Chapter 119: Surprise Attack on the Hu General

Xiao Ding followed the five thousand cavalry led by Jin Xi to rescue Commander Wei’s troops. Upon spotting the enemy encirclement, Jin Xi swung his heavy blade and spearheaded the charge.

Like a sharp arrow, the five thousand cavalry pierced through the barbarian ranks, instantly tearing an opening in the encirclement. Inside the ring, Commander Wei, who had been struggling to hold his ground, immediately ordered his men to push outward.

The barbarians fell into chaos under the pincer attack. Their two leaders, Wanni Ba and Fang Choupi, scrambled to organize a defense. Wanni Ba, wielding a broad-backed saber, spurred his horse toward Commander Wei, while Fang Choupi brandished a heavy iron mace against Jin Xi. Xiao Ding thrust his spear, felling enemies in quick succession, and his roommates fought valiantly by his side.

Within moments, the battlefield was littered with corpses, and blood flowed like a river. The barbarians, caught off guard by the swift arrival of reinforcements, suffered heavy losses.

Commander Wei found himself struggling against Wanni Ba, a formidable warrior of the Great Xia Kingdom known for his immense strength, heavy blade, and masterful horsemanship. After thirty rounds, a momentary lapse in Commander Wei’s focus cost him his life; Wanni Ba’s blade sliced him in two from shoulder to back. The commander’s troops fell into immediate disarray, their morale shattered by the loss of their leader.

Wanni Ba then turned his mount toward Jin Xi, intending to join Fang Choupi in a two-on-one assault. Jin Xi was already hard-pressed; the barbarians were physically powerful, and Fang Choupi’s mace—weighing over a hundred pounds—sent jarring tremors through Jin Xi’s arms every time it struck his weapon.

Seeing Commander Wei fall and Jin Xi faltering, Xiao Ding surged forward to intercept the approaching Wanni Ba.

"Who are you to challenge me?" Wanni Ba sneered, eyeing Xiao Ding’s lack of armor and the simple spear in his hand with utter contempt.

"My name is Tian Xiao Ding. Who are you? State your name!" Xiao Ding demanded, wanting to know the identity of his opponent.

"I am Wanni Ba, a general of the Great Xia Kingdom! You are nothing but a nameless pawn, yet you dare to seek death? I shall see what you are truly capable of!" Wanni Ba roared, charging forward to cleave Xiao Ding’s skull.

"Tian Xiao Ding, be careful! Wanni Ba is a famous general of Great Xia!" Jin Xi shouted, recognizing his new recruit.

"Ha! 'Wanniba' [playing in the mud]? I don't think much of you. You might as well go back to your Great Xia and play in the mud!" Xiao Ding retorted, parrying the heavy saber with his spear.

Though Wanni Ba was strong, Xiao Ding was no less so. As they passed, Xiao Ding thrust his spear back toward the general’s heart. Wanni Ba, an experienced veteran, had anticipated a counter-strike and managed to twist his body, deflecting the spear with his blade.

They circled and clashed again. Xiao Ding had hoped to make short work of the general, but Wanni Ba’s experience and skill proved difficult to overcome. Xiao Ding’s strikes were parried one after another. Furthermore, Wanni Ba was armored, while Xiao Ding was not, leaving him at a significant disadvantage. While Xiao Ding’s spear occasionally grazed the general, it could not penetrate his plating, whereas one mistake for Xiao Ding could be fatal.

Anxious, Xiao Ding realized he needed a swift end. As they passed each other again, he whipped out a repeating crossbow from his pack and fired several bolts into the belly of Wanni Ba’s horse. Fearing his bolts would fail to pierce the general’s armor, he chose the mount instead.

The wounded horse bucked, nearly throwing Wanni Ba. Seizing the opening, Xiao Ding thrust his spear into the general’s side—a spot where the armor was weakest. Wanni Ba failed to dodge in his panic, and the spear pierced deep. With a forceful heave, Xiao Ding unhorsed him. Wanni Ba let out a final, blood-choked wail as the iron tip pierced his chest, killing him instantly.

Just then, Jin Xi’s situation turned dire. Distracted by Wanni Ba’s death, Jin Xi failed to block a strike from Fang Choupi, and his blade was knocked from his grip. As Fang Choupi raised his mace for the killing blow, he suddenly felt a cold sting in his neck. He reached up, his hand coming away covered in blood, and touched a crossbow bolt protruding from his throat.

Xiao Ding had turned his repeating crossbow toward the gloating Fang Choupi the moment he saw Jin Xi in danger.

"Who... who ambushed me?" Fang Choupi gasped, turning his head toward Xiao Ding.

"My name is Tian Xiao Ding. Remember it well—I’m sending you to the afterlife with clarity!" Xiao Ding holstered his crossbow and rode forward.

"I never imagined... I, Fang Choupi, a general of Great Xia, would die at the hands of a nameless pawn... I cannot close my eyes in peace..." Fang Choupi’s eyes burned with hatred as he clutched his throat.

"Ah, so your name is 'Fang Choupi' [farting a foul smell]? Well, you won't be farting anymore, unless you do it in the underworld," Xiao Ding mocked.

Before Fang Choupi could respond, he toppled from his horse, and a soldier nearby promptly decapitated him. With both enemy commanders dead, the morale of the barbarian army collapsed, and they began to retreat. Jin Xi commanded a brief pursuit before calling his men back; he knew the military principle of not pursuing a desperate foe, especially given that the barbarians were cavalry and his own force consisted mostly of infantry.

In the battle, Commander Wei’s force lost over five thousand men, while Jin Xi lost only a few hundred. The barbarian army suffered seven to eight thousand casualties.

Jin Xi assumed command of the remaining troops, oversaw the clearing of the battlefield, and sent word of the victory to Huang Wenlong in Dingbian City. Afterward, he led his forces toward Pubian City with the spoils of war, which included fifteen hundred sets of leather armor, over three thousand blades, two thousand longbows, tens of thousands of arrows, and over a thousand horses.

Since the barbarian force had been intercepted, Pubian City remained safe. Jin Xi stationed his troops there to rest and used the captured horses to equip an additional thousand cavalrymen, leaving his total force actually stronger than when they had departed from Dingbian.