The Human Emperor c1-2382

by Huangfu Qi (皇甫奇)

  For this unprecedented battle, each of them was ready to fight until the end.

  Chapter 1854 - Wolf-Shaped Monster!

  Chapter 1854: Wolf-Shaped Monster!

  Translated by: Hypersheep325

  Edited by: Michyrr

  The millions of Arabs roared like an approaching tsunami as they approached the Tang lines.

  Behind the steel walls, all was still, the war horses snorting uneasily.

  “Giant ballistae, prepare to shoot!” a voice bellowed over the army.

  If things went as expected, the Arabs would again use the Behemoths to open the path and force their way through the defense line, with all the cavalry following right behind.

  They were ready for this tactic, but they managed to underestimate just how prepared the Arabs had come for this battle.

  “Begin!”

  In the back of the Arab army, an officer suddenly swung his hand down.

  Clang!

  With a great clatter, a thick Deep Sea Xuan Metal chain was cut apart. Behind the chain, a massive wolf-shaped monster stretched its limbs, its claws leaving deep gouges in the earth.

  Awoooo!

  A savage howl pierced through more than half the battlefield. The wolf monster shook its body, which erupted with flames that completely engulfed it.

  In the blink of an eye, this monster had become a being of flames.

  Swoosh!

  The wolf monster leaped, crossing more than a hundred feet with a single bound, and swiftly began to make its way toward the Tang defense line.

  This monster was not as large as the other Behemoths, only one-fifth the size, but it had exchanged size for agility. In just a few leaps, it had crossed one thousand feet.

  The searing flames left a long and scorched path behind it.

  “Ah!”

  An Arab horseman, unable to move in time, was struck by the wolf monster’s flames. A shriek left his lips as his body and the armor around it began to burn. Thud! He crashed to the ground and was soon nothing but ash.

  “Watch out! Giant ballistae, shoot down that fire wolf!” Su Hanshan firmly ordered, his eyes narrowing.

  Although the wolf monster was still some distance away, his intuition told him that it was incredibly dangerous.

  “Ballista unit one, move left four degrees and up five degrees! Shoot!”

  As the giant ballistae slowly began to turn, Su Hanshan commanded his ballista units to attack the wolf monster.

  “Release!”

  “Release!”

  “Release!”

  Su Hanshan’s reaction was swift, but he had underestimated the wolf monster’s power. More than half of the ballista bolts were dodged by the wolf monster’s incredible speed.

  The remaining ballista bolts struck the burning wolf’s body, but they seemed to have no effect.

  Awoooo!

  With a heaven-shaking roar, the flames around the wolf monster suddenly swelled. And then, as countless eyes stared in shock, what appeared to be an enormous blazing sun slammed into the steel walls on the Great Tang’s left flank and exploded.

  It was impossible to describe the power of that explosion. Scorching flames and destructive power swept out like a storm.

  The heavy steel walls that weighed tens of thousands of jin seemed to be made of paper, and the high-temperature flames twisted, melted, and blasted them away. All the steel walls within an area of one thousand feet, along with the soldiers and beehives in the area, were blasted into oblivion, the ground scorched black.

  In this region, all traces of existence were wiped away, a large pillar of smoke rising into the air. With just one strike, a massive hole had been torn through the Great Tang’s left flank.

  Everyone paled at this sight.

  Awooo!

  But this was only the beginning, and more howls began to rise over the battlefield.

  In the rear of the Arab army, great balls of flame began to ignite and hurtle toward the Tang defense line with astonishing speed.

  “Careful!”

  Anxious cries of alarm rose up from all across the defense line.

  Boomboomboom!

  Those blazing balls of flame began to explode along the steel defense line.

  On the elephant Behemoth, the High Priest suddenly commented, “It seems that these things you created are more impressive than I expected!”

  As he stood in front of the golden tent, those explosions across the steel defense line seemed exceptionally brilliant.

  “Heh, without the High Priest’s help, even with the power of that ancient civilization, I would have never been able to create these wolf monsters.”

  Khatabah chuckled as he replied.

  These flame-wreathed wolf monsters were apparently a product jointly created by the High Priest and Khatabah.

  “These wolf monsters might only be one-fifth the size of other Behemoths, but they mature much faster. If I had known before how easy these things were to use, I might have made more,” Khatabah said.

  The High Priest merely smiled.

  “Both big and small have their own advantages!”

  Regardless, these explosive monsters he and the Hierophant had created had done their job.

  In the distance, even though the Tang had done their best, massive holes had still been blasted through the steel defense line.

  In yesterday’s battle, the Arabs had expended two hundred thousand cavalry and several dozen Behemoths, but had failed to achieve what these wolf monsters had accomplished in a few seconds.

  The situation rapidly turned against the Great Tang. The suicidal explosions of the wolf monsters had created large gaps in the line. While the giant ballistae managed to kill one or two, their attacks had barely any effect on the overall result.

  “This is bad. The front part of the defense line is extremely important. All the beehives are installed there, and the shield soldiers are stationed there. These explosions are extremely damaging to us. Elite shield soldiers are very difficult to train!”

  A hint of worry flashed across Zhangchou Jianqiong’s eyes.

  These explosions had slain nearly one thousand elite shield soldiers each, and injured even more of them. These constant explosions had already dealt a critical blow to the first defense line.

  “It’s not time to worry yet. No matter how strong these wolf monsters are, their numbers must be limited. They can’t have enough to affect the entire battlefield. This isn’t my greatest worry yet.”

  Wang Chong frowned as he glanced at the rear of the Arab army.

  He sensed that the true threat was neither the wolf monsters nor the Behemoths. It was something else.

  Buzz!

  As Wang Chong spoke, the other Great Generals turned grim and also looked toward the rear of the Arab army.

  After a few moments of thought, Wang Chong suddenly ordered, “Order Su Hanshan to scatter the ballistae and prepare to defend!”

  This sudden order left Xue Qianjun and Xu Keyi startled. They instantly sensed that they were about to face a major foe.

  Kaclack!

  In the distance, as if in response to Wang Chong’s order, the loud groaning of gears and scraping of metal came from the rear of the Arab army. Hundreds of metal catapults were arranged in a row, armored giants pulling back the mechanisms to their maximum extent and aiming the catapults in the direction of the Tang army.

  “Release!”

  “Release!”

  “Release!”

  As these orders were issued, the curled-up armored giants in the catapults were tossed high into the air and across the vast Arab army. With the help of the catapults, they hurtled through the air like blazing meteors.

  These armored giants were even moving faster than the Arabian Behemoths.

  Buzz!

  As the armored giants hurtled through the air like a meteor shower, all the Tang soldiers grimaced.

  “Careful!”

  A sharp cry cut through the air like a sword. Su Hanshan’s pupils cons
tricted, his face scowling. He had already noticed that the armored giants were heading for his ballistae and the several dozen giant ballistae.

  This wasn’t Su Hanshan’s first time seeing the Arabs use this tactic, but the armored giants were even more accurate than they had been at Talas.

  “Coiling Dragon Formation! Scatter!”

  Su Hanshan pulled out his sword and raised it high over his head! All the ballistae immediately began to change formation.

  Wang Chong had adjusted the original ballista cart design, adding wheels to the flat platforms on which they had originally been placed. This added flexibility immediately showed its worth. Normally, the heavy and clumsy Tang ballistae would crumble the moment they were targeted.

  But with Su Hanshan’s order, the tens of thousands of ballistae immediately altered formation, scattering apart into a twisting and coiling dragon.

  “Aim three feet higher at the air! Shoot!”

  At almost the same time, Chen Burang led his master archers in a counterattack.

  Thwishthwishthwish!

  Sharp whistles pierced through the air as arrows exploded toward the armored giants.

  Many of the armored giants were struck by these arrows and died before even hitting the ground.

  With the Great Tang deploying all its elites for this battle, while it still could not effectively kill these armored giants, it was not so helpless as before.

  “Ready!”

  But there wasn’t much time. A few seconds later, the armored giants crashed into the Tang army.

  Chapter 1855 - Armored Giants!

  Chapter 1855: Armored Giants!

  Translated by: Hypersheep325

  Edited by: Michyrr

  Bang!In a flash of light, an armored giant smashed into the earth, creating a crater with a diameter of more than one hundred feet. Two Tang soldiers unable to move in time were instantly crushed into meat pancakes. Meanwhile, the force of the impact showered the Tang ranks with stone debris and sent a plume of dust more than one hundred feet into the air.Raaaa! A massive figure stood up, its body bursting with murderous and violent energy.“Giant!!”Upon seeing this massive being taller than several men stand up, the soldiers who had taken part in the Battle of Talas paled. These giants did not have the dark green armor of the Skyquaking Giants, and their bodies had also changed from tall and thin to muscular and bulky.These new giants were even stronger than the Skyquaking Giants.Boomboomboom!Furious roars began to erupt across the battlefield as hundreds of armored giants began to land, and this was only the beginning…“Look! What’s that?”Suddenly, sharp whistles came from the back of the Arab army. A Tang soldier with sharp eyes looked up and saw thousands of fire balls rising from the horizon.Even though these fire balls were much smaller than the giants, only about the size of a jar, their size made them even faster.“Arabian Kerosene!”A Tang officer’s pupils constricted as he recognized what these were.Oil, or Arabian Kerosene, had become known throughout the Great Tang after the Battle of Talas. Its inextinguishable properties posed a grave threat to the Tang army.This Arabian Kerosene and the armored giants made Arabia’s first attack far fiercer than the Tang had imagined.“Li Junxian, it’s time for you to move out. Take the Confucian Sect members and eliminate those armored giants!“Li Siye, take half of the Mo Saber Unit and work together with the Confucian Sect members to kill those giants!“Zhang Shouzhi, get those things ready!”Wang Chong’s calm and collected voice rang out, instantly soothing the others.“This general will go!”Li Junxian and Li Siye both swiftly accepted their orders. As Li Junxian spoke, his eyes flashed with resolve.“Everyone, follow me!”Li Junxian waved his hand, going forth with Elder Song, Sword Ghost, the white-clothed girl, and the other experts of the Confucian Sect.Li Junxian had personally requested to join this war. This was not merely a war, but a chance for him and the Confucian Sect to redeem themselves!“Everyone, follow me!”On the other side, Li Siye gathered his men and made his way toward the giants.The battle had only just begun and was not yet that intense. Even though the Arabs had mobilized all their power, it was no easy task to break through the layers of the Tang defense line. Li Siye and his Mo Saber Unit still had enough time to clear out the armored giants.As Li Siye and Li Junxian began to move out, Chen Burang and the master archers awaited orders.“Everyone, listen up! Target the Arabian Kerosene! Loose on my mark!”Chen Burang’s extremely calm voice rang out. He gripped his longbow and nocked an arrow. His eyes locked onto the Arabian Kerosene bombs that were getting closer and closer.At this moment, the entire master archer unit was eerily still.Creee!The Arabian Kerosene bombs whistled through the air in their tens of thousands.Three thousand feet! Two thousand feet!Chen Burang was constantly calculating the distance. He was keenly aware of how difficult it was to deal with this viscous Arabian liquid. It was both flammable and hard to extinguish.A single mistake would cause the fire bomb to explode in the air and spread the oil outward, creating a sea of fire on the ground that would cause even more damage.Before the battle, Wang Chong had repeatedly emphasized that if the bombs exploded in the air, they could burn up all the oxygen, suffocating tens of thousands of soldiers and killing them without even needing to hit the ground.I have to explode them at the right height!Chen Burang firmly looked up at the sky. He needed to choose the right height so that all the oil would burn up in the air without hurting the Tang army.Eight hundred feet! Seven hundred feet!“Ready!”Chen Burang held his breath, the tension reaching the maximum as he stared into the sky.Time slowed to an endless crawl, and after what seemed like an eternity, Chen Burang’s eyes flashed with cold light, and he finally gave the order.“Release!”The air screeched as tens of thousands of arrows took flight from the Tang ranks, a forest of arrows that impacted with the Arabian Kerosene bombs.Boom! Boom! Boom! Balls of flame erupted in a series of dazzling explosions.The explosion of one fire bomb caused the surrounding fire bombs to also explode, setting off a chain reaction that created a fierce sea of fire. This sea of fire created a unique blockade high in the air.“Ah!”As an armored giant passed through the sea of flames, the burning Arabian Kerosene seeped through the chinks in his armor. In the blink of an eye, the giant turned into a screaming fireball.All of the giants passing through the sea of fire met the same fate.Upon seeing this, the Arab generals grimaced.This was not a development they had predicted.Meanwhile, hundreds of giants had already fallen into the Tang ranks, posing an enormous threat to Su Hanshan and his ballistae, particularly the giant ballistae, which were the first targets for the giants.Unlike ordinary ballistae, the giant ballistae were fixed on high metal platforms and could not be moved.“Three hundred of you! Come with me and destroy the giant ballistae! The rest of you, destroy the ordinary ballistae and the ants operating them!” a muscular, armored giant roared in a hoarse and scratchy voice.But at this moment, white-robed humans without even a shred of armor barred their path and charged at them.“Interesting!”Upon seeing these defenseless humans, the giant leader was taken aback, and then he savagely laughed.“You damn ants think you can stop us? I don’t mind twisting off your heads and eating you as appetizers before I destroy those giant ballistae!”With a cruel smile, the giant leader took out his massive saber and swung at one of the white-robed humans.The other giants similarly chortled, arrogant and disdainful smiles on their lips as they charged at the white-robed humans.For the armored giants, the two sides weren’t even on the same level when it came to size and strength. These strange humans weren’t even worth thinking about, simply serving as a means to satisfy their murderous desires.But as these armored giants lunged forward, bang! Needles of Psychic Energy slammed into their minds.“Ah!”A laughing giant suddenly howled like a wounded beast and put his hands on his head.“Beast! I’ll end you personally!”Bamboo Mirror coldly snorted as he pulled out his sword, his entire body rippling with righteous energy as he shot toward the armored giant.The hundreds of Confucian Sect experts began to attack the armored giants, with Li Junxian personally holding down ten of them.Before the
battle, Wang Chong had found Li Junxian and told him to use Psychic Energy attacks on these giants before fighting them.The giants and Behemoths both had their origins in the technology of that lost civilization. Although their methods of production were different, they had their similarities, even sharing the same weakness.All the Behemoths and giants had been produced over a short period of time. Special methods could be used to rapidly increase their size and power, but the same methods did not strengthen their souls.Not even the High Priest could do anything about this.Even the strongest Psychic Energy practitioner could not grant other creatures powerful souls or immense Psychic Energy.These armored giants had the body and strength of a Saint Martial realm expert, but the same was not true of their Psychic Energy. This was their greatest weakness.And the ones most capable of exploiting this weakness were undoubtedly the members of the Confucian Sect.“Kill them!”“Kill them all!”The armored giants crazily roared. They instinctively felt greatly threatened by these white-robed humans, but little did they realize that this was only the beginning.“Release!”The giants had no idea that Zhang Shouzhi was also watching them.