In the distance, the Western Turks had long ago vanished, and Xue Qianjun's investigation quickly came to a conclusion.
"Marquis, it's bad! Lord Chen Bin has disappeared! We've searched the entire camp, but we can't find him! "
"What?!!"
Wang Chong grimaced, and even Gao Xianzhi and Cheng Qianli turned to look, their expressions completely different from before. Although they didn't know much about Wang Chong's subordinates, they had at least heard of Chen Bin's name. He was Wang Chong's ballista commander, and he was extremely skilled in commanding ballistae. Ballistae were all in his hands, but in the hands of others, they were completely different. In Wang Chong's army, Chen Bin held an extremely important position.
Although he had not charged into battle like the others, he had probably killed a considerable number of Arabs, Tibetans, and Western Turks in this battle. He was the one who had truly contributed to the victory, an extremely important figure.
Without him, the Tang Dynasty and all of Talas would have a massive effect!
"Search for me one more time! What about the inside of Talas? Have you searched the city? Also … call the ballista soldiers over! And Chen Bin's Personal Guard — do not even they know where Chen Bin went? "
At the end, Wang Chong's voice hardened.
"Yes!"
A nervous look appeared on the messenger's face. Marquis was rarely this stern, but everyone knew that Chen Bin's disappearance was no small matter.
The messenger quickly left, and the army began to get busy with Wang Chong's orders. Gao Xianzhi, Cheng Qianli, and the other generals were also anxiously waiting. The investigation quickly came to a conclusion, but none of them wanted to hear this news.
It had been confirmed that Duwusili had taken a person with him in his retreat, and this person was Chen Bin! Because Chen Bin had been injured while dealing with the Skyquaking Giants, he had been lying on the ground with the other wounded soldiers and corpses. Thus, Duwusili's departure had not attracted much attention.
Many of the wounded had been moved into Talas and other heavily guarded areas. The ballista soldiers believed that Chen Bin had been taken away, and coupled with the chaos of the battle, none of them had the time to pay attention to anything else, no one had noticed that Chen Bin had been taken away.
This news was like a heavy bomb that fiercely exploded in everyone's hearts. For a moment, the atmosphere was oppressive and heavy. Even Zhang Shouzhi, who was standing to the side, revealed a solemn expression.
"I don't understand. Duwusili is known as the Celestial Wolf Great General, one of the three strongest Great Generals of the Western Turkic Khaganate. Why did he take Chen Bin?"
Xi Yuanqing, the third-in-command of the Anxi Protectorate army next to Cheng Qianli, interjected. He had rushed over after receiving the news. His deepest impression of Chen Bin was still the efficient and callous way in which he had commanded the ballista army to reap the Arabs' wrongs.
Although his martial arts were not high, the ability he displayed was something that many generals with higher strength than him could only look up to. But he still didn't understand why the mighty Celestial Wolf Great General had taken him away.
"Could it be that Duwusili wants to obtain the secrets of the ballista from Chen Bin and build a ballista army?"
Xi Yuanqing said.
"Impossible!"
Before Xi Yuanqing could finish, Zhang Shouzhi interrupted him.
"Ballistae have always been the greatest secret of the Tang Dynasty. If you want to build a ballista, you need a blueprint. You can't build one just by looking at its outer appearance. It's just a large ballista, and the craftsmen are responsible for the craftsmen while the soldiers are responsible for the battlefield. Although Chen Bin is the commander of the ballista army, he doesn't have the blueprint. It's simply impossible for Duwusili to obtain the secrets of the ballista from him.
"Moreover, the forging of a ballista requires a very high level of skill and a complete forging system. This isn't something that a steppe empire like the Western Turks can achieve. Even if they have the ballista blueprint, they'll be useless! They won't be able to forge a single ballista! "
Zhang Shouzhi's expression was resolute. In the field of forging, Zhang Shouzhi held absolute authority. Whether it was the construction of the City of Steel or the appearance of the giant ballista, Zhang Shouzhi's status in the world was as high as the noon sun, and he was fully deserving of the title of grandmaster. In particular, Zhang Shouzhi had supervised the construction of the City of Steel, and that magnificent masterpiece had raised Zhang Shouzhi's status to the extreme, making him a god in the eyes of many craftsmen.
If he said that the Western Turkic Khaganate couldn't forge a ballista even if they had the blueprint, then this would definitely be the case.
"But is it possible that the Western Turkic Khaganate is working with the Arabs to build a ballista?"
Another officer of the Anxi Protectorate army asked. The Western Turks, Ouzan, and Arabia were currently in a three-way alliance. What everyone was worried about the most was that the Western Turks and Arabs were working together, which would be very bad.
The Western Turkic Khaganate truly couldn't forge a ballista, as they lacked the skill and skill to do so, but the Arabs were different. If they had the blueprint, they would definitely be able to forge one.
"Impossible."
This time, before Zhang Shouzhi could answer, Gao Xianzhi shook his head and rejected the idea.
"The Arabs are extremely proud. They only truly clashed with us and came into contact with ballistae a month or two ago, and at that time, the Arabs had not yet formed an alliance with the Western Turks. In addition, the three-way alliance has only just been formed, and each side has its own ulterior motives. In the current situation, the alliance is far from deep enough to work together to forge a ballista. Moreover, given Abu Muslim's style of doing things, he probably wants to see Duwusili lead an army to attack us together with the Arabs, not a trifling ballista blueprint. Thus, this situation is impossible. At the very least, Duwusili's actions have nothing to do with Abu Muslim. "
"But if the Western Turkic Khaganate can't forge a ballista and Duwusili has no intention of working with the Arabs, then why did he kidnap Chen Bin?"
Xue Qianjun muttered to himself. His words caused everyone to fall silent. Chen Bin was the commander of the ballista army. If Duwusili wasn't here for the ballistae, what else could he be here for? No one could think of an answer to this question.
"There's no need to think about it. If Duwusili isn't here for the ballistae, then there's only one thing left: the Wushang Cavalry!"
As everyone looked on, Wang Chong said the last four words.
In all of Talas, the Tang Dynasty's strongest forces were the ballista army and the Wushang Cavalry, armed to the teeth. If it wasn't the ballista army, then the rest was obvious.
"But, Wang Chong, isn't Chen Bin the commander of the ballista army? If Duwusili wants to move against the Wushang Cavalry, why would he kidnap him? "
Gao Xianzhi slightly creased his brow in confusion. The mighty Celestial Wolf Great General, who had dominated the steppe and the borders, would never make such a low-level mistake. At this moment, even Gao Xianzhi was somewhat confused.
"… Moreover, if Duwusili wanted to move against the Wushang Cavalry, he could have done so directly. Even if he coveted the Meteoric Metal armor and WuZi Steel swords of the Wushang Cavalry, there was no need to kidnap a person."
The Wushang Cavalry were unimaginably powerful, and as the commander of the army, Gao Xianzhi could not have failed to notice them. Moreover, Wang Chong had never intended to conceal the secret of the Meteoric Metal and WuZi Steel swords from him.
"I'm afraid that the problem lies with the armor."
An almost imperceptible bitter smile appeared on Wang Chong's lips.
"All the commanders under my command are equipped with Meteoric Metal armor and WuZi Steel swords, and the commanders in particular are even better equipped. Duwusili isn't familiar with the composition of my army, so he must have only noticed the special armor of the Wushang Cavalry and not the other parts. Thus, he took Chen Bin to be a member of the Wushang Cavalry. As for Duwusili's goal in kidnapping him, if I'm not mistaken, it's probably for formation phenomena. "
"Buzz!"
In the beginning, everyone was still astonished, but when they heard the words' Formation Phenomena ', their expressions changed abruptly as they came to a sudden understanding. It was especially so for Gao Xianzhi and Cheng Qianli. Their horizons and knowledge far surpassed that of ordinary people, so they naturally understood the weight of the words' Formation Phenomena '.
In a flash, Gao Xianzhi's heart sank. For a supreme commander like Gao Xianzhi, Wang Chong only needed to say a part of it for Gao Xianzhi to understand.
"This matter is a little bad. Formation phenomena is no small matter. In truth, even if you hadn't brought it up after this battle, I would have asked about it. It's no wonder that Duwusili has taken a liking to your formation phenomena. The Celestial Wolf Cavalry have dominated the world and are one of the three strongest cavalry forces of the Western Turkic Khaganate. If he were to obtain the secret of formation phenomena and raise the Celestial Wolf Illusory Formation to the highest level, he would become a major foe of our Tang Dynasty, both now and in the future. In addition, I don't know much about your subordinates, but there is one thing I would like to ask. Chen Bin is the commander of the ballista army. Does he know about the formation phenomena of the Wushang Cavalry? "
Gao Xianzhi sternly said.
"He knows."
Wang Chong nodded.
"Before I established the ballista army, he was actually one of the commanders of the Wushang Cavalry. He doesn't say that he knows all the secrets, but he knows at least eighty percent. "
"Wang Chong, the Western Turks are an empire of cavalry, and they use even more formations than we do. If Duwusili obtains the secret of formation phenomena and begins to spread it throughout the Western Turkic Khaganate, you should understand what that means. So allow me to ask you one more question. Given your understanding of Chen Bin, if Duwusili wants to know the secret of formation phenomena, will he succeed? "
Gao Xianzhi spoke very tactfully, but his expression grew more and more solemn. Duwusili's schemes were no small matter. As one of the most elite Great Generals of the Western Turkic Khaganate and one of the most exalted irqins, he was not just plotting to raise the strength of the Celestial Wolf Cavalry. The gravity of this matter had already surpassed the level of Chen Bin's capture and the threat to the ballista army. It was now a strategic contest between the Tang Dynasty and the Western Turkic Khaganate.
"Haaah."
Wang Chong gave a long sigh and slowly raised his head toward the east.
"What I'm worried about right now is not that Duwusili might obtain the secret of formation phenomena, but that he won't be able to!"
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