Rumble! Under the encouragement of a group of Khitan warriors, the siege towers began to slowly make their way toward the fortress.
The alliance soldiers rallied, excitedly roaring as they rushed forward with their siege ladders.
“The Khitans are truly fierce and brave!”
In the rear, An Lushan couldn’t help but laugh at the sight.
Cui Qianyou and Tian Qianzhen also couldn’t hide their surprise. Once these Khitans got serious, their ferocity was truly shocking. It seemed that not even death could stop them.
For the alliance army to have such a powerful ally was undoubtedly a blessing.
The Khitan King proudly laughed and said no more.
The Khitans lived in a much harsher environment than the other countries. If they were not so fierce, how could they contend with their foes?
The Khitans continued their rapid advance, and in short order, seven to eight thousand Khitans had gathered in front of the walls, and more Khitans were continuing to ride across the sea of fire.
Encouraged by the Khitans, the other alliance soldiers bellowed. Using shield carts and sand, they opened up more paths leading to the base of the walls.
The catapult teams in particular had been inspired by the Khitans, and they launched their boulders into the sea of fire to create paths.
Completely extinguishing such a vast sea of fire was not something done quickly.
But creating paths for the soldiers to advance was not as complicated.
Thud! Thud! Thud! Large boulders crashed into the sea of flames, and compared to the blazing tree trunks, these rocks were much easier to cross.
Bang!
A giant boulder rolled several dozen feet through the flames. A moment later, a long siege ladder descended, one part of the ladder happening to hook itself onto the top of the boulder, locking the ladder in place.
Just like that, a suspended ‘passage’ appeared.
“Kill!”
Alliance soldiers quickly began to climb up this passage.
Fwoosh!
At the same time, a shovel dug into the dirt, lifting up the hot soil and burning kerosene and flinging them to the sides.
Tens of thousands of alliance soldiers at the edges of the army began to do this, using this crude but effective method to open up another path through the flames.
With thousands of soldiers working together, a path ten-some meters wide was quickly dug through the sea of flames, and it rapidly crept toward the walls.
The sight of tens of thousands of soldiers working together was truly a wondrous sight.
The Great Tang had its plans, and so did the alliance.
And the alliance was swiftly putting these countermeasures on display.
Although the speed was relatively slow, it would take ten minutes at most for the army to reach the wall.
Whoosh!
In the distance, the Khitan warriors at the very front jumped, mounting the wall.
“Haha! Come and fight me! I’m going to kill all you Tang dogs!”
A Khitan warrior heartily laughed, already prepared for a tough battle. But all that came in response was the twang of a bowstring.
Fwoosh!
A sharp arrow punched through his throat, carrying with it a geyser of blood as it emerged from the back of his neck.
The Khitan warrior’s eyes flew open in disbelief as he held his neck. Staggering backward as blood flowed out of the hole, he fell from the walls and into the flames.
“Kill them! Leave not one alive!” Chen Burang coldly ordered, nocking another arrow to his bow and shooting down another Khitan warrior.
In this short while, Chen Burang had already ordered the master archers to withdraw from the walls, putting them out of range of the Condor Snipers on the siege towers.
Without vision, even the Condor Snipers could not easily threaten his master archer unit.
“Activate the second defense line!” Chen Burang immediately ordered.
Creakcreak!
As Chen Burang spoke, the groaning of gears resounded over the battlefield.
The soldiers scaling the walls of the fortress heard this terrifying sound and instinctively turned their heads in its direction.
“Look over there!”
“Careful!”
What they saw made their hearts grow cold with fear.
The smooth surfaces of the steel wall began to shift, numerous beehive-like holes appearing on them.
These holes were arranged in columns and rows, densely distributed across the walls.
“It’s beehives!”
“Retreat, retreat!”
Fearful cries rang out across the battlefield.
Wang Chong had four lethal weapons under his command, and they would always appear in each of his battles: the impregnable steel defense line, the reaping ballista army, the supreme Wushang Cavalry, and finally, his unique creations, famed for their ability to slaughter dense concentrations of enemy soldiers, the beehives.
Amongst the mechanical weapons, only the beehives had yet to make an appearance.
The beehives had the least killing power of the four weapons, and it had been a very long time since they had last appeared, but for ordinary soldiers, their concentrated fire was still a nightmare to deal with.
No one had expected Wang Chong to wait until now to use this unique weapon.
Moreover, these beehives were angled so that the bolts would cover more than half of the battlefield.
“What are you afraid of? I’ll destroy them!”
“Everyone, come with me! Khitans feel no fear!”
“Charge!”
But in the face of this danger, the Khitan warriors did not retreat in fear. On the contrary, their bodies erupted with powerful fighting intent!
Khitans felt no fear!
This was the highest principle that all Khitans adhered to, the foundation behind their ability to resist all the other countries.
As the beehives slowly appeared along the walls, none of the Khitans retreated. On the contrary, they rode toward the walls at an even faster pace.
Roooar!
As they charged at the walls, the Khitan warriors roared, their dantians unleashing Stellar Energy that transformed into barriers and enclosed their surroundings.
Chapter 2176 - Lethal Gold!
Chapter 2176: Lethal Gold!
Translated by: Hypersheep325
Edited by: Michyrr
Some of the Khitan warriors were able to compress their Stellar Energy into frontal shields.
Although the Khitan Tribe had far fewer warriors than the other countries, the strength of their soldiers was much greater.
Even in the face of these terrifying killing weapons, the Khitans felt no fear.
What beehives? They were just trash to the Khitans!
But though the Khitans reacted quickly, those on the walls reacted even more quickly.
With the turning of gears, arrows emerged from the numerous holes of the beehives, the sharp tips pointed at the charging Khitan warriors.
Boom!
Boom!
Boom!
Before the Khitan warriors could charge very far, countless concentrated arrows poured out, covering every inch in front of the walls.
Only those who had experienced it for themselves could understand the true power of the beehives.
The arrows blotted out the sky like dark clouds, a piercing whistle tearing through the air.
“Go!”
But in the face of this full-out barrage, none of the Khitan warriors fell back.
Bang!
A Khitan warrior raised up his shield of Stellar Energy to block the downpour of arrows. At the same time, he wound a rope around his right wrist and pulled, using the momentum to mount the walls and send his saber slicing at the nearest beehive.
The Khitan soldiers were all brimming with strength, and this slash of his could have easily shattered a boulder, let alone the beehive and its complicated internal mech
anisms. He was confident that he could slice the beehive in half and turn it into a pile of scrap.
But when the arrows made impact, what happened was far different from what he had imagined.
Fwoosh!
As the arrows made impact, the sharp tips glinted with a strange light as they somehow pierced through the giant shield of Stellar Energy.
Before the Khitan warrior could react, plushplush! All of the arrows pierced through the Stellar Energy shield and into his body. Blood gushed out through the numerous wounds, carrying away his life.
How could this be? What arrows are these that not even the Stellar Energy of the Khitans can stop?
The Khitan warrior’s eyes widened in disbelief as all the strength left him. His body went limp, and as his body fell from the walls, his vision went dark.
Thudthudthud!
He did not come crashing to the ground alone.
Those agile Khitan warriors who had been climbing the walls like monkeys were instantly turned into corpses and made to plummet into the sea of fire.
“Armor-piercing arrows! Armor-piercing arrows!”
“They used armor-piercing metal for the arrows!”
A fearful cry tore through the battlefield.
Though the beehives were powerful, their flaw was that their arrows were short, weak, and short-ranged, not comparable to a strong bow. Thus, they could only damage warhorses and weaker soldiers.
Normal soldiers had powerful Stellar Energy and wore thick armor, which should have been enough to greatly reduce the damage of the beehives.
But contrary to everyone’s expectations, the Great Tang had crafted these arrows from armor-piercing metal.
Though these arrows did not appear like regular armor-piercing arrows, from their luster, it appeared that they were at least fifty percent armor-piercing metal.
The Khitans hated using armor, and at such close quarters, this sort of habit was fatal.
“Ah!”
Screams tore through the air as the pincushioned Khitans fell from the walls.
One strike!
Only one strike!
The more than seven thousand Khitans and their reinforcements had been instantly slain.
There was not a single survivor to be found.
Silence!
Deathly silence!
The soldiers of the alliance army were left with their mouths agape, their eyes wide open.
In the distance, the Khitan King’s body went cold, his face pale.
This had come too suddenly. The Khitan King began to tremble.
He seemingly did not dare to believe that so many of his pugnacious Khitan braves had been killed in just a single engagement. They had yet to even properly fight, and had not gained any of the glory or honor a warrior deserved, only died a meaningless death on the battlefield.
The Khitans were not as large as the other countries, and this loss of nearly one-tenth of his forces had the Khitan King stricken with grief.
The others around the Khitan King were even more shocked. Gao Shang had ceased to wave his fan, and stared speechlessly at the battlefield.
Armor-piercing arrows!
No one had expected the Great Tang to be so extravagant and use this sort of expensive material on the beehives.
Each beehive could launch sixty or more arrows, even as many as one hundred. If all these beehives had been equipped with armor-piercing arrows, just how much armor-piercing steel would be required?
How many tens of thousands of taels of gold was this?
Truly, using gold like it was dirt!
In that single wave, Wang Chong had used at least seventy million taels of gold, and this had been only one volley.
“Madman!” Tian Chengsi muttered in shock.
There was no other word that could describe what they were all feeling.
There was no one else in the world besides Wang Chong capable of such a thing.
Besides shock and curses, there was also another, more complicated feeling.
“Too frightening! He has to die if we want to conquer the Great Tang.”
Elsewhere, Cui Qianyou’s eyes flashed with apprehension.
He had always feared Wang Chong’s martial arts, especially after what had happened during the feast of all countries, where all of them, including his master, An Lushan, had almost died to Wang Chong in the northeast corner of the capital.
Only on the battlefield did Cui Qianyou realize that Wang Chong’s grasp of strategy was even more frightening than his martial arts.
He was called the War Saint and had a divine grasp of strategy. With each operation, he would carefully balance the pros and cons, but besides caution, his plans also did not lack for madness.
Only the most insane of madmen would use seventy million taels of gold to produce beehive arrows.
However, Wang Chong had to consider that when the calamity arrived, all gold left in the treasury would be nothing more than scrap metal.
Rather than letting it go to waste, it would be better to exchange it for weapons to increase his chances of victory.
In this aspect, it was completely in line with Wang Chong’s style, and what seemed insane was actually rational.
Boomboomboom!
Meanwhile, yet another volley fired, and all the Khitan soldiers within five thousand feet of the walls, including their reinforcements, were slain to the last man. Even the tree trunks the Khitans had thrown onto the sea of flames were pincushioned with arrows.
At this point in the battle, the alliance army had lost at least three hundred thousand men. The battlefield was covered in bodies, but the assault on the city had yet to even begin.
Although the Great Tang’s steel fortress was right in front of them, it seemed as if some invisible barrier stood in their way.
The Great Tang’s layer after layer of attacks had turned that region into a zone of death.
A booming and cold voice came from the depths of the fortress. “An Lushan, Ozmish Khagan, Khitan King, Xi Queen, Yeon Gaesomun… is that all you’re capable of?
“This king still has seven hundred thousand soldiers that have yet to act. To try and rebel against the Great Tang with this little ability, is that not laughable?”
All of the sovereigns turned ashen upon hearing Wang Chong’s voice.
Although they knew that Wang Chong’s words were meant to damage the morale of the alliance army, they could not help but be enraged.
“Bastard!”
The Khitan King clenched his fists so hard that they audibly cracked.
His Khitan soldiers had suffered grievous losses, and there was no doubt that Wang Chong was mocking him.
“Attend me! This king will kill that bastard personally!”
The Khitan King’s eyes were red with rage, his body trembling.
More than eight thousand Khitan soldiers had died without even killing a single enemy. This was not how Khitan braves should have died!
“Khitan King, calm yourself. Don’t take that boy’s bait. He’s hoping for you to personally take action!” A voice came from the side, urging the Khitan King to stop.
Surprisingly, it was An Lushan who had spoken at this time.
In this war, it was Youzhou that had lost the most soldiers. The Underworld Cavalry had been almost completely wiped out. But at this time, An Lushan was unexpectedly the most rational.
Gao Shang looked over at the Khitan King and said, “Correct! Khitan King, if you take action, you will truly have fallen for his trap!”
The Khitan King and his Khitan warriors were extremely fierce and brave, and they would be very useful in the other parts of the battle. They could not be so easily thrown away here.
“So you’re saying that we should just let that bastard continue to act cocky?” Yeon Gaesomun stepped forward, his eyes narrowing.
“Your Majesty, please wait. Let me think!”
Gao Shang dropped his head, a pensive look in his eyes.
All fell silent as An Lushan, Yeon G
aesomun, Tian Chengsi, and even the furious Khitan King turned to look at him.
Gao Shang had been very inconspicuous, not interacting much with the other sovereigns, but everyone knew that An Lushan had his current status, had been able to bring Zhang Shougui down, precisely because of this seemingly weak Gao Shang and his farsighted strategies.
A few moments later, Gao Shang finally raised his head and spoke to the sovereigns.
“Everyone, I have a way to deal with this steel fortress, but I will need your cooperation!”
……
Bwoooom!
A plaintive horn blared, and the alliance army began to surge once more. The battle was restarting much more quickly than had been anticipated.
Chapter 2177 - A Hope for Breaking the Walls!
Chapter 2177: A Hope for Breaking the Walls!
Translated by: Hypersheep325
Edited by: Michyrr
“These scoundrels still haven’t given up!”
Within the fortress, beneath the giant banner, Abusi slightly frowned.
Wang Chong looked ahead and coldly said, “They will not give up, nor can they give up. When rowing a boat upstream, you fall back if you stop moving forward. With the cold wave coming, they have nowhere to retreat!”
Ever since the forty thousand infantry had withdrawn into the fortress and the city assault had begun, the commanders had withdrawn into the fortress.
They were generals, so their most important duty was not to fight with the vanguard but to oversee the overall battlefield situation.
Now that the battle had begun, the two of them no longer needed to be at the front.
“Wang Chong, do you think that they can break through your defenses?” Abusi questioned.
After working together several times, he was extremely confident in Wang Chong’s abilities.
Each of Wang Chong’s defenses reaped more lives when they were triggered. For the alliance army to attack at this time was simply suicidal.
“We can’t get careless!”
Wang Chong shook his head and solemnly said, “Although Youzhou doesn’t have any renowned generals, they cannot be underestimated!”
Wang Chong had never underestimated any of his opponents. Even when killing chickens, he would use the bull knife.
The Human Emperor c1-2382 Page 1311
