Chapter 29: Cutting Through, Slaughtering Without Number!

Upon hearing the report, the expression of Agunu, who had just ordered reinforcements to the northern tribe, shifted instantly.

"Wait, hold the order."

Agunu immediately stopped the commander who was about to mobilize troops for reinforcements.

"General, why?" the Tatar commander asked, puzzled.

"I previously could not understand why the Ming army would attack from the northern tribe. After all, that is the heartland of our people; once discovered, we could simply deploy enough forces to surround and annihilate them, leaving them nowhere to run."

"But now, I understand."

"The attack on our northern tribe is a Ming feint, a decoy."

"The Ming army’s true goal is to mass their forces and attack our southern tribe." Agunu wore an expression of sudden realization, believing he had seen through the Ming army’s stratagem.

"Then, General, what should we do?"

Several Tatar commanders standing by asked respectfully.

"Increase the forces guarding the southern tribe," Agunu replied without hesitation.

"Yes."

The Tatar commanders promptly led their troops away.

"Ming army," Agunu muttered. "I, Agunu, am the chieftain’s most trusted warrior. You thought you could lure me into reinforcing the northern tribe while you increased your forces to attack the south. Your plan was clever, but in the end, it was seen through by me."

"Although our tribe has suffered minor setbacks at the hands of the Ming, these are but small losses compared to the Great Yuan’s eventual destruction of your Ming nation."

"Once the Great Yuan breaches your Ming border at Danning, our tribe shall rise up in arms, storm the Central Plains, and seize everything that belongs to your Ming nation."

Greed welled up in Agunu’s eyes.

...

Turning our gaze back!

The Tatar northern tribe.

This tribe had a population of no less than twenty to thirty thousand; it was quite substantial.

At this moment, Zhu Ying was still charging and slaughtering frantically. From the moment he breached the tribe, the battle blade in his hand had not ceased its movement for an instant.

Whenever he saw a Tatar, he struck them down without a shred of pity.

"Killed a Tatar infantryman, gained 20 points of Strength."

"Killed a Tatar infantryman, gained 40 days of lifespan."

...

"Host's total attributes have exceeded 600 points, rewarded with one common treasure chest."

The panel prompted.

In less than the time it takes for an incense stick to burn since the charge began, Zhu Ying had slaughtered countless Tatars, and his total attributes had directly increased.

The moment his attributes ascended, as if leveling up, the sublimation of his stats washed away all his fatigue.

"Brothers!"

"Burn this Tatar tribe to the ground!"

"Kill!"

Zhu Ying bellowed.

His blade flashed as he engaged in mad slaughter. He killed every Tatar he encountered. The attributes he gained left him feeling invigorated.

Behind Zhu Ying, in the depths of the night, dozens of torches blazed brilliantly. Thousands of Ming soldiers followed the guidance of these torches, charging and killing wildly.

Hearing Zhu Ying’s command, many of his elite guards did not hesitate; they relit the torches and firebrands they carried and hurled them toward the tents of the Tatar tribe.

In the blink of an eye, raging flames surged throughout the Tatar tribe.

"Where are our warriors?"

"Why are they not fighting back?"

"Damn Ming people..."

"Spare my life..."

The Tatars within the tribe screamed in terror, begging for their warriors to save them, but amidst the slaughter of the camp invasion, their cries only served to further incite the Ming soldiers.

Slaughter.

Mad, unbridled slaughter!

The Ming cavalry resembled a long, murderous dragon, charging and rampaging through the tribe.

Zhu Ying was like the head of this dragon; wherever his blade passed, countless Tatars perished.

The sounds of battle, the wails of the dying, and the roaring of the raging fires shattered the tranquility of the night.

The northern Tatar tribe was thrown into total chaos by the army led by Zhu Ying, with countless slaughtered and bodies strewn across the wilderness.

At the Blue Banner Tribe.

"General."

"Something is not right."

"The Ming army at the southern tribe only probed us, fired a few arrows, and then retreated. They didn't attack at all. I don’t know what they are planning," a Tatar commander reported respectfully to Agunu.

Agunu looked perplexed. "What exactly is the Ming army’s intention?"

"Report!"

"The northern tribe is calling for reinforcements."

"The Ming army has breached the tribe. Our people are being massacred; the blood is flowing like a river."

"Please, General, make a decision."

A messenger from the northern tribe arrived before Agunu, his voice filled with grief.

"What?"

Agunu’s expression changed.

"Could it be that I have been deceived?"

"The Ming army wasn't planning to attack the south, but the north?" Agunu thought, panic rising in his heart.

"Quick!"

"Mobilize the troops immediately and follow me to reinforce the northern tribe."

Agunu realized something was wrong.

He issued the order immediately, then ran toward his warhorse and vaulted into the saddle.

Time passed in a flash!

The veil of night gradually receded, and the sky began to brighten.

When Agunu arrived at the northern tribe with his army, his expression was ghastly.

Burning tents were everywhere, bodies were everywhere, and people were wailing everywhere.

The entire tribe seemed to have been destroyed.

"Ming people, how dare you!"

Agunu’s eyes filled with fury, his voice hoarse and laced with hatred.

"General."

"The Ming army raided our tribe under the cover of night."

"The tribe has suffered heavy losses; over ten thousand of our people are dead."

A Tatar commander reported to Agunu with a bitter expression.

"How many Ming soldiers attacked last night?" Agunu asked, grinding his teeth.

"I... I don't know."

"The Ming army just slaughtered their way in, like a long dragon."

"We couldn't stop them at all," the surviving Tatar commander replied in terror.

"Even if the northern tribe only had a few thousand troops, how could you fail to hold back even a single Ming soldier?" Agunu asked with a cold, piercing gaze.

"I... I..."

The Tatar commander was terrified, unable to speak.

The Ming army had struck with extreme speed, and his tribe had been lax in their defenses; after the camp was breached, they were thrown into panic and confusion, failing to organize any meaningful counterattack.

This was the consequence of an undefended camp raid.

"Pursue!"

"Nu'alin!"

"Pursue them for me!"

"Tear these Ming soldiers into pieces!"

"They have ventured deep into our heartland; they cannot escape."

"Take advantage of the daylight and hunt them down," Agunu roared.

"Yes."

A Tatar commander answered immediately.

He then led his troops in pursuit along the direction of the Ming army's retreat.

"Ming army, Ming nation."

"I will make you pay in blood," Agunu cursed in hatred.

Looking at the miserable state of the tribe, with more than half of it reduced to ashes, how could he not harbor such hate?

More than twenty miles away from the northern tribe, still within the territory of the Jianzhou Tatars, in the northern frontier.

"Halt!"

Zhu Ying raised a hand.

He pulled on the reins of his warhorse.

"Halt!"

The thousand-man commanders issued their orders, and the thousands of Ming cavalry, who had been marching at top speed, came to a stop.

Looking at them now, every one of them was stained with the blood of battle, their blades caked in crimson.

They looked like an army that had crawled out of the depths of the underworld.

"Count the numbers!"

Zhu Ying turned his horse and shouted loudly.

"Count by the hundred-man units."

"Report immediately!"

The thousand-man commanders also shouted loudly.

Immediately, the headcount began.