Chapter 671
Chapter 671
Inside Nangong Ao's barracks.
Commander Sayan asked.
"Is that Shen Lang's army?"
Nangong Ao nodded.
"Why didn't he send such formidable soldiers to Yangguo City?"
Nangong Ao answered Sayan's question.
"Shen Lang is a man who values his home above all else."
"And why hasn't Shen Lang appeared?"
Nangong Ao didn't know. Shen Lang was indeed nowhere to be seen today.
"It seems there are heroes among you people of Yue after all."
Nangong Ao instinctively wanted to refute that statement.
'Shen Lang, a hero? What a joke.'
But he kept the thought to himself. The Shaman tribesmen had always judged a hero by the outcome of a battle. To be honest, Nangong Ao had mentally prepared himself for the possibility of defeat today. After all, Shen Lang had performed too many miracles, and this was his home, which he would surely defend with his life. However, he had never imagined they would be so utterly slaughtered in a one-sided defeat. How many casualties had the Jin Clan suffered in today's battle? Was the number so low it was hard to even imagine? Throughout the entire engagement, Nangong Ao's army had been passively beaten down, with no room to counterattack.
'How can an archer unit be this powerful? How can they perform at their absolute peak like this? What do we do now?'
Nangong Ao and Sayan fell into silence.
"We must not withdraw our troops!"
Sayan suddenly exclaimed, and Nangong Ao understood his reasoning. If they withdrew, this army of the Jin Clan could go to reinforce Yangguo City.
'Not withdraw? Then how do we fight from now on? Should we mobilize the warriors of the Shaman and Southern Gull tribes?'
They were naturally more formidable than the surrendered army of Yue, being much more agile and skilled with the bow. But unfortunately, they had no siege equipment. No catapults or siege crossbows whatsoever. The battle had been initiated too hastily, leaving no time to build them. Su Nan's army had siege equipment, but even if it were transported here, it couldn't be used in time.
Nangong Ao said.
"We have two options going forward. The first is to maintain the siege without engaging. The second is to risk our entire army in an all-out assault."
As the deputy commander, he couldn't make the decision himself. Sayan, the commander, was a chieftain with exceptional martial prowess and had ten thousand warriors under his command. However, battles between Shaman tribes were typically close-quarters brawls in the jungle. Each Shaman warrior possessed immense combat strength and could engage in brutally bloody battles. But their level of military command was certainly not high. If they threw their entire army at the Count of Xuanwu's Estate, the casualties would be staggering.
"The Jin Clan's archer unit is formidable, but in close combat, they likely wouldn't withstand a single blow."
Sayan was skeptical of Nangong Ao's words. The Shaman warriors were not only skilled archers but also exceptional in close combat.
"Shen Lang is a peculiar genius. His heavy-armored Nirvana Army is nearly invincible in close combat. But they are only suited for trench warfare or when two armies are in a standoff. If my guess is correct, this archer unit is his second Nirvana Army, and they haven't been training as a unit for more than half a year. I have studied his Nirvana Army extensively. They train intensively in only one discipline. So, if their archery is exceptional, their close combat skills must be abysmal."
Sayan nodded at Nangong Ao's words.
"Our Eastern armies do not excel at night battles. It's because we can't see well. But are the Shaman warriors skilled in night combat?"
"We are the people who fight best at night. Most of our hunting is done then."
That was true. During the day, the beasts in the thicket were full of energy and had sharp eyes, so hunting them then would be disadvantageous. But at night, the beasts' energy and senses were severely diminished, making them much easier to hunt. Thus, all Shaman warriors were adept at night combat, and over long years, they had developed the ability to see in the dark. Moreover, they were fond of eating animal liver, which naturally improved their eyesight.
"At night, it will be difficult for the archers to aim, their accuracy will plummet, and their combat effectiveness will drop sharply."
That much was certain. Even a master archer needed light to see their target clearly to aim.
"Therefore, I suggest we fight at night."
Sayan was silent for a moment. A night battle would require his five thousand Shaman warriors to be the absolute main force. The Southern Gull warriors were slightly better, but the rest of Nangong Ao's twenty thousand troops were not suited for night combat. Sayan made a bold decision.
"Very well. Let's fight at night!"
***
Darkness fell. It was the beginning of the lunar month, so there was almost no moonlight; it was so dark you couldn't see your hand in front of your face. The army of the Great Southern Nation gathered once again, preparing to attack the Count of Xuanwu's Estate. The remaining ten thousand or so of Nangong Ao's troops were essentially spectators in this battle. The only hope rested on the five thousand Shaman warriors.
But just then, the sky instantly brightened as hundreds, even thousands, of lanterns rose into the air. The sight was immeasurably beautiful, but Nangong Ao and Sayan were completely stunned by it. The twenty thousand troops preparing for the siege also suddenly forgot their mission, tilting their heads back to gaze at the incomparably beautiful scene. This was exactly the scene described in the poetic line, "The splendid lamps have just begun to shine." If scholars or refined gentlemen were to see this, they would have written countless poems. The lanterns launched from the Count of Xuanwu's Estate were, of course, Kongming lanterns, which they flew into the air like kites. One alone was not bright, but with hundreds, thousands, gathered together, the sky became somewhat illuminated.
Sayan was amazed.
"Shen Lang truly has the most peculiar ideas. To think of flying lanterns in the sky. How on earth does he come up with such things? General Nangong, with this much light, can your troops see well?"
Nangong Ao asked his troops, but the answer came back that they couldn't see well. This was because the lanterns in the air were too high, providing only limited illumination on the ground. Sayan asked his Shaman warriors if they could see well in that light. The Shaman warriors said it was very bright and they could see clearly. So, should they proceed with the night battle as planned? After thinking for about thirty seconds, Sayan decided to go ahead with the night battle.
"Shaman warriors, mix in with the Southern Gull warriors and charge together! You must remember this!"
Because the main force for this siege was the Shaman warriors. The Southern Gull warriors were there to provide cover—or, to be more blunt, to be arrow fodder. The outcome of this war depended on this very night battle.
"Attack the fortress!"
At Sayan's command, twenty-five thousand troops surged toward the Count of Xuanwu's Estate like a tidal wave once again. The true main force, the Shaman warriors, hid among the Southern Gull warriors, spreading out their formation as much as possible. Looking up at the top of the walls, it was indeed pitch-black. Even with the Kongming lanterns in the sky, nothing was visible, making it even more impossible to aim and shoot from a distance of several hundred meters.
*Thump, thump, thump, thump.*
The sky-shaking sound of war drums echoed once more as the enemy's twenty-five-thousand-strong army rapidly approached the walls. The Second Nirvana Army on the walls did not fire their bows. Even when the enemy reached the two-hundred-meter mark, they showed no intention of shooting. Sayan breathed a sigh of relief.
'It seems we're finally going to succeed.'
Shen Lang's elite archer unit, which had started firing at this distance during the day, did not shoot at all from this range at night.
And finally, when the Shaman army reached a distance of one hundred and fifty meters.
*Whoosh, whoosh, whoosh, whoosh.*
Dozens of flaming arrows shot into the sky, flying tens of meters high before bursting apart.
*BOOM.*
Something like a conflagration suddenly exploded, and a massive fireball instantly illuminated the pitch-black night. Another astonishing scene unfolded, leaving Sayan and Nangong Ao completely dumbfounded.
'What the hell is this now? How can it be so bright and brilliant?'
It was a firework crafted by Shen Lang. With aluminum powder inside, it could be called a primitive flare. An astonishingly bright and large firework exploded tens of meters above the heads of the Shaman army. For a fleeting moment, the firework lit up the battlefield as bright as day, and the Shaman army was so mesmerized they forgot to flee.
'Is... is this some immortal's trick? How can the middle of the night be this bright?'
And then,
*Whoosh, whoosh, whoosh, whoosh, whoosh.*
From the top of the walls, a rain of arrows once again poured down like mad. The warriors of the Shaman and Southern Gull tribes disliked wearing armor, leaving them virtually unprotected. From one hundred and fifty meters, the two-dan powerful bows unleashed incredible killing power; any arrow that hit its mark pierced straight through the enemy.
*Whoosh, whoosh, whoosh, whoosh.*
*Bang, bang, bang, bang.*
The primitive firework flares continuously shot into the sky and exploded. The sky above the battlefield was consistently bathed in bright light. It wasn't as bright as day, and the light would have been insufficient for other archers, but it was enough for the Nirvana Army. They were individuals with modified bloodlines, and more importantly, their master was the Great Grandmaster Nandu. They had studied ancient texts on mental training and had practiced archery countless times in the pitch-black night. Their eyesight far surpassed that of ordinary people. Of course, their killing power when shooting at night was not as great as during the day, but their accuracy was still quite high. Moreover, the enemy below the walls wore no protective armor and carried no shields.
An astonishing, one-sided slaughter unfolded once more. The attacking enemies were struck by arrows one after another, falling to the ground, brutally pinned to the earth.
But then, the bravery of the Shaman warriors was revealed. Even when shot and pinned to the ground, they fiercely pulled the arrows from their bodies and continued to charge forward. The arrows were barbed like harpoons, and pulling them out caused massive bleeding and tore away chunks of flesh—a fearsome sight to behold. But the Shaman warriors would let out a crazed roar and charge forward again. Of course, they would often collapse mid-charge and die on the spot.
Other brave warriors, even when pierced by arrows, paid them no mind and charged on relentlessly. As long as they weren't dead, they kept charging forward, looking as fierce as if they would pluck an arrow-pierced eyeball out and swallow it whole.
Jin Mulan and Jin Zhuo looked at each other, their faces filled with pity. The Shaman warriors were incomparably brave, but tragically, they were dying a dog's death. Just then, Shen Jian, clad in armor, stood nearby, directing his subordinates to transport arrows. He was now a Decurion. However, he had never seen such a bloody and cruel battle before and was momentarily stunned.
"Young Master, if you can't bear it, you should return inside the fortress."
"Sister-in-law, what are you saying? Do I look like someone who fears death? Wouldn't that bring shame upon my brother?"
'Actually, your brother has no face to lose.'
Jin Mulan swallowed those words and said nothing more.