chaotic tide of this broken world—all seemed to freeze.

Then.

One sword—severed!

The long sword tore through armor, cut through flesh, and broke the stalemate of this great battle.

The head of Helian Jieshan, younger brother of the Shatuo monarch Helian Bo and famed general, soared into the air.

Time stretched slow and thick. Helian Jieshan could still see the chaotic troop formations, the spinning heavens and earth, the fear on the soldiers' faces, and the warlord gasping for breath yet radiating overwhelming might.

In the midst of a hundred thousand troops, beheaded the commander!

Unparalleled in a thousand ages.

?? struggled once more out of the underworld's rest (struggling)

? Don't know how many days I can hold on

? Please, everyone, give me moon tickets