Chapter 532- Willing to Die
Translator: ryangohsf
Editor: Nora
When the morning sunlight shone down once again over the city walls of Guiping Pass, the battle once again played out.
The two armies that had rested for the night threw themselves without hesitation into this life or death battle.
It was obvious that the progress of the alliance army was smoother today.
The four thousand mountain barbarian soldiers looked on at the seemingly endless army; it was the first time they had doubt in their eyes. Just based on them, they could not even occupy all the space on the city wall of Guiping Pass, so they could only leave some empty spots.
Occasionally, there would be some alliance army soldiers who fearlessly climbed the walls through these empty spaces.
Shihu had no choice but to lead a firefighting squad to go along the city wall and extinguish all the dangers. Even so, there were many close calls, and they took heavy casualties.
Looking at the situation, it would be hard for them to hold on.
The numerical difference was simply enormous, and the balance of the battle started to tilt toward the alliance army.
Even the strong mountain barbarians, who employed all of their skills, could not properly face such a strong army.
Furthermore, thanks to the commands of Li Mu, the alliance army knew when to attack and retreat, coordinating well with one another. The sword-shield soldiers and archers had a tacit understanding, and the cover fire seamlessly mixed with the close combat fighting.
Although their enemies had suffered heavy casualties, Li Mu did not grow overconfident. This was the difference between a great general and a normal general.
All of a sudden, Guiping Pass teetered on the verge of collapse.
Pei Ju stood on the city wall, his expression extremely serious. Suddenly, a look of pain appeared on his face, as he stood up and arrived at Shihu's side, "General Shi, get ready to retreat!"
"What?"
The young general was covered in blood, but even the blood could not mask his shocked expression.
"I said, retreat!"
Pei Ju understood the feelings of generals like Shihu at the current moment, but he had no choice but to make the most rational decision, "Guiping Pass cannot be defended; let's not make unneeded sacrifices. Let's leave some foundation for the 1st independent division of the mountain barbarians; let's not let them disappear."
"...."
Shihu was speechless; he turned around and looked at the men who were trying so hard, as a pained expression appeared in his eyes. After this battle, the elite legion that the Lord hoped for would probably not exist.
"No." Unexpectedly, Shihu shook his head once more, as a rare smile appeared on his bloodied face, "Mister Pei, you are an important minister to the Lord. You are different from us brutes and should not fall here. I'll arrange a guards squad to escort you out."
"What about you?"
Pei Ju looked at Shihu, as his heart grew more and more uneasy.
When he heard these words, the young general actually smirked. Under the sunlight, this smile looked incredibly pure, filled with a kind of beauty that one could not turn their eyes away from.
At that moment, Shihu's heart seemed to have been cleansed.
"Mister, we are different."
Shihu turned around and looked at the horizon. Under the blood red skies was a mysterious power, directing this young mountain barbarian general, allowing him to gain an unknown comfort.
"We are warriors, mountain barbarian warriors, the most loyal soldiers of the Barbarian King." Shihu's voice was low and calm; it was like the burden in his heart was placed down and only acceptance was left.
"Mountain barbarians can only die in battle; we do not retreat!"
Shihu tightly grabbed the blade in his hand, smiling once more, "This is our destiny."
When Pei Ju heard these words, he grew emotional. At this moment, his impression of the mountain barbarians completely changed. Before this, in his eyes, especially after what Chiyou did to him, the mountain barbarians were the definition of brutish and arrogant.
But at this moment, he truly felt the elite qualities of this race.
Tenacious, courageous, resilient, not good with words, willing to self-sacrifice….
They all had good qualities in them.
This was a race that was able to earn one's respect, and they would not hang ‘loyalty and kindness’ around their mouths every day. Instead, they would show such virtues during the crucial moment.
As one said, it was easy to know but hard to execute.
To be able to do that, how elite and amazing were the mountain barbarian race?
Thinking about it, for the Lord to recruit the mountain barbarian race was definitely not a split second decision. He had probably seen through their qualities and planned the matter long ago.
Thinking about this point, Pei Ju sighed.
He did not expect himself to grow so old, to the point where bias would appear in his eyes.
Pei Ju took a glance at Shihu, as he decisively and warmly said, "Since that's the case, this old bag of bones will stay here with you all!"
"Sir, you cannot!"
Shihu, who had looked calm and composed, suddenly became panicky and anxious.
"Why not?"
Pei Ju had already made up his mind.
"Sir, you are a civil servant, ruling the land is your strength. How can you stay with us and sacrifice yourself for nothing?"
"No." Pei Ju shook his head and smiled, "General, you are wrong. My current identity is the advisor of the Guiping Pass troops. I am an actual military personnel, not some civil servant."
"But…."
Pei Ju waved his hand, "There are no buts, this is decided! General, go back to your post. Even if we die, we must make the enemy pay a heavy price. The glory of Shanhai City must be upheld."
Shihu took a close look at Pei Ju, as his eyes gave out an emotional and touched expression.
At this moment, it seemed the barrier between them had suddenly fallen, allowing them to understand each other's thoughts.
In the end, the young general did not say anything, bowing solemnly to Pei Ju before leaving. Pei Ju, on the other hand, stood on the same spot, looking out at the army outside of the city, deep in thought.
Pei Ju had not expected there to be a day when his blood would boil once more. Everything that happened in history replayed in his mind, filling him with emotions.
Remembering the past, cherishing the moments.
The nicely dressed kid, giving out young and adventurous vibes.
The air of a scholar, challenging anything he did not like.
Conquering the Turks, running the western region, gaining the title of Lord.
Sending troops to Liaodong, setting up the north Fan Town.
Remembering the waters of the river hitting the raft, the waves crashing.
Working for the Tang Dynasty, greeting the king.
Everything in the past, all of it ends in gossip and laughter.
……
Along with the motivating words of Pei Ju, the remaining mountain barbarians launched their strongest attack.
"Kill, kill kill!"
The tempo of the battlefield quickened, as the killing intent covered the heavens and spread across the wilderness.
A bunch of mountain barbarians started to sing their race’s war song. Even when facing an enemy ten times their number, they feared nothing. One by one, they threw themselves into the embrace of the death god.
They used their actions to prove their promise to the Barbarian King. The mountain barbarian soldiers would not disappoint him; they would not humiliate the glory of the legion.
Life appeared so frail at this moment.
Every moment, there would be a mountain barbarian soldier falling.
The pained Shihu had totally become a blood colored tiger, sweeping around the battlefield.
Each brother that fell made the blood red color in his eyes thicken. At the end, he showed his might, letting loose a thunderous roar.
"Ah!"
Shihu's shout made him go berserk, and his body expanded and became filled with energy.
All of a sudden, he was invincible on the battlefield; no one could stop him.
Probably because of his influence and the atmosphere, the remaining mountain barbarian soldiers also let out roars and one by one went berserk.
In a moment, their killing aurae gathered.
The attacks of the alliance army were blocked, and the entire attack route was forced to a standstill.
Such might was really alluring.
Every time the mountain barbarian went berserk, it would surprise the enemy.
Only Li Mu, who was behind the troops, let out a smile. He had heard of the berserk state of the mountain barbarians. He knew that although they became strong, it was just a last ditch effort.
If the alliance army was able to hold off this wave, victory would be in their sights.
Li Mu raised his head at the sun overhead.
It was about two hours away from noon.
Which meant that he could take down Guiping Pass earlier than expected.
On the battlefield, what mattered was the size of an army. A small number of elite soldiers could last for a moment, but they could not last for long.
This was war, not some warriors competition of martial arts.
….
The sad song at Guiping Pass still played on.
It was like even the heavens were not willing to let this army perish.
A change was about to occur.
Just as Shihu's troops entered their last leg and started to embark on their final path, on the north mountain roads of the pass, smoke bellowed and horse hooves thundered out.
"It's the Lord, the Lord is here to save us!"
The spotter at Guiping Pass saw the army that appeared outside the pass.
When Pei Ju heard these words, he felt a jolt in his heart, as he quickly turned around and looked out. The golden dragon flag was like a lighthouse, saving the boat of the mountain barbarians from getting lost.
"It really is the Lord!"
When they got the news, the mountain barbarians on the city wall cheered out. Their cheers grew louder and louder, astonishing Li Mu.
A bad premonition rose up.
"Has the variable finally appeared?"
Li Mu muttered.
….
Ouyang Shuo raised his head and looked at Guiping Pass as it grew bigger and bigger in his sight. When he saw the Shanhai City Lord Flag that waved high up on the pass, he let out a comfortable sigh.
He had led the Divine Martial Guards to rush day and night. Apart from taking care of the war horses' rest, they even ate their meals on the horses. Finally, at the last moment, they managed to reach Guiping Pass.