Qu Bai stood in the distance, his gaze dark and heavy. Sending his cavalry to attack today was merely to test the waters.
He didn't dare to launch a massive siege because he feared Gefeng's Heavenly Punishment and the bizarre nature of Gefeng's south gate.
At this moment, there was no commotion inside Gefeng City. The Gefeng soldiers showed no panic, and even the commoners running back into the city were well-ordered.
His eyes sharpened. Could the north gate have some hidden trap just like the south gate? A trap that allowed people in but never out?
It wasn't that he hadn't seen a barbican before, but he didn't believe Gefeng's south gate had one built in, because a single barbican couldn't swallow up so many people at once.
Moreover, according to the soldiers who participated in that battle, they had been right at the city gates but hadn't heard any sounds of fighting or shouting from inside.
People who entered Gefeng's south gate seemed to just disappear. It was incredibly bizarre.
The cavalrymen following Qu Feng all raised the bows in their hands. Just a little closer, and they could draw their bows and shoot down the Jinyang Army.
Just as he was thinking this, countless arrows suddenly rained down from the walls of Gefeng City with a swoosh.
Qu Feng's pupils constricted. How was this possible? They couldn't possibly hit a target from this distance!
However, the arrows fell like rain, dark and murderous, hurtling straight toward them.
Such incredible speed!
He swung his blade to block. Clang, clang, clang! He deflected several arrows aimed at him, but his forward momentum slowed.
He noticed the difference in these arrows. Not only did they have a longer range than ordinary arrows, but their power was also immense, jarring his hands until they ached.
The Quzhao cavalry behind him lacked his strength; over a hundred were killed in the very first volley.
Screams and the terrified neighing of horses mixed together in utter chaos.
Swoosh, swoosh, swoosh...
Another volley of arrows rained down, this time claiming even more Quzhao soldiers.
Qu Feng's eyes nearly split open in fury. He finally saw clearly that the soldiers standing on Gefeng's walls weren't holding bows at all, but crossbows?!
In the distance, Qu Bai also exclaimed in shock, "How is this possible?"
One must know that his cavalry was still about two hundred paces away from Gefeng County. For ordinary bows, shooting seventy paces was already impressive.
How could Gefeng's arrows reach so far?
And with such tremendous power! The men he sent out were elite cavalry, yet they were completely defenseless under Gefeng's arrows.
No, his eyes narrowed. Were the weapons the Jinyang Army held on Gefeng's walls not bows?
Watching his carefully cultivated elite cavalry fall batch after batch, his heart bled. Gritting his teeth, he ordered, "Retreat!"
The thumping of drums echoed.
Hearing the drums of retreat, the surviving Quzhao cavalry breathed a sigh of relief, turned around, and fled.
At this distance, they couldn't shoot the enemy, but the enemy could hit them. This battle was impossible to fight.
However, while they wanted to run, Jiang Jin had no intention of letting them go. The crossbows in her soldiers' hands fired ceaselessly; a single arrow could reap the life of a Quzhao soldier.
Zhou Sui aimed his bow at Qu Feng, drew the string, and released.
The arrow flashed like lightning, shooting straight toward Qu Feng.
Qu Feng was deflecting arrows while turning his horse to retreat.
Suddenly, panic seized his heart as an extreme sense of crisis washed over him.
Pfft.
The arrow pierced clean through his neck.
The immense impact threw Qu Feng straight off his horse.
He was somewhat lucky. Having charged at the very front earlier, he was now at the very back. Apart from his own warhorse, there were no other horses around; otherwise, he would have been trampled to death.
But he was not far from death now. With an arrow in his neck, blood constantly spilled from the corners of his mouth, and he couldn't utter a single word.
Zhou Sui's bow was specially custom-made for him by the weapons workshop. Not just his, but the bows of Yun Chengxuan, Yao Ji, and the others were all custom-made.
Their range and accuracy were beyond compare to ordinary bows. It was only natural that Qu Feng couldn't block it.
The Quzhao cavalry was slaughtered until fewer than a few dozen men remained. Having finally run to what they believed was a safe distance, they all secretly breathed a sigh of relief.
Jiang Jin issued another order: "Eight-Ox Crossbows, ready, fire!"
Dozens of Eight-Ox Crossbows unleashed their massive bolts at the frantically fleeing Quzhao cavalry.
Pfft, pfft, pfft...
Due to the immense kinetic force of the Eight-Ox Crossbows, several Quzhao cavalrymen were sent flying several meters by the bolts before crashing heavily to the ground.
After falling, they were trampled by the warhorses.
Qu Bai's eyes widened abruptly, his voice filled with disbelief: "These... these are crossbows? Why is their firing range so far?"
The dozens of cavalrymen killed at the rear had already fled over a mile away. What kind of crossbow could shoot over a mile?
His face turned pale, then blue, then purple. Of the 500 elite cavalrymen he had sent out, not a single one survived!
Even his fierce general Qu Feng had failed to return.
Fortunately, the infantry was further away and hadn't been slaughtered by the arrows, though they weren't completely without casualties. Many were trampled to death by the frantically fleeing warhorses, leaving the scene in utter chaos.
Jiang Jin watched the Quzhao infantry discard their armor and flee in panic, secretly thinking it a pity.
The infantry ran slower, trailing far behind the cavalry. Before they even reached the firing range of the Dragon Feather Crossbows, Quzhao had already sounded the retreat drums.
Although the catapults' range had improved after her modifications, they could only hit targets at six or seven hundred meters. By now, the Quzhao infantry had already fled over a thousand meters away.
The Eight-Ox Crossbows could reach them, but they were expensive to operate; using them to kill infantry wasn't cost-effective.
Thirty minutes later, after the Quzhao soldiers had shrunk back into their camp, Jiang Jin finally ordered, "Go collect the warhorses and weapons."
500 cavalrymen meant 500 warhorses. Although some had run back to the Quzhao camp, most of the horses, having lost their masters' control, remained standing in place, bewildered.
Xie Nanxiao was thrilled: "Understood."
He excitedly led his men down the city tower and began clearing the battlefield. They also finished off the wounded; anyone who hadn't been shot in the neck was given a fatal strike.
After another thirty minutes of busy work, Xie Nanxiao led his men back to the city to report their harvest.
"We secured a total of 336 horses. Among them, 304 are good horses, and the other 32 are either injured or dead, all dragged back to the city."
Jiang Jin nodded. They could add three more cavalry companies, and they now had enough meat to eat for a long time.
Xie Nanxiao's voice continued, "We retrieved all our arrows, regardless of whether they were intact or broken. We also gathered 156 Quzhao longswords and 161 spears..."
Jiang Jin looked at the field littered with Quzhao corpses. Waiting until Xie Nanxiao finished his report, she finally said, "Send someone over to tell them to handle their own corpses."
Xie Nanxiao's eyes flashed. "My Lord, are you trying to lure them over to kill another wave?"
Xia Chanyi secretly rolled her eyes. "What are you talking about? Our Lord is a person of integrity. How could she do such a thing?"
Jiang Jin: "..." It was possible.
But this time, she genuinely didn't intend to make a move. She purely just didn't want to deal with the corpses herself.
The commoners who had been digging the foundations were all standing inside the city. Facing the pursuit of the Quzhao soldiers for the first time, they were still dealing with lingering fears.
Fortunately, just as their Lord had promised, they had experienced a scare but no real danger.
Everyone's sense of security and trust in the integrity of Jiang Jin and the Jinyang Army rose to a whole new level.
Jiang Jin walked over to the inner city tower and looked at the commoners standing inside the city. "The Quzhao soldiers have been repelled. Everyone, go back to work."
