12dz Chapter 488 Death Squadron
Chapter 488 Death Squadron
"Damn it, this is impossible!" The change on the battlefield threw Lu Jie into a panic, and he gritted his teeth.
"This knife, which looks like a dog's leg, can actually cut through fish scale armor!"
Lu Jie's eyes nearly popped out of their sockets; he still refused to believe what he was seeing.
In just a quarter of an hour, nearly half of the 20,000 cavalrymen were killed or wounded, while Pang Xingji's 5,000 men suffered no more than 1,000 casualties.
The casualty ratio of ten to one is a stark contrast; if the fighting continues like this, even 20,000 men won't be enough to kill.
Moreover, Pang Xingji has 15,000 private soldiers behind him, and who knows what special skills they possess.
"You forced me to do this, don't blame me for being impolite!" Lu Jie continued through gritted teeth, giving the order:
"Crossbowmen, listen to my command! All troops, attack!"
At this moment, a thousand soldiers dressed in black robes emerged from behind Lu Jie. They were in pairs, one carrying a crossbow on his shoulder and the other aiming from behind.
The Great Yellow Crossbow! A super-powerful crossbow with a range of two hundred zhang and a kill radius of over one hundred zhang!
Its power is said to be able to pierce through iron plates, and it requires the cooperation of two people to barely nock the arrow.
Not to mention ordinary soldiers, even experts like Mo Youying were wary of the Great Yellow Crossbow.
The dark arrowheads gleamed coldly in the sunlight, piercing straight into everyone's hearts.
"It's a large crossbow! Oh no! Retreat immediately!" Pang Xingji shouted.
As a commander of a thousand men, he was quite knowledgeable and had heard that the Lu family army had a powerful crossbow called the "Great Yellow Crossbow," which had an astonishing range and power. It was the nemesis of cavalry.
However, the Great Yellow Crossbow requires extremely high craftsmanship and rare materials. Even if you have the technology, it cannot be mass-produced. Five hundred Great Yellow Crossbows are probably only something that Lu's army could produce.
In this era of cold weapons, the Great Yellow Crossbow was the king of weapons, possessing the longest range.
There is only one way to break through the Great Yellow Crossbow: the cavalry must charge forward despite the danger.
Because the crossbows were difficult to cock, they could only unleash a maximum of three volleys of arrows before the cavalry charged.
It was precisely because of this deficiency that the crossbowmen were positioned at the rear, protected by cavalry, infantry, and even ordinary archers.
Generally speaking, as long as you can reach the crossbowmen, you've won the battle.
Pang Xingji also wanted to rush in and kill these crossbowmen, but he also had to deal with the enemy's 10,000 cavalrymen, and he couldn't break through them in a short time.
After receiving the order, the four thousand cavalrymen began to retreat, but the enemy's ten thousand cavalrymen relentlessly pursued them, giving them no chance to retreat.
"put!"
Lu Jie shouted loudly, his face contorted with rage.
shhhhhh!
Five hundred crossbow bolts pierced the air with a sharp sound.
The sharp arrowhead flashed like lightning, piercing a man's chest in an instant. The immense force sent the man flying through the air before he crashed back down.
"Everyone be careful!" Pang Xingji knew the power of the Yellow Crossbow; he was lucky to have survived.
After a volley of crossbow bolts, the private army suffered nearly two hundred casualties, and Lu's army paid the same price.
"Damn it, they even killed their own people!" Pang Xingji said through gritted teeth.
Clearly, the enemy's 10,000 cavalry have become cannon fodder to hold Pang Xingji back. A one-to-one exchange is better than being killed ten to one.
"Move out! Within the time it takes for an incense stick to burn, wipe out all the enemy cavalry!" Just as Pang Xingji was hesitating, a familiar voice rang out.
This person was Lin Ping, who witnessed everything that had just happened.
A forced retreat while being held back by 10,000 men would result in the loss of at least 2,000 men.
However, if all the enemies are killed within the time it takes for an incense stick to burn, the crossbowmen can only fire five waves of bolts, and the losses will not exceed two thousand.
After weighing the options, Lin Ping made a decision immediately.
"All troops, listen to my command, charge!" Upon seeing Lin Ping, Lian Ping, the city lord of Shancheng, smiled faintly.
The reason he came was entirely to curry favor with Lin Ping, so naturally he had to obey Lin Ping's orders without reservation.
In other words, these 10,000 private soldiers were just a number to him; even if they were all wiped out, he could rebuild them in the shortest amount of time.
There are tens of thousands of military households in the city, but he is not sure what he lacks. What he lacks is equipment and military pay, and Lin Ping is the one who can bring him equipment and military pay.
"Brother-in-law, I'll help too!" Underneath his military uniform, Jiang Yunyu looked dashing and heroic, a far cry from the chubby guy who used to follow Lin Ping around begging for maidservants and clothes.
The city lord of Jiangcheng also dispatched all his troops, striving to eliminate the enemy's 10,000 cavalry within the time it takes for an incense stick to burn.
The 20,000 cavalrymen advanced with unstoppable momentum, completely disregarding the threat of powerful crossbows.
Just as Lin Ping had predicted, after the time it takes for an incense stick to burn, all 10,000 cavalrymen of the Lu family army were annihilated.
The city lord's 20,000 cavalry suffered very few losses, with only a little over a thousand killed by powerful crossbow bolts.
"Lu Jie, if you surrender obediently, I may spare your life." On horseback, Lin Ping exuded an imposing aura, and his sharp eyes gave people the feeling of looking down on all living beings.
The Lu family army's 20,000 cavalry have been completely wiped out, and more than half of their archers have also been lost. Now, only 20,000 infantry and 1,000 crossbowmen remain.
Although they have a slight advantage in numbers, their strength is far inferior to that of the city lord's private army.
"Lin Ping, it was you!" Lu Jie said through gritted teeth, wishing he could skin him alive with his eyes.
Just a few days ago, Lin Ping was nothing more than an ant, someone Lu Jie could crush with a single finger.
But he missed his chance, which not only allowed Lin Ping to become the top martial arts champion and win the princess's heart, but also gave him the opportunity to trample on him.
Lu Jie was unwilling to accept this!
"Even if I die, I'll drag you down with me!" Lu Jie's eyes were contorted with rage as he summoned another thousand soldiers with red cloths wrapped around their foreheads.
"A suicide squad?" That was Lin Ping's first reaction.
"Oh no, they're carrying bombs!" He suddenly remembered the night Mo Youying was injured.
Although Lu's army did not have artillery, they did have bombs with decent power. As long as these suicide soldiers were tied to their bodies, they could perish together with the enemy.
"Come back, all of you come back!" Lin Ping shouted as they retreated.
If 20,000 cavalry charged forward like that, they would suffer heavy losses.
Lin Ping's order was like a royal decree to Pang Xingji. Even if he had to endure two waves of arrows for nothing, he had to turn back.
When the vanguard was less than fifty meters away from the enemy's suicide squad, they stopped and quickly turned back.
Fortunately, these private troops were well-trained and did not panic during their retreat.
After losing more than 800 men, the private army successfully withdrew from the range of the crossbows and formed a stalemate with the enemy.
"Hahaha! I didn't expect you to be scared too. It's a pity you missed your only chance to die with me. In the time it takes for an incense stick to burn, the 50,000 reinforcements in the city will arrive. You can just wait to die!" Lu Jie laughed loudly.
If Lin Ping had charged forward, he might have had a chance to kill Lu Jie. To minimize losses, Lin Ping chose to retreat, which would inevitably bring even greater disaster to the private army.
Lu Jie was not lying; the 50,000 garrison troops inside the city had already assembled and were on their way. They had no choice but to flee.