Chapter 218: Truth!
“…”
In an instant, everyone fell silent.
Black Tortoise Peak didn’t have the support of a Princess Ni Huang and neither were they as offensively oriented as White Tiger Peak either. In fact, they didn’t even have a single master archer like Zhou Huang.
Yet, with just a shield, most of them actually managed to survive this ordeal.
Even the experts whom Marchioness Yi brought here felt that Wei Hao and the others were way too lucky.
“Young general, that person… seems like Wang Chong from the Wang Clan!”
Just as Wang Chong and Wei Hao were gathered together, no one noticed that at the top of the peak, beside a blazing campfire, a few young men with Hu characteristics along with some Han men were currently staring down with cold gazes.
The Black Tortoise Peak was exceptionally high, making it easy to survey the surrounding situation from here. They could easily spot the escaping Goguryeons and Turks spreading themselves within the forest, as well as the wolves whom the Goguryeons ordered to stall the pursuing troops.
The Turks and Goguryeons had caused quite the uproar with this assault. However, none of the gazes of these young Hu and Han were on them. Rather, their focus was on Wang Chong instead.
“Hmph, that kid sure is lucky. White Tiger is the west-most peak, closest to the capital, and exactly where the Turks and Goguryeons were focusing their efforts. Yet, he somehow managed to survive!”
By the campfire, a young Hu leader spoke coldly. The Origin Energy around him coalesced into a green Halo of Thorns and slowly began to revolve around him. Countless wolf fang arrows lay on the ground nearby but none of them managed to even get close to him.
To most, this night was no different than a nightmare. Yet, to those men standing by the campfire, this was nothing more than a small game.
Be it the Goguryeon condor snipers or Turk master archers, regardless of how thickly the arrows poured in, they were no threat to them at all.
The reason was simple. In this world, there wasn’t a single master archer alive who could threaten a true Tongluo tribe member. Members of the Tongluo tribe were the best cavalry in the world, as well as the cavalry that possessed the least fear for archers.
As the second son of great Hu General Abusi, Abutong had been learning how to grab arrows with his bare hands from young and could now easily do so even when blindfolded.
The barrage of wolf fang arrows threatening Black Tortoise Peak couldn’t harm him at all.
“Young general, it is currently chaotic now. Why don’t we…”
Beside Abutong, a young Tongluo youth made a gesture to kill, hostile intentions simmering in his eyes. Wang Chong’s memorial regarding the Hu had already made him the thorn in the eyes of all Hu. Countless Hu had been plotting how they could claim Wang Chong’s head, and this seemed to be an ideal situation for them.
“No!”
Contrary to his expectation, Abutong waved his massive hands and rejected the idea immediately.
“If I’m not mistaken, that lady beside him should be Little Marchioness Yi, the daughter of the only marchioness in Great Tang. Any woman in this country who was conferred a title of nobility and placed in command of armies is a lunatic, and that woman is a lunatic among lunatics!”
“Even I don’t have the confidence to subdue her. If our operation fails and we leave behind any evidence, the situation might backfire on us!”
Abutong replied. He was clearly wary of Marchioness Yi. Different from Wang Chong, she was a true expert who was reputable even among the geniuses of the capital.
“But young general, do we just let this matter go?”
The Tongluo youth replied indignantly. Tongluo men had always prided themselves on their feral and aggressive nature, and tolerance wasn’t their style of doing things.
“Hmph, let the matter go? How is that possible! Why do you think I chose this Kunwu Training Camp when I could have gone to Shenwei Training Camp instead? The days are long, and there will be plenty of chances to deal with this Wang Chong in the future!”
Abutong sneered as he flung his sleeves backward and returned back into the hall on top of Black Tortoise Peak.
The battle at Azure Dragon Peak ended around the same time as that of Black Tortoise Peak. And by the time Wang Chong arrived, the attacking Goguryeons and Turks had already received the news and left.
The four peaks of Kunwu Training Camp were built from the very start with the intention of supporting one another.
In truth, the battle had already ended from the moment that White Tiger Peak triumphed over their enemies! At the time, the tides had already changed, and no matter how indignant the Goguryeons and Turks were, they could only flee in disappointment.
“It’s finally over!”
Below the Azure Dragon Peak, Wang Chong wore a pallid appearance. He panted deeply as he supported himself with his hands on his knees. The battle had lasted a long time, while he’d been running around without a break the whole time. Now that he could finally take a breather, he found his Origin Energy and stamina were nearly depleted.
Were it not for the additional benefit of enhancing his Bane of the Battlefield slaying the Goguryeon warriors, he wouldn’t have pushed himself so much.
However, it was all over now. All that was left was to sweep the entire area.
…
A strong mountain wind blew across the night sky.
While Wang Chong, Marchioness Yi, Wei Hao, and the other camp members were clearing the corpses and carcasses from the four peaks, no one knew that a pair of eyes had been silently observing their actions and the entire Kunwu Training Camp from the shadows.
No one knew exactly how long he had been standing there, but without a doubt, from the start to the end of the assault, there wasn’t a single detail that had managed to escape his notice.
“Are the preparations complete?”
In the darkness, a shadowy figure was standing atop a rocky prominence with his hands behind his back. His voice was authoritative and cold, and it was impossible to discern any emotions from it. A slight star-lit radiance shone upon him, allowing one to vaguely see the shape of Great Tang’s uniform.
“All preparations are ready! Quill, Imperial, Serpent, Dragon, Tortoise… All six armies stand ready. Not a single one of those master archers, warriors, or wolves will get away!”
A young man moved to kneel before that figure respectfully. His tone was composed but the content of his words was shocking.
If Wang Chong was here, he would definitely be astounded. Quill, Imperial, Serpent, Dragon, and Tortoise—they were all regiments under the Imperial Army.
Wang Chong and the others thought that the master archers had sealed all news from getting out, but the royal palace somehow seemed to have had advance knowledge.
“Very well! Relay my orders! Kill every single one of them, especially the master archers! Since the Eastern and Western Turkic Khaganates and Goguryeo sent us so many master archers and condor snipers, it’ll be a little embarrassing if we don’t accept them properly!”
The figure ordered coldly and callously.
If Zhao Qianqiu was here, he would be even more astounded. The person standing here issuing orders was the very same one who said that he would return to the capital to report to the Sage Emperor! Instead of returning to the royal palace, he was hiding here instead!
The command was swiftly relayed, and in all directions, in places where none could see, another battle raged on. This one ended much quicker than the previous assault. There was no stalemate. It was a completely one-sided slaughter.
Or perhaps, calling it as a battle was a little inaccurate. To be more exact, it was a prepared harvest.
“Lord, are we being a little too heartless here?”
The young kneeling man finally questioned after relaying the orders.
“Heartless?”
That figure perched atop a towering prominence appeared taken aback, seemingly unable to comprehend the meaning behind the young man’s words.
“Over a hundred master archers and several hundred Goguryeon warriors… In truth, this assault could have been entirely prevented. So why did we keep the news from them despite receiving earlier warnings? Those recruits are still children; they aren’t at an age to enter a battlefield yet. Aren’t we being a little too callous to them?”
The young man was involved in this matter, so he was aware of the entire proceedings.
It was due to the lack of preparation that this sudden assault caught so many off guard, resulting in massive losses. The Goguryeons and Turks had concealed their movements well; their planning being also very thorough; and their sense of timing was, in addition, excellent.
But to the Great Tang, an operation of this level wasn’t in their blind spot yet.
The Three Great Training Camps were just twenty to forty li away. At such a distance, how could the capital possibly be completely unaware of the happenings here?
In truth, there was no secrecy behind this assault in the first place. Even though the Turks were extremely careful, and the wolves were slowly slipped across the border one by one over an extremely long period of time, it was still insufficient to hide from the eyes and ears of the royal court.
Just that, the royal court intentionally concealed the matter. Not only so, they even allowed their enemies free reign, and this assault on the Three Great Training Camps was the result.
“You’re sympathizing with them?”
That person replied indifferently.
“Yes!”
The young man grit his teeth and affirmed.
“Heh, do you know of the death quota of the Three Great Training Camps?”
Weng!
The young man was initially confused when suddenly a ghastly comprehension dawned on him and his body trembled. He abruptly raised his head.
“Lord, you mean that…?”
“Hmph, do you think that I have the right to make a decision for such a huge matter?”
That person replied.
“So that means that the Sage Emperor…”
The young man’s face turned pale.
“It’s good that you understand! Only after the quota is exceeded will we step in, and currently… the number of deaths is still within the permissible range!”
The figure replied nonchalantly as he continued to observe from above. On the other hand, the young man listening to these words trembled violently, as though he was struck by a bolt of lightning.
Tongluo Tribe -> Toŋra Tribe -> They are a part of a nomadic tribe classified under Tiele.
are Turks coming from the heritage of Xiongnu.
Xiongnu is a confederation(alliance) of nomadic people who formed a powerful influence in the third century BC to late first century AD.
Note: As China has a more organized method of recording history and their records are more complete, most of the history of these tribes are transliterated and passed down in Chinese. According to Wikipedia(Chinese), in the original language, Tongluo should refer to Toŋra. However, for the sake of convenience, I’ll use the transliterated version.