Chapter 952: First Victory
The Kushans' rain of arrows burst out, compared to the rain of arrows that the heavy cavalry had already given up.
By now Barak has collected some intelligence. The golden-armored warriors are not completely immune, but the rain of arrows has little effect.
The rest of the Han army was not immune to the rain of arrows, but the Xianzhen was not one of them.
The response to the attack was quite simple: sweep with the spear and block with the arm shield.
This basic tactical move that any two normal spearmen could perform, at this moment, was like a wall that easily blocked the arrows shot at them.
Without the need for Gao Shun's command, after blocking a wave of arrows, the soldiers in the rear naturally put down their spears, took out the bows on their backs, drew the bows and shot arrows, and shot arrows at will with whistling arrows that easily pierced their opponents.
The spirit of the army that broke through the enemy lines has some elements of the Yulin Army and the Xiongnu Guards. They can use the most appropriate tactics according to the situation without the need for command. This is the experience of war.
The Xianzhen that has come this far has no shortcomings at all!
All-round soldiers are only the weakest at the beginning, but once they are formed, they are capable of facing any opponent, any situation, and any challenge.
The only ones who can restrain them are opponents who are further along the road to omnipotence than they are.
With just one wave of shooting, the Xianzhen easily killed hundreds of opponents, and then these Xianzhen began to provide covering fire. They could easily provide covering fire when their teammates were attacking the enemy, and they could ensure that they would not hit their own people.
Therefore, it was just a test, and the trap formation directly played out the mutual coordination of long-range, medium-range and close combat. Gao Shun had thought about this kind of thing before, but the number of the trap formation was too small at that time, so it was not worth playing all-round coordination. But now it has it.
"Archers retreat, assemble in formation!"
Although they had the advantage of terrain, Xianzhen relied on his superb archery skills and all-round strength to forcibly eliminate all the archers in the front.
Barak had no intention of wasting his time by wasting the lives of archers and the enemy's formation.
It is not easy to train archers. They have accumulated so many arrow reserves. It would be a pity to send all the archers away before finishing the battle.
Just retreat to the back and use space to buy time. The Han Dynasty will eventually send all the regular troops up, and the group rain of arrows can play the greatest effect at that time.
"Defend with confidence!"
After pulling away the archer corps, Barak saw that he had suffered an irresistible attack in all directions, so he immediately ordered his troops to shrink their formation and try to thicken the defense line to see if he could stop the Han Dynasty.
The Golden Armored Legion in the center of the army had been suppressed by force relying on its numbers and officers such as Zasali. If they could use soldiers to cut off the connection between the Golden Armored Legion and the ones behind, they would have a chance to try to encircle and kill the Golden Armored Legion.
He is now certain that this place cannot be defended. Without the three talents and the Military Soul Legion, they cannot stop the Han Dynasty at all.
When two brave men meet in a narrow road, the brave one wins, and when two brave men meet, the strong one naturally wins.
Now both the Han and the Kushans are brave, but at the moment, the Han is stronger.
So he simply set his sights on killing the Han Dynasty. Compared to killing ordinary elites, it would be more valuable if he could surround and kill the Military Soul Corps and cut off the Han Dynasty.
However, it was of no use. The Han army not only had three powerful armies: heavy cavalry, golden-armored warriors, and vanguard troops, but also had many elite troops behind them.
The moment when Ballack contracted the formation and thickened the defense.
Cao Zhen and Cao Hong determined that the enemy archers' cover was ineffective and decisively seized the opportunity.
He led his elite soldiers to attack with all their might. The soldiers who had been under half-protection of Cao Ren suddenly charged forward with roars, and covered the distance of dozens of steps in just three breaths.
The speed surprised Xu Huang and others on the other side. This speed was already faster than the Xiliang Iron Cavalry.
Although the speed of the Xiliang Iron Cavalry is almost a shame among cavalry, it is still cavalry after all. It is a shame for the cavalry to be surpassed so easily by infantry.
On the other hand, it also shows how fast Rui Shi is.
It appeared from the Han army's front line at a speed so fast that it almost left an afterimage. The Kushan soldiers didn't even have time to react. In a hurry, the soldiers could only use defense to parry according to their habits developed over the years .
They are well-trained, so even if they don't react in time, their muscle memory will help them to defend themselves.
After all, those at the front of the formation are basically sword and shield soldiers, and taking damage is a compulsory course for every well-trained sword and shield soldier.
However, even the well-trained sword and shield soldiers, when they have strengthened their own defense to the limit, have no resistance to this dazzling sword light.
What the Sharp Warriors fear least is this type of meat shield soldiers. Any defense is meaningless in their eyes. Only the organized shield guards can make them look up to them. The rest of the legions are just squishy.
As long as the dazzling sword light shines over you, no matter what type of dual talents you have, you will all die.
The hissing sound of the sword blade tearing through the air was accompanied by a slight sound, and the Kushan soldiers in front fell down like wheat being cut.
At this moment, any opponent that stood in the way of the warrior was chopped into pieces by the dazzling sword light.
The terrifying killing efficiency caused many Kushan soldiers to be covered in blood before they could even react. When the sharp warrior swung his last sword, a huge gap was directly cut out on the flank where the defense line had not yet been compressed.
"withdraw!"
After completing the killing, Cao Zhen and Cao Hong did not hesitate at all and directly ordered the elite soldiers to retreat. Although continuing to kill could achieve more brilliant results, it was also possible that the elite soldiers would be sacrificed.
The two people's ability to seize opportunities far exceeds that of younger people like Cao Ang.
After they withdrew, the rain of arrows commanded by Barak finally arrived.
The sharp soldiers had already escaped, and the ones who remained in place were the shield guards led by Cao Ren. The heavy shield guards completely ignored the rain of arrows and rushed forward through the gap cut by the sharp soldiers, making the gap even more chaotic.
"Damn, what kind of fighting style does the Han Dynasty have!" Barak tried to calm himself.
The biggest advantage of the defending side is the archer corps, which can attack from a high position and have a longer range than the attacking side.
However, almost all the troops currently displayed by the Han Dynasty are not afraid of rain of arrows.
It is the only type of soldier that is afraid of rain of arrows, and its speed is not slow either. Unless you can set a trap with bait and then directly spread it out in a wave without distinguishing friend or foe, it would be extremely difficult to catch the opponent's slippery body.
"Oh, it's okay, it's good to know it earlier!"
Barak actually knew the intelligence of part of the legion. After all, most of the intelligence of the Han army that appeared in Nangui had been thoroughly studied.
But knowing and actually responding are two different things. The Han army is not a fool standing there to be killed by you. The enemy's command level is very high. This continuous and orderly dispatching method shows at a glance that it is the command of a large army.
But think about it, it would be strange not to deploy one or two large army commanders for such a large-scale offensive campaign.
"Retreat and let them in to fight!" After thinking it over, Barak directly ordered officers at all levels to lead the rear and central armies to retreat slowly.
He gave up the idea of besieging and killing the Military Soul Corps, as it was really not showing off.
The Han army had a lot of elite soldiers, and it was extremely difficult for him to cut off the connection between the two sides.
Moreover, at that short distance in the mountain pass, the combat power displayed by the Military Soul Corps was too incredible, so they had to increase the contact area with the Han army in order to kill as many Han troops as possible.
"Retreat to advance?" Everyone on the command platform was stunned. Barak's response was better than they imagined.
And Barak's command ability is even better than they thought.
You know, it is very difficult to retreat the army in a war, and if you are not careful, it will result in a great defeat.
"What an excellent general, it's a pity that he was born in Kushan!"
Cao Cao's love for talent was aroused, but that was just his love for talent. He had no intention of being lenient at all.
"March! Move the entire army forward. Since the other party has prepared the stage, then we naturally have to take the stage." Cao Cao shook his head and gave the final order.
"The casualties will not be small!" Chen Gong said suddenly.
"It is unavoidable. Tell all the officers on the front line that all the responsibility will be shouldered by me alone!" Cao Cao didn't even turn his head. He understood what Chen Gong meant, but he was the Marquis of Wei appointed by the imperial court himself.
Xun Yu nodded. Just as Cao Cao said, the terrain and battlefields in Beigui were difficult to overcome, and casualties were unavoidable.
In the war between empires, it is still a fight between armies. The Soul Corps opened up the situation, and if the army cannot keep up, all the previous efforts will be wasted.
Therefore, even though they knew that the battlefield ahead would become a meat grinder, they had no choice but to step in.
Cao Cao took all the responsibility on himself in order to let all the officers and soldiers fight.
This is the meaning of the monarch's existence.
Xun Yu also understood at this moment why Guo Hao and Chen Xi specially enfeoffed the three marquises of Wei, Shu and Wu, and promised to make them kings. It was all for the purpose of allowing the three armies to exert their maximum combat effectiveness.
All trivial matters were left to Cao Cao, and the soldiers on the front line only needed to go into battle and kill the enemy.
This is the way of the lord.
"The Marquis of Wei is wise!" Xun Yu was convinced. He did not expect that Cao Cao had not regressed over the years, but had become more mature instead.
After receiving the order, Guo Ziyi had no more scruples. He rode his horse to the front and led the entire army forward, pushing the command line forward and directly confronting the Kushans.
"You must drive your horses to the Khyber Pass and deliver the intelligence you have collected to General Arvind stationed there."
Barak tilted his head and gave the order. The secretary who had been taking notes on the side nodded immediately and left with all the Han intelligence related to this battle.
Barak had anticipated that they would not be able to defeat the Han Dynasty. Their purpose was to delay the Han Dynasty, wear down its fighting spirit, and provide Arvind, who was actually stationed at the Khyber Pass in the rear, with sufficient and clear intelligence just in case.
From the current perspective, although there have been considerable losses, it is well worth it. The characteristics displayed by each legion of the Han army are clearly visible, and the Kushans will be easier to deal with in the next battle.
After all, they still have many special troops that have not been deployed, so they can launch a surprise attack when the time comes.
Barak looked at the almost defeated central army with extremely cold eyes. The Han Dynasty was almost invulnerable , and he could not see any weakness at all.
If they want to win, they can only fight head-on with equal strength until the Han army is unable to sustain.
This was the only advantage of the Kushans. They were fighting on their own land, and it was easier for them to mobilize troops than the Han Dynasty.
"Start the fire, cut off the military camp, and prepare to retreat."
Barak could still afford a loss of around 20,000 or 30,000.
Moreover, he was worried from the beginning that he would not be able to defeat the Han Dynasty, so he made preparations early. The ditches in the camp were not only used to defend against the Han Dynasty's attacks, but also to consume the enemy's cloud energy.
Another larger role is to set fire to and cut off the military camp when they are unable to resist, giving the rear a chance to retreat.
He didn't tell anyone about this, in order to make the entire army fight to the death without leaving any room for maneuver.
However, it has now fallen into a clear decline, and it is no longer worthwhile to continue fighting. It is better to simply burn it down and survive.
Following Barak's order, the Kushan camp quickly caught fire, blocking the entire Han army's advance route from south to north. The defeated Kushan soldiers in front suddenly lost the possibility of turning back to their own side, and the tung oil burned fiercely with black smoke.
This kind of fire area is dozens of steps wide, and even the heavy cavalry with thick skin and flesh are unwilling to try it.
"Sure enough, when we show our strength that the other side cannot resist, the Kushans will set fire and retreat," Guo Jia said to Chen Gong without turning his head.
"It's expected, but unfortunately General Hua was still a step slow. He must have encountered some accident!" Chen Gong sighed.
They had anticipated this situation long ago, and Feixiong's flanking move was a countermeasure, but they did not expect Huaxiong to not appear within the estimated time.
Then the only option was to let the Kushan army escape, but even if they escaped, they had to leave something behind.
"Yuan Rang, Miao Cai, it's time for you to take action. Chase down the Kushan troops and kill as many as you can!" Cao Cao said to his two brothers with a smile.
"Open!" On the other side, Chen Gong and others cooperated with Guo Ziyi to use clouds to support a passage.
The passage formed by clouds completely isolated the flames, but unfortunately the consumption was too great and only a few legions could pass through.
"Rush at lightning speed and win a victory a thousand miles away!"
Xiahou Yuan gave his super speed talent to the Tiger and Leopard Cavalry, and together with Xiahou Dun, he led the army to rush out of the propped-up passage, and then began to pursue in the direction of the Kushan retreat.
"Let's clean up the battlefield and leave that side to them!" Cao Cao sighed. Although it was expected, he still felt a little regretful. It would be better if they could be completely wiped out.
"Our gains are not small. We have killed more than 40,000 enemies, including more than 20,000 elite soldiers. This is already a great victory." Chen Gong said with a smile.
"Thanks to the cooperation of Kushan, using fire to separate the battlefield is indeed a good plan, but isn't this approach exactly the same as being cut open by a legion on the battlefield?"
"Things that might have taken more time and caused more casualties to resolve were now resolved more quickly and with fewer casualties."
After the last soldier who was still resisting was killed by the vanguard, the remaining Kushan soldiers naturally surrendered.
The Han army took down the first tough bone.
