Nightfall

Chapter 1058: Between Heaven And Earth, There Came The Wild Horses

Translator: Larbre Studio Editor: Larbre Studio

Chanyu stepped out of his golden yurt and looked around. His dark and handsome face was covered with a satisfied smile because of the resoluteness of his warriors as well as the coming victory after so many years.

According to him, the Northern Battlefront Army’s lack of cavalrymen would never be a match to his cavalry of the Golden Tribe. The previous battles were dragging on because the Northern Battlefront Army was unexpectedly persevering and their armament and senior cultivators were extremely powerful. But more importantly it was because the cavalrymen of Golden Tribe did not pull all their effort. They were merely testing and exhausting their enemies.

When the infantry confronted the cavalry, despite their innate advantages, the cavalry was psychologically superior. If the infantry wanted to stop the cavalry, they had to pay a lot more both physically and mentally.

Previously, the cavalry of the Golden Tribe was exhausting the Tang infantry, taking down their enemy’s morale while elevating their own. They had acquired full confidence for the coming victory. It would be a decisive battle today.

The cavalry of Golden Tribe would definitely make their full attack, not leaving any chances for the enemies. They would go for revenge after hundreds of years of humiliation, and crush the Northern Battlefront Army and the Tang people.

It was a risky plan, yet according to Chanyu, it was a bound-to-win battle. As a result of the testing previously, he was very certain that the Tang people did not have any other backups. Therefore they had every reason to launch a frontal attack.

The day finally broke and the light was about to prevail. Morning glow fell on the grassland as well as Changyu’s face, which made him seem more resolute and powerful.

He stared at the fields in the south and the indistinct Tang barracks from a distance. He could almost see the cavalry of the Golden Tribe pouring onto them and quake the earth in a short while. Then the Tang army would launch their weapons like they have done previously, throwing rocks and shooting spears. The sharp spears would be chilling and the blades of the cultivators from the Central Plains would be shining. The arrays would stir the Qi of Heaven and Earth. But eventually, they would all be crushed by his cavalry.

General Bule came and looked at the wisest and most widely respected Chanyu in the history of the grassland. He said with a trembling voice, “Today, Your Highness will be the king of the world.”

Chanyu smiled no more and stayed calm. He was calm because he knew they would win. He looked over the Tang army toward somewhere further south. The national master had told him that it was where Chang’an was located.

The gentle but awe-inspiring emperor had died six years ago but his daughter was still alive. Chanyu planned silently that when they occupied Chang’an he would kill that woman by himself and fuck her dead body.

A Da also came to the golden yurt. He did not take a bath. The blood stains on his clothes were stinky and attracted many mosquitoes and flies.

The nobles took a glance at the young former slave who had become the most powerful warrior in the Gold Tribe. They could not hide their disgust and dread, and stayed as far as they could from him.

A Da was wounded in the battle previously. In order to remember the failure he did not wash off the blood stain. He was trying to remember what he should learn from the enemies instead of clinging onto the humiliation.

He took disguise in the cavalry of Golden Tribe that day and broke through the trenches and spears of the Tang army. His plan was to hide among the dead bodies of his fellow warriors and seek for an opportunity to assassinate Hua Ying, the chief commander of the vanguard of Northern Battlefront Army.

A Da had always wanted to kill Hua Ying. At the beginning it was merely a revenge to Ning Que’s bloody slaughter in Chang’an earlier on. But he could not succeed after a long while which had led him to the suffering from poisoning. Therefore he planned for a risky assassination this time. But again he failed. Because from the beginning, or more precisely ever since he moved toward the Tang army among the cavalrymen, some person had saw through his plan.

Hua Ying never showed up. Instead there came an iron hammer and an array.

A Da was attacked unexpectedly and wounded right away. But he was after all the most powerful warrior in the Golden Tribe Royal Court. So he managed to break out of the intensive encirclement of Tang and returned to the Golden Tribe, extremely miserably.

He disregarded the wounds and paid a visit to the national master that night. Then he realized who those people were.

The one who saw through his plan was Fan Yue, Mr. Fourth of the Academy. The one who swayed the iron hammer was the most courageous Mr. Sixth of the Academy. While the woman who mastered arrays to the zenith was Mrs. Seventh of the Academy.

The three masters from the Academy were all at Seethrough. They were outstanding in the cultivation world but should be nothing for A Da. He could have easily defeated ten of them. However he was seriously wounded and confused.

He pondered for a whole night. Instead of getting enraged he managed to calm himself down. It was his first direct confrontation with the academy in the battlefield and he had learnt a lot. He could not help showing more respect for the Academy, yet more resolute than ever in taking them down.

That was why he could have stayed undisturbed when looking at the Tang army under the morning glow, despite the disgust and dread of the nobles. It was because the Golden Tribe would definitely win the battle and even would not need him to participate.

Chanyu and A Da shared the same confidence in the coming victory. Therefore they were very calm. But the rest of the warriors of the grassland seemed fanatic. They stared at the Tang army with the eyes of the wolves.

As long as they could defeat the Tang, the Golden Tribe Royal Court would reign over the entire world. In the new chapter they would occupy the most wealthy cities in the Central Plains, wear the best silk clothes, embracing the most beautiful women, indulge in the strongest liquor, drink from the clearest brooks and eat the finest steamed buns.

These must be the bestows of their Tengri. It would be an insult to Tengri if they could not take the triumph.

...

...

Chanyu, A Da and their numerous cavalrymen in the Golden Tribe were all looking at the Tang army to their south.

In Tang’s barracks, Hua Ying and his soldiers were also looking to the north. Further south in the temporary General’s Mansion, Xu Chi was also looking to the north, to the hungry wolves in the morning glow and breeze.

People sensed the danger.

The previous battles of over ten days were already brutal. The cavalrymen of the Golden Tribe attacked pretty hard, and the Northern Battlefront Army defended even harder. Therefore they could only break even. But today it would not be the same.

The Golden Tribe was going to fight desperately today. Chanyu and his people were ready to bet the luck of the entire tribe in the coming battle.

Hua Ying’s face was ghastly pale.

Through the telescope, he could see clearly what they were doing in the Golden Tribe Royal Court. He saw that the grassland barbarians were feeding their horses, and providing them with water and salt. And he could even see the mutton boiled in their pots.

As a veteran Tang general, he knew exactly the customs of the grassland cavalrymen. In no more than two hours the well-fed warhorses would carry the barbarians like hungry wolves to devour them.

It was their ritual on the grassland. It was also the reason why he looked ghastly pale. Chanyu and his grassland cavalrymen did not even care about being seen by the Tang army now, which meant they had already planned for the timing of the battle today and were officially announcing it to the Tang army.

How confident they were, and how humiliating it was to the Tang army!

If it was ten years ago, Hua Ying would have sent his cavalrymen to raid them as soon as he saw this. They would have obtained what they wanted before the enemy could even react.

But now he could no longer do that. Because he did not have enough warhorses. It was no longer possible for him to send out the cavalrymen in sequence and groups like he used to do in their full glory.

If only...

That same problem, that same wish came into Hua Ying’s mind again. If only Tang could have a real cavalry at this point, if only they had enough warhorses, could Chanyu ever dare to be so arrogant? Absolutely no. It would be the doomsday of the Golden Tribe Royal Court if only...

But that was just his wish. If wishes equaled the reality, how could there be so much pain in the human world? His wish could never come true. Therefore the Golden Tribe Royal Court was not doomed today. That was why Chanyu and his grassland cavalrymen could be so rampant and aggressive. That was also why the Northern Battlefront Army was so helpless. He could almost see their miserable ending and sense the despair in it.

Not like Hua Ying, the ordinary soldiers in the Northern Battlefront Amy was resolute and calm. They did not know the secrets or the prediction the generals had made on the sand table. They had no idea and did not care about the chance of victory. They would fight fearlessly like always no matter what.

Looking around at the Tang soldiers who were preparing quietly for the battle, Situ Yilan tried to conceal her sadness and raised her head again in high spirits, in order not to jeopardize the morale the slightest.

She noticed that a Tang soldier was still standing by the pot while all the others had finished their breakfast quickly and started sharpening their weapons. He was holding a big bowl in the left hand and a wooden spoon in the right, indulging in the taste of the vegetable porridge, and murmuring cheerfully upon chewing on the pork in it.

“What’s your name?” Situ Yilan came to him and asked.

He was not an elder soldier. But she could tell that he was already a veteran through his callused hands and indifferent look.

The Tang soldier turned to her, paused for a while, put aside the bowl with porridge and saluted to her. He replied, “General, I’m Wang Wu from the Fourth Chihou Squad of the Vanguard Brigade.”

“Wang Wu? That’s a neat name.” Situ Yian continued, “But it seems you are not a neat person. Don’t you know everyone else is already back to their barracks and preparing for the battle? Why are you still here?”

Wang Wu showed enough respect but he was not afraid of her. He answered sincerely yet mockingly, “Chihou Squads will not join the battle for a while. Furthermore there will be at least two hours before those barbarians’ attack. Why the hurry? There were quite some pork in the porridge today. It would be a shame if we cannot finish it.”

Situ Yilan slightly raised her eyebrows and commented, “Indeed a veteran.”

Wang Wu used the wooden spoon to scratch on his neck and grinned. “I’m flattered.”

Situ Yilan said, “It seems you’ve got a good appetite this morning. I wish everyone else could be like you and have enough confidence in the battle today. Or...” Upon those words she suddenly stopped.

Wang Wu’s weary smile disappear too. He stared at her and said indifferently, “Or what, General? Or may there be some miracles? You know that’s not gonna happen.”

Situ Yilan looked cold. She stared into his eyes and asked after a pause, “What are you trying to say?”

“There is quite some pork in the porridge today, and even more vegetables... Although we’ve been fed very well in the Northern Battlefront Army, it is still far above average. It’s too good to keep me from doubting.”

Wang Wu did not fear her and continued calmly, “Or perhaps it is our last meal. Therefore the General wanted to give us the best.”

Situ Yilan asked again in cold voice, “What the hell are you trying to say?”

Wang Wu pointed at the Tang soldiers in the nearby barracks who were preparing for the battle quietly, and continued, “I know we are definitely losing the battle today. Many of us know it. We just never mentioned it.”

Situ Yilan was silent for a long while.

Wang Wu said further, “If you think I’m jeopardizing the morale, you could sentence me right away.”

Situ Yilan replied, “I’m more interested in why you’ve told me this.”

Wang Wu said, “Because I want to tell General Xu, the imperial court at the Academy... I’m not reconciled. I won’t take the failure. And I can’t understand why the Northern Battlefront Army would end like this.”

Situ Yilan lowered her voice and said, “To defend the country is the duty of every Tang soldier. What are you not reconciled for?”

“My point is why did General Xu send us here outside Guhe? Why do we have to fight our last battle here? I’m never afraid of death. But I don’t like it that he is sending us to die for nothing.” Wang Wu got enraged all of a sudden and throw the wooden spoon back into the pot. He yelled at Situ Yilan, “The Xiangwan Plain was ceded by the imperial court. The battle was decided by the general. Why do we have to die for absolutely nothing? Even if you generals want us to die defending the country, shouldn’t we die for a victory?”

Situ Yilan stopped her guards from pulling out the sabers and paused for a long while. Because she did not have an answer for this angry veteran either. Indeed, the imperial court sent the Tang army here to defend the country and they spared nothing executing the order, with their blood and lives. But they should at least let them have some chance of winning. Otherwise how could they die with content?

“So what do you want? What do you want me to do?” she stared at Wang Wu and asked sincerely.

Wang Wu was not expecting such an answer. After a long pause, he said nothing further, smiled bitterly and turned to walk toward their barracks.

Situ Yilan gazed at his figure but did not ask further questions. Because she knew pretty well what the young veteran would want. It was also what she was longing for, what the Northern Battlefront Army or even the entire Tang was longing for.

Wang Wu came back to his barrack, and stared blankly at the half bag of dried grass outside the tent.

He was one of the Chihou Squad, the very few in the Northern Battlefront Army who had horses. But his horse died two years ago in Wei and he never had another horse ever since.

A Chihou without his horse was no better than a dog. Wang Wu could not help from thinking like that throughout the two years. He felt that he was indeed no better than a dog. Because even a dog could bark. What could he do?

Wang Wu kicked away the bag of dried grass and went to wash his face. But upon staring at the pale and frowning face reflected in the water bucket, he found his sensations dreadful.

He inhaled deeply and completely dispelled the despair and anger down his heart. Then he pulled out the saber that he brought from Wei and started to give instructions to his subordinates in preparation for the coming battle.

A Chihou without his horse... was still a Tang soldier. He would fight till the last even if there was no hope.

He looked through the morning glow toward the yurts of the Golden Tribe in the north, and recalled the City of Wei all of a sudden. When the City of Wei was wiped out by the cavalry of Golden Tribe, he was one of the very few who survived. He returned to the Northern Battlefront Army and reclaimed his identity. He was assigned a horse but lost it again shortly. Just like they used to have the City of Wei but lost it later.

Wang Wu often recalled the days when they used to go hunting with the general, killed countless gangsters and claimed their fortunes. But those days were gone forever.

Under his indifferent and lazy disguise, his heart was constantly inflamed and poisoned by anger and hatred. He had always dreamed about defeating the grassland barbarians with his fellow soldiers and reclaim the City of Wei some day. But it seemed pretty hopeless.

According to the current situation, there might never be such a day. He was longing for a warhorse, the best warhorse. He wanted to ride on his horse and charge to the enemies. If only he could have a warhorse and so could his fellow soldiers, they would definitely win.

This idea had been haunting him constantly. He was almost driven crazy upon the sight of the countless horses in the Gold Tribe Royal Court. At this moment he would surrender whatever he had, even his life to anyone who could give him a horse. He was even willing to wash the feet of those stinky grassland barbarians for a horse, as long as he could kill them after that.

If anyone could give him a horse, he would like to slave for that person. But unfortunately, there were no ifs.

Wang Wu was about to wash his face then get ready for the most brutal battle thought a thousand of years. It would be a series of battles that would take countless lives. The Northern Battlefront Army would probably lose. And all the Tang soldiers would die for their country. He wanted his face and teeth to be clean when he died.

The next moment, he felt some dizziness because the water rippled in the basin. The reflection of his eyes and eyebrows were distorted and seemed funny instead of depressed.

People from the Golden Tribe Royal Court also sensed the quake. Tens of thousands of grassland cavalrymen were preparing tensely for the battle and feeding their horses. But suddenly those well-trained warhorses became extremely restless. Some were shaking their heads like crazy instead of eating and drinking. Some others looked toward somewhere afar being scared. They kept kicking their forelegs, as if they could only cheat themselves and kill the fear by doing so.

The fields started quaking from the City of Wei to the meadow outside Guhe. The wheels of the carriages in both sides were creaking. Some soldiers could not even stand properly on the ground.

A Da jumped onto the top of a carriage and squinted toward where the quake came from. He had the best eyesight hence was the first to be stunned upon seeing what was happening. What he saw was incredible and he could no longer stay arrogant and solemn.

More and more people saw the source of the quaking. Wang Wu raised his eyebrows high as well as the corners of his lips. His hands trembled and the wet towel fell into the basin and splashed some water.

The same like him, everyone from the Chihou Squad and the Northern Battlefront Army further away all felt the quake. They looked toward the northwest. Everyone was stunned, confused and silenced. But there was more excitement and expectation.

The grassland was clear and fresh under the morning sun. There was no wind or dust. People could see clearly that a huge dark mass of clouds was coming toward them from the northwestern horizon. The clouds seemed to be moving slowly only because of its huge size. They were actually moving fast.

The dark clouds dashed a dozen miles swiftly and came to the edge of the fields outside Guhe. Now people could see clearly that it was rather a mass of dense dust instead of clouds. And it was caused by horse hooves. Countless wild horses were roaring toward them!

The morning sun flushed the sky and shed warm light into the dust, as if it was the rosy morning glow pulled down to the earth. The dashing horses seemed flaming and charming!

No one could tell how many horses there were in the morning glow. And no one would bother to figure out how many horses could have created such an earth-shaking scene.

They just knew that an incredibly huge crowd of wild horses just appeared from nowhere. And the wild horses.. were coming to the Tang army! The silence on the grassland made the clip-clops even more distinct. It pounded on everyone’s ears and heart like thunders.

Every soldier in the Tang’s Vanguard Brigade stopped their preparations. No matter how harsh their disciplines were they could no longer move their eyes away from the morning glow and the countless wild horses dashing toward them.

Some Tang soldiers kept rubbing their eyes and thought it might be their illusions. They tried to convince themselves that it was not illusions, but still found it unbelievable.

Others like Wang Wu did not even dare to blink. He gazed at the wild horses as if he was looking at some charming girls in the liquor store in Wei, and was afraid that upon a blink they would disappear.

Situ Yilan bit hard on her lips and her face turned pale. Her hand trembled on the tilt. She knew it was not an illusion but could not be sure that the horses were really coming toward them. What if... they were to turn to the east of the grassland and disappear instantly as they came? What if they were only passing by?

They felt as complicated as they looked, with a mix of anxiousness, longing, stunning, worries and even fear. They stared at the morning glow as well as the wild horses dashing toward them, and felt increasingly anxious.

When the morning glow gradually disappeared, the meadow outside Guhe was enveloped in dust and sand. Tens of thousands of warhorses in the Golden Tribe neighed in fear. The sunlight was blocked and it was hard for people to see clearly.

Situ Yilan closed her eyes and opened again shortly. She saw a brown wild horse standing in front of her and staring at her. The eyes of the brown horses seemed like those of a human infant, curious and most innocent.

When the dust settled, soldiers went into a hail. They shouted loudly with excitement. It was hard to describe the scene. They seemed crazy and yelled in relief.

It was very real. The horses, wild horses, countless wild horses came to the Tang army in the morning glow. The wild horses strolled around the barracks of the Tang army, as if they were enjoying themselves in the grassland. Their long mane swayed in the morning breeze. They were handsome and curious.

Like the brown horse, it did not understand why the woman in front of it was crying.

The wild horses could not understand why these people were hailing, why their voices were hoarse, why they cuddled their necks and gently stroked them. Why were they laughing? And why were they crying?

They would never understand what they meant for the Tang people. Their arrival was a true divine manifesto.

Over the past ten days, the past year, or even the past three years... from the emperor to the ministers, from ordinary people to the fearless soldiers, everyone in the Tang Empire had constantly been longing for enough warhorses. They knew it was a wild hope. Because they had lost Xiangwan Plain and Taoism would never spare them a chance.

The last battle between Tang and the Golden Tribe was about to be launched, the result of which would be decisive to the future of the human world. But people like Hua Ying, Situ Yilan and Wang Wu still could not stop wishing wildly. They would surrender whatever they had, including their dignity and lives, to plead to Haotian for another chance, even though they were no longer her followers.

The Tang was in bad need of horses, warhorses.

It seemed that Haotian had indeed heard their pleading and put aside their betrayal. It seemed she was standing behind the morning glow and uttered four words to the Great Swamp in the heart of the Wilderness: “Let there be horses.” Therefore the Tang army received their horses.

...

...

The Tang army almost went insane. On the contrary, everyone was stupefied throughout the tribes of the Golden Tribe Royal Court. The grassland people were ghastly pale.

The Golden Tribe Royal Court ventured the entire population to migrate to the south and launched the war against Tang. And every single tribe followed Chanyu without doubts. That was only because of the fact that Tang was in lack of warhorses.

However right before the decisive battle, countless wild horses dashed out of the heart of the grassland and came to them. What the hell was going on? Where did they come from? Why did people living on the grassland for generations have no idea about their existence? How could so many wild horses survived secretly?

Some seniors and brave travelers from a few tribes recalled a legend they heard decades ago. It was said that deep inside the West Wilderness, where even the wolves did not dare to enter, there was a group of divine horses who could walk on the water and survive on clouds. They were heavenly steeds of Tengri that just dwelled in the human world temporarily.

Could those wild horses coming from the south like dark clouds be the legendary heavenly steeds? If they really belonged to Tengri, why would they help the Tang army?

The seniors were almost fainting and the travelers were trembling. The warriors were about to drop their weapons. And the women started praying in scared voices to plead for Tengri’s protection.

Seeing the countless wild horses coming from the south, the grassland people felt that they were already abandoned by Tengri.

They could never understand why. The national master who stayed in the carriage at the rear could not figure out why either. But he knew for sure that the situation was completely different now. He sighed profoundly.

He already sent several priests heading to the golden yurt, while himself and the rest priests formed an array with carriages. But he never went to the battlefield. He was afraid of Yu Lian and Tang. He had been trying to discourage Chanyu from the risky plan. It was because he always believed that the Academy and Tang would never lose so easily. Unfortunately Chanyu was not listening.

The result of the battle today seemed obvious. But someone did not agree.

Staring at the barracks of Tang in the south enveloped in dust, the handsome Chanyu still looked calm and resolute. Being the overlord of the grassland, he boldly initiated the migration of the entire tribe and invasion to the south. He took the risk of traveling all the way down and the possibility of being trapped by the Tang army. But he was so certain that they would win the war no matter how hard it would be.

He wanted revenge for his elder brother. And most importantly he wanted to reign the entire human world. He would like his subordinates to be the next generation aristocrats and his descendants to become the owners of the charming land in the south. Therefore he had to win. It was the Abbey Dean’s promise to him as well as his to the Abbey Dean.

Even until now, upon seeing the endless wild horses coming in the morning glow, he was still confident. More precisely, despite the paleness on his face, he was not disturbed the slightest.

General Bule murmured, “According to Taoism ... Tengri was missing. Everyone in the Central Plains was looking for her. Could it be that our betrayal had enraged her and that was why she sent these heavenly steeds to help the Tang people?”

Chillness flashed in Changyu’s eyes. He stared at him and said with a cold voice, “Stupid you.”

General Bule did not dare to argue and backed off silently. He thought that he understood Chanyu the best... The coming battle on the meadow outside Guhe would be decisive. The Golden Tribe could not afford a failure or a retreat because the cavalry of Golden Tribe had gone too far to the south. And there was no way for them to head back home.

Since they could neither surrender nor retreat, they could only keep fighting. How could he jeopardize the morale at this moment? General Bule understood this well and kept silent even when he was scorned stupid.

“It has nothing to do with morale... Tang would never win.”

“Why?”

“What are they really longing for?

“Horses.”

“Wrong.” Chanyu looked to the south extremely indifferently and confidently, “They want warhorses, not just horses.”

Indeed. Situ Yilan and Wang Wu had been praying everyday for whatever horses as long as they could have enough of them. But what they really needed could only be warhorses. And warhorses had to be well trained throughout a long period of time. But what they got was merely a large group of wild horses.

The wild horses never saw blood. Nor did they participate in any battles. They were never saddled or reined. How could people ride and fight on them?

No human being could train tens of thousands of wild horses into experienced warhorses in such a short period of time. It was dawn. The battle was about to be launched. As for those wild horses... what use could they be of anyway?

Upon hearing Chanyu’s words, General Bule was cheered up immediately. He was after all the general of all the cavalrymen. He had the previous doubts only because he was stupefied by the overwhelming scene of tens of thousands of horses pouring in.

The Golden Tribe accelerated the preparation and assembling. Their warhorses was scared previously but calmed down by their masters gradually. They were armored and put on the arrow cases. But they were still irritated and could barely keep their formation whenever they saw those of their kind in south.

But just as Chanyu had said indifferently, the Tang army was in chaos right now. After the hail and tears of joy, they came back to their senses and started preparation right away upon the messages delivered by the Chihou Squad. Then they realized that they did not have enough riding gears... It had been over three years. They had no horses and no one in the Northern Battlefront Army could have predicted this.

There were more trouble to come. The Tang soldiers found that although the wild horse seemed nice to them, they were still reluctant to be reined, not to mention saddled... Wild horses were running around in Tang’s barracks. Colorful horse hair were flying around. Some wild horse even knocked down the soldier and escaped...

Although they could not see what was happening in Tang’s barracks, the grassland warriors could tell from the chaotic sounds and dust that Chanyu’s judgment was correct. They mocked and whistled toward the Tang army, swayed their blades and did their best to scorn.

Right then, an extremely sharp whinny was heard between Heaven and Earth.

It was like the friction between two rocks, or the sound from a broken air box. It seemed weak like the panting of someone sick, but lasted long.

The ugly whinny pierced through Heaven and Earth.

The mocking laughter from the tens of thousands of cavalrymen in the Golden Tribe were suppressed.

The untamed neighs and weird snorts were stopped instantly.

Tens of thousands of wild horses seemed to have heard the most horrifying sound in the world. They did not dare to move any further and raised their heads together toward where the whinny came from, as if they were soldiers waiting for an inspection.

The dust in the northwestern part of the field was settling. And something came out of it gradually. There were eight rarely seen steeds pulling a shabby cart.

A black donkey was sitting in the shabby cart. There were lots of furless spots on its body which made it seem miserable. But it was in high spirits. Probably it was born like that or it was the grapes and wine it had been feasting on.

The black donkey squinted around the fields, as if it was the real king for all the wild horses and warhorses. The wild horses in Tang’s barracks bowed. And the warhorses in the Golden Tribe were scared.

Mu You and the Sixth Brother stepped out of the barracks and walked toward the shabby cart.

It was only until then they saw the big black horse pulling the black carriage behind the shabby cart. It seemed cheerful and chubby. Obviously its senior fellow had treated him well throughout the past three years.

Mu You slightly laughed. But because of the drought in the grassland, the corners of her lips cracked slightly and shed some blood. She and the Sixth Brother bowed to the black donkey in the cart. The black donkey nodded reservedly and politely.

The big black horse ran to Mu You and was about to push its head into her arms. But upon recalling the person with only one arm, it tried hard to control itself. Mu You patted its neck. The big black horse put on a solemn look, backed off and bowed to her and the Sixth Brother.

Immediately following that they heard the sounds of rolling wheels. Many huge carriages came out from the supplies and gears barracks. They were led to the Vanguard Brigade by Fan Yue, the Fourth Brother of the Academy, and were loaded with various kinds of riding gears and sabers.

The students of the back hill of the Academy finally reunited in the Wilderness.

...

...

Saddled and reined, the wild horses gradually calmed down.

The cavalrymen in the Northern Battlefront Army gently touched their long-lost riding gears and felt extremely sensational. Their former horses had aged and passed away. But the gears were still here. They were a bit worn but still in good shape.

Wang Wu held some fresh water in both hands and delivered to his horse. Looking at this somewhat discontented wild horse, he committed silently that he would slave for it for the rest of his life.

Right now, we will go after the enemies.

Indeed, let’s take down the enemies.

The cavalrymen of the Golden Tribe Royal Court were pouring in already.

The previously restless grassland warhorses were activated by the horse whips and spurs and temporarily forgot their instinctive fear. They darted forward.

The Tang army was much quieter than previously.

Instead of mounting onto the horses, they led the formerly wild but now tamed warhorses forward. They stepped on the slightly firm grassland and headed resolutely to the north.

They were the Tang army. They were the strongest cavalrymen in the world, never defeated. The warhorses by their side had also reigned the Great Swamp for decades peerlessly. No matter how powerful the cavalrymen from the Golden Tribe were, how could they be a match to them?

Dust blew and blotted out the sky above the grassland. It was finally time to mount onto the horses.

Situ Yilan jumped onto the brown wild horse and pulled out her saber gradually. She raised her blade and pointed to the cavalrymen from the grassland. She said nothing and showed no sentiment. Her guards roared outrageously all of a sudden.

Everyone in the Tang army roared together. After so many years of depression, their anger busted into fighting will upon the roars. Then the charge began. It was a breath-taking silent charge. Many cavalrymen of Northern Battlefront Army found it very strange to launch a charge again after so many years. But when they raised their blades, pushed on the horses’ bellies and bolted out, they found it very familiar again.

It was called invincibility.

Countless bouts of dust chopped the grassland. Countless dark iron streams rushed toward the Golden Tribe.

All of a sudden clashing of weapons became deafening. It was from the Qilian City as well as by the side of Guhe. All the cavalrymen of Northern Battlefront Army bolted out from nowhere.

The dark flood poured onto the Golden Tribe from three different directions. If someone could overlook the battlefield from above, he must be stunned by the overwhelming scene.

Chilling wind swayed Situ Yilan’s hair by her cheeks. And she was thinking of the victory.

Wang Wu bit hard on his lips and seemed absolutely determined. And he was thinking of the City of Wei.

It was under the flag of the Golden Tribe. Chanyu was extremely pale. General Bule was urging him to retreat and join the national master in the rear.

Chanyu said nothing. No one knew what he was thinking about. It wasn’t until now had he realized why the national master had been trying to stop him from the risky plan.

The Academy... and Ning Que... were indeed ruthless. And the Golden Tribe was defeated. He knew it clearly. He vomited blood and fell off the horse.

It was on the meadow outside Guhe. Ning Que put down the telescope and pondered silently on what he had seen. He handed the telescope to Xu Chi who was standing by his side.

Xu Chi stared at him and asked, “We have stayed low for so many years just in preparation for today. Don’t you think it was too risky?”

Ning Que thought for a while and said, “This was the only way.”

Xu Chi said, “If you had handed me those horses earlier on, I would have won too.”

“But you could not wipe them out.” Upon saying that he walked down the meadow.

Situ Yilan fought for victory.

Wang Wu fought for the Wei.

He also had his purpose.

All he had been planning was simply to... wipe them out.

...

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