The Feat of Slaying the Commander and Breaking the Banner Shocks the Entire Army!

"You're courting death!"

Seeing Zhu Ying charge at him, Jin Guda urged his horse forward and swung his war saber down.

The force of the charging horse combined with the saber's slash.

A powerful blow came cleaving straight at Zhu Ying.

"Good!"

Zhu Ying barked coldly.

He gripped his saber and met the attack head-on.

Clang!

The war sabers collided, their tremendous force sending sparks flying.

Zhu Ying held his saber firm, his body utterly unmoved.

Even with the momentum of his charging horse behind it, Jin Guda's full-force slash failed to budge Zhu Ying.

"Down you go!"

Zhu Ying gritted his teeth, drew upon all the strength in his body, and fiercely shoved back.

A crushing force like an avalanche bore down on Jin Guda.

"Not good!"

"What incredible strength!"

Jin Guda's expression changed. It felt as though his hands were bearing a thousand pounds; his entire body, even his horse's four legs, trembled violently.

Thud!

Jin Guda and his horse crashed straight to the ground.

Just how strong was he?

Chen Heng stared in shock from nearby.

But Zhu Ying did not hesitate at all. He immediately raised his saber and stepped forward, seizing this once-in-a-lifetime opportunity to slash at the fallen and disheveled Jin Guda.

"No..."

Before Jin Guda could even rise, Zhu Ying's saber came down. He let out a despairing scream.

Slash!

The Fine Steel Saber severed Jin Guda's neck in one stroke. Blood sprayed everywhere as his head flew from his body.

"Commander of Ten Thousand Jin Guda of the Jianzhou Tatars killed. Picked up 100 points to all attributes."

"First kill of a commander of ten thousand. Reward: one ordinary treasure chest."

The panel displayed the prompt.

Immediately afterward.

With the addition of 100 points to all attributes, Zhu Ying felt his entire body undergo a sublime transformation.

But Zhu Ying did not hesitate. He directly picked up Jin Guda's head and hung it from his waist. This was the greatest merit of the battle.

"I'll take your battle banner!"

"Kill!"

Zhu Ying roared.

His gaze fixed on the Tatar soldier ahead holding their battle banner.

He charged once more toward the Tatar soldiers behind Jin Guda.

With his attributes increased, his strength had grown even greater.

Each slash cut down another Tatar soldier.

"Tatar infantryman killed. Picked up 20 points of strength."

"Tatar infantryman killed. Picked up 40 days of lifespan."

"Tatar infantryman killed. Picked up 20 points of speed..."

The panel prompts rang out without end.

Under Zhu Ying's fierce slaughter, he quickly reached the soldier carrying the Tatar battle banner and brought his saber down.

The man and the battle banner in his hands.

Slash!

Zhu Ying cut straight through the Tatar battle banner's pole.

"Your commander has already been slain by me!"

"Surrender, and you will not be killed!"

Zhu Ying stepped on the broken banner and shouted loudly.

His voice rolled like thunder.

Seeing this scene.

The Tatar soldiers across the battlefield all panicked.

On the battlefield.

The battle banner came first.

The army followed the banner into battle. So long as the banner remained standing, morale soared. But once it fell, the army lost its backbone and would ultimately scatter in chaos.

"The commander of ten thousand is dead!"

"The battle banner has been broken!"

"We've lost!"

"Retreat... retreat quickly..."

The Tatar soldiers caught in the melee panicked and cried out in terror.

They had originally held the advantage in numbers and fought the Ming Army to the death, but at this moment, their defeat came like a collapsing mountain.

That soldier truly was a fierce warrior.

Chen Heng stared fixedly at Zhu Ying, his face full of shock.

He had witnessed Zhu Ying's ferocity firsthand from beginning to end.

At that moment!

From the rear flank.

Two groups of cavalry and Ming Army soldiers suddenly charged out, surrounding this Tatar force. Liu Zhen had arrived with reinforcements, completing the encirclement.

Seeing the Tatars fleeing in disarray, Zhu Ying gave it no further thought and pursued them with his saber.

Every one he killed meant a random twenty attribute points. Zhu Ying would not let such a perfect chance to strike them down slip away.

With such a good opportunity, he naturally had to go all out.

At this moment!

The battle had reached its end.

An hour later.

The fighting subsided.

The infantry rested on the battlefield, clearing corpses and treating the wounded, while the uninjured cavalry headed north in pursuit.

At this moment!

The army's garrison commanders gathered the soldiers under their command responsible for recording military merits and began tallying the merits earned.

Each Hundred Household Battalion had a deputy hundred household commander directly under the garrison commander's authority, responsible for military merits.

"How many brothers from the First Hundred Household Battalion are still alive?"

"All of you, come over here!"

Liu Lei shouted loudly, gathering the soldiers under his command.

He was not the only one.

The many hundred household commanders were also shouting, gathering their respective troops.

Once all the soldiers of Zhu Ying's Hundred Household Battalion had assembled.

Of the original hundred-plus men, fewer than seventy percent remained. Their losses were severe.

Seeing this, Liu Lei's expression turned somewhat mournful. But he did not dwell on it and immediately said, "Deputy hundred household commander, tally the merits from enemy kills and count the fallen soldiers."

"This subordinate accepts the order."

The deputy hundred household commander assigned to the battalion immediately stepped forward and said loudly, "Arrows found in enemy corpses will be credited as merits and personally recorded by the garrison commander's battalion. What our Hundred Household Battalion records now is merit for enemies slain in battle, which will be reported directly upward. Brothers, if you have proof of your kills, you may submit heads or enemy ears to have your merits recorded."

As soon as the deputy hundred household commander finished speaking.

More than a dozen soldiers stepped forward, taking out the enemy ears and heads they had cut off and carried with them.

"Anyone else?" the deputy hundred household commander called out.

At that moment!

Zhu Ying slowly stepped forward.

The deputy hundred household commander and the military merit clerk holding the records both looked at Zhu Ying with their brushes in hand.

Zhu Ying said nothing.

He reached into his robes.

Dozens of bloody ears fell to the ground.

There was also a head and the Tatar battle banner.

Seeing this.

Liu Lei was dumbfounded.

The deputy hundred household commander responsible for tallying merits was dumbfounded, and so was the clerk recording them.

Was it... was it you who killed the Tatar commander and broke their battle banner? the deputy hundred household commander asked in astonishment.

"The head is right here."

"Deputy hundred household commander, you may verify it." Zhu Ying said with a smile, pointing at Jin Guda's head on the ground.

Liu Lei was completely stunned at the side, unable to say a word.

"Reporting to the deputy hundred household commander."

"There are fifty-eight ears here. He... he killed fifty-eight enemies, and that does not even include the enemies he killed with his bow and arrows." The clerk at the side counted the ears on the ground, his voice trembling.

The deputy hundred household commander glanced at them, swallowed hard, and then said, "Record it all. Report it to the thousand household commander at once—no, report it directly to the garrison commander."

This merit was too great.

So great that even the deputy hundred household commander could hardly believe it. Yet the results were before his eyes; the facts could not be denied.

The merit of killing enemies, the feat of slaying the commander and breaking the banner.

Without question, this was the greatest merit of the battle.

"You... what's your name?" the deputy hundred household commander asked Zhu Ying.

"This subordinate is Zhu Ying, a squad leader of the First Hundred Household Battalion," Zhu Ying immediately replied.

"Good."

"All your military merits have been recorded and will be reported truthfully. You performed very well in this battle and rendered great service to the Ming Dynasty."

"Once the garrison commander reports to the commanding commissioner, and then to Yingtian, there will surely be a great reward." The deputy hundred household commander spoke excitedly.

The way he looked at Zhu Ying had also become far gentler.

Clearly.

After this battle.

Zhu Ying would certainly receive promotion and rank, perhaps even rise three grades in a row.

After all, this merit was simply too great.