Chapter 133: Northern Frontier Iron Cavalry, Terrifying As This!
The news of the Basaigan Tribe’s destruction spread like the wind to the surrounding nomadic tribes.
Everyone was shocked by the powerful combat strength displayed by the Northern Frontier Army.
It must be known that the Basaigan Tribe’s strength among the Seven Rivers Tribes was not weak at all.
But even so, it was still wiped out in one fell swoop by an army from the Northern Frontier?
“Northern Frontier Iron Cavalry, terrifying as this!”
“They are not human, they are a group of devils wearing white armor, coming from the snow mountains.”
“No wonder King Xiao can beat the Naiman People until they fall apart with such a terrifying army under his command.”
“It seems that in this battle, King Xiao is sure to win.”
“From now on, the Royal Court will change its surname to Xiao.”
“Fortunately, we have already sent heavy gifts to the Eastern Capital in advance, King Xiao should not make things difficult for us.”
“Prepare the troops and follow King Xiao to crusade against the tyrant.”
The Seven Rivers Tribes were buzzing with discussion, all shocked by the news of the Basaigan Tribe’s destruction.
At the same time, they were also rejoicing that they had already submitted to the Eastern Capital, otherwise they would surely end up the same as the Basaigan Tribe.
Thus, even those originally neutral tribes began to switch allegiance one after another, preparing to welcome the arrival of the Royal Army.
“His Majesty the Great will arrive at his loyal Seven Rivers Grassland in a few days.”
At the same time, Tarhan was still rejoicing in his choice.
He had timely ‘surrendered’ to Xiao Simo, otherwise the current outcome would probably not be much better than that of the Basaigan Tribe.
But at noon this day, a shrill cry instantly shattered the tranquility of the Duoluoban Tribe.
A herdsman came galloping from afar.
His clothes were blown to flutter by the wild wind, his face full of terror and exhaustion, shouting nonstop from his mouth.
“White devils, white devils are coming!”
This voice spread rapidly through the tribe like a thunderclap.
The herdsmen of the Duoluoban Tribe were immediately struck with panic.
They had long heard the news of the Basaigan Tribe’s destruction, and that mysterious army called the “white devils” haunted their hearts like a nightmare.
Now, this terrifying rumor had turned into reality—the white devils were really coming toward their tribe?
The Duoluoban Tribe’s strength was comparable to that of the Basaigan Tribe.
They were fundamentally no match for the white devils.
At the same time, Tarhan in the large tent heard this news and was shocked in his heart, his heavy mood hard to conceal.
But thinking that he had already submitted to Xiao Simo, and even offered the ‘head’ of his Hdun.
This action had clearly shown his sincerity and torn face with the Royal Court.
Logically speaking, the Eastern Capital Army should not make things difficult for him anymore.
Thinking of this, he calmed down a bit and reassured the herdsmen: “Everyone, don’t panic. We have already surrendered to Lord Xiao Simo. The Eastern Capital Army will not harm us.”
Despite this, Tarhan still ordered to prepare for battle, just in case.
At the same time, he also sent someone to tell Hdun to hide well and not reveal the truth.
And less than half a quarter of an hour after that herdsman returned to report, the herdsmen could see with their naked eyes that on the northern grassland, an army was rapidly approaching the Duoluoban Tribe.
Leading them was a group of White Armored Cavalry, like devils killing their way out of hell, with aggressive aura.
“Boom boom boom boom~”
War horse hooves crushed the grass waves, kicking up dust across the sky, the sound of hooves like rolling thunder, shaking the land slightly, each step like war drums booming, announcing their arrival.
After yesterday’s fierce battle, the armor on their bodies had been dyed red with blood.
The originally gray-white cotton armor now presented a dark red color, like asuras walking out of hell.
The leading golden Sun and Moon Battle Flag fluttered, with dried bloodstains adding a touch of eeriness to the outline of the sun and moon, just like two blood-colored suns rising over the grassland.
The herdsmen of the Duoluoban Tribe saw this army from afar, their hearts even more uneasy and fearful.
The legend of the white devils echoed endlessly in their minds—this army was invincible, sweeping all before it, unstoppable.
Fear enveloped everyone’s heart like shadows.
Tarhan stood in front of the tribe, gripping the hilt of his saber tightly, praying in his heart that his surrender could exchange for safety.
However, facing that increasingly close dark red iron cavalry, his heart was still filled with unease and doubt.
But he still forced himself to stay calm and shouted loudly to the panicked herdsmen: “Don’t panic.”
“We have already surrendered to King Xiao, the Eastern Capital Army will not attack us!”
His voice sounded especially hoarse in the cold wind, yet carried an undeniable dignity.
As he spoke, he pointed to a flag beside him, with a prominent “Xiao” character on it.
This was the flag granted to all tribes that went to the Eastern Capital to pay respects to Xiao Simo, symbolizing their submission and loyalty.
Tarhan firmly believed that this flag would ensure the Eastern Capital Army would not mistakenly harm them while operating in the Seven Rivers Basin.
Then, Tarhan ordered a cavalryman to raise that Xiao Character Flag high and gallop toward the oncoming Eastern Capital Army.
That cavalryman waved the flag while shouting loudly in Khitan language: “We are the Duoluoban Tribe and have already surrendered to the Great King.”
“Please, General, see clearly—we have no hostility!”
However, facing this soldier’s shout, Li Xiao just sneered.
“A broken flag, treated like a treasure.”
Little did they know, the right to interpret this thing was in Li Xiao’s hands.
He said it was useless, it was just a rag.
Immediately, Li Xiao directly drew his bow and nocked an arrow.
“Whoosh~”
Accompanied by the whistle of an arrow, from a hundred meters away, it precisely hit that cavalryman’s chest.
He let out a miserable scream and fell from the horseback, the Xiao Character Flag also crashing heavily to the ground, trampled beyond recognition by hooves.
Tarhan’s eyes widened, his face full of shock and disbelief.
“Damn it!”
“Why is this?”
At this moment, he finally understood that this Eastern Capital Army was not mistakenly entering the Duoluoban Tribe’s territory, but coming straight for them.
But he had clearly surrendered to Xiao Simo, why was the Eastern Capital Army still attacking him?
Could it be that his plan of fake surrender had been leaked?
A chill surged in his heart instantly, and with a hoarse voice, he shouted to the soldiers: “Prepare for battle!”
“Quick, prepare for battle!”
However, it was already too late.
The White Armored Army’s speed was astonishing, closing in on the tribe in the blink of an eye.
The front row of White Armored Cavalry all drew bows and nocked arrows, arrows raining down like a downpour.
The herdsmen had no time to react before a swath fell.
Screams and cries instantly overwhelmed the entire tribe.
After three rounds of arrow rain, following Li Xiao’s order.
“Spread out.”
The White Armored Army quickly split into left and right flanks, encircling the tribe from both sides.
Immediately after, the real killing weapon behind the White Armored Army was revealed: a hundred Armored Cavalry in heavy armor.
Seeing this, Tarhan’s pupils contracted sharply, and he shouted with eyes about to split: “Armored Cavalry, it’s Armored Cavalry!”
“Everyone, spread out.”
His voice was filled with despair.
Armored Cavalry were the most terrifying troops on the grassland; their war horses and knights were wrapped in thick iron armor, charging like a moving steel fortress, unstoppable.
In normal times, he could lead the soldiers to scatter quickly and avoid contact with the Armored Cavalry.
But who let him be deceived by that bastard Xiao Simo.
At first, he had vainly hoped to reconcile with this Eastern Capital Army, but by the time he realized, it was too late.
The White Armored Army had already begun encircling the Duoluoban Tribe from both sides.
At this point, the space for the herdsmen to disperse was limited.
The Armored Cavalry began their charge!
“Boom boom boom~”
“Kill~”
“Crush them!”
Their iron hooves crushed the turf, shaking the earth.
The hastily formed defensive line of the herdsmen was like paper in front of the Armored Cavalry, instantly torn to shreds.
Many didn’t even have time to escape before falling from their horses and being trampled into meat paste by the iron hooves.
The White Armored Army followed closely, charging into the tribe.
They wielded Hooked Scythe Spears and sabers, killing anyone they saw without mercy.
Blood dyed the grassland red, wails rising one after another.
Li Dashan and six other Centurions leading ordinary soldiers continued to flank from both sides, surrounding the entire tribe.
The battle progressed unusually quickly.
Although the Duoluoban Tribe’s herdsmen resisted desperately, their resistance seemed so powerless under the Eastern Capital Army’s iron hooves.
Soon, the tribe was littered with corpses, with heavy casualties.
Tarhan was pressed to the ground by several White Armored Soldiers, his face covered in dust and blood.
He struggled to lift his head and saw his tribe turned into ruins, his heart filled with rage and despair.
At this point, he no longer cared about anything and roared loudly.
“Xiao Simo, you will die a dog’s death!”
Seeing this, Li Xiao called Hutu over and asked: “What is he shouting?”
The Seven Rivers Basin was once the ruling center of the Western Turkic.
Many tribes, influenced by the Turks, changed their original language and all spoke Turkic language.
In fact, in this era, Turkicization in Central Asia was very severe.
Turkic language had become a lingua franca in many places, even more useful than Khitan language.
The Zhelan Tribe where Hutu originally came from was a Turkicized tribe.
So he translated: “Master, he is cursing Lord Xiao Simo, calling him a bastard.”
Hearing this, Li Xiao’s mouth curved up slightly, revealing a meaningful smile: “This guy has a good eye for people.”
Tarhan was pressed to the ground, still struggling fiercely, his face full of anger and unwillingness, cursing nonstop.
At this moment, he saw a general in bloodstained white armor riding over on horseback.
That person’s armor was splattered with blood, glistening with a dark red sheen in the sunlight, like an asura from hell.
Tarhan struggled to raise his head and asked through gritted teeth: “Why?”
“Why are you slaughtering my tribe?”
His voice trembled slightly, still holding a glimmer of hope that Xiao Simo had not discovered the truth of his fake surrender.
And he was not wrong in thinking that.
This time, it was indeed Li Xiao’s private action.
Li Xiao had once sworn that all who coveted Xiao Yanyan would pay the price of extermination. Now, he fulfilled his promise.
Li Xiao stared coldly at Tarhan, his gaze piercing into his heart like a blade.
He slowly spoke, his voice ice-cold and low: “The Sijin Tiyaer of the Basaigan Tribe is a key criminal named by Lord Xiao Simo to be executed.”
“He fled to your Duoluoban Tribe, and not only did you not expose him, you harbored him instead.”
“Tarhan, do you know your crime?”
Hearing this, Tarhan was instantly stunned.
His face was full of shock and confusion as he blurted out: “No!”
“I didn’t!”
“These days, I have never seen Tiyal, let alone harbored him!”
However, before his defense was finished, two soldiers behind Li Xiao led a horse over.
On the horse’s back was a bound man, covered in bloodstains, barely breathing.
The soldiers threw him heavily to the ground with a thud.
Li Xiao said indifferently: “Now, you have seen him.”
At these words, Tarhan was dumbfounded.
This works too?
“No~”
“This is framing and slander.”
“I want to see the Great King.”
Seeing Li Xiao’s shamelessness, Tarhan broke down completely, struggling nonstop and hurling abuses at Li Xiao.
He was now certain that the attack on the Duoluoban Tribe might not be known to Xiao Simo.
It should be the decision of this young general in front of him.
But why?
He didn’t even know him, let alone offend him!
Why frame him like this?
“Beauty brings disaster!”
“Some women are not for you to covet.” Li Xiao murmured softly.
And during the subsequent looting of spoils of war from the Duoluoban Tribe, Li Xiao suddenly stopped a team of soldiers.
They were escorting a group of female captives to the temporary female captive camp.
“Where were these people captured?”
Li Xiao asked in a deep voice, his gaze slightly scrutinizing one of the female captives.
This woman was about twenty years old, wearing ragged sheepskin like an ordinary woman, her face dirty and her true appearance unrecognizable.
But her temperament was completely out of place with the surrounding ordinary nomadic women.
Moreover, there were always two women around her, subtly centering on her.
Li Xiao was certain this was no ordinary woman; her status was definitely not common.
“In the tents over there.”
The leading Squad Leader pointed to a cluster of tents in the distance and answered.
Li Xiao turned to look and saw that the tents there were low and dilapidated, clearly the dwellings of the tribe’s lower class.
But given this woman’s appearance, she absolutely could not be a lower-class woman.
“Go wash her face clean.”
Li Xiao ordered in a deep voice.
Hutu beside him immediately untied the water pouch from his waist, had someone hold the woman down, and personally washed her face.
“Don’t.”
“Get away~”
“Ahh, save me~”
During this process, the woman struggled constantly; her life of luxury seemed to make it hard for her to adapt to being treated like livestock.
Soon, when the dirt on her face was washed away, what appeared before everyone was a stunning face.
“Enough~”
Li Xiao immediately stopped Hutu from further cleaning.
“This woman’s status is not ordinary. Since she won’t talk, send her to my large tent.”
“Interrogate her properly.”
“Must force her to spit out the truth.”
The battle ended quickly. By afternoon, the Jin Prefecture Army continued sorting spoils of war, treating the wounded, and recording military merits.
In the evening, they still slaughtered cattle and sheep, feasted, and then reveled through the night.
The women of the Duoluoban Tribe’s cries echoed through the night sky.
At the same time, Li Xiao was also vigorously interrogating that woman’s true identity in his large tent.
Finally, an hour later, the woman, beaten like mud, was thrown out of the tent.
Ever since last night’s assassination attempt by that woman.
Li Xiao had become even more cautious.
For these captured women, he no longer kept them in the tent overnight.
And Tarhan, looking at Hdun covered in whip marks, felt endless grief inside, tears of heartache flowing nonstop.
Angry at his own incompetence and cowardice, unable to protect his beloved woman.
He could only helplessly keep banging his head on the ground.
The Jin Prefecture Army stayed on the Duoluoban Tribe’s territory, resting for three days, also to wait for Xiao Simo’s main army to arrive.
War is like this.
The tense and dangerous killing was slowly eroding the soldiers’ minds; no one knew in which battle they would die.
This caused brutal emotions to breed in everyone’s heart.
Resolving it this way with crude violence was better than letting emotions build up in silence.
Ultimately leading to a camp mutiny—it was a hundred times better.
Moreover, because the Seven Rivers Basin lacked no food, after breaking two tribes, the Jin Prefecture Army did not lack beef and mutton.
If it were the Central Plains Dynasty in a time of warfare, these women’s fates would probably be even more tragic.
Three days later, Xiao Simo’s main army arrived.
Outside the large tent, a group of Seven Rivers Tribes’ leaders stood solemnly, quietly waiting for Xiao Simo’s summons.
At this moment, a low rumble of hooves came from afar.
These tribal leaders all turned toward the sound, only to see a cavalry team of about twenty charging over.
They wore bloodstained white armor, mottled with blood, as if having gone through countless battles, gleaming coldly in the sunlight.
Though only twenty riders, their aura was like a hundred iron cavalry charging, hooves pounding the ground and kicking up rolling smoke and dust.
Seeing this, the tribal leaders were secretly shocked.
The rumors they had heard in the past few days flooded their minds; someone blurted out in fear: “White devils!”
“They are the white devils!”
Everyone knew that Xiao Simo had a White Armored Cavalry under him, with formidable combat strength, indestructible, leaving rivers of blood wherever they went.
The Duoluoban Tribe and Basaigan Tribe, these two once powerful tribes, collapsed like a toppling building under their assault.
This White Armored Cavalry had become the nightmare of the Seven Rivers Tribes, crowned with the terrifying title of “white devils.”
Today, they finally witnessed this chilling existence with their own eyes.
Though only twenty riders, they were murderous, the bloodstains on their armor silently telling of their illustrious military merits.
The cavalry reached the tent front, and all dismounted in unison.
The leading young general had cold eyes, swept over the crowd, then strode toward the large tent.
He stood tall, steps steady, exuding a sharp aura that made people afraid to look directly.
The leaders outside the tent felt this pressure and all lowered their heads to avoid him, none daring to meet his gaze, fearing to anger this white devils’ leader and bring annihilation.
At this time, the personal guards outside the large tent shouted loudly: “Announcing, Jin Prefecture Deputy Governor Li Xiao enters the tent.”
Hearing this, Li Xiao strode forward, unfastened his cavalry saber from his waist, handed it to the guards outside, and walked into the large tent with head held high.
After he entered, the nomadic leaders outside breathed a sigh of relief, as if an invisible pressure had instantly dissipated.
The crowd began whispering among themselves.
“I didn’t expect to see the legendary white devils legion today.”
“These people have extremely heavy killing aura; they must have killed countless.”
“Look at the bloodstains on that armor… they are simply a group of killing gods!”
“The one who just went in must be the white devils’ leader, so young—unbelievable.”
“Jin Prefecture Deputy Governor? Unlimited future prospects.”
“Jin Prefecture? Seems to be at the foot of Golden Mountain.”
“One of the Four Prefectures of Northern Frontier, directly under the Great King’s command.”
While the crowd was whispering, one tribal leader suddenly thought of something and said with wide eyes.
“Li Xiao? I remember who he is now; no wonder the name sounded familiar.”
Everyone turned to look upon hearing this.
“Who?”
“Prince Consort of Chu State.”
“Husband of the Princess of Chu, brother-in-law of the Great King.”
“Hiss~”
Hearing Li Xiao’s identity, all the leaders gasped, their shock indescribable.
They didn’t expect him to not only be Jin Prefecture Deputy Governor and commander of the White Armored Army, but also Xiao Simo’s brother-in-law?
Who hasn’t heard of the Princess of Chu?
The youngest daughter of Empress Chengtian, the Xiao Clan’s treasured pearl.
Legend has it she is extremely beautiful, the most beautiful woman on the Northern Frontier grassland.
However, due to her unattainable status and past relations with the Da He Family, many dared not have any presumptuous thoughts.
But they never expected the renowned Princess of Chu to marry a young lad?
Though these people were envious and jealous inside, they knew clearly.
Li Xiao’s status was extraordinary; not only was he a capable general under Xiao Simo, his marriage tie to the Great King made his position even more prominent.
Once Xiao Simo ascended to that position, Li Xiao would be a genuine Prince Consort with even greater prospects.
Perhaps in the future, they would have to work under him for a living.
Inside the tent, Xiao Simo sat in the main seat. Seeing Li Xiao enter, he nodded slightly.
Li Xiao placed his hand on his chest in salute, respectful yet dignified.
“Li Xiao pays respects to the Lord.”
“Mm, no need for excessive courtesy.”
Xiao Simo nodded lightly and said gravely: “You did very well in this battle.”
“Wiped out the Basaigan Tribe in one stroke and captured Tiyal alive.”
“You did not disappoint my expectations.”
“Record this as a great merit for you.” Xiao Simo smiled faintly as he said.
Li Xiao saluted again: “Thank you, Lord.”
“In this battle, it was all thanks to the Lord’s profound strategy and the Jin Prefecture officers and soldiers’ dedication. This general merely contributed a little.”
Just as Li Xiao finished speaking, Xiao Lintta sitting in the side seat sneered coldly.
“Indeed, Deputy Governor Li only contributed a little.”
“But you used your other strength elsewhere.”
Hearing Xiao Lintta’s words, Li Xiao knew this guy wouldn’t miss any chance to attack him.
The next second, Xiao Lintta stood up and accused Xiao Simo: “Though Li Xiao has military merits, he acts aberrantly, confuses right and wrong, and harms loyal officials.”
“The Duoluoban Tribe had clearly submitted to our Eastern Capital, and to show loyalty, its Sijin even personally beheaded Hdun, completely breaking with the Royal Court.”
“Yet such a tribe with sincere loyalty was persecuted by Li Xiao.”
“Just days ago, the Duoluoban Tribe was attacked and broken by Li Xiao’s army.”
“Such behavior has caused the Seven Rivers Tribes to be terrified and uneasy.”
“Great King, Li Xiao arbitrarily kills the innocent and attacks allied forces; his crime is unforgivable.”
“Please, Great King, punish him.”
