Northern Prefecture Rivers and Mountains

Chapter 417 Death

The sky gradually brightened.

Although the Crescent Moon Formation was gone, the crossbow carts remained, and the Wei cavalry charged wave after wave toward Liu Yu's banner.

Facing an enemy three times their size, the Northern Army responded with ease, their long spears like fangs, piercing and felling the charging Wei cavalry.

"We must not let Changsun Song escape!" Liu Yu said, sword in hand, his spirits high.

With few arrows left, the soldiers simply pushed their crossbow carts and rammed them into the Wei cavalry. As wood chips flew, the cavalrymen and their horses fell to the ground.

Unlike their previous desperate defense, this time they held nothing back, with the Beifu soldiers fighting the Wei cavalry head-on on foot.

"Kill the enemy!" Supported by Liu Juanzi, Liu Yu rushed to the front, his face flushed red, his eyes gleaming. With a swift stroke, he cut down a cavalryman who had broken through the crossbow cart.

Blood splattered all over his face, but he seemed even more energetic.

He looked up to the sky and roared: "This is what a true man should be like! Hahaha—"

The morale of the surrounding soldiers soared, and they formed ranks to continue fighting the Wei army.

One by one, the Wei soldiers fell, but the Northern Army fought with increasing ferocity.

The corpses of men and horses piled up in a layer. The laborers braved the rain of arrows and went forward to pile the corpses into a low wall. Meng Longfu and Ding Wu led the armored soldiers to stand on the wall of corpses and continue to fight with the Wei army.

"Liu Yu!" came a loud shout.

A fierce general wielding a black spear and clad in black armor charged out from the Wei army. Even his warhorse was clad in iron armor, and he was followed by more than two hundred riders. Both men and horses were clad in iron armor, and they swept in like a whirlwind, knocking away the Northern Army soldiers who stood in their way like straw.

With a loud crash, forty or fifty riders smashed through the low wall made of corpses.

Even Ding Wu, who was above, was knocked away.

The black spear will burst out from the gap and crash directly into the Northern Army's formation.

"Yu Lidi is here, Liu Yu, are you ready for a battle!"

Liu Yu's eyes gleamed with a fierce light. He reached out and grabbed an unclaimed warhorse, then mounted it.

"Ji Nu!" Liu Juanzi called out, but did not stop him. "Go—"

The warhorse reared up, Liu Yu raised his spear to the sky, his body trembling slightly, muttering something, his voice drowned out by the shouts of the people and the neighing of the horses around him.

The warhorse landed on all fours and charged off like an arrow, with its personal guards following closely behind.

Without any frills, the two men and horses collided, blood and flesh flew everywhere, and the mournful cries of warhorses were carried by the north wind.

Half of Wei's iron cavalry fell, and more than a hundred of Liu Yu's personal guards also fell.

A hideous wound appeared on Yu Lidi's chest, from which blood gushed out.

Liu Yule turned his horse around, took a long spear, its tip trembling slightly, pointed it at Yu Lidi and the Wei soldiers beside him, and roared: "Come!"

The sound wasn't loud, but it was extremely penetrating.

The morning sun shone on him, as if bathing him in a divine glow.

The Wei army facing Liu Yu trembled, and their warhorses even neighed and retreated.

"Hahaha--"

Liu Yu spurred his warhorse toward Yu Lidi, who in turn charged forward with his spear raised.

A gust of north wind swept by, sending sand and stones flying. The two horses passed each other, splashing blood.

Liu Yu's long spear was gone, and he sat motionless on his horse, while Yu Lidi behind him had a long spear stuck in his body and fell headlong off his horse.

"Long live the Emperor! Long live Lord Song!"

The guards swarmed forward and hacked the Wei soldiers who rushed in into pieces.

Upon hearing the shouts, the Wei army on the periphery not only did not retreat, but launched an even more ferocious attack.

Groups of cavalry charged fearlessly toward the wagon formation and the wall of corpses, while some agile cavalrymen leaped up and charged fearlessly toward the Northern Army.

"Liu Yu must be killed today!"

Shouts echoed as blood mist enveloped the battlefield.

This place is not Fangtou; there are no high embankments or dikes, nor is it surrounded by the Qi River or Baigou. It is a flat plain, giving cavalry a great advantage.

Changsun Fei and Shusun Jian attacked from both sides. Although they were unable to break through the defenses of the Northern Army for the time being, the enemy was strong and the troops led by the two men were the elite troops who had risen to power in Wei.

After such a long and fierce battle, he had long harbored deep hatred for Liu Yu, wishing he could devour his flesh alive.

Even Changsun Fei, one of the Eight Dukes, charged towards the Northern Army formation with a bow and crossbow.

"We swear to kill Liu Yu!"

The shouts in various languages ​​on the battlefield were deafening.

More than 20,000 cavalrymen circled around the Northern Army like a long snake, their arrows blotting out the sky.

Although the range was short and the power was weak, the Northern Army's bows and crossbows were exhausted after a prolonged firing, and they were unable to retaliate, and were gradually suppressed.

“Ji, Ji Nu…” Liu Juanzi’s lips were trembling.

Liu Yu was still on his horse, his hands tightly wrapped around the reins, his feet twisted in the stirrups, but the flush on his face had faded, leaving him very pale, and even his eyes were vacant.

Liu Juanzi dared not make a sound, and led her personal guards forward to lift him off his horse and help him onto the palanquin.

A gasp rang out as the Wei cavalry broke through the wall of corpses, spreading like a tidal wave and crashing into the second line of chariots.

Meng Longfu and Xu Yizhi led their armored soldiers into a fierce battle.

With the war at this point, it would be a huge loss for the Wei Kingdom not to kill Liu Yu.

"Agui...has he arrived yet..." Liu Yu's voice was almost devoid of any human vitality.

Although he had no wounds, his battle with Yu Lidi had exhausted his last bit of energy.

Liu Juanzi looked north; a pale red morning mist shrouded the battlefield, and there was no sign of reinforcements. "Agui... will definitely come back, don't worry." Liu Yu's voice was like a candle flame in the wind, as if it might be extinguished at any moment.

If it weren't for my strong will, I would have passed away long ago.

"I originally intended to kill Changsun Song, then storm Pingcheng and take Tuoba Si's head, but alas, my days are numbered. It is truly that Heaven does not favor me." Liu Yu stared at the sky shrouded in blood mist, his eyes beginning to glaze over.

“That’s enough, that’s enough. The Wei army has lost its composure and its elite troops have been wounded. They won’t last long. Leave the rest to A Gui.” Liu Juanzi gripped Liu Yu’s hand tightly.

"Agui will definitely come..."

"Do you have a message for him?" Liu Juanzi tried to keep her voice calm.

"A true man who cannot be emperor or king in life will die with regrets. Please, Agui, for the sake of our brotherhood... leave me some of your bloodline... After I die, bury me with the Zang family..."

Zang Aiqin suffered from many illnesses and was bedridden for many years. She passed away last year before him.

As soon as he finished speaking, Liu Yu's hand fell limply to his side.

"Ji Nu..." Liu Juanzi suppressed her grief, not daring to speak too loudly.

"Lord Song, the Wei army has broken through our left flank! We request reinforcements!" Several bloodied veterans from the Northern Army rushed over.

Liu Juanzi suppressed her grief and was about to lead the remaining guards to fight when several more people arrived from the east. "Changsun Fei has broken through the chariot formation, and General Xu Yizhi has been killed in battle!"

The soldiers stared at him with wide eyes.

If Liu Yu were still alive, even if he couldn't defeat the Wei army, he could continue to resist until reinforcements arrived.

Liu Juanzi was just a doctor, and faced with the crisis, she couldn't help but panic.

"Where is Lord Song?" The veterans finally saw a clue.

"Lord Song... his injuries and illness have relapsed, and he has already gone to sleep. Do not disturb him."

The veterans exchanged glances, but didn't say anything, and each returned to their own positions.

However, the battlefield situation continued to deteriorate. Under the relentless and fearless attacks of the Wei army, the casualties of the Beifu Army gradually increased, and their formation became unstable.

"Will the General be able to get here?" The guards stared blankly.

After Liu Yu left, they seemed to have lost their backbone, completely lacking the spirit and vigor of battle-hardened elites.

"If Lord Song says the General will come, then he will definitely come," Liu Juanzi reassured the soldiers around her.

With a "whoosh," an arrow flew from the sky, grazing Liu Juanzi's face and embedding itself in the palanquin.

In the blink of an eye, a troop of elite Wei cavalry charged into the central army.

The leading general, with graying temples, was none other than Changsun Fei, the foremost and fiercest general of the Wei Kingdom.

"Lord Song..."

The battlefield was filled with veterans of the Northern Army calling out for Liu Yu.

With Liu Yu around, they would continue to fight no matter how dire the situation, but it was precisely because of this that they became dependent on Liu Yu.

"Is your Lord Song dead?" Changsun Fei abandoned his bow and picked up his spear, circling around the banner of the Northern Army.

The situation on the periphery worsened, and the Northern Army suffered heavy casualties. The supply troops went to the front, and although they were incredibly brave, they were not as composed as the veteran soldiers of the Northern Army when faced with the charge of the Wei cavalry. Corpses fell in droves.

"Things have come to this, we have no choice but to fight to the death." Liu Juanzi, after all, came from the Liu clan of Pengcheng, and immediately drew her sword.

The surrounding guards were roused and raised their long spears to engage Changsun Fei in battle.

However, the Wei army that broke in was too large. The personal guards had already suffered heavy casualties in the bloody battle with Yu Lidi, and they were increasingly no match for Changsun Fei, who was known as having the "bravery of Guan Yu and Zhang Fei".

Before half an incense stick could burn, Liu Juanzi was shot in the chest by an arrow. Fortunately, her armor protected her, and she did not die on the spot.

"It seems Liu Yu is definitely dead!" Changsun Fei spurred his horse up the platform step by step, his eyes filled with excitement.

Taking Liu Yu's head makes all the casualties worthwhile.

"The General is here!" Cheers suddenly erupted on the battlefield.

Changsun Fei was extremely surprised. He looked up to the north and saw a cloud of dust rising and the thunderous sound of horses' hooves.

A cavalry unit in silver armor charged into the battle formation, and the Wei soldiers on the outer perimeter fell like wheat. Even Shusun Jian's banner was cut down.

The Northern Army, which had been on the verge of collapse, suddenly rallied, picked up their swords and spears, and dragged their exhausted bodies to continue fighting the Wei army.

Even the guards on the platform struggled to their feet, raised their long spears, and faced Changsun Fei.

"How hateful!" Changsun Fei exclaimed in shock and rage, "Charge forward and cut off Liu Yu's head!"

"kill!"

The Wei cavalry spurred their horses and charged toward Yatai.

But those personal guards actually pounced down, crashing their flesh and blood into the galloping warhorses.

Even the severely wounded but still alive Northern Army soldiers on the ground, supporting their broken bodies, stepped forward and clutched at the horses' hooves. Even the soldiers who couldn't move sat on the steps, watching the charging hooves without fear...

Call——

The warhorse let out a mournful cry, blood mist continued to spread, and the warhorse fell one after another.

The platform was narrow, and with the imperial guards blocking their way, they couldn't get through.

"Damn it!" Changsun Fei cursed, but the Battle of Xuchang inexplicably came to mind. Those Jin soldiers were just as fearless, using their flesh and blood to block his cavalry...

With this delay, the Tiger Guard cavalry have already stormed in.

Changsun Fei, however, seemed not to see anything, spurring his horse toward the platform, as if possessed, shouting angrily, "Even if I die today, I will personally cut off Liu Yu's head!"

However, just as he crossed the pile of corpses, a dense barrage of crossbow bolts came flying at him.

A burst of blood mist exploded, riddling him and his horse with arrows, before he collapsed to the ground with a thud...

(End of this chapter)