My father-in-law Guan Yu, I persuaded Liu Bei to launch a surprise attack on Xiangyang at the beginn

"Such a crossbow exists in this world?"

A sense of astonishment surged through Zhuge Dan's mind, and his gaze fixed on the rows of steel behemoths in front of the Han army.

Even Gu Han's expression changed, and a hint of panic flashed in his originally arrogant eyes.

He had been living in the southern barbarians for many years and knew nothing about the weapons and equipment of the outside world.

But then I thought, we have more than forty war elephants leading the way. Even if they are strange machines, how can they stop the giant beasts from charging?
His expression quickly returned to disdain, and he waved his hand, continuing to urge the elephant troop forward.

The elephants' hooves kicked up dust as they trod the ground, and their roars carried on the wind to the Han army's ranks.

Banners fluttered in the air before the Han army's ranks.

"Grand Marshal, I believe your divine artifact is definitely not wrong."

Wei Yanchang brandished his sword, his tone as firm as iron:

"Balloon, fire!"

The command flag suddenly started waving.

Immediately afterwards, the thunderous sound of drums resounded.

"Boom-boom-boom!"

The three resounding drumbeats drowned out the roars of the elephant herd.

Deng Ai stood on the other side of the formation, his spear pointing directly at the barbarian army ahead, and shouted sharply:
"Balloon, fire!"

Orders are as firm as mountains.

Dozens of ballistae were operating simultaneously, with the soldiers in charge working together to activate the mechanisms.

"Boom boom boom!"

The deafening roars continued in unison, as if the sky itself had cracked open.

More than a hundred giant arrows, each covered with iron fletching, shot out with a piercing whistle as they hurtled towards the elephant herd.

In the blink of an eye.

The first giant arrow struck the leading war elephant head-on.

The giant arrow pierced through the iron armor of the war elephant's head, penetrating its skull with a "thud" and embedding itself in its brain.

The war elephant let out a deafening cry of agony, its massive body suddenly halted, and then crashed to the ground.

The southern barbarian soldiers on the elephant's back had no time to react and were all thrown off and run over by the elephant's body.

Simultaneously.

A hundred giant arrows followed closely behind.

Screams rose and fell as nearly forty war elephants were pierced in vital organs, some with arrows between their eyebrows, others with arrows piercing their throats, and one after another they fell to the ground and died.

Wailing cries filled the air.

This scene shocked even the battle-hardened Han soldiers.

"This weapon can even shoot down war elephants? How can there be such a powerful crossbow in this world?"

The Han soldiers were filled with astonishment, and their hands, gripping their weapons, trembled slightly.

But soon, their eyes lit up with ecstasy.

While the Han soldiers were overjoyed, the southern barbarians were plunged into terror.

As the war elephants fell one after another, they trampled each other in the chaos, crushing many of the southern barbarian soldiers into a bloody pulp.

Cries of agony and the thud of weapons hitting the ground filled the air.

The once-impressive momentum of the elephant cavalry's charge was completely disrupted, and the troops were crushed and scattered into a chaotic mess.

The arrogance and pride on Guhan's face had vanished, replaced by terror.

His eyes widened as if he were witnessing the most bizarre sight in the world.

"how is this possible?"

"How can there be a weapon in this world that can shoot through an elephant?"

"impossible!"

Finally, the first round of volleys ended.

The Han soldiers immediately reloaded their arrows.

The weakness of the ballista also became apparent at this moment.

Although powerful, it is extremely slow to change arrows.

Each giant arrow weighs tens of kilograms and requires several soldiers to lift and carry it before embedding it into the crossbow slot. The whole process takes at least half a cup of tea's time.

The long interval between the two volleys undoubtedly gave the southern barbarians a chance to catch their breath.

Gu Han suddenly snapped out of his daze, roaring and brandishing his scimitar as he shouted:

"All troops, listen to my command! Advance!"

"Take advantage of their charge to break through the enemy lines while they're changing arrows, and kill them!" Gu Han saw through the mystery weapon's true nature.

Slow arrow reloading is a fatal weakness.

Suppressing his lingering fear and calming himself, he ordered his soldiers to urge the elephant corps to continue the charge.

If they can reach the Han army's front line before the second wave of arrows, they can use the remaining elephant cavalry's momentum to overwhelm the hundreds of thousands of Han soldiers.

Even if they lose dozens of war elephants, they can still win in the end.

Under his stern shouts, the remaining war elephants of the barbarian army gradually regained their chaotic formation and launched a renewed charge, stepping over the corpses of their comrades.

It's too late.

Wei Yan had already prepared a backup plan. A cold glint flashed in his eyes as he raised his sword and pointed it directly towards the South Gate.

"Open the city gates and release our elephants!"

The orders were swiftly relayed, the command flags waved rapidly at the front of the battle, and the thunderous drumbeats rose again.

The gates of Nanli City slowly opened, and with a deafening roar, hundreds of giant beasts surged out.

War elephants!

It turned out to be the Han army's elephant corps!
This secret legion, secretly organized and built by Xiao He, has finally revealed its true form.

Wei Yan's plan had already been devised:
By severely damaging the enemy's elephant formation with ballistae, and then launching a counterattack with our own elephant regiment, we can annihilate the enemy in one fell swoop.

The Han soldiers were overjoyed at the sight, their eyes filled with excitement and astonishment.

They had never known that they had elephant soldiers, and for a moment they were all dumbfounded.

He only snapped back to reality when the officers' shouts rang out.

"Quickly clear the way and let the elephants charge!"

The soldiers regained their senses and quickly retreated to both sides, creating a wide passage for the charge.

The Han army's elephant cavalry charged through the ranks of hundreds of thousands of soldiers toward the remaining elephants of the Southern Barbarians.

The Han soldiers on the elephants held long spears, shouted loudly, and their momentum was overwhelming.

Gu Han, who was coming towards him, had a sudden change in expression, and his previously barely steadied mind completely collapsed.

"How is that possible? How can the Han army show signs of battle?"

He exclaimed in surprise, his face filled with disbelief.

At this moment, not only Guhan, but all the Nanman soldiers seemed to have seen a ghost. Their momentum of charge suddenly stopped, and their eyes were filled with despair.

late.

The Han army's war elephants had already launched a frontal assault, and the giant beast legions collided with a deafening roar that shook the plains.

Countless pieces of flesh, along with broken ivory and shattered armor plates, rose into the air, instantly staining the field red with blood.

In an instant.

Nearly forty war elephants of the southern barbarians, already frightened, were knocked to the ground. The barbarian soldiers on the elephants' backs had no time to react and were crushed into a bloody pulp.

Screams came and went.

It should be known that the war elephants of the Southern Barbarians originated from the southern regions, and were physically strong, making them the best elephant breed in the world.

The elephants used by the Han army were mostly purchased by Xiao He from various places, and their combat strength was far inferior to that of the Nanman war elephants.

But Xiao He had already anticipated this.

Therefore, he first used ballistae to severely damage the enemy elephant regiment, killing and wounding a large number of enemy elephants and plunging the remaining elephant herd into fear.

Taking advantage of the enemy elephants' distraction and disorganized formation, send out your own elephant cavalry to launch a surprise attack.

It was this ingenious double-insurance strategy that enabled them to bridge the gap in combat power and defeat the enemy in one fell swoop.

The crash has begun.

The war elephants of the southern barbarians were routed by the Han army and fled.

In this escape, the first elephant collided with the second.

In a short while, the Southern Barbarian elephant army began to fight amongst themselves.

Meanwhile, the Han army's war elephants behind them were taking advantage of the situation to crush the enemy.

The elephant cavalry thus collapsed.

now.

Gu Han was still in shock, unable to understand why Wei Yan also had an elephant troop.
Was it conjured by Xiao He?

Just as he was in a daze and confused.

The defeated war elephants ahead were charging toward him.

Gu Han suddenly regained consciousness and cried out urgently:
"Retreat! The entire army retreats!" (End of Chapter)