The fiercest soldier of the border army

The firelight flickered in the wind, casting glimpses of light and shadow on the walls of the beacon tower.

About twenty dark figures wrapped in sheepskin had climbed up to the front of the ice slope, moving slowly like a flock of wild sheep foraging for food at night.

"They're coming for us!"

Cheng Feng exclaimed, "I'll go put out the fire!"

"It cannot be destroyed."

Tang Shun stopped Cheng Feng, the firelight reflecting off his face.

Calm and composed.

It puts people at ease.

The nine people, who were initially flustered, seemed to be infected by the atmosphere and quietly quieted down.

The person who originally wanted to suggest running away couldn't bring himself to say it at this critical moment.

"They came for this beacon tower."

"Their feigned approach is merely to prevent us from lighting the signal fires and then silently taking us down!"

Tang Shun explained in a deep voice, "They'll know once the fire is out."

"A typical beacon tower is garrisoned by only three to five people, but we have ten. That's enough to launch a surprise attack!"

"Let's play along!"

Tang Shun stared at the group of dark figures without blinking.

He knew that if he put out the fire now, the enemy would become more alert.

The weather was cold, and within an hour, a thin layer of ice had formed on the north slope where water had just been poured.

Once they get onto the ice slope and slip, that will be the perfect opportunity.

Tang Shun lowered his voice, "Bow the bow, draw the sword, and hide yourself."

The nine men immediately lay prone against the wall, aimed their bows and arrows at the north slope, placed their hands on the hilts of their swords, and suppressed their breathing into thin streams.

The flock of sheep drew closer and closer, leisurely and seemingly casual, yet steadily closing in.

We were only a hundred paces away from the ice.

Sudden.

The "sheep" suddenly rolled over, shed their sheepskins, and revealed their hideous faces.

Everyone held a curved sword, crouched low, and rushed toward the beacon tower with small, quick steps!

It didn't make much noise from beginning to end.

Tang Shun and the others held their breath and gripped their weapons tightly.

The ice slope was steep and slippery; several people in front of them lost their footing and fell to the ground with a thud.

A series of muffled thuds followed.

The armored Xiongnu man in the middle was startled, realizing that he had been exposed.

Tang Shun stood up and immediately shouted, "Fire the arrows!"

Arrows pierced the air with a few whooshing sounds, and five or six people fell to the ground instantly, two of them twitching twice before going still.

"There's an ambush! Spread out!"

The armored man realized he had been tricked and roared.

The remaining people immediately dispersed, no longer traversing the icy slope, but instead rushing towards the pit and the spiked defense line.

Organized and methodical, that's elite!

"Cheng Feng, lead your men to guard the stakes; Wei Zong, go to the pit; Liang Enyi, guard the ice slope!"

The Xiongnu surrounded them from three sides, tearing away their disguise. In an instant, their battle cries pierced the quiet night.

The spiked stakes were highly effective in preventing cavalry charges, but they lost their greatest effectiveness against scattered elite Xiongnu troops.

Cheng Feng and his two companions were the first to engage in a fierce battle with the Xiongnu barbarians.

"You son of a bitch, go to hell!"

Cheng Feng roared, brandishing his broadsword with a fierce and powerful motion, instantly killing one person with a single strike.

"kill!"

The pungent smell of blood did not frighten the Xiongnu people; instead, it aroused their bestiality!

The remaining few attacked in a crisscross pattern!

The armored Xiongnu leader's eyes flashed with a fierce light, but he was not the first to charge.

Tang Shun observed the overall situation from the center and did not engage in battle immediately.

He kept a close eye on the Xiongnu leader in the shadows, knowing full well the principle of capturing the king first!

The mantis stalks the cicada, unaware of the oriole behind!

Seeing Cheng Feng fighting again, the Xiongnu chieftain, like a venomous snake spitting its tongue, quietly circled to the side and suddenly charged forward with a vicious slash!

Cheng Feng suddenly felt a chill on his back, and when he turned around, a curved blade was already slashing at his face.

"Get down!"

Tang Shun roared and charged in from the side, brandishing his sword and aiming it straight at the Xiongnu leader's forehead!

The Xiongnu leader hastily retreated, barely managing to avoid them!

But his arm was still badly slashed!

Blood instantly soaked his entire arm, flowing down his fingertips.

Cheng Feng slumped to the ground, his hands still trembling.

He watched Tang Shun's retreating figure, his lips moved, but he didn't say a word.

He then turned over again and engaged in a chaotic fight with others.

At this moment, Tang Shun was facing off against the Xiongnu leader.

Only then could I see what the other person looked like.

His hair was braided, a large iron ring pierced his nose, and he was clutching his bleeding arm, being protected by two Xiongnu subordinates.

He stared at Tang Shun fiercely, as if he wanted to devour Tang Shun alive.

Tang Shun remained silent, standing proudly, and placed the torch on the pile of pine logs.

Analyzing parameters is a tactic, but this move is a strategy.

He knew that the other party's goal was to silently remove the beacon towers; if the beacon towers were lit, everything would be in vain.

The Xiongnu leader's expression changed drastically.

The two sides negotiated in silence.

Tang Shun is gambling.

They were betting that the other side didn't want the beacon tower to be lit.

"Beep—"

Before long, a sharp bone whistle blew, and a dozen or so Xiongnu people began to slowly retreat upon hearing the sound.

Tang Shun stopped Cheng Feng from continuing the fight.

Do not pursue a desperate enemy.

The two brothers couldn't hold on.

One of them had his head smashed to pieces, but his hand was still gripping the hilt of a knife.

The other one was surrounded, and after killing two people, he was exhausted and had his throat slit with a single blow, his blood spraying a distance of ten feet.

The team of ten has dwindled to eight, and almost everyone is injured.

The enemy fled, leaving nine corpses lying across the icy slope and at the base of the wall.

The moonlight shone on the blood-stained ground, patches of red and black, like spilled paint.

"We won! We won!"

"They survived!"

"ah--"

"I killed three! That's fifteen taels!"

"I killed two, ten taels of silver, enough to send the child to a private school to learn to read!"

"It's so good to be alive!"

Once the Xiongnu had retreated a hundred paces, the seven men cheered wildly, threw down their weapons, laughed heartily, embraced each other, and jumped for joy, releasing the fear and ecstasy in their hearts.

The fire was still burning, and a gust of wind blew by, carrying the aroma of charred horse meat into the air.

The seven men looked at Tang Shun with fervent eyes!

They didn't even understand why Tang Shun would place the torch on the pine tree, but they understood when the Xiongnu retreated!

The Xiongnu were afraid that the beacon towers would be lit!

They knew in their hearts that even if they lit the beacon towers, there would be no reinforcements. In fact, if all the beacon towers in the rear were to retreat to Datong City, it would be questionable whether anyone would even see them.

But the Xiongnu didn't know that.

In two battles, at the cost of two men, sixteen enemies were killed, all of them genuine Xiongnu barbarians!

Everyone received military merit rewards!

Such a squad leader is worth following!

dong... dong... dong...

Just as everyone was cheering, the ground began to tremble slightly.

The smiles on Cheng Feng and the others' faces froze.

Wei Zong's expression changed drastically, and he quickly lay down, pressing his ears tightly to the ground.

"Cavalry! They're Xiongnu cavalry!"

"At least a hundred riders!"

"A hundred Xiongnu cavalry?!"

"Damn it, how could a hundred riders appear at this crucial moment?!"

In an instant, everyone's face turned to despair.

Tang Shun stood up abruptly, instinctively grabbing the knife.

In the darkness of the night, in the north, tiny black dots appear on the horizon.

One, two... ten... twenty.

More than a hundred people!

The dust that rose was not sand whipped up by the wind, but dust kicked up by horses' hooves.

The dark figure drew closer, and a rumbling sound like muffled thunder could be heard.

"How much?" Cheng Feng asked in a low voice.

Wei Zong's expression changed: "Indeed, there are no fewer than a hundred people."

call out--

A wolf-tooth arrow, whistling through the air, landed squarely on the earthen platform.

shhhhh--

Immediately afterwards, a dense rain of arrows came, striking the rocks and scattering sparks.

shhhhh--

The arrows continued their momentum. After a brief pause, arrows blazing with flames streaked across the night sky, heading straight for the beacon tower...