Chapter 103

  "What?" Qiu Zhen looked at Xiao Muqing with suspicion.

  Xiao Muqing said: "Now using oil and fire is still early, sir, please don't worry!"

  Qiu Zhen's eyebrows were knotted into a ball, and he said: "Now our side can no longer stop the barbarian troops. If we don't use oil and fire, the barbarian troops will be on the sand soon!"

  Xiao Muqing smiled easily and said, "It's not too late to use it when the time comes." Seeing Qiu Zhen's disapproving expression, Xiao Muqing took a step forward, leaned in close to his side, and whispered in his ear, "Lord Qiu is a rare strategist who has studied human nature, but actual combat experience may not be as good as mine. Please consider my suggestions carefully, sir!"

  Qiu Zhen gazed at Xiao Muqing, silent and speechless.

  Xiao Muqing said: "Now the great enemy is in front of us, once the city is broken, our lives will be in danger, so if there is no absolute guarantee, I would not dare to speak to you here."

  Qiu Zhen let out a silent sigh, Xiao Muqing's words were polite on the surface but actually showed no mercy, however what he said was also true, his own experience against enemies was indeed far from that of Xiao Muqing who had nearly ten years of military service, especially when facing barbarian soldiers.

  After a brief silence, Qiu Zhen raised his head, looked straight into Xiao Muqing's eyes and said seriously: "I hope you don't get all the brothers in the city killed." As he spoke, he handed the command flag to Xiao Muqing and said: "For now, you're in charge!"

  At the critical moment, Qiu Zhen was able to take the initiative to give himself power, and Xiao Muzheng was also greatly surprised. He looked at Qiu Zhen again, then glanced at the command flag handed over to him, wanting to reach out and take it, but hesitated, staring blankly at the command flag in a daze.

  "Xiao Canjun, what are you waiting for?" Qiu Zhen asked in a condensed voice.

  Xiao Mqing came back to his senses, no longer hesitating. As he took over the command flag, he said: "Thank you, Lord Qiu, for trusting me!" He held the command flag in his hand, and his heart surged with excitement. At some point, he had also dreamed of holding a command flag and commanding thousands of horses, but he never thought that today it would become a reality.

  No time for sentimentality, he beckoned the herald to come over and said: "Pass down the order, all soldiers defending the city must protect the fire oil well and use it when they see my command flag!"

  "Yes!" Xiao Mùqīng had the command flag in his hand, he was now the commander, the messenger dared not to be slow, and hastily responded with a sound, rushing away.

  At this time, the barbarian army invested more manpower in the siege. Except for the main general and his personal guards, almost all of them were used on the battlefield. The cloud ladders lined up one after another, and tens of thousands of barbarians climbed up to the city like beasts, while the Wind Army also used all the defensive weapons they could use.

  Rolling logs and boulders fell from the city walls like hail, arrows shot down like raindrops, and barbarian soldiers dropped from mid-air like dumplings. However, such intense attacks could not stop the barbarians' charge. Before long, some barbarians had climbed up onto the city wall. The newly arrived barbarians did not even have time to swing their weapons before they were pierced by several spears and fell backwards with multiple holes in their bodies. Yet, more barbarians followed, crazily charging forward into the numerous spears, getting pierced like a beehive while also successfully pushing down countless defenders, buying time for their comrades behind them.

  Under the impact of the barbarian army's desperate attack, the Wind Army was gradually unable to withstand it, and more and more barbarians gathered on the city wall.

  When Feng Jun was on the defensive, he still had an advantage, but once the enemy climbed up to the city wall and became a face-to-face confrontation, Feng Jun was no match for the barbarian soldiers. Often two or three Feng Jun soldiers couldn't withstand one barbarian soldier, and the strengths and weaknesses of both sides were immediately apparent on the battlefield.

  Qiu Zhen, who was on the tower, saw the battlefield clearly. He anxiously stamped his foot. If the barbarian troops hadn't climbed up to the city head, their own side still had an advantage in defending the city and could have fought back. Now that the barbarian troops were already on the wall, their own side no longer had any advantage to speak of, and defeat was only a matter of time.

  He slapped down the arrow shaft and turned back abruptly, glaring at Xiao Miaoqing with anger, saying: "Do you want to get us killed?..."

  His words had not finished, originally standing on the ground far away from Xiao Miaoqing suddenly raised the command flag and waved it repeatedly. Upon receiving the command flag, those Feng Jun who were in charge of the oil pots all lifted up the pots and rushed to the edge of the city wall, pouring down the boiling hot oil inside.

  Some of the barbarian soldiers had already climbed up onto the city wall, but more were still climbing up ladders and waiting below the wall. The boiling oil poured down on them, making things miserable for those barbarian soldiers who hadn't made it up to the top of the wall in time. The oil was scalding hot; even if you just got a drop of it on your skin, it would blister badly.

  In an instant, the screams of the barbarian soldiers on the cloud ladder and under the city wall were continuous, countless barbarian soldiers were scalded by the hot oil, their skin was peeled off, revealing blurred blood and flesh and dense white bones, the scene was so miserable that it was unbearable to see.

  This is not over yet, after seeing the fire oil being poured down, Zuo Muqing waved the command flag here, half of his body protruding from the tower, shouting loudly: "Release the fire arrows, ignite the oil!"

  As he ordered, Feng Junming ignited one after another, and for a time, fire arrows shot out from the city wall in all directions.

  As the fire oil ignited, with the fall of the rocket, the city below instantly turned into a sea of flames, followed by mournful cries.

  Those barbarian soldiers who were not splashed by the fire oil or tightly scalded were in the midst of the sea of flames, being burned all over their bodies, screaming continuously. The tragic cries made the Fengjun on the city wall feel a chill down their spines, and the air was filled with the thick smell of burnt flesh.

  The commander of the barbarian army apparently did not expect such a situation, hesitated for a moment, and hastily ordered all the attacking barbarians to withdraw immediately.

  The sea of flames burned more and more fiercely, the barbarian soldiers who were blocked outside could hardly get close, hearing the main general's order to retreat, many barbarian soldiers turned around and retreated back to their own camp.

  They withdrew, the barbarian soldiers under the city were burned to ashes, and those who had climbed up the city wall immediately became isolated forces. The situation on the battlefield was changing in an instant, these barbarian soldiers who charged at the forefront thought they were the brave warriors who opened the door to victory, but now they turned into dead soldiers who drilled into the gate of death.

  Behind them was a sea of flames, in front of them were the dense crowds of the Wind Army. It can be said that these thousands of barbarian soldiers, whether they went forward or backward, were on a dead-end road. Although they still tightly grasped their weapons and appeared ferocious, their eyes had already revealed a desperate emotion. On the other hand, the morale of the Wind Army was high, dividing the thousands of barbarian soldiers into manageable sections, surrounding them layer by layer.

  Fighting to this point, Xiao Miaoqing on the tower often breathed a sigh of relief in his heart. Although he appeared calm on the surface, his heart was already tied into a knot. His tension was no less than that of anyone present. Delaying time and allowing the barbarian soldiers to climb the city walls were part of his plan. Pouring oil to isolate the barbarian soldiers was also part of his plan. Injuring enemy soldiers was secondary; as long as the goal was to burn as many of the barbarian soldiers' cloud ladders as possible, if the barbarian soldiers' cloud ladders were insufficient, then no matter how many more people they had, it would be difficult for them to play a role. His plan could be considered a great success. This big fire burned most of the barbarian soldiers' cloud ladders to ashes and also greatly injured the barbarian soldiers, severely weakening their morale.

  He turned his head and called Lian Chuanling again, saying: "Pass on my order, capture as many barbarians trapped on the city wall as possible, and kill those who resist stubbornly without mercy!"

  "Yes! Enlist!" With the order of the commander, the adjutant was even more impressed by Xiao Muzhen's ability and his confidence increased greatly. When he replied, his voice was much louder and clearer.

  Xiao Muqing spat out a mouthful of turbid air, turned his head to look at Qiu Zhen, and smiled slightly, saying: "Just now, let the adults be startled!" His words were laced with meaning, on the surface comforting Qiu Zhen, but in reality subtly mocking him for being unable to keep calm and lacking the demeanor of a great general.

  Qiu Zhen came back to his senses and stared at Xiao Muqing in surprise. Regardless of Xiao Muqing's character, he indeed had exceptional abilities, remaining calm in the face of danger, with a cool head and rich experience, making him an opponent on the battlefield who could make enemies tremble with fear.

  He caught the sarcasm in his words, and Qiu Zhen didn't get angry, at least not on the surface. He smiled calmly and said lightly, "It's not scary, just a bit nervous about facing the barbarian army for the first time." As he spoke, his gaze shifted to the command flag tightly held in Xiao Muqing's palm.

  The barbarian troops have temporarily withdrawn, with many casualties, and the cloud ladder has been destroyed by more than half. It's likely that they won't be able to launch another attack for a while. Logically, Xiao Muzhen should return the command flag to Qiu Zhen at this time, but instead, he is taking it easy and using it comfortably.

  Deliberately ignoring Qiu Zhen's gaze, Xiao Muqing chuckled and turned his attention to the outside of the city.

  "You said: 'The barbarian troops suffered a great loss when they first attacked the city, and next time they attack, they will surely use all their strength. At that time, we will have a hard time defending ourselves!'"

  Qiu Zhen furrowed his brow and asked: "What should we do? Use the old trick again and launch a fire attack?"

  Xiao Mqing shook his head and said, "The enemy is now on guard, and using fire attacks again will be difficult to achieve results. Now we can only rely on Lord Tang. If Lord Tang arrives in time, we can defeat the enemy army. If he cannot arrive, we are likely to... suffer a disaster!"

  Qiu Zhenxin's heart skipped a beat as he asked, "What do you think the barbarian troops will do next to attack the city?"

  Xiao Muqing replied: "Either launch a four-sided attack or use the Lingshan warriors to lead the charge and take the city gate directly!"

  Qiu Zhen sucked in a breath of cool air. If the barbarian troops were really dispersed and surrounded the city walls on all four sides, their own defense would lose its focus. With limited manpower, they would be spread too thin across the four city walls, and it was likely that they would soon be defeated by the barbarian troops one by one. After listening to Xiao Muqing's analysis, Qiu Zhen's expression also turned serious. The more than a thousand barbarian soldiers who remained on the city wall did not resist for long. Except for some who were killed, the rest were all captured by the Wind Army.

  Xiao Muzheng ordered the soldiers to tie up these barbarian troops and push them to the front of the city wall. Even if they couldn't serve as human shields, they could still be used to intimidate the enemy.

  The first siege ended in a disastrous defeat, with the barbarian army also suffering heavy casualties of over 10,000 men. Before they could launch their next attack, a cloud of dust rose from the rear of the camp as a group of horsemen rushed towards them at high speed.