Vanguard Army's Crushing Defeat
Just then, the frequency of the arrow rain from the left and right flanks began to decrease, especially for the Longbowmen. The continuous rapid volleys of more than ten rounds had exhausted a lot of their strength, and the arrow rain no longer had the suppressive power it had at the beginning.
The Heavy Crossbow Team were ordered by Victor to reduce their firing rate, as he believed that allowing the opposing army to engage in close combat was the way to break the stalemate.
Viscount Isold, the commander of the Vanguard Army, also noticed the situation and immediately ordered, "All units must speed up and cross the range of the enemy's ranged units as soon as possible. Let the Serf Soldiers follow, so that our troops can overwhelm them with superior numbers."
The messenger on horseback relayed the order, and the entire Vanguard Army sprang into action once more. The previously stalled left and right flanks began to advance, and the Serf Soldiers in the rear, led by their officers, also charged forward.
Soon, the Vanguard Army's lightly armored Sword-and-Shield Soldiers clashed with the Heavy Infantry on both flanks. When the Sword-and-Shield Soldiers tried to use their leather shields to block the spears of the first rank of Heavy Infantry, the second rank of Heavy Infantry thrust out their spears, and the lightly armored Sword-and-Shield Soldiers with their front wide open were pierced like candied hawthorns.
The Sword-and-Shield Soldiers's swords were too short to reach the Heavy Infantry behind the shield wall, and the two rows of Heavy Infantry used their long spears to thrust repeatedly, causing the Sword-and-Shield Soldiers's phalanx to pay a heavy price for every step they took forward.
When these lightly armored Sword-and-Shield Soldiers finally broke through the spear formation and scaled the shield wall in an attempt to engage in close combat, the first rank of Heavy Infantry maintained their thrusting rhythm, while the second rank of Heavy Infantry drew their short- Wolf Tooth Hammer from their waists, aiming to strike the temples and Adam's apples.
Even the fiercest Sword-and-Shield Soldiers who could dodge the spear thrusts and scale the shield wall would be struck by these Wolf Tooth Hammer, their blood and brains splattering across the Vanguard Army Heavy Infantry's armor.
However, even such efficient killing could not stop the swarming Vanguard Army. Both the left and right flanks and the central army formation were shaken, and multiple gaps appeared.
Viscount Isold intensified the Vanguard Army's offensive, sending all his Reserve Force to the front lines, leaving only the Cavalry units from the two territories at the command post.
Just when Viscount Isold and Viscount Leo thought they would soon defeat the enemy in front of them, they saw a new change in the command position of the Golden Sunflower Army, Victor issued a new flag signal.
As Victor gave another signal, the Bow and Crossbow Troops abandoned their bows and crossbows and began to enter the Heavy Infantry phalanx with swords in hand, coordinating with the spear formation and shield wall to block the Vanguard Army troops.
These archers were already strong and agile warriors, and when they entered the Heavy Infantry formation with their weapons, they quickly began to play an important role. They attacked the enemy soldiers who broke into the formation in groups of two or three. Their skillful coordination and combat skills were simply unstoppable by the Vanguard Army soldiers.
With the addition of this fresh force, the previously somewhat unstable arc-shaped formation once again transformed into an iron wall, continuously devouring the flesh and blood of the Vanguard Army soldiers.
Upon witnessing this scene, Viscount Isold, who had thought the situation was settled, was furious, but he had no Reserve Force left.
He could only order all troops to keep moving forward and not to retreat. The Serf Soldiers were also driven forward and rushed forward. The front of the Golden Sunflower Army was already densely packed with the Vanguard Army soldiers. Even the Vanguard Army's archers dared not fire arrows anymore to avoid accidentally injuring friendly forces.
Standing atop the hill, Victor saw everything before him and muttered to himself, "It's almost time. The enemy's forces have all surged up, and their strength and morale have reached their limit. We can make our move."
Victor gave another order to the standard-bearer beside him, but this time the flag signal was no longer pointing towards the square formation below the mountain, but towards the dock behind them.
As flag signals continued to be issued, the objects that had been covered by cloth on the decks of the ships around the dock were finally removed from their disguises, and a large number of Bed Crossbow and ship-mounted Catapult were pushed to the side of the ships.
Facing the already crowded enemy formations, these previously hidden, terrifying weapons began to unleash their power.
Amidst the shouts of the sailors, the ship's Catapult launched a barrage of stones. These Catapult had been calibrated a day earlier, and the area 20 meters in front of Victor's army was within the Catapult's attack range. The densely packed Vanguard Army soldiers also caught the stones steadily.
As the first volley of stones rained down, countless bursts of blood erupted from the Vanguard Army's ranks, followed by piercing screams. The perfectly polished, round stones rolled through the crowd, crushing the limbs of countless soldiers. The other Vanguard Army soldiers were stunned to see their comrades clutching their severed limbs and screaming in agony.
Just then, the Bed Crossbow on the ship began firing in volleys, with bolts over 2 meters long sweeping across the dense formation of the Vanguard Army, sometimes killing several people in a row.
Victor deployed 20 Catapult and hundreds of Bed Crossbow on these dozen or so ships. Facing the dense formation of the Vanguard Army, the first volley of fire achieved terrible results. A large area of the central army, which was under concentrated fire, was left empty, and hundreds of enemy soldiers were either wounded or killed.
Blood, severed limbs, fallen corpses, and screaming wounded soldiers extinguished the Vanguard Army's fighting spirit. The entire central army then collapsed, with large numbers of soldiers fleeing the battlefield, either voluntarily or by force.
The enemy forces on the left and right flanks were stunned by the collapse of the central army. Just as they were caught in a dilemma, the Bed Crossbow and Catapult on the ships began to attack the left and right flanks respectively.
The Vanguard Army on the left and right flanks were compressed into the front of the Golden Sunflower Family's army by the water canals on the east and west sides. Their formation, which was even denser than that of the central army, became easy targets for Bed Crossbow and Catapult.
The same tragic scene unfolded on the left and right flanks. After enduring two consecutive rounds of attacks, the Vanguard Army on both flanks also collapsed, and the entire Vanguard Army was practically devoid of any organization.
At Victor's command, the entire Steel Crescent began to move, pursuing the retreating Vanguard Army.
Ron also led his Cavalry in pursuit. The Heavy Cavalry formed a square of 51 lines, four consecutive ranks, and charged the Vanguard Army that still maintained their formation. The Light Cavalry began to hunt down the officers in the fleeing army to prevent them from regrouping.
Viscount Isold and Viscount Leo witnessed the tragic scene before them. The Vanguard Army, which had been launching an overwhelming offensive, had suddenly turned into a pile of mud, and the situation had been reversed, with the attackers and defenders in complete disarray.
"How is this possible? What happened? How could we have failed?"
Viscount Isold has fallen into a state of hysteria and lost his ability to command.
Viscount Leo could only order his guards to put Viscount Isold on his warhorse. "Isolde, don't give up. We still have Cavalry. Now that the enemy is chasing the fleeing soldiers, we can still run away."
After saying this, Viscount Leo ordered all Cavalry to retreat north.
Just then, a troop suddenly appeared from the north, its flag fluttering, prominently embroidered with Golden Sunflower Crest.
Viscount Isold finally regained consciousness and looked at the distant army with immense grief and indignation. "He even arranged the ambush in advance, is he really that confident that he can defeat us?"
No one answered him anymore. The approaching troops lined up directly along the moat of Red Ginseng Castle, firmly blocking the Cavalry's retreat route. Faced with the dense gunfire, the Light Cavalry, having lost their ability to maneuver, could only become lambs to the slaughter.