The Horse Tribe's Response

While Xueya of the Wolf Tribe led his men to attack the Sparrow Nest Tribe, the atmosphere in the Horse Tribe's council tent was as oppressive as the sky before a storm. This was the largest tent in the entire Horse Tribe, capable of accommodating forty or fifty people to hold discussions at the same time. A circular skylight was opened in the top of the tent, and in the center of the tent, the Horse Tribe's leader Junfeng, sat in the main seat.

He was in his forties, in the prime of his life. He wasn't particularly tall, but he was strong and sturdy. Years of riding horses had made his legs slightly bent, but his back was straight. His face was dark and rough from the winds of the grasslands. His eyes weren't large, but they were as sharp as a hawk's. At this moment, suppressed anger was burning in those eyes.

To Junfeng's right sat several core leaders of the Horse Tribe — Chidian, Taxue, Zhuiying, Muyun, and Jiangsuo. These five were the most elite cavalry commanders of the Horse Tribe, each with a hundred skilled riders under their command.

To the left were several elders of the tribe. They no longer participated in the battles directly, but Junfeng would still listen to their opinions on major decisions. The tent flap was lifted, and a warrior led Tengjiao, the chief of the Great Grass Vine Tribe, in. Tengjiao's appearance made everyone present gasp.

This once strong and sturdy man now looked ten years older. His hair was disheveled, his face was covered in dust and tear stains, and his leather armor was stained with dried blood—not his own, but that of his people. His eyes were red and swollen, and his eye sockets were sunken. He looked like a withered tree struck by lightning. Junfeng stood up, walked over quickly, and personally supported the swaying Tengjiao.

"Brother Tengjiao," Junfeng's voice was low and heavy, "Please sit down and tell everyone what happened to you."

Tengjiao was helped to sit down on a leather cushion. He looked up at Junfeng and the familiar faces in the tent. His lips trembled violently, and he couldn't speak for a moment. Junfeng didn't urge him. After a while, Tengjiao finally managed to speak.

"Chief, esteemed leaders, elders..." His voice was hoarse, as if forced out from his throat, "The Wolf Tribe... the Wolf Tribe has arrived."

The tent was completely silent.

"Three days ago," Tengjiao said slowly, his eyes vacant, as if recalling a nightmare, "They arrived before dawn, about... about nine hundred people."

Around nine hundred people. This number caused the leaders to exchange glances. Chidian frowned, Zhuiying clenched his fist.

"They have cavalry," Tengjiao continued. "A lot of cavalry. When we broke out, they had at least four hundred horses surrounding and attacking us."

"Four hundred cavalrymen?" Junfeng's eyes narrowed.

"Yes, at least four hundred." Tengjiao nodded firmly. "Their leader, the one with the scar on his face... his name is Xueya. The Wolf Tribe stormed into the stables first and stole dozens of our horses. Luckily, we got a heads-up and hid dozens of our best horses behind the wooden hut beforehand..."

His voice suddenly choked up as he said this, "I led my men to break through the encirclement, but they surrounded and killed most of them. Only I and three brothers escaped..."

He lowered his head, his shoulders heaving violently.

"My people... my wife, my two children, my people... they're all in the camp..."

Junfeng closed his eyes and took a deep breath.

Silence filled the tent; no one spoke except for the suppressed sobs of Tengjiao echoing in the air. After a long while, Tengjiao finally calmed down, raised his head, and looked at Junfeng with tears streaming down his face.

"Chief Junfeng," his voice was hoarse and sorrowful, "The people of the Wolf Tribe kill indiscriminately, sparing no one—the old, women, children, none of them! Please, you must bring us justice!"

He suddenly knelt down, repeatedly banging his forehead heavily against the animal skin blanket.

"I beg you! Please avenge us! My life, Tengjiao's life, belongs to the Horse Tribe from this day forward! I'll be your ox or your horse, I'll feed you horses for the rest of my life, I just beg you..." His voice was completely hoarse, "I just beg you not to let my people die in vain!"

Junfeng suddenly stood up, strode over to Tengjiao, bent down and helped him up.

"Brother Tengjiao," Junfeng's voice was deep, yet carried an undeniable power, "You're right. The Great Grass Vine Tribe has been dependent on our Horse Tribe for over ten years, offering the best foals every year without fail. Your grudge is the Horse Tribe's grudge."

He looked into Tengjiao's swollen eyes and said, word by word, "I will avenge you."

Tengjiao was stunned, then knelt down and kowtowed repeatedly in gratitude. Junfeng gestured for the soldiers to help Tengjiao down to rest. After the tent flap fell, he returned to his seat and glanced at everyone present.

"We all heard that." His voice wasn't loud, but everyone heard him clearly. "The Wolf Tribe, nine hundred strong, including four hundred cavalry, wiped out the Great Grass Vine three days ago."

He paused. "Anything else? Does anyone know anything else?"

No sooner had he finished speaking than a man suddenly stood up. His Xiao Matou, and he was originally the leader of the Horse Horn Tribe and Junfeng's sworn brother.

"Brother!" Xiao Matou's voice trembled with excitement, but he emphasized each word, "This time, it's definitely not just the Great Grass Vine tribe that's suffering!"

All eyes were on him.

"This spring," Xiao Matou took a deep breath, trying to calm himself, "the Fire Tribe came here to trade for ponies, and I had a long talk with the Fire Tribe Jianya chieftain."

He paused for a moment before speaking.

"The Jianya leader told me that last year, the Wolf Tribe had been raiding and plundering many small tribes in the west, taking several hundred able-bodied men with them. Later, they tried to continue their raids, but were surrounded and annihilated by the Fire Tribe and other tribes at the Yellow Leaf Camp. Their main force was almost completely wiped out."

"I never expected these beasts from the Wolf Tribe to actually come all the way to our north! They even kidnapped so many people and stole so many horses!"

He raised his head and looked directly into Junfeng's eyes. "Brother! We absolutely cannot let him escape this time! The Wolf Tribe is like a venomous snake; even if you cut off a piece of it, it will heal and come back! Only by smashing its entire head can we eliminate the threat forever!"

"Well said!" A rough voice rang out. It was Chidian, the bravest cavalry leader of the Horse Tribe. He was in his early forties, with a full beard and hands as rough as old tree bark.

He stood up and strode to the center of the tent. "Chief, Xiao Matou is right. The Wolf Tribe has come with overwhelming force this time. Of their nine hundred men, four hundred are cavalry. If they can wipe out the Great Grass Vine today, they can wipe out other tribes tomorrow. Once they've taken some more men and seized enough horses, their next target will likely be our Horse Tribe!" He looked around at everyone. "Instead of waiting for them to fatten up before attacking us, let's take advantage of them before they've established themselves and crush them right here!"

"Chidian is right," Taxue chimed in. He was the most experienced leader of the Horse Tribe, in his early fifties, with graying hair, but his riding skills remained superb and his insight still sharp.

He said slowly, "The Wolf Tribe has launched a large-scale attack this time. If we can intercept their main force, defeat them in one battle, and seize all their food and supplies, then we won't even need to lift a finger. Just starving them will be enough to make them collapse and disappear."

Zhuiying nodded. "Besides, most of the people the Wolf Tribe brought were infantry. How could two legs outrun four of us?"

Muyun, the youngest of the leaders, was only in his early thirties. He was impatient and couldn't contain himself any longer. "Leader, what are we waiting for? Call the troops! I'll lead a hundred men into battle. If we don't bring back Xueya's head, I'll bring you my own!"

He tightened the Jiangsuo, not rushing to express his opinion. He looked at Junfeng and said in a deep voice, "Chief, sending troops is certain. The question is how to send them, how many, and which route to take."

Junfeng remained silent, listening quietly to each leader's opinion, his eyes calm and unreadable. After everyone finished speaking, he looked at the elders to his left. The eldest, the old shepherd Batu, slowly spoke, pausing before a chill creeping into his aged voice:

"The Wolf Tribe now has nine hundred men, four hundred of whom are cavalry," Batu analyzed slowly. "That sounds like a lot, but at least half of them are young men we've just recruited in the last few days. They haven't been trained, haven't fought any tough battles, and their equipment is poor. On the other hand, we have eight hundred cavalrymen, all of whom are old brothers who have followed us for many years. Each of them has two horses, and they move like the wind."

He paused, looking at Junfeng: "But our numbers alone are not enough."

"Not enough?" Chidian exclaimed anxiously, "Old Batu, eight hundred cavalrymen can't even defeat them?"

"It's not that we can't beat them," Batu, shaking his head.

He stretched out his withered finger and drew a line in the air. "The Wolf Tribe has infantry, so they can't run fast, but they have four hundred cavalry. If they really want to escape desperately, can our eight hundred cavalry annihilate their cavalry? Can we capture their leader? Besides, we still have people left to defend the tribe. We can only really take six hundred cavalry with us."

Chidian opened his mouth, but didn't say anything.

"So six hundred cavalrymen are far from enough," Batu said. "We need more cavalrymen, enough to surround them."

Junfeng nodded; he already had a plan in mind.

"Old Man Batu is right." He stood up, his voice Chenwen and powerful. "Six hundred cavalrymen can defeat the Wolf Tribe, but they may not be able to annihilate them completely. And this time, I want more than just to defeat them."

His gaze swept over everyone. "We want the Wolf Tribe to disappear forever."

Silence fell over the tent, then the eyes of several leaders lit up.

"Chidian immediately," Junfeng ordered, "To the five core subordinate tribes in the north."

"Yes!" Chidian straightened his back.

"Tell their leader that the Wolf Tribe has invaded the north and has already slaughtered the Great Grass Vine Tribe. Tell them to send one hundred cavalrymen from each of their tribes to come after us from behind."

"Yes!"

"Muyun, Jiangsuo," Junfeng, turning to the two young leaders. "You two stay here and guard the home with Batu and the others. I'm taking six hundred men with me; we still have two hundred cavalry at home, enough to handle the situation. The rest of you leaders, come with me."

Muyun became anxious. "Chief, I want to go with you!"

"Next time," Junfeng rarely showed a smile, "This time, let Chidian have his fill first."

Chidian winked smugly at Muyun.

Orders were passed down one after another, and the main tent bustled with activity. Several leaders went to gather manpower and prepare supplies, while the warriors ran around the camp relaying commands. Junfeng remembered what the Fire Tribe's Jianya Tooth leader had said when he came to trade for dwarf horses this spring.

"We've decimated the Wolf Tribe," Jianya said at the time. "The main force was almost completely wiped out, with only a few escaping back to High Pointed Mountain. But we still need to be careful of the Wolf Tribe."

Junfeng didn't pay much attention at the time, but he didn't expect that less than a year later, Xueya would make a comeback in the north, and would be even more ferocious and ruthless than the one in the west last year.

"It was my carelessness," Junfeng said in a low voice.

He turned and strode out of the tent. Inside the camp, six hundred cavalrymen were assembling. These were the most elite warriors of the Horse Tribe. They had been living on horseback since they were teenagers and were highly skilled riders. Each of them could ride two horses and had a strong ability to gallop continuously. At this moment, they were checking their equipment. No one spoke, only the occasional neighing of horses and the sound of hooves pawing the ground could be heard.

Junfeng walked to his chestnut horse, which had been with him for many years and which he had raised from a foal. He stroked the smooth Zongmao on the horse's neck, and the horse affectionately nuzzled his shoulder.

"Old friend," Junfeng, "It's time to set off again."

The chestnut horse snorted, as if to say: I've been waiting for this day for a long time.

He mounted his horse, surveyed the six hundred cavalrymen before him, Junfeng a deep breath.

"Let's go!" he ordered in a deep voice.

The thunderous sound of hooves echoed as six hundred cavalrymen surged out of the camp like a tidal wave, galloping southward. Three days later, Junfeng led the six hundred cavalrymen to the Sparrow Nest Tribe. The scene before them silenced even these seasoned grassland warriors who had seen countless deaths.

The former camp was gone. The wooden fence had been toppled, the thatched huts burned down, and dried, blackened bloodstains were everywhere. A faint, acrid smell lingered in the air—the smell of burning corpses. Hundreds of bodies lay neatly piled in the center of the camp, reduced to charred skeletons. It was impossible to tell who was who. Tengjiao dismounted to examine the remains. He squatted beside a smaller skeleton—judging from its size, it must have been a child. He remained silent for a long time before slowly standing up and slamming his fist into a charred wooden stake beside him.

"Beast." He squeezed out the word through gritted teeth.

Xiao Matou stood behind him, clenching his fists. He remembered the scene when the Horse Horn Tribe was wiped out last year, and he knew all too well the heart-wrenching pain.

Junfeng quickly learned from several survivors nearby that the Wolf Tribe had left three days ago, with more than 800 people carrying a large amount of supplies, heading south. The main force of the Wolf Tribe was retreating, and with a large amount of supplies, this was the best opportunity to annihilate them.

"Pass down the order," Junfeng said in a deep voice, "Rest for an hour, feed the horses, and then continue the pursuit."

"Yes!"

The soldiers immediately sprang into action. They untied the fodder bags from their horses and fed them. They also took out dried meat and dried milk, and ate them silently with water from their water bags. Junfeng leaned against his chestnut horse, slowly chewing on a piece of hard, dry jerky.

Chidian walked over and squatted down beside him.

"Chief," Chidian in a low voice, "Reinforcements from the five affiliated tribes are on their way and should arrive near the Sparrow Nest Tribe as early as tomorrow night."

"Okay." Junfeng nodded.

"Shouldn't we... wait for them?"

Junfeng remained silent for a while.

"No need to wait," he said. "The Wolf Tribe is carrying a large amount of supplies and can't move fast. Let's catch up with them, pin them down, and not let them escape. Once reinforcements arrive, we'll attack together."

Chidian thought for a moment and nodded, "That makes sense."

He stood up, brushed the dirt off his knees, and said, "Then I'll tell the brothers to get ready; we might have to travel through the night."

Junfeng didn't speak. He looked south, in the direction the Wolf Tribe had retreated.

"Xueya," he whispered, "You can't escape."