The sky was bright, and after a moment of silence, the sound of war drums erupted outside the low walls and trenches. Accompanied by the drumming, squads of woodcutters surged forward armed with blades, axes, shields, and armor.
What greeted them was a volley of sharp arrows from behind the low wall, raining down like a storm.
Yet their shields blocked some of the arrows, and even those who were struck by arrows pressed forward under the urging of the drums, stepping over their fallen comrades as they flooded closer like a tide.
The hoarse cries of foreign tongues filled the air, instantly inundating the trenches and low walls before continuing to pour forward.
Standing atop the crumbling fortress wall, one could see the fierce expressions of the heavily armored woodcutters charging forward.
"Retreat."
The general on the fortress wall fired his last crossbow arrow and shouted.
Watching the Zhou Soldiers flee in panic, the woodcutters who crossed the trenches roared with greater arrogance and soon stormed into the fortress walls.
After a night of fierce fighting, the area behind the fortress wall was in utter disarray: crumbling dirt walls, flaming wooden scaffolding, fresh, congealed bloodstains, corpses of Zhou Soldiers scattered chaotically on the ground, and abandoned shield carts.
It was as tragic as hell itself, yet the devastation made movement difficult.
Especially in this already narrow fortress interior, the flooding woodcutters bunched together, moving sluggishly, packed tightly as they lost formation: shields at the front, heavy troops behind, and axe-wielders on both flanks losing their protective structure.
This small new city fortress wasn't expansive, but it was strategically advantageous, easy to defend and hard to attack. Thus, after entering Yizhou, the Duke of Chengguo seized it as his first move and nearly captured the Jin Country's seventh prince here, if not for Tuoba Wu swiftly bringing reinforcements to their rescue.
The woodcutters were more familiar with this location than the Zhou Soldiers were, yet the ones who had just charged inside grew cautious, their initially savage expressions turning somewhat perplexed.
The fortress within the walls was empty.
Had the Zhou Soldiers all perished overnight?
But this did not slow their pace; more woodcutters surged in from behind, and within moments, the fortress walls were overflowing with people.
As they prepared to charge toward the inner city ahead, a piercing drum sound rang out. Shortly afterward, the hum of wind followed, prompting the woodcutters to instinctively look up—what they saw were volleys of stone bullets launched from the inner city coming their way.
The woodcutters screeched and tried to scramble for cover, but with the sheer number of troops and the narrow space, those behind hadn't yet reacted and continued to flood in. Within seconds, over a dozen stone bullets rained down.
A group of men were instantly crushed to the ground, helmets twisted under the impact, blood gushing everywhere.
In addition to injuries from the stone bullets, chaos ensued as comrades collided and trampled one another in a frantic struggle.
"Wasn't their supply of catapults already exhausted?"
"How do they still have them?"
Listening to the anguished cries in foreign tongues echoing outside, the general concealed behind the inner city walls remained calm.
What was so strange? They had never placed hope in reinforcements; naturally, they had prepared extensively.
"Crossbowmen," he instructed, rising to half-stance and aiming his own crossbow toward the dirt walls outside, "Fire."
A dozen soldiers rose and unleashed bolts from their weapons.
Arrows rained down toward the woodcutters at the base of the walls.
The inner fortress plunged into chaos.
Watching the woodcutters retreating after their advance, Tuoba Wu, observing from the distant camp, was furious. He ordered his troops to shoot any woodcutters falling back.
"They don't have many troops left; they won't hold out," he bellowed, "Warriors, even if you crush them beneath our corpses, crush Zhu Shan!"
A wave of retreating woodcutters was slaughtered. Forward meant death, retreat meant death—countless woodcutters had no choice but to charge desperately ahead.
The area inside and outside the fortress was densely piled with corpses.
"…This round must have cost them over a thousand." The general atop the inner wall murmured, and then chuckled darkly, evidently pleased with the result.
"Excellent."
A rich voice echoed from behind.
The general turned to see that an entire group of officers and soldiers had at some point gathered on the wall, surrounding a towering figure.
Beside him stood soldiers holding a large flag waving in the wind, casting shadows over the man and obscuring his face.
The man, clad in armor with a helm, was hidden in the shadows, though the bright red tassels on his helmet were strikingly vivid.
He held a meticulously forged long blade, likely weighing twenty to thirty pounds, gleaming coldly under the sunlight.
"Duke," the general rushed forward to salute.
The Duke of Chengguo stared ahead.
Beyond the dense heaps of corpses, an unending swarm of woodcutters was pouring forward.
"Prepare for battle," the Duke of Chengguo commanded.
This would be the final fight.
But as always, his voice betrayed no grief, rage, or joy—his words were simple and decisive.
The surrounding officers were equally composed.
They had known this outcome long before arriving, so there was no room for lament.
"Kill the traitors!" they shouted as they unsheathed their weapons.
All the soldiers atop the city walls stood, shouting hoarsely with unwavering determination. Their expressions were a mix of anger, zeal, and numbness, yet fear was nowhere to be found.
Their cries rolled like spring thunder, echoing through the fortress.
Watching wave upon wave of woodcutters charge in, retreat, and then surge forward again, the deafening clash of battle caused even Tuoba Wu, observing from the distant lookout post, to feel unsettled. He tightened his grip on his long axe, clutching its hilt unsteadily.
As the ebb and flow of the battle pushed the fight outside the fortress, Tuoba Wu's gaze finally locked onto a figure.
That figure stood tall with an imposing stature, his snowy white armor glimmering blindingly. Particularly striking was the long blade he wielded.
It was this very blade that had taken his brother's head, forcing him to live like a dog for the past four years.
Tuoba Wu's eyes burned red.
If he could personally slaughter the Duke of Chengguo, only then would he cleanse his humiliation.
He raised his long axe, prepared to descend from the lookout post, when he saw the Duke of Chengguo's blade slicing through the air with a fierce rhythm. Those near him were scattered and felled in droves.
Amidst such chaos and swarm, his movements remained calm and deliberate, carrying an inexplicable elegance.
Yet it was an elegance soaked in blood.
As his blade swept through, a soldier was nearly cleaved in half, a mist of blood erupting under the sunlight, internal organs flying everywhere.
Tuoba Wu's face turned grim, his eyes flickering as he gripped his long axe before hesitating.
The Duke of Chengguo Zhu Shan was destined to die, but if he caught sight of Tuoba Wu, he'd undoubtedly drag him down to the grave as well.
Though the army was vast and the Duke had no strength left to counterattack, his cunning was notorious—who knew what tricks he might have left hidden?
It was not worth the risk. It would be enough to personally sever his head once he was dead.
"Continue attacking, attack!" Tuoba Wu shouted, his knuckles white against the railing. "Everyone, charge and kill them all, kill them all!"
He then threw his head back in maniacal laughter.
"Zhu Shan is going to die! Zhu Shan is finally going to die!"
At that moment, a series of deafening booms interrupted him, and the lookout post quaked violently. Caught off guard, Tuoba Wu nearly collapsed.
What was happening?
He clung to the railing tightly, searching for the source of the commotion when panicked cries sounded from behind him.
"Zhou reinforcements have arrived!"
Zhou reinforcements?
Where could Zhou reinforcements come from?
Apart from the Duke of Chengguo Zhu Shan, who dared defy the emperor's orders, who dared lead troops into Jin Territory, who dared to face tens of thousands of enemies and still fight?
Could it be a mistake?
But the uproar from the rear intensified, sweeping across the battlefield like wildfire.
"It's the Qingshan Army."
"The Qingshan Army is here!"
Qingshan Army? What is the Qingshan Army?
Tuoba Wu turned to look, his expression stunned.