Chapter 12: Mastery of the Mountain Blade Technique

The Yan army stationed outside the city seemed not to have expected the Qin army to choose this moment to break through. Caught off guard, they offered no resistance beyond a scattered volley of arrows.

Duan Hong led the way, guiding four soldiers holding shields high to block the incoming projectiles.

Behind them, on the city walls, civilians and wounded soldiers were lowered down using hemp ropes.

When Young Master Tao was helped down by two soldiers, the bandages on his chest were already soaked through with blood from his wound.

Hu Chunniu leaned against the city wall, checking on a few wounded soldiers who had fallen unconscious, while gathering the scattered medicinal herbs back into his basket.

In the distance, the Yan army’s formation finally stirred, shifting toward the base of the city wall.

"Boom—"

On the city walls, the last of the Qin army’s defensive crossbows fired with a thunderous snap. The yard-long bolts whistled through the air, holding back the approaching Yan troops.

"Charge!" Duan Hong led his men into a battle formation, swords and shields in hand, blocking the rain of arrows as they sprinted toward the low woods ahead.

They jumped from the two-zhang-high wall, crossed the dried-up moat, and dashed across the two-hundred-zhang stretch of open field to reach the low-lying forest.

The low woods connected to the distant mountains. Even if Yan troops were forming lines nearby, once the civilians and wounded reached the forest, their chances of survival would increase significantly.

Zhang Yuan, his hand pressed against the hilt of his blade, followed behind Chen Wuxiong, running with his body slightly hunched.

The wounded and civilians followed with great difficulty, running with all their might.

Everyone knew that to survive, they had to reach the woods before the Yan army arrived.

A squad of Yan soldiers roared as they sprinted forward, attempting to intercept the charging Qin troops and civilians.

"Kill—"

Duan Hong bellowed, thrusting his long spear and piercing through the body of the leading Yan soldier.

Several soldiers behind him surged forward, knocking aside the other Yan troops and carving out a path.

Everyone followed closely, heads down, charging forward.

"Don't look back," Chen Wuxiong panted, dragging his long-handled battle axe. "We can't save everyone."

They couldn't save everyone.

Zhang Yuan caught a glimpse out of the corner of his eye: a squad of Yan cavalry was sweeping in an arc, galloping toward them.

The curved sabers in the riders' hands glinted with a cold, ghostly light, like sickles harvesting crops.

The unarmed civilians and wounded soldiers had no defense against these warhorses.

Zhang Yuan gritted his teeth, gripped his sword hilt, and turned back to charge.

The Great Qin Martial Guard exists to protect the home and country, to guard their comrades and the people.

He could not watch his comrades and those civilians be slaughtered.

Even if he could only delay them for a moment, he would find peace in that.

Chen Wuxiong reached out to grab him, but missed Zhang Yuan’s arm.

"Lad Zhang!" he shouted urgently. Behind them, soldiers holding spears and supporting the wounded looked up.

An old soldier in half-body leather armor let go of the wounded man he was supporting and dragged his spear to meet Zhang Yuan.

On the other side, two other soldiers stopped and turned back.

"Zhang Yuan, keep moving forward!" The old soldier with the spear leveled his weapon, blocking Zhang Yuan’s path.

Chen Youde, one of the eight "Soap-Clad Guards" who had arrived at Fengtian County with Zhang Yuan.

Before Zhang Yuan could speak, Chen Youde had already led the two spearmen to turn and charge toward the Yan cavalry.

The three long spears formed a triangular formation, tips pointed forward, meeting the cavalry charge head-on.

"Go, go—"

The civilians cried out. Someone reached out, grabbed Zhang Yuan’s arm, and pulled him toward the woods.

When Zhang Yuan looked back again, the triangular spear formation was gone.

The leading soldier of the charging Yan cavalry held a blood-dripping head in his hand.

Zhang Yuan’s feet felt as heavy as lead.

"Go! Don't let Old Chen and the others die in vain!" Chen Wuxiong pushed Zhang Yuan forward, gritting his teeth and whispering.

In three months, only these few remained of their entire battalion.

Behind them, the cavalry pursued and cut down the civilians and wounded; miserable wails filled the air.

"Behind that low forest is a cliff of jagged rocks. To the right is a dead-end mountain path, and to the left is the road to Chen Family Village." Chen Wuxiong looked ahead. "Zhang Yuan, go left."

Chen Wuxiong gave Zhang Yuan a heavy shove, dragged his long axe, and turned to run back.

Zhang Yuan stood where he was, watching Chen Wuxiong swing his axe, sweeping a cavalryman off his horse, then smashing a warhorse’s knee with another blow, causing both horse and rider to tumble.

"Hurry, hurry—"

Chen Wuxiong waved his arms, shouting for the wounded and civilians lagging behind to keep up.

A curved saber swept across Chen Wuxiong’s left side, taking his arm and half his skull with it as they flew into the air.

Two wounded soldiers supporting each other were knocked flying by a warhorse. As one hit the ground, the horse trampled over his chest and abdomen, splashing a spray of blood.

"Kill—"

Zhang Yuan let out a roar, drew his long blade, and charged back, dragging the steel.

The Yan cavalryman who had just turned his horse around smiled, gave a low shout, squeezed his horse’s flanks, and charged at Zhang Yuan.

Zhang Yuan was one of the few among the soldiers and civilians who still wore armor.

A charging warhorse carried the force of a thousand catties. As long as the mounted soldier utilized the horse's momentum, the force behind his blade could easily exceed five hundred catties.

An ordinary soldier, let alone blocking it, would be sent flying just by trying to parry.

Zhang Yuan dragged his blade with his right hand, sprinting forward to meet the charging horseman.

Infantry breaking cavalry.

If it were the old him, he wouldn't even have had the courage to face a warhorse.

"Chaos, assist in battle."

Grids of light appeared before Zhang Yuan’s eyes.

With his long blade in hand, he took a half-step forward. When the horse was a zhang away, he suddenly crouched, tensed his legs, and flipped his right hand, using the strength of his arm to point the blade diagonally outward.

The tip of the blade was two feet off the ground.

Mountain Blade Technique: Cliff-Breaking Cloud.

The charging horse brushed past him. The rider pressed his saber down, but it missed Zhang Yuan’s head, grazing his hair.

Zhang Yuan’s blade paused, and a spray of blood instantly scattered.

The horse’s front hooves had dodged the blade, but its hind legs collided with it during the gallop. Utilizing the horse's own momentum, the blade sliced through the horse’s tendons.

The horse, having run three zhang further, collapsed with a crash. As the rider fell, he rolled and held his curved saber horizontally before him.

Just as he turned, a heavy long blade spun through the air and slammed into his chest and abdomen, slicing half his body apart and shattering his spine.

Cloak Blade Technique: Whirlwind Slash.

Except, Zhang Yuan had used this move as a throwing blade.

Zhang Yuan took two steps to catch up to the thrown blade, gripped the hilt, and pulled back. A harsh, grating sound of steel against bone rang out.

He reversed the blade and thrust it into the neck of the warhorse, which was spitting blood on the ground. With a spin, Zhang Yuan pulled the blade out and swung it upward.

"Clang—"

A descending curved saber was blocked by his long blade.

That strike, aided by the horse's momentum, exceeded five hundred catties!

Zhang Yuan’s body was dragged backward, his feet carving deep furrows into the ground.

The rider pressed his saber down, trying to pierce Zhang Yuan’s neck.

Zhang Yuan swept his long blade backward, used the force of the opponent's strike to flip his body, grabbed the hind leg of the galloping horse, was dragged a few steps, and then flipped over to slash down from the horseman’s back, cleaving him off the mount.

Mountain Blade Technique: Overturning Seas.

Having killed two men and a horse in succession, Zhang Yuan’s blood surged, and his eyes turned blood-red.

In his mind, blood-red beads and insight beads tumbled down from the Chaos interface.

With his long blade in hand, the remaining dozen cavalrymen slowly came to a halt.

Without space to charge, the warhorses pranced, not daring to approach.

Zhang Yuan’s display of infantry breaking cavalry showed the skill and strength of a veteran elite.

At least at the middle stage of the Houtian realm.

The wounded and civilians trailing behind took this opportunity to rush into the low woods.

"Be careful." Young Master Tao, supported by two civilians, passed by Zhang Yuan and whispered a warning.

Zhang Yuan nodded, his blade slanted, and he retreated slowly.

"Boom—"

A roar came from the direction of the city gate.

A third surge of Xiantian energy entered the fray.

Two Xiantian-realm Yan experts were surrounding the Red Scale Army Commander, Yu Lin.

Even with Yu Lin’s formidable strength, it was hard to say if he could hold his own against two.

Moreover, there were more than two Xiantian experts among the Yan army.

Zhang Yuan retreated, dragging his blade, as a blood-red bead shattered in his mind.

A thousand catties of force!

The moment the barrier of a thousand catties was broken, Zhang Yuan felt his entire body lighten.

"Hum—"

An insight bead shattered, and Zhang Yuan’s eyes erupted with brilliant light.

Mountain Blade Technique: Minor Success!

Indeed, actual combat was the fastest way to improve one's cultivation and martial arts.

"Retreat."

Duan Hong’s voice rang out. Four shield-bearers protected Zhang Yuan. Duan Hong, holding his spear, grabbed Zhang Yuan’s armor with one hand, checked him over, and only breathed a sigh of relief when he saw he was uninjured.

The group retreated step by step into the low woods. The cavalry hesitated at the edge of the forest, not daring to enter.

The civilians and wounded had already reached the depths of the woods; once they crossed the jagged rocks, they would be safe.

Zhang Yuan looked ahead, and his expression changed drastically.

With Chaos battle-assistance active, he saw that the area of the jagged rocks and cliffs in the low woods ahead was stained a deep, fresh red.

The Yan army was hiding there!

"It's an ambush!"

Zhang Yuan shouted and charged forward.