“Everyone, be careful! This person is highly likely to be the young commander of the Great Tang, Wang Chong!”
Hular warily stared at the approaching army.
The other two Arab governors, Pahlavi and Karim, said nothing, but both of them were clearly extremely worried.
Gallop!
A few moments later, the two armies approached each other and stopped, entering a distant stalemate.
“Tang, you’ve gone back on your word. You’ve clearly received our gold, but now you’re breaking the treaty. Truly despicable!”
Karim, the Governor of Hamadan, rode forward, his eyes flashing. Although his reputation and prestige were far inferior to the likes of Qutaybah and Abu Muslim, Karim was undoubtedly a member of the second tier of Arab governors. Moreover, Karim had always had an unyielding personality, and even in front of Wang Chong, he was fearless.
“How could it be us who broke the treaty? The first to attack were you, not us!”
Speaking in a mellow and dignified voice, Wang Chong slowly trotted forward on the White-hoofed Shadow. His expression was calm and placid, and his every movement exuded a natural air of admirable strength and character. Any other Imperial Great General of the same level paled in comparison to him.
Buzz!
All the Arab generals grimaced at these words.
Although it had always been the Tang and Khorasani challenging and provoking the Arabs, in the end, it truly was the Arabs that had begun the pursuit in earnest.
“Bastard! You were the one who laid an ambush there and lured us in. This was clearly a premeditated scheme!” an Arab general next to Hular couldn’t help but retort.
“Hmph! If we hadn’t made preparations, you would have killed all seven thousand of those soldiers!” shot back Xue Qianjun, riding out from behind Wang Chong.
“You!”
The Arab general was instantly at a loss for words.
Although everyone knew that those seven thousand men had just been bait, Xue Qianjun’s words were also true. If the Tang had not been one move ahead, those twenty thousand Arab soldiers would have been returning victorious.
“There’s no need to say any more!”
Hular extended a hand and stopped the general behind him. He rode forward and glared at Wang Chong.
“Tang, you are also a renowned general of a generation. Are the words of the Great Tang really this untrustworthy?”
“Heh!”
Wang Chong faintly smiled and urged his horse forward, his face brimming with contempt.
“Trustworthy or not, complying with the treaty or destroying it—these are things that I should be asking you! Didn’t I already tell you? In one day, you must withdraw from Shifan. Since you’re not complying, you are naturally the first to go against the agreement, and I can’t be blamed for ordering my army to advance westward and go on the offensive.”
“You!!”
Hular instantly paled at these words. When had the strongest empire of the west ever been forced by another into this kind of situation?
“I will count to three. If, after three seconds, you still haven’t started to retreat, then prepare to die!”
Wang Chong extended a finger, his body exuding a domineering aura.
“One! Two! …Three!”
Before Hular could react, Wang Chong had announced the countdown and extended his third finger. A moment later, the twenty thousand soldiers of the coalition army bellowed and charged.
Domineering!
Too domineering!
Wang Chong had said that he would give the Arabs three seconds, but there had been no break. Without any time for the Arabs to react, he had counted down to three and ordered his army to attack. The Arabian Empire had conquered countless foes and encountered so many formidable Great Generals, but not a single one of them had ever been so domineering and so ironfisted, exuding such a powerful pressure that one could barely breathe.
Chapter 1170 - Pahlavi Dies!
Chapter 1170: Pahlavi Dies!
Translated by: Hypersheep325
Edited by: Michyrr
“Kill!”
With a mighty roar, twenty thousand soldiers rushed forward in a torrent of steel.
“Outrageous!”
Even though Hular, the Empire’s White Corpse, usually showed no emotion on his pale face, this time, even he couldn’t help but show a little anger. No matter how powerful his opponent was, it was just an army of twenty thousand. They were made of flesh and blood like all the rest. Did they really think that they could contend against an army of one hundred thousand?
And even if they could overcome one hundred thousand, farther back was Shifan, which contained two hundred thousand more soldiers.
“Kill them!”
With an icy face, Hular pulled out his sword and gave the order to attack.
Bang!
The earth quaked as the one hundred thousand Arab soldiers charged forward to meet the Tang, Khorasani, and other rebel soldiers. Boom! Twenty thousand collided with one hundred thousand in a stunning impact.
But this battle was foreordained to turn out differently from how Hular imagined. As the two armies clashed like primordial beasts, two groups of soldiers charged out from the left and right flanks of the Tang army, riding in long arcs before stabbing into the sides of the Arabs. Meanwhile, the rest of the army stabbed into the Arab ranks like a sharp sword and cut straight through it.
“Cutting Formation!”
Right after they had charged through the enemy formation, the several thousand Wushang Cavalry scattered like petals and began to slice through the Arab army like so many knives.
In mere moments, the center of the Arab army collapsed into chaos.
“Bastard! Kill them!”
Hular was enraged at this sight. For any army, the collapse of the center was extremely lethal.
Although the enemy was fierce, they were not so formidable as to be invincible. Arabia still had the advantage in numbers, and there were still two hundred thousand soldiers in the rear waiting for the order, ready to charge out at any time. But while Hular was still clinging to hope, suddenly…
Clang!
There was a metallic clang as an invisible energy spread over the battlefield. Clangclangclang! All the halos on the bodies of the one hundred thousand soldiers began to weaken, and their auras plunged with frightening speed, leaving them shocked and terrified.
“What’s going on? Just what’s happened? Why has my strength dropped so much!”
“Careful!”
The sudden drop in strength threw the Arab formation into more chaos than the Wushang Cavalry’s Cutting Formation.
The latter was physical harm, but the former was an immense mental panic that had come out of nowhere!
And all this was only the beginning. There was yet another metallic clattering, and this time, it was the Arab generals’ turn to have their strength plummet.
“Ah!”
Screams of alarm and panic came from behind them, and when they turned their heads, they realized that these sounds of turmoil were coming from Shifan. Hular and the governors beside him instantly turned grim. None of them had expected the range of their opponent’s attack to be so vast that it even encompassed the two hundred thousand soldiers that weren’t even taking part in this battle.
The Bane of the Battlefield Halo!
The Bane of Generals Halo!
Wang Chong faintly smiled atop his White-hoofed Shadow as he unleashed his two most powerful war halos. These Arab soldiers were not as elite as the armies under the command of Qutaybah or Osman, so they suffered far more severe effects.
The Bane of the Battlefield and the Bane of Generals were not invincible halos. As long as an expert of the Great General level took action, consuming energy to unleash their own halo, they could weaken the effects of these two halos. But would Wang Chong give them this sort of chance?
“Hurry! Use Great General halos to weaken these two energies!” Pahlavi loudly
called out, shocked and infuriated.
Although he had no idea what sort of halo his enemy was using, he was still a governor of Arabia and a Great General expert. He was able to quickly determine the countermeasure.
But before he could finish, the earth quaked and an enormous energy rose from the earth to surge toward the three governors like a tsunami.
“Since you don’t want to retreat, remain here forever!”
Wang Chong’s voice was bone-piercingly cold. It resounded over the world like the god of death announcing the fates of the three.
“Impudent!”
The three looked up at the same time, but before Hular could react, the governor to his right side, Karim, suddenly shot furiously into the air. Clangclangclang! In a flash, black-red halos erupted from his body, one after the other.
“Karim, watch out!”
Hular paled. Karim had always been the most irascible of the Arab governors, and at a time like this, his trait had become a fatal flaw. No one understood more than him that this youth from the east was stronger than the Great Generals of any other country they had conquered before. He was not something Karim alone could deal with.
Bang! With no time to think, Hular shot into the air like a cannonball. Raaa! As he soared into the sky, the air resounded with the howl of a devil. Hular left shockwaves in the air as he rose. Suddenly a ghastly white foot extended out of the void, followed by a pale white figure.
As everyone watched, a massive white corpse more than thirty meters tall appeared behind Hular. This sight suddenly made everyone understand why he was called ‘the Empire’s White Corpse’.
Awoooo! The moment the corpse appeared, its eyes exploded with light like dazzling suns. At the same time, it gave a bloodthirsty howl infused with powerful Psychic Energy ripples. Everyone in the area suddenly felt an instinctual fear, as if they were ants encountering a frightful predator. They trembled in fear and began to flee. Not even the Arabs were immune to this effect.
Although he was an Arab governor, the Empire’s White Corpse had a fighting style different from all the others. The massive corpse that Hular had summoned possessed powerful Psychic Energy, and its terrifying howl intimidated even Saint Martial experts, instilling deep dread into their hearts.
But before the howl could spread to the entire battlefield, an even more terrifying energy exploded forward, impacting against the pale white corpse. Yowwww! The giant corpse trembled as it covered its head with its hands and began to scream.
The aura around its body fell into chaos.
Moreover, the two dazzling suns that were its eyes began to dim. At the same time, Hular groaned, blood flowing from his ears, nose and eyes. This corpse was merely his avatar, and its life was linked to his own. The avatar being injured was no different from him being injured.
Psychic Energy!
A hint of fear finally appeared in Hular’s eyes. His Hell White Corpse was actually a supreme Psychic Energy technique that not even Saint Martial experts could block, let alone others. But Hular had never imagined that there would be someone on the other side with an even stronger grasp of Psychic Energy.
“Ugh!”
Hular was far from the only one to suffer from Wang Chong’s Psychic Energy attack. To his left and right, both Pahlavi and Karim had also been struck, and even their attacks had been slowed by this formidable assault.
Psychic Storm!
Wang Chong had further developed Masil’s Shadow Pierce. Shadow Pierce was a technique that targeted only one person, but Wang Chong had developed it into a technique that could attack many people at once. Even if he was facing many Saint Martial experts, he could use this move to jolt their minds and disrupt their souls.
“Great Destruction Art!”
An icy and emotionless voice resounded in the ears of all the Arabs, and a moment later, Wang Chong had unleashed the strongest technique of the Great Yinyang Heaven Creation Art.
“Not good!”
“Careful!”
Everyone immediately felt a surge of terror in their hearts, but it was too late.
Boom! Boom! Boom!
A massive gust of wind howled down from the sky and impacted against the ground, then a huge explosion hurled several figures into the sky like ragdolls.
“Run!”
Hular began to flee, his face stricken with fear. If one looked carefully, one would notice that one of his hands was hanging limply at his side, blood streaming down it.
This single strike had severely wounded Hular. A destructive power was wreaking havoc in his body, and it was extremely sharp and vicious. Hular had already tried several dozen times to expel it, but all his attempts had failed.
Impossible! Just what sort of energy could be this terrifying!
Hular’s heart was thumping. He had originally believed that the strongest this person could be was Abu Muslim’s level, but not even Abu Muslim could have defeated him like this.
Before Hular could run very far, he heard a wretched scream.
“Ah!”
As Hular continued to flee, a massive energy swiftly vanished from his perception.
Pahlavi.
Hular’s mind sank as he recognized the voice.
“I already said before, all of you were seeking death!”
Wang Chong floated in the air as he spoke in a chilling voice to the Arabs, one of his hands gripping Pahlavi’s neck. He viciously threw Pahlavi’s corpse to the ground like it was a punctured leather bag.
Chapter 1171 - Another Two Hundred Million Taels Obtained!
Chapter 1171: Another Two Hundred Million Taels Obtained!
Translated by: Hypersheep325
Edited by: Michyrr
“Lord Governor!”
The entire world seemed to be drained of sound for a few moments.
Imperial Great Generals were all supreme figures to ordinary soldiers, untouchable existences. No one had imagined that Pahlavi would be slain in a single clash with Wang Chong. With the death of Pahlavi, the power of the halos exuded by his body swiftly vanished, and Wang Chong’s Bane of the Battlefield and Bane of Generals halos once more began to take effect.
“Kill!”
The twenty-thousand-some Tang, Khorasani, and rebel soldiers redoubled their assault. The death of Pahlavi and Wang Chong’s two powerful halos immediately caused the Arab army of one hundred thousand to crumple.
“Run! Flee!”
The rout was as swift as a landslide, and the Arabs soon began to flee.
“Everyone, hear my order! Kill them!”
Bahram unsheathed his sword and gave the order. His eight-thousand-some Aswaran Cataphracts immediately began to pursue the one hundred thousand Arabs.
Clangclangclang! As they charged, halos erupted from their feet, and each Aswaran Cataphract seemed to become a moving fortress.
Bang! Wherever these cataphracts passed, they would send seven or eight Arab cavalry flying into the air. The immense impact shattered bones and inflicted severe injuries.
The swords of the Aswaran Cataphracts flickered through the air with extreme speed. Before the Arab cavalry had fallen back to the ground, four or five them had already lost their heads.
“So fast!”
Even the hovering Wang Chong couldn’t help but commend this sight.
These Aswaran Cataphracts of the Sassanid Dynasty had a firm and steady momentum. Their attacks were rapid and brutal, and they could be fast or slow, heavy or light. They had developed their way of combat into an art form, and in certain aspects, they had even surpassed the Mamelukes. They were even comparable to the Wushang Cavalry in a few areas.
And this was even though the Wushang Cavalry had Wootz Steel swords and Meteoric Metal armor that would make any Aswaran Cataphract envious.
“Pass on my order! All soldiers, full-out offensive! Remember! Don’t give these one hundred thousand soldiers a chance to catch their breath!”
Wang Chong lightly dropped back to the ground.
The battle
was settled, and all that was left was for Wang Chong to lead his army in doggedly pursuing the Arab soldiers. Wang Chong was in no rush to advance. Instead, he allowed the one hundred thousand Arab soldiers to enter the city so that they could throw the other two hundred thousand soldiers into chaos as well.
Neither Hular nor Karim had expected Wang Chong to be so determined.
While the Arabs had been planning to attack the two hundred thousand rebels, they had at least attempted to conceal their actions, but Wang Chong was heedless. And his enemy’s tactics also made Hular feel extremely helpless.
They clearly had the overwhelming advantage in numbers, outnumbering their enemy by more than ten times, but every time Hular tried to rally his troops and exert this advantage, the enemy force of around twenty thousand would always find the weakness in the Arab ranks. With just one attack, all of Hular’s efforts would be squandered.
Once, twice, thrice… the twenty thousand rebel soldiers cut through the three hundred thousand Arab cavalry like a scalpel, throwing the Arabs into disorder again and again, even using their own soldiers to hinder each other and create even more mayhem.
The pursuit lasted for one hundred li, and after repeated skirmishes, Hular was cast into the depths of despair.
“Withdraw!”
With Hular’s order, the army began to madly flee, completely giving up on any form of resistance. In the end, the army of twenty thousand killed more than one hundred thousand Arab cavalry, pursued them for more than two hundred li, and scattered them in every direction. Only then did Wang Chong and Bahram decide to withdraw their soldiers.
“General, let’s withdraw! Our men have sent word that even more Arab governors and soldiers are converging on this location. Even if we continue the pursuit, we might end up surrounded!”
Several hundred li from Shifan, Bahram on his monstrous horse rode alongside Wang Chong. When he gazed at that young face, a hint of admiration flitted through his eyes. This young commander from the east had a daring, courage, and sharp intuition that Bahram had never seen in his life.
Under his command, twenty thousand soldiers exhibited far more power than Bahram could ever achieve. He was always able to identify the weakest point in the enemy army, predict where it would manifest, and then dispatch the minimum number of soldiers to achieve the maximum effect, neutralizing the enemy’s counterattack.
The Human Emperor c1-2382 Page 739
