I practiced magic in the Three Kingdoms

Chapter 133 Do you recognize this formation?

"My men, follow me to kill the enemies and gain merit!"

"kill!"

The soldiers of Xiliang were extremely brave. Although their military discipline was poor, their combat effectiveness was unquestionable due to years of fighting with the Qiang people. Their combat skills were also quite superb, and their coordination of various tactics was extremely tacit.

What's more, Hua Xiong and Wang Fang were also brave men. Wearing precious armor, they went to the front line and launched a fierce attack on the Sun-Yuan coalition forces. Wherever their iron hooves went, the earth shook and thunder roared.

Before the two sides engaged in battle, Hua Xiong and Wang Fang led more than 400 cavalry and galloped over. More than half of the infantry under Sun Jian were civilians who had been recruited for less than three months. They were deceived into going to the battlefield, and lacked both formation training and combat skills. They were immediately frightened and at a loss as to how to deal with the cavalry's charge.

The clattering sound of horse hooves seemed to knock on their bones, making them tremble with fear.

The archers in the coalition forces' squadron shot arrows randomly out of fear. The arrows were soft and had no power at all. Moreover, the distance was too far, so the arrows quickly lost their power and fell to the ground. Facing the thick armor of the Xiliang army, they could hardly achieve much results.

Seeing this, Hua Xiong also mocked loudly: "These southern troops are indeed weak. Their bows and arrows are so weak that they can't even kill a rabbit, right?"

This statement immediately caused the Xiliang cavalry to burst into laughter: "Haha, these little chickens are too weak!"

Hua Xiong and Wang Fang led their respective cavalry to bypass the front and began to attack the flanks of the coalition forces.

When cavalry fights against infantry, killing and wounding is only secondary; the most important thing is to create chaos and thus break the formation of the coalition infantry as quickly as possible.

Once the coalition formation is broken and they lose their organization and structure, we can then begin to reap the entire battlefield.

However, Sun Jian was also a man who knew military affairs. He had participated in suppressing the Yellow Turban Army with Dong Zhuo, so he was not unfamiliar with the tactics of the Xiliang soldiers.

At present, Sun Jian also has the full support of Yuan Shu, sufficient logistics, high morale, and many veteran generals and personal soldiers who followed him to start his career. Therefore, Sun Jian is not without the ability to fight back.

Facing the fierce cavalry charge from Hua Xiong and Wang Fang, Sun Jian immediately shouted, "All troops, form a battle array, spears and halberds in front, do not panic!"

After the roar, Sun Jian immediately activated his soldiers' spirits to strengthen his army's defense. At the same time, he dismounted and stood shoulder to shoulder with the infantry on the front line: "Work together and line up to kill the enemy!"

General Cheng Pu, who was under his command, was also shouting at the top of his lungs, personally commanding the battle on the front line: "Work together and hold your ground!"

"Don't panic. Our army will defeat the unjust with the righteous. We will surely win this battle!"

"Shoot arrows to suppress the enemy's rear!"

Facing the prepared infantry formation, the rows of spears and halberds were like a hedgehog covered with spikes. For a moment, Hua Xiong and Wang Fang had no idea where to start. They led their elite cavalry to surround the enemy formation and fought for a long time, but the coalition forces did not suffer any damage. Instead, their own cavalry suffered several waves of arrows, resulting in casualties and the loss of dozens of people.

"Retreat, retreat first!"

Wang Fang saw that the situation was not good and did not want to fight anymore. He wanted to retreat with his cavalry to regroup. After all, cavalry were valuable and could not exchange heads with infantry like this. Otherwise, even if they won, it would be a huge loss.

But Wang Fang wanted to leave, how could Sun Jian let him do so?

Seeing Wang Fang trying to retreat, Sun Jian seized the fleeting opportunity and immediately jumped on his horse: "The enemy is already cowardly, follow me and charge!"

After saying this, Sun Jian intended to take a dozen personal guards and chase after Wang Fang while the chaos was going on, in order to crush the morale of the Xiliang soldiers.

Zu Mao stepped forward to dissuade him: "General, the battle is dangerous and fierce. You can't take such a big risk alone!"

However, Sun Jian was bold and brave, so he didn't care at all. Instead, he was full of confidence: "The enemy cavalry has already consumed a lot of horsepower in the previous battle. Now they are tired. If I attack them unexpectedly, I can kill Hua Xiong and Wang Fang, and then take advantage of the situation to defeat the Xiliang infantry under my command and cut off Xun You's arm."

These words obviously moved his subordinates.

"Your Excellency is indeed very courageous!"

"We are willing to follow the general into battle!"

Then Sun Jian suddenly led dozens of cavalrymen out and charged towards the direction of Hua Xiong and Wang Fang without hesitation.

Although the cavalry under Sun Jian were few in number, every one of them was brave enough to fight and was not afraid of death.

Because they had not participated in the battle just now and had been conserving their strength, now is the time when they are at their strongest!
"kill!"

As Wang Fang and Hua Xiong had a large number of men, they were stunned by Sun Jian's charge.

"Thieves, please die!"

Amidst the chaos of the army, Sun Jian stood on his horse with his sword drawn, as powerful as a tiger, and displayed his powerful force without reservation.

Wherever he went, there was no one who could match him. His sword was flaming like fire, and he killed hundreds of people all the way to Wang Fang and Hua Xiong. He raised the ancient ingot sword high, and the blade reflected the scorching sun in the sky, emitting a dazzling and bright light.

Wang Fang was shocked to see that Sun Jian was so powerful that he could defeat a thousand men with just one horse. He shouted to Hua Xiong, "Attack together, or we will both die here today!"

Hua Xiong gritted his teeth, raised his sword and started fighting, and joined forces with Wang Fang to attack Sun Jian, one on the left and one on the right, attacking from the horse to the ground, trying to clamp down on the ferocious tiger of Jiangdong before them.

The broadsword and the long spear come together!

Hua Xiong's swordsmanship is fierce and powerful.

Wang Fang's long spear was fierce and the angle was tricky.

The two men cooperated well, one took the main attack while the other held back. If it were an ordinary warrior, he would have been killed by the two of them, but Sun Jian was no ordinary man.

He was gifted with extraordinary talents. When he was young, he accidentally found the manuscript left by his ancestor, the military saint Sun Wu, which was one of the famous military works "The Six Forces of Military Conflict" - the Military Force of Fire.

After hard training, he has already grasped the essence of aggressive martial arts. In terms of martial arts skills, he is even better than Zhu Jun!

"Look at the knife!"

The tip of the ancient ingot knife scraped across the ground, sparks flew, and then Sun Jian raised his knife and went straight for Wang Fang's internal organs, forcing Wang Fang to swing his halberd across.

Then he took a step forward, using the force to leap into the air, and as he fell, he turned around and chopped hard. The weapon's evil spirit turned into flames that wrapped around the blade, adding to its power.

Hua Xiong also quickly used his special skills, injecting the evil spirit of soldiers into the black iron blade, which burst into dazzling light, hoping to counter attack and resolve Sun Jian's move.

Dang~
The blades struck each other with a sound like a loud bell.

Hua Xiong only felt a brutal force invading his body along his arms, and his internal organs felt as if they were burning on fire. He was in extreme pain.

"Ah, the Suzaku Divine Fire!"

With just one blow, Hua Xiong was seriously injured and all the meridians in his body were damaged by the fire.

Sun Jian was from Wujun and Zhu Jun was from Kuaiji. Both of them were from Eastern Wu and were favored by heaven. Therefore, by chance, they both obtained a ray of Nanming Lihuo, which they refined into their bodies and achieved amazing supernatural powers.

Although Hua Xiong and Wang Fang were brave and had good martial arts skills, they were no match for a peerless master like Sun Jian. Even if they joined forces, they could not defeat the power of Sun Jian's divine fire. After more than ten rounds, they were chopped by Sun Jian's sword and flew back, vomiting blood and fainting.

"The captain is dead!"

"Run away!"

Wang Fang and Hua Xiong's men mistakenly thought that their commander had been killed in battle, and their morale collapsed immediately.

The 4,000 Xiliang infantry were annihilated by Sun Jian in just one stick of incense, and Hua Xiong and Wang Fang were taken prisoner. In the end, only a few hundred cavalry managed to escape.

Among the crowd, Sun Jian's image of a fierce tiger fighting bravely once again won the hearts of the people and greatly enhanced his prestige in the army.

Under the central army banner, Xun You had a solemn expression on his face: "To disregard life and death like this, you are indeed worthy of being called Sun Wentai, the fierce tiger of Jiangdong."

"Minister, Sun Jian is coming to kill us!"

On the battlefield, after Sun Jian annihilated the troops of Li Meng and Wang Fang, he set his sights on Xun You.

"A scholar leading the troops? What a joke!"

"I heard that this man is the chief strategist under Marquis Qi, well versed in military tactics and strategies, and is trusted by Wang Yuanxu. As long as you capture him, Liang County will be in our hands."

Under Sun Jian's command, Cheng Pu and Han Dang were both fierce generals. Their morale was high at the moment, so they naturally did not take a weak scholar like Xun You seriously.

However, they had no idea what a terrifying army they were about to face.

The allied soldiers came like a tide, numbering as many as 20,000, of which Sun Jian personally led 5,000 soldiers as the vanguard.

The front army had just been defeated and Sun Jian was unstoppable. Even the veteran general Xu Rong suggested that Xun You temporarily retreat into the county town.

However, Xun You, who was in charge of the central army, remained calm and composed: "Archery camp, set up crossbow formation."

The three thousand crossbowmen of the Shesheng Camp remained calm and responded loudly, "Yes!"

Then the command flag was waved, and the crossbowmen of the Shesheng Camp, who had hardly taken action since the war began, finally had the chance to show their skills.

Their faces were solemn and their movements were skillful. They were using tools to string the powerful crossbows in their hands. This was the Tianzhi crossbow that Wang Jing had improved after recruiting a group of Mohists and combining Mohist mechanical techniques with modern scientific knowledge. The power and range of the crossbow had been greatly enhanced.

This also means that ordinary people cannot pull these powerful crossbows with their hands, and can only use tools such as hand-cranked winches.

But the soldiers of Shesheng Camp have all received special training and are now able to use tools skillfully. Soon they will become the nightmare of all enemy forces.

As the ace-level long-range force under Wang Jing, the Shesheng Battalion crushes ordinary archers in terms of range, firing speed and lethality. Perhaps only a world-famous strong army like the Jizhou Crossbowmen can compete with it.

At this moment, on the battlefield, three thousand people raised their crossbows at the same time, and the taut bowstrings seemed to make the air stagnate.

The three thousand soldiers of the Shesheng Camp were divided into thirty teams of one hundred men.

Each hundred-man team has a captain and two team leaders.

These low-ranking officers all stood out from ordinary soldiers. They received special training in Mohist Academy, were proficient in numbers, and mastered the skills of observing wind direction, wind force, and calculating distance. They were able to provide precise shooting parameters such as scale, height, direction, etc. to ensure the accuracy of shooting.

Under their unified command, the Shesheng Camp deployed a huge goose-like formation, like a wild goose spreading its wings, embracing the world in its arms.

"Crossfire!"

"East three, fifteen degrees, full bow, shoot!"

"North five, thirty degrees, half arc, shoot!"

……

Different orders were continuously executed.

Cross-shooting, echelon firepower, and layers of overlapping arrows, such a dense and orderly rain of arrows attack immediately caused great suffering to the allied forces of Sun and Yuan.

Arrows filled the sky like locusts, falling from different directions and angles. Even the sword and shield soldiers holding shields were shot and looked confused and at a loss as to what to do.

They only have one shield, but the rain of arrows seems to be coming from all directions. Who can withstand it?

Whoosh~ Whoosh~
Arrows rained down on the battlefield continuously. The powerful crossbow arrows were enough to penetrate armor. Even the most elite Jiangdong heavy infantry in the front row were beaten to bloody pulps by the dense rain of arrows.

Sun Jian still wanted to break through the formation alone, waving his ancient ingot knife and charging all the way to the front of Shesheng Camp, but he encountered an even more stubborn resistance.

Xun You deployed two spearmen units of 2,000 men to meet the enemy head-on. They were all infantrymen from the Hedong camp. They formed a hundred-man army based on the village, received training together, lived and ate together, and had the friendship of fellow villagers. Therefore, they were eager to fight, trusted each other, and had an extremely strong will to fight.

These big men from Hedong, each holding a three-meter-long iron spear, stood shoulder to shoulder, forming dense square formations, turning themselves into iron hedgehogs.

When one person falls, someone else will step forward to take his place, with a firm will and a determination to fight to the death.

Sun Jian led his men to charge into the battle formation several times. His ancient ingot sword was as aggressive as fire and his offensive was extremely fierce, causing huge casualties to the Northern Army. However, he still returned without success. He was so anxious that his eyebrows were almost on fire.

There were constant screams from the middle and rear rows of the coalition forces. Thousands of soldiers were crowded together, facing the attack of arrow rain all the time. The morale dropped rapidly at a speed visible to the naked eye.

Sun Jian saw this and was furious. He immediately borrowed 2,000 archers from Yuan Shu and gave them to Huang Gai, the commander, to shoot at the Shesheng Camp. Even if he couldn't defeat the enemy, at least he could hold them back a little, right?

Now the two sides have reached a test of will, to see who can withstand higher casualties and whose morale collapses first.

But how could ordinary archers be a match for the Shesheng Battalion?

After more than a dozen rounds of mutual shooting, the shooting range was suppressed and the shooting speed was soon overtaken. The two thousand archers borrowed by Sun Jian were soon killed or wounded.

Even Huang Gai was hit by more than a dozen arrows and suffered serious injuries. If he had not worn two layers of iron armor, his body might have been cold by now.

"My lord, our army's morale is low. Let's withdraw our troops today!"

"Yeah, let's fight again tomorrow!"

Han Dang and Cheng Pu tried to persuade Sun Jian that the firepower of the Shesheng Camp was too strong and if they continued fighting, they would not be able to withstand it.

"Why is the enemy's crossbow array so fierce?"

Sun Jian had fought many battles in the south and the north, but this was the first time he had seen a long-range unit like the Shesheng Camp: "Are the enemy's crossbowmen all made of iron? Why can they shoot continuously without getting tired?"

Huang Gai was an expert archer and had excellent eyesight, so he figured out some of the secrets of the Shesheng Camp: "My lord, the crossbows used by the enemy are of a strange shape, and they use a strange capstan to wind the strings, which greatly saves the soldiers' physical energy. Therefore, they can continue to shoot at our army as if they have endless physical energy."

Han Dang was shocked when he heard this: "A powerful crossbow? I heard that Marquis Qi recruited people from the Mohist School to work for him. Could it be the long-lost Tianzhi Crossbow?"

Huang Gai shook his head: "I have seen the Tianzhi crossbow. The structure is similar, but not exactly the same. It should have been improved. The firing rate has been reduced, but the range and power have been enhanced. It can break heavy armor within a hundred feet."

hiss~
The generals under Sun Jian's command couldn't help but gasp.

Can break heavy armor within a hundred feet!

You should know that lapel armor itself is very expensive, and the cost of heavy armor is several times that of ordinary lapel armor. It is often only equipped by the elite in the army.

All of these elite soldiers are brave men selected from hundreds of miles away. They are tall and strong. After wearing heavy armor, they can charge recklessly on the battlefield and there are few things that can threaten their lives.

But now there is a powerful crossbow that ordinary people can use, which can take their lives from a distance of more than a hundred feet with just a flick of the finger?

This is simply terrible!
Sun Jian saw that the Northern Army's crossbow formation was so sharp, and although he was unwilling to give in, he also understood that if he continued fighting, his chances of winning were slim and it would only increase casualties.

Finally, Sun Jian had no choice but to give the order: "Sound the horn and call back the troops."

Behind the coalition forces, a gong was struck, and Sun Jian personally led the rear, with tens of thousands of troops slowly retreating.

In the central army formation, several young generals looked at Xun You expectantly: "Minister, the enemy has retreated, should our army pursue them?"

Xun You sat under the commander's flag, looking at the sand table in front of him, shaking his head and saying, "Sun Wentai is personally leading the troops to cover the rear, and the other troops are retreating in an orderly manner. If we pursue them rashly, we may be ambushed. It is better to withdraw while we are ahead."

Although he repelled the coalition forces, Xun You's mind remained very clear and he was not blinded by the temporary victory.

He was well aware of the advantages and counterattacks of the two armies against each other. The Shesheng Battalion, one of the eight battalions of the Northern Army, was very good at positional and defensive warfare, but not good at mobile and offensive warfare.

On the contrary, Sun Jian was known as the fierce tiger of Jiangdong. The characteristics of his tactics were always aggressive, brave and fierce. He was good at attacking but not good at defending, and he had a huge advantage in field battles.

If the Shesheng Camp were to go out of the camp and fight, it would be giving up its strengths and taking advantage of its weaknesses, and would be courting death.

Moreover, for Xun You, the current priority is not to kill the enemy, but to protect Liang County. As long as Liang County is defended, Luoyang will not have to face the threat of war directly, thus stabilizing the overall situation.

We just need to wait for Wang Jing to lead his troops to come to our rescue, and then we can have a decisive battle with the allied forces of Sun and Yuan.

Just as Xun You was preparing to retreat into Liang County, a commotion suddenly broke out behind the allied forces of Sun and Yuan.

"Could it be a bait?"

Xun You was still wondering if this was Sun Jian's deliberate attempt to confuse the enemy, when a cavalryman came with a token and asked to see him. When he saw Xun You, he immediately knelt on one knee and said, "Minister Xun, the lord has ordered you to go into battle immediately and attack the main force of the coalition army from the front and back with the Bingzhou soldiers. This battle will decide the outcome."

"The Lord is here?"

Upon hearing the news, Xun You was both surprised and happy.

He didn't understand that the enemy's confusion and turmoil must be due to the Bingzhou soldiers' outflanking. When the enemy army was fighting and their retreat was cut off, it would be strange if the soldiers didn't go crazy!
This is a once-in-a-lifetime opportunity!
(End of this chapter)