A Bloody Battle Beyond the Camp
Before long, the Wolf Tribe's Shichui set fire to the surrounding wooden houses and thatched huts, and thick smoke billowed into the sky. When the Duyan's forty fierce warriors rushed into the tender green rice paddy and frantically destroyed the seedlings that would become the Pottery Salt Tribe's future food supply, the Pottery Salt Tribe's camp fell into a deathly silence for a moment, and then erupted into earth-shattering screams and roars.
"They set the house on fire!"
"Damn it! They're uprooting our rice seedlings!"
"Quickly! Go tell the chief!"
The news reached Jia Li's ears like a thunderclap as he paced anxiously in the center of the camp. When he was helped up to the top of the camp wall and saw the billowing black smoke, the raging fire, and the rapidly expanding, heartbreaking mess in the rice paddies, his vision went black, and he swayed. If the head Biaotou(bodyguard/escort) hadn't caught him in time, he would have collapsed to the ground.
"Beasts! Beasts—!" Jia Li let out a heart-wrenching cry, his finger trembling as he pointed outside the camp, his voice distorted by extreme anger and heartache. His people, both warriors and hastily armed civilians, were deathly pale, their eyes filled with shock, fear, and a rage that had grown wildly from being driven to desperation. Their homes burned, their crops destroyed—this was not merely a loss of property, but the most vicious devastation to the very foundation of their survival!
Then they saw the Wolf Tribe members tie burning straw to long poles and gleefully throw them into the camp! Sparks landed on the roofs of the wooden houses and the edges of the thatched huts. Although most of them were extinguished or deflected by the guards on the walls with simple tools, there were still a few places where ominous blue smoke rose.
"Throw Shitou! Use spears! Smash them to death!" Jia Li roared, his voice almost frantic.
The defenders on the wall angrily hurled any stones and short spears they could find. The wooden shield formation, which was being protected by the Wolf Tribe, was hit with a thud, and several unlucky soldiers were struck by stones that pierced through the gaps in the shields, falling to the ground with screams. The speed at which torches were thrown slowed temporarily, but did not stop. The enemy had come prepared, and their shield formation was thick; this level of ranged attack had limited effect.
Panic and anger were spreading throughout the camp. The cries of women and children mingled with the heavy breathing and curses of men.
"Chief! We can't let them burn anymore! We can't let them pull them up again!"
"Our houses! Our fields!"
"Fight them! Go out and fight!"
Kaishan and the Liequan also arrived at Jia Li's side, their faces equally grim. Although the Hundred Crafts and Beast Taming Tribe did not share the same feelings as the Pottery Salt Tribe, the Wolf Tribe's atrocities of extermination and destruction sent chills down their spines and aroused their shared hatred for the enemy.
Jia Li forced himself to pull himself out of the almost overwhelming anger and heartache. He knew he couldn't hold out any longer! If he continued, their belongings outside would be burned to ashes, the camp itself might be set ablaze, and more importantly, the morale of his people would completely collapse in the despair of watching their homeland being destroyed! At that point, the camp would fall into chaos on its own, without the Wolf Tribe even needing to attack.
"Chief of the Kaishan! Leader of the Liequan!" Jia Li's eyes were bloodshot, his voice hoarse yet filled with a desperate resolve, "You've all seen it! The Wolf Tribe is utterly inhuman; they're trying to wipe us out! I, Jia Li, swear here and now that if we can defeat the wolves this time, all the salt currently in the Pottery Salt Tribe's inventory, plus all the spoils we've seized from the Wolf Tribe, will be used to reward you two and the brave warriors who came to our aid! My Pottery Salt Tribe is willing to forge an eternal brotherhood with the Hundred Crafts and the Beast Taming Tribe, to watch over each other, to help each other through life and death!"
Generous rewards and oaths carry special weight in dire straits. Kaishan, a warlike man by nature, was now enraged by the Wolf Tribe's brutality and roared, "Chief Jia Li, rest assured! We, the men of the Hundred Crafts, hate such underhanded tactics! Let's get them!"
The Liequan nodded emphatically, its face solemn. "The Wolf Tribe's actions are an outrage against both gods and men! Our Beast Taming Tribe is willing to fight to the death alongside the Pottery Salt Tribe!"
"Alright!" Jia Li no longer hesitated and immediately began to organize the counterattack. The core consisted of two hundred well-trained warriors from the Pottery Salt Tribe, plus one hundred young and strong women, teenagers, and healthy elderly people who, although not rigorously trained, were now consumed by hatred and armed with simple weapons. In addition, there were one hundred warriors who had Kaishan and eighty Beast Taming tamers from the Liequan. The entire force went into battle.
The camp gate was pushed open with a teeth-grinding creak. Jia Li led the charge (although he was tightly protected by the Biaotou and others), followed closely by Kaishan and the Liequan. A force filled with grief, indignation, determination, and last hope roared out of the camp like a flood bursting its banks, rushing towards the Wolf Tribe's army that was setting fire to and destroying the fields!
Xueya sat astride his horse, sneering as he admired his "masterpiece," anticipating the collapse of the Pottery Salt Tribe. He never expected their reaction to be so intense, so swift, and so resolute in its all-out attack!
Seeing the dark mass of people, their eyes filled with blood and tears, roaring as they charged forward, Xueya's sinister smile froze instantly, and he was startled. "Damn it! These cowards actually dare to come out and fight!"
He reacted quickly, immediately ordering the troops to retreat and recalling the Shichui and Duyan gangs who were setting fire to and destroying fields to prepare for battle. At the same time, he ordered the Tujiu's cavalry squad to keep watch near the Fish River. After deducting the fifty Yexiao in Wolf Fang Valley, he had about three hundred and thirty or forty men at his disposal who could be immediately deployed to the battle. This was slightly less than the enemy's, but they were all ruthless bandits who had seen blood and were willing to fight to the death.
"Brothers! They're out! Perfect! Let's send them on their way in the wilderness! Kill them!" Xueya roared, drawing his sword and dispelling the slight panic among his men caused by the enemy's desperate charge.
Two equally hostile groups, one driven by grief and indignation to Shouhu their homeland, and the other by ruthlessness to plunder and destroy, collided violently like two turbid currents!
In an instant, the sounds of clashing weapons, roars, screams, and dying cries mingled together, echoing across the plains.
The warriors of the Wolf Tribe were indeed fierce, possessing strong individual combat abilities, rich combat experience, and ruthless tactics. However, the combined forces of the Pottery Salt Tribe had a numerical advantage and, driven by the tragic mentality of "their home is half destroyed and there is nowhere to retreat," their fighting spirit was exceptionally tenacious. In particular, the warriors of the Pottery Salt Tribe headquarters and those tribesmen fueled by hatred charged forward almost recklessly. The warriors of the Hundred Crafts Tribe were skilled in using heavy weapons and possessed astonishing strength; the warriors of the Beast Taming Tribe, in conjunction with their Liequan, were agile and cunning, specializing in attacking the lower body and flanks.
The battlefield was deadlocked, with every inch of land fought for and bloodshed taking place. People fell one after another: the fierce bandits of the Wolf Tribe, the warriors of the Pottery Salt Tribe, and even those boys with innocent faces who gripped Shimao tightly.
Xueya, protected by his guards, charged left and right, cutting down two charging Pottery Salt Tribe warriors, but was also shocked by their fearlessness. Kaishan wielded a heavy Shichui, causing chaos and defeat for the Wolf Tribe men and horses wherever he went; Liequan, with several ferocious Liequan, specifically targeted lone enemies, causing considerable confusion.
The battle lasted for about an hour, with both sides trading blows back and forth for several rounds, neither able to completely defeat the other. More than eighty corpses were left on the battlefield (about forty on each side), and many more wounded soldiers groaned in pools of blood.
Blood stained the land, cooling some of the madness. Both sides felt exhausted, and the fear brought by the death and injury began to spread. The Wolf Tribe was indeed brave, but seeing their familiar companions fall one after another, their offensive gradually slowed down; the Pottery Salt Tribe alliance was filled with grief and indignation, but the heavy casualties also sobered them up from their initial fanaticism, making them realize that if they continued to fight like this, they might very well perish together.
Before they knew it, the sun was nearing its zenith. The fatigue and hunger following the fierce battle began to erode both sides. After a brief, wary standoff, the two wounded teams slowly disengaged and retreated toward their respective camps. The battlefield was littered with corpses, abandoned weapons, and still-wet blood, and the air was thick with the stench of blood and burnt flesh.
Xueya returned to the temporary camp with a grim face, counting the number of men, his heart bleeding. Although most of the dead were newcomers, they were also the capital for his expansion. Jia Li's losses were probably even greater, but judging from the desperate fighting spirit of the enemy, they were clearly not completely defeated yet.
Supported by Biaotou(bodyguard) and personal guards, Jia Li retreated into the camp. Looking at the mostly wounded warriors around him, and the burned ruins and ravaged rice paddies outside the camp, he was filled with grief and indignation. But he knew that the Wolf Tribe would definitely come back that afternoon, and might even launch an even fiercer attack.
We must seize this brief respite!
"Quickly! Send the fastest boat to the Fish Tribe immediately!" Jia Li hissed to a trusted aide. "Stop begging! Tell Canglan to go to the Fish Tribe! The Wolf Tribe is plundering! Our Pottery Salt Tribe is fighting to the death! If the Fish Tribe doesn't come to our aid, once our tribe is destroyed, the Wolf Tribe's next target will be all the tribes along the Fish River! We're all in this together, so beg them to send reinforcements immediately! Right now!"
He had to make the Fish Tribe realize that sitting idly by and watching the tigers fight might just lead to their own demise! This was his last hope. His trusted confidant accepted the order and immediately selected a few tribesmen most familiar with the water. They boarded a light and fast Muzhou and rushed headlong down the stream toward the main channel of the Fish River.
Xueya also saw the fleeing Xiaozhou in the camp; he knew it was going to call for help. However, the Wolf Tribe's blockade had just been breached by Jia Li in a single battle, leaving them powerless to intercept it. He could only spit in frustration and order the Tujiu cavalry to strengthen their surveillance of the Fish River, while urging the cooks in the camp to prepare food immediately so that the warriors could recover their strength as quickly as possible.
A brief but bloody midday silence enveloped the land ravaged by flames and blood. Both sides were catching their breath, preparing for the next, even more brutal clash.