"It's bad, Chief! The Grant Family's army is upon us!"
Mark Zou tumbled off his bed in a panic. The shouts and sounds of killing from outside reached him instantly, and his face was filled with fear.
"Damn it, how many of them are there? We have a hundred thousand men here! Send orders immediately—annihilate the enemy!"
The Rocky Plain had descended into utter chaos. Black smoke billowed everywhere. Edward Grant rode his horse, wielding a long spear, leaving fallen bodies in his wake. Right behind him was Sebastian Zhao, whose hands gripped two short spears, swiftly and precisely stabbing into the throats of enemy soldiers.
Sebastian Zhao darted atop his horse, his pair of short spears flashing as he struck—each attack brought down another enemy.
More and more enemies fled toward the massive rear formation. Edward Grant, caught up in the frenzy of battle, roared and gave chase.
Sebastian Zhao, seeing this, immediately spurred his horse forward, circling around to intercept Edward Grant.
"Don’t pursue too far—wait for the main force to arrive."
On the hillside, the Grant Family’s army surged forward, charging in. The Zou Clan was unable to mount an effective resistance and had already fallen into disarray. Soldiers, just now awakening, scrambled for their weapons, preparing to defend against the cavalry that had shattered their vanguard—yet not a single line of cavalry pressed the attack further.
"Don’t panic! Grab your weapons—charge! The enemy’s numbers are few!"
"Fall back for now. Use the rocks for cover and attack slowly—the enemy is reorganizing for a counterattack."
Sebastian Zhao shouted, while Edward Grant’s eyes were red with fury. On the plain below the hillside, a dense mass of enemies surged forward. Behind them, the cavalry continued to cut down fleeing foes, and chaos reigned.
"All units, fall back! Dismount and prepare for battle!"
Sebastian Zhao shouted again, leading the cavalry toward the towering rocks. The Grant Family’s forces were already rushing over.
"Archers, move forward!"
Sebastian Zhao rode through the crowd, shouting orders. Immediately, rows of soldiers with bows stepped forward. When several generals approached, Sebastian Zhao gave them a meaningful glance, then swiftly rode to the left flank.
"Edward Grant, prepare for a second wave of flank attacks. When they come up, we’ll move quickly to their sides."
Many cavalry had already been lost—only about a thousand remained. Sebastian Zhao kept shouting, and Edward Grant followed, his face alight with excitement. Below the hillside, the enemy began their charge; a dense mass surged forward.
Suddenly, a rain of arrows fell from the sky. The unprepared enemy was struck down in droves. Sebastian Zhao, leading the cavalry, charged ahead at full speed.
"Keep charging! The Grant Family only has a handful of troops—push forward and seize the mountain pass!"
Mark Zou shouted, while some generals tried to persuade him to retreat for now, regroup, and then attack again. But the situation was already out of control.
The Zou Clan’s troops kept charging forward, only to fall under the rain of arrows. Soon, some soldiers began to flee, and Mark Zou started to panic.
"The Grant Family’s cavalry is coming from our right—get the trip ropes ready!"
A general shouted. Edward Grant had already charged into the enemy’s right flank, swinging his long spear. More cavalry followed, cutting through the ranks. Sebastian Zhao moved swiftly along the enemy’s right, searching for the Zou Clan’s chief. Enemy cavalry kept pouring in, many tripped by the ropes, and as soon as they fell, surrounding soldiers swarmed and stabbed the fallen riders until they were riddled with wounds.
Edward Grant was surrounded. Enemies kept thrusting their spears at him. Suddenly, his horse was stabbed in the belly and went berserk. Seeing this, Sebastian Zhao rushed over, dodging two attacking spears with a sideways maneuver. He blocked one with a short spear, while the other swept across two enemies’ throats.
With a ripping sound, Sebastian Zhao untied the rope securing his body. His horse had been stabbed and collapsed from exhaustion. He flipped off the saddle, leaping high toward Edward Grant. As he landed, his two short spears stabbed into the bellies of two enemies. He rolled away, dodging attacks, grabbed a stone hammer, and sprang up, smashing it into an enemy’s jaw.
"Edward Grant, retreat! Get ready!"
Sebastian Zhao shouted. Edward Grant fought fiercely in the crowd, swinging his long spear with force. The enemy, now gripped by fear, dared not approach.
The Grant Family’s forces had charged down and were now locked in fierce combat with the enemy. The battlefield was out of control—there was nothing but relentless fighting.
A sword thrust directly at Sebastian Zhao, but his eyes never left Edward Grant, who was still surrounded.
"Give the order—no matter what, Edward Grant must be killed!"
When Mark Zou learned that Edward Grant had broken through to his army’s right flank, he shouted at once, and several generals galloped off.
In a flash, Sebastian Zhao dodged the sword thrust, closed in on his opponent, grabbed the enemy’s wrist, and snatched the sword away. He drove the blade upward into the enemy’s jaw, then used the body as a shield against arrows. Releasing his grip, Sebastian Zhao leapt, rolling across the back of the fallen enemy to evade several spears. He drew a dagger from his belt and, as he landed, stabbed it between an enemy’s thighs.
The blood-crazed enemies quickly surrounded Sebastian Zhao. The cavalry was nearly wiped out, constantly picked off by the enemy. Edward Grant was wounded, crouching and swinging his long spear with force, while enemies cautiously tried to approach.
Distant horse screams echoed as the enemy parted. Using one foe as a shield against attacks from behind, Sebastian Zhao rolled, slashed two enemies’ throats with his dagger, and rushed toward Edward Grant.
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A general wielding a massive hammer charged toward Edward Grant on horseback. Sebastian Zhao glanced back. On the hillside, the Grant Family’s army had broken into the enemy’s main force. The right flank was in chaos, but the enemy’s numbers were still overwhelming, all because of Edward Grant.
"Come on, you bastards! Come on!"
Edward Grant roared, surrounded by corpses. A fast horse closed in on him, its rider—a general—swinging a massive hammer down.
Just as Edward Grant saw it, it was too late—Sebastian Zhao threw himself at Edward, knocking him aside as the hammer swept past his face with a whoosh.
With a sudden leap, Sebastian Zhao grabbed the horse’s tail. In midair, he reversed his grip on his dagger, and as soon as he landed on the horse’s back, he stabbed it into the rider’s neck, but was thrown off himself.
Columns of cavalry charged over. Sebastian Zhao’s legs were growing weak, but after getting to his feet, he quickly returned to Edward Grant’s side as enemies began to close in.
"I told you already—don’t be so reckless!"
Sebastian Zhao barked, wiping blood from his forehead. Edward Grant smiled, raising his long spear.
"I didn’t expect you to be so strong. We’re sure to win this war."
Edward Grant’s voice grew louder, causing the surrounding soldiers to panic. The Grant Family’s army was like a sharp blade, thrust into the enemy’s ranks. The enemy began to flee.
"A thousand pounds of grain for Edward Grant’s head!"
At the shout, enemies swarmed in again. Sebastian Zhao picked up two swords, gripping them tightly. In the distance, chaos erupted as the Grant Family’s second wave of cavalry charged, led by Terry Mao and Lily Mao, the brother-sister pair.
"We can’t hold out, Chief. We need to retreat—if we don’t, the Grant Family will wipe us out."
Mark Zou glared viciously at the soldiers on the right, who had already begun to flee.
At last, a long horn sounded across the battlefield—the Zou Clan began to retreat.
"Terry, it’s up to you now."
Sebastian Zhao shouted. Terry Mao nodded and charged past them, leading a mass of cavalry in pursuit of the fleeing enemy.
Edward Grant stood, thrusting his spear at an enemy. The Zou Clan’s army was in full flight, the shouts of battle and cries of despair forming a stark contrast.
Meanwhile, at the Central Pass, Joseph Qiao stood atop a watchtower, bow in hand. The rumble of hooves grew louder—the enemy army was now visible, advancing steadily.
Rows of enemy soldiers held half-body wooden shields, while others carried stones on their backs. Six columns of soldiers hauled temporary wooden bridges for crossing traps.
"All units, prepare to attack!"
Joseph Qiao shouted. Behind the earthen wall, three staggered ranks of soldiers readied their arrows.
Bella Liang rode among the ranks, quietly watching the pass ahead.
"Looks like this will be a tough fight."
As she spoke, Bella Liang raised her hand. On both sides of the advancing army, cavalrymen waved small red flags. Seeing this, the front ranks allowed the stone-carrying soldiers to move forward.
Joseph Qiao quickly realized their five trench traps were precisely at the archers’ maximum range—the enemy commander was clever.
The enemy advanced slowly. As they neared the pass, the stone-carrying soldiers unloaded their stones and threw them ahead, testing the ground with each step.
With a bang, the first trench trap was revealed, halting the advancing soldiers. Joseph Qiao immediately ordered the archers to aim skyward—their maximum range just reached the fifth trench.