The Human Emperor c1-2382

by Huangfu Qi (皇甫奇)

  Wang Chong said nothing, glancing at the sky. The two sides had fought for many hours. It was still around four hours until nightfall, but the size of both forces meant that four hours was not enough time for a large-scale battle.

  “There’s no rush for now. After a defeat in the first battle, the Arabs will be in a greater rush than us.” Wang Chong looked into the distance as he ordered, “Harden the defenses and prepare for the next battle!”

  ……

  “Of sixty-some Behemoths, more than forty were killed. This loss is rather large!”

  Far in the distance, atop the back of the elephant Behemoth, the High Priest spoke with a faint tremor of emotion in his voice.

  Forty-some Behemoths were enough to easily destroy an entire kingdom, but this many had died in the very first clash, and it had not been a particularly intense battle. The High Priest could raise more Behemoths given time and energy, but this was still a significant loss.

  Only in the east had such losses ever occurred.

  On the other side, while Khatabah appeared calm, his brows were ever so slightly creased.

  The Temple led by the High Priest had worked with the empire for many years. Whenever Arabia encountered a powerful foe in its conquests, the Behemoth Army would always be mobilized. This was essentially a tacitly understood tradition. This tradition originated in his friendship with the High Priest.

  For this eastern expedition, Khatabah had gathered vast amounts of information, absorbing the lessons taught by the previous defeat of the Behemoth Army in the east. He had armor forged from the best steel and strengthened with numerous formations and inscriptions for the Behemoths, even encasing their heads and underbellies in armor.

  Khatabah had presumed that the Great Tang would be hard-pressed to deal with these defenses, allowing the Behemoth Army to be swift and effective. But unfortunately, Khatabah had underestimated the Great Tang’s giant ballistae and Behemoth Slayers.

  “This eastern youth has prepared far more than we imagined!” the High Priest said, his voice tinged with a strange tone.

  Chapter 1846 - The Mysterious Giant Cauldron!

  Chapter 1846: The Mysterious Giant Cauldron!

  Translated by: Hypersheep325

  Edited by: Michyrr

  A hint of darkness appeared on Khatabah’s heart, but he almost instantly recomposed himself.

  “It’s only two hundred thousand soldiers! It does not change the overarching situation, nor will it alter their fate of destruction. No matter how much they have prepared, they will still die!” Khatabah nonchalantly said.

  “Pass on my order! Have the army withdraw and prepare for battle tomorrow!” Khatabah suddenly turned to one of his trusted generals. “Lucis, is it ready yet? Where is it now?”

  Lucis got down on one knee and respectfully said, “Milord, we’ve just received word that it has arrived. What should be done with it?”

  Khatabah raised an eyebrow and turned around. Even the High Priest was taken aback. Though his face was concealed, his black robe trembled, and he turned with Khatabah to look behind him.

  To the west, on the horizon, was a massive black silhouette that rumbled as it slowly approached. Upon giving it a careful look, one would realize that it was a bronze cauldron that was several hundred feet tall. The surface of the cauldron had mysterious carvings, and installed on its bottom were ten-some pairs of wheels. The entire thing was being pushed forward by heavily-armored giants.

  Neigh!

  Warhorses shrieked in the distance. Wherever the cauldron passed, the Arab warhorses seemed to take fright and retreat in panic, causing the orderly ranks of the army to fall into chaos.

  Moreover, those giants pushing along the giant cauldron had their teeth grit together, apparently in great pain.

  Roooar!

  Loud roars were coming from the depths of the cauldron, infused with an endless desire to destroy and kill. The surrounding Arab horsemen were all uneasy and kept far away from this cauldron.

  At this moment, Khatabah’s eyes flashed with an astonishing light while the High Priest subtly nodded.

  Since that object was here, the entire eastern world could no longer escape destruction.

  These Tang were simply struggling at death’s door, but death was inevitable.

  “Pass on my order! Place that massive cauldron at the highest spot and have it guarded by one million soldiers and fifty Governors! Without my order, no one is allowed to approach it!” Khatabah coldly ordered.

  “Yes!”

  Lucis was internally shaken as he hastily bowed.

  A few moments later, Lucis departed to relay the orders.

  Bwoooom!

  As a horn blared, all the Arab soldiers began to withdraw.

  At the same time, an arrow wrapped in white linen flew out and over the Tang defense line.

  A Tang horseman quickly bent down to pick up the arrow and delivered it to the Great Generals in the rear.

  “Heh, the Arabs have sent word that they’ll fight with us tomorrow!” Cheng Qianli said upon reading the letter.

  Wang Chong smiled and said, “Heh, as expected. Let’s do as they wish!”

  Wang Zhongsi, Abusi, Gao Xianzhi, Zhangchou Jianqiong, and An Sishun nodded.

  The Great Tang was the defending side and had the fortifications of the long steel defense line. They were in no rush to fight with the enemy.

  Moreover, after the battle, the army needed time to rest and repair the walls.

  Bongbongbong!

  Following Wang Chong’s order, the drums began to rumble. This was both an order to withdraw and a reply to the Arabs. The army quickly drew back and began to reconsolidate. Zhangchou Jianqiong and An Sishun swiftly began to handle the aftermath of the battle, including getting their injured soldiers treated.

  Wang Zhongsi, Abusi, and Gao Xianzhi also began to consolidate their own soldiers. Although they had not participated in the battle and their soldiers had been barely injured, everyone knew that a fierce battle was coming. All of them needed to prepare themselves.

  “Craftsman team, hurry up! There’s not much time! We have to repair as many of the walls as possible before late night!”

  “Cement team, get ready! Repair the ground as quickly as possible so we can set up the steel walls!”

  With the battle over and the army reconsolidating, the busiest people were the craftsman team and cement team led by Zhang Shouzhi. The craftsman team no longer consisted of purely craftsmen and smiths. Wang Chong had also moved more than seven thousand soldiers to that team, making this team seem somewhat like modern-day military engineers.

  As for the cement team…

  This was a new development from Wang Chong. When fighting with the Behemoths, the terrain would often be heavily damaged, and some areas became unsuitable for setting up steel walls. If this were not resolved, the defense line would not be complete. The enemy could exploit the weaknesses in these areas to increase the pressure on the front line.

  The cement Wang Chong had developed had originally been used for roads, but Zhang Shouzhi had discovered that it was completely possible to use this technology on the battlefield to repair the terrain damaged by the Behemoths.

  In addition, it could be used to strengthen the steel walls’ connection to the earth.

  As everyone began to work on their own tasks, Wang Chong did not return to the City of Steel. Instead, he rode over to the mountainous corpse of a rhino Behemoth.

  This action immediately drew the attention of Li Siye, Su Hanshan, and Xue Qianjun.

  “Come; follow our lord!”

  These people quickly began to chase Wang Chong.

  In front of the Behemoth, Wang Chong pulled on the reins of his horse.

  The rhino Behemoth was long dead, the blood flowing out of its body forming a moat around it. No matter how much vitality and strength it had in life, in death, it was just a rotting pile of meat.

  Swish!

  Wang Chong’s eyes flashed with cold lig
ht as he sent out a piercing Sword Qi to slice at the rhino Behemoth’s head. Plush! The Behemoth’s head parted open, revealing its red and white brain tissue.

  Li Siye, Xue Qianjun, and Su Hanshan glanced at each other in confusion. But a few moments later, they saw Wang Chong reach into the rhino Behemoth’s brain and extract a small object.

  Everyone could see that this was a bronze shard the size of a fingernail and covered in mysterious veins.

  “What is this?” Li Siye and the others said in surprise. At their level of strength, they could see that this bronze shard was extremely old and had some history behind it.

  More importantly, they had taken part in the Battle of Talas, but this sort of object had not been discovered in the heads of the Behemoths back then.

  “An ancient seal. It’s what that High Priest of Arabia used to control the Behemoths,” Wang Chong indifferently said.

  He pensively rubbed the bronze shard between his fingers. He could sense a weak, but extremely unique, energy within this shard, unlike any other he had encountered.

  That black-robed High Priest had used this power to repel his Psychic Energy.

  After beating the small one, the big one has come. This sort of beast and this object shouldn’t have appeared in this world. This High Priest of Arabia has far too many secrets, Wang Chong quietly said to himself.

  For these enormous creatures to appear in this world of martial arts was far too abnormal. No country had this technology, not the Turks, the Tang, the Tibetans, the Mengshe Zhao, any kingdoms of the Western Regions, Charax Spasinu, or even Sindhu. Only Arabia had the Behemoths.

  And these Behemoths all came from that High Priest.

  All of Wang Chong’s understanding of this mysterious High Priest came from the deceased commander of the Behemoth Army, Masil. From his memories, Wang Chong had been able to sense Masil’s fear, reverence, and awe. For Masil, the High Priest was an omnipotent and divine existence.

  And in that previous battle, neither Wang Chong nor the High Priest had used all their strength.

  They both understood that this was merely an initial probe, that neither side had begun to take this battle seriously. Of course, the most important part was that Wang Chong had realized through numerous attempts that he could not take control of the Behemoths, making any further battle with the High Priest pointless.

  His first priority was to plan for the next battle.

  A day will come when we clash and I understand all your secrets!

  Gripping the bronze shard, Wang Chong profoundly gazed at the domed fortress in the distance and then turned to leave.

  As Wang Chong left, on the distant Turkic steppe, the grass waved back and forth in the wind. Wunu Shibi looked in the direction of the City of Steel, and only now did he slowly draw back his gaze.

  “I really didn’t think that the Great Tang would win the first battle. And it was an almost complete victory with barely any losses!”

  Wunu Shibi deeply sighed, his mind in great turmoil.

  The battle was over, but Wunu Shibi found it hard to shake off his shock.

  Although both sides had merely been testing each other in this battle, in terms of scale and intensity, it had surpassed more than ninety percent of the battles between the Western Turks and the Great Tang. But for these two opposing sides, it was only the beginning.

  However, what left the greatest impression on Wunu Shibi was the unprecedented sight of the six titans of the Great Tang working together.

  King of Foreign Lands—or rather, Nine Provinces Protector-General—Wang Chong, Annan Protector-General Zhangchou Jianqiong, Beiting Protector-General An Sishun, Anxi War God Gao Xianzhi, War God and Crown Prince’s Junior Guardian Wang Zhongsi, Tongluo Great General Abusi… each of these men was strong enough to hold their own and intimidate the surrounding empires. But now, all of them were in one place.

  No one knew just how frightening the six of them working together was, but everyone had seen just how well Zhangchou Jianqiong and An Sishun had worked together.

  Chapter 1847 - Night Conference!

  Chapter 1847: Night Conference!

  Translated by: Hypersheep325

  Edited by: Michyrr

  “Perhaps after this battle is over, the other countries will really have to rethink their relationship with the Great Tang and Arabia. These two empires are just too powerful. The Great Tang especially is too close. Fortunately, given how the Great Tang borders so many other countries, its Great Generals have been scattered. Otherwise, if they were together, no empire would be able to stop them!”

  Wunu Shibi felt a shiver go down his back.

  For many years now, the other countries had always believed that they could sit on the same level as the Great Tang, but it was now apparent that they had been deluding themselves.

  And there was also that warning from the Great Tang’s Sage Emperor. This was not some mere bluster. They truly had the strength to carry out their threats.

  “Hyah!”

  With these thoughts in mind, Wunu Shibi turned his horse around and began to ride back into the steppe. This war in the northwest was of utmost importance and no longer concerned just the Great Tang and Arabia. He needed to return to Ishbara Khagan and discuss this matter with the other Western Turkic generals.

  Gallop!

  As Wunu Shibi vanished into the distance, several other powerful auras began to silently depart as well.

  They also needed to digest the information they had learned from this battle.

  ……

  Night quickly fell, but even though the curtain had fallen on the battle, this was only the beginning for the northwest.

  “Hyah!”

  To the northwest, the Arab base was awash with light.

  As darkness fell, a horn blared. Amidst rumbling hooves and clouds of dust, tens of thousands of Arab cavalry carrying torches scattered throughout the base.

  Blazing torches were planted throughout the area, illuminating several dozen li around the base.

  In the darkness, countless Arab cavalry were patrolling the vicinity.

  Creee!

  At the same time, sharp cries and the flapping of wings came from above. Tens of thousands of Arabian hunting falcons had taken to the skies, vigilantly watching out for any approaching enemies.

  Any abnormal movement in the darkness would immediately be noticed by many hunting falcons and cause them to flock over.

  “These Arabs… truly formidable! Such a tight defense, without the slightest flaw, practically every inch protected. It seems a night raid on their base is utterly impossible!”

  A figure watched the Arab base from an extreme distance, a deep fear in their eyes.

  The Arab base’s defenses were too meticulous, and torches illuminated every corner. It was impossible to raid the base in these circumstances—they would be discovered from a distance of ten-some li.

  Among all the opponents he had faced, this was the first one that was so formidable, so cautious, so impregnable.

  Whoosh! Zhang Que led his scouts away without anyone noticing.

  As Zhang Que was leaving, in a place extremely far from the City of Steel, a group of elite Arab scouts was similarly disappointed.

  The Great Tang wanted to raid Arabia, and Arabia wanted to do the same to the Great Tang.

  But before they had even gotten close to the City of Steel, they gave up.

  Creee!

  Sharp cries came from overhead. The Arab scouts only needed to raise their heads to see tens of thousands of various kinds of birds circling the skies, thick clouds of them that covered every angle.

  And the City of Steel itself had numerous sentries, both open and hidden, surrounding it.

  It was easy to avoid the obvious sentries, but much harder to avoid the hidden ones.

  Even before they had reached the perimeter, they had nearly run into several groups. If they hadn’t been some of Arabia’s best scouts who had taken part in numerous campaigns, they would have
already been exposed.

  But even so, they had needed to expend great effort and endure many dangers to reach this place.

  “Hahaha, Arab friends, since you’re here, there’s no rush to leave. Let us give you a good welcome!”

  Galloping suddenly came from a distance, and the enemy force rode straight toward the Arab scouts with no attempt to hide their approach.

  Whoosh! The Arab scouts instantly paled.

  “Let’s go!”

  They immediately turned their horses around and began to flee. But at this moment, there was a harsh whistle in the air. Plush! In a splash of blood, an Arab horseman grunted and dropped from his horse.

  “Watch out! Master archer!”

  The Arab scouts grimaced. Master archers had frightening vision, and even in the darkness, not even a fly several li away could escape their eyes.

  More importantly, the arrow had pierced through their armor. This was clearly an extremely formidable master archer.

  Bang!

  With no time to think, the Arab scouts scattered in ten-some different directions. They moved extremely quickly and proficiently, displaying their abundant battlefield experience.

  But they had underestimated the power of the Tang master archers. Given that they had already discovered the scouts and had allowed them to venture so deep, they would not let them go so easily.

  Boomboomboom!

  The air howled as arrows pierced through the veil of darkness, leaving long white trails in their wake as they struck the fleeing Arab scouts.

  Thud! Thud! Thud! The Arab scouts were all brought down before they could get very far.

  The last Arab scout just barely managed to avoid the fatal blow, shifting so that the arrow stabbed through his right thigh and pinned it to the side of his horse. Panicked, the man took off and swiftly vanished into the night.

  A few seconds later, the Tang cavalry gathered together, their sharp eyes and clean movements indicating that they were all elite scouts.

  “Captain, why did you leave one alive? Since these barbarians dared to invade our Great Tang’s territory, shouldn’t we kill them all?”