The Human Emperor c1-2382

by Huangfu Qi (皇甫奇)

  But to Wang Chong, there was no need to stop them. He had never once imagined relying on the two hundred thousand rebel soldiers to stand against all of Arabia.

  History has already undergone a massive change, but I hope that matter hasn’t been affected.

  A thought occurred to Wang Chong, and he quickly looked up at the sky. A few moments later, his eyes flashed and he faintly smiled.

  The world had experienced a significant change. The Great Tang had not only not been defeated in Talas, but its army had marched all the way to Khorasan and now threatened Baghdad. However, that matter he remembered had not been affected in the slightest.

  The more you send, the more will die. This time, you will pay the heaviest price!

  Wang Chong’s mind quickly interacted with one of the Stone of Destiny’s ‘Power’ rewards.

  “User confirms spending 10000 points of Destiny Energy in exchange?”

  “Confirm!”

  Chapter 1168 - Soldiers Encroach Upon the City!

  Chapter 1168: Soldiers Encroach Upon the City!

  Translated by: Hypersheep325

  Edited by: Michyrr

  The Arab soldiers arrived much faster than predicted. Only a few days later, the scouts and Khorasani spies that Wang Chong had dispatched sent back word that a force of more than three hundred thousand soldiers had gathered in an area one-hundred-some kilometers from the Great Tang forces. They were rapidly building up fortifications to guard against any possible ambush or offensive from the Great Tang. Moreover, even more soldiers were arriving from the rear, and the Arab forces were swelling in number.

  From the report sent by the spies, the Arabs had already gathered at least two Great Generals.

  “The commander is Arabia’s ‘Empire’s White Corpse’ Hular. This person has a very cruel and restrained personality, and more importantly, this person has always been an extremely meticulous commander. His defenses are almost impenetrable. If we force an attack, we will find it very hard to gain any advantage,” explained Bahram from next to Wang Chong.

  He knew all the governors and commanders of Arabia like the back of his hand. In this aspect, the Great Tang was dearly lacking. Much of the information Wang Chong had obtained had been given to him by Bahram.

  “Hah, even the tightest defense has a flaw. It just depends on what we choose.”

  Wang Chong softly chuckled. In the Battle of Talas, the Great Tang had overcome five hundred thousand with one hundred thousand, and they were only facing three hundred thousand here.

  Wang Chong had never underestimated his opponents, but even the Arab War God Qutaybah had died to him, so what need did he have to fear a measly Empire’s White Corpse? No matter how strong Hular was, he couldn’t be stronger than Qutaybah.

  Bahram froze, and then he immediately thought of something and nodded. Hular was not some nobody of the empire, and Wang Chong was probably the only one who would dare to evaluate Hular in such a way. But Bahram was keenly aware that this young commander was different from any other person he had ever encountered.

  The inconceivable reversals he had accomplished imbued him with the confidence to say such things before anyone.

  “Xue Qianjun, write a letter for me to the Caliph of Arabia, stating that even though we’ve already signed a treaty, Arabia has still dispatched three hundred thousand soldiers to Khorasan. This has made us feel threatened and is a blatant breaking of their promise. Within one day, Arabia must withdraw its army. Otherwise, we cannot be blamed for mobilizing our army to maintain the treaty,” Wang Chong said without turning his head.

  Upon hearing these words, Gao Xianzhi, Cheng Qianli, and the others around Wang Chong all smiled. The Great Tang side understood everything that the Caliph was thinking, but the Arabs continued to play deaf and dumb, pretending that they were unaware.

  “This general understands!”

  Xue Qianjun bowed and quickly took his leave.

  Flapflap! Several messenger birds flew into the air. One was headed toward Baghdad, while the other was headed toward the Empire’s White Corpse and his three hundred thousand Arab soldiers.

  Boom!

  Wang Chong’s letter was like a descending boulder, setting off an uproar the moment it landed in the Arab camp.

  “Bastard! This bullying goes too far!”

  Hular was known for his composed personality and ability to keep his emotions off his face, but when he received Wang Chong’s letter, he couldn’t help but slam his fist against the table, his eyes spitting fire.

  The Tang had already obtained one billion taels of gold from Arabia, but after getting a deal, they were still trying to barter, turning around and questioning the motives of Arabia. This was simply too much!

  Arabia had always respected strength and courage, and the other small and weak kingdoms had always had to look up in respect. This was the first time it had ever been so brazenly threatened.

  “Milord, what do we do? They’ve only given us one day to withdraw. Do we really have to comply with them?” one of Hular’s subordinate generals cautiously said, his head lowered.

  The Arabs had by now gathered three hundred thousand soldiers, one hundred thousand more than the enemy, and so they normally would ignore such a letter. But everyone knew that a hundred-some li away, behind the high walls of Khorasan, was the fierce and unstoppable coalition army of the Great Tang and Khorasan. Given their past record, not even outnumbering them by one hundred thousand soldiers would be enough to overcome them.

  “Impossible!”

  The eyes of the Empire’s White Corpse burned with rage as he immediately rejected the notion.

  “No one can threaten Arabia like this. Pass on my order. Tighten the defenses. I’d like to see what they can do about it!”

  “Yes!”

  The deputy quickly departed with the orders.

  “Wait a moment!”

  Hular suddenly called his deputy back, taking in a deep breath as his expression cooled.

  “Write a letter for me to the Great Tang. Arabia did not intentionally break our agreement with the Great Tang. This mobilization is just a regular mobilization to carry out necessary defensive work, and we hope that the Great Tang will not think too much of it.”

  The deputy was stunned, but he quickly came around, lowering his head and quickly departing.

  Flapflap!

  An hour later, an Arabian hunting falcon soared into the sky, crossing the tributary of the Tigris River and entering Khorasan.

  Five minutes later, Wang Chong, Gao Xianzhi, Cheng Qianli, Li Siye, and the others had all gathered. After reading the letter, all of them had rather amused looks on their faces.

  All of them knew what the Arabs were up to and what they were planning.

  Xi Yuanqing suddenly broke the silence. “Lord Protector-General, how should we reply to this letter?”

  “Reply? Do we need to reply? The Arabs don’t think that we would accept such far-fetched reasoning from them.”

  Wang Chong heartily laughed.

  The Arabs were playing a game of words. Everyone understood what they were preparing to do. Since he knew that they were preparing for a war, Wang Chong wouldn’t just sit back on his laurels and let them gather without any obstacle.

  “Great General Bahram, General Cheng, Li Siye, get ready. Let’s go see this Empire’s White Corpse Great General!” Wang Chong said.

  “Mm.”

  Bahram, Cheng Qianli, and the others all nodded, a smile on their lips.

  ……

  Several hours later, in the city of Shifan, a hundred-some kilometers from Khorasan, the Arab soldiers had organized into disciplined ranks, their bodies seething with killing intent. This army of three hundred thousand was prepared at any time to fight a fierce and large-scale battle.

  “Focus! Everyone, get to your positions!”

  “Order the craftsman team to hurry up! If five thousand barracks aren’t finished by tomorrow, immediately execute half of the craftsmen!”

/>   “Hurry and feed the warhorses! In just five days, we will be battling with the Tang!”

  Whips cracked through the air as the Arab generals spurred on the craftsmen and soldiers into erecting the camps. Shifan was not a large city, and three hundred thousand soldiers had already made the city seem rather packed. And there were still four to five hundred thousand soldiers on the way.

  An army of eight hundred thousand required the construction of a vast number of facilities.

  On the high walls of the city, an Arab deputy bowed as he reported, “Milord, the construction in the city is about finished, and the external defenses are in the middle of being strengthened. For the short term, we should not have to worry about the Tang!”

  “Mm.”

  Hular gave a satisfied nod and took his eyes away from the horizon.

  The enemy this time was extremely powerful. Hundreds of thousands of Arab soldiers, Qutaybah, and other Great Generals had already died at their hands. Everyone in Arabia, Hular included, now viewed these Tang soldiers with great apprehension.

  “Reporting!”

  As he was thinking, an Arab horseman suddenly galloped out of the distance, leaving a cloud of dust in his wake. The scout had an extremely pale face and seemed to be in great panic.

  “A large force of Tang soldiers is marching toward Shifan!”

  Bang!

  These words immediately sent shockwaves through the city. On the walls, Hular and the other Arab governors paled. No one had expected the enemy to dare launch an offensive while the Arabs had the advantage of both numbers and position.

  “Bastard! We just signed a treaty and even sent them the one billion taels of gold. The ink isn’t even dry yet, and yet they’re already tearing it to shreds!”

  Hular was both shocked and furious. In previous wars, no one had ever dared to treat Arabia like this.

  Moreover, the Great Tang had just received one billion taels of gold, but now they were tearing up the treaty to attack them. This was simply too despicable.

  “Reporting!”

  A few moments later, a shout and the thundering of hooves could be heard from the distance. Another Arab scout with a panicked expression galloped toward Shifan.

  “Reporting to Milord: a combined force of seven thousand Tang and rebel soldiers is heading toward us. They are less than three li away!”

  “So fast!”

  All the people on the walls grimaced at these words.

  In the brief interval between the two scouts, the enemy had already gotten within three li of Shifan. At this speed, they would soon appear at the walls.

  “Arrogant! They’re far too arrogant!”

  An Arab governor on the walls became furious. These Tang of the eastern world had no regard for others. The Arabs had only lost once, but they still had a vast army and many governors and generals.

  Hular was also internally livid.

  “Everyone hear my order. No one is to act without my word. I’d like to see what this Tang commander wants!”

  With Hular’s order, the atmosphere around Shifan turned somber. Just a few moments later, there was a thundering of hooves and a great roaring as an army charged out of a cloud of dust.

  At a distance of six to seven hundred meters, Hular viciously called out, “Who goes there?!” His voice was brimming with energy, resounding over Shifan like a peal of thunder.

  “Hahaha, is that the Empire’s White Corpse on the walls, Hular of the Arabian Empire?”

  A loud laugh could be heard as a red and black warhorse rode out from the army of seven thousand, its mane glossy and bright. The gaze of its rider, sharp as a sword, was focused on the three Arab governors standing on the walls.

  Chapter 1169 - Domineering Assault!

  Chapter 1169: Domineering Assault!

  Translated by: Hypersheep325

  Edited by: Michyrr

  Before Hular could say anything, an Arab general at his side shouted in rebuke, “Who is it down there? Who dares to speak the Lord Governor’s name!”

  “Hahaha, Hular, even you Arabs have a day like this. I have come to deliver a message from the Great Tang’s Qixi Protector-General. Immediately withdraw all your soldiers from Shifan! Otherwise, the Tang will move out from Khorasan in response to your treachery and attack. Just like Qutaybah, all of you will die!”

  Jalali looked up to the walls and laughed.

  Jalali was a Khorasani, and also a member of the Sassanid Dynasty. For all these years, only Khorasani like him who had been oppressed by the Arabs knew what sort of life they had lived. In front of the Arabs, all the Khorasani were cautious and meek, not even daring to speak so loudly. They were truly second-class citizens. Moreover, all the Khorasani were burdened with an incredibly heavy tax. This was all not too long ago, but now, they could stand in front of three hundred thousand Arab soldiers and exchange words with a powerful governor like Hular.

  “Impudent!”

  “Arrogant!”

  Hular and the other Arab governors and generals were infuriated by these words. A mere seven thousand soldiers dared to act so brazenly before them. They were seeking death!

  “Come! Dispatch twenty thousand men and kill them all!” Hular suddenly ordered, his face a sheet of ice.

  Complying with Hular’s order, the gates opened and twenty thousand Arab soldiers, their expressions grim and dour, charged out of the city and toward the seven thousand soldiers.

  “Hahaha, let’s go!”

  Seeing that his goal had been achieved, Jalali waved his hand and immediately led his men away.

  “The message has been delivered. It’s best if you behave yourselves!”

  Jalali heartily laughed as he jeered.

  “Where are you going!”

  The leading Arab general, seeing that the enemy was getting away free of consequence, immediately urged his soldiers to move faster.

  The two armies swiftly disappeared into the distance.

  Several li away, the leading Arab general, Abula, sternly ordered, “Damn it! Hurry up! Don’t let them run! The Tigris River is just up ahead! They can’t escape!”

  With a stab of his scimitar into the hindquarters of his horse, his army frenziedly charged forward. But before they could get very far, there was a fierce neighing, and countless soldiers, charging in at an unexpected angle, thrust into Abula’s army like a sharp arrow.

  “Not good! Retreat!”

  Abula paled and tried to lead his army away, but it was too late.

  “It’s too late to think about escape! Hand over your lives!”

  Jalali pulled out his sword and turned his seven thousand soldiers around. Rumble! They charged into the Arab ranks and immediately threw them into chaos.

  ……

  “What! Abula’s army was wiped out?”

  On the high walls, when Hular received the news, he was struck dumb. In just a few moments, Abula’s twenty thousand men had been vanquished. This was far too fast.

  “How many soldiers did they have?” Hular asked, anxious and doubtful.

  “Other than the previous seven thousand, the enemy had eight thousand lying in ambush. There were fifteen thousand in total.”

  “What? How!” blurted the two Arab governors at Hular’s side before he could say anything.

  If the enemy had more soldiers, then the loss was understandable, but there were only fifteen or sixteen thousand soldiers, a smaller force than what the Arabs had dispatched. Just how had they managed to kill so many people in such a short amount of time? Could the legends be true? Were there soldiers from the strongest eastern army in history that were even able to overcome Qutaybah’s soldiers? But how could that be?!

  From the information they had gathered, although the Tang army had won, it had been left with only twenty to thirty thousand soldiers. And the force just now had primarily been composed of those rebel soldiers that usually scattered like mice. When did this motley force suddenly become so formidable?

  “Pass on my order! Dispatch
all the hunting falcons!”

  Only now did Hular sense that something was wrong. He had originally believed that the enemy had only sent a small force to make some trouble and show off their might, but it now seemed that this was not the case.

  Flapflap! A moment later, countless hunting falcons soared out of Shifan in every direction.

  A few moments later, the hunting falcons and scouts returned with an accurate count of the enemy.

  Twenty thousand was the number of soldiers they were facing, and this force of Tang and Khorasani was coming straight for Shifan.

  “Pass on my order! One hundred thousand soldiers will follow me out of the city. I want to personally test the power of this force.”

  Hular was furious. One mistake was enough. This time, he would personally deal with the Tang and the rebels.

  Boom! The gates opened, allowing one hundred thousand soldiers to flood out of the city. The remaining two hundred thousand soldiers remained in the rear, ready to move out the moment something seemed off. Although only one hundred thousand soldiers had been dispatched, the two armies were in tune with each other and would not give the enemy any weakness to exploit.

  Rumble!

  Not long after Hular had brought his army out of the city, he spotted a massive golden dragon banner on the horizon. And then, to the tune of banging war drums, an army of Tang, Khorasani, and other rebel soldiers appeared, marching toward Shifan. In the center of this army was a black-haired and armored youth who immediately caught Hular’s attention.

  “It’s him!”

  Hular’s eyes narrowed at the sight of this young figure, and his face froze in shock. He had never expected the Great Tang’s young commander to personally show himself here.

  Hular and the Arab soldiers had heard far too much about this young Tang commander. They even had detailed information on his appearance, bearing, weapons, and armor. Thus, even though Hular had never seen Wang Chong before, he could recognize him almost immediately.

  But this was not why Hular viewed him with such apprehension and regard. The most important thing of all was that everyone in the Arabian Empire knew that he had been the one to kill Qutaybah and Aybak.