Border Soldiers: My granaries are full of grain and meat, and I guard this region.

The moment the three hundred cavalrymen crashed into the barricades, Qi Feng was so shaken that he took three steps back.

He knew that this time Da Rong would not stay behind but would launch a full-scale attack, so Qi Feng did not retreat and immediately counterattacked.

The saber slashed into the foreleg of the first horse, the sharp blade severing the horse's leg bone.

Qi Feng's newly bandaged wound was torn open again, and blood flowed down the handle of the knife.

Qi Feng didn't let go. He sidestepped the fallen horse and swung his sword backhand, slashing at the second horse that followed. Horse blood splattered all over his face, hot and smelling of rust.

"Fill in! Fill in!"

Qi Feng roared, and the warriors wielding horse-slaying swords immediately rushed up from both sides.

Qi Shitou was on the far left. The blade of his knife was already chipped, but he kept slashing. If one slash wasn't enough, he would slash twice. If two slashes weren't enough, he would pounce on the rider and pull him off his horse.

Qi Xiaoliu jumped down from the wall and twisted his ankle when he landed, but he didn't realize it. He dragged his leg to the gap and used his shoulder to brace against a piece of wall soil that was about to collapse.

But the barricades were broken, and most of the sharp wooden stakes were knocked down. The remaining few were crookedly stuck in the ground, with bits of horse meat and cloth hanging on them.

The Great Rong cavalry no longer needed to slow down and detour; they could directly trample over the corpses of their comrades and charge into the village entrance.

When the first row falls, the second row can step over the corpses of the first row and rush up. The third row follows the second row, and the rest are like layers of waves, impossible to stop.

The fighting continued until Qi Feng finally managed to repel the attack. He took a step back, his heel hitting a rock. He looked down and realized that he had retreated to the old locust tree at the village entrance, with the dirt road of Qi Family Village behind him.

The earthen walls on both sides were riddled with arrows, and several soldiers on the walls lay slumped over, still clutching their bows, but no longer moving.

"Master Qi! We can't hold out any longer!" Liu Si's voice came from the top of the wall, hoarse. "We're out of arrows! Not a single one left!"

Qi Feng ignored him, turned his head to look at the village, and wiped the blood off his face.

The sounds were blurry over there, but you could still hear shouts of battle, though much weaker than before.

Qi Feng didn't know how much longer Qi Daniu could hold on, but he knew he couldn't back down now. If he retreated even one more step, the entire village would be gone.

Just as Qi Feng turned around to reorganize the frontal defense, he saw a scene that made his heart sink.

At the eastern end of the village road, several soldiers dropped their weapons and ran back. The one in the lead shouted as he ran, "We can't hold them off anymore! Run! Back to Fuxing County!"

The shout was like opening a dam; several soldiers on the wall began to jump down, and soldiers on both sides of the village road dropped their rifles and ran eastward. Some even threw away their helmets, and some cried as they ran.

In less than three breaths, at least forty or fifty people retreated, surging along the dirt road towards the east end of the village like a swarm of ants whose nest had been disturbed.

Upon seeing this, Qi Feng immediately roared, "Stop them! Zhang Yuan! Stop them!"

Zhang Yuan rushed over from the end of the village and reached out to stop the person running in front, but the person pushed him away.

Zhang Yuan stumbled two steps and crashed into the wall. The fleeing soldiers walked around him and continued running eastward.

More and more people followed behind. The soldiers who were originally shooting arrows on the wall began to hesitate when they saw their comrades running away. Some even climbed down from the top of the wall.

Qi Feng knew that if he didn't immediately stop this retreat, the entire Qi Family Village would collapse instantly!

Once all seven hundred garrison soldiers have fled, even if his dozen or so men were made of iron, they wouldn't be able to stop three hundred cavalry.

Thinking of this, Qi Feng immediately rushed to the group of defeated soldiers, grabbed the man in front by the back of his collar, and pulled him back forcefully.

Before the man could react, he was thrown to the ground. Qi Feng pressed down on his chest with one knee, raised his right hand with his saber, and without any hesitation, beheaded the man with a single stroke.

Scalding blood immediately gushed out, raining down on the faces of the fleeing soldiers around them.

Qi Feng's action caused all the fleeing soldiers behind him to stop.

Qi Feng got up and kicked the head, which had wide-open eyes and was still dead, to the side of the road.

His face was covered in blood, it was hard to tell if it was his own or someone else's. His leather armor was torn in several places, and the bandage on his right shoulder had come undone and was hanging loosely.

Qi Feng didn't speak. He glanced at the group of defeated soldiers in front of him, then looked at the Rong cavalry regrouping at the village entrance, and finally his gaze settled on the garrison soldiers on the wall who had already lowered their bows and arrows.

The atmosphere was somewhat silent.

However, Qi Feng spoke up quickly. His voice wasn't loud, but every word was clear to everyone.

"Run? Where do you think you're going?"

Qi Feng raised his finger and pointed to the Rong cavalry outside the village.

"The Rong cavalry are coming from the west, and you're running east. Can two legs outrun four?"

"It takes at least half an hour to get from Qijia Village to Fuxing County. You won't even get there in an hour and a half. You'll be caught up by the cavalry before you even reach the halfway point, and they'll cut you down from behind like chopping vegetables!"

"Look at those brothers who are already dead on the wall. They didn't run away. They died facing west, towards the direction the cavalry were charging from! They died before you, but they didn't die with their backs to the enemy!"

"Think of your wives, children, and elderly mothers in Fuxing County. If you run away, the entire Fuxing County won't be able to hold on!"

Qi Feng took two steps toward the village entrance, pointing his saber at the distant Rong cavalry. His voice suddenly rose a few decibels, no longer the suppressed calm of before, but a thunderous roar.

"I, Qi Feng, am not running away today! I'll stand here! If cavalry comes, I'll chop them down! If horses arrive, I'll kill them! Reinforcements will arrive at dawn, and Zhong Shao will personally lead troops to rescue you! If you turn back now, grab your swords and climb onto the wall, you can still live until dawn! If you run now, you won't live more than half an hour! Even if you manage to reach Fuxing County by sheer luck, what awaits you then?"

Qi Feng didn't continue, but these soldiers couldn't possibly be unaware that desertion in the face of battle was a capital offense, and would also implicate their families.

According to the laws of the Sui Dynasty, if these people really went back, they would be beheaded, and their families would be exiled.

After Qi Feng finished speaking, he suddenly turned around and faced the group of defeated soldiers, pointing the tip of his knife at them.

"I'll say it one last time: anyone who retreats will be killed! Anyone who dares to kill a barbarian will live!"

No one moved from the fleeing soldiers; everyone watched Qi Feng silently, and the entire Qi Family Village seemed to fall silent at that moment.

But the Rong cavalry wouldn't wait for them; the offensive outside the village had already been reorganized.