Chapter 451

First Volume_Chapter 451 Lone Army's Surprise Raid

Ning Hu and three hundred Tianji Camp Guards lay hidden in a depression less than one hundred steps from the camp, all crouched low to the ground, masked by the night, silently waiting for their chance.

The camp was too close to the Front Line, and with the fighting between the Beixi County Garrison and Chen Si growing fiercer, the Beidi camp's defenses had become extremely tight—besides soldiers strictly carrying out patrol and guard duties, specialized officers patrolled the entire camp every one Envoy to prevent any slacking off.

Ning Hu found no gap at all, and cavalry moved too fast—if the Front Line fighting calmed, they would immediately be recalled to reinforce the camp.

Once the cavalry returned, attacking the camp would become even harder.

There was only one chance—he could not possibly abandon it!

Ning Hu gambled everything and ordered preparations for a direct assault!

The three hundred Tianji Camp Guards were split into two squads: Ning Hu led two hundred, while the other hundred found a way to circle around to the rear of the camp, forming a flanking attack.

After waiting half a Envoy, Ning Hu no longer hesitated.

"Kill!"

At his command, two hundred Tianji Camp Guards charged toward the camp; before they reached fifty steps, patrol soldiers spotted them and tried to raise the alarm—but were killed mid-shout by an arrow flying through the air.

Meanwhile, other soldiers around them, unprepared for the Tianji Camp Guards' highly trained archery, were inevitably struck down.

In an instant, seven or eight patrol soldiers were shot dead, but one soldier's scream still drew the attention of others—urgent gongs and drums echoed throughout the entire camp.

Soldiers awakened from sleep rushed out of their ying zhang in panic, only to find Tianji Camp Guards already inside the camp.

"Enemy attack! Enemy attack!"

"Don't panic! Hold your line! Advance and fight!"

A Gate General sprinted over, commanding the chaotic soldiers to meet the enemy.

The camp housed four thousand infantry, and the Liang Kingdom's main army was held back beyond the Border—they could not possibly send a large force to the rear; the enemy must be a small detachment.

The Gate General slashed down one fleeing soldier and roared at the others in panic: "Those who shirk battle—die!"

At that moment, a soldier ran from the direction of the Camp Gate, fell at the Gate General's feet, and cried out in terror: "General, the enemy's assault is fierce—we cannot hold!"

Before he finished speaking, the Gate General raised his blade and beheaded the soldier who was undermining morale, roaring: "Those who disrupt military morale—die! All of you, charge forward!"

The Gate General was furious because the camp stored vast quantities of grain and forage—if the grain was lost, the Front Line army could not sustain itself long enough to break through the Liang Kingdom's Defensive Line; without time to plunder the autumn harvest of Liang's civilians and with no grain reserves in the rear, the entire war would suffer catastrophic damage.

The Gate General guarding the grain would be flayed alive!

Under pressure from the Gate General and the supervising officers, the panicked soldiers could only grit their teeth and charge toward the Camp Gate.

Watching the soldiers' backs, the Gate General felt a growing dread.

Though the enemy could only be a small force, why did they choose precisely tonight—when the cavalry had just been withdrawn—to launch their raid? Unless… they had been lying hidden for days, secretly observing.

But within a hundred li, every corner was watched by night owls and scouts—how could they have hidden for days without being detected?

As the Gate General struggled to understand, the cries of battle grew clearer beside his ear.

Had the enemy already breached the Camp Gate and were now charging this way? How much time had passed? How could the enemy be so ferocious?

On the other side, Ning Hu, wielding a step spear, continuously slaughtered soldiers blocking his path.

Only one cup of tea time had passed since the raid began—Ning Hu had already killed over ten defenders and led the Tianji Camp Guards through enemy lines, advancing deep into the camp, now less than one hundred steps from the granary!

Beidi's elite troops were few and all deployed to the Front Line; the rear garrison, though regular army, had been stationed for years without real combat experience—and faced with the Tianji Camp Guards' swift night raid, they were thrown into chaos, forgetting all their training.

In battle, nothing is more dangerous than losing your composure!

The more fiercely the Tianji Camp Guards attacked, the lower the enemy's morale sank; without morale, resistance crumbled.

The two hundred guards launching the frontal assault were divided into two waves: the front one hundred carried step spears, the rear one hundred still held bows.

The step spears shattered enemy long weapons and armor, while shielding the archers behind.

The arrows inflicted unimaginable pressure on the defenders.

And…

The Tianji Camp Guards were equipped entirely with armor-piercing arrowheads.

Made of pure iron, the arrowheads were slender and coated in poison.

Each Tianji Camp Standard Armor-Piercing Arrow cost enough to forge ten ordinary arrows.

Beyond the arrowheads, the bows themselves had been modified by the Tianji Camp: in both Shedynasty and Beidi, heavy step bows had one shi (one hundred twenty jin), medium bows seven dou, and light bows five dou.

Heavy cavalry bows matched medium step bows in power.

But the Tianji Camp Guards, trained under Qin Feng's physical conditioning and specialized archery drills, possessed superior physical strength—Tianji Camp Step Bows were one shi two, two dou stronger than standard step bows; their range and armor-piercing capability far surpassed ordinary soldiers'.

The camp defenders could not withstand the Tianji Camp Guards' archery.

One shot—always hit. One hit—always pierced.

Cloth armor and light armor were useless; even heavy armor worn by officers offered no effective protection except at the helmet and heart-protecting mirror.

Whether in weapons, armor, or morale, the camp defenders were vastly inferior to the Tianji Camp Guards; despite their numerical advantage, they could not unite their strength, rendering it meaningless.

As the Tianji Camp Guards closed to less than fifty steps from the granary and the defenders scattered in disarray, unable to mount any coherent counterattack, the Gate General knew clearly: once morale broke, forcing these raw soldiers to rally again was impossible.

The Gate General immediately led his guard unit into battle himself.

The Gate General wielded a long-handled axe; his fifty-plus bodyguards carried mainly zhan dao.

The Tianji Camp Guards had already crushed the defenders' morale—against the charging Gate General, they could not yield an inch, or his personal valor would restore enemy morale.

Ning Hu pointed at the enemy Gate General and roared: "Target the enemy commander—kill him!"

Though brave, Ning Hu was no fool—he would never recklessly engage an enemy commander in single combat.

Instantly, the Tianji Camp Guards focused their arrows on the Gate General.

Though his bodyguards rushed to shield him at once, a volley from the Tianji Camp Guards struck the Gate General and over a dozen of his guards.