At 100 years old, he joined the army in place of his granddaughter, and became a national war god.

Su Mu dragged his horse-slaying saber and chased after Chi Lie in the direction he had fled.

A dozen or so Northern Di cavalrymen stood in a row across the middle of the road, blocking the way.

They looked at the white-haired, blood-covered old man with fear in their eyes, but they did not move aside.

They were Chi Lie's personal guards, who had served the general for over a decade.

The general can retreat, but they cannot.

Even if it means death, we must buy the general time to escape.

"kill!"

The cavalryman in the very center of the formation raised his long sword and roared angrily.

His voice was loud and clear, drowning out the sounds of fighting behind him and the fear in his heart.

The other cavalrymen, stirred by the roar, raised their swords and charged towards Su Mu.

Su Mu stopped and stared at the group of Northern Di cavalrymen who were ready to die.

He knew in his heart that these people were risking their lives to hold him back so that Chi Lie could escape far away.

"Grandpa, I'm here to help you!"

Zhao Tieniu shouted from behind.

He rode Zhou Huchen's warhorse, brandishing his broadsword, and charged towards the dozen or so Northern Di cavalrymen.

At the same time, Zhou Huchen also made a decision.

Despite the excruciating pain in his shoulder, he gave orders to the officers around him:

"Never mind me! Go and help the old man!"

"Also, organize a counterattack immediately! The Northern Barbarians are panicking; they'll kill as many as they can!"

Several captains and centurions immediately organized a counterattack.

The Daqian soldiers, who had been under heavy attack, suddenly seemed like different people, roaring as they charged towards the Northern Di people.

Su Mu didn't turn around; his eyes remained fixed on the direction Chi Lie had fled, and he made up his mind: he couldn't let him get away.

Su Mu searches for horses on the chaotic battlefield.

Everywhere were fleeing Northern Di cavalry and pursuing Daqian soldiers. The warhorses were either being ridden or were running around in panic, and there wasn't a single one idle.

Time slips away, one breath at a time.

Chi Lie's figure grew smaller and smaller, almost disappearing into the night.

Just as Su Mu was getting anxious, a neighing sound came from behind the tent on the right.

The neighing sound was loud and clear, drowning out all the noise on the battlefield.

A white steed burst forth from the flames.

It leaped into the air on all fours, its body soaring high over a pile of burning grain sacks, its mane fluttering in the night wind like a white flame.

Su Mu's eyes suddenly lit up: It was that Akhal-Teke horse!

The Akhal-Teke horse came straight at him, stopped two steps away, lowered its head, and nuzzled his shoulder and face with its nose.

Su Mu was stunned.

He reached out and touched the horse's neck with his withered fingers.

Instead of moving away, the horse moved its head even closer, as docile as a pet.

Su Mu immediately understood that the Akhal-Teke horse was recognizing its master!

Su Mu's eyes stung slightly.

He took a deep breath, grabbed the horse's mane with his withered hand, stepped onto the horse's back with his left foot, and leaped up, flipping himself onto the horse's back.

After Su Mu settled in, he leaned down, patted the horse's neck, and said, "Good horse, catch up with that Northern Di general for me."

The Akhal-Teke horse seemed to understand his words.

It raised its head, leaped high on its front hooves, let out a deafening neigh, and then charged out of the camp like an arrow released from a bow.

The white figure streaked across the moonlight, leaving a silvery trail, as fast as the wind.

Behind him, Zhao Tieniu had just cut down a Northern Di cavalryman when he looked up and saw Su Mu already riding a white horse and charging away.

He opened his mouth as if to shout something, but the white horse was too fast and disappeared into the night in the blink of an eye.

Several captains looked at Zhou Huchen upon seeing this.

"Captain, what should we do? Should we follow the old man and hunt down those Northern Di people?"

Zhou Huchen looked around.

The supply depot was still smoking, only half of the grain had been salvaged, and the ground was littered with corpses and weapons.

If they were to launch a full-scale pursuit, and the Northern Di turned around and burned all the remaining provisions, the entire army would be starved.

He gritted his teeth and made a decision.

"Don't pursue a desperate enemy!" His voice was firm. "Our primary task is to protect our supplies and provisions. As for the routed enemy troops, let them go for now."

"What about the old man?" Captain Zhang Heng asked anxiously. "He's already gone after him!"

Zhou Huchen looked in the direction where Su Mu had disappeared, remained silent for a moment, and then sighed softly.

"I hope he'll be blessed with good fortune."

He turned to face his soldiers, his voice suddenly rising: "Everyone, listen up! Immediately eliminate all sources of fire in the supply camp! Move all provisions and supplies to the tents in the center of the camp! Strengthen defenses to prevent the enemy from turning back!"

"yes!"

The soldiers responded with a resounding roar and got to work.

……

Inside the fire station.

Two hundred or so cooks huddled in the open space between the tents, each one watching the direction of the supply battalion with trepidation.

Flames soared into the sky, thick smoke billowed, and the sounds of battle rose higher and higher.

"We're doomed! The Northern Barbarians have invaded! Are we all going to die?"

"Listen—it sounds like our people are shouting over there! The fighting is really loud!"

"What? Did we win?"

"Impossible! Half of the three thousand defenders are greenhorns. How can they withstand the elite Northern Di troops?"

"Look over there...!"

One person pointed to the open space outside the supply camp, his voice trembling.

Everyone turned to look.

Under the moonlight, a white horse carrying an old man with white hair rushed out of the firelight.

Alone on horseback, he chased after the fleeing Northern Di cavalry.

"Isn't that...isn't that our old man from the cookhouse?!"

"What's wrong with him? Why is he riding alone to chase after the Northern Di people?"

"He's got a death wish!"

Everyone stared wide-eyed, their minds buzzing.

A cook over a hundred years old chasing after the Northern Di cavalry?

Zhao Dazui stood at the front of the crowd, almost dropping his broadsword.

He recalled how he had mocked the old man in his heart the night before: What good is great strength? What good is being good at training horses? On the battlefield, wouldn't he just be sent to his death?

But now, the old man he once mocked has the courage to ride alone on horseback to hunt down the Northern Di people.

And he, not only dared not participate in the battle, but also stood here trembling.

Zhao Dazui's face flushed red and then turned pale.

"Let's go!" he suddenly shouted, raising his broadsword. "To help at the supply depot!"

"Huh? Boss, what are we going to do there?"

"What can we do? Move supplies, put out fires, carry the wounded! Don't just stand here, let's go!" Zhao Dazui was the first to rush out.

The two hundred or so cooks looked at each other in bewilderment, and then followed in a swarm.

……

One hour later.

The fire at the supply depot was finally extinguished.

The provisions were moved to an open space in the center of the military camp and piled up into a small hill.

The wounded were carried into the tent, and the military medics were so busy they barely had time to breathe.

The bodies were dragged outside the camp and piled up.

Zhou Huchen sat on an overturned wooden crate, his shoulder wound simply bandaged, still bleeding.

He ignored the pain, his eyes fixed on the direction outside the camp gate.

Several captains stood beside him, along with Zhao Tieniu and Gu Changfeng, and many soldiers behind them.

No one spoke; they just stood there, gazing at the road in the night.

They were waiting for the white-haired old man to return.

Time passed little by little.

Some people began to whisper nervously to each other.

"I hope nothing bad has happened to the old man."

"One person chasing dozens of Northern Di cavalrymen... no matter how skilled he is..."

"Shut up!" Zhao Tieniu whirled around, his large, round eyes glaring at the soldier who had spoken. "The old man will be alright! Anyone who spouts nonsense again, I'll tear their mouth apart!"

The soldier shrank back, not daring to say anything more.

But Zhao Tieniu himself wasn't sure either.

Another half hour passed.

The sky was beginning to lighten; dawn was approaching!

Just as everyone's hearts were sinking, a sharp-eyed soldier pointed to the end of the official road and shouted, "Look over there!"

Everyone turned to look.

In the morning mist, Su Mu slowly appeared riding a white horse.

When they got closer, everyone was stunned.

The white horse was covered in dark red bloodstains, and Su Mu's clothes were soaked in blood.

He gripped the horse-slaying sword tightly in his hand; the blood on the blade was half-dried, gleaming darkly in the morning light.

What's most shocking is that what's hanging on the horse's back is actually two human heads.

Zhou Huchen suddenly stood up, the wound on his shoulder was pulled, and he winced in pain, but he didn't care.

His eyes were fixed on the two heads, his pupils dilating little by little.

The captains looked at each other, dumbfounded.

Su Mu rode his horse slowly to the front of the crowd.

He dismounted, his withered hands grabbing the two severed heads and lifting them up.

With a flick of his wrist, he threw the two heads to the ground.

The head rolled twice before coming to rest at the feet of a captain.

The captain held up a torch and moved closer, illuminating the two bloody heads.

The firelight illuminated their two deathly pale faces...

One of them is Chi Lie from earlier.

That square face was now as pale as paper, its eyes half-open and its mouth slightly agape, as if it were still in shock in its last moments before death.

The other picture shows Chi Lie's deputy general.

The entire room fell silent.

Everyone stared at the two severed heads, then looked at the white-haired, blood-covered old man.

No one speaks.

But everyone's heart was in turmoil.

A cook.

A centenarian.

A man, a horse, and a knife.

They pursued and killed the fierce Northern Di general Chi Lie, and beheaded him.

Such a feat is truly astonishing!