Chapter 33: The Final Battle Begins

The ten thousand Northern cavalrymen were all clad in chainmail armor, their equipment fully prepared. Yet the Eastern Hu, dressed in leather armor and wielding stone hammers, spiked clubs, wooden spears, bronze swords, and halberds, were no less formidable. Thirty thousand cavalry against ten thousand—no matter how you looked at it, the advantage seemed overwhelmingly in favor of the Eastern Hu.

To avoid being flanked by infantry spears, Lei Ming led his cavalry in a wide arc around the enemy foot soldiers, charging instead at the Eastern Hu from another direction.

With a thunderous rumble, the enemy drew ever closer. The thirty thousand Eastern Hu riders, already impatient, launched into a full-speed charge. The vast tide of cavalry stretched as far as the eye could see. The superior horsemanship of their foes bearing down upon them made Lei Ming tense, but the cold steel of his crossbow in his hands restored his composure.

“Charge! Kill!” The Eastern Hu cavalry, masters of mounted archery, drew their bows and short wooden spears.

Lei Ming led the way, raising his hand crossbow. Behind him, ten thousand crossbows were lifted skyward in unison. Though the air was thick with dust and confusion, the Eastern Hu chieftain saw the movement of the Northern cavalry. Even so, he was unconcerned—no one was more skilled at mounted shooting than the Eastern Hu.

“Fire! Fire!” he shouted.

The twang of bowstrings was followed by a hail of bolts streaking through the air. The cavalry crossbows had a range of only a hundred meters, but each was double-strung, allowing for two consecutive shots. As the first wave of arrows arced through the sky, another followed swiftly behind. Soon, the first arrows began to descend on the enemy.

“What—what is this!” With more than a hundred paces yet to go, the Eastern Hu chieftain could hardly believe his eyes. These were not infantry crossbows or longbows, but cavalry weapons!

The battlefield was shrouded in dust and smoke, and only the first ranks of Eastern Hu noticed the arrow storm.

“Arrows! Arrows!” they shouted, trying to warn those behind, but the roar of hooves and the cries of warhorses drowned their voices.

As the arrow storm closed in, more Eastern Hu saw the countless steel-tipped shafts raining down.

“No—no!” Brave warriors waved their arms, but too late—the deadly bolts pierced throats and armor alike.

Horses screamed and reared amid the human cries of agony.

“Damn it! Another arrow storm!” Amid the flying dust, General Yimu could not tell the extent of his losses, but he knew they must be severe.

After two volleys, thousands of cavalry in the front ranks fell, while those behind swerved to avoid the fallen men and horses.

The Eastern Hu's own arrows flew early, but their power and speed were weak—at best, they inflicted only flesh wounds on horse heads.

The Eastern Hu ranks were thrown into confusion, but the Northern cavalry remained disciplined.

“Lob!” Lei Ming shouted, hurling two short iron-tipped javelins. The frontmost ranks of the Eastern Hu, untouched by the arrows, were caught off guard.

Suddenly, with a whistling sound, the chieftain dodged aside just in time. He was about to order a retreat when the next instant left him dumbstruck.

A dense barrage of javelins flew forth. The chieftain knew there was no stopping it now. After another round of chaos and screams, the surviving thousand cavalry, wounded, turned to flee without waiting for orders, their terrified horses bolting of their own accord.

“It's over! We're finished!” Those in the rear, feeling panic seize them, spurred their mounts to flight.

“Hurry! Retreat! Retreat!” Lei Ming's eyes blazed as he shouted, “Accelerate! Charge at full speed!”

His personal guard echoed the command, and soon ten thousand warhorses surged forward at their utmost speed.

Jing Ni gave a faint smile, losing interest in the fleeing enemy.

“My lord! So the Eastern Hu cavalry are not so fearsome after all!” she exclaimed.

Lin Shu nodded. At this stage, the Hu cavalry were indeed unimpressive—only after the ruthless Maodun reorganized the Xiongnu did their cavalry truly become renowned for valor and skill in battle.

Of course, the steppe’s equipment now was inferior to what it would become decades later. When the Xiongnu swept past the Great Wall, capturing countless craftsmen and slaves, the tribes gained the technology to forge iron.

“Damn it! Sound the horn of death!” General Yimu could not bear the shame of letting his men be slaughtered in flight.

The horn sounded, a mournful, resolute wail. The panicked Eastern Hu steadied themselves.

“Die!” an enraged Hu knight turned and loosed an arrow, knowing there would be no escape.

The wiser warriors aimed not at armored riders but at their horses’ heads.

More began to fire backwards as they fled, and in the ensuing chaos, several hundred Northern cavalry fell.

Angered by their losses, the Northern riders retaliated in kind.

A flurry of short javelins flew. Some of the canny Eastern Hu clung to the bellies of their horses, but forgot the horses’ heads could not be hidden.

After thousands of javelins, nearly a thousand cavalrymen were struck down.

The death horn continued to wail, forcing the chieftains to wheel their cavalry back around.

“Charge! Break through!” The two armies closed, the clash of flesh and steel imminent.

The Eastern Hu cavalry wielded a motley assortment of heavy short weapons, while the Northern army’s cavalry all brandished standardized sabers, each 1.2 meters long and weighing over a dozen pounds. Yet some warriors found them light in hand.

Kill! Attack!

The thunder of hooves shook the ground.

The tribal leaders watching from afar were stunned. What was meant to be an encirclement had become a desperate battle.

“Chiefs, the Northern army has committed all its forces. We must not wait any longer. If Yimu’s main force is lost, the Eastern Hu alliance will have no strength left to resist!” Siter urged anxiously.

Even the son-in-law of the late Qi Shan did not wish to see the Eastern Hu defeated. With a sigh, he declared, “My tribe will send twenty thousand warriors as well!”

“Good! We’ll march at once!”

Even the routed troops were being thrown into battle, and no one hesitated further.

When Yimu returned and saw the assembled cavalry, he finally relaxed. Though the Northern cavalry were better equipped, the Eastern Hu had the numbers. The two sides were evenly matched, and after each clash, their losses were nearly equal.

Knowing the Northern warriors were tough and well-armored, most of the Eastern Hu targeted their horses instead. This meant many Northern cavalrymen who fell still retained the strength to fight, while fallen Eastern Hu knights struggled even to rise.

The infantry, charging forward to support, still needed time to arrive. Not wishing to see his cavalry decimated, Lin Shu could wait no longer.

“Jing Ni, you stay here and command. I must join the battle myself.”

Before she could reply, Lin Shu spurred his Black Tiger war machine into action.

“My lord!” Jing Ni, anxious, immediately entered the cockpit. Her husband was not strong enough to endure long, even piloting the Black Tiger.

Suddenly, the Black Tiger’s controls shifted, the levers and pedals slowing the machine automatically.

Seeing the war chariot also moving out, Jing Ni let out a breath. “Ha! That man—always so impulsive!”

But Lin Shu was no fool; he knew his own limits. The Black Tiger was powerful but not invincible—repeated blows could deform its metal, and the joints and pressure hoses were especially vulnerable.

In just over ten minutes, half of the Northern cavalry had been wiped out. The Eastern Hu cavalry fared little better, with just over ten thousand remaining.

“We must retreat!” Lei Ming ordered. They had already charged into the Eastern Hu’s encirclement.

Seeing the enemy trying to escape, Siter immediately commanded, “Attack! Do not let them go!”

If they could annihilate the Northern cavalry, the course of the battle would be entirely in the Eastern Hu’s hands.

As the remaining ten thousand Eastern Hu gave chase, they caught sight not far off of the Northern main force—and almost within reach, the towering Black Tiger.

It stood three meters tall, six meters long, its tail a three-meter chain-sword.

“Perfect timing. Let’s see what the machine gun can do.”