Chapter 309: National Destiny In Peril, Impenetrable Passes
“The city has fallen, the city has fallen.”
“Northern Frontier Army has killed their way in.”
Just as both sides were engaged in a fierce and brutal fight for control of the breach, a terrified shout rang out inside the city.
Woluohai City had been breached.
While the elite of the Xia Army were defending the breach, the Northern Frontier Army forcibly climbed up the city wall and was counterattacking toward the various sections of the garrison.
“What?”
“Damn it!”
Gao Yi, who was commanding soldiers at the breach to resist the Northern Frontier soldiers, changed his expression drastically upon hearing this news.
His arm gripping the hilt trembled slightly, and his teeth were nearly bitten through.
“Heaven, why are you so cruel to our Xia Kingdom!”
He knew the Northern Frontier Army was very powerful, with terrifying individual combat ability and overall strength, but he never expected that after holding out for only five days, Woluohai City would be breached.
But he, Gao Yi, would never submit.
More and more Northern Frontier Army soldiers climbed over the city wall and attacked toward the breach, intending to support the Black Armored Army entering the city.
“Kill!”
Gao Yi’s eyes bulged with rage, the spear in his hand flashing with cold light as he fiercely thrust it toward a Northern Frontier soldier’s neck.
The soldier reacted too slowly, and blood sprayed all over Gao Yi.
He wiped the blood from his face and roared: “The men of the Xia Kingdom will not retreat even in death!”
The Xia Army soldiers around him were inspired by his aura and fought fiercely one after another.
Gao Yi was like a fierce tiger, charging left and right, consecutively killing three more Northern Frontier soldiers.
But countless Northern Frontier soldiers in red armor surged forward like tides, with large numbers of Black Armored Army heavy infantry pressing close behind.
The soldiers around him dwindled, falling one by one and never rising again.
“General Gao, run!”
The last guard roared as he blocked in front of him, pierced through the chest by a spear.
Gao Yi’s eyes were threaded with blood; with his already exhausted hands, he swung the broken saber full of gaps, wanting to charge forward again.
But a soldier threw a chain that looped around his neck and yanked him to the ground.
Surrounding Northern Frontier soldiers seized the chance to pounce, pinning down his limbs firmly and binding him securely.
“Let me go! I want to kill you barbarians!”
Gao Yi struggled fiercely and roared nonstop, but could only watch helplessly as Northern Frontier soldiers continuously poured into the city.
Woluohai City fell into complete chaos.
Northern Frontier Cavalry entered the city, advancing along the streets, shouting: “All common people and soldiers, assemble outside the city! Those who resist will be killed without mercy!”
A Xia Army soldier hid in a corner of a civilian house, raising his bow and arrow to attempt a sneak attack.
The arrow struck a soldier’s chest but was blocked by the armor plate, causing only a minor injury.
The Xia Army soldier was then pierced through the chest by another Northern Frontier soldier.
“Bastard, courting death.”
“Cornered resistance is a dead end!”
On the streets, Northern Frontier soldiers drove the panicked common people, with the coughing of elders, the crying of children, and the sobbing of women unceasing.
“Move quickly! Any more dawdling and you’ll lose your life!”
On the other side, Gao Yi was brought before Li Dongjiang.
Li Dongjiang wore crimson armor, his burly physique emanating a ferocious aura like a wild beast, staring fiercely at the bloodstained Gao Yi.
“General Gao, I’ve heard of your fame for a long time.”
Li Dongjiang looked at him and slowly said: “I’ve long heard that there is General Gao Yi in the Xia Kingdom, who has repeatedly blocked the Kereit Tribe from advancing south, pursued across a thousand li of grassland, and guarded the northern border of the Xia Kingdom without fail.”
“Seeing you today, your reputation is well-deserved.”
“In the world, few fortified cities can withstand five days of continuous assault from my Northern Frontier Army.”
Listening to Li Dongjiang’s words, Gao Yi’s pale face showed no sign of emotion.
His raspy voice like dry branches said: “You are Li Dongjiang?”
“Commander of the Northern Frontier Second Garrison, uncle of the barbarian chief Li Xiao?”
Ever since Li Xiao first resolved Dunhuang, the Northern Frontier had become the Xia Kingdom’s primary enemy.
Li Chunyou had intensified intelligence gathering on the Northern Frontier, learning many things.
Including the backgrounds of people like Li Dongjiang, which were no longer secrets.
Capturing a few captives would reveal it.
“Correct, I am the Commander of the Northern Frontier Second Garrison and General of Xizhou, Li Dongjiang.” Li Dongjiang nodded lightly.
Gao Yi nodded slightly, his expression calm: “General Li, defeated by your hand today, I, Gao Yi, have no grievances.”
“Today I have no other request, only seeking death.”
Li Dongjiang sighed: “General Gao is a true hero, and I admire you greatly.”
“To perish just like this, wouldn’t it be a pity?”
“Now that Woluohai City has fallen, the Xia Kingdom’s fate is nearing its end. If you surrender to my Northern Frontier, I guarantee you high office and generous rewards—not inferior to what you have in the Xia Kingdom?”
“Surrender?”
Gao Yi sneered: “My Gao family has received imperial grace from the Xia Kingdom for generations, eating the monarch’s salary and serving loyally—how could we become traitors seeking glory?”
“Your Northern Frontier Army invades our Xia Kingdom’s territory and slaughters our Xia Kingdom’s people. I wish to devour your flesh and drink your blood—how could I surrender?”
Li Dongjiang frowned slightly: “General Gao, you are the same as us, a Han person. The Xia Kingdom is not your homeland—why be so stubborn?”
“Born in the Xia Kingdom, raised in the Xia Kingdom, receiving its grace—I am a man of the Xia Kingdom!”
Gao Yi’s tone was firm: “I, Gao Yi, today have only death, to repay the imperial grace.”
Li Dongjiang looked at his resolute eyes, knowing further persuasion was useless, and helplessly shook his head: “Since your intention is set, I will grant it.”
“I just wonder, if your Xia Kingdom’s monarch falls into my Northern Frontier’s hands in the future, will he die heroically like you, General Gao? Or grovel like an ant begging for life?”
With that, Li Dongjiang snorted lightly: “I hope he does not disappoint you loyal ministers who sacrificed your lives for the Weiming family’s foundation.”
Hearing this, Gao Yi’s expression turned indignant, glaring fiercely at Li Dongjiang, though a flicker of struggle and doubt passed through.
Then he slowly closed his eyes.
Seeing his resolute refusal to surrender, Li Dongjiang said no more.
In the Northern Frontier, with abundant troops and generals, they had passed the stage of desperately seeking talent.
Soon after, looking at Gao Yi’s corpse, Li Dongjiang was silent for a moment before finally ordering: “Give him a proper burial.”
As in history, Gao Yi died loyally for his Xia Kingdom.
Only, his grandson became a high official of the Mongol Empire more than a decade later.
……
On the other side, an army was marching north across the land between the Helan Mountains and the Yellow River.
The Xia Kingdom banners fluttered weakly under the blazing sun, just like the many soldiers in the army, showing no trace of elite demeanor.
“Marshal, ten li ahead is Keyi Gate.”
In the army, the vanguard officer reined in his horse, pointed to the faint mountain pass on the distant horizon, and turned to Weiming Honglie in the central army ranks.
Weiming Honglie wore bright silver armor with a sword at his waist, nodding slightly upon hearing this.
He raised his hand to shade his eyes toward Keyi Gate, his brows unconsciously furrowing.
Not long ago, the Xia Kingdom completed the first batch of troop conscription, drafting all males from fifteen to under fifty from the common people.
Using the few elites left guarding places like Xingqing Prefecture as the backbone, they barely formed an army.
Just from Xingqing Prefecture, Shun Prefecture, and Dingzhou City, they gathered fifty thousand able-bodied men; conscription in other prefectures was still underway.
To counter the tense situation in the north, Li Chunyou appointed him as Grand Marshal of the North, commanding all troops in the north to resist the Northern Frontier Army.
The fifty thousand army he now led was the first batch heading north to reinforce Woluohai City.
But the ranks were mostly sallow and emaciated farmers, either too old or too young, their hands trembling as they gripped their weapons.
Moreover, most didn’t even have a piece of leather armor, still wearing their original farmer’s clothes.
It was less an army and more a rabble of ducks forced onto the perch.
There was no helping it; Western Xia’s national strength had weakened to this extent, providing some worn-out weapons was already the limit, and even military rations had been cut.
After all, what Li Chunyou contributed was only one million strings of cash, not ten million.
Weiming Honglie was pondering how to speed up the march to ensure Woluohai City could hold until reinforcements arrived.
Suddenly, urgent hoofbeats came from the distance.
“Clop clop clop clop clop~”
Two scouts galloped chaotically to the central army, nearly tumbling as they dismounted, followed by several ragged, bloodstained soldiers.
“Marshal! Disaster!”
The scout’s voice was filled with terror: “Woluohai City… Woluohai City has been captured by the Northern Frontier Army!”
“What?”
Weiming Honglie’s eyes widened fiercely, staring hard at the scout and demanding: “Say it again!”
The several Xia Kingdom soldiers who escaped from Woluohai City knelt with a thud, one replying in a choked sob: “Reporting to the Marshal, five days ago the Northern Frontier Army blasted down the city wall. Our army resisted to the death…”
“But their heavy infantry were too ferocious. We didn’t hold until sunset before the city fell. General Gao… his fate is unknown!”
Weiming Honglie felt a buzz in his ears, his vision going black.
He gripped the reins tightly, knuckles white: “How many troops does the Northern Frontier Army have? How did General Gao deploy defenses? How many garrison troops remained when the city fell?”
“The Northern Frontier Army main force is about thirty thousand, with many grassland herdsmen aiding in battle.”
Another soldier answered choking back sobs: “General Gao sent all who could fight to block the breach. There were still many garrison troops when the city fell, but there were even more Northern Frontier people…”
“We escaped via the waterway in the chaos, and along the way we saw Northern Frontier Army driving the common people, with fires everywhere…”
Weiming Honglie fell silent, his face growing darker.
He knew the defensive strength of Woluohai City and was well aware of Gao Yi’s ability to defend it—even such a stronghold couldn’t hold for ten days?
The Northern Frontier Army’s combat strength was this formidable?
“Marshal,”
The deputy general beside him cautiously spoke: “Woluohai City has fallen, Keyi Gate is isolated and without aid. Should we…”
“Continue north!”
Weiming Honglie interrupted, his voice hoarse but resolute.
“Even if only Keyi Gate remains, we must hold it!”
“Pass my order: the whole army accelerates. Reach Keyi Gate within one hour!”
Keyi Gate was at the northern end of the Helan Mountains, not a city but a treacherous terrain.
It connected east to the Yellow River and west to the main Helan Mountains range, like a sturdy gate barring the way between mountain and river.
It blocked enemies invading the Western Xia heartland from the north, serving as the northern gate of Xingqing Prefecture.
Past Keyi Gate lay the vast Helan Mountains plain, with only Dingzhou City between it and Xingqing Prefecture.
But now, successive wars had drained Dingzhou’s troops empty.
Thus, Keyi Gate must be held to the death.
Otherwise, Xingqing Prefecture would become the Northern Frontier Army’s playground.
Thus, Weiming Honglie led his fifty thousand rabble to join the remaining twenty thousand troops of the Right Wing Chaoshun Army Command originally guarding Keyi Gate, deploying defenses around the treacherous terrain of Keyi Gate.
They massed heavy troops at the main passes, dug horse trap pits, and used every method to block the Northern Frontier Army’s offensive.
……
Tiger Wolf Pass.
At the pass between two mountains, this newly built fortress stood like a beast poised to strike, firmly guarding the vital road to Liangzhou.
Grand Marshal of the Western Expedition Nai Ling Sicong led one hundred thousand Western Xia troops, locked in days of fierce battle here, launching dozens of assaults on this stronghold.
In Tiger Wolf Valley, corpses were stacked layer upon layer, nearly blocking the narrow passage, yet the pass remained unshakable, like an impassable chasm.
In the main army tent, Nai Ling Sicong looked at the military report on the desk, his brows knotted tightly.
Orders from Xingqing Prefecture grew more urgent one after another, with wording increasingly severe.
They demanded he quickly capture Tiger Wolf Pass, recover Liangzhou City, then switch to defense and send the army main force back to aid Xingqing Prefecture.
All this because the Northern Frontier Army had opened a second front, fiercely attacking Woluohai City in the north.
When this news arrived, Nai Ling Sicong was greatly shocked; he hadn’t expected the Northern Frontier Army to end the Northern Desert war so swiftly.
What of the Kereit Tribe?
What of the Kiyan tribe?
Those grassland people who once ravaged the Xia Kingdom’s territory ferociously—now facing the Northern Frontier Army, they had become fragile weaklings?
He knew better than anyone how dire the situation was.
Once Woluohai City fell, Xingqing Prefecture would have only Keyi Gate as its last line of defense, putting the entire Xia Kingdom in peril.
“Generals.”
Nai Ling Sicong’s turbid eyes gleaming with sharpness swept over the generals in the tent, his aged voice hoarse.
“Woluohai City is in crisis, Xingqing Prefecture hangs by a thread.”
“Tiger Wolf Pass is the Northern Barbarians’ lifeline. Capture this pass, and they will have no strongholds left in the Hexi Corridor.”
“Not only can our army recover Liangzhou, we can return to aid the capital and preserve our Xia Kingdom’s foundation!”
He slammed the desk and stood: “The court raises troops for a thousand days to use them in one moment.”
“Now with national crisis upon us, it is time for us to die for Great Xia.”
“If Tiger Wolf Pass is not taken and Xingqing Prefecture falls, how can we face His Majesty and the people? How can we face our ancestors?”
The generals were stirred by his words, clasping fists: “We vow to fight to the death with the Marshal!”
Then, Nai Ling Sicong donned heavy battle armor and personally came to the front lines.
He reined his horse on the high slope, eyes like torches on the dense ranks of Xia Army soldiers below, issuing a loud order.
“Offensive!”
“Woo woo woo woo~”
The horn wailed, and Xia Army soldiers surged toward Tiger Wolf Pass like a tide.
Carrying ladders, holding shields, they roared as they charged forward, attempting to scale the towering city wall.
On the city wall, Northern Frontier soldiers were already in strict formation.
“Loose arrows!”
With the command, arrows rained down like drops, felling Xia Army soldiers one after another.
But the following soldiers showed no fear, trampling comrades’ corpses to press on.
“Fire cannon!”
The chiliarch of the Fourth Garrison Divine Machine Camp gave the order, and the twenty cannons on the pass roared one after another.
“Boom boom boom boom~”
Cannonballs whistled from the barrels, smashing into the dense Xia Army formations. Each explosion stirred up a storm of blood and flesh, sending soldiers tumbling and screaming.
The Xia Army’s assaults were repelled time and again, only to reorganize and attack anew.
In Tiger Wolf Valley, corpses piled higher and higher, blood forming streams that trickled slowly down the valley.
Nai Ling Sicong watched anxiously from the high slope, his face twisted: “Continue the siege.”
“Military law team, heed: shoot anyone who dares retreat.”
But as he shouted, a massive “boom” rang out.
A cannonball exploded nearby, hurling mud and gravel; the shockwave startled his war horse into rearing.
“Careful, Marshal!”
Nai Ling Sicong felt a sharp pain in his chest, his vision blackening as he fell from the horse.
With the commander gravely wounded, the Xia Army’s offensive instantly faltered and halted.
The generals, seeing this, could only order retreat.
By evening, Nai Ling Sicong slowly awoke in the main army tent.
He tried to rise but felt intense pain in his chest, every movement agonizing.
“Marshal, your injury is severe; do not move recklessly.” A general hurried forward to soothe him.
“What happened to me?” Nai Ling Sicong frowned, seeming to have forgotten prior events.
Reminded by others, he gradually recalled, then anxiously asked: “How goes the battle?”
The generals in the tent looked troubled; a deputy general replied: “Reporting to the Marshal, our offensive stalled, with heavy casualties among the officers and soldiers. We temporarily withdrew to camp to regroup.”
“Moreover, rumors spread in the army that you are mortally wounded. We tried our utmost to suppress them, but morale across the ranks…”
Nai Ling Sicong was silent for a moment; it was the expected outcome.
The only way was for him to force himself up, pretend nothing was wrong, and show his face to the troops.
Otherwise, the rumors would not stop but intensify.
“How progresses the northern route army?”
Another general sighed: “Marshal, the Northern Frontier Cavalry elites are exceptionally fierce; our cavalry cannot match them, and we have yet to achieve any battle results.”
In truth, everyone knew Western Xia’s most elite cavalry had been lost to the Northern Frontier Army in the Hexi battle the year before last.
The current cavalry were newly formed, far inferior in elite quality to before.
The whole army had only two thousand Iron Falcons still battleworthy, but too few, with one thousand needed to protect Xingqing Prefecture.
The remaining one thousand Iron Falcons had no advantage against Northern Frontier Cavalry, especially since the Northern Frontier Army’s Black Armored Army were armored cavalry not inferior to the Iron Falcons.
Hearing this, the light in Nai Ling Sicong’s eyes dimmed, and he closed them in despair, his heart turning cold.
The frontal Tiger Wolf Pass was hard to breach; the north was Gobi flatland but the Northern Frontier Army’s home ground.
As for the southern Biandu Pass?
That required crossing half of the Qilian Mountains!
As gloom hung over the Western Xia generals, an even more shocking message arrived.
A messenger rushed into the tent, kneeling on one knee: “Reporting to the Marshal, Woluohai City… has fallen!”
“What?”
Nai Ling Sicong’s eyes snapped open, color draining from his face.
He stared incredulously at the messenger, body trembling violently, followed by a fit of intense coughing.
“Cough… cough cough…”
The phlegm he coughed up contained chunks of dark red flesh.
“Marshal, Marshal~”
The generals rushed forward to support him, but he waved them off.
“Get away.”
Nai Ling Sicong roared lowly in fury, like a tiger on the brink of death.
With trembling hand, he pointed toward Tiger Wolf Pass, eyes filled with grief, anger, and helplessness.
He muttered: “Your Majesty, this old minister deserves death. I failed to recover the Hexi Corridor and betrayed your heavy trust.”
“Deserves death!”
With that, Nai Ling Sicong shed tears, coughing blood again.
That earlier cannonball seemed to have damaged his organs and ribs.
Finally, Nai Ling Sicong issued a difficult order.
“Pass… pass my command: withdraw the army!”
“Return immediately to Xingqing Prefecture.”
“No delays!”
Though reluctant, the generals knew it was unavoidable.
Not only did Xingqing Prefecture need this army for protection, but the northern front’s outbreak made provisions for the Western Expeditionary Army unsustainable.
If Tiger Wolf Pass could be breached to seize Liangzhou City’s provisions, all might still be possible, but with the offensive failed, withdrawal was the only path.
The next morning, the Xia Army camp outside Tiger Wolf Pass broke and departed, tens of thousands of troops retreating south wearily and despairingly.
Leaving only the mountain of corpses in Tiger Wolf Valley, emanating a desolate aura in the dawn light.
