Chapter 146: Defeating the Xianbei When the friendly cavalry and the enemy cavalry were entangled together, ordinary crossbowmen might have to stop shooting to avoid accidental injuries. But the first batch of death soldiers are obviously not among them. Qu Yi led the vanguard of soldiers without hesitation, aiming and shooting while following Zhang Liao's army and advancing slowly, without any fear of death. Facing the Xianbei cavalry on both wings that wanted to encircle them, they fired at them at a high frequency. Facing the Xianbei cavalry blocking Zhang Liao's army in front, they fired accurately at the enemy to ensure that they would not accidentally injure their own cavalry. Zhang Liao's army, which was at the front of the charge, felt that the charge was going extremely smoothly. On the one hand, the strength between the enemy and us was very different. On the other hand, with the assistance of the vanguard soldiers, many Xianbei cavalry who were a little further away were directly shot off their horses. Although our side was at a disadvantage in terms of military strength, we actually gained a huge military advantage in a local area, and the enemy was unable to organize a decent attack. How could Zhang Liao’s army’s attack not be unstoppable? Tian Ze, who was closely watching the battle area between the two sides in the rear, couldn't help but sigh in his heart when he saw this scene. Unexpectedly, the Xiandeng death squad and Zhang Liao’s army actually achieved an effect similar to the infantry and artillery coordination in later generations. Of course, this situation could occur despite the fact that Zhang Liao's army and Qu Yi's army cooperated well and the vanguard soldiers had amazing combat effectiveness, but it was also largely due to the cooperation of this group of Xianbei troops.
This group of Xianbei troops, with their loose formation, large numbers, poor equipment and weak combat power, were completely suppressed by this set of tactics. Because even when the two sides were fighting, this group of Xianbei cavalry did not attack closely with concentrated fire. Many of them kept a relatively medium distance in the back and attacked with various strange weapons or bows and arrows. Their offensive methods have relatively more layers, which can maximize the advantages of individual soldiers and make up for the shortcomings of insufficient organization and coordination. Their offensive methods are slightly different from those of the Han army, and each has its own advantages and disadvantages. If it were the Han army, with its relatively tight offensive formation, it would probably be difficult to achieve such an effect. In a cavalry charge, momentum is extremely important. Especially the outcome of the initial confrontation is crucial. The presence of Qu Yi directly smashed the arrowhead of the Xianbei cavalry's "sharp arrow". This allowed the cavalry led by Zhang Liao to maintain a tight formation and charge into the Xianbei army with almost no pressure. Now it was Zhang Liao's turn to shine. After years of cavalry combat, Zhang Liao has accumulated rich combat experience. Coupled with his natural keen battlefield intuition, he can always seize the best opportunities for battle. Five thousand cavalrymen formed a goose-shaped formation with the most lethality and fiercely attacked the Xianbei cavalry. With the bonus of their talents, the cavalry under Zhang Liao's command have absolutely crushed the Xianbei cavalry in terms of individual combat power. Seeing this, the many Xianbei cavalrymen in the front who had already been defeated by the vanguard of the death squads instinctively reined in their horses and retreated out of fear. The scene suddenly became chaotic, and countless Xianbei cavalry were forced to move forward or backward. Looking down from the sky, one could see that the Xianbei army's vanguard had been completely defeated, and the two armies that were supposed to collide with each other had now become completely one-sided. Seeing Zhang Liao advancing forward, Tian Zejun and others, who were the rear troops, followed suit and handed over the spare war horses that had been prepared long ago to the vanguard soldiers. At this time, the distance between the vanguard soldiers and the enemy was far beyond the shooting range, so they could only mount their horses. Although the hit rate of operating the "Xiandeng Crossbow" on a warhorse is much lower and it is not easy to string the bow, but because of their talent, the Xiandeng soldiers still choose to attack with crossbows. The only difference is that the attack method has been completely transformed from the original precision strike to concentrated fire.
Each time the fire was concentrated, a large gap was created in the Xianbei army blocking the charge of Zhang Liao's army. Behind the Xianbei army, Budugen was stunned as he watched tens of thousands of soldiers being defeated by Zhang Liao without any chance of fighting back. It's not that he hadn't thought that the front army would be defeated, but he hadn't thought it would be defeated so quickly and so thoroughly. When he gave the order for the central army to attack from both wings to avoid being hit by the defeated and retreating front army, it was too late. Zhang Liao personally led 500 Zhaohu soldiers to the front, pushing his talents to the limit. The terrifying bonus made his personal guards gradually show a special rhythm. Qu Yi, who was standing behind him, felt this scene and was slightly moved: "As expected of Wen Yuan, he has come this far so quickly!" "wind!" At this moment, Zhang Liao seemed to have a blessing in his heart, and the 500 Zhaohu soldiers under his command all felt faintly the rhythm of the wind. Each thrust of their spears seemed to be easier and more accurate. They no longer needed to slow down and dodge the enemy soldiers and corpses that blocked their way. They just rode through the gaps as if by instinct. When Tian Ze in the back looked at the small map distractedly, he was stunned. On the small map, the Zhaohu Army led by Zhang Liao was widening the distance between itself and the main force at an incredible speed and charging forward. "Is this an ability similar to Gongsun Bogui's?" Tian Ze couldn't help but doubt inwardly. As he was once a close friend of Gongsun Zan, he also had a certain understanding of his talent. Gongsun Zan, who was born in the frontier, was accustomed to the looting of the Hu cavalry who came and went like the wind since he was a child, and had his own unique understanding of cavalry combat. speed! As long as your speed is fast enough, you can catch up with the enemy and the enemy cannot catch up with you. You can fight when you want to fight or run when you want to run, and you will always be invincible. The White Horse Volunteers led by him were extremely fast, the fastest in the world, and in Tian Ze's mind they were the best light cavalry. He didn't expect that Zhang Liao's Zhaohu Army had also awakened this legion talent. But soon, Tian Ze discovered something wrong after careful observation. After quickly killing their way through the front army, Zhaohu's army did not increase its speed when it reached the Xianbei center army. The talent of Zhaohu Army does not seem to be the improvement in movement speed, but the speed of attack and reaction. Although they do not have the terrifying speed of Baima Yicong, they can maintain their speed during cavalry charges. How terrifying! If the White Horse Volunteers led by Gongsun Zan are the absolute king in speed and the nemesis of cavalry. Then the Zhaohu Army led by Zhang Liao has one of the strongest talents in charging into battle. Zhang Liao led 500 soldiers of the Zhaohu Army to charge left and right, never slowing down, as if they were in an empty space, with a clear goal, heading straight for the Xianbei army's flag. Budugen was horrified when he saw the approaching Zhaohu army and Zhang Liao, who was rushing in the front with a big knife in his hand and had no enemy to match him. "Stop them! Stop them now!" However, the central army was already in chaos at this time. On one side was the dispersed attack on both wings that he had previously ordered, and on the other side were the defeated soldiers of the front army and the ferocious Zhaohu army that had already rushed over.
All the soldiers were in a panic, like headless flies, not knowing what to do. The leaders of each tribe were also panicking at this time. They were originally a temporary alliance, not a solid block. Seeing that the situation was not going well, each wanted to preserve some strength, and many even thought of retreating. How could Zhang Liao let go of such a good opportunity? He aimed in the right direction and gradually killed his way to Budugen. Seeing the Xianbei flag in front of him, Zhang Liao waved his sword wildly, slashing down the surrounding Xianbei cavalrymen one after another, and then swung his sword. With a "click", the Xianbei flag broke. The surrounding Xianbei army suddenly fell into chaos. Budugen had already turned his horse and retreated at this time. Zhang Liao took advantage of the situation and continued to charge, rushing forward like a tiger pouncing on its prey and beheading him with one stroke. The surrounding battlefield suddenly became quiet. Zhang Liao stood on his horse with his sword drawn, holding Budugen's head high into the sky. "Chief Hu surrender, and the rest of you surrender immediately!" The Zhaohu Army burst into cheers, followed by a loud shout in unison. "Chief Hu surrender, and the rest of you surrender immediately!" Although it was in Chinese, all the Hu cavalry understood the meaning of this sentence. Upon hearing the voice, many of the Hu people hurriedly looked back, only to see that the king's flag had indeed disappeared. The Xianbei army completely collapsed. A few cavalrymen simply dropped their weapons and surrendered, but most of them retreated to the west under the leadership of their respective leaders. Mijia, who had been well prepared, took the opportunity to evacuate with his own direct subordinates and some clansmen who still obeyed his orders when Zhang Liao rushed out of the front army. Moreover, he was smart and did not rush to the front, but stayed behind the first echelon. After confirming that Zhang Liao's army was still far away from him, he turned his horse north. This battle has lasted for a long time, and I am afraid that the enemy's reinforcements will arrive soon! In this case, it is safer to break away from the main force and run in another direction. (End of this chapter)