One against four, complete annihilation!
"General Nie is still the most formidable," Nan Jiyun chuckled while resting.
Liang Xiao merely nodded.
While their martial arts were comparable, Nan Jiyun excelled at swift kills to conserve energy, whereas Nie Yuan had extensive experience fighting overwhelming odds, as demonstrated when he single-handedly defeated the evildoers of the Hui Chun Cult.
No matter how good sparring was, without proving themselves on the battlefield, they could not command respect.
Now that both had earned fame, they would be convincingly appointed to important responsibilities in the future!
Before Nie Yuan could rest, another six barbarian generals arrived in a group to pursue them.
"Nie Yuan! You can kill four, but do you dare kill all six of us!"
The roars of the six drew disdainful glances from Liang Xiao and the others: "Shameless!"
Just as Nie Yuan was about to respond, Yue Qingtian arrived. "I'll accompany you!"
Seeing Yue Qingtian's reinforcement, Nie Yuan became even more audacious, and together with Yue Qingtian, they spurred their horses towards the six.
In the first clash, two against six, Yue Qingtian's overwhelming saber strike knocked a barbarian general off his horse, followed by a swift decapitation!
"What divine strength is this?" The remaining five were greatly shocked, drawing their spears and swinging their sabers to fight.
They could see that this towering brute of a man, though slightly slower than Nie Yuan and Nan Jiyun, possessed astonishing power, making him even more lethal than the other two!
Nie Yuan and Yue Qingtian, one on each side, fiercely battled the remaining five.
Then, three more barbarian generals arrived to reinforce them.
"Nine against two, damn it!" Lü Changhe finally burst into a curse and rushed forward with Zhuo Ying, cracking their whips.
Before the two could get close, screams began to echo from the battlefield.
Lü Changhe and Zhuo Ying stared blankly at the battlefield. They saw Nie Yuan and Yue Qingtian successively stab and behead six men, leaving the remaining three with ashen faces, fleeing for their lives back to their camp.
Out of twenty-seven barbarian generals who had fought, only eighteen survived. The remaining nine, who had not yet engaged, were already terrified and dared not fight!
The barbarian army endured a cycle of "shouts, exclamations, wails, more shouts, more exclamations, more wails..." each time their generals engaged ending in a crushing defeat.
The Right Virtuous King and the Left Virtuous King turned ashen-faced, speechless for a long time.
The proud generals of the barbarians, thirty-six in all, could be routed by just three generals of Da Qian!
"Hahaha! Three fierce generals of Da Qian are enough, we don't need thirty-six at all!"
Lü Yi laughed with uncharacteristic wildness, his mood soaring.
The soldiers also roared with laughter, then began booing the distant barbarian army.
Both sides had expected a hard-fought, indecisive battle, but who knew that thirty-six men would be swept away by three, unbelievably!
Liang Xiao felt an immense sense of relief.
These three fierce generals, while not quite on his level, would be invaluable in the future, allowing him to relax and take it easy.
If victory had been barely achieved against the thirty-six, the boost to morale would have been limited, mainly enhancing the soldiers' confidence and making them believe that Da Qian's cavalry was superior to the barbarians'.
But winning so effortlessly had a much more significant impact on the soldiers' morale.
Liang Xiao had already noticed that the soldiers standing ready in the distance were all excited, ready to fight the barbarians even if the battle were to begin immediately!
"Marshal, should our army press the advantage and pursue?" the generals under Lü Yi anxiously inquired.
Upon hearing this, Lü Yi glanced at the barbarian formation and, seeing that they had not fallen into disarray, quickly said, "Have the generals return first and await further orders!"
With the barbarian army assembled, and being mostly cavalry, Lü Yi dared not be rash and underestimated them. He could only wait for Liang Xiao's return to discuss the strategy.
Liang Xiao led his men back to the main camp. After reporting to Lü Yi, the latter praised Nan Jiyun and the other two: "After this battle, your names will be known throughout the land!"
The three thanked Lü Yi for the opportunity.
Lü Changhe and the others looked on with a sense of anticlimax, filled with envy.
They had expected to have a chance to showcase their martial prowess on the field.
But that was it?
It wasn't that the barbarians were weak, but that these three were too formidable.
"My brother Shi Liuyun, his martial arts are even superior to mine. He is currently the General Who Pacifies Rebels," Nie Yuan said modestly.
Everyone was startled: "Even superior to General Nie?"
Nie Yuan realized he had been too modest, overshadowing Nan Jiyun and Yue Qingtian. He quickly explained, "Liuyun likes to study my spear techniques, so I have no chance of winning against him. General Nie and General Yue should be evenly matched with him..."
Lü Yi laughed heartily, "The more such fierce generals we have, the better!"
At this moment, Liang Xiao was also in an excellent mood.
The fact that these three had achieved fame in this battle proved that his judgment was sound.
Lü Yi then asked Liang Xiao for his opinion on attacking.
Liang Xiao smiled and said, "No rush. The two armies are at a stalemate. Our army controls the water source, and our supplies are also safe. We can wait for them to retreat or to actively harass us before pursuing. This will prevent them from flanking and surprising us."
It was unrealistic to press the attack and attempt to annihilate them simply because their generals had lost individual duels. Such an action would only lead to heavy casualties for their own side.
However, if the barbarian cavalry detached themselves from their camp to intercept, their supply train would likely not be able to keep up immediately.
If the barbarians chose to retreat, it would be a further blow to their morale. The Da Qian army could then use their cavalry to pursue and annihilate them. Even if the pursuit was unsuccessful, the cavalry could retreat safely.
If the barbarians chose to confront them here and brought up their supplies, the Da Qian army could use their cavalry to raid the supply units while their infantry advanced, pressuring the barbarians and leaving them unable to attend to both ends.
If the barbarians launched an offensive, then it would be a contest of skill for both sides.
Lü Yi understood and smiled, "After this battle is over, we will have a grand celebration for all the generals, especially the three!"
Everyone was deeply impressed by the three and no longer doubted their martial prowess.
The eighteen corpses of the barbarian generals were displayed at the front of the formation, further humiliating the barbarians!
"Our Da Qian is rich in martial virtue!"
The Da Qian soldiers were full of confidence and eager to fight the barbarians, to prove that they were now different from before!
Conversely, the barbarian camp was in an awkward predicament.
Attack? Their morale was low!
Retreat? They were likely to be pursued and annihilated by the enemy!
The Right Virtuous King and the Left Virtuous King found themselves in a difficult position, unable to advance or retreat, and dared not be careless.
If both sides remained in a standoff here, they could at most last half a day, as the distance was too short, and they would fall within each other's arrow range in an instant.
Once night fell, either side could be attacked by the other!
"Marshal, what should we do now? The supplies from Helan Mountain haven't arrived yet..." the Right Virtuous King's advisor said with a worried expression.
Originally, the Right Virtuous King had been full of confidence, intending to use the victory of the thirty-six generals to launch an attack. Even if they couldn't defeat Da Qian, they could use their cavalry to harass them and slowly wear down the Da Qian soldiers.
Now, the tables had turned, and they were becoming increasingly passive!
At this moment, the Right Virtuous King was also extremely dejected and was about to vent his frustration when he heard the Left Virtuous King laugh, "Actually, today doesn't necessarily bring only bad news!"
"Having lost so many great generals, what makes you say that?" the Right Virtuous King retorted unhappily.
A trace of madness appeared on the Left Virtuous King's face, and he sneered, "What does today's battle tell us? The Celestial General did not appear! We will use this opportunity to rally the soldiers, let them understand that the Celestial General is truly dead! Then, we will launch our attack!"