Chapter 356: Last Operation!
Hong long!
In an instant, the Great Tang cavalrymen who were charging for Iron Cloak Li abruptly scattered in all directions.
Every single one of them chose a different direction, and even Wang Chong was fleeing frantically as well.
This abrupt scene left everyone dumbfounded.
"They are escaping! Don't allow them to escape!"
"Block their path of escape!"
"Great job, chief!"...
The highwaymen shouted excitedly. Their chief was truly strong, as expected of him!
Those cavalrymen had slaughtered many of their brothers, and even Hu Lang had fallen at their hands. Yet, the chief single-handedly destroyed them and sent them fleeing.
He was indeed incredible!
"Brothers, we have to speed up! We have to help chief clear them up!"
The highwaymen immediately felt their bloodthirst flaring.
As highwaymen, they weren't as disciplined as military soldiers. Thus, in the face of trouble, they would find their morale plummeting easily, and they were more prone to giving up as well. But on the other hand, if they perceived themselves to be in the upper hand, their ferocity and fighting prowess would be amplified.
"Kill them!"
Deafening shouts shook the forest as the highwaymen picked up their pace.
"Hmph. It seems like those fellows still have their uses!" Iron Cloak Li gazed at the highwaymen and bandits rushing in from all directions, and his tightly-knitted brow finally soothed slightly.
He turned his gaze to the fleeing cavalrymen and sneered coldly. To only think about escaping now, wasn't it too late for that?
Hu Lang might have gauged the prowess of the enemy inaccurately, resulting in their tragic loss, but there was one thing he did right.
He had sent thirty elites to block Wang Chong's escape road.
Those cavalrymen had nowhere to escape to.
Weng!
Just as Iron Cloak Li was about to join the pursuit himself, an abrupt change occurred. Before everyone's shocked gazes, the escaping cavalrymen suddenly turned around and charged at Iron Cloak Li.
Hong long long!
In an instant, the thirty cavalrymen had reached the peak of their speed.
Not only so, the formation of the thirty cavalrymen also swiftly changed in the midst of their charge. The seemingly chaotic positioning was gradually unfolding into a clear echelon formation.
Taking a closer look, there were eight rows, each with a slightly different number of people.
Even Wang Chong himself had joined the formation so as to compensate for the loss of manpower.
"What is going on?"
"What are they trying to do?"
The highwaymen were stunned. They thought that Wang Chong and the others were fleeing out of fear of their chief, so they had focused their efforts on tightening their encirclement and preventing them from escaping.
But who could have thought that they would actually make a turnaround all of a sudden and charge back in?
"What are you waiting for? They are attempting to kill chief! Hurry up and stop them!" A loud bellow shattered the momentary silence. Chang Dao whipped his steed furiously as he sped forward furiously.
Of all the people here, he was the only one who sensed that Iron Cloak Li was in danger.
Without a doubt, the Great Tang cavalrymen were intending to use their numerical advantage to deal with the chief with their charge. Even though Iron Cloak Li was able to easily deal with ten True Martial realm experts back on the mountain, it was hard to say whether he could do the same for thirty well-coordinated cavalrymen.
Hong long long!
On the horseback, Wang Chong was glaring at Iron Cloak Li with a slightly lowered posture.
He knew that they were in an extremely dire situation at the moment. Whether it was Xu Gan and Huang Yongtu, or him and Bai Siling, they were tightly encircled and knee-deep in danger.
Iron Cloak Li had single-handedly ruined the plans he had prepared with brute force and turned the tides of battle.
If Wang Chong wanted to reverse the situation, there was only one solution: Kill Iron Cloak Li!
He was the crux to everything!
As long as he was dead, the morale of the highwaymen would immediately crumble, and those powers whom Iron Cloak Li had rallied together would fall apart as well.
This was simply how highwaymen and bandits operated. They preyed on the weak and feared the strong. Should they feel that they were in a disadvantageous position, their natural instinct would be to flee as far as they could.
The idea of upholding one's honor and fighting to the last man standing was something that could never happen among them.
"Siling, are you prepared?" Wang Chong asked with a hushed voice.
"I am!" Sitting in front of Wang Chong, Bai Siling clenched her jaws tightly, and a sliver of determination flashed across her eyes.
Even if Wang Chong hadn't said a single word, she knew that they didn't have much time. She would only have a single strike.
This was the final opportunity they had to reverse the situation.
If they couldn't kill Iron Cloak Li by the time the highwaymen converged on them, death would be what awaited them.
Neighhhhh!
With the disposition of warriors treading on a path of no return, the cavalrymen charged furiously at Iron Cloak Li.
In that instant, the atmosphere was incomparably tense, and an air of death permeated the area.
"Hmph, allow me to quell that thought from your minds!" Iron Cloak Li's cold voice wasn't too loud, but it sounded clearly in everyone's ears.
He stood unwaveringly in the face of the huge wave of enemies he was about to face, and a powerful aura slowly rose from him.
If his enemies thought that he could be killed by just numbers, then he could only say that they were too naive.
Weng!
A black Stellar Energy chainmail wrapped all around Iron Cloak Li, and the reverberating metallic sound from it seemed to grip one's heart.
"Come!" A cold glint surfaced in his eyes.
Before the cavalrymen could even reach them, Iron Cloak Li had already rushed forward to attack the first echelon.
Boom, like a huge boulder being thrown in, Iron Cloak Li collided with the cavalrymen.
Steel spears snapped in the face of the black Stellar Energy chainmail, and bodies were sent flying by that immense force of the crush. With just a single move, Iron Cloak Li had destroyed the four cavalrymen of the first echelon.
Pained cries of the soldiers and sorrowful neighing of the steeds formed a loud cacophony, and the blood splattered lingered in the air in the form of a crimson mist. The steeds had some parts of their bodies caved in, such that even their bones were visible.
It was truly a gruesome scene.
But despite all of that, Wang Chong and the other cavalrymen continued charging forward without any hesitation. In the face of a living hell, their eyes didn't even blink in the slightest.
They had no other choice at this moment.
If they couldn't kill Iron Cloak Li now, the same fate would surely befall them eventually.
"Hmph, insects who don't know their place, you aren't a match for me!" Iron Cloak Li sneered savagely.
Boom!
Before Wang Chong could rush in, Iron Cloak Li flashed and appeared at the east face of another echelon. Boom! His steel-like fist sent even the protective armor right into the body of the steed.
His powerful Stellar Energy was struck into the side of the steed and escaped from the back of the rider.
"AHHHH!"
A dying scream echoed as blood spurted several zhang high from the hole on the rider's back, dyeing Iron Cloak Li's face red. However, this only seemed to further stimulate the savagery in his mind.
This wasn't the first time he had killed a soldier, but the feeling of being in control of a situation and governing the life and death of another never failed to trigger his excitement.
In fact, under his excitement, he could sense that his Iron Cloak was gradually approaching another breakthrough.
With a voice brimming with cold savagery, Iron Cloak Li roared, "I will kill all of you!"
Boom boom boom boom, with four consecutive explosions, Iron Cloak Li struck yet another four cavalrymen with his shoulders, elbows, and fists, and sent them flying in a particularly gruesome manner.
"Hahahaha!" Iron Cloak Li rushed for another steel echelon of cavalrymen.
He had a nimble footwork which made it hard for Wang Chong to gather the full might of thirty people to attack him simultaneously.
Iron Cloak Li might be confident, but he wasn't blinded by his own ego. Given the immense power of his Iron Cloak Technique, as long as he could maneuver around the cavalrymen continuously, he would be able to strike at the openings in their formation and kill them all easily.
Hong long long!
But just as Iron Cloak Li was headed to the next echelon, something unexpected happened. Several zhang away from where Iron Cloak Li was, an echelon suddenly made a turn and charged toward another direction
This unexpected maneuver had caught even Iron Cloak Li by surprise.
However, what was even more shocking had yet to come.
Right when the echelon disappeared, unbeknownst to even Iron Cloak Li himself, another echelon suddenly appeared behind him, and in an instant, five spears containing the full might of five cavalrymen struck him forcefully.
Peng peng peng peng! And following very closely behind, another five spears struck Iron Cloak Li from another direction.
Even though Iron Cloak Li had been making sure to remain on the move, eight spears still struck him squarely. It was as if they had rehearsed it innumerable times beforehand, and ten spears struck Iron Cloak Li squarely.
Through his commanding ability, Wang Chong was able to move the cavalrymen flexibly enough to bring out their full might even against a lone and nimble target.
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Translated by: StarveCleric
Edited by: RED