Tang Dynasty: Starting with 3,000 elite cavalry, a bloody battle to retake the city.

Han Ye was stunned.

Why erect a cenotaph? Everyone's almost dead, who are we even showing off to?!

But the next moment, he understood.

Because he was suddenly pushed onto the back of Red Hare!

Xiahou Dun turned around, suddenly roared to the sky, his voice shaking the surrounding fields: "All troops, listen to my command—"

"Cut a bloody path through for the general!!"

boom--!!

In an instant, the remaining masked soldiers roared in unison, like the final roar of trapped beasts!

They stopped defending and retreating, and instead boldly changed direction, launching a desperate charge towards the weakest point in the Turkic army's defenses!

The blade flashes like a dragon, the spear rises like a wave, and blood spills across the sky!

"kill!!"

"kill!!!"

"Clear the way for the general—!!!"

They used their bodies as shields and their lives as ladders, advancing one after another, stepping over the corpses of their comrades!

Han Ye's eyes widened in horror as he watched from horseback.

Everyone who rushed out never came back.

Xiahou Dun was riddled with arrows, his left arm was almost broken, and his right leg was pierced by a spear, yet he still charged forward with his sword, cutting down one enemy after another like a madman!

He was no longer human, his body covered in blood, like a demon crawling out of hell!

But their steps never stopped.

Even if I only have one breath left, I will break through the gate of life for the general!

"Stop!!" Han Ye's throat ripped, his voice hoarse as if grinding sand, "Are you fucking insane!!"

No one responded.

There was only the flash of blades, only screams, only bodies falling one after another.

It was only a hundred meters, but it felt like walking through the cycle of life and death.

Of the masked soldiers, only one in ten survived.

"Xiahou Dun!!" Han Ye's eyes widened, blood gushing from the corners of his eyes. "Do you even know what you're doing?!"

But the man simply turned around, and a cruel smile appeared on his blood-stained face.

That one glance was like a farewell.

Xiahou Dun smiled.

It wasn't a laugh, it was a grotesque laugh, the corners of his mouth torn upwards, frothing with blood, like a demon crawling out of hell.

He didn't answer Han Ye, but just stared at him intently, his eyes chapped, but his pupils were frighteningly bright.

The voice was forced out of his throat, hoarse as if his bones were being ground to dust: "Alive... General."

Just this one sentence.

The next instant, he shoved Han Ye away and, with his last bit of strength, threw his commander aside!

Han Ye staggered backward, watching helplessly as Xiahou Dun's mangled body—no longer recognizable as human—pounced like a dying beast towards the surging black tide.

The Turkic cavalry swarmed in like locusts, their swords flashing like rain and their spears like a forest.

He was swallowed up.

Like a drop of blood falling into an abyss, it is instantly pierced, torn, and trampled by countless sharp blades.

Blood exploded, staining the yellow sand red, spreading inch by inch, like a wound cracked open in the earth.

Han Ye stood rooted to the spot, unable to move an inch.

He watched helplessly as the man who had always stood silently in front of him slowly knelt down, then stubbornly straightened his back, before finally collapsing to the ground with a thud, sending up a cloud of blood mist.

died.

Xiahou Dun... is dead.

They risked their lives to pave a path for him to survive!

"Xiahou Dun..."

Han Ye's throat felt like it was filled with red-hot iron filings, and every word he uttered was stained with blood.

His voice was so hoarse it was almost inaudible, his eyes were bloodshot, and tears mixed with blood streamed down his cheeks.

His mind went completely blank.

Didn't we agree on that?

Didn't we swear to live and die together?!

Why must I be the one to live?!

"General, let's go!"

"Fight your way out! Fight your way out now!"

"I'll risk my life to keep you alive!"

"Never mind me! Escort the general away!"

"Hahaha... General, remember to build me a cenotaph. I'm taking my leave now!"

A series of roars exploded in their ears. Those were the remaining less than a hundred masked soldiers, all wounded and covered in blood, yet not one of them turned back.

They rushed forward.

It's not a charge, it's a death march.

One by one, they removed their masks, revealing young faces, ferocious smiles, and resolute eyes.

They charged into the enemy ranks like madmen, blocking gaps with their bodies, meeting spears with their chests, slitting throats and cutting horses with broken swords, until they were torn apart by a hail of blades and fell into muddy pools of blood.

Each dull thud as someone fell was like a knife stabbing into Han Ye's heart.

Visibility blurred, and the world lost its color.

He saw Khagan Jieli on horseback, his face contorted in rage: "Chase him! Chase him! That masked general—I'll tear him to pieces!"

He saw the Turkic cavalry surging like a tide, their hooves flying, their killing intent soaring to the sky.

His soldiers, his masked army, rushed forward one after another, risking their lives to give him a chance to live!

How tragic! How tragic! How desolate!

Han Ye felt as if his heart was being gripped and squeezed tightly.

Blood freezes, soul leaves body.

He seemed to have just crawled back from the brink of death, only to be nailed to the spot by the horrific scene before him.

Until the last person.

That was the youngest masked soldier, his face still bearing the traces of youth, yet he charged forward without hesitation, spear in hand, to meet the three Turkic cavalrymen.

The moment the spear pierced his chest, he neither cried out nor begged for mercy.

With his last breath, he turned back to look at Han Ye and roared like thunder:

"General—run!!"

"Live on!!!"

boom--!

This sound, like a thunderclap splitting the chaos, directly blasted into the depths of Han Ye's soul!

He trembled violently, his pupils contracted sharply, his fingertips went numb, and his heart started beating again!

anger!

A torrent of rage erupted from his very being, burning away reason and consuming all his grief!

"Khan Jieli!! I will kill you!!!"

He roared, his voice like the howl of a wild beast, shaking the very air.

Ignoring his wounds and exhaustion, he suddenly drew the Soul-Severing Arrow from his back—the weapon that had killed countless enemy chieftains!

The bowstring was drawn taut, its whirring sound deafening, and the arrow was aimed straight at the enemy leader a thousand miles away!

In an instant, the world seemed to stand still.

That arrow tore through the sky, cleaved the wind like thunder, and was so fast that it left a trail of afterimages!

Jieli Khan's pupils contracted sharply, and he instinctively turned his head to dodge—

"Pfft!"

The arrow pierced his left eye with pinpoint accuracy!

"Aaaaaahh ...

Screams ripped through the battlefield, and blood spurted everywhere!

The mighty Turkic Khan was shot in public with an arrow, covered his eyes, rolled off his horse, and writhed on the ground in agony!

Han Ye stood in the pool of blood, his eyes as cold as an ice demon.

he knows--

This bloody battle is not over yet.

As long as he is alive, no one can truly kill him.

That arrow ultimately failed to take the life of Khagan Jieli.

But the arrow grazed his eye socket, tearing open his flesh and causing blood to explode!

"laugh--!"

Blood gushed out, flowing down half of his face, a glaring scarlet, like a curse splashed from hell.

"Khan!"

The strategist cried out in alarm, and the guards around him all paled. Their swords were already drawn, but no one dared to move.

Meanwhile, Khagan Jieli stood still, his five fingers tightly gripping his left eye, blood gushing out from between his fingers, staining his beard with blood.

He remained motionless, seemingly oblivious to the pain, except for his right eye, which burned with intense rage.

The next instant, he raised his head and roared, his voice booming like thunder:

"Chase them! Kill them! Kill them all!!!"

The three "kill" words were enunciated slowly and deliberately, each one a testament to the speaker's gritted teeth and boundless hatred.

at the same time--

Han Ye has broken through the encirclement!

When the Turkic cavalry surged forward like a tidal wave, and when Xiahou Dun and others used their flesh and blood as shields to cover the rear and die!

All one hundred masked assassins under his command perished in battle!

Not a single one survived!

Mountains of corpses, blood soaking the yellow sand.

Only one person, with the setting sun on his back, gallops wildly on horseback!

The Red Hare, a divine steed, was as red as fire. Its four hooves flew, shattering the vast earth as if breaking the boundary between life and death!

It needs no urging; it seems to possess a spirit, carrying the solitary figure on its back, swift as a ghost, appearing and disappearing in the wind and sand!

"Heh...hehe...hahaha—!"

Han Ye, sitting on horseback, suddenly threw his head back and laughed wildly.

Laughter ripped through the sky, shrill like the howl of wolves, and sorrowful like the weeping of a lonely soul in the night!

died……

They're all dead...

The three thousand elite cavalrymen brought from Youzhou, once invincible forces that swept across the northern border, are now all buried at the frontier!

There is no tombstone, no name, only bloodstains blown by the wind and loyal bones buried by sand!

His laughter echoed across the wilderness, resonating with the very heavens and earth!

The sky suddenly darkened, dark clouds pressed down, and a fine rain fell silently.

It wasn't a downpour, but rather a dense, needle-like ache that pierced people's hearts.

The sky wept.

The whole world grieves.

……

Half a day later, the blood-stained figure completely disappeared at the edge of the wasteland.

The Turkic army searched for miles around but found nothing.

Jieli Khan stood on the high slope, his face as black as ink, his eyes burning with rage that seemed to scorch the earth!

What's even more hateful is—

Although the arrow was not fatal, it ruined his left eye!

At this moment, his left eye was wrapped with a blood-stained strip of cloth, making him look like a one-eyed demon, ferocious and terrifying!

"Find him!" he roared, his voice hoarse like a beast's. "Dig three feet into the ground and dig that masked general out for me! I'll tear him to pieces! I'll shred his body to pieces!!!"

The messenger trembled as he received the order, and the army dispersed once more.

The strategist stood aside, seemingly wanting to say something but holding back.

He knew that the longer the delay, the more time the Tang Dynasty would have to prepare for war!

If this battle drags on until the Tang army completes its defenses, their 100,000 Turkic cavalry may not be able to break through the pass!

But he dared not say it.

At this moment, Jieli Khan was blinded by hatred!

Reason has vanished, leaving only obsession churning within!

The strategist silently closed his eyes and whispered to himself:

Hopefully Chang'an hasn't realized this yet... otherwise, we won't win this battle.

……

Not only the border regions, but also the capital city of Chang'an was shrouded in this gloom.

A light rain fell silently.

You can look up and see—

The sky was filled with dark clouds, not pitch black, but with an eerie dark red hue!

It looks exactly like congealed blood!

The rain, even carrying a hint of blood, fell, striking the eaves, the streets, and the shoulders of pedestrians, as if blood and tears were falling!

"What...what is this?!"

People on the street looked up in terror, "Blood raining from the sky? A terrible omen!"

"Could something have happened at the border?!"

"Could it be... the Ghost-Faced General?!"

The whole city was in a state of panic, and people's hearts were unsettled.

Li Jing stood in the courtyard of the mansion, gazing up at the blood-red clouds, his brows furrowed.

"A celestial phenomenon...what does this foreshadow?"

He muttered to himself, his palms sweating.

Li Yingge stood behind him, her fingertips cold, her chest tight and painful, almost unable to breathe.

She didn't understand celestial phenomena, nor did she believe in ghosts or gods.

But at this moment, the anxiety in my heart is like a raging fire!

"No...something must have happened!"

"Han Ye... what's wrong with you?!"

She gripped her sleeve tightly, her nails digging into her palms.

But there was nothing she could do.

No news arrived from the border; Chang'an remained as still as stagnant water.