Chapter 172: The Man and the Horse Were Destroyed, the Sand Dune Crossbow

"You are indeed as brave as your name, but that's all!"

Li Xuan quickly retracted his spear, and Aleb's body fell off his horse.

Aleb was born into the Yaoluoge clan, and his name means "brave".

The moment his body fell on the yellow sand, Aleb's consciousness gradually faded away.

With his last bit of strength, he could only grab a handful of sand.

He has always been conceited, and now he finally sees what it means to have the courage to overwhelm the grassland.

It turns out that he is also vulnerable!
When his breath stopped, Aleb opened his palms weakly.

The yellow sand in his hand was blown away by the wind. He hoped that Ye Hu could also escape the encirclement of the Tang army in this way...

Aleb knew that his cavalry could not resist for too long, so he tried his best to assassinate Li Xuan and save the situation.

But it aggravated the failure of the Uighur Guards Cavalry.

"General..."

After Aleb's death, the guards roared in despair and were determined to fight to the death with Li Xuan and Li Xuan's guards.

Li Xuan wielded his lance, thrusting left and right, knocking the Uighur guards off their horses one by one.

The Shen Ce Guards followed Li Xuan in the attack. With each attack, the number of enemies became fewer and fewer. After a few rounds, no one was left standing on their horses.

Afterwards, Li Xuan led his personal guards into the battle.

The Uighurs' iron armor was not as sharp as their horse lances.

Li Xuan used his unparalleled divine power to steer the horse lance and thrust forward.

The spear blade competed with the moonlight for brilliance, and in the dark night it was like a silver tongue, moving out and retracting, breaking the armor of the Uighur Guards.

Other soldiers need to rely on the power of their horses to charge, but Li Xuan only needs to rely on the speed of his horses.

With the speed of his warhorse as an aid, he can kill the enemy more effectively.

Any Uighur guard who came into contact with Li Xuan's spear could never turn back.

The Uighur cavalry had not seen Aleb's flag for a long time.

When they saw Li Xuan enter, they knew that Aleb was in great danger.

Because Aleb was an eagle on the grassland and the bravest general of the Uighurs, it was impossible for him to flee from the battlefield like those cowards.

However, these Uighur guards were also extremely strong and did not beg for mercy like other Uighur cavalry. The Tang army could only use methods such as "breaking armor", "encircling and stabbing", "picking horses" and "hooking and stabbing" to disintegrate these cavalry one by one.

The armor of both sides is highly recognizable, so there is no chance of accidental injuries at night.

As time went by, the blood flowed and soaked the sand, looking very strange in the moonlight.

After Li Xuan killed dozens of cavalrymen by using the superior force to defeat the inferior, the elite cavalrymen of the Tang army also completed the encirclement and suppression in the cover of night, and the Uighur guards were completely wiped out.

Under the light of the torches, Li Xuan dismounted and took a rest, gulping down a few gulps of water.

The sweet rain enters my stomach and my spirits are greatly boosted.

The other elite cavalry also took a short rest to restore their strength.

"How far is it to where General Zhang and General Che are?"

After the military commander Cen Shen came to his side, Li Xuan asked him.

"General Li, we are still sixty to seventy miles away!"

Cen Shen replied to Li Xuan without looking at the map.

"Send a message to Nan Jiyun and Li Zhushi, and tell them to make sure to close the loopholes. After the Huihe cavalrymen have been beaten and bruised, they will definitely change their direction and break out to the sides. Whoever can capture Mo Yanchuo will be rewarded with a first-class merit by this commander."

Li Xuan asked the messenger to convey the order.

Each messenger had four horses, so they had enough energy to run.

He learned from the prisoners that the commander of this trip was his old acquaintance Mo Yanchue.

If the "heroic Khan" Moyanchuo were to be defeated here, there would be great turmoil in the Uighurs.

"General Li Fei, lead your elite cavalry to keep an eye on both sides while pursuing. If there is any movement, lead your troops to provide support."

Li Xuan also instructed Li Feiyuanli to prevent the Uighurs from breaking out from both sides.

He used tactics similar to those of the Mongolian cavalry in later generations, deploying thousands of elite cavalry on both sides in large and small groups over a hundred miles.

The defeated Uighur soldiers felt it was extremely difficult to break out from both sides.

"As ordered!"

Li Feiyuanli accepted the order.

It was quite difficult for the elite cavalry of the Tang Dynasty to deal with the Uighur cavalry, and it took nearly two hours.

Fortunately, the light cavalry did not participate in the battle. The two teams of light cavalry continued to drive the defeated Uighur soldiers forward.

The defeated Uighur soldiers had tried many times to break out from the two sides, as they believed it would be easier to escape from there.

Although it is not easy for light cavalry to ride and shoot at night, there are a lot of them, and they surround one layer after another, one team after another, alternating vertically and horizontally.

The horizontal sword in the hands of the light cavalry is a sharp weapon for killing people at night.

Of course, there were some fish that slipped through the net and escaped, but the Tang army's light cavalry did not lose the big picture for the sake of small details and pursued those escapees.

Under such circumstances, the defeated Uighur soldiers had to give up breaking out from the two sides and could only move forward.

The horses could no longer run, and many clever Uighur cavalrymen took advantage of the battle between the Imperial Guards and the elite cavalry of the Tang army to walk slowly and rest to replenish the energy of their horses.

The defeated Uighur soldiers walked in the endless desert, without food and some even without water.

Their only belief is to return home and stay away from the shadow of the Tang army.

Especially those Tang soldiers wearing face guards, they were like ferocious beasts that only knew how to kill people. Whenever those who had experienced them thought of the iron horses and armor, they all shuddered.

Gradually, it was daybreak. They had been on the run all night.

Before his death, Alep bought time for the defeated Uighur soldiers, making it impossible for the elite cavalry of the Tang army to catch up with them in a short period of time.

……

This is a stretch of sand dunes that stretches for dozens of miles, undulating like mountains.

The highest dunes are so steep that it is impossible to climb them on horseback.

Fortunately, there are many roads similar to tunnels between the sand dunes.

After passing through the sand dunes in this area, there will be a flat road until you leave the desert and enter the wilderness.

The first person to arrive here was certainly not Mo Yanchuo, who was wearing iron armor and leading the guards.

Rather, they were some of the earliest Uighur servants and Uighur cavalry who had fled.

They traveled light and were far ahead of the others.

They thought that the dawn had arrived and they had welcomed the light of day, but when they were about to cross the sand dunes in this area, they discovered a scene that shocked them.

On a sand dune trail, shields stand on the yellow sand.

Behind the shield are armored soldiers holding spears.

Behind them is the battle flag of the Tang Dynasty.

On the main avenue separating the dunes, there are two sets of deer antlers.

The Tang soldiers, wearing fish-scale iron armor and holding long swords, stood in neat rows.

They wear "masks" on their faces, so you can't see their expressions. They are like iron towers, giving people a huge sense of oppression.

When the Uighur cavalry marched south for a military parade, they passed through this sand dune avenue, but now they are blocked by the Modao army.

"Why did the Tang army appear here?"

"Did they come down from heaven?"

"It's over. There are Tang soldiers on all the sand dune roads, and they are all wearing armor!"

"Why are those people holding long swords and wearing masks the same as the cavalry on the battlefield? Will they be equally powerful?"

"There's no way out. Break out from both sides!"

"We are exhausted and can no longer run. The Tang cavalry on both sides have changed horses and are in much better condition than us. Besides, it is already daybreak. How can we possibly escape from dozens of cavalry archers?"

A group of Uighurs gathered together and did not dare to charge. Among them were several Uighur servants and leaders of small tribes.

They are even more worried.

If I had known this earlier, I would have led my tribe to join the Tang Dynasty and would not have had to endure such fear.

They blamed Mo Yanchuo, saying that they should have broken out at noon yesterday so that their way back would not have been blocked.

When the Tang army suddenly emerged from the wind and sand, the Uighur coalition's chances of winning were already slim.

When the Tang army rushed into the camp, thousands of Huihe coalition soldiers were defeated before they could even mount their horses.

Those people could only find a tent to hide in and wait to surrender after the war.

Half an hour later, more and more defeated Uighur soldiers gathered near the sand dunes.

"The road home is right in front of us. Should we surrender immediately and become a prisoner? Or should we charge forward desperately?"

A small tribal leader shouted sternly.

"Charge forward, but don't charge at the Tang army's heavily armored infantry. The passage there is narrow and easy to defend but difficult to attack. Let's charge at the Tang army's masked swordsmen together. Let's get someone off their horses and move the antlers away first."

Another tribal leader responded.

If you are defeated and captured, you may become a slave. It is better to fight to the death than to live like that.

Other defeated Uighur soldiers also wanted to give it a try.

Several tribal leaders immediately arranged their slaves to ride horses to the antlers.

Deer antlers are heavy, and in addition to the large spikes, there are many small spikes on them, which must be removed with a spear.

Even the deer antlers temporarily assembled by the Tang army could still cause casualties to the cavalry.

Just as dozens of slaves dismounted and prepared to move the deer horns away, hundreds of powerful crossbowmen immediately appeared from behind the Modao army, holding crossbows and rushing forward.

"Whoa, whoa, whoa..."

They pulled the trigger, and the Hu slaves, who were less than ten steps away, were shot to death one after another.

The defeated Uighur soldiers in the distance felt a chill in their hearts when they saw this.

"They only have two antlers. Let's rush over together and tear the antlers apart. Are thousands of cavalry still afraid of their useless weapons?"

A tribal leader made up his mind and said through gritted teeth.

They had few sets of armor and were chased by light cavalry, so it would be difficult for them to survive. They would rather try to charge into the Tang army's sword formation.

Having never seen the Mo Dao formation before, I just hope it's just a fancy move.

"Warriors, charge!"

Other tribal leaders and defeated Uighur generals thought so.

As long as they could cross the sand dunes, the Tang army's light cavalry would have to go around for dozens of miles even if they wanted to chase them.

They have a greater chance of survival.

However, some defeated Uighur soldiers were unwilling to do so. They mounted their horses and prepared to climb up the lower sand dunes.

Escape by climbing over the sand dunes.

"Boom!"

The war horses raised sand and charged forward with their last bit of strength.

"Hold the knife!"

Zhang Xing held the Mo Dao in both hands and shouted.

"Shh..."

All the Modao soldiers held their Modao with both hands in unison.

Some of the Modao soldiers were still a little nervous.

This was their first real combat experience.

Only Zhang Xing showed no emotion at all, as he believed that ambushing the defeated soldiers did not reflect the bravery of the Modao Army.

Thousands of defeated Uighur soldiers rushed forward.

"Swish, swish, swish..." When the distance was close, two hundred strong crossbowmen appeared and shot at the fleeing Uighur soldiers.

“Wheeze…”

The war horses screamed and people and horses fell to the ground one after another.

Fortunately, the Tang army did not have enough strong crossbowmen, and after firing three rounds of crossbow arrows, they immediately retreated behind the Modao army.

They dropped their crossbows, picked up spears, and formed a battle formation.

If the Uighur cavalry really broke through the Modao army, they also had means of defense.

Thousands of defeated soldiers reined in their horses when they reached the deer's antlers. They hooked the antlers with their spears, ready to pry them apart.

"Soldiers, attack!"

Seeing the defeated Uighur soldiers stop their horses to deal with Lujiao, Zhang Xing gave an order.

The soldiers with Modao in hand strode forward at a rapid pace.

Compared to the fear on the faces of the defeated Uighur soldiers, the defeated Uighur soldiers could only see the determination in the eyes of the Modao soldiers under their mask protection.

"Crack!"

Zhang Xing held the large Mo Dao and took the initiative to chop off the second layer of deer antlers.

At this time, the defeated Uighur soldiers had already removed the first layer of deer horns.

Seeing Zhang Xing coming, several spears stabbed Zhang Xing together.

"clang!"

Thanks to his specially made inner and outer armor, Zhang Xing didn't need to block unless the attack was intended to stab him above the neck.

"Pfft!"

Accompanied by the neighing of the warhorse, Zhang Xing cut the neck of a defeated Uighur soldier's horse.

Blood splattered, the warhorse fell sideways, and the Uighur soldier also rolled off the horse.

Zhang Xing took another step forward, raised his sword and swung it at the fleeing Uighur soldiers on horseback.

"Pfft!"

The horses of two defeated Uighur soldiers were close to each other. Zhang Xing cut them in half with one strike of his sword.

He immediately swung his knife and killed several more people.

The longer Mo Dao could easily kill a cavalryman on horseback as long as they got close enough.

"Crack!"

Seeing more spears stabbing around him, Zhang Xing became impatient and cut them off with one sword.

Those defeated Uighur soldiers who had lost their weapons were killed off their horses one by one by Zhang Xing.

A Uighur warrior was about to stab Zhang Xing's face guard on his horse, as he believed that the face guard was the weak point.

"Go to hell!"

Zhang Xing turned his head to avoid the stab, then raised his knife and chopped it down.

At this time, the two were already very close.

"Pfft!"

The sword rises like the wind and falls like the mountain.

The powerful sword pierced through the body of the Uighur warrior, and then hit the horse's back.

The horse neighed and fell to the ground, bleeding profusely.

Both men and horses were shattered!

This bloody scene terrified the other defeated Uighur soldiers.

The Tang Dynasty's Modao soldiers were also ignited by Zhang Xing's bravery.

They chopped off the second layer of antlers and moved forward.

Some of the Modao soldiers chopped at the horses' legs, some chopped at the horses' heads, and some directly chopped at the people.

If the Huihe soldiers fall off their horses, the Modao soldiers will follow up to finish them off.

Relying on the strength of their armor, they raised their swords and slashed down, leaving a sea of ​​blood all over the ground.

Yellow sand turns into red sand!

"The antlers are gone, charge and smash them to pieces."

A tribal leader shouted and ordered the soldiers in the rear to charge forward, using the impact of the horses to break the Tang army's Modao formation.

The defeated Uighur soldiers who stopped to pull out the deer's horns were soon slaughtered.

The tired and hungry warhorse seemed to have insufficient impact.

Zhang Xing relied on the Modao Army and took the initiative to attack the charging Uighur cavalry.

The spear was unable to penetrate Zhang Xing's body at all. His sword strike was so powerful that both the man and the horse were bleeding again.

The black armor was stained red with blood.

There were also blood spots on the face guard.

The defeated Uighur soldiers saw Zhang Xing's towering height and knew how terrifying he was, so they did not dare to charge in Zhang Xing's direction.

But Zhang Xing led a team, holding long swords and attacking left and right. No Uighur cavalry dared to resist, and both men and horses were defeated.

The Modao Army was divided into teams of five people. They were as steady as a rock. They would kill any horse they saw or any person they saw, and they could also cooperate with each other.

Some of the desperate Huihe fleeing soldiers knocked down the Modao soldiers.

Although the war horses had no strength left, the fallen Modao soldiers turned over, unharmed, and continued to fight.

Any defeated Uighur soldiers whose horses stopped for a moment would be slaughtered by the Modao soldiers.

The Modao soldiers fought fiercely, and before long, Zhang Xing killed dozens of them alone.

The bodies of men and horses were spread out layer upon layer. Led by Zhang Xing, the Modao soldiers did not retreat but advanced, pushing forward like an iron wall.

“They are not human…”

The defeated Uighur soldiers were mentally devastated and shouted for their horses to be mobilized.

Just a few layers of Mo Dao made them despair and think they were invincible.

Look at the mountains of corpses and sea of ​​blood. Where are the bodies of the Tang army?

"Retreat quickly... retreat quickly..."

The tribal leaders and Uighur generals also issued orders in dejection.

Even so, many people failed to adjust their horses in time and were caught up by the Modao soldiers and died in the yellow sand.

"Don't kill me, I surrender..."

Some even saw no hope of escaping from the Modao and simply rolled off their horses and surrendered.

The Modao soldiers did not kill these poor people who surrendered.

Li Xuan established military regulations that prisoners should not be killed if they were unable to resist.

The prisoners were discouraged and had obviously lost their fighting ability.

If you want to charge the Modao Army, you must charge with armored cavalry.

Another option is to use cavalry archers to defeat the Modao army, but this situation is unlikely to happen.

Because the Modao Army must be guarded by light cavalry.

……

When the Modao Army was fighting with the defeated Uighur soldiers, some of the defeated Uighur soldiers rushed to the sand dunes.

As they drove their horses with difficulty, they looked back at the battlefield of the Modao Army. They felt terrified and lamented their own wisdom.

They could escape by climbing over a few sand dunes.

The quicksand was so thick that some horses' hooves sank into it and they couldn't move.

The horse was too tired and even though we whipped it, it wouldn't move forward.

Some horses fell directly on the sand dunes, gasping for breath, with their abdomens heaving violently.

This still failed to stop the other defeated Uighur soldiers from moving forward firmly.

They kept looking up at the top of the dune: almost there, almost there...

It was difficult to move forward, and I sank into the sand with every step.

On the lowest sand dune, there seemed to be only a dozen steps left.

Many of the defeated Uighur soldiers had parched mouths, but they had no water to drink.

They thought, grit their teeth and then take a rest.

At this moment, a Tang soldier wearing leather armor and holding a crossbow poked his head out from the sand dune.

"Whoa, whoa, whoa..."

"Puff...Puff..."

When the Tang army's powerful crossbowmen appeared, they shot with just a little aim.

The powerful crossbow is fired like thunder, and whoever is hit will fall down.

"There's an ambush on the sand dunes..."

A fleeing Uighur soldier was pierced through the chest by a powerful crossbow before he could even finish his shout.

He fell off his horse, and the blood-stained yellow sand rolled down the slope...

The speed of going downhill is much faster than that of going uphill.

The surviving Uighur soldiers were horrified and returned in a panic.

"Free Fire!"

"Pfft!"

Che Shensai was the first to draw the crossbow string and shot down a fleeing Uighur soldier.

The Uighur war horses finally couldn't bear the heavy load and rolled down the hillside.

There were ambushes of crossbowmen on some other sand dunes.

The action taken by Cheshensai alarmed the other sand dunes. Under the command of Langjiang Yajiang, all the strong crossbowmen on the sand dunes stretched their heads out and shot the crossbow arrows on their crossbow arms.

None of the defeated Uighur soldiers chose to attack head-on. They had already lost their courage. Even though there were only two or three hundred strong crossbowmen, they retreated down the mountain regardless of everything.

"Soldiers, chase!"

"Woo..."

Seeing that the time was almost right, Che Shen Sai gave an order and the bugler blew the charge horn.

The strong crossbowman carried the crossbow on his back, held the spear and shouted, rushing down the hillside with an unstoppable momentum.

"Pfft!"

"Pfft!"

Che Shensai swung his long sword wildly, chopping down the fleeing Uighur soldiers one by one on the hillside.

The crossbowmen's spears were sharp and as sharp as a slaughter.

"Surrender... Surrender..."

Many defeated Uighur soldiers stopped struggling, and some laid down their weapons halfway up the slope and surrendered to the Tang army.

Seeing that they could save their lives by surrendering, more and more defeated Uighur soldiers gave up resistance.

……

Those defeated Uighur soldiers who escaped from the Modao Army could only try to break out from both sides.

Now their numbers are even smaller and their fate is sealed.

The Tang army's light cavalry kept shooting during the day, not at night, and almost no one escaped...

(End of this chapter)