Chapter 201 The First Battle 2 (1/2)

The two Arrow Formations were like two giant arrows. They became two sharp arrows, shooting at each other on the broad plain. The momentum of the arrows was very mighty, causing the dust to rise in clouds.

The rumble of galloping horses was like the sound of thunder, eclipsing all other noise. Two Arrow Formations composed of fine cavalrymen in armors drew closer and closer—100 steps, 50 steps… Finally, they clashed.

The moment the two armies faced each other, their long spears were on the line before their horses. The two opposing teams of cavalrymen stuck out their long spears beyond their horses' heads and stabbed at their enemies.

The whinnies of the horses suddenly arose. Shining spears clashed, generating a clear sound. The sharp point of their spears penetrated armor and body. Sad, shrill cries mixed with the sounds of horseshoes, covering everything and shielding all senses.

The cavalrymen in the forefront of the two armies pa.s.sed one another. Some of them fell onto the ground; some of them remained on their horses. They charged toward the center of their enemy's formation. All the soldiers at the frontline saw was a vast sea of iron armors and a forest of long spears.

The battle formations caused two clouds of dust to collide with each other, integrating into each other and then separating. The horses were galloping at top speed in the battle formation, creating one dust line after another. The dust lines ran vertically and horizontally through the black horses and armors, like the crisscrossing footpaths between fields.

The screams and shouts became louder and louder, covering the rumbling sound of the galloping horses. The sad, shrill cries rose one after another, making people's heart tremble with fear.

The battle formations, which were originally very tight, crisscrossed as the horses run. Gradually, sporadic, linear or stretches of empty s.p.a.ce began to appear. The horses were still running in the battle array, but the cavalrymen were gone.

None of the soldiers who fell in the battle formation stood up, whether dead or alive. In an instant, they were trampled by enemy or friendly horses turned into muddy flesh.

The scarlet blood dyed the ground.

Li Ye was right next to Shangguan Qingcheng. The Senior and Junior Priestesses were right behind Li Ye. Shangguan Qingcheng's personal soldiers followed them closely. As the head of the Arrow Formation, their pressure was the greatest, and they were also the strongest part of the formation.

As a cultivator at Level 9 of Qi-refining, Li Ye was not afraid of any long spears stabbing at him. As his horse ran rapidly, the figures and faces of his enemies pa.s.sed him quickly. They popped up before him, and then instantly brushed against him. So Li Ye could only cast a pa.s.sing glance at them.

Each long spear stabbing at Li Ye could not break the defense enchantment he set. They either broke or deviated from him. Li Ye knew very well the key to charging a formation as a cavalryman. He carried the long spear steadily and did not even change the position of the spearhead. His spear was pointed at one direction all the time.

Enemies who charged at his spearhead directly fell from their horses and died.

Only pract.i.tioners who were at the Qi-refining Stage could avoid his spear. Only those elite soldiers who bowed down and stayed close to the horseback could avoid his spearhead.

There were many sounds coming from the battleground. Sound produced when the spear swept past the armor, sound produced when soldiers fell to the ground, the screams and shouts of soldiers who were trodden by horses…They appeared one after another, like the sea waves sounding in Li Ye's ears. Li Ye could appraise the loss of his and his enemy's troops without even looking around or turning back.

The head of the Arrow Formation formed by Li Ye was indestructible. No one could destroy it. Soon they penetrated their enemy's Arrow Formation. When there were no enemies ahead, Shangguan Qingcheng adjusted the horse's direction skillfully and turned her cavalrymen's formation around.

After the first round of charging, the speed of the cavalry certainly slowed down.

The two Military Formations intersected and pa.s.sed each other, leaving hundreds of bodies in the empty land behind. The flood of iron armors was like a dragon. They turned around in the empty field, then charged toward their enemy again.

During this process, they finally had the opportunity to appraise their loss. Li Ye frowned. The loss of the Wolf-tooth Troop was great, much higher than he had expected. He originally thought that with the great proportion of cultivators in his troop, his troop would become invincible.

Now he realized that even cultivators could not guarantee a win when they are confronted with charging cavalrymen in their formation. As long as their cultivation was not very high, they could not control the situation of the war. When the cavalrymen were fighting, they were very close to death and sometimes, even the slightest move would decide whether they could live or die.

Only the elite troops who had experienced hundreds of wars could know the secrets of war, which could not be described by words. They had to bring maximum damage to their enemy while staying alive.

The soldiers of Wolf-tooth Troop had undergone enough training, and they nearly had no chance to rest. They also had suppressed bandits many times. But judging from the practical situation, no soldier could be called elite soldier without real war experience. And the soldiers who survived the war would be the best soldiers of the elite troop.

Sometimes, the experience and skills obtained in real wars were even more important than their armaments.

The soldiers began to adjust themselves for a new formation. The s.p.a.ces caused by the death of soldiers were refilled by the surviving soldiers. Thus, they kept the orderly shape of the formation. In the real war of formations on the battlefield, the result of the war depended on whether the array was complete or not.

Li Ye turned around and looked ahead. He looked serious and determined. The two army formations were going to fight against each other again. The horses trod over the b.l.o.o.d.y battlefield and ran toward the other party again.

Li Ye was not at ease. Zhu Zhen was even calmer and more determined. He stared at the front row of Wolf-tooth Troop. It looked as if his eyes were going to burn.

The Charging of the Array Formation was the best array for a cavalry to fight against infantries. But in fact, when two cavalry troops were fighting against each other, it was not the best choice. The two troops both chose the Charging of Array Formation only because both of them were confident that they could tear the other side apart by their Charging Formation and end the war.

However, Zhu Zhen discovered in disappointment that after the first round of the Charging Formation, the array of the Wolf-tooth Troop was still complete. The number of their dead was much smaller than he had expected, while the number of the dead in his own troop was far higher than he'd expected.

Zhu Zhen originally thought that the Wolf-tooth Troop was made up of new soldiers who were easily defeated, but he realized how wrong he was.

The Wolf-tooth Troop not only had a large number of cultivators who could cause great harm to his troops but were also well trained. After a round of fierce fighting, their formation was still intact. Their soldiers' performance at war was only slightly inferior to his experienced elite troops.

He could imagine that after experiencing several more wars, this cavalry troop before him could become a real elite cavalry troop.

Zhu Zhen also discovered that among the 3,000 cavalrymen, was a group of backbone soldiers who were real experienced veterans in war. They were the skeleton of the troop and helped to keep the order and thrust of the troop.