On the vast, boundless grasslands, a towering mountain range lay sprawled across the plains like a winding giant dragon, stretching beyond the horizon.
White snow had already piled up upon those tall, majestic mountains.
At the foot of the mountains stood a magnificent royal city—the seat of the Xiongnu royal court.
"Imperial Advisor, do you think the Great King and the others could conquer the northern border of the Great Wei Dynasty?" A burly young man stood beside an alchemy furnace, looking at the Imperial Advisor shrouded in a black robe as he urged the flames to refine pills.
Only after a long while did a voice emerge from beneath the black robe.
"The Great Wei Dynasty's dragon aura has not yet run dry. The time has not come."
The Xiongnu Imperial Advisor paused before slowly speaking again.
"An eagle has arrived on the grasslands."
"An eagle?"
A flicker passed through the burly young man's expression.
The next morning, Sheng Huai'an led his army away from the temporary camp. He would not keep his troops in one place for too long.
After autumn had arrived, white frost and dew already clung to the grass in the early mornings.
Their target remained unchanged that day: raid the Xiongnu grain transport forces and cut off the Xiongnu army's food supplies.
Nearly a hundred thousand Xiongnu soldiers stood at the front lines, and the grain they consumed every day was no small amount.
They had to cut off the Xiongnu army's provisions and slow its siege of the city. Otherwise, even with General Yang Ye guarding Anning Pass, it could not be held.
Less than a third of the ordinary soldiers remained. Without ordinary soldiers, General Yang Ye alone could not hold Anning Pass.
The army raced across the grasslands, specifically targeting Xiongnu supply convoys transporting grain.
After wiping out three Xiongnu forces transporting provisions, Sheng Huai'an and his men encountered a unit of Xiongnu Cavalry.
The enemy numbered two thousand riders, all elites among the Xiongnu Cavalry.
The two armies met upon the boundless grasslands, separated by less than a li.
Under such circumstances, even if Sheng Huai'an wanted to lead his army away, he could not escape.
Allowing the Xiongnu Cavalry to pursue them from behind and wear them down would be courting death.
"Neighhh!!"
As if it sensed the approach of battle, the white horse beneath Sheng Huai'an let out a shrill neigh and pawed at the ground.
Helan Guanshan looked at the cavalry opposite him, a cruel smile curling across his lips. Those thousand-odd heads were his.
"At last, I've found you!"
"Up ahead are the enemies who slaughtered our tribesmen. Warriors, what should we do?" Helan Guanshan shouted.
"Kill!"
"Kill!"
"Kill!"
The cries of slaughter from the Xiongnu Cavalry behind him soared into the clouds, deafening enough to shake the heavens.
If he killed this enemy force and brought their heads back, he could be ennobled as a general rather than remain a commandant.
"Kill!"
Helan Guanshan drew his saber and gave a great shout, leading the cavalry in a charge.
Watching the Xiongnu army charge from the opposite side, Sheng Huai'an turned to the soldiers behind him and said:
"Brothers, are you afraid!?"
"Not afraid!"
Seeing not the slightest fear in his subordinates, Sheng Huai'an nodded in satisfaction. When facing the strong, they dared to draw their swords. This force truly deserved to be called the elite chosen from the Anning Army.
"When narrow roads meet, the brave shall win!"
"Gentlemen, charge with me!" Sheng Huai'an roared.
The white horse beneath him immediately shot forward like an arrow loosed from the string.
"Charge..."
"Kill!"
The thousand-odd iron cavalry behind Sheng Huai'an also charged forward with furious roars.
They too were hot-blooded men. Defending their homes and nation, slaughtering enemy invaders—those things had been carved into their bones.
A thousand troops and ten thousand horses thundered forward, iron spears and armored steeds swallowing ten thousand miles like tigers!
The killing intent that filled the sky scattered the clouds overhead.
Sheng Huai'an's aura rose without end. He was like a war god, while the cavalry behind him burned with rainbow-like momentum, like a sharp blade following Sheng Huai'an straight into the enemy's heart.
"Wei dog, hand over your life!"
The aura Helan Guanshan unleashed was like that of a savage wolf.
Yet Sheng Huai'an was like a fierce tiger descending the mountain. Both had fixed their eyes on the other.
In Helan Guanshan's eyes, Sheng Huai'an could not withstand even a single blow. He was already a dead man. How could a mere early Houtian cultivator block the full-force strike of someone at Houtian Great Perfection?!
Sheng Huai'an did not shout any slogans. Instead, he raised his entire condition to its peak and unleashed his strongest strike.
Boom!
The two collided in an instant. Spear and saber crashed together with the force to split mountains and sever seas, erupting with a thunderous roar.
Helan Guanshan was blasted off his horse by the tremendous force, and his saber was sent flying as well.
That unparalleled, terrifying force made the blood and qi within him churn violently, shifting his organs out of place.
Helan Guanshan rolled several times after being thrown from his warhorse before finally coming to a stop.
He could not suppress the sweetness in his throat and spat out a mouthful of blood.
Sheng Huai'an, however, had only suffered a split tiger's mouth from the immense force. This Xiongnu general was extraordinarily powerful, the strongest opponent he had faced thus far.
Kill!!
Warhorses charging forward at full speed could not stop at once. Carrying terrifying momentum, Sheng Huai'an plunged into the Xiongnu Cavalry formation.
Not a single enemy survived within the reach of his spear.
Helan Guanshan quickly fled aside, avoiding the impact and trampling of the Anning Iron Cavalry.
Seizing an opportunity, he leaped into the air, dragged an Anning Cavalry soldier from his horse, killed him, and seized the warhorse.
Watching Sheng Huai'an lead the Anning Iron Cavalry into the enemy formation like a fierce dragon, slaughtering without restraint, Helan Guanshan regretted underestimating his opponent. Having lost the greater momentum, he found it difficult to lead his iron cavalry against them.
After a round of slaughter, countless corpses lay scattered across the ground—some Anning Iron Cavalry, some Xiongnu Cavalry.
But more of them were Xiongnu Cavalry corpses.
Less than half of the Xiongnu Cavalry could still remain on horseback.
Sheng Huai'an had been too valiant. Charging into the Xiongnu Cavalry formation at the forefront, he had slaughtered them until men and horses toppled over, shattering their charging formation.
The surviving Xiongnu Cavalry gathered behind Helan Guanshan. Looking at the half of his men who had been slain while the enemy had lost fewer than a hundred, Helan Guanshan's heart bled.
His moment of carelessness and contempt had allowed the enemy commander to knock him from his horse with a single spear strike, costing them the initiative in this battle.
After leading the cavalry through their charge and reining in their momentum, Sheng Huai'an turned his horse around once more.
Guo Xiaoping, Hu Bing, Tang Yunshan, Hai Dahe, Wang Wu, and the others stood silently behind Sheng Huai'an. Every one of them was stained with blood—the blood of enemies they had slain, splashed upon them.
"Xiongnu Cavalry aren't so frightening. As long as we're stronger and fiercer than them, we can still kill them until men and horses topple over." Sheng Huai'an smiled as he wiped the blood from his face.
"Do you have the confidence to kill every last one of them?" Sheng Huai'an asked loudly, his sonorous, forceful voice ringing in every ear.
"Yes!"
"Yes!"
"Yes!"
The Anning Iron Cavalry shouted, their momentum rising without end. Under Sheng Huai'an's leadership, this force of iron cavalry now blazed with rainbow-like momentum.
"Very good!"
"Gentlemen, charge with me. Slay the enemy invaders and swear to defend our homeland and nation unto death!" Sheng Huai'an cried, launching another charge.
"Slay the enemy invaders and swear to defend our homeland and nation unto death!" The iron cavalry behind him shouted as they charged forward.
Iron hooves clanged, warhorses neighed!
Seeing the enemy cavalry launch another charge, a savage gleam appeared in Helan Guanshan's eyes.
"Warriors, we wolves of the grasslands are the kings of the grasslands! Follow me and slaughter the enemy invaders who dare set foot upon our grasslands—kill!"
Between the two sides, it was either their death or his survival.
They could only fight a bloody battle to the end. Only the victor deserved to stand and speak.
Having learned his lesson, Helan Guanshan no longer dared to be careless. He focused with twelve parts of spirit as he faced Sheng Huai'an.
As Sheng Huai'an charged on horseback, the blood and qi around him rolled like a dragon, the hot blood within his body roaring as his true essence circulated to its limit.
Even his skin glimmered with a faint golden light. Like a heavenly god descending into the mortal world, his aura was unmatched.
Seeing Sheng Huai'an charging toward him on horseback with his spear raised, Helan Guanshan also raised his aura to its absolute peak, gathering all his strength and swearing to determine victory or defeat with Sheng Huai'an.
The warhorses thundered forward, making the earth tremble.
Sheng Huai'an unleashed the Overlord Spear Technique, preparing to kill in a single strike and cut down that Xiongnu general beneath his horse.
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