Battle for the City Gate

"General Chen, why can't we see General Yan? With a matter of such importance to the army and the kingdom, we must see him even if we have to force our way in," Sima Heru said indignantly. He had even switched to calling him General Chen instead of Brother Haoran.

Chen Haoran naturally heard the displeasure in Sima Heru's voice, but continued with an apologetic smile. "Brother Sima, we won't be able to see General Yan today. And General Yan isn't discussing military affairs with his deputy generals right now, either."

"How do you know?" Sima Heru clearly did not believe him.

"Brother Sima, General Yan doesn't want to see me. Everything he said was just an excuse," Chen Haoran said in a low voice. Being distrusted and even pushed aside was bound to affect a person's state of mind. Even a great general was not immune.

"Brother Chen, might you be worrying too much?" Sima Heru asked, his face full of doubt.

"Brother Sima, come with me to General Yan's command tent tomorrow, and you'll understand everything that happened today!" Chen Haoran said, looking at Sima Heru.

Their discussion did not last long before Sima Heru hurriedly took his leave. Worn out from his long journey, Chen Haoran did not ask him to stay. Now that he had arrived, they could catch up whenever they liked; there was no need to do it now.

The fighting at Wuling City continued. The siege ram had been set alight with fire oil, illuminating the city gate. The bodies of Wu Kingdom soldiers lay all around it, along with a few Qian Kingdom soldiers! Battle cries still shook the heavens, and the assault went on. Atop the walls, soldiers were rushing to replenish arrows, fire oil... and men!

"Deputy General Wu, our casualties are too high. The Qian Kingdom seems to have been prepared for this all along. If this continues, we won't gain the slightest advantage. Why don't we withdraw first and devise a new siege plan?"

"No. Don't you know that if we withdraw now, the Qian Kingdom will surely pursue us while they have the advantage? Our troops will fall into chaos, and we'll have nowhere to retreat!"

"Brigadier General, are the catapults ready?"

"Reporting to Deputy General Wu, the catapults are all loaded and ready to be deployed at any time!"

"Brigadier General, sound the horn and send out the catapults! If we don't take Wuling City tonight, we'll never have another chance."

"To repay General Yan's great kindness, we must take Wuling City in this battle, even if it costs us our lives."

Rumble... A group of soldiers pushed the catapults out from deep within the forest. When they reached their assigned positions, the soldiers secured their four corners. Dozens of bare-chested men stood behind the catapults, awaiting the order to attack!

"Catapult crews, prepare!"

The bare-chested men immediately brought out enormous refined steel stones and placed them in the catapults. They cut the ropes, and gravity hurled the great stones fiercely into the air. Arcs filled with the breath of death streaked across the night sky!

Boom... A massive refined steel stone struck the wall with unerring accuracy. Rubble flew everywhere, raising clouds of dust. "Ah..." "Ah..." The Qian Kingdom soldiers' agonized cries came from within the dust. When it settled, a huge refined steel stone was lodged in the wall, and the surrounding masonry was riddled with cracks... Stone bricks kept falling from the wall, along with the bodies of Qian Kingdom soldiers...

Boom...

Boom...

The catapults hurled boulder after boulder, sending massive refined steel stones crashing into the Qian Kingdom's walls.

"Take cover! Take cover! All soldiers, get off the wall!" Commander Wan repeatedly ordered the soldiers to evade the bombardment, until every living Qian Kingdom soldier had helped another walk or tumble down from the wall.

The catapults were immensely powerful. After several volleys, Wuling City's walls were riddled with breaches, with refined steel stones of all sizes embedded in them. A great hole had also been smashed through the gate.

"All troops, charge! Kill..." Deputy General Wu sounded the call to attack once more.

By now, no living soldiers remained atop the Qian Kingdom's walls. Most had taken cover far away from them!

Through the shattered gate, Commander Wan saw the Wu Kingdom army charge and heard wave after wave of battle cries. He immediately shouted to his soldiers, "The Wu Kingdom is attacking again! Everyone, block the gate! Don't let a single one through!"

Spear in hand, the Qian Kingdom soldiers rushed toward the gate. If it fell, the people of Wuling City would be lambs to the slaughter. Most of the soldiers' families were inside the city; even if they had to block the gate with their own bodies, they would not let a single enemy through.

The soldiers had enlarged the hole in the gate a little. Shield bearers stood in front with their shields raised, while the archers and crossbowmen waited behind them! They watched the onrushing Wu Kingdom army coldly, without a trace of fear on their faces.

Only when the Wu Kingdom soldiers drew close did the gate captain give the order to fire!

"Fire!"

Whoosh... Arrows cut through the air.

A great number of Wu Kingdom soldiers tumbled from their horses, kicking up clouds of dust! Those behind them immediately filled the gap and continued charging.

"Fire!"

"Again!"

Arrows rained down on the opposing ranks, taking countless Wu Kingdom soldiers' lives. That was war: either you died or I did. If you didn't kill the other side first, there was no telling who would die in the end.

"Spearmen, prepare!" the captain shouted to the soldiers.

"Hah!..."

The spearmen gave a great shout! With firm, ringing steps, they gripped their spears and pointed them straight at the charging Wu Kingdom army. Their faces were resolute; though they knew death was certain, they showed no fear.

"Kill!..."

Shouting, the spearmen charged the approaching Wu Kingdom cavalry.

Generals died after a hundred battles; warriors never returned.

The armored warhorses crashed straight into the spearmen, and the soldiers in their saddles swung their sabers, cutting them down. Spearman after spearman was knocked off his feet, blood spraying from their mouths in arcs. The Qian Kingdom soldiers struck by the horses could no longer get up, and the warhorses trampled toward them...

With the spearmen blocking their way, the warhorses slowed. The spearmen behind immediately moved up to fill the gaps, thrusting their spears and stepping over their comrades' bodies to strike back at the Wu Kingdom. This gate was Wuling City's only line of defense. If the enemy broke through, the men in the city would be enslaved and the women forced into prostitution.

"Qian soldiers, for the sake of our Qian Kingdom's people, hold Wuling City's gate! Don't let the enemy take a single step past it! Kill..."

More and more Qian soldiers poured out of the gate, roaring as they charged the Wu soldiers. The gate was stained red with blood, and the bodies of soldiers and warhorses lay scattered across the ground. The Qian soldiers who rushed out charged onward over the corpses of their comrades and enemies alike.

Wave after wave, fearless in the face of death.

With the gate shattered, the siege had turned into a close-quarters battle. Soldiers on both sides slaughtered one another amid severed limbs, agonized cries, and the screams of warhorses.

The two armies were locked in a melee. The slightest lapse on either side would mean death at the other's hands. Both sides fought with bloodshot eyes, giving no thought to their own lives, intent only on taking those of their enemies. The bodies piled ever higher, and blood flowed across the ground, gathering into a pool. Broken weapons and mangled bodies fell into it, sending up sprays of blood...

"Brigadier General, send a detachment over the wall and into Wuling City. Make them unable to defend both head and tail," the Pojun War God said to the officer beside him.

"Yes, sir! I accept your orders!"

"Battle Formation Breaching Battalion, follow me! Kill!"

A force of Wu soldiers stepped forward, steel sabers in hand and grappling hooks on their backs. Carrying scaling ladders on their shoulders, they headed for the battlefield. The Battle Formation Breaching Battalion consisted of lightly equipped soldiers whose sole purpose was to get over the wall and cause trouble, not to get entangled with the enemy. Every one of them was battle-hardened and decisive in killing.

The battle remained deadlocked. The Wu soldiers tried to break through the gate, while the Qian soldiers defended it! Bodies were piled like small hills, and the stench of blood filled the city.

"Men, get up on the wall at once, in case the enemy takes advantage of the chaos to cross our defenses."

The Qian soldiers quickly formed human ladders to climb the wall; its stairs had all been destroyed by the catapults. As the Qian soldiers climbed onto the badly damaged wall, the Wu Kingdom's Battle Formation Breaching Battalion arrived at its foot. The Qian soldiers outside the gate saw men trying to scale the wall and shouted a warning.

As soon as the scaling ladders were in place, the nimble men of the Battle Formation Breaching Battalion climbed swiftly. The Qian soldiers who had just reached the top of the wall naturally spotted them and immediately drew their bows and shot at them. Some of the Qian soldiers picked up dislodged stone bricks and hurled them at the ladders...

The Battle Formation Breaching Battalion had nowhere to dodge, and most of its men were knocked off the ladders. The soldiers behind them immediately took their places, holding simple light shields to block the arrows and rubble falling from above.

The siege continued, with casualties on both sides.

Commander Cao had by now settled the panicked residents. He was leading a large force toward the gate at top speed.

"Deputy General, the Wu Kingdom is attacking the city without regard for the consequences this time. They must be trying to take Wuling City in one stroke. Lead your troops to reinforce the gate at once. If the gate is lost, bring me your head!"

"I accept your orders!"