In the 238th year of Tianwu, on the Dingwei day of the Xinmao month, at Tianxiong Pass, the Beiliang rebel army returned in force, pressing its troops up to the city walls.
Outside the border, the west wind howled. On the northern plain, the Beiliang Iron Cavalry stood arrayed in a dense black mass; dark clouds weighed upon the city, and the heavy tide of soldiers drove straight toward Tianxiong.
Over ten thousand Iron Cavalry pressed to the foot of the walls, warhorses all lowering their heads and stifling their neighs, iron hooves pawing at the withered grass beneath them, gathering strength to charge.
At this moment, atop the walls of Tianxiong Pass, stretching like a mountain ridge, the defending soldiers stood armored and still, in tight formation, rooted firmly behind the crenellations. Banners were yanked by the gale, snapping and crackling in the wind.
Blades and spears gleamed cold, Armor crusted with Shuang; Orderly Officers spurred their mounts along the wall, shouting and relaying orders. Ray after ray of light flickered into life; atop the wall, Array prohibitions hummed, and the City’s Big Formation was activated.
A great battle was coiling, ready to explode!
Toward dusk, the setting sun made the scene all the more grim and killing. Within the Beiliang Army Formation, above the great standard, the Beiliang Main General in command floated in midair, squinting toward the defenders’ wall opposite. A trace of hesitation flashed in his eyes, but in the end he slowly raised his hand; his muffled voice boomed like a drum as he issued his orders.
"Pass the order!"
"Storm the city!"
With that command, the horn of assault quickly blared within the formation.
"Wuuu..."
The horn sobbed like a wail, wandering in the northern gale.
Before the formation, the Beiliang Elite Cavalry, long poised to strike, moved as though a launch key had been pressed. Horses neighed in unison, hooves flew, boiling dust surged up, waist-knives were drawn, and they charged forward to kill.
As the cavalry formation surged ahead, a deafening rumble erupted within the ranks of Troops. One after another, globes of dim golden light flew out, dropping and rolling toward the front. Each dark-gold metal sphere swelled in the wind; then these metal balls flashed with multicolored Spirit Light and snapped open with a series of loud clicks.
Very soon, one after another beast-shaped Puppet appeared, bodies like solid cast iron and gold, forms all different—there were gray eagles, giant tigers, some only a few feet tall, some towering over ten zhang high. These Mechanical Puppets kindled red light in their twin eyes, bodies like Vajra; like a bestial tide they thundered, tearing soil and plowing earth, turning into soaring dust as they slammed toward the lofty walls of Tianxiong Pass, serving as the Vanguard Army.
On the bodies of these beast-shaped Mechanical Puppets, all sorts of explosive runes flickered, like so many timed bombs.
This was Mechanical Techniques crafted specifically for assaulting cities!
As the Beiliang Army Formation began the attack, atop Tianxiong Pass’s walls a shocking roar of splitting air burst forth: countless streaks of light, swish swish swish, shot out from behind the crenellations. With every etched rune, Armor-piercing Crossbow Arrows as thick as an arm tore through the air, shooting out in force.
In an instant, the two sides came to blows.
"Bang!"
"Bang!"
"Bang!"
Beyond the walls, the first clash slammed together.
Armor-piercing arrows fell as dense as rain, constantly colliding with those charging Mechanical Puppets, punching through one Puppet after another, each explosion booming, tossing up dazzling dust and flame.
And amid that soaring smoke and dust, the ground outside the border heaved and rolled. Bumps swelled up all over, taking advantage of the chaos to dart swiftly toward the base of the wall, fast as arrows leaving the string.
Meanwhile atop the wall, the army formation shifted; Orderly Officers spurred along the ramparts, Command Flag waving in their hands as they issued one order after another.
"Vanguard Camp, Bing up Ji down, Kan and Li, Li Fire!"
"Left Road Camp, Rising Sunflower, Falling Seed, Joyous Marsh, Cold Ice!"
"Sword and Axe Hand, prepare............"
With each shouted command, the Tianxiong Pass Troops atop the wall stepped forward rank by rank; the Small flags planted in their backs spun free and flew out beyond the walls. Then both hands pressed down toward the Dantian, and with a unified shout, they began to recite spells, driving True Qi. Fingers turned into Sword fingers, pointing toward the Array Flag they belonged to, to activate it.
In an instant, several layers of Array Flag lines of defense hummed to life.
On the first Flag Formation, flame roared up from each flag-face; as each Array Flag, about a meter in length, spun rapidly in midair, that fire grew with the wind, rolling into fireballs a few zhang across. In the space of one breath, they suddenly condensed, and pillars of fire as thick as a bowl-mouth shot out from the flagpoles, screaming downward, swish swish swish in rapid volleys.
Next, the flags behind spun with a hiss, emitting streams of icy white vapor. Cloud Formation and Rain Distribution took shape; soon, rumbling thunder rolled, dark clouds billowed, crackling and snapping, and then—crash—torrential rain poured down, spreading outward beyond the border.
The pounding rain crashed onto the ground and in an instant turned into frosty mist. In the space of a breath it congealed into Cold Ice, spreading with frightening speed, sealing several li of terrain into a field of white Shuang. The surging smoke and flame were abruptly smothered, the view cleared, and those "trying to fish in troubled waters" siege operatives were forced into the open, their bodies arrested in place.
From atop the wall, figures stepped onto Array Flags and descended out of the City Gates, charging toward those earthen mounds that had burst up from the ground. Long blades slid free in their hands; Sword Qi lashed out, crashing into the Shuang-frozen mounds one by one.
Stone and dirt flew, screams rose in succession, and streaks of blood burst forth.
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Afterward, these Sword and Axe Hands all shouted in unison, then formed two lines. Gripping long ropes, they took the outer barrier as a fulcrum and hurled Tripwires at the Beiliang Iron Cavalry that had rushed into the Flag Formation’s attack range.
As men and horses toppled, these warriors moved with ghostly speed beneath their feet, weaving through the chaos. Sword Qi billowed, white vapor soared into the sky, intertwining into a meat grinder, ripping up blood and flesh with wet thuds as they fought the Beiliang Soldiers at close quarters.
After one pot of tea’s time, the rear of the Beiliang Army Formation sounded the gong to withdraw.
The Troops ebbed away like the tide, leaving beneath the walls a field of shattered metal Puppets and horse corpses.
Night fell; that very evening, under cover of darkness,
the Beiliang Army launched two more charges.
But each was only a small contingent probing ahead, each deeper than the last, as though testing the "bottom line" of Tianxiong Pass.
The second day, the third day.
On the Beiliang Army Formation’s side, as before, they kept up this style of warfare, harrying Tianxiong Pass from different directions, attacking without cease day and night, wearing down the stamina of the defenders.
At the same time, to sound out the defenders’ true strength, the commanding General under the guise of feints would occasionally launch genuine assaults, meant to confuse the troops of Tianxiong Pass, preventing the defenders from ever relaxing their guard.
Until the dawn of the fourth day, in a secret underground council chamber behind the Beiliang Iron Cavalry’s encampment, the General leading this campaign, having observed these past days, finally drafted a military dispatch.
From these days of observation, the defenders of Tianxiong Pass had remained shut within their walls. No matter how they were harried or provoked, the defenders clung to the ramparts and refused to sally out to meet battle.
Moreover, the number of defenders inside the city had decreased significantly, likely as stated in previous dispatches: several remaining units of Mountain-cutting Army that had been stationed here had already withdrawn, moving south with the main host.
"Also, the Tianxiong Pass Demon Suppression General, Qi Tian, has not shown himself for several days."
"At this point, further probing is redundant. This humble officer earnestly petitions the Prince to permit me to issue full assault orders, and to redeploy follow-up Troops in support. When the time comes, a single trial will reveal the truth."
Having finished writing, this commanding General folded the letter, then called out for an attendant.
A subordinate answered and stepped inside.
"Carry this letter ten thousand li to the Prince!"

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