Chapter 141: When the Star Loses Its Light (2)
After meeting Yu Gwang-se, So-mu immediately left the camp.
As he made his way back to the Wolf Fang Squad’s assembly point, his expression was somewhat grim. It had not been a very pleasant meeting.
He was about halfway up an unnamed mountain when it happened.
“Aaargh!”
A faint scream drifted from about fifty zhang away.
So-mu’s body stretched out like a ghost as he darted toward the sound.
Arriving in an instant, he saw a Wolf Fang squad member catching his breath. The tip of his sword had run through a Hui soldier, pinning him to a tree.
“You must be slacking on your training. To think you’d get tired out by a guy like this.”
The squad member was startled by the voice coming from behind him.
“Whoa! You scared me. Please, make some sound when you approach. I thought my heart was going to stop.”
It was Cheong-hae, a squad member originally from the Mount Hua Sect.
So-mu looked around with a puzzled expression. Signs of a struggle were scattered everywhere. It was unexpected that Cheong-hae, one of the top combatants in the Wolf Fang Squad, would be this exhausted.
“Was this guy the leader of the special force?” Cheong-hae asked, pulling his sword free from the tree.
“No, he’s a centurion.”
If he was a centurion, he would be around the rank of vice-commander. That meant the actual leader of the special force was still out there. If they weren’t careful, the Wolf Fang Squad could suffer casualties.
“I’ll have to take a look around,” So-mu said.
Cheong-hae, reading So-mu’s mind, stopped him. “No need to worry. Brother Il-gwang said he’d handle their commander.”
“Then we don’t need to concern ourselves. Let’s head straight to the assembly point.”
Using their light footwork, So-mu and Cheong-hae dashed away together. Their destination was an abandoned temple about three hundred zhang away.
Most of the squad members had already gathered there.
It was another fifteen minutes before everyone was assembled.
Though none of his men were visibly injured, some looked quite fatigued. It seemed the enemy’s martial arts were more formidable than expected.
“Did everyone succeed?” So-mu asked.
Since the numbers had been equal, they had agreed to pair off and face them one-on-one. He needed to know if any had escaped.
Il-gwang rolled his shoulders as he replied, “Of course we did. We killed them all. But why are you back so early, Captain?”
“As expected, he wouldn’t listen to reason. I gave him one last chance, and he threw it right back in my face.”
“So he wants to monopolize command until the very end?”
“Yes. In fact, he said we must also move under his command.”
“What a madman. So what do you plan to do now?”
“For now, we have no choice but to act independently. The march will resume soon, so let’s get moving.”
So-mu led the Wolf Fang Squad along the mountain path, covertly monitoring the army led by Yu Gwang-se.
Their objective was to strike the rear of the enemy besieging Xiangyang Fortress. The Hui Dynasty seemed to anticipate this, desperately trying to intercept them.
However, after the Wolf Fang Squad joined the fray, all of the enemy’s deceptive tactics were rendered useless.
The army’s march proceeded without hindrance.
Two days passed, and just as the soldiers were recovering from their fatigue…
An elite force of the Hui army had formed a defensive line ahead, blocking their path. Their numbers were close to a thousand.
The fifty-thousand-strong army led by Yu Gwang-se deployed and prepared for battle. From a nearby mountain, the Wolf Fang Squad watched the scene unfold.
Cheol-du, a member of the Wolf Fang Squad, whispered, “Are they trying to buy time?”
So-mu thought differently. “A force of that size isn’t enough for that. There might be some scheme at play, so let’s observe a bit longer.”
The hundred or so members of the Wolf Fang Squad, like a pack of black wolves, watched from the shadows as the Yongmu Army led the charge to break through the blockade.
The elite force’s line broke much easier than expected. As soon as the battle commenced, the allies seized the upper hand.
Sama Cheol’s ferocity in slaughtering the enemy was terrifying.
“Our allies’ momentum is incredible,” Cheol-du muttered.
Within fifteen minutes, the battle was drawing to a close. The Hui force had already begun to flee.
So-mu’s eyes gleamed as he studied the fleeing enemies, his gaze locking onto a small mark branded on their bodies.
“Something is off.”
Cheol-du tilted his head. “What’s off about them running away?”
“They aren’t regular troops. They look like a slave unit.”
“Well, regular troops are too valuable to use as a suicide squad.”
“That’s not what I mean. Slave units do not retreat even if they face death, because their families are held hostage.”
As So-mu pointed out, something was indeed strange.
Meanwhile, the allies, blinded by the easy victory, were pursuing them relentlessly.
Having suffered defeat after defeat, the pleasure of a decisive victory was intoxicating.
“Slaughter them all! Do not let a single one escape shreds!”
Even Yu Gwang-se did not hesitate to join the pursuit.
After a short while, the army encountered another force of about a thousand men.
Having already tasted an easy victory, they did not hesitate.
“Break through!”
The surging tide of the army shattered the enemy’s defensive line in an instant. And, as before, the Hui force fled, with Yu Gwang-se pursuing them in a state of extreme excitement.
“No one can stand in our way!”
Watching from a distance, Il-gwang snorted. “Madman…”
Sensing an ominous aura, So-mu signaled one of his squad members. It was Hyeonjeong, a senior disciple of the Mount Hua Sect and Cheong-hae’s senior.
“Go ahead and see what lies in front of us.”
“Yes, Captain. I’ll be back shortly.”
Hyeonjeong vanished toward the front like an arrow.
So-mu then called Cheol-du and whispered something to him. Seeing Cheol-du nod, he gave his final instruction.
“Deliver what I just told you to Commander Han Baek immediately. We have no time.”
“Understood.”
With Hyeonjeong and Cheol-du gone, the rest of the squad matched the army’s pace, advancing through the mountains.
Meanwhile, Yu Gwang-se was ecstatic after defeating four consecutive enemy units.
“Do not let them escape!”
The army’s pursuit showed no signs of stopping.
The chase continued for nearly two hours. Having personally cut down over a hundred men, Yu Gwang-se’s eyes were bloodshot with madness.
Just then, his vice-commander, Nam Cheon, rushed up to him.
“General, this is a dead end!”
Ahead lay a basin surrounded by steep mountains.
The surviving Hui soldiers, numbering about fifteen hundred, had nowhere left to run.
“Heaven is on our side! Do not stop the pursuit!”
Perhaps because things had gone too smoothly, Nam Cheon felt a sudden wave of unease and tried to stop him.
“I have a bad feeling about this. We should pull back for now.”
Yu Gwang-se glared at him and shoved him aside.
“Retreat when the enemy is right in front of us? What nonsense is that?!”
“Just in case, shouldn’t we divide our forces?”
There was no need to deploy the entire army to eliminate a mere fifteen hundred men.
But Yu Gwang-se thought differently. This was a golden opportunity to boost the morale of all his troops.
“I’ll deal with you after the battle.”
Yu Gwang-se, who had already been looking for an excuse to discipline Nam Cheon, charged forward with the soldiers.
Left with no choice, Nam Cheon joined the ranks.
The closer they got to the enemy, the greater Nam Cheon’s anxiety grew. He could see the faces of the surrounded enemies. Even in the face of slaughter, they were calm. There was no fear in their eyes.
Yet the oblivious soldiers charged forward with thunderous battle cries.
“Waaaaah!”
“Charge!”
At that moment, Nam Cheon saw Yu Gwang-se and Sama Cheol at the front suddenly freeze. They seemed to have sensed something and panicked.
Then, the sound of thundering hooves began to echo from somewhere. When they looked back, an unbelievable sight met their eyes.
Rumble! Rumble!
In the distance, the ground vibrated as clouds of dust rose.
“Could it be?”
It was a Hui cavalry unit.
There was no longer any doubt. The enemy had lured them here. It was the worst-case scenario.
“What a disaster…”
Nam Cheon quickly scanned the surroundings to assess the situation.
The entire army had entered the basin, save for the supply train which was half a day behind.
Surrounded on three sides by sheer cliffs ten zhang high, there was no way out. The slave unit lay ahead, and the cavalry unit was charging from behind.
“St-Stop!”
At Nam Cheon’s shout, the soldiers who looked back turned pale with fear.
The cavalry numbered about two thousand. While not a massive force, the allies were entirely infantry, making it a fatal threat.
If they were struck from the rear by cavalry, their formation would disintegrate in an instant.
A panicked Yu Gwang-se rode back to the rear and shouted, “The enemy is less than ten percent of our size! Do not panic and form ranks!”
It was easier said than done.
Sama Cheol rode up, shouting as he pointed at the slave unit. “I will take the Yongmu Army and finish those guys off first. General, command the rest to annihilate the cavalry!”
That was the only option. They would suffer heavy casualties, but he was confident they could win.
Just as Yu Gwang-se nodded and open his mouth to order, a dark shadow loomed over the cliffs surrounding the basin.
“Nock arrows!”
Looking up at the cliffs, Yu Gwang-se stood open-mouthed.
Thousands of Hui archers were drawing their bows along the edge. The enemy had set a perfect trap.
The encirclement was absolute.
Vice-commander Wang Rang rushed up in a panic. “What should we do, General? Give us orders!”
No solution came to mind.
The army’s soaring morale plummeted instantly. The soldiers began to panic, running about in confusion.
“Damn it…”
At that moment, laughter echoed from behind. It was the commander of the slave unit.
“Hahaha! Welcome to the pits of hell!”
Though the enemy mocked them openly, no one could utter a word.
Up on the cliff, the commander of the archers raised his hand and shouted, “Aim!”
Yu Gwang-se looked around.
The pale, terrified soldiers were trembling. He could not win with such troops. He had to make a decision.
“Break through the cavalry and retreat!”
Nam Cheon rushed over and yelled, “General, we are all infantry! Even if we break through, how can we outrun the cavalry? Only a handful of martial artists with fast light footwork will survive!”
“We must save who we can!”
“How can you retreat without even fighting?!”
Yu Gwang-se turned away, preparing to break out.
Nam Cheon sighed and looked up at the cliffs. The archer commander was about to give the order to fire.
“Fire…”
Suddenly, Nam Cheon’s eyes widened in shock. The head of the archer commander flew into the air just as he was about to give the command.
It was an unbelievable sight. Immediately after, a red mist began to sweep through the archers’ ranks. Black wolves were ruthlessly tearing through the archers.
“Is that Captain So-mu…?”
Nam Cheon shuddered as he watched the cliffs.
The martial arts of the Wolf Fang Squad, which he had only heard of in rumors, transcended imagination. The archers fell like autumn leaves, unable to put up any resistance.
Overjoyed, Nam Cheon shouted, “Reinforcements are here! The enemy’s archers are collapsing!”
The shattered morale of the army began to stir once more.
While the worst had been avoided, it was not over yet. The Hui cavalry was still charging toward them.
“Form defensive ranks, quickly!”
The soldiers gathered their courage and formed a tight formation. And at that moment, another miracle occurred.
A thunderous horn echoed, shaking the entire basin.
Buuuuu-!
The charging Hui cavalry slowed down, hesitating. They were visibly shaken.
Nam Cheon looked toward the sound of the horn.
A new cavalry force had emerged, charging toward them at breakneck speed. Their numbers were comparable to the Hui cavalry.
Divided into two flanks, they targeted the enemy’s sides. Seeing the emblem on the flags they carried, Nam Cheon’s eyes welled with tears of relief. It was the cavalry of Chang’an.
It was Commander Han Baek, who had been waiting nearby.
Nam Cheon felt a deep reverence for So-mu, who was somewhere on the cliffs slaughtering the archers.
‘How could he devise such a crazy tactic…?’
The timely arrival of the reinforcements meant So-mu had anticipated the enemy’s trap beforehand.
If it had been Nam Cheon, he would have warned the army to prevent them from entering the basin. But So-mu chose to let the army walk into the trap.
He did so to create a triple encirclement: Yu Gwang-se’s army surrounding the slave unit, the Hui army surrounding them, and finally, their own reinforcements surrounding the Hui army.