The pinnacle cavalry of the cold weapon era, the ultimate tactics, the ace forces of the two poles of the world!
Amidst earth-shattering roars, the decisive battle begins, to determine victory or defeat, life or death!
Every Tianri Elite Cavalryman was a flesh-eating warrior of their tribe, with unwavering faith in the Tianri Cult and astonishing stamina.
Despite carrying dozens of pounds of equipment, both men and horses maintained orderly acceleration, pushing their speed to the absolute limit.
They were confident that even the enemy's heavy cavalry, unless also charging or setting up obstacles, would be sent flying by their irresistible impact force!
And if they were unfortunate enough to be pierced by their lances through armor gaps, it would be a fatal blow!
On the battlefield, whether heavy or light cavalry, the Tianri cavalry held the numerical advantage.
The Da Qian heavy cavalry, to protect the divine archers behind them, did not immediately charge. Instead, they stood their ground with lances held high, their gazes resolute, not a single man flinching.
Every member of the Da Qian heavy cavalry was an elite recruited from all over the country, with clean family backgrounds. To join legions like the Da Qian Elite Cavalry, they had to have at least two sons at home, or at least one adult son and a daughter, ensuring heirs remained.
Upon enlistment, Da Qian heavy cavalry enjoyed the treatment of white-robed soldiers. Whether alive, wounded, or deceased from illness, their families received the highest level of state pension, freeing them from worries.
Even before departing for the campaign, they had made their resolve.
For the peace and prosperity of future generations, for the eternal peace of Da Qian.
Even if they died on the battlefield, they would defend the Da Qian military spirit with their lives, and failure was absolutely impermissible!!
Long periods of intensive training and practice had forged the Da Qian heavy cavalry's resilient character and their absolute obedience to military discipline.
They were waiting for the opportune moment to transition from defense to offense, and until then, they had to withstand the enemy's first charge.
The Tianri Elite Cavalry initiated their charge from forty Zhang away, ensuring maximum impact!
The Central Plains cavalry had already arrived at the rear-center of the Da Qian heavy cavalry, each drawing their Da Qian bows.
Ten thousand divine archers from the rear dismounted, strung their longbows, and loosed them at an upward angle.
"Whoosh, whoosh, whoosh!"
Ten thousand arrows cleared the path, tracing arcs through the sky, almost obscuring the heavens as night approached.
"Thwack, thwack, thwack!"
A multitude of arrows struck the Tianri Elite Cavalry, piercing the supposedly formidable chainmail of the Tianri tribe. They embedded several inches into flesh, and some found vital organs!
The Tianri Elite Cavalry in the front ranks looked in horror at the arrows lodged in their bodies.
They had previously had the Jiaozhou soldiers wear their armor and endure volleys from the new longbows.
The arrows from the longbows had barely penetrated their chainmail, making it difficult to hit vital spots.
Thus, their confidence had soared, and they dared to charge without reservation today.
Comparing the casualties inflicted on the army by Da Qian's longbows, they were certain: even if their own longbows were not as powerful as Da Qian's, Da Qian's longbows would not easily pierce armor and kill.
But the reality before them shattered their perception!
The Tianri tribe was unaware that the longbows in the hands of the divine archers were among the finest in the country, a testament to the continuous improvement in craftsmanship.
Furthermore, the divine archer corps comprised the strongest overall soldiers, specializing in mounted archery.
Therefore, these Da Qian longbows were even more potent than those of ordinary archers, capable of piercing most iron armor from forty Zhang away!
But what truly shocked the Tianri Elite Cavalrymen who had been hit was a portion of the Da Qian Elite Cavalry at the center.
Each of them wielded a massive "composite bow" and shot directly from horseback. The arrows they loosed were even more capable of piercing armor than the longbows!
The vanguard Tianri Elite Cavalrymen stared blankly at the Da Qian heavy cavalry holding the Da Qian bows: so, Da Qian country possessed another type of bow with greater close-range penetration power than a longbow?
With terror-stricken eyes, they fell from their horses, some of the hit Tianri Elite Cavalrymen perishing on the spot.
The few survivors were trampled to death by their own warhorses and those of their comrades behind them!
"Return fire at them! Keep charging!!"
The Tianri cavalry commanders, witnessing the heavy casualties at the front, were both shocked and enraged, and ordered their own horse archers to open fire.
The Tianri longbowmen also dismounted like the divine archers, strung their bows, and loosed their first volley.
Combined with the existing longbows of the Jiaozhou allied forces, over three thousand longbowmen unleashed a simultaneous volley. Thousands of arrows were fired in a similar trajectory towards the Da Qian heavy cavalry, aiming to pierce armor.
"Thud, thud..."
A series of muffled sounds like a rain of pebbles erupted across the plain.
The Da Qian Elite Cavalrymen watched in shock as the arrows struck the Da Qian heavy cavalry and were all repelled!
They had not pierced the armor; the three thousand longbows had inflicted no significant casualties!
"How is this possible?!"
The charging Tianri Elite Cavalrymen involuntarily slowed their pace due to the shock in their hearts.
They had tested the power of their longbows, so why could the enemy's armor withstand the fatal volleys of their longbows!
At this moment, the once self-proclaimed invincible Tianri Elite Cavalry had to observe closely, and finally discovered the reason.
The armor worn by these Da Qian heavy cavalrymen was made of large, shaped plate metal. It was neither chainmail nor the lamellar armor "Burenjia" that had become famous in the battle of Yanzhou and was widely imitated by other nations...
"The rise and fall of dynasties throughout history proves that dignity can only be found on the tip of a sword, and eternal peace is not achieved by empty talk but by resorting to iron and blood against bandits!"
Xiao Qing and the officials, whenever they recalled Liang Xiao's impassioned speech in the great hall, felt their blood boil, resolutely implementing the policy of a strong military guaranteeing a strong nation.
Da Qian's steel smelting technology had continuously improved, and steel production far surpassed previous levels tenfold!
Due to the generous wages, workers from all over the country scrambled to join steel factories, and the state spared no expense in cultivating various blacksmiths, all for the sake of continuously strengthening military equipment.
The people of Da Qian, both soldiers and civilians, had unwavering faith in Liang Xiao and Xiao Qing, who had improved their lives, and no one opposed the court's increased military spending.
Now, all Da Qian heavy cavalry and vanguard heavily armored soldiers were equipped with plate armor, an armor that even longbows and Da Qian's own arrows found difficult to penetrate!
The defensive effect of heavy infantry against crossbow bolts was not yet pronounced, as "Burenjia" had set a high standard.
However, the Da Qian heavy cavalry had now demonstrated the defensive power of plate armor to the world.
It was one of the pinnacles of defense in the cold weapon era, with protection even superior to iron "Burenjia," and in some situations, surpassing even steel "Burenjia"!
The Tianri Elite Cavalry, after a mere moment of observation, felt a chill creep up from their heels to the crown of their heads.
If the longbows behind them could not pierce the armor, it meant their charging lances might also...
But now the Tianri Elite Cavalry had their arrows nocked and could not stop. It was too late to retreat, and there was no opportunity to halt.
The warhorses charged at full speed, making forty Zhang feel like mere inches.
Under the combined fire of longbows and Da Qian's arrows, the Tianri Elite Cavalry suffered nearly six hundred casualties before finally reaching the Da Qian Elite Cavalry formation.
The distance between the two sides was now ten Zhang!
At this very moment, all the Da Qian heavy cavalrymen finally broke their silence, roaring in unison, raising their steel-tipped lances, and pointing them directly at the charging Tianri Elite Cavalry.