The Human Emperor c1-2382

by Huangfu Qi (皇甫奇)

  "Ready! Shields!"

  With a set of sharp signals, massive steel shields were suddenly raised to the sky like countless fish scales. At the same time, there was a clattering of metal as war halos began to emerge from these large shields.

  The Halo of Tenacity, the Halo of Defense, the Black Iron Halo, the Tempering Halo, the Charging Halo, the Attack Halo… thousands of halos began to resonate, their sounds mixing together.

  In an instant, an enormous fighting intent exploded out of the Mengshe Zhao soldiers. And in the sky above the shield-bearing soldiers, space began to twist as the image of a massive stone began to manifest, shining with a milky-white light.

  When this massive stone appeared, the Mengshe Zhao army took on a completely different tone. It seemed to become much steadier and weightier.

  "The Whitestone Corps!"

  As Wang Chong looked down from the summit and saw that white stone slowly manifest over the Mengshe Zhao soldiers on the front line, his expression instantly turned grave.

  "Geluofeng is burning with ambition, and he's truly been training quite the number of soldiers in these last few years! The quality of these soldiers is still lacking when compared to the Annan Protectorate army, but they're already quite similar in a few aspects."

  The Whitestone Corps was one of the elite corps that Geluofeng had trained.

  Although Wang Chong had never encountered it before, it had a thunderous reputation. These soldiers had played no small part in the battle of Erhai. The Whitestone Corps was also the largest of Mengshe Zhao's army corps, numbering one hundred thousand.

  Rumble! The world quaked as the tidy infantry ranks of the Whitestone Corps began to divide into squares. Through a slow but steady march, they began to approach the summit from all sides.

  Upon seeing this, both Wang Chong and the other commanders on the mountain couldn't help but widen their eyes.

  In both their marching style and use of shields, Mengshe Zhao's Whitestone Corps is acting almost exactly like an army of the Great Tang. Back then, the Sage Emperor in his kindness provided Mengshe Zhao with many things, including methods to train soldiers and knowledge of formations. But now, Geluofeng is using these things to deal with the Great Tang. This fellow has truly put a lot of thought into his schemes!

  As Wang Chong's sleeves flapped in the wind, his mind was buzzing with thoughts. With this similar style of army, Geluofeng's understanding of the Great Tang, and the fact that the Tang were fighting on foreign territory, it was no wonder that the Annan Protectorate army had suffered such a devastating defeat.

  Alas, Geluofeng, you encountered me!

  As he looked down the mountain, Wang Chong's eyes turned cold and hard. The art of war was about confusing the false and the true. If Geluofeng truly believed that just by defeating the Great Tang once, he could defeat them twice, then he was making a grave mistake.

  "Get ready!"

  Raising his right hand, Wang Chong swiftly gave his first order. With this order, the air began to rumble as halo after dazzling halo began to ripple out from the mountain.

  The one hundred thousand Tang soldiers began to unleash their different halos. Their forces stretched from the summit to the base, all of them behind the layers of steel walls. In a flash, the original mountain disappeared, replaced by a mountain of steel formed from men and walls.

  Killing intent and dangerous energies roiled around the mountain, and the Great Tang army exuded a dignified and somber air. All of these soldiers exuded the odor that could only come from well-trained soldiers who had experienced hundreds of battles, the smell of emotionless iron and blood.

  Anyone who saw this army would be able to feel that hair-raising strength and demeanor. These thousands of soldiers stood like solemn statues, none of them making a noise, as if all of them were part of the same body.

  The strength of thousands had fused into one. This sort of quality was not something an ordinary army could achieve.

  At this moment, the one hundred thousand Tang soldiers on the summit were showing traces of that Great Tang which had once swept through the world without equal.

  More than one hundred thousand soldiers of the Annan Protectorate army had died in the battle of Erhai, but the soldiers that remained had not only failed to crumble, they had grown even stronger.

  "These people…"

  At the base of the mountain, the Mengshe–Ü-Tsang commanders couldn't help but widen their eyes at this sight.

  Even though they stood on opposing sides, they had to admit that the Great Tang's systematic training produced high-quality soldiers that probably not even the Tibetans could match.

  If it weren't for the fact that cavalry were naturally superior to infantry and the fact that Ü-Tsang possessed the most cavalry, the southwestern war might have ended with a completely different result.

  "Fight! Fight! Fight!"

  As they roared, the thousands of soldiers of the Whitestone Corps used the cover of their shields to slowly approach.

  From the mountain came the creaking of countless mechanisms.

  While the Mengshe Zhao army was rapidly advancing, the Tang army remained as unmoving as statues. Their cold and bright gazes continued to stare down the mountain.

  This combination of movement and stillness only seemed to increase the pressure.

  Fifty zhang!

  Forty zhang!

  Thirty zhang!

  Twenty zhang!

  ……

  The air was fraught with tension. Whether it was on the summit or at the base of the mountain, whether Tang, Mengshe, or Tibetan, all the commanders had focused their attention on the place where the lines of the army would first clash.

  Finally…

  Boom!

  With a massive boom, the front ranks of the Whitestone Corp finally met with the Tang ranks and fell into a melee.

  "Kiiiill!"

  "Kiiiill!"

  Soldiers on both sides bellowed. In the instant the two armies clashed, Mengshe Zhao and Great Tang soldiers were cut down like stalks of wheat.

  Such was the harvest… From the very start, the battle had reached an extremely intense and callous state.

  Chapter 564: Walking into a Trap! Both Sides Sound Each Other Out!

  Chapter 564: Walking into a Trap! Both Sides Sound Each Other Out!

  Translated by: Hypersheep325

  Edited by: Michyrr

  "Press forward!"

  Without waiting for the battle to develop, Geluofeng sent another wave forward with a wave of his hand, and tens of thousands of soldiers of the Whitestone Corps marched into the fray. The clash of shield against shield, steel against steel, rang out as the dense ranks collided.

  "Press forward!"

  The second wave had barely arrived and Geluofeng was already sending his third wave of troops sweeping forward.

  "Don't give them a chance to rest! Duan Wuzong, go up there and personally hold the line!"

  "Yes, Your Majesty!"

  At Geluofeng's side, a heroic general carrying a white-tasseled spear urged his horse forward. This was the commander of the Whitestone Corps, Duan Wuzong, and he was also Mengshe Zhao Great General Duan Gequan's cousin.

  He was the one who had trained the Whitestone Corps to its current level.

  From this action of sending out Duan Wuzong so early, one could see the importance Geluofeng placed on this battle.

  Bangbangbangbang!

  The air resounded with the rumbling of halos as they overlapped and incessantly pressed forward. In a few short moments, the Great Tang soldiers on the outermost perimeter of the mountain were put under enormous pressure.

  Each inch of ground had multiple members of the Whitestone Corps charging into it.

  Massive Halos of Thorns intersected with each other, their rumbling and clattering mixed in with the endless cries of battle. Geluofeng used no other strategy than that of sheer numbers to push and press against the Annan Protectorate army garrisoned on the mountain.

  In
a one-on-one matchup, a soldier of the Whitestone Corps was no match for a soldier of the Annan Protectorate army, not in strength, speed, or dexterity. But when their numbers reached a certain level, this quantitative change would effect a qualitative change, and everything would be different.

  "Let's see how they do?"

  At the base of the mountain, Geluofeng, Huoshu Huicang, and Dalun Ruozan quietly watched on, everyone waiting in anticipation for the Annan Protectorate army's reaction.

  The rows of steel walls on the mountain seemed like an imposing fortress, a castle that wasn't a castle.

  Not even people with Geluofeng's or Huoshu Huicang's experiences had ever encountered such a situation before.

  Neither of the pair could grasp Wang Chong's strategy.

  This first wave was just a test.

  "What do you think they will do?" Geluofeng suddenly asked.

  "What they'll do… we'll find out soon." Huoshu Huicang squinted as he spoke.

  These two powerhouses of the southwest, enemies yet not enemies, friends yet not friends, in Zhangchou Jianqiong's generation had always suppressed each other. But after Zhangchou Jianqiong, these two had suddenly stood together to deal with the Great Tang.

  "The Whitestone Corps is a corps that I trained to have an extremely formidable defense. No matter what sort of tricks they have, their effects will all be greatly reduced against the Whitestone Corps. As long as we can shatter the Annan Protectorate army's defense and annihilate them, the Great Tang's southwest will be ours for the taking. This will be our final battle!"

  Geluofeng looked up to the summit as he spoke.

  It was the last battle. Once these enemies before him were eliminated, the southwest would be a world that belonged to Ü-Tsang and Mengshe Zhao. At this moment, not even Geluofeng could conceal his agitation.

  All that he had anticipated would become reality on the morrow.

  "Don't get too careless!" Huoshu Huicang chided from the side.

  "What? With our five hundred thousand soldiers, do you think that we can't destroy their remaining forces?" Geluofeng asked, his brow furrowed.

  Huoshu Huicang was an Ü-Tsang Great General and incomparably valiant. Geluofeng had originally believed that he would agree with his point of view. To his surprise, Huoshu Huicang had taken a stance that he would have never imagined.

  "I didn't say that we wouldn't destroy them. I am only saying that we need to show the appropriate level of caution. I feel that things won't proceed as smoothly as we imagine," Huoshu Huicang calmly said.

  For some reason, Huoshu Huicang had an ill foreboding that he couldn't shake off. Perhaps it was because that Tang person on the summit was too quiet. Perhaps it was because the Annan Protectorate army had been retreating all this time but had seemed to stop here solely because of this mountain.

  "In short, maintain an appropriate level of vigilance. We just can't get careless…"

  ……

  Bangbangbang!

  On the slopes, shield clashed against shield in an unending din.

  "Kiiiill!"

  "Kiiiill!"

  The thousands of Whitestone Corps soldiers roared as they pressed forward.

  "Hold!"

  "Hold!"

  ……

  The Annan Protectorate army was constantly being pushed back, its shield soldiers constantly retreating. Bangbang! The rocks under their feet shattered as a massive pressure pushed these soldiers on the front line into the dirt and rock of the mountain face.

  The collapse of the front line seemed like only a matter of time.

  Kacrack!

  The grinding of shield on shield made one's teeth ache, and the Great Tang infantry all had red faces from the effort they were putting forth. At the base of the mountain, Geluofeng, Duan Gequan, Fengjiayi, Dalun Ruozan, and Huoshu Huicang were all looking up at the summit.

  Once the Great Tang front line could no longer hold, their soldiers would all surge, availing themselves of the mountain to cleave their way to the summit and take care of all the Tang soldiers.

  "It's about time!"

  As Wang Chong observed the melee from the summit, watching the Great Tang tussle with the Mengshe Zhao and Tibetan soldiers, his gaze slowly turned harsh. Geluofeng and Huoshu Huicang were using the Whitestone Corps to sound him out.

  But Wang Chong was sounding them out as well.

  Boom!

  With a swing of his right hand, the situation changed in a way that the Mengshe–Ü-Tsang army did not expect. Right when the Annan Protectorate army seemed to be reaching its breaking point, boom! All the Tang soldiers on the outermost perimeter suddenly retreated, thousands of soldiers rushing further into the mountain.

  Buzz! It was so sudden that the Whitestone Corps soldiers farthest back were dumbfounded.

  "What's going on here?"

  Geluofeng slightly paled at this sudden change.

  Although he hoped to see the Annan Protectorate army fail, this sort of utter collapse was occurring far earlier than he had expected. But before he had time to think, all the soldiers of the Whitestone Corps were already surging forward.

  "Wait!"

  Geluofeng wanted to say more, but it was already too late. Thousands of soldiers were already charging forward, their formations completely ruined.

  "Kill!"

  "Slaughter them all!"

  "Kill these Tang and the southwest will be our world!"

  ……

  The sight of the Annan Protectorate army fleeing had made them all go crazy. With the Tang in front and the Whitestone Corps behind, the two sides began to play out a pursuit drama. Yet none of them noticed that though the soldiers on the front lines had begun to retreat, the Great Tang soldiers on the summit had remained steadfast.

  "Begin!"

  With the wave of a right hand, the left and right flanks roared to life. Before these countless Whitestone Corps soldiers could react, countless Tang soldiers were charging in.

  Bang! Bang! Bang!

  Yet the first wave was not the Great Tang infantry, but the sounds of thousands of ballistae. These ballistae had all been concealed behind the steel walls such that they were impossible to see from the base of the mountain.

  Swooshswooshswoosh!

  Cold lights flashed in the air as these ballista bolts, harbingers of death, thundered toward the soldiers of the Whitestone Corps. There was no time to dodge as the Whitestone Corps was cut down like waves of wheat.

  Their roiling Stellar Energy and Halos of Thorns were utterly incapable of stopping the ballista bolts.

  "Aaaaah!"

  Screams filled the air as thousands of Whitestone Corps soldiers were felled by the assault. Each ballista bolt had run through ten to twenty soldiers.

  In normal circumstances, the large shields they wielded would have mollified the damage of these ballistae. However, as they charged, they had clumped together, leaving them no space for such maneuvers.

  And their dense ranks were now perfect for the ballista bolts to display their maximum power.

  "Retreat! Retreeeeeat!"

  "Run! They have ballistae!"

  "It's a trap! Hurry! Retreat!"

  ……

  The soldiers instantly fell into chaos.

  Chapter 565: The Decisive Battle! Initial Victory!

  Chapter 565: The Decisive Battle! Initial Victory!

  Translated by: Hypersheep325

  Edited by: Michyrr

  "Raise shields!"

  "Raise shields!"

  "Raise shields!"

  ……

  The officers of the Whitestone Corps began to holler out their orders, but it was too late.

  Boom!

  Just as one of these Whitestone Corps officers was yelling his orders, the air shrieked as a massive axe spun through the air and cleaved into his skull.

  "Kiiiill!"

  War cries rose up from all around. The shield soldiers at the front lines of the Annan Protectorate army had already retreated, but at this mome
nt, countless axe soldiers suddenly appeared and began to charge.

  Massive axes glimmered with a somber light that could cause anyone to widen their eyes in shock.

  Bang! Bang! Bang!

  The flying axes howled through the air like drops of rain as they hacked into the ranks of the Whitestone Corps. Bang! Bang! Bang! Countless Whitestone Corps soldiers dropped to the ground like felled trees, their bodies thudding into pools of blood.

  "Hold! Hold! Hold…"

  The Whitestone Corps commanders in the rear urgently and frenziedly cried out. The Annan Protectorate army soldiers pressing in from their left and right weren't numerous. At the very least, the Whitestone Corps far outnumbered them.

  As long as they could resist the frenzied assault of the Annan Protectorate army, the situation could still be altered.

  "It's too late!"

  On the summit, Wang Chong revealed a sliver of a cold smile as he watched on.

  The armies of this era were still focused on advantages in numbers, knowing nothing about the true art of battle. No matter what army they belonged to or how powerful they were, as long as one soldier saw another charging, they would charge as well. At that point, the army was no better than a mob.

  They were simply no match for their well-trained opponents who were retreating and attacking as a cohesive unit.

  Bang! Bang! Bang!

  That brief victory on the battlefield quickly transformed into a one-sided slaughter. Thousands of soldiers from the Annan Protectorate army charging down from the summit were running right over the Whitestone Corps.

  In a short time, this test had become a complete reversal.

  "Retreat!"

  "Withdraaaw!"

  At the base of the mountain, the Whitestone Corps Commander Duan Wuzong's face had twisted into a nasty grimace. He was the one who had trained the Whitestone Corps, but not even he had imagined the battle to turn out like this.

  "Pass on my order to immediately commit the reserve soldiers!" Duan Wuzong roared in rage.

  But before Duan Wuzong could apply his reserve soldiers, right when the Great Tang soldiers had reached the base of the mountain, the pursuit suddenly stopped.

  The thousands of soldiers suddenly came to a complete halt, as if there was some invisible line there.