Chapter 1105 - Killing a Horse When It’s Alive!
Chapter 1105: Killing a Horse When It’s Alive!
Translator: EndlessFantasy Translation Editor: EndlessFantasy Translation
Although the Great Horn Army had used the techniques of the ancient Turan people to train a batch of soldiers who were skilled in combat…
For the sake of secrecy, they had never organized such a large scale battle before.
Be it Round Bone Club or Old Bearskin, they lacked the experience to fight against the cavalry. From a certain perspective, ordinary soldiers like them were also targets of the trial and could be sacrificed at any time.
Meng Chao’s words really reminded them of their dreams. Both Round Bone Club and Old Bearskin were stunned, and they fell into deep thought.
Meng Chao did not care how shocked they were from the bottom of their hearts. “To be specific, first, we should let everyone have a good night’s rest. From now until dawn, it’s the darkest time of the night. It’s impossible to even see one’s fingers on the grassland. It’s impossible for the pursuers to kill wantonly,” he said methodically.
“When dawn comes, I suggest that we split into two teams. One team will dig pits and trenches, building a simple and secret defense line around us.
“If time and manpower are really tight and we can’t build a real defense line, we can knock down the weeds and tie up some knots. It will still be good to be able to tie up the legs of our opponent’s horses.
“Of course, our pursuers must be extremely strong. Whether it’s the grass, pits, or trenches, none can really stop them.
“However, they can, more or less, reduce the speed of our pursuers, giving the inconveniences as if they were fighting in a swamp. That would give us a chance to flee from our pursuers’ side as well.
“There’s still a group of people that can spread out to the nearby areas to gather the scattered fugitives.
“We don’t need to go too far or find too many people. There are three to five hundred rat people, which is enough for us to fight a decent counterattack.
“According to my observation, if we want to fight our pursuers head-on, we’ll be at a disadvantage in terms of weapons. For the ease of fleeing, many rat soldiers only carry thin and short swords, but they do not carry long weapons that can hold back the charge of a cavalry. As a result, they will be slaughtered like sliced melons and vegetables.
“It’s difficult to find the raw materials needed to make long weapons on the grassland. It is indeed difficult to solve the problem.
“My suggestion is that we simply arrange a team of men and horses to lay low on our pursuers’ charging route. They would have to endure the fear of being trampled by the iron hooves, and chop off our pursuers’ legs, or when our pursuers pass by them, they can stab their belly from the bottom up. If our pursuers are mainly centaur warriors, their bellies will be their biggest weakness.
“Of course, with such a tactic, the casualties would definitely be very heavy.
“The stomping of the Centaur warriors’ iron hoofs is not something that can be easily withstood either.
“A lot of rat warriors would not even manage to draw their sabers before being stomped by the centaur warriors’ iron hoofs. That would happen until their tendons are broken, bones are broken, and even their intestines are pierced through.
“However, this is the only method I can think of that can slow down the enemy’s attack with the utilization of short weapons.
“If it were any other ordinary troops, they would definitely not be able to carry out such a tactic. But since we are all under the Rat God’s protection and are willing to sacrifice ourselves for him at any time… let’s kill them all!
“By the way, if you are really determined to fight the centaur warriors to the death, I suggest that we move the camp half a mile southwest at dawn. There seems to be an underground river running through there. The ground is even wetter and the grass is denser.”
Old Bearskin and Bone Club looked at each other in bewilderment. They did not come back to their senses for a long time.
The other rat warriors looked at Meng Chao with both shock and awe.
It did not matter whether the battle tactic he had mentioned would work or not.
At a time when everyone was at a loss, the fact that someone could step forward and make a sound was enough to be their spiritual support!
“The land half a mile southwest is indeed more muddy, which is not conducive for the centaur warriors’ speed. However, the weeds there are growing better and taller than here. The tip of its grass is several heads higher than what we have here, completely blocking our view!”
Bone Head and Old Bearskin discussed for a long time, but they did not reject Meng Chao’s suggestion. Instead, they began to struggle with the details.
“Aren’t we blocked here?”
“Whether the weeds are above the tip of our nose, the top of our heads, or two or three heads, the difference is not big for us. It will greatly reduce our combat ability regardless.
“But for the centaur warriors, the difference is too big.
“The average height of a centaur warrior is about two or three arms higher than ours.
“To us, the weeds that cover our vision are just right, but they don’t pose any obstacle to the centaur warriors.
“Therefore, it’s very easy for such a situation to happen. We run around like headless flies in the weeds that are as tall as a man, but the Centaur warriors can look down from above and see our movements clearly through the undulating waves of the grassland.
“In the end, we get caught by our pursuers. Aren’t we bringing this upon ourselves?
“The wetlands in the southwest half a mile away is where I saw the most lush water plants and the highest growth of wild grass. Once we enter the lush maze, not only will our vision be cut off, but the centaur warriors’ vision will also be severely disrupted. Everyone will be blinded and only be able to fight randomly. Fighting randomly is good. We, who have nothing but passion and determination, will only have a chance to survive on the most chaotic battlefield, right?”
Meng Chao’s detailed analysis finally made the fugitives widen their eyes, and a glimmer of hope gradually filled their gaze.
Although everyone was silent, they all imagined what the battle would be like if everything was carried out according to Meng Chao’s suggestion without any compromise.
The battle would undoubtedly still be very difficult.
Their simple defense line might be penetrated by their pursuers in an instant.
Many people, or even all of them, could die.
However, they would not be massacred like the pitiful corpses in front of them.
Not even one of them would be killed!
Even if everyone was killed, even if only one centaur warrior was buried with them, it would still be a victory in a sense. No, the Rat God would definitely see it, right?
“What if…”
Round Bone Club licked his dry lips and hesitantly said, “What if we set up for a long time and the pursuers don’t arrive to attack our camp?”
“How is that possible?”
Meng Chao could not help but laugh. “Believe me, our pursuers have a bigger headache than us when we run around like a bunch of scattered sand and headless flies. If we continue to chase after them in twos and threes, how long will it take for the pursuit to end?
“If possible, the pursuers would like to find three to five hundred or more fugitives and wipe us all out in one go, wouldn’t they?
“Once they discover our tracks, the pursuers will think that we are exhausted and waiting for our doom.
“As for the fugitives, is it possible for them to gather their unyielding will and fight a bloody battle with them on this carefully arranged battlefield? I don’t think our pursuers would have such an absurd thought, right?”
Indeed, even though Black-corner City had been turned upside down, it was impossible for their pursuers to have such an absurd idea.
However, the psychological advantage that the clan warriors held over the rats had been slowly established and solidified after thousands of years of oppression as well as enslavement. It had been deeply imprinted on their cerebral cortex.
It was impossible for their pursuers to believe that their prey, who were as timid as rats, would bare their sharpest fangs at the hunters in armor.
“If we really have the chance to hurt our pursuers, will our pursuers be ruthless enough to gather a large number of reinforcements and not let us go?”
The silent Old Bearskin pushed Round Bone Club aside and asked Meng Chao himself.
Meng Chao contemplated for a moment and shook his head. “I don’t think so. If we can really hurt our pursuers, they might make a clean retreat and never dare to catch up again.”
“How is that possible?”
Old Bearskin frowned and said, “Those Blood Hoof warriors are full of anger. What would they be too afraid to do?”
“No, what we are about to face is not all the Blood Hoof warriors, but only the centaur warriors in the Blood Hoof Clan,” Meng Chao corrected him seriously.
Old Bearskin was taken aback. “Is… Is there any difference?”
“Of course.”
Meng Chao said, “Yes, we have turned Black-corner City upside down, but which major clans have ruled Black-corner city in the past thousand years?
“The Blood Hoof Clan and the Ironhide Clan, right?
“The Blood Hoof Clan represented by the Minotaurs and the Ironhide Clan led by the wild boar people are the two most powerful clans in the Blood Hoof family. They have a firm control over power in Black-corner City, and they’ve suffered the most losses recently. Hence, they have the most reason to be angry in this chaos.
“On the other hand, the Centaur Clan pay huge regard to speed, and they love to ride like horses. They are not used to life in the city, and there are not many well-known Centaur Clans as well as temples in Black-corner City. Hence, they have not suffered too many losses. How could they be more furious than the Minotaurs and wild boar men?
“As the vanguard of the Blood Hoof Army, it is their duty to hunt down the fugitives.
“On the premise that the fugitives do not resist strongly and they can kill wantonly to accumulate battle merits, I believe that the centaur warriors will also do their duty.
“However, if we can hurt, injure, and cripple the Centaur warriors, we will make them realize that we are like stones in a latrine pit. Not only are we smelly and hard, but they won’t squeeze a single drop from us. Even if we are smashed into pieces, their arms will be broken, their hoofs will be twisted, and both sides will suffer heavy injuries or even perish together.
“If they are not careful, they might even make a mistake and ruin their thousand-year-old reputation.
“If we can send such a strong, clear, and effective message to them, do you think that the centaur warriors will chase after us relentlessly, risking their lives and glory just to foolishly work for the Minotaurs as well as wild boar people?”