Tang Dynasty Bandits

Chapter 107 Enemies meet
If a siege didn't rely on large-scale attack vehicles, it could only be carried out by attacking like ants, consuming a large number of lives. Therefore, the attackers would often forcibly conscript large numbers of civilians as cannon fodder.

In the mountains of southern Shandong, there were not enough people to recruit, and the height and slope of the mountain cities made it difficult to use siege weapons.

But these are really not a problem for Flame Commander Zhen Ranyu.

Although Zhen Ranyu's means of attacking the city were not as good as those of her junior brother Qi Kerang, who was recognized as the best in the world in terms of offensive and defensive weapons, they seemed to be not much worse.

Facing the strongholds and strategic passes nestled in the mountains, Zhen Ranyu recruited the bravest men in his army, offered them generous rewards, and then ordered them to wear three-layered helmets with long brims instead of armor. Between the helmets, there were also silk pads for cushioning.

Then he ordered the soldiers to either climb ladders or tie their spears together to make ladders, which would be pushed to the top of the city walls by their comrades.

Since arrows, rocks, and other bullets from the city walls all fell directly on the top of the city walls, the three-layer helmets were sufficient to resist them, so the warriors rarely suffered any damage. Not wearing armor also made the warriors relatively light and agile.

Once on top of the city walls, these elite warriors, unarmored, relied on their formidable fighting power to carve out numerous breaches. As more and more warriors gained a foothold, the city fell amidst roars of deafening thunder.

By making good use of the marching formation, the Flame Army was able to advance at a considerable speed even in the mountains, and was able to launch a lightning attack like a meteor on the pass occupied by the Grass Army.

"Strange, where did the bandits get so many cavalry?"

The speaker was Bo Chulong, the last of the "Five Swords of Burning Heaven" and a descendant of the Jiuyuan Bo family.

The cavalry commander in white helmet and armor swung forward with his lance, impaling a Grass Army knight on his horse. With a swing of the foot-long blade, he slashed the horse's head off. "Not surprising, Qingqi is full of bandits. After Wang Xianzhi surrendered his head, these bandits, wanting revenge for Wang Xianzhi, naturally joined Huang Jutian's army."

This man has a tall stature, a long and narrow face, high brow arches, and a prominent aquiline nose. He looks unrestrained and calm, but also has a deep coldness.

He is one of the four great lords of the Ming Cult, the "Ghost King" Ming Shiyin, a top cavalry general comparable to Kou Qianzhi, the former deputy envoy of the Taining Army.

"Just as General Yan predicted, when we attack the city and capture the stronghold, a group of city thugs will be tailing us, plotting evil." Bo Chulong said with a smile, "With General Ming as our rearguard, even if the Yellow thief has a thousand tricks, they won't succeed. We can take his head off in the next few days!"

Ming Shiyin did not answer, but just glanced coldly at the horse armor on the horse.

Fighting in the mountains was different from fighting on the plains. Even if you had a strong horse, you had to remove the armor to save horsepower. However, if you faced a powerful enemy, you still had to quickly put the armor back on your horse and fight fully equipped.

He just came from the city of Xuzhou not long ago.

Having been forced to open the treasury just the previous year by Qi Kerang, the Snow Commander, this time the Ganhua Army Jiedushi Zhi Xian refused to allow the Yan Commander's troops into the city to rest, instead offering them cattle and wine as a reward. Zhen Ranyu, eager to fight Huang Chao, ignored the accusations and allowed his soldiers to enjoy the wine and food before continuing their march north.

But the city of Xuzhou did bring back many old memories for Ming Shiyin.

He once led his troops here to kill the wife of his former good brother, and that good brother also seemed to have died in the chaos.

But when the mountain wind whistled past, blowing the long-lost smell of blood into Ming Shiyin's nostrils, he still felt a breath of fate.

Sometimes, he really hoped that Ge Jian and the others were still alive.

If you ask him whether he regrets the decision he made back then, Ming Shiyin’s answer would definitely be no regrets.

He would never be willing to perish along with Pang Xun.

But he has indeed been lonely in the past ten years.

A roar like thunder suddenly came from the ravine.

The voice struck Ming Shiyin as familiar. His heart, which had been silent for years, suddenly surged with a wave of shock.

Ming Shiyin stared intently at his old friend who was riding towards him: "Brother Ge... no, King Yi, it's been a long time!"

Ge Jian held a painted halberd that shone like lightning, looking up to the sky and laughing loudly: "You know I'm not dead yet!"

"I'm truly sorry for what happened in Xuzhou. On the battlefield, swords have no mercy. Your Madam's death was absolutely not my wish."

The two became enemies, and Ming Shiyin could no longer call him brother.

"But I always remember that I am the Ghost King of the Holy Religion!" Ming Shiyin suddenly said, "Over the years, my religion is no longer so ostracized. The imperial court has tacitly allowed my followers to establish markets in some cities in the Central Plains. You should know these things."

Ge Jian said coldly, "Ming Shiyin, are you saying that all this is the work of a traitor like you?"

"Our sect doesn't need a leader. As long as there's no leader, there's not much difference between the Ming Cult and Buddhism or Taoism."

"But if the likes of Zhang Jue of the Taiping Dao and Sun En of the Tianshi Dao succeed, the harm they inflict will be a hundred times greater than that of a tyrant! King Yi must have heard from Sect Leader Pang Xun about how our sect was suppressed and massacred by the Arab Empire in the West."

"The leader of the Arab Empire, named Hailifan, controls both civil affairs and religious authority, a legacy passed down from generation to generation. He is extravagant and lustful, surpassing even the kings of Jie and Zhou. The people are being oppressed and tortured by him, their suffering unbearable, with no words to express their discontent."

"My teachings are meant to light a bright light for the people, not to usurp the throne. What Master Pang did in the past was profoundly wrong."

Ge Jian just listened to Ming Shiyin's words silently, and after he finished speaking, he laughed out loud.

"Ming Shiyin, you speak so righteously that I almost believed you!"

Ge Jian's voice suddenly fell silent, as if he was recalling the past: "I don't care about the teachings of the Ming Cult. I just want to live a life of eating meat and drinking wine with my brothers."

"I know that Master Pang died because of you, and my beloved wife also died at your hands. If you only want to save your own life, either run away or surrender to the enemy, then at most I will say that you have no sense of loyalty."

"But you worked tirelessly for the imperial court, marched to capture Xuzhou, and slaughtered your own brothers, just to end up like this, with only a hundred cavalrymen? Before I joined the sect, I already had ten times as many followers as you!"

As soon as these words were spoken, all the knights of the Grass Army behind Ge Jian burst into laughter.

Ming Shiyin showed no sign of anger. "My differences with Sect Leader Pang haven't lasted a day or two. You should know that I gave him many suggestions about starting the uprising..."

"Then you shouldn't be greedy for the positions of the four great religious kings. You should get out of here quickly like a dung ball pushed by a dung beetle!" Ge Jian roared, and he rode his horse and raised his spear, galloping up the slope like a whirlwind. Wherever his horse's hooves stepped on, the grass bent with the wind.

"Ming Shiyin, I will kill you today!"

The armored knights around Ming Shiyin had already put on their horse armor and were surrounding and killing Ge Jian.

But Ge Jian's long spear was swung across the sky, and purple lightning flashed, creating afterimages all over the sky. It moved in all directions like a god, completely unpredictable. In an instant, he stabbed the throats of three armored cavalrymen, and the spear tip pierced through the neck guards and hit their necks. Blood spurted out, and they fell off the saddle and died.

"Is this the armored cavalry you carefully trained? It's nothing more than this!"

Ge Jian let out a long roar, the tip of his halberd was stained with blood, and his battle robe fluttered in the wind, as if he had the power of a god.

He endured for ten years just for today's attack from Bo Lang!
(End of this chapter)