Distant Mountain Battle Song

Chapter 166 was never intended to serve the purpose of war.

The battle at Ghost King Mountain was romantic.

Especially when burning red coal blocks fell from a great height, Japanese soldiers would often fall from their horses or be burned alive by the piled-up coal in the narrow canyon below.

Seeing the canyon turning into a furnace, Yun Ce had no choice but to order a retreat. The carbon monoxide concentration on the mountain was too high. Although it was not yet at the level of an explosion, people would definitely suffer from brain hypoxia if they stayed there for too long.

As soon as they returned to the upwind position, Qin Shu, his face covered in coal dust, hurried over and said to Yun Ce, "Japanese soldiers have also appeared on both sides. They came over the mountain."

"What about behind them? Are there Japanese soldiers coming from the direction of Tiewei Pass as well?"

Qin Shu took a breath and said with some grief and indignation, "Yes."

Yun Ce laughed and said, "Since it was something that was expected, why are you so indignant?"

Qin Shu choked up a little as he said, "I thought killing Japanese devils was the duty of every Han Chinese."

Yun Ce nodded and said, "The Han and the Japanese are mortal enemies. Only by killing them can we live happily."

"But the Japanese at Tiewei Pass just watched us get surrounded, and they even stood by and watched as the Japanese tried to cut off our retreat from the direction of Tiewei Pass."

Yun Ce waved his hand and said, "Continue to fight according to the pre-set plan. When some more Japanese soldiers come, we will set Ghost King Mountain on fire and then run away."

"Run away? General, where can we run to? Even the Iron Fortress Pass is unreliable, where else can we find a safe place?"

"Enough with the nonsense. Get to the battle plan. The Japanese are about to haul away the coal blocking the canyon entrance. We don't have time to be sad."

Qin Shu left filled with grief and indignation, and Yun Ce said to He Qingfang, who was beside him, "The Japanese are about to show their faces, prepare the crossbows."

He Qingfang and her female warriors quickly moved forward and landed in the dug pit, exposing their upper bodies. They placed their crossbows flat on the ground and pulled the triggers as soon as the Guifang cavalrymen showed their heads. Instead of firing in stages, they chose to fire continuously. The dense crossbow bolts immediately killed the Guifang cavalrymen who had just appeared, causing them to fall from their horses one after another.

Seeing this, Yun Ce glanced at Zuo Chong behind him, then spurred his chestnut horse over the scouting pit where He Qingfang and the others were hiding, and charged towards the somewhat chaotic Japanese cavalry.

The chestnut horse charged ahead, and this time Yun Ce did not choose to use his most familiar horse spear, but instead used a meteor hammer.

With wars having been going on for over a thousand years, all the methods available for dealing with the enemy have been thoroughly developed and have mature countermeasures. Even the iron caltrops meant to slow down enemy cavalry are ineffective against the Guifang cavalry wearing iron shoes. In fact, sometimes, due to misjudgment, they can even bring about one's own annihilation.

When all other methods have been exhausted, the effectiveness of cold weapon warfare has reached its peak. Unless there is a major breakthrough in combat technology or a major breakthrough in human evolution, hand-to-hand combat will be the most effective form of combat for both sides.

When everyone is highly familiar with war, the role of generals becomes less important, because every soldier on the battlefield clearly knows his position, his role, and his best way to kill the enemy.

This is how the Guifang people are nowadays. Although they cannot avoid enemy crossbow fire when charging, their vanguard tries their best to attract and deplete the enemy's crossbow bolts, creating better conditions for the later attackers to strike.

This is why He Qingfang and her team launched an attack as soon as the enemy showed themselves; once the enemy's formation appeared, the effectiveness of the crossbow bolts would drop drastically.

Yun Ce's choice of a heavy weapon like the meteor hammer was also for this reason. He was strong, his chestnut horse was strong and fast, and the meteor hammer had the largest coverage area when swung. In addition, Yun Ce had killed a centurion two days ago and taken his extra-large meteor hammer, so he naturally regarded the meteor hammer as a treasure.

"woooooo"

The enormous meteor hammer, whipped by the wind, spun and crashed into the vanguard of the Japanese soldiers. In an instant, blood and flesh flew everywhere. Shattered horse heads and armored bodies could not withstand the spinning hammer. Any obstacle in its path was either smashed or broken, and the hammer could not slow down in the slightest.

Perhaps some clever ones hid in the horse's belly or leaped high from their horses to avoid the fierce meteor hammer, but they could hardly escape the hunt of Zuo Chong and others following behind Yun Ce.

The chestnut horse, carrying Yun Ce, charged from the head to the tail of the enemy cavalry, leaving a trail of corpses and rivers of blood in its wake.

It wasn't until Yun Ce's giant meteor hammer collided with a giant shield that it bounced high into the air and stopped spinning.

The chestnut horse stopped and looked up at a giant bull that was even taller than itself.

What had just stopped Yun Ce's meteor hammer was the giant shield held by an old general with a white beard on the back of the giant bull. Now, several cracks inevitably appeared on this thick iron shield. The old general threw away the giant shield, raised a heavy battle axe again, and pointed it at Yun Ce, saying, "Hand over Young Master Yuzhu, and I will spare your life."

Yun Ce shook his head as he looked at the thick iron shield that shattered upon landing and said, "I can't hand it over."

The old general roared, "You killed him?"

Yun Ce said somewhat dejectedly, "I originally wanted to keep him to exchange for benefits, so I put him in the camp and provided him with good food and drink. I didn't expect him to try to escape in the middle of the night."

He was caught by the soldiers. It wouldn't have been a big deal at first; they would have just kept him locked up again. But Young Master Yu was disobedient and struggled hard. As he struggled, his clothes inevitably became disheveled... You know, the army is full of rough men, but Young Master Yu is quite handsome. And then... things got really bad.

When I inquired at dawn, Young Master Yu had already passed away, so he couldn't hand it over." Zuo Chong, who had just arrived at Yun Ce's side, overheard Yun Ce's explanation. His eyes widened in disbelief. He couldn't believe that the general would frame them for what he had done.

Feeling the heat emanating from the giant bull opposite them, Yun Ce whispered to Zuo Chong, "Run! Can you beat this giant bull knight?"

Zuo Chong couldn't help but shudder. There wasn't just one giant bull on the other side, but three!

Each ox had a soldier standing on its back, one wielding a giant axe, one a large club, and the other a large cleaver with a blade two feet long.

Zuo Chong turned his horse around and ran away, but Yun Ce spurred his horse forward and blocked the bull cavalry's path.

Zuo Chong fled, and all the cavalry that had charged alongside Yun Ce ran away, leaving Yun Ce alone, standing at the mouth of the valley on horseback, blocking the thousands of troops behind him.

"So, Young Master Yu is dead?"

Yun Ce nodded and said, "Fortunately, the head is still intact and has been sent to Tiewei Pass for a reward."

The giant bull knight turned to a man riding a large horned horse and said, "Go back and tell Lord Yushan that Young Master Yuzhu has perished at Ghost King Mountain."

The man on horseback screamed, "No one could bear to harm Young Master Yuzhu!"

The Giant Bull Knight said in a deep voice, "The Han Chinese man on the other side is not lying; Young Master Yuzhu is really dead."

The man on horseback was about to scream when another giant bull rider shouted at him, which made him shut his mouth and quickly ride away.

The leading bull knight turned to look at Yun Ce and said, "I let your men escape just now not because I had any pity for them, but because you had nowhere else to run."

"I was wondering why Iron Enclosure Pass didn't send troops to rescue you, but now I understand. They want the glory of killing Young Master Jade Bamboo, and you have no choice but to die."

Upon hearing this, Yun Ce's chestnut horse reared up with a neigh, its hind legs straightening, its front legs kicking twice in the air, and its hind legs shifting position without him noticing. By the time it landed, its head was already pointing backward, and it launched itself forward. By the time the giant bull knight, who had been on guard against Yun Ce's sudden attack, was ready to defend himself, he saw the chestnut horse carrying Yun Ce disappear into the valley.

Zuo Chong and the others, who had already climbed up the cliffs on both sides, quickly pushed the glowing red coals down the cliffs. In a short while, the narrow valley was once again transformed into a blazing coal furnace.

After crossing the valley, Yun Ce led Zuo Chong and the others in a hurry toward the main peak of Ghost King Mountain. On the way, they encountered female warriors such as He Qingfang, so they helped them onto their horses and continued on their journey.

Sitting atop a chestnut horse, He Qingfang said, "General, we are surrounded on all sides. Are we to die here?"

Yun Ce said impatiently, "When we were eating yesterday, Qin Shu told me that you wanted to have a baby with Qin Shu. Let me tell you, you won't die until you've given that guy ten or eight babies."

Upon hearing this, He Qingfang perked up and quickly said, "Are we going to use big bombs to clear a path and fight our way out?"

"Get out of here! Big bombs are made with money. With Coal Hill around, why would we need bombs? Once we get back, get on your horse and wait for the ground to start burning. Then follow Qin Shu and run away. If you get out, you'll survive."

In the blink of an eye, Yun Ce's team of less than two hundred men had retreated to the foot of Ghost King Mountain.

His team was relatively well-organized, but Qin Shu's team was in much worse shape. Yun Ce glanced at them and said to the disheveled Qin Shu, "How did you lose so many men? Didn't the reserve team have bombs? I didn't hear any bombs go off."

Qin Shu gritted his teeth and said, "Using bombs to clear the way is our last resort. We can't use it now. Only by using it as a last resort can we catch the enemy off guard."

Yun Ce could no longer speak ill of Qin Shu at this point. He waved his hand and said, "Have you memorized the route map I gave you?"

Qin Shu nodded and said, "I know it by heart."

Yun Ce said, "Alright, assemble the army. After an incense stick's time, discard all baggage and follow Qin Shu closely. Remember, when the earth bursts into flames later, only those who follow Qin Shu will survive."

After Yun Ce finished speaking, he patted the chestnut horse, and the chestnut horse immediately began to climb the mountain.

Looking at Yun Ce's retreating figure, He Qingfang asked Qin Shu, "What is the general going to do?"

Qin Shu frowned and said, "I heard they're going to set Ghost King Mountain on fire."

He Qingfang then asked, "Why would following you guarantee my survival?"

"The general said there was no coal beneath the road I was walking on."

　There is more to come.

　　
　
(End of this chapter)