Nachen stiffened all over, but the force in his opponent's sword instantly destroyed the life within him. He died at once without even managing a scream.
His horse carried him onward for a while before he finally tumbled heavily to the ground.
The Qonggirat Tribe's guards around him were utterly bewildered. Thinking he had simply fallen from his horse by accident, they hurried over to help him up, only to discover that he was already dead. They were all horrified.
"They killed the chieftain! Avenge him!" someone shouted. Every soldier present turned red-eyed and charged at Yang Guo and the others.
After Öchen died, the clan had elected Nachen as its new chieftain. Now Nachen was dead as well. No one in the Qonggirat Tribe could accept the loss of two chieftains in succession. Besides, they had been responsible for the chieftain's safety. With Nachen dead, they could not escape blame. Their only choice was to risk their lives killing the culprits, hoping to lessen their punishment afterward.
Yang Guo and Zhou Botong were equally confused, but the enemy commander's death was clearly a good thing. They rallied themselves and faced the enemy.
But there were simply too many Mongol soldiers. They killed wave after wave, yet spears and lances kept stabbing in from every direction. Some soldiers even rolled along the ground, slashing at their legs.
Had their martial arts not ranked among the very best of the Five Greats, they would have been dismembered long ago. Even so, both had suffered many wounds.
Zhou Botong had just protected Yang Guo, so his injuries were worse. Three arrows had struck his back, and more than half his beard, eyebrows, and hair had been burned away. Yang Guo had been stabbed in the waist by a spear. Though he had