Bo Yan thought about it for a moment, but he still did not want to retreat just like that. Retreating without a fight was a great humiliation to the Mongolian warriors, and Bo Yan could not accept it.
"Assemble the troops and prepare to meet the enemy!" Bayan ordered.
Zhang Hongfan had no choice but to obey.
When the Mongolians attacked Linan this time, they claimed that they had a million soldiers, but only 600,000 soldiers left their six bases. After a series of battles, apart from the puppet army, another 100,000 soldiers died in battle.
Currently, apart from the two hundred thousand troops guarding the north, there were only a hundred thousand troops stationed on the other three sides.
This also meant that even if Bayan gathered the entire southern army, he would only be able to gather a hundred thousand men. Moreover, the army had just withdrawn from the frontlines and returned to their camps. It would be extremely difficult to gather a large army.
Time was of the essence, so Zhang Hongfan could only gather ten thousand elite cavalrymen, including his and Boyan's personal guards. Otherwise, they might not even be able to gather ten thousand men.
"It's enough!"
Boyan, on the other hand, was brimming with confidence. In his opinion, as long as the first wave of the enemy's attack was blocked, the follow-up troops would quickly assemble and complete the counter-encirclement.
It was still unknown who would emerge victorious.
While Zhang Hongfan was mobilizing his troops, the Evil Cometh Division had already broken through the last barrier. Bayan and the rest could already see the silhouettes of the enemy. The Golden Dragon Flag of Great Xia fluttered in the wind and was extremely eye-catching.
Just as Boyan was about to give the order to charge, a petite messenger suddenly ran in from the side. Panting heavily, he said, "Reporting to the Commander-in-Chief, there is urgent military news. The east and west wings have sent out an early warning, saying that a large number of cavalrymen have suddenly left the city of Lin 'an and are attacking from the south. We ask the Commander-in-Chief to take precautions."
"What?!"
Boyan's heart trembled, his expression changing drastically as he forcefully pulled on the reins.
Gazing at the clearly visible enemy troops, Boyan's expression was extremely ugly. Even if he wanted to retreat now, it was too late. Within such a short period of time, even if the Mongolian cavaliers were well-trained, they could not immediately turn around and retreat.
If they were to retreat in a hurry, once the enemy attacked at the right time, their formation would be thrown into chaos, and that would be a disaster. What was worse was that once they retreated, the camp behind them would suffer as well.
The slightest mishap would result in a complete defeat.
As expected of a famous general in the Mongolian army, Boyan soon understood the pros and cons of the situation.
He had no choice but to bite the bullet. As the saying goes, 'When two enemies meet on a narrow path, the braver one wins'. The only thing they could do now was to withstand the first wave of the enemy's attack and wait for the main army to assemble at the camp before making further plans.
"Everyone, charge!"
Boyan hurriedly issued the military order.
For a moment, the rumbling sound of horse hooves resounded, and the earth shook.
Under the orange glow of the sunset, the two cavalry units charged at each other, ready to fight to the death. Perhaps it was just an illusion, but at this moment, even the sunset glow became enchanting and hung the color of blood.
Boyan did not charge forward. He remained where he was, protected by his bodyguards. While commanding the frontline troops, he also urgently mobilized the rear troops to quickly assemble the troops in the south.
The one leading the charge was a Mongolian general, while Zhang Hongfan was ordered to gather his troops at the back.
In the process of charging, the fierce general E Lai wielded a pair of iron halberds and rode on the Rakshasa, revealing a bloodthirsty smile. He aimed at the enemy's commander and lightly tapped the Rakshasa with his right boot.
Receiving the order, the Rakshasa suddenly sprinted forward. The man and beast worked well together.
The speed of the Rakshasa's charge obviously surprised the enemy. In that instant, E Lai had already skillfully waved his two iron halberds. With a 'pfft' sound, before the enemy could react, he was directly cut in half, and blood splattered everywhere.
The Rakshasa was drenched, but he did not care at all. A red glow flashed in his eyes. This was really an evil beast, and only a ruthless person like E Lai could subdue it.
As soon as they started fighting, E Lai killed the enemy's general.
This time, the charging imperial guards' morale soared, and they all charged forward while howling.
On the contrary, the originally arrogant Mongolian cavalry lost their courage. This was the first time they saw cavalry that was even more ferocious than them.
The Mongolian cavalry was mainly light cavalry, and because they were skilled with bows and horses, they could shoot arrows on horseback regardless of whether they were attacking or retreating. Throughout the entire battle, the rain of arrows would not stop.
On the contrary, they were not very good at charging between cavalry.
Disregarding everything else, just the armor alone was a huge difference, not to mention the machetes used by the Mongolian cavalry. In the face of the Great Xia imperial guards' lances, the machetes were like toys. They were not on the same level at all.
As soon as the two sides started fighting, it was obvious who was stronger.
Under the charge of the 30,000 Great Xia imperial guards, the 10,000 Mongolian cavalry's formation was immediately messed up.
With E Lai as the leader, the Great Xia cavalry directly tore the Mongolian formation into pieces and did not stop as they continued to charge forward. As for the Mongolian cavalry that crossed their path, the rear army would take care of them.
One must not forget that behind E Lai were the 30,000 cavalry from Luo Feng City and 20,000 cavalry from Great Song. They might not be as good as the Great Xia imperial guards in a head-on charge, but they could still take care of the remaining survivors.
E Lai was the core of this beheading operation, and before they set off, Ouyang Shuo had already told him that the success of killing Boyan depended on E Lai.
E Lai did not want to disappoint the king.
After tearing apart the enemy's defensive line, be it E Lai or the Rakshasa beneath him, they were covered in blood. They were like evil gods that walked out of hell, looking extremely ferocious.
E Lai did not care at all. He stared ahead and quickly searched for his target. Very soon, Boyan, who was retreating under the protection of his personal guards, entered E Lai's line of sight.
"Haha, Boyan, don't run. E Lai is here. Leave your puny life behind!"
E Lai's eyes lit up, and the Rakshasa beneath him did not need to be commanded at all as it directly pounced forward.
…
On his warhorse, Boyan took the time to glance at the chaotic scene behind him. His expression was extremely ugly. He never expected the enemy to be so powerful that they could tear apart the Mongolian army's defensive line in a single round.
This was something that had never happened in any of the previous battles.
This time, Boyan was truly frightened out of his wits. He did not dare to stay any longer. Under the protection of his personal guards, he fled pathetically to the rear in preparation to rendezvous with the main forces.
He did not know how many troops Zhang Hongfan had gathered.
At that moment, E Lai's roar came from behind him. In the game, Gaia had its own translation system. Although Boyan was Mongolian, he could understand E Lai's words, and his expression turned increasingly ugly.
As one of the few generals in the Mongolian army, Boyan did not lack the courage to fight the enemy. He wished he could immediately turn his horse around and fight the big guy behind him.
However, as a commander, his rationality reminded Boyan that he could not do so. The aggrieved Boyan could only whip his horse continuously and increase his speed to escape.
However, the faster Boyan fled, the louder E Lai's roar became.
The Mongolian warhorses were not very tall, but they were known for their endurance. They had made great contributions in the Mongolian expeditions to the west, but in terms of speed, they did not have any advantage over the Green Beetle Warhorses that the Great Xia Imperial Guards rode.
On the contrary, they were at a disadvantage because the Green Beetle Warhorses were known for their speed.
Seeing that Boyan was not far ahead, E Lai could not hold it in any longer and immediately activated his general specialty. As such, the speed of the Great Xia Imperial Guards, who were already moving like the wind, increased once again. They approached Boyan and company at a speed visible to the naked eye.
When E Lai saw this, he could not help but grin. He was not far from completing his mission.
At that moment, the rumbling of hooves came from ahead. It was Zhang Hongfan leading his troops to provide support. Before he arrived, a wave of arrows had already rained down on the Great Xia Imperial Guards.
Shooting arrows while advancing was the forte of the Mongolian cavalry.
When Boyan saw this, he heaved a sigh of relief inwardly as he revealed a look of relief after surviving a calamity. If he were to really be caught by the enemy behind him, no matter how valiant he was, he would not be able to withstand so many attacks. He would probably be doomed.
When E Lai saw this, his eyes were filled with indignation. The enemy's arrows rained down on them with extraordinary power. A few of the Imperial Guards beside E Lai were instantly killed, and they were thrown into a complete mess.
Zhang Hongfan's goal was very simple. He wanted to use the rain of arrows to stop the Great Xia Imperial Guards from advancing and save Boyan and company.
"No, I can't let all my previous efforts go to waste." E Lai was not someone who would give up easily. A fierce glint flashed in his eyes as he roared, "Everyone, speed up and charge!"
E Lai!
At the crucial moment, E Lai did not retreat but advanced instead. He braved the enemy's rain of arrows and took the lead.
Seeing how valiant their commander was, the Great Xia Imperial Guards were completely enraged. All of them roared as they charged forward, completely ignoring the rain of arrows raining down on them.
This time, Zhang Hongfan and Boyan were completely dumbfounded. They had never seen such a fearless army in the world.
"Quick, go forward and provide support to the commander!"
Zhang Hongfan did not dare to delay. He patted his warhorse and charged forward.
If Boyan died, according to the Mongolian military rules, even if Zhang Hongfan survived, he would be beheaded by Khubilai. Hence, no matter how difficult it was, Zhang Hongfan had to brace himself and charge forward.
Zhang Hongfan's reaction was not slow, but E Lai was even faster.
In just a few blinks of an eye, E Lai finally caught up to Boyan and company with the help of his General Specialty. He raised the two metal halberds in his hands and slashed down.
"Protect the commander!"
Seeing this, Boyan's bodyguards all disregarded their own safety and formed a human wall behind Boyan.
"Hmph!"
E Lai's expression did not change. With the help of the Rakshasa, heads would fall wherever the halberds fell. Even the powerful Boyan's bodyguards were no different from chickens and dogs in front of E Lai.
At this moment, the Great Xia Imperial Guards had also caught up.
Seeing this, E Lai did not waste any more time. He directly went around Boyan's bodyguards and chased forward.
Soon, Boyan was about to meet up with the main force.
However, E Lai did not waver at all. The Rakshasa under him seemed to have sensed its master's desire. Although it had already run for a long distance, it charged forward again.
With a whoosh, the Rakshasa crossed the distance of nearly ten meters with E Lai and instantly arrived behind Boyan.
"Commander, be careful!"
Seeing this, Zhang Hongfan and the others were furious.
Boyan subconsciously turned his head and saw a pitch-black metal halberd growing larger and larger in his eyes.
"Puchi!"
Boyan did not even have time to react before his head was struck by E Lai's metal halberd.
Blood and brain matter splattered everywhere.
With a boom, Boyan fell off his warhorse. A famous general of a generation had actually died in the hands of E Lai.
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