Renowned in the Northern Frontier

Half an hour later, at the entrance of the narrow gorge.

Wei Zhe, along with Hu Lei and four others, reined in their horses and stood there, as if deliberately waiting for the pursuing enemy.

Soon, a thousand-strong Xiongnu cavalry appeared in their sights. Leading them was a Xiongnu centurion with a fierce gaze. When he saw Wei Zhe and his group, a cruel smile spread across his face.

"Haha! I searched high and low, and now I've found you without any effort! Qin Army rats, you can't escape! Attack! Capture the leader, and I'll reward you with a hundred cattle and sheep!"

In his eyes, the opposing five were simply foolish to stop here.

"Kill!"

Over a hundred Xiongnu cavalry let out a roar and charged towards Wei Zhe's group like arrows loosed from a bow.

"Squad Leader!" Hu Lei tightly gripped his shield, his expression tense.

"Don't panic," Wei Zhe's tone was terrifyingly calm. "Wait until they are within fifty paces, then follow my command. Use your Armor-Piercing Awls and fire at will!"

Fifty paces... forty paces... thirty paces...

Watching the enemy draw closer, Hu Lei's heart was in his throat.

Just as the Xiongnu cavalry at the forefront were about to reach them, Wei Zhe's voice rang out.

"Fire!"

The five men simultaneously drew the deadly three-edged Armor-Piercing Awls from their saddles and hurled them forward with all their might!

Wei Zhe didn't aim at ordinary soldiers; his target was the Xiongnu centurion charging at the very front!

With the boost of his Agility attribute, which had surged to 225 points, the Armor-Piercing Awl he threw was as fast as a black lightning bolt!

The centurion's vision blurred. A sense of mortal danger enveloped him. He instinctively tried to raise his saber to block, but found his movements as slow as a snail compared to his opponent.

Splat!

The sharp Armor-Piercing Awl accurately pierced his face. The immense momentum carried his body backward, sending him and his horse tumbling to the ground.

At the same time, the four Armor-Piercing Awls thrown by Hu Lei and the others successfully struck three Xiongnu cavalrymen, killing them instantly!

In a single exchange, the enemy commander and three vanguard soldiers were instantly killed!

The momentum of their charge faltered.

"Retreat! Into the gorge!"

Wei Zhe, having struck his blow, did not linger. He immediately turned his horse and led the four men into the narrow gorge.

"Chase! Chase them! Don't let them escape!"

The Xiongnu soldiers behind them, realizing what had happened, furiously gave chase.

However, less than a hundred paces into the gorge, a roar erupted from the mountain walls on both sides.

"Fire!"

Qian Hu and his men, who had been lying in ambush, pushed down the giant rocks and sharpened wooden stakes they had prepared!

"Rumble!"

"Ah—!"

The narrow gorge instantly turned into a living hell. The Xiongnu cavalry were packed together, man and horse, with nowhere to dodge. They were crushed by falling rocks, their screams echoing endlessly.

After one round of attacks, at least fifty to sixty Xiongnu cavalry were permanently left behind.

Before they could regroup, Wei Zhe and his five men had already killed their way back from the other end of the gorge!

They were like a red-hot dagger, fiercely piercing into the enemy formation, which had become scattered due to the chaos.

"Kill!"

Wei Zhe led the charge. The glaive in his hand had now become a reaper of lives. His speed was incredible; the Xiongnu soldiers could often only see an afterimage flash by before their throats or hearts turned cold, and they lost all strength.

He alone was an army!

In just a quarter of an hour of fierce fighting, this thousand-strong unit was utterly routed by Wei Zhe and his twenty men!

The remaining Xiongnu no longer cared about military orders. Crying and yelling, they turned and fled, escaping the gorge in a sorry state.

Inside the gorge, over two hundred Xiongnu corpses were left behind.

Wei Zhe's squad, on the other hand, had only two men sustain minor injuries in the melee.

"We... won again?"

Looking at the corpses scattered everywhere, the team members still felt like they were dreaming.

Twenty men ambushed a thousand-strong unit and achieved a great victory!

"Clean up the battlefield! Let's go home!"

Wei Zhe's voice pulled them back to reality.

As the sun set, Wei Zhe led his twenty brothers, along with hundreds of captured warhorses and the enemy commander's head, onto the horizon of Eagle Beak Cliff. The entire fortress was in an uproar.

"They're back!"

"My God! They actually came back!"

"Twenty-one people... not one missing!"

The soldiers on the city walls erupted in earth-shattering cheers.

When the fortress gates opened for them, and Shi Meng along with a group of officers personally came out to greet them, everyone was stunned by the sight before them.

Although the twenty-one soldiers were covered in blood and exhaustion, their eyes were sharp as knives, exuding a battle-hardened aura only possessed by veteran troops. Especially Wei Zhe, who led them. He sat calmly on his horse, his expression serene, yet the pressure emanating from his experience of countless battles made even some officers afraid to meet his gaze.

"Wei Zhe..." Shi Meng walked up to him, his lips moving, but in the end, he only managed to utter two words, "Well done!"

Sun He, the Centurion who had once mocked Wei Zhe, was now hiding behind the crowd, his face ashen, not even daring to look at Wei Zhe.

Inside the main tent, Meng Wu personally poured Wei Zhe a bowl of wine.

"Wei Zhe, with twenty-one men, you raided the enemy camp at night, burned their provisions, and personally killed an enemy Chieftain; then, on the Gobi Desert, you fought against overwhelming odds and ambushed a thousand enemy soldiers! Such achievements are enough to make your name renowned throughout the Northern Frontier of Great Qin!"

"With this battle, the Right Wise King's forces have suffered heavy losses and their provisions are cut off. For at least three years, they will be unable to march south again! You have secured three years of peace for the Northern Frontier of Great Qin!"

Meng Wu's eyes were filled with excitement and admiration.

"Guards!" he shouted loudly, "Carry out my command!"

"Promote Wei Zhe to Centurion of the Vanguard Camp's 'Tiger and Wolf Army'! Grant him the rank of Fifth Rank Official! Reward him with a thousand yi of gold and a hundred qing of fertile land!"

"His subordinate, Deputy Squad Leader Qian Hu, and Squad Leader Hu Lei, are both promoted to Squad Leader! All other brothers will receive a promotion of one rank and a hundred yi of gold each!"

"And Wei Zhe's name shall be announced to the entire army! Let all three hundred thousand Elite Warriors of our Northern Frontier know of his bravery!"

"Boom!"

This appointment exploded like a bombshell in the hearts of all the officers.

Centurion! Fifth Rank Official!

In less than half a month since enlisting, Wei Zhe had achieved a leap that others could never accomplish in a lifetime!

He had transformed from an unknown nobody into a rapidly rising, brilliant new star in the Northern Frontier Army!

Wei Zhe took the wine bowl and drank it down in one gulp.

He looked at the bright moon outside the tent, his thoughts drifting to Jiang Bo and Ling'er far away in Beacon Tower Town.

"Ling'er, wait for me."

"I'll be back soon."

His legend had only just begun.