Chapter 716

Although over the past seven days, the Great Yuan's elite warriors have suffered heavy losses.

But since they came with the main army, many are still alive.

Thus, after the arrow barrage ceased, as long as they avoid the siege crossbows and aren't hit by them,

these martial artists can play a major role.

The siege crossbows are powerful, but they are primarily tools for assaulting or defending fortresses.

Their wide attack range also means their accuracy is poor.

So, just after the siege battle began, within the time of one incense stick, all three walls were in dire straits.

"Bad! There are many hidden-weapon experts among those enemies…"

Upon hearing this, Sikong Yuchi Zhen immediately prepared to ignore his fatigue, seize his Kanglong Mace, and lead the suicide squad into battle.

But before he could act, another alarm came in:

"General Sikong Yuchi, enemy elites here are trying to aid the attackers' siege…"

"There are experts here who've directly thrown enemy siege weapons…"

Every section, every section—nearly the entire line was under emergency.

Sikong Yuchi Zhen now understood clearly: even if he were forged from iron, how many nails could he possibly have?

"Captain Chen, what should we do now?"

In terms of defending Yanmen Pass, after Wang Xiaojie, Captain Chen is the top choice.

With the defense in crisis, Sikong Yuchi Zhen could only turn to him for advice.

"In my view, you can't save any side in time."

Captain Chen smiled bitterly as he surveyed all around, seeing every corner locked in chaotic, bitter combat,

"I suggest moving some siege crossbows to the government office and retreating to defend it.

Destroy all remaining siege crossbows."

The government office of Yanmen Pass is no ordinary government office.

It is a small inner city within Yanmen Pass.

When built, it was designed as a fallback position in case Yanmen Pass ever fell, allowing the remaining defenders to retreat there.

To use the office's slight terrain advantage, hold out as long as possible.

Now, the time has come to retreat to the government office.

Upon hearing this, Sikong Yuchi Zhen was furious.

He naturally knew how long the government office could possibly hold.

He feared that by the time the three-thousand-strong army retreated there, they'd lose another several hundred, even a thousand men.

Then, with only the remaining defenders left, both the siege crossbows and morale would plummet to near nothing.

What would they have left to defend the pass with?

"General Sikong Yuchi, Captain Chen, look to the north! It looks like our reinforcements have arrived!"

Just as Sikong Yuchi Zhen was in agony, unwilling to make this decision,

a scout suddenly shouted loudly.

North?

Could it be General Su Dingfang from Hetao sending the Yuan army?

"That can't be! General Su Dingfang, to conceal his departure, took only two divisions.

He's barely managed to capture and hold Hetao through his tactical brilliance—where would he get troops to reinforce us?"

Like Sikong Yuchi Zhen, Captain Chen immediately thought of General Su Dingfang from Hetao as the likely source of reinforcements.

"Go see! Perhaps General Su's military genius truly has sent us aid."

Sikong Yuchi Zhen saw morale surge as reinforcements arrived, once again repelling the enemy's assault.

He felt deeply relieved and immediately pulled Captain Chen along, rushing from the south to the north.

In the Great Tang, every division and every pass's troops could be distinguished by their banners.

Even from afar, when Captain Chen reached the northern wall, he instantly recognized: the reinforcements' banner was that of Yanmen Pass's own troops.

"That's Yanmen Pass's banner! Has General Wang Xiaojie arrived with his men?"

Captain Chen was both excited and astonished.

Hearing this, Sikong Yuchi Zhen froze, then let out another bitter laugh.

For the past seven days, Bolhuo had sent several cavalry units to scour the southern regions, seeking Wang Xiaojie and the five-thousand-strong force.

He always believed Wang Xiaojie, though seemingly estranged from Yanmen Pass, was actually hiding deep in the mountains and forests, waiting to strike him from behind.

Sikong Yuchi Zhen naturally knew this.

He also knew Bolhuo had turned over nearly a hundred li of southern territory.

Yet they still hadn't found Wang Xiaojie or the five thousand men.

Unexpectedly, Wang Xiaojie had done the opposite—moved those five thousand men from the most likely southern direction to the north.

This not only surprised Sikong Yuchi Zhen but also evaded Bolhuo's search entirely.

"Too bad, too bad…"

Captain Chen uttered "too bad" twice.

By "too bad," he meant Wang Xiaojie's arrival came at the worst possible moment.

Yanmen Pass could barely hold on now, on the verge of retreating to the government office.

Though Wang Xiaojie's five thousand men caught Bolhuo off guard, it wouldn't change the outcome.

Because Yanmen Pass could no longer send out troops to reinforce Wang Xiaojie and coordinate an inside-out attack.

Sikong Yuchi Zhen heard Captain Chen's words and naturally understood his meaning; he immediately said,

"Captain Chen, though we cannot now exploit the opportunity created by General Wang to break the Bolhu army,

as long as we bring these five thousand fresh troops inside the pass, we still have great room to maneuver!

Why not let me lead a detachment to meet General Wang?"

"General! It's too late…"

Captain Chen smiled bitterly, pointing toward the northern battlefield.

Indeed, the situation on the battlefield had changed drastically.

Just moments before, Wang Xiaojie's five thousand men had suddenly appeared, striking the northern Yuan forces from behind and nearly causing their collapse.

But in the next moment, after the Yuan troops regained their footing,

Bolhu realized these five thousand were not reinforcements from the Hetao region, but Wang Xiaojie's own force.

He was overjoyed instead, pulling many troops and even experts from the other two fronts to surround the five thousand completely.

Meng Chixing and Bi Xuan's figures were among them.

With their arrival, and Wang Xiaojie's five thousand lacking any formidable experts,

on the open plain with no terrain to defend, they were immediately trapped in a pincer.

Watching Wang Xiaojie's reinforcements sink as if into layers of mud, they seemed on the verge of being swallowed whole.

As Captain Chen frowned, at a loss for what to do,

Sikong Yuchi Zhen ordered men to summon Pei Xingjian and Ba Fenghan.

The battle raged like fire; soon, the two arrived.

Sikong Yuchi Zhen took the Dragon-Soaring Mace from his back and handed it to Pei Xingjian,

"The situation is dire—it has reached its final moment. I need you to go mad with me!"

"Huh?"

Ba Fenghan still looked bewildered, not understanding what Sikong Yuchi Zhen was up to.

But Pei Xingjian, perceptive and having been Sikong Yuchi Zhen's childhood friend, instantly guessed his plan.

He pointed to the five thousand Yuan troops to the north and asked,

"You want me to impersonate you and go rescue those five thousand?"

"Yes!"

Sikong Yuchi Zhen smiled with quiet satisfaction.

"Sikong Yuchi, are you mad? Pei… the Altar Lord Kou isn't even from the Tang Empire—how can he interfere in this battle?"