Chapter Twenty-Three Battlefield
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November 7th, Year Six of King Zheng of Qin
A thousand miles sealed in ice, ten thousand miles blanketed in snow, gazing beyond the Great Wall, nothing but wilderness remains...
Li Yu looked out at the endless snowy landscape. It was beautiful, yet he was speechless—where is the road ahead?
Fortunately, there were native guides in the party.
Li Yu glanced back at the grand procession of horsemen behind him, feeling a surge of pride. Now he finally understood why Zhao Kuo dared to challenge Bai Qi. With ten thousand men at your side, you truly gain confidence.
King Zheng of Qin was meticulous about Li Yu’s safety, commanding Meng Tian to bring five thousand elite cavalry.
And the six Sword Slaves beside him provided even greater security. Ahead, Breaking Earth Saburo cleared the way.
Li Yu gazed at the snowy scenery outside the window. At first, he was excited, but after a while, he grew tired of it—at least, unlike with beauty, his appreciation never faded. Holding the hand of his foreign bride, he warmed her fingers and asked, “Wife, how much farther to go?”
She lifted the curtain, looked around at the terrain, and replied, “At our current pace, we’ll reach my Wolf Tribe tomorrow.”
Li Yu opened the carriage door and shouted to Meng Tian, who rode ahead, “Brother Meng! Only one more day and we’ll arrive—everyone, keep up the good work!”
He then moved to the rear carriage. As soon as he entered, a chill struck him—not from the cold, but from the biological instinct of facing danger.
Li Yu said, “You six always wear those stern faces—who did you learn that from? Zhao Gao? Even Zhao Gao doesn’t frown all day; he sometimes smiles, though it’s even more hideous. And you two, Soul Transfer and Soul Extinction, such lovely girls—sitting up here with all you men, I told you to sit in front. Isn’t it uncomfortable, all crowded together?”
Li Yu rambled on, but no one replied. It was dull. At least Jing Ni was more interesting; though all were assassins, Jing Ni still retained some human emotions, while these six had been thoroughly brainwashed into killing machines.
Li Yu got to the point, “Tomorrow we’ll reach our destination. When it comes to rescuing the Wolf King, how confident are you?”
True Steel finally spoke, “As long as we know the location, there’s no one we can’t rescue.”
Boasting, Li Yu thought to himself, these people really know how to act. But he smiled, “Of course, with you six united, there’s nowhere you can’t go in this world.”
Old Blind Water then said, “Master Li, you’re too polite—we all serve the Empire.”
Li Yu squinted, eyeing the blind man. Of all the Sword Slaves, he found this one most intriguing—deeply hidden, never revealing his true nature.
“Then I’ll leave it to you all,” Li Yu bowed and left the carriage.
Soul Transfer remarked, “This Prince is not bad.”
Soul Extinction replied, “Just a bit too chatty.”
Chaos said, “And rather lustful as well.”
Phantom added, “His gaze keeps lingering on the twins.”
Soul Transfer and Soul Extinction: “…”
Just then, wolves howled outside, rising and falling, as if a pack lay ahead.
Meng Tian prepared his men, setting the formation for any sudden turn of events.
Li Yu rushed to Meng Tian, “Brother Meng, what’s happening ahead?”
Meng Tian replied, “Not sure—probably not coming for us.”
As he finished speaking, wolves began appearing on both slopes, over a hundred in total, unfazed by humans, simply standing their ground.
Then, a vague figure appeared among the wolves, stroking the noticeably larger gray wolf at the front.
“Is the Princess below?” a girl’s voice called from the wolf pack.
Li Yu...!!! Princess? What princess?
From the rear carriage, his wife stepped down and called to the slope, “Is that you, Nuomin?”
“Is the Princess well?” the voice called again from afar.
She shouted, “They are all guests I invited, no need to worry.”
The girl dashed down the slope, arriving before her in an instant, and knelt on one knee, “Princess, you must have suffered.”
This girl had a leopard’s head, round eyes, and agile build, appearing two or three years younger than Li Yu—a typical underage maiden.
Such cruel times…
Li Yu couldn’t help but sigh. So many modern people yearn for antiquity—what’s there to yearn for?
The three sat in the carriage, and Li Yu gradually pieced together the situation.
Once, the Wolf Tribe, to which his wife belonged, was the strongest northern tribe, revered by all others. That lasted until her father grew weak and incompetent.
The branch tribe led by Touman gradually supplanted the original Wolf Tribe as the prairie’s overlord. To fully replace the old Wolf King, Touman needed the former king’s abdication—and the best way was to marry his only bloodline, the Princess.
The rest of the story Li Yu could guess. In the original, the Princess sought out Ying Zheng, but Ying Zheng, wanting no complications in his eastern campaign, broke her heart; so she returned to the grasslands to find her own way. Ying Zheng, feeling guilty, later showed special favor to Hu Hai because of this.
Nuomin, who scrutinized Li Yu in the carriage, belonged to the Moon Wolf Tribe, loyal to the Wolf King. In the original, Touman wiped out her tribe.
“Princess, is this truly your husband? He looks so frail,” Nuomin said.
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“Kid, what do you know? Strength isn’t just about bulging muscles—you need strength in your bones, flexible and resilient. Your Princess knows.” Li Yu said proudly.
“You’re just boasting. The Moon Wolf Tribe has innate abilities to control wolves, and their sense of smell is sharper than ordinary people. That’s how they detected us early.” His wife explained.
“It’s the Princess’s unique scent—I knew right away she had returned,” Nuomin said with pride.
“Where? Let me smell—such a lovely fragrance! Wife, let me enjoy it!” Li Yu leaned in.
“Don’t be silly, there are others present,” she replied, gently pushing him, then asked Nuomin, “Any news of my father?”
Nuomin answered, “No, but I know where the king is held.”
“Really?” Li Yu exclaimed.
“Of course—my nose is sharp.” She sniffed at Li Yu, curious, “Your scent is strange, but pleasant,” and leaned in closer.
Li Yu quickly hid behind his wife, hugging her, “Wife, someone’s trying to seduce your husband!”
She gently stroked Li Yu’s face, “She’s just a child, don’t be ridiculous!”
Li Yu said, “Wife, looks like we can start earlier—Nuomin knows where your father is, so we can split up. The Sword Slaves and Nuomin can rescue him, while we wait at your tribe for news.”
She nodded, “I’ll follow your lead, husband.”
With her agreement, Li Yu led Nuomin to the rear carriage.
…
As the domed tents drew closer, his wife’s excitement grew.
She had finally returned, bringing powerful allies—and her husband.
Inside the domes, the tribesmen saw Breaking Earth Saburo leading the way and thousands of Qin cavalry. Alarmed, the drums sounded urgently; all took up arms, preparing for confrontation. Some bold ones rode out to meet the Qin army.
“Ge’er, Bals, it’s me!” his wife called out from the tent.
“It’s the Princess!”
“The Princess has returned!”
Shouts rang out as they ran back toward the domes.
After settling the soldiers, Li Yu and Meng Tian discussed the next steps: sending a thousand men to harass Touman’s base, leaving the rest to await Touman’s attack on the main route, then marking their location on the map and awaiting tomorrow’s outcome.
Li Yu then sought the descendants of the Gongshu family, instructing them to do this and that.
The next day,
Ambush in the valley
“Brother Li, what’s that in your hand?” Meng Tian asked, curious about Li Yu’s device.
“It’s called a telescope. Here, take a look,” Li Yu said, handing it over.
“A marvelous treasure!” Meng Tian mimicked Li Yu, peering into the distance, awed.
Li Yu laughed, “I’ll have Gongshu Qiu study it, hopefully we can mass-produce.”
“Then our Qin army will have eyes that see a thousand miles!” Reluctantly, Meng Tian returned the telescope.
Li Yu continued watching.
“They’re coming,” he said to Meng Tian.
Ten breaths later, Meng Tian saw blurred figures in the distance.
True Steel carried an elder on his back, the others covered the rear, Nuomin rode a gray wolf at incredible speed across the snow.
Behind them came a thunderous roar, like a stampede.
True Steel reached the valley mouth, didn’t enter, but ran up the slope with the elder.
As soon as he reached the summit, the main force arrived—over twenty thousand strong, all burly men wielding varied weapons, a stark contrast to the uniform Qin army.
The leading man was the strongest—bare-chested in winter, Li Yu’s teeth chattered at the sight. This must be the “strength” Nuomin spoke of—a brute.
The strong man halted his horse and shouted at the Qin army, “This is Wolf Tribe territory—you people from the Central Plains have crossed the border. Go back where you came from, or else…” He brandished his broadsword, the meaning clear.
Meng Tian stepped forward, “How many times have you crossed our borders? Today, we’ll let you taste what it’s like to raid someone else’s home!”
The strong man replied, “I am Touman, leader of the Wolf Tribe. I’ll give you one last chance. Will you retreat or not?”
Meng Tian didn’t respond, but called out, “Any Qin soldiers here who wish to retreat?”
“No! No! No!” The response grew louder, shaking the valley.
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Touman saw their resolve and realized there was nothing to discuss. He had the numbers—two thousand for Qin, ten times that for his own side. If he retreated now, his dream of dominating the steppe would be a joke, and no one would follow him.
With this in mind, Touman raised his sword to the sky, “Charge! Cut down these fools!”
Li Yu watched the distance, waited until most of the enemy entered the valley, then signaled from the hilltop. Several trebuchets appeared, launching objects into the valley.
Touman touched the liquid on his head—black and pungent. Then a torch was hurled in.
Flames soared, explosions erupted, screams echoed, hell on earth. Figures flailed in the fire, those outside tried to rescue, others pressed in, but panicked horses were uncontrollable, running wild.
The Qin army mowed down the fleeing soldiers with crossbows.
The oil was just a fuse—the main force came from the yellow gunpowder lining both sides of the road, a little produced by the Gongshu family, all brought by Li Yu.
These ancients still clung to old ways—even with gunpowder in Qin-era tales, they preferred mass charges. In modern warfare, no one would dare such human wave tactics.
After the battle, Li Yu looked at Touman, his face burned, right hand blasted away, his body ravaged.
Li Yu deliberately had Meng Tian spare his life—otherwise, Touman would’ve died in the first round. Li Yu wanted to use him as bait, tying him to a pillar in the valley, waiting for rescuers. It was an open trap—everyone knew it, yet had to come. He waited most of the day and ordered Touman’s wounds tended to keep him alive.
Soon, another twenty thousand appeared on the horizon, a grand sight.
This time, they didn’t rush forward, but sent someone to shout toward the valley, “You’ve captured our leader—state your terms.”
“Twenty thousand sacks of rice, five thousand sheep, three thousand cattle!” came the reply, shouted by one with a booming voice.
An outrageous demand—nearly winter, if they really paid, all would starve.
“We’re here to negotiate sincerely—why do you ask the impossible?”
“Then there’s nothing to discuss. Why don’t you come over then?”
“Revenge for our leader!” A man drew his sword, pointing at the hill—clearly, he knew what had happened, aiming to clear the obstacles first.
Li Yu approached Touman, “Looks like you’ve been abandoned. Poor thing!” Touman’s mouth was covered, grunting in fury—who knew if it was anger at Li Yu or betrayal by his own side. No one cared.
Just then, a few bloodied men rushed from the rear, crying as they reached the main force—telling their tale.
Suddenly, the twenty-thousand strong force was in chaos—some surged forward, others retreated, even their leader couldn’t control the situation.
Li Yu saw the timing was right, signaled again to the Gongshu disciples on the hill. The ground shook; Breaking Earth Saburo burst from the earth, covered in black oil. A massive explosion followed—he self-destructed. The ground rapidly heaved, men and horses tumbled, another explosion—hell on earth, but this time in open ground, so casualties weren’t as severe. Still, most lost the will to fight and fled. As they turned to retreat, a thousand-strong Qin squad attacked, Meng Tian’s main force arrived, and another massacre ensued.
As the sun set, the fires of battle gradually died down.
Excited, Meng Tian came to Li Yu, “Brother Li, I never knew war could be fought like this!”
Li Yu replied, “The invention of gunpowder changed warfare completely—it’s just you all are too stubborn.”
“What about him?” Meng Tian gestured to Touman.
“Kill him—he’s useless now. Let him be freed early. Ah, I’m too kind,” Li Yu sighed.
Meng Tian looked at the battlefield, then at Li Yu, speechless. You, kind? Never seen deaths so gruesome—charred corpses, most incomplete.
…
Back in the tribe, Li Yu didn’t see his wife. After asking around, he learned she was in the largest tent, accompanying her father, who had been rescued by the Sword Slaves after the first battle. They’d had half a day together—who knew how their conversation went.
Meeting his father-in-law for the first time, Li Yu was a bit nervous. He straightened his clothes and entered the tent.
An old man lay on the bed, barely hanging on, face marked with signs of death, lips purple, eye sockets sunken, eyes dull.
His wife held the old man’s hand, crying uncontrollably.
Li Yu didn’t know what to say. Judging from his build, the old man must have been robust in his youth, but heroes age, never as they once were.
The old man seemed to hear Li Yu enter, turned, saw a handsome youth at the entrance. He stroked his daughter’s hand, then raised his own, beckoning Li Yu over.
Li Yu knelt, taking the old man’s hand with his wife.
“You’re from Qin, aren’t you? My daughter has spoken most about you. I entrust her to you,” the old man said haltingly, Li Yu nodding in response.
The old man took a deep breath, as if gathering all his strength, and said, “I’ve met countless people. I can tell by your eyes you’re a good man. Treat my daughter well in the future... All right, I want to speak to her alone now, please step outside.”
Li Yu nodded, bowed deeply, and left the tent.
The Sword Slaves approached; True Steel spoke, “When we rescued him, he was already like this.”
Li Yu nodded, “I understand—it’s not your fault.”
Watching the distant Qin soldiers tending fires and cooking, Li Yu sighed. In these times, no one was truly fortunate. Even the Qin soldiers had their own parents and children, but to survive, they followed orders and came to this bitter, frozen land with Meng Tian.