Chapter 897: The Celestial Wolf Great General!
Translated by: Hypersheep325
Edited by: Michyrr
“How was it?”
Gao Xianzhi rode up on a brown steed to meet with Wang Chong outside of Talas.
“Dalun Ruozan was planning this with the Arabs for some time. They will begin their assault soon,” Wang Chong calmly replied.
“So between the Arabs and Tibetans, you’re choosing to deal with the Tibetans first?” Gao Xianzhi asked. Wang Chong had placed almost eighty percent of his forces on the eastern line, so he was apparently placing a very high priority on dealing with the Tibetans.
Wang Chong shook his head and corrected this statement with a smile. “Not the Tibetans. I’m first dealing with the Tibetans and the Western Turks!”
“The Western Turks?”
Gao Xianzhi’s body trembled and a look of surprise appeared on his face. Rumble! While he was still confused, the earth began to quake, and another cloud of dust rose from behind the seventy thousand Tibetans, a sign that another army was arriving.
Buzz!
A few moments later, a massive banner was thrust over the horizon. Upon it was a golden wolf, its claws and teeth bared. The sight of this golden wolf immediately caused everyone’s eyes to narrow and the atmosphere to turn solemn.
Amongst all the various countries of the continent, only one faction would use a massive wolf as their symbol: the Western Turkic Khaganate! And amongst the Western Turkic Khaganate, only the most revered and supreme of figures could use the golden wolf as their symbol.
The commander of these forces was an Imperial Great General of the Western Turks!
“Duwu Sili!”
Gao Xianzhi’s face became extremely serious. Although there were many people Gao Xianzhi had not met in his time in the Western Regions, he knew of all the elite Great Generals in the area.
The Celestial Wolf Great General!
This was one of the Great Generals of the Western Turkic Khaganate, an extremely experienced veteran who had even defeated Beiting Protector-General An Sishun once! Most importantly…
“Wang Chong, be careful! The one who’s come is the Celestial Wolf Great General Duwu Sili of the Western Turks,” Gao Xianzhi gravely said. “The Black Wolf Yabgu, Agudu Lan, who you killed in Qixi, was once his subordinate, one that he had carefully nurtured and promoted. Not only that, he commands of the three strongest cavalry forces of the Western Turkic Khaganate, the Celestial Wolf Cavalry! There aren’t many people in this force, but they are all extremely terrifying fighters. This was precisely the cavalry force that defeated Beiting Protector-General An Sishun back then.”
“Mm?”
Wang Chong’s eyes widened as he subconsciously turned to look at the massive golden wolf banner. Wang Chong was no stranger to the name of Duwu Sili. Amongst the commanders of the countries bordering the Great Tang, the Celestial Wolf Great General was definitely one of the best.
This person was wholly capable of sitting on the same level as Gao Xianzhi.
But Wang Chong had never imagined that Duwu Sili would have some relation to Agudu Lan.
So, did the death of Agudu Lan draw him out?
Wang Chong’s eyes flashed as his mind churned.
Dusong Mangpoje, Duwu Sili, and even… Wang Chong turned to that fiery-red figure standing behind Dalun Ruozan. Wang Chong was no stranger to this man either. It was precisely Dalun Ruozan’s constant companion, Huoshu Huicang!
A tiny Talas had managed to gather three Great Generals of Ü-Tsang and the Western Turks. If one added on the Abbasid Caliphate’s Governor of the East Abu Muslim, the Great Tang was facing four Great Generals and was suddenly in great peril.
Not only that, Duwu Sili had also brought with him the Celestial Wolf Cavalry, a force of cavalry that stood at the apex of power in the continent. Together with the Arabian Mamelukes and his own five thousand Wushang Cavalry, three of the greatest cavalry forces in the world had gathered at this place.
Such a thing had never happened in recorded history.
“No, wait!”
Suddenly, Wang Chong’s heart thumped as he turned his gaze back to the hills. Behind Dalun Ruozan, the Tibetan army parted to reveal a distinctive force of cavalry. Their horses were robust and well-built, their armor mottled with blood-red symbols.
These cavalry exuded a cold aura, and comparing them to the Tibetan cavalry around them was like comparing an adult to a child.
They were cloaked in storms of energy that immediately placed an invisible pressure on everyone who saw them.
“The Mutri Great Cavalry!” Li Siye suddenly blurted out, his entire body tensing up as he stared at those Tibetan horsemen wearing golden-red armor.
Wang Chong said nothing, but his expression was similarly grave. He knew that Dalun Ruozan had to have come prepared, but he had never expected that he would bring the oldest and also strongest cavalry force of Ü-Tsang with him!
The Mutri Great Cavalry!
It was rumored that more than three hundred years ago, Mutri Tsenpo of Ü-Tsang entrusted this most powerful cavalry force with the duty of protecting the royal capital, and they had never left the royal capital since. Even in his last life, when the Abbasid Caliphate invaded the plateau, the Tibetans did not mobilize this force.
(TN: Mutri Tsenpo was the second Tsenpo of Tibet, the son of the legendary progenitor of the Yarlung Dynasty, Nyatri Tsenpo.)
These were the only cavalry force on the plateau that could be called ‘Great Cavalry’.
In terms of fighting power, these cavalry far surpassed the cavalry forces that Wang Chong had already eliminated, the Qinghai Soldiers and the White Braves. He had never imagined that Dalun Ruozan would be so capable as to even mobilize the Mutri Great Cavalry.
The Celestial Wolf Cavalry, the Mutri Great Cavalry, the Wushang Cavalry, the Abbasid Caliphate’s Mamelukes… all these supreme cavalry forces of the world had gathered in one place, an unprecedented event in the history of cavalry warfare!
Buzz!
A familiar sense of pressure suddenly washed through his mind, soon followed by the Stone of Destiny’s voice.
“Destiny is an interweaving of the extraordinary. The gathering of the world’s supreme and most brilliant things is certain to have subtle effects. Either they join together, or they decide between each other which is the superior. Through this, the world either shatters or enters a new era. All of it hinges upon this special moment and the Choice of Destiny!
“Mission: ‘Clash of Destiny’ has been unlocked! The difficulty has been increased. Starting from now, for each Mutri Great Cavalry or Celestial Wolf Cavalry killed by user’s Wushang Cavalry, user will be rewarded 30 points of Destiny Energy. For each Mameluke killed, user will be rewarded 50 points of Destiny Energy. For each Wushang Cavalry lost, user will be penalized 100 points of Destiny Energy. The rewards and penalties will be immediately calculated during battle.
“Note! Mutri Great Cavalry, Celestial Wolf Cavalry, and Mamelukes killed by soldiers not belonging to the Wushang Cavalry will not be counted!”
Wang Chong was dazed by this voice, a strange feeling in his mind. He had never expected this sort of mission from the Stone of Destiny. It appeared to be a mission that would allow him to accumulate Destiny Energy on the battlefield, but the truth was anything but.
Besides the Wushang Cavalry, the strongest force at Wang Chong’s side was the ballista army, but according to what the Stone of Destiny had said, if the ballista army or any other force besides the Wushang Cavalry killed the Mutri Great Cavalry, Celestial Wolf Cavalry, or Mamelukes, these kills wouldn’t be counted for the purpose of rewards.
In other words, if Wang Chong wanted the Destiny Energy rewarded by the Stone of Destiny, he could only gain it by using his Wushang Cavalry in a clash of cavalry on cavalry.
Not only that, while the Wushang Cavalry would only get 30 points from killing the Mutri or Celestial Wolf Cavalry and 50 points from killing a Mameluke, each Wushang death would cost Wang Chong 100 points.
So, is this already taking into account the fact that they’re all equipped with Meteoric Metal armor and have far better defense than the others? Wang Chong speculated.
Li Siye turned to Wang Chong. “Lord Marquis, what should we do now?”
“Pass on my order! Prepare for battle!”
Wang Chong sneered at the distant army and began to gallop back.
At almost the same time, Gao Xianzhi also gave his own orders, after which he returned to the second line of defense along with Wang Chong.
……
On the distant line of hills, the thousands of Tibetan cavalry did not immediately move out, remaining in place. Countless pairs of eyes followed Dalun Ruozan as he rode to the rear of the army, where a large Turkic force under the banner of a golden wolf was surging forth like a mighty wave.
This army was led by a muscular and sharp-eyed Turkic man riding a Turkic steed, his appearance like a war god descended from the high heavens. Behind him was a force of cavalry wearing silver armor covered in strange inscriptions. Moreover, unlike the armor of other cavalry, this armor was covered in barbs, and it was also shaped rather strangely, making these men appear like savage silver wolves from a distance. A single glance at these horsemen would make one feel an inexplicable dread.
Awoooo!
Fierce wolf howls echoed over the skies. Each of the thousands of Celestial Wolf Cavalry was leading a pack of ten-some wolves, each four feet tall.
“Duwu Sili, you really did come!”
Dalun Ruozan stood at the top of a hill, heartily laughing. In this three-member alliance, the last party in Dalun Ruozan’s plans had finally arrived.
“Since I was invited, how could I not come to this feast where we will divide up the Great Tang?” A thunderous voice rang in everyone’s ears.
Neeeigh! Duwu Sili’s horse gave an astonishing leap, seeming to leave behind a trail of fire as it soared through the air and landed at the top of the hill.
Duwu Sili stood tall amidst the blustery winds, his presence alone seeming to bring a storm down over the hill, his majestic pressure forcing the surrounding people to withdraw.
Even those Tibetan generals were unable to remain at the top of the hill. Everyone standing within a radius of ten zhang around Dalun Ruozan was forced down the hill.