AWB Chapter 480 Archery
Chapter 480 Archery
"Still don't understand?" Li Wuyang was furious. "What clever tricks could Xie Jingchun, a mere brat, possibly have?"
"You actually managed to fool all of you battle-hardened veterans?!"
He suddenly pulled up his cloak, "I'll go see for myself!"
The generals in the tent were horrified and knelt down to stop him, saying, "Your Majesty, you mustn't! You are the ruler of the country and the marshal of the three armies. How can you personally go to the front lines? What if something happens to you!"
"The enemy's movements are unclear, which is precisely the time to use a plan. What if the enemy is waiting for you to show up and set up an ambush? Wouldn't you fall into their trap?"
"Your Majesty is the ruler of Great Liang, how can you risk your life? This matter should be left to your subordinates..."
"Shut up!" Li Wuyang interrupted sharply, his gaze sweeping over the kneeling generals like a frost-sharp blade.
"None of you can even understand a formation, yet I entrust the fate of this empire to you?!"
"A bunch of useless trash!" Li Wuyang coldly rebuked.
All the generals fell silent, daring not to speak again.
Li Wuyang ignored them, donned his armor, and looked grim.
"If I can't even understand the formation set up by a mere teenager, then I don't need to be emperor!"
He flicked his cloak, turned and stepped out of the tent, exuding a murderous aura.
Li Wuyang mounted his horse and galloped towards the front of the northern village.
A quarter of an hour later, he stood atop the city wall, gazing at the battlefield.
The Jin army's formation was unpredictable and elusive, like a fog or a barrier, trapping the Liang soldiers within and preventing them from escaping.
At that moment, a bugle sounded.
In the distance, in the center of the Jin army camp, a huge black battle flag suddenly rose, bearing the character "Jin" and fluttering in the wind.
Li Wuyang frowned deeply.
This is... the Bagua Formation.
Before he could react, a soldier staggered into the city wall, covered in blood, and knelt down, shouting.
"Your Majesty, the Jin army launched a surprise attack on our outpost. Xie Jingchun personally led the charge and broke through our flank within the time it takes for an incense stick to burn. I saw him rush into the Cangling Forest and never see him leave the camp again."
"Break my flank?"
He repeated it in a low voice, turned to look at the constantly rolling Jin army formation in the distance, and a picture flashed through his mind.
Many years ago, he happened to read a fragment of the "Eight Gates Formation Diagram"...
“Cangling Forest…” he murmured, slowly raising his head.
The Bagua Formation uses the mountain terrain as a guide, the camp as the eyes, and the troops as the formation. The only way to break it is to identify the location of its "gate of life".
And this gate of life is located precisely within... the Cangling Mountains.
The fragmented memories in his mind suddenly surfaced: "The Eight Gates Formation takes advantage of its shape, hides its sharpness between wood and fire, and uses the mountains and forests as its eyes. If it is broken, the whole formation can collapse."
"I see."
Li Wuyang gave a cold laugh, "Issue the order that I will personally enter the Cangling Forest."
"Your Majesty, you mustn't—!"
The men knelt down in unison, terrified. "The Cangling Forest is deep and treacherous, and now the Jin army is eyeing us covetously. This journey will inevitably lead us into dangerous territory. We must not rashly venture into it!"
Li Wuyang waved his sleeve and said, "If we don't even dare to enter a forest, how can we talk about defeating the enemy?"
His tone suddenly turned cold: "The Jin army is using this formation to trap me this time. If I do not understand their tactics and their intentions, my army will be exhausted and defeated sooner or later!"
"Xie Jingchun dares to offend me, so I will let him know that the emperor of Great Liang is not someone who sits in a corner waiting for death!"
He glanced at the generals in the tent and said, "If you don't understand the changes of the Eight Trigrams and the fundamentals of its formation, then shut up and guard the camp!"
-
Li Wuyang rode his horse up Nangang, accompanied by a thousand personal guards.
From the high ground, one can overlook the entire forest valley.
He squinted and saw a figure in crimson standing on a horse in the Cangling Forest, where the mist had not yet dissipated. It was Xie Jingchun.
Almost immediately, he sensed that something was wrong.
His gaze narrowed slightly as he stared at an inconspicuous hillside.
The weeds under the rock swayed slightly, reflecting light so faintly that they would have been almost imperceptible had the wind not been eerily still.
Li Wuyang suddenly shouted in a low voice: "Retreat!"
Before the guards could react, he had already leaped a step to the side and back!
Almost at the same moment he made his move, a piercing arrow shot through the air, like a thunderclap, suddenly breaking the silence of the morning!
The arrow flew like a raging dragon, aiming straight for his heart!
Li Wuyang dodged extremely quickly, but the arrow was even faster!
Xie Yanli had been waiting at a high place for a long time, and his arrow was not aimed at the heart, but at the direction that Xie Yanli had anticipated he would have to dodge!
"puff--!"
The arrow was deeply embedded in his left shoulder, and blood splattered on the rocks.
Li Wuyang groaned, staggered, and nearly fell off his horse.
"Protect the Emperor!!!" the guards cried out in alarm, and the warhorses neighed.
Chaos erupted on the high ground.
Xie Yanli remained in the half-kneeling, bow-drawing posture.
His gaze pierced through the lingering mist, fixed on that disheveled figure.
"Your Majesty!" Two guards practically pounced on him, half-supporting and half-dragging him back into the woods.
Xie Yanli's gaze, hidden in the woods, narrowed slightly, his bowstring still drawn.
He calculated the timing and position perfectly, and shot the arrow with extreme speed and accuracy.
Even though Li Wuyang noticed, he still couldn't avoid it and was seriously injured.
However, after the defenses were redeployed, there was virtually no chance to strike again...
He narrowed his eyes, his hawk-like gaze sweeping across the forest.
Beneath a broken shrub, Xie Jingchun was half-squatting, wiping the blood-stained blade.
Hearing footsteps, he suddenly looked up alertly.
"It's me," Xie Yanli's voice came.
"Father!"
Xie Jingchun let out a long sigh of relief, jumped up from the ground, and couldn't hide the relaxed smile on his face.
Xie Yanli took a few steps closer and patted him on the shoulder. "You did a great job this time. Not everyone can break through such an encirclement and lure him in."
Xie Jingchun rubbed his hands together, a hint of shy pride flashing across his face, and said with a touch of regret.
"What a pity, it didn't hit his heart. I don't know if he will survive."
"Even if he doesn't die, he'll only have half a life left," Xie Yanli said calmly.
Xie Jingchun turned to look at him in confusion.
Xie Yanli smiled and said, "I coated the arrow with poison."
Meanwhile, in the main tent of Daliang.
Li Wuyang lay on the bed, his shoulder charred black, with the edges of his skin turning bluish.
The accompanying imperial physicians looked solemn as they discussed the matter amongst themselves.
"This is no ordinary arrow wound! It must have been coated with a deadly poison!"
"Quickly, use Jin Chuang San to stop the bleeding, then cauterize the poisoned flesh with flames!"
"It's too late, the poison has already entered the bloodstream."
The Liang general standing nearby shouted sternly, "If anything happens to the Emperor, none of you will survive!"
The imperial physicians turned ashen-faced and hurriedly knelt down, pleading, "Please forgive us, General! We... will do everything in our power!"
A brazier was brought in, and iron tongs glowed red-hot in the charcoal fire. The imperial physician, his silver knife dipped in medicine, tremblingly approached Li Wuyang's wound.
The silver knife sliced into the rotting flesh, and blood gushed out instantly.
"Ah!" Li Wuyang suddenly arched his body, cold sweat pouring down his forehead.
The red-hot iron pliers were removed and placed close to the wound, releasing a mixture of burnt and bloody odors.
Li Wuyang's eyes turned bloodshot, his whole body jolted violently, his vision went black, and he collapsed heavily to the ground.
"Your Majesty! Your Majesty!"