Massive crossbow bolts, thick and barbed, pierced more than a dozen shields, felling men and their defenses alike!
The bolts from the divine arm crossbows in the rear followed swiftly, tearing open a breach, and the Qingtian Guards surged forward.
The rebels' arrows rained down at close range, striking the Qingtian Guards and the Great Qian Town Guards' shields and bodies, yet with minimal effect.
A portion of the rebels standing at a higher vantage point then realized: even the front-line archers of the opposing force wore armor, rendering their bows and crossbows incapable of effective damage!
Yue Qingtian, wielding a heavy shield in his left hand and a Mo Dao in his right, personally charged through the hail of arrows, his voice like thunder. He led two hundred armored Famine Populace soldiers to the very front.
Hundreds of rebel arrows, including those from imitation longbows, rained down upon Yue Qingtian and his men, all deflected by their heavy shields and plate armor.
"What kind of armor is that??"
Helian Heng's longbowmen were startled.
They were renowned local strongmen, and their longbows could pierce some iron armor at close range.
Yet, the hundreds of men opposite wore armor of a peculiar design and could even deflect the Fengyu arrows they shot!
Even the Buren armor offered some protection against Fengyu arrows, with only a fraction able to pierce the metal plates!
But the Qingtian Guards gave the enemy no chance to ponder. Each man fought valiantly, breaking into the enemy ranks. Shielded by the heavy shields of their comrades in front, the Mo Dao, long spears, and longbows worked in concert to swiftly harvest lives and expand their territory!
"Capture Helian Heng! Those who surrender will be spared; those who abandon the darkness and join the light will be rewarded!!"
While Liang Xiao's army rained down shouts of battle and killing, they did not forget their psychological warfare, striking the enemy's spirit and mind.
Especially the divine arm crossbow squads, operating in threes, with the other two logistics soldiers assisting by delivering arrows and nocking them, all roaring in unison.
Facing the surging momentum of the two great armies, and the relentless volleys from the ballistae and rear crossbows, Helian Heng's elite vanguard was rapidly breached.
As more and more Qingtian Guards and Great Qian Iron Guards broke through the vanguard's defense line, the rebel vanguard began to retreat steadily, feeling their strength waning.
"What's happening? No retreat allowed!!"
Helian Heng, in the central army, received the news and was like an ant on a hot pan, furiously issuing orders.
These were the elites he had nurtured with good food, drink, and equipment, yet they were already retreating less than two quarters of an hour after the battle began!
Helian Heng's strategists, including Helian Ting, were filled with dread.
Could they not even hold for two quarters of an hour?
Were Liang Xiao's troops all heavenly soldiers?
The Qingtian Guards and Great Qian Town Guards, their faces stern, slew and shot down any who resisted. In direct combat, more than thirty rebels had already fallen to Yue Qingtian's Mo Dao.
Protected by their plate armor, with longbowmen and divine arm crossbows suppressing the enemy's archers, Yue Qingtian, charging at the forefront, remained safe despite facing a dense mass of rebel soldiers.
The other Famine Populace, relying on the sturdiness of their plate armor, withstood the enemy's blades and spears, their sole objective to kill quickly.
They were heavy infantry, ill-suited for long-distance pursuit; their only task was to tear open the enemy's lines as quickly as possible to create an absolute advantage!
Especially with the enemy possessing longbowmen and ballistae, the longer the engagement dragged on, the heavier their own losses would be!
While their front ranks could resist crossbows, arrows could be lobbed to the rear, and the enemy was also using shields to cover their archers' return fire.
Tens of thousands of Great Qian Town Guards, having rested and conserved their strength, drawing higher salaries than the Feathered Forest Army and enjoying fine food and drink, now wished to display their absolute martial prowess to Liang Xiao.
For public duty, to establish merit and serve the court!
For personal gain, to secure their families' futures and avoid being eliminated!
Thus, the fighting spirit of the Great Qian Town Guards was even higher than that of the Qingtian Guards. Under Liang Zhan's command, they charged like hungry tigers, targeting the enemy's shield-bearing units.
On Helian Heng's side, a large number of heavy shield soldiers endured the tidal wave of the Great Qian Town Guards' advance, forced to retreat continuously.
They too were elites, but compared to the thousands of mighty warriors meticulously chosen and immensely strong by the Great Qian, the difference was like heaven and earth, even inferior to the newly trained recruits in the northern territories.
"My Lord! The enemy has broken through one-third of our vanguard's line!"
Upon receiving the urgent report from a messenger, Helian Heng, shocked and enraged, roared, "Contract the lines, and have the central army immediately fill the gap!!"
Before Helian Heng could give the order, another messenger arrived, "My Lord! The central army has collapsed!"
"What?!" Helian Heng's pupils constricted. He whipped the messenger across the face with his riding crop and roared, "The central army did not engage in close combat, nor did they face the enemy vanguard, how did they collapse??"
The messenger, touching the bloodstain on his face, wailed, "They have indeed collapsed and are now charging towards our main camp!"
"My Lord, intelligence at this juncture is crucial and should not be easily mistaken. We should investigate the situation as quickly as possible!" Helian Ting hastily reminded him.
Helian Heng also quickly calmed down and sent men to investigate further.
A portion of the rebel central army, approaching the vanguard, consisted of soldiers with little fighting will, still lost in deep self-doubt.
Discovering that the vanguard could not hold back the enemy, and with waves of crossbow bolts raining down upon them, this group of soldiers had already lost all morale and fled, fearing being turned into porcupines by the Great Qian crossbows.
The discipline troops could initially kill a hundred or two hundred men, but facing an increasing number of deserters, they were unable to maintain control.
Until a large volley of crossbow bolts arrived from afar, killing over a hundred of the fierce-looking discipline troops themselves...
The discipline troops then broke and fled, everyone turning to escape!
While Helian Heng's vanguard was still fighting desperately, the central army collapsed first, leaving the vanguard without further support, and the breached line grew ever larger.
"The rear army has abandoned us!!"
A wail erupted from somewhere, causing some of the vanguard soldiers to turn and look.
Indeed, even the discipline troops had fled!
The chaos in the central army also prevented rear messengers from reaching the vanguard in time, causing disarray among the rebels.
In an instant, these vanguard troops who had bravely resisted the Great Qian soldiers believed they had become abandoned decoys.
"Surrender and be spared! Those who abandon the darkness and join the light will be rewarded!!"
The Qingtian Guards and Great Qian Town Guards, having broken into the rebel ranks, did not forget Liang Xiao's orders, their roars striking at the enemy's hearts.
Defeat spread like a landslide!
A large portion of the already despairing vanguard troops began to retreat. The most forward units, in their despair, hearing the roars of the Great Qian soldiers, could only drop their weapons, kneel, and beg for mercy.
A contingent of Great Qian soldiers arriving from the rear, responsible for securing prisoners, were well-prepared. They took hemp ropes from their packs, ordered the rebels to disarm and be bound, and tied them up securely.
"My Lord! The vanguard has also collapsed!"
Upon receiving the urgent report from a messenger, Helian Heng nearly fainted with anger: "The vanguard is also so不堪一击 (unable to withstand a single blow)??"
He could never have imagined that his carefully cultivated elite troops would be so ineffective against Liang Xiao's army.
And with this, he had intended to occupy Sichuan and claim emperorship...
At this moment, Helian Heng realized he had been completely outmaneuvered by Liang Xiao, finding his own ambitions utterly ridiculous and pathetic.
"We must preserve our foundation!" In his despair, Helian Heng hastily mounted his horse and urged it onward.
"Archers, hold the line, and immediately withdraw to Jiange!"