Tang Dynasty Bandits

Chapter 108: I only wish to die on the same day of the same month of the same year

The fact that Ge Jian was able to kill three armored cavalrymen under Ming Shiyin in a row does not mean that the armored cavalry trained by Ming Shiyin are vulnerable.

Not everyone is a fierce warrior like Ge Jian who can penetrate armor and hit vital points and attack as fast as lightning.

On the contrary, the armored cavalry were like prehistoric beasts in front of the grass army infantry and light cavalry.

When Ge Dan rushed into the iron cavalry formation of Ming Shiyin alone, the Cao Army cavalry commanded by the brothers Zhu Wen and Zhu Cun also relied on the opposite hillside to deploy to both wings.

Besides the two cavalry commanders, Tian Jun and Huo Cun, there were also cavalry commanders Qin Yan, Bi Shiduo, Li Chongba, Xu Qing, and Chang Hong, all of whom were originally from Wang Xianzhi's army. Together with the roving bandits from Lu, the total number of troops was 2,000 to 3,000.

But if these cavalrymen were to face Ming Shiyin's troops, they would die if they were hit, and would die if they were bruised and injured.

The armored cavalry, including the men and horses, were packed tightly like boxes, leaving no room for maneuver and making it difficult to break through their defenses. The tall and powerful enemy cavalry swept down with their spears, but the force was immense.

There were many trenches and ditches in the hills, and although the light cavalry of the Grass Army could advance through them, it was difficult for them to leap and attack, and they missed the target, and when they reached the front of the enemy, they became increasingly exhausted.

Nearly a thousand official cavalrymen led by Bo Chulong, one of the "Five Swords of Burning Sky", also dispersed to cover the two wings of Ming Shiyin's troops and fought against the Cao army cavalry.

Li Chongba, a general of the Cao army, wore a white uniform, a light-colored two-clang armor, and a two-foot-long iron ring sword on his back. He shouted to the government troops, "This is truly a good battlefield! Even if I die here, my life will not be in vain!"

After saying this, he entered the battle line, thrusting his spear into the enemy, as if he were striking fruits from a tree, and knocked five or six cavalrymen of the Yanshuai army off their horses.

Just as Li Zhongba was charging forward, enjoying a killing spree, he heard Bo Chulong roar, "Fire!"

From nowhere, a large crossbow arrow, as thick as a child's arm, shot through the air like a spear. The powerful impact directly pierced a knight of the government army, then broke through Li Zhongba's heart guard and pierced his chest.

Blood spurted from Li Chongba's mouth and he fell off his horse in an instant. His followers rushed to grab him back, but he was as thin as gold paper and could not survive.

It turned out that Li Chongba's bravery had long been a target of the enemy. Yan General Zhen Ranyu's troops were accustomed to using bows and crossbows. Ordinary bows and arrows were difficult to penetrate the thick armor of the cavalry commanders, so Bo Chulong set up several heavy crossbows to fire at Li Chongba as he engaged his own cavalry.

Li Chongba never expected that Bo Chulong didn't care about the lives of his own soldiers at all. He was not prepared enough and was shot through the heart by an arrow.

"Brothers, I'm going to see Alliance Leader Wang to avenge me!"

After leaving these generous words, Li Chongba closed his eyes and died.

Zhu Wen sighed, "It's a pity that my senior brother Meng Kai isn't here. Otherwise, let alone Bo Chulong, even Ming Shiyin wouldn't be worth mentioning."

Qin Yan, Bi Shiduo, Xu Xing and Chang Hong looked at each other, obviously dissatisfied.

"What nonsense is General Zhu talking about?" Qin Yan said angrily, "Could it be that Li Chongba died in battle, and I, the Qin, am afraid of death?"

After saying this, he rode forward, like a flash of lightning, and went straight to the center of Gai, where he had a fierce battle with Bo Chulong. Their spears collided, and the killing was so fierce that the sky fell to the ground and golden lotuses emerged from the ground.

Qin Yan was more alert than Li Chongba. He dodged the enemy's sudden attack with bows and crossbows by retreating his horse. However, he also lost his fighting spirit. Facing Bo Chulong's fierce attack, he was unable to withstand it and rode away.

"The little brat under Marshal Yan's command is not to be underestimated in terms of martial arts." Qin Yan said indignantly.

"Tian Jun, what do you think?" Zhu Wen looked at the handsome girl next to him.

Unexpectedly, Tian Jun couldn't hold back any longer: "Just the last of the Five Burning Heaven Swords has scared you so much. Let me go up and kill you!"

Although Bo Chulong killed Li Chongba and defeated Qin Yan, Tian Jun did not take him seriously at all.

Among Kou Qianzhi's "Twenty-Eight Riders of the Nebula," Tian Jun was clearly superior to the others. During the Songzhou raid, Zhu Wen was already performing exceptionally well, even at the limit. Gao Siji, known as "Xuanwu," was wounded and fled after being struck by Zhu Wen in just three or four blows, but Tian Jun fought on foot for more than a dozen rounds, holding her ground without losing a single blow. Zhu Wen suddenly appeared, using the spear-snatching technique to wrestle away her snake spear, ultimately defeating her.

Even Marshal Xue's "Six Stars of the Southern Dipper" or Marshal Yan's "Five Swords of Burning Heaven" have never been able to match Tian Jun.

Inspired by Zhu Wen's provocation, Tian Jun put on his helmet and armor, and with his snake spear emitting a green shadow all over the sky, he rushed out of the battle formation.

She first bent her bow and unleashed a rapid stream of four or five arrows, like a torrential downpour. Her accuracy was often lacking, so she failed to kill anyone. Her greatest achievement was wounding an enemy soldier's horse, but she missed a vital point.

But in the Central Plains, mounted archers were a rarity. Tian Jun's arrows caused the enemy cavalry to flee, creating an opening for her to charge in, from which she advanced unimpeded.

The two had already made an appointment to date, and Tian Jun was now considered Zhu Wen's woman. Zhu Wen was afraid that she would be in trouble, so he quickly rode his horse to catch up.

But it must be admitted that in cavalry battles, Tian Jun could exert much greater power than Zhu Wen.

One-on-one horse combat is one thing, but galloping forward on horseback and breaking through enemy lines is another.

In terms of unstoppable momentum, Tian Jun was arguably even more powerful than the other men. His cavalry skills, acquired since childhood and meticulously nurtured by Kou Qianzhi, had given Tian Jun, who had just turned twenty, the potential to become a top-tier cavalry general.

The government cavalry was like waves splitting apart, and were killed by Tian Jun, who rushed in and swept them with his snake spears. They were not able to match their enemy.

A crossbow arrow shot towards Tian Jun, with a force that could penetrate steel, but Tian Jun was quick-eyed and quick-handed. He swung his snake spear and the general flew away. The force was still unstoppable and directly shot down a cavalryman of the government army, along with his horse.

"You villain who stabbed me in the back, take my spear!" In a flash, Tian Jun had already killed his way to Bo Chulong.

In reality, the Flame Army was renowned for their bows and crossbows, so shooting arrows to injure people was perfectly natural. Furthermore, the grassland-style cavalry of the Twenty-Eight Riders of Xingyun were also accustomed to using hidden arrows.

But Tian Jun was used to being unreasonable, and when she stared at him with her scorching eyes, Bo Chulong couldn't help but feel frightened and timid.

The worst thing to do on the battlefield is to be cowardly. In the blink of an eye, Tian Jun had already galloped his horse to Bo Chulong's side and swept him down with his spear.

A spear pierced Bo Chulong's forearm, piercing his armor. He screamed in pain and rode away. Facing the powerful Qin Yan, Bo Chulong had previously fought without a trace of inferiority, ultimately forcing Qin Yan to retreat. How could his martial arts skills be defeated by Tian Jun in a single blow?

But on the battlefield, a hint of fear could mean the difference between life and death. Bo Chulong's momentary hesitation led to a crushing defeat in an instant.

The government cavalry hastily surrounded Tian Jun, attacking him from both sides. However, with Bo Chulong defeated and the government troops' fighting spirit gone, Tian Jun wielded his serpent spear like a flying dragon, clanging the enemy's weapons and forcing them to rein in their horses to avoid his attack.

At this moment, golden sunlight poured down, emitting a glazed glow on the two dragon horns on the top of Tian Jun's helmet, which made her look even more heroic, and she really looked like a dragon girl in heaven.

Zhu Wen's heart moved, and he thought that this four-legged snake really had some of the aura of "Little Dragon Girl".

The Great Xia Dragon Sparrow Sword in his hand swept across, beheading a cavalryman and rushing to Tian Jun's side: "Sister Jun, I'm here to help you!"

The long sword left no marks, but the blood-red light surged, forcing the knights besieging Tian Jun to retreat like a tide without daring to confront it.

During the battle, Tian Jun heard Zhu Wen call her "Jun Mei" in public, and she couldn't help but feel both shy and happy, and her dark face also showed a clear blush. But both armies were just rough soldiers, and no one noticed the subtle emotions.

Due to the fierce fighting of Tian Jun and Zhu Wen, one wing of Ming Shiyin's armored cavalry was exposed.

If ordinary grass army cavalry faced the indestructible armored cavalry, it would be like an ant gnawing on an elephant, but brave generals like Tian Jun and Zhu Wen undoubtedly had the means to kill the armored cavalry.

So the armored cavalry at the edge had to turn their attention to the two of them and Qin Yan, Bi Shiduo and others who followed them.

Ge Jian, who was charging hard among the armored cavalry, suddenly felt the pressure relieved.

Besieged by a hundred armored cavalrymen, Ge Jian had only managed to strike first. By the time the armored cavalrymen reacted, even though Ge Jian was incredibly brave and familiar with Ming Shiyin's military training methods, he was still struggling, and soon he had sustained several wounds all over his body.

If Ming Shiyin's armored knights were not typical Central Plains knights, not good at riding and shooting, and had not shot a few armor-piercing heavy arrows at Ge Jian, Ge Jian would have been dead by now.

However, Zhu Wen and Tian Jun led their troops to drive back Bo Chulong's troops, which relieved some of the pressure on Ge Jian. This made Ge Jian's heart surge with courage. With a roar, he swung his spear and cut off the head of another armored cavalryman, and he had already killed Ming Shiyin!
"Come and die!" Ge Jian said with gritted teeth.

"It's not like we haven't fought before, and each time it was a 50-50 fight." Ming Shiyin sighed, "Even though you've come to me now, you've been badly injured. How can you be so confident that you can kill me?"

After he finished speaking, he thrust his spear towards Ge Jian.

Ge Jian's long spear was waving, purple lightning was everywhere, and it collided with Ming Shiyin's spear and halberd, sparks flying everywhere.

With one blow, blood spurted out of Ge Jian's mouth!

"You are injured and you are no match for me now. Go back, I don't want to kill you." Ming Shiyin looked a little melancholy.

"Then do you still remember the oath we made in the past?" Ge Jian wiped the blood from his mouth with his sleeve: "I don't ask to be born on the same day of the same month of the same year, but I ask to die on the same day of the same month of the same year!"

Ge Jian roared like thunder, shaking the mountains and rivers: "I'm here to keep my appointment!"

He glanced to the side and saw that the armored cavalry, who had been forced to fight their way through a bloody alley, were already approaching this side.

Among them were quite a few old brothers from the Ming Cult. Ge Jian remembered that many of them were only sixteen or seventeen years old at the time, with young faces.

If these people had not shown mercy, he would never have been able to reach Ming Shiyin.

Perhaps Ming Shiyin, his old friend, needs relief just like himself.

Ge Jian raised his spear and galloped his horse, feeling the blood boiling in his body. The old scenes appeared vividly in his mind.

"Live and die together, hahahahahaha..."

Ge Jian laughed loudly, and the old horse under him, which was also wounded several times, raised its head and neighed, and together with its old master of many years, burst out with a rebellious spirit that shook the mountains and rivers.

The two horses galloped towards each other and passed each other.

Ge Jian and Ming Shiyin fell off their horses at the same time.

At that moment, both of them pierced each other's chest!

"General Ming!"

The armored cavalry under Ming Shiyin's command cried out in surprise and rushed over to carry Ming Shiyin onto his horse, while Ge Jian was stabbed by spears and blood spurted all over his body like a fountain.

"Master Pang, Big Brother Yuan... Ge Jian is here to see you. That clueless brat Ming Shiyin will be here soon, too. You should all join us in giving him a good scolding. And my wife, I'm sorry to have kept you waiting. Cong Zhou is already a handsome young man. I've taught him well. What I'm doing today is giving him his final lesson. When he grows up, he'll definitely be a man of integrity..."

"The Ming Wang is immortal, and the heart lamp lives forever."

Ge Jian muttered to himself with his last bit of strength, with a satisfied smile on his face. He raised his palms to the sky and closed his eyes calmly.

Ming Shiyin also looked at the soldiers under his command with a calm gaze.

"I don't ask to be born on the same day, month, and year, but I ask to die on the same day." Ming Shiyin said slowly, "Ge Jian, you calculated very well. If you don't make up your mind to die, I will definitely not die willingly. With Ming's personality, even if I flee in the face of battle, I will definitely survive..."

As he spoke, he was unusually calm and composed. He said to his subordinates, "You guys don't need to bother trying to save me. This general's time has come and he won't survive."

(End of this chapter)